NINA KOVALEV
"Trust yourself, then you will know how to live." -Johann Wolfgang van Goethe
Author note: This may be my last chapter for some time. I have a semi-cross country move coming along that will lead me to a job that's going to be taking a lot of my physical and mental energy, at least at first. I hate to do this at this point since we're getting to a critical part of the story, but I want to be able to do it justice, so it's on pause for now.
Los Angeles, CA (Elysium)
Did Milo Rambaldi just say what he thinks he said?
Jack Bristow, clutching the baseball bat in his hands as tight as he would Irina Derevko's thin neck right now, gives Rambaldi a look of disgust at the remote prospect of Irina staying at Jack's house. He's literally speechless right now.
Irina takes notice of that and, remaining calm, pleads her case. "Jack, I'm only here because I'm in danger..."
Jack cuts her off. "And I'm supposed to feel sorry for you and open my home up as some sort of shelter? Have you gone mad in the past five years?"
Nadia Falk, standing behind Jack to the right, comes up to Jack and puts a hand on his arm. "Dad..."
Jack looks down at Nadia with anger all over his face. He'd like to believe that Nadia would know better than to trust Irina, but he remembers all to well how Nadia felt about her mother before Sovogda and knows all to well about Nadia's weakness for family.
As Jack pulls his arm away from Nadia, Irina takes the time to smile at her daughter. "Hello, Nadia. How are you?"
Nadia gives out a cautious "Good." That's all she can muster at the moment, as she feels really out of place right now with Krakatoa ready to explode in front of her.
Irina turns to Julieta, who also looks lost. She loses her smile and looks humbled to see Julieta. "I'm glad to see you well again. I apologize for what happened to you. I wanted to make sure you and the kids were safe and I didn't live up to my word. I'm sorry."
Julieta looks down at the ground timidly, her usual move when she's unsure. "It wasn't your fault..." She doesn't see Jack giving her a perturbed look. It's clear to him that Julieta has some sort of bond with Irina, and he doesn't like that one bit. Julieta decides to say no more.
Rambaldi reasons with Jack, trying to steer the conversation back on track. "She can explain why she's here better than I can. But I can say it has suddenly become necessary to shelter Miss Derevko for the time being."
Jack turns to Rambaldi and snaps "There are MILLIONS of vacant homes in this realm. The fact that Irina has specifically chosen me is a calculated act on her part for...I don't even know what! Maybe she's leading Sloane and Elena here..."
Now it's Irina's turn to cut him off. "The last visual I have of my sister is her pointing a gun at my head. And the last visual I have of Sloane is him throwing your paternity test in a million pieces in my face."
Nadia gasps and exclaims "You told him?"
"I wanted to reveal that to him at a more opportune time, but I knew our dealings were coming to an end. I wanted him to know the truth before we concluded our business."
And now Jack is truly pissed. He was aware of the deal Irina struck to stay in Elysium in exchange for her intel on The Nine, but now, she's saying The Nine is over!
With his teeth literally grinding right now, he winds up to knock Irina's head off.
Nadia immediately bearhugs Jack and tries to tackle the much larger man, but this does little except delay Jack a little. As Irina steps back cautiously, Jack still tries to take a swing...
...and is stopped when Alec Derevko teleports to him and grabs the bat with both hands in mid-swing. Alec coldly tells Jack "I'd advise you end your aggression at this time."
With his teeth still grinding, Jack asks "What in the hell is this? You hate Irina! Is this some sort of double-cross?"
Alec doesn't respond because he's not exactly ready to defend Irina's honor yet.
So Rambaldi responds for him. "We still feel that Irina is an asset for us, and as a condition of her agreement with us, she asked to stay with you if she felt her life was in danger."
Jack drops the bat, allowing Alec to take it away. He steps up to Irina and the two have a staredown, with Jack incensed and Irina her usual calm self. Jack is trying to figure Irina out, something that he'd just hate to admit is his Achilles Heel.
Irina, on the other hand, knows the effect she has on Jack, how she gets under his skin and works her way up and through his psyche. She knows better than to match Jack's fire right now. Her silence is having its desired effect.
Jack then turns over to Rambaldi. "Milo, you know all too well what I have been through with this woman."
Rambaldi nods in agreement. "I do. That is why I am leaving Alec here to keep an eye on Irina. I am not foolish enough to ignore the fact that Irina needs more than one set of eyes on her."
Jack keeps staring at Rambaldi for a few seconds after that, his eyes furrowed and narrow in anger. He takes a deep breath, then turns back to Alec, who has since set the bat down on the couch. "You approve of this?"
Alec, whose stone-faced scowl could be interpreted as a neutral look for him, replies flatly "I follow orders from Rambaldi. I like this no more than you do."
At this point, Jack turns back to Nadia and a scared-silent Julieta Romero. "I think you two should leave now."
Nadia pleads "Dad, I can help..."
Jack growls "I need to deal with this on my own."
Julieta steps out of the kitchen and goes towards Jack. "Jack, I know what I say may not matter much, but if it's any help, I was not treated badly by Irina when I was in captivity."
Jack forms a generally disapproving look on his face. He doesn't want to hear that Irina did good for someone, especially a woman she helped abduct.
Nadia puts a hand on Julieta's shoulder. Jack's not in the mood for reassurance. "Julieta..."
Julieta looks down at Nadia and shakes her head. "No, please." Julieta then looks back up at Jack, feeling determined to get her point across. "Irina went out of her way to make sure me and the kids were taken care of. She wanted to make sure we were safe!"
Jack snarls "You don't know this woman."
"No, Jack. I believe I do. I've been raped, tortured, and abused...I've seen the worst and endured the worst in people. Because of that, I can see the good and bad in people. I know what Irina did in her life and all, but..." Julieta than looks over at Irina, whose calm expression hasn't changed one bit. "...I really believe that Irina isn't a bad person in her heart. Mitch was a bad person...he was pure evil." Julieta then looks down at the ground timidly. "But a bad person doesn't go to Rome to get an orphan mother and her kids the best lasagna you can get from Rome."
