Paradigm part 2 of 2 by Vickie Moseley vickiemoseley1978@yahoo.com Act 3 Location unknown mid afternoon They'd colored pictures, played a few of the games on the shelves. At one point Sarah found a tea set in the toy box and they had a tea party on the table with make believe strawberry sandwiches (Sarah's own recipe, she confided) and make believe chocolate 'tea'. When Sarah grew restless, Scully found a jump rope and they moved the table to the wall to make room for a jumping lesson, something Sarah found very amusing. After a few hours of play, Sarah grew tired and fussy. Scully found the Winnie the Pooh series on the bookshelf and pulled Sarah on her lap. They settled in and Scully began to read. When her little head started to nod, Scully put the book aside and picked her up. "Sing to me, Momma," Sarah said sleepily when Scully attempted to put the child down on the bed. "Oh, Sarah -- " "The Bullfrog song, Mommy. I like the Bullfrog song." With a catch in her voice, Scully began to sing, stroking the little girl's back as she finally drifted off to sleep. "Jeremiah was a bullfrog . . . " To her relief, Sarah smiled, stuck her thumb in her mouth and was soon sound asleep. It was only mid afternoon, but Scully found herself drawn to the double bed. She wondered briefly if there might be something in the food, a sedative or something that would cause her to sleep so much. Then, it was kind of tiring, keeping an active three year old from going stir-crazy. Not sure what she could do besides not eat any food left in the future, she joined Sarah in her slumber. Mulder and Scully's duplex 7:45 pm Alex had raided the refrigerator and made himself a sandwich; all the while marking out the best possible places for them to stake out as soon as 'sleeping beauty' arose. He leaned against the table and watched the agent sawing logs on the sofa. What a life they had here, he thought sadly. They weren't even married, no sign of kids. So many sore subjects -- Fox's sister, hell, the subject of his whole family was like one raw nerve. And from what he could gather, most of Dana's family was dead and gone, too. It was so different from the happy bunch of people who had unofficially adopted Alex in his own world. He shook his head and went back to the maps. The ringing of the phone woke Mulder. He lunged off the sofa, grabbing for the phone. "Scully?" he all but shouted into the receiver. When the caller identified himself, Mulder's face fell. "No, sir. No, I haven't heard from her except for the one time. You're kidding! No, I'll be right over there. Oh, and sir, um, be prepared to accept another extreme possibility, OK?" He hung up the phone and went to the coat tree by the door to pull on his jacket. "C'mon, Skinner says there's been another attack and they think they have it cornered in a parking garage in Falls Church." "Wait!" Alex objected. "Maybe I should stay here. Or go to one of the other sites. You know, just in case." "Are you on crack?" Mulder responded, using the detective's own words. "They have it cornered. If we get there in time, we might be able to -- " "To what? Get it to tell us where Sarah and Dana are? Now who's on crack?" he laughed bitterly. "And besides, I don't see why we have to drag the Captain -- " Mulder looked at the man closely. "Hold on a minute. You went AWOL, didn't you?" Alex dropped his head. "I had vacation time coming," he said defensively. "You didn't tell your Captain where you were going, did you?" Mulder accused. His head jerked up and Alex pinned Mulder with a defiant glare. "Do you know how much paperwork and crap the old man put me through over that fiasco at Glass-glo the last time our path's crossed? I was in shit for months! And the son of a bitch never did buy my explanation of an alternate world, even when Dana came back from San Francisco with a tan, showing us pictures of the New Bay Bridge! So yeah, I went AWOL -- because I knew it was the only way! And I would do it again, anytime, for that little girl!" Mulder licked his lips and then nodded, before breaking out in a smile. "Alex, I think I'm beginning to . . . understand you." "Geez, don't get all mushy on me," Alex sneered. "C'mon, you can stay in the car until we know for certain they have the creature." 1013 Leesburg Pike Falls Church, Virginia 8:30 pm Mulder cringed as they pulled up to the address Skinner had given him. The place was a circus. There were at least a dozen squad cars from various jurisdictions, including a familiar Bureau HRT van parked along the road. Mulder pulled his car behind several of the other vehicles, rolling his eyes as Alex folded himself down in the seat to remain unnoticed. A Virginia State Trooper was directing traffic and required Mulder to his identification before he could cross the barricade set up in the driveway to the parking garage. Mulder set off at a trot to the van. "When the hell is the chopper getting here," Skinner was barking into a cell phone as Mulder stepped into the van. Agents manning the equipment turned to him and nodded in acknowledgement. One agent, a woman Mulder had seen Scully talking to in the cafeteria just the week before made a point to get him a cup of coffee and gave him a pat on the shoulder. One of their own was missing and regardless of what the bullpen thought of him, Scully was well liked. "Where is it?" Mulder asked, looking at the tiny surveillance monitors that showed each of the twelve floors of the garage. "We think it's hiding here -- an equipment locker on the roof," Skinner said, pointing to one of the monitors. "We have all elevators locked down and all stairs blocked. There is no way in hell this guy is getting away this time." "It's not a guy, sir," Mulder corrected. "It's a creature. Possibly a werewolf." "Whatever it is, I want it down," Skinner growled. "But we still haven't found Scully," Mulder pointed out. "We need it alive." "Why? So it can lead us to her? Mulder, if this thing took her -- I know how hard this is -- " "She was alive!" Mulder shouted. When all heads turned toward him, he lowered his voice and pulled his superior out of the van so that only Skinner could hear him. "I talked to her this morning. She called me on her cell phone but something happened and we were cut off. The creature took her somewhere, has her locked up in a basement. She thought they were in the country because there were no city noises and it was very dark at night." "Mulder, you're saying this animal took your partner -- to hold her captive? For what possible purpose?" Mulder licked his lips. "Remember when I told you to be ready for another extreme possibility?" Skinner clamped his jaw shut so tight Mulder thought he head a molar crack. "Sir, this creature, werewolf, what ever you want to call it, it's not from -- our world." "Mulder, if you're going to tell me this thing is alien -- " "Not exactly 'alien', sir," Mulder interrupted. "I said, not of this world." "You've lost me." "Sir, remember when we investigated the deaths