Title - Kismet (2/3)
Author - Jaimee Kidder
Email - SpecialAgentDana@aol.com
Rating - PG-13 (for violence)
Classification - XRA
Spoilers - Herrenvolk/Talitha Cumi, Fight the 
Future, Triangle, Two
Fathers/One Son, Three of a Kind
Keywords - Mulder/Scully romance

Summary - Mulder and Scully investigate a 
seemingly meaningless murder in a
small farming town in Alabama and suddenly find 
themselves caught in the
middle of events that could lead to the end.
Note: I had to change the dates around a bit, 
so it takes place in August,
but the season 6 finale hasn't happened.
Sorry, no psychic Mulder here. :-)

::whirrrrr:: "I made this!"

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters 
in this story.  I wish I was
Scully and owned Mulder, but such is not the 
case.  If I did, this would be
an episode -- or two, or five -- of the show, 
not some story that Chris
Carter will prob'ly never read. :)  The 
secondary characters are mine (so
there!).  But Mulder, Scully, and the rest are 
all CC's (hail to the man!),
1013's, and Fox's.  Too bad for me. ;-)
Title - Kismet

Author - Jaimee Kidder

Email - SpecialAgentDana@aol.com

Rating - PG-13 (for violence)

Classification - XRA

Spoilers - Herrenvolk/Talitha Cumi, Fight the 
Future, 
Triangle, Two Fathers/One Son, Three of a Kind

Keywords - Mulder/Scully romance

Summary - Mulder and Scully investigate a 
seemingly 
meaningless murder in a small farming town in 
Alabama and 
suddenly find themselves caught in the middle 
of events that 
could lead to the end. 

::whirrrrr:: "I made this!"

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters 
in this story.  
I wish I was Scully and owned Mulder, but such 
is not the 
case.  If I did, this would be an episode -- or 
two, or five -
- of the show, not some story that Chris Carter 
will prob'ly 
never read. :)  The secondary characters are 
mine (so there!).  
But Mulder, Scully, and the rest are all CC's 
(hail to the 
man!), 1013's, and Fox's.  Too bad for me. ;-)
Oh yeah...and I borrowed Celine Dion's "Because 
You Loved 
Me"...so thank you, Celine, for singing such a 
lovely (and 
shippery) song!



=========================
A.D. Skinner's office
7:36 p.m.
=========================

The phone rang.

Assistant Director Walter Skinner stared at it 
meditatively, 
wondering if the world as he knew it would end 
if he just 
smashed the idiotic thing to bits.

Nah.  He'd probably just wind up in a mental 
institution.

The phone rang again.

Mentally cursing Alexander Graham Bell, Skinner 
picked up the 
receiver.

"Skinner."

"Sir, it's Scully."

As if that explained the purpose of the call.  
"What is it, 
Agent Scully?"

"It's Agent Mulder."  Skinner sat up 
straighter, picking up on 
a barely concealed panic that underlined 
Scully's quiet tone.  
She took a breath and went on.

"We've been on this case --"

"The murder...the one in Alabama."

"That's right.  Yesterday, we received a call 
from Assistant 
Director Kersh.  He informed us that the case 
had been closed 
and that we should report back to the Bureau as 
soon as 
possible."

"Go on," Skinner directed, wondering anxiously 
where this was 
heading.

"Agent Mulder...strongly felt that the case had 
been 
mishandled, and that it was a cover-up for a 
greater purpose.  
I had begun to agree with him...in fact, that 
belief was 
strengthened by several attempts on both of our 
lives.

"But somewhere between Alabama and here, 
something happened.  
To Agent Mulder.  He's been talking strangely, 
and has nearly 
run off the road -- intentionally, I believe.  
He threatened 
me with bodily harm not an hour ago."

Skinner stood up.  "Where are you both now, 
Agent Scully?"

"Roanoke...the Days Inn right off of Interstate 
81.  Exit 146.  
Please get here as soon as you can, sir.  
There's a lake about 
a mile away...he keeps talking about 
it...saying he want to 
drive straight to hell."

Skinner's breath caught.  "Where is Agent 
Mulder?"

"Taking a shower.  I thought this would be a 
good time to call 
you."

Only then did Skinner notice that Scully had 
been speaking 
unusually quietly during their conversation.  
"All right, 
Scully, I'll be there as soon --"

The sound of a door crashing open was clearly 
audible over the 
phone.

"Mulder --"

Scully's cell phone dropped to the carpet with 
a soft thud.

"Scully!  Agent Scully!  What's going on?"

"Mulder!  Let me go!"

"Who you talkin' to?  Huh?"

"I don't know what you're talking ab--" The 
rest was cut off 
as Scully gasped.

"Maybe talking to Kersh?  Tellin' him all about 
our case?  
*My* case?"

"Mulder, we need to get you to a 
hospital...please...let me 
go..."

"Agent Mulder!"

"Let...me...go!"

More struggling sounds could be heard plainly 
over the phone.  
Skinner was unable to move as he pressed the 
receiver to his 
unbelieving ear.

Then there was a hard thud against a wall and 
the sound of a 
punch.  Mulder moaned angrily.

"Sir!  I need help!"

Running footsteps and the sound of drawers 
being frantically 
opened, then Scully's voice again, screaming 
incredulously, 
with angry tears obvious in her voice, "My gun!  
Mulder, you 
took my gun!"

Click.

Scully was unable to stifle a sob.  Then, 
"Mulder, put it 
down."  Slowly, calmly, the way she learned at 
Quantico.  The 
part of Skinner's mind that wasn't thinking 
about the danger 
she was in held admiration for Scully.

Another punch, this one harder, and the sound 
of someone 
collapsing on the floor.  Scully howled in 
pain, her voice 
close to where the phone lay on the floor.  She 
was furious 
now.

"Put the gun down!  Mulder, drop it!  *Now,* 
you son of a --"

A gunshot.

A cry of pain ripped through the phone.

Heavy footsteps were becoming more and more 
audible.

Then a crunching sound, and the line went dead.

Skinner remained standing, stunned out of all 
capability to 
move.  Then, snapped out of his horrified 
trance, Skinner 
slammed the phone into the cradle and threw the 
office door 
open.  His secretary looked up, surprised.

"Kimberly!  Get on the phone!"

   
=========================
10:47 p.m.
Days Inn
Roanoke
=========================

The door on motel room 116 burst open and a 
team of FBI agents 
swarmed in.  Skinner came in last, unwilling to 
admit to 
himself that he was afraid.  His fears were 
more than 
justified.  The scene that met his eyes looked 
like any one of 
the hundreds of violent crime cases he'd 
handled.

But this one was different.

Working on so many horrific cases bred a sort 
of survival 
instinct -- learning to detach oneself from the 
cases and deal 
with them in a cool, professional manner.  That 
ability was 
the only thing that kept Skinner from leaving 
the room.  
Forcing himself to view each detail in the room 
as though he 
was looking at a series of crime scene 
photographs, he walked 
slowly through the doorway and into the room.

Two broken lamps.

The shower curtain and bathroom door hanging 
open and a fist-
sized dent in the wall where the doorknob had 
smashed against 
it.

Watery footprints leading from the bathroom in 
long, 
purposeful strides.

Wrinkled, disheveled twin beds that looked like 
they had been 
jumped on a couple of times by a two-year-old.

All the drawers in the cabinet yanked open and 
hanging ajar, 
with the few contents scattered on the floor.