Julieta looks back up at Jack, whose hard exterior hasn't cracked one bit on the surface. Julieta suddenly feels a little afraid that she overstepped her boundaries and looks over at Nadia. "Ok, let's go now."
Nadia nods. She knows that she's no help here. This is between Jack and Irina, and she knows she can't be a voice of reason when she has so many feelings towards both parents that she's still trying to understand. So, she holds on to Julieta's hand and they both teleport away without saying another word.
Silence takes control of the room for a few moments. Jack digests what Julieta had to say. The rest await to see what Jack will do. Even though Jack's harder to read than Latin, there's a sense with Irina that Julieta's words did have an effect on him. If he doesn't like what he heard, he'd have dismissed it right away.
After looking at the void left by Julieta, Jack turns to Irina, and for the first time doesn't sound hostile. "Is that true?"
Irina squints her eyes, confused by the question. "Is what true?"
"You went to Rome to get them lasagna?"
Irina lets out a relieved chuckle. "I had an informant that ran a restaurant in Rome. He wasn't a major informant...just a seeing eye really. He served some of my rivals and would feed me information on their whereabouts. He did make a fine lasagna...I was sad when he died in the 80s and I hoped he would have made the journey to Elysium." Irina turns to Rambaldi. "Thank you for letting him in."
Rambaldi curiously asks "What is the name of this chef you speak of?"
"Santino Corralluzo."
Rambaldi thinks for a bit, then says "The name is vaguely familiar. Where is his restaurant located?"
Before Irina can respond, Jack snarls "Excuse me." Rambaldi and Irina stop their conversation immediately and turn to Jack. "I really don't care about Italian cooks right now. What I care about is Irina living in my house!"
Rambaldi kindly asks "May we have a seat? I believe there are some ground rules to discuss."
"Fine." Jack then points to the couch and heads for a lounge chair across from the couch. Alec, Irina, and Rambaldi, from left to right, sit on the couch.
Rambaldi starts off. "As I stated before, as long as Irina is here, so will Alec Derevko. This is to ensure Irina's compliance with our agreement."
Jack turns to Irina. "And you agreed to this?"
Irina shrugs. "It was a necessary concession on my part."
Jack gives Irina a small, sarcastic smirk. "You do realize that Alec Derevko is not your average fool."
"I know."
"And you certainly know that there is no way I'm going to let you get the best of me, either."
Irina hesitates, digesting the 'best of me' part. She smirks and wants to say something, but instead goes the safer route. "I know that as well."
"Good. And you will no longer hide behind a cellphone and Mary Falk. You need to tell me what you know about your organization right now."
"And if I don't?"
"Then I'll kill you."
Irina lets out a wry smile. "Oh Jack...I'd laugh if I didn't think you'd live up to those words. You've killed me twice now...remember?"
"Do you?"
"How can I forget?"
"Did you forget why I killed you the last time?"
"No, I haven't forgotten."
"I hope my face and Sydney's face have haunted you in the past five years."
"Sydney's, yes. As for you, when I remember your face, I remember the face of the man that did me the biggest favor of my life."
That one came out of left field for Jack. "What did you say?"
"One question at a time. You wanted to know what's going on with Sloane, Elena, and Kelly Peyton. Let's address that first."
"I'm waiting."
"My meeting today with Sloane and Elena collapsed. Our alliance is effectively over."
"I knew it."
"How could you have known what happened in Sovogda earlier today?"
"Not that. I knew you'd betray us, and now you're opening your parachute and hoping to glide to safety."
"I am looking for safety, yes, but that doesn't mean I can't be of use to you."
Jack leans back and folds his arms. "Go on. This should be good."
"I had a feeling from the moment Sloane failed with the Elysian Council that something else was at work here. Sloane was never fully committed to our mission after that failure. Elena and I were, but I also sensed that Elena had a contingency in place."
"And let me guess: they suspected you were working on something as well."
Irina pauses for a moment, then shakes her head. "Not Sloane. He just saw me as a screw-up. Sydney played him for years...imagine what I can do. As for Elena...maybe. But I believe having them blame me for the failure was a cheap copout."
"It doesn't seem like Sloane to not have a contingency when a plan of his fails."
"That's why I believe that, beyond the Elysian Council and beyond luring in Tom and Nadia with Julieta and the kids, he only had one real goal in mind."
"And what was that?"
"He wants to be left alone after causing some chaos. He's seen nothing but ice and my and Elena's faces for the past five years. This is a change of scenery for him. This may have been his wish all along."
"And what of Elena?"
"I can't get a read on her. I never really could read her even when I was growing up. Katya wasn't all that hard to read once you got past her little smirk, but Elena has so many layers to her." Irina hangs her head somewhat. "She's an agent of chaos, so she could still be a problem."
Jack doesn't say it, but what Irina is saying is making a whole lot of sense. "And what of Kelly? You haven't mentioned her yet."
Irina looks back up. "That's because I have absolutely no idea where she is. She disappeared before Tom Falk and the True Irish incinerated the cartel. She's a wild card right now."
Alec asks Irina "Do you have any possible locations for her? Any hideouts?"
Irina shakes her head. "I'm afraid not."
Alec snaps "But you worked with her before!"
Something about Alec makes Irina break her cool. "She kept to herself and only met with me on my terms!"
Alec turns away from Irina and slowly shakes his head. Out of the corner of his left eye, he looks back at Jack as if to ask permission for him to kill her right here and now. After all...that's what Alec is REALLY here for. Laurent L'Andre told him as such when Irina made the proposal. If Irina slips up, she's dead.
Jack leans forward. "You know where Sloane and Elena hide out, right?"
Irina thinks for a bit, purses her lips in thought, then nods. "I know a few of Sloane's places from our temporary alliance towards the end. Elena...I may have an idea where she's hiding out already."
"Where?"
"I don't want to say it and then have you accuse me of lying later."
"I'll listen to a hunch as long as it's nothing more than that."
