PAGE TWO

Note: When Cantonese is spoken, these # #, will be before and after the sequence.

Birkoff was apprehensive. "What is it? What do you see?"

Michael waited patiently following Walter’s line of sight.

Walter was walking toward the table and chair beside the window. On the chair he picked up something small. He looked at it for a second then closed his hand slamming his fist down hard on the table. Shaking his head, he wore a grimace of pain on his face.

At this point, Michael spoke up. " Are you all right?"

Walter stood up straight and looked across the room at the two young operatives. With resolve in his voice said, "Contact Mai Ling, I want her here NOW." He crossed the room with determined steps holding out his closed fist toward Michael.

Michael held out his hand to receive whatever it was. There, they both saw a small Praying Mantis with one leg removed. It was still alive.

Walter called out to them, "Combat civilian dress. Briefing in 15. Michael, get Mai LING!!"

Michael went to his computer, typed out a message, scrambled and sent it. When he finished dressing, what looked to be normal clothing concealed 4 weapons and 2 chip bombs Walter invented. The receiver for Nikita’s trackers fit neatly into his hand. It was reading movement to the southwest.

Birkoff had a knot of fear growing in his stomach that Nikita was gone for good. He had never seen Walter so upset.

Minutes later, Mai Ling entered the suite. She had been running and was breathing fast. She braced for the onslaught. Walter came up to within 2 inches of her face with rage in his eyes and acid in his voice. # # "Where in the hell were you? How could you not have seen this? I even warned you this might happen." # #

# # "It’s only 4 o’clock, the net was to be in place at 6. Still, we witnessed the incident and my team is tracking. They will report to me when the location stabilizes." # #

Walter calmed a bit, nodding his head. # #"Thank the gods. Let’s bring the others up to speed. # #

Michael and Birkoff had been watching and listening to the exchange. They were both astounded that Walter spoke Chinese. More specifically, Cantonese. Everyone moved into the small room as Birkoff activated the Halo system for that room.

Walter began. "Nikita has been abducted by a man named Shek Kiin. He runs the underground here, the black-market. He specializes in hard to get items and someone has put Nikita on the list.

"What is the significance of the Praying Mantis?" Michael asked.

Mai Ling’s eyes went wide. # #"You didn’t tell me that!" # # She flipped open her cell phone and issued urgent orders to her team. ## Monitor only, do not intercept. Repeat, do not intercept. ##

"The Mantis tells us who has her and that she’s for sale. We can buy her back. It also tells us that different rules apply now that Kiin is involved."

Michael wasn’t satisfied. "And the missing leg?"

"We probably won’t get her back in one piece." Walter continued to pace.

Michael turned to block Walter’s pacing and searched the mans face for answers. "This sounds personal. What are you not telling us?"

Walter sighed and rubbed his hand across his brow and behind his neck before growling. "Yeah,… it’s personal all right. Those are the new rules. (sigh) I lived here from ’57 until ’68. Kiin and I studied under Master Gwoh, 4th generation Grand Master of Preying Mantis wushu (kung fu). We had a….. disagreement. The details of which are none of your business. We have a very small window of time before he does any permanent damage. I’d say about 3 hours."

Michael could tell from his face the ‘disagreement’ involved a woman. That put Nikita in even more danger. Revenge was powerful stuff. Walter was correct, time was very short indeed.

Walter was pacing slowly and thoughtfully in front of the window. Michael, Birkoff, and Mai Ling were quiet, waiting for Walter to think out a plan. It didn’t take him long.

"Birkoff, contact Operations and accelerate the take down ASAP. Then contact Tiger house and reschedule this evening’s meeting for tomorrow evening at 10. With luck, we’ll be long gone by then. Activate the tracker in her shoulder, try and get a location."

Birkoff moved to the computer on the far table and began typing.

"Mai Ling, take Michael and hook up with your net. Find Nikita’s location and monitor only. DO NOT attempt a rescue. You will be seriously out manned. Inform me when you are on site. Birkoff will feed you anything he gets from the satellite. I’ll contact Chan Pui of Dragon house and initiate those negotiations. Go."

Walter was now alone with Birkoff. "Anything on the satellite?"

"She seems to be in an office building off of Nathan Road southwest of here. Mai Ling’s net has confirmed. They’re receiving signals from the trackers in her clothing. Michael and Mai Ling are in route, ETA 14 minutes. The take down is commencing as we speak. However, the initial hit will only be 15% with the remaining houses collected tonight. That should be enough to get their attention and give us the cards we need now. Tiger house has agreed to the postponement. You think they put her on the list?"

