As the rogues traveled to small town Pennsylvania, Michael fell silent. He had been excited to go after the Guardian and finally get a step ahead of Percy. Yet, during the long drive, his excitement seemed to wane. Nikita wasn't concerned at first; she assumed that he was thinking about the mission and trying to come up with a plan. However, as his silence stretched on, she grew worried. It wasn't odd for him to be brooding. But for it to come out of nowhere was startling. Nikita couldn't let it continue. She had to comfort her boyfriend, even if she didn't know what was wrong, "Hey, are you okay? What's the matter?"
Michael sighed. His thoughts had gotten away from him as they traveled through the states. He tried to stay focused on the current mission; however, he soon found himself thinking about the future. It wasn't something he tried to contemplate. In their crazy lives, their future was never certain. It wasn't worth getting their hopes up. But for a happy moment there, he had been hopeful. He could see a light at the end of the tunnel, and it all centered on her, "When we made plans to get ahead of Operation Sparrow and put an end to Percy's plans, I got excited. I thought we're halfway to taking Percy down, and… And then…"
"And then what? We live happily ever after in domestic bliss?" Nikita asked cautiously. If she was being honest, she hadn't thought a lot about a future with Michael. Yes, she loved him. Yes, she loved being with him. And yes her time with him was the happiest she had ever been- despite the war going on. But a future together just didn't seem real. They were assassins with horrific (and monstrous if you were Nikita) pasts. Could they really ever move on from that. Could they truly live happily ever after after all they had done. Nikita didn't think so. But if Michael did, she really wanted to know.
"Nevermind. It's stupid," Shaking his head, Michael just focused on the road. He was probably getting ahead of them by thinking about their futures. He and Nikita had never really talked about their lives after the war. They were simply living day to day, cementing their love and fighting for each other. The two should probably start discussing where they saw themselves once their war was over. If their war ever ended. Michael wasn't sure when the war ever would end. He thought he had a clue, but not so much anymore. They should just focus on the present. It was more solid. Also, the two were finally at the Guardian's house, "Here's our Guardian."
While Michael parked the car and readied his weapon, Nikita stared at him. She hadn't meant to dismiss his feelings. If he wanted a future with her- if he wanted to live on some island paradise with her and be happy forever- then she had to know. He had to tell her. Unfortunately, they didn't have time to discuss their relationship then. Taking out the Guardian and stealing a black box before Alex arrived was more important (why did there always have to be something more important). So with a sigh, Nikita grabbed her gun and followed Michael out of the car.
Both expected Winters to attack them once they entered the house. Instead, it was just some biker. Although he tried to fight his intruders, Michael and Nikita were able to take down the biker fairly easily. They soon had him down on his knees and began to demand where the Guardian was. He had no idea what they were talking about. He had never heard of Winters before, nor did he know why she would've been there. The rogues considered applying more pressure to get him to talk. However, they quickly realized that the biker was telling the truth. The Guardian wasn't there, only her tracker was.
Apparently, when Winters had sold her house to the biker the year before, she put her tracker into a keychain and left it for him. Wherever he then went, so did she. Her real destination remained unknown, making the only lead the rogues had on her and the black box worthless. Michael and Nikita attempted to inform Alex that, but she didn't answer; she was either busy with Division or her boyfriend who was back in town. So the two simply called Birkhoff as they slumped back in their car, "We have a problem. We're sitting outside the Guardian's house right now. But I don't think we're gonna be able to pull this off in time."
"I'm reading she's in close proximity to her house right now," Birkhoff replied, confused. He had satellite image of the small town and the tracker location pinging on his computer. By all accounts, the Guardian should be exactly where she was supposed to be. So what kind of trouble could Michael and Nikita have run into. Birkhoff couldn't find any Division interference, and Alex was nowhere near the town. It should've been a simple mission for the rogues. So what could've possibly happened. What went wrong that time.
"I know. I've got her tracker in my hand. We just don't know where she is," Michael explained the situation to Birkhoff. Winters' tracker was out and had been out for a while; she had escaped Division without anyone knowing. Michael wondered what could've possibly made her leave. Could she have fallen in love, like Owen had. Could she have seen past Division's lies, like Michael and Birkhoff had. Could she have escaped to save herself, like Nikita had and Alex planned to do. Or did she just leave. What was the story there.
