Alexandra.
A stood for abruptly cut out of a good life. L was for the lack of compassion life had shown her. E was for excruciating pain she probably had endured over the past few years. X stood for nothing, as Nikita didn't know many things with that letter besides a xylophone.
As she sat in Henry's private jet the only thing that took her mind of anger was the game she played daily in the 3rd grade.
In all honesty, there were many possible reasons for her anger.
Perhaps she'd grown tired of searching for a ghost.
Perhaps she missed the Division friends who she'd left behind.
And perhaps, it was the fact that she was flying back to New York. All the way back home to end her search for the Russian princess.
Why?
Because as it turned out, Alexandra, bought by Vlad Ivanov, had been living in a brothel that- had she had the patience for- Nikita could have walked to.
It was the fact that Nikita had lived within not just the same country or city but the same area code as Ivanov's mafia-run brothel that killed her.
Yet, no matter how much she scolded herself, she knew that, even with her luck, she could never have found Alexandra.
She leaned back in her seat only to reminisce about yesterdays rather eventful ride.
October 13th, 2007
Moscow, Russia
3:00 PM
Nikita flew down three flights of stair without even a moment's hesitation and flash drive etching its way into her palm. The more flights she crossed, the more it occurred to her that it probably hadn't been a good idea to wear 5-inch pumps. However, considering most of Russia was always dressed to impress, she justified her choice of shoes.
Inside her apartment she inserted the USB and opened up the 6 results. Saved e-mails here, another there and bingo.
An address.
She leaned in read it more carefully.
Oh, fuck.
And that is how she came to be. Sitting in an aircraft bound for home- one she now knew that she shared with Alexandra.
New York
10:00 AM
She'd never been jet-lagged before- it was always the same story. Sleeping the whole time one the plane to be on track and not lose a day. Yet, this trip from Russia set her back by an entire day. Assuring herself that she'd be back to normal within the next 2 days she got to her morning routine. It was too late to go on a run without risk being seen so she just spent the morning working out inside- and nourishing herself with veggie shakes. As she downed the green juice as a replacement for lunch it stuck her strange how much she'd actually missed having these meals- although dining in fancy restaurants and using up room service was great, the health benefits of shakes were something else.
Nikita was finished- although not in a literal sense.
10 hours from now- she would take Alexandra and bring her back to the apartment. Give her a home and anything she needed. It was her duty- one she'd sworn to herself- to protect and help this child.
Although the child wasn't really a child any longer considering her age and all she'd been through.
With 10 hours to kill, she began to build her portable sauna. Everything she needed was in place- in fact she'd set it up the day before to make sure it would work but it took up too much room and she needed space. Besides, the sauna, although a nice place to relax really killed the atmosphere she had going.
The loft she lived in had become her home. Her 'me' place. A little Zen paradise.
3 hours later she had finished and gave her creation an admiring look.
When she'd been in division, being abruptly cut from any access to Ketamine drove her insane. She had violent outbursts and her body felt weak. Just one hit was all she needed. She needed to come down easy. A guard had once held her down when she was yelling that she needed a hit. She remembered how he picked her up and pushed her against a wall.
"Like it or not, you're stuck here in a drug free world. Just relax."
"I need a hit- that's all I want. I just- I just need to come down easy. You'll help me out, right? I just need one- just a hit…." Her voce grew weaker and her body was running on a last resort.
"There is no easy way out. Just relax, breath in and out."
"I don't need you telling me what to do, I need a hit!" She shouted at him and tried to worm her way out but he kept his stance.
"Think of division as a gift- you have a chance to get clean. And you know what Amanda says 'It's very rude to question a gift'. "
Her body slumped, she was weak. Without the drugs she'd relied so heavily the adrenaline that used to be produced was now fading. A deep breath in and she fell to her knees. She had passed out.
A while later, Nikita had awoken to find herself on her bed inside the division chamber. She looked around an saw the guard sitting on the other side of the room.
"Drink the water on the table, it'll help."
She finished the cup within seconds and then looked at the guard.
"What are you doing here?"
"You passed out, remember? I carried you over. I also realized that you'd be dehydrated. When your body lacks food or water, the cravings get worse. I think you've noticed that by now."
She stayed at the corner of her bed and gave him a quick look over.
"You were a druggie, too?"
"Yeah- anything I could find I used. Since I was 17 or so."
"Does it ever go away?"
"The thirst? Yeah."
"You're lying."
"I'm not. It takes years, and it takes restraint but it really does go away. I felt it never would. But it did and now- I'm never going back."
"I don't think it'll work for me."
"You're the vegetarian aren't you? You gave up meat- what's so different about drugs?"
"You just compared drugs to food."
"No- I compared to the willpower you actually possess to the one you think you don't have."
