CHAPTER 9

Mulder swallowed hard, his eyes wide. "Yes," he replied softly, staring at Scully, whose face matched his in shock.

"Mulder, it's John Doggett," Doggett said. "Damn, it's been a while."

"Yeah it has," Mulder replied, shaking his head remorsefully at Scully. "Glad you called, Agent Doggett. We've got about a thousand questions to ask you." Mulder saw Scully's eyebrow arch at the news of the caller being Doggett.

"Yeah, well I've got my share of things to tell you." Doggett paused; Mulder could hear he was driving, recognizing the particular noises in the background. "Mulder, you and Scully are in danger."

"We gathered that."

"How?" Doggett was shocked at Mulder's nonchalant response.

"Long story," Mulder replied. "Listen, we need to know if you've been in contact with an adult William."

"Son of a bitch," Doggett muttered. "How the hell-"

"Ask him where he is!" Scully exclaimed loudly, enough so that Doggett paused when he heard her voice.

"We don't know," Doggett replied to Scully's request. "He and his partner Cara English came to us over a day ago. They left a few hours after that."

"Did you tell them about us yesterday?" Mulder asked, his interest beyond peaked at the details.

"Yeah, we told them everything. And gave William a picture."

"What time?"

"I don't know … maybe around five o'clock eastern?"

"Five … that would be two here," Mulder said loudly, glancing over at Scully to suggest it was the same time she collapsed in the hospital the day prior. "And they're headed here?"

"That's all we know," Doggett replied.

"How did you get our number?"

"It took a bit of digging, but we were able to connect Dana to Salem Hospital. The rest was fairly simple."

"Too simple," Mulder muttered.

"Did he leave a phone number?" Scully asked anxiously, grabbing the phone from Mulder to put it on speaker.

"Hi Dana," Doggett said. "No … well, yes. But no. His partner gave us her cell, it's all they had. William's belongings are in Hoboken."

"Did he kill the doctor?" Scully nearly whispered, afraid of the answer.

"No. From what we gathered, the case they were working on was a set-up. Someone was trying to flush William out. They must have used a fragment, because he exhibited all the same symptoms as Mulder when he was exposed. The noise, voices …"

"For what purpose? He has no powers."

"I beg to different, Agent Scully," Doggett remarked. "He blew up a china cabinet across the room when he was angry. And the guy is strong. Bit of a loose cannon."

"How did he become an adult?" Mulder asked. "He should be ten."

"Yeah, good question," Doggett replied. "I wanted to know the same thing myself. Turns out he believes he was born in 1987 in Wyoming."

"And his … parents?"

"Died in a car accident when he was 17. He moved to Hoboken with an aunt."

"How is it even possible that he would believe he was born in 1987?" Scully asked. "The date is everywhere. School, work …"

"I don't know, Dana. It's blowing my mind as well."

"How did he know to come to you?" Mulder asked.

"He said he didn't. He just followed what his mind told him."

"So … he has powers?"

"Oh yeah. And probably more than we know about."

"What about his partner? Cara English?"

Doggett sighed. "You know, Mulder … I thought I had her pegged as just his partner. But there is something about her that just isn't …"

"... isn't?" Mulder asked.

"Something that just isn't normal," Doggett finished. "I mean, she literally just touched your son on the back and saved me from being clobbered to death."

"William tried to kill you?" Scully asked in disbelief.

"No … but he does struggle with that whole light and dark thing. Like I said, he's got to believe in his abilities. Otherwise, he's a loose cannon."

"You think Cara English is in on things?" Mulder asked softly, eliciting a reaction of surprise from Scully.

"No, quite the opposite," Doggett replied. "I think she's pretty much the only thing that's keeping him safe right now."

"Why hasn't this gone national yet? Why no media coverage?" Mulder inquired.

"The bureau has a really tight grip on this one. They are controlling the search, the news, everything."

"Why haven't they …" Mulder paused, answering his own question in his mind. "So William's coming to protect us?"

"I believe so," Doggett replied grimly. "Listen, I have tried to get ahold of Cara with vital information, information she's keeping secret from William for the time being."

"What information?" Scully asked.

"Cara was held at gunpoint by an English guy who gave her a vial of liquid, telling her if it wasn't administered to William within 72 hours that he would die." Doggett paused, inhaling deeply. "She had us test a sample and it turns out the guy was right."

"Where is this guy now?" Mulder asked.

