"Déjà Vu"
By
Andra Marie Mueller
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story takes place in the a/u established in my "Reunion" series. All things X Files are the legal property of Chris Carter, Ten Thirteen Productions and 20th Century Fox. But they wouldn't recognize their characters in my world anyway. Thanks to BEKi for her input on the original ST:VOY version of this story and this rendition done XF style. And thanks to Shea for the usual reasons, especially for the online laughs
"As water reflects a face, so a man's heart reflects the man." – Proverbs 27:19
As the flames consumed his flesh and the screams of his dying partner faded away, Doggett realized his life was about to end and allowed himself a nanosecond of rage at the futility of it all. Using his last ounce of willpower, he focused his last conscious thought on the joy in his children's smiles, and the taste of Jessica's kiss. His brain reached for the memories and clasped them tightly to his consciousness. Then the fire overwhelmed him at last, and he felt a brief flash of searing pain before awareness vanished into a black void of nothingness.
FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA: TWO HOURS EARLIER
It started as an ordinary day, with nothing to indicate how it would end or the anger and anguish it would leave in its wake. Jessica awoke alone to find the sun streaming through the bedroom windows and the telltale rustling in the bathroom told her that John was all ready up and about.
The early bird that catches the worm has nothing on John, she mused silently.
"Good mornin', beautiful," Doggett greeted softly.
Jessica glanced over her shoulder to find her husband standing in the doorway, dressed in a charcoal gray suit and tie with a sky blue shirt that matched his eyes. "Good morning yourself," she greeted. "How long have you been awake?"
"A while," Doggett answered, and walked over to sit on the edge of the bed. "The twins are still sleepin', but the Three Stooges wanted breakfast."
She smiled at his use of the nickname he had bestowed on their dogs. As the result of an off hand remark made by Mulder, Grace and Matthew had given Doggett a puppy for his 50th birthday three days earlier, a female bulldog they had named Georgia. She was all of thirteen weeks old and weighed less than a sturdy pair of boots, yet she was all ready taking charge of the family's other dogs, two extra large Saint Bernards named Spooky and Semper Fi.
"Just goes to show that when you're dealin' with females of any species, size don't matter," Doggett had observed wryly.
"What about you?" Jessica asked. "Do you have time to have some breakfast with me before you head to work?"
"I wish I did, but I have a meetin' with Deputy Director Kersh this mornin'."
"Dare I ask what about?"
Doggett shrugged. "I have no idea, but dollars to donuts it ain't cuz he wants to commend me for my work on the X files," he responded dryly.
"Very funny, Sunshine."
They exchanged a smile as he leaned over to give her a warm kiss. "I'll call you later to see what you want to do about dinner."
"Don't forget that the twins are staying with Fox and Dana tonight," Jessica reminded him. "Will wanted them to have a sleep over."
"I don't suppose we could convince them to take the dogs, too?"
"Good-bye, John."
"Bye, Jess."
HOOVER BUILDING – WASHINGTON D.C.
Walking through the front doors of FBI Headquarters, Doggett had just reached the elevator when he heard his name being called. "John, wait up…"
He turned expectantly to see Mulder approaching him. "Mornin', Mulder," he greeted.
"I'm glad you're here. I just got a message from Greg Burlinksi and he wants to see us right away. Apparently one of the hospices that is using the alien technology is here in D.C."
Doggett sighed. A former Navy S.E.A.L., Burlinski had been given an honorable discharge following a covert mission in Europe wherein his unit had been ambushed and he had been the sole survivor. The government had lied to the public and said that the soldiers had been killed in a routine training exercise. They had declared the deaths a "tragic accident" and closed the case after only minimal investigation. Upon his return home, Burlinski had begun telling anyone who would listen that his unit's real mission had been to destroy a secret facility where doctors were using alien technology to heal critically wounded or terminally ill patients. Because his brother was one of Jessica's officers at Alexandria P.D., word of his ranting had reached her, and she in turn had presented his story to Mulder. The initial interview with Burlinski had not yielded any proof of his claim, as he was unable to provide the agents with the specific location of this mysterious facility. Yet what he had told them regarding the procedures being done there too closely paralleled the genetic manipulation that had been done to Jessica so many years ago, and Mulder and Doggett had continued to pursue the case.
"I've got a meetin' with Kersh in about two minutes, so you and Monica should head on over to see Burlinski. I'll contact Jess when I'm done with Kersh and we'll meet you there."
Mulder nodded and Doggett stepped into the elevator, then rode up to the fourth floor and made his way down the hall to Kersh's office. His secretary was nowhere in sight, so Doggett approached Kersh's door and knocked twice, then stepped inside at Kersh's muffled "Come in."
"Good morning, sir," Doggett greeted.
"Good morning, Agent Doggett," Kersh echoed. "Thank you for being prompt. Have a seat."
Doggett settled himself into a chair in front of Kersh's desk, and the other man waited until he was comfortable before continuing. "We're both busy men, so I'll get directly to the point," he said. "As you're aware, the Bureau has yet to find a permanent replacement for Brad Follmer. Given the fiasco that arose last year after his connection to Nicholas Regali was revealed, the powers that be have been reluctant to put just anybody in the Assistant Director's chair. They last thing they want or need is another reason for the press to rake the Bureau over the coals."
"Frankly, sir, I'm not cryin' in my coffee over the Bureau's bad publicity," Doggett replied dryly.
