Disclaimer: If I owned them, they would still be on the air. Belongs to Chris Carter and Fox. Takes place somewhere between season 4 and 6. Enjoy!
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The clacking of size thirteen, black dress shoes echoed down the shipping yard as the six- one, raven-haired man walked towards an unidentified entrance. He approached the door, glanced over his left shoulder, and knocked. A small slit in the door opened.
"Gilto Mikili." The man spoke, slipping a small bag of herbs to the anonymous entity. The slit closed, locks unlocked, and the door opened slowly under its weight. The man stepped in and as the door closed, the darkness surrounded him. Walking deeper into the darkness, he followed a familiar path until he reached another door. This time, he did not knock.
On the other side sat a redheaded man. Silently, the raven-haired man advanced towards him. He opened his palm and blew. A cloud of powder engulfed the seated man.
"What the f-," The man began to choke and fell to the floor. As the man withered, gasping for breath, the raven-haired man smirked, stepped over him, and opened a desk drawer. He pilfered a black leather book and a key and stashed it inside his suit pocket. From his left pocket, he withdrew a small vile, uncapped it, and laced the desk with a fine dust.
Walking calmly out the same doors he had entered, the raven-haired man returned to the night air.
Scully walked briskly down the corridors of the J. Edgar Hoover building. The echoing clack of her heels announced her presence to the lowly hall of the X-files. As she opened the door, she wasn't shocked to see Mulder, waiting with a file in hand.
"Fancy a drive?" He handed the file to Scully and retrieved his jacket from the back of the chair. Immediately, she flipped open the file and read.
"Virginia Beach," She was intrigued. "For a homicide? Mulder, why would they need us there?"
"String of crimes and an expert medical opinion." He smiled and walked past her. Rolling her eyes, she turned and followed him out the door. She continued reading as they walked.
"It says here that the shipment warehouse operator was found in his office, no forced entry, no sign of a struggle, C.O.D. unknown. Shipment workers didn't hear anything, nor remember anything from that particular evening."
"It also says that the only things missing were a book and a key, no money or other expensive paraphernalia was taken from the warehouse." Scully waited for Mulder's inveterate explanation.
"This is the third case to happen along the shipment ports in New England; the first was in Maine, then Connecticut, and now Virginia. No clear cause of death for the warehouse operators and the same book and key was stolen from each office." Scully took the passenger side of the blue Ford Taurus as she continued to examine the file.
"What are in the books?" She asked, looking up from the file.
"It's believed to be a 'Keeper's List', a real hush hush from customs."
"So, it's like a rolodex for the high seas' black market."
"Uh huh." Scully was beginning to see connections.
"Who's on the list?" She inquired, flipping through some of the papers.
"Many and various of sorts. You have fish anglers, jewelers, drug dealers, importers, exporters, pretty much anything you could name, it's in the books."
"What about the keys? Do we know what they go to?"
"It's assumed the keys are for storage units somewhere in the shipping yard. Mulder was now exiting the urban setting of Washington D.C.
"So, if the operators knew the goods were hot, they'd place them in the shipping containers, which only they had access too?"
"You would hope it would be that simple, Scully." Mulder glanced over and smiled. "My bet is there was one key for the operator and one key for the perpetrator."
"There's the M.O., kill the operator for the book and key."
Mulder responded, "Now the question is, 'Who needs a key?'." Closing the file and her eyes, Scully allowed everything to sink in for a moment.
It was nice when she didn't have to drive, it gave her more time to think and enjoy the bucolic scenery, especially in the eastern states. She inhaled deeply before letting her head lull to the side.
Mulder opted for sunglasses to dim the shine of the rising sun. Not hearing a follow up from Scully, he looked over to find her asleep, the sun illuminating her partially open lips and the strands of hair on her face. He smiled as a light fluttery feeling over took him. She was always so beautiful when she was sleeping; he absolutely loved little moments like this. Finally, turning his attention back to the road, Mulder grabbed his sunflower seeds and settled in for the four-hour drive.