written by Codename Elise
Nikita awoke to a familiar soft French accent. "Kita, where is Athena?"
She rolled over too sleepy to pay attention to the firm grip on her leg, until it became painfully uncomfortable.
"Ouch!" She yelled retracting her body into a fetal position. Michael pinned her legs down again and turned her on her back.
She tried swinging a punch not recognizing whom the rough hands were attached to. He caught her swinging arms and straddled her bringing her collapsing frame up to him.
He held her wobbly head in both hands, "Nikita wake up!"
Through half closed eyelids she was able to make out the form holding her.
"Mi ch…eal?" She said her voice fading back into oblivion.
"Yes, it’s me, Nikita I need you to focus, where is A-the-na?" He asked watching her blue eyes rolling upward.
"Stay with me!" He ordered sharply.
"She slept on sofa, pushed her out, too much wine… need sleep." She babbled incoherently.
Michael picked up the empty bottle from the floor with his black gloves and placed it in a plastic bag.
"Where did you get this from?"
Nikita wrapped her arms around her shoulders. The cold knife of realization pierced her heart. The fresh sting of betrayal coursed through her blood purging the poison out of her body. She pushed herself into a sitting position and rubbed her eyes. She was ready to debrief.
"Andrew brought it over two days ago. I didn’t have any until last night. Athena helped herself to most of it, and then I drank the rest to cure my insomnia."
"That bastard!" Nikita swore enraged as the tears of humiliation marked their bitter trail.
"I sent a team to pick him up." Michael said placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I am not a charity case, keep your pity." She said hoarsely before padding to the living room.
"Athena is not an operative, is she?" Nikita said tying her loose tresses in a ponytail before reaching down to pick up the blanket on the floor.
"No."
"Let me guess, another of your mission wives’ you forgot to mention?" Nikita vexed.
"On the contrary, without her we have no future."
"No sign of a struggle." He said changing the subject as he walked over to the front door.
"No evidence of forced entry." He said crouching down to examine the lock more closely.
Did he have a key?" He inquired without inflection in his voice. His flaring nostrils and wild stare told of his disapproval.
"Yeah."
"Get dressed." He barked slamming the door shut with such force, that it pulled it clear off the hinges.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Madeline paced back and forth like a caged rat in her office. Why
had Operations suddenly been called away on a HF 10 conference?
Section had not been summoned to attend such a classified event
in over four years. There must be a change of the guards taking
place in strategic areas and heads soon would be rolling.
The Second in Command was holding on to the hope Operations would not be put out to pasture just yet. Even though she had distanced emotional from him, she could not help to feel a special bond between them. Madeline was certain if he was ordered to retire; he would not go down easily. It would be difficult to control his egocentric impulses if pushed beyond the fine line of appreciation to disregard. It could be catastrophic.
There was the can of worm that had been opened with the kidnapping of Athena. The Boxing Instructor had conveniently vanished, the operatives who were responsible for Nikita’s daily surveillance had their coffee spiked with Valumn. Not one recognizable player claimed the kidnapping as theirs. Birkoff had been working on twenty-four hours shifts trying to find more on their illusive target but was quickly running out of steam. Two other operatives had become windows to their souls with the proper modification, but they preferred death to giving up the name of their employer.
The presence of the two operatives halted her mental gymnastics. Madeline instantaneously extinguished any signs of distress and put them up to speed on the immediate problems Section was facing.
"I think it is time I contact George." Michael said in dismal voice.
"Let’s give it one more hour" Madeline interjected.
"Is any one going to tell me what’s really going on?" Nikita asked fiddling with Madeline’s bronze paperweight stallion.
A very confused and shaky voice interrupted their repertoire.
"Madeline, Michael you have to come see this."
"What is it Birkoff?" Madeline answered sharply.
"It’s Operations… I think he wants to talk to all of you."
"Patch him through." Michael ordered displeased by the young man’s lack of initiative.
"That’s the problem, he’s rigged the visual so it can only be seen on my monitor….. I think he wants the news to be public."
Oh no, he’s been retired. Madeline thought, masking her fear with a stale smile.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The atmosphere at Com central was electric. Birkoff’s team
was in full swing jumping from one terminal to the next, checking
incoming data and verifying the already existing Intel. Birkoff
was chewing at the end of a pencil, a behavior dating back to the
time when Section One had been infected with a deadly virus and
he had been left running most of the show.
Madeline stood up to the plate, greeting a very agitated image of her superior on the monitor screen.
Operations laughed as she cautiously asked him if he prefer to speak to her privately. His laugh was not the usual cynical laughter that was easily recognized by all that had dealt with him, but a more sinister cackle that surfaced to her memory the unpleasant confrontation they had years ago.
The same unstable laughter had filled her office after she had disagreed with the platform he was using to convince the Agency that he was the best candidate for Head of Operations.
