By Quim
quim@qtp.ufl.edu
DISCLAIMER: Fox Mulder, Dana Scully, The X-Files and all its characters
belong to Chris Carter, Ten-Thirteen Productions and Fox Network.
But everybody knows that. If they were mine, Mulder and Scully
would be busy making UberScullys. Since Mr. Carter insists in
torturing X-Files fans everywhere with mind games (yeah, I like
"Seinfeld" as well), I decided to play doll with them as relief
for my frustration, driven solely by the deep admiration and
affection that I feel for such characters. Other than that, I
am not making any money out of this experience. In summary,
No infringiment is intended.
Rating: R. The typical action thriller associated with the Conspiracy
theme.
There is some violence and a couple of bad words, but nothing
you won't see in the actual show.
Classification: XA (X-File, Adventure). Mild doses of ScullyAngst
and MulderAngst.
Spoilers: Multiple spoilers for all seasons, especially the fourth
one.
It ain't
fun otherwise. People might easily recognize in special
"Zero
Sum", "Tunguska" and "Terma". Very mild references
to "Memento
Mori" and "Wetwired". But this story stands alone.
I will
assume that Mulder somehow has escaped alive in "Gethsemane",
because
considering any option otherwise is downright stupid.
Keywords: Mulder/Scully UST, just hints of MSR. Non-shippers
(is there still
anyone
left after "Memento Mori" ???) should be fairly safe with
a modest
exercise of denial. Anti-shippers should bail out and go
watch
"One Breath" and "Memento Mori" until their eyes are open.
Summary : The Lone Gunmen uncover the connection between a series
of murders
and a
scientific experiment. Suddenly everybody connected to the
ordeal
is dying in misterious ways. Can Mulder and Scully get to the
answers
before the Consortium or the KGB make them disappear ?
Author's note: thanks to Penny Daza for incentive and Emily Phelps
for
reading
the story pre-post, criticism and very useful discussions.
********** Chapter I ************
Saint Petersburg, Russia
August 13th
3:00 P.M.
Vassily Peskov enjoyed the warm days of Saint Petersburg.
A sophisticated
man, he considered himself very fortunate. He lived in
one the most beautiful
towns in Europe, flooded with cultural flourishing. Each
building was an
architectural beauty. History also have been generous
to the town. Few cities
in the World had had the opportunity of seeing so many
wars, revolutions
and kings passing by. Saint Petersburg had, and survived.
Peskov's own life had been full of adventure and excitement.
Now retired, he
still enjoyed the success he had previously experienced.
He was quite good
at his job, and he knew it. The condecorations he carefully
kept in a box
by his bedside often gave him a glimpse of the past. Glorious
past in which
he had put his life at risk for the Party and Mother Russia,
and invariably
got out alive. All missions accomplished. A tribute to
both his skill and
intelligence. And his ability to always be at least two
steps ahead any
opposition.
Even though the times were not as good as before, he still
enjoyed the
reminiscing. A cup of samouvar also was a symbol of the
comfort that
characterized his present life. As he watched the sun
still high, he sighed.
Vassily Peskov was a very fortunate man indeed.
However, he expected that sometimes the past came back
to haunt him.
His senses were still sharp and he felt someone watching
him. He turned
back to see a young man staring at him. The man lacked
a arm. Peskov
immediately knew that his retirement would be interrupted.
"Zdravo, Tovarich Krycek. What brings you to Saint Petersburg ?"
"I am here to ask another favor, Tovarich Peskov."
"You know I am retired. I helped you last time."
"Da, and I am grateful for that. But something new has
come to our attention."
Apartment 42
2630 Hegal Place
Alexandria, VA
August 13th
10:00 A.M.
Fox Mulder woke up in his couch. Crap, I overslept, he
thought. Another
good saturday morning wasted. He had had a good
dinner the night before,
so although he was a little hungry, he decided to skip
breakfast and have
a nice lunch. Better be in good shape tonight, he thought.
He would have
dinner with one of the most extraordinary, generous, intelligent
women in
his life.
Mulder had a good shower and dressed. He had to spend the
entire afternoon,
and he wanted to make sure it would have nothing to do
with aliens or freaks
or mutants. His first impulse was to get his telephone
and call his partner
Dana Scully, but he remembered she was participating in
a forensics seminar
at Quantico. The last time they had had some time together
was their usual
after-work drinks at the Headless Woman Pub. It had been
only two days ago,
but boy, did he missed her. It would be hell to spend
two days without
talking to Scully.
Of course he could use his usual 900 number to alleviate
the frustration,
but he wanted to keep his telephone bill under control.
Furthermore,
lately his sexual sublimation routes were not so efficient
as before.
For some reason, any video watching invariably made his
brain rewire into
fantasies over the luscious, diminutive body of... Dana
Scully.
So he decided to get his thoughts away from such dangerous
paths and simply
have some good, honest laughter. Nothing better than chat
for some hours
with his friends, The Lone Gunmen. The wacky, paranoid
computer nerds that
ran the anti-government tabloid entitled 'The Magic Bullet'.
He caught his
gun and his coat and left, not failing to notice that
the metal "2" on his
front door was falling again.
For once, he chose not to pay attention and simply left.
'The Lone Gunmen' Headquarters
Somewhere in Washington, D.C.
11:30 A.M.
Mulder checked one last time the alley behind. He knocked the door.
Byers opened the door and looked around. Mulder couldn't help but laugh.
"Don't worry Byers, I was careful not to be followed." He entered.
Inside the office, Langly was playing with the last technological
gadget
they had stolen. Frohike made some annotations and greeted
Mulder with a
smile and a hand waving. Mulder knew that their focused
attitude meant
they had come across something big. He dropped his coat.
Frohike playfully
teased.
"What are you doing here in a Saturday, Mulder ? If I were
you, I would
take your pretty partner to a picnic by the Potomac or
something."
"She is out of town for three days. I was just passing
by and I decided
to hang in for a while."
"You came just in time, we were about to go out for lunch."
This is what I call a perfect timing, he thought. They
left the office
and went to a popular restaurant in Georgetown. After
the lunch, they came
back to the office. As Byers fixed some coffee, Frohike
approached Mulder.
"You will not believe what we came across two days ago.
Look at that, these
are patients of a cancer research clinic. They all suffered
of different
types of cancer. Some of them had been given six months
of lifetime at
best."
Mulder frowned at the thought. He knew the boys had not
stopped looking
for answers to the mystery of Scully's cancer. Not since
they had breached
the security of the fertility clinic and Mulder himself
had nearly died at
the hands of one of the Consortium's hit men.
Langly continued the report.
"One month ago, the patients started to improve. All of
them. It was like
a miracle. Nobody knows exactly how it happened."
"And how did you guys know about this mass miracle ?" He
was almost afraid
to ask.
Byers took over the conversation.
"Two of the patients had access to the internet. They sent
messages talking
about their recovery. They even participated in some chat
rooms on cancer
research. Word gets around. Several patients had such
a dramatic improvement
that they were released and went back to their homes.
Friends and families
made so much noise that they called the attention of the
press in some
towns. One of our collaborators passed us the information."
"And what's the official word from the clinic ?"
"Not a word. With all that brouhaha, the government has
temporarily closed
the clinic with the pretext that the establishment is
under investigation
for charlatanism and malfeasance. No details were released.
The responsible
for the project, Dr. Harold Forsythe, left the clinic
and his whereabouts
are currently unknown. But the best part is still to come."
"One of the patients, a 50-year old man, was killed one
week ago. Shot
in his own home. You may have seen it on the news. The
local police
conveniently attributed the incident to burglary."
