by Slaton Smith
The appointed time, 7:30 came and went. Pasco did not show. Hass was slightly upset. He had wasted half a day, a day that could have been spent talking to another candidate. It was well past 8 P.M. when Hass got up to head back up to his room and then back to Boston, when he saw Oscar Pasco come through the revolving doors of the Westin. He looked exactly like he sounded on the phone. He was 5’10” and very pale. He wore his jet black hair combed straight back. He really hadn’t bothered to get cleaned up for the meeting. He had on black pants, a red shirt, which was un-tucked, with a black jacket over the shirt. Hass approached Oscar Pasco and extended his hand. Thomas Hass was back to being Walter Mathis again. Why change an alias? Especially, when it worked so well.
“Mr. Pasco. I’m Walter Mathis.”
Pasco shook his hand.
“Hi,” he responded.
Hass noticed the strong smell of smoke emanating from Pasco.
“Thanks for meeting me. Let’s find a seat and talk. I have a handful of questions and a couple of tests for you.” They sat down and Hass started the interview. Oscar seemed anxious, but the reason wasn’t the interview. He just wanted to get back to the casino.
“Tests? Why?” Oscar asked, realizing that he was not getting back to the tables anytime soon.
“Why? Mr. Pasco, we really want to get a good handle on people we are offering six figure salaries to. That’s why,” Hass answered sharply.
“OK. This going to take long?”
“Mr. Pasco, where are you currently working?” Hass asked, ignoring Oscar’s response.
“I am between things,” Oscar replied. His legs were crossed and his arm was over the back of the sofa.
Hass made a couple notes that were more about the attitude than the answers.
“How long were you with Merrill Lynch?”
“Five years.”
“Why did you leave?”
“I was fired,” Oscar replied with a cocky, “I don’t give a shit look.”
“Why?”
“Integrity issues,” Oscar answered, without any hesitation.
Hass made a note.
“Just a couple more questions and then I would like for you to take a couple of tests and fill out a form for HR.”
“Fine,” Oscar answered. He was really getting tired of this. He really didn’t think he had a chance to get this job. Since Merrill Lynch had fired him and he had lost his brokerage license, nobody wanted to hire him.
“What is your favorite book?” Hass asked, while twirling the pencil between his fingers. He knew the question would piss off Pasco and had looked forward to asking it.
“My favorite book? Are you kidding?” Oscar answered, making a face like he had just taken a sip of seawater.
“No. I am not kidding.”
“I don’t have a favorite book,” Oscar replied.
“Surely they made you read at the University of Michigan?” Hass replied.
“I’m glad you Googled me, Mr. Mathis.”
“Well, you didn’t provide a resume.”
Pasco did not respond.
“I’ll take any book. Just give me one,” Hass said, pushing it.
“I read a chapter of this Harlequin romance in a bookstore. I can’t remember the title. I think there was a pirate on the cover.”
“I guess that’s about as close as we are going to get,” Hass replied, as he stood. Oscar remained seated.
“Where are you going?” Oscar demanded.
“I reserved a conference room for you to take the tests.”
“I’ll take them here.”
“Mr. Pasco, I have two timed tests for you to take. I don’t think the lobby is where we will get your best thinking.”
“I’ll do it here.”
Hass was done with this guy.
“Fine. The first thing I need is for you to fill out a couple of forms,” he said handing Oscar the iPad. Oscar filled out the required information and handed back the iPad. Hass hit a couple of keys and returned the iPad to Oscar.
“This is a timed personality test. You have thirty minutes.” Oscar looked at the iPad and started flying through the test. He finished in twenty minutes.
“Here,” he said, handing the iPad back to Hass. Hass hit another few keys, then gave Oscar the iPad back for the last test.
“Mr. Pasco, this is a Wonderlic. Do you want any scratch paper?”
‘No.”
“It’s fifty questions . . . “
“Yeah, I know. Twelve minutes. Let’s get going.”
“The timer starts when you touch the screen,” Hass said as he sat back down. Oscar flew through this test as well. He finished with a minute left and handed the iPad to Hass.
“Anything else?” Oscar asked, standing.
“No. Thank you for your time,” Hass said, extending his hand.
“You know, the guy on the phone promised me a dinner.”
“He did?” Hass said, hoping Oscar would have forgotten.
“Yeah.”
“Well, we can grab a bite right here in the hotel,” Hass said, gesturing towards the restaurant.
“I tell you what. I don’t think you really want to have dinner. Why don’t you just give me the money you would have spent on my dinner?” It was more of a demand than anything else.
“Excuse me?” Hass was shocked. He knew people like Oscar Pasco existed. He had just never met one and now hoped he never would again.
