"Where do you think Krieg is?" Suddenly, Alex asked. She and Nikita had been working in silence since their brief conversation about Amanda. Nikita hadn't wanted to say anything else, and they were both busy setting up their equipment in the abandoned warehouse. But since Shadowbot hadn't found anything yet, the two had to take an active role in searching for Stefan. Their best bet in securing him before Amanda could was to locate Krieg. He couldn't have gone too; he had to have been hiding out somewhere. Obviously, he was smart enough to avoid digital detection. But there were some old school strategies the agents could utilize to track him down.

Nikita did her best to shake her head free of Amanda. She couldn't keep letting thoughts of the bitch keep dragging her down. She'd never be free- she'd never return home- if Amanda continued to invade her senses. Nikita had to let her go. She had to focus on others. She had to focus on herself. If only it wasn't so difficult to keep the bitch out of her head. What Amanda was planning, what she was doing to Nikita's friends and family, the former rogue couldn't just let that go. She couldn't let the bitch keep winning- keep living.

Yet, ignoring everything and just focusing on the bitch wasn't working. Nikita had to do better. There were more important people in the world than Amanda. There were more important people worth thinking about. Nikita had to shake her head, she had to take a deep breath, and she had to protect the innocent like she had promised to do, "He'll want the heat to die down first before he risks traveling. And without money, he's gonna need to hole up cheap. It's too cold to rough it, especially with Stefan, so…"

"Motel. Probably near the airport," Alex finished Nikita's thought. She hurriedly began to focus their search on motels in the area, specifically ones with easy access to the airport for a quick getaway. Maybe they could get lucky, and Krieg paid for a room with a credit card. Since he had to go into hiding from unknown mercenaries, it was unlikely. But, according to a theory from Birkhoff, Amanda had managed to track Stefan because of an online videogame. With a teenager on hand, another mistake could happen. The two agents just had to pray that they were the ones to respond to it first.

"Let's start making some calls. How's your French?" Nikita had a more tactile way of finding Stefan and Krieg than just plugging information into Shadowbot. If she and Alex called around to the motels that fit Krieg's supposed parameters and asked for a man and a teenager that fit Krieg's and Stefan's descriptions, then the two agents were more likely to find some success. It wouldn't be quick, and Nikita and Alex would have to think on their toes (not that that would be extremely difficult for them) but it was better than just sitting and waiting. Especially since Amanda had already gotten ahead of them once when it came to Stefan.

"Trés bien. How's your German?" Alex gladly accepted the phone handed out to her. She also gladly accepted that she'd be speaking French as she called around (she was slightly more fluent and far more comfortable with French than with German). She already had some ideas of how she could convince the manager, or front desk operator, or whoever answered the phone to tell her if Krieg and Stefan had checked in. As she kept making calls, she was sure to come up with more ideas. Or she could take some of the ideas that Nikita had to have been thinking of.

"Sur gut," Smirking, Nikita began to make her calls. With her and Alex covering the different parts of the city and surrounding countryside in the two most commonly spoken languages, they should've been able to find Krieg and Stefan soon. It wasn't that difficult for the agents to gather information from whomever answered their call- both were excellent with that kind of grift. The frustrating aspect came from how many motels they had to call. Thankfully, after a while Nikita finally got a hit. She excitedly slammed down her phone and typed the intel into the computer, "Got 'em. Father and son. Paid cash. Right off the exit to the airport."

"Awesome," Alex muttered, already grabbing their gear so they could rush to the motel. They updated Ops along the way, and Birkhoff scoped the place out for them. There had been no signs of Amanda yet. But she was bound to slink out of the shadows once she got a bead on Stefan. Nikita and Alex had to remain on high alert until they smuggled Stefan out of the country- possibly even until they had him safely back in Division. Amanda wouldn't be stupid enough to directly attack them there. Though, she could (and had) find ways. The bunker was a relatively safe base. Which, to the rogues, was an entirely bizarre thing to think about.

Since Nikita had already gotten the room number from the motel manager when she had called, she and Alex didn't have to bother with the staff. They could just bound up the stairs to the door and begin to knock. There was no immediate answer, which wasn't surprising. But Nikita and Alex kept trying. They weren't going to give up until Stefan was safe. After they talked to Krieg, he could understand that, "Krieg. We're here on behalf of Ari Tasarov. We're not here to hurt anyone. We just want to talk."