"I have to check for myself, but she may be back at the old family home in Russia."
Alec turns back to Irina. "What makes you say that?"
Irina turns to Alec. "When she grew up, she always kept bragging about how she was going to run the house when she grew up. Of the three of us sisters, she had the most attachment to home." Irina then turns back to Jack. "I will help you locate Sloane and Elena as best I can. I understand Tom is looking for addresses."
"He is. He's blowing up any place that might be shelter to them."
Irina rolls her eyes. "He sounds like my father. If there was a mole in our yard, he'd destroy every molehill until he found the mole."
Rambaldi asks "You don't think Tom's plan is a wise one?"
"I didn't say that...he may find something after all."
Jack points out "He also can't die. He's the ideal person to do such checks."
"Makes sense. But Tom's campaign could force them to hide even deeper. That's why I'm here, because we need to do our own investigating, and we need to get started right away before they completely go off the grid. I'd like to check on the old Derevko home on my own..."
Jack tersely says "Absolutely not."
Alec quickly says "I'll go with her."
Irina puts him in his place. "No! This has to be me and me alone. Elena is cunning...more so than I am even. I don't want an extra body she can discover."
"You forget who you are talking to."
"It's too much of a risk."
"I don't take orders from treacherous dogs like you!"
Rambaldi grabs Alec's robe from behind Irina and gives him a yank towards him. "But you do take orders from me. She is right, she must go alone."
Jack suddenly stands up. "I will be right back. I may have a solution to this problem." Jack storms down the hallway into his office. He starts going through the drawers of his desk, looking for something.
However, he'd be interrputed by Alec Derevko, who apparently followed Jack in. As Alec closes the door behind him, he asks "May I have a word with you?"
Jack keeps rummaging through the desk, but talks to Alec anyway. "You're not going to screw me over, are you? I'm finding it harder and harder to trust a Derevko."
"You have my word that I am on your side. I can never trust that woman no matter what she does."
Jack pauses for a bit. Alec's about as blunt as a sledgehammer, so he's not the lying type. Jack then goes back to rummaging. "Good. So, what do you want?"
"Do you understand why I am here?"
"To keep an eye on Irina."
Suddenly, Alec unsheathes a hidden blade in his right wrist. The clack of the blade causes Jack to stop for a moment and turn suspiciously towards Alec. Alec coldly replies "To kill her if she even deviates from her agreement in the slightest. I assure you, Jack, you will be protected."
Jack turns back to another desk drawer and starts rummaging through it. "I have no doubt of that."
"Then, what are you doing?"
Jack doesn't respond until he pulls out a metal box five seconds later. He sets the box on the desk and opens the top latch. He then pulls out a syringe that is in the box. As Alec watches the needle with wonder, Jack looks back at Alec. "I may end up killing her before you can."
Before Alec can respond, Jack walks to the door, flings the door open, walks out of the room and back into the living room.
Rambaldi notices the syringe right away. "What is that, Jack?"
Jack ignores Rambaldi and looks Irina dead in the eyes. "Stand up." Irina does as instructed, but can't help but be curious about the syringe, which Jack holds up. "This is a tracking device. Once it is implanted, it is linked to my computer. Before I retired from the CIA, Marshall Flinkmann gave me this for a mission. I never had to use it, and for some reason it carried over into Elysium. I've tested it and it still works." Jack then walks up and stands about a foot away from Irina's face. "If you are going to live in my home, I'm going to need more than an angry assassin on my side. You will be implanted with this tracking device or you can get the hell out of here. Is that perfectly clear?"
Irina just shrugs, appearing defiant over the threat of the tracking device. "That's fine. Where are you going to inject me?"
Jack replies "The back of your neck. Turn around."
At this point, Irina gives Jack a downright seductive smile. She slowly turns around. Then, she grabs her long brown hair and lifts it up, exposing the back of her neck.
Then, she waits.
After a few seconds, Irina hasn't detected any noticeable movement from Jack. So, she turns around and seductively asks "Getting any ideas, Jack?"
Jack stares at her with a look of repulsion. However, she is right. Jack is getting an idea.
One of Jack's favorite moves when he and Irina were married was to sneak up behind her when her back was turned, assuming she didn't know he was there. He would slowly part the back of Irina's hair, lean over, and give Irina a few warm, tender kisses on the back of the neck. Something about Irina's neck seemed so inviting to Jack, perhaps the fact that Irina always played it up like she enjoyed it a lot. Could have been because she actually did or she was just playing with him. Jack's not quite sure.
What Jack didn't truly know is that Irina truely did enjoy those kisses on the back of her neck. She loved everything about Jack back then, including the way he loved her. And the back of Irina's neck was often the trigger to some, well, enjoyable moments that would follow.
Now, Irina's just being coy with Jack and believes that he wouldn't really consider rekinding an old romantic habit of theirs...although she does like the thought of it. She never lost the warm spot in her heart for Jack, even if Jack's warm spot for her iced over years ago.
But what she doesn't know is that, deep down in Jack's angry, distant heart, Jack is remembering the intimate moments he'd have with Irina. He's remembering how he felt around Irina when he loved her.
When he loved her.
Jack snaps out of it, like he was in a trance. In a quick motion, he puts a hand on Irina's left shoulder and, with his right hand, injects Irina with the tracking device into the back of her neck. Irina doesn't even flinch, but can't help but feel a little disappointed that Jack had no apparent response to Irina's playful act of seduction. She didn't see him snap out of the trance, having turned her head already.
She didn't know that a seed was successfully planted in Jack's psyche.
Jack then quickly turns Irina around and looks her deep in the eyes. "You sleep in the front bedroom. There are two twin beds there. You get one, Alec gets the other. You sleep when I sleep. You wake when I wake. You eat when I eat. And if you try to sneak out on me, I will kill you myself. Because if you try to fuck me over, that tracking device in your neck becomes an explosive. And only I..." Jack flashes Alec a sneer. "...control the button that sets it off."
