"Double Cross" was the cornucopia of double crosses. All sides were duping each other all over the place, making for a crazy ride. Did you breathe a sigh of relief when it was revealed that Nikita knew Carla was working with Percy? I definitely did!

When Carla found the phone left in Percy's makeshift holding room, I suspected she was being set up, but wasn't positive. Carla's actions were overly suspicious; they had to know, right?

Well, it turns out they definitely knew that Carla was loyal to Percy, but how it played out was quite a surprise. Nikita, Michael and Birkhoff have pulled off some brilliant plans, but never like this before. I love that the writers kept us, the viewers, in the dark about the full plan. Usually, we  see them plan the mission and carry it out, so this was a pleasant twist.

When they openly discussed the plan to keep Percy in an adjacent building with Carla in the room, I was pretty sure it was misinformation for Carla's sake. At that point, I thought it was probably a test, rather than them knowing for a fact that she was feeding him information.

Birkhoff's reveal to Carla that they didn't track the Division agent, but had instead tracked her warning text to Percy was brilliant. That twist clinched this as my favorite Nikita mission ever. They played Carla perfectly and that move allowed their misinformation plan to work. Without Carla getting Roan and the Guardian in the right position, Amanda could have easily killed them all.

Ultimately, Carla got what she deserved. Her desire to get back to work and recreate her "Division" project blinded her to Percy's true plan. Amanda was an easy scapegoat for Percy to use, but also for Carla to believe. She betrayed the one person who would have done anything for her, Nikita. And, Birkhoff was right when he said that Nikita would have forgiven her. Carla was too trusting of Percy and stubborn; that cost her her life.

In the end, nothing really changed. Sure ... Nikita got Ryan back and both Carla and the Guardian died, but in the big picture it remained the status quo. The three sides remain: Nikita and her team, Percy and Roan, and Amanda working with Ari to take control of Zetrov.

Odds and Ends

• Alex's press tour of Semak's house was a weak point of the episode. Did she really expect her mother to be there? Why would Semak risk having Alex and her mother in the same place? He wouldn't.
• I'd love to see Alex and Sean hook up. She could use both love and a stable man by her side. Even though Sean worked for Division, he is an honorable man and he will protect her. That may end up being his downfall, though I hope not.
• Cassandra is Ari's MI-6 plant. I could do without the return of Cassandra and definitely not looking forward to this twist. Does Ari know that Michael thinks he is Max's father? Cassandra is definitely trouble.
• Nikita: Division is not a shield, it's a sword. And it bleeds everything it touches. | permalink
• Michael: You never know how close your enemies are going to be. | permalink

With Carla out of the picture, what will happen next? Will Nikita and her crew be able to take on Percy, Amanda, Semak, and Ari? Or, will be too much, especially when you throw Cassandra into the mix?

Carla Day is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter and on Google+.