"But it's not even about willpower half the time. I just feel so weak- it's like my body can't do anything. I don't know what to do…I really don't…"
"Are you kidding me? The answer to that's the easiest of them all."
"What?"
"I said the answer to that's the easiest of them all."
"You're not Snow White's magic mirror. Stop talking in riddles and get to the point."
"What I mean is that when you feel weak, you're body just needs adrenaline. I've also felt that it's important to get the toxins out of your body to feel healthy."
"And I do this how?"
"Exercise. Day and night. You sweat every toxin out and when your body workout, natural endorphins are produced and you feel better then ever- trust me."
"I'm not one to trust a stranger."
"I'm a guard."
"Same thing."
"Okay… then you don't have to trust me, just believe this one sentence that I say. Heat and exercise make the cravings go away quickly and it makes sure they never return. "
She lay on her bed for a long time and then looked back up at him and nodded.
"Remember," he added "you're not doing this as a favor to me- it's for you and your body. You have a second chance, use it wisely."
He shut the door on her and left.
As it turned it that the guard had been right. The more heat she produced the less she wanted anything. That was the idea behind the portable sauna she'd begun to build.
With the sauna set up she went downstairs to take a nice long bath. Her boxing in addition to a yoga session and building something practically from scratch was hard work. She needed rest and relaxation for her plan to go smoothly when she went to retrieve Alexandra- not that she actually had a plan. Nikita never had a plan. To the dismay of her partners, she'd change it half way even if she did have one. Not that she cared what they though- she liked operating solo, anyway.
Nikita's Apartment
7:00 PM
Her eyes flew open as she realized she had fallen asleep reading. She noticed her copy of Catch-22 was by her side- luckily, she wasn't a fussy sleeper and her copy remained perfectly in tact. After her bath, she'd realized she still had a few hours- unfortunately for her patience was a virtue she didn't possess.
Nikita saw her bookmark was on the very last page. She quickly read it for the 5th time or so. Michael had recommended the book, one of his favorites, to her.
She finished it and saw that it was almost time to get ready.
7:05
She was going to be in the brothel at 8.
While she was inside the bath she began to play out the scenario inside her head. She would pose as a face of a willing client and then be lead out into the private office. Once inside, she would strike. If Ivanov behaved, she would spare him. If not- she hadn't done all this to quit now.
She walked over to her rack of clothes. It was a nice selection; she had to hand it to herself. Her fashion sense had long drifted away from dreadlocks and midriff baring tank tops she had borrowed from the whores who drifted in the same druggie sections as her.
Her outfit needed to be simple yet badass. It needed to be strong and intimidating. Badass wasn't really a word that had a place in her vocabulary- but it had a place in Birkhoff's.
She left the apartment 20 minutes to 8 and drove off in the flashy Kia that Whitfield had left for her. It was her first time driving it- all the other times she had relied on the dark green jeep or the motorcycle. New York was filled with so much traffic that unless the distance was worth it she walked.
She turned around the corner and really noticed what kind of area she was in. Dirty and unappreciated. It surely lacked funding and housed all kinds of people. Her home was only 15 or 20 minutes from Times Square by car but when you added in another 25 minutes or so to the other side, you ended up in a place you would never want to be. She passed the Duane Reed and noticed the lights didn't work. She knew that about 15 minutes away from the brothel, there would be a line of clubs where the whores would hook up with various suitors. Tacky.
Realizing that her car wouldn't be safe, she drove up to the club that looked the most prestigious with valet parking and all. Only in New York could you have such a packed and upbeat street on one side and a brothel on the other. Disgusting. She loved New York but at the same time- it housed some of the most monstrous people in the world.
She dropped her car off, paid an overpriced amount and left on foot to head toward the address that supposedly housed the whores.
She avoided people at all cost and stayed hidden- although she was in relatively business like attire; the clothing had a sultry side to it as well.
She went down the sloped concrete floor, which she assumed belonged to a empty garage.
An empty space, huh. Maybe I'm lost- not that I actually can be, I don't even know where I'm going.
And then she heard a drunken giggle.
The voice got louder and she heard the clicking of stilettos accompanied by a march. She finally saw the couple- a impossibly thin whore with dyed red hair and pale skin accompanied by a man who was obviously well off and enjoying the sight of a practically pre-pubescent girl in a dress that barely covered her.
Oh yeah, I'm definitely in the right place. Hmm… I wonder how much these girl's get paid.
Nikita stood the corner. The clearly drunk couple passed her without a second glance. They walked to the other side of the wall and banged on what seemed to be a barely visible door and were let in after a moment.
Clever- very clever.
She walked over to the other side where the two had been only a moment before and traced the door with her fingertips. The handle was inside and it had been given a paint job the same color as the wall so it would stay hidden.
