"First floor only - we'll leave through the fire escape at the rear." He then slumped against the wall knowing he was going to regret the acrobatics..

"Michael" hissed Nikita.

"It's OK - I'll make it back to -"

"NO!!! - " she paused taking in the look of distress on his face briefly before biting back her concerns and getting out what was really bothering her at this moment

"Michael that voice - It was Hellway!"

"You sure?"

"Positive - what's going on Michael - how did she know we were going to be here?"

"Later - here we are, first floor - there's a bar - we wait there."

"Wait for what?"

"Fall out - if you are right she will stay here long. There is a bar on the first floor - I noticed as we were waiting in the lobby-"

She wondered how he had managed to check out what was on each floor, she had been far too distracted...

The elevator came to a halt at the first floor and the odd looking threesome made their way to a quiet looking alcove that afforded a good view of the comings and goings.

The waitress offered them the cocktail menu, which detailed a number of highly exotic concoctions including the "Saucy Sanlin" containing tequila and served with a feather, the "Mighty Minx" a variety of daiquiri made with snowberries, the "Karoff Krush" - vodka and schnapps, and "Stalactite Drip" - the contents of which were undisclosed.

Nikita shook her head -

"It's amazing the names that some folks come up with for drinks - I'll have a mineral water."

"Milk."

The Red Cell operative that sat between them - Nikita's gun still aimed at the parts he held most dear - looked from one to the other in disbelief. He was just about to order a large brandy for himself when Michael interrupted saying -

"That will be all thank you."

After their drinks had been served along with a bowl of peanuts, Michael turned to the man -

"Your name?" "You can call me Boris."

"Fine - it makes no difference to me," sighed Michael.

"Who are you working for?"

"Chocolate Dragon."

"Hey joker - don't tempt me to blow away what measly chances you may ever have at fatherhood!" retorted Nikita shoving the gun against his thigh.

"I've nothing to lose - if you don't kill me - she will, so let's forget this?"

Nikita glanced across the table at Michael - their eyes met briefly - they were going to have to take this creep somewhere private to persuade him to talk. Just as things didn't seem capable of becoming more frustrating the karaoke machine on the stage whined into action with the opening chords of "Smoke gets in your eyes" -

"Time to go?" begged Nikita.

Michael didn't answer he just nodded and she wasn't sure if his pained countenance was due to the headaches or the singing...

They made their way out of the fire exit into the service area at the back of the hotel, Michael held onto the man who called himself 'Boris' while Nikita went out into the street to hail a taxi.

As he stood propped up against the wall, Michael was surprised to feel a stinging sensation in his neck. He rubbed his hand against the sore skin, thinking it to be a particularly malevolent mosquito, only to find a tiny dart come away between his fingers - a small tranq dart he realised as his knees folded under him and he collapsed in a heap -

Nikita came running around the corner excitedly shouting -

"Michael - I've got a taxi - what's wrong?"

Nikita rushed over to Michael, first tackling Boris with a kick to his groin bringing him down fast, putting paid temporarily to his attempted escape.... As she was leaning over Michael, checking his pulse and lifting an eyelid to check on the dilation of his pupils convinced that his collapse was a result of his treatment at Section 1, she was oblivious to the tranq dart that embedded itself in her thigh.

Within seconds she crumpled on top of Michael's prone form.

************

Nikita was the first to recover from the effects of the tranquilliser, she felt groggy and the floor seemed to be moving up and down beneath her - she shook her head and sat up, but as her head cleared the floor continued to shift under her feet. Her hands were tied behind her back and the room was dark, but she could hear someone close to her, breathing heavily and groaning softly. She shuffled over to find out if it was Michael, lying down next to him she could feel his unmistakable curls against her face - he was out cold.

"Michael - wake up! Michael!" she whispered into his ear, gently head-butting his shoulder in an attempt to rouse him. She did this for what seemed like an eternity before he came round-

"Kita- what's going on - where are we?" He mumbled.

"I have a horrible suspicion we're on a boat of some sort - either that or I'm catching whatever you've got-"

"Not funny," he moaned as the swell of the sea beneath the hull began to set off a major attack of vertigo.

"Can you reach my ropes? - Perhaps you can loosen them a bit."

"Sure."

Nikita wriggled up close to Michael - pressing her hands towards the small of his back - he tugged at the ropes until she felt them begin to loosen -

"That'll do for now." Nikita's wrists were slim enough to slip out of the ropes that bound her hands.

She began to make a search in the pitch-black room for a light switch of some sort... but then thought twice as she wasn't in any hurry to alert their captors... She returned to Michael's side helping him get out of his bindings. Then she sat him up supporting his head in the crook of her arm, imagining how dreadful he must be feeling.

"How do you feel? - And don't even think of saying fine."

"Awful if you insist on the truth."

At this point the door was unlocked and the light switched on - before them stood a woman not unlike Madeline in appearance. Her hair dark and severely controlled in a style that could have been sculpted, her eyes were dark brown, her lips thin and she wore a dark blue trouser suit, elegant but functional.

"Hellway?"

"Yes - Nikita knows who I am - I'm sorry we couldn't have met in more pleasant circumstances Michael. However, your actions earlier made it clear that your agenda undermined mine. That is not acceptable. I really cannot tolerate insubordination." She spoke with a clipped English accent, not rich like Adrian's had been, but clinical and without emotion.

"Why are you doing this - what happened to Boris?" Nikita demanded.

"My motives are not your concern. Boris - is that what he said his name was? I had no use for him - please co-operate with my men, I don't want any unnecessary unpleasantness." She turned to leave and two burly looking men took her place using their guns to usher Michael and Nikita out of their cabin and towards the upper deck.

Nikita noticed that their guards both had knives tucked into sheaths on their belts - she caught Michael's eye and he nodded almost imperceptibly. As they walked up the ladder one went behind Michael and the other brought up the rear behind Nikita, effectively separating them. Suddenly without warning Nikita lost her footing and stumbled into the guard behind her, with a sharp elbow to the solar plexus, followed by a forearm smash into his face he fell back onto the deck below. Michael turned to kick the other guard in the face, as he did so, Nikita leapt forward to catch him around the waist and snatch his knife, before he knew it the blade was at his throat. Michael desperately looked about for the guard's gun that he had dropped - only to see a small foot in a deck shoe nudge it over the side and into the water.

Hellway was holding a gun in both hands trained at Michael's head -

"You will co-operate," she insisted.

Michael turned to see Nikita slacken off her grip on the other guard - he started to shout a warning but it was too late - the second guard had recovered and had sneaked up on Nikita and as she turned his knife slashed into her abdomen. The thin cotton fabric provided no resistance to the extremely sharp blade - Nikita stared down in shock as blood appeared in a wide stripe across her midriff. She staggered on the deck and even as Michael dashed across to grab her - it was too late, she slipped in the blood that splattered the deck and went tumbling into the sea -

"Stop!!!!" screamed Hellway as Michael kicked his shoes off to dive in after her - she cocked the gun and took a shot at him as he went over the side of the boat intent on rescuing Nikita.

Hellway rushed to the side to see nothing but a drift of bloodstained bubbles showing where the two Section agents had disappeared into the warm, shark-infested waters of this part of the Persian Gulf.

With a visage of unadulterated malice she put the safety catch back on and said to herself- "Well that solves that problem."

************

Back at Section 1 Madeline smiled up at Operations as he entered her office -

"It seems that our problem has been dealt with. I have assured our associate that we will provide whatever assistance she requires in the maintenance of her position in the Middle East."

************

Birkoff wandered over to Walter's bench presumably to hand over a disc of new hardware configurations. --

"I need to talk, I think I've made a mistake-" He spoke quietly so only Walter could hear.

"Well whatever it is that you have done - keep it to yourself, leastwise around here kid." Walter was not in a particularly friendly mood with anyone these days, but as he saw the distressed look on Birkoff's face he softened. "Meet me in the usual place, in an hours time - OK?"

"Make it two hours - I've got sims to run that'll take longer than that."

