CHAPTER FIFTEEN - SOMETHING...
Nikita hasn't moved an inch when Michael returned inside the room. She is still transfixed in that zone in her brain that screams at her about how horrible she is. She clings to Michael's words that it was not her. She's not that person…but wasn't she?
Killer. She has always been a killer even before Division. There is no denying that. That's why she was in death row to begin with. That's how Division found her. Percy and Amanda only polished her, made her deadlier, but they didn't make her.
"Nikita, drink this while it's hot", Michael said gently.
She moved accordingly, silent, and blanked. He did not let go of the cup as she drinks, fearing she would drop it and burn herself. That would have been welcomed. The pain would surely take her mind off her messed up life. What keeps her together is Michael. She cannot do that. Whatever it is that's running inside her head, she cannot do that to Michael. They are each other's lifeline. If she gives up now, then, what will happen to him?
"How's Birkhoff?" she asked with a slight hesitation.
Suddenly, the thought of coming back to Division terrifies her. She would have to face everyone. The other agents may not have been aware of it but because of her their pardons are as good as nothing anymore. Birkhoff's dad is dead because of her. Alex's dad is dead because of her. Sean's mother is dead because of her. Ryan's mother thinks her son is dead because of her. How is she going to face everyone?
"Hey…stop that. Stop living inside your head. I am right here. This is real. This is our life. Birkhoff wanted to say he's sorry. He's not mad at you. He just came here to find answers. That's all. He doesn't blame you. You know him better than that", Michael said.
Of course, she does. Her acquired family is just as selfless and loving as she is. She still does not know what she did to ever deserve them but she's glad that she has them. She just wished that she doesn't keep on causing them problems at every turn.
"Do you think we will ever get past this? Whenever we think we survive something, another problem comes up. This is too big to sweep under the rug. I ruined everyone's chance at having a normal and free life. I put everyone in danger", she asked.
"We will…together…all of us. We will find a way to fix this and we will beat Amanda. You didn't ruin anything, Nikita. She did and we will get her", he assured her.
That's too big to promise but he seemed determined.
"When I killed the doubles, Amanda killed the real ones. It wouldn't change that President Spencer is dead, Michael", she argued.
"We're not certain of that, Nikita. You've only heard her kill the FBI Director. If there's anything these last few years had thought me, it's that nothing is set in stone. I've always thought my life would always be the handler, Percy's right hand man, always seeking to avenge my family, but all of that changed. You changed it. No one thought Percy would go down and you made it happen. This is just going to be one of those things. We will beat the impossible. You're no longer alone in this fight, Nikita. You've got all of us. Imagine what that can do, yeah?" he gave her that smile that has the power to take all of her pain away.
She found herself smiling too. Michael has that ability to make it all better despite knowing how hard the road is going to be. When they were on the run together, evading Division, and taking mission after mission to take down Percy, life seemed so hard that she wanted to give up sometimes but he was there. He's her rock. He kept her holding on to hope and they succeeded. Without him, she would've drowned. She already got the taste of what she's going to be without him. She doesn't want that to happen again.
"Together", she muttered and allowed him to comfort her.
The news of Birkhoff's father spread amongst the team like wildfire. They couldn't believe he managed to keep that secret from them for so long and yet they understood. Giving out that kind of information, if had fallen into the wrong hands, can be dangerous.
Owen paced himself when Birkhoff informed them of Nikita's panic attack. He got that Birkhoff was shocked and reacted but Owen is on and always will be on Nikita's side. Since the day he'd known her, she never had a panic attack even the odds were stacked against her. To heard what she'd gone through, he couldn't help but feel annoyed at Birkhoff.
"…but she only heard Amanda killed one man", they all turned to Alex who's in deep thought. "Who's to say she really did kill everyone else?" the girl asked.
"Amanda told Nikki that the real ones no longer have use. She just needed them for their DNA", Birkhoff argued.
Sean shook his head in disagreement.
"If she only needs them for that, she wouldn't keep the FBI Director alive for that long. She needs them more than just their DNA. The Shop can easily obtain those even without abducting those people. I mean, think about it. Those people had worked in important positions in the government for years. Even if they crafted the perfect doubles, they wouldn't know the government's secrets on their own. They need the originals to tell them that", he pondered on.
That all made sense. No one knew how long the FBI Director had been cloned. Amanda and The Shop had kept the real one alive until Nikita targeted his double. There's not much to dig with the FBI. He became a loss they can afford to probably discourage Nikita but they miscalculated. Amanda messed up Nikita's brain quite well and they didn't expect the way she retaliated.
Nikita has always been that one variable no one can control. Amanda thought she could. The Shop thought that Amanda could. They were wrong. Nikita has always been unpredictable. No one predicted that she would turn her attention to Amanda herself and the Shop's business.