A dried pool of blood on the floor near the 
dresser with a 
trail leading out the door to the parking lot.

A crushed cell phone, lying where it had been 
dropped on the 
floor.

Skinner could only imagine what had happened, 
but he couldn't 
imagine why in his wildest nightmare.  He 
leaned against the 
wall and closed his eyes, trying unsuccessfully 
not to 
remember the scene as it had unfolded over the 
phone.

"Sir!  We've found a trail!"

Skinner pulled himself up and followed the 
agent out the door 
and into a car, tiredly resigned to listening 
to the endless 
torrent of information.

"It was a...'98 Camry.  Beige.  Judging by the 
marks in the 
dust, we figure your guy dragged her out to the 
car.  Now you 
said the guy had mentioned something about the 
nearby lake.  
The road leading to Carvins Cove Reservoir, a 
few minutes 
away, was the first place we checked.  And we 
got lucky.  Good 
thing your guy's a predictable psycho," he 
chuckled.

"Understand one thing," Skinner exploded 
quietly.  "This is 
not a game; it is a case.  And their names are 
Agent Mulder 
and Agent Scully.  You will refer to them as 
such.  Is this 
clear?"

The agent nodded, slightly confused but 
unfazed.  "Anyway, we 
found tire tracks at the end of this road, 
and...well, you can 
see for yourself."

They parked at the end of the road.  Skinner 
quickly got out 
of the car and stood up.  Clearly visible in 
the tall, weedy 
grass were tire tracks.  He stared for a second 
at the tracks, 
then followed them the remaining 100 yards or 
so to the shore, 
hoping as he ran that maybe he would find the 
car parked 
somewhere in the grass.

Finally he reached the shore and stopped cold.

The tire tracks went completely into the lake.

Skinner was unable to do anything but stand 
there, staring 
blankly into the quiet water.


=========================
A.D. Skinner's office
Thursday, August 19
12:52 p.m.
=========================

Skinner sat at his desk, going over the agent's 
preliminary 
report for the thousandth time.  It took all 
his effort to 
maintain a professional attitude towards the 
case.  Flipping 
back to the first page of the report, he began 
to read through 
it again.

The report was fairly thorough.  It listed 
possible scenarios 
for what had happened that night, possible 
motivations for the 
suspect, and a recommended course of action.  
It was confirmed 
by forensics that the blood on the carpet in 
the room did 
indeed belong to Agent Scully.

The car had not been found yet.

As denial faded and hopelessness set in, 
Skinner flicked the 
report closed and sighed.


=========================
Margaret Scully's residence
1:32 p.m.
=========================

Maggie Scully wandered into her bedroom with a 
steaming cup of 
tea and glanced out the window.  She loved 
storms, especially 
on days when there was nothing to do and she 
could curl up in 
bed with a book and something warm to drink -- 
exactly what 
she was planning on doing now.

She hopped onto the big comfy bed and leaned 
against the 
chubby pillows, just enjoying listening to the 
sound of the 
rain and the occasional rumble of distant 
thunder.  After a 
minute, she realized that the wind was picking 
up and the 
thunder was getting louder.  She picked up the 
remote control 
and flicked on the television, checking to see 
if the news had 
anything to say about the storm.  A perky 
reporter was 
talking.

"...current trends are expected to continue 
well into the 
coming year."

The camera cut back to the studio.  The 
anchorwoman looked 
back at the camera as a small video box with a 
picture of a 
woman popped up in the upper right corner of 
the screen.  
Maggie squinted at it, gathering her blanket 
closer around her 
shoulders.  Then her eyes widened and she 
gasped involuntarily 
as she suddenly recognized the face on the 
screen.

"Dana?"

Fear chilling her blood, she sat up, unable to 
move any 
farther.

"Meanwhile, there are no current leads in the 
investigation 
into the abduction and possible murder of 
F.B.I. Special Agent 
Dana Scully."

Maggie sat, paralyzed, powerless to take her 
eyes off the TV 
screen.


=========================
Econo Lodge
Room 1124
Richmond, Virginia
1:33 p.m.
=========================

Mulder walked to the TV and turned it up.  "Hey 
Scully, look 
at this."

"Meanwhile, there are no current leads in the 
investigation 
into the abduction and possible murder of 
F.B.I. Special Agent 
Dana Scully."

Scully walked into the room holding a towel in 
one hand.  She 
ran the towel through her drying hair and sat 
down on the bed 
as the anchorwoman continued to talk.

"...received this alarming phone call yesterday 
evening."

A fuzzy recording of Scully's call to Skinner 
began to play.

"Sir!  I need help!" as footsteps pounded 
across the floor.

Drawers pulled hastily open.

"My gun!  Mulder, you took my gun!"

A hammer cocking.

"Mulder, put it down.  Put the gun down!  
Mulder, drop it!  
*Now,* you son of a --"
 
The shot split the air.

The anchorwoman looked back at the camera.  
"Dana Scully's 
partner-turned-assailant, Special Agent Fox 
Mulder, is 
believed to have shot and possibly murdered 
her.  The car the 
agents were driving was found missing with tire 
tracks leading 
into a nearby lake.  The Justice Department is 
doing 
everything they can to locate the two agents, 
but it doesn't 
look hopeful."

Mulder turned around and grinned at Scully.  
"Not a bad piece 
of work, if I do say so myself."  She was 
silent, deep in 
thought.  "I never knew you were such a good 
actress, Scully," 
Mulder continued.  She glanced up and smiled.  
"It was easy 
when you make such a good psychopath."  He 
chuckled, then sat 
down on the bed next to her.  "You okay?"

She nodded.  He looked at her for another 
moment and began 
thinking about what had happened.

It had been a relatively easy matter to fake 
their 
disappearance.  Since both were F.B.I. agents 
and Scully was a 
doctor, they were able to get some of her blood 
drawn quickly 
and without any questions.  After that, they 
found a used car 
lot and bought an old Buick, and purchased a 
new cell phone 
for Scully.  From there it was just a matter of 
putting the 
plates on the Buick and finding a motel room 
near a lake.

He had come up with the idea.  He was also the 
one who 
suggested the idea of going crazy and 
assaulting Scully.  He 
knew, with a sad certainty, that it was a story 
that everyone 
would believe.  It was certainly strange to 
have to act out 
such a horrible scene.  Mulder still wasn't 
sure how he felt 
about it.

They knew that they shouldn't tell anyone that 
the two of them 
were still alive.  They hadn't even told the 
Gunmen.  Mulder 
couldn't help but wonder how everyone was 
taking it.

No doubt many of his colleagues were smugly 
thinking they knew 
he was crazy all along.

They were staying at a hotel for as long as it 
took to find a 
cheap apartment where the owner wouldn't 
recognize them -- or 
care if he did.  The downside of faking a crime 
was that their 
pictures had been shown on local news 
broadcasts all across 
the country -- and especially in the Virginia 
area, since that 
was where the crime had supposedly taken place.  
Neither 
Mulder nor Scully were sure how much publicity 
the case would 
get, and too much attention by the media could 
make their 
lives very difficult.  But they weren't going 
to give up now.

He glanced over at her.  She was staring 
absently at the 
television, probably thinking about the same 
things as he was.  
Feeling the need to break the tension that had 
settled over 
them both, he touched her arm.  She looked up 
and he smiled, 
taking a strand of damp hair in his fingers.  
"Hey, you have 
to see your hair."

