Kate stood. in the middle of the room looking at the screens, the rest of them with her.
"Antoine Ginon, also known as the French Casanova. A very wealthy French businessman, in the technology sector. His company GTech has multiple contracts with government throughout the world, providing them with state of the art technology. They don't call him the French Casanova because he woos these companies into contracts but more for his side business."
Donald looked at the picture of Antoine Ginon. He was a man in his forties, quite good looking, the typical French. "What is his side business?"
"Human trafficking. Or to be more precise women."
More pictures came up on the screen. "Over the past 7 years, all of the following women, wives of powerful businessmen and government officials have gone missing and even though there has never been any existential proof, they all have Ginon in common."
"What is his MO?" asked Liz.
"It's always the same. Once a year he comes to New York to attend the annual French Embassy gala. He's very good at what he does and he can very easily identify, the unhappy wives of these powerful men. He approaches them, woos them, tells them what they want to hear. The men are so busy mingling and maintaining political relationships that they hardly ever realize that he has made contact with these women. Within two days, his private jet leaves New York and the women have disappeared."
"Does he use them to get money from these businessmen or government officials?" asked Harold.
"No. We've checked all the financials on both sides. Whereas there are no questionable financial movements in regards to Ginon, we have found some on the husbands' side. But nothing linking those transactions to Ginon."
"So why abduct these women?"
"This is where it gets interesting. We were able to link the transactions to multiple off shore accounts, never the same one and Ginon is way too smart to let any trace behind him. My theory is that he abducts these women, sells them off to various criminal organizations who in turn blackmail the businessmen and government officials, with this money they fund their drug cartels, weapon trafficking, anything that is illegal and needs money."
Donald huffed. "Some Casanova."
"If we can get Ginon, then we can track back to where these women were sent and dismantle the trafficking network."
Raymond smiled contently. Kate had done a great job and she was definitely one of the most knowing people in the room, when it came to Ginon.
Liz looked again at the picture of Ginon. "OK, so how do we get to him, we obviously can't apprehend him on French territory."
"Luckily for us, the annual gala is in two days, he'll be on our territory," chipped in Raymond.
"He'll be at the French Embassy, a lot of good that will do and the rest of the time he'll be in one of their cars. He's untouchable", said Donald.
"We do have a small window of opportunity… when he gets out of the car at the airport to get on his private jet."
Harold nodded. "A small window indeed but it is one. The questions is how do we catch him in the act. That Embassy will be crawling with women, how do we know which one he'll target without giving him any indication that we're on to him?"
"We bait him." Said Raymond smiling.
Harold looked at him. "You want me to send Agent Keen and Agent Ressler undercover?"
"No. I want Agent Fontaine. She has the advantage of being fluent in French and can easily pick up on side conversations he may have with his so-called associates."
Donald looked at Kate and smiled. "I can handle that, what is our angle?"
Raymond shook his head. "You have no angle Agent Ressler, because you won't be the one accompanying her. You're undercover skills aren't up to par, there is no way anyone would believe you are a prominent businessman or politician!"
Ronald's blood started to boil. It was the second time in one day that Reddington had made him look like an idiot in front of Kate.
"Then who do you suggest?" asked Harold.
"Tom Keen." Said simply Raymond. "It's Keen or no one. You want to catch Ginon, you're going to have to near perfection."
"He's not FBI!" said firmly Donald.
"He may not be FBI, but I trust him way more than you when it comes to Agent Fontaine's safety. Besides, he won't be the one doing the arrest. That I believe is something within your realm."
"Reddington is right, we're talking about saving these women's lives and brining down more criminals along the way." He looked at Raymond. "I'll have Keen brought in."
"No. The next step of this operation needs to be discreet and thorough. Keen and Fontaine are going to have to prepare their story, their history, discuss every moment and step of what is going to happen at the gala. It's quite exciting actually, it's very much like a Tango, a choreography that has to be known by heart and perfected to the point of almost only becoming one. It requires trust. I'll take it from here."
Harold thought for a while and looked at the entire team. "Agent Fontaine, are you aligned with what Reddington is saying?"
"Absolutely, one wrong move and we may never be able to apprehend him ever again."
"Alright then, but when they go to the gala, I want eyes and ears!"
Kate sat in the back of the car with Raymond looking outside the window as Raymond talked to someone on the phone. When they stopped thirty minutes later in front of a beautiful apartment building, she followed him out of the car, into the lobby and into the elevator. He pushed the button of the top floor, the penthouse.
He watched her enter the penthouse and look around. He placed his hat on the table and looked at her.
"You were very quiet in the car." He said analyzing her every move.
"I didn't know you were expecting a conversation."
"Well, it's always nice to discover things about one another."
"You'd be amazed at how much you can learn in silence." Said Kate giving him a side smile.
He sat down in the sofa and folded his hands. "So what is it that you have learned about me Agent Fontaine?"
"You are a man of very few attachments. Aside from Agent Keen and Dembe you have a hard time opening up to people and committing to others, most probably due to your tragic past yet, you would do anything to make sure that nothing happens to them. You are a very cultivated man, it shows in the way you move, you dress, you talk, you weight the impact of every word you pronounce, nothing is out of place. You have been around the world, you have seen all of it's horrors but have learned more from its beauty, hence your need for refinement. With this need for refinement, I'm sure you drink only the best wine and best cognac, you only go to some of the finest restaurants unless you can't do otherwise. And…" she paused for a moment.
He looked at her gently. "Please continue."
"And I believe that you are looking for redemption. You said that a lot of criminals do the terrible things they do out of pride or to boost their ego. And if maybe it has and is the case for you it wasn't always the reason behind what you did… you did it merely out of survival. I think that deep down inside you are a good man and you lost your way."
He stood and walked over to the window where she was standing. He came close, very close. She didn't move. He looked into her eyes and she saw it, a mix of pain and relief. Years of pain that had accumulated and somehow the relief that maybe someone had finally seen him, the real him and understood him. He was about to say something when the doorbell rang. In the blink of an eye, Kate saw Raymond resume his role of Raymond "Red" Reddington. He walked away from her and headed for the door.
He opened the door and a man walked in. He looked in Kate's direction and smiled.
Raymond closed the door. "Agent Fontaine, this is Jacob Phelps, aka Tom Keen. Shall we get started?"