(((Author's interlude: during the time period passing between now and
the next setting, Fowley and the other victim are warned that they are
in danger, and are placed in a *safe house.* However, they're both
rather stupid.)))

Government Safe House
Baltimore, MD
September 30, 1999
4:54 AM

Diana Fowley opened the door of the safe house where she was
staying with Annie Eddows and was met with the most gruesome sight
she had ever seen. On the floor of the living room was a corpse. She
could just barely make out the identity of the body-there was blood
everywhere. She clamped a hand over her own mouth and ran out the
front door-right into a police officer.
"Officer," she gasped, "thank God you're here... somebody's
been killed!"
"Ok, calm down, miss.. it's going to be ok. I'll take you
downtown where you can make a statement.. I'll call for back-up first."
He showed her into the backseat of the car, and radioed the
nearest police station for back-up and paramedics. He set the radio
down and carefully-so that Fowley wouldn't see-turned it completely
off. He started the car and drove away from the house.

About half an hour later, when they still hadn't reached the
police station, Fowley began to get suspicious.
"Excuse me, I think we're going the wrong way."
"No, we're fine."
"Are you sure? We should have been downtown by now."
"We're not going downtown."
"What?"
He pulled the police cruiser into an alleyway and ripped the
radio out of it's circut. He pulled out a gun and quickly shot Fowley
in the head, then set about to finish the job.


Safe House
5 AM

The many squad cars pulled up infront of the safe house,
closely follwed by Mulder's own car. They all got out and rushed
into the almost empty house.
"Hello?" Mulder called, "Diana?"
There was no answer, just dead silence. Then he saw the body.
"Oh my god.." he whispered, "OVER HERE!"
The paramedics and coroner rushed over into the living room,
and over to the body. Once the paramedics realized there was no
reason for them to be there, they left the scene.
"It's Annie Eddows," the coroner informed the police and
agents, "she died about twenty minutes ago, at the least."
The body was covered up and carted out.
"Mulder? Where's-"
"Fowley," he finished for his partner, "I don't know. I can
only hope she's ok."
Scully gave him a look.
"She helped me find the X-files, Scully, I owe it to her to
find her."
She nodded. He rested a hand on her arm.
"You ok?"
"Yeah, it's just.. I can't see how anybody could do something
this horrible to another human being."
He held her hand briefly, "I know.."

5:45

"No fingerprints this time either," the police officer informed
SAC Miles, "he's either using gloves or being too careful."
"There has to be something we've missed, one thing we've
overlooked that will lead us to the killer."
They had, in fact, missed something this time-a message
that was written in blood had been found at every crime scene except
this one. Or so they thought.
Mulder stood in the door to the living room, staring at the
formerly white couch. Then, he saw it. He quickly walked over to the
couch and read the note:
"You can't save them"
He really didn't understand the notes. None of them could
be tied together with a similar theme. The only thing they had in
common was that they were all written in blood at the scene of the
crime.
"Agent Mulder!"
He looked up, "Miles?"
"They found Diana Fowley."
"She's dead." Mulder said simply.
"Yes... how did you know that?"
"In 1888, Jack the Ripper killed twice on September thirtieth.
The bodies were found within forty-five minutes of eachother."
"Oh."
"I should come with you."
"No," Scully stepped in, "go home, Mulder. Let me handle this
one."
"Scully, I can't leave you by yourself. You're probably the
next one on his list!"
"And I'll be surrounded by police officers. I'll be safe."
He gave Miles a look saying 'help me out here.'
"It's ok, Agent Mulder, I won't let anything happen to her."
Mulder sighed, "Thanks a lot, man... ok, I'll go, but I want
you to call me the minute anything happens."
"I will," Scully promised.
He gave her hand a little squeeze before leaving the house and
going home.


