Fait Accompli II

written by Tammy

Chapter 3

Michael took the phone from Willie's outstretched hand with a quick smile and a nod of his head. "Yes?" The teenager started to head out of the library. He stopped and made the motion of shutting the door. Michael nodded at him again.

"Hello, Michael." The accent on the voice told him it was Mac.

"Hello, Mac. How are you?" There was a sound that made Michael picture Mac as stretching out in his office chair.

"Very well. What about you and the rest of the family? Claude and his?" Michael sat down on the edge of the large ornate desk that sat in front of the large window. It was starting to sleet again, he could hear tiny crackles at it hit the glass. It was strange that Mac was asking these questions. He had only been there yesterday.

"Fine. Same as yesterday. Is there a problem?"

"No... just checking.... Actually I have some questions for you. Things I'm not sure on." There was a space of quiet. Michael stared out the window, running his thumb across his lower lip. Questions were not the only reason for the phone call, he was sure of it. Mac had gone out on a limb, there had to be some kind of payment wanted, eventually. Perhaps Mac was going to present the bill.

"Let me think out loud here for a moment, Michael. I know you've collected favors during your time with Oscar. I've had some awareness of your network for a few years now. But it's small, that way you never owe a great deal and a great deal couldn't be asked out you either."

"Those of us who have been at this long enough do."

Mac laughed softly. "But it has been a long time since I saw an outside network as small as yours. Many know of you but own nothing of you. Causes me to question some things. Such as how big is the one inside, Michael? Just how much control do you wield in Section One?"

"Not much." Mac laughed again. Michael got up from the desk and started to pace. He knew what was going to be asked now. Mac wanted to know what he knew. There was plenty, carefully hidden, someplace no one would think to look. Not a single one of them would do much damage to Section One but together and in the hands of the right official....

"Of course not. Watch Oscar and Madeline closely. The favor you asked of him, loyalty is not all he'll expect. Whatever agreement you made, he'll change it bit by bit till it doesn't resemble the original one. You have an adversarial friendship there. Plus you've earned the animosity of Madeline now. I suggest one thing. Remember very well those who know what true loyalty is."

The dial tone was the next thing he heard. He fingered the phone off and set it on the desk. Leaning against the end bookcase, he glanced at his watch before looking back out the window. Reese wouldn't be waking up for a while and the 'girls' as they were calling themselves had declared the kitchen off limits. He had some time to think and plan. Unfortunately Mac not only was right, he had placed a trap too. One Michael had to avoid in order to keep from going from one hell to another.

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"Can I let my hair grow long like yours, Mom?" Katie glided the brush down the back of Nikita's hair again. The girl stood behind her on the bed where Nikita sat in a long sleeve shirt with her bare legs crossed. Nikita felt almost undressed in light of Katie's sweatshirt, turtleneck and sweat pants. Katie was always cold and Reese was always warm. She had feet like ice cubes constantly and enjoyed torturing Reese with them. She had shown her expertise earlier. Reese had wound up throwing a bit of a fit so Michael had taken him to his room and Nikita had dragged Katie up to their room.

"If you want to but you have to take care of it and keep it neat. It can be a lot of work."

"I don't mind." Nikita smiled at the confident tone in Katie's voice. The first two days she and Reese had been like vines. It was hard to see what they had been acting like. The vine act had stopped but still neither allowed them out of their sight for long. Michael had taken up running at dawn just for a bit of peace and quiet. Herself, she tended to hide in the huge tub for an hour after Katie went to bed. When she came out Michael was either already in bed, half asleep or sprawled out on the floor, drawing maybe reading. If he was in bed, she would curl up with him. If he was drawing, she would sit on the floor and they would talk about the day. Both of them avoiding subjects that could lead to talk about the past or about Section. Neither topic belonged there.

She had to admit to enjoying the sensation of sleeping in the same bed as him again . It felt safe and complete. No, complete wasn't the word for it. Nikita just knew she liked the way it felt when she rolled over and he would move to somehow keep contact with her. However just the two of them in the bed never lasted long. Not a night had passed in almost these two weeks where Reese had not crawled in with them. The child had to have the middle of the bed, uncovered and sleeping in the strangest positions. Even Michael had taken to sleeping on his side, a position he was unaccustomed to. And the nightly dreams that would awake one or both of them, never stirred the little guy. He slept through them.

Katie had slept with them the first two nights but Michael's nightmare the second night had convinced her to stay in her own room. Nikita wasn't sure if it was because he had frightened her or because she had not appreciated the rude awakening. The third morning she had been miserable to the point where Annie had sent her upstairs in order to restore quiet in the house.

"Mom, why aren't you sleeping here tonight?"

"I thought we talked about this yesterday morning when you walked in on us. We need a little us time. You are old enough to understand that and about privacy. Reese isn't and I don't feel comfortable locking the door. He will throw a fit and disturb the rest of the house. If he wants somebody to snuggle with tonight, he knows where your room is. I warn you he might be a little upset. So no grouching in the morning if he wakes you up. "

"Then stay here to have it. Besides, you two will get a lot of it when you leave." Nikita could hear the whine starting. She could remember her mother complaining about that but never understood it. Now she did.

"Katie...please. We both explained to you how it is where we live and work. We don't get a lot of time together."

Dropping down on the bed next to Nikita, Katie looked up at her. "You could stay here," she said wistfully, her eyes wide and pleading.

Nikita wrapped her arms around her in a fierce hug. "I wish I could but you know how the deal works."

"Doesn't mean I can't try. I love you, Mom." Nikita kissed her on top of the head as Katie hugged her back.

"I love my girl, too." Cuddled together, they sat like that for several minutes.

"Did he love you?" Katie pulled out of her mother's arms and sat back down on the bed.

"What do you mean?" Katie's words caused her heart to beat a little faster. She hoped the reference was not to Taylor.

"The man who was supposed to be my dad. Did he love you?"

Nikita shrugged, Annie had said the questions would be asked. I'm not ready for this!! "I really can't say for sure."

"I don't think so. Not as much as Dad does." Nikita didn't hide the small smile from her face. She had been hearing for a long time from other people about how Michael felt about her before he got over the fear of saying it himself. Now she was hearing it from her own daughter. He was a pretty poor liar where she was concerned she guessed. "Jerrod said you aren't married even though you wear rings like Uncle Claude and Aunt Annie. Is that true?"

Looking down at her hand and briefly closing her eyes, Nikita had a feeling this was going to be a long talk. "They stand for a lot of the same things. Love, faithfulness, hope, things like that."

"All that mushy stuff. Like Reese says, yuck! Are you going to get married? Cause then me and Reese can have a baby sister and then maybe a brother. That would be really cool. I can make sure they don't get all wacky like Pieces is."

"Wait a minute. Reese is not wacky...he's only a baby still. As he gets older, you'll understand him better. He is still just finding his way around. Hold on those other thoughts though because they are like really in the future there, kiddo. There is a lot to deal with before that can happen. A great number of things have to change before we can even get to that point. But someday.......maybe." With a small frown Nikita got off the bed and went into the bathroom.