She paused and then laughed, suddenly.  
"Mulder..."

"What?"

"I can't..."

"'Course you can.  Come on."  He took her arm 
and pulled her 
off the bed.  She went reluctantly to the 
mirror and looked at 
the face that met her there.

There she was, with slightly damp dark brown 
hair.  It was 
like looking at a different person.  She was 
speechless.  
Mulder smiled and rested his chin on her head, 
looking at her 
disbelieving face in the mirror.  "Lookin' 
good, Agent 
Scully," he murmured.  She smiled distractedly 
and touched her 
hair.

Suddenly breaking out of her shocked daze, 
Scully turned away 
from the mirror and walked to the closed laptop 
sitting on the 
table.

Mulder followed her to the table and stood next 
to her.  "Any 
ideas on how we're going to track down any 
information when 
*they* couldn't find anything?"

"Come on, Mulder...the guys may be good, but 
they weren't 
there.  You and I know what to look for."

He nodded and they switched on the computer.

As the laptop warmed up, Mulder looked at 
Scully.  "Scully, 
I'm sorry for everything this has put you 
through.  I know --"

Her head snapped up, eyes blazing.  "Mulder!  
Stop 
apologizing!"  Startled, Mulder felt his eyes 
widen in 
surprise at the sudden outburst.  She sighed 
and continued, 
quieter this time.  "I know it won't be easy, 
Mulder, but I'm 
prepared for that.  I want you to know --" she 
put her hand 
over his larger one and squeezed it gently, "-- 
that I'm in 
this with you, and I'm not going anywhere."  
She paused with a 
sad light in her eyes.  "I thought you knew 
that I'm not the 
type to run off on you like that, Mulder.  I 
thought you 
trusted me more than that."

Mulder thought the look in her eyes would break 
his heart.  
Forcing the words to come, he opened his mouth.  
"I know, 
Scully...I know you.  I know you wouldn't leave 
me in this by 
myself.  I just...so many people have betrayed 
me -- people 
whom I trusted -- and I can't stop myself from 
thinking that 
maybe they were right, and that I should give 
you every chance 
to get as far away from me as you can.  And I 
know that you're 
putting your life at risk by sticking by me, 
and I don't want 
to see you die."

She looked deeply into his eyes, her gaze 
penetrating to his 
heart.  "Mulder, if I didn't want to be here, 
with you, I 
wouldn't be.  I would have found a way out -- a 
reassignment, 
anything -- years ago.  But I'm not just 
tagging along for the 
ride, Mulder.  Your quest has become mine as 
well.  I want to 
find the truth just as much as you.  And I 
won't run out on 
you.  I promise you that."

He stared at her blankly for a second, her 
words taking time 
to break through to his heart.  Then a grin 
flooded his 
features and he reached over and put his arm 
around her 
shoulder.  "Come here."  She conceded willingly 
as he gave her 
the biggest hug he'd given anyone in a long 
time.  He sighed 
contentedly.  " I love you, Scully."

She leaned against him, letting all her tension 
flood out of 
her as she met his embrace, assuring him 
gently, "I love you 
too, 
Mulder."

They held each other for many minutes, simply 
enjoying the 
presence of the other.  Finally, Scully stirred 
and Mulder 
released her reluctantly from his arms.  
Without a word, they 
sat at the table in front of the laptop, 
preparing to get down 
to business.

"Hey, Scully, I just remembered something."

She looked up, her eyes inviting him to 
continue.

"Remember how you found out that Rob Harris was 
going to see a 
friend the day he died?  We were going to find 
out his name 
and question him about those files that Harris 
left over 
there."

"Do you think the friend might have had 
something to do with 
Harris's death?"

"Mrs. Harris said they worked for the same 
company, right?  So 
maybe this friend wasn't a friend at all; maybe 
he saw the 
research Harris was doing and thought it was 
enough to have 
him killed."

"Mrs. Harris did mention that her husband had 
been researching 
a product they had been shipping."

Mulder's eyes lit up the way they always did 
when he was 
rolling with a theory.  "What if it was the 
virus?  What if 
Rob Harris found out about the company's secret 
transactions 
with the government and thought it was strange?  
He was 
probably researching it, found out a little too 
much, and 
someone wanted to make sure no one else found 
out what he 
knew."

"But what did he find out from his research?  
How much did he 
learn on his own before telling the friend?  
Mulder, he could 
have found out more than we have," Scully 
finished, looking 
apprehensive and eager at the same time.

He stared at her, assimilating this new idea 
into his mental 
web.  "Scully, why don't you call Mrs. Harris 
and see what you 
can find out about her husband's buddy."

"What are you going to do?"

"See what I can dig up online."  She nodded and 
pulled out the 
cell phone they had bought for her.  Then she 
stared at it, 
suddenly horrified.

"Mulder, your old cell phone..."

He looked at her, uncomprehending, then blinked 
as he realized 
what she meant.  Pulling it from his jacket 
pocket, he walked 
into the bathroom.  He quickly filled the sink, 
turned the 
phone on, and dropped it into the water.  Then 
he walked back 
into the room.

"Let's see if I lapse into catatonic 
schizophrenia now..." he 
smiled.  Scully eyed him, too relieved that the 
matter was 
taken care of to smile, and turned her phone 
on.  He turned 
back to the computer and connected to the 
Internet, dimly 
aware of Scully's low voice in the background.

"Mrs. Harris?  I'm Agent Brown, from the F.B.I.  
Yes, I know, 
we're doing everything we can.  Well, I've been 
assigned to 
wrap your husband's case up.  I'm sorry to call 
you so 
suddenly like this, but I have some last 
questions..."

Mulder turned his attention to the computer 
screen again and 
logged on to his favorite Internet message 
board to see if any 
of the paranoid members had gotten wind of the 
case.  Then 
something on the page made him stop scrolling 
down the list of 
topic names and stare unbelievingly at the 
screen.

"Thank you very much for your help, Mrs. 
Harris.  If we hear 
anything new, we'll let you know."  Scully 
terminated the call 
and began to recite what the other woman had 
said.  "Mrs. 
Harris told me that her husband was going to 
stop by a Brett 
Silver's house to pick up some files.  She told 
me that her 
husband hadn't really been complaining to her 
about work, but 
he did seem vaguely stressed out over 
something.  She thought 
he was trying to protect her from whatever the 
problem was, 
and she figured he knew what he was doing, so 
she didn't ask.  
That's all I..."  She trailed off as she saw 
Mulder glance up 
for the first time from the screen.  "Mulder?  
Are you 
listening?"

"Scully...look at this."

She walked to the computer and bent down to 
look at the 
screen.  The computer was displaying on its 
screen the main 
message list.  The mouse cursor was resting on 
the topic name 
and author that had so intrigued Mulder.

Scully gasped.

"Mulder...is that..."

Their eyes met.  Mulder nodded. "I think so, 
Scully."

Mulder clicked on the link, waiting impatiently 
for the page 
to load.  Finally the message was displayed on 
the screen:

-----------------------------------------------
---------------
--
"Starbuck and Ahab"
(author: Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow, and Toto)

Ha ha ha.

Info: PK has a lot in common with the other 
managers.  Two-
faced.  Uses the position for monitoring 
progress.  All for 
now.  Hope it helps.

P.S. what kind of amateurs do you think we are?
-----------------------------------------------
---------------
--

Mulder read and reread the message over several 
times as 
Scully did the same.  Then he smiled.  "No 
fooling those 
guys," he muttered.