"I would have. What better way to increase your odds at winning the contract with us. Two meetings in a row with the Tai Pan was a sure sign that he would soon be out. He used Kiin to keep his own hands clean. I need a secure line for some private phone calls. Set it up for the sitting room."

"You got it." Birkoff began sequencing.

Walter moved to the sitting room, sat, and waited. "Hang tough, Sugar." Shortly, Birkoff knocked on the door "go ahead".

Walter dialed a number in Kowloon. "Chan Pui, this is Walter Thornton. How are you today sir?… I am very glad to hear it. Tell me sir, do you know of our trouble? … Yes, as am I. Would it be convenient for you to visit me in my suite? …. Thank you sir. I will be waiting."

Walter hung up and dialed a number in Aberdeen. Just dialing brought back fond memories. ## "Master Gwoh, this is Walter. How are you today sir?… I am glad to hear it. …Yes, yes, we received it. Excellent craftsmanship, just as I remembered. …Yes, it is a tragedy. Sifu, (teacher) are you in a position to assist me? … Yes, she is very important to me. …. Yes, he did, with one leg removed. I was distressed to discover he was here and not on the mainland. I had hoped to avoid this situation. Yes, I can arrange that, however it will take me about 6 months to initiate. Is that acceptable? … Agreed. I will be waiting for your call here in the suite. Thank you sifu. ….I too miss our time together. Yes, I will. Goodbye." ##

Walter smiled as he hung up. Things never seemed to change here. Everything was still a negotiation. For the first time since Nikita had been abducted, he believed she had a chance. Slim was better than none. Master Gwoh had nets in place in Kowloon, Hong Kong, and Macao. "..Please don’t let him take her to Macao." Walter laid on the couch resting before negotiations with Chan Pui began.

Never one to be out of the loop, Birkoff activated the translation program and read a transcript of the call. It always paid to eavesdrop because you just never knew.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Nikita woke up with a ripping headache. Trying to sit up she groaned. About that time, the door opened and 4 men entered followed by an elderly woman. The woman sat a silver tray on the table. Nikita noted a pair of satin slippers and a beautiful royal blue oriental dress with pale blue rosebuds. She watched the men warily as they surrounded her motioning for her to stand. A huge man entered. He was over 6 ft. which was very unusual here.

"I am Shek Kiin. You belong to me now. I have several bidders on the line so I will not tolerate trouble from you. This is the only warning you will receive. He switched to Chinese ## "Sweep her." ## The men took up positions near her as one held an electronic wand over her head and passed it over her body, front and back. Several beeps were heard and the men began removing her clothes.

*Well, so much for trackers* she thought. More orders were given and the wand, now set on a different frequency, was passed over her again. More beeps sounded passing her leather hair strap and ponytail holder. These were also removed. She reached for the dress to cover herself but was blocked by one of the men. She had little modesty, but the way these men were looking at her was unnerving. Butterflies again.

Kiin walked in a circle around her, looking over his new prize. Why in hell had he agreed to the terms? He chastised himself for not being more informed before accepting a contract. This girl was perfect. And, had he known Walter was involved, there would have been no agreement at all. As it was, all he had was his word and he’d agreed to keep her ‘tidy’ until the transfer. ##"Damn the gods! When will I learn." ## He thought about his agreement. ‘Tidy’ was one thing, healthy was another.

More orders and the wand’s frequency was altered a third time and passed over her. This time where it beeped caused Nikita’s butterflies to move up into her chest.

Kinn’s attention was sharply focused on the girl’s shoulder. The old woman could see his concern. The old woman barked orders at the men. Her voice was high and shrill. Nikita found herself forced to the floor on her stomach with arms and legs spread wide. Each man restraining a limb. The woman knelt beside her with one knee on her back. Withdrawing a pocket knife, the woman proceeded to dig out the chip tracker deeply buried underneath the left shoulder blade.

Nikita gritted her teeth but was unprepared for the depth of pain. Her scream filled the room. Afterward, she went limp under their restraint. She was breathing hard trying to recover.

The woman handed the tracker to Kiin who was visibly shaken. He knew this technology and it was not used by slavers. He was in over his head. Fear combined with his anger towards Walter, caused him to became more lethal with each passing second. His voice bellowed so loudly she could feel it vibrate through her. The woman scrambled to execute his orders. She retrieved on object from a cabinet and placed it in the fireplace, down in the hot coals. Nikita caught a glimpse of it. It looked like a cigarette lighter but bigger and longer. The handle was a Praying Mantis with the opposite end flat.