Irina notes how fiery he seems right now. That much she can read. What she can't see is the very faint beginnings of an internal struggle that is taking place in Jack.
San Felipe, Mexico (Elysium, the next day)
Nadia Falk, Julieta Romero, and Jack Bristow are at the orphanage today, on the first day of the new adoption drive that the Elysian Council approved and Nadia and Jack helped fine-tune.
Meanwhile, Mary and Tom Falk are at Tom and Nadia's home, watching over Emilio and Maria. The kids are in Emilio's room playing a game while Tom and Mary are having a chat on the couch.
Tom's been scouting with Owen Schroeder and the True Irish, trying to find places that Sloane and Elena could be hiding out at.
A curious Mary asks with a bit of nervousness "How has your scouting gone?" Mary knows that Tom's been tense since his encounter with the cartel a few days ago. The fire in his belly is definitely back.
Tom grunts. "Not so good. The only place I know Elena could have hid out at is the orphanage in Buenos Aires. The building is vacant and, quite frankly, disgusting. I know Elena's great at adapting, but even that cold-hearted bitch has some standards."
Mary shakes her head dismayed. "I really don't know where she could be hiding either."
Tom looks over at Mary. "You knew that Elena and her minions were scouting me during my days in the Anti-Cartel. You never tracked any of them back to any of Elena's hiding places?"
Mary sighs and looks down. "No. She actually conducted her business entirely out of the orphanage. There was a room that was always locked and the kids could never go into. She had everything she needed in that room. When she traveled, she had aliases and stayed in hotels, hiding in plain sight." She then looks back up at Tom. "Ok, so what about Sloane?"
"Oh, his place in Los Angeles is still there. Still turns my stomach when I think about what happened in there." Tom goes silent, recalling that was where Nadia and Maria, the two most cherished and important things in his life, were murdered by Sloane in that very house. In a deeper timber, Tom says "That's the first place I destroy. No one's living there. No one will miss it. Owen and the True Irish are going over the plans on how to level that damn mansion."
"Why are they planning without you?"
"You don't send a stone mason in to build cabinets in a home. You don't send a plumber to do landscaping. And you sure as hell don't send me to wire a house for explosion." Tom looks back at his mother. "In a team, you let your teammates do what they're best at. They play their role, and I'll play mine. I can't die and I'll have my little friend Justine with me."
Mary sarcastically says "So you're just going to be a grunt, walking around with your little axe while the big boys do all the work?"
Tom stares at her blankly, then tries to hide his smirk as he shakes his head and turns away. His mother can time her sarcastic wit with the best of them. "Mom, you can be so ridiculous sometimes." Tom finishes with a laugh, which causes Mary to return with a couple laughs of her own.
Mary replies "Well, someone has to keep my son's ego in check."
"I have my wife for that."
Mary looks around and, with sarcasm all over her voice, says "Huh, I don't see her right now. That's weird. Guess I'll have to fill in for your wife."
Tom gives his mother a sardonic look. Then, he gets serious as he recalls something. "Speaking of Nadia, something I've been thinking about since Rambaldi told me Nadia's blood helped me survive Project Alloy."
Now serious, Mary asks "What is it?"
"You had to tell Nadia that she had The Lifeforce when I took a bullet in my neck and croaked. There was no written documentation of her or me having this ability, just 'anomalies' in our blood. Elena had to have been tipped off somehow. Did you have anything to do with that?"
Mary gasps and forms a disgusted look on her face. "Tom! That's ridiculous! I couldn't do that to you! I didn't know how to communicate with you at that point and that whole situation turned my stomach inside-out! I would have tried to tell you to not go on that mission, not encourage Elena to cut my son open!"
Tom studies her face for a bit. He believes her. One of Mary's weaknesses as an agent is that she sometimes has trouble hiding her emotions, especially if she feels she's been wrongly accused. It's a glitch Tom has as well, but he can sometimes cover his emotions with sarcasm and that wry smirk that is his trademark. Mary never learned how to do that, at least not very well anyway.
The door knocks behind them, breaking Tom's thoughts.
Tom immediately gets up and mutters "Who the hell could that be?"
Mary gives him a slap on the leg as she remains seated on the couch, unconcerned with the door. "Oh Tom, I told you your grandparents could be coming over."
As Tom walks to the door, Maria comes running out. "Are Great Grammy and Grampy are coming, Gramma?"
"Maybe!"
Tom gets to the door and opens it.
It's not Edward and Violet, the cute old couple. It's Alec and Irina, the blood relatives with bad blood.
Unlike last night, Tom doesn't have a weapon in his hand to rear at Irina. But he doesn't look any happier to see Irina than Jack did. "What the effing hell are you doing here? You're supposed to be under house arrest!"
Irina gives Tom a funny look. "House arrest? Is that was Jack is calling it?"
"No, but someone being held under constant watch within the confines of a hostile home...qualifies as captivity, come to think of it. Is this the part where I feel sorry for you?"
"No sympathy needed."
By now, Mary has gotten to the door to stand next to Tom. "Irina! You're not supposed to leave Jack's without..."
Alec cuts her off. "...without Jack's permission. She got permission. She has not left my sight, nor will she now."
Mary asks "This isn't her first stop?"
Irina cracks a small smile. "I had to see my daughter and Jack in action at their adoption drive. It seems to be going well so far."
Tom snarks "I hope that isn't your way of being sarcastic."
"Quite the contrary. I only had a few moments to talk to your wife before she had to get back to assisting interested parents."
Mary raises her eyebrows. She's always felt protective of Nadia, dating back to her quest to save Nadia from the Soviets before she died doing just that. "What did you talk to her about, Irina?"
"It's between us girls. We both would rather keep it that way."
Tom shakes his head slowly. "I don't like this."
Irina turns to Tom curiously. "There's nothing sinister going on here. Just some ice to break between a mother and daughter."
At this point, little Maria squeezes between Tom and Mary, asking "Who is it?" She looks up and sees it's Irina. For the first time since Irina held her captive, Maria is locking eyes with Irina. She doesn't look scared, nor overly giddy to see Irina. Just curious.
