Chapter Six - You Are Kidding, Aren't You?
Scully could barely keep her mouth from falling open. "A ghost?"
"Well a spirit might be a better term for it."
"Ghost? Spirit? You are trying to tell me that you think that a spirit is appearing and killing people for no apparent reason."
"Well, yes. But I think we may be able to figure out the reason once we figure out who the spirit is."
Scully just shook her head in disbelief and looked over at Krycek who had obviously heard some of Mulder's outlandish theories before. He looked totally unphased by what he had just heard.
Scully sat back unable to think of what to say next. Krycek had no such trouble.
"So Fox, how do we go about figuring out just who this spirit is?"
Mulder who had been enjoying the look of shock covering Scully's face turned his attention back to Krycek.
"Well Alex, from what I can tell all the people who have been killed had some sort of training in channeling. I imagine they all had a gift for conversing with deceased spirits. All we have to do is see if they have some sort of client list and see if any person's name comes up repeatedly."
Mulder paused and glanced over at Scully who seemed a bit more in control of her emotions. "We will, of course, also follow the more conservative route and talk to all the people who came in contact with the latest victim during the last 48 hours of her life."
"Alex, why don't you work on the previous victims while Scully and I split up work through the guest list of the party the latest victim threw right before she died."
Krycek grabbed his jacket without hesitation "Good enough. I will get right on it."
He left before Mulder could respond. Mulder waited until he could no longer hear his footsteps before turning to Scully. "Eager little thing, isn't he? I am not quite sure why he is so agreeable but I can't say that I really trust him."
"But he's your partner"
"Just because he is my partner doesn't mean I have to trust him right off the bat. I trust you a lot more and I barely know you."
"Why is that?"
"Because you question my theories and don't spend all your time kissing my ass. Of course that might not be so bad either" he said smiling wickedly at her.
Scully glared back but refused to respond to his comment. "So where do we start?"
"Why don't we take a few minutes to write down the names of everyone we can remember from the party and anything in particular that sticks out about them. We can then each write a statement about our own activities at the party for the record. After we read each other's statements, I am sure we will come up with some questions. You can use Krycek's computer if you like." Mulder turned towards his own computer paused a moment and starting typing.
Scully swallowed hard and tried not to think too much about her personal conduct at the party. She desperately wanted to forget most of it.
Mulder noticed the lack of typing on Scully's part and looked over at her. She was focusing hard on the computer screen as it trying to come up with just the right words to describe her actions. He could have sworn he saw her blushing ever so slightly.
"Scully" Mulder said quietly. "You don't have to go into great detail you know. Just general observations will do fine for now. Don't put anything on paper unless you witnessed it first hand for yourself."
Scully looked up and smiled weakly knowing he was referring to the illegal use of marijuana and the like. She hadn't actually seen anyone smoking so she shouldn't put it in her report.
They worked in silence for quite a while each tapping away on the computer keys pausing only to gather their thoughts or to grab a cup of coffee.
Finally about two hours later they both declared themselves done. They watched in silence as the printer spewed out what they had written. They each handed their version of events over to the other and began reading.
Scully noticed immediately how much longer not only Mulder's narrative on the evening's events was but his list of guests.
She waved the paper at him "How could you possibly remember as much as this?"
"Photographic memory" Mulder said shyly.
"Oh" Scully replied returning to her reading.
When they both finished reading they looked at each other a bit sheepishly. They were amused to see that neither of them had really mentioned the fact that they had spent a good deal of time together at the party or that they had left together.
Scully wasn't quite sure what to say and was quite pleased when Mulder asked her if they should just split up the guest list and start interviewing potential witnesses.
"We can split the list more or less down the middle" he started "but I think it may be a good idea for me to talk to your sister Melissa and you to talk to Angela."
Scully nodded "I think that would be easier on everyone"
They parted company agreeing to keep in touch.
Mulder looked at his long list and figured he would start with the person with whom he most wanted to speak. Melissa Scully.