“Yeah, just give me the cash,” Oscar said, looking right into Hass’ eyes.
Hass really didn’t want to give him the money, but he also didn’t want to be with the guy any longer than he had to. He reached for his money clip, took out $40 and handed it to Oscar. Oscar looked at the bills.
“We had drinks, too,” he said, with his hand out.
“Here,” Hass said, handing him a $10. Oscar turned and left without saying another word. He walked across the lobby and through the revolving doors. A massive doorman looked him over. The doormen at the hotel were big for a reason. They were there to keep the trash and the bums out and away from guests waiting for their cars or a cab. Oscar Pasco’s was trash through and through.
Hass sat back down in the lobby and reviewed the scores. Oscar Pasco had scored a forty-four on the Wonderlic. He wondered what he would have done if he had actually tried. He was also certain that his personality would also be easy to manipulate, but they would have to be cautious. Oscar Pasco was extremely skeptical of everything and everyone.
IX
Candidate Review
Boston - May 7, 2011
Thomas Hass assembled a one sheet on each of his candidates, headed into the conference room where Dr. McFarland, his team of analysts and Robert Waters were waiting. Altogether, it had been a productive week. The team had contacted and interviewed twenty-five men who met their criteria. Each analyst walked McFarland and Waters through their recommendations. Hass had spoken to several men, but two had bubbled to the top, Sean Garrison and Oscar Pasco. He still was surprised Oscar Pasco had done as well as he did on the tests. He really struck Hass as a borderline thug. The stench that poured off of Pasco at the interview in Detroit was still fresh in his mind.
He passed out the one sheet on Oscar Pasco first and began walking McFarland and Waters through the assessments. McFarland and Waters immediately began scanning the document.
“Mr. Waters and Dr. McFarland, in front of you is the profile of Oscar Pasco. Thirty years old. Approximately 5’10”. Single. No living relatives. To summarize, our tests peg him as a paranoid schizophrenic. We also conclude that he is susceptible to addiction - addiction of any kind. Alcohol. Gambling. Tobacco. Our background check on him revealed some interesting information. He accepted a full scholarship to the University of Michigan, where he did well academically. He graduated in three years with a degree in finance. However, during his time in Ann Arbor, he was implicated in a campus gambling ring. Apparently, he ran a successful sports book. No charges were ever filed against him. He accepted a
job right out of college with Merrill Lynch in Detroit. Like his time at the University of Michigan, he did well, but ran into trouble. He was fired for integrity issues. We think he was manipulating numbers to cover gambling debts. He scored a forty-four on the Wonderlic and our tests place him at the very top of the IQ scale for the candidate pool. My conclusion is that he makes a strong candidate. We need to be cautious as his high IQ coupled with his psychosis could lead to issues down the line. I would estimate that he is in average shape for a person his age. We will know more once we give him a complete physical examination.”
McFarland was making a couple of notes and looked up and across the table at Waters.
“I like him, doctor.” Waters commented.
“I do as well, Robert. I agree with Hass’ assessment, there are points in his broken personality that we can easily use for our purposes - especially the susceptibility to addiction. He makes the cut. Let’s get him in here for the orientation.”
“I will take care of it,” Hass replied.
“Who’s up next?” McFarland asked, eager to keep things moving.
“Sean Garrison. Twenty-six years old. Approximately 6’2”. No living relatives. Garrison is an interesting candidate. Very charismatic guy – a very clever individual. He pushed me with his responses to the interview questions, but without making me feel like I was being pushed. I assume that’s the advertising side of him coming out. He is driven by a rock-solid sense of right and wrong, yet does not come off as stuffy or arrogant. Our tests indicate that he has a strong sense of purpose and is driven by a solid value system and will stand up for his beliefs. Independent of our testing, these behaviors were evident in his description of an interaction with his most recent employer. He stood up to his boss and was fired as a result. Garrison maintains that he did the right thing. The tests also indicate an unyielding sense of independence. He scored well on the Wonderlic. His IQ is 134 – a good score near the top of the pool. From a physical standpoint, he is above average, having played competitive lacrosse for several years.”
Waters was scrutinizing the summary.
“What’s this? The Fountainhead? I heard the assessment. Does he fancy himself some sort of modern day Howard Roark?”
McFarland took off his glasses and folded his hands on top of the report.
“Robert, this is one of our ideal candidates. He is a passionate person that has a strong value system. Since you brought it up, let’s stay with the Roark analogy. He values independence and free will above all. He feels he is defined by the choices he makes and I am certain that’s why he says this is his favorite book. He relates to the character. Look, don’t dwell on this. We can wind him up and play on this. If you want to make a statement, this is your man. He will take every mission personally. You want something done in spectacular fashion, this is your man. Couple that with above average athletic ability and you have an assassin that theoretically will excel once given our serum. And no, he is not Howard Roark.”
