Title: The Air That They Breathe
Author/Pseudonym: Tinnean
Fandom: La Femme Nikita
Pairing: Birkoff/Davenport
Rating: NC-17
Status: New/Complete
Email for feedback: Tinneantoo@aol.com
Series/Sequel: not really, but The Little Comm Op Who Cried Wolfe is an offshoot
Disclaimers: The boys don't belong to me (I should live so long!), I don't get a penny for this, but oh, boy! do I have a good time! (and I'd like to think they have fun too.)
Summary: Birkoff's got a secret admirer. How's he going to deal with it when he finds out who it is?
Warning: graphic m/m sex, first time, language
Part 1
Birkoff was hunched over the keyboard of
his computer. His fingers flew with lightning speed as his accessed the latest
intel accumulated by his network of hackers.
Suddenly his head jerked up. The small hairs on the back of his neck were
standing on end. Someone was watching him. Again.
Birkoff had always been somewhat paranoid, but lately, the feeling that eyes
were constantly on him had become stronger and stronger, making him fidgety,
restless. Excited.
Warily he glanced around.
The only operatives around him were those whose shift it was, engrossed with
their computer screens. The area surrounding Comm was empty.
But the sound of footsteps echoed down the corridor that lead to the commons.
A frown creased Birkoff’s brow. Then he
shrugged and leaned forward to study his own monitor.
******
The operative swore and ran a hand over his smooth scalp. That was too close.
The fascination he had developed for the comm op was bordering on obsessive.
He had known since his teens that his sexual orientation was ambiguous, to say
the least. So he bulked up, shaved his head, and developed a reputation for
being a mean mother. He kept to himself. And if anyone tried to approach him on
a personal level, the hard, cold look in his black eyes had them backing off in
a hurry.
The level 3 cold op had sampled both sexes in the wild days before he was
recruited to Section One. And he had enjoyed the encounters. But the aftermath
of the affairs had been so messy that now he tended to shy away from any
entanglements.
And fucking simply for its own sake was too emotionally barren to be an
acceptable alternative.
He had always liked the young head of Comm. They had split a beer or two after
debriefings, and had acknowledged each other when sharing a lift to their
quarters, but they were coworkers, nothing more.
Somehow, in recent days, that had changed.
The cold op found himself on the lookout for the comm op. He searched for
occasions to be in the same room, share the same space. Breathe the same air.
He wanted to let the feel of the stubble that covered Birkoff’s head abrade
his fingertips.
He wanted to stroke his thumb across the lush lips of Birkoff’s mouth, teasing
them opened.
He wanted to follow his thumb with his own lips, forcing Birkoff’s to part,
allowing his tongue access into the honeyed depths beyond.
But most of all he wanted to strip them both naked and bury himself in the body
the younger man was at pains to conceal, fucking him savagely, wildly, taking
them both to places they had never gone, bringing them pleasure they had never
dreamed of.
He was disgusted with himself. He knew Birkoff had had some experiences with
women. But not a whisper had ever indicated that the comm op might even consider
dallying with a member of his own sex, much less someone as well-known for his
ruthless dependability as the cold op was.
If he wasn’t careful, he’d wind up getting himself canceled. And Birkoff as
well.
But he couldn’t resist the tantalizing allure that the comm op held for him.
Maybe the best he could hope for was friendship.
Friendship wasn’t bad. They could down some brews, scope some babes.
And Davenport would keep the fact that he was hopelessly infatuated with
Birkoff locked deep within his heart.
Part 2
The head of Comm was deep in thought as he
made his way into the lift that would take him down to the subbasement level
that housed the commissary. He had run a double shift, trying to sort out the
reason their latest mission had turned sour and blown up in their faces.
The result was Michael and Nikita were missing. Four operatives from the
abeyance pool were toast. And three good men had come in with varying degrees of
injuries.
One of them was Davenport, the bulky level 3 cold op. He had been wheeled into
Section, his mission pants soaked with blood.
Right now he was in MedLab.
And Birkoff was concerned.
More than concerned.
He liked the hard-eyed Davenport. He was one of the few operatives who had
treated the young comm op as a living being, rather than an extension of his
computer.
Davenport even bought him a beer, once.
Birkoff had thought at the time that Davenport was watching him rather
predatorily, a hungry gleam in his black eyes. Before he could consider how he
should react to the operative coming on to him, Davenport had shuttered his
glance and made an innocuous remark about one of the female operatives who was
passing by.
And Birkoff concluded that, not being used to alcohol, the beer was making him
see things.
He still wasn’t sure if he was relieved or disappointed.
While he had had few affairs, they had not been as fulfilling as he had been
lead to believe they would be, and he was starting to wonder if he might have
better luck with a male partner.
But to Birkoff, just the idea of having some hot, sweaty neanderthal shoving his
cock into his virgin ass made him want to gag.
Except when he had thought that it was Davenport doing the shoving. Then he had
discovered the idea was not quite so repugnant.
In fact, it was kind of titillating.
His abdomen tightened. His nipples tingled.
The hairs on the nape of his neck stood stiffly. As did another part of his
anatomy. Birkoff shifted uncomfortably in the lift and hoped no one else would
call for the elevator. Most of Section thought he was eccentric. If he should be
spotted with an obvious hard-on, in an empty lift, he wasn’t sure he’d be
able to withstand the whispers that would circulate.
As luck would have it, the car came to a halt two levels before he was able to
make his escape. The doors slid open, and a cold-eyed op waited impatiently to
get on. His scalp smoothly shaven, his jaw covered with stubble, Davenport
glared at the occupant of the lift, until he saw who it was.
To Birkoff’s amazement, a dull flush mounted the cold op’s cheeks and he
hesitated for a bare instant before stepping forward. “Birk,” he nodded
shortly, acknowledging the head of Comm. Davenport turned to face the front of
the car.
“Da...Davenport!” Birkoff could hardly stutter the name out. “I thought
you were dying!” And he blushed and hit his forehead for the gaucheness of his
comment.
Davenport grinned sourly. “Section would never permit an unsanctioned death of
any of its operatives!” He risked a glance at the object of his obsession, and
felt himself hopelessly drawn into those chocolate brown eyes. “Ummm, sorry?”
he murmured as he realized he had missed what Birkoff was saying.
“I said, the scuttlebutt was that you
had been shot to ribbons!”
“Nah, as you can see, the reports of my demise are highly exaggerated!”
Against his better judgment, Davenport found himself leaning toward the comm
operative, breathing in the scent of soap and indefinable something that was
uniquely Birkoff’s.
Birkoff was startled to find his personal space invaded. But he did not feel
threatened. He looked up into the black eyes, normally so shielded, and drew in
a silent breath at the hot, intent look.
“But you were covered in blood! They said!”
“Not my blood.” Davenport was becoming distracted. Birkoff had not backed
off from him when he had moved closer. Could that indicate interest? He licked
his lips, unsure of his next move.
Birkoff found his gaze drawn irresistibly to the sculpted mouth of the cold op.
And his own mouth went dry. “Not your blood?” he repeated dumbly.
