After waiting in traffic for almost half-an hour, Assistant
Director Walter Skinner pulled out of the queue and parked
his car, too impatient to wait any longer. Walking the last
two blocks to the hospital to visit his agents, he came
across police barriers and diversion signs. Looking at the
portion of road that was cordoned off, he saw a car turned
sidelong on the road and he could see tire marks burnt into
the tarmac. He now understood the reason for the hold-up of
traffic and he felt slightly guilty for being so annoyed at
the delay when someone had obviously been hurt. He walked
through the automatic doors and made his way to the
elevators, pressing the button for the seventh floor. Two
nurses got on after him, both heading up to the ICU wing on
the 4th floor. They began talking about their patients and,
although he tried not to listen, his attention was caught
when they mentioned the accident that he'd seen the
aftermath of outside.
"Any word on how the MVA victim's doing, Kelly? The one who was run over right outside?"
"He's just out of surgery but it's still touch and go. He's not come round yet, still comatose."
"My goodness. I treated the driver and he said he just walked straight off the kerb into his path, wasn't even looking where he was going. Of course the driver was driving faster than he should have been, unfortunately. Do we know who he is yet?"
"No. He had no wallet or ID of any kind - we presume they must be with his jacket somewhere since he wasn't wearing one at the time of the accident. He wasn't wearing one when I saw him before he was hurt either."
"Have you had any luck tracking down the woman he mentioned when you saw him?"
"No. The hospital computer network is down so I've been phoning different departments for the last hour and a half, trying to find out if she's a patient in their unit. It's taking far longer than it should because there are so many patients down in the ER and not enough nurses on duty. I've had no luck so far - but then there are still plenty more departments to go through."
"I just hope it's not too late for him before we find her. It would help if you knew more about her. Like the rest of her name, if she's even a patient here, or anything more than what we do know."
"I realise that Siobhan, but all he said was that he needed her, he needed Scully."
The two women had gotten off the elevator and so Skinner didn't hear the last few words as the doors closed between him and them. As the lift moved upwards once again he leant against the side, thinking about the poor man who had been run over and couldn't be identified. When the lift stopped at his floor he got out and made his way quickly down the corridor to Scully's room, anxious to hear what her test results were. He was also hoping to find Mulder with her as he had questions about the events of the hearing that he wanted answered as well as having news of Cancerman's death. Reaching the door, he lifted his hand to open it but his arm froze mid-air when he heard the raised voices of Scully and her mom coming form inside the room. Deciding to wait for a more appropriate moment to go in, he sat down on the chairs outside the room, mildly surprised to find Mulder's jacket on the seat next to him. Thinking that Mulder had either popped to the loo or was inside the room with Scully and her mother, he left it sitting beside him and rested his head against the wall. For the second time in the last ten minutes he tried very hard not to listen in to what was quite probably a private and personal argument between mother and daughter.
"Why didn't you wake me up? I can't believe you let me sleep. You said you would wake me up and you didn't!"
"Dana calm down."
"Mom, I told you to wake me in half an hour and that was nearly two hours ago. I need to sspeak to him, find out why he left."
"I know Dana and I'm sorry but I fell asleep. I didn't think I would, I'm sorry honey."
"No mom... I'm sorry. It's not your fault, I shouldn't have shouted at you. I know you're just as tired as me. It's good that you got some rest... Can you pass me the phone?"
"Sure Dana. Here you go."
"Thanks."
Scully dialled the familiar number of Mulder's apartment and drummed her fingers impatiently on the bed rail as she waited for him to pick up. After six rings the answering machine picked up and, after leaving a short message for him to call her, she slammed the phone back on its hook, frustrated. She hurriedly dialled his cell-phone number and sighed exasperatedly when it went straight to his answering machine, signalling that the phone was not turned on.
"Mom his phone still isn't on. Mulder never leaves his phone off for this long. Why isn't he answering?"
"I don't know sweetie. Maybe he's already on his way back in to see you and he turned it off again."
"Maybe."
Having realised earlier in the argument that Mulder was obviously not in the room, or indeed the hospital, Skinner knocked quietly on the door. When they called for him to come in he did so, Mulder's jacket in his hand. He saw both faces drop when they saw whom it was, although he realised that it was only because they were hoping that he was Mulder. Or at least he hoped that was all it was - he was still unsure of Scully's trust in him even though he had not been the man they had been looking for in the FBI.
"A.D. Skinner. Hi."
"Agent Scully, Mrs Scully. I hope I'm not interrupting?"
"Of course not sir, come in."
"I just came by to see how you were doing."
"Well sir. My test results came back and it's nothing but good news. My cancer's gone into remission."