Scully looked up from the screen.  "Mulder, 
it's great that 
they'll be able to keep in touch with us...but 
won't this give 
us away?"

"Don't worry," he assured her with confidence 
born from 
experience.  "Every message on here is every 
bit as coded, 
obscure, and cryptic as this one.  As long as 
we don't 
respond, no one's going to give it a second 
glance."

She was silent, considering the accuracy of his 
words, and 
studied the message again.


=========================
Police station
Four Mile, Alabama
=========================

Jake Kelley checked his watch, then leaned 
forward across his 
desk.  "Hey Joe," he called to the officer at 
the desk across 
from him.  Joe looked up from his copy of 
People.  "Yeah?"

"I'm goin' for my lunch break now.  Be back in 
twenty or so."

Joe nodded.

Kelley stood and walked back to the back room 
to pick up his 
jacket, and Joe went back to the article on 
Cameron Diaz.

Several minutes passed.

Joe came to the end of the article and was 
flipping back to 
the table of contents when he paused and 
glanced up.  "Yo 
Jake!"

There was no answer.

"Kelley?"

Silence.

Joe stood and leaned over his desk to try and 
see into the 
back room.  Having no luck with that, he went 
around the desk 
and walked curiously to the back room.

"Hey Jake?  Whatcha doin', man?"

Joe rounded the corner and walked into the back 
room.  He 
looked around.  There was the row of coats, the 
old unused 
filing cabinets, a bulletin board, --

He glanced down.

"Oh, man...Jake!  Jake, can you hear me?  
Jake?!"

He knelt on the floor beside Kelley's prone 
body and felt in 
vain for a pulse.  Looking up helplessly, Joe 
stared for a 
moment, his breath coming in heavy, short 
gasps.  Then he 
jumped up and ripped the phone off the cradle.

The paramedics were there within ten minutes 
and packed Kelley 
into the ambulance.  It took off, siren 
piercing the still of 
the afternoon, leaving the police station 
quietly deserted.

No one had noticed the squirming bee lying on 
its back on the 
floor.


=========================
A.D. Skinner's office
3:27 p.m.
=========================

Skinner stood up from his desk, unable to think 
about the case 
anymore.  Unable to put off any longer the fact 
that it wasn't 
just a case.  He walked quickly out the 
adjoining door and 
rounded the corner, ignoring whatever his 
secretary was 
saying.  Somehow he thought that if he walked 
briskly enough 
and fast enough that maybe he could leave his 
problems behind, 
but as he left the office and saw the steady 
stream of people 
passing him by in the hall, he couldn't push 
the thoughts away 
anymore.

In all likelihood, Agents Mulder and Scully 
would never again 
be in that crowd of people.  Never again walk 
into his office 
doing the little act they always did, albeit 
restrainedly, in 
his office -- Mulder trying to push his theory 
into the light 
of plausibility and Scully standing there with 
the army of 
reason and science on her side, gently doing 
her best to keep 
Mulder back.

Skinner couldn't suppress a wry smile.  Rarely 
had Mulder ever 
been wrong.

And now he had killed himself.  And taken 
Scully with him.  It 
was unthinkable.

Suddenly he blinked, and realized he was 
standing outside his 
office door staring blankly at the crowded 
hallway.  He sighed 
and shook himself mentally.  It was then that 
he heard his 
secretary's insistent and worried calling.  He 
turned around 
and leaned on the doorframe.

"What is it, Kimberly?"

"Um...I'm sorry to bother you, sir, but there's 
a Margaret 
Scully on line one.  She says it's urgent," 
Kimberly amended, 
seeing the A.D's face tense.

Skinner sighed again.  "All right, I'll take it 
in my office."  
She nodded and he walked slowly back into the 
room he had 
spent countless years of his life growing to 
hate.

Forcing himself to pick up the phone, Skinner 
reconciled 
himself to one of the most difficult phone 
calls he had ever 
had to make.

"Mrs. Scully?"

There was a long pause, then a quiet, ragged 
sob.  "Mr. 
Skinner, *where* is my daughter?"

Skinner rubbed his forehead and sighed.  "Is 
there somewhere I 
can meet you?"


=========================
Haad Thai restaurant
Washington, D.C.
9:32 p.m.
=========================

Skinner looked up as Mrs. Scully hesitantly 
approached the 
small booth.  Standing, he stretched out his 
hand in greeting.  
"Mrs. Scully?  Good to see you again."

She took his hand, looking at him with 
remarkable eyes that 
were striking not as much in their beauty as in 
the strength 
behind them.  "It's good to see you too," she 
murmured, 
sliding in to her side of the booth.  Skinner 
sat as well.

Wasting no time, Maggie folded her hands on the 
table and met 
Skinner's eyes.  "Tell me...everything you 
know.  Please."

He exhaled slowly.  "I don't know where to 
begin."

"How?  I saw the news this afternoon.   Do you 
really think 
Fox could've done this?"

"I don't know.  All the evidence tells me 
otherwise, but...I 
have this feeling."
 
"He would *never* hurt my Dana.  I'm sure of 
it." 

Skinner nodded, looking around the room.  "I 
know; I feel the 
same way."

They were quiet, faced with two very familiar 
possibilities.  
Which was true?  The logical, Bureau-backed 
scenario, or 
something vague and improbable -- two people's 
intuition?  

Skinner and Maggie sat silently together.  They 
were, for this 
brief time at least, equals, sharing disbelief 
mixed with 
sadness as the night wore on.


=========================
Econo Lodge
Richmond, Virginia
11:03 p.m.
=========================

The news was on again.

Scully and Mulder sat besides each other on the 
floor at the 
foot of one of the beds watching the news on 
one of the local 
stations.  Scully glanced over at her partner, 
who was 
watching the TV screen absently.  She turned 
her attention to 
the television.  The same anchorwoman that was 
on in the 
afternoon was sitting at the news desk.

"And now, the latest on the abduction of F.B.I. 
agent Dana 
Scully."

Scully sat up straighter.  "Mulder, look."  A 
video clip of 
Skinner conversing with reporters had begun to 
play as the 
anchorwoman kept talking.

"We caught up with Walter Skinner, an Assistant 
Director at 
the F.B.I. and the Special Agent in Charge of 
the case, at a 
local D.C. restaurant."  The camera moved in as 
Mulder turned 
to Scully, a look of surprise in his eyes.  "I 
didn't know 
Skinner was appointed as the SAC in the case."  
"I didn't know 
he could be," Scully said in a low voice, also 
surprised.  
Then the sound on the video came up, and 
Skinner's words 
became audible.

"We're really not sure what happened at this 
point.  I can 
tell you, however, that the agents' car was 
located earlier 
this evening in a small lake just north of 
Roanoke, and there 
was enough of Agent Scully's blood found in the 
room and the 
car to assume that she did not survive."

Scully shivered almost imperceptibly but Mulder 
felt it and 
looked down at her.  She returned his gaze and 
relaxed against 
him as he put his arm around her shoulder and 
held her gently.

"Our forensics team also detected Agent's 
Mulder's blood in 
the interior of the car, indicating the 
possibility of a 
murder-suicide.  Neither one of the agents has 
been found," 
Skinner finished.  Scully heard the video clip 
fade out and 
allowed her eyelids to drift closed and her 
head to drop 
slowly onto Mulder's chest, listening to the 
rhythmic sound of 
his quiet breathing.  She was completely 
relaxed.