The men repositioned her on the floor exposing the inner thigh of her right leg. The woman pressed the hot object firmly into her skin and held it there. Nikita passed out from the pain.

When she woke, she moved to see what had happened to her leg. The shape of a Praying Mantis had been seared into her skin. It was already blistering and very painful to touch. She had to get out of there. It was even more painful to raise her arms to put the dress on. She could feel the blood from her shoulder trickling down her back.

She dressed slowly. Ignoring the slippers, she preferred to be barefoot. Looking around the room, she put a plan together. Positioning herself behind the door, she picked up a lamp and threw it knocking over the cabinet and spilling its contents.

When the door opened, she focused the strike of her hand on the throat and crushed his windpipe. As he dropped, she relieved him of his weapon and shot the second man. She began running down the hall. She heard shouts and others running after her. Rounding a blind corner she was hit full in the face with a fist. The beating was severe and lasted several minutes. Her right eye was swelling shut but she saw movement coming towards her face and lifted her right arm for protection. The full force of a solid mahogany club made contact with her forearm shattering the bones. A wave of nausea moved over her and she lost consciousness for a second time.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Michael and Mai Ling had reached the location and called in. Walter issued instructions and they entered through a hidden entrance. Birkoff took a fresh x-ray of the building using a DOD satellite then guided them undetected to the 38th floor, south wing, room 3805. There they found 2 men dead in an empty room. Michael inspected the room and found a pile of her clothing. He also noticed drops of blood on the carpet which were still sitting on top of the fibers. He touched a finger to the blood.

Mai Ling and her team searched the scattered debris from the cabinet.

"Walter, the room is empty. We found her clothes and some blood. It’s fresh. I’d say 15 minutes. There are also 2 men dead in the doorway. Looks like Nikita’s handiwork. Stand by………Walter, Mai Ling has handed me what she called a ‘chop’. The handle is a Praying Mantis and there is a diagram of a mantis on the flat end. The flat end is warm and bloody."

Walter answered, "That’s his mark. The signal from her shoulder went dead 11 minutes ago. Return to base."

"Birkoff start monitoring the following frequencies." Walter rattled the numbers off as Birkoff looked on quizzically. "My special frequencies for Nikita’s custom made tracker."

Michael handed the chop back to Mai Ling "What does this mean?"

"He knows you’re not a slaver and is taking action to ensure his own safety. The mantis is a message to Walter. By marking her, he has voided his contract with Tiger Claw house. He plans to keep her. Nikita is in for a rough ride. If we can’t get a location on her soon, she’ll disappear. Probably to the mainland where Walter can’t get to her." She didn’t need to draw Michael a picture of what life would be like with Kiin.

Michael’s face remained blank as he received this information. He reviewed the advantages he had here. He didn’t have any. He was out of his element here. Games here had so many levels of meaning. A white man was out matched. He would need to live here for years to get through the layers and figure out what was going on. He felt powerless. Nikita was his responsibility. He just stood there, staring at the blood on the floor.

Birkoff answered the door to admit Chan Pui. He directed him into the sitting room where Walter was. Greetings were exchanged and small talk made. Walter proceeded to lay out the deal. Dragon house would receive 30% of Tiger Claw’s houses and 30% of Eagle Claw’s. Dragon house would more than double in size and Chan Pui would become Tai Pan.

Walter paused to pour drinks and let his proposal sink in.

"What would I be required to produce in exchange?"

"We want to establish contacts with terrorist organizations in this region as well as the west. You will provide this."

Pui thought about this a while. "I will need 50% of the houses."

Long pause, "40 and we will begin inserting your men as controllers tomorrow."

Pui thought again. His mind raced like a calculator. He would triple in size to 120 houses. Eagle Claw would be left with 66 and Tiger with 54. That meant his worth was about in increase by 122 million dollars US.

"When would I be expected to begin introductions?"

"Six months."

"Deal"

They celebrated with cigars and whisky and returned to small talk. Pui asked "May I offer my assistance in retrieving your girl?"

"That is most kind of you. It would be very helpful. We found her location about 20 minutes ago but they had already left the scene. We do not have a current location." The two men talked more and Pui put all of his resources at Walter’s disposal. Pui left the meeting leaving 2 aides behind to assist Walter.