Kersh stifled a sigh. He has been spending too much time with Mulder, he thought to himself. Aloud he said, "Based upon your performance since joining the X files, as well as a strong recommendation from A.D. Skinner, the position of Assistant Director is now being offered to you."
Surprise flickered across Doggett's rugged features. "You're offerin' me a promotion?" he prompted.
"Yes. I don't know why you're so surprised, John. The powers that be offered to bump you up in rank once before, but you chose to stay with the X files. Agent Reyes and Agent Mulder seem to work well enough together, and now that you have a family to consider, we felt you might be ready to accept a position with a more regular work schedule. I'm certain Captain Doggett would appreciate the chance to spend some extra time with you."
The faintest of smiles creased his face. "With all due respect, sir, you're not tryin' to promote me simply because you think it'll make my wife happy to have me workin' nine to five," he replied.
"Perhaps not," Kersh allowed, "But from where I sit that would be a strong motivator to give the offer serious thought. Agent Scully gave up the X files three years ago in order to spend more time with her family. You could do worse than to follow her example."
Doggett pointedly ignored the small voice in the back of his mind whispering, He's right. "I'll need to talk to Jess before I make a decision either way," he demurred.
"Of course. Talk it over with Captain Doggett and let me know as soon as you've reached a decision."
"Yes, sir."
Rising to his feet, Doggett bid Kersh farewell and exited his office.
ALEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA
Jessica was in her office reviewing a case with one of her homicide detectives when a knock on the door signaled the arrival of another person, and they glanced up as Doggett opened the door.
"Mornin', Captain," he greeted with mock formality.
"John…this is a pleasant surprise."
"Unfortunately it's a business call."
"Ah." Jessica gestured at her detective. "Special Agent John Doggett, Detective Royce Davis."
The men exchanged a handshake as Davis remarked, "Nice to meet you, Agent Doggett, although with the way the captain speaks about you, I was expecting you to be ten feet tall and bulletproof."
Doggett gave his wife as amused smile as she shot Davis a quelling look. "Unless you want to start a new career as a stand up comedian, Royce, I suggest you keep your comments to yourself," she cautioned.
"Yes, Ma'am."
Bidding them farewell, Davis exited the office and Jessica waited until the door had closed behind him before addressing her husband. "So what brings you here?" she asked.
"Mulder got a call from Burlinski this mornin' askin' to meet with us," Doggett told her. "Apparently there's a clinic like the one he told us about here in D.C."
"And what makes him willing or able to tell you where this one is, when he didn't know the specific location of the one his friends died trying to find?"
"He called us for a reason."
"Maybe because when it comes to anything remotely resembling an X file, he knows all he has to say is 'Jump' and Mulder will ask 'How high?'."
Doggett cocked an eyebrow. "Somethin' buggin' you, sweetheart?"
"Yes, actually. I'm getting a little tired of my brother dragging you along on every wild goose chase that crosses his path. Once in a while it would be nice if he could find someone else to follow along whenever he gets the urge to go ghost busting. It's not like he doesn't have another partner."
"Why is it okay for him to drag Monica into his business and not me?" Doggett queried. "Hell, the man's my brother-in-law."
"To paraphrase a familiar quote, that doesn't make you his keeper," Jessica countered. "And Monica isn't married with children."
"So that makes her more expendable?"
"That's not what I said," she responded tightly. "Despite her lingering feelings for you, I've come to consider Monica a friend. She's always been there for you and Fox when push came to shove and I'm grateful for that. But I won't stand here and pretend she means as much to me as you do. You're my husband and the father of my children, John; I won't let Fox's obsession take you away from me."
Confusion was evident on Doggett's rugged features. "Where is all of this comin' from, Jess?" he asked. "It's not like I haven't been in dangerous situations before, with or without Mulder."
"If it were still just the two of us, then I'd be willing to let you and Mulder chase little green men until the cows come home. But we have the twins to think about now, and Mulder has Will. Don't you think its time the two of you put the brakes on?"
Doggett flashed his wife a faint smile. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you'd been talkin' to Kersh," he replied dryly. "When I saw him this mornin', he offered me a promotion to Assistant Director and said now that I have a family I should start considerin' a more stable work environment."
Jessica returned his smile. "Well then for once he and I agree on something," she said. "You and I had this discussion when I was offered the promotion to Captain."
"So you're sayin' you want me to quit the X files and accept the promotion?"
"I'm saying I want you to take a long, hard look at the rest of your life and decide how you want to spend it," Jessica corrected. "I love you, John, and if in your heart of hearts continuing your work on the X files is truly want you want, then I will support you 100. But if you're only staying with it out of some misguided loyalty to Fox, than maybe you do need to reconsider your career track."
The ring of his cell phone prevented any response from Doggett, and he pulled it out of his jacket. "John Doggett."
"It's me," Mulder's voice replied. "Where are you?"
"I'm with Jess. Where are you?"
"Burlinksi told us where to find that hospice," Mulder said, and gave him the address. "Monica and I will meet you and Jessica there."
"We'll see you in a few minutes."
Doggett ended the call and replaced the phone in his pocket. "That was Mulder," he told her. "He got an address for the hospice Burlinski told us about and he and Monica are gonna meet us there."
"We'll take my car," Jessica said. "Those cars the Bureau makes you drive practically scream 'federal vehicle'."
"And yours is any less conspicuous with the 'DONT TCH' plates?"
"I couldn't find a way to condense 'Property of John Doggett' into seven letters."
"Very funny, sweetheart."