Then she felt him startle.  "What is it, 
Mulder?" she 
murmured.  

"Scully, isn't that your mother?"

Scully's head came up as her gaze was instantly 
riveted on the 
TV.  The reporter was still speaking.

"We also found Margaret Scully, Dana Scully's 
mother, at the 
restaurant with A.D. Skinner.  She declined our 
request for an 
interview, but she did have this to say."

Slowly her mother's words became audible.  "I 
can't deny the 
facts, but we will continue to hope and pray 
for my daughter's 
safe return."  There was a lump in Scully's 
throat as she 
watched her mother's tear-stained face.  She 
was so strong, 
always, but Scully knew how hard it was for 
her, having an 
F.B.I. agent for a daughter.  How every night 
there was that 
small part of her mother's mind that wondered 
as she went to 
bed whether Scully was safe.  Scully closed her 
eyes and felt 
Mulder's arm around her, drawing strength by 
his presence.  
And as she watched her mother push wearily 
through the swarm 
of eager reporters and get into her car, she 
knew that her 
decision to search for the truth would be 
harder than ever.


=========================
Somewhere in Virginia
11:31 p.m.
=========================

"Is everything going according to plan?" the 
man asked, his 
voice commanding respect and demanding an 
answer.

Another man turned to look at the large 
Mercator-projection 
map of Earth, stretching across a far wall.  
Indicating with a 
small wave of his hand the collection of small 
colored 
thumbtacks that littered the surface of the 
map, he spoke.  
"We are perfectly on schedule.  They will be 
pleased."

The first man walked slowly to the map and 
stood in front of 
it, sharp eyes taking note of the thumbtacks' 
positions and 
colors.  At last he turned to face the other 
men, silent and 
waiting.  He took out a cigarette and his 
lighter and flicked 
the wheel.  A flash of flame illuminated a 
wrinkled, bitter 
face.  His sudden smile struck fear into the 
hearts of the 
younger members.

"Let it begin."


=========================
Friday, August 20
6:54 a.m.
=========================

Mulder awoke to find himself in the same 
position he had been 
in when he drifted off last night.  Sitting -- 
lying, really -
- at the foot of the bed with Scully asleep on 
his shoulder, 
he lingered for a while, enjoying the time of 
peace and 
restfulness that exists only in the morning.

Finally realized he wasn't going to be able to 
go back to 
sleep, despite the enticingness of the idea, 
Mulder reached 
behind him and pulled a large pillow from the 
bed, then gently 
shifted Scully's sleeping form to the pillow.  
She stirred and 
opened her eyes unfocusedly, mumbling "What 
happened?" in 
bleary, faint tones.  

"Shhhhh...." Mulder whispered, softly brushing 
her tangled 
hair back from her face.  "Go back to 
sleep...I'm just going 
to get some coffee."  She nodded as her head 
dropped back into 
the pillow.  He stood and walked into the 
bathroom, emerging 
again in several minutes with his face swathed 
in white gauze 
bandages and the small tortoiseshell glasses 
on.  Feeling 
ridiculous and awkward with the clumsy but 
necessary disguise, 
he stood in the bathroom doorway for a few 
moments, watching 
Scully curled up on the floor and wondering if 
he should leave 
her, asleep and alone and unprotected.  Then he 
shook 
apprehensive thoughts aside and headed 
downstairs to the hotel 
coffee shop.

=========================

Scully awoke again a few minutes after Mulder 
left.  She sat 
up, slightly disoriented, then remembering 
where she was, she 
stood up and glanced around to see if Mulder 
had gone yet.  
The television was still playing quietly in the 
background.  
Scully got up, walked to the small wooden 
dresser was 
beginning to get dressed when she heard 
something on the TV 
that caught her attention.

=========================

Mulder strode into the little coffee shop on 
the ground floor 
of the hotel and picked up a Styrofoam cup, 
forcing himself to 
ignore the eight or ten people that were 
scattered around the 
lobby area drinking coffee or watching the TV 
that was 
attached to the corner of the ceiling.  He 
placed the cup 
under the spigot for coffee and glanced around 
the lobby, 
scanning the area for anyone who looked out of 
place.

"Excuse me," a voice spoke up from behind him.  
Mulder whirled 
around to see a balding man standing next to 
him, obviously 
waiting for his turn at the coffee machine.  
Mulder half-
smiled from sheer relief and moved out of the 
way, muttering, 
"Excuse me," as he did so.  The man nodded and 
began filling a 
cup with decaf.  "You live near here?"

Mulder's mind went on alert, but he remained 
pleasant and 
shook his head.  "I'm from Michigan," he told 
the man.

"Oh really?  Whereabouts?"

"Lansing area," Mulder ad-libbed, getting more 
suspicious by 
the minute.

The man nodded and looked at his coffee, then 
picked up a 
package of Sweet 'n Lo.  "What, uh...happened 
to your face?" 
he asked, looking Mulder straight in the eye.

"Car accident," Mulder said immediately, then 
wished he 
hadn't.

The man nodded again, sympathetically.  "More 
and more of that 
these days."

Mulder eyed him momentarily.  He seemed like 
just a tourist 
who was staying in the same hotel and liked to 
make friendly 
conversation, not a Syndicate agent.  Whether 
he was or not, 
he just stood there, silent now, stirring his 
coffee.  Mulder 
finally decided it was time to leave.  "Well, 
I've got to be 
heading back to my room now, so--"

"Wait a minute," the man said, now looking at 
the television 
at the end of the room.  He gestured to the 
screen.  "You hear 
about this?"

Mulder glanced up to the TV.

=========================

Scully, dressed now, switched the TV off and 
walked swiftly to 
the bedside table.  Relieved now that she had 
thought to put 
Mulder's new number on speed dial, she slid her 
cell phone off 
the table and into her palm.

=========================

His picture, taken for his F.B.I. badge, was 
plastered across 
the screen of the television.  Forcing himself 
to remain calm 
and stay put until he could leave quickly 
without attracting 
attention or suspicion, Mulder watched the Good 
Morning 
America news report with the rest of the people 
in the room.  
Just then, to his relief, his cell phone rang.

"Hello?" Mulder said in what he hoped was a 
cheery, 
vacationing tourist voice, glad he had 
remembered not to 
answer with "Mulder".

"Mulder, you have to come back up to the room.  
Is the 
television on down there?"

"Hi, honey," he said, for the benefit of the 
few people around 
him.  "Yeah, that's right."

"I'm guessing you're not alone," Scully said, 
the barest edge 
of amusement creeping around the edges of her 
brisk tone.  
"Can you get back up here without much notice?"

"All right, I'm coming right now, sweetheart," 
he smiled.  "Do 
you want any coffee...maybe a bagel or some 
orange juice?"

"That's good, Mulder.  Just come back up as 
soon as you can."

"Okay then.  I love you, honey."

There was a pause.  "I love you too, Mulder."  
Then the line 
went dead.

Mulder smiled, his first genuine smile since he 
had come 
downstairs, and leaned closer to the man.

"I got to go now," he said, winking at the man.  
"She hates to 
be left alone, if you know what I mean."

The man chuckled and Mulder smiled, thankful 
for the 
camaraderie between men about the affections of 
a woman.  He 
slowly backed towards the door.  "See you 
later," he said, 
raising one hand in farewell.  The man nodded 
and chuckled 
again.  Finally, Mulder was out the door and in 
the elevator.