"Sure thing - but this time have a beer, the guys are getting suspicious - they think you're my kid." Walter looked over the disc - inserted it into the reader and started studying the list of modifications required.

Birkoff nodded his head and made his way back to systems.

************

Despite preferring the high caffeine fix of a Pepsi Max, Birkoff joined Walter in a bottle of Budweiser in the office of the Harley showroom. He grimaced slightly at the sour taste, but made the effort for Walter, besides which he had a feeling he was going to need some alcohol in his system to face Walter with his suspicions.

"OK - so what gives now? - What 's going on - was that Michael's body that those goons carried out of Medlab the other day?" Walter waded in with questions he'd been bottling up - dreading the answers.

"What did you see? I thought only Medical techs saw that!"

"Sure they did - they also talk freely if persuaded right, I know how to flatter the nurses out of their panty hose - never mind getting a few secrets outta them...."

"You wish!" teased Birkoff.

"Well was it Michael? - 'cos if he's dead, Nikita's gonna give them hell - and I think I'll be joining her..." the older man's face had become stern, the lines etching it rigid with tension and suppressed anger.

"Yes - I think it was Michael - "

Walter threw his bottle against the wall with an almighty crash. Beer and froth ran down the wall pooling on the floor amongst the broken glass.

"But hold on- I don't think he was dead! When I told Nikita -"

"YOU TOLD NIKITA!!!!!!- How could you?" Walter stood up and glowered at the young boy, wondering what had got into the computer genius' head that made telling Nikita that Michael had been killed by Section such a good idea.

"I-I had to - I panicked I guess and Operations wanted her back and I figured that she was next so I had to warn her not to come back...." Birkoff hoped that Walter would understand that he'd acted as he had in an attempt to keep Nikita alive.

"Slow down - you're not making a whole lotta sense."

"Walter - I saw them take a man out of the white room - it was at night - he looked dead - but Walter the room was freezing - I ran a check on the environmental logs for section- the usual stuff : a/c reports, thermostat controls, well I dug a bit and found out the they'd been reducing the temperature in that room by two degrees each day for about ten days......."

"Oh my God - they must have been freezing the poor guy..."

"I think we were right thinking it was Michael in there. Anyway they brought the body out of that room the same day that George called and then when George appeared in Section - that's when the body was removed from Med lab.

Now I did some back tracking - checking on developments in interrogation techniques - Stasiowska has been busy using up abeyance ops to test a new drug - well the trial stopped two weeks ago, resumed two days ago and then stopped again....

In the meantime supplies of the drug were being delivered to Madeline's office each day.

I figured they'd been trying it out on Michael and I told Nikita that-"

"Why - to make her feel better about the guy being dead - that he'd been drugged up to his eyeballs by Madeline first? Jeez Birkoff, you gotta learn how to put these things across better.."

" But Walter - Nikita asked me if there was an antidote - all the trial subjects were abeyance ops and all are dead - I checked - that leaves only one possible candidate for a victim in need of an antidote to that drug - "

"Michael?"

"Yes - if I'm guessing right, we're the only ones who can help - we let them down once already - this is our last chance."

************

Michael felt the searing pain as the bullet from Hellway's gun tore along his leg, and as he hit the salt water the stinging confirmed that she'd managed to hit him, but he didn't have time to think about that- he had a single purpose - find Nikita. There was not light much beyond the boat - he would have to listen for her - he swam upwards and as he broke the surface he heard splashing to his left, he turned in the water desperate to catch some indication of where she was -

"Ni-ki-ta!!!!!!!!! Where are you? Answer me !!!!!!"

"Mi- chael, here!!!" her voice was weak but Michael could make out the direction.

He swam towards the source of the cries with confident strokes that pulled him through the water. When he got closer to where he had her cry out, he stopped to look around - no sign - she must have gone under - he dived beneath the surface, feeling for Nikita, staying under until he felt as if his lungs would burst. The pounding in his head as the vertigo took command of his sense of balance, coupled with the throbbing pain along his leg did not make his task any easier, but he gritted his teeth, pushing all thoughts of his own suffering to the back of his mind as he concentrated on Nikita. She had to be there somewhere - he came up for air just in time to catch her flailing arms as she gasped for air and began to sink again- he reached out and grabbed for her, catching her hair, one more lunge and he was there, he 'd got her arm this time, frantically paddling with his legs to keep them both up, his left leg threatening to give out at any moment. Michael got around Nikita and clasped her under the arms tilting her back so her head bobbed up above the water level so she could breathe.

"Ni-ki-ta - stop struggling - just lean back - we have to stay still until we can work out which way we need to swim..." he spluttered as he held her close against his chest.

"Mi-chael, the cut - it hurts like hell -" Nikita let Michael keep them both afloat as she pressed her hands against the wound trying to staunch the flow of blood.

"Please hold on Ni-ki-ta - - you're losing blood - but the salt water should help -"

Michael moved his head carefully to look around them - that's when he spotted the lights along the coast from villas and what looked like barbecue pits. He turned his back to the lights and then slowly began to swim towards the shore, his leg feeling like a lead weight, no doubt he was bleeding as well, but he wasn't going to let Nikita know that yet - it would only make her worry more than necessary. He paused to get his breath.

"Michael - are you OK?" Nikita called out concerned at the cessation of movement from him.

"No," he sighed feeling his energy draining rapidly. He turned round to check they were still headed in the right direction - that's when he saw the row of floats bobbing up and down with the waves. Between them stretched a net - a shark net - to keep sharks off the tourist beaches - and they were on the wrong side of it and both of them were losing blood -

"Nikita - I can see the shore, there is a net between it and us - we will have to climb over it when we reach it - be ready.."

"Michael -what sort of net - why?" there was panic in her voice and he tried to reassure her as best he could.

"Shhh - don't worry, just be ready-" he sounded exhausted. She wished she could help, but her own reserves were running low. Fortunately the sea was warm, so at least they were in no danger of freezing to death she thought grimly. She was becoming light-headed herself - loss of blood she rationalised, but having Michael's strong arms around her waist and knowing that his chest was beneath her back gave her faith that they would make it.

She felt him begin to kick again against the current that seemed to be pulling them back out to sea, and they yet again began their inexorable progress towards the beach and safety. It was then that she thought something brushed against her leg...its texture was rough.....Maybe a piece of junk floating out with the tide.... then it returned and nuzzled up to her abdomen. Butting her - not inanimate junk - but something alive - she kicked out at it with her foot automatically - alarming Michael as she changed their momentum.

"Nikita - what is it?" he called out urgently.

"I don't know!!!!" she shouted and then as it came back once more and she felt a row of sharp teeth sinking into her side - she let out a bloodcurdling scream of pure terror. Michael swung her behind him and holding her under one arm started swimming with one arm - strong powerful strokes driven by a determination to get past the net and into safe waters ....

"Kick Nikita - as hard as you can !!!"

Nikita put aside the pain in her abdomen as the urgency of the situation required them both to swim for their lives as the shark followed the scent of their blood and came after them...

"Arghh!!!!! " called out Michael - as something sharp cut into his leg and he was pulled under the waves - he struck out with feet and arms and drove himself upwards to the surface - maybe he could distract it while Nikita made it to safety -

"Kita - swim - go for the net!" he shouted out as he was pulled once more beneath the surface. Unfortunately he was still screaming out to Nikita as he went under and water rushed into his lungs, sending him into paroxysms of choking ... he thought he was finished until a hand grabbed hold of his arm and wrenched him back above the water -

"Michael - come on -!!!" Nikita knew she didn't have the strength to swim on her own and that their best chance was together. They were suddenly caught in a beam of light - that passed over them once and was gone - it returned once more and stayed fixed on them, lighting up the dark waters to show a swirling red maelstrom about their bodies ...