"You're right. Getting DNA sample is nothing. There would be no need for them to keep the real ones alive. They're there for information", Owen agreed.
Alex's face lit up.
"So, that might mean Birkhoff's father is still alive and so is President Spencer", she mused.
Birkhoff heard the idea that his father might still be alive but what had sunk in was the possibility that maybe the president is still alive. If President Spencer is still out there, Nikita's name will be cleared. Their pardons are still in the horizon. No marines will come bursting through their door.
"We need to find the evil witch's lair", he concluded.
That's how Michael had found them the next day—all huddled on their respective corners scouring everything that would tell them where to find Amanda and the Shop. They were all so into it that they didn't even notice Michael came inside the room.
"What's up?" he broke their focus.
Sean was the first one to glance at him.
"Where using Shadownet to find the Shop or Amanda. We think the president and the others might still be alive", he said.
Michael frowned. Nikita told him that Amanda had killed the FBI Director when she killed his double.
"What are you talking about?"
"We think they're keeping the real ones alive for information. They didn't need to kidnap them nor keep them alive for that long if it's just their DNA. They could've killed them sooner, but they didn't. That's because they need them for more than just their DNA", Alex explained.
That is a good point and the kind of development they needed. The kind Nikita needed. Hope.
"I need to tell Nikita", he croaked out.
"Whoa! Mikey, hold up. We're not yet certain that this hypothesis will pan out. Do you think it would be ideal to let Nikki know about it now?" Birkhoff asked.
Michael sighed.
"She needs…something, Birkhoff. She needs something now. Nikita is not good at waiting. She's never been good at waiting", he answered.
She needs to do something, to have something to focus on. Otherwise, she will drift away and be consumed by her dark thoughts that would eat her alive.
"Go. We'll prepare everything to present to her later. We'll even make a presentation", Alex encouraged.
Michael returned with Nikita twenty minutes later. Nikita looked confused to find herself at the briefing room. It's been made clear that she's not to take another mission until the mess is sorted but Michael insisted that she needs to be back in Division and so she came along with her.
Alex hugged her first before Owen when she walked into the room. They all missed her. Division felt incomplete without her. The family felt incomplete without her.
"Welcome back, Nikita", Ryan greeted before pulling her into his arms.
"Thank you but I am lost here, Ryan. I thought I am benched for the meantime. What am I doing here?" she asked.
Ryan gestured towards the screen. Alex, Birkhoff, Sean, and Owen had actually prepared a presentation for her about their theory. Nikita listened intently, digesting every bit of information they're throwing her way. At first, it's a reach. Then, the more they explained why they came up with that idea, the more it made sense to her. They're right. Why keep those people alive? It would've been more prudent to just kill them off, but Amanda had kept the FBI Director around.
"Nerd, what exactly does your father do at NSA?" Nikita asked.
"He's a Chief Strategy Officer at the Cyber Crime Unit", he answered.
"Is he good with computers?" she followed up.
"Seriously?"
"Is he as good as you?" she clarified.
That made Birkhoff think. "Possibly",
"So, he has his use to Amanda and the Shop", that made Birkhoff sighed in relief. There is a fat chance that he could still be alive. "I found the list at MDK office in New York. Can you locate all of their offices?" Nikita instructed.
Owen smirked. Nikita hasn't been back for more than an hour and she's already bossing them like she hadn't left. It feels good to see her take charge again. He and Michael looked at each other and nodded at each other. He was right. Nikita needed something to focus her energy on instead of letting her wallow. This is her field.
"Done…and there's a lot", Birkhoff said.
They looked at the screen and saw all of MDK offices throughout the world.
"Does any of them shows any unusual signs, anything out of the ordinary or different from the rest of their branches like drawing more power than the rest, radiation or anything?" Ryan asked, his brilliant mind at work.
Ryan is the best analyst Nikita has ever met, any of them has ever met. When he got that serious face on, those eyes that seemed to have wandered far from their reach…Birkhoff has dubbed it as the crazy but they know Ryan is in the zone when he's like that. How else a low-level CIA analyst figured out about Division when no one else does?
"There…it's in Dubai. It's drawing…way too much power than the rest of their companies. They're taking most of the power supply from the city and has its own generators", Birkhoff answered.
Eyes turned to Nikita, waiting for her to make the decision. It's just like old times. She may not claim to be their leader but everyone knows she is, even Ryan. She's someone no one wants to cross and everyone wants to follow.
"It looks like we're going to Dubai then", she muttered.
Michael smirked at her regained confidence. There's that feisty woman that broke down every single wall he built over the years.
"You heard the boss. Gear up. We're going to end this once and for all", Michael declared and everyone moved into action.