A few years after his ascension into power he began to grow callous toward her. He used her feelings against her manipulating her into submission, forgetting she was the one who forced the Agency’s hand.
The last time they had spent a night at the tower, he had shown his true colors. She was appalled by sick games. Being in control of the white room was her job, and she did it as efficiently as possible. However, in her private life, she preferred not to be reminded of the physical and mental anguish that had always been the tools of her trade. That night she had given him an ultimatum, if he ever request her company for one of his perverse tryst again, she would have no other choice but go straight to Oversight and confess having tampered with the psychological records used in determining his promotion. She would not be treated like one of his hunting dogs!
"Sir are you feeling all right?" Michael inquired studying the bizarre behavior that resembled the time he had deliberately allowed himself to be poisoned to expose Philo.
Operations turned to Michael. "Section’s future is bleak, without me at the helm it will be destroyed, I am giving you a chance to join me, or you will go down with the ship mon Capitan." He bowed mockingly.
Michael rubbed his chin, "Join you sir?"
"That’s right if bright boy over there hasn’t figured it out yet, I’ve defected. Red Cell needs someone like me to lead’m into the new millennium. Michael they take the best years of your life and when you are old they will not hesitate to pull the trigger. As for your precious Nikita, George will never allow a walking time bomb to take over as Second in Command."
"Little Athena here is more cut out for the job." He said turning from the camera to address his guest.
Madeline’s eyes became like two great big chocolate saucers.
"Paul tell me you are not responsible for the kidnapping of Athena."
"Okay Maddy I will tell you, I will tell you any other fairy tale you wish to hear if it will shut your mouth for once." He said his eyes growing strangely glazed.
"Paul return Athena unharmed and I will use my political clout to keep George from canceling you." Madeline bargained showing him her ace.
"Over my dead body!" Nikita protested.
"Shut up Nikita!" She commanded slapping her hard across the face.
Michael called over two male operatives to restrain Nikita. The strong men found it nearly impossible to control the outraged woman threatening to dismember her poised superior.
Walter unable to remain neutral to the circumstances joined in the fight.
Furiously his fist came down on top of Birkoff’s desk sending papers scattering everywhere. "Madeline that was way out of line. If you as much as lay a finger on her, I’ll call George myself and have your skinny little butt thrown in Abeyance for conduct unbecoming, you got me?"
"Walter I will do whatever deems necessary to get Athena back." She warned him her voice hissing like a snake ready to strike back at any given moment.
Michael reached over the keyboard "You are all out of line, I am the one in command now and we will do things my way." With a quick push of the escape key, he ended the teleconference.
"I apologize Nikita, but I had to make sure Operations believed he had caused a mutiny between the ranks. Put some ice on it and the swelling will go down." Madeline instructed unsympathetically.
"Walter let this be the last time you defy my authority, the next time there will be grave consequences for your insubordination."
"Birkoff let us know when you have his approximately location…I will be in my office if anyone feels the need to challenge me any further."
"Just tell me when and where." Walter called out walking back to his workstation with a spring in his step.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
At nineteen hundred hours Nikita followed by the red team
surrounded a four-story condominium overlooking the ocean. Nikita
climbed on the roof and crouched down ready to throw down the air
duct a can of tear gas. Shrouded by the darkness of the night she
ran across the roof, jumping with great agility onto the wrap
around balcony. She could make out Operations voice followed by a
few unknown ones. Birkoff had notified them that there were four
guards, two hostiles and two innocents within the penthouse
parameters. Michael stood by a large palm tree at the other end
of the balcony preparing his silencer.
George’s redden face appeared on the screen of Michael’s miniature camera. He confided in Michael, that his grandchildren had become "Priority One" and the rest were expandable including Operations and his cohorts. He warned him, not to come back empty handed or he could kiss his beloved Nikita good bye. The grief stricken man confided to the new Head of Operations that he did not care if he broke Section Protocol as long as it brought him the desired results.
Earlier that evening Oversight’s ruthless leader had turned a blind eye to Michael’s employment of non-Section personnel to find the location of Operations lair, and now he would become conveniently blind again to any strong tactic the young leader would use to bring Operations down on his knees.
The tear gas filled the room causing the heavy-armed guards to flee to the balcony in search of cleaner air. Nikita moved from her position attacking one guard from the back, while two other operatives disqualified the other two from the game. As she searched the bodies for weapons she heard the familiar loud footsteps of her ex-employer.
He was pushing Athena and a younger boy toward the balcony’s edge. He smiled triumphantly as he pressed the barrel into the helpless victim’s forehead.
"A shot right here, would penetrate through her skull and end up lodge in his brain. One would die and the other would be left in a vegetable state… tough call Nikita… which are you going to try to save?"