Married to Michael, for real.... that was a big part of someday. They were experimenting with the parenting part right now but it wasn't the real thing yet. Claude and Annie were there as backup. And even with their help it was a challenge, but between her and Michael it seemed to be going fairly well. Even the parent child talk had gone well. At least they both thought so after comparing notes as they laid in bed last night. The 'adult time and privacy lecture' had been a little hard no matter how they looked at it. What a subject for their first joint serious talk.

Katie had walked in on them here in the bedroom yesterday afternoon. Nikita had complained about a knot in her calf that had progressed into a backrub and it had escalated from there. Time alone had been so scarce both during the day and night that they both gotten carried away. He had only closed the door, not locked it. There hadn't been the need.

The kids had all been outside and Reese was napping. Neither Michael nor she had been anywhere near clothed when the door opened. For the first time since she had know him, Michael acted embarrassed. Though she felt sorry for him, it was a kind of sweet thing to see. That he stayed and participated in the talk had meant even more to her.

Katie spread out on the bed on her stomach, a frown on her face to match Nikita's. "Did I make you mad when I said that or sad?"

Sighing Nikita answered, "A little sad because I would like that very much."

"What was that guy like?" As Katie's question came in from the bedroom, Nikita put down the blush brush she had been using. She closed her eyes again and shook her head. She didn't want Katie to know how she had come into this world.

"I really don't feel that now is a good time to share that with you. Maybe when you are a little older." She could hear the noise of disappointment that Katie made.

"OK I guess. Michael is more like my real dad anyway. He loves me and that is a big part of being a dad. Right, Mom?"

"Yes."

"Did you love him?"

"Katie, please." Katie made a face at the bathroom door as she heard the tone in Nikita's voice.

"You act like you don't want to talk about him at all. I just want to know. Like I don't know if I really have any brothers or sisters. Or if I have a grandma or grandpa. Geesh! It's not like it's a big deal or anything." Nikita sat on the edge of the tub, suddenly feeling very weary. It would feel good to curl up in a corner and cry for a while. She had tried not to think about it at all and here it was right in her face again. Katie appeared in the doorway. "Mom, are you gonna cry?"

"Trying not to." She gave Katie a weak smile. "Come here." She ran a hand over the top of Katie's head and down her cheek as the girl stepped forward. "I don't like to talk about, Taylor, that was his name, because he hurt me very much. And it makes me very sad to think about how he made me feel and how it kept me away from you. I was young when you were born Katie and I couldn't take care of you. I know you realize that. He was part of the reason I couldn't take care of you. Giving you to someone else to love was one of the hardest things I ever did in my life but it was the right thing for you."

"I'm not mad at you for it. I just want to know who else is in my family. I kinda feel like I'm on this big island by myself sometimes and it gets pretty lonely." She looked up into Nikita's eyes. Nikita couldn't stop the blurring of her own eyes with tears. "I'm worried that when you leave in a couple days you won't be coming back. Either of you. I just got my mom and dad. I don't want to lose you again. You can't promise when you'll be back and I'm scared."

"I'm sorry things are so messy. I wish I could wave my hand and make all the bad stuff go away. I did some really dumb things when I was younger. And a lot of them have affected you. I never meant for anything to hurt you, Katie." She kissed Katie on the forehead as she pulled her into another hug. "I can't give you a when but I will be back. Nothing is going to stop me. I won't let it."

"It's that salope's fault not yours." Katie pulled away from Nikita with anger and some tears in her eyes. "I don't like her at all. She reminds me of a witch. I hope somebody throws water on her like the witch from the Wizard of Oz and she melts.

"Don't try using a word you think I don't know. I know that one and I don't want to hear it again. Yes, Madeline does have her bad points. But a lot of things have made her that way. And everything that has happened to me is not her fault. A lot happened before I even meet her."

"That's what I heard Dad call her a few days ago. I agree with him, she is. He was really mad and was beating on that bag in the basement like he wanted to punch a hole in it. I thought I had a temper. Wow."

"I mean it Katie. Don't try and change the subject either."

"What you have to do isn't fair and I don't like it."

"I don't like it either, but there is nothing I can do about it right now. By the way, just because you heard him use it, that doesn't mean you use it. Off limits... adults only.... got it?"

Rolling her eyes, Katie sighed and leaned against the wall. " All right. I got it already. Geesh." Silence followed.

"OK...you asked about the rest of your family. My mom, your grandma lives in Australia. I have not talked to her in a very long time. She was pretty sick and probably does not even remember me."

"Will she get better?"

"I don't know, I don't think that possible though..... I was an only child.... so you don't have any aunts or uncles. As for your other grandparents, I am really unsure. I don't remember Taylor's parents having ever been mentioned. Besides Reese, you don't have any other brothers or sisters."

"Doesn't matter. Since he didn't care enough about us to love us then he lost out on the two of us. Michael is way better than he could be anyway. When we went walking this morning, he told me all about the clouds and some sayings about them that could help you tell what the weather will be like tomorrow. And he told me about the ocean and how the moon and the wind makes the water move. He is really smart."

"Yeah he is."

"He has to be. He picked us!"

Smiling and laughing a little, Nikita shook her head. From the mind of a child.... "I guess you're right."

"I usually am." Katie said hastily. A sheepish grin formed as Nikita raised her eyebrows in mock disbelief. Then Katie got serious again. "What about Dad's parents? Does he have any brothers or sisters?"

"Michael's parents have been gone for a while. He has a sister but they haven't talked to each other in a long time. Part of the reason we work where we do is because we really do not have families. Some of us make them up as we go along. That may sound really strange to you and I don't expect you to totally understand it. At times I don't understand it either. What I want you and need you to understand is that both Michael and I love you very much. And we will do everything we can to make sure you and Reese are as safe and happy as we can make you."

Katie studied Nikita with steady eyes. At times her mom sounded so sure and mother like. But other times, Katie thought she sounded like herself. Like she wanted to be liked and understood. She had been an outsider at school and sometimes she felt that way here, being the only girl. Katie wondered if her mom ever felt that way. She wasn't sure but she didn't want anybody to know she felt that way. That was a secret she had only shared with Reese and he wasn't about to tell anyone; she hoped.

"Why did you fall in love with Dad?"

"Why? That's a good question. I don't really know. A lot of things. He's very special." Nikita shrugged, caught off guard by the question. She hadn't really ever analyzed why.

"What do you love most about him?"

"Is this the Spanish Inquisition or something? God.... you are a little nut. I think you're going to grow up to be a reporter. The next Barbara Walters...."

"Well?" Katie followed Nikita out of the bathroom and to the closet.

"I don't know. I just know how I feel.....This robe or the dress Annie found on Saturday?" Nikita pulled a long dove gray dress out of the closet and laid it on the bed. She chewed on a fingertip as if genuinely trying to decide. Katie threw herself down on the bed. Grabbing one of the sleeves, she rolled it between her fingers. She looked up at her mom. The dress was going to look really pretty on her.

"Mother.... puhleez be real." Suddenly Katie giggled. "But if you're going to be doing what I saw you two doing yesterday afternoon then maybe the robe would be easier?"

Nikita's mouth dropped open as she looked at Katie. "Katrina Nicole! We talked about that."