"It's empty," Alex whispered to Nikita after she noticed that there were no sounds escaping from the thin walls of the motel room. Stefan and Kreig weren't there. Which shouldn't have been right. Sure, Krieg dodged all street and security cameras, so if he came and went from the room no one would actually know. But it was too soon for him and Stefan to leave hiding. The threat was still out there- the heat was still too intense. Something else caused the room to be empty, and Nikita believed she knew what.

"Decoy room. He's watching us," Responding in a whisper, Nikita motioned Alex to search the other rooms. Thinking about it, it had been a little too easy to obtain Krieg's room number from the front desk. At the time, Nikita just took her lucky break and chalked it up as good acting and a sympathetic manager. Yet, in hindsight, it was clear that Krieg had set it up that way. He wanted people to find that room so he could watch and possibly attack from his real one. Alex and Nikita had to be careful as they made their next move. They made sure not to draw out their weapons and to seem non-threatening. They seriously didn't need things to escalate.

Of course, things did anyway. As Alex approached the door of another room, Krieg came out of hiding. He brandished his weapon, forcing the women to step back. The two fought the urge to immediately go on the offense. They just had to calm him down, convince him that they were on his side. There was no need for any more violence. He had to be reasonable enough to know that. After all, he didn't immediately start shooting at Alex and Nikita. Instead, he demanded some answers, "Who do you work for?"

"The same man who pays you. I can call him," Nikita spoke calmly, raising placating hands. She was certain that if she got Ari on the phone, Krieg would let her and Alex talk. He even might work with them if he knew the full extent of what was going on. However, when Nikita decided to slowly move for her cellphone, Krieg saw it as an attempt to go for her weapon. He sprung to attack, and Nikita only did what came naturally. She didn't want to hurt Krieg- it'd seriously damage her attempt to talk to him and help Stefan. But he tried to kill her. What else was she supposed to do.

While Nikita and Krieg battled one another- one going for the kill, the other just trying to deescalate the situation, Alex went for Stefan. Mostly to protect him from the deadly agents, but also to start extracting him from the motel. Unwanted attention brought on by the fight was going to come their way soon. They had to start leaving immediately. Nikita tried one last time to get Krieg to talk with her. Yet it was another failed attempt. In fact, in the heat of the fight, she wound up throwing him off the walkway and down on a car. There went any peaceful negotiations. Alex had the right idea to run, "We gotta go."

Stefan was understandably freaked. But once the women explained what was going on as they drove to their base of operations, he calmed. His father had hired Krieg to protect him; after the shooting, it was no surprise that he hired extra protection to move him. He wasn't too worried about that, though. His main concern was Krieg. They had just left him. Shouldn't they check on him. Yet Nikita claimed he could take care of himself- he was ex-special forces, after all. Stefan should only worry about himself. But he wasn't all too thrilled about where he was going next, "So what now? You take me to my father and we live happily ever after?"

"Don't sound too excited," Alex couldn't help but respond sarcastically. She didn't know the kind of relationship Stefan had with his father. However, she knew if she had the chance to reunite with her father- even after knowing all of the corrupt things he had done- she'd gladly accept the chance. She still loved her father deeply, and she still missed him everyday. Stefan was lucky to have the chance to return to his father. Though, he didn't seem to think so. Not everyone loved their fathers like Alex did. Some wished they could, but they just couldn't.

"How can I be? I've been running from the name 'Tasarov' my whole life," Stefan didn't really whine. He hadn't complained the entire time the two agents prepared his fake ID and passport; he let them take his picture and come up with new details without a word. Yet, when it came to his father, he couldn't stay silent. He had a lot of biting comments and negative thoughts to share. Krieg said it wasn't healthy to speak ill of his father, yet Stefan didn't care. He had to make his contempt known.

"You'll never stop running," Sending the material she and Alex had gathered to Birkhoff so he could make the fake ID, Nikita huffed. She hadn't intended on making a comment. The majority of her focus was on the preparations required to smuggle Stefan out of the country. However, the teen's remark pulled the words out of her. It had been well over a decade, yet she was still running from her last name. No matter what she did, she couldn't stop. Yes, she hoped for better for Stefan. But it was somewhat naïve to think that. The sins of the parent couldn't escape the child. In fact, the repercussions for the child were always worse than for the parent.