Hidden in the darkness lurked Section One’s most notorious killer. He waited to see how his trainee would handle the chess match Operations had set out for her.
"Nikita save Dale!" Athena screamed hysterically feeling his rough hands digging into her fragile neck.
"So help me Ops if you…." Nikita warned aiming her gun squarely into his face.
"Tsk tsk, never agitate the assailant, that’s the first rule of engagement… you should know that by now N-i-ki-ta." He laughed ironically pronouncing her name in the same manner her mentor did.
Michael took one step closer to the target. Operations leaned the young boy’s head over the railing. "This is not personal kid, but your grandfather has been asking for it for a long time, I aim to please."
"Uncle Paul don’t be foolish, right now you could get off pleading insanity, if you murder Dale, the Agency will hunt you down like a bloody animal. Every day of your life you will have to look over your shoulder. Is that really the way you want to live your retirement years, dodging bullets and what nots?"
"I have no choice, they want to cancel me." He said pressing the barrel harder into the panic stricken child.
Let Dale go and I will give you my word that Grandfather will bury this whole bloody mess and never dig it up for as long I live." Athena spoke softly, she smiling bravely," Uncle Paul you can come to PSY OPS, I promise you will retire with dignity."
He scratched his white hair, "Thena you know this has nothing to do with how I feel about you. Dale and you are the sad casualties of war….Stephen was one too." He said with tears in his crystal blue eyes… "He was my son… and that whore couldn’t keep him alive!"
Nikita seized the moment to kick the gun out of his hand. He pivoted grabbing her by her hair ramming her face into the concrete railing that bordered the balcony. Nikita could feel the throb of the large bruise forming in her forehead, she wiped away the blood dripping down her chin and lounged straight into him like a run away locomotive.
Operations threw her on the ground striking her mercilessly with the back of his gun. "YOU LET HIM DIE!" He kept screaming in unison with Nikita’s horrific screams. Michael grabbed the gun he had beating her with and threw it over the railing. He dragged him off his bleeding lover, and smashed his head against the wall. He picked him up, carrying the full weight of him on his hands, and was ready to throw him off the balcony when he heard Nikita’s weak voice beckoning him to stop.
"Micha..el don’t …." She said before her body gave way to the surmounting pain.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Nikita awoke to the distant sound of the waves rocking against
the ocean reef. The smell of salt permeated the air. She tried to
move only to find her worn out muscles had become part of the
hospital bed. She searched the walls depicting a mural of a
winding dirt road across a blooming field of colorful flowers.
Above the painting was an inscription in gold calligraphy.
"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy laden and I will
give you rest." Matthew 11:38.
From the bed she could look out an open window to discover two cardinals busy building their nest on the branch of a tree. There was a distinctive taste of metal in her mouth, and she wondered if she was hallucinating.
She rubbed her finger across her swollen lips and traced the outline of the several wires attached to the sides of her chin.
"Hello Nikita, I am afraid Ops dislocated your jaw and left you with a few other souvenirs to remember him by." Said a small framed woman with long flowing locks that frayed her small waist. She pulled forward a strand and smiled. "Naturally a redhead, Madeline thought it was best if I changed my appearance to divert the bloodhounds, you know how fond she is of playing dress up."
Nikita tried to speak but the noise that came from her throat sounded like a baby’s gurgle.
Athena walked over to the window. "You are in the Psy Ops infirmary. As you may have noticed, we are very different than any other branch of the Organization. Here there are no surveillance cameras or bugging devices. I have daily sweeps to determine if any have been planted without my knowledge. This is a haven for those that have been broken in the field. We provide emotional, physical and spiritual support, as you can see." She said referring to the Christian scripture on the wall.
"There is no hidden agenda besides providing a sanctuary where an operative can feel secure until they are ready to return."
Nikita coughed, her mouth filled with blood that dripped down her pink flowery nightgown.
The petite woman picked up a towel and soaked it in the porcelain wash basin near the bed. She cleaned off gently the blood from Nikita’s mouth and dabbed the fresh specks of blood from her nightgown. She threw the towel into the trash can and washed her hands scrubbing meticulously each finger with the anti bacterial soap.
"You have suffered extensive trauma to your face. Your cheekbone was broken in two parts and you have a nasty collection of bruises that will take some time to heal… The doctor believes that some reconstructive surgery may be required, but we will cross that bridge when the time comes."
Nikita licked her dry blood caked lips. Lifting her feeble hand she pointed to the water she craved on the night table.
Athena took the pitcher of water and served some in a small cup, she brought the straw up to Nikita’s parched lips and waited till she sipped.
The water was painfully cold. She winced but continued to drink, quenching her relentless thirst.
