Chapter 4
Washington, D.C. 1:00pm
"Wow. If walls could talk huh?" Mulder said walking into his old office with Skinner and Scully.
"If walls could clean." Scully answered wiping heavy dust off the filing cabinets. "So, what exactly are we looking for?"
Mulder opened a filing cabinet searching through the contents, "We'll know when we find it."
"I thought everything from the X-files was destroyed." Scully noted.
"Apparently not." Mulder replied gathering the files together.
"I don't understand why they didn't destroy our files." Scully asked, "Or at least give away the office."
"They did." Skinner explained, "Or at least they think they did. I recovered the files before they were destroyed and tried to fix everything up."
"You really expected us to come back." Mulder said amazed at the faith in Skinner's gesture.
"Agents I was beginning to believe you're indestructible but, by some chance you weren't I couldn't watch nine years of work go up in smoke." Skinner admitted.
"So were Reyes and Dogget both reassigned to the X-files then?" Scully asked.
Skinner sighed, "They were transferred. They're hearts weren't in it enough to fight. I did what I could to save the X-files but with the government and bureau's threats I didn't have an agent who would touch them with a ten foot pole."
"Well I guess it's true." Mulder chuckled, "There are only two people in the world crazy enough to take on the X-files."
"Maybe there are only two people passionate enough to take on the X-files." Skinner replied.
"Sir." Scully spoke up.
Skinner made eye contact. "Yes?"
"Thank you" Scully said, "For everything."
"It was the least I could do." Skinner answered looking at his watch, "I have a meeting to get to. Agents, lay low for a while until I can figure out how to get your heads off the cutting board."
"We will. Thank you again Sir." Scully said as Skinner walked down the hall. A few minutes later she turned to Mulder, "None of these cases explains anything. Mulder, let's just say your UFO theory is wrong."
"Okay. We can say that." Mulder replied placing down a bunch of files.
"Maybe we should be looking at other possibilities. You heard the case, double homicide child kidnapping. What if that's all it is? What if we've spent so much time worrying about 'them' and dealing with 'them' and accusing 'them' that were not used to suspecting anyone else?" Scully reasoned.
"That's why you're my partner isn't it?" Mulder asked, "To provide logical reasoning to situations I only provide impossible answers to."
"What if I can't anymore Mulder? What if I've seen too many things I can't explain? What if my thoughts on science are distorted?"
"Then we wouldn't be here having this conversation would we? You would be sitting idly by looking for evidence in the X-files. Instead, here you are thinking of the logical solutions." Mulder replied, "If anything Scully don't ever doubt your ability to be my partner. We've been through too much for you to start doubting yourself now."
Scully smiled, "I guess I'll go find out if there were any witnesses to the murder. Any possible suspects."
"Besides ourselves." Mulder stated.
"Besides ourselves" Scully repeated reaching for William.
"I'll watch him. You just be careful" Mulder warned.
"I will be. I can handle myself." Scully replied reassuringly.
"I never suspected otherwise." Mulder said watching her walk out the door.
^^^^X^^^^^
Washington, D.C. A few hours later...
Skinner reentered the old office rubbing his temples, "This looks really bad."
Mulder looked up from the desk covered in papers, "I like to call it organized mayhem myself."
"I mean you and Scully getting William back after everything that's happened. It looks bad." Skinner explained.
"What were we suppose to do? Leave him at the reservation and keep hiding? Pretend like we didn't know where he was?" Mulder asked.
"No, I'm not saying you should have done things differently. I am saying that you and Agent Scully suddenly reappear with your son after he's kidnapped with no probable explanation. That doesn't reflect good on you both." Skinner answered.
Mulder sighed, "Sir, Agent Scully and I have gone nine years with improbable explanations. I think they can handle one more."
"You're a marked man. They're out to find you." Skinner stated honestly, "And when they find you they're going to kill you."
"Sir, with all due respect, if they wanted me dead I would have been." Mulder continued, "There was no reason to kill me. They realize I know the truth and I can't do anything about it. But, if they were to kill me it would prove they had something to hide."
"They're worried you'll tell people the truth."
"No, they're not. I can't." Mulder said with defeat in his eyes, "I have too much to lose now. Even if I shouted the truth to the world I would probably end up on the front page of a super market tabloid and no one would be able to change it."