"So ?..." Mulder remembered having seen something of the
sort.
"Another patient was killed three days ago. Similar circumstances.
Just
to be sure we were not imagining things, we waited for
today's papers to
check. And, bang ! There it goes. Another murder."
Byers put the final touches.
"This is not a coincidence, Mulder. Someone is killing
these people. And
it has to do with their miraculous cure. Perhaps it is
a good opportunity
for you to do some digging and make your salary be worth
our tax dollars."
Mulder could barely contain his excitement. This could
mean that he might
perhaps find a solution for the worst of his nightmares.
Margaret Scully's residence
Baltimore, MD
7:30 P.M.
Margaret Scully lit another candle. The dinner was almost
ready.
She was looking forward to see Fox Mulder again. They
had not talked
since Dana's last stay at the Hospital. Margaret was very
fond of this
strange, dark man who had completely taken over her daughter's
life.
Mulder rang the bell punctually at 7:30 P.M. Margaret
opened the door
and gave him a hug.
"It's good to see you, Fox."
"Same here, Mrs. Scully. I brought you flowers and a bottle
of wine.
White, because Dana told me you prefer it."
"Thanks Fox. There was no need of it. Are you hungry ?"
"Ah, a little. Actually I was looking forward to talk to you again."
"Yeah, we haven't talked so much since..."
The memory removed the smile from her. Both Mulder and
Margaret found
themselves staring at the pictures of Melissa and Dana,
smiling like
two little girls... Innocent... Happy...
Before everything started.
Before Dana's abduction. Before Melissa's death. Before
Dana's cancer.
Before Fox Mulder. Margaret knew the thought had crossed
his mind. She
had to talk him out of this guilty trip.
"Don't be sorry Fox. I don't blame you for anything that
happened. I
know how you feel about Dana, and I know you are doing
everything
possible to save my baby girl. Dana told me how you supported
her when
she was in the hospital. How you discovered the treatment
would not help
her at all. You gave her time, Fox. Only for that you
might have saved her.
I know you will put things right. Don't lose faith. I
haven't."
Mulder felt uneasy about talking to Mrs. Scully about
such things. But he
admired this strong, well-meaning lady, who had lost husband
and a daughter
and undergone so much tragedy in her recent life, and
still could
inspire confidence in the future.
I wish my mother had been that strong, he thought. But
immediately he
regretted the comparison. True, his mother had perhaps
done wrong in her
life, but Mulder still didn't know the details or the
exact circumstances.
He chastised himself for being so insensitive. He was
surprised with Mrs.
Scully's next words, which made him suspect she could
read his mind.
"Dana told me about what happened in Quonochontaug some months ago."
Mulder didn't say anything. He was not sure how to proceed.
"You see Fox, when Dana was gone you told me how you had
been hurt all
your life. By people whom you loved. I don't want to discuss
the merit
of these ill-doings. I always like to think that no matter
what happens
in our lives, happiness and love will always be within
our reach. We just
have to look at them. And know where to look."
"I wish I could see it in your family, Mrs. Scully... But
I have brought
up so much pain to Dana's life... She deserves so much
better."
"Fox, you're wrong. God knows that you mean a lot
to Dana. You are her
best friend. You are the only one she trusts.
Since that night when you
came here looking for her, I have never heard Dana speaking
of you except
with love and admiration. Well, perhaps once
or twice she complained of
you leaving her behind."
He felt reassured and chastised at the same time. This
time he could not
fail this family. He would not.
"I will not give up Mrs. Scully. I will find a way of saving
Dana.
I don't know how, but I am looking. Everywhere."
"I know dear. And I am happy that Dana has a man who cares
so much
about her. Dana is a difficult woman to be around, Fox.
She's so
vibrant, and intelligent. She has such a sense of duty.
She got
it from Bill, I guess. Sometimes she will not show how
much she
appreciates you being around. But she does."
The rest of the night, they didn't talk about the past.
For the moment,
Mulder was glad that they could chat for some hours without
him having to
bring her bad knews.
46th Street, New York
August 14th
10:13 A.M.
The Well-Dressed Man impatiently paced around the office.
This was not
going according to the plan. On the table, his associates
discussed possible
alternatives to proceed with the project. The Cigarette-Smoking
Man entered
the room. He lit a cigarette while the Well-Manicured
Man briefed the meeting.
"I think we all know that the project has come to a breakthrough.
The final
experimentation was successful, perhaps too successful
to keep discrete.
Now it looks like information has been leaking, in more
ways than we could
ever anticipate."
The Cigarette Man took over. He had to show he still controlled the situation.
"We are now taking precautions for the patients to be conveniently
removed.
Our only problem is the main file concerning the final
stages of the project."
The Well-Manicured Man grew more and more impatient with
this lack of
security. Americans were so full of themselves, and yet
they can't keep
their own vaults locked without some joker telling everybody
the secret.
"What do you mean ? The doctor in charge should be removed immediately."
The Cigarette-Smoking Man puffed the smoke. This movement
always gave
everybody else an impression of undisturbed confidence.
"And he has been. However, the file is gone. Someone copied
all the relevant
information to a disk. And the disk was not found anywhere
in the clinic.
Don't worry, it is just a matter of time before we get
it. We only have to
be careful that the russians or the british don't get
the disk before we do."
The Well-Manicured Man was not convinced.
"You make sure that they don't. Or you will have a lot
of explaining to do.
We cannot risk exposure."
"Don't worry. I am well aware of the implications."
Apartment 42
2630 Hegal Place
Alexandria, VA
August 14th
11:21 A.M.
The telephone rang two or three times before Mulder got it.
"Huuummm... Mulder."
"Mulder, it's me."
"Scully ? Where are you ?"
"Home. I came back from Quantico early. That workshop was
boring, and I
didn't feel like wasting the Sunday. I got everything
I wanted from the
lectures on microscopic diagnosis and DNA polymorphisms..."
"Scully, what are you wearing ?
She couldn't help but laugh. "Ah, by the way, I talked
to my mother
this morning. Thanks for being there. You know, Charlie
has been
sort of out of touch lately..."
"Don't mention it. I like talking to your mother. After
all, she is the
closest thing I have to a family. So, can I see
you today ?"
"Maybe. Do you have anything in mind ? Mutants, flukes or UFOs ?"
"Nothing of the sort. I was thinking about something light,
romantic.
Can you meet me at our place ? What about, humm, in one
hour ? We can
talk about it, and I'll treat you for lunch. Real food."
Scully raised her eyebrows at Mulder's invitation.
"I'm impressed Mulder. I have to tell Mom to have you
for dinner more often."
"I don't think so. Your mother might spoil me, and I don't
know if I can
stand so much healthy food. Well, see you later. Our place,
okay ?"
"I'll be there. Bye Mulder."
The reflective pool
Washington Memorial Monument
12:40 P.M.
Dana Scully carefully examined the papers her partner had
brought to her.
Meanwhile, Mulder chewed sunflower seeds. He knew Scully's
opinion about
The Lone Gunmen, but waited for her to voice it.
"This is crazy Mulder. You know The Lone Gunmen cannot
have access to this
amount of information. At least, not legally."
"Yeah, but I have learned to trust them in certain matters
such as sneaking
into classified information and do some funky pouching."
Scully remembered the last time Mulder had ventured into
some action
adventure with The Lone Gunmen. She still didn't know
if she should be
grateful or angry for Mulder sticking his neck for her.
"Well, what concrete information do you have ? I mean,
other than news
footage, internet chat and stolen documents from
the government ?"
Mulder took from his pocket a list of names and addresses.
"Byers gave me the list of patients of the clinic that
have not yet been
killed. Three of them, two living in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
We could
drive there, enjoy the local cuisine and take some pictures."
