- Contains references to Voices, Gambit, Mercy, Hard Landing, Not Was and On Borrowed Time. - Adult Situations & Bad Language

Madeline shut down the video feed to Nikita's apartment content with the scene she'd just witnessed. The deprogramming had taken quite nicely, she thought to herself. Michael had been visibly shaken by Nikita's rebuff of his attentions although she had seemed confused at first.

Madeline realized the processing period would take a few more days before the condition became irreversible and it was those few days that she had to contend with especially with Operations offsite. Michael had picked up on the subtle changes in Nikita almost immediately telling Madeline that their connection, or bond if you would, ran deeper than she realized.

Michael would do everything in his power to try to turn Nikita during this vunerable period of the deprogramming and she had every intention of stopping him.

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

Michael kicked brutally at the workout bag extending from the ceiling of the loft's corner as the sweat dripped profusely from his body. Her words had stung him to his core and while he had initially been devastated with hurt, the emotion had soon turned to one of pure rage. How dare they. He would not let them do this. He knew Madeline was behind it and he intended on making her pay dearly for silencing Nikita's heart.

He had readily found out from his internal resources that Section had used a beta driven technique which took the body several days to process. Time was, therefore, of the essence.

He struck out viciously at the bag causing the supporting chain to twist uncontrollably as he mentally processed his next course of action.

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

Nikita sat quietly in her darkened apartment trying to sort through her emotions. Confusion was the most prevalent. She just didn't understand. That fact, however, did nothing to eradicate the knowledge that her connection to Michael was gone. Gone, and she just couldn't remember.

What she did remember was the pain in Michael's eyes as she verbalized her revelation. A revelation she had recently come to accept although she couldn't explain why.

He had asked what they had done to her and while she was currently in the dark about it, she had every intention of finding out.

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

Michael arrived at Section well before dawn and immediately checked his PDA. His team, with the exception of Nikita, was scheduled for aerial drop reconnaissance prior to the actual mission.

He quickly accessed Section's database calling up intel on all missions currently on pad and saw that Nikita was scheduled to go out on the Bramalea mission with Davenport's team.

He realized Madeline had purposely removed Nikita from his team to allow the final stages of the deprogramming to take effect. He needed access to the Council codes in order to get Madeline out of Section. He knew, she would put a watcher on either he or Nikita while she was away and mentally prepared that contingency plan while breaking the encryption to the Council codes.

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

Madeline was reviewing current mission profiles when her computer screen suddenly went dark prompting her to enter a series of personal codes to retrieve the incoming message.

She entered the string of passwords and waited momentarily while the system acknowledged her entry. Once the information had filtered through, the computer screen sprang to life displaying the alpha/numeric code B4 which caused Madeline to pale immediately.

She entered the code into the system to read the complete transmission before making a call to Section 2 and shutting down her computer.

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

Gregor Kesseler had escaped the experimental facility at substation B4 and Madeline's indepth knowledge of his mental processes was necessary if they were to retrieve him.

She was ordered to handover her current workload and report to the Philippines immediately. Madeline cursed George under her breath remembering how he had overriden Operations mandate to have Kesseler disposed of.

George believed Kesseler could be of use to Section if they could tap into his psyche and at the time Madeline had no choice but to agree that he would make an excellent lab rat.

Kesseler's escape couldn't have come at a more inopportune time, she thought to herself.

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

Michael was in his office updating his team's PDAs when the outside call he was expecting came through on his secured line. "Status", he readily inquired. "She's outside the compound, Michael". "Good. Follow and detain", he deadpanned.

As she drove home, Madeline began to mentally prepare herself for the task at hand. She despised the heat of the Phillipines almost as much as the thought of Kesseler at large and was determined to make short work of this assignment.

She had left instructions with Section 2's Head Strategist to advise Operations, upon his return, that the Council had requested her presence to conduct special field work and that she would return as soon as possible.

She had then turned over all her current assignments with the exception of Michael and Nikita. They were her pet project and she put a special operative in place to keep watch over them and to run interference if necessary.

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

Thinking back, she realized if only she had convinced Operations to allow her to engage in a little more field work, she probably wouldn't have gone down so easily.

She had barely gotten clear of her automobile when someone blindsided her knocking her cold. She awoke gagged, eyes covered and bound on the cold concrete floor of what smelled like an abandoned building.

Madeline shivered involuntarily suddenly realizing they had stripped her down to her Victoria Secrets.

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

Michael reconfigured the Bramalea mission so that Davenport could discover that he was in excess of team operatives.

He then approached him regarding a shortage of operatives for his own reconnaissance mission and requested that he check for contingency.

Upon checking his contingency plan, Davenport realized he could spare two operatives without jeopardizing the mission and told Michael he could take one of his units.

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

"Josephine". Nikita closed down her cell, showered and unconsciously donned an all black attire before quietly exiting her apartment.

She felt more focused than normal and eagerly entered Section totally prepared to eat the first terrorist who reared his ugly head. She proceeded directly to Munitions for her PDA and weapon of choice.

