Smiley sat in silence as Brent Jackson ate a sandwich cross-legged on a cot. The cot and a steel toilet were the only accoutrements part of the cell, Smiley's metal chair coming from outside. In his lap was a selection of papers and files on Jackson and the whole mess. Jackson kept his head down as he ate, glancing up occasionally to see if Smiley was still watching him. He kept his hands resting on his paunch and watched the prisoner eat with half-closed eyelids.

"Whatever this is, it's all been a big mistake," Jackson said between bites.

He let the comment pass without adding to it. This was Smiley's style of interrogation. Lots of questioners liked to constantly talk and badger and bullied their subjects. Smiley let the silence work to his advantage. The man under scrutiny's mind raced in anticipation of what question was to come next and how to answer it, what to say and not say. The interrogator had just the one question, their mind cleared of nothing but the answers and the truths that even a blatant lie would reveal. Plenty chaffed under the long silences that went well past awkward.

"Hours before the operation to take in Tiger Shark, I sent a cable to your station." Smiley thumbed through papers until he found what he wanted. He passed it to Jackson to let him see the message.

"It was marked FLASH, for Captain America's eyes only. In the message, it says evidence has come to light that an agent inside SHIELD has been supplying Tiger Shark with classified intelligence. Documents identifying the double agent should be found on Tiger Shark's yacht. All documentation are to be handled by Captain America alone and sent back to Washington for review. Captain America, Fontaine, and Stevenson have no knowledge of this message coming in. We received confirmation from Jakarta Station that the message had been successfully received. You are communications officer for the station and you were found with those documents hidden on your person, Jackson."

Jackson stuttered and sputtered as he tried to grope for an excuse. Smiley let him twist in the wind. He cast aspersions on his fellow agents. Stevenson had intercepted the message, he said. He forced him to steal the documents or he would kill him. When Smiley asked how Stevenson bypassed the biometric passcode that locked SHIELD communications devices, he said he was forced at gunpoint to read the message and gave it to Stevenson.

"It wasn't me, you see. It was always--"

The next papers Smiley handed him stopped Jackson cold. It was a surveillance photo of an Indonesian woman and a small child. Further photos showed Jackson behind them, catching up to them, taking the child in his arms.

"These photos were found on Tiger Shark's yacht. As was a ledger detailing payments to an unknown Swiss bank account. Cross-referenced to SHIELD's operations against Tiger Shark's pirate network, each payment took place within two days of some misfortunate development in the hunt for the man. A routine computer check by Indonesian national police discovered withdrawal of those funds from the computer of the woman in the photo. Brent, does your wife in Virginia know about your second family here in Jakarta and what you do to support them?"

Smiley took off his glasses and cleaned them against his shirt. When he slid them back on, he saw Jackson's face was a pale green. He was searching for something to say, some way to deny what was the cold, hard truth. He looked close to puking the sandwich he just finished. Smiley handed him a napkin in case he couldn't keep the bile down.

"Do you have children, Mr. Smiley?" Jackson asked once the moment passed.

"No," Smiley said without any emotion. "It's for the best, I'm afraid. Me or my ex-wife were never parent material."

"It's hard to support a wife and three children on a government salary, and then... my loved ones here in Jakarta. Tiger Shark came to me with the photos of me and them and threatened to send them to my wife bac home. He threatened me with exposure and offered me money to help him avoid SHIELD capture. The stuff in Yemen... I had no idea it would happen." 

Smiley's thoughts were on Ann. She had once said that coercion was a myth. The things we did were of our own accord, all coercion did was to give one an excuse to do or not do whatever it was that was in their heart's desire. Jackson's infidelity was his flaw, his need to be the perfect husband and father, was as much to blame as Tiger Shark's thuggish methods.

"Under normal circumstances," Smiley said after a long pause. "You would be thrown into a deep, dark hole somewhere and would never see the light of day again. But the circumstances here are not anywhere near approaching normal. You will continue to work for SHIELD, you will be transferred to another part of the world where you will have access to classified material. Eventually someone will come calling, someone above Tiger Shark in the HYDRA hierarchy. You will report it directly to me and you will in effect become a triple agent, feeding HYDRA disinformation created by me. It's either work for me or dying in prison, Brent."

Smiley leaned forward, placing his hands on his knees. Jackson wiped his mouth with the napkin he'd been given and seemed to be on the verge of making a decision. Smiley stood with the bundle of files under his arm. He looked down at Jackson. If they were face to face, the man would tower over him. But here in this cell with him on the cot, Smiley loomed large over Jackson. It was as much mental as it was physical. 

"I'll do it," Jackson finally said.

Smiley nodded and left the cell without another word.