Melissa didn't seem all that surprised to see Fox Mulder standing at her door. She greeted him warmly and accepted his condolences about the loss of her friend before inviting into the room.
"Melissa" Mulder started accepting the cup of coffee she offered him. "I know how difficult this is, but I need you to think about the party and Paige. Can you think of anyone who would want to do her harm? Did you feel anything strange the night of the party?"
Melissa smiled and sat back in her chair sipping her coffee while shutting her eyes and thinking. She took her time about it but didn't keep Mulder waiting too long.
"Now that you mention it, I did have several strange feelings pass over me during the evening."
"Would you mind sharing them with me?"
Melissa smiled at Mulder again, put down her coffee cup and picked up his hand. "You know Fox, it is so nice to be treated with such respect. My feelings are so often ridiculed or ignored."
She took her hand back and placed it along with the other on her lap. "Basically the atmosphere in the room was quite pleasant. Occasionally I would pick up on a little bit of tension but nothing too serious. A couple of times I felt some very strong feelings though."
Mulder nodded his encouragement and she continued. "The first time was when you first entered the room with Angela and came over to us."
"You felt something from Angela?"
"No you actually"
"Me?"
Melissa smiled a bit shyly at him "Don't tell Dana about this or she will have my head, but I picked up on the positive energy between you two right away. Even though you two had never been formally introduced before that night, it was clear that you both knew who the other was."
Mulder looked down suddenly very interested in a small spot on the carpet.
"The other time was later in the evening. A lot of the guests had gone home and all that remained were the night owls. Angela had gone off to find the bathroom leaving Tom temporarily alone. Paige noticed that he looked a bit uncomfortable and walked over and chatted with him until Angela returned. I could have sworn while she was doing it a cool feeling came over the room."
"Do you think it could have been a spirit?"
Melissa paused before answering "Maybe"
"Do you think we will ever get your sister to think so?"
Melissa shook her head "Doubt it - but I am willing to try if you are."
Scully got much less information out of Angela than Mulder did from Melissa. Angela greeted her with great excitement and this time Scully was not spared the hug.
Angela had babbled on about how wonderful the party was and how much fun she had and how happy she was that Scully and Mulder had hooked up.
"We didn't 'hook up'" Scully muttered "Mulder was just kind enough to see us both home"
"Really? Didn't look that way to me. I thought you two were off to have a wild time between the sheets. Too bad" Angela said shaking her head slightly "you would have had a lot of fun."
Scully frowned slightly and tried again to get the conversation off of her and Mulder and back onto the party. "Do you remember any one showing any signs of ill feeling towards Paige?"
At the mention of Paige's name, Angela became a bit more subdued. "Towards Paige? No. Everyone loved her. The only person I met who didn't like Paige was my twin sister Andrea."
"Andrea? Has she been in contact with Paige recently?"
Angela laughed. "No, she has been dead for five years now. Of course, Paige has contacted her a couple of times for me since then."
"Really?" Scully said trying to hide her opinions of such notions "How did she die?"
"Car accident. We were both in the car when a tire blew and we lost control of the car. Andrea was killed instantly. I walked away with a little bit more than a scratch. I had worn my seat belt while she had not."
"I am sorry to hear that."
Angela quickly changed the subject back to her beloved Tom and Scully endured another thirty minutes of hearing all about his virtues before being able to tear herself away.
Scully managed to interview another half a dozen guests before calling it quits for the day. Her head was spinning from dealing with people who preferred to deal with feelings instead of facts. She was out of her element with these people and it made her quite uncomfortable and quite irritable. Mainly because she knew that Mulder was probably suffering from no such discomfort.
Scully returned to her apartment, took a quick shower and changed into a comfortable pair of sweats and a grungy old t-shirt. She was just about to pop a frozen dinner into her microwave when there was a knock at her door.
She sighed, threw the frozen dinner down on the counter and walked over to her door. She looked through her peephole and saw Mulder standing there with a large pizza box and a bottle of wine.