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

"O'Brien tells me you and he go back", Davenport innocently commented. "Yes", Michael monotoned. "O.K., Davenport declared. O'Brien has just volunteered to pair off with Nikita to complete your team units. Good luck, Michael".

"Thank you", Michael offered returning his attention to the former Detective Marco O'Brien. "Review your PDA and make sure your'e up to speed with the mission before reporting to munitions", he instructed.

"You got it boss", O'Brien smuggly replied before taking his leave. Michael watched him depart and mentally began implementing his contingency plan now that he knew exactly who the watcher was.

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

Madeline could feel the left side of her body going numb from the lack of blood circulation and cold exposure to her skin.

She rocked her body to and fro to the best of her ability in her constraints until the momentum finally rolled her over onto her right side. She let out a little sigh, satisfied with her small victory when suddenly, she heard them.

"Let me see, let me see. How much did you get?". "Chill man. See, I got a hundred for it". "WHAT!, that's all?. That dress was worth double that. It was a Versace!. Don't you know nothin?"

Madeline couldn't believe her ears. She had been abducted by Twiddley Dee and Twiddley Dum of the European fashion industry. Had she not been suffering from hypothermia, she might have found the entire situation quite comical.

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

Michael provided his team with last minute instructions regarding ground coordinates and egress routes to be used for and after the gathering of their recon intel. The team listened intently while conducting individual parachute and weapons check prior to the actual jump.

"Check your PDA's for your jump coordinates. The surrounding area to be covered is very extensive, people. Stick with your individual units and report back to the substation when your recon is complete. Good luck", Michael concluded.

"Come on Dollface, your'e with me", O'Brien announced with a broad smile. Michael noticed no reaction on Nikita's part to O'Brien's comment. In fact, she had been so focused since her entry into Section that morning that he feared the deprogramming was becoming irreversible sooner than anticipated.

He had to move quickly.

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

O'Brien landed and quickly disengaged himself from his chute, immediately rolling the expansive cloth into a small ball and hiding it behind a bush.

He looked around momentarily, walking forward a short distance when he suddenly realized he had been separated from Nikita, as well as the rest of the team.

"DAMN!", O'Brien cursed, realizing Michael had deliberately given him the wrong ground coordinates and separated him from Nikita. He knew Madeline was going to kill him for sure.

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

Michael landed and removed himself from his parachute keeping Nikita within eye distance as she fell to the ground a few feet away.

He watched as she skillfully detached her chute and stashed it away under a nearby tree stump.

She spotted him and immediately closed the distance between them readily inquiring about O'Brien's whereabouts.

"He can't be far, Michael lied. His chute must have caught a tail wind. Let's proceed forward", he instructed.

Nikita took the lead.

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

They came to a small clearing five kilometers from their drop site and Nikita stopped short blocking Michael's vision. "What is it?", he asked although he already possessed the answer.

"A cabin. Looks abandoned", she whispered. He motioned for her to go East while he took off to the West to cover the cabin's parameters.

Nikita came around the back crouching low as she observed the cabin's interior. Seeing no one, she entered and began looking around.

Michael knew it was now or never. He would unsilence her heart or die trying!

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

Michael approached the cabin's entrance watching Nikita momentarily through a window as she scouted around. He entered the cabin closing the door quietly behind him, when Nikita swung around with her gun automatically pointed towards his heart.

The primal look she encountered in Michael's eyes caused her some concern so she extended her gun out further. "What is this Michael?, she demanded as her hand began to tremble. I've told you before....."

Michael advanced upon her capturing both her wrists in a viselike grip and pulling them in opposite directions effectively disarming her and pulling her dangerously close.

Nikita experienced a feeling of deja vu as Michael went through the motions of disarming her and her mind suddenly flashed back.

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

She was being ravished. He was consuming her whole and, still, she couldn't get enough. "I thought I'd lost you", he whispered desperately.

"Michael?", she questioned. "Do you remember?", he anxiously asked. "I don't understand", she lamented.

Michael could see the confusion clearly written over Nikita's face and he wanted to scream. He needed to make her remember before it was too late and aggressively continued to stimulate her with familiar gestures and phrases.

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

Michael released her from his grip and took her tenderly in his arms pulling her head forward to rest upon his shoulder. "I wish things could be different", he whispered softly in her ear.

Nikita felt her head reel as she once again was overcome by the feeling of deja vu followed by a mental flash back. "Me too", she monotoned causing Michael's heart to jump.

"Ni-ki-ta, Ni-ki-ta, please........come back to me", he pleaded.

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

Madeline discreetly struggled with her constraints while her captives discussed their next sale strategy.

Twiddley Dee was informing Twiddley Dum that he should keep his mouth shut and let him do all the talking when it came to the sale of her Ferragamo pumps.

Twiddley Dum had relented but not before asking what they intended on doing with her. Madeline's entire body went rigid as the voices emanating from the next room suddenly went silent.

She assumed they were considering their options when suddenly Twiddley Dum spat out, "Let's have some fun with her!". Before she had a chance to hyperventilate, Twiddley Dee remarked saying, "She's nothin but a bag of bones...and an old bag at that. COME ON!".

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

Michael was becoming desperate. Time was running out quickly and they were expected back at the substation for departure to Section.