"No more lectures about that stuff. We did that in school. It's worse than the mushy stuff. That stuff was gross and embarrassing. And you talked to me about it with him here. Yuck, awful!!!"

"Just keep thinking that until you are old and gray. Or at least until you get married. Sneak into Reese's room and see if he stole my boots again. They aren't in the closet."

"He needs handcuffs. He gets into everything. I shouldn't have taught him how to walk."

"Oh, so I can blame you for that!" She grabbed a pillow and playfully hit Katie with it. "Traitor! Wait till he gets older. Worry about locking your room. Did you see what he did with the mustard bottle at dinner? I thought Claude was going to die on the spot. Annie is going to be so black and blue. I think we need to show him crayons and paper. Now go look before I do something nasty. Like tell Willie you like him."

"Aww, Mom, you are so gross!!" She scrambled over the bed and hopped down. "I'd rather eat those sheep gut things."

"Haggis can be arranged!" Nikita quipped as Katie scurried from the room.

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Birkoff turned in a circle in part of Madeline's old office. "They just left it like this... wow." Darcie stood just behind him. A big happy grin on her face and her hands clasped behind her back. She was proud of herself for finding her way around the mass of tunnels but even more proud of this. If Birkoff hadn't known about this, then nobody did. It was hers and hers alone. Now she had a place to hide just like Nikita did. Maybe it was still in here, not on the outside like hers was but it was still a place to separate herself from the rest.

"Perfect home away from home. And only those I like can visit. So far that's only you." She sat down in a task chair and spun around, obviously delighted with herself. Birkoff frowned as he surveyed the amount of stuff she had squirreled away in here. Shades of Gail's money schemes danced before his eyes.

"Where did you get all the stuff?" he asked haltingly.

"Junk room. Most of it has come from there so don't worry that I'm lifting it. I washed my hands. See Pops..." She held them up, showing him the fronts and backs. "...no more sticky fingers. I just saved them money on the trash collection. You know they charge per pound. I lessened the load. The chair here is Michael's old one. That desk, table and some of the other big stuff was here when I found it about 3 months ago. The shelves came out of Walter's place when he got the new ones." She pointed to the wall behind Birkoff. "Guess what's on the other side of that?"

He shrugged. "Just tell me. You got me so turned around that my sense of direction crashed."

"Boss II's new office. I plan to keep my eye on her from now on. She's not pulling any more fast ones."

"How so?" he asked as he hopped up to sit on the desk. "This is the second time you've mentioned a fast one. And you've had a thing going on about Madeline for a couple of weeks now. What did she do that set your butt on fire so bad?"

Darcie chewed on it for a minute before she spoke. There was no reason to tell Birky everything that Nikita had told her about her little girl and Taylor. She would just tell about what Madeline had done. "She found Nikita's little girl's father and sent him after Nikita. I won't tell you why but Nikita is like kinda scared of him because of some stuff he did to her. Michael took after her because he was afraid that the guy would want Katie or something like that."

"So?"

"Michael sees himself as her dad now. He wants Taylor to stay away from all of them. You know what that creep did? He left her alone and pregnant. Never bothered to come back and help out at all. Personally I 'd kill the guy." She pushed herself out of the chair and viciously kicked a basket that laid near her. A couple of girls had similar backgrounds to Nikita and she knew what they had gone through. Giving up the baby and always wondering afterwards. It had hurt to see friends go through the bad stuff it caused. It hurt even more to see Nikita going through it because Darcie felt a lot closer to her than she had the others. That was besides Ronnie...

"You wouldn't do that." Her sudden anger confused Birkoff. The guy really upset her.

"Try me!" She knew he thought she was kidding. Yeah maybe she had a problem with pulling off the scenarios but there would not have been one if that was the case.

Birkoff decided to change the subject. Knowing Nikita, the past was where she wanted it to stay which included the two of them discussing it. "So this is where you hide out? Like when I can't find you around Section at all?"

"Yeah most of the time. Whatever they used on the new office walls to shield stuff filters over to here. My signal doesn't read. They stripped the monitors and alarms out of here too. Bet you can't trace me in the conduits either. They have that metal shielding in there too."

He gave a short laugh. "You become like a little ghost."

"Yeah, I'm good at fading into the background but I pop up in the best places. If I was a blackmailer in my spare time I could make a fortune." She walked over to him and pulled out the drawer next to his leg. After pulling out a brown paper bag, she laid it on his lap. "I owe you those. You won the bet, they weren't on vacation together."

Opening the bag, he pulled out a bag of 'Double stuff' Oreos. "How did you get these?"

"I've gotten into Walter's good graces as far as Oreos....now I'm working on that great chocolate he gets for Christine. I refused to take care of ingrown toenails just for chocolate though no matter how good it is."

Wrinkling his eyebrows, Birkoff shook his head. Sometimes she came out with the weirdest things but if she was going to continue the snacks, that was ok with him. "Now tell me how you got the idea about the built in closets....."

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Erik leaned against the side of the van with a heavy sigh. He looked down at Doyle who stared back to the house that stood in the small valley. "Operations rag you out too?"

"Tatters," Doyle said shortly. "You think the piece of crud could have cleared them out of here in the amount of time he had?"

Considering the inanity of the question for a moment, Erik nodded. "Yeah, from what I've seen this guy do in the past. He ain't an amateur, Doyle. He's an expert. He had an advantage. Old JJ knew we were watching his activity but this place just wasn't on the list. It gave him time to rabbit and there isn't a doubt in my mind that he had a back up plan too. He just picked another hole to curl up in for a while. Guy has the mind of a dealer in terrorist clothes. Bad combo."

"The only way we know they were there were the signals. Were they faked?" He looked up to see Erik shrug.

"You saw the readings. They checked out. We know the dead guy up in the room with the busted out window was one of his guys. The bandages on the shoulder looked fresh. We found that leather case with all those knives and needles. You said yourself they looked like scalpels. There were those bloody sheets too. You heard what Billie said, he thought the stitches looked like the Doc's work. You know, small and neat like she is. They kinda matched his scar too."

"5'8" on a woman isn't small."

"But she's built small....I'm not going to debate the Doc's physique. It's nice to look at and so is she but that's not important right now. To tell you the truth I'd like Simon back, I'm not enjoying myself filling in here. Less bs on our team, no real leader, just Princess to take or apply the heat if necessary. You know what we got to do when we go back, don't you?"

Stretching, Doyle stood up, his eyes back on the house. "No, what?" Princess... just what Simon calls her. I swear this whole place is like a fan club for them at times.

"The Agency bitch is going to want a report. And you think Operations was rough...."

With a smirk on his face, Doyle raise an eyebrow at him. "She'll be cake. I'm not worried."

"She don't charm, Doyle. You aren't even an appetizer for the beast." He rapped his knuckles on the van door. "Scrap maybe..."

"Screw you. Hey, Green said the tire tracks looked like the tires those new Mercedes SUVs have?"

"Yeah... why?"

"Maybe we can figure out their direction of travel. The only road goes north-south, you take half and so will I. Let's check towns for a 20 mile radius."

