Alexander and Austin were baffled by Mike's confession. "Isn't he under the drug's control?" Alexander asked. "If not, why would he obey Rhea's commands? Did we guess wrongly, and is Mike willingly working with Rhea? Is he confronting us to show off his success?"

Mike cut short their speculation. "Yes, I freed Rhea, and I did it intentionally." He added, "She hypnotized me."

"Hypnotized?" The other two exchanged glances, unconvinced. However, Austin found the explanation increasingly plausible.

Mike nodded. "She may have used drugs as well, but I wasn't sure. What I know is she hypnotized me. She wanted me to release her, so I did."

Austin interrupted, bewildered. "Hang on. You knew she wanted you to free her, and you just did it?"

Mike's nod confirmed his words. Austin exclaimed, "Do you know what you're talking about? Are you under her control or not? Are you still hypnotized?" He playfully snapped his fingers in Mike's face, recalling a movie trope for breaking hypnotic trances.

Alexander restrained Austin, then focused on Mike. "She didn't hypnotize you, did she?" Initially confused, Alexander now grasped the situation.

Mike shook his head gently. "I wasn't."

Before Austin could speak, Alexander declared, "He did it on purpose."

Austin remained puzzled, but Mike confirmed with a nod. "That's right. When I realized Rhea was using hypnosis, I deliberated before deciding to let her go," Mike explained. Austin pressed, "Do you genuinely believe she would rescue your son?"

"No," Mike replied. "I wanted to observe her actions and use her to uncover what's happening inside the embassy."

"So, you're trying to become a double agent?" Alexander asked, acknowledging the term’s imprecision.

"I guess you could say that," Mike admitted. "I couldn't think of a better way. We were getting nowhere, so I acted when I understood her plan."

Austin remained incredulous. "Why didn't you discuss this with us?" They could have saved themselves considerable effort had Mike been upfront.

"I worried she'd see through me if it wasn't convincing," Mike explained quietly. "Rhea is incredibly shrewd. If I'd told you, and you hadn't searched for her, she would have become suspicious. The best approach was to pretend I was under her control."

Alexander nodded thoughtfully. "Everything makes sense now," he said. "I still have a question for you."