Shouts in Arabic called out.... And then Michael felt a grappling hook catch onto his shirt and pull him roughly towards the boat, he turned to hold onto Nikita as he felt her being dragged down again. He held on with all that was left of his strength, barely able to breathe - coughing and spluttering as the salty water bubbled up from his lungs and into his throat, making him gag. The fishermen in the wooden sailing dhow looked down on their catch - a man and a woman...both gasping for breath in a sodden bloodstained heap on the deck. The woman was bleeding profusely from a gash under her ribs, her dress ripped away and the edge of the wound pulled away in an ugly tear, the tell tale teeth marks showing how close an escape she had survived. She recovered her breathing reasonably quickly before passing out. One of the fishermen wrapped her in a blanket. The other two in the crew went to the aid of the man, who was half drowned, vomiting sea water and choking as they rolled him onto his stomach and pressed down on his rib cage helping him eject the water from his lungs. He, too, was injured - blood trickled from a messy wound along his leg, but not as critically as the woman. As he gradually recovered he rolled over and looked for his companion..... When he saw her he crawled over until he could reach out and touch her, then with an effort that sapped him completely he pulled himself up to take her in his arms and then he, too, lost consciousness.

************

For once fortune chose to smile on Michael and Nikita. The fishermen knew the coast very well - they regularly went out in the early hours of the morning to set the nets and then pull them in towards the beach to bring in sultan ibrahim and hammour. They noticed things - from the life of the sea to the life along the edge of the sea. They knew the coast intimately - from the tourist beaches, where wealthy German tourists paid exorbitant hotel fees to sit under the sun and be boiled like lobsters which they eventually resembled, to the public beaches where Russian prostitutes hawked their wares to the consternation of the local police and the amusement of immigrant Indian labourers who strolled along the strand line on their days off to observe the sights. The fishermen also knew the private beaches associated with palaces and large villas belonging to important local families. They also remembered a striking young woman with long blonde hair, who walked along the beach watching the sun rise - she stood out because there were few western women that walked alone on the beach that early in the morning, unless they were walking dogs. The other reason she had made an impression on their memories was that she was apparently a guest of Majid Bin Khalid Al Quassimi - a handsome Emirati who had expensive tastes in leisure and recreation. It did not take long for the fishermen to calculate that the reward for returning his "houseguest" would far exceed whatever they could make for their catch at the fish market in Deira.

The shallow bottomed boat made its way to the shore where it glided up through the breaking waves onto the soft sands ...they were prepared for the armed guards that ran down from the house to check them out ..Within minutes, Majid himself was on the scene and was ordering his guards to carry the two unconscious westerners back to the villa. After a discussion with the fishermen as to the location where they had found the two and assurances that nothing would be said about the matter, Majid handed over a roll of hundred dirham notes. He then sent the men to the kitchens where they would be fed before setting off again, Arab hospitality would allow no less.

Majid put through an urgent call to his physician before checking on the condition of his two friends. He had given instructions for Nikita to be put in a separate room from Michael and it was there that he went first. He was shocked at the condition she was in - her face was pale and gaunt looking, framed by the tangles of her hair. Two of the housemaids were busy drying her off and cleaning her up, they had carefully placed a folded up towel against the cut that disfigured her smooth abdomen, but blood had begun to seep through. Majid knelt down beside her, shoo-ing one of the maids away, he stroked her forehead gently and drew the blankets around her as he felt her start to shiver.

"Oh Nikita - what happened? Habibtee ... I would never have let this happen to you..." he kissed her softly on the lips and tasted the salt from the seawater.

She began to stir, her eyelashes fluttering as she came to -

"Where - ?"

"You're here with me my dear - don't worry my doctor is on his way ...try not to move please, you have been hurt..."

She had been about to ask where Michael was - a quick glance to either side of the bed confirmed that he was not in the same room as she was. Confusion set in - had she imagined it all - what had happened.... Some accident on the beach maybe ...

"Majid - what happened?" she tried to sit up but an agonising pain gripped her and refused to let go - she gasped out loud - Majid took her hand and let her squeeze it hard.

"Shhh ... do not try to think ... just take it easy, please, I'll look after you now, everything will be fine..."

Nikita sunk back into the pillows, Majid's warm hand holding hers tightly. She struggled with the waking nightmare that she'd been with Michael and Hellway had captured them and then they'd ended up in the sea, with sharks... no far too fantastic she decided as she drifted off again. As the room closed in around her she took comfort in the feeling of warmth from Majid's body as he moved closer guarding over her.

************

Michael woke in a room that seemed vaguely familiar - his leg throbbed and looking down he could see that it was encased in crisp white bandages.

"The bullet only grazed your leg, there were a few teeth marks from the shark you seem to have encountered. However, your wounds are now cleaned and dressed. There are a few stitches. You will be able to leave in the morning." He was startled to see Majid leaning against the wall at the far side of the room, dispassionately letting him know of his condition.

"Nikita? Where is she? Can I see her...?"

"She will be fine - my doctor is attending to her now - and the answer to your question is no! - why should I allow you anywhere near her - she could have been killed - you bring nothing but danger!" Majid was shouting at Michael now letting go of his self-control - he was furious at the state that Nikita was in ... and he held Michael to blame entirely.

"I need to see her." Michael sat up - feeling dizzy- but determined.

Majid came up to the side of the bed and dragged Michael up by the collar of his shirt -

"I said NO! You will keep away from her - she is under my protection here and I will not have her disturbed!"

Michael glared at Majid with a look of cold anger in his green eyes - how dare this man stand between him and Nikita - did he have any idea what he was doing? He raised up his hands to grip Majid's wrists and wrenched the man's hands from his shirt, ripping some of the fabric in the process -

"I'm not asking any more - you will take me to her -"

"No one gives me orders in my home - least of all the man who would have the woman I love ripped to pieces by sharks!" Majid emphasised his point by roughly shoving Michael into the tapestry-covered wall and holding him there by his shoulders.

The two men were standing mere inches from one another bristling with rage - barely aware of the light knocking at the door, followed by it opening slowly and a voice calling out -

"The doctor has finished - he would like to see you now-"

"I'm coming" they said as one - but their looks said "later", they would settle this matter between themselves once they knew the object of their jealous fury was going to be alright.

Majid was faster than Michael at getting to Nikita's room - after all he knew exactly where to go, but Michael was on his heels.... limping visibly but keeping up .

As they reached the door of the bedroom, Majid turned abruptly and called to his security men-

"Hold him- he can wait here until I have seen her."

"No." Michael tried to shake off men who were restraining him - unsuccessfully due to his weakened condition.

"I will make a deal Michael - I'll leave the decision to Nikita - I will ask her if she wants to see you. If she does I will not stand in your way, if not you will leave in the morning without her. Agreed?" "As long as I can listen - I will only go if I hear it from her lips." Michael held Majid's glare with a fierce one all of his own.

"So be it." Majid nodded to his men - they stood by the door preventing Michael from following Majid in, but kept the door slightly ajar, so every word could be heard from outside.

"How is she?" he heard Majid enquire of the doctor.

"Not good, she has lost a lot of blood, we have given her two units of whole blood, but she will need more. The wound was made with a serrated knife - the jagged edges to the cut will allow for faster healing, she was lucky the cut only penetrated the outer layers of skin and partly into the muscle wall of her abdomen. She is an extremely fit woman, her muscle tone is superb -it probably prevented the injury from being far worse than it is. However, the damage done by the shark has complicated matters, there could be a serious infection. I have given her an intravenous dose of broad-spectrum antibiotics - but we'll need to keep an eye on how that heals... I don't want to risk sepsis. She is delirious at present - but a good night's sleep should see her much improved by morning - if not you must call me immediately." Michael latched onto every word, wishing only to be at her side - but the moment the doctor uttered the word 'delirious', he felt a sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach - maybe in her delirium she would tell Majid to send him away.... He listened carefully as Majid dismissed the doctor and then sat close to Nikita - he envied his proximity to her, but had to concentrate on every word spoken...

"Nikita - how are you feeling?"

"Thirsty...can I have a drink?"