He knew he had to say it. It was the only way. He gently pulled back and lifted her chin with his index finger until her eyes were locked and focused on his.

"Have I ever told you that I love you", he whispered reverently, taking her full mouth into his and kissing her passionately.

Something inside Nikita's head snapped as she cried out in pain and fell to her knees. Michael dropped to the floor along side her and watched as she clasped her head tightly and applied pressure to her temples.

Her head felt like it was going to explode as all her stolen memories suddenly came flooding back to her like a tidal wave.

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

"Ni-ki-ta, Michael tentatively called. Are you O.K.?". Her response was non verbal but very reassuring to Michael who suddenly found himself half way disrobed before he could restrain her.

He grabbed Nikita's busy hands stilling them mid stream to her pure discontent. "Michael, please, she pleaded. I need you".

Michael found himself in a position extremely unfamiliar to him. HE COULDN'T THINK. The urgency he felt pulling at his core along with Nikita's pleadings for them to join almost broke him.

He knew they should be leaving but to ensure that the effects of the deprogramming were truly reversed, he let nature take its course to Nikita's sheer delight.

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

Madeline laid on the cold concrete floor of the abandoned building still gagged with her eyes covered and bound, shivering in her Victoria Secrets as she continued to struggle with her bonds. She just wanted out. They had surely given her a black eye when they blindsided her, she realized, in addition to selling her clothing, insulting her and leaving her to freeze her ass off in this asbestos stinking rat trap.

She didn't know how she was going to explain this to the Council who had surely figured out that she hadn't even left the country yet. She soothed herself by thinking of all the deliciously vendictive ways to repay the two bit thieves who had done this to her if she could just free herself from her bonds.

She ceased her efforts immediately, however, upon suddenly hearing footsteps coming towards her. One of her captives crouched low beside her and whispered menacingly in her ear, "Your'e lucky bitch!". He grabbed her by the hair lifting her face to his and ran his tongue along her chin and up her cheek in one long, wet sweep.

Madeline convulsed involuntarily and her captive took the opportunity to prick her arm with the small hypodermic needle Michael had provided for the job. The serum would scramble her brains a little and wipe out a few days from her memory. If she was probed into trying to remember events during that timeframe, the drug acted in a repressive manner pushing the information further from her recollective grasp.

**********

O'Brien found his way back to the substation just as the team was preparing for departure. He entered van access giving Michael a knowing look. Michael's blank mask remained in tact as he informed O'Brien that he expected his debrief prior to their return to Section.

He motioned for the team to load Mobile Air Comm and headed back to his temporary office to check in with Birkoff and advise that their ETA was 48 hours and 32 minutes. "O.K., Michael. I'll inform Operations", Birkoff responded before disconnecting.

O'Brien made his way towards Nikita at the back of the transport determined to gauge whatever he could from her. "Seems like we got separated, Dollface", he stated. "No kidding, O'Brien. Where the hell were you?. I had to do your share of the recon as well as mine", she growled.

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

Madeline woke up and immediately noticed the cold and the darkness. She rolled over, blinking the sleep from her eyes and sat up. She was completely shocked to find herself sitting in an abandoned building practically naked.

Her eye was throbbing and she winced upon touching it wondering what the hell had happened. She tried to remember how she had gotten there but pulled a complete blank.

She wanted to find out where she was so that she could get back to where she needed to be but realized....first things first. She looked around the abandoned structure desperately trying to find something to cover up with.

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

Michael was in with Operations discussing operative performance when Madeline entered wearing dark sunglasses. Operations, who hadn't seen her in a few days, automatically reached over and removed the glasses exposing her shiner.

"What happened?", Operations demanded. "Nothing, she replied. Just a little accident at home, Paul. These things do happen", she reassured him. Operations observed her intently before relenting and accepting her explanation.

"How did your field work go?", Operations prompted. "Field work", she repeated. "Madeline, are you alright", he probed. "Yes, of course", she lied knowing to admit the truth would mean her own demise.

"Michael, would you excuse us", Operations requested. "Of course", he replied before taking his leave. He knew Madeline would not divulge anything to Operations about her lack of memory.

On the contrary, she would slyly obtain any information she could from him regarding her activities during the last 72 hours and try to piece together the puzzle herself.

Good luck, Michael thought to himself as he proceeded downstairs knowing she would be so tied up with her own troubles for a while, she would have no time for he or Nikita.

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

Nikita stuck her head in Michael's office asking if he had a minute to go over her stat report before she submitted it to Birkoff. "Let's take a look", he invited.

Nikita approached his desk and handed him the disk allowing her fingers to sensually caress his during the exchange. It was a discreet interaction that Michael had come to look forward to since the return of Nikita's heart.

His hazel green eyes sparkled as he placed the disk in the drive and hit the enter key. When he refocused his gaze forward, Nikita was gone. He peered through the office blinds but she was nowhere to be seen.

His computer monitor suddenly beeped calling his attention to the screen where a message brought a small smile to his face and joy to his heart.

HAVE I EVER TOLD YOU THAT I LOVE YOU!

VOILA, FINI

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