After half-carrying, half-leading Nikita to Medical, Birkhoff rushed to Ryan's office. The doctors would be able to handle the situation, and Sonya promised to stay with her until Michael could return- Nikita really shouldn't be alone. That left Birkhoff free to inform the others of the drastic turn of events. The killchip was deactivated, the second mole was dead, but they didn't quite have their victory. Something had to be taken away from the team just as everything was going their way. With their track record, it shouldn't have been surprising that it was something as powerful as their potential futures, "Ryan…"
"Is everything okay? Did deactivating the killchip not work? Did we not catch the mole in time?" Ryan instantly assumed those worst scenarios were why Birkhoff ran to him. He had been waiting on an update from Nikita. She had given Michael and Alex the green light to attack Amanda. She should've then rushed to inform Ryan of what was occurring and what they had to do next. She never returned to his office, however. Several minutes later, Birkhoff arrived instead. Something must've gone wrong. There was no reason to doubt it.
"No, the killchip's gone. Sonya's fine. And the other mole's dead. It was Baker," Shaking his head, Birkhoff quickly negated Ryan's fears. It was nothing like that. All the team's plans had worked; Amanda didn't have power over them anymore. Except, that wasn't the only thing to fear. The hacker kept picturing all the blood in Nikita's lap. He couldn't shake her terrifying lack of response from his mind. She was in incredible pain, but there were barely any tears. It was as though she had already accepted her dark fate. She was so broken, Birkhoff felt himself breaking too, "It's Nikki. She's miscarrying, and it's really bad."
"Is she in Medical?" Panic surged through Ryan once again. Relief had flooded his veins when he knew Sonya was safe. Her killchip couldn't control her any longer. Amanda had no power over her. Michael and Alex were perfectly clear to kill the bitch and end her reign of terror. Except, upon hearing that his friend had miscarried, his anxiety returned with full force. If Nikita didn't receive medical attention, she'd suffer a whole slew of complications. She needed care in all its forms. And, she needed support.
"Yeah. Sonya's with her, and she's going to stay with her. But we gotta tell Mikey," Doing his best to battle his own fears, Birkhoff circled around to why he had crashed into Ryan's office in the first place. The team in Division weren't the only ones who had to know what happened. Michael had to be made aware of the situation. He had to know about the miscarriage, about Nikita's pain, about the fact that the baby was gone. That shouldn't be kept from him. The horrible timing of it all could be damned.
Although Ryan agreed that Michael should know Nikita had miscarried, they couldn't afford to tell him then. He and Alex were on their way to kill Amanda. Their plans to raid her hideout already had to be changed; they were chasing her and Ann down the road. The two couldn't face any more surprises. Alex and Michael needed to stay on mission. All of Division's futures were riding on the operation. If it was successful, they were all free. The good of the many had to be placed above the needs of the few. Just for that instance anyway, "It'll have to wait for when he comes back. He was to stay on mission."
Incredulously, Birkhoff gawked at Ryan. A small part of him understood what he was getting at. But the more sensible part screamed how ridiculous it was. It'd be hours before Michael and Alex returned. That was too long. Michael shouldn't be kept in the dark for hours. Nikita was his wife and she was hurting. He had to know, "So Michael can just walk in here and discover for himself that Nikita has been in pain for hours? That she lost the baby? No. Absolutely not. Wouldn't you want to know right away if something happened to Max?"
"That's not fair," Ryan snapped. Of course he'd want to know if something happened to his son, Max. But he didn't have that luxury. To keep Max safe, he had to stay out of his life. It was the sacrifice Ryan knew he had to make for the greater good. Others made the same kinds of sacrifices. In that instance, Michael had to stay on task rather than know about his wife. That wasn't a great thing, yet it was a necessity. Those kinds of choices ruled Division's world, "Look. This mission is too important. Michael has to stay focused."
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Birkhoff couldn't hear anymore from Ryan. That was enough bullshit for one day. There was only a certain extent where the mission came first, and that definitely wasn't it; the amount of blood in Nikita's lap definitely wasn't it. Without looking back, Birkhoff stormed out of Ryan's office. The hacker wasn't stopped. He was free to grab his com and immediately call for Michael's attention. Although he didn't know what was happening out in the field, or how to delicately break the news, Birkhoff did it anyway, "Mikey! Mikey! Nikita… it's bad. It's really bad. She's having a miscarriage…"
"She lost the baby…" Besides an eventual and desperate request for transport back home, that was the last communication anyone heard from Michael. He received the news of the miscarriage, then went silent. Not even Alex said anything. Long minutes later, the two agents just demanded that they be given a way back to Division. Birkhoff obliged. He didn't press for more from them, especially from Michael. He simply helped them return home, then he moved to see what Nikita needed in Medical.
"Where is she?" Michael stormed into Ops. He should've debriefed. He should've explained what had happened. He and Alex weren't able to talk to their team as they traveled. Their thoughts were too jumbled, their coms were too staticky on the airplane, and patching up Alex's bloody arm more efficiently became a priority. It also honestly didn't occur to either of them to inform the others of the shit they had experienced. Again, they should've. But Alex was still reeling from her injury and from killing Ann. And Michael was too absorbed with what Birkhoff had told him. He couldn't think about anything besides his wife in pain and alone.
Once Michael and Alex arrived back in Division, the devastating result of their mission was unimportant. They didn't care about Amanda or the fact that she had slipped away once again. For once, it didn't matter that the bitch wasn't dead. There were far worse things to deal with. Alex needed actual Medical attention- she and a one-handed Michael could only do so much with a scarf and an emergency med-kit. She also needed a real chance to absorb what she had done. Michael, meanwhile, had to see his wife. He hadn't heard any updates on her condition. He had to see her; he had to know that she was alright.