"Pretty clever on Winters' end. Percy checks her tracker, looks like she's in town, living at her appointed residence. For all we know, she's sitting on some beach in the tropics," Taking the keychain from Michael, Nikita studied it in amusement. A part of her wished she had been that smart when she had escaped Division; though, she never really put thought into escaping- she just did it to survive. Life on the run would've been a hell of a lot easier if Percy and Amanda had never known she had left in the first place. Maybe the same mistakes wouldn't have been made. And maybe her thought of a future would've been different.
"Look, we have to scrap this mission. The clock is ticking, and Alex needs to get here and report what happened," Michael's comment pulled Nikita's attention away from the tracker. The rogues couldn't steal a black box if the Guardian protecting it was in the wind. They didn't know if the box had been moved or destroyed or whatever when Winters had gone on the run. And they had no time to figure it out. They'd just just have to wait until the next black box lead to gather intel on Operation Sparrow. Hopefully, Alex could give them more leads.
"Maybe we can go out for a drink. Right before Percy finds out his Guardian's gone and hell rains down on all of us," Birkhoff couldn't help but joke. Once Percy discovered that one of his precious Guardians had gone rogue, he was going to go ballistic. It would be a hell of a lot harder for the team of rogues to do anything, especially steal a black box and peek inside, when Percy tightened his paranoid reins. Even Alex couldn't help them out. The three might as well make the best of it until then.
Whereas Michael rolled his eyes, Nikita hesitated. She glanced back at the tracker and tried to think why Winters would go through all that trouble. Of course escaping Division was worth the effort. But it was risky to leave your tracker with another person. Their movements couldn't be predicted. What if the biker left town or got into trouble or died. Winters' intelligent plan would be for nothing. If she was really that smart, she'd stick around to check on her tracker. She could do whatever she wanted in the small town while also ensuring that no one would ever know, "Unless we don't. What if she's still here?"
"What are you saying? You think she removed the tracker and stuck around?" Birkhoff scoffed at the idea. The second the rogues' trackers had been removed, they had split. Sticking around in a place they didn't have to be didn't make any sense. They were free, so why not go wherever they wanted. Even someone as dedicated and insane as a Guardian wouldn't stick around once their tracker was passed off. Maybe Winters didn't go far because of the regimen pills. Yet she definitely wasn't still there.
"Just hear me out. All the black boxes are kept at banks, right? Guardian protocol. There are only three banks here. And only one of them has safety deposit boxes," Onto a whole new idea, Nikita sat up excitedly in her seat. On their way to the town, Nikita had researched the banks in the area; she had remembered what Owen had shared in London about the Guardian protocol, and attempted to apply the information to Winters. The fact that she had removed her tracker certainly changed things. But maybe not that drastically. She'd be concerned about the regimen, after all. And, she'd want the black box still intact so her cover would never be blown.
"Where are you going with this?" Michael did his best to read Nikita's thoughts. First, she praised Winters for giving Percy the slip. Then, she began to argue that Winters never truly left; the rogues could still have their chance to take down the Guardian and steal the black box. Michael couldn't understand the sudden shift. Sure, there was a chance that the black box remained in the safety deposit box. But what made the Guardian suddenly predictable. Sometimes (most of the time, really) Nikita's thought process left him completely baffled. He just wanted to be able to catch up with her so he could plan with her.
"Hurry up and start hacking, Nerd. I've got a plan to flush her out," Smirking proudly, Nikita was absolutely certain that her idea could work. She got Michael to start driving towards the only bank in town with safety deposit boxes, and she started Birkhoff on his hack before she shared her plans. Winters wouldn't let the black box become compromised if it'd expose that she had escaped. So if something were to happen to the bank it was held in, then she'd come out of hiding to check on it. The rogues could draw her out by faking a bank robbery. Then they could either follow her or attack her from there. They didn't have to give up just yet.
After talking to the rogues, Alex returned to her apartment. She should've returned to Division and gathered more information on Winters. However, Nathan texted to say that he was back in town. She'd much rather see her boyfriend than voluntarily go to the bunker. She had missed him while he was away for a DJing gig. Also, she had a million different things to tell him. Most of it concerned her recent thoughts about Division. If she was going to escape, then that was something he needed to know, especially since it concerned his safety too, "Nathan. Hey. I've been waiting for you to get back in town."