She has no idea she's locking eyes with her other grandmother.
Tom looks down and worriedly tells Maria "Hey, go back to your room..."
Maria shakes her head quickly. "I want to see Irina!"
Tom and Mary are both worried about how this encounter will go. After Maria was returned to Tom, she actually stuck up for Irina, saying she was treated nicely by her.
Irina is worried as well as she studies the 5 year old black-haired child. Sometimes it can be hard to predict how a girl that age will react. Yes, Maria did appear to like her, but as time goes on, has the gravity of the situation deluded Maria's judgment of her?
Maria is also studying Irina, going through her own processes. Finally, she comes to one simple conclusion. "Does it hurt?"
Irina gives her a funny look. "Does what hurt?"
"Your scars! Do they hurt you?"
Irina feels her right cheek, where her frostbite scars from her time in the frozen Cocytus Lake in Hell still crease her face. She forgets she even has them from a time to time. Irina shakes her head a little solemnly. "No. Guess they look kind of ugly, huh?"
Maria forms a kind smile and says "You need a hug!" And with that, Maria steps forward and hugs Irina around the legs. An astonished Irina looks up at an equally astonished Tom and Mary, then back down at Maria. She returns the hug.
Mary's first reaction is to look back at Tom, who doesn't look pleased to see his daughter hugging the notorious Irina Derevko over her affliction.
That's because he isn't. Tom has managed to change Nadia's and Julieta's of her in addition to the kids apparently, and now she's trying to change the stubborn Jack Bristow. Irina's just got a way about her, a certain kind of warmth, that can deceive people into trusting her. The question with Irina is whether you can truly trust her. And that's still a gigantic question.
For Tom, Irina has done no wrong to him. She lived up to her word in Sovogda, she played her role in Brussels, and she even gave the OK for Tom to marry Nadia when Sloane was unavailable. Irina's never treated Tom unfairly. But she has stabbed more backs than the people who stabbed Julius Caesar combined, and she did have Sydney, her own daughter, dead to rights in Brussels.
And yet, she didn't pull the trigger. Nadia's convinced Irina wouldn't have pulled the trigger. Tom's not so sure. Mary thinks she agrees, but still has some doubt and doesn't want to drop her guard.
Suddenly, Emilio comes running from the bedroom and spots Irina. He waves at Irina and says "Hi!"
As Maria lets go of her, Irina smiles at Emilio. "Hello. How are you liking your new home?"
Emilio smiles a toothy grin that is still missing a couple baby teeth that have fallen out. "Good! Did you bring lasagna?"
Irina shakes her head. "I'm afraid I didn't. Maybe next time." Emilio groans a little and hangs his head.
Tom gives her a bit of a sneer at the 'next time' idea. He then looks at the kids. "Ok, go to your rooms. Irina and Gramma need to talk."
Maria starts walking away, but still stretches her arm out behind her to wave "Bye!" at Irina.
When the kids disappear, Tom turns back to Irina. "You may have my wife fooled, you may have my kids fooled, but don't think me and my mother are going to be as easy."
Irina shrugs non-nonchalantly. Even as she looks at him now, Tom resembles a bulldog to her. He's stocky like a bulldog, with wide shoulders and a sturdy body. But he's also got the snarl and attitude of a bulldog: fierce to his enemies, loyal to the death with his friends. And like a bulldog, this is a predictable response from Tom. "I understand. But I didn't come here to talk to Mary. I wanted to talk to you."
Tom and Mary exchange glances. Both have the same thing on their minds. Tom turns back to Irina and asks "About what?"
"I'd rather that stay between us. Can we go somewhere private?"
Alec puts an hand on Irina's shoulder. "You go nowhere without me."
Tom holds up a hand. "Hang on. Me and Irina can go out to the back porch and you can observe from the other side of the patio door." Tom then turns his attention to Irina again. "Our conversation stays private, and Alec can jump your ass if shit hits the fan. Don't forget about the other assassins here as well."
Irina chuckles. More predictability. Plus, there's the fact that her head turns into soup if she tries to teleport away, thanks to Jack's explosive tracking device in her neck. "I haven't forgotten about them." Irina turns to Alec. "Is that fine with you?"
Alec gives Irina a scowl, then turns back to Tom. "Fine."
Mary asks "What about me?"
Tom turns to Mary. "Make sure the kids don't break anything." Tom then turns to head to the patio as Mary throws up her arms, pissed about her lack of a role in this. After all, Mary hasn't forgotten that it was her that opened the door to Irina's supposed retribution quest.
Out on the patio, Tom sits at the head of the table, with Irina off to her left. Inside the patio door, Alec's piercing eyes keep watch on Irina, like he's got nothing else in the world to worry about except for the whereabouts of Irina Derevko. To a normal person, this would give him or her the willies. To Irina, it's just another day.
Tom holds out his arms impatiently. "Well, you called me out here. What do you want?"
Irina just keeps a cool smile on her face. "How are you and Nadia doing?"
Tom shrugs dumbfoundedly. "Fine. Why?"
"Just curious. You know, your mother is a very good storyteller. When she would give me updates on you two, I thought I was listening to a fairy tale. I guess I should thank you for giving Nadia that kind of love."
Tom's not buying this nice act for one second. "Yeah, sure."
"Your mother said there was a change in Nadia when Elena injected her with The Connection. Suddenly, she went from just wanting to hide at the orphanage to wanting out anyway she could. Mary thinks that's why she ran away, not just because of the rapist beating her. That was her escape."
"Is there a point to this?"
"Did you feel the same way after Elena snuck up and injected you after that party?"
Tom can't help but laugh a little. That was the night a bunch of his friends played a prank on him. After he passed out on the couch, his friends took him, still lying on the couch, out into the woods. That's also where Elena finally was able to inject him with The Connection. "You know, it's interesting. It was right after that party where I really started angling to get out of little ol' Bunker. I felt there was something out there for me. I didn't know what it was, but this drive in me to find whatever it was I was looking for consumed me. I never knew it was a woman until I laid eyes on Nadia in that mission in Argentina. Even after I left her, I felt satisfied that I found what it was I was looking for. But let me tell you, one of the hardest things I ever did was walking away from Nadia that first time...it was like abandoning the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow."