at Glass-glo Industries?" Skinner's eyes went wide and he started shaking his head. "Mulder, that whole parallel universe bullshit -- " "Sir, I have proof," he said, grabbing his superior's sleeve and leading him back to his car. "But I want you to keep in mind, this is NOT who you think it is." Mulder opened the passenger side door, revealing Alex Krycek, huddled in the front seat. Skinner immediately reached for his weapon, but Mulder caught his hand. "I seem to get that same reaction back home," Alex joked. "What is he doing here?" Skinner demanded. "See, that's just it. He's not the Alex Krycek from our world. In his world, he's a police detective -- " Alex stepped out of the car, flipping out his badge. "DC homicide. I've been working this case for two months." "How did you get here?" Skinner grilled. "I followed the creature through a rip in space or vortex. He's killed six people where I'm from -- and taken a hostage." "A hostage?" Skinner prodded. Alex looked over at Mulder, hesitant to answer. Mulder stepped in for him. "The creature kidnapped a three-year old little girl," Mulder said, not bothering to reveal the child's background. Skinner frowned. "So you're thinking it has both Scully and this child?" "Her name is Sarah," Alex interjected. "Yes sir, Captain, um I mean -- " Skinner shot him a confused look but turned back to Mulder. "Are you sure about this?" "When I heard from Scully this morning, I distinctly heard a child's scream just before we were cut off. I believe they were together at that time." "And what makes you think they aren't -- " Skinner couldn't bring himself to say the word. "We haven't found their bodies," Alex said with a shrug. "The creature never bothered to conceal its kills before. Why start now?" "Well, it certainly didn't conceal this one," Skinner mused. "Pulled the guy out of his car and ripped him to shreds right on the floor of the garage." "We need this thing alive. We have to use tranqs to bring it down," Mulder said firmly. "Mulder, I understand -- " Just then a helicopter arrived at the scene, landing in a vacant lot across from the parking garage. Skinner jogged to it, Mulder and Alex bringing up the rear. Location Unknown night When Scully woke up, she noticed more food on the table. Hot dogs and macaroni and cheese along with the ever-present milk. Whoever was feeding them seemed attuned to the tastes of a three-year old, but Scully would have killed for a nice Cobb salad. She sighed and decided to once again check her surroundings. On a bad day, Mulder would have told her the definition of insanity was repeatedly taking the same action and expecting a different result, but she persevered. The window was just as impassable as it had been. The door, however, was a different matter. Whoever had brought down the food -- probably the little man, had left the padlock off. The door was still closed, but a little jiggling on her part and she was able to get it open. "Mommy! Don't let the monster in!" Sarah screamed from the bed. Scully turned to see the child, trembling in fear at the sight of the open door. "Sarah, it's OK. I don't see the monster. I don't think it's here." "No, Mommy, please, close the door! Don't let the monster in!" The child pulled her knees to her chin and started to cry. Scully reluctantly closed the door and went over to the little girl, gathering her in her arms. "It's OK, baby. Mommy closed the door. It's OK." As soon as the words were out of her mouth she realized what she'd said. Her heart seemed to stop beating for a moment and tears threatened to choke her. She sat on the bed, stroking Sarah's hair until the child finally settled down. "I don't like the monster. He's scary!" Sarah said, still a little shaky. "Yes, he is. But he's not here, so we're OK. I'll protect you, Sarah. I promise." She forced herself to use the personal pronoun as opposed to the name Mommy. She had to watch herself. This wasn't her little girl, no matter how much she might want that to be. "Let's do something. What would you like to do?" "Can we play school? I'll be the teacher first," Sarah declared and scampered off the bed to get out paper and crayons again. Scully gathered her tattered emotions and pasted on a smile, ready to go to 'school'. 1013 Leesburg Pike 11:21 pm It had taken some time to exchange the normal rounds for tranquilizers, but finally everything was in place. Mulder requested that he and Alex be allowed to go with the team making their way up the parking ramps to the top level, just in case the creature decided to run that direction. Skinner wasn't happy about it, but agreed. The parking ramp echoed every footstep as they made their way up the twelve stories. On some levels there were still cars, but most of the levels were vacant, all the workers having left the structure for their homes hours ago. Alex glanced over at Mulder as they walked, a few steps back from the rest of the team. "How do we communicate with it, once we have it?" he asked. Mulder blew out a breath. "Well, it's been my experience that once incapacitated, the creature -- if it is a lycanthrope -- will return to its human form. Then it's just a matter of interrogation." Alex raised one eyebrow. "You really are on crack, aren't you?" "Look, Scully and I deal with this shit every day of the week. If you didn't want my answer, why did you ask me the question?" "Sorry!" Alex said contritely, holding his hands up in surrender. "It's just -- I'm a little freaked out here, is all. I mean, most of the time, you're this stuffed shirt intellectual who's lecturing me on the psychological ramifications of police brutality on a civilized society, or some shit like that. I'm just not used to you totin' a gun and spoutin' off weird shit theories like they were straight out of the Journal of American Psychology." Mulder looked over at the man. His first reaction was to deck the guy, but he held himself in check. "I guess . . . I guess it would be hard. I mean everything around you is the same yet it's all different." "Yeah, something like that. I don't know how your Dana did it when she was there with us. She was incredible." Mulder smiled at that. "She's _always_ incredible," he replied. "She had you fooled, well, at least, your twin. And the Captain, although he thought she was acting kinda funny. And me -- whoa, I was totally fooled. But she was different. Harder around the edges. When she held that gun -- that was . . . it was the sexiest damn thing I've ever seen!" "Watch it," Mulder glowered at him. "Oh, yeah, sorry. I need to find the parallel universe where Dana Scully thinks you're a twit, or you're an axe murderer -- that's what I need to do," Alex said with a firm shake of his head. "I'm just stuck in the wrong dimension." "You keep tellin' yourself that, chum," Mulder returned with a fake smile. "Now, maybe we should get back to the lesson?" He nodded to the rest of the team as they made the final turn to scramble to cover on the rooftop. "Yeah, down to