Mel sat in her car a long time. She stared at the apartment complex she had just left through