"I hope you're right but, what if William is just part of a plan to lure you out of hiding?" Skinner asked.
"Then they must not be looking too hard for me." Mulder rubbed his eyes looking at the papers in front of him, "What's important now is finding out who sent William here and what they wanted from him so I can clear Scully and myself of any possible suspicion surrounding the Van de Kamps murder."
Skinner nodded, "Be careful. There's not a lot of people you and Scully can trust around here anymore."
"There never were."
^^^^^^X^^^^^^^
Scully entered the morgue flashing her FBI identification hoping no one would notice that she probably wasn't technically an agent anymore, "Can I speak with a Dr. Blargen?" Scully asked the security guard.
"Um, yes, third door to your right." the security guard directed.
Scully entered the room finding the doctor sitting at his desk, "Hello, Dr. Blargen, my name is Agent Scully with the FBI. I was wondering if I could ask you some questions."
"Why of course. Have a seat." Dr. Blargen offered.
"Thank you." Scully said while sitting down, "Your name appears on this autopsy report correct?"
The doctor took the report looking over it, "Ah, yes, such an odd case."
"I noticed you autopsied both individuals but didn't mark a cause of death for either just naming it to be 'suspicious'." Scully stated.
"Why yes. The cause of death it was nothing like my colleagues or I had ever witnessed. It appeared to be an apparent poisoning but we found no trace of poison in the victims' blood. At least no familiar substances." Dr. Blargen explained, "Maybe it would be easier just to show you myself."
Scully followed the doctor to where the bodies were being kept and uncovered the man's. Scully and Dr. Blargen both put on examination gloves as Dr. Blargen pointed out poking the jelly like skin, "Look at the skin. It appears to have been broken down by something."
Scully nodded as a memory crept into her head, "Are there any bone samples?"
The doctor took a tube filled with the bone sample placing it on the microscope slide, "That is what was most unusual of all. Have a look."
Scully peered into the microscope and stepped back shocked at what she found.
"Agent, have you ever seen anything like this before?" Dr. Blargen asked.
"Yes" Scully answered, "Yes, I have."
Washington, D.C. 1:00pm
"Wow. If walls could talk huh?" Mulder said walking into his old office with Skinner and Scully.
"If walls could clean." Scully answered wiping heavy dust off the filing cabinets. "So, what exactly are we looking for?"
Mulder opened a filing cabinet searching through the contents, "We'll know when we find it."
"I thought everything from the X-files was destroyed." Scully noted.
"Apparently not." Mulder replied gathering the files together.
"I don't understand why they didn't destroy our files." Scully asked, "Or at least give away the office."
"They did." Skinner explained, "Or at least they think they did. I recovered the files before they were destroyed and tried to fix everything up."
"You really expected us to come back." Mulder said amazed at the faith in Skinner's gesture.
"Agents I was beginning to believe you're indestructible but, by some chance you weren't I couldn't watch nine years of work go up in smoke." Skinner admitted.
"So were Reyes and Dogget both reassigned to the X-files then?" Scully asked.
Skinner sighed, "They were transferred. They're hearts weren't in it enough to fight. I did what I could to save the X-files but with the government and bureau's threats I didn't have an agent who would touch them with a ten foot pole."
"Well I guess it's true." Mulder chuckled, "There are only two people in the world crazy enough to take on the X-files."
"Maybe there are only two people passionate enough to take on the X-files." Skinner replied.
"Sir." Scully spoke up.
Skinner made eye contact. "Yes?"
"Thank you" Scully said, "For everything."
"It was the least I could do." Skinner answered looking at his watch, "I have a meeting to get to. Agents, lay low for a while until I can figure out how to get your heads off the cutting board."
"We will. Thank you again Sir." Scully said as Skinner walked down the hall. A few minutes later she turned to Mulder, "None of these cases explains anything. Mulder, let's just say your UFO theory is wrong."
"Okay. We can say that." Mulder replied placing down a bunch of files.
"Maybe we should be looking at other possibilities. You heard the case, double homicide child kidnapping. What if that's all it is? What if we've spent so much time worrying about 'them' and dealing with 'them' and accusing 'them' that were not used to suspecting anyone else?" Scully reasoned.