"Your idea of a romantic Sunday afternoon is really spooky.
Investigating
murders. And starting from a tip from The Lone Gunmen."
"Yeah, but at least I am not leaving you behind during
the weekend.
I didn't enjoy a bit the last time I did it."
What the heck, Scully thought. At least they would have
some outdoor
activity. She was worried about the perspective of Mulder
spending
another weekend alone in the basement, working like Ebenezer
Scrooge.
And that was the main reason for what she had left the
boring seminar
at Quantico. She had been delighted to hear he had spent
the evening at
her mother's. Scully didn't quite understand the depth
of the bonding
her partner and her mother shared, but she reveled on
the thought.
After lunch, they stopped by her place to pick one or two
things and hit
the road.
Barnes family residence
1013 W 14th Avenue
Harrisburg, PA
3:00 P.M.
Vassily Peskov rang the bell and waited. After some time,
he noticed
nobody was coming to answer. He put his gloves and tentatively
grabbed
the door knob. The door was open. Peskov immediately recognized
that
something was wrong. He carefully entered the house.
Peskov examined the room. Everything was in an apparent
order. He thought
about calling to see if someone appeared, but his instincts
told him to
remain silent... and alert. He drew his rarely used gun.
As he approached a door to a room, he caught a glimpse
of what seemed
like a shadow moving on the floor. Coming towards the
corridor.
Peskov only had time to throw himself to the floor. A man
in black turned
towards him with a gun in his hand. Peskov quickly fired
two times.
Cautiously approaching the body, Peskov searched him.
If he was lucky,
perhaps this whole ordeal might be over now and he would
be able to go
back to Saint Petersburg. Unfortunately for him, he didn't
find what
he was looking for.
A quick search over Barnes' house revealed nothing besides
the dead body
of James Barnes, plus a total wreck at his reading room.
Peskov infered
that his now dead adversary had probably been looking
for the same thing
he was, and had not been successful. Therefore, there
was no point in
unnecessarily remaining in a crime scene.
As he left the house, Vassily Peskov wondered if this mission
was becoming
a race against time. He took off his gloves and reached
in his pocket for
a list of names and addresses. He crossed out the name
of James Barnes and
checked the next address. As Peskov calmly headed towards
his next target,
he saw the lights of police cars and ambulances passing
by him.
Josh Davis' residence
566 S 3rd Street
Harrisburg, PA
3:10 P.M.
Josh Davis was enjoying a warm afternoon. He contently
put a sign
"For Rent" in front of his house. As soon as he arranged
a fair deal,
he would get a cruise ship to the Bahamas. He had decided
to taste every
moment of his life, now that his time had been returned
to him. Birds
singing and flowers growing were undeniably enjoyable
for him these days.
He observed as a car stopped in front of his house. A young
couple casually
dressed left the car and approached him. Certainly newlyweds
looking for
a place to live in the neighbourhood, he thought. The
small woman flashed
her badge and addressed him.
"Good afternoon. My name is Dana Scully, and this is my
partner,
Fox Mulder. We are with the FBI. Can we ask you some questions
about your treatment, Mr. Davis ?"
"Sure. But what's going on ? I hope this has nothing to
do with the
murders of the patients of the clinic. I decided to get
out of here
as soon as I saw the news..."
"Unfortunately it has, Mr. Davis. We are trying to track
down a certain
piece of information that was probably in the possesion
of the clinic.
Did you have any recent contact with Dr. Forsythe ?"
"Yeah, we were friends. It was him who gave me incentive
to use the
computers in the clinic to talk about the research in
the internet."
"Did he give you an address where you could reach him ?"
"No, but he told me he was going to disappear for a while.
You know,
with the clinic being investigated, etc. I think he mentioned
once
that he had a summer house in Syracuse. But I don't know
the address."
Mulder decided to try something more along the lines of his personal agenda.
"Did he ever explain to you what was the treatment about ?"
"No, not really. I only know that, all of a sudden, we
started to get
better. All of us. It was like a miracle. I for myself
am grateful."
"It is quite understandable, Mr. Davis. Being cured of
a terminal disease
is not something to be taken lightly."
"No, this is not what I mean. I used to think that at sixty-three
I had
nothing to look ahead. Now some time has been given back
to me. And I
am going to make the most of it. I am going to party.
Take ballroom
dance lessons. Play golf. Whatever."
Scully was taken aback by the old man's enthusiasm and
high spirits.
She remembered how months ago, right before her cancer
being diagnosed,
she had fallen to a depression that led her to a reckless
and almost
self-destructive path.
Meanwhile, Mulder was trying to get something more out of the interview.
"Do you know anything about some piece of equipment...
Or perhaps
data... that could have anything to do with the treatment
?"
"Well, he gave me a diskette the day before I was released.
He said
it had ideas for a web page for the treatment, once it
proved successful.
I never had the opportunity of using it. Seems to be uncoded,
and my
personal computer can't read it."
Fox Mulder felt like he was about to grab the Holy Grail itself.
"Mr. Davis, would you mind if we take this disk with us
back to Washington
and examine it ? It might contain information that could
lead to Dr.
Forsythe's whereabouts."
"Humm... No, take it. I can't use it anyways."
Scully didn't understand what Mulder was expecting to find
in the disk,
but made a mental note to ask him later, when they were
alone. As they
left Davis' house, Mulder noticed his partner was in a
quiet mood.
"You okay Scully ?"
"Yeah, I... It is amazing how Mr. Davis is dealing with
his perspective.
I was reminded that life still is worth living."
"Don't worry Scully. You will find a way out of this. We can't give up."
"I know. And I won't give up. As far as I have you."
Mulder felt like reassuring his partner. As they walked
towards the car,
Davis observed how Mulder gently put his arm around Scully's
shoulder.
She promptly put her arm around his waist and rested her
head on his
shoulder. Davis couldn't help but wonder how lovely this
couple was.
Barnes family residence
Harrisburg, PA
4:30 P.M.
Mulder and Scully drove slowly along the streets of Harrisburg,
looking
for the next address in the list. When they reached Barnes'
house,
flashing lights from police cars and ambulances were everywhere.
"What is going on here ???"
"Looks like we missed a wild party."
They left the car and approached the scene. As they were
stopped by a
policeman, Mulder flashed his badge.
"Agents Mulder and Scully, FBI. Can you tell us what happened here ?"
"Well, it looks like a burglary. Someone in the neighbourhood
heard
shots being fired and called 911. When we arrived, there
were those
two bodies inside. One of them was the owner. The other
one has not
yet been identified. The house is a wreck."
After talking with the local police and the detective in
charge,
they both entered the house and examined the place. Mulder
put the
rubber gloves and approached John Barnes' body. From the
pocket of
Barnes' shirt he took a small piece of paper in which
someone had
written an address:
SUMMER RESIDENCE
3466 SW 12TH ST.
SYRACUSE, NY
Mulder's eidetic memory reminded him that the address was
among
those in his list. Mulder discretely put the paper in
his pocket
as Scully approached him.
"Mulder, John Barnes' name was in the list that Byers gave
you.
This murder has to be related to the clinic."
"If someone is trying to make the patients disappear, he
will wait
two ot three days before he strikes again. Nothing will
come from
the investigation from the local police. Come on Scully.
Let's get out of here."
"And what are we supposed to do now ?"
"Well, soon will be 5:00 P.M. What do think about we go
to the park
and take some pictures ? Watch the sunset ? We could have
dinner later
and watch the last show at the Museum of Scientific Discovery."
She raised her eyebrow at his boyish grin.