"I can order you some more pain meds if you like, however I prefer you are awake so you can take advantage of the amenities our facility offers… Once you have enough strength to get up, I will give you the grand tour of our estate. Rest now, I will be back later to check on you." She smiled pleasantly patting her hand.
xxxxxxxxx
The next few days Nikita was given the royal treatment, massages,
delicious meals and intensive physical therapy to get her back in
shape. The blonde operative had been assigned a team of
specialist that rotated on twenty four-hour shifts. A staff on
nurses tended to her bath and personal grooming each day and
Athena herself made it a point to take her on a stroll across the
grounds each morning.
The front of the impressive mansion had green lush gardens. Rose bushes and large topiaries framed the white wrought iron furniture scattered through out the premises. One large fountain surrounded by three large sculptures of angels sat in the middle.
Nikita sat on the edge, letting her fingers skim through the cool water. There was a peace about the place that brought reassurance to her untrusting heart.
Athena sat on a bench dressed in a navy blue suit. Her hazel eyes covered by the dark fashionable sunglasses perched upon her aristocratic nose.
"Nikita I never took the time to properly thank you for stopping Michael from killing Uncle Paul." She began.
Nikita still could not speak clearly. After attempting to mouth the words that came out as gibberish, she settled for acknowledging her gratitude with a small nod.
"Don’t fret, soon you will grace us all with your speech, meanwhile I would like you to pay particular attention to what I have to say."
Nikita dried her hand on her beige cargo pants. She was glad Athena had her wardrobe transferred from her apartment to her recovery room. She straightened her tortoise shell hair band, and smoothed out the blonde wisps tossed about by the ocean breeze.
"Adrian as you know was the founder of Section One. She founded the organization on the virtues of truth and justice. She believed in taking criminals and rehabilitating them into competently skillful, corruption annihilators. Under her reign, Operatives were not merely chattels to be used and discarded when they no longer fit the bill. They were not canceled for making errors on the field. Like in any other human created endeavor there were flaws. She was not perfect but she tried."
Nikita gazed at her new mentor. Why on earth is she telling me all this?
Athena clasped her hands on her knees, "She was a strong leader who loathed corruption and was merciless in her goal of ending terrorism."
"I suppose it would help if I tell you how she came to be known as the "Mother of Section, " She said scribbling some notes in her yellow pad and setting it down besides her.
"Adrian was an army brat, who grew up in the barracks spitting and shooting with the best of them. Her father was a quick- tempered general and her mother a fine English lady of the upper echelon. Outraged by her daughter’s crass behavior she removed her from her father’s custody and shipped her to a prestigious finishing school in England."
Athena picked up an empty juice carton from the ground and dumped it into the trash receptacle hidden behind the manicured hedges that served as a fence around the vast property.
"After graduation against her mother’s wishes Adrian broke her arranged engagement to a wealthy financier and enlisted in the army to study Nursing. During the Vietnam War, she rejoined her father’s brigade as a Triage Nurse, but rumor has it she was of the first woman to engage in actual combat…..." Athena paused to catch her breath.
"That’s were Adrian met Gramps and Uncle Paul. Both were serving their country as Military Intelligence Agents. Uncle Paul was married to Corrine, but that did not stop him from competing against Grandfather. They bided for her attention like lovesick puppies. I heard a very familiar scene took place between Jurgen and Michael over a lovely young recruit." She grinned.
Athena removed her sunglasses and cleaned them off with a tissue she had produced from her pocket. Nikita’s expression was one of alarm.
"Really Nikita, don’t look so shocked. Nothing remains secret in Section for long." She took a long pause, "I am sure just like Adrian and every other red blooded female, you basked in the chivalry of the moment." She laughed giving her a soft nudge with her elbow.
Nikita went over to the rose bush and tried to break off a stem. The roses were so large and the colors so vibrant they seemed to jump out begging to be picked. It was easier to concentrate on picking roses than to allow the memories of the past to resurrect. She put two of her fingers delicately on each side of the stem. At the moment she pushed her thumb down on the stem to bend it, her hand slipped and her ring finger landed on a thorn. Crimson blood seeped out from the small prick. She stuck her finger in her mouth, draining out the rest of the blood, cursing under her breath.
"Here let me help, " She said motherly wrapping the injured finger with the tissue.
"These little fellows are quite temperamental. They are hybrids just like the ones Adrian grew inside the office that Madeline occupies now." She informed her applying enough pressure on the wound to stop the flow.
The older woman broke off the stem, expertly avoiding the prickly thorns eagerly awaiting her delicate flesh. She held the impressive looking peach colored blossom and sighed, "Adrian was like a mother to me. She taught me everything from growing price winning roses to spotting leadership qualities in people."
She handed the rose to Nikita and escorted her to the tennis courts. She handed her a racket and started the automatic ball thrower. Nikita got in position and swung her racket sending the ball flying over the net.
"Good you are regaining your focus, practice for a few more rounds. We can finish our little chat in the back terrace. I will have them bring us out an early dinner."