Davenport shook his head, wondering if Birkoff would slug him or report him if
he dared to sample his lush mouth. The lure of those lips tempted him. “One of
the abeyance ops died bleeding all over me. I knocked myself out when I slipped
in a puddle of her blood. MedLab let me out as soon as they realized I wasn’t
even concussed.”
That was the longest string of sentences Birkoff had even heard coming from the
usually terse operative. “Davenport,” he whispered through lips that had
gone dry. “Would you...”
The doors to the lift opened. Operatives coming on after a before-shift meal
were waiting to use it to ride up to their respective levels. Thankfully, none
of them noticed the air of tension that charged the atmosphere of the car.
Davenport took a step back. “Let’s go get a cup of coffee, amigo.”
Birkoff followed him into the commissary, confused. ‘Amigo’ was what Walter
called him. Walter was his friend, kind of.
But Birkoff would never consider kissing the munitions op. He wasn’t curious
as to how it might feel to press his lips against Walter’s. He didn’t wonder
how he might taste.
He looked after the cold operative with muted longing, and followed slowly
behind him.
Davenport had already gotten them two cups of coffee and had staked out a table
in a far corner, isolated from the few members of housekeeping who were the
remaining occupants of the commissary.
No one approached housekeeping during their downtime, not even Operations or
Madeline.
And housekeeping approached no one.
Birkoff and Davenport were in effect on their own.
They sat across from each other, hesitantly conversing with their eyes.
<Would you...>
<...kiss me?>
<...kiss you!>
<Soon?>
<Now!>
<Oh, yes!>
And they rose abruptly and paced from the room, leaving the coffee to cool,
forgotten, on the table.
Part 3
On this particular day, at this time of
day, the corridors of Section were deserted. Operatives who were still on site
were busy catching up on much-needed sleep.
The disappearance of Michael and Nikita weighed heavily on all who dwelt
in Section. Operations had torn a strip off anyone who had the misfortune of
being within his range. Madeline was disturbed by the disastrous results of the
mission. And they all dreaded the very real possibility of what might occur
should George poke his Oversight nose into Section One's affairs.
It was fast becoming imperative that the two operatives be found or be declared
off-profile.
Before Birkoff had left his post, he had
worked out the most logical scenario and programmed it into the system. Having
completed his rotation, he was on downtime for desperately needed rest.
Operations had selected Hillinger to carry the ball for this shift.
He knew that the young troublemaker would work at it especially hard, hoping to
overshadow the head of Comm.
Operations couldn't resist letting his eyes run over the taut curve of
Hillinger's backside as he bent over his desk. This was a win/win situation:
either Hillinger came through for them and Michael and Nikita were safely
returned to Section.
Or he failed.
In which case, Operations personally would have to discipline him.
His eyes became hooded and a feral smile curved his lips.
*****
Birkoff and Davenport entered the lift silently. Davenport punched the button
that would take them to the level where his quarters were housed. Birkoff's
mouth went dry, but he said nothing.
The burly cold op was silent also, and Birkoff began to wonder if he had misread
the whole situation. He shifted uncomfortably, trying to ease the erection that
seemed bent on displaying his interest in the other man to all of Section. Why
would someone as strong as Davenport be the least bit interested in a computer
geek such as himself? Someone who, once he was away
from his computer, was a gutless wonder? Someone who couldn't even attract a
girlfriend on a more than sporadic basis?
By the time the doors opened to give them access to the third sub-level, Birkoff
had convinced himself that he had read more into Davenport's glances than was
actually there. Surprised at how depressed that conclusion left him, he looked
at Davenport as he stepped out of the lift.
"Ummm, I'd better head on back to my place. It's been a long night
and...you must be as tired as I am?" The statement ended as a question.
Davenport whirled around, his face
darkened with anger. He stalked back into the lift, crowding Birkoff into a
corner. "You little tease!"
The comm op stared at him helplessly. The doors slid shut and the car jerked
into movement. With a vicious oath, Davenport stabbed at the panel, bringing the
lift to an abrupt halt between floors. Then he programmed it to refuse all calls
for it.
This was a risky move that could well see him canceled, but he was not about to
let Birkoff renege on the promises his eyes had made.
Birkoff had backed as far away as he could, but there was no where he could
escape to. The cold op approached grimly and suddenly it seemed as if there
wasn't enough oxygen in the small space that enclosed them.
"I want you, Birkoff. I want your mouth on mine. I want your hands holding
me. And most of all I want to be inside you, driving you wild with passion. If
you don't want those things, you'd better tell me now!"
"And if I do tell you that?"
Davenport's eyes grew grim. "Doesn't matter," he shrugged. "I'm
going to have you. And when I'm done with you..." He paused.
"...you'll let me go?"
Davenport grinned. A rapacious grin. "No. I plan to do it again. And
again."
Birkoff's lips parted as he stared into ruthless black eyes.
Eyes of lust.
Eyes of lechery.
Eyes of devouring passion.
And with a moan he melted into the cold op's embrace, desperately seeking
Davenport's hard lips, rubbing his lower body against the evidence of how much
the cold op wanted him.
"I thought I was mistaken," he whispered against Davenport's neck,
pressing kisses beneath his ear. "I couldn't believe you'd be interested in
someone like me!"
He dragged the cold op's hands down his body to cover the arousal that was fast
becoming painful, then pulled them around to grip his ass.
Davenport thought the top of his head would explode from excitement. His fingers
flexed and separated the comm op's buttocks, rubbing the enticing cleft that
begged for plundering.
He turned his head, his teeth nipping the column of Birkoff's throat, the
stubble on his jaw abrading the tender skin. "I want to mark you!"
Davenport murmured hoarsely as he pushed aside the turtleneck that concealed the
spot where Birkoff's neck and shoulder joined and fastened his lips there,
suckling ravenously.
"Davenport! Where can we go?"
"Well, we *were* on the way to my rooms when one of us chickened out!"
he remarked wryly.
Birkoff gently ran his fingers along Davenport's jaw. "I still can't
believe someone like you would want me!"
Davenport stiffened. "What do you mean by that?" He was extremely
sensitive to his background. His half-breed heritage had often led to serious
problems, with his peers as well as with authority figures. He hadn't come
across it much in Section, and so was blindsided by Birkoff's attitude, never
having expected it from him.
Birkoff could feel Davenport withdrawing from him. He could feel, oh how he
could feel! the cold op’s loss of interest in him, and he closed his eyes,
shutting out the painful sight of what he was sure would be before him:
Davenport regarding him with pity. Or derision. Or disdain. Blindly he reached
past him to put the lift back into service.
"I asked what you meant by that!" Davenport snarled, grabbing
Birkoff's arm and whirling him around.
The tinted glasses sat askew, no longer shielding the wounded chocolate brown
eyes, and Davenport was taken aback by the agony he saw in them.
"What was this, an experiment? One of Section's inscrutable tests? Did I
pass or fail? Did you enjoy making a fool out of me?"
"What?" Davenport felt as if he had suddenly stepped into Wonderland.
Then he wrapped his anger around him once more, a protective cloak guarding his
feelings. "Don't try to confuse the issue! I don't know what tear you're
going off on. If you're not interested in soiling your lily white body with a
filthy 'Injun', then just fucking say so!"
"Huh?"