=========================

Scully glanced up as the door to their room 
opened and then 
sighed in relief as Mulder walked tensely 
through the door and 
slid the chain lock into place.

"Mulder."  She stood in the middle of the room, 
with her hands 
on her hips, unwilling to let her relief show.

"I know, I know.  We have to be more careful."  
His voice 
tense with stress and frustration, he removed 
the glasses with 
one hand and began unwrapping the gauze from 
his face with the 
other.

"That's not what I was going to say."  He 
glanced up, eyes 
wide with guarded curiosity.  She continued.  
"Mulder, I think 
you need to stay here from now on."  His mouth 
opened in 
protest, but Scully cut him off and went on.  
"You are, at 
least to the police, a wanted criminal.  Your 
picture was just 
put on national television in front of millions 
of people 
across the country.  Do you know what could 
happen if just one 
person recognized you?"  He sighed, realizing 
the truth of her 
words.  She looked him in the eye, and her tone 
lowered.  "No 
one's expecting to see me, and I probably 
wouldn't be 
recognized if I were out by myself.  Besides, 
my picture's not 
the one they're showing.  I know this isn't 
anything we 
planned on having to do, but neither of us 
thought this story 
would get so much coverage.  Mulder," she said 
gently, putting 
her hand on his shoulder, "You know I'm right."

He nodded slowly and looked up to meet her 
gaze.  "We have to 
find an apartment as soon as possible."

"I know."

Mulder closed his eyes.  "Scully..." he began, 
shaking his 
head in quiet frustration.  "Our backs are up 
against the wall 
with this.  We have no access to any of the 
F.B.I. facilities, 
we can't go back to Alabama...we can't respond 
to the Lone 
Gunmen's message without attracting attention.  
I can't even 
leave our room anymore.  How are we going to 
find the truth 
when we've trapped ourselves in our own lie?"

Scully took his hand and looked up into his 
face.  "We did 
what we did because we had no choice."  Seeing 
her words were 
having little effect, she continued 
insistently.  "Mulder, if 
the date is really set, these people will not 
let you or me 
get in the way of their plans.  Several 
attempts were made on 
both of our lives, and I believe they weren't 
going to stop 
until we stopped looking for answers.  We could 
be either 
willfully ignorant or dead -- or sitting in 
this hotel room 
with a reasonable amount of freedom to search 
for the truth.  
I've made my choice, and so have you.  It won't 
be easy, but 
the truth *never is.*"

He nodded, reassured by her words.  They were 
silent together 
for a little while, and then Mulder stood up.  
"Now what?"

She thought for a minute.  "All we have to go 
on is the 
message from the Lone Gunmen."

Mulder's eyes lit up; he was glad to have 
something new to 
think about.  "Scully, I'll bet that if we went 
down to 
another Nature's Best office, you'd see Phillip 
Kahn sitting 
behind the desk."

Scully's brow furrowed, and finally she gave 
up.  "What are 
you saying?"

"I think they were trying to tell us that all 
the managers are 
the same.  They're clones, Scully, just like 
Jeremiah Smith."

"So -- wait.  If that's true, would they have 
the 
same...shape-shifting ability that Jeremiah 
Smith had?"

Mulder sobered.  "I hope not, Scully."  She 
looked down, 
considering the possibilities.  After a minute, 
she stood.  
"I'm going to go down to the lobby and get a 
cup of tea."  He 
nodded and switched the computer on.

=========================

Scully walked out of the elevator and into the 
now crowded 
lobby area, hoping that her confidence would 
hold.  There was 
a line of about six people for the coffee and 
hot water 
machines and she got in it quickly, looking 
around at the 
crowds of people out of habit and apprehension.  
She was 
dismayed at how paranoid she had become, but 
realized that 
their fears were grounded in reality.  Which 
made the fear 
worse.  ((Quite a vicious circle you've gotten 
yourself into, 
Dana.))

Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, she 
again looked 
around at the lobby, seeing it, she hoped, 
through more 
rational eyes than before.  Tourists were 
milling about in the 
foyer, buying maps and travel guides and 
whatever else would 
fit in those little fanny packs.  The coffee 
line had narrowed 
down to four people.  There were yellow 
newspaper dispensers 
lined up next to the table with the coffee and 
hot water, and 
Scully leaned down to read the headline out of 
curiosity and 
boredom.  The article was an unmemorable piece 
about some 
plans the mayor had to donate more park space 
to the city, but 
what caught Scully's attention as she glanced 
at the table of 
contents was enough to make her eyes widen in 
alarm.

=========================

A balding man stood alone in a desolate corner 
of the lobby, 
observing the people -- particularly the woman 
with the short 
brown hair by the coffee -- and speaking 
quickly and quietly to 
an invisible listener.

"I've found them." 

There was a slight pause.

"The Econo Lodge just east of downtown 
Richmond."

A longer pause.  The man listened intently.  
"All right."  He 
stepped away from the wall and walked to the 
waiting area.  
Picking up a newspaper, he seated himself in a 
chair near the 
small crowd of people and pretended to read, 
waiting for 
further instructions from the voices that spoke 
in his ear.

=========================

Mulder had almost finished changing his clothes 
when the door 
flew open and Scully was standing in the 
doorway.  He glanced 
up, surprised and mildly amused.  Scully didn't 
appear to 
notice, and as Mulder met her gaze, he saw that 
look in her 
eyes that he'd seen only once before -- the day 
last summer 
that she had told him she was resigning from 
the Bureau.  He 
felt his blood run cold as he looked into her 
eyes.  She was 
barely holding back tears.  Something serious 
had happened.  

"Scully?"

She walked into the room and tossed a newspaper 
down on the 
bed nearest Mulder.  He quickly pulled his 
pants on and sat 
down on the bed, picking up the paper.  It had 
been opened to 
the "News in our Neighborhood" section.  Mulder 
glanced up at 
Scully, the question in his eyes.  Wordlessly, 
she pointed 
down to the bottom of the page.

The headline read, "Nature's Best to Open Local 
Office".

He looked up sharply.  She nodded and 
whispered, "Read it."  
Mulder looked down at the paper again and read 
the brief 
article to himself.

'There's new hope for the unemployed this fall.  
Nature's 
Best, an agricultural company, is opening a 
huge facility 
right here in Richmond.  They are planning to 
hire over 500 
new Richmond employees.  "The company is 
expanding at such a 
rapid rate," said Phillip Kahn, the soon-to-be 
manager of the 
new Nature's Best office.  "We are expecting to 
more than 
triple our current facility area and land 
space."  Because of 
this rapid rate of expansion, Nature's Best 
will soon be 
opening hundreds of newly-built offices all 
over the U.S. and 
even more than that overseas.  The official 
grand opening is 
slated for Labor Day.'

Stunned, Mulder had to reread the article 
several times to 
convince himself of what he had just read.  
Then he closed his 
eyes and let the truth hit him like a freight 
train, the 
newspaper dropping from his hands and falling 
to the floor 
unheeded.

They were expanding, the article said.  
Worldwide expansion.  
If a Nature's Best facility included any of the 
things they 
had seen in that field in north Texas, then 
Mulder's darkest 
nightmare probably hadn't come close to what 
they could be 
facing.

The case in Payson, South Carolina came to 
Mulder's reeling 
mind.  All those children.  All those bees.

