'The general was tortured prior to his death! You don't consider that as suffering?' asked Reid in surprise.
'You can't suffer if you are dead. And, of all the agents and operatives that have worked for ARGUS, he knew better than most how to make a man suffer' replied Waller.
'Where did he learn those 'skills'?' asked Rossi.
'He had a natural talent – one that not many people have. But he fought against it for a long time. Until he realized that the consequences of not acting are sometimes worse than anything he may be required to do.'
'Why would he have wanted General Shrieve to suffer?' asked Hotch, going back to the case details.
'Because the 'good' general was responsible for the loss of a lot of innocent lives – including the death of a child. One he appeared to have formed a bond with. The child's father was his handler' explained Waller.
'He was a natural at inflicting suffering and torture but was able to form a bond with a child?' asked Reid in confusion.
'The 2 aren't mutually exclusive Agent Reid. A distinction he had trouble seeing.'
'His handler was one of your agents? What about the archer?' asked Morgan.
'The handler was an agent, yes. The archer? No. He was ….. an 'operative' Waller replied with a cold smile.
'An operative. Were his actions sanctioned by your agency? The torture of a US army general and the murder of several soldiers?' queried Morgan.
'There are people in the world who deal in extremes and it would be naïve to think that anything less than extreme measures will stop them. The torture wasn't sanctioned per se but nobody was interested in punishing him for it.'
'Extremes? What was the general doing in Hong Kong that warranted such 'extreme measures'?' asked Rossi.
'That information is compartmented. You have not been cleared to be read in on those details' replied Waller.
'Did either the agent or operative continue working for ARGUS after the operation concluded?' asked Hotch.
'I never saw the agent again. We have been unable to find any trace of him from the moment he left Hong Kong. He had outlived his usefulness to the agency and besides, at the time, we had bigger concerns to deal with.'
'And the operative? You've said he wasn't an agent. How did he come to your attention?' asked JJ.
'He came to my attention when he managed to kill several of my agents and derail an operation that had been underway for a year. That was without training. I was intrigued.'
'He killed your agents and you were intrigued?' asked Reid.
'Not many people manage to surprise me. He did. I wanted to see what he would be capable of with some training. After he was apprehended he was drafted to participate in the Hong Kong operation. That's where you managed to find his trail. Frankly I was surprised that he even survived, much less was able to kill highly trained agents. I was impressed. And I'm not easily impressed. Even then he showed promise.'
'Why would you get someone untrained to work on an ARGUS operation? Wouldn't an agent have been a better choice?' queried Rossi.
'Because, as luck would have it, this operative had access to pertinent information about the Hong Kong operation that would have been …. difficult to attain by other means. It was expedient to draft someone who already had the access.'
'How did you convince him to work for you' asked Morgan.
'At first he was ….. uncooperative. His aversion to putting anyone in harm's way to get things done was an obstacle we needed to overcome if he was to reach his full potential. Even the strongest of people have their weak-points. Their Achilles heel if you will. You just need to know where and how hard to press.'
'And what was his weak-point?' asked JJ.
'Everyone has somebody that they would do anything to protect, Agent Jareau. In this case he happened to have an entire family of them.'
'You threatened his family to get him to work for you?' asked Reid incredulously.
'I did what was necessary. He saw things in black and white. We needed him to appreciate the grey. Sometimes extreme measures are required to keep this country, the world safe.'
'And how did he respond to the threat on his family?' asked Hotch.
'How would you react if someone threatened your family Agent Hotchner? He reacted predictably – made some threats and refused to cooperate. He tried to run, tried to contact them to warn them. However, as I said, you just need to know where to press on a weak-point.'
'These are the tactics of a government agency? To threaten family members to ensure cooperation?' asked Morgan.
'My agency does what is necessary to get things done Agent Morgan. Morals and ethics are nice to have but don't help in the fight against people with neither. I am not here to justify my actions, simply to share information. If you are not interested in that information this meeting is at an end.'
'Ok then. You said he was untrained but he managed to kill several agents – what skills did he have when you first encountered him?' replied Morgan.
'He had good CQC technique but his weapon of choice was the bow and arrow. He was already an expert marksman with the bow when we encountered him.'
'Did he continue to work for ARGUS after Hong Kong?' asked Rossi.
'He was…'convinced' to participate in another operation' replied Waller.
'If the last operation ended so badly that a child died and he tortured somebody what could you possibly do to convince him to work for you again?' asked Morgan.
'We tracked him down and he was …... 'maneuvered' into a position where he had little choice. People with his particular skill-set and talents aren't easy to find.'
'What exactly does that mean?' queried JJ.
'It means that when he realized the scope of the operation he didn't take much convincing to participate. He always was incapable of standing idle while someone is threatening lives. Judging by his recent activities that hasn't changed.'
'He doesn't seem like the type of person who would take kindly to being maneuvered. How did he react?' asked Reid in interest.
'Well, the last time he saw me he said that if we ever crossed paths again that he would put an arrow through my eye. A little melodramatic but not a threat I take lightly.'
'When did you last speak with him?' continued Reid.
'After that last operation. He was given the opportunity to return to his family or to go anywhere in the world and have no further dealings with ARGUS. He declined.'
'Why? Why wouldn't he want to return to his family? Especially if they were the only reason he agreed to cooperate in the first place!'
'You would have to ask him. All he said was that he had a promise to keep.'
'Do you know anything about him after that last meeting?' asked Hotch.
'No I haven't spoken to him since.'
'He hasn't been seen since the hostage case before Christmas. Why do you think he would stop because of that?' asked JJ.
'I honestly don't know. Perhaps he is licking his wounds. Maybe he took a holiday and is sunning himself on a beach somewhere. Maybe he gave it all up to settle down in suburbia. Maybe he is dead.'