"Oh, come on, sweet cheeks, don't play stupid! Everyone here in Section
knows I'm a redskin!"
Birkoff searched his mind for a logical reference and could only come up with,
"Football? Why would I care if you've played football? Davenport, you're
giving me a headache! And I'm tired and I want to go to bed! Since you don't
want to join me, then just get the hell out of my way!"
The lift had come to a halt and the doors stood open. Birkoff stormed out of the
car, leaving Davenport to stare stupidly after him.
Somehow he got the feeling that he had committed a serious blunder. But could
Birkoff be so naive that he didn't understand how people treated those who were
in any manner different?
And then he realized that, despite having spent the majority of his life behind
Section's walls, Birkoff knew better than anyone what it felt like to be
different.
Davenport stepped out of the lift, his hands fisted at his sides, watching as
Birkoff turned a corner and vanished from view. He started to follow, then
stopped.
And sighed. If he had misjudged the comm op, then he'd hurt him. Birkoff would
never want to talk to him again, much less let him near enough to his delectable
body to demonstrate everything he had wanted to do to him.
Davenport was disgusted with himself. If he could have reached around that far,
he would have kicked himself in the ass. After all this time you'd think he had
more control. Now he had sabotaged what could have developed into something
very, very special.
Well, he wasn't that much of a fool! He'd go after Birkoff and explain. He'd
make him see reason. He'd...
Who was he kidding?
Everyone here in Section might think he was the hardest, coldest operative to
come along since Michael, but he knew the truth. It was easy to be brave when
only your life was on the line.
But when it was your emotions, well, that was another story.
Davenport looked into his soul. He didn’t like what he saw looking back.
He gazed yearningly down the empty corridor, wanting more than anything to find
his way to Birkoff’s quarters. Then he turned and entered the lift.
Where Birkoff's scent still lingered faintly in the air.
Part 4
Birkoff was almost running when he reached the corridor that housed his
quarters. Tears blinded his eyes and it took two tries before he could
successfully punch in the correct security code that gave him access to his
rooms.
"Goddamned macho schmuck!" he muttered as he slammed the door shut
behind him. He used the heels of his hands to wipe away the moisture on his
cheeks and shuddered in an effort to control his emotions.
Exhaustion tugged at his senses, but he was so keyed up he knew he would never
get the sleep he needed in the time Operations had allotted him. He had been
going on caffeine and candy bars for over thirty-six hours and chemical
assistance was the only way he would get any rest.
In the bathroom he resolutely avoided his reflection in the mirror as he downed
the pills that Pharmacy made sure all members of Section had. Definitely not FDA
approved, it would take less than ten minutes before he began feeling their
effects.
Drained of all energy, he lethargically peeled off his clothes and left them
lying on the floor as he turned on the shower and tried to adjust the water
temperature to his liking. Unhappy with his attempts to get it just the way he
wanted it, he finally surrendered and stepped under the spray.
The comm operative braced himself against the wall and let the pounding water
beat against his body. "Fool, fool, fool!" he admonished himself
bitterly as the scene with Davenport played itself out over and over in his
mind. "Can't you ever learn? The only thing you're good at is
programming computers! When is that simple fact going to get through to you?
"Women don't want you! Even men don't find you attractive! What freaking
good are
you?"
He bit back a sob and turned off the water. Roughly he toweled himself dry,
amazed to find his erection as hard as when he had kissed the cold op. "Why
are *you* still interested?" he demanded of his eager flesh. "It's
obvious *he* isn't!"
Too weary to pull on the sweatpants he normally slept in, he peeled down the
covers and crawled into bed. His hand reached down to fondle his balls and then
closed securely around his cock. Before he could jerk himself off, the pills
kicked in and he was sucked into a deep, dreamless sleep.
*****
The dream started insidiously, to darkness.
It was so dark. The computer screen, which usually cast a green glow that
lightened the shadows in his room, was turned off.
And there was someone in those shadows, watching him. He lay there, scarcely
daring to breathe, his eyes tightly screwed shut. He knew that if he opened
them, if whoever prowled in the dark knew he was awake, then he would be lost
for all time.
The atmosphere around him changed as the lurker in the darkness approached the
bed, disturbing the air currents. A whimper of fear caught in his throat and he
struggled to contain it.
Above all else, he must not make a sound; he must not move.
And then, despite himself, he started as warm fingers caressed his calf, gliding
up past the sensitive spot behind his knee, stroking the long muscles of his
thigh to the thatch of curls where his cock nestled.
Panic exploded unexpectedly into lust and the bed creaked. He frantically
twisted to escape as those fingers encircled his cock, coaxing it to fierce
arousal. Heat flooded him and he spread his legs wide in silent offering.
A soft moan whispered past his lips, and then was trapped by the mouth that came
down firmly onto his own.
Warm and wet, a tongue licked at the seam of his lips, teasing them apart,
plunging in to parry and thrust. Birkoff tried to bring his arms around the
shadowy figure, desperate to hold it close to his needy body, but found his
wrists bound in silken restraints.
For a moment terror swept over him and he struggled mindlessly to free himself.
The soft cords cut into his flesh, scoring it deeply.
"Shhh, baby. Shhh," a soft voice calmed him. Male? Female? He couldn't
be sure, and he found he didn't care. "I promise I won't hurt you. Don't
fight me!" And then that tongue was doing magic things to his ear, dipping
into it, circling the rim, drawing the cool lobe into his mouth.
For he discovered it was a man
pleasuring him, hair-roughened thighs settling between his, pressing high
against his balls, starting a voluptuous friction that quickly became maddening.
"Fuck me!" he demanded as a broad thumb rubbed the moisture beading
the tip of his cock in lazy circles.
Teeth nipped lightly at his throat. "You're not ready for me, baby,"
the voice said. "I'd split you in two! I don't want to hurt you!"
Birkoff writhed, trying to get closer to the hot male flesh tantalizing him.
"Hurt me!" he cried. "It doesn't matter! I need to feel that
somebody wants me! Take me, please take me!" He was almost sobbing from
unrelieved passion.
The body above his stilled. "I've given you a very hard time, haven't
I?" Lips began a slow, sweet journey down the comm op's body, pausing to
tease his flat male nipples to pebbled peaks.
Straining against his bonds, moaning at the sensations this unknown lover was
showering him with, Birkoff could only endure mindlessly. The lips left his
nipples, continuing on past his flat abdomen, pausing to explore the dip of his
navel, slowly, ever-so slowly approaching the erection that was begging for its
share of attention.
"I won't fuck you baby, not this time. But I'm going to love you like
you've never been loved before! I'm going to suck you until you pass out from
the pleasure!" the voice promised.
The words were enough to have Birkoff trembling and whimpering on the brink. And
then he felt the tongue begin licking him, as if he were a popsicle, long broad
swipes that started at his balls and went to the engorged tip of his arousal,
then traveled the path in reverse.
And when that hot, wet mouth engulfed him he almost rose off the bed. The voice
hummed encouragement, taking Birkoff deep into his throat, where the vibrations
tingled along his nerve endings, and he began spilling himself before he even
realized he was about to come.