"You just can't get away from the flying saucers, can you, Mulder ?"
"Come on Scully. It will be fun. After all, it is Sunday."
************************** End of Chapter I *******************************
********** Chapter II ************
Planetarium
Museum of Scientific Discovery
Strawberry Square
Harrisburg, PA
9:30 P.M.
Mulder and Scully peacefully watched the show at the Planetarium.
Mulder
couldn't help but put his arm over Scully. She silently
rested her head
on his shoulder and relish every moment. Mulder whispered
in her ear,
"See, I told you it would be a lovely, romantic Sunday."
"I have to agree. It's beautiful. I have not been in a
Planetarium
in ages."
"You should trust my leaps more, Scully."
"I will. You are the only one I trust, Mulder. You know that."
Scully wasn't sure if she should allow herself to feel
what she was
feeling. Although she didn't want to spoil the night,
something
compelled her to shop talk for a while.
"Mulder, what are we going to do about the doctor ? If
The Lone
Gunmen are right, his life might be in danger. We have
to find
him."
"Tomorrow morning we start bright and early. With the resources
of
the bureau we should be able to find him more quickly.
For the
moment, I just want to enjoy."
Scully looked at Mulder's face. As the stars and planets
danced over
their heads, she noticed how Mulder's eyes twinkled with
fascination.
He looked like a small kid in a candy shop.
She gently put her head back to his shoulder and watched
the show.
Holiday Inn
Harrisburg, PA
11:21 P.M.
Mulder was really tired after the Sunday errands. They
could have gone
back to Washington, but had decided to spend the night
at Harrisburg and
start fresh in the morning. Since they were not officially
on duty,
Scully suggested they shared a room in a good hotel, instead
of the usual
two-rooms-in-a-dump arrangement. She showered first, while
he turned on
the TV and scanned the news. Nothing. He turned off the
TV and prepared
to shower.
To Mulder's astonishment, Scully left the bathroom, wrapped
up in a towel.
Her hair was still wet. Her scent filled the room, and
Mulder felt
inebriated. He couldn't help but staring at her bare legs.
The sight
rendered him paralyzed. This was going to be a VERY long
night ahead.
"It's your turn, Mulder. There is still soap in the tub. Mulder ?..."
"Ahh, yeah... I'm going. Did you bring your pajamas ?"
"No, I didn't expect to spend the night here. This means
that I will
have to sleep naked. And don't you dare to peek." Inside,
she was
willing him to.
Mulder chuckled and turned around. Two could play this
game. He had
stripped in front of her before, the last time in a military
base in
Albany, NY during the case of the flight 549 crash, so
he knew she was
not squeamish about nudity. If you can dish it out, you
can take it, he
thought. Without waiting for her to say anything else,
he promptly took
off his jeans.
Scully got a very complete view of his muscular legs.
And the red speedos.
For seconds that seemed like an eternity, Scully remained
speechless.
Without looking back, Mulder quietly put his reading glasses,
pretended
to get something from his bag so as to give her a good
view, and calmly
walked into the bathroom. The sight rendered her paralyzed.
Scully barely could keep still with the sight still haunting
her senses.
Why on earth did he have to put those glasses, she cursed
to herself.
As Mulder showered, Scully tucked in the bed and pulled
the sheets to
cover her bare body. She also noticed she was starting
to feel very hot
and wet under the sheets. Her own scent was at the same
time a gift from
Heaven and a reminder of how she didn't want to be in
this awkward
situation. She suspected Mulder knew what he was doing
to her.
Mulder left the bathroom, also wrapped in a towel. As he
tucked in the bed,
he turned his head and smiled at his partner. He still
had the glasses on.
"Good night Scully. Sleep well."
Fat chance now, Scully thought. She turned off the lights.
"Good night Mulder. Have nice dreams."
"I will dream of you."
Neither one of them got much sleep that night.
Apartment 35
3170 W 53rd Road
Annapolis, MD
8:00 A.M.
Dana Scully had spent good part of the night peeking at
her partner's bed
on the other side of the room. Scully was quite relieved
when they had come
back to D.C. and she asked Mulder to go to her place to
change clothes.
Mulder had dropped Scully at her apartment, waving goodbye
with the same
boyish grin that had greeted her during breakfast at Harrisburg
and during
the trip back. Finally alone, she entered her apartment
and headed directly
to the shower to cool down her unpartnerly thoughts and
regain some composure.
However, as the drops of water and soap finally massaged
her body,
Scully couldn't help but give herself up to some self-indulgence.
After all, I am only human, she thought.
FBI Headquarters
J. Edgar Hoover Building
Washington, DC
8:15 A.M.
Assistant Director Walter S. Skinner frowned as he saw
the Cigarette-
Smoking Man enter his office. This never could mean good
news.
"What do you want ?" There was no point in pleasantries.
"It looks like Agents Mulder and Scully have been putting
their noses
where they shouldn't. The NSA is looking for them for
interfering with an
investigation concerning... public health. Of course,
I reassured them
that you would bring them both back to Washington."
"I can't help you. I don't know where they are. I don't
have the habit
of keeping tabs on my agents during the weekend."
"This is a very serious situation Mr. Skinner. Mulder and
his partner
might have intercepted information that both the russians
and the
british would like very much to have. If they are not
found as soon as
possible, not even I will be able to help them."
Skinner was growing more and more irritated with the unpleasant
company
he was forced to endure. Finally, he snapped.
"You never showed any interest in their welfare before.
And as far as I
know, you still didn't honor our agreement."
The Cigarette-Smoking Man dragged another puff of the cigarette
and blowed
the smoke around, as to leave the office impregnated with
his presence.
"Rest assured, Mr. Skinner, that Agent Scully will get
her miracle...
When I find the convenient moment. However, I will not
be able to save
her if she is killed before that."
He left the office. Skinner was left alone, silently cursing
himself for
having been so stupid as to deal with that man. He could
only hope that
somehow in the future Mulder and Scully might find a way
of rescue him
from the mess he had put himself into.
FBI Headquarters
J. Edgar Hoover Building
11:00 A.M.
Dana Scully entered the small office in the basement still
both relishing and
regretting the feelings that had been aroused the previous
night. Now, alone
in the office, Dana Scully was glad that at least she
was again in control.
She wondered if perhaps that was what she feared most
in Fox Mulder.
He was the ultimate sublimation of her fear of losing
control.
It was with some surprise that she got a call from AD
Skinner's secretary
summoning both her and Mulder. She climbed the stairs
and headed towards the
Assistant Director's office, where she was received by
a very unfriendly
and grumpy AD. It was not the usual disgruntled way in
which he shoved
back to them unacceptable field reports. There was something
else.
Skinner seemed furious.
"Agent Scully. Where the hell is Mulder ?"
"Humm... I don't know, Sir. Is there something wrong ?"
"At the moment, both you and Mulder are targets of the
NSA and the Pentagon,
not to mention a couple of foreign secret services. I
have been calling
half Washington this morning. What did Mulder mess with
now ?"
"Well, Sir... We were together yesterday. We spent the
Sunday at Harrisburg.
He left me at my place, and I have no idea where he is
at the moment."
Scully was lying. Although Mulder had told her nothing,
she had a pretty good
idea of where he was. Also, her instincts told her it
would be a good idea to
spare the Assistant Director of the details of the interview
with Josh Davis.
"And what the hell were the two of you doing at Harrisburg ???"
"Just enjoying the Sunday, Sir. We took some pictures of
the town, we
had dinner and we watched the last show of the Planetarium."
Scully certainly didn't want to get to this detail, but
she knew there was
the possibility of them having been spied. After all,
Skinner knew she had
been with Mulder. So perhaps it would be a good opportunity
to gain the
boss' confidence.