"Of course - here - have some water - sip it slowly now.... good girl-"

Ask her muttered Michael - now leaning against the door- partly to hear clearly and partly to keep him upright, he should have still been in bed himself, but all that mattered right now were Nikita's words - he had to hear if she wanted him or not...

"Nikita - you were brought in by fishermen - they brought Michael in as well. Do you want to see him?"

"No ...no ....Michael's in Section ... they killed him didn't they? Why are you being so cruel Majid ? WHY ????"

Michael's heart was in his mouth as she screamed out the last word in obvious torment... she didn't remember... perhaps he should just go and give her yet one more chance at happiness... he was sure Majid would play along ... he wanted her to himself after all.

"No Nikita - they did not kill him - he is here, waiting outside to see you, he too was hurt, but not badly."

"He's here - he's alive? My God - please show me - Michael??" her cries were broken by sobs ... Michael could hear Majid asking one of the maids to hold her still while he came to the door. He opened it a fraction until his eyes met Michael's.

"You could have lied - let her think I was dead." Michael said in astonishment at the Arab's generosity of spirit.

"Yes - but that would have been without honour. I could never have pursued a relationship with her knowing its foundations were based on a malicious lie. Go to her. " Majid opened the door wide and stood aside as Michael rushed to Nikita's side. He held her close as she sobbed into his neck - the wounded man oblivious to his own injuries and the blood that continued to trickle down his leg as he held tight to the woman he would die for. Majid watched for a moment as Michael held her and stroked her matted tresses of hair as though they were made of the most precious of silks.

Majid beckoned his maid to leave and quietly closed the door, his heart slowly breaking as he did - he could not deny that these two belonged to one another and it was not for him to come between them.

************

Nikita cried herself to sleep through sheer exhaustion coupled with the trauma of their close escape from the sharks. When she came round a few hours later it was to find Michael slumped at her side also worn out.... she carefully wriggled to one side of the bed to give him more space, as she did so she noticed his pants that had been ripped off from just above the knee, revealing bandages wrapped around his calf , stained with blood, which had trickled and dried out on his ankle......

She felt warm - almost feverish, but could recall having lost her footing on board a boat and plunging beneath the warm salty depths of the Gulf. She had fleeting memories of Michael pulling her up and trying to get her to the coast, just before something had attacked - after that everything was a blur...

She tentatively touched the bandage that encircled her waist, the flesh beneath felt tender and she could feel he ridges of stitches. She moved her hand up to Michael's head that lay on her shoulder, his hair was matted, and he was breathing heavily. She stroked him gently not wanting to awaken him, but was unsuccessful - he was a light sleeper at the best of times - as for now -he jumped up with a start -

"Kita.." he looked up at her with worry etched into his features " You OK ?"

"Shh - I'll be alright ...What happened? I remember the boat - how are you - your head? Are you still getting the dizzy spells? Tell me the truth....."

"The truth? I feel drained, my leg is throbbing and my head feels as if Walter is testing a new explosive within my skull - but apart from that I'm fine." The washed out expression on his face and the dark shadows beneath his eyes bore witness to this unusually candid confession of physical weakness from Michael. Nikita summoned a sad smile to her lips and tucked a stray curl of hair behind his ear.

"We have to leave here before she finds out we're still alive won't we?"

"Yes - but not yet - is there room under that blanket for me?" Michael knew that they both had to take advantage of the sanctuary they had for now - it would not last for long.

"Come on - get in properly, you've been crouched at the edge of the bed all night I think." Nikita welcomed the opportunity to sleep a while in his arms before venturing forth again into the treacherous waters that seemed to surround them no matter where they were.

Michael carefully leaned on the bed and lifted his legs up onto the mattress and taking Nikita in his arms he held her close to his chest, her hair smelt of seaweed and there was sand in it, but he didn't care. She wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him close, she was very warm already, but needed to feel him close... he smelt of the sea.... but she didn't care.... They were together and that was all that mattered.

************

In fact neither Nikita nor Michael were fit to go anywhere for the next four days. Nikita had developed a raging fever as a result of the infected bite marks in her abdomen and Michael's headaches gradually got more and more debilitating. He didn't let her know and Majid went along with the charade.... Taking it in turn with Michael to sit at her side and mop her forehead he took over whenever he could see that Michael could go no longer without a break... While Majid watched over Nikita he had his doctor check out Michael and although he could not ascertain the cause of the problem, he prescribed some powerful drugs to overcome the headaches and nausea, treating Michael for sever migraines seemed to work. The medication knocked him out for hours at a time ...but at least the sleep did him good, allowing his physical injuries to heal.

After the second night the fever broke and Nikita was able to sit up and eat some bread and soup - she had only been able to keep down water with "Rehydrate" powder stirred in to maintain her blood sugar and electrolyte balance. She was hungry when she woke and despite the cramps in her stomach as she sat up in the bed, she felt much better for having something solid to eat. Michael was relieved to see her awake and looking less haggard - she demanded that someone get her to a shower and was quite put out to be told there was no way she could allow the stitches to get soaked. In the end she settled for a hair wash and a shallow bath. The smell of the sea had become quite potent despite the bed baths and when she returned to the bedroom, she noticed with a smile that the balcony windows were wide open and the bedclothes had been stripped off and replaced. It was also difficult to ignore the incense burner in the corner with perfume oils evaporating into the atmosphere exorcising the air of the evil scent of rotten fish.

Michael had been there when she had awoken earlier but was now nowhere to be seen - she eventually found him in a small room next to hers lying sprawled on a sofa, dead to the world and worryingly unaffected by her nudges and shakings.

"Nikita -"

"Majid - what's wrong with Michael? I can't wake him up."

Majid came to her side and wrapped an arm around her waist to gently support her before he explained -

"The only medication my doctor could give to combat these headaches puts him to sleep for about an hour or two at a time. I persuaded him that you would be alright if he took something while you were getting cleaned up. He hasn't taken anything for the pain in hours - wanting to be at your side when you woke up from the fever..."

"The headaches - they've been getting worse haven't they?"

"Yes - we had to trick him into taking the drugs at times - it was that or bodily drag him from your bedside. The pain has got so bad that he has been unable to walk straight - we put him in here so that he could find you easily when the drugs wore off. Unfortunately they seem to be lasting for a shorter period of time - come let us return to your room and leave him to sleep a little longer."

Nikita wanted to push Majid's hands from her body and sit with Michael as he had sat with her...she needed to do something for him but she did not know what... Perhaps Majid was right, she should leave Michael to rest and allow him to take her back to her room...as she was about to acquiesce and turn her back on him, she heard him moan out her name-

"Ni-ki-ta..."

Looking back, her eyes met his as they opened and she was drawn back to him as if they were physically bound to one another - how could she even have considered deserting him now...

Nikita slipped out of Majid's arms and slowly sat on the edge of the sofa on which Michael lay. She felt his forehead - no temperature, but his eyes were pools of barely concealed pain - not quite focussed on her - he almost seemed to be looking through her.

"Michael - - can you hear me?" she asked softly - worried that despite appearances he wasn't really aware of his surroundings.

"Yes - I can hear you - and smell you," he paused to make a show of sniffing the air around her -" Yes - much better now - you no longer smell like a mermaid." He attempted to smile - but his efforts at distracting her from his condition failed abysmally.

"Now is not the time to develop a sense of humour Michael - I need to know exactly how you feel - I'm going to risk getting in touch with Birkoff to see if he's found anything out about the drugs Madeline was using on you -"

"Nikita - it's too dangerous - if the communication is monitored - they will know that you are alive - and Birkoff will also suspect that I am still alive if you continue to badger him for details of an antidote-"

"Yeah - well I don't think there's a viable alternative - until we get you back on your feet, there's nothing we can do unless we spilt up again - and that is a dumb idea right now."

"What reasons are you giving Birkoff for his investigation?"

"Well - not many - beyond a desire to beat the crap out of whoever was responsible for your death ", she shrugged her shoulders in a resigned manner - aware of the fact that Michael the level 5 operative would not see the logic behind her approach.