Nikita nodded and concentrated on striking the ball. She had not played tennis since her first year as a recruit, and although she was a bit rusty, she enjoyed it just the same. After the practice, she made a mental note to ask Athena if she would join her next time. She would get a real kick at watching the immaculate woman break a sweat.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The pony tailed operative sat across the socially graceful,
affluent Madam. She made circles with her fork on the scalloped
potatoes, waiting impatiently for the continuation of the details
of Adrian’s life. When she didn’t speak Nikita forced
her lips to pronounce the message she wanted to covey.
"T..el Mooo…re" She said, tears filling her eyes from the pain of the stitches as they pulled on her upper lip.
"I must apologize, I was distracted by the picturesque scenery. I have lived here forever, yet a day does not go by I thank God for the privilege of seeing his magnificent workmanship."
The sky was painted with an array of colors that put to shame any artist palate. The sound of the waves rocking gently against the sandy shore lulled the sun to sleep with its sweet lullaby. The sleepy golden strands of sunlight dipped lazily into the ocean depth, leaving thin trails of gold on the dark blue surface.
"That’s another thing I inherited from Adrian, my faith. Without it I would not have been able to survive a day in this organization."
"Let’s get back to the story shall we?" She said placing down her fork neatly besides her plate.
"In the course of the Vietnam War, enemy forces captured the three young officers, and held them as POWs. My grandfather and Adrian were able to escape but Operations was so badly beaten he could not keep up and was recaptured. Adrian and my Grandfather were married upon their arrival to the States, and a week into their honeymoon they were recruited into the organization."
"Nikita placed a tiny piece of lobster in her mouth, careful not to touch the outside with her fork. Once safely inside, she savored the delectable morsel, chewing it very slowly as she watched the emotional woman continue her dissertation.
"It was years after that, Adrian founded Section to quench her undying thirst to bring terrorism down on its knees. Adrian was successful until Gramps made the mistake of negotiating the release of Uncle Paul. Instead of sending him for psychological intervention, he had him transferred from the POW camp straight into Adrian’s turf."
She dabbed the corner of her eye and continued. "Adrian wanted grandfather to send Uncle Paul to PSY OPS. Unfortunately, Madeline who was serving as head honcho for PSY OPS, was able to convince the Agency my uncle’s war experiences would benefit Section and keeping him in the psyche ward was a waste of time. "
Athena stopped to wipe her mouth and drink from her wineglass. Saying Madeline’s name out loud had left her with a bitter taste.
"From then on it was war. Adrian demoted Madeline to Psy Analyst, and recruited me out of medical school to take her place. A few years later Madeline and Ops falsely implicated Adrian in a plot to overthrow the Agency. Their names were cleared but she was sent to Abeyance and banished. Operations assumed control of Section and took with him his loyal watchdog. "
Nikita bolted out of her seat. It was too much to take all at once. Adrian had warned her about them, but she had sided with their theory thinking their crimes were justifiable. It had been there all along as plain as the nose on her face, how naïve she had been!
"I am not finished please sit down," Athena said firmly.
"Operations wanted to shut down Psy Ops. He was lobbying for permission to do it, but grandfather kept it functioning as a memorial to his wife. He knew I was the only one he could really trust to do right by her memory." She said lifting her wineglass into the air.
Nikita joined her as she toasted to the untarnished memory of Section’s greatest leader.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The wind blew through the open window, allowing the cold rain to
blow inside her room. Quickly she shut the window, leaving
outside the thrashing of the waves tossed about by the angry
wind. The bed lamp blinked as the thunder roared like a thousand
hungry lions. It had not been the storm outside the windowpane
that had awakened her, but the storm raging within her.
She had been at PSY OPS for a month now. Her jaw was healing nicely and the doctor had removed the stitches that had prevented her from speaking correctly. She climbed back in bed pulling the covers up to her neck. The feeling of loneliness washed over her. She grabbed her Bible from the night table and pulled out a picture.
Why hadn’t he come?
She picked up her cellular and began dialing his number.
No, she told herself stopping her fingers from punching in the last two digits. She would not give in to the ache in her heart.
In her mind’s eye she saw him. He walked confidently up to the observation deck. His cold green eyes showing pride as he stood arrogantly poised against the glass watching over his new domain.
What did he meant Athena was the key to their future? Could they really have a future, or was this another one of Section’s games to test her loyalty? Nikita rubbed her throbbing temples as the questions swirled making her feel slightly woozy. She picked up the cellular once more.
"I thought you would be up, no one can sleep with this wretched weather… You miss him don’t you?"
Nikita smiled "Does mind reading come with the title or did you steal some of Maddy’s tricks? " She asked sassily.
Athena perched herself on the window’s ledge. She clapped her hands and stretched out her bare feet. "Bravo, you are beginning show signs of life again."