"Doyle, let me give you three letters, S....U...V. Anything coming to mind?" Erik sounded irritated. This new guy was a bit of a pain. He had a know it all attitude; no wonder just about everybody disliked him so much. Erik didn't have much respect for ex-cons. Even though most of the ones he worked with were of one kind or another. The ones he worked with, he respected, but not Doyle. The man rubbed every cop sensibility he had the wrong way. Not to mention most of his human ones, too.

"Protected wetlands. They aren't amphibious. Lousy gas mileage plus those things are ugly and expensive. 4 of them together then, we hope, somebody must have seen them. They'd make an impression. You on?"

"We're wasting time doing it."

"You ever stop being a Mountie?" Doyle threw back at him as he got up and walked around the van. Erik saluted him cleanly behind his back. What bad ass... 5 minutes Doyle.... that's all I'd need. And then you'd know all about a northern RCMP officer... Snow can be a deadly thing.... especially in the bush.

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Chapter 4

As the clock over the couch chimed out nine times, Michael got up with an annoyed sigh. Pushing the lace curtain aside, he looked out the side window up to the windows of the bedroom he and Nikita had been using. The light was still on but now he could see no movement. Annie had already chased him out of the house once and threatened him with a dire fate if he came back again before dawn. Nikita and Katie were having a talk and Annie assured him that as soon as it was over, Nikita would be there. That was an hour ago he had heard that and he was still waiting.

Closing the door behind him, he saw the shadowed movement of the guard who had the gate near the bungalow under watch. Michael raised his hand to signal the guard that all was well. The security that Mac had set up and the people he had to do it were impeccable. They all knew their jobs and did them without disturbing the estate occupants in the slightest. What he found intriguing were that about a half a dozen of the younger ones he had met were the grown children of some in the older group. They enjoyed the life they had been brought up in and wanted to stay here as part of it.

That meant a lot to Michael. It showed loyalty but not just to the amenities it offered which abounded here. No expense had been spared.. The whole layout showcased the skills Mac had exercised in picking people for this assignment and the integrity with which he ran things. These people stayed because they wanted to not because they had to. It made Section One seem that much more darker in his mind than it had been already.

But did it really matter now? Praising Mac mentally for his set up after that phone call earlier. He had told himself he wasn't going to worry. Hadn't he handled worse things? Yes, but never with having to consider so carefully the way it would affect two children. Not like this, not the way it had such direct impact on his future. Should he tell Nikita? That opened up a whole of set of problems. No, hold it aside and deal with it later. He didn't have enough to form a complete plan anyway. He needed more and that could only come from Mac.

Even with acknowledging those thoughts; for the first time in a long time, Michael felt safe and relaxed. No one could find them if they wanted to. In theory they could live here for the rest of their lives. Nikita could have her someday. He could work on recreating the parts of himself that the past had all but obliterated. Mac had given him a warning that Cala was like a drug, one didn't want to give it up. You just wanted to let it wrap around you and keep the bad part of your life away.

As he looked to the sky and took a deep breath, he felt that temptation digging into him. He wanted to stay here just as much as she did but he had made promises. And for all the peace in the world, he couldn't bring himself to break them.....yet. Even though Mac was telling him that they would be broken by the other side. If not tomorrow then perhaps the next day. But it would happen.

In the past two weeks he had grown to care even more for both Katie and Reese. A smile formed on his lips as he thought of the sight he had woken up to several mornings ago. Reese had been in bed with them as usual, trying to keep him out had turned into an entire house awakening including two guards from the outside. They hadn't tried that again. He was also in his usual spot, between them but for once he was in a normal position.

Nikita had been on her side facing him but her arm which usually laid on her pillow was curved around Reese. The little guy was snuggled up against her as close as he could get. Both of them had appeared to be sound asleep. After several minutes of watching them, Michael could not resist touching her. With a finger he traced her cheekbone, wondering how he had gotten to this place and time but happy he was.

Nikita's eyes opened and she smiled sleepily at him. Sliding closer, he kissed her forehead and then laid the side of his face against her head. He remembered that they stayed like that for a while. He must have dozed off again because the next thing he knew Reese was kicking at him and demanding loudly more room. The poor tyke had been pretty well squashed between them. And that had been the end of sleep too, as Katie had come crashing in to dive on top of the bed.

Katie was a great kid, in many ways incredibly a clone of Nikita. The temper, the stubbornness, mannerisms, even Katie's appearance remind him strongly of her. Then there were those looks. That sly smile that Nikita had; growing to reflect in her eyes. The one that always warned him that trouble was coming.

The other was the hurt look, it could break your heart and Nikita had it designed just perfect for getting what she wanted. Even though the pain those eyes echoed at times was completely, viciously real and not a ploy. Katie unfortunately had both down pat and used them to her ultimate gain except with Nikita. Michael had already seen one battle between them. He hoped he would never be stuck in the middle of one. Chuckling at the image of two Godzillas screaming at each other that popped into his head couldn't be helped. Nikita would not take kindly to the characterization, he knew that for sure.

Exhaling, he watched his breath lazily float off into the shadows. There was a definite frostiness to the air but fortunately the strong biting wind from the day had died down. He had taken his sweater off earlier so he stood outside in just his khakis and a white turtleneck. What breeze there was went right through the thin material of his shirt and through his pants too, chilling his hands. Pulling a hand out of his pocket, he blew into it. Not that he minded the cold but he had been out in it enough today and he wasn't ready for it either. The warm weather had come and gone too quickly this year for his tastes. Looking over at the house again, he decided to give her another 10 minutes and went back in.

The fire had died down a little and he could feel some of the coolness from outside seeping in. Turning off the light, he sat down in front of the fireplace and stirred the logs. Sparks jumped and it glowed brightly again, flames licking around the logs. Watching them, he recalled the dream he had been having lately. Another one of those dark thoughts he had been trying to not dwell on but the hot flares of orange and red brought back too many memories of things burning and that look from Jon he kept seeing. Along with the warning echoed by the damn bracelet.

After all these years, the idiot still held on to the anger over it. Michael could not even fathom why. What it signified had not be real or true in any sense of the word, Simone had assured him of that. But it was obvious Jon didn't feel that way and he probably never had. Michael closed his eyes as he envisioned her pulling the pocket knife from her pocket and jamming it through the copper of her bracelet into the soft wood of the tree outside the farmhouse. He had looked to Jurgen who just shrugged at him with an expression that said let it be.

Operations had relented in letting them go on the mission with Jurgen, even though both of them and Madeline felt they were too close to the situation. The farmhouse had been L' Araigne's hideout and Jon was there as well. The three of them planted the charges and started to slip away when they spotted Jon. Michael had tried to drag Simone with him but she shoved him away. She had demanded her part in the end of it as well. She had yanked the bracelet out of her jacket and stared at it. Then the knife came out and she attached it to the tree. It had bent as she did it, barely holding into the tree. The simplicity of the bracelet's design was still fresh in his head. He could almost feel the etching's relief on the metal.

The ferocity of the loathing in her words still rung clear too. "Hope you rest in hell with him, Jon." Then she had taken off for the van. Jurgen had made him explain everything when they got back to Section. They had been split up for a long while after that. She had gone to work with one of the old timers, Carson and then eventually with Martina for a time before she came back. That was when the friendship ended and the love started. He had been so hesitant to let it evolve especially since Jon had survived the attempt and even though L' Araigne was dead, his 'lessons' still had haunted Michael.