"Excuse me, Sir, but what is this all about ? We have just
spent a Sunday
together. We know nothing about whatever it is that you
are talking about."
Skinner's patience was wearing thin. He realized he would
not get anything
out of Scully, regardless of her telling the truth or
not. He decided he
should, once more, trust their judgement. He was reminded
of last
November. How he was reluctant in sending Mulder and Scully
to Demeter, VA
to arrest Danny Markham. Back them, they had carried out
the assignment
quickly and discretely. What was of essence in a crisis
situation. And it
had been one of Mulder's mysterious leads that had led
to the name of
general Benjamin Bloch. And it had been Mulder's impecable
timing that
ultimately had saved the general's life.
Mulder and Scully were his best agents. Still frustrated,
and against
his best judgement, Skinner decided to give them the call.
"If I were you, Agent Scully, I would try to contact Mulder.
Immediately.
And tell him that if the both of you are not in my office
by this afternoon,
with a lot of explanations, you are on your own. I will
not be able to help
him. Or you. Good luck. You are dismissed."
Scully promptly left the room. She started to wonder if
Mulder had not
told her everything about that trip to Harrisburg.
'The Lone Gunmen' Headquarters
Somewhere in Washington, D.C.
11:30 A.M.
Mulder was getting nervous by the minute. After leaving
Scully at her place,
he had immediately called The Lone Gunmen and let the
disk with them for
decoding. He had gone home, showered and put his working
clothes. After
taking five minutes to fix the falling "2" in his door,
he had come back.
Now, after three hours, Langly still had not broken the
diskette.
"How is it going ?" Mulder's tone revealed his impatience.
"Almost there... The last two attempts almost got it. Now
I am trying
an alternative procedure."
Byers felt like reassuring Mulder.
"Don't worry Mulder. We will get it sooner or later. Langly
has been
playing a lot with this new software we stole from the
CIA last month.
Why don't you go home and rest ? You look like you didn't
sleep well..."
"Yeah, I was up late yesterday." Mulder felt a little uncomfortable.
Frohike couldn't help but smile. He knew his friend so well.
"You got a new video ? Is it good ?"
"The best I've ever had. I could give up all others just for that one."
"Gotcha !" Their chat was interrupted by an ecstatic Langly.
Their eyes
were drawn to the screen as the multitude of symbols collapsed
into a
very understable sequence of windows and icons.
"What is that ? What does it say ?" Mulder could barely contain itself.
"The directory contains several technical files... on medical
procedures...
Hummm, there is a lot of chemistry also... Description
of FDA Phase I and
Phase II trials, except that there is no official number
associated with..."
Byers' eyes were fixed on the screen. He looked over the
icons and pointed
at one of them.
"Langly, get that one... Yeah, that one with the symbol
of a crab and the
word 'finalexp' under it."
Langly prompted clicked on the icon. The file was empty.
Mulder scanned
the screen, looking for something familiar. Then he saw
it.
"Langly, try the third one... With the label 'Spe' under
it."
Langly tried again. The information started to scroll down.
"How did you choose ?" Byers couldn't see the logic.
"No reason. But 'Spe' is latin for 'hope'. So I figured, why not ?"
"Geez. Thank God you went to Oxford."
Frohike frowned. He had an idea of what was all that about,
but unfortunately
the interpretation of the data was beyond his capabilities.
"Looks like a new inoculation was found... I can't read
that stuff, I am
not a doctor. Can you arrange us a visit from your pretty
partner ?"
"You bet. I will call her now." He took his cell phone
and dialed the
familiar number. 555-6354. It was off service. Damn !
"You guys see if you can find something else. I will go
to the office and
get her. Call me in my cell phone if you will."
46th Street, New York
12:00 P.M.
The Well-Manicured Man and the Cancerman faced each other
with clear
disgust in their faces. Not only they still had not the
disk, but one
of their operatives had been killed. The situation was
quickly going
out of control. The Well-Manicured Man snapped at his
associate,
"We have to do something quickly. Your incompetence has
put us in a
very delicate position."
The Cigarette-Smoking Man calmly dragged another puff of the cigarette.
"Don't patronize me. You know how resourceful I can be
in a crisis.
We have not found the disk, but my sources with the russians
tell me that
they have not done it, either. It is natural to assume
that Fox Mulder has
the disk in his possession. He might be trying to access
the information."
"And how do you suggest we take the disk from him ?"
"Fortunately for us, Fox Mulder is plagued by these misguided
notions about
truth and justice and love for your fellow man. We can
use this in our advantage.
One of my operatives is about to contact him. Even in
the event it doesn't work,
I have a backup plan. Don't worry. The disk is practically
in our hands."
The Well-Manicured Man was still suspicious.
"I hope so. Enough of surprises."
Somewhere in Washington
12:30 P.M
Fox Mulder was battling the D.C. traffic when his cell
phone rang.
He promptly took the phone, expecting it to be Scully.
"Mulder here."
A feminine, husky voice answered.
"Mr. Mulder ? Marita Covarrubias. Can you meet me as soon as possible ?"
"Humm... Sorry, I can't. Not now. I am in a hurry. Business, you know."
"If your business has to do with a certain diskette containing
medical
information, then I believe I can help you Mr. Mulder.
By the way, if
I were you I would not be around the FBI Building much
longer. There are
people looking for you... People that are not happy that
you have this
disk."
"Humm, ok. Where are you now ?"
"I can meet you at the Lincoln Memorial, like last time.
See you in ten
minutes."
Mulder was not liking this. Somehow he knew he could trust
no information
coming from Miss Marita Covarrubias, which had proved
less eager and less
useful than his previous informants, Deep Throat and X.
However, she had
arranged the papers for his trip to Krasnoyarsk. And she
had given him the
name of general Bloch. Since the diskette was safe with
The Lone Gunmen,
he decided to play the game. Perhaps something new would
come out of this
meeting.
Binghamton, NY
12:45 P.M.
Vassily Peskov carefully scanned the neighbourhood. He
didn't want to find
more unexpected opposition after his last lucky escape
at Harrisburg.
He had taken from the last patient the information he wanted.
Now it would
be simple to reach Dr. Forsythe, and the information.
Lincoln Memorial Monument
Washington, D.C.
1:00 P.M.
Mulder watched the Lincoln statue as he saw the languid
and sensual figure
of Marita Covarrubias turning a corner. He addressed the
blonde,
"What do you want to talk about ?"
"Two weeks ago, some information reached my office at the
United Nations...
Concerning some research being conducted in American soil."
"Research on which field ?" Mulder had learned that the
best way to deal
with informants was to deny any piece of knowledge he
had, hoping they
would let something slip.
"Cancer. Apparently, someone finally established a protocol
for a treatment.
Quick, safe and effective. The cure is at hand. Do you
understand, Mr. Mulder,
how important it is that such research comes to public
domain ?"
"There are other interested parties, isn't it ?"
"The monopoly of the possession of such knowledge is very
alluring.
Certainly there are people who would not want this information
to spread."
"Who ?" Mulder knew nothing would come of that, but he had to try his hand.
"Russians. British. Who knows ? The important thing is,
as soon as you get
the disk, you should bring it to me. I will take the disk
and the information
to the Secretary General, and he will make it public.
The cure of cancer,
Agent Mulder. Think about it. Readily available to anyone
who needs it.
Might be the breakthrough of the Century. One of the darkest
fears of Mankind,
gone forever."
Covarrubias' words, as carefully chosen as they were,
and spoken in that
distinct, silky voice, still inspired distrust in Mulder.