business," Alex agreed, following Mulder to crouch behind a cement support for a lamppost. The HRT members were in position, the helicopter was circling overhead. The FBI had arranged for the garage superintendent to put a tear gas canister in the ventilation system, flooding the storage closet with the painful gas. In a matter of seconds, the creature burst through the door of the closet, howling in pain. Mulder watched breathless as the sharpshooter took aim. He fired, hitting the mark on the right flank. The creature bellowed its anger and to everyone's astonishment, ran as hard as it could toward the chopper and the sharpshooter. In a haze of drugs and fury, the beast leaped over the short retaining wall in an attempt to catch the aircraft. It fell the twelve stories to the cement driveway below. Mulder and Alex found themselves running all the way down the parking ramp. When they got to the ground floor, a crowd of law enforcement from various jurisdictions stopped them from getting to the creature. "Holy shit!" Alex exclaimed, having reached the monster's body before Mulder. Mulder broke through the crowd and stared down at the body. In the darkened alley, illuminated only by the searchlights of the helicopter, lay a naked man. The commander of the HRT members ordered an immediate search of the grounds for any trace of the creature. It was Alex who knelt down next to the body that was lying face down, and pulled the tranquilizer dart out of the man's shoulder. "This is the . . . perpetrator," he said, not really believing his own eyes. He looked up at Mulder and shook his head. They exchanged a knowing look. Without the creature, their hopes of finding Sarah and Scully were looking very dim. Location unknown night As darkness fell, Sarah grew tired. Finally Scully was able to convince the girl it was time for bed. After several minutes of teeth brushing and face washing, Sarah climbed into the big bed. Just as Scully was pulling the covers up over her, Sarah ducked under her arm and knelt down next to the bed. "Prayers, Mommy! You forgot!" Sarah accused with a twinkle in her eyes. "Oh, of course, how silly of me," Scully replied, kneeling down next to the little girl. Together, they made the sign of the cross and bowed their heads. Sarah waited, not saying anything. Finally, she darted a glance over at Scully. "Mommy. You start, 'member?" Scully drew in a breath. She thought back to her own childhood prayers, so different from the desperate pleadings she whispered as an adult -- 'keep him safe', 'let him find us'. "Now I lay me down to sleep," she uttered in a cadence reminiscent of her youth. "I pray the Lord my soul to keep," Sarah responded. The next part was tricky. In her childhood, the prayer went 'if I should die before I wake', but Scully had learned from putting Matty and Claire to bed that there was a newer version less likely to cause nightmares. "Bless me Jesus, through the night," Scully said, hoping she was right. "And wake me with the morning light," Sarah completed, much to Scully's relief. Scully started to cross herself, but Sarah wasn't finished. "God bless Mommy and Daddy and Grandpa Ahab and Grandma Maggie, Uncle Bill and Aunt Tara, Uncle Charlie and Aunt Missy. And Paw paw and Meemaw Mulder and Aunt Sam and that boy she likes Kevin and God bless Uncle Alex and find him a keeper. Amen." Scully couldn't help the chuckle that came as she heard the last part of the prayer. Sarah looked concerned. "That's what Daddy says, isn't it, Mommy? Uncle Alex needs a keeper." "What is a keeper, Sarah?" Scully asked, because it was just too good to resist. Sarah scrunched up her little face and thought for a moment. "I think it's a dog," she said confidently. Scully had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud. "OK, munchkin, enough," she said playfully. "In to bed you go." Dutifully, Sarah scurried under the covers and snuggled into the pillow. "Mommy, I want Bunnikins," she said plaintively. Scully frowned. She had no idea where, or for that matter _what_ Bunnikins was. "I'm sorry, sweetie. We'll find Bunnikins in the morning." "But I left him at home, Mommy! We have to go home to find him!" Sarah insisted. "We will, sweetheart. I promise. We will be home before you know it. Now go to sleep. I'm going to clean up a little bit and then I'll hold you all night so you won't miss Bunnikins -- will that work?" Sarah thought about it for a minute and reluctantly nodded. "OK, Mommy. But tomorrow, I want to go home. I want to see Daddy." Scully stroked the child's baby fine hair. "I know, sweetheart. I want to see him, too," she said, holding back her own tears. After a few minutes, Sarah had fallen asleep and Scully began her exploration of the rest of the basement. 1013 Leesburg Pike Falls Church, VA 1:15 am The coroner had declared the body dead at the scene, cause of death a broken neck and severe head trauma. While the combined Virginia state troopers and Fairfax County Sheriff's deputies continued to search the area for the creature, most of the officers at the scene were struggling with the incredible truth that the dead naked man in the alley was the monster they'd been chasing for days. As the coroner's people loaded the body into a bag and prepared to take it to the county morgue, Alex stood, staring into space. "We'll find them. We should go back to all the previous scenes. There has to be a clue there somewhere. Maybe someone saw something -- someone who works nights -- " Mulder was rambling, laboring with his own sense of impending doom at this most recent failure. Suddenly, Alex jerked his head over toward the coroner's wagon, where an attendant was slamming the door. "Wait! Wait a minute!" Alex shouted, running flat out to grab the guy's arm and swing him around. "I need to take another look at the body!" "Sure, buddy," the attendant said, wide eyed. "No problem. Hey, Hank! Wait up a minute." The attendant then pulled the gurney forward and waved his hand. "Be my guest. Just be careful not to get any on ya," he said with a casual shrug. Alex pulled the tab of the zipper down, revealing just the face. Impact had not been kind, it was hard at first but then . . . "Oh my god," Alex muttered. As the picture became clearer, he stepped back and threw his hands in the air. "Oh my GOD!" "What? What'd you find?" Mulder demanded. "I know this guy!" Alex shouted. "I know him! Dana knows him! YOU know him, for God's sakes," he said, poking Mulder in the chest. "Alex, I don't -- " Mulder realized what the detective was saying so he took him by the elbow and steered him to an area without an audience. "You're saying it's someone you know from . . . back there?" Mulder asked again. "Yes, of course! Oh, this is incredible! I had no idea! I thought they had clearances, but then, maybe since he's been around a while -- " "Krycek! Focus! Tell me what the hell you're talking about!" Mulder insisted adamantly. Alex beamed. "The dead guy, our 'werewolf' for lack of a better description, is