Michael and Mai Ling returned. All they could do was wait. Mai Ling received reports from her net every half hour and Pui activated his net with a phone call prior to leaving. Walter knew not to call Master Gwoh for a report. His old teacher/friend would contact him if he had any news.

Walter paced and reviewed the situation. With 2 active nets from Mai Ling and Chan Pui plus 3 from Master Gwoh, they would hear something soon. Good or bad.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Nikita woke up on a cold wet floor in a dimly lit room. The room was moving. Rocking side to side, she could hear the wood of the boat creaking with each movement. She moved around testing her body. Checking out what worked and what didn’t. Everything was sore but working. All but her right arm. She felt of it and pulled in a sharp breath. There was a knot on her forearm the size of a grapefruit. She was unable to straighten her elbow without pain shooting through her. She made a great effort to stand and succeeded on the third try. At least her head was clear. Leaning against the wall, she removed her bracelet and examined it. With her arm out of commission, she would need a tool to remove the tracker. She found a loose nail in the wall near her and pulled it out. Using the sharp end, she pried the piece of jade out and swallowed it down. She examined the bracelet and discovered the ends to be quite sharp. "My hero Walter." She had a weapon now she needed a plan. That wasn’t too hard, get the hell out of hear.

She didn’t know where the door was so she stayed put and let out an earsplitting scream. Not 2 seconds later the door opened 10 feet to her left and a man rushed in. Nikita feigned fright and the man rushed over to her reflexively. He was about to ask her something when her knee came up into his groin, hitting hard. The sharp bracelet was rammed up the base of his skull. The man had a seizure and fell to the floor. He had no weapon on him so she ran. It didn’t take her long to find her way to the deck and look around. There was no land in sight. None. Panic ensued when the crew saw that their captain’s prized prisoner was about to escape. The only place to go was over the side so she made the move. Too late, they tackled her and carried her back down into the cargo hold.

They carried her over to one of the walls and dropped her to the floor. Kiin was summoned and soon appeared. When he arrived he was very quiet and walked around her for some time. The other men waited nervously for his instructions. She would be punished severely but had already been beaten and branded. Kiin issued orders and several men restrained Nikita on the floor. With her left knee bent, her foot was held firmly flat on the floor. The door opened again and the old woman entered.

Nikita watched with growing concern.

The men forced her to lay flat on the floor while the woman pulled tools out of a bag. There were 2 chains about 18 inches long and a long thin pin about 16 inches long. The woman proceeded to insert the pin into and through the left calf muscle. The heavy chains were attached to either end and then to the floor.

Nikita’s piercing screams filled the ship and resonated across the water. The screams came from that secret place deep inside of us where undiluted fear lives. For a third time, Nikita lost consciousness. The blackness enveloping her was merciful.

Across the water to the northeast, Michael suddenly clutched his chest and leaned heavily on a table. His face a mask of pain as the breath was knocked out of him.

Walter and the others watched with increasing alarm. They were about to send for a doctor, when he recovered. Michael was shocked as the intensity of what he was feeling fully registered. "Something terrible has happened. We must move now. I can’t explain it but Nikita’s time is up."

Walter didn’t argue. As he reached for the phone to call Master Gwoh, it rang and he nearly jumped out of his skin. "Hello? …..Master Gwoh? Yes, we are ready. ……OK, we are leaving now. Thank you sifu."

"She’s on a Junk on her way to Macao. Master Gwoh will intercept. We need a fast boat." He looked expectantly at the 2 aides.

They nodded and one lifted the receiver to instruct the dock to pick them up at the hotel’s pier. "6 minutes."

"Good. Also have a doctor here when we get back." Walter and the others moved quickly toward the elevator. One aide remained and again made a call.

Birkoff had his computer with him as they boarded the boat. Just before they sped off, his receiver beeped 3 times. " I GOT HER. She’s southwest of here, 35 minutes. GO."

Nikita was waking up and her leg was absolutely throbbing. She sat up to see what it looked like. There was a long silver spike thing through her calf with each end chained to the floor. As she looked closer, she could see rows of chains and ankle restraints lining the floor. Now she was going to be sick. Up came the entire contents of her stomach. She felt around for the tracker and swallowed it again. She laid back down and felt better. With every attempted movement, pain shot up her leg as fear tightened its grip on her chest. * This is it. There is nothing more I can do to save myself.* She closed her eyes and was quiet, listening to the ship and the men moving above. After several minutes, she heard yelling and, yes, that was gunfire. Michael was finally here.

