Nikita executive producer Craig Silverstein recently previewed trouble ahead for Nikita and Michael when the show returns with new episodes in January.

In the mid-season finale, Amanda made it clear that in her quest for vengeance against Nikita, she would not target the heroine herself, but her loved ones. Silverstein recently spoke with TVLine about what that threat is going to entail in the second half of the season.

The first episode of 2013, “Intersection,” was originally meant to be the show’s mid-season finale, but “due to some scheduling changes,” it ended up as the second half opener. That means we can expect intense action and a cliffhanger when the show returns on January 18.

According to Silverstein, things go crazy “right away, in episode 7.” In light of a Comic Con teaser that “something’s going to happen” to Michael in season 3, the Nikita EP previews that what happens with Michael “comes as a consequence of everything that’s been happening so far. So, if you ask what has been happening, that’s really been Amanda.

“It comes up as a consequence of that and of [their] going after her. It’s a really interesting problem.” And it will “for sure” change the Mikita relationship.

Silverstein also previews that the Mikita storyline will contain unexpected twists and turns. “I think people are going to [think we’re] going this way or that way,” Silverstein says, “and it’ll be fun to see what people think is going to happen versus what actually happens.”

Amanda’s mysterious plot also promises to rival, if not surpass, Percy’s villainy in the first two seasons. Her quest to teach Nikita before killing her “gets pretty intense. It definitely goes to some places that I think Percy would never even go,” Silverstein teases. “She really becomes more and more dangerous as it goes on.”

Nikita returns with new episodes Friday, January 18 at 8:00 p.m. ET.