However, before Alex and Michael could run off in different directions, Ryan was determined to know how terribly the mission went. He needed an explanation for Michael's missing prosthetic, Alex's injury, and why Amanda was still alive. The team had to debrief and review their choices just like they always did. The extenuating circumstances didn't factor in. Nikita was fine. She was safe in Medical. She didn't have to be a concern anymore. The only thing left to worry about was what had happened during the operation, "What happened?"
"Where's Nikita? Where's my wife?" Furiously, Michael demanded. He had half a mind to tear Division apart in order to find Nikita. The team couldn't tell him that his wife had miscarried, and expected him to continue on as though everything was normal. The hours that had passed as he traveled home meant nothing. She was still miscarrying. She was still in pain. She still needed him. Michael had to be by Nikita's side. Debriefing, Division, it could all be damned. Who cared about the mission anymore. Who could even care about Amanda.
"She's in Medical. Sonya stayed with her," Before Michael could completely lose his mind, Birkhoff told him where to find Nikita. He should've told him right as he entered Ops. He also should've led Alex to Medical. But a part of Birkhoff had expected Ryan to finally get over himself and be the person he always was. He thought his friend would step in and do everything he could to help the others; he thought he'd protect them. Instead, Ryan remained the bastardly leader. Only Division and the mission mattered, nothing more.
Ignoring the weighted looks between Ryan and Birkhoff, Michael scrambled to Medical. Alex followed; though, mostly to care for her knife wound. She'd check on Nikita after Michael had his chance to be with his wife. He burst into her room, frantically searching her over. Nikita was unconscious on the cot, dried tears and echoes of pain etched into her features. Hollowed out, Michael inched closer to her. He nearly ran over Sonya as he did, yet she didn't mind. She was on her way out, after she told him what had occurred, "They gave her medicine to help pass the fetus, and to calm her down. She eventually fell asleep. But she kept asking for you."
"Thank you," Michael somehow managed to thank Sonya. She nodded and squeezed his bicep as she left. Although he never took his eyes off his wife, Sonya knew how sincere Michael's gratitude was. He seemed so relieved knowing that someone had sat with Nikita while he was gone. She didn't have to go through all that pain and heartache alone. But she still had to suffer while her husband was thousands upon thousands of miles away. Guilty and heartbroken, Michael collapsed in the chair Sonya once occupied. Tears pooled in his eyes. He grabbed Nikita's hand fiercely and brought her knuckles to his lips.
"I'm so sorry, Love. I'm here now. I'm right here. I'm so sorry," As his tears finally fell, Michael blabbered. He had to let go of Nikita's hand in order to softly caress her flushed cheek. She stirred slightly under his touch, yet he had a feeling that she would stay asleep for a while. Her clothes were gone, replaced by a hospital gown and a blanket from their apartment. While Sonya sat with Nikita, someone else (possibly Birkhoff) removed her stained clothes and brought her comfort. Michael's tears fell faster. He clutched his wife's hand in his only one, sobbed quietly, and repeated how sorry he was for being gone.
As soon as he had the time to check his phone, Sean abandoned his duties at the base. He'd make up an excuse about a family emergency or whatever later. The text he read couldn't be ignored or pushed off for when he was done with work. Alex was hurt and needed him. Sean didn't know how bad it was. But that didn't matter. He just had to be at her side. Assuming she was in Medical, he raced straight there. Her injured arm had finally been expertly patched up. She was only resting for a moment on the chair. Relief surged through, at least for a second. Sean still panicked at the sight of Alex so hurt, "Alex! Alex! I got your message. What happened?"
"Where the fuck were you?" Alex leapt out of the chair and shoved at Sean. She had left him a text hours ago. She numbly, shakingly, and dazedly sent him a text as she and Michael boarded the jet to come home. There wasn't much to her words- just that she was injured, and the op had been blown- yet she had expected Sean to call immediately. She had expected her boyfriend to charge into the fray and try to save the day. What she got was a delayed response, however. She knew that wasn't his fault. She knew he had a duty to another team. But the fact that he wasn't there hurt more than her knife wound.
Baffled, Sean tried to catch up with Alex's thoughts. He could've sworn he saw tears simmering in her blue eyes. However, he didn't understand them in the slightest. She knew he had to be with his Seal Unit that week. She had accepted the news, only requesting that he stayed safe. She knew he couldn't be there for the team of former rogues on that mission. So why was she so upset. What happened while she was out in the field. How hurt did she get, "What? You knew where I was. I was on base. Now, what happened? Are you…"
"We needed you! We needed you to kill Amanda! To help us escape the grenade! To help Nikita! You were supposed to be with us! We needed you! I needed you!" Shoving Sean again, Alex interrupted with a screech. The tears she didn't believe she was going to shed slipped past her defenses. It was probably a result of her shock and trauma. Since her adrenaline had a moment to die down, she was left raw and entirely too emotional. If she slept and rested, she would be alright. However, Alex didn't want to be rational. She wanted to scream and cry and berate her boyfriend for not being there. She had needed him, and he was gone.
"I'm sorry. I'm here now," Although Sean still desperately wanted to know what went down on that mission, he realized Alex's rambling was the best he was going to get at the moment. He attempted to pull her into a hug. She pushed him once more. The action had less power than before. Her tears had zapped her strength. Her chin trembled and her shoulders shuttered. Gently, Sean attempted another embrace. That time, Alex crashed into his arms. He held her until the tears stopped. Then, he held her even tighter.