Chapter 11.

Scully paced the length of the small kitchen as she listened to the hollow sound of the cell phone ringing in her ear. She looked over at the trap door that lead to the crawl space and looked at her watch. Only a few minutes had past since the last time she had checked and Mulder had still not emerged from the basement.

"Bates."

"Yeah, Rodney," Scully stammered in the phone. She was uncomfortable calling the officer by his first name as she barely knew the man. "Do you know when the doorman is going to arrive?" She winced as she heard the words come out of her mouth. That sounds so dumb, she thought. Damn that Mulder and his secret codes!

"I spoke to him about five minutes ago," Bates said dryly. "He's on the way. He should be there in an hour."

"Great," Scully replied rolling her eyes. She closed the phone and tossed it on the countertop. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" she said aloud to no one in particular.

Scully wandered toward the front door and paced nervously in the hallway. Patience wasn't one of her strong suits, especially when it involved unknown subjects lurking in or around her house. As much as this case drove her crazy, the unknown elements scared the hell out of her. The cryptic information Bates had recited was code that Jobgen was okay in his position under their house. Mulder didn't even have to go down there, Scully thought as she headed back toward the door. So much for trying to be the hero.

"Scully."

Scully swirled around on her heel and jumped at the sound of his voice. "Geezus Mulder," she gasped when she saw him standing there. "Bates reported that Jobgen's okay," she mumbled trying to act like he hadn't startled her.

"I know, I just talked to him," Mulder said looking at her carefully. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Scully replied calmly, taking a breath to steady herself. "I'm just ready for bed." Scully walked to the bottom of the stairs and started up the flight.

"Hmmm," Mulder growled with a sly grin on his face. "I like a woman that takes charge."

Scully rolled her eyes as she trudged up the stairs. Nester's words were playing like a broken record in her head as she walked down the hallway and she could hear Mulder following her in silence. Suddenly Scully was nervous.

"What was Jobgen doing down there?" Scully asked mindlessly to break up the tension.

"Nothing," Mulder replied as he walked into the master bedroom. He pulled his shirt over his head and threw it into the hamper. "He said it's really cold down there," he added walking into the bathroom.

Scully watched him intently and then followed him into the small room. "Mulder can I talk to you a second?" she asked sitting down on the side of the tub.

He glanced over at her and caught the serious look on her face. He sighed and braced himself for the worst. "As your lover, partner or friend?" he asked turning to face her.

Scully hesitated a moment. She ran her tongue over her lips. "As my partner," she replied slowly.

Mulder nodded. "What's on your mind?"

"Are you … going to let me bring Sams in tomorrow?" she blurted out in one breath. Damn, she cursed herself losing the nerve to have "the" conversation with him.

"Am I going to let you?" Mulder repeated. "Scully when have you ever needed my permission to run the case?"

"You've been telling me what to do since we got here," Scully said firmly.

"What?" Mulder guffawed with a baffled expression on his face. "Scully, I haven't told you once what to do on this case. We are running the case like we always do. I do my thing and you …" Mulder gestured around the room. "You go after the scientific and then argue with me on all my theories."

Scully shook her head and chuckled. "Okay, Mulder, whatever," she replied abruptly and stood up from the bathtub to leave the room.

"Oh, no," Mulder said stepping over to the door to block her from walking away from him. "It's not okay, whatever," Mulder said. "What the hell is bothering you? You've been moody for days.'

Scully stopped in her tracks and looked him in the eye. I'm not friggen moody, she thought to herself as she gave him the "look". "I'm moody?" she replied.

"Yeah," Mulder said staring back at her. "And I'm not the only one who's noticed."

"Oh, like Nester is an expert on women and their moods?" Scully retorted, with a slightly raised voice.

"He's pretty perceptive about female tendencies," Mulder countered. "He grew up with four sisters you know."

"And that makes him an expert?"

"Scully, he has a degree in psychology."

"Oh, right … that's why he accused me of PMSing!" Scully yelled and threw her hands up in the air. "Why am I the one getting accused of being moody? You're the one that started this fight."