Three men burst into the room with bright lights. As they came closer to her, she became more frightened. She couldn’t see who they were with her eyes swelling shut. She could hear them yelling in Chinese. Her first thought was that they were from another house and she wasn’t being rescued at all. Her second thought was that he had sold her. "I don’t know how much more of this I can take." She thought she was talking to herself when a man answered her.

"Walter sent us." Was all he said but that was enough. That changed everything.

Carrying her top side with the spike still in her leg was tricky. They didn’t dare try to remove it under these conditions. With every move and bump Nikita cried out in pain. That was the easy part. Two men held her steady on the small ledge while the others repositioned themselves for the next segment of the transfer. She assumed she was going over onto another boat. The men put her carefully into some sort of a net and the next thing she knew she was being lowered 50 ft into nothingness. Her heat was racing, waiting to feel the deck. What she got instead was the distinctive feeling of a rubber raft thing. Hands guided her into a reclined positioned with her leg supported by pillows. Then she felt them get off her raft.

"Hello?" she rasped tentatively. Silence

The same man who spoke to her before responded with "You will wait here for Walter."

With the small raft tethered aft, Master Gwoh’s boat moved away from Kiin’s. Kiin’s boat exploded into hundreds of pieces. Huge chunks of flaming wood flew through the air and splashed into the sea. Nikita’s heart jumped out of her chest. Pain shot through her with the movement. She gritted her teeth and willed herself to settle down.

It was about 8 in the evening when Kiin’s ship blew up. The bright burst of flames could be seen for miles. Walter’s boatman saw it and increased speed. They arrived about 10 minutes later.

Walter gave instructions to pull along side but maintain a respectable distance. They could see the boat but not the crew. There was a small rubber raft tethered behind the larger boat. With the binoculars Michael saw a man reach over the side and cut the small raft loose. Looking towards the raft he saw an unmistakable patch of blond hair. He motioned for the aide to retrieve the raft.

The crew became visible as the boats passed. Walter scanned the deck. The old man stood on the bow. When the two men made eye contact, they each raised their hand in greeting. Michael trained his binoculars in that direction but the old man had seen his movement and slipped out of sight. Walter was quiet for several seconds, lost in thought.

The speed boat pulled up along side the raft. Getting a first look at Nikita, their smiles quickly faded. What they saw was a mess. Her face was badly bruised with both eyes nearly swollen shut. Dried blood coming from her nose and ears. Her right arm was also swollen and a nasty purple. It was her left leg that grabbed them by the throats. The 18 inch skewer was still hideously in place. More dried blood covering her leg and feet.

Michael was the first to speak, "Nikita?" His voice was shaky.

She couldn’t see very well, only shapes. Since she wasn’t sure who this was going to be, she laid very still. There was nothing wrong with her hearing however and when she recognized Michael’s voice she tried to answer him. Nothing came out so she raised her good arm in acknowledgment. It was the only thing she could move. Even that was a mistake. Like a rocket, the pain shot off the scale and it was all she could manage not to scream her head off. Her emotions ran rampant. Relief, happiness, and half a dozen others washed over her.

The small raft was bouncing all over the place and each movement jarred the spike causing more bleeding. The men quickly worked on a solution to the next dilemma. How to get her on board? It took several minutes to prepare. Nikita wanted to be unconscious again. She would just as soon skip this next part. They lifted her and the raft together into the boat, the pain became unbearable. Her screams were piercing. Each one tore at the hearts of her rescuers. The men cut the raft away and positioned her on a sofa like seat. Michael held her legs in his lap stabilizing the left. Nikita got her wish. The welcoming blackness enveloped her for the fast ride home.

No one had spoken during the 25 minute trip. Everyone was silently watching her trying not to think about the horrors she certainly endured. Each man blaming himself for some nonexistent element of carelessness.

When they arrived at the dock, the doctor was waiting with a gurney. Quickly they moved to the private elevator. It wasn’t long before they reached the penthouse and transferred Nikita to her own bed. The doctor waved everyone out of the room. Walter and Michael didn’t move an inch. The expression on their faces spoke volumes. *No way are we letting her out of our sight again.* So, the doc began his examination.

The first thing he did was to prop her leg up on some pillows to get the skewer clear of the bed and linens. He proceeded to cut her dress off leaving it in pieces underneath her. Opening his bag he removed lots of medical equipment and supplies and placed them in the order with which he would need them. Michael and Walter took the opportunity to do their own quick eval of Nikita. Seeing the additional bruising on her sides and chest, the dried blood between her legs, their hearts sank even lower. The doc asked if she was conscious when they found her and how long she had been unconscious. Their answer was brief and to the point.

