FBI Headquarters
Washington D.C.
March 9, 1998
9:20am

"You ready?" Mulder asked.

"I've been ready for years" said Scully.

Mulder smiled and turned on the projector. It was time for work, time for business, time to pretend that nothing is wrong. He and Scully had just been through their morning routine of coffee, bagel sandwiches, and more recently –making sure Scully was feeling okay. He hated asking, because he hated seeing Scully have to lie to him. She always replied with a big "I'm fine" while looking down at her bagel sandwich. He hated asking, but he did it because he wanted her to know that she shouldn't be afraid to talk to him about anything. As much as it panged him to think about it, he remembered how much harder it must be for Scully.

"Mulder?"

"Hm?" He looked at Scully and her eyes quickly flashed to the projection screen. He had skipped the first slide. "Oh, sorry. I uh. That one didn't matter. It was more like an intro picture."

"It looked like a body to me."

"Really? I usually start with an intro picture."

"Nope. Body."

Mulder fiddled with the projector sheepishly and reversed the slide.

"Okay, here we go." Mulder stood up straighter to begin his presentation. "JoAnne Sycamore, age 20. Lived alone. She was found her mother who was worried because her daughter hadn't answered the phone in over a day. Time of death was put at about 20 hours."

"Cause of death?" Scully asked.

"Heart attack" Mulder stated simply with a shrug.

"A heart attack? Mulder she's a slim 20 year old."

"I know, weird huh?"

Scully was trying to think of a possible condition that might bring on a heart attack in a young, fit person. Mulder answered her question before she could come up with anything.

"She had a kind of heart condition. It caused pompitations. She was on drugs to help regulate her heart rate. I guess they don't work under extreme conditions."

"Rape"

"No signs of rape. In fact no signs of any struggle except for an upset bedside table."

"Well, she could have knocked that over herself in a desperate attempt to get help. Why this would be anything to promote a criminal investigation is—"

Mulder switched the slide.

"This was found at the scene. It's a digital photo taken, by the time the camera gave 12:04am. It's consistent with the estimated time of death. What do you see Scully?"

Scully looked at the slide. She could see the edge of a bed with sheets matching the ones from the police photos of the girl lying in bed, and a large foot, a black sneaker and dark jeans standing beside the bed.

"There was a man there."

Mulder nodded.

"But there was no sign of rape?" She was surprised.

"That's right. Which would be consisted with reports of a man stalking the area, known for breaking into homes and watching young woman sleep. Five cases in 4 months. It's also possible that there are more victims out there who haven't come forward, or who may not even have known he was in their house. He hides in the darkness of their bedrooms and doesn't say anything. Even if they wake up, he just splits and goes out the way he came."

"He doesn't touch them?"

"Well not yet."

Scully crossed her legs and rubbed her neck.

"We both know what this could escalate to. We have to find him before watching them isn't good enough anymore."

She raised her eyebrows and shook her head, agreeing with him. There was something sarcastic about the way she responded.

"Unless this is too much for you. That's okay, Scully."

"Mulder, I'm fine. It's local anyway. No planes, no rental cars, no hotels." She knew what was on his mind "close to my doctors," she assured him. "I need you to stop worrying. I need you to know that I know I can talk to you anytime about anything." Then she joked with him a little bit "I just hope you can handle to responsibility. I might not show it, but I can be pretty needy."

Mulder drew his hand along her hairline, feeling its softness against the back of his hand. "I can handle anything. Anything you need, I'll be there."

"I've got your number." Scully said, getting the last word in. It was her new fail-proof way of keeping a strong face on.

It will get better, I promise. I think I know where I am going this, but we will see how it plays out. I will try to get to the point next time. -Pete-sa