It was a brilliant tactic to hide the brothel; she gave the Russian Mafia that.
But not clever enough to hide from me. Damn gangsters think they're so original but it's the same thing over and over again.
And so, after a few moments, Nikita knocked on the door, which opened to reveal an man who stood at least 6 and a half feet from the ground with hair the color of lemon zest due to all the hair gel he'd applied.
"What do you want?" His voice, heavy with a Russian accent bellowed across the empty garage.
"I'm here to see Vladimir Ivanov."
"Get lost."
"I have a meeting at 8. If I'm late, Volkov will be very disappointed."
It was a white lie but held enough weight to work. The guard looked her up and down and pushed the door open.
She followed him down the hallway, passing various girls in their 'cubicles' waiting for a client. She hated this place already and the smell drove her insane. Girls, starting from the age of 11 or 12 were lying down on their beds, passed out, overdosed and dazed.
"In there." The man knocked on the door and left.
"Vat? Who is this?"
"I request a meeting- I'm here on behalf of Volkov."
She heard rustling behind the door and shortly after, it opened. The man's salt and pepper hair was combed back; he had a fake tooth and smelled of drink. Just about as stereotypical as possible when it came to middle aged Russian men.
"Vlad, nice to meet you." He motioned inside and Nikita followed. "So vat can I help you with? I sent all profits over there should be no problems…"
"Oh there are no problems- for now, at least. I'm actually here in a more private inspection sort of way."
"Okay. How can I help you?"
"A few years ago Shurik Marinsky sold you a girl. She was 13 at the time. Her name was Alexandra. He told me she went by Sasha- where is she?"
Vlad, who until that moment hadn't really been paying attention sat up straight and looked over Nikita getting more suspicious. He hadn't received any notification. This hadn't ever happened or been authorized. How did she know about Sasha? Just who the hell was this bitch?
"Vat's it to you?"
"Like I said, just checking in."
"Get Volkov to call me- then we can talk."
"I can if I want but honestly, it's a simple question. Where is Alexandra?"
Ivanov ignored her then stood up and walked to the other side of the room and lit a cigarette. Nikita then noticed the dog he had in his room. A steel cage stood in the corner and the pit-bull was whimpering.
"Oh shut up, dog." He kicked the cage until the dog fell silent.
Oh, hell no.
"What did you just do!?"
"It's just a dog." He looked her over. "You're still young but eventually, you'll figure out that in this world very few people matter and animals certainly don't. You do what you want. Like the women here- they don't matter. No one knows them anyway so I just get them high and that's it. I make money off of them and whenever I want I can do anything I want to them. I even have an age selection to go off of now that younger ones came in last month and my older ones have aged."
Perhaps she should have been more patient.
Or perhaps it was a good thing that in less then a second after Vlad had said those words, Nikita had him pinned on the ground with a knife to him.
Her moral and values were different then the norm but they were a hell lot better then his. It was unacceptable to hurt living things or, to make money off others. That way of living was only for scum.
"My patience is running short. I'm going to ask you one last time, where is Alexandra?"
"Fuck off." Nikita saw that his left cheek bore a deep gash. Co symmetry looked nice on butterfly's- perhaps it would help this man out. Vlad tried to squirm his way out but Nikita had him pinned down. "Get off me you fucking bitch."
She struck.
His right cheek now bore a deep red gash identical to the one on his left.
"Let's play a game. Every time that you don't answer, I'll cut you up. Now, take two, where is she?" She inched the knife down to his throat and pressed it but this time without a cut. "Answer me."
"The whore ran away over a year ago. How the fuck should I know where she is."
She closed her switchblade and got off him. Vlad stood up and began to walk towards her when Nikita threw a punch that would knock him out for the next few hours.
She existed to fulfill only one purpose. Now, she had failed. She was lost.
Running a hand through her hair, she wandered around the office. Nothing. The pit bull whimpered again and she walked over. It backed away. Without anything else to do she opened the cage and set the dog free. It rubbed against her and ran.
It was then when she saw a random metal pipe on the side of the door. She pulled it off and went out hitting the pipe violently against the side of the door.
"I want everybody out! You're free, there's a woman's shelter up north of the Bright Lights Club get there now! Go!" She continued to bang the pipe until one of the edges flattened. "I want out! I'll set a bomb to clean this place if any more people stay, out! NOW!" With those words, the clients and the originally busy whores got up and ran as well. It was empty. There was nothing in this brothel for her. She walked out of the house and into the lot.
"Damn it Alexandra where are you?!" She kicked over a garbage bin yelling the words to herself again.
A thin girl stood on the other end of the door and watched Nikita carefully. She walked clumsily on her heels and staggered over to Nikita.
"Are you looking for Sasha?"