Michael was walking inside the halls of Section remembering all that had happened. Each day it became more difficult to be inside Section. He reached his office and saw it full of boxes. He had a lot of work to do to put back his office, as he liked it.

Halfway through, Nikita popped in to see how it was going to him. Michael looked at her, thinking of the time he had wasted but most importantly of the time they had together. Nikita didn't say a word; but her feelings were the same.

There were a couple of more boxes to go, when Nikita picked up a small green box labeled CONFIDENTIAL; which she thought it was strange because one of the other boxes were labeled.

"Michael, would you come here a minute", Nikita asked. As Michael walked to him, he wished he could just hold her for a moment. A sweet light scent of peach came from her skin and he recalled seeing the shower gel in her bathroom. She couldn't think of anything else, either. Michael seemed so tired and sad. He had worked in his office like a robot, not looking at the other operatives, who would walk by his office. She wished she could hug him and make dinner for them.

Michael looked a the strange box Nikita had in her hands. He didn't recognize it as his. They didn't need to speak out loud what they were thinking, so Michael secured his office and sat on the floor next to Nikita.

They opened the box and inside it, wrapped in tissue paper was a book. It had the word ADRIAN'S JOURNAL engraved in gold and it seemed really delicate. Michael looked at Nikita for a second, asking her to leave him alone to look at what the book had. He didn't want her involved in another problem, that would affect her. She understood him perfectly and stood up, smiled and said: "I'll be outside, if you need me". He closed his eyes, telling her that he'd be out as soon as he found out what it was.

Michael opened the book and started to read: "For the first time in many years; I feel the need to express everyone of my thoughts as we begin a new journey in our lives. Paul, George, Walter and I (Adrian) will become what from now on will be known as Section One, the most covert and anti-terrorist group in the world. Here we will try to help our human fellows and try to make world peace a reality".

Michael kept on reading very carefully all the descriptions that Adrian wrote of what and why Section One had been created. She was very good at her job and so were the others. She named each operative that had come into, with their good and bad things and the reason they were canceled. Each cancellation had been for a reason that was "justified".

Suddenly Michael found out what caught his eye. "A new woman has entered Section One today. Her name is Madeline and she is one of the best operatives we have had in a long time. I will promote her to the position of psychologist and internal affairs. She's very intelligent and can see many things that other's can't. Paul seems attracted to her and I think it could be a complication if it's not taken care of. I will observe and see what happens".

Michael knew that Operations and Madeline had a history together but it seems that everyone had noticed it too. Adrian kept on writing about things he never knew had happened. Section One was very different in that time. It seemed to him, that once Operations took over Section, everything had changed and not even the a trace of the old Section had remained.

Then he found something he never thought of. Adrian wrote: "Paul and Madeline have been seeing each other out of Section for a while. They seemed more connected than what I had predicted. I'm worried that it will affect their performances if not stopped. I need to make arrangements to control the situation". Then the juicy part caught his attention. "I fear for my life. Paul and Madeline want Section for them to run. Paul is a good operative but he isn't the right person to be in charge of Section. He's impulsive, manipulative and thinks that he is the only one who knows everything. I'm sure that they will try get rid of me, soon. I'm sure that Madeline will always be an asset to Section but under Paul's influence, I don't know what can happen".

It was the last thing she wrote on the book. Some pages were missing from the journal, and Michael wished he knew what they said. He was sure that Operations must have found the journal after Adrian was banned from Section for life. It was interesting to have found it but how had it gotten into his things. He decided to but the book back in the box and hide it. It wasn't for everyone to see. He took out the the tissue paper and wrapped it. As he was going to close the box, he looked at the lid. There was some papers glued to it and when Michael took them, it was the missing pages of the journal.

It read: "Madeline is pregnant. I've sent her to a mission (not real) and Paul is furious. He doesn't know he's going to be a father. I hope he never finds out. I'm the only one who knows about Madeline's condition and I'm sure it will always be a secret. If anyone ever gets their hands in this journal, I hope you can use it to benefit yourself and Section".

Michael glued the papers back to the lid and closed the box. He still didn't know how it became to be in his office, but he didn't care. He would hide it and use it to his benefit when the time was right. He had an ace up his sleeve, for whenever and it would be soon; he'd use it to help himself, get back with Nikita, the only woman he loved.

The End.

This story © Nabiki, 1999