As Oliver's investigation into their Lian Yu connections hit dead ends, Michael's subtle trap began to yield results. He noticed unfamiliar individuals lurking near the Queen mansion, their movements too deliberate, their gazes too intense. He recognized a subtle energy signature clinging to one of them, a faint echo of the dark magic he had witnessed on the island.
He engaged one of these observers in a seemingly accidental encounter, playing the role of a disoriented survivor haunted by his past. "Those symbols… I keep seeing them," he murmured, gesturing vaguely. "They were on the island… a bird… carved in wood…" He was feeding them carefully crafted information, letting them know he remembered, but also portraying himself as unstable and easily manipulated.
Oliver, frustrated by his lack of progress, confronted Michael. "You're acting strange, Michael. You keep talking about symbols, about the island. What's going on?"
Michael offered a carefully constructed explanation. "It's just… nightmares, Oliver. Flashbacks. It's hard to forget." He deliberately downplayed the true extent of his awareness.
Meanwhile, Michael anonymously contacted a trusted associate of his father, a discreet individual with connections to the city's underbelly. He provided this contact with carefully curated information about the individuals observing them, subtly guiding this associate to investigate their activities and their potential connections. He was using his intellect and his knowledge of the city's hidden networks to fight a battle Oliver couldn't yet see.
The information Michael provided led his contact to uncover a small cell of individuals connected to their Lian Yu captors, operating in the shadows of Starling City. This information was then anonymously passed on to Oliver, giving his brother a tangible lead, all orchestrated by Michael's cunning and his desire to handle the threat discreetly, his own involvement remaining hidden.