Still that mouth suckled him, swallowing
everything he could give until he thought there was nothing left. And then one
inquisitive finger eased into his virgin opening, and then another, and he found
himself hard and quivering again. His hips thrust up to fuck that knowledgeable
mouth, and then wriggled down on the fingers that were fucking him.
Desperate for oxygen, his lips parted and he gasped and groaned and struggled
against the cords that held him helpless, wanting more, and more and still more.
And then, as that voice had promised him, his system overloaded and his last
orgasm saw him fainting from the exquisite sensation of it.
*****
Birkoff came awake slowly, feeling more relaxed, more refreshed, more...
everything than he had in ages. He stretched luxuriously, to find himself
tangled in his sheets. He unwound them from his arms and legs, then bolted
upright as he realized he was naked.
Memory returned, and with it depression. He had made a fool of himself over
Davenport, and to make matters worse, had sought refuge in the pharmacology
Section offered.
He swung his legs over the side of the bed and sat with his head braced in his
hands.
And then snippets of the sexual fantasy he had dreamed began to flood his
senses. The cool material binding his wrists, the hot mouth engulfing his cock,
and those fingers, those witchy, wicked fingers, giving him more pleasure than
he had ever imagined.
Tremors ran through him and he squirmed on the bed. His morning erection seemed
even more prominent than usual. Tentatively, he touched it, wincing at its
tenderness.
Come to think of it, his ass felt a little stretched. And his wrists were sore.
That dream!
That fantastic, vivid, oh-so-real dream!
He raised his wrists to eye level and examined them carefully. Pinkened
abrasions, fast fading, circled them.
Birkoff moaned.
*Not* a dream!
Then who could have given him such a wonderful, caring first time experience
with another man?
Who in Section could have gotten his access code?
Michael? No, he and Nikita were still missing as far as Birkoff knew, and while
Michael would do whatever was required of him by Section, he respected the comm
operative too much to take advantage of him while he slept.
Walter? That would have felt like incest. And besides, Walter was unregenerately
heterosexual.
Davenport? Birkoff sighed. In his dreams, then bit off a laugh at the aptness of
that thought.
Hillinger? The head of comm turned green. Something like this would be right up
that little weasel's alley! The more he considered it, the more firmly it
settled in his mind, and suddenly he found it necessary to clamp a hand over his
mouth and race to the bathroom, where he barely had time to spill the meager
contents of his stomach into the john, then sit huddled, shivering with dry
heaves.
He couldn't reconcile the gentleness with Hillinger, but who else could it be?
His brain was so fogged with despair that he couldn’t come up with another
likely operative who would even consider tying him to his bed and using him like
that.
He would sell his soul to think his midnight lover had been Davenport, but he
was convinced that the cold op wanted nothing more to do with
him.
So, it had to be Hillinger, his bête noire.
Birkoff could just picture Hillinger
waiting in Comm, ready to throw this in his face, ready to mock him for pleading
to be fucked!
Oh, God, he had actually begged!
Grimly he rose and turned to brushed his teeth, getting the taste of bile out of
his mouth.
Then he showered and dressed and went in search of the pistol he kept secreted
behind a panel in his bedroom. This was one weapon Section and Operations had no
idea he kept. Walter had juggled his inventory and seen to it that Birkoff had
it in his possession after a disgruntled recruit had threatened the comm op.
And Walter had never asked for it back.
Birkoff tucked the pistol into his
waistband, making sure it was hidden by his pullover and left his quarters,
determined to end Hillinger's career in computers. The thought of the younger
man having him at his mercy made him want to puke up his guts again, but he
clamped his back teeth down hard and headed for the lift.
It would probably cost him his own life, but he found he no longer cared.
He felt used, he felt violated, and when he found the guilty party, he intended to terminate him. With extreme prejudice.
Part 5
Davenport was lurking by the lift that accessed operative housing. It was the
lift that had seen his abortive attempt to seduce Birkoff after he had been
released by MedLab. Since it was the one closest to the comm op's rooms,
Davenport assumed this was the lift he would take when he finally roused and was
ready to make his way to the commissary.
He had been lurking, on and off, for a good portion of his shift. Fortunately,
everyone was still concentrating on the disappearance of Michael and Nikita, and
things were very quiet around Section.
Davenport was uncharacteristically nervous. After that fiasco in the lift, he
had devised a scheme that in his more rational moments caused him to question
his sanity. It was so obvious, Birkoff would be bound to spot his fingerprints
all over it. How the comm op would react was what had the normally unflappable
cold op unnerved.
Not only had he tied the head of Comm to his bed, but he had given him no option
in the matter of his first homosexual experience. Davenport had played his
tongue along Birkoff's turgid length. He had suckled him and finger fucked him
until the comm op had exploded in a frenzy of completion and had passed out.
And, God help him, Davenport had been so lost to all reason that he couldn’t
resist sliding his cock into Birkoff's unconscious body. Into that sweet, virgin
territory. As if they had been lovers for years, his entrance had been smooth
and easy. But Birkoff's passage had held him snug and hot, and just the memory
of how they fit so perfectly together had him on the verge of
embarrassing himself by coming, right here, right now, in the corridors of
Section.
And Davenport had to wonder: when he saw the cold up in the artificial light of
Section's day, would Birkoff want to kiss him or kill him?
So Davenport lurked.
*****
Birkoff could not face the lift where Davenport had kissed him for the first
time; he took one of the others. His ass felt decidedly used, and although he
knew himself to be blameless, he still felt as if the whole incident in his
quarters had been his fault.
The pistol nestled comfortably at the back of his waistband, Birkoff stalked
Section. It didn't matter where Hillinger might be hiding. The head of Comm had
all the time in the world. He would find that little worm and have his revenge;
whatever happened after that, whether Section canceled him or transferred him or
just ignored the whole incident, it was immaterial.
He would have dealt with the weasel who had taken such unfair advantage
of him, who has taken what he had wanted Davenport to have, and that was
what mattered most.
Hillinger was not in the commissary.
He was not in his own quarters, the ready room or van access.
The observation deck was deserted, as was the tower.
That left Comm.
Birkoff leaned against the entrance to the Comm area and watched sourly as
Hillinger's fingers flew over the keyboard, Birkoff's keyboard. "Someone's
been sitting in my chair!" he gritted, and Hillinger whirled around to face
him.
The younger operative curled his lip and sneered at his section head.
"Seems *I* found Michael and Nikita where *you* couldn't!" he gloated.
And then he froze. Birkoff was pointing what looked like a cannon at his head.
"Listen, Birkoff, it was your program!” Hillinger babbled. “It was just
the luck of the draw that I was on deck when we found them!"
He dropped behind the desk and covered his head with his arms. "Don't shoot
me, Birkoff! Please don't shoot me!" he yelled as loud as he could, hoping
to get someone in who would divert his head's attention.
A number of operatives, and Operations, suddenly appeared, but Birkoff was
backed against a wall and no one could approach him without getting into his
line of fire.
This was a Birkoff no one had ever seen before. Cold. Colder even than that
legendary cold op, Michael. They all were *very* nervous.
"I'm tired of you, Hillinger," the head of Comm said. "I'm tired
of your snotty, snooty, smartass attitude. You care about no one, you care for
no one and you care even less who you hurt. Well, it stops, here and now!"