As always, she had
given him little or nothing. He decided there was no point
in continuing
this conversation.
"I will contact you as soon as I find something."
Mulder left. Alone in the monument, Covarrubias got her
cell phone.
"I don't think he bought it. However, he said he would call me."
"Go back to New York and wait. We do have an alternative
plan."
'The Lone Gunmen' Headquarters
Somewhere in Washington, D.C.
1:30 P.M.
Dana Scully was becoming desperate. She had lost at least
half an hour
trying to lose a van that followed her. Eventually succeeding,
she
decided to dispense with subtlety and follow the only
lead she had.
She went straight to the publishing joint called 'The
Magic Bullet'.
Mulder had started this with The Lone Gunmen, so she knew
he should
have been in contact with them. She knocked fiercely at
the door in
the dark, narrow alley.
"Open the door, Byers ! It's me ! Open dammit !"
The door opened and she was greeted by a slightly surprised
but immensely
delighted Frohike.
"Agent Scully, it's a pleasure to see you. Come in please."
"Don't lie to me Frohike. Where is Mulder ???"
"Well, he left about two hours ago... He went to look for you."
"Me ??? Why ???" Scully couldn't believe her bad luck.
"He wanted you to look at the files we broke into this
morning. He left the
diskette with us. We were expecting for the two of you
to come together."
Oh my God, Scully thought. Mulder was loose in D.C. with
everybody from
the NSA to the military to the Pentagon looking for him.
She had to get
him before someone else did. She promptly took her cell
phone and noticed
it was turned off. Damn. She turned it on and quickly
dialed Mulder's
number.
"Hello ?" Scully let out a sigh of relief when she heard his voice.
"Mulder, it's me. Where are you ???"
"I am going back to the office. I want you to take a look at something."
"Mulder, listen to me. DO NOT go back to the office. There
is a lot of
people looking for you. You have to get back to The Lone
Gunmen."
Mulder had no time to answer. The last sounds that Scully
heard were the
screeching of tires and a crash, and her cell phone went
mute.
"MULDER !!!"
************************** End of Chapter II *******************************
********** Chapter III ************
Somewhere in Washington, D.C.
2:00 P.M.
Once the car had been bumped, Mulder noticed that his cell
phone had been
damaged in the crash. He somehow managed to leave the
car and reached for
his gun. He saw two men dressed in black approaching the
scene. They did
not look happy.
Mulder took his gun and fired two shots, aiming high. As
the two men in black
took cover, he started to run for his life. He reached
the nearest subway
station and disappeared into the crowd.
He had to think fast. Scully was safe with The Lone Gunmen.
So was the disk.
Mulder could not go back to the J. Edgar Hoover Building.
And whoever wanted
the information in the disk, was getting tougher. Mulder
knew that he had to
find Dr. Forsythe as soon as possible. He remembered the
interview with Davis.
Mulder peeked around the corner of an alley. He still wondered
how the hell
he had gotten out of that alive. Since he could not talk
to Scully, he
decided to go back to his apartment in Alexandria. He
would be able to
contact The Lone Gunmen from there, since he knew they
kept his telephone
bugged.
'The Lone Gunmen' Headquarters
Somewhere in Washington, D.C.
2:10 A.M.
Scully was completely overwhelmed. Mulder might be dead.
She had to get
to him. She started to head towards the door, but Byers
stopped her. He
always tried to keep cool in order to have things under
control.
"Wait, let's not rush. Scully, listen to me. If Mulder
escapes, he will
contact us. We have to proceed with the disk. That's why
you came here."
Still fighting the tears, Scully tried to think clearly.
"You are right. We have to proceed. What is it that you
wanted me to see ?"
The Lone Gunmen led Scully to the computer terminal and
started to scroll
down the information.
Apartment 42
2630 Hegal Place
Alexandria, VA
August 16th
4:00 P.M.
Mulder left the elevator at the fourth floor and headed
towards his apartment.
As he approached the door, he raised his head and noticed
the metal "2" was
in a slightly different position than when he had left.
Mulder stopped and his instincts clicked on. He started
to go back to the
elevator, first slowly, then increasing his pace, and
finally running for dear
life. At the same moment, the door of his apartment opened
and the Grey-Haired
Man appeared, already pulling his gun. Mulder barely had
time to enter
the elevator and push the down button. The door closed
as the Gray-Haired Man
fired three times, barely missing.
Mulder stormed out of the building and ran to the street. So much for that idea.
There was no time to lose. In the absence of options, Mulder
took a cab
and headed straight to the airport. He had only one lead.
He prayed that
whoever was racing against him didn't have anything better.
FBI Headquarters
J. Edgar Hoover Building
7:00 P.M.
The Cigarette Man entered the office of the Assistant Director.
Walter Skinner loathed himself for what he was about to
do. He wished
he had any option. He had tried to avoid the Cancerman
during
the whole afternoon, as to give Mulder the largest lead
as possible.
Now the time had come. He gave the Cigarette Man some
sheets of papers.
Faxes, field reports and airplane schedules.
"Fox Mulder have been spotted at the airport this afternoon.
I was
informed that he took a flight to Syracuse."
"Thanks Mr. Skinner. Your collaboration is very much appreciated.
I will attend to this matter from now on." He left the
office.
I am not done, you bastard, Skinner thought. He called his secretary.
"Kimberly, try to contact Agent Scully. Immediately. Try
her cell phone
or her home."
'The Lone Gunmen' Headquarters
Somewhere in Washington, D.C.
7:10 P.M.
Several hours later, Scully still tried to analyze the data from the disk.
"Do you understand any of that ?"
"I don't understand everything, but a lot has to do with
the description
of a protocol for a treatment of... Cancer. The procedure
is somewhat
unorthodox, and the drugs they used... I have never seen
anything like
that. This is technology years down the line. Oh my God.
Look at that.
The Gompertzian curves of each tumor type... This is crazy.
They are all
thousand times lower than usual."
Scully patiently pointed at the screen in order to help
The Lone Gunmen,
as she knew they were not specialists.
"The treatment does not affect host tissue in any way...
Even tumors that
show marginal or no response to chemotherapy, like hypernephroma
or lung
cancer or endometrial cancer, are all gone. The overall
survival rate for
histological history is reduced by months. This is incredible."
Frohike and Byers were impressed.
"Talk about hitting the jackpot. This is nuts. We have
to make copies of
those files. The next issue of 'The Magic Bullet' will
be a hit."
"This is what Mulder was after, isn't it ? A cure for my cancer ?"
Langly saw Scully was really upset, and immediately got defensive.
"Don't talk to us. We just broke into classified information.
We help
Mulder, and he helps us."
"Scully, listen. Give Mulder a break. You know more than
anybody how
important this is to him. Last time, he had to put all
our asses in the
line of fire."
Frohike was interrupted by the chimmering sound of Scully's
cell phone.
"Scully."
"Agent Scully, this is Assistant Director Skinner. I thought
you might
want to know that Mulder is in Syracuse. If you want to
reach him, you
don't have much time left. I have contacts in the NSA
that are in
charge of this operation. Both you and Mulder will be
safe if you contact
them as soon as you reach Syracuse. Good luck."
That was all that Scully needed to hear.
"You guys make copies of those files. Lots of copies. I
am going to
Syracuse to get Mulder."
She stormed out of the office and drove directly to the airport.
Frohike sighed, "What a woman. Mulder, you are a lucky
bastard."
3466 SW 12th St.
Syracuse, NY
8:15 P.M.
Fox Mulder was finally getting the impression that his
luck had
changed. After renting a car in the Syracuse airport,
he had
driven around town trying to reach the address he had
retrieved
from John Barnes' body.