"Shot himself in the head after letting her go."

"Jesus," Mulder said softly. "Reminds me of Antarctica," he added to Scully. "Did she say anything else about him? The English guy?"

"She mentioned he said that his grandfather died for 'this truth' …"

Mulder's eyes widened. "Well Manicured Man, Scully," he whispered. "What was in the vial?"

"A bunch of iron absorbing things that would rid his system of the magnetite he was being given in the hospital. He's probably getting weaker by the minute," Doggett answered softly.

"And she has the vial?" Scully asked, referring to Cara.

"Yes," Doggett replied. "But Monica and I were played by a shape shifter. Somehow he got ahold of her phone and stole my charger so I couldn't text Cara."

"But you did?"

"Just a while ago … but she won't know the number. I bought a whole new damn phone just to get ahold of her."

"What's her number?" Scully asked quickly.

"We found it through a former roommate. We had to use official channels."

"John …" Scully's voice was soft, filled with concern. "You're putting yourselves at risk."

"We were already at risk, Dana," Doggett assured her calmly. He dictated the number to them over the phone. "Scully, he needs the contents of that vial."

"And if you call her …"

"We risk spooking William. He's seen too much, heard too much. William … from what I saw of William, he's not sure at all of who he really is, or of who is really on his side."

"So at this point, we've got to hope that he trusts her enough to save him." Mulder's voice was dark with worry and fear.

Doggett nodded, though he knew it wasn't seen. "And lay low yourselves until he finds you."

"Yeah," Mulder mumbled, regretting his choice of the tiny town they lived in.

"We can't get access to a satellite tracker, otherwise we would locate them by Cara's cell."

"Doesn't matter," Mulder said softly, glancing over at Scully. "They already know where they are. The less attention they bring to them, the better. They don't want the world to know someone like William exists. They don't want people to have someone to hope in."

"So they'll try taking him quietly?" Doggett asked.

"Most likely."

"Or they'll make him choose," Scully murmured, a single tear sliding down her cheek.

Doggett was confused. "Between what?"

"His present and the future," she replied sadly.

Near Evanston, WY
2:46 AM MST

Another tank of gas later and several hundred more miles under her belt, Cara's eyes were heavy as she pulled into the dimly lit motel parking lot. Her back ached and her head hurt from the combination of focus on driving for so long and wondering how to tell Will about the vial she needed to administer to him.

Will had stayed awake the entire time after their argument in the car regarding Mulder and Scully's phone number, only breaking the silence to cough or shuffle himself further under the blanket he was in. During those eight hours of silence, he began to feel horribly for how he treated Cara, only to remind himself that the real Cara was still in Hoboken. Safe, at least, he thought. This version sitting next to him couldn't be her. Cara wouldn't keep this secret from him. Unless she feared for his life … No! Stop trying to excuse her. This isn't her!

They both paused in silence after Cara shut off the ignition, thanking her lucky stars that somehow she hadn't fallen asleep at the wheel. Will felt Cara glance over at him, her face barely visible in the dark. "Are you strong enough to stand?" she asked, her voice gentle.

"Yeah," Will said, feeling every joint in his body ache terribly as jolts of pain ran through his legs from putting weight on them. He exited the vehicle slowly, leaving the blanket behind. He saw Cara at the rear of the vehicle, taking both of their bags out and carrying them to the office to check in.

Once inside, Cara fished out her card with a hesitant sigh, watching as the manager slid it through the machine to charge it. Will grabbed his bag roughly from Cara's hands, enough so that she looked up at him for the first time in a while. His skin was pale, his eyes heavy - he looked weak. "There you go," the manager said politely, handing Cara two sets of keys. Will snatched one, turning to leave before Cara could catch up.

"Will!" Cara called to him as she followed him out of the office. "Let me help you-"

"I'm fine, Cara," he replied without looking back.

Cara watched him enter his room, which was across the way from hers, shutting his door without another word. She stood there in the darkness of the night, gripping her bag and bracing herself against the bitter winter wind. What had happened between them to change things so drastically? She knew she was tired, but she was beginning to feel as if Will didn't any longer trust her …

"Shit," she whispered, realizing what must have happened. He found the vial and the text when she gave him her coat. That had to be it. Did he think she was working against him? Would he slip away in the dark of night? Or would he confront her, the rage she had seen in him before now directed at her?

What she didn't know was, at 3:37 AM, she would get her answer.