Egorov learns that Matorin is dead and his body has been cremated. Putin calls, furiously demanding progress on finding the mole. Vanya reports that Dominika is missing. Putin orders him to bring her home safely, which Vanya interprets as a veiled command to silence her permanently.

Dominika calls from Greece. She claims that she killed Matorin when he tried to kill them both, and she passes the scripted disinformation: Nate said the CIA caught an important female spy and saw through the false trail about eye surgery. The mention of the eye-surgery ruse alarms Vanya, confirming his suspicion of Korchnoi as MARBLE. She gives Vanya a fake location. Vanya orders extraction and begins round-the-clock surveillance on Korchnoi.

Athens CIA Station cables Headquarters that Greek police arrested a woman matching Dominika’s description.

In Moscow, Korchnoi assembles covert communications equipment from a bookshelf concealment and sends a routine message to a US military satellite. The reply contains a prearranged signal confirming that the plan has begun. He knows SVR surveillance has recorded everything. Lab analysis later confirms spy dust, traceable to Nate, on Korchnoi’s office furniture.

When Korchnoi returns home, he knows he is caught because his sticky lock has been lubricated. Five agents ambush him, strip and search him, and transport him to Lefortovo Prison. During interrogation, he freely admits to spying against the Kremlin but does not mention Dominika. Zyuganov orders torture. Vanya eventually confronts Korchnoi, telling him that Dominika’s information led to his arrest. Korchnoi privately recognizes that their succession plan succeeded.

SVR technicians use Korchnoi’s equipment to send a message, but they accidentally use his duress signal. Benford understands that Korchnoi has been arrested.

Vanya is summoned to Putin’s dacha late at night. In a basement gym, with Zyuganov present, Putin punctuates each word with clanking weights: He wants Dominika back. Zyuganov senses an opportunity for advancement if he can retrieve her.

After her arrest, Dominika is quietly turned over to Forsyth by the Greek police and moved to a safe house in Glyfada, where Benford and Forsyth inform her that Korchnoi has been arrested. She is suspicious, sensing that Benford is manipulating events. He tells her that Korchnoi envisioned her as his successor, and the mission now falls to her. Forsyth advises her to follow her heart, while Benford makes a direct plea for help. Dominika says she needs time to consider.

Nate, having read restricted cables to locate her, appears at the safe house and accuses her of knowingly getting Korchnoi arrested to advance her own position. Bound by Benford’s orders not to discuss the operation, Dominika cannot defend herself. She asks if he truly believes she would harm Korchnoi. Nate coldly suggests the cables speak for themselves and leaves.

When Dominika confronts Benford and Forsyth, they confirm that her call led to the arrest. Enraged, she accuses them of using her as an informer, saying a man’s life is more important than intelligence and that they are no better than the SVR. Benford argues that it was Korchnoi’s own succession plan and warns that his sacrifice will be wasted if she refuses. Dominika retreats to her bedroom. Benford tells Forsyth they have a 50-50 chance of retaining her.

In Vienna, Benford meets with Zyuganov. He bluffs that the Greeks are pressuring Dominika to hold a press conference about SVR activities, then makes a proposal. In the Kremlin, Putin sees operational benefit in the American offer but is determined not to appear weak.

At Athens Station, Benford assigns Gable to convince Dominika to return to Russia, citing her trust in him. He reveals his plan: a spy swap for Korchnoi at the Narva River Bridge on the Estonian-Russian border. Gable objects that the deal was made before securing Dominika’s agreement. Benford reveals his leverage: If she refuses, Korchnoi’s release will be cancelled. Gable warns this could backfire.

Benford outlines the operational plan: He will go to Estonia to coordinate, Forsyth remains in Athens, and Gable must hide Dominika and bring her to the bridge. He imposes Moscow Rules—no phone use.

In Moscow, Zyuganov summons two assassins and briefs officer Lyudmila Tsukanova.