"I see you took the subtle approach then" - through the pain of a splitting headache he managed to raise his eyebrows at Nikita, before submitting yet again to a pulse of agony that spread out in a wave across his head. Caught unaware he was unable to disguise his anguish from Nikita - she grabbed his hand in hers and encouraged him to squeeze hard to control the pain.

"Hey - take it easy on the cynicism - it's wreaking havoc with your head." She tried to make light of it - it helped in her attempts to swallow a sob before she submitted to pity - an empathy he would not appreciate.

"Kita - do not call Birkoff direct - send your enquiries to George and he will relay Birkoff's answers to us. If the request is uncovered then Operations and Madeline will not be able to interfere with that source of inquiry." Michael spoke slowly through gritted teeth, his eyes tightly shut as if avoiding the light.

"Sure Michael - I'm onto it -" she squeezed his hand once more, carefully leaned forward to gently brush his lips with hers and then left.

************

Madeline turned to Operations as he entered her office -

"Still no confirmed sightings of either Michael or Nikita - I am prepared to believe that George's enquiries about the drugs developed by Stasiowska are just curiosity. However, I do not relish the thought of the drug falling into his hands, I have taken great care to ensure limited access to the data. "

She had sat still during her explanation, her face tilted up to him and her hands held together in her lap. Operations could sense a proprietary attitude to both the drug and the subject emanating from Madeline, but chose not to pursue that observation at this moment.

"Well then keep something back which will prevent him replicating the chemical - we certainly do not want to have it falling into the wrong hands!"

"My thoughts exactly."

************

Nikita decided to sit out on the porch in the warm sea breezes, with a light wrap draped over her shoulders while she waited for a reply - sitting there checking her hotmail account every ten minutes was driving Majid insane and was not doing her nerves any good at all. Watching the sun set over the sea was helping her lose the tension in her muscles - the mint tea also did its job, the fresh aroma infiltrating her nostrils calmed her mind and gave her clarity of thought. No matter what she heard from George she would have to start making preparations - their next stop would have to be Morocco. Her wounds were finally closing up properly and the infection was under control, she could move about - but any hand-to-hand combat could pull the stitches loose - so they would need to arrange to be armed. As for Michael - he should have shaken off the side effects of the drugs by now, which could only mean that some long term, possibly permanent damage had been done... the prospect of this worried her more than she could allow him to realise. He was in no state to travel rough that was a fact - perhaps she could ask Majid to help, but she had been aware earlier of a distinct atmosphere between the two men and couldn't be certain that Majid would be prepared to assist them any further...

She had asked him if he had any contacts in Morocco and he had mentioned stables where he and his brothers kept their horses when entering endurance races. She was fascinated by the idea of travelling around the desert lands on horseback and Majid had been only too happy to wax lyrical on the tests of strength and stamina of both horse and rider that the endurance challenges focussed on. He was obviously far happier in the freedom of the wilderness than in cities - true he loved his Ferrari - but he was a horseman at heart and, like most of his people, inordinately proud of the noble, yet fine boned Arab horse.

If all else failed that would indeed provide excellent cover and a discrete transport route. However, if they chose to use Majid in this way, they would have to ensure that Hellway did not find out about their resurrection from a supposedly watery grave.

As the sun sunk beneath the waves casting splatters of liquid gold to spill onto the waters of the Gulf, Nikita sighed, drew the soft Kashmiri shawl more tightly about her shoulders and turned her back on the last of the day's sunshine and returned into the shadows where Michael lay in a sedative induced slumber.

************

Operations had handed over to Birkoff a disc to encode and send to George outlining the details of drug research and development carried out by Dr Marisa Stasiowska over the past six months. The information about the disorientation drug was carefully hidden so that it would take hours of sifting through tedious catalogues of clinical trials to uncover.

George had specified that he wished to review the action of the interrogation drugs developed and Birkoff wondered if he dared to insert the extra data that he and Walter had managed to unearth - in particular the autopsy records on the abeyance ops that had been used for her most recent trials. If he was correct in his speculation that Michael was still alive and that Oversight knew where he was, this would be his best chance of helping Michael. If Operations found out what he had done - he would need a fall-out shelter to hide out in, but then again if Nikita ever found out that he had held a possible key to saving Michael - should he still be alive - and not made use of it, then even that would be insufficient protection. In balance he went with his conscience and sent the additional data in an appendix at the back of the document. After sending the data he wiped all records of its transmission from the system and resent the entire document minus the appendix - hopefully Oversight would pay careful attention to both copies of the document.

The autopsy results had described inflammation of the semicircular canals of the inner ear. As these delicate organs of balance were encased in bone, the swelling had placed pressure on the auditory nerve, which would have given rise to severe headaches - especially as both sides of the head would have been affected. In longer-term trial victims, there was evidence of internal haemorrhage in the ears as the pressure also ruptured blood vessels. Others had exhibited infections as the fine membranes separating the inner and middle ear - the fenestra ovalis - had been perforated as the pressure built up and infectious bacteria had travelled from the Eustachian tube in the throat up and into the inner ear. The infection had been rapidly transmitted along the route taken by the auditory nerve and into the brain itself. Two of the ops had displayed a form of meningitis as the membranes around the brain had become secondarily infected. Naturally these symptoms could not be directly attributed to the drug - but had the potential to result in a lingering, painful death if left untreated.

************

Nikita had left the lap top opened on the coffee table next to the phone point. She wasn't sure if she wanted to check it again as she stood in the doorway waiting for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. She was worried that there would be no word - and just as concerned that there was bad news.

She took a deep breath, winced as the expansion of her chest tugged painfully at the stitches and then walked towards the table - rather than sit on the sofa and disturb Michael she crouched down on the floor and opened a connection to reload her hotmail page. The warbling tone as the modem connected to the local telecommunications network was loud and she feared it may wake Michael, but a quick glance reassured her that he was still asleep. When she looked back at the small screen she could see there was new mail.

The message from George was brief and to the point -

Hospitalisation required - go to the American Hospital - they will be waiting -do not delay

Nikita jammed her trembling fist into her mouth - biting down on her knuckles to repress the cry of anguish that was welling up inside. She wished he could have said what the problem was - it was so like Section just leaving more mysteries. She sent a quick message to Birkoff in spite of Michael's instructions to the contrary - it comprised of one word: -

SPILL

She closed her connection and sat back on the sofa - trying to ease the tension across her stomach.

"'Kita - what is it?" Michael curled his body around hers giving her more space on the sofa and he snaked his free arm around her waist - lightly so as not to hurt her, but enough for her to feel warmth and closeness.

"I didn't mean to wake you - I'm sorry." Nikita turned slightly so that she could stroke his hair and rest her hand on his shoulder.

"You look sad - what is worrying you - is there a problem with your wound?" He sat up quickly - thinking that she was having a relapse.

"No - I'm going to be fine - it'll take more than a fresh shark fancying a nibble to put me out of action for long... no Michael - it's you, you're not getting any better, you have to get to a hospital-"

"Nikita - even if that was necessary- it is not possible, you know that-"

"Well - it is now - George has made some arrangement..."

"What did he say?"

"Only that I had to get you to the American Hospital, no details, nothing."

"You haven't been in touch with anyone else have you?" he asked becoming agitated that Nikita would go seeking answers of her own when none were forthcoming.

"No - of course not..." she lied dipping her head down so her hair trailed over his face, surreptitiously avoiding eye contact.

"It will not be necessary - I shall take some painkillers and then we will be ready to leave in the morning."

"Oh no Michael - I am under orders on this one - and I'm not in a hurry to alienate George as well as Operations in the same week!" Nikita took his shoulders in her hands forcing him to look at her in the face.

"OK then - I will have a check up with the contact there for your sake, but then we leave for Morocco - agreed?"

"I agree to the trip to Morocco as soon as the doctors say you are fit and not until. Why don't you get cleaned up a bit and I'll get one of Majid's drivers ready."