the denier that works the night shift at the morgue. My God, he has access to everything about you and Dana -- your phone number, your address -- that's why there was no forced entry! He could have taken an impression of Dana's keys, then had one made. Then all he would have had to do was sneak in at any time when you were away, stayed hidden and waited for the right time to take Sarah out through the window!" "Alex, you keep saying 'you'," Mulder reminded the detective with a tired sigh. "So, who is this guy? What's his name?" Alex shook his head, lost in thought but coming back to the present. "Oh, his name is . . . uh, let me think a minute. Carter. No, Carver! That's it! Terry Carver! I think maybe it's Terrance Carver." Mulder was writing the name down in his notebook. "So we look up this Terrance Carver." "Wait," Alex said, taking hold of his companion's sleeve. "Just because he's a wolfman in my world doesn't mean he's a wolfman in your world," he reasoned. "True. But what was the first thing you did when you arrived?" Mulder asked. Alex bit his lip. "I went to my apartment, but someone else was living there. Then I headed for the last crime scene, but I got there too late -- you were being loaded into an ambulance." "You went to your house. Let's see if we can find out if maybe Terrance Carver visited his twin. Chances are we might find another dead body." FBI Headquarters 5:45 am There were fourteen Terrance Carvers in the greater DC metro area. Only two of them were matches for age. Of the two, one was in the Guard, serving in Iraq and the other had been killed in a multi-car pile-up on the I-95 just four days after New Years 2006. "Well, that's a wash," Alex said, laying his head in his arms. "No, wait," Mulder countered, turning the computer monitor so that Alex could view it. "Mr. Carver, the one who is in Iraq, had an apartment in Bethesda, but it also lists him as owner of a farm out near Sharpsburg. He pays property taxes on it." A few more clicks and Mulder smiled. "It was the family homestead. He still owns the house." "Dana said she was out in the country," Alex remembered. "You think this could be where they're being held?" Mulder checked his watch. "It's almost sunup. It's definitely worth a look, don't you think?" "We could call the Sheriff up that way, have his men go check it out." "We can do that one the way. Our werewolf isn't going anywhere," Mulder said with a smile. Location unknown night She found light switches, but only one very dull bulb hung in the far corner of the basement. It was barely enough light for her to see to the top of the stairs. The door at the top of the steps was barred; there would be no escape that way. Scully sat on the top step for a few minutes, willing away her depression. She tried to remember how light it was outside when she'd smelled breakfast the day before. She knew it had been early, which meant she had little time to find an escape. She crawled down the steps, feeling apprehensive. She was aware the hostages were sometimes kept for years, just as Carl Wade had kept Lucy Householder for eight long years. She didn't want to think what it would do to Mulder if they weren't found soon. For that matter, somewhere in another place her exact twin was living a mother's worst nightmare. She had to find a way out for both of them. It was a long abandoned basement; she soon discovered mice nests and spider webs everywhere she turned. She examined every nook and cranny. At some point someone had replaced all the windows with the same glass blocks she'd found in the small bedroom. She did find a sledgehammer and was in the process of trying to devise a way to break the glass bricks when another possibility presented itself. There was an old coal door set in the side of the wall. Once used to send coal into a long dismantled coal bin, the hatch-like door was rusted completely shut. Scully eyed the sledgehammer, then eyed the coal door. Wrapping rags she'd found on the floor around her hands to prevent blisters, she picked up the sledgehammer and went to work. Act 4 Location Unknown Daybreak It had been exhausting work, and at times she had almost given up, but finally she felt the latch move and she was able to pry the door open using a small pry bar. She wiped the sweat from her face and went to wake Sarah. It was a testament to the sleeping abilities of the young that Sarah hadn't awoken during Scully's assault on the rusted latch. Scully went to the bathroom and washed the grime and rust from her hands and face before going to the bed to wake the child. Sarah smiled up at her. "Mommy, I'm hungry," she said as she stretched. She looked over at the table. "Where's breakfast?" "Sarah, it's time to go home now. We'll have breakfast later, OK?" "We're going to see Daddy?" the girl squealed. Then she noticed the open door and jumped back into the bed, cowering under the covers. "The door, Mommy! The monster will get us!" "No, sweetheart, the monster isn't here. Come with me. We can leave now." Finally, Scully was able to coax the child out of the tangle of blankets. She wrapped the girl up in a threadbare quilt from the bed and carried her to the coal door that she had propped open with the handle of the sledgehammer. "Sarah, you go through that little door and wait for me. I'll climb out right after you." "NO!" the child screamed. "No Mommy! The monster, it'll eat me!" "Sarah, listen to me. The monster isn't here. It's gone. But we have to leave, now." "No, Mommy! Daddy will come find us!" Sarah insisted. "Sweetheart, Daddy doesn't know where we are," Scully reasoned. "We have to go find him. Daddy is probably worried about us. It will be all right. Mommy will protect you," she promised. Once again, the ease of using that title was not lost on Scully. She tamped down her guilt by rationalizing the need to comfort the child. "This is a very scary thing, Sarah, but Mommy is right here with you. I would never let anything hurt you. You believe that, don't you?" Sarah was far from totally convinced, but slowly she nodded her head. "OK, you keep hold of my hand after I get you up there. You can pull me up, OK?" "OK, Mommy. But hurry!" the child pleaded. The coal door was only 4 feet off the floor, so getting Sarah through it proved a simple task. Scully was a bit more encumbered getting out because of Sarah's 'help', but finally the two were standing on the ground outside the old farm house. A cold wind blew through the bare trees nearby and Scully considered going back into the house to grab some more of the blankets from the bed. "Mommy, go!" Sarah urged. Scully nodded. Picking the child up and wrapping the quilt around both of them, she started off through the trees. Miller's Sawmill Road Sharpsburg, Maryland 8:06 am Mulder gripped the cell phone harder, wishing he could crush it with his bare hands. "Deputy, what do you mean there's no one there? Did you check everywhere?" he demanded. "Well, we're almost there. I'll look around for