The doc began his evaluation at her head looking at and feeling of her skull. It took some effort to pry her eyelids apart in order to shine the penlight into her pupils. He moved down her body looking and probing with his fingers. Her arm would need special attention but could wait until he had finished. Seeing the blood between her thighs he moved her right leg out a bit. He called Walter over to ask him about what he saw. The perfect shape of a Praying Mantis that had been burned into her flesh. It was still blistered and swollen. Walter nodded his head to continue the examination. Michael showed no emotion but on the inside, nothing. Everything had simply stopped. He was in limbo until he heard if she would be all right. Even he could see she had multiple head injuries and those were the worst. Completely unpredictable.

The doc instructed Michael to stabilize her leg while Walter helped roll her onto her side so the dress could be removed and her back examined. If it were possible for Walter’s heart to sink lower, when he saw her back it did. There was a huge deep hole where the tracker had been removed as well as multiple broken ribs visible. The men helped to return her to her back and reposition her leg on the pillows again. Nikita remained blissfully unconscious during the exam. The doc then began work resetting her arm and placing splints and a sling on it. He then focused his attention on her leg. He shot her calf full of xylocaine to numb the entire area. After establishing that the skewer had been expertly placed and thus no major blood vessels were compromised, he slowly pulled it out. He stitched up her leg, the wound on her back, and about 11 other lacerations applying dressings where needed. He showed Walter how he wanted them changed when they became bloody. She was not to be moved for 12 hours at least. He would be back in the morning.

This last statement brought their attention back to the present and they both looked at the clock. It was 1 o’clock in the morning already. As the men left the bedroom and made their way to the elevator, the conversation continued with Walter asking questions and the doc answering. Since the girl had been conscious earlier and had passed out probably from pain, he believed she would be awake soon. They were not to feed her, only water for now.

After everyone had left, Walter updated Birkoff and put in a call to Section. They needed to leave as soon as Nikita could be moved. Having played their trump card earlier than anticipated, all their lives were in danger. The two houses would quickly put things together and figure out their involvement.

Michael stayed with Nikita through the night. She woke several times and, not being able to see, became frightened. It never lasted long as Michael was quick to speak easing her fears. She would drink a little water and return to sleep.

The doctor arrived early and woke her up. He introduced himself and asked her several questions. The doctor was satisfied that her concussion was minor and gave his approval to move her to a safer location. Within a few hours they were settled in a hotel in Taipei, Taiwan. They planed to stay a week allowing recovery time for Nikita. She was in no shape for a 20 hour plane ride.

Over the next week Nikita’s face almost returned to normal and she began to recover quickly. Initially, everyone was walking on eggshells around her but by the 4th day, things were getting more relaxed. They even had a few humorous moments getting her out of bed the first time. It had taken all 3 of them and since every part of her was painful, no one knew where to touch her. It was quite comical. Finally, Walter arranged for their flight home. For privacy he booked the entire last 2 rows of first class. Two rows of 7 seats. Three in the middle and 2 on each side. It didn’t hurt a bit. He just flipped out that magic credit card knowing he would never see the bill.

Nikita allowed them to move her around in a wheelchair though she didn’t much like it. Birkoff sat on the left side of the plane and Michael on the right. Nikita and Walter shared the middle so she could lay down. About 3 hours into the flight, "Walter, I think my leg is bleeding again, would you check it?"

"Sure thing Sugar, swing it over here."

Nikita placed her leg across his lap so he could reinforce her dressing. Michael sat forward to watch. Nikita watched him for several seconds until he felt her eyes on him and smiled. She smiled back, winked a great big exaggerated wink, and blew him a sensuous kiss.

*That was peculiar. She’s up to something.* There was a message there but he couldn’t quite decide what it was.

He settled back into his seat and began reviewing the mission for the umpteenth time. However this time he reviewed the days leading up to the mission. The mission details, the special instructions from Madeline, Walter and Nikita spending time in clubs, and the ease in which she had let him repair their friendship. Looking back, it seemed just too easy. She was even flirting with me some. Come to think of it, she seemed pretty confident in herself THAT night. He pondered on this dilemma a bit longer before breaking into a wide grin. With a sudden flash of insight, Michael realized he had been played. ‘Big Time’ as Walter would put it. Still smiling, he looked over at her to see she was still watching him. She broke into a big toothy smile as he nodded his head and tipped an invisible hat, saying *Well done milady. Well done indeed.*