Once Mulder reached the house, he scanned the neighbourhood
and
saw nothing to be alarmed. He rang the bell and a man
appeared.
He talked to the owner of the house, who happened to be
one of
the patients of the clinic. The man gave him the address
of the
house where Dr. Forsythe might be spending the summer.
As Mulder left the scene, he noticed a man in black stalking
the
house. Taking care not to be spotted, he drove around
the corner
and left the car some 200 meters away from the house.
Mulder came back to the house and stalked the neighbourhood
for
some minutes, not losing sight of the man in black. After
a while,
he saw an old man calmly walking towards the house. The
old man
approached the door, rang the bell and waited. The house's
owner
opened the door and after some introductions, both entered.
Mulder observed as the man in black moved towards the house.
Some minutes later, he heard two shots being fired. He
quickly
approached the house, always taking cover.
Mulder peeked around the door and saw the body of the house's
owner in the floor. Besides him, the man dressed in black
stood,
pointing a gun to the same old man that had entered the
house.
Vassily Peskov was helpless. He started to think that he
would
never see his beloved Mother Russia again. Suddenly, he
heard
a young voice from behind the man in black.
"Federal agent !!! Hands in the air !!!"
The man in black turned towards Mulder and fired once,
but Mulder
was in better position. He fired twice and the man in
black fell
heavily to the ground.
Mulder carefully approached the body and checked. He was dead.
Peskov remembered that the police should be arriving at
any moment.
He started to walk towards the door, but he stopped as
he heard the
clicking of a trigger being setup. Mulder pointed his
gun at him.
Peskov recognized a Smith & Wesson 1056, 9 mm. He
knew he had better
not make a mistake in this situation. He slowly raised
his arms.
"It is not polite to leave after someone having saved your life."
"What do you want ?"
"To begin with, to know what a nice old man like you is
doing in such
a bad company."
"I have nothing to say."
Mulder was distracted by the sound of sirens and police
cars approaching.
As he lost his concentration for a second, Peskov threw
himself through the
window. For a moment Mulder was amazed of the speed and
energy of the old
man. He went to the window and observed as Peskov ran
through the alley,
disappearing in the shadows.
At the same time, several men in black stormed in the house.
Two grabbed
Mulder, as the others attended to the corpse in the room.
Mulder was very
relieved to see Scully enter the house accompanied by
the men in charge
of the operation. He recognized the badges of the NSA.
Scully barely could contain herself. She remembered she
had felt like
this during that odd Congressional hearing, when Mulder
had appeared from
nothing. She threw her arms around his neck and buried
him in a fierce hug.
"Mulder ! Thank God you are okay. What happened here ?"
"It looks like our chat with Mr. Davis triggered a race.
With no civilized rules, by the look of it."
For one hour they were questioned by the NSA officers.
Of course,
both Mulder and Scully denied knowing anything about the
clinic.
Their silent communication allowed them to keep the inquiry
under
control. Once the frustrated NSA officers had searched
both
Mulder and the house, and concluded the diskette was nowhere
to be found, Mulder and Scully were released. As they
headed for the
car, Scully was relieved to feel Mulder's hand gently
touching her
back. She had thought she would never feel that again.
"Mulder, what are we going to do now ?"
"I have to find Dr. Forsythe. If anyone can tell us what
is in
those files with detail, it is him. And I have to do it
alone.
I will leave you at the airport."
"No way! I am going with you. I will not lose sight of you again."
"Scully, you have to go back to Washington. Take a copy
of that disk
from The Lone Gunmen and show it to doctors. Not only
your doctors,
but several independent, renowned ones. We have to figure
out how
this treatment works, and release the information. To
everybody.
This is the most important thing now. And you are the
only qualified
person to do it."
"You're right. But take care. I don't want to lose you."
"Trust me, you won't. See you back in D.C."
Oncology Center
Johns Hopkins University Hospital
Bethesda, MD
several hours later
Scully was exhausted. A group of Oncology specialists feverishly
had been discussed with her the data on the files for
hours. Finally,
they had given up. Their faces were somber.
"Dr. Scully, I don't know what you want us to say. This
looks like
something out of science fiction. Although your story
is very
compelling, we don't see any way of pursuing this... protocol.
We
have never seen anything like it. The descriptions are
technically
precise, but only barely recognizable. There is no references
to
begin with. We are at a loss here."
"But you have seen the description of the treatment. The
data gathered.
Even if the information is incomplete, you should be able
to figure
out how to complete the study."
"Study ? On what ? We don't know the principles behind
this protocol.
It is only a bunch of recipes, chemical formulas and dosages.
We have
no idea of whether it works. We don't even know HOW it
works."
Forsythe's summer residence
Syracuse, NY
10:13 P.M.
Dr. Harold Forsythe grumpily walked towards the living
room. He didn't
want company. When he opened the door, a tall darkhaired
man flashed
a badge.
"Dr. Forsythe, I presume."
"What... Who are you ?"
"My name is Fox Mulder. I am a FBI agent. Can I talk to you ?"
"I hope this has nothing to do with my clinic."
"There is a lot of people dying because of what happened
in that clinic,
Dr. Forsythe. Have you gathered the information on the
treatment somewhere ?"
"Well, there were files describing the protocol. I copied
it to two disks.
I have one of them and I gave the other to one of my patients,
in case
the government wanted to make me 'disappear'. You understand."
"Were you successful ? Does the treatment work ?"
"I... I don't know anymore. I thought it did. I really
did. But two
or three weeks ago, some conflicting data appeared. Pointing
in several
different directions."
"The diskette you gave to Josh Davis... It contains some
information
on the treatment, doesn't it ?"
"Some of it. But the information is incomplete. The final
piece was
supposed to be added after the protocol was proven."
"And what is exactly the final piece ?"
"I... I don't remember. They took it from me. I knew it, but..."
A shot interrupted Dr. Forsythe. Mulder watched, appalled,
as the small
hole on the doctor's forehead started to leak blood. Mulder
immediately
turned back to see a man in black pointing a gun at him.
Mulder was already thinking about trying to seize the man
in black,
but he was never given a chance. From behind the man in
black, he heard
a soft sound like a gun with a silencer.
The man in black fell to the ground. Mulder quickly approached
the body
of Dr. Forsythe and took the diskette. Some seconds later,
Mulder watched
as an old man took some steps forward, always pointing
his gun to Mulder.
"I shall have this disk. Please don't make any mistake now."
Mulder handed the diskette to the old man.
"I might as well as kill you..."
Mulder gulped. Apparently, this time he had run out of
his luck.
To his surprise, Peskov lowered his gun.
"...But this wouldn't be the way of a sportsman or a gentleman.
Now
we are even, and my job here is done. I will leave now.
Dasvidania."
Mulder would not let it go that easily. As Peskov turned
to leave the
house, Mulder launched forward, trying to seize the old
man. Using the
back of his gun, Peskov quickly and viciously knocked
Mulder down. And
calmly left the house.
46th Street, New York
6:20 P.M.
"The information has been retrieved and is safe. This matter
has been
disposed of as discretely as possible. However, it seems
that the Russians
also had access to pieces of the information, as well
as other parties."
The Well-Manicured Man was furious.
"You fool. Now we can be exposed."
"There is no risk. As I said, the information is in pieces.
It is
effectively useless for anything else beyond speculation.
The Well-Dressed Man was not convinced.
"What about our operatives that were killed ? Their identities ?"
"This is easier to be handled. It is not the first time
that such
unfortunate fate has met one of our hit men. As before,
neither the FBI
nor the CIA will find anything concrete in any of the
national databases.