Alex glanced at Nikita. The two didn't talk about her family a lot. Alex and Sean talked about their parents and the similarities between his mother and Oversight and her father and Zetrov; however, Nikita kept most of her thoughts to herself. Considering she didn't want to upset her brother, it was understandable. But comments like that made Alex believe that keeping it all to herself was going to one day make Nikita explode. Stefan seemed to have the same thought as he glanced at her. Alex considered commenting on it. Yet her focus should remain on the teenager. He needed more comfort at the moment, "Believe it or not, we know how you feel."

"Cause you're an Udinov. And you're…" Although Stefan was able to recognize Alexandra Udinov the instant he saw her- she was still all over Russian news sites- he had no idea who the other woman was. She introduced herself as Nikita, as someone working with his father, yet that meant nothing to him. She was like him, though; she knew what it was like to hide from a powerful family name. But before he could ask about her story, Nikita shut him up with a harsh glare. Stefan better change the subject, fast. Fortunately, he had another question that'd make that happen, "So. If my father really wanted to rescue me, why isn't he here?"

Her glare dropping, Nikita wasn't sure what she should say. After learning that they were working with his father- and after they were able to provide some specific details- Stefan trusted the two women. He even didn't ask why an Udinov was helping him- he just went with it. However, Nikita feared that if she told the whole truth, it would spook him. The teenager had already been through so much recently. She couldn't add the unbearable knowledge of Gogol, Division, and Amanda. So, Nikita settled on a lame excuse that she had heard a thousand times before as a kid- and surely Stefan had too, "It's complicated."

"That's the answer he always used to give me," Although Stefan grumbled, he didn't push Nikita for a better answer; he simply went and slumped in a chair. Alex and Nikita glanced at one another. Neither knew exactly what to say to the teenager besides the fact that they had been there before. They also couldn't really promise him that it'd get better. Alexandra Udinov might've returned from the dead, yet her father was dead, and she'd never return to the life she once had. And Nikita was still running- always running, never home. By smuggling Stefan out of the country, they were sealing him to the same fate. It would always be complicated and painful.

Before those thoughts could get any worse, Birkhoff replied to the information Nikita had sent. Stefan was in the system, the agents could begin their exfil. A plane would pick them up where it had dropped off Alex and Nikita, and they'd travel straight to Division. It was almost over. Once their transport arrived, Stefan would be safe. At least, at Division. From there, they weren't quite sure what to do with him. Yet they could figure it out later. They had the time to actually think, "We'll be wheels up in an hour."

"What was that?" Stefan asked timidly as he stared out a nearby window. Alex glanced over in the direction he was staring at and instantly froze. Somehow, Amanda and her goons had found them. It wasn't worth the effort to try and figure out how. Birkhoff had had the place on lock, which meant that Amanda had managed to get around his security efforts. It would take the agents a while to work out how exactly she did that. And they clearly didn't have the time. So, Alex just called for Nikita to get ready for a fight. As soon as the two grabbed their guns, their assailants burst through the door and started firing.

"Stay down and don't move!" Alex ordered Stefan. And from there, she and Nikita got separated. Nikita wasn't worried about her; she knew the young woman was strong and capable. The former rogue was only worried about Stefan, which made it easier to pick through the ex-Gogol agents and other hired guns coming her way. It also made it easier to chase after Amanda. Nikita wasn't going to hesitate that time. If she had her in her sights, she was going to take the shot. No mercy. No being a hero. The fight ended that night.

Amanda at least wanted Stefan alive. Although she wanted to capture him, hurt him, and hold him as bait to make Ari compliant, she didn't want him dead. That was some relief to Alex and Nikita. As long as he stayed hidden, he should be fine; they'd take care of the rest. Unfortunately, he didn't stay hidden. He tried to run to safety, believing the safest place would be away from everyone. He was wrong. Amanda's henchmen cornered him and grabbed him. Miraculously having witnessed it, Alex gave chase. She couldn't lose sight of them. Once they were gone, there'd be no way of tracking them, "Shit! They got Stefan."

"Go after them! I'll be right behind you," Nikita swore. Alex could handle rescuing Stefan. The former rogue's focus wasn't really on him anyway. She had given chase to Amanda, and all her sights were on her. If she died, all that pain ended. So many people would be safe and sound, Division agents could be free and return home, the instant Amanda was dead. Nikita wasn't going to let that opportunity slip by again. There were sins to atone for, and the world to save. So, the second she had the bitch right where she wanted her, she smiled cruelly, "It's about time we finished this. Don't you think?"

Sorry this is late. I've been having trouble focusing and wanting to write recently.