Purposefully, Birkoff fed a round into the chamber. In the sudden hush, it
sounded like the crack of doom.
"Operations!" Hillinger screamed.
The head of Section stepped forward. Or maybe it was just that the operatives
around him took a step back. Operations scowled at them, then turned his
attention to his senior comm operative.
"Mr. Birkoff, would you mind telling us what Hillinger has done to require
such a drastic measure against him."
Birkoff shook his head. "This is between Hillinger and me." His
glittering eyes flickered momentarily toward the others. "If you want to
change that, I'd be more than happy to accommodate you!"
They didn't leave, but they distanced themselves even more from Operations and
the two comm operatives. Operations whispered out of the corner of his mouth,
"Someone get Walter!"
"Walter can't help," Birkoff told him. "Not this time! Y'know,
some people are alive only because it's against the law to kill them. I think
it's time to change that!”
The pistol was aimed carefully at Hillinger's head. He peeked up to see what was
going on, and shrieked at the cyclopean eye that was staring him down. A faint
hissing sound drew everyone's attention to him, and to the ever-widening puddle
between his knees.
And then a large hand closed gently over the barrel of the pistol and forced it
down. "It's okay, Birk. It's okay." Davenport's other arm supported
the comm op as he slumped forward, but he kept a tight grip on the hand that
held the pistol. "Sir, I'll get him out of here, if you have no
objections?"
"No, no. This has been a trying time for all of us. Make sure he gets some
rest. And someone get Hillinger to my quarters! He's got some serious explaining
to do! And get him dry pants!" Operations strode away, pleased at having a
more or less legitimate excuse to have the young comm op brought to him. The
cleanup he would leave to his minions.
Once they were away from Comm, Davenport whispered furiously, "What the
hell was that supposed to be about?"
Birkoff turned his head away, but the cold op grabbed his chin and forced it
around. And saw the tears streaming down his erstwhile lover's face. Frantically
he looked around. There was no one in this corridor, but that could change at
any moment.
He hustled the comm op into a stair well. "Baby, tell me what's
wrong!"
Birkoff struggled to regain his composure. "Sure. I'll tell you. Then
you'll run as fast as you can from me!"
"Birk, you're scaring me. What the fuck happened between when I left you
and now?"
Chocolate brown eyes filled with shame and pain looked deep into Davenport's.
"I was...I was assaulted, in my quarters." He held up a wrist that
still bore a faint bruise. "I was...tied to my bed and...and..."
"...and made love to!" Davenport snapped.
Confusion filled Birkoff. "No, it wasn't love. It was Hillinger! He got
into my rooms somehow and took advantage of me while I was zonked out on
sleeping pills!"
"Jesus, Birkoff, if that's how you react when you're sedated, I'm not sure
I want to make love to you when you're alert!"
"Huh?"
"It was me, Birkoff! Not Hillinger! Do you think I'd let that little sleaze
get anywhere near you?"
"You? It was you?" Birkoff repeated stupidly. And then it sank in and
he launched himself at the burly cold op, beating at his chest. "You tied
me up and fucked me senseless? And then left me?"
Davenport let the blows connect, but he was not by nature a martyr, and after
one particularly painful one, he shoved Birkoff back against the wall, holding
his hands prisoner above his head. His body pressed full length along the comm
operative's, he knew Birkoff would be in no doubt about his feelings. His
arousal was hard and needy, and with a moan he fastened his lips to the lush
mouth that was hurling abuse at him.
Birkoff writhed and twisted and then froze as Davenport's tongue thrust into his
mouth, beginning a rhythm that was echoed by their lower bodies.
As soon as Davenport felt the tension go out of Birkoff's body he drew back
slightly. "I'm so sorry, baby! I never meant to hurt you. I just wanted you
so badly, I had to have you! I wouldn't have left but my beeper went off and I
had to report to my section head."
"But Michael is your section head!"
"Yeah." Davenport's grin was lopsided. "He and Nikita are
back!"
"Later!" Birkoff breathed as he took the cold op's mouth. "Tell
me later! Right now I need..."
Davenport groaned. "And so do I!"
And this time they took the stairs.
Part 6
The two members of Section pelted down the stairs, eager to find someplace
private to consummate their passion. "Davenport!" Birkoff laughed
breathlessly. "Where are you taking me?"
The cold op came to an abrupt halt and Birkoff barreled into him, nearly
knocking him down the remaining stairs. "Birk...Seymour, if I take you back
to your rooms, will you be all right?"
"Don't call me that!"
"What?"
"Don't call me 'Seymour'! I *hate* that name! It's a nerd's name, a geek's
name!"
"But...what should I call you then? I want to call you something
special."
Birkoff blushed. "You do? Well, I...I really like it when you call me Birk."
He leaned back against the wall of the stairwell and crossed his arms.
"Do you?" Davenport asked.
The comm op smiled dreamily. "It sounds *so* macho!"
Davenport braced his hands on the wall on either side of the comm op's head.
Birkoff's eyes widened behind the tinted lenses he wore, and then drifted shut
as Davenport's breath whispered over his lush lips. They parted involuntarily
and the cold op ran his tongue over first the upper lip, then the full lower one
before dipping in to sample the sweetness that was
Birkoff's mouth.
"Mmmm," Birkoff hummed with pleasure. "Whose rooms are
closer?"
Davenport drew back slightly. "Yours are, I think, but will you be okay
with that?"
"You asked me that before. Why wouldn't I be comfortable having you in my
rooms, in my bed?"
The cold op looked away from those melting, chocolate brown eyes. "Because
of what I did to you there, in your bed."
"And you think that bothers me?"
"Well, you were very upset before. You were ready to kill Hillinger.”
"That was when I thought *he* had done all those things to me. When I first
woke up, and I thought you had been with me, I was so..."
"You were so ... what?" Davenport wanted to know when the comm op
hesitated.
Birkoff sighed. "Oh, I don't know. Thrilled that you'd spent the night with
me? Excited that it had been you in my bed, that you had tied me up? That you
had taken me to places I had never been before? And where I'd like to go again,
very, very soon!"
"So how did you go from being happy *I* had seduced you to concluding
instead that somehow it was Hillinger?" Davenport was surprised to see
Birkoff flush in embarrassment.
"I figured you wouldn't want anything more to do with me; y'know, after
what happened in the lift? And, the more I thought about it, the more I couldn't
believe that you would have come to me in the night. After considering everyone
here in Section, Hillinger was the only one I could come up with who had the
ability to get into my rooms. And his own agenda for doing so."
Davenport couldn't resist taking the comm op into his arms, drawing him up
snugly against his solid frame. "And I wasn't there when you woke up. I
wasn't there to soothe you. I'm sorry, baby. Were you very sore? I tried to be
gentle, but I just couldn't help myself; I had to sample your tempting ass! Can
you forgive me?"
"That depends, Dav." Birkoff looked up at him from under his lashes.
"If you do whatever it was you did to me while I was sedated, again,
without me being under the influence, I just may consider it!"
The arms around him tightened. "You'll let me near you?"
He took Davenport's hand and pulled him along after him.
"Oh yes!"
Part 7
Davenport looked around Birkoff's quarters with interest. The night before he
hadn't dared to risk a light, crossing the rooms instead in the dark, going by
touch alone.