That was only a test.

Labor Day was seventeen days away.

A small sob caught his attention.  He looked up 
to see Scully 
standing in front of him, shoulders slumped in 
despondency and 
tears running down her cheeks.  He stood up and 
took her face 
in his hands, and she leaned against him, her 
body shaking 
with quiet sobs.  After a minute, she looked up 
into his eyes, 
her own filled with tears.

"Mulder...it's been so easy for me not to 
believe.  To 
rationalize, to push the things I don't 
understand to the back 
of my head, to stick to the rules of science.  
And now...I 
don't know what to believe any more...."

He pulled her closer and gently kissed her 
forehead, wrapping 
his strong arms around the woman he adored.  
"Oh, Scully..." 
he murmured, trying to impart to her courage he 
didn't really 
feel.  He closed his eyes, a part of his mind 
wishing he had 
never found the X-files, wishing he had never 
known there were 
forces beyond this world that held such 
unfathomable power 
over humankind, wishing he had met Scully at a 
little cafe in 
D.C. somewhere.  But he knew that they were 
doing what they 
were meant to be doing.  Whether or not he had 
believed in 
fate before the Cradock and Marine bank 
incident, he couldn't 
deny that it had made him think.  Maybe he and 
Scully were 
meant to be here, or maybe they were only here 
through a 
series of choices they had made somewhere in 
life, but they 
were here, together, in this hotel room, and 
this was the only 
place he could imagine himself.  Despite 
everything that had 
happened, he knew with deep certainty that 
neither he nor 
Scully would have changed anything about their 
lives together 
-- professional or otherwise.

"Mulder," she whispered, bringing him back to 
the present.  He 
looked down at her.  She was looking at him 
with such an 
expression of strength and beauty that it 
nearly broke his 
heart.  He couldn't bring himself to speak.  
"Mulder...this is 
really it, isn't it?"  Her words, so frank, 
brought Mulder's 
worst fears into the blinding light of 
certainty.  He nodded 
slowly.  "I think so, Scully."  In spite of 
himself, a tear 
slipped down his cheek, more for Scully than 
the rest of the 
world.

She saw the tear and caressed it away softly 
with her hand.  
He was touched and comforted by the gesture and 
shut his eyes, 
blocking out everything except the feel of her 
hand on his 
cheek.

=========================

The bald man's concentration was focused on a 
sound no others 
could hear.  After a moment, he breathed a 
nearly inaudible 
assent, and stood, folding the paper and 
placing it on the 
chair behind him.  He walked briskly to the 
elevator, paying 
no attention to the men who stood and began 
walking in the 
same direction as he went by.   

By the time he reached the elevator, he was 
followed by a 
group of ten or fifteen men, all 
inconspicuously dressed and 
each seemingly keeping to himself.  Once 
inside, a large, 
sinister-looking man placed his finger on the 
button for floor 
eleven and glanced at the bald man, who flicked 
his stare in 
his direction and nodded his head a fraction of 
an inch.

=========================


In the silence, Mulder's attention was drawn to 
the radio 
between the beds, playing a song softly.  
Something about it 
caught his interest, and he was aware of Scully 
also listening 
as he let the peace of the music wash over him.

"For all those times you stood by me
For all the truth that you made me see
For all the joy you brought to my life
For all the wrong that you made right
For every dream you made come true
For all the love I found in you
I'll be forever thankful, baby
You're the one who held me up
Never let me fall
You're the one who saw me through
Through it all."

Mulder looked down at Scully.  Her arms were 
wrapped loosely 
around his shoulders, her eyes closed.  He 
simply watched her 
for a moment until her eyes opened to look into 
his.  Both 
were unable to look away, their unspeaking gaze 
conveying more 
than words ever could as the words of the song 
spoke for them.

"You were my strength when I was weak
You were my voice when I couldn't speak
You were my eyes when I couldn't see
You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach
You gave me faith 'cause you believed
I'm everything I am
Because you loved me."

Scully looked into Mulder's eyes and was lost 
in their depths.  
They held such quiet passion that she couldn't 
move even if 
she had wanted to.  They were bright with the 
glimmer of 
unshed tears.  She wanted desperately to 
forget.  Forget that 
in two and a half weeks, the world would change 
harshly and 
they might lose each other forever.  As she 
gazed into his 
eyes, she knew he was feeling the same heart-
wrenching 
feelings.  But he gave her strength, just by 
his presence, and 
more than he could ever know.  And he was there 
for her, with 
unwavering love and support.  They would get 
through this. 
Together.

"You gave me wings and made me fly
You touched my hand; I could touch the sky
I lost my faith, you gave it back to me
You said no star was out of reach
You stood by me and I stood tall
I had your love, I had it all
I'm grateful for each day you gave me
Maybe I don't know that much
But I know this much is true
I was blessed because I was loved by you."

She was so beautiful.  And as Mulder watched 
her, he knew the 
song was affecting her as much as it was him.  
His hand 
strayed to her hair and he stroked it gently, 
unable to put 
into words the feelings he felt.  He pulled her 
closer and 
rested his head gently on hers, closing his 
eyes.  
Impulsively, he began to rock her slowly, 
savoring the 
strength her presence was building in him.  
Time had stopped 
for them, for the moment.  

"You were my strength when I was weak
You were my voice when I couldn't speak
You were my eyes when I couldn't see
You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach
You gave me faith 'cause you believed
I'm everything I am
Because you loved me."

Mulder bent his head and crooked a finger under 
Scully's chin 
to softly raise it.  Her eyes slowly opened, 
long lashes 
lifted to reveal a stunning blue-green.  
Intending to speak, 
his lips parted, but words would not come.  She 
glanced at his 
mouth, so close to hers, and then looked into 
his eyes again, 
her breath and pulse quickening.

"You were always there for me
The tender wind that carried me
A light in the dark shining your love into my 
life
You've been my inspiration
Through the lies you were the truth
My world is a better place because of you."

Their lips met and time stopped there -- frozen 
in a rainbow 
of hope and beauty.

"You were my strength when I was weak
You were my voice when I couldn't speak
You were my eyes when I couldn't see
You saw the best there was in me
Lifted me up when I couldn't reach
You gave me faith 'cause you believed
I'm everything I am
Because you loved me
I'm everything I am
Because you loved me."

The song ended, and after another moment so did 
the kiss.  
Scully leaned against Mulder's chest and closed 
her eyes 
again.  His hand came up to stroke her hair 
softly.  After a 
minute, she spoke, her voice a barely audible 
whisper.

"What are we going to do?  What *can* we do?  
We can't just 
stand by and wait for...it, whatever it is, to 
happen."

"I know," Mulder returned in a low tone.  "I 
don't know 
what...what we can do, but we have to do 
something.  We have 
to stop this.  Somehow, Scully.  We'll find a 
way," he 
murmured, his words muffled, his lips pressed 
to her hair.  
She gave a small nod, and reluctantly moved 
from his arms.  He 
let her go, watching her walk away to the other 
side of the 
room.

=========================

The man coolly watched the small round numbers 
over the 
elevator door light up and darken in 
succession.  

8...

9...

10...

11.

The doors slid open.

=========================

Scully sat at the table and flipped open the 
slim grey laptop, 
kicking off her shoes and taking a sip of tea.  
Mulder walked 
over and leaned over her shoulder.  "What are 
you thinking, 
Scully?"