myself, thank you!" He snapped the phone shut with an audible crack from the casing. "Could it be the wrong house?" Alex asked meekly from the driver's seat. "No," Mulder defended. "It's the right house. It's abandoned and they found a room in the basement where someone has been recently. But there's no one there now." "Where could they have gone?" Alex wondered aloud. "You don't think -- " His face went white as he considered the awful possibility. "No, I don't think he killed them," Mulder said firmly. "Just like you knew where he took them?" Alex jeered, staring out at the highway. "We'll find them. At least we know he'd dead and they're safe." "Assuming that really was the beast back there, and not some poor victim it tossed over to hide its escape," Alex replied glumly. Mulder glared at the detective. "Just drive," he ordered. The farmhouse was at the end of a long, overgrown gravel drive, now sporting two county squad cars. Mulder pulled in behind one of the cars and parked, getting out without waiting for Alex. He went up to one of the deputies. "I'm Special Agent Mulder, are you Deputy Allen?" he asked, flipping out his badge. "Yes sir, that'd be me," the young deputy said with a nod. "Let's go inside, I can show you what we found." The first floor of the house was completely bare, not even a forgotten mattress. Mulder noticed the Alex had joined them and was looking around the kitchen. "Electricity is on. The refrigerator has food in it," Allen noted. Alex opened the fridge and pulled out a gallon jug of milk, reading the label. "Expires next week," he said, opening the lid and sniffing the contents. "This is fresh." Mulder looked around the kitchen, finding plates and cups in the dishwasher. "We found the room down here," Allen explained, holding open the basement door. Mulder caught his breath as he looked at the room. The child's desk and table, the rocking chair. He leaned over the bed, picking up one of the pillows and bringing it to his nose. "Scully was here," he told Alex. Alex went over to the child's desk and picked up a piece of paper. He brought it over to Mulder, showing him. It was a stick-figure drawing of a house with three people out front, a woman with red hair, a man with brown hair and glasses and a little girl with red hair. At the bottom of the page was scrawled the name 'Sarah'. "Dana told me she learned to write her name last week. She was going to have her draw me a picture for my desk at the station," he said, carefully folding the picture and putting it in his back pocket. "So where are they now?" "There's no blood anywhere. No signs of a struggle," Mulder recited as he paced the room. "The door was barred when you arrived, Deputy Allen?" "Yes sir, and it sure didn't look like any body could have gotten out that way." "There has to be another way out," Mulder said, striding purposefully from the room. He searched the basement, finally calling to Alex. "Here," he said, pointing to the closed coal door. "There was a sledgehammer leaning against the house out back," Allen offered. "Didn't think much about it, but they could have propped the door open, made their escape that way." "They're on foot and it's getting colder," Mulder said, taking the stairs two at a time. "Deputy, put out an ABP on a woman and a child, I gave you the descriptions. They shouldn't be that far from here! Alex, you have shotgun," he added as he hurried off to the car. Unknown State Highway two hours later Scully had never been so happy to see cement adorned with white and yellow lines in her life as she was when she and Sarah broke through the trees and saw the highway. Sarah had been a trooper, walking almost half the way. It was slow going, but Scully couldn't have made it if she'd had to carry the child. Two days of inactivity had done a number on her bruised muscles, leaving her sore and stiff. The wind hadn't been kind, either, kicking up a pile of dark clouds that seemed to be threatening either sleet or snow. "Sarah, I think we should wait here a while, see if a car goes by," Scully suggested. "But Mommy, I gotta go potty," Sarah announced with a grimace. Scully sighed, trying to figure out where a good impromptu 'potty' might be among the trees and dense underbrush when she heard a rumble coming from down around a corner in the road. There, before her very eyes, was a Sheriff's Department squad car, pulling to a stop. The deputy all but ran over to Scully and the child. "Ma'am, you wouldn't happen to be an FBI agent, would you?" the deputy asked, breathless. "As a matter of face, I am," Scully said with a grin. "Hot damn, uh, excuse the language, ma'am. Um, we been looking for you two for quite a while. Here let's get you in the patrol car and warm you up a bit. I have a car seat in the trunk for the little one." "Thank you, Deputy . . . " "Webb, ma'am. Andy Webb. Boy, I don't know how I rate. You two are the biggest thing to hit these parts in a while! And here it is, only my first day on the job! Whoooo Hoo!" the young man whistled. They were quickly buckled in the very warm and comfortable back seat of the patrol car and on their way. As Scully listened to Deputy Webb calling in his 'discovery', she stroked Sarah's hair as the child fell asleep. Washington County Maryland Sheriff's Department 11:15 am Mulder was near frantic as he plowed his way into the small brick building. He scanned the half dozen people until his eyes fell on the one red head in all the room. He was at her side in a heartbeat, pulling her into a fierce embrace, his face buried in her hair. "Mulder, I'm a mess. I'm dirty, I haven't showered in days," she protested, but he couldn't stop himself. "You're alive. I don't care if you just crawled out of a New Jersey sewer, you're alive," he chanted, hugging her close again. "Munchkin!" Alex shouted and scooped up the little girl who was trying her best to get in on the 'family hug' taken place right next to her. "Oh Sweet Sarah, Uncle Alex has been so worried about you!" he said, showering her with kisses. Suddenly, he held her at arms length. "You weren't hurt, were you? Did a doctor look you over? Are you OK?" "I looked her over, Alex," Scully said quietly, when she finally broke Mulder's bear hug. "She's fine." "Thank god," Alex sighed, holding the little girl tight. "Daddy! Daddy, I want my Daddy!" Sarah cried out and lunged for Mulder. Alex tried to keep her in his arms, but the little girl launched herself in mid air and only Mulder's quick reaction time prevented her from falling to the floor. "Daddy, I missed you so much!" the child exclaimed, kissing Mulder's face repeatedly. "Mommy said you'd find us and you did!" Mulder held the girl stiffly and looked uncomfortably over at his partner. Scully frowned and nodded to the little girl. "Mulder, she doesn't understand," she hissed in a low voice. Mulder licked his lips and looked down at Sarah. Scully's pert nose and mouth were on that face, but it was Samantha's eyes that stared back at him. His throat