It wasn’t as large as a department head of his stature and experience had a
right to expect, but Birkoff seemed content with it. A pocket-sized kitchen
served his prosaic needs when he felt the urge to cook for himself rather than
dine at the commissary. The living room was crammed with computers and
peripherals, and one chair.
A door beyond the computers stood carelessly ajar, and through it was the
rumpled single bed. Helplessly Davenport drifted toward it. He could see two
strips of black silk, stark against the white sheets. A simple chest of drawers
was in the far corner opposite the bed. On it sat an anomaly for these rooms: a
26 inch color TV with an elaborate video game system hooked to
it.
To Davenport's surprise, Birkoff turned a fiery red. The cold op couldn't stop
himself from crossing the floor and taking the other man in his arms.
"What, baby?" he asked, nuzzling the skin beneath his ear.
"I should be too old to play with video games!" he murmured, drawing
in a deep, relishing breath of Davenport's earthy scent.
"Says who, babe? Whatever gets you through the night!"
Birkoff leaned into him. "You do, Dav. You got me through last night!"
The cold op shifted his grip and edged his fingers beneath the hem of Birkoff's
pullover, raising it up as his palms swept over the smooth, cool flesh of his
back. "I'm no good for you, Birk. You deserve someone better than I am,
someone who isn't as soiled."
"What are you talking about, Davenport?"
"My past, Birkoff. I've done things...."
Birkoff took a handful of Davenport's shirt and gave him a shake. "We've
*all* done things, Dav, every last one of us! Otherwise we wouldn't be here in
Section!"
"No, you don't understand, baby. I...enjoyed those things. I hurt people.
Badly, in the most thorough ways I could devise. And I've slept with
people..."
"You mean you're not a virgin!" the comm op gasped, and it took
Davenport a beat before he realized he was actually being teased. A surprisingly
sweet smile parted his lips, taking Birkoff completely off guard. He groaned and
seized those lips, biting at them, out of control.
Birkoff's fingers sought hair to wind in, and frustrated in their search, molded
against Davenport's skull instead. His breath whispered into Davenport's mouth
and he thrust his tongue in to meet and toy with the cold op's.
The burly operative went wild and backed Birkoff up until his knees hit the edge
of the bed and he tumbled onto it. Davenport landed on him heavily. Birkoff
moaned and rubbed his erection against the thigh wedged high between his legs.
Davenport dragged his mouth from those lush lips to run his teeth along the
column of the comm op's throat. "Tell me what you want, baby!" he
muttered.
Thrashing his head, Birkoff was awash in a world of sensation he had never
before experienced. "I don't know! I want...I *need* to feel your skin on
mine!" He reached up between their bodies and began undoing the buttons on
Davenport's shirt, spreading it wide and running his hands over the sculpted
muscles of his hairless chest. "Ohhhh, God! You feel so good!"
Davenport paused in his exploration of the interesting bulge in Birkoff's
trousers. "So do you, baby!" His busy fingers parted the front
of the comm op's pants and eased them down over slender hips. Birkoff's cock
sprang free and he almost wept with relief.
And then the other man was kissing his way down Birkoff’s torso, following the
fine curls that arrowed past his waist to his groin. Heat, moist and shocking
enveloped his arousal as Davenport’s hungry mouth closed around his turgid
flesh.
Birkoff shook uncontrollably as the cold op’s teeth scored the length of his
cock, as his tongue teased the tip, where a drop of his essence beaded. His lips
parted and ragged gasps filled the quiet of his quarters. He could feel himself
tottering on the brink, and panic suddenly rode him.
“Dav, no! I’m going to...”
“Come for me, baby!” the cold op growled. “I could eat you alive! I want
you to come for me now!” Davenport worked a blunt finger past the tight ring
of muscle that guarded Birkoff’s almost virgin channel and with a hoarse
shout, the comm op found himself hurtling over the edge, his hips jerking,
pouring himself into Davenport’s voracious mouth.
Restless hands stroked the cold op’s head, arching up to offer more of himself
for his lover to devour. Davenport continued to suckle and lick him until
finally, sated, Birkoff sprawled bonelessly under him.
“Jesus, Dav, you need to grow hair!”
Davenport grew very still. Carefully he released Birkoff’s now flaccid cock.
Was the comm op about to ambush him for his actions of the previous night?
Holding himself tightly to prepare for the emotional barrage he expected, he
managed to whisper past numb lips, “Why?”
Birkoff propped himself up on his elbows and looked into pain-filled, midnight
eyes. “Well, I need something to yank on when you make me come like that, and
your ears are sure gonna get sore if I have to pull on them!”
“You’re not sorry you let me make love to you?”
“I thought all the noise I was making made that clear.”
“Sorry, baby, I guess I’m just a paranoid son of a bitch. I was on the
outside so long, I’m afraid to trust anyone with my...with my heart! There, I’ve
said it! Now you can laugh at me and throw my emotions back in my face!”
Birkoff could see that Davenport was really upset. He reached over and drew the
cold op up beside him, and kissed his mouth shut.
“Dav, you know what’s wrong with you?”
Davenport closed his eyes and braced himself. “What?”
Birkoff sighed contentedly. “Aside from the fact that you’ve got altogether
too many clothes on? *Absolutely nothing*!”
Part 8
Birkoff stretched sinuously, his body brushing against the cold operative in his
bed. "God, you make me feel good, Dav!"
Davenport groaned and held the other man tight to him. "Do that again, Birk.
Make me so hot I have no choice but to come all over you!"
The comm op reached down and cupped Davenport's straining arousal. "Tell me
what you want me to do for you, Dav. Tell me!" he murmured as his lips
suckled the tendon at the side of his throat.
Davenport arched into the touch of that knowledgeable mouth, desperately
dragging in lungfuls of oxygen. His brain turned to mush, he could only
concentrate on the sensations that ran wild through his body.
Encouraged by the inarticulate moans he was drawing from his partner, Birkoff
brought his hands between them and began working on the buttons that kept him
from the warm flesh he needed to touch. As each button parted, he spread the
shirt and followed the path with lips and tongue, until his questing fingers
found a flat male nipple.
He paused to worship that hardening bit of flesh, biting down carefully, then
sweeping it with an apologetic tongue. To his surprise, it hardened even more
and he couldn't resist taking it between his lips and sucking it into the heat
of his mouth. Involuntary whimpers from Davenport went straight to Birkoff's
groin, making his cock swell to renewed readiness.
Birkoff sat back on his haunches, pulling Davenport up with him. He eased the
shirt off his shoulders and tossed it aside, feasting his eyes on the solid,
hairless chest before him. He seized a quick kiss and pushed his lover back down
on the bed. His hands continued the task of baring the tempting body hidden by
mission pants and his lips continued toying with those enticing nipples.
Pushing the pants down past hips and strongly muscled thighs, the comm op was
forced to leave Davenport's chest and move lower, following the firmly defined
contour of his abdomen, dipping into his navel. Birkoff stroked his cheek
against the cold op's jutting arousal that begged to be engulfed. A quick swipe
of tongue teased a drop of moisture to the tip of Davenport’s
cock. Another swipe, and that tongue was gone, traveling down to nip at the back
of a knee, lick at the hollow of an ankle.