Simone had assured him that whatever Jon had told him or let be implied about him and her were wrong. Michael had fought viciously with her that night she had come to the apartment. He refused to have anything to do with her emotionally or physically. There was absolutely no way he could bring himself to that. The nightmare that created his life started because L' Araigne thought that Papa had seduced his wife. How could Michael perpetuate that by doing the same thing to Jon? If they were married then she was not free to be with him.

Her laughter had rung in the apartment and then the rage hit. She denied everything. She had been 15 so how could it had been legal. The whole thing had been a scheme on Jon's part to control her and he thought in the long run Michael too. She had never made any pretense of the way she felt about him, no matter the length he went to denying his own. She threw a lot at him that night. He knew she had covered for him a lot so he could have time and peace. That had been how he had stayed so close to Claude and kept him safe. But he had never know the extent of her help or feelings until that night. It had shocked him to the core to know what she had been put through for him...

The fingertips on his cheek startled him. He jerked his eyes away from the flames to see Nikita standing next to him. Her eyes were red rimmed as they looked at him. In them he saw a mixture of pain and worry. She gave him a wane smile. "You OK?" she asked as the tears glittered anew in her eyes, threatening to spill over onto her face. He could see tear tracks from earlier there already.

"I want you to answer that question instead," he answered as he stood up. Nikita shook her head as she brushed a tear away. As he reached out for her, he had a feeling this was not going to be a good night.

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Doyle rolled his eyes as CC continued to rate his performance. He had already had to listen to Operations and now this one. He wondered how Simon would have reacted to her exhibition. The man said he had an attitude but it was nothing compared to the red headed wench that paced the room like a wild dog. If she started foaming at the mouth, it would not have surprised Doyle in the least. To keep from laughing at her, he concentrated on precisely swiveling his chair to match the seams in the tabletop. The arm rest meeting the seam at a right angle just perfectly...

"You aren't going to say anything? You're just going to sit there, acting like you are dumb. That you don't have anything going around the empty head of yours?" CC snapped venomously at him. Her anger had gotten more intense as she had listened to their feeds. This guy was about useless and getting worse.

"Sorry didn't know you wanted a response. I thought your questions were more rhetorical in nature. Usually when a woman is going off the way you are, it's best to lean back and let the storm pass. You stay drier that way."

CC kicked the side of the chair he swiveled in to spin him to face her. "Listen little man..." His jump to a standing position made him brush against her. She pulled back faintly, aware unexpectedly that he had a temper which was bristling and was just as bad as her own.

"Back off babe. You're pushing my good humor to the breaking point." She had called him empty headed and now little. The insults were done. So they hadn't found anything and been overdue getting back but weren't all possibilities however small supposed to be explored? Even Operations' tirade had been more about how he had been short sighted himself regarding Christine. Her place should have been rigged like all the other field Ops who lived off site. Especially because of her connection to Michael.

That comment had piqued Doyle's curiosity. He had questioned it. Just because she was buddy buddy with Simon and Nikita who were in Michael's back pocket, why did that make her so special. Operations had glared at him with a look that categorized him as a moron. Doyle had been floored, what had he done to earn it? He had been flat out dismissed after that and yanked out of Ops by CC here to the briefing room.

Sneering at him, CC slowly sat on the table. She leaned back on her hands, a cat like look on her face. "Did I hurt the poor baby's feelings?"

"No, just the pleasant image I had in my head about you. You managed to change my mind about you." He had a hard time keeping the look of disgust repressed.

"A pleasant image of me? Oh what was it?" She sat forward suddenly, a snarl in her voice. "Flat on my back?"

"At the beginning," he retorted before he stepped away. "Lose some of the attitude. It ain't pretty."

"Wasn't trying to be. I'm not a sweet person."

"Everybody said that."

"I'm not here to be anybody's friend. I have a job to do."

"Then do it. I'm not your personal punching bag."

CC could resist the dig that line created. She had heard about the fight he had with Michael and how he had come out on the very short end of it. "That's right! I did hear you offered those services to Michael. How much is your contract? Is his right as mean as they say it is?"

"You ought to know. He showed Nikita how to use it. If my sources are correct and I know they are. You were on liquids for a couple of days. She clocked you out!"

"I have a different perspective on that."

"Yeah from behind your eyelids." Doyle turned from her and leaned again the door frame to stare across the circle to Ops. He watched Birkoff good naturedly boot Darcie in the rear to push her off the dais. With a finger pointing towards the exercise room, he sounded like he was telling her to go to class. Half heard insults seemed to shoot back and forth among the Ops crew. He felt a bit of jealousy. Darcie seemed to fit in where ever she wanted to, how did she do it?

"Your return to your former abode can be arranged." CC threatened.

"I can be packed in 5 minutes!" Doyle barked back as he walked towards the exercise room and its adjacent corridor. He needed some peace and quiet. His newest cell, what passed for quarters around here, seemed as good a place as any for that.

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"Yes?" Operations smacked the open line to his monitor. Billie popped up on the screen. "What do you have?" He rested his hand on a manila envelope next to the keyboard.

Billie yanked a face into view. "This is the guy you wanted, right? He says Foller isn't his name. But everything matches."

Operations sighed as he stared into the fearful eyes of Taylor Foller. He looked exactly like the man in the picture that laid on the corner of the desk. The decision to send people out to grab the man had been rash. But there was no way he was going to let this man be used again. His existence on the outside threatened Reese's safety and future. Not to mention the liability he represented for Section in a form of a weakness for Nikita. It needed to be contained and neutralized if possible but not as Madeline had seen fit. "Prints, too?"

"Matched exactly."

A grim smile curved Operations' lips. "Follow profile." He closed the feed and stretched out his neck. "Mr. Foller, they say paybacks are a bitch. You're going to find out just how much."

"Where the hell did you find him?" The disgusted tone in her voice did nothing to improve his mood. He looked over at his door to see CC standing there, foot tapping on the floor. Had she been in on it with Madeline? He nudged the envelope away from the center of his desk. He hoped she hadn't heard any of the conversation. It appeared she hadn't.

"You're bothering me. Shut up and take a chair." Operations pointed to in front of his desk. He wasn't particularly interested in dealing with her right now but he didn't have a choice. He was more interested in getting Taylor secured, then working on getting leads on Simon and Christine. It was time he made some demands of dear doctor. Like talking to Michael and curbing whatever she had going with Simon. Though if they had been that good at hiding it so far, maybe if it kept the peace, it could be allowed. Simon was the most likely to fill Michael's shoes. And what Oscar wanted most was things to run smoothly....

"Doyle needs a trainer." CC said as she sat in the chair. "He needs discipline and some manners."

"And you need a muzzle. Get off Doyle's back. He's been thrown to the dogs since I pulled him back in. He's done ok, some minor problems. He needs time. I know you feel things aren't up to your standards but you don't run this place. Don't think you ever will either. I am merely tolerating you. There are three others here that would not think twice about making other arrangements for you." He studied her for a minute, waiting for another sarcastic comment. He had the strangest urge to wash her mouth out with soap and hold her head under the water to watch the soap bubble.