tightened and he struggled to hold back his tears. Like a floodgate opening, he crushed the child to him, burying his face in her baby fine hair. "Oh, Sarah, I'm so very glad we found you," he said softly. As the emotion of the reunion finally slipped away, Alex caught Scully's eye. "Hi, long time no see," he said in a whisper. "Hello again. I'm not sure how -- " "Long story," he said tilting his head toward Sarah, who had climbed out of Mulder's arms and was busy rearranging the pencil holder and stapler on the desk sergeant's counter. "You two have been working together?" she asked, looking at Mulder for confirmation. "It took a little getting used to," Mulder admitted. "Say what, G-man?" Alex countered. "It took a LOT of getting used to. But in the end -- " "Mulder, there was a man, I think he was another captive. We didn't find him after the creature left the door open. I think he might have been another victim." "Scully, believe me, this report is going to kill a forest of trees before we get it documented. Right now, I think we have bigger items to consider," he told her, nodding toward Sarah who was now tugging on her arm. "Mommy, I'm hungry!" the child declared. "Can we go to McBurgers?" "Um, how about we try something different, Munchkin?" Alex suggested. "It's called McDonald's and it's almost exactly like McBurgers." "OK, Unc'a Alex! Let's go!" "Fast thinking, but how did you know?" Mulder asked quietly as they headed for the car. "I saw the arches. The name is different, but I'm betting they still have the best fried zucchini you can find," Alex said with a wink. "Um, about that -- " Mulder countered. "Gotcha," Alex replied with an evil grin. Homewood Inn and Suites off the I-70 Scully closed the door to the bedroom quietly, so as not to wake the sleeping little girl. Lunch and 45 minutes in McDonald's playland had exhausted the tiny girl once again. Mulder had suggested not going back to the city immediately. From what Alex had told him, Dana and Fox lived in Prince Georges County, Maryland, in a two-story colonial with a half-acre yard. Going to Scully and Mulder's duplex in Georgetown would only serve to confuse the child. Even so, the three adults needed time to talk and plan. "So, basically, we go back to the vortex and hope it's still open," Alex said, sipping coffee that Scully had prepared in the hotel room's kitchen. "What if it's not open?" Scully countered, sitting forward on the sofa next to Mulder. "Alex, you can't assume that it's going to be there now. If this vortex has always been around, why haven't more people gone though it?" "Dana, I don't know what to tell you," Alex admitted. "I just know that's the only way we can get back home." "Alex," Mulder broke in. "Do you think you could give us a few minutes to talk -- privately?" The detective looked at Mulder and then at Scully, whose face was hidden because she was staring at the floor. He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. "Sure. I'll just go out to the courtyard and um, talk to the ducks." When he was gone, Scully stood up and went to the window. "Mulder, I know what you're going to say," she said, crossing her arms. "Good. Maybe you can tell me," he quipped. He got up from the sofa and stood behind her, pulling him to him, her back to his front. "Scully, I don't know what to tell you. I went through hell the last couple of days, but I think what you went through was worse." She shook her head vehemently. "No, Mulder. It wasn't. After destroying my cell phone we never saw the monster again. We were warm, we were well fed. Aside from being trapped, we were fine -- better than fine." He kissed the top of her head lightly. "That's what I'm saying. Scully, you had 48 hours -- a taste of motherhood. Just like before, when you found Emily. And now, just as before, you're having to give that up -- to walk away. I can't think of anything worse than that." He turned her around and she buried her face in his chest. "Mulder, she calls me Mommy. And she has your eyes and your chin and she draws pictures and she loves Tigger and thinks Rabbit is mean to Pooh and I want that -- I want all of that!" she said, breaking down into sobs. He wanted to be strong for her, but his own eyes were cloudy with unshed tears. "And I want that for you. Scully, do you think I was unaffected when she hugged me and called me Daddy? When she told me she'd missed me?" He stopped, grasping for some control over his emotions. "But Scully, we aren't who she thinks we are. We aren't Mommy and Daddy -- not to that little girl." She pushed away from him with a gentle shove and paced the sitting room. "Don't you think I know that, Mulder? Don't you think I kept thinking that every time I looked at her? But now, I'm afraid for her, too. Mulder, we're talking a vortex! There is no scientific basis for this 'passageway' between two dimensions!" "Brad Kensworth got the idea somewhere, Scully," Mulder said evenly. "Maybe his 'glass' invention was based on a vortex of some kind. And just because we haven't studied it doesn't mean it can't exist. You of all people should know that. Scully, look at all the things we've seen in the last dozen or more years that your science could not explain." "But Mulder, we are talking about a little girl's life," she countered. "A little girl who is made up of _our_ DNA!" She toyed with the small decorative arrangement on the table in the dining room area. "Who would know that she wasn't ours?" she asked hesitantly. Mulder closed his eyes and then opened them slowly. He walked the few paces to take her in his arms again. "We would know, Scully. We would know." He stroked her hair, dropping kisses. "Not like this, sweetheart. You know I want to give you this one thing more than I could ever say, but not like this. Not when it means stealing something that isn't ours to take." Against his chest he felt her nod and then they both held each other and cried. Homewood Inn and Suites courtyard 2:30 pm Alex looked up when he saw Mulder at the door. Mulder motioned for him to stay seated and walked over to join him. "How's Dana doing?" Alex asked, not mentioning the tearstains he could see Mulder's cheeks. "She'll be fine. Sarah's awake. They're watching television. Toon Disney." "That should make her happy. Dana and Fox only let her watch Omni Kids and Crazy Animals." Mulder cleared his throat and leaned back, letting the fading sun warm his face. "Scully suggested we have a picnic supper, in Rock Creek Park tonight." Alex nodded. "Sounds like a plan. I can tell Sarah I'm taking her for ice cream. I do that from time to time." Mulder looked over at his companion. "You really do love her, don't you?" Alex refused to look at him. He toyed with a twig he'd found on the ground. "I don't see myself as the marrying kind, if you know what I mean. That little girl -- she's all the family I've got. Her mother, even that tight assed dad of hers -- " He stopped and looked sheepishly at Mulder. "Sorry, but he is a tight-ass -- no