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Aleksei spoke up:
"Little Natasha… You've been brainwashed by Western ideology."
Natasha replied calmly:
"I didn't choose the West because of its ideology."
Aleksei raised an eyebrow.
"Really? So what, it was for a mission?"
Ignoring his sarcasm, Natasha asked coldly,
"Where is the Red Room?"
Aleksei glanced at Natasha, then at John Wick and Smith Doyle sitting on the plane.
"I don't know," he said flatly.
Natasha narrowed her eyes.
"I know a few interrogation techniques…"
Aleksei quickly interrupted,
"I really don't know!"
Natasha sat down right in front of him.
"Oh please. You and Dreykov—"
"Dreykov?" Aleksei cut in,
"General Dreykov? My friend?"
"He gave me glory… I was the first, and only, Soviet super soldier."
"I could've been more famous than Captain America! But because of that stupid mission, he buried me in Ohio."
"Three years!"
"Three excruciatingly dull years."
He met Natasha's gaze.
"No offense."
He was referring to the three years he played father to Natasha and Yelena.
"And then he throws me in prison to rot for the rest of my life. Why?"
"Why? Why would he do that to me?"
"You know why? Maybe because I said something about the country's decline? Or maybe I just didn't like his hair? Who knows—"
"I wanted the Party to feel like a Party. Not some soul-crushing bureaucracy."
"But no. Instead, he locked me up and ran off to hide."
"And I wasn't even the one who… you know…"
"I didn't kill his daughter."
Natasha finally understood—Aleksei being thrown into prison might have been because of her.
She frowned and asked,
"Wait… Are you saying Dreykov threw you in prison after his daughter died?"
Aleksei nodded.
"Yeah. No one knows who bombed his office, but his daughter supposedly died in that blast. He lost it and had me thrown in here while he ran off."
Natasha's heart sank. So Dreykov wasn't dead. The Red Room hadn't been destroyed. Everything SHIELD told her—was a lie.
She looked at Smith Doyle. His intel had said otherwise.
Smith Doyle spoke firmly,
"Dreykov's daughter is alive."
Aleksei blinked in shock.
"She's alive?"
He turned to Natasha.
"So… you're looking for the Red Room?"
Natasha nodded.
Aleksei sighed.
"I've been rotting in prison. You think I'd know where the new base is?"
Smith Doyle interjected,
"Now that we know Dreykov is alive, the next step is to see Melina."
Aleksei paused.
"Melina?"
"Yeah… we should see her. If you want Dreykov, you can't avoid her."
"She's worked for him longer than I ever did."
"I think she's living on a farm outside St. Petersburg."
Natasha was stunned.
"She's still working for Dreykov?"
Everything she thought she knew crumbled. SHIELD had lied to her.
The Red Room wasn't destroyed.
Dreykov was alive.
Melina was alive—and still working for him.
Even his daughter survived.
Meanwhile, her fake father was rotting in prison, her sister was under mind control, and her real mother had been killed by Dreykov. Even her fake mother was still serving the man.
So what had she been doing in SHIELD all this time?
Saving people?
Or just… lying to herself?
John Wick, who had been piloting the helicopter, glanced at the fuel gauge.
"We've got enough to make it to St. Petersburg."
Aleksei turned to Natasha, curious.
"Why are you looking for Dreykov?"
Natasha met his gaze.
"He's controlling Yelena. I need to save her. Then I'm going to kill Dreykov and destroy the Red Room."
Aleksei nearly laughed at her boldness—until he saw Smith Doyle.
"With him on your side? Yeah… maybe you've got a real shot."
"I remember Yelena… she became one of the deadliest child assassins in the world."
"Efficient. Cold-blooded. Unmatched. But what do you mean 'controlled'?"
Natasha explained,
"A neural virus. It overrides a person's will."
Aleksei nodded slowly.
"Disgusting tactic. I'll help you however I can."
Seeing her skepticism, he added,
"Don't question the Red Guardian's resolve."
---
Meanwhile…
At Melina's farmhouse, a makeshift maze filled her yard. Inside, a few pigs weaved their way through, following her commands.
"Straight ahead… now slightly to the right," Melina instructed through her tablet.
As each pig successfully exited the maze, she rewarded them with a snack.
"Good job, my darlings."
Suddenly, the loud whirr of helicopter blades roared overhead. Melina looked up—camouflage-patterned military chopper. Her eyes narrowed.
She opened the gate and barked at the pigs,
"Go to the safe zone. Hurry!"
The pigs trotted off obediently.
Once they were secure, Melina headed straight to her weapons cache and began gearing up. She was sure of one thing:
That helicopter wasn't from Dreykov.
Through her binoculars, she spotted four figures disembarking: Aleksei, Natasha, and two men she didn't recognize.
Recognizing two familiar faces, she lowered her binoculars and walked to meet them.
At the gate, Aleksei grinned.
"Sweetheart, we're home."
Melina turned without a word and headed back toward the house.
"Follow me," Aleksei called out.
She opened the door, stepping inside.
"Welcome to my humble home. Don't be shy."
Then she glanced at the newcomers.
"And who are these two handsome gentlemen?"
—End of chapter—
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