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Scully could barely keep her mouth from falling open. "A ghost?"
"Well a spirit might be a better term for it."
"Ghost? Spirit? You are trying to tell me that you think that a spirit is appearing and killing people for no apparent reason."
"Well, yes. But I think we may be able to figure out the reason once we figure out who the spirit is."
Scully just shook her head in disbelief and looked over at Krycek who had obviously heard some of Mulder's outlandish theories before. He looked totally unphased by what he had just heard.
Scully sat back unable to think of what to say next. Krycek had no such trouble.
"So Fox, how do we go about figuring out just who this spirit is?"
Mulder who had been enjoying the look of shock covering Scully's face turned his attention back to Krycek.
"Well Alex, from what I can tell all the people who have been killed had some sort of training in channeling. I imagine they all had a gift for conversing with deceased spirits. All we have to do is see if they have some sort of client list and see if any person's name comes up repeatedly."
Mulder paused and glanced over at Scully who seemed a bit more in control of her emotions. "We will, of course, also follow the more conservative route and talk to all the people who came in contact with the latest victim during the last 48 hours of her life."
"Alex, why don't you work on the previous victims while Scully and I split up work through the guest list of the party the latest victim threw right before she died."
Krycek grabbed his jacket without hesitation "Good enough. I will get right on it."
He left before Mulder could respond. Mulder waited until he could no longer hear his footsteps before turning to Scully. "Eager little thing, isn't he? I am not quite sure why he is so agreeable but I can't say that I really trust him."
"But he's your partner"
"Just because he is my partner doesn't mean I have to trust him right off the bat. I trust you a lot more and I barely know you."
"Why is that?"
"Because you question my theories and don't spend all your time kissing my ass. Of course that might not be so bad either" he said smiling wickedly at her.
Scully glared back but refused to respond to his comment. "So where do we start?"
"Why don't we take a few minutes to write down the names of everyone we can remember from the party and anything in particular that sticks out about them. We can then each write a statement about our own activities at the party for the record. After we read each other's statements, I am sure we will come up with some questions. You can use Krycek's computer if you like." Mulder turned towards his own computer paused a moment and starting typing.
Scully swallowed hard and tried not to think too much about her personal conduct at the party. She desperately wanted to forget most of it.
Mulder noticed the lack of typing on Scully's part and looked over at her. She was focusing hard on the computer screen as it trying to come up with just the right words to describe her actions. He could have sworn he saw her blushing ever so slightly.
"Scully" Mulder said quietly. "You don't have to go into great detail you know. Just general observations will do fine for now. Don't put anything on paper unless you witnessed it first hand for yourself."
Scully looked up and smiled weakly knowing he was referring to the illegal use of marijuana and the like. She hadn't actually seen anyone smoking so she shouldn't put it in her report.
They worked in silence for quite a while each tapping away on the computer keys pausing only to gather their thoughts or to grab a cup of coffee.
Finally about two hours later they both declared themselves done. They watched in silence as the printer spewed out what they had written. They each handed their version of events over to the other and began reading.
Scully noticed immediately how much longer not only Mulder's narrative on the evening's events was but his list of guests.
She waved the paper at him "How could you possibly remember as much as this?"
"Photographic memory" Mulder said shyly.
"Oh" Scully replied returning to her reading.
When they both finished reading they looked at each other a bit sheepishly. They were amused to see that neither of them had really mentioned the fact that they had spent a good deal of time together at the party or that they had left together.
Scully wasn't quite sure what to say and was quite pleased when Mulder asked her if they should just split up the guest list and start interviewing potential witnesses.
"We can split the list more or less down the middle" he started "but I think it may be a good idea for me to talk to your sister Melissa and you to talk to Angela."
Scully nodded "I think that would be easier on everyone"
They parted company agreeing to keep in touch.
Mulder looked at his long list and figured he would start with the person with whom he most wanted to speak. Melissa Scully.
