Burn Notice Season 6 Episode 8

Michael: (voice-over) There's always a risk when using a stolen car in an operation, but there are ways to minimize that risk. Take it from an employee parking lot during midday and chances are it won't be missed for hours. You want an older model to avoid anti-theft devices and a common, neutral color that won't attract attention. Of course, it doesn't matter how carefully you choose a car if you have to drive it through a police checkpoint.

Michael: (voice-over) Taking a hostage is only as effective as his relationship with his rescuers. The more they value his life, the more leverage you have. Of course, if your hostage doesn't value his own life, all bets are off.

Michael: (voice-over) A good defensive position is known as a force multiply. One man can hold off three others as long as he can remain well-protected while keeping up a steady stream of suppressant fire. Only problem is doing that requires a lot of ammunition. And when it's all gone, your defensive position very quickly becomes a death trap.

Michael: (voice-over) When you've been driven to a meeting in a head bag, figuring out your location can be a challenge. If you know how long you were on the road, you can use the local speed limits to calculate a general area, and if you can get to a window, local landmarks can narrow it down even further. It's the sort of thing you learn in the boy scouts, except boy scouts rarely do it with a gun to their back.

Michael: (voice-over) Spies feed enemies false information all the time. Sometimes, though, you have to give up the real thing actual intelligence that puts innocent people in danger. It's rough, rolling the dice with someone else's life. But sometimes it's the only play.

Michael: (voice-over) The passage of time is one of the most often-used tools in counterintelligence. It allows an adversary to observe you and determine whether you've been followed, then it's just a matter of whether they've seen enough to make a new acquaintance or a corpse.

Michael: (voice-over) A successful blackmail depends on the psychological state of your target. Leading with your demand can risk putting him on the defensive right from the start. But if you start by showing him how his world's about to crash down first, he'll be looking for the key to his salvation and be more likely to take it when you offer it to him.

Michael: (voice-over) Once it's time to spike your target's drink, the important thing is to control the dose. Mix too much sedative with alcohol and you shut down the part of the brain that controls the heart and lungs, which means your target won't be sleeping. He'll be dead.

Michael: (voice-over) Setting up a blackmail is about more than knocking your target out and snapping pictures of things he won't remember. It starts much earlier, with all the things he will remember. You need to make sure that by the time you knock him out, he's ready to actually believe that he did anything.

Michael: (voice-over) As far as cold approaches go, there's nobody spies would rather deal with than salespeople. They're talkative, eager to please, and most meet too many people in a given year to remember them all.

Michael: (voice-over) Whether you're trying to run someone off the road or just trying to sell that you are, it all comes down to the vehicle you use to do it. You want a light frame so you can maneuver faster than your target...and a low center of gravity so you don't flip. Choosing the right car can mean the difference between a clean stop and a nasty spill.

Michael: There's no reason for you to take unnecessary risks.
Fiona: Why don't you let me decide that?
Michael: If you're trying to prove how tough you are...
Fiona: I'm not trying to prove anything.
Michael: We still don't know what kind of situation we're walking into.
Fiona: When do we ever? When has that ever mattered?
Michael: Since Nate died!
Fiona: Look, I know you feel responsible for what happened to Nate. You're not. He volunteered for this mission because he wanted to do something worthwhile, something good, because that's who he was. Because he was a Westen. I'm gonna do this because it's who I am. It's because of who we are. And you can't change that.

Sam: Hey, look who's not in jail.
Pierce: Well, I just got an earful from Langley about your little stunt. What the hell were you thinking threatening an FBI agent like that?
Michael: I didn't threaten him. I asked him questions with a gun in my hand, a gun I have the right to legally carry.

Michael: (voice-over) If you need to get information from a government official, it's often best to approach him outside his usual place of business. When he's not in an environment that reinforces his authority, you're a lot more likely to get something out of him... Especially if you can catch him alone.