In Estonia, the Tallinn CIA Chief of Station contacts KaPo, the Estonian security service, which agrees to help with the swap. Benford arrives and conducts a surveillance-detection run to Narva, confirming that Russian watchers are in place. Back in his hotel room, he uses a microscope lens to verify that SVR agents searched his belongings.

Before his flight to Washington, Forsyth takes Nate for a beer. Nate reveals that he read the restricted files and is furious at Dominika, whom he believes knowingly betrayed Korchnoi. Forsyth forcefully corrects him: Dominika was an unwitting participant in a trap set by Benford and Korchnoi and was devastated upon learning the truth. A chastened Nate insists on seeing her. Forsyth gives him a cryptic hint about the time and location.

Nate makes a grueling journey from Athens to Estonia, plagued by delays, illness, and exhaustion. He arrives in Narva after sundown, bypasses a police roadblock, and reaches Benford’s position at the bridge.

Gable takes Dominika to a hotel. A Russian informant at the desk recognizes Gable and makes a call, revealing their location. Dominika tells Gable that she is quitting, no longer trusts the CIA, and intends to defect. Gable listens patiently all day without arguing.

Over dinner, Gable makes his pitch. He tells her that she thrives on the secret life of espionage and cannot live without it, and he proposes she return to Russia to build a powerful career on her own terms—starting by destroying her uncle. He offers full CIA support and autonomy, including Nate as handler if she wishes. Dominika is noncommittal.

Gable then reveals she must decide by the next day: She is needed in Estonia for a spy swap to free Korchnoi. Dominika is furious, accusing him of trapping her again. Gable counters that the choice is hers—he will help her defect if she refuses—but Korchnoi’s life depends on her decision. They return to the hotel in silence. Gable believes that he has failed.

In their room, two men ambush them, claiming to be rescuing Dominika. As one attacks Gable, Dominika embraces the other, feels a pistol in his belt, and shoots him multiple times through his clothes. She then kills the second man, who has Gable pinned, by shooting him under the chin. Afterward, she tells Gable she will be “bitchy” from now on—signaling she is ready to proceed.

At the Narva River Bridge, fog shrouds the roadway as Russian and Estonian forces take up positions at opposite ends. Nate arrives, and Benford angrily orders him into the command van. Gable arrives with Dominika hidden in his car. He reports that she killed two SVR assassins in Athens and has agreed to the swap solely to free Korchnoi. Her future cooperation remains uncertain.

Benford instructs Nate to speak to Dominika, act as a professional case officer, and bolster her resolve. Instead, he gives her a heartfelt apology, saying her safety is all that matters. She flatly rejects his apology, telling him not to give her a second thought. Gable gives her a final briefing on maintaining cover during the exchange.

On the Russian side, sniper Lyudmila Tsukanova positions herself in the Ivangorod Fortress tower with a suppressed rifle. She is directed to sight on a dark-haired woman with a slight limp. A helicopter delivers Korchnoi to the Russian side.

As Dominika prepares to walk, she slaps Nate hard across the face for any observers, whispers goodbye, then breaks free from Benford and Gable and starts across the bridge. Korchnoi begins walking from the other side. They stop side by side at midspan. She feels his presence but does not look at him. Korchnoi offers her his overcoat as a traditional gesture; Dominika takes it and drops it contemptuously on the pavement, performing for SVR observers as he hoped she would do. They resume walking.

As Korchnoi nears the Estonian side, Tsukanova shoots him in the neck, severing his carotid artery. He collapses and dies instantly. Gable stops the Estonian troopers from raising weapons. Across the bridge, Dominika hears the commotion, turns, sees the body, and instantly understands. She represses a scream, composes her face, and is hustled into a waiting car, containing her rage.

The CIA team is stunned. Gable raises binoculars, hoping that Dominika witnessed the killing and now understands the true nature of the regime she is returning to serve. Korchnoi’s overcoat lies abandoned in the fog at the center of the bridge.