Al the while, Irina had a very satisfied smile on her face. That's because she put herself in Nadia's shoes with that story that Tom told. While Tom wouldn't have been a guy that she would have pursued as a boyfriend in her twenties (she prefers taller men), imagining being the object of Tom's quest actually makes her feel all warm and gooey inside. Deep inside her is a romantic waiting to get out. She tells Tom "That's a nice story."
Tom shrugs. "Yeah, I guess." Tom then gets perturbed. "Is THIS what you wanted me out here for? To add another chapter to your favorite fairy tale?"
"No. Does the name 'Nina Kovalev' mean anything to you?"
Tom goes white and his face turns into a stone. That is a name that nobody mentions around him, and for good reason.
Irina nods. "You don't have to say anything, I can tell it does mean something to you."
Tom growls "Me and Mike NEVER talk about that psycho bitch. Not to anyone, not even ourselves. Who the hell told you about her?" Nina is a chapter of his life that isn't written in any CIA records
Without hesitating, Irina replies "It doesn't matter. But I heard about the story a long time ago. I was wanting to hear your version."
"I don't talk about her. Period. What's done is done."
"If you tell me, I bet I can help you answer a question that's been on your mind for a long, long time."
Tom turns away to the ocean and mulls Irina's request over. There really wouldn't be any harm in telling her the story since there's about zero chance of backlash because of it. There'd be no one for Irina to rat him out to, and it may have an effect that he wouldn't mind giving to Irina.
Tom looks back over at Irina. "My buddy Mike was in love with her."
Los Angeles, California (Earth, circa 1998)
It's 1 in the morning and Tom should be sleeping right now. Instead, he's at the door of his best friend Mike Walcott's apartment, trying to defuse a situation that just went nuclear.
Tom wants to pound on the apartment door with the fury of a thousand suns, but knows that making a ruckus isn't the best idea right now with the neighbors. So he knocks casually, making a special pattern at the door to let Mike know it's him.
Mike must have been waiting on him, because he opens the door right away. Tom goes to smile and give Mike a poundhug, but freezes when he sees Mike's beaten face. "Jesus!"
Mike frantically motions Tom inside. Tom steps in, and Mike closes the door quickly.
Tom studies Mike some more. "Good grief! I had no idea Nina had that in her!"
"You're telling me! She must have been in the Russian equivalent of the Golden Gloves when she was growing up!"
Tom looks down the hallway. "Where is she?"
"Unconscious. She smacked her head pretty good on the corner of the bed table."
Tom nods his head and pats Mike on the shoulder. "Good. Come on, sit down for a second. We need figure this out." Tom takes a seat, but Mike heads to the kitchen. Tom asks "Where are you going?"
"Geting us a couple beers."
"No, we need to stay sharp on this. Get over here and sit down."
Mike reluctantly nods, thinking a beer would do him some good right about now. He walks over and takes a seat. His first words out of his mouth are "Tom, I'm sorry..."
"Hey, there's nothing to be sorry for. Bitch just snapped..."
"She had to have had a reason."
"We'll get to that. First, tell me what happened."
"Well, I'm just sleeping away like a baby when I'm awoken to a rag getting forced on my mouth. I open my eyes and I can barely make out Nina through the light coming through the window. I know what she's forcing into me is chemical...I could smell it. I was able to get a boot into her stomach and kick her off. I asked her what the hell was going on, and she just jumped right back on me and tried to strangle me. I had no idea what set her off...I was wondering if she had become a zombie or something!"
"A zombie attack would have saved us some headaches at least."
"I got hands off of me, and then she just starts whaling on me. I threw her off again and tried to restrain her, but that's when she gave me this..." He points to a bad scratch near his eye. "She tried to gouge my eyes out, so threw her against the wall and then slammed her head on the edge of the bed table. She's been out since."
Tom looks back down the hallway, where Nina is still lying. He's trying to figure out why Nina would have jumped Mike like that.
Mike continues. "She had a needle on the bed table. I don't know what was in it, but I could tell it wasn't heroin or anything like that. I think she meant to use it on me once she knocked me out."
"Sophisticated for a scorned lover."
"She had nothing to be angry about! Our relationship was going along just fine! I loved her, she loved me. Tom, I swear I didn't see this coming!"
Tom pats Mike's hand. "It's ok. I didn't see it, either. Looked like you two were getting along fine." Tom thinks for a bit, then asks "You never met her family, did you?"
Mike shakes his head. "No. When I'd ask her, she'd get all nervous and say that she didn't want to introduce me to them yet."
Tom then thinks of something else. "You never met any of her friends, either."
"No, I didn't. I always thought that was odd. She's a beautiful, friendly gal. Nina kept trying to tell me that she just hadn't had the time yet, but I always thought it was odd that an outgoing girl like her wouldn't have at least a couple friends outside of us." Mike pauses for a bit, then gets a revelation. "Do you think she could have been working for someone?"
Tom gives him a funny look. "Like who?"
"Like a cartel? We know some of these cartels have Russian ties!"
Tom lets out a snicker. "No way. Cartels don't trust anyone besides themselves. They would have sent a Latina up here to seduce you, not a comrade. Besides, this would be too sophisticated for a cartel."
Mike leans forward. "But the chemical rag...the needle...she had this planned!"
"Come on, Mike! You know as well as I do that crazy doesn't necessarily mean you're dumb. Sounds like she may have wanted to kill you to make it look like natural causes so she can get off scot free and go find some other poor soul to kill."
Mike runs his hands through his brown hair and clasps them on the back of his head. "I really am a schmuck, aren't I?"
"This isn't the time for woe and shame. We need to figure out what to do with Nina."
Mike looks taken-aback. "Really? We call the cops on her!"