"How long do you intend to let the little arrangement between Michael and Nikita go on? Till they decide to just split? Or she uses those kids as leverage with him, like Simone tried to do?"

"Circumstances are different here. Nikita knows that won't get her what she ultimately wants. Only cooperation will. She won't use Michael's feelings against him."

"It's the oldest trick in the book Oscar. Use the little kiddies."

"Nikita doesn't read those kind of books. She plays fair and expects that in return. I don't know how she's held onto that in here but she has. She threatens and fights back but she's smart. She'll do what she has to in order to keep all three of them safe."

"Oh ain't love grand?" CC intoned. She felt disgusted by the image of the little white house with a picket fence and swing set in the front yard that popped into her head.

"Don't knock what you don't know, Constance." Operations warned.

"I know it. I don't want it. Emotions make you weak."

Laughter erupted out of Operations as he stood. "Emotions and weakness..... excuse me young lady! But sitting here in my office is a miserable, anger, spiteful and very unhappy person. There are several emotions in that description. Are you of all people admitting to be weak?"

Now it was CC's turn to laugh. "Oh be real. Only thing weak about me are my nails." She examined them for a instant before she looked up into Operations' eyes which studied her intently. "What are you looking at me like that for?" The scrutiny made her uncomfortable. But that was only because it was from him. She drove herself nuts trying to get his approval but it never came. Any of that seemed to her to be reserved for Michael and Nikita.

Once again, Operations had to wonder when and how CC had gotten to be so angry with life and with him. He didn't accept the rationale she had given him about being this way was because he wouldn't let her in Section One. "What did it, CC?"

"What do you mean?" She kept the frown off her face. Oscar was soul searching and she wasn't

in a revealing mood.

"What happened to the girl I used to know?" He followed her with his eyes as she stood up. It was easy to tell that she was displeased with the question. Her own eyes swept over his face with a dispassionate glint.

"The girl grew up." On that comment she brushed past him and threw back over her shoulder as she strode out. "I'll be down in Maddie's hole for a while."

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With a moan, Simon opened his eyes. Things were dark and they were blurry. His back throbbed like a bad toothache. The rest of his body felt bruised and sore. The image of building as he had looked at it from the grassy hill still hung in his head. He had done a lot of stupid stuff in his life but nothing like that. The two stories he judged they had been up was really four. He was lucky he had gotten them both killed.

As his senses became sharper, he got the impression that he was in a moving vehicle, a van. He could hear the hum of the road beneath his head which laid on a cold steel floor. It was bare too, nothing banged against the sides at it hit a bump. He blinked his eyes to try and clear them. The focus cleared more and he realized that he was looking at a black boot. He watched it raise up so that it was level with his cheek. Simone steeled himself for the blow. He could feel he no longer wore cuffs but linked shackles on both his wrists and his ankles. There wasn't a chance he could defend himself at the moment.

Instead of kicking him in the face, the boot moved lower, to his shoulder and struck just hard enough to roll him onto his back. Simone looked up to see Jon staring hard at him. "Enjoying yourself, Jon Jae?" he asked.

"Jon will be sufficient, thank you. That was not a very smart thing you did, Simon."

"Where's Christine?"

"Safe for now. What did you think you were going to prove with that stunt? That you could easily kill yourself and her?" Simon didn't answer him, he was too busy studying the inside of the van. "There is no possible way for you to possible use anything to your advantage right now but you are still trying. Why?"

"Instinct."

Jon made a sound of disgust. "Like an animal has. I encourage you to cooperate with me. Things will be easier for you and for Paige. Tell...."

"Her name is Christine."

"...me what keeps you in Section One. We could deal Simon. You're an impressive specimen." Simon sneered at him. Where have I heard that before? Specimen means slave in my book. Never gonna feel like that again....he thought to himself

"Go to hell."

"Oh you wound me. Perhaps after this little reunion thing is done, we can work something out. Tell me how long have you known her true identity."

"I've know Christine for awhile."

"And you are not afraid of the repercussions of being involved with her?"

"No need to be afraid of what isn't going to happen. She's the doc not a field op." Simon rolled his eyes as Jon laughed. The guy was going to go down so hard. He was going to have a hand in it. There was some hurt to inflict, especially that slap he has seen Jon give her at the top of the hill. Seeing her fall to the ground like a leaf from a tree had almost crushed him. They had been outside of the building long enough for their signals to have reached Section One, he was positive of it. But they had been moved so fast....

"I know who she is, Simon. I've known for a while. You don't lie well, give up. For you, one of your kind, it smacks of dishonor. You think he is not going to have something to say about the fact that you are sleeping with his sister?"

Simon smirked, "We're adults. And unlike you, we've moved past the games we played as kids. Hide and seek got boring around first grade. Maybe you ought to learn a new game, like Simon Says. You might live longer. Grounding yourself in reality is a good thing too."

Jon returned the smirk. "Threatening me or trying to be humorous? You failed to be either."

"Merely FYI. You're going to be ground chuck by the time we're done with you. And I'll make sure you're awake for the grinding too. You won't last a minute inside the door."

"That's more than I want, Simon. Really just 30 seconds in the door. That's all it will take to set it up then I'll just wait for Michael. You see, I know they are looking for the two of you. I've already taken steps to insure that they think you two are coming back alone then the war games begin. And you know what, once again the spoils will be mine and he'll end up with nothing."

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After setting the next log on the fire, Michael looked over at the window to see what she was doing. Nikita still stood like a statue but the tears had stopped, drying in place on her face. Getting up, he went over and place his hand on her shoulder. It was rigid now, she had gone from needing to be held and comforted to walling herself off from not only whatever had upset her but him too. He traced the line of her shoulder with his thumb as he gazed out the window with her.

"Why are you sharing it with the darkness? It won't answer you back, believe me."

"Leave it alone" she whispered. Michael couldn't see what was going on in her eyes but he could hear it in her voice. This was suppose to be time to be together before they had to return to Section in two days. The coming days would be hard enough saying good bye to the children without there being something not right between them. He couldn't let her just push it away until she decided that it wasn't worth dealing with because then it came back twice as bad.

"I can't leave alone what I don't know about. Tell me what has you so upset. Is it leaving here and going back?"

"A little." She pulled away and went to sit by the fire. Even with the tear streaked face, she looked beautiful. The sheath like design of the dress made her look taller and thinner and fell gracefully from her shoulders. The deep v shape of the neckline was a perfect frame for the necklace from Martina which hung around her throat. Her blue eyes seemed even more blue against the dove gray reflection of the dress. And her hair shone in the glow from the fireplace, falling straight down her back. He wanted to tell her that but knew the words would be pushed away.

Sitting down beside her, he let her be in silence for a bit longer before he spoke again. "Are you and Katie having a problem?"

"Yes, my life is the problem!" Nikita said bitterly. She shoved the poker viciously into the logs from where Michael had it laying on the hearth and drew her knees up to her chin, a hand clasped on each ankle. With a small sigh, he pulled the metal out of the fire. Rubbing his thumb over his lips as if making a decision first, he then reached out to run a finger along her thigh.