Mulder pulled his head back and looked at her quizzically. He could practically see the steam coming from her ears. "Excuse me?" he asked.

"You started it the other day," Scully replied flatly.

"When?"

"You don't remember?" Scully muttered in disbelief. "The other day when you accused me of eating your breakfast."

Mulder starting laughing at her. "You're still pissed about that? Please!"

"You're laughing! It's not funny Mulder!" Scully remarked. She was totally pissed now. It was just like him to make light of whatever happened the other day and expect her to let it go. And normally she would let it go, except this time, that whole episode was just a smoke screen for what was really bothering her. She looked up into his hazel eyes and stared at him for a moment. He had that look about him, like he was psycho-analyzing her.

"What's really bothering you?" Mulder said softly.

Scully took a deep breath and exhaled heavily. He was wearing her down just by staring at her. "I'm sorry about Ethan."

Mulder pursed his lips and nodded. "Okay," he remarked slowly. "That's a start. Why did you lie about him?"

"Well, it wasn't exactly a lie. Just an omission of information," Scully replied.

"Isn't that the same thing?" Mulder asked her.

Scully smirked. Yeah, it's the same thing when we are interrogating a suspect, but not when you are talking to me, she thought quickly. "Why did you go that way anyway? Were you spying on me?" She asked turning it back on him.

"No!" Mulder replied shaking his head. "I went to shoot hoops at the Y after work. Little did I know I was going to catch you in a lip lock with wonder-boy."

Scully crossed her arms at her chest and leaned against the vanity. "Either was I," she said remorsefully.

"So, are you dating him now?" Mulder ventured carefully.

'Hardly," Scully muttered looking up at him. "Do you think I'd sleep with you if I was seeing him?"

"Well, I would hope not," Mulder replied with a somber expression. "I know how irresistible I am."

"Is that what Diana thinks?"

Mulder rolled his eyes and scowled. "It always comes back to her," he muttered. "Why can't you trust me?"

Scully felt her heart skip a beat as she searched within for an answer. Jealousy was the only reason she could come up with and it sounded a little lame right now. Here's goes nothing, she thought as she tilted her head to the side. "Mulder," she began. She stopped suddenly and turned her head again. What was that? she thought listening for the sound.

"What's wrong?" Mulder asked her as he saw her expression change.

"Did you hear that?" Scully asked ducking under his arm and walking into the bedroom. A popping sound echoed quietly in the night. "That sounded like a shot."

Mulder listened intently to the background sounds until he heard the popping for himself. "Go check on Bates," Mulder directed her as he pulled her service revolver from the dresser drawer. "I'll get the tunnel," he remarked as he handed the gun to her and headed for the stairs.

Scully followed Mulder down the stairs and slipped into the kitchen to retrieve the keys to the Vesch's house from their spot by the refrigerator. She walked to the sliding glass door and looked back at the nook to see Mulder drop out-of-sight into the crawl space.

Scully pushed the sliding glass door open and stepped out into the night air. She closed the door and quietly snuck across the yard to the garage door at the Vesch's. She left herself in with the key and walked quietly through the garage to the main door of the house.

Scully entered the hallway from the garage with confidence. She paused a moment to allow her eyes to adjust to the darkness when she suddenly felt sick to her stomach in anticipation of what she would find. The only sound she could hear was her own heart beat pounding in her ear. Scully took a deep breath to calm her nerves. Geezus Dana, you've done this a thousand times, pull it together! she scolded herself as she scanned the darkened hallway.

Scully started down the hallway and peered around the doorway of the laundry room. When she was sure it was clear, she stepped half into the room with her gun leveled at shoulder height. She noticed her hands were shaking and shook her head. Calm down! she scolded herself. Scully took several breaths to shake her nervousness before continuing but her mind was playing tricks on her. She couldn't focus on her task, as images of her conversations with Nester kept flooding her thoughts. She leaned up against the washing machine and tried to blot out the noise in her head. Okay, okay… Nester is right, she told herself. I need to talk this out with Mulder and stop blaming that woman for my insecurities. Scully took another deep breath and felt her confidence coming back. When I get back to the house, she told herself one final time.