"Yes and no - we go by taxi, just in case there are watchful eyes."

Nikita helped Michael steady himself as he stood up - swaying slightly on his feet.

As soon as she heard the bathroom door shut, she quickly reconnected to the Internet and checked for Birkoff's reply. It was there, ready for her:

check out autopsy details - they may help

Nikita read through the details in silent horror - George was right, Michael needed to be in hospital - but were they going to make it in time?

************

On arrival at the hospital by taxi - much to the chagrin of Majid who felt that his hospitality was rejected and his duties as a host were being undermined - Nikita was not too surprised to see a Filipino orderly waiting at the entrance with a wheelchair. He showed her his ID badge and a note saying I have instructions from Mr George to oversee the treatment of Mr Michael .

Nikita hoped she could trust that this was not a plot by Operations or Madeline - she suddenly had visions of Michael being whisked away by men in white coats never to be seen again. She walked faster to keep up with the wheelchair, concerned at the route the orderly was taking - into what looked like a maintenance elevator rather than the main concourse of the hospital. The doors closed and they were headed towards the 4th floor.

The man smiled at her - noting the worried frown on her face-

"It's OK - I was informed that the patient requires absolute privacy, this is where we bring in those public figures who do not wish their presence in the hospital to be leaked to local gossip mongers. My name is Lawrence."

Nikita relaxed a little at his cheerful smile - yes that would explain a lot - George had taken into account their need for maintaining a low profile in Dubai while Hellway was still on the loose.

"Hi Lawrence - I'm Nikita, I was wondering about how we managed to avoid the reception area."

"No problem Madam - everything has been taken care of - no paper work will be necessary."

The bell rang to indicate that they had reached the 4th floor - the doors slid open and Lawrence pushed Michael - who had remained suspiciously quiet - towards the MRI suite. As they entered the waiting area and the wheelchair came to a halt Michael sat up suddenly and spun the wheelchair so that it was between him and the orderly-

"Michael!!!!" yelled Nikita taken aback at his action, which had caught Lawrence off balance and toppled him over a low table.

"Nikita - there's something wrong about this, trust me-"

"No Michael - it's OK, you need treatment, please believe me-"

By this time Michael had pulled the hapless Filipino guy up from the floor and had his arms pinned behind his back.

The receptionist in the MRI suite had called for security in the meantime using the alarm button under her desk. Two burly looking security men appeared from the opposite direction to the one in which they had arrived. Before Michael could react they had him flanked on either side and were grasping him by the upper arms as a doctor arrived and approached him with a hypodermic syringe- squirting out an air bubble as he slowly advanced.

Michael spun his head round to see Nikita standing by doing nothing to assist him -

"Nikita - please - why aren't you helping me? I beg you!!!!!!"

She almost broke at the words that spilled from his lips, he genuinely believed he was in danger and was literally begging for her to come to his aid - what if she was wrong? What if his instincts were correct?

She stood there, her arms wrapped around her waist and her mouth open, her lip trembling as the doctor deftly injected the fast acting tranquilliser into Michael's arm.

She watched on as Michael gazed at her in total disbelief - before his eyelids shut off the glistening green wells of despair and he collapsed into the clutches of the men either side of him.

Nikita watched on in horror as Michael's limp body was placed onto a stretcher and carried into a side ward. She made sure not to lose sight of him and was glad that the security men left them after depositing Michael onto a bed. The doctor stayed with her and started examining Michael - lifting his eyelids to check on the degree of pupil dilation and taking his pulse.

"He'll be out for a bit - but nothing to worry about. So are you going to tell me why I've been told to examine an apparently fit and pretty strong young fella for miscellaneous auditory complaints and neural trauma?" Nikita smiled as he spoke - he was Australian, about thirty, with fair wavy hair, sparkling blue eyes and a cheeky grin. If she couldn't trust her own instincts about this man she may as well toss her feminine intuition out of the nearest window.

"How about you tell me your name first off, mate," she demanded with a smile, but also taking the precaution of placing herself between Michael's body and the apparently harmless medic.

"Mark Gilmore - and you? Or shall I just call you Shee-lah?" he quipped.

"Nikita - and if you want to stay fit and healthy yourself - you'd better do something about my friend. He may be suffering from swelling of the inner ear - on both sides, with possible infections and haemorrhage - it might have spread down the nerves into his..."

"Into his brain - OK I can see the link then between the auditory investigation requested and the neural check up. But how the hell do you know what the problem might be? I've got no notes from a referring doctor. How did this happen - bad head cold?"

"Cut out the attempts at humour pal - just trust me, I have it on good authority that those are the conditions you need to be checking - and nowhere in my briefing did it give reasons for you to examine my cleavage!" She leaned closer and with two fingers of her right hand tilted his head up until his eyes met hers - "That's better, now it's about time you examined my friend properly!"

"Fine - we'll start with a CAT scan to check for internal inflammation and damage to the auditory neural canal. As you are so un-forthcoming on details I'll want to do an EEG and check out the responses on all cranial nerve functions. I'll order blood tests and take some cerebro-spinal fluid for viral and bacterial analysis. What medication has he been on?"

"Besides elephant tranq's? Mainly aspirin, penicillin and paracetamol."

"Well if there's anything else dissolved in his bloodstream we'll pick it up. I'll just go and arrange for these tests to commence straight away then I'll be right back sunshine, so be a good girl and stay put." Despite a look of righteous indignation from Nikita, she allowed herself to be sat down in a chair and be patted on the head. She checked Michael - he was looking dreadfully pale and she didn't like the way he was breathing so shallowly...

Mark Gilmore had been gone for only a few minutes and soon returned with a nervous looking Lawrence who proceeded to wheel the gurney out of the room and across to the double doors leading to the diagnostic centre. Nikita was stopped at the doors by a strong hand on her shoulder.

"Oh no you don't darling - no entry - radiation you know. Anyway I'd like a word with you."

Nikita turned about on her heel, glowering and ready to strike out at this man verbally or physically, but he was ready and shoved her into a nearby wheelchair and crouched down to face her - his knees trapping her legs so she couldn't get up.

"Now then - while you may think I've been copping a butchers at your quite splendid chest young lady, it wasn't the prime reason for my gazing over your gorgeous body - no! I couldn't help but notice the way you were clutching your abdomen - to begin with I thought you might have a dicky tummy, but then I couldn't help but notice the gauze dressing under the rather flimsy fabric of your frock. Why don't you make a lecherous medic from Perth ecstatically happy and let him check those stitches for you?"

Nikita stopped gaping long enough to ask-

"How did you know I've got stitches - you got X-ray vision or what?"

"Hey - just a lucky hypothesis! Do you want me to guess what colour panties you're wearing?"

Nikita reluctantly lay down on a bed in a cubicle and lifted her dress to reveal the bandages across her midriff. Dr Gilmore showed an unexpected sign of chivalry by covering up her legs with a small sheet.

"Mmmm - wouldn't have guessed pink with lace...." he mumbled to himself as he started to carefully peel off the tape holding the gauze in place before inspecting the sore-looking wound. There was a stark red line that appeared to end in a jagged tear - both were held together by series of inflamed looking stitches.

"So don't tell me - the shark in the hotel swimming pool got randy - you tried to fight him off with your handy dagger but he grabbed it and had a go back? Jesus - you really ought to invest in a better standard of beach club love...."

"Do you ever stop talking?"

"Yeah - but chances are you don't fancy spending the night with me!"

"You can bet on it."

"Bloody hell - where did you go for the needlework? My old ma could have done better on her Singer. Tell you what sweetheart next time you fancy an embroidery job on your tum - go to the tailors down in Satwa. However - if you want an invisible mend I'm your man."

"You want to re-do my stitches?"

"Answer me this - do you want scare kiddies on the beach? Or are you never going to wear a bikini again?"

"Can you put in stitches that don't tug and itch and will allow me to have a shower?"

"I guarantee it - if you are in any way disappointed I'll buy you a beer!"

"Why doesn't that fill me with confidence?"