Tom shakes his head quickly. "Not a chance. Last thing we need is negative attention put on us. Ever since Munoz was ousted, the guys that have taken his place running the Anti-Cartel are trying to find reasons to shut us down. They get wind that one of their own was romantically involved with a psychopath, they'll grill you until kingdom come looking for information you could have fed to her. And yeah, maybe they will investigate if she had involvement with someone else and if she did, forget our division just being shut down! Me and you will be in legal hell. It's too obvious, especially since our new boss was a Cold War veteran. Russian spy lady would be right up his alley."
"So what, we make her disappear?"
Tom knows the insinuation is putting a bullet in her head and burying her somewhere. But while that is the simplest option, it is one that comes with risks of its own. If only there were another way to make her disappear. And that's when Tom comes to a revelation. There is a way to make her disappear.
Mike notices Tom's light bulb go on. "You have an idea?"
Tom nods his head slowly. "Yeah. Ramon Castilla."
Compton, CA (Earth, still circa 1998)
Seven years later, Tom would meet Mike under this very overpass in Compton to figure out what to do with Mitch Hayes, who revealed himself to be a rat for Elena Derevko's Covenant.
Eight years later, Mike would be joined by David Marson and the two would meet Sydney Bristow and Nadia Santos to talk about how they're going to break Tom out of prison.
But now, Tom and Mike are waiting for Ramon Castilla to show up to help them solve the Nina Kovalev problem.
Tom and Mike are leaning back on the trunk of the car, watching the ramp that leads down into the aqueduct they're in. And they both look a little nervous about the conversation that's going to take place.
Especially Mike, whose been cleaned up a little since Tom met him at the apartment. "Tom, I don't feel good about this."
"What is there to feel good about? There is no happy ending to this story."
"What am I supposed to tell them at work? Look at my face!"
Tom looks over at Mike. "You got mugged. You can give me your wallet when we're done here."
"Mugged? I'm a CIA operative! I have my ID with me..."
"No you didn't. You went out to the bar and were smart enough to leave your ID at home. And there were at least four of them that you saw that jumped you, so you couldn't fight them off. Comprende?"
"Yeah. Geez...me and my damn libido..."
"Stop. Shit happens. We're going to take care of it."
A car starts to pull down the ramp. Tom and Mike look at it cautiously and wave. The headlights flash at them in return. It's Ramon.
As the car approaches, suddenly some banging is heard from the trunk of Mike's car. Tom and Mike ignore it, but they know what's causing it.
Tom turns to Mike and says "I'll do the talking. I think it'd be the wisest thing here."
Mike just nods. He's not a happy camper right now.
Ramon's car comes to a stop. A huge man gets out of the drivers seat. A slightly smaller man gets out of the rear passenger's seat. And a third man gets out of the front passenger's seat once the smaller of the two big men opens the door for him.
Ramon Castilla is a little guy, about 5'6 or so. But he carries himself big-time alright. He's got a nice pinstriped suit on, his black hair slicked back, and the almost stereotypical gold chain with a cross around his neck and showing on his exposed chest. Despite the flashy looks, he's not overly handsome, although he wishes he was.
He holds his hand out for a handshake and speaks English excitedly. "Tomas! Good to see you!"
Tom keeps his arms folded and keeps a stern face. "We'll shake hands when the deal is done."
Ramon holds up his hands. "I understand. So, you got something for me?" Tom walks up to Ramon and hands him half of a picture. It's of a black-haired woman, wearing a tank top and short shorts on the beach. She looks Russian in descent and is quite attractive. Ramon grins. "Ah, she's beautiful, man! This is the woman you're giving me?"
"Giving? No. We need something in return for this woman."
"Hey, come on. I'm doing you the favor here from the sounds of it."
"Nah, we can just take her and put a bullet in her brain. But I thought we can do ourselves a favor. I know all about your woman trafficking organization. I know you like to use some of those women for just what's between their legs, but others you use as drug mules."
Ramon shrugs nonchalantly. "I don't know what you're talking about, man."
"I think you do. We also know that you have yourself a bit of a problem in your organization."
"And what would that be?"
"Not what. Who. Miguel Martinez."
Ramon turns back to the big men and chuckles. They chuckle in return. Ramon turns back to Tom. "That piece of shit causes so many headaches for me, we were just talking about how we were going to get rid of HIM."
Tom smirks. "Yeah, he really screwed the pooch for you guys last week when he 'misplaced' his cocaine that we found!"
Ramon loses his smile. "Hey, he was acting on his own! I had nothing to do with that!"
"We know. Miguel's been getting more cavalier lately and we know it's not your m/o to unzip your pants like that. We figured Miguel went rogue on you. Problem with Miguel on our end is that we want to squash whatever game he's trying to run nowadays. And from the sounds of it, so do you."
Ramon nods. "You want Miguel. In exchange, you'll trade us this woman. Is that your proposition?"
"Correct."
"How did you come across this woman?"
Tom turns back to Mike. "Let's just say that she's a real heartbreaker."
Ramon starts laughing. "Oh, she give you those cuts on your face, man?"
Mike tersely replies "Yup."
Tom takes over the conversation. "We don't care what you do with her. But we need to make sure she disappears off the face of the planet. If that means you sell her as a piece of ass to some jungle rat in an isolated part of Mexico, that's fine by us. But she doesn't end back up on your doorstep under any means. And in exchange, we'll make sure you are absolved of any involvement in Miguel's activities. Does Miguel still trust you?"
Ramon nods. "Yes, at least on the surface."
"Good. Have him accompany you to a meet in 12 hours. Be vague on the details. You come back right here with Miguel and hand him over to us."
Ramon thinks for a bit. "If we're going to hand him to you on a silver platter, we need our payment up front."
Tom nods agreeably. "Of course. We brought her with us. I'll show you."
Tom starts walking back to the trunk. Mike pulls out his keys and opens the trunk up.