"He told me once your speech impediment was gone, you would be a handful… Michael is not here because I prohibited him to come."
Nikita went over to the elegant woman looking like an old photo from yesteryear sitting in her white, Victorian lace nightgown.
"Why?"
Athena turned her attention to the rain painted patterns on the window. With her finger she traced their outline.
"You are in PSY OPS to recover from the wounds you have been inflicted. Michael is responsible for the damage caused to your emotional arena… I don’t intend to allow him to slow down your progress."
Nikita tilted her head slightly trying to analyze her superior.
"You are being groomed for the two most important positions in your life. The position of Second in Command and ….."
"Yeah?" She asked letting curiosity get the best of her.
"We will discuss the second role in due time… be patient." She said business-like.
Who is this Michael’s twin sister? She possessed his same enigmatic personality. One minute she is kind and compassionate and the other cold, and manipulative. These two are the same creatures of habit, pawning me off like some chess piece to be moved around as they see fit. Nikita concluded. Be Patient, Hah!, I am through being patient.
She picked up the delicate woman by the cuff of her nightgown and shook her. "I am sick of playing Section games… I don’t know what the hell you want with me lady, but unless you start spilling your guts soon, I am going to make you regret bringing me here!"
"Nikita I can understand your frustration, but violence won’t get you what you want. I am aware you can squash me like a bug, I am not trained in hand to hand combat, nor I intend to fight you." She said staring emotionless into the golden flecks rapidly spreading like wild fire in Nikita’s blue eyes.
Nikita shoved her back down on the ledge making her almost topple over. Athena took control of her exasperated composure and raised herself up.
"What do you think kept you from killing me just now? I am an easy target, defenseless against your skillful training, you could have broken my neck, take out the guards and escape without anyone being the wiser… What is it Nikita that separates you from the rest?"
Nikita shrugged her shoulders pretending not to know. If she wanted to play twenty questions she would have to do it alone.
"I am sure by now the old goat has told you about the 5% club. At first I was skeptical, Adrian painted you as some sort of Saint, and I am not fond of worshipping foreign idols. But when you stopped Michael from throwing Uncle Paul from the balcony I finally understood."
"What did you understand?" She asked squaring her jaw.
"I saw what Michael sees in you. You are his indeed his angel. The one who taps him daily on his shoulder and reminds him that he must answer to a higher authority than ol’mighty Section."
"I am no Angel." Nikita disagreed, as pictures of those she had killed flashed in her memory.
"How long have you known him?" Nikita asked cautiously like a soldier avoiding land mines.
"Since he was a Section infant, fussy and belligerent as all hell." Her laughter chimed, like a bell ringing merrily.
"Mikey was sent to PSY OPS for an entrance evaluation. Frankly, I never thought the poor fellow would make it past the first week, without blowing out his brains. He was deeply disturbed by the guilt Rene left for him to carry. I tried making him understand it was not a deliberate act of malice on his part, but an error in judgment." She said with a delicate voice.
She went over to the walking closet and removed a pair of silver shoes from the shoe stand. The stand automatically moved to the side allowing entrance into a secret passage. Athena motioned to Nikita before crawling through the small opening.
Athena punched her code into a neon blue keypad at the end of the dark cramped tunnel and the steel doors opened. Inside was a room full of computer terminals and high tech equipment. Athena slid a cartridge and placed her eye in the scanner. A chair came up from beneath the floor and she sat down. She placed her finger in a special compartment on the computer desk and typed in a long sequence of numbers with her other free hand. The emblem of Section One appeared on the screen. She typed in the password and opened the tree into Section’s directory.
"Look here," She said pointing to the familiar male image on the screen.
"It’s Michael personnel file. Everything you have ever wanted to know about him is in here… read it."
Suddenly a warning appeared in bold red flashing letters on the screen.
"I suggest you stop wasting time and get to work." Athena said emptying the seat.
SELF- DESTRUCT SEQUENCE IN 5 MINUTES.
Nikita sat down and began her reading. She skimmed past his health records, psyche evaluations to his early training days with Jurgen. She read quickly absorbing his rebellious first days and the physical pain of his first trip to the white room. She moved on scanning through more text that covered his idealistic personality, his suicidal tendencies that caused him to spend endless hours in Medlab.
SELF – DESTRUCT IN 4
She read on browsing through the pictures of a younger Michael. The long hair kid with large, emerald eyes told a story of fear, grief and loneliness. Surveillance reported a youth with a volatile temper that would wreck anything in his path, cry himself to sleep and drink too much to erase the pain of having lost his freedom.