Just as she stepped into the doorway to continue down the hall, she heard a low cry coming from the living room. She left the room quickly and made her way along the wall toward the sound. As she came around the corner to the foyer, she found Bates wrestling with a man twice his size.

"Freeze!" Scully shouted as she leveled her weapon on the subject. The man released his hold on Bates, stood upright and turned toward Scully. He hesitated and then began to run toward her. His footsteps were sluggish and his movements exaggerated, like he was moving in slow motion. Scully watched him coming toward her, paralyzed for a moment. At the last second she yelled out again. "Stop!" she yelled and felt her finger pull back on the trigger of her gun.

As the bullet released from barrel, the man reached out and firmly shoved Scully to the floor. The shot appeared to hit the man point blank in the chest, but it didn't faze him.

The force against her body hit Scully like a freight train and as she fell backward her head collided with the wood flooring. Her gun clattered out of her reach across the floor. She looked up into the face of her attacker as he loomed over her. His face was like no other, dark and matted. She heard a low growl come from his throat as he approached her like prey. Damn it Dana! This is it, she thought as she fought to remain conscious. He's going to kill me and I never got up the courage to tell Mulder how I feel! As the blackness began to envelope her vision, she felt a wet heaviness dripping on her skin and heard the popping sound of gun shots ringing over her ears.

……

The coolness of the floor was the first sensation Scully felt as she slowly became aware of her surroundings. She could smell Mulder's cologne and felt the warmth of Mulder's hand against her face. She could hear muffled voices surrounding her, but couldn't focus on what they were saying. She tried to speak, but felt like her mouth was stuffed with cotton balls.

"Mulda?" she finally gasped as she tried to open her eyes.

"Scully?"

She registered his voice clearer this time. She opened her eyes and squinted up at Mulder. His face was blurry above her. "Mulda, I wazjealzsch," she mumbled struggling to sit up.

"Hey, whoa," he replied calmly putting his hand gently on her shoulder. He watched her eyes roll up in her head and felt her body fall against his arm. "Easy, you got clunked in the head pretty good. Scully?"

"Here's an icepack," Jobgen said to Mulder. He squeezed the bag until it popped and then shook it to mix the chemicals inside. Once it started to cool, he handed it to Mulder.

"Thanks," Mulder replied taking the pack from the officer. He put in on the back of Scully's neck and called her name again.

"Does she need an ambulance?" Jobgen asked.

"No, I don't think so," Mulder said. "She's coming around." He looked over at Bates leaning up against the wall in the foyer. "I don't want to draw any attention to the situation, but they both need to get checked out."

"I'll get the car," Jobgen said as he helped Bates stand up and the two men made their way to the sliding glass door. "We'll meet you in the garage in five minutes."

"We'll be right behind you," Mulder replied as he watched Jobgen and Bates head out. He turned his attention back to his partner. "Scully, are you with me?"

"Mulda," Scully whispered as her eyes fluttered opened. "Zorrybouttan. I wazjealzsch."

"I know, I get it," Mulder replied with a chuckle. "How many fingers do you see?" he asked her holding three fingers in front of her face.

"Three," she whispered, a little more clearly this time. Scully struggled to sit up with Mulder's assistance. She looked around the room noticing the muddy footprints along the hallway. "What happened?" she mumbled looking him in the eye.

"I was hoping you could tell me," Mulder said as he ran his fingers through her hair examining the bump on the back of her head. He moved the ice pack over it. "Looks like Bates interrupted an intruder and you took the brunt of his exit."

"I shot him," Scully replied seeing it in her mind. "Once in the chest."

Mulder looked around at the floor for any signs of blood. Both he and Scully had heard gun shots earlier and Bates had reported firing several rounds as well, but the only signs on the floor were spent casings. "Are you sure? Before or after he hit you?" He saw her gun laying a few feet away.

"Before," Scully replied slightly irritated.

"Don't get mad, Scully," Mulder countered. "There isn't any blood on the floor."