“But aren’t we manipulating the very things he values?” Waters responded.
“True, which is why this is so delicate. Again, if something goes awry, he could turn on all of us. The other man, Pasco, is motivated by money and a desperate need to satisfy his addictions. He will not come looking for us. Garrison will be motivated by vengeance. He will take all of this very personally, as we have stripped away his very essence and will feel the need to make things right, for himself and those he feels we have harmed.”
“I don’t like that.”
“No, but think about it, Robert. You want vengeance. You want a bloody spectacle. Garrison is the tool to get you what you want,” McFarland said.
Waters remained silent.
“I need to do some testing on these men when they arrive, but the individuals with higher IQs might be candidates for more advanced implants. I will need to look into their profiles a little more to anticipate the side effects,” McFarland added.
“All of these men will be watched. I will have a handler shadowing them, backed up by a two-man squad. If anything goes wrong with an assignment or your programming is off, they will be terminated immediately,” Waters announced.
Waters rubbed his temples and looked at Hass.
“What do you see as the probability these guys will complete more than one mission?” he asked.
“Mr. Waters, some of these men will die after the procedure and will not complete even one mission. I estimate seventy percent of these men will die while executing or after completing the mission. The balance will not make it past two missions. You also have to remember the stress their bodies will be under after we give them the implants and the serum. They will burn up in thirty days as it is.”
“These two guys you just presented, Garrison and Pasco?”
“They might make it to two missions. The odds of them moving beyond that are less than one percent.”
Waters nodded. He did not like the odds, but he could do some real damage with just five or six of these guys. He pulled out the sheets of the top candidates and placed them in a red folder that was in front of him. The rest of the room was quiet.
“Let’s get these guys in here. I want to keep this moving,” Waters ordered, rising from his chair and leaving the room. He did not dwell on the attrition rate. This was a war whether Congress realized it or not. It called for sacrifice.
X
A new job
May 9, 2011
Thomas Hass reached out to Sean Garrison early the following Monday. Sean was sitting on the deck of the house enjoying another beautiful spring day in Pittsburgh. Sean picked up Hass’ call on the first ring.
“This is Sean,” he answered.
“Good morning Sean, Walter Mathis here.”
“Good morning.”
“I have some news for you. I would like to offer you the job.”
Sean was elated. He had quickly transitioned into a new job that would double his old salary.
“Thank you!”
“I would like to start you at $85,000. There is also a great benefits package. Health insurance, dental and vision. We also offer something unusual, a whole life policy of $200,000. What’s nice about this is it has a great cash value that will just keep building. Of course, there’s a physical that you have to take to qualify for the policy. In addition, we have a strong bonus program.”
“I have had some time to think over the opportunity. It’s an easy decision - I accept.”
“That is great news. When can you start?”
“Whenever you want me to.”
“Can you be here Friday? We will host you over the weekend and get some additional paper work done, plus the physical. Your training will start on Monday, a week from today. Shortly there after, we will get you on a plane and off to Europe.”
“Sounds good.”
“I also want to get your signing bonus to you. It will be grossed up, so it will be a true $12,725. I just need your banking information.”
Sean gave the necessary account and routing numbers to Hass.
“Thanks. I will have my assistant, Rhonda, set up all of your travel arrangements. I will arrange for an American Express card to be left at the front desk of your hotel. Please use this for all of your expenses.”
“Thank you. See you later this week.”
“Looking forward to it, Sean.”
As he hung up, Sean realized he could breath easy now and not worry about employment. He went back to enjoying the springtime sun.
Hass sent a quick note to McFarland regarding the conversation with Sean and a request to another team member who was handling all the travel and expenses. He picked up the phone again and called Oscar Pasco. The call went as well as expected. However, he did not wire Pasco the signing bonus. He was certain the guy would run off with the money and not show. Pasco would receive the money in his account after he arrived in Boston.
The next phase for Hass and the team was more logistical. They needed to keep the candidates sepa
rate. To do this, they broke the men into three groups of five. Sean and Oscar Pasco were in group one. They would go through the procedure first, followed by the second group the following week, and the last group a week after that.
Sean checked his bank balance later in the day and saw that he was $12,725 richer. Brian would be thrilled that Sean had money to pay the rent and the ability to pick up a bar tab. Sean took the rest of the week pretty easy. He picked up a few items for his trip. Several new shirts, new ties and a good pair of black shoes – cap toe.