SELF – DESTRUCT IN 3
Athena clicked the mouse taking her into the following two years. He was more cocky and self-assured, but still lacked the subtlety and skill of fully trained cold op. Nikita watched the pictures, noticing color in his wardrobe. His uniform back then had consisted of tight blue Jeans, bright polo shirts and military fatigues. There was also a designer tuxedo hand picked by Madeline for his Valentine missions. She examined the exaggerated smile and throaty laughter in the surveillance tapes. He was learning to perform for the camera to give Section what they wanted regardless of the humiliation, guilt and self-loathing that were the side effects from such a phony existence.
SELF – DESTRUCT IN 2
This time Nikita fast forward to a year after Simone was captured. Tears streamed down her face as she watched the surveillance video of the man she knew too well. In place of the emotion filled eyes and rebel’s pout, was the cold empty stare and stern taut mouth of a lifeless machine. The pictures though color could have well been black and white. His pasty skin against the darkness of his funeralistic garments; depicted a man mourning not only for the wife he had lost but for his own emotional suicide.
"We have to log off now, Birkoff has created a booby trap in the middle of the sequence and if don’t get out now it will simultaneously transmit our location." She said pressing the escape button.
"Thanks" Nikita said unable to control the impulse to hug her.
"I know it didn’t answer all your questions, but it gave you a glimpse of who he was… We should get back before the guards think I have been kidnapped again…"
"Nikita," She said helping her back to bed, "I am not your enemy."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
She held the gun, letting go of the trigger very slowly. The
bullet sailed through the air and landed on the target’s
shoulder.
She rolled on the floor, dodging the blank bullets shooting from the injured holograph image. The graceful operative jumped in mid air, landing behind the target with her gun ready to fire. She quickly delivered the bullet into the computer figment’s back ending the exercise.
"How would you have felt if that would have been a child or an invalid?" Athena asked removing the earphones that protected her from the noise.
Nikita dried the sweat on her brow and threw the towel over her shoulder.
"Sick to my stomach." She answered untying her hair.
She wiped some of the perspiration from her face, "I’ don’t think I could lived with myself."
"That’s what makes you a perfect Second in Command." Athena replied gaily.
"Excuse me?"
"You are a soft touch Nikita, exactly what Section is in need of right now. The blood bath Madeline began needs to end before we loose any more operatives."
"How can I stop it?"
"The brave young soldier needs a balance; he cannot do it alone. In the perils of the wars he has fought he has lost the most precious commodity he ever possessed, a conscience." She dramatically recited, handing her the chilled water bottle.
The operative greedily gulped down the water, letting the excess fall out of her mouth until it ran down the slopes of her strawberry colored tanktop.
"You are his conscience. If he tries to run the empire lacking this divine gift, it will destroy him." Athena said her convincing eyes transcending into the azure window to Nikita’s tender heart.
Athena opened the porthole into the recesses of the mind of the man Michael was before Section had branded him. She told the tale of how elated he had been when the birth of his son was announced. How he had cried himself to sleep in the therapy couch mourning for his dead child. Then she recounted the chilling scene when she opened her office door to find him in a catatonic state, frozen by the grief of loosing his wife. The bitter journey finally led to the countless, joyful, hours he had spent with Athena speaking about the operative that had captured his bleeding heart.
She shared the poetry he wrote; the tempo of the thousand letters tied with a simple yellow ribbon he never had the courage to send her. The memory of the passionate night the lovers had shared in Lyons and how he had chosen to push her away unable to tell her of his secret marriage with Elena for fear she would hate him. Athena even disclosed how he had stubbornly refused her help after the Vachek mission had reached its completion.
"I admit I was terribly jealous that it was not my psycho babble that was curing his ailment." She said chuckling.
"I take my hat off to you Nikita, you accomplished something years of intensive therapy never could have."
The envy in the older woman’s voice was evident. Had her interest in Michael trespassed from professional courtesy into emotional attachment? Nikita wondered.
Athena sat straight back against the love seat, she crossed her leg, tucking the short hem of her hunter green skirt under her thigh. Regardless how hard it was for her to relive the past; she was determined to light the operative’s way into the historic dynasty.
"My grandfather fancied too much the new regime’s methods. Somehow they brainwashed him into sanctioning the white room to train operatives. Michael was the first."
"Random inquires and testing…." She shuddered with repugnance.
"You cannot imagine how many helpless operatives go mad, the irony is once they are through fragmenting their personalities, sucking out whatever is left of their souls, they are sent to me for repairs."
" Hah, that’s rich? What the hell am I suppose to do, inflated them like blow up dolls and hope no one takes a pin to them?" She asked holding on Nikita’s hand as a single tear gleamed like a beacon of light in her sorrow filled eyes.
"Do you love Michael?" Nikita cut to the chase.
"Yes, I loved him. But our encounter was brief, and purely physical on his part. Merely two ships passing by on their way to different ports." She confessed disguising the tinge of melancholy creeping over her professional persona.