Scully watched him as he reached over and picked up the weapon and pulled out the clip. She ran her hand down the front of her shirt and smeared the muddy goop with her hand. She looked at her hand to see what she had touched. Is that blood?

"Mulder, there's blood on my shirt!" she blurted out loudly.

Mulder turned back to her and swept the beam of the flashlight over her shirt checking for its origin. When he was certain that she hadn't been shot, he examined her palm closely. "I don't think its blood," he replied calmly pushing the magazine clip back into her gun. "It looks like the same stuff we found before… on the fan blade and the back of the jeep."

He stood up from the floor and walked into the kitchen to retrieve a towel for her. He walked back to Scully and handed it to her while he made a sweep of the room with the flashlight looking for bullet holes in the walls. There was nothing. He turned back to Scully and helped her to her feet. "Come on," he said pulling her up. "We need to get you and Bates checked at the hospital."

Once Scully was on her feet, she put a hand against his chest. "Mulder wait," she said trying to steady herself.

"Are you okay?" Mulder asked as he tilted her head back to look in her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm just a little …," she mumbled pulling out of his grasp. "I'm sorry about Ethan. I was … am jealous of Diana. I don't like her and I don't trust her. "

Mulder bit his lip. This was hardly the time to talk about this, but it was apparent that she wasn't going to let it go. "Do we need to talk about this right now?"

"Yes, I just need to get it off my chest," Scully replied ruefully. "I know I can't pick your friends for you Mulder, but my feelings for her are not going to change."

Mulder ran his hand down the side of her arm. "It's no secret that you don't like her," he started. "But that's not the real issue between us. Is it?" he asked her.

Scully took a deep breath. It was more of a statement rather than a question. He knew her all too well, to the point that she couldn't hide anything from him. He was right, Diana was just the smoke screen for the real issue. She shook her head. "No, it's just …." she paused and looked at the floor searching for the right words. The silence between the pair was deafening. Finally Mulder broke the ice.

"Scully you asked me to trust you. I do and even on those occasions when I didn't or thought that you were wrong for whatever reason, in the end, I've always come back to you," Mulder said. His hand lingered at her palm and he grasped her hand in his. "I know that trust is the issue between us and …."

"It's not," Scully interrupted. "I trust you, Mulder. It's just …." She stammered under her words. Dammit! Why can't I just say it! she wondered to herself. I don't even know what I want to say. She bit her lip and felt tears brimming in her eyes.

Mulder pulled her hand up to his chest and pressed it against his breastbone with his palm. "You trust me with your life, and on most occasions you trust my gut instinct and my judgment. But you have yet to let your guard down and trust me with your heart."

Scully looked up into his face and found herself being pulled into the hypnotic stare of his hazel eyes. Why is it that he knows me so well, and yet I'm still trying to figure him out? she wondered as she tried desperately to find words that would explain her feelings … or maybe just the reason she was so tongue tied. Maybe I'm just being stupid, she mused. Why does everything have to be so complicated with my life?

"I love you Mulder," Scully coughed out finally. She felt a tear escape down her cheek.

Mulder caught it with his fingertips and ran his thumb over her lips. "This isn't about love Scully. I don't doubt your love for me," Mulder said quietly. "You just need to trust me enough to let me in."

Scully held his gaze and then leaned forward into his arms. She felt his arms circle her back and his hand rest softly in 'his spot' at her waist. Despite that he had spelled out the whole thing for her, she felt good that it was finally out in the open. I guess it's good that he understands me, Scully thought as she sniffled into his shoulder. Since obviously I can't figure myself out.

"Mulder, I …." Scully began as she pulled back from his embrace.

"Shh, it's okay," he mumbled into her hair. "I'm not ready to give you up as my partner anyway."

Damn him! Scully thought to herself. He thinks I need to let him in? Maybe I need to let myself in. She sighed and looked up into his eyes. "Okay, I'm glad that's off my chest."

Mulder nodded knowingly. "Can I take you to the hospital now to get checked out?"

Scully nodded, took the ice pack out of his hand and placed it on the back of her next. She followed him out of the house and into the night.

…….

TBC