"OK - make it a jug of beer."

Nikita held her hand over her face as Mark Gilmore excused himself to fetch his needle and thread - she just hoped he knew what he was doing, after all she was depending on him to save Michael....

************

Mark Gilmore was true to his word - he cleaned up Nikita's scar miraculously, carefully removing the remains of the previous stitches and replacing them where necessary with dainty little stitches of a much finer thread and in some places just pulled together the unsealed edges with butterfly stitches. The teeth marks were particularly awkward, but with painstaking care he repaired the damage done by the emergency job undertaken by Majid's doctor who had been called out in the middle of the night. However, it occurred to Nikita that the man was probably half asleep when he worked on her wounds and had been more concerned about halting the loss of blood than the neatness of his work.

Mark Gilmore placed a clean dressing over the wound and then removed his disposable latex gloves with a loud twanging noise.

"All done - but I'll need to see you again in a week's time to remove them..."

"Might not be here - got to be moving on..."

"With or without lover boy?"

"Who? Oh you mean Michael ...I've not heard him described as that before - but 'with' - definitely."

"I wouldn't mind betting he's going to be grounded for a bit - I can be your personal physician till then if you fancy?"

"No - I don't fancy. Look - isn't it about time you went and checked up on him anyway?"

"The path lab results will take another couple of hours to come through and that's with strings being pulled. The results of the CAT scan are beyond my puny powers of analysis- I'll have to wait for the tech guys to produce pictures for me before I can make any sense of that data - so, how about a coffee?"

"Don't you have other patients to look after?"

"Not any more - I've been sequestered - just for the treatment of your buddy. I only did your stitches so I could see your panties - NO!! Before you stick that suturing needle in my groin - the fellas who are paying me to treat Michael have made it clear that if I don't co-operate 100% I'll lose my residence visa and be on a one-way flight back to Oz."

"My God - you're being threatened!"

"Not exactly - more like blackmailed -"

"What did you do?" Nikita's mind raced through a number of malpractice scenarios.

"Well there's this hotel called the Panorama -"

"Say no more - I don't want to know!"

"You've been there?" His face lightened up in a huge lascivious grin.

Before Nikita had the chance to decide whether to suture the doctors testicles to the chair or his lab coat - the door to the cubicle swung open and Lawrence was there with a clip board for Dr Gilmore -

"Results of the scan are ready and the patient has come round - we got him restrained this time."

"No- Michael -"

"Good lad Lawrence - I don't see why you should have to put up with wheel chair wielding psychopaths." He read through the top page of the report and then turned to Nikita - " Will you stay put if I leave you or am I going to have to take you with me?"

She had already swung her legs off the bed and was straightening out her skirt.

"Don't even think of leaving me out of the loop - I've still got that needle!"

"Well you'd better follow me then."

"Well?" she pestered him as they started to walk towards the lift, "what does it say?"

"You wouldn't understand... Trust me I'm a doctor."

Nikita grabbed his arm and yanked him to a halt -

"Tell me in words you think I will understand or I'll get in touch with your paymasters and make sure you go home by boat - the long way round!"

"OK - Jesus you're a stroppy madam when you want to be - but I'm going to tell the patient first, if he wants you to listen in - then that's fine by me, but there is something called patient confidentiality you know. "

"Fine." Nikita pouted sulkily at the medic, he had a point, not one she was happy with, but it would have to do for now.

The lift doors opened onto a private wing of the hospital - doors lined the corridor opening onto private rooms. They entered one about half way down the corridor - inside was Michael, his wrists held at his sides by restraining belts attached to the sides of the hospital gurney on which he lay - looking uncomfortable, unwell and unhappy.

"Michael?"

"Nikita - should I thank you for this?" he struggled impotently against his restraints.

"You were wrong Michael - this is Dr Gilmore, he's been paid to take care of you -"

"Great - who by? Madeline? Hellway? Or is there yet another party who wants me dead?" His caustic words were coated in sarcasm and delivered with distrust.

"Who? What?" demanded Gilmore.

"None of your business Gilmore." Nikita snapped at him before turning her attentions on Michael-" just shut up and listen for God's sake - doc get on with it and tell us what's wrong with him - now !!"

"First - young lady pull that suturing needle out of your hem, I saw you slip it in there earlier - and you pal, keep it buttoned until you hear me out. I'm a doctor and whoever the hell pays for me I do the same bloody job and that's trying to make people better, not bloody kill them!"

"I'm sorry," sighed Michael - his eyes shutting wearily. Nikita also looked slightly apologetic as she sat down on the edge of the bed and removed the needle from her dress and placed it carefully on the bedside cabinet.

"Right - now if you can both behave yourselves for a few minutes I'll explain what the problem is and how I suggest we deal with it."

"The CAT scan shows indications of inflammation around the cochlea, vestibular apparatus and auditory nerves - in both ears. Preliminary microbial analysis shows up both streptococcus and staphylococcus colonies in the inner ear, but as yet no indication of invasive infections into the neural pathways. Intravenous antibiotics will prevent the spread of the infection - but it won't work fast enough to reduce the swelling. The pressure is extremely acute on the nerves leading from the vestibular apparatus - the semi- circular canals - that's why Michael can't walk straight and the vertigo is becoming progressively worse, to the point of a perpetual feeling of nausea and disorientation- right?"

Michael just nodded gently, Nikita looked shocked - poor Michael, no wonder he was feeling so ratty....

"Anyway - I want to suggest a drastic approach - a surgical procedure to release the pressure and allow for the area to be drained. It's not without some risk, I could slice through your auditory nerve and leave you permanently deaf. Or we could cause the pressure build up to force the infection into the brain. Either way, if we wait for the medication to take its course, you'll end up with both of those conditions anyway - so what's it to be - quick and risky or slow and inevitably doomed for failure."

"Since you put it that way..."

"Hey doc - where d'you learn your bedside manner, the docks?" interrupted Nikita.

"Look I'm sorry not to dress up the truth in a fancy gift wrap and bow - but I kinda figured you folk would appreciate the straight untarnished truth."

"Yeah - well I guess we're not over accustomed to receiving it. So what next?"

"Michael - when did you last eat anything?"

"I can't remember..."

"Nikita - when did you last feed the fella?"

"Well - I had some soup and bread earlier - but I don't think Michael had any..."

"Jesus - you to take the proverbial, all I asked was when the fella last ate any solid food and you two act like I'm asking what you had for breakfast two years ago on Sunday. Don't you have normal routines like ordinary folk who don't go throwing themselves at sharks? By the way - it looks like Michael has had his leg stitched up by the same ham-fisted quack that did your tummy."

"Well - since you ask - no we don't follow the usual routines.... But I'm pretty certain Michael hasn't kept any food down for a few days now."

"Great- so malnutrition is about to set in as well, better get some vitamins into both of you. I can be ready for surgery within the hour, depending on if we can get the theatre prepped in time. So nothing to eat or drink at all now - not even water, got it?" The doctor gathered up his paperwork and made towards the door.

"Yes - so I have agreed to this treatment have I?"

"You'd have to be bloody stupid if you didn't - and despite first impressions, I wouldn't mind guessing you're a pretty smart fella."

"Before you go doctor - can you unfasten the straps?" Nikita looked up beseechingly.

"Only if you take responsibility for what may happen if I do - no more chucking the furniture about and no making a run for it. I'll warn you now fella - you're in a surgical robe and we've hidden your clothes, try running and the whole hospital will see your arse hanging out - not that I reckon you could run more than ten yards in a straight line anyway."

As soon as Mark Gilmore had left the room, Nikita turned to look a Michael - he was looking down at his wrists and then back at her -

"Nikita - we do not have time for this - release me - we have to go."

"No! You're not going anywhere - if they can operate today, we can be mobile sooner than if we leave you untreated, how much longer do you think you can go on - without your sense of balance, you can't shoot straight and you sure as hell can't defend yourself in unarmed combat. Running is out and so is driving and don't think I can carry you around - with this slice across my middle..."