"Look, I know you're in trouble. And you're stuck in some kind of insane job that makes you miserable. But I can help," Nathan barged into Alex's apartment, already ranting about how he could get her out of that situation. Apparently, he had been thinking about it a lot while he was away. Alex tried to slow him down, yet his mind was already made up. He was going to save her from that life despite not knowing what that life entailed, "I've got a friend who lives in San Francisco. And he's got a guest house on his property. It's nice, private. He's cool with you crashing there until you settle into the city."
A part of Alex wanted to gush about how sweet that all was. Nathan knew she was in trouble and he wanted to save her- protect her. Yet, it wasn't that simple. He had no idea what she was up against. And the only thing that could really save her would be her revenge. She couldn't run off to San Francisco and live happily ever after, but there was a chance that he could, "Nathan, I already have a plan to get away. But once I'm gone, the people I work for, they'll come looking for me, and you can't be here when they do."
"Wait, so now I'm the one that needs to go?" Nathan questioned Alex immediately. She hadn't really thought of it like that. She knew that she eventually had to run from Division if she were to be happy. And she knew that being with Nathan was dangerous. However, she hadn't thought about him running away too. It could help if he did. When she finally bolted, Division's first actions would be to go after her boyfriend. She couldn't let that happen. She had to keep him safe. She hadn't been able to save her other loved ones, yet he could be different- she wanted Nathan to be different.
"Yes. And San Francisco won't be far enough. They know I care about you, and they could hurt you," Pacing her apartment, Alex thought aloud. She hadn't been asked about Nathan by Amanda or anyone else in Division. But they had to know about her boyfriend. Either Sean told them (though, she doubted that) or they had spied on her. It'd make sense if they had kept tabs on her while she was at home. Nathan wasn't a stranger to Division- he was a potential target. She had to help him escape their wrath. He couldn't be collateral damage.
"Who is 'they'? Why don't you just talk to me like a normal person for once, and tell me what the hell's going on?" Nathan, however, wasn't picking up on Alex's anxiety- not past his confusion, anyway. She always talked in vague terms whenever she talked about her job or the things she was worried about. Hell, everything about her was vague. She never gave complete answers or the full information. And she constantly talked about running away but was never more specific than that. She was a closed book, and no matter what she never opened up to him. He had tried at least; it was just never going to work.
"Because you already know too much, okay? I'm trying to protect you," Alex was well aware of how that sounded. It was the worst answer to give Nathan. Except, she couldn't bear to tell him anymore. What she had said about Division had been dangerous enough. The less he knew about the secrets that could kill him, the better. Alex had known that entering a relationship with Nathan would be difficult. However, she had hoped that no one would get hurt again. She had hoped things could've been better. And maybe they still could, as long as Nathan just listened to her and escaped.
"From the mob, right? That's who we're talking about here. That guy Sean, he's definitely connected. You owe money or something, right?" Nathan assumed. He had assumed that Alex's troubles were mob related for a while. The random appearance and disappearance of their neighbor Sean helped solidify that idea for him. There was definitely some criminal activity going on, and it had all caught up with Alex. It was alright if it had. She simply had to tell him everything for once so he could help her.
Alex blinked. Sean Pierce in the mob- there was absolutely no way. It was possible that he had strange connections if he was in the military one second and Division then next- maybe he was connected to that group that knew about her deal with Division- yet he certainly didn't have mob contacts. He was too good and too much of a rule follower for that. Besides, the trouble Alex was in had nothing to do with the mob. It was far more serious and detrimental than that, "They are government assassins, Nathan. They will kill you. And they will erase any evidence that you were ever here."
"If you wanted to end things, you could have just said so," Unwilling to believe the perceived blatant lie Alex had just told him, Nathan stormed back out of her apartment. She was left rooted on the hardwood floor. She had to chase after him. She should've ran after him and made him listen to her. But her time was up. She had to leave for Pennsylvania and report that the rogues had already struck. She should also check the messages on the phone that had been buzzing in her pocket. She couldn't chase after Nathan and try to bring him back to her. Division had completely ruined her chance.