"That's unbelievable news Scully."
"Yes it is. I'll be back at work before you know it."
"Dana, you need plenty of rest before you're ready to go back. That's what the doctor told you, remember?"
"I know mom. I was just kidding. Speaking of work though sir, you haven't seen Mulder around, have you? He didn't get called back in to work did he?"
"No Scully, I haven't seen him since he left the hearing earlier. He said that he was coming straight here - I thought he would still be here with you."
"He did come but then he left. I can't get a hold of him and I don't know where he went."
"Well, I found his jacket lying on the chairs in the hall. His badge, wallet and cell-phone are still in its pockets."
"What...but...why would he...that doesn't make any sense...Oh my God, Bill! ..."
Realisation dawned as Scully thought about what Bill had told them Mulder had said. She knew that Mulder would never have left without at least saying goodbye and he definitely would not have left his jacket. A look of almost murderous rage passed over her face as she thought about what her brother might have said to Mulder to make him leave. She had been aware of words having been exchanged between the two of them earlier but Mulder had not wanted to talk about it and Bill had just brushed it off as nothing when she had asked. Both her mother and Skinner were looking at her strangely and she realised that she had trailed off mid-sentence and had not said anything for quite some time.
"What is it, honey? What does Bill have to do with Fox not being here?"
"Bill must have said something to Mulder earlier to make him leave. Don't you see mom? ...Mulder wouldn't have left his jacket if he had just decided to go home."
"That's true. Not with his phone and badge in the pocket for sure. I'm surprised though Agent Scully, surprised he didn't come in to see you, especially once he heard the good news - no matter what your brother said."
"We need to find him. It would help if we knew what Bill had said though, it might give us a clue where to start - but he's hardly going to tell us what he said to him. How are we going to...I mean...we need to find him."
"Get some more rest Dana. I'll go see if any of the nurses outside heard the conversation, okay?"
"Sure mom. Would you hurry?"
"Of course."
"Agent Scully, I'm going to have to head back to work but I'll swing by Mulder's apartment on my way and make sure he's not there."
"Thank you sir."
"Get some rest. I'll phone as soon as I get there."
"Bye."
Skinner followed Maggie out of the door, both beginning their individual searches for Mulder. Scully lay back in her bed and closed her eyes, too worried to sleep but too exhausted to keep them open.
Elsewhere in the hospital an EKG machine beeped out the steady rhythm of Mulder's heart, a ventilator kept him breathing and an ICP device monitored the pressure in his brain. Nurses and doctors bustled in and out of the room, periodically checking his vitals and recording the outputs of the monitors. Mulder was oblivious to the shaking of doctor's heads and their doubtful attitudes as his eyes remained closed, his body motionless in his peaceful coma.
"Any word on how the MVA victim's doing, Kelly? The one who was run over right outside?"
"He's just out of surgery but it's still touch and go. He's not come round yet, still comatose."
"My goodness. I treated the driver and he said he just walked straight off the kerb into his path, wasn't even looking where he was going. Of course the driver was driving faster than he should have been, unfortunately. Do we know who he is yet?"
"No. He had no wallet or ID of any kind - we presume they must be with his jacket somewhere since he wasn't wearing one at the time of the accident. He wasn't wearing one when I saw him before he was hurt either."
"Have you had any luck tracking down the woman he mentioned when you saw him?"
"No. The hospital computer network is down so I've been phoning different departments for the last hour and a half, trying to find out if she's a patient in their unit. It's taking far longer than it should because there are so many patients down in the ER and not enough nurses on duty. I've had no luck so far - but then there are still plenty more departments to go through."
"I just hope it's not too late for him before we find her. It would help if you knew more about her. Like the rest of her name, if she's even a patient here, or anything more than what we do know."
"I realise that Siobhan, but all he said was that he needed her, he needed Scully."
The two women had gotten off the elevator and so Skinner didn't hear the last few words as the doors closed between him and them. As the lift moved upwards once again he leant against the side, thinking about the poor man who had been run over and couldn't be identified. When the lift stopped at his floor he got out and made his way quickly down the corridor to Scully's room, anxious to hear what her test results were. He was also hoping to find Mulder with her as he had questions about the events of the hearing that he wanted answered as well as having news of Cancerman's death. Reaching the door, he lifted his hand to open it but his arm froze mid-air when he heard the raised voices of Scully and her mom coming form inside the room. Deciding to wait for a more appropriate moment to go in, he sat down on the chairs outside the room, mildly surprised to find Mulder's jacket on the seat next to him. Thinking that Mulder had either popped to the loo or was inside the room with Scully and her mother, he left it sitting beside him and rested his head against the wall. For the second time in the last ten minutes he tried very hard not to listen in to what was quite probably a private and personal argument between mother and daughter.