The door creaked open. Their eyes darted nervously toward the man standing motionless under the florescent lights.
"Michael" Nikita gasped in joyful surprise.
Athena did not waste anytime conveying her displeasure.
"I thought we had an agreement."
"It could not be helped."
"Why are you here?" There was suspicion written all over Nikita’s untrusting face.
A wry but indulgent glint appeared in his eyes. "I have come to take you home."
Athena touched his arm in an effort to stop him from taking the matter any further. "She’s not ready."
With her keen eyesight Nikita spotted the disk Michael had unexpectedly hurled at her. With a swift move of her right hand she caught the flying object in mid flight.
"Her reflexes are satisfactory, any other problems can be handled by Medlab." He said decisively.
Nikita stomped her foot down shifting the attention back to her.
"What if I don’t want to go?"
"It’s not your call."
Nikita went over to where he stood, she dangled the disk in her finger pulling it away just when he was ready to grab it. She toyed with him, her blue eyes flirting shamelessly under the fringe of her dark lashes.
"Who’s call is it yours or Sections?" She smiled scratching his back as she walked around him like a playful kitten.
"If it is your call, I am going to need some guarantee that it will be worth my time to serve as your …." She gave him an impish laugh, "colleague."
Athena aware she had lost the battle against the wiles of the young lovers’ heart, made a dignified exit leaving them in the midst of their mating dance.
He took her in his strong arms, shaping her against his rock solid frame. She felt her defenses weakening as his mouth claimed her own. His lips ignited the fire consuming her with unbridled passion. She hung on to his neck weakly as the world around her was lost in the intimacy of the moment.
He pushed her away momentarily as his green eyes blazed a riveting trail from the planes of her lily-white complexion down to her exposed belly button.
"In all Section history I doubt there was ever a Second in Command as incredibly desirable as you." He told her thickly, gazing at her curves like an artist appreciating a rare collection of fine art.
Nikita ran her fingers through the waves of his short hair. "I heard Adrian was quite a looker in her time."
He took the towel draped across the back of her neck and pulled each end tightly toward him until she was inches from his face again. "Are we going to do things Adrian’s way or my way?"
Nikita swallowed hard. His warm breath seared her skin. Even his haughty disposition was laced with an inescapable hint of sensuality.
"That depends on what you have in mind." She stringed him along enjoying the cat and mouse game he was obviously playing.
Michael ran his hand gently on her eyelids causing them to close.
"Don’t open them."
He crossed his eyes making hilarious faces in hopes she would burst out laughing and he could to catch her cheating. But Nikita kept her word.
Reaching into the pocket of his black pants he took out a small circular box. He took her hand in his holding out her ring finger and slid the gold band into place. Without sight the feel of the cold metal against her finger made her heart leap with boundless energy.
"This is what I have to offer you." He said as a matter-of-factly.
Nikita opened her eyes and looked down at her trembling finger. She was not prepared for what she saw. A gold, hand crafted band with a large teardrop stone adorned her small finger.
She tried to speak but no words could relay the message behind her joyful tears. Michael knelt on one knee, his pasty face flushed by the weight of the long awaited moment.
"I can’t give you your freedom but George will sanction our relationship."
"Do I have to love, honor and obey?" She teased still admiring the intricate detail of the band as he got up and joined her.
"Always." He uttered kissing her earlobe softly.
"Woah, you probably blew your whole pension on this baby" She wiggled her finger allowing the light to reflect off the lustrous diamond. "Tell me Mr. Samuelle just how do you intend to put food on our table?"
"We don’t have to eat, we will live on love alone." His mouth quirked with instant humor
"The splendor of your beauty will feed me and the softness of your skin will clothes me." He said emphasizing the prose poetically.
For the first time since she had known him she saw him in a different light and it scared her.
"Is it not poetry, flowers and expensive jewelry the tools to woo a woman?"
Michael teased tugging her flaxen hair.
"Is that what Section taught you?"
"What… what’s gotten into you anyway?" She arched her eyebrow waiting for a reply.
Michael smiled mischievously, "Since Athena and you compromised my file, I wanted to show you some of what you may have missed before you logged off."
Nikita felt the color rising to her cheeks. Oh, the man was good, how would she ever keep up with him?
"Er… So what other goodies do you have up your sleeve?"
"Those mon coeur, I will show you in due time." He said kissing the palm of her hand before recapturing her in his embrace.
"I love you Kita until death do us part." He said his eyes feeling the saltiness of his tears as he blinked them away.
From beyond the two-way mirror Athena toasted celebrating the grand event that would take place in the following weeks.
"Way to go Michael, you’ve finally found the happiness you’ve deserved." She cheered, drinking down bittersweet pain of loosing the man she never had.
The End
written by Codename Elise
©1999 La Femme Fiction
people have read this fic since July
27th, 1999