'He hasn't answered before. Why would he now?' queried Rossi. 'And do you really think this is a good idea? Using someone as bait to catch an unpredictable killer?' asked Rossi.

'But if he is the connection what if this pushes him over the edge? If he had something to do with the kidnapping what's stopping him from killing his hostages if he thinks we are getting too close? He knows JJ is part of the team after him. What's stopping him from killing her?' asked Garcia.

'So far he has gone out of his way to not harm innocent people. He has been solely targeting criminals' replied Hotch calmly. 'We have no leads on either Mr. Steele or JJ. The only apparent connection is through our Unsub. It is a measured risk.'

'Do it' insisted Morgan. 'We need to do whatever it takes to get JJ back. To get Mr. Steele back. We have no other leads so this is our only option.'

2 days later the team were going through the QC office footage again to determine if there was anything they had missed previously when Hotch and Lance both entered with news.

'Our plan worked. My daughter is looking into a series of recent fires as a favour for a friend. The friends brother was a firefighter who died in a fire last week. She just rang the hood guy and he answered' stated Lance.

'Ok. So he is alive' concluded Morgan. 'How did he respond?'

'He sounded surprised that she had the phone and seemed reluctant to get involved. He insisted that collecting evidence wasn't what he did but to hold onto the phone.'

'Ok. Keep monitoring the phone. He might arrange a meeting to hand over any evidence he uncovers' replied Hotch. 'In the meantime, an interesting connection came up related to the Bratva. 2 years ago the CIA managed to get an operative undercover in the Moscow chapter of the Bratva. Almost all of his case files have been completely redacted. Except for the alias used by the operative – Foma Kiniaev.'

'If he successfully infiltrated the Bratva he might have crossed paths with our Unsub' concluded Morgan. 'Would it be possible to arrange to meet with him?'

'No. 2 months into his next mission he went dark and missed several scheduled check-ins with his handler. The CIA sent multiple teams to try and locate him. He accessed a CIA bank account and emptied the security deposit box' replied Hotch, before continuing. 'They tracked him to Berlin, Germany where he was found sleeping on park bench by police officers. He told the officers that he did not know his name or where he was from, but spoke fluent German. He attacked the officers and took off running. Berlin police managed to locate him and were about to apprehend him when he entered the US embassy using a US passport – the name on the passport was redacted. He was apparently waiting in line when something spooked him. He managed to escape the embassy and hasn't been seen since.'

'Ok. So a CIA operative went off the grid. Why do you think there is a connection to our Unsub?' asked Rossi.

'Because during his last check-in with his handler in Russia he mentioned that one of the Bratva members was a new recruit but had been given the status of Captain immediately. An American' replied Hotch.

'So what happened to him? Why would he desert his mission and go off the grid?' asked Morgan.

'His handler was as surprised as anyone. The operative was evidently one of their best at covert infiltration and undercover' replied Hotch.

'No wonder the agency doesn't want to share information on him. An experienced operative like that going dark has to make the agency nervous' suggested Rossi. 'The information in his head would be worth a fortune to interested parties.'

'It confirms the Unsub's rank as a Captain in the Bratva. Did he say anything about his identity?' asked Morgan.

'No. He didn't share anything else with his handler. Just that he was American' confirmed Hotch.

'Fits with what Waller told us – that he inspires loyalty easily' added Reid.

'Doesn't really help us identify him though. If this CIA operative is off the grid, there is no way to get more information from him' continued Morgan in frustration. 'If he inspires this level of loyalty in everyone he meets, how exactly are we going to catch him? How are we going to get JJ back?'

'We have to rely on the ruse with the phone for now. He said that he would call back with the information your daughter requested Detective Lance. If he has collected information he may arrange a meet and we need to be on site when he does' concluded Hotch calmly.

The following day the team were discussing the latest update on the case – the unsub had called Laurel Lance the previous evening regarding the fires.

'So he calls to provide details on the arsonist, details he could only have gotten from a close encounter with him but refuses to get involved' summarized Morgan. 'He doesn't arrange a meeting to discuss what he found. And he insisted that Ms. Lance she should be dealing with the police instead of him.'

'That's inconsistent with his previous actions' continued Reid. 'The only time he made contact before was during the Unidac- Deadshot case and that was only to ask for assistance, not to turn it over for law enforcement to deal with. Perhaps he doesn't believe he is capable of handling the arsonist alone.'

'But what's so special about this arsonist?' asked Morgan. 'He has handled armed kidnappers, armed bank robbers, confronted gun-runners and had dealings with the Triad. What's changed that he can't handle this?'

'He went quiet after the Christmas hostage case and we know for a fact that he confronted the other archer. Maybe he was injured' suggested Rossi. 'If his confidence was shaken or he was incapacitated due to injury, it would explain why he doesn't want to get involved in this case.'

'He may not want to get involved but based on his previous actions it's unlikely that he'll stop looking into the case' continued Reid. 'And if he does continue to investigate and actually finds something? He will more than likely act on it.'

'Tommy Merlyn and Oliver Queen are hosting a fundraising gala at their nite-club venue tonight to benefit the firefighters and their families' added Garcia.

'That would be a hard target to resist for an arsonist' suggested Rossi. 'We need to be on site to see who shows up.'