Nina is lying in the trunk, a rag around her mouth and her hands and feet bound together behind her. She's awake and she's trying to scream something in Russian to Tom and Ramon as she violently shakes. Ramon just laughs. "Oh, she's a feisty one! I know a man that loves to get his bitches feisty. And to give him a white woman...he'll pay top dollar! That bump on her head may even increase her value a bit."
Mike asks "Who is this sick prick?"
Ramon looks over at Mike. "You don't need to know. But this guy does like his beauties damaged a little upon arrival. It'll make 'breaking' them easy." Ramon looks back over at Tom. "She'll do."
Tom extends his hand for a handshake. "And here I thought I was getting the bargain when I arranged this deal. You solve your Miguel problem and you get to make a big profit from it."
Ramon returns the handshake with a grin. "You know, they say the Falcon Devil is an unfair and cruel man. Perhaps the tales are a lie."
"I'm only cruel to who I need to be...when I need to be." Tom turns to a furious Nina. "Am I right, sweetheart?"
Nina growls something at him.
Tom leans forward and stares into her eyes. "I don't know if you are working for someone or not. Quite frankly, I don't give a shit. You tried to kill my friend. Now, you're only going to wish you were dead." Tom then stands back up and looks at Ramon. "Get this psycho bitch out of my sight."
Ramon waves at the big men to come over. They come over and grab a squirming and screaming Nina from the trunk of the car. Even though Nina is kicking up quite a fit, the big men act like she's nothing in their arms before depositing her into the trunk of their car.
Tom, Mike, and Ramon concluded their business and Ramon drove off with Nina in the trunk of his car.
As he watches the car drive away, Mike says "I feel sick to my stomach." After all, this time a few hours ago, he and Nina were in love. Now, she's being hauled away to god-knows-where to have god-knows-what done to her.
Tom looks over at Mike and pats him on the back. "I'd be feeling the same, too."
Mike looks back at Tom. "Do me a favor. Let's never speak of this again. I'll never be able to think of Nina without getting nauseous. Not just over what she did to me, but what we did to her just now."
Tom nods. "It's a rotten business we're in, Mike. This was for the best. But yeah, I'll keep our secret safe."
San Felipe, Mexico (Elysium, back to present day)
Tom completes the story. "Ramon lived up to his word. We apprehended Miguel later that day and we never heard from Nina again. I always wondered where she went, though."
Irina says "Ensenada"
Tom looks surprised. "Huh?"
"Ramon sold her to the leader of a small time gang there who had a fetish for beautiful women he could defile and ruin."
Tom shifts in his chair uncomfortably. "How did you know?"
"Elena told me. Apparently Nina escaped somehow, but not before picking up a heroin addiction and becoming physically decrepit. She was a captive for a year and Elena said she went through some unspeakable horrors."
Tom leans forward, shocked at this bit of news. "You mean to tell me that Nina was working for Elena Derevko?"
Irina nods. "Yes. Nina was an operative of hers. She was being raised to be in the KGB, but when the Cold War ended, Elena brought her over to Argentina. She grew up in the same orphanage Nadia did under a different name. Elena finished her training and groomed her to be Mike's wife."
"Wha...why?"
"Elena wanted to get closer to you. She had been tracking you through her other operatives, but felt that she wanted more information on you. Nina seduced Mike and then was going to kill Mike. Then, a few months later, she was going to kill your wife Kate. With both of you grieving, Elena thought you two would fall in love with each other. Then, she'd have someone as close to you as possible."
Tom starts laughing at the absurdity of that plan. "Good grief. I think Elena may have been crazier than Nina."
"No argument here. She knew sending a Russian in wouldn't raise any flags with you since that's not exactly your field of expertise."
"What became of Nina? Did Elena ever say?"
Irina turns away and smiles. "If you had a mirror, I could show you what she became."
Tom pauses to think about what Irina just said. "Nina...became you?"
Irina nods. "She became my double. Elena had Nina learn how to become me. She studied and practiced for years before I was captured. Me and Nina were put under Double Helix and she became me. She looked hideous when I saw her, so I'm sure it was an improvement on her morale when the process was over."
Tom laughs. "I'll bet. And then Jack put a bullet in her forehead. Small world we live in, huh?"
Irina looks around. "Especially now that travel has become easier."
Alec teleports next to Irina. "We need to leave. I told Jack you needed 30 minutes here and time's up."
Irina nods and looks back at Tom. "Thanks for sharing. I was always curious what your side of the story sounded like."
Tom nods and smirks. "Thanks for telling me what happened to Nina. Something I wondered about for a long time."
Irina stands up. "Are you going to tell Mike?"
Tom thinks about it, then shakes his head as he stands up. "Nah, I'll let that sleeping dog lie. He's married to my sister and raising two kids. He's moved on."
Irina smiles. "Good for him, then. Take care, Tom."
Tom just nods and doesn't say anything, still not fully trusting her.
Alec puts a hand on Irina's shoulder and the two teleport away.
Tom goes to walk back into the house, but stops when she sees a suspicious Mary walk out the patio door. She sarcastically asks "Well, did you two have a nice talk?"
Tom shrugs. "Sure. Nothing major."
"Define 'nothing major'."
Tom smiles. "She wanted to know my side of the Nina Kovalev story. Apparently that psycho bitch was Elena's operative. She was with Mike to get closer to me."
Mary shakes her head. "I don't like you sharing old stories with Irina. I don't trust her."
Tom raises an eyebrow. "Seriously? You're the one that brokered the meet between her and Rambaldi!"
"I know. And now, all of the sudden, she's lost touch with Sloane and Elena and she's trying to crawl back into Jack's life. And just what is she talking about with Nadia? You know how fragile Nadia is when it comes to family!"
"I'll keep an eye on her."
Mary sighs. "I don't want you to get caught in Irina's web. She had me fooled and now, I'm not sure what to think of her."
"Don't worry about me. Telling Irina the Kovalev story was a win-win for us."
"How?"
"Answers a question I've been wondering about for a while and lets Irina know to not cross me...or I'll send her packing like I did Nina."
END OF CHAPTER