"That's why you're my partner isn't it?" Mulder asked, "To provide logical reasoning to situations I only provide impossible answers to."
"What if I can't anymore Mulder? What if I've seen too many things I can't explain? What if my thoughts on science are distorted?"
"Then we wouldn't be here having this conversation would we? You would be sitting idly by looking for evidence in the X-files. Instead, here you are thinking of the logical solutions." Mulder replied, "If anything Scully don't ever doubt your ability to be my partner. We've been through too much for you to start doubting yourself now."
Scully smiled, "I guess I'll go find out if there were any witnesses to the murder. Any possible suspects."
"Besides ourselves." Mulder stated.
"Besides ourselves" Scully repeated reaching for William.
"I'll watch him. You just be careful" Mulder warned.
"I will be. I can handle myself." Scully replied reassuringly.
"I never suspected otherwise." Mulder said watching her walk out the door.
^^^^X^^^^^
Washington, D.C. A few hours later...
Skinner reentered the old office rubbing his temples, "This looks really bad."
Mulder looked up from the desk covered in papers, "I like to call it organized mayhem myself."
"I mean you and Scully getting William back after everything that's happened. It looks bad." Skinner explained.
"What were we suppose to do? Leave him at the reservation and keep hiding? Pretend like we didn't know where he was?" Mulder asked.
"No, I'm not saying you should have done things differently. I am saying that you and Agent Scully suddenly reappear with your son after he's kidnapped with no probable explanation. That doesn't reflect good on you both." Skinner answered.
Mulder sighed, "Sir, Agent Scully and I have gone nine years with improbable explanations. I think they can handle one more."
"You're a marked man. They're out to find you." Skinner stated honestly, "And when they find you they're going to kill you."
"Sir, with all due respect, if they wanted me dead I would have been." Mulder continued, "There was no reason to kill me. They realize I know the truth and I can't do anything about it. But, if they were to kill me it would prove they had something to hide."
"They're worried you'll tell people the truth."
"No, they're not. I can't." Mulder said with defeat in his eyes, "I have too much to lose now. Even if I shouted the truth to the world I would probably end up on the front page of a super market tabloid and no one would be able to change it."
"I hope you're right but, what if William is just part of a plan to lure you out of hiding?" Skinner asked.
"Then they must not be looking too hard for me." Mulder rubbed his eyes looking at the papers in front of him, "What's important now is finding out who sent William here and what they wanted from him so I can clear Scully and myself of any possible suspicion surrounding the Van de Kamps murder."
Skinner nodded, "Be careful. There's not a lot of people you and Scully can trust around here anymore."
"There never were."
^^^^^^X^^^^^^^
Scully entered the morgue flashing her FBI identification hoping no one would notice that she probably wasn't technically an agent anymore, "Can I speak with a Dr. Blargen?" Scully asked the security guard.
"Um, yes, third door to your right." the security guard directed.
Scully entered the room finding the doctor sitting at his desk, "Hello, Dr. Blargen, my name is Agent Scully with the FBI. I was wondering if I could ask you some questions."
"Why of course. Have a seat." Dr. Blargen offered.
"Thank you." Scully said while sitting down, "Your name appears on this autopsy report correct?"
The doctor took the report looking over it, "Ah, yes, such an odd case."
"I noticed you autopsied both individuals but didn't mark a cause of death for either just naming it to be 'suspicious'." Scully stated.
"Why yes. The cause of death it was nothing like my colleagues or I had ever witnessed. It appeared to be an apparent poisoning but we found no trace of poison in the victims' blood. At least no familiar substances." Dr. Blargen explained, "Maybe it would be easier just to show you myself."
Scully followed the doctor to where the bodies were being kept and uncovered the man's. Scully and Dr. Blargen both put on examination gloves as Dr. Blargen pointed out poking the jelly like skin, "Look at the skin. It appears to have been broken down by something."
Scully nodded as a memory crept into her head, "Are there any bone samples?"
The doctor took a tube filled with the bone sample placing it on the microscope slide, "That is what was most unusual of all. Have a look."
Scully peered into the microscope and stepped back shocked at what she found.
"Agent, have you ever seen anything like this before?" Dr. Blargen asked.
"Yes" Scully answered, "Yes, I have."