"I'm sorry Nikita - how is it - you must be in pain and I have thought about nothing but myself..."

"It twinges a bit, but Mark gave me a local anaesthetic when he redid my stitches -"

"There was a problem?" Michael was immediately concerned that there'd been a complication with Nikita's injuries and he hadn't noticed.

"Only an aesthetic one - but I think the wound will heal quicker now, and I can stretch a bit more easily. The point is that you need to have this sorted out, only then can we make a move. "

"Nikita -we will need help- we cannot do this on our own any longer - Hellway got to us too fast and if it hadn't been for chance, we would both be dead by now." He sighed with resignation, it took a lot for him to admit to being fallible, but they had been compromised too easily.

"Yeah - I've been thinking about that. I thought that Majid's horses would be a good cover -"

"How?"

"He enters desert endurance rides on Arab horses - he has stables outside Casablanca that he uses for training his horse after they are flown out from here. He has his own private jet for transporting the horses - and I thought-"

"Nikita - we should not rely too much on Majid's goodwill - he is only doing this because he loves you-"

"He does not! " exclaimed Nikita - her face reddening -

"Nikita - he told me - when you were unconscious after we were pulled out of the sea - he was angry at me for bringing harm to you." Michael decided not to mention that they had almost come to blows over their feelings for her.

"But that wasn't exactly your fault -"

"Not directly, maybe - but - is it right to make use of the man because of his feelings for you? He would do almost anything to be in your company and he is a competitive man - no good will come of it..."

"Maybe not Michael - you say we need back up?" Nikita was fidgeting with the bed sheets that covered Michael - smoothing them down, trying to avoid touching him.

"Yes- trained back up preferably."

"I trust Corallie from the Dubai sub station-"

"She works for Hellway!" Michael protested.

"Yeah and I worked for Madeline - so what? Anyway a lot of the local ops are in fear for their lives, Hellway is a loose canon.... What if Corallie received orders from Oversight to leave Dubai for an undisclosed destination - she could meet up with us - at least she's fit and has local knowledge, her Arabic's pretty good too...."

"What is it Nikita - is my company no longer good enough for you?" Michael teased, longing to reach out and stroke her face, but unable to raise his arms.

"I wouldn't mind another able body about to protect us generally - a team again that's what we need..."

"OK then - there is a number I will give you - use it to contact Oversight, they will need a password. Leave your suggestion with them and ask them to contact you via the doctor - I assume they have a source of contacts in place in order to have assigned our most perspicacious physician to us...." Michael smiled a sad, twisted little smile as he sank into the pillows and shut his eyes against the bright lights.

Nikita leaned over him and kissed him gently on the mouth.

"Give me the number then."

************

Nikita waited with Michael until a nurse came to prep him for surgery - then she kissed her fingertips and pressed them against his lips...Lawrence returned to help the nurse transfer Michael onto a gurney and wheel him out towards the operating theatre.

Dr Gilmore stood by the door and watched Nikita as she had stroked the young man's hair tenderly and knew instinctively that there was no point trying to pursue her heart or any other part of her anatomy for that matter - it was spoken for, whether she knew it or not.

She could feel the presence of Mark Gilmore - her training made her aware of his footsteps and quiet breathing, she could tell exactly where he stood without looking. She watched, as Michael was taken out of the room and then without turning asked-

"Well doctor what are you going to do - give me the details."

"If you insist - well the blood tests indicate high levels of streptomycin an antibiotic which has been shown to cause damage to the nerve of balance, we'll have to get that out of his system. There are better drugs we can use, in combination with cortisone's to remove the fluid that has leaked into his middle ear. Are you understanding this?"

"I'm blonde - not stupid - keep going, I want to know exactly what you're going to do to Michael before I leave this room." She had turned to give the doctor the full benefit of her scrutiny.

"Unfortunately we will have to carry out surgery to remove the build up of fluid in the inner ears. I consulted with the otologist chap and he agrees that we should be able to perform straight forward endolymphatic sac decompression procedures -"

"What?" exclaimed Nikita - losing track once the medic had hit the polysyllabic jargon -"OK I'm not stupid, but I'm not a brain surgeon either! If I thought you were deliberately trying to blind me with science I'd be forced to rearrange some of your anatomy. Again - in words that I can understand!"

"Sorry - sweetheart. It's really quite simple - we drill away the bone behind his ears-"

"You do what?!"

"Just a little bit - it's called the mastoid bone. Then we can expose the inner ear, insert a tube into the area where the fluid is collecting and drain it out. Using an operating microscope we can be very accurate, avoiding damage to the facial nerves. Hopefully we won't need to use lasers -" he paused as Nikita started to pale- "Honest love there's no need to worry, the entire op will take about two hours, then we'll patch him up and he'll be right as rain - no probs."

Nikita stepped closer to the doctor and pressed him up against the wall of the cubicle, she smiled with her mouth but her eyes remained grim.

"Swear on it - by whatever you hold most dear. Because if anything goes wrong I'll come looking for you and you won't be able to find a hole deep enough to hide in."

Nikita did not wait to hear the doctor's response but just shoved him against the wall and stormed off. Her thoughts were in a tempest all of their own - everything that had happened to them was due to Operations and Madeline of that she was sure. The mission that had taken them to Syria in pursuit of the deranged Mounia Bensouda that had almost resulted in the capture of Michael by Red Cell and her own death. Then here in the Emirates, Hellway had almost finished them off with the help of a hungry shark - whatever the hell was going on - it felt bad.

Michael was meant to be dead as far as Section was concerned - but Hellway had found them - how? - there must be a leak somewhere. Michael was supposedly working for George to find out what they had inadvertently uncovered in the Middle East. Could there be a mole in Oversight - working for Operations? The whole affair stunk - their only lead was that the plane that had intended to pick up Michael had gone on to Morocco - the home place of the Bensouda family.

Nikita slumped down in the corridor - her back against the wall and her hands over her face as she tried to filter through the morass of confusion that clouded the events of the past few weeks. If the mission to Lebanon and beyond had been a set up as Mounia Bensouda had told Michael - then Operations and Madeline were undoubtedly behind it. Their treatment of Michael on his return to Section would confirm that - they had experimented with a new form of interrogation technique on him - not the actions of the blameless. As a result of that he was undergoing surgery to attempt to correct the damage they had done.

Hellway - the woman in charge of the Dubai sub station was unhinged, but her interception of the Red Cell operatives in Dubai and their subsequent execution before Michael or Nikita had had the opportunity to question them was more than slightly suspicious. She must have been bugging their communications. That meant she knew they would have been going to Morocco next. Their only hope was that she remained convinced that they had perished in the waters of the Gulf...

Majid had told her about the sha'mahls - hot desert winds that blew in from the deserts and raised sandstorms that obliterated all the landmarks as they made their way across the city. She felt as though Michael and herself were in the midst of such a storm and it was time to seek a helping hand to pull them out before they were lost for good.

Nikita took her hands from her face and looked at the smudged number on the palm of her left hand - she had used the pen from Michael's medical chart to scrawl the contact number he had given her. She took a deep breath - regretted it as the stitches on her stomach complained and than gingerly inched up the wall and headed for the nearest pay phone.

************

Nikita was not happy with George's instructions - but he had made it clear that the situation was far too dangerous to proceed without a clear profile. Corallie would be reassigned without delay and would accompany Michael and Dr Gilmore as a nurse to the Al Mamounia Hotel in Marrakech where he would be booked in as a French businessman recuperating from surgery. However, to avert suspicion Nikita would travel separately with Majid to his stables just outside of Casablanca on the coast. She had to make arrangements immediately and such was the urgency of their predicament she would not be able to wait at the hospital for Michael to come out of surgery.

Blinking back tears of bitterness Nikita made her way out of the foyer of the hospital where she had arranged for Majid to meet her. She looked back once into the halls teeming with bustling crowds that she couldn't see clearly through the tears that blurred her vision and whispered -

"Be well my love..."

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