Finally socks and boots were discarded and those trousers were swept off,
leaving Davenport blessedly naked. Before the cold op’s muddled brain could
think of what move it wanted him to make next, Birkoff dragged his hot, yearning
flesh back up over Davenport's body. Cocks touched and quivered, straining
toward further contact.
Birkoff was almost sobbing with passion. "Dav, please! Help me. I don't
know what to do next!"
Shudders rippled through the massive frame the comm op was wriggling on top of.
Pulling the smaller man a little higher and nudging his legs apart, the cold
operative couldn't resist rubbing his cock in the notch of Birkoff's thighs.
"Do you want to fuck or be fucked?"
Birkoff froze. "You'd let me do that to you?"
"I'm yours, baby! I'll let you do whatever you want to me!"
A disjointed sound whispered past Birkoff's lips and he nuzzled the spot between
shoulder and neck that drove Davenport wild. "Ohhh," he groaned,
"fuck me! Please fuck me!"
Before Birkoff could change his mind, Davenport flipped him over onto his
stomach and straddled his hips. He scrabbled frantically through the jumble in
the night stand. "Lube, Birk, we need lube!"
"Huh?"
Davenport swore, realizing his partner would be unprepared for this type of
lovemaking. He rolled to his side and buried his head in his hands. "We
can't do this without some kind of lubricant. I'll tear you apart otherwise!
Shit, shit, shit!" And he pounded his fists on his thigh.
"But last night...?"
"Last night I brought it with me." The cold op scowled at his lover,
who had collapsed in uncontrolled laughter.
"And here I thought you were always prepared!"
"Birkoff, if you don't get yourself together, you're going to find out what
it feels like to get your ass reamed!"
"Oh, I hope I will anyway!" His skin flushed, a fine sheen of
perspiration coating it, the comm op stretched across the bed. He reached under
to a concealed compartment. With a little crow of triumph, he waved a small tube
of K-Y Jelly.
"I'm not even going to ask why you keep a tube of K-Y in your
bedroom!" Davenport growled, and Birkoff blushed a vivid red.
His arousal had subsided somewhat, but the sight of Davenport liberally coating
his own hard erection had the comm op vibrating with eager anticipation. His
partner threw him a glance from under his lashes and motioned for Birkoff to
resume his former position on his stomach.
Birkoff's mouth went dry. He knew the act that was about to be performed on him
had been done the previous night, and so it was possible, but Davenport's cock
was so large. With a start he felt gentle fingers circling the ring of tight
muscle, then slip in and begin an easy stretching movement. The sensation was
electrifying and he tried to back onto those clever fingers.
A hard arm slid around his waist and raised him onto his knees. He lowered his
head to his folded arms and spread his legs further apart. Davenport delved
further into the puckered opening, then removed his fingers. Before Birkoff
could protest, Davenport's hard hands gripped the comm op's buttocks and
separated them. Then he angled his cock at the almost virgin portal and began to
push his way in.
The smaller man gasped and struggled to relax his muscles, allowing Davenport's
arousal to enter easily. The cold op reached around and took his partner's
erection in his fist and began a gliding rhythm, stroking from tip to balls,
slowly at first, and then more and more rapidly.
He pulled his hips back until only the head of his cock was still within
Birkoff's snug channel, and then drove in all the way, his balls slapping
against the comm op's buttocks.
Davenport's other hand found Birkoff's nipples. Alternately, he pinched and
plucked and rolled them, causing his lover to moan and buck against him,
pleading to be fucked harder.
Deeper.
Faster.
Birkoff's hands twisted the sheets. His eyes were squeezed shut and he wallowed
in the feelings that washed over him: the hard flesh pounding within him, the
hard op leaning over him.
Davenport closed his mouth over the curve of Birkoff's throat and bit down. A
keening whine signaled the start of the comm op's orgasm, and as his essence
began spilling into his lover's hand, Birkoff felt Davenport come, filling his
passageway with the hot, white liquid.
After endless, shuddering minutes the cold op slumped bonelessly over the back
of the smaller man. Trembling both from the physical release and the not
inconsiderable weight of his partner, Birkoff collapsed, gasping for air.
Pinned spread eagle beneath the burly cold op, Birkoff held himself as still as
possible, determined to keep the other man deep inside him for as long as he
could. Davenport must have felt much the same. Plastered along his lover's back,
his arm was curled snugly around him, emphasizing his possession of Birkoff.
Birkoff felt Davenport's flaccid length begin to slide out of him. "I'm
losing you!" and he clamped down tight with inner muscles.
The grip along his cock jolted the cold operative, and he found himself swelling
to full arousal again. And rolling to his side, taking his lover with him,
Davenport began a gentle undulating motion that drove him deep into Birkoff’s
body, teasing nerve endings that had just been sated to unbearable excitement
once again.
"You'll *never* lose me, baby! Never!"
Because of the cancellation of LFN, this
has taken a slightly different
twist. Maybe Birkoff and Davenport will have a more fun adventure in the
future.
Part 9
The cold operative and the comm operative were nestled together in bed.
Davenport lightly stroked Birkoff’s chest, toying with his nipples, trying to
remain as deep inside him as was possible.
All good things had to end, though, and Birkoff sighed deeply as he felt
Davenport’s flaccid manhood slide out of his narrow channel. “What time is
it, Dav?” he asked as he ran his fingertips along the hand that fondled him.
Davenport leaned over the smaller man and squinted at the bedside clock. “Christ!
it’s past midnight! We’ve spent all day in bed! Operations is going to have
our asses!”
“Nah, I think he’s after Hillinger’s ass!” Birkoff chuckled and turned
over to rub his length against the cold operative he had taken to his bed.
Davenport licked his lover’s lips and then settled onto them, pressing until
they parted. He slid his tongue past the edges of the comm op’s teeth and
began sampling the honeyed depths beyond.
To Birkoff’s disappointment, the burly cold op didn’t take their amorous
play to its passionate conclusion. “I’ve got to get something to eat, Birk.
C’mon, you must be starved too!”
As if they had been lovers for twenty-four years, rather than twenty-four hours,
the two rolled out of bed and began searching for the clothing that had been
scattered in their fevered haste to get at each other.
“Let’s hope Christopher still has the commissary open,” Birkoff murmured.
“He'll open it for me!” Davenport told him with supreme confidence.
“And why, exactly, is that?” the comm op demanded, starting to feel the
green-eyed monster sinking its claws into him.
“Baby, you can’t be jealous!”
Birkoff scowled at him.
“You *can* be jealous! That is just so sweet!” Davenport was overjoyed that
his lover was so involved with their relationship that he wanted exclusivity.
“I’m glad you think it’s sweet. Just get one thing straight, Davenport: I
may have let you deter me from shooting Hillinger, but if you *ever* screw
around on me, I will have no qualms whatsoever in shooting whoever is trying to
take you from me!”
Now Davenport was getting curious. “Would you shoot me too?”
“Oh, no. I’d devise another punishment for you! I’ve let you fuck me, but
if you ever start looking at anyone else, I’ll tie you to my bed and keep you
there indefinitely! And *I* will fuck *you* until you don’t know which end is
up!”