Alleyway
Baltimore
6 AM

Miles and Scully reached the crime scene shortly after the
police. They were met by Lieutenant Michael Talbot.
"I'm the one who found her," he informed them, "she was still
alive then, but she died shortly after the call."
He had blood all over his uniform.
"I tried to stop the bleeding," he explained, tears starting,
"I tried to save her..."
"It's ok," Miles assured him, "now, Talbot, you go on home...
we can take your statement some other time. You've had enough for one
day."
Scully gave him a sympathetic smile as he walked to his police
cruiser. She walked over to the body and lifted up the sheet.
"It's her," she said, "but how did she get here?"
"I don't know," Miles replied, "she was told not to leave the
house... maybe they killed her there and moved the body."
She nodded, "Maybe.... what about Talbot?"
"Who? Mike?" He paused, "You don't think he might have..."
"What do you think?"
"No, he's a good kid.. hasn't been the same since his wife
died, but he couldn't do anything like this... you saw him a minute
ago. He was practically hysterical."
"Yes.. indeed."
The crime scene was cleared up, closed off to the public, and
then Scully went home. She opened the door cautiously.
"Mulder? You here?"
"In the kitchen," he called back.
She smiled slightly, "You're cooking?"
"Yep," he came out of the kitchen, wearing the apron Scully had
gotten from her brother reading: 'Kiss the cook'.
She walked over to him, shedding her coat and tossing it on
the couch, "It was her."
"Diana?"
"Yeah... I'm sorry, Mulder. I know you did care about her."
He plopped down on the couch, "I have to find him before
November ninth."
"Is that when you think he'll attack again?"
"Yes. I know he will... he's torturing me, drawing the murders
out as long as possible while still following the pattern."
"Who will his next victim be?"
He looked up at her with watery eyes, "You."
"Are you sure?"
"Positive.. I haven't been in a serious relationship between
you and Diana... and I'm even more serious about you."
She sighed. "Why is he doing this?"
"I honestly don't know... maybe he feels that I took away
somebody he loved, so he's returning the favor."

Out in the squad car, 'Jack' laughed to himself. Agent Mulder
didn't know how right he was about that. It had been 1979 when the
man took away his mother and sister. And he hadn't even been taken
downtown for questioning... 'Jack' remembered the day well. He and
his sister had been sitting in the backseat of their mother's car-
she hadn't let him drive that day. She'd been taking them to Boston
for the weekend. They'd passed under the streetlights, and been
rammed into on his sister's side by a Vega. Everything had gone
black, but he remembered waking up, alone in the ICU of a hospital.
He'd been informed that his mother and sister were dead. He'd inquired
as to the status of the other driver.
'He's alive,' the nurse had said, 'and lucky to be so.. I don't
like telling people this kind of thing, but your mother ran a red
light. The two of you are lucky to have survived. I mean, both cars
were going at least sixty miles per hour.'
On that exact day, 'Jack' had silently sworn revenge on the
man who had taken the women in his life. It was too bad he had to
wait until November for the next one... the last one. He smiled,
thinking of how he could get creative this time, how he could leave
his very own M.O. He would have fun this time.


Mulder's Aparment
November 7
8:43 PM

"Left foot green," Mulder announced when the spinner stopped.
Both of them trying to do this did not work. They collapsed
in a heap on the floor.
"I hate this game," Scully remarked.
"Really?" Mulder looked down at her, "I love it."
"Mmm... do you?"
"Yes I do."
He smiled and leaned in, giving her a kiss. And the phone
rang. Her cell phone, to be exact. She let out an irritated breath and
picked it up.
"Scully."
"Agent Scully?"
"Yes."
"This is Lieutenant Talbot with the Maryland state police..
there's been an incident.. we think your mother may have been
injured."
"What? Where?"
"Someone planted a bomb in your mother's neighborhood. Several
houses were damaged. There are six people wounded and.." he trailed
off.
"And what?"
"Seven people dead."
She felt her face go white. "I'll be there as soon as
possible."
She set the phone down and quickly put her shoes on and
grabbed her keys and coat.
"Scully, what happened?"
"I can't talk.. I have to go."
"It might not be safe."
"Mulder, my mother might be dead. I have to go."
"Call me as soon as you get there."
She nodded and ran out the door and down to her car. She
climbed in to the driver's seat and drove towards her mother's
neighborhood in Glen Burnie, Maryland.

But she never got there. There was no bomb either. When she
was on one of the backroads, a police cruiser appeared out of nowhere
and signaled for her to pull over. She saw a man in uniform step
out of the car and come up to her window. She didn't recognize that
it was Lieutenant Talbot.
"Ma'm, you were speeding."
"I know.. I'm in a hurry."
"What's the rush?"
"I was told there was an explosion near my mother's house, and
that she may be dead."
"Where does she live?"
"Glen Burnie."
"I was just there, and I can assure you that there is, was,
and will be no explosion."
She let out a huge breath that she didn't know she'd been
holding. "Are you sure?"
"Positive, miss. Now, while I understand your reasons
completely, I still need to write this off as a traffic violation. May
I see your liscence and registration please?"
Scully nodded and reached towards the glove compartment,
taking her eyes off the policeman. She felt a gloved hand clamp
over her mouth and smelled the chloroform on the rag that the
hand held. The last thought she had before loosing conciousness
was 'Oh shit.'