Melissa didn't seem all that surprised to see Fox Mulder standing at her door. She greeted him warmly and accepted his condolences about the loss of her friend before inviting into the room.
"Melissa" Mulder started accepting the cup of coffee she offered him. "I know how difficult this is, but I need you to think about the party and Paige. Can you think of anyone who would want to do her harm? Did you feel anything strange the night of the party?"
Melissa smiled and sat back in her chair sipping her coffee while shutting her eyes and thinking. She took her time about it but didn't keep Mulder waiting too long.
"Now that you mention it, I did have several strange feelings pass over me during the evening."
"Would you mind sharing them with me?"
Melissa smiled at Mulder again, put down her coffee cup and picked up his hand. "You know Fox, it is so nice to be treated with such respect. My feelings are so often ridiculed or ignored."
She took her hand back and placed it along with the other on her lap. "Basically the atmosphere in the room was quite pleasant. Occasionally I would pick up on a little bit of tension but nothing too serious. A couple of times I felt some very strong feelings though."
Mulder nodded his encouragement and she continued. "The first time was when you first entered the room with Angela and came over to us."
"You felt something from Angela?"
"No you actually"
"Me?"
Melissa smiled a bit shyly at him "Don't tell Dana about this or she will have my head, but I picked up on the positive energy between you two right away. Even though you two had never been formally introduced before that night, it was clear that you both knew who the other was."
Mulder looked down suddenly very interested in a small spot on the carpet.
"The other time was later in the evening. A lot of the guests had gone home and all that remained were the night owls. Angela had gone off to find the bathroom leaving Tom temporarily alone. Paige noticed that he looked a bit uncomfortable and walked over and chatted with him until Angela returned. I could have sworn while she was doing it a cool feeling came over the room."
"Do you think it could have been a spirit?"
Melissa paused before answering "Maybe"
"Do you think we will ever get your sister to think so?"
Melissa shook her head "Doubt it - but I am willing to try if you are."
Scully got much less information out of Angela than Mulder did from Melissa. Angela greeted her with great excitement and this time Scully was not spared the hug.
Angela had babbled on about how wonderful the party was and how much fun she had and how happy she was that Scully and Mulder had hooked up.
"We didn't 'hook up'" Scully muttered "Mulder was just kind enough to see us both home"
"Really? Didn't look that way to me. I thought you two were off to have a wild time between the sheets. Too bad" Angela said shaking her head slightly "you would have had a lot of fun."
Scully frowned slightly and tried again to get the conversation off of her and Mulder and back onto the party. "Do you remember any one showing any signs of ill feeling towards Paige?"
At the mention of Paige's name, Angela became a bit more subdued. "Towards Paige? No. Everyone loved her. The only person I met who didn't like Paige was my twin sister Andrea."
"Andrea? Has she been in contact with Paige recently?"
Angela laughed. "No, she has been dead for five years now. Of course, Paige has contacted her a couple of times for me since then."
"Really?" Scully said trying to hide her opinions of such notions "How did she die?"
"Car accident. We were both in the car when a tire blew and we lost control of the car. Andrea was killed instantly. I walked away with a little bit more than a scratch. I had worn my seat belt while she had not."
"I am sorry to hear that."
Angela quickly changed the subject back to her beloved Tom and Scully endured another thirty minutes of hearing all about his virtues before being able to tear herself away.
Scully managed to interview another half a dozen guests before calling it quits for the day. Her head was spinning from dealing with people who preferred to deal with feelings instead of facts. She was out of her element with these people and it made her quite uncomfortable and quite irritable. Mainly because she knew that Mulder was probably suffering from no such discomfort.
Scully returned to her apartment, took a quick shower and changed into a comfortable pair of sweats and a grungy old t-shirt. She was just about to pop a frozen dinner into her microwave when there was a knock at her door.
She sighed, threw the frozen dinner down on the counter and walked over to her door. She looked through her peephole and saw Mulder standing there with a large pizza box and a bottle of wine.
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