A satisfied grin curled the corner of Davenport’s mouth. “And what am I
doing while you’re tying me to the bed?” He could feel himself growing hard
at the thought of his shorter lover taking the dominant hand in their affair.
“You can’t stay awake all the time, Dav. And then you’ll be mine!”
“Baby, I’m already yours! Let’s go eat!”
“What about Christopher?”
“What about him?”
“Dav...”
“Okay.” The cold op could see Birkoff was still concerned about his
friendship with the head of Dietary. “We came into Section at about the same
time, and we danced around the possibility of an affair, but decided it just
wasn’t worth the danger of exposure. Nothing happened between us. But we
remained friends. Now, does that ease your mind?”
Birkoff shrugged. He chewed on his lip, and Davenport could see that something
was still eating at him. He waited patiently.
Finally, the comm op burst out, “Aren’t you concerned about the danger to
us?” He was hurt that his lover cared more about a friend than about him.
Davenport pulled Birkoff into his arms and held him tightly. “I’m concerned,
but it doesn’t matter: I have to have you! If I get canceled for it, it will
be worth it! Haven’t you realized yet, Birk, that I love you?”
“And that makes all the difference? Oh, Dav!” The smaller man melted against
the cold op and nuzzled his throat. “But just to let you know, if anyone in
Section cancels you, I will hunt them down like the slug-sucking, snail-barfing,
weasel-wallowing scum they are and commit serious mayhem on their bodies!”
“’Slug-sucking...’ Oh my, remind me never to get you angry with me, Birk!”
He hugged him once more, thrilled that he had found someone willing to fight for
him.
They left Birkoff’s quarters and took a lift down to the commissary. Not
surprisingly, it was crowded. Word that Michael and Nikita had returned had
ricocheted around Section like a loose 357 magnum slug.
The news that Operations had called a major conference for 0100 hours was also
being discussed. Not in anyone’s memory had a meeting of this size ever been
convened. Nerves were stretched tight. Arguments broke out frequently, and
trainers had to keep sharp eyes on their material: the fights could become
deadly before the combatees realized just how skilled they had become.
Birkoff and Davenport took a couple of trays and visited the various stations,
loading up with protein and carbohydrates. Reluctantly, they also added some
salads and veggies at Christopher's urging. “Best to keep everything in
working order, gentlemen. Things might be getting hairy!”
The two operatives took his advice and after getting some bottled water to wash
down their meal, headed for a couple of empty seats. Walter was sitting nearby,
earnestly conversing with a few members of Housekeeping.
They took their time eating, not wanting indigestion to interfere with whatever
they might be called upon to do. Silently, they watched as more and more
operatives came in and found seats. Soon there was standing room only in the
large commissary.
Two figures entered. A man of average height and a petite blond woman, dressed
completely in black, this time minus their small, yellow boxes. In spite of the
crowd, suddenly empty seats were found for the two, and there was plenty of room
left around them.
And then Operations entered, Madeline at his side, Michael and Nikita following.
The quartet strode to the front of the room and waited patiently for silence.
Finally, after numerous hissed “Shhhh’s!” they had everyone’s attention.
Operations took the floor. “Thank you all for being here on such short notice.
A meeting similar to this is now taking place at each of the Sections. As you
know, Michael and Nikita were off profile for almost forty-eight hours. Not,
however, because the mission had gone sour, as was
announced, but because I delegated a specific assignment to them. I will let
them give you their findings.”
Michael and Nikita stepped forward. It could be seen that Nikita was clinging
tightly to the senior cold op’s hand. “We have spent the past two days with
George in Oversight. Things on the outside have become decidedly...strange, and
it’s possible that this being the dawn of the new millennium might have
something to do with it.
“As some of you may have heard, the situation in Northern Ireland looks as if
it will finally be coming to a peaceful conclusion. In the Middle East, in
middle Europe, in Africa and South America, unexpected pockets of peace have
broken out. For reasons no one can explain, the lion has lain down with the
lamb, swords are being beaten into plowshares. There are no wars, no police
actions, no nasty little attempts at genocide.
“No more terrorists.” He paused to let that sink in.
“How does that impact us, Michael?” Walter asked, his voice more gravely
than usual.
Michael sighed and seemed to fold in on himself. Nikita squeezed his hand and
faced the senior weapons op. “It means we that have become redundant, Walter.
We are no longer needed. We have served our purpose, but our usefulness is at an
end.”
A wave of disgruntled sound started at the back of the room and surged forward
until the operatives at the front of the room were inundated by it.
“I love you honey, but the season's over?” one of the senior operatives
growled.
Nikita looked at him with sad eyes. “Exactly. I see you all understand.”
“So what happens to us?” a disembodied voice shouted.
Madeline fielded that question. “You have all been faithful and hard working.
You will each be given what you deserve, commensurate with your time spent here
in Section. Those of you with less seniority are free to go as soon as you are
debriefed. The senior members and the heads of their departments will be
required to stay until Section is shut down, presumably sometime in the next
three months or so. Of course, my door is open, as always, to any who have
difficulty adjusting to this change in status. That’s all I have to say. Paul?”
Operations once more spoke. “This is a very sad day for Section. I’m sure I
speak for all of us when I say how much this will be missed. As Madeline has
stated, my door also will be open. We will be available to all of you. Michael,
Nikita?”
They traded glances and shook their heads.
“Then that’s all for now. As we access any further intel, we will be sure to
inform you. Good evening. Or rather, good morning.” The head of Section left,
Madeline still at his side.
Walter joined Michael and Nikita. “So that’s it? We’ve all been retired?”
He turned to leave.
Michael grabbed his arm. “Wait, Walter. Join us for a drink?”
“What’s happening?”
Michael nodded toward the doors which were crowded with operatives who were so
dangerous that only an organization like Section could keep them under control.
“Let them leave. You don’t want to be mixed up with them!”
The senior munitions operative broke into a cold sweat. There was silence as the
last of the more junior operatives shuffled through the doors.
He could just make out the harsh cough of silenced automatic weapons’ fire.
And then came the cries and moans of the dying. Scattered shots could be heard,
for with its usual efficiency, Section would permit none to live.
The interrogations operatives stopped by the huddled group. “Is Operations
expecting us to remain here, or go out to be executed?” Exx asked calmly.
Death had never held any fear for her. She would miss her counterpart, but if
her destiny awaited in the bloodied hallway, she would go forth to meet it.
Wye gripped her arm. “I go with you, wherever that might be!”
“Even to death, Wye?”
He tightened his hold and nodded. Exx blinked slowly and for the first time
permitted herself to smile at him in the presence of others. They linked arms
and leaned against each other, prepared to wait as long as it took.
Michael was surprised by that turn of events, and then surprised that he was
surprised. He should have seen it coming. “Those of us who remained behind
will be given the chance to live our lives in freedom.”
“And we’re really free?”
Birkoff and Davenport reached them in time to hear Walter’s question.
He continued to storm at the turn of events. “Just like that, after all these
years, after being under Section’s control for so long? So what do we freaking
do now?”
Birkoff and Davenport looked at each other and smiled.
“We’re going to DisneyWorld!”
End