No names, no fingerprints, no pictures. No history. No
dental work. Those men
never existed. There is no possibility of any connection
to this room."
"And what about Mulder and his partner ? They know."
"They have no proof whatsoever. Agent Scully has already
shown the
information to several medical centers, and nobody managed
to figure
out how the protocol works. In time, we will be able to
recover all
the disks she has given away. On the other hand, Mulder
has once again
proven to be a formidable obstacle. In the future we will
have to be
more careful in dealing with him."
The Well-Dressed Man sighed out of frustration.
"Sometimes it looks like it would be easier if we killed them both."
The Cigarette-Smoking Man smiled and dragged another puff of the cigarette.
"Let me remind you that we can not do that. You know how
important
Agent Mulder is to the equation."
The Well-Manicured Man nodded. They would have to deal
with Fox Mulder
later. Regardless of how inconvenient he insisted to be.
Saint Petersburg, Russia
August 16th
1:20 A.M.
Vassily Peskov entered his small apartment looking forward
to a cup of
samouvar. The flight had been strenuous for a man of his
age. He was not
surprised in finding a young man lacking an arm waiting
for him.
"Iah sajaleioo... The information could not be retrieved intact."
"Don't worry, Tovarich. Your work was fine as always. The
piece you
retrieved will be valuable in our own research efforts.
And you didn't
allow the final piece to fall into American hands."
"Harashaw. Now I only want to rest. Iah boltche ne rabotaioo."
"I will leave now Tovarich. Congratulations again. Spaseeva. Dasvidania."
"Dasvidania, Tovarich Krycek."
Peskov closed the door and went to his bedroom. The next
day, he would go
to the Park to feed the pidgeons and watch teenage couples
necking in the
grass. He might perhaps spend one hour in the Museum of
the Revolution,
and then watch the ballet.
As he reached the bedroom, from his window he could see
the lights of the
streets of Saint Petersburg. The sumptuous buildings benefit
from the
nocturnal illumination. God, how I love this town, he
thought.
Vassily Peskov smiled. He was a very fortunate man indeed.
Apartment 35
3170 W 53 Road
Annapolis, MD
8:00 P.M.
Fox Mulder sheepily waited outside Scully's apartment.
She opened the
door and motioned him to the couch.
"Hi. What did you want to talk to me about ?"
"I have talked to several doctors, in different oncology
centers. I have
discussed the data on the disk at both Johns Hopkins and
Mount Sinai. They
all shared the same opinion. They say it is farfetched.
There is a lot of
missing information. Without more details, it is impossible
even to
formulate a trial protocol. The files are useless. However,
I left copies
of the disk with all of them."
Scully could see the disappointment in Mulder's face. She
knew she could
no longer avoid the issue that really troubled her.
"Mulder, there is more. This is not why I called you here."
"Then why are we here ?"
"Well... This is hard... I mean... Remember our interview with Josh Davis ?"
"Yeah, you told me you were reminded that life was still
worth living...
Something like that."
"Exactly. Hummm... I am fumbling the words. There is something
I felt I
should say while we still have time. While I still have
time. I am very
lucky for having you by my side, Mulder. And I am very
grateful for that.
Mulder, you are my best friend. I trust you with my life."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence. But this is not about me, is it, Scully ?"
"Yes and no. It is about myself, Mulder. But I really don't
know anymore if
I can distinguish our lives. I don't know where one ends,
and the other starts."
God this is hard, Scully thought. She wanted desperately
to open herself
to Mulder, but still held back.
"You remember some months ago, when... during your vacation..."
Sure as hell Mulder remembered. Although he desperately wanted to forget.
"Philadelphia. Ed Jersey. Your tattoo." He almost added, "The desk."
Scully realized that the subject was painful for Mulder
as well.
She gave up thinking too much and simply blurt out the
words.
"Since that time, I didn't let you see my tattoo.
I thought it was a part
of me you shouldn't see. It was personal. Private. I was
angry and upset,
and I thought that I should keep boundaries between us.
To preserve myself.
This is one of the reasons for which I didn't go with
you to Canada."
"I understand. I can't say I like it, Scully. But I understand.
I was an
asshole with you back then, and I surely know I am not
the best partner in
the world. You certainly deserve better. It is only natural
that you want
something to keep you grounded."
"No, Mulder, that's not what I mean. Since my cancer has
been diagnosed,
and even before, you have been my support, my source of
strength. You keep
me grounded. I would have given up a long time ago if
you were not there
with me."
"Yesterday, I was frustrated because you had not told me
that this had
something to do with me... I didn't know your cell phone
had been damaged,
and I thought you were ditching me again. But, all the
time, you were
looking for a cure. Running for your life. And then you
were almost killed
again. For me... I realized that I have not been so generous
in showing
how much you mean to me... How much I trust you."
Mulder was not sure of how to proceed. He gave her a puppy
dog look and
gently took Scully's hand and intertwined their fingers.
"You are welcome. You know you can count on me for anything you want."
Scully knew. She raised her head to face him. Mulder saw
that she was serious.
He felt lost in those blue eyes. Scully finally spoke,
half eager, half ashamed.
"I want you to look at something."
Mulder watched as Scully got up. She hesitated for a moment,
and then turned
around. With her back facing him, she partially lifted
her shirt. Then she
slightly pulled down her pantyhose as to expose the dreaded
tattoo, just above
her buttock. Mulder knew how difficult this was for Scully.
She was doing
what she feared most. Exposing herself. Allowing herself
to be vulnerable.
Losing control. Relinquishing control. To Mulder. Only to Mulder.
Struggling to keep his mind away from how beautiful the
body of his partner
was, Mulder got closer, and took a good view of the tattoo.
He tentatively
touched the snake with his fingers, tracing a full circle.
The hideous figure
imprinted in the pure pale silk of her flesh was a reminder
of how apart they
once had been.
Silently, both Mulder and Scully decided they would never
be that apart again.
Then, as tears rolled down her cheeks, he put his palm
on her back, covering
the tattoo completely. He rested his forehead on her back
and whispered,
"Sorry Scully. I used to think that I would make it disappear
if I could.
But this is not the truth. It was something you needed
to do at some point
of your life, and now it is part of you. Good or bad,
you grew with that
experience. Now you will have to live with it. And I will
support you.
I only regret I was not there with you. And now, I have
failed you. Again."
Scully turned around to face Mulder. She noticed he was on the verge of tears.
Not for himself. For Scully. Only Scully.
"No Mulder. You never fail me. Remember what I wrote to
you when I was in
the hospital ? There is no secret intervention. No miracle
cure. Mulder,
listen to me. You are not responsible."
Scully held Mulder's face and allowed herself to get lost
in those hazel eyes.
Finally, he lowered his head. His cheeks touched hers,
and their tears melt
together. She supported him as much as he supported her.
"Don't worry Mulder. Somehow we'll pull through all this.
We'll find the truth.
Together."
Scully lowered her hands and embraced Mulder's waist. He
gently caressed her
head now comfortably tucked under his chin.
Lost in each other's arms, both Mulder and Scully felt
the other's pain
washing out their own. And they both started to heal.
The future still belonged to them. Together.
A magazine shop
Union Station
Washington, D.C.
Two weeks later
The Cigarette Smoking Man approached the small shop and
asked for a pack of
Morley's. While he waited, he idly scanned the magazines.
Most were cheap
tabloids of no repercussion. We was amused to see a copy
of the 'World Weekly
Informer' with the top story that read,
GOVERNMENT HIDES DISCOVERY OF CURE FOR CANCER.
He smiled. After paying for the pack, he lit a cigarette
and left.
T H E E N D
************************** End of Chapter III *****************************