"Why didn't you wake me up? I can't believe you let me sleep. You said you would wake me up and you didn't!"
"Dana calm down."
"Mom, I told you to wake me in half an hour and that was nearly two hours ago. I need to sspeak to him, find out why he left."
"I know Dana and I'm sorry but I fell asleep. I didn't think I would, I'm sorry honey."
"No mom... I'm sorry. It's not your fault, I shouldn't have shouted at you. I know you're just as tired as me. It's good that you got some rest... Can you pass me the phone?"
"Sure Dana. Here you go."
"Thanks."
Scully dialled the familiar number of Mulder's apartment and drummed her fingers impatiently on the bed rail as she waited for him to pick up. After six rings the answering machine picked up and, after leaving a short message for him to call her, she slammed the phone back on its hook, frustrated. She hurriedly dialled his cell-phone number and sighed exasperatedly when it went straight to his answering machine, signalling that the phone was not turned on.
"Mom his phone still isn't on. Mulder never leaves his phone off for this long. Why isn't he answering?"
"I don't know sweetie. Maybe he's already on his way back in to see you and he turned it off again."
"Maybe."
Having realised earlier in the argument that Mulder was obviously not in the room, or indeed the hospital, Skinner knocked quietly on the door. When they called for him to come in he did so, Mulder's jacket in his hand. He saw both faces drop when they saw whom it was, although he realised that it was only because they were hoping that he was Mulder. Or at least he hoped that was all it was - he was still unsure of Scully's trust in him even though he had not been the man they had been looking for in the FBI.
"A.D. Skinner. Hi."
"Agent Scully, Mrs Scully. I hope I'm not interrupting?"
"Of course not sir, come in."
"I just came by to see how you were doing."
"Well sir. My test results came back and it's nothing but good news. My cancer's gone into remission."
"That's unbelievable news Scully."
"Yes it is. I'll be back at work before you know it."
"Dana, you need plenty of rest before you're ready to go back. That's what the doctor told you, remember?"
"I know mom. I was just kidding. Speaking of work though sir, you haven't seen Mulder around, have you? He didn't get called back in to work did he?"
"No Scully, I haven't seen him since he left the hearing earlier. He said that he was coming straight here - I thought he would still be here with you."
"He did come but then he left. I can't get a hold of him and I don't know where he went."
"Well, I found his jacket lying on the chairs in the hall. His badge, wallet and cell-phone are still in its pockets."
"What...but...why would he...that doesn't make any sense...Oh my God, Bill! ..."
Realisation dawned as Scully thought about what Bill had told them Mulder had said. She knew that Mulder would never have left without at least saying goodbye and he definitely would not have left his jacket. A look of almost murderous rage passed over her face as she thought about what her brother might have said to Mulder to make him leave. She had been aware of words having been exchanged between the two of them earlier but Mulder had not wanted to talk about it and Bill had just brushed it off as nothing when she had asked. Both her mother and Skinner were looking at her strangely and she realised that she had trailed off mid-sentence and had not said anything for quite some time.
"What is it, honey? What does Bill have to do with Fox not being here?"
"Bill must have said something to Mulder earlier to make him leave. Don't you see mom? ...Mulder wouldn't have left his jacket if he had just decided to go home."
"That's true. Not with his phone and badge in the pocket for sure. I'm surprised though Agent Scully, surprised he didn't come in to see you, especially once he heard the good news - no matter what your brother said."
"We need to find him. It would help if we knew what Bill had said though, it might give us a clue where to start - but he's hardly going to tell us what he said to him. How are we going to...I mean...we need to find him."
"Get some more rest Dana. I'll go see if any of the nurses outside heard the conversation, okay?"
"Sure mom. Would you hurry?"
"Of course."
"Agent Scully, I'm going to have to head back to work but I'll swing by Mulder's apartment on my way and make sure he's not there."
"Thank you sir."
"Get some rest. I'll phone as soon as I get there."
"Bye."
Skinner followed Maggie out of the door, both beginning their individual searches for Mulder. Scully lay back in her bed and closed her eyes, too worried to sleep but too exhausted to keep them open.
Elsewhere in the hospital an EKG machine beeped out the steady rhythm of Mulder's heart, a ventilator kept him breathing and an ICP device monitored the pressure in his brain. Nurses and doctors bustled in and out of the room, periodically checking his vitals and recording the outputs of the monitors. Mulder was oblivious to the shaking of doctor's heads and their doubtful attitudes as his eyes remained closed, his body motionless in his peaceful coma.