offense," he confided guiltily. "None taken" Mulder said with a smirk. "Anyway, they let me . . . borrow her from time to time. Let me pretend that I'm normal, I have a normal job and a little girl who loves me -- " "She does love you, Alex. I could see that when you held her," Mulder interrupted. "Well, I like to think she does," the other man said with a sigh. "Going through this vortex -- it didn't . . . hurt at all, did it?" Mulder asked with a worried expression. "To be honest, I didn't know I'd gone through it until I saw a stop sign," Alex said with a shrug. "We have the green on the top," he informed Mulder. "So I figured I wasn't in Toledo anymore." Mulder looked at him with confusion on his face. "Sorry, bad joke," Alex said with a wink. "C'mon. I know a Mom and Dad who are worried sick and a Captain who is waiting to chew me a new asshole." "Well, with a welcoming party like that, we don't want to keep you any longer," Mulder replied with a smile. Rock Creek Park Washington DC 5:00 pm It was a testament to Scully's acting abilities that she didn't break down into tears when they got to the park. She sat in the front seat with Mulder, Alex and Sarah sat in the back seat with a sack of Subway sandwiches and drinks between them. Mulder found a little picnic area near the creek near a big tree that Alex pointed out to Sarah, the prearranged clue for Mulder to follow. The sun had dropped below the rooftops of the surrounding apartment buildings long before, but on the floor of the little gorge it was dusk with streetlights illuminating the scene. It looked tranquil, inviting. They talked of little things, whatever Sarah wanted to discuss. They spoke of going to the zoo and the last time Uncle Alex came for dinner. She told them what she wanted to do when she grew up -- teaching doctors, like Mommy and Daddy. Finally, Alex glanced at his watch and Mulder nodded. "Sarah, how about I take you for an ice cream. We'll meet your Mom and Dad back at the house? How does that sound?" Alex asked with forced excitement. "Oh yes, Unc'a Alex, yes!" she replied, happily clapping her hands. "I want chocolate ice cream on a big cone!" "I think I can handle that," he said lifting her up off the picnic table seat and hoisting her onto his hip. "We'll see you two later," he said, his eyes twinkling in the dim light. "Yeah, see you at home," Mulder said. Scully stood up and both men held their breath. She walked over and kissed Sarah on the forehead. "Be good for Uncle Alex, Sweetie," she said evenly. "I will, Mommy," Sarah said and hugged Alex's neck tightly. "Good girl," Scully responded. "Take care of her, Alex." "I will, Dana. I promise." They turned and walked away, Sarah finally begging to get down and walk, the independent young lady of two very independent people. They'd only gone a few yards along the path when Alex leaned over and whispered something in Sarah's ear. She stood very still and nodded. Alex jogged back to Mulder, pulling his wallet out of his pocket. When he got to Mulder, he pressed something into his hand. Mulder looked down and saw the portrait of Sarah and her mother and father. "Alex, this is yours," Mulder protested. "You keep it. I can get another one in the next card she sends me," he assured Mulder. "Thank you," Mulder said. "For everything." "Back at you," Alex said, shaking Mulder's hand. "I, uh, gotta go." "Yeah, you better." He walked back to Sarah; they stepped beneath a big oak tree and vanished from sight. Scully sat there for several minutes, not daring to look at Mulder. Finally, she picked up the wrappers from the sandwiches and tossed them in a nearby trash barrel. "It's time to go home," she said quietly and they walked back to Mulder's car. Epilogue Mulder and Scully's Residence two days later "When are these damned things coming out?" Mulder whined as he attempted to shave around the stitches at his neck. Showering was a distant memory and even Scully had commented that she thought they could take the stitches out themselves - - as soon as the area looked healed. "One more day," came the reply from under the shower spray. "Did you finish the report?" "It's on the computer. It was a lot harder than I thought since I can't substantiate anything Alex told me. But it does appear that the man we found in the alley worked with the Dana Scully Mulder from the other dimension and he took the child, perhaps as a way to get closer to Dana. When he saw you, he probably thought you'd be the next best thing. It's rough and dirty but it's all there. Take a look at it when you get out," Mulder replied, wiping wisps of shaving cream from his face. They hadn't said a word upon returning to the duplex after watching Sarah and Alex depart. Scully had refused to go to the Emergency Room, and Mulder didn't have the courage to force her. Instead, she acted like it was a Sunday night, she gathered and laundered work clothes, tidied up the kitchen and didn't speak a word. When it was time for bed he was almost afraid she would relegate him to the sofa for some unknown and unintentional crime. Instead, she clung to him the minute their bodies hit the mattress. They made tender love and he resolved not to mention the tears creasing her cheeks and staining her pillow. In the morning, they went to work. Her fortitude in the face of adversity was one of the things that most endeared her to him. It also drove him stark raving mad when he knew she was shutting off her feelings, from herself, from him. They were past that, long past that, or so he had thought. He had decided, half out of cowardice, to give her some time. But it was Friday and they had a whole weekend stretching out before them. He was terrified she would go on another cleaning spree. He couldn't handle that. He would have to draw her out, one way or another. He grabbed his car keys and followed her out to the car. He had all day to devise a plan. 5:00 pm Scully parked the car in the alley driveway and sat for a moment. Images of Sarah would flit through her mind, superimposed on images of Emily. Both girls were about the same age, but Sarah seemed more advanced. Sarah was definitely the happier of the two girls, always ready to play, to color, to be read to or rocked. Her heart ached when she thought of Emily, long gone. But the tears burned her eyes when she remembered the feel of Sarah in her arms, calling her Mommy in a way that Emily never did. She shook herself and reached for the door handle. Mulder had left the office early, claiming to go see a 'real' doctor about his stitches. She didn't believe him for a minute, he was up to something -- but she was too tired and heartsick to figure it out. She trudged up the walkway to the back door. "I'm home," she called as she stepped into the kitchen. She could smell something in the oven -- something Italian. Peeking in the door, she saw Mulder's famous lasagna -- as he had deemed the recipe he'd seen on the Food Network during his convalescence of a few months back. A bottle