"We can't work on it if I don't know more about it than that."

"You can't fix this!" she snapped at him

He replied in the same manner. "How do you know!?" His reaction made her flinch. Nikita was not in the mood for fighting with him. Tonight was suppose to be time for them to relax. And here she was ruining it because of how she felt about the talk with Katie. Michael immediately regretted snapping back at her. He saw the way she seemed to pull even further into herself. Nikita reached for his hand as he went to smooth imaginary hair back behind his ear.

"What are you nervous about?" She tried to figure out what was going on behind his eyes. It was so hard, he never stopped hiding things. Even when he was relaxed, she felt there was more going on in his head than he admitted to.

"Not nervous, worried. You're closing up."

"Doesn't feel good, does it?" She bit her lower lip as hurt from the words showed in his eyes. "Sorry that was uncalled for."

"True enough though..... I went up to the house earlier and Annie kicked me out, telling me to wait for you till you were done talking to Katie. Everything I'm hearing and seeing says that you're acting like this because of something that she said. Or because of how you reacted to something she said and now you're feeling guilty about it. Regardless of what it is, the effect is on all four of us now, whether you realize it or not."

"Do you know that every time I look in her eyes I feel like a liar?" It dawned on Michael as he heard the sadness and self reproach in her voice that Katie must have been asking questions. He felt like kicking himself as he recalled his answer to her this morning when she had asked about her father. 'Your mom needs to answer that question' had not been the best thing to tell her. Whatever happened as they talked, he had started it this morning with that stupid response.

"Why?" Michael got a hold of her arm and pulled it towards him. With a small sigh, Nikita allowed him to draw her closer.

"She wants to know about her father. My answer...she's not old enough. I told her that he hurt me a lot....he did more than hurt me. He ruined our lives. How can I tell her the truth? If I can't, that makes me a liar. Makes me a great mother, too, doesn't it?"

Michael thought for a second before he spoke. "Would you tell Reese about his father if he asked?" Nikita shook her head.

"No, he doesn't need to know. Not the lives his birth parents had, has, whatever...ours are bad enough."

"Then why tell Katie? Does knowing how she came into this world make anything better for her? Does knowing the animal he was...." He couldn't keep the anger out of his voice and it stirred her own.

Stiffening and pushing away from him, she got to her feet. "Damn it! I wish you would stop calling him that! Don't I have enough to cope with!? Now I have to fend off your feelings over it? It happened to me. It is my problem and my daughter's. It's for me to resolve. It's a wound I have to heal!"

"Stop the 'my' stuff!! I have a stake in this too. I've willingly taken a part in her life. Don't mark off what's yours and mine!!! It doesn't work that way anymore!"

"You don't..." She tried to interrupt him but he talked over her, ignoring her attempt at protesting. Nikita couldn't ignore the part of herself though that felt happy because of his affection for Katie. But if he couldn't understand how she wanted to just forget all the hurt then maybe this wasn't going to work as well as she hoped it would. She started to move towards the door.

"Regardless of how you put it or when it happened, the past is part of you. What he did to you is not something you just brush aside. It shapes you, your reactions and your perceptions." Michael got to his feet and grabbed for her as she started for the door. "No, you are staying and we are finishing this. We've swept this under the rug long enough. It's time to take the power away from this. I'm not going to let it pull apart what we have or this family we're trying to put together. You said at the hotel that you washed it away. There is nothing over and done about it. It's still there and eating away at you. "

Nikita sneered at him. "Aren't we a fine one to talk? You think my past is causing problems? Look at yourself, Michael! You want a family? You've already got a complete one you can't let go, why do you need another one? So you can get a death grip on that one too? I'm not playing into it!" She jerked her arm away, defiance and anger glared in her eyes. Michael felt the challenge from her and how it demanded him to meet it. He resisted the urge. If they fought, things would not be resolved and they needed to be.

"That was cruel and unnecessary."

"But oh so true! I'm just a substitute, have been since the first time you saw me. You're using me just like you did then. Only it's for your own self interest now and not Section's. I'm a fool. I never learn."

He slapped a palm against his leg, expelling the anger that way as best he could. It stung and told him he was close to letting her direct this into a fight. She was deflecting the focus from her and Taylor. But he was not going to let her do it. "This is about you, Nikita! About Taylor! About us! Not about my own hang-ups and not about anything or anyone else!"

"But it is all the same poison. The past keeps you from being completely up front with me. It pushes me away from you because of the way I fear your reaction every time you hear his name. It affects the way you and I react to Katie. Our response to Reese gets colored by it too. Tell me what do you see when you look at her face!"

He focused on her face, eyes wide and intense. "I see a living breathing painting of you. I see the ultimate compliment in that child for the woman you are." Michael saw the disbelief on her face. "Don't shrug my answer off. I see it on your face. You asked me a question and I honestly gave you my response. Katie is the child she is because as long as she can remember she had wanted to know about YOU! And in anticipation of that she tried to picture you in her head and what you were like. She tried to imagine how you expected her to be. She's the you that you wanted to be as a child. The you life didn't give you a chance to be. Can't you just appreciate her, Nikita? Understand the life and beauty in those eyes? Just like I did the first time I saw you. Just like I do every time I look at you now. I look at her and can only imagine the woman she will become. And having an example like you, it's going to be quite the sight."

"Where, how do you see that? I see him and every mistake I've ever made."

"She's not a mistake! She's everything right!"

Nikita grinded her teeth together. "I didn't say she was a mistake but her life and the way it is turning out is the result of my mistakes! I've practically condemned the both of them to hell for the rest of their lives. How? Because Nikita never stands up for herself! First sign of trouble, I tuck my tail and run away. I refuse to confront the problem!"

"You refuse to confront what happened with him and the way it makes you feel. That's it."

"I admitted it happened! What else is there?"

"Going beyond it. Stop letting it control you."

A loud noise of frustration exploded out of Nikita. "TAKE YOUR OWN ADVICE!! When was the last time you went a day without thinking of L'Araigne. Every second I see you with Reese, I wonder who you're really seeing. 4 nights in the past two weeks you've woken me up saying 'Simone'. I dare you to tell me the past hasn't got a strangle hold on you."

"I'm working on it."

"Then until you accomplish it, lay off me!!" Nikita tried to go around him again. The night was blow to bits at this point. They were both too angry to have any peace. Yanking the door open, she froze as he yelled at her.

"The only way I can accomplish it is through you!!! You and those two kids are the only living part of me!!! I push at you because.... because I am scared as hell that every time I touch you now.... damn it.... you think of him and what he did." She turned to look at him but his head was down. "And yes I've been dreaming of Simone. But Jon is in it too and I feel so damn powerless. It's coming and I don't know where to look for it to hit! I know he's planning to come after you and the kids. Madeline's games weren't the only reason I wanted to hide them. But they were the best catalyst for Operations. I want to hide you too, so he can't find you to hurt you. That's not possible though, I can only protect you if you let me. And you won't."

Closing the door softly, she moved back towards him. "What do you mean about Jon? Was that bracelet Simone's? "

"I know I've never heard everything about those two. Simone told me what she felt she needed to and that was all I ever got. She thought she gave the final blow but it only made him want revenge against me. It's gotten worse because I've got his son. And I've got you."