She glanced up.  "If the company is going 
public now, there 
may be some new information on the Internet 
from the other 
cities where an office is opening.  At the very 
least we may 
be able to determine the scale of this."  She 
dropped her gaze 
back to the computer, taking a deep breath.  
After another 
moment, she spoke again, her words softly 
cutting to the heart 
and the truth of all they were facing.  "I know 
it won't do 
much, Mulder, but it's the only thing I can 
think to do right 
now."  He nodded, knowing too well the feeling 
he had seen in 
her eyes -- the quiet desperation, the 
futility, the need to 
do something, anything really, and the 
overwhelming feeling 
that nothing could ever make a difference.  

After a moment he stood and walked to the door.  
Scully turned 
around.  "Mulder?  Where are you going?"

He looked at her and waved an empty package of 
sunflower 
seeds, smiling sheepishly.  She rolled her 
eyes.  "Come on, 
Mulder.  Can't you live without those things?"

"You wouldn't deny Popeye his spinach, would 
you, Scully?"

She groaned and rolled her eyes again.  "And 
what if someone 
sees you?"

"Snack machine's just around the corner, 
Scully," he said, 
opening the door.  He shot her the 'hey-it's-
me' look.  "Be 
back in a flash."

She smiled in spite of herself and turned back 
around to the 
computer.

=========================

The men walked silently, navigating without a 
word down the 
maze of mulberry-carpeted corridors.  Finally, 
the bald man 
stopped and held up his hand.  He glanced 
around at the 
others.  One man stepped forward, withdrew a 
small white 
plastic card from his pocket, and inserted it 
into the door.  
It clicked open without a sound, and the men 
advanced quietly 
into the room.

Scully heard a noise behind her and turned with 
a small 
welcoming smile to greet Mulder.

The smile disappeared instantly when she saw 
the men.

She shot up, automatically preparing to defend 
herself, her 
service weapon in hand.  At that moment, the 
last man entered 
the room, dragging a man in a choke hold with a 
gun to his 
head.

"Mulder!"

She watched, helpless, as Mulder struggled in 
the man's grip.  
She glanced up sharply as a suit-clad man 
stepped forward, 
keeping something with a silencer trained on 
her as he did so.  
"Put down your gun."

Unwilling to surrender, she glanced around at 
the men, her 
mind searching furiously for some way of 
escape.  Her silence 
was mistaken for indifference, and the man 
holding Mulder slid 
back the hammer on the gun with a vicious yank 
at his neck.  
Her breath caught softly, and she looked 
desperately at 
Mulder.  He returned her gaze, mouthing 
raggedly, "Scully, 
don't..."

Scully felt a deep sense of failure and sadness 
as she raised 
her hands in surrender and set her gun on the 
floor.  The man 
nodded and smiled grimly, then signaled with a 
crook of his 
finger.  Two men detached themselves from the 
group and strode 
over to Scully, pinning her arms roughly behind 
her back.  The 
man on the right shoved a small white cloth 
over her mouth.  
As she recognized the sickening sweet smell of 
chloroform, her 
gaze returned to Mulder's face.  As their eyes 
met, his face 
twisted in a grin, and the man holding Mulder 
released his 
grip.  Suddenly, a man was standing before 
Scully, a man that 
she had seen only several times before.  A man 
who had looked 
like her partner only a moment before and now 
was someone 
impossibly different.  Her eyes widened as she 
realized what 
had happened, but by then the chloroform had 
begun to take 
effect.  Her vision greyed as she collapsed in 
the men's arms.

=========================

Mulder grit his teeth in frustration as the 
vending machine 
spit his dollar bill back on the floor again.  
Fishing in his 
pocket, he found some change, fed the coins to 
the machine, 
and punched the buttons for sunflower seeds.  
Nothing 
happened.  He hit the buttons again, with no 
result.  His mind 
flashing back to a similar time, he walked 
around to look 
behind the machine, hoping with a wry smile 
that this time it 
was plugged in.

As he bent down to check the plug, he heard 
approaching 
footsteps.  Some old instinct born out of 
paranoia made him 
stay behind the machine out of sight until they 
left.  He 
glanced at the first man's face and his blood 
ran cold.

The man from the lobby, his face hard and grim.

He had to get back, to warn Scully somehow.

((But...then why are they walking *away* from 
our room?))

His mind couldn't consider this at the moment 
and he instantly 
forgot the thought as more men appeared, 
stalking down the 
hall.  He pressed himself flat against the 
wall, his heart 
racing.  If they saw him, there'd be no way he 
could escape.  
And then they'd go after Scully...and he'd have 
to watch as 
they took her.

He shut his eyes momentarily, shoving away from 
his mind's eye 
images of her being taken.  When he opened 
them, he realized 
that the men's footsteps were farther down the 
hall by now, 
and he dared to shoot a glance down the 
hallway.  When he did, 
the last of the men was turning the corner.  He 
stepped into 
the hall, looking around for anyone else, then 
he broke into a 
run in the direction of their room, hoping 
against hope that 
they hadn't been able to find the room.


=========================
U.S. 60 East
9:07 a.m.
=========================

The black sedan, flanked by several jeeps, 
cruised down the 
road away from the hotel.  Inside, a woman lay, 
apparently 
unconscious, between two neatly dressed men.  
Two small 
handguns lay on the seats next to the two men, 
and each man 
had a hand casually resting on the weapon 
closest to him, eyes 
never straying from their gaze straight ahead.

A tinny ringing sound could be heard suddenly -
- though the 
men in the back seat never showed the slightest 
flicker of 
interest, and the woman never moved -- and the 
man in the 
passenger seat of the car smoothly opened a 
cell phone and 
raised it to his ear.

"Yes?"

The voice on the other end spoke, the sound 
hollow and 
metallic over the cell phone.  "Have you met 
with success?"

The man in the car allowed his gaze to touch 
briefly on the 
unconscious woman, and answered, "Partial 
success, sir."

"Only partial?"

He frowned.  "Yes...*he* was not there when we 
entered, but 
his partner was, and she is in our custody now.  
We left a man 
behind in case he comes back."

There was a pause, and the man spoke again, 
after a moment, to 
fill the silence rather than endure it.  "Sir, 
we can be ready 
in an hour if this is inade--"

"No," came the voice, smirking and smug in its 
self-assured 
brilliancy.  "Let him be."

Waiting momentarily for an explanation, and 
receiving none, 
the man inquired, in a tone of slight 
confusion, "Sir?"

"Divide and conquer," the voice proclaimed.  
"If these two are 
separated, their primary focus will be on 
finding each other 
again, not on this...obsessive quest for the 
*truth,* as they 
see it."  His tone was drenched in disdain.  
"No, leave Mulder 
alone.  His concern and even love for his 
partner will fill 
his head; he won't be able to think about 
anything else.  
He'll blames himself, his concentration will be 
gone...without 
her, he's really nothing more than a paranoid 
lunatic.  
Besides, it may even leave him open to 
certain...possibilities?"  The harsh smile in 
the man's voice 
was impossible to miss.

The first man nodded, though he knew the caller 
wouldn't be 
able to see, and murmured "All right," into the 
phone, then 
hung up, taking another glance at Agent Scully 
before 
signaling the driver to take the next exit for 
the I-295.


=========================
Send all comments, compliments, flames, or 
anything else you 
feel like saying to specialagentdana@aol.com.  
Feedback is 
practically begged for, as usual :)