of wine was uncorked and 'breathing' on the kitchen counter. She sighed and shook her head. She really wasn't in the mood for romance or seduction and it looked like Mulder had pulled out all the stops. "Hey," he said, leaning against the kitchen doorway in jeans and a grey tee shirt. The fact that he looked delectable seemed to make her more depressed. "Did you get the stitches out?" she asked, peering at his neck. "All gone," he said, pulling his collar aside for her inspection. "I better not find little black catgut threads in the sink upstairs," she warned him as she moved past. "I left the receipt from the co-pay on the desk in the office. I knew you'd be suspicious." "Not suspicious, Mulder. Skeptical," she countered. "Do I have time to take a quick shower?" "Real quick. Dinner's on the table in 15 minutes," he answered. "OK, no shower. But I am changing my clothes," she replied. With heavy footfalls she went up to their bedroom. When she came back downstairs, now enfolded in a downy blue sweater and her oldest jeans, he had the table set with the 'good' dishes (ones her mother had given them) and candles were on the table. He'd even folded napkins. She had to smile ruefully at his endeavors. The man did nothing halfway. He gallantly pulled out her chair. "Would the lady care to sample the wine?" he asked as he scooted her close to the table. "I'll take my chances," she replied and he went about filling first her wine glass and then his. She picked up her napkin and discovered it had concealed to small packages, both wrapped in white tissue paper and tied with white silk ribbon. "Mulder, what are these?" she asked, holding them up. "Gee, I guess I need to get the guys to check the security alarm, huh?" he said with a boyish grin, but she detected a subtle air of nervousness about him. What had he gone and done this time? "Dare I open them now, or should I wait so I don't spoil dinner?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. He seemed a bit hurt at her words and tone, but resolutely shook it off. "Let's eat while the garlic bread is still hot," he suggested. The dinner was perfect. She even managed to taste both the entree and the salad he'd prepared, with fresh mushrooms she had noted. Finally, the wine glass was near empty and her plate was mostly clean. She daintily wiped her mouth on the napkin and looked up at him with a smile. "My compliments to the chef," she said graciously. "The chef accepts all compliments, it was his pleasure," he assured her. "Now?" she asked, picking up the small packages. "Let's go into the living room," he countered, refilling their glasses and taking her hand to help her up. He guided her from the room with his hand on the small of her back. Once seated on the sofa with their glasses on the coffee table, Mulder nodded that she could open the smaller of the two presents. It was the picture of Sarah with her parents that was now encased in a tasteful silver and mother of pearl frame. She looked up at him with tears on her lashes. "It's beautiful," she said, and leaned over to give him a kiss. "Open the other one," he encouraged. She removed the tape and paper from the slightly thicker box and pried off the lid. A small metal vial was revealed along with a business card. A frown creased her brow as she held up the vial. There was a serial number on it. The card, she discovered was for a fertility specialist at Georgetown University Medical Center. She shot him a hard look. "Mulder, what is this?" "First, I want you to know that everything I did, everything I do, I do with the absolute best of intentions," he prefaced. She drew in a breath and nodded slowly. "When we had first found out about your cancer, I broke into a medical clinic of a Dr. Scanlon," he said, licking his lips. "You know that part." "Yes, and you found out that they had harvested my ova for their experiments," she said, swallowing thickly. "One of those ova was later used to . . . create Emily. You told the judge that at my adoption hearing." He nodded at her timeline. "What I didn't tell you at the time was that I stole a couple of the vials from the storage unit," he said quietly. "You . . . what?" she asked, her voice catching in her throat. "Mulder -- why didn't you tell me?" Her expression was a mixture of anger and deep betrayal. "Scully, when I first found them, you were dying. Or so we thought. I took the vials and I had them placed in a fertility clinic here at Georgetown under an alias. I thought they would be safe. They've been there, well, for six years now." "That still doesn't explain why you kept it a secret," she hissed. "When was I supposed to tell you? After you lost Emily? 'Oh, don't worry, Scully -- you can make your own baby'. To be honest, there were times when I completely forgot they were there. And further, I was hoping that Scanlon was wrong and we'd find out the old fashioned way," he said sheepishly. He took her hand and was gratified that she didn't pull away. "What I'm telling you is that you have a choice. If you really want a child, we can have a child. We can start the procedures tomorrow or next week. But if we have a child, I want that child to be as safe as Sarah is with her parents." "Sarah was kidnapped from her bed while a police detective sat in their living room," Scully pointed out bitterly. He tilted his head and frowned at her. "OK," she relented. "I see your point. So what are you saying -- that we just go on? That we never just stop the car . . . Mulder, we have so much to do! We have the laptop to decipher, we have Strughold and Charlie to defeat and that's not even considering Spender and Krycek and -- " "I'm saying right here, right now, it's your decision, Scully. When you want a child, I'm there. It doesn't have to be this week. It can be in a few years. I, uh, I left a deposit last spring, when I arranged for you to have full access to the family finances. A little mixing, a little time in a warm place and 'voila' -- instant parents." She shook her head and a sad smile formed on her lips. "God forbid we do anything the conventional way," she muttered. "So, what's this?" she asked, holding up the vial. "It's not in a cooler, so it's probably not viable." "It doesn't have anything in it. It's just a container with the number your ova are stored under. Consider it a Swiss Bank Account." "So, it's all up to me?" she asked. "Isn't that what all that ruckus outside the Supreme Court is about?" he asked with a grin. "I want you to be happy, Scully. I will move heaven and earth to ensure that." She wiped the tears from her chin and cheek and then looked at the vial in her hand. "Someday, Mulder. Not now, not when there is so much at stake. But someday . . . someday . . . voila." He took her hand and led her up to their bedroom. As they readied for bed she looked at the small portrait in the silver and shell frame. She traced the tiny face with her fingertip. Carefully she placed it on the nightstand by her side of the bed. the end.