"What does it have to do with us, Michael?" He sat in a chair, elbows on his knees holding up his head. The mess that the past was kept spilling more and more into the present, mangling and ripping it to pieces. How long before it killed the future? Nikita knelt in front of him and pulled down his hands. "Answer me!!!!"

"Jon feels that he was married to Simone and I stole her from him."

"None of you were old enough..."

"He's 4 years older than me Nikita. He was old enough but Simone told me none of it was legal because she was underage and without parental consent. I believed her, I still do. There is no doubt in my mind he blames me for her betraying Philippe to Section. She always distracted him from me. Right up till the ultimate sell out in their eyes. They took me in a raid she helped out in. I remember waking up in the white room with my head in her lap, her telling me we were finally safe. What a pitifully cruel joke that was!!"

Michael leaned back in the chair as he pulled his hands from her, to rub at his temples. He hadn't had a headache in almost two weeks. This one was going to be massive, he could feel it. "When we were at Claude's, the bracelet on the table, Jon made her wear it all the time. Her skin was always green from it. Always reminded her of a fungus that she couldn't get rid of. He had a matching one. The design in the middle is a symbol he picked from Chinese. It means something about deciding spoils of war. By putting the knife through it, he made it clear the war is renewed. Nothing is decided anymore."

"So you think he'll come after me and the kids just to get back at you." He pushed himself out of the chair, forcing her to stand with him.

"Not just come after you. He'll take you away from me. And make sure I know that he has you and there will be no way for me to get you back. He'll do physically what Taylor is doing to you emotionally. I can take most of the power from Jon but I can't touch Taylor. You have him wrapped up inside. Get rid of him! Give me a chance! With him so close to you, I can't be!"

"Wait a minute." Nikita held up her hands to back him off. "You know I can take care of myself. Stop worrying about that, ok? I feel like we're on our way back to the beginning with this protecting me stuff."

Michael shook his head and looked to the ceiling. "Because we almost are! You're being careless. Madeline tripped you like an untied shoelace. You believed so easily! You're taking all these chances. When I saw that car, the ideas that flew through my head. I thought he had started on it. Torture me by making me wonder what happened to you. I watched as the car rolled off that flatbed with Raymond's words in my head...that you were ok... still knowing what Jon was capable of and seeing that brake fluid dripping onto the ground..... I followed the directions Raymond gave me without question. I went without thinking, I had no plan. I was a perfect target."

"That was your doing not mine!"

"But you made it worse. By letting him get to you! You were so self destructive when you left. Getting away from what you were feeling was all that was important."

"It was the kids I was upset about. Not all Taylor! He's not the only thing in my head!"

"I doubt that at times!" He swung away from her with a growl. "Can't you understand how afraid I am of losing all of you? I've lost it all before, I won't survive another go around. I get so angry when I think of him!! And I see that pain in your eyes when you think no one is looking. The memories, the anger, the regrets. I want to fix it. I want to make it go away. But you won't let me." He started to pace. He had gotten himself to the point where he couldn't stand still.

Nikita brought her hands up to her face to rub her eyes. The aggression in him was easy to see and she knew that he was close to losing the tight rein he kept on his temper. But she was tired of dancing in circles with him on this. It was her problem. Why couldn't he trust her to take care of it. "Michael, what will make you stop this?" She moved closer to him and snagged his arm as he paced by her. He tried to yank his arm from her but she pulled back just as roughly. "What will make you happy?"

"Talk to Raymond when we go back. He can help." Nikita shoved his arm away in an almost disgusted way.

"Christ, Michael! Do you ever give up?" Though giving in to his request was going to be the only way to get him to stop, she did not want to talk to Raymond. The old man bothered her, worse than Madeline ever did. He was too damn truthful and he saw in too deep. Much more than she even wanted to do herself.

"No, that's the only way I know how to survive." He took a shaky breath. Michael could sense her giving in. The fight wasn't leaving her but he knew she was sick of hearing it and wanted him to leave it be. "Please, Raymond knows how to help." Nikita threw her hands up in the air.

"Fine! Whatever you want, if it will make you stop badgering me, I will. But you drop it now! I have had enough. Tonight is ruined. I'm just going back to the house and try to get some sleep. You do what you want. I can tell you aren't going to sleep tonight. You've got yourself too keyed up but I'm drained. Good night."

Michael hadn't expected her to move so quickly to the door. She had it opened and was stepping out before he moved. The sound of it banging against the bungalow wall echoed in the still night. He caught up with her on the walk. "Don't go back to the house. I want you to stay with me. Let's try to salvage what we can of tonight."

Annie moved the curtain aside as the sound of the door reached the house. Claude hovered behind her. "What's going on?" he asked.

"They're having a discussion."

"You mean they're fighting again. How did two such pigheaded people fall for each other?" He sounded faintly annoyed. Annie turned to look at him.

"You should know. How does it happen?" He rolled his eyes at her as she giggled. Annie looked out the window again.

"If she tries to get back in this house, I'll kick her out just like I did Michael."

"We should stay out of this. We're forcing the issue."

"No, we're not.... just providing assistance. He'll fix it... watch him."

"No." Nikita moved further up the walk. Silently Michael cursed himself for raking the muck around again. It was his own fault for letting it get out of hand.

"You look beautiful tonight... I love you." She didn't reply to him. Michael tried one more time, letting her know how important the night was to him. "I was really looking forward to tonight. I'm sorry." Watching her back as she walked away from him, he didn't bother to keep the disappointment out of his voice. She stopped and turned around to look at him.

"You can't just let me go, can you?" She chewed on the inner part of her lower lip as she waited for him to reply.

"No." Slowly she walked back to him, eyes focused on the gravel. He had said exactly what she hoped he would. It had been hard to hide the letdown that they would not be spending the night together as they had hoped. His words had sounded calculated though and she wondered if he really meant them. It made her steps hesitant.

Seeing her uncertainty, he wanted to show her that the words hadn't been just to get her to come back. He kissed her as soon as she was close enough. "I meant what I said. You really do look beautiful." He tried to kiss her again but she pulled away, starting to shake. Instantly he was worried. He had not been kidding about the trepidation regarding Taylor. As she started to talk he heard the catch in her voice. Michael tried to figure out as fast as he could how to stop it . He started to open his mouth to talk when she shook her head.

Nikita had seen the look in his eyes and wanted him to stop thinking about Taylor as quick as possible. "Can we go back in? You've got pants on, I don't. And that cool breeze is going right up my skirt. Chattering teeth are not far away." A smile of relief crossed his face as he put his arm around her and they turned together back towards the bungalow.

Claude made a disgusted sound as he pulled Annie away from the window. "I swear fighting is foreplay for those two." She started giggling and he shot her a look. "And what's so funny?" He asked as he started to take a drink from the glass in his hand.

"Better than marshmallow fluff...." Annie spun and dashed from the room. Choking on the liquid at her comment, he smacked the glass down. A huge smile on his mouth.

"You better run, woman...." He raised his voice as he followed her through the door. "Does that mean you found some?"

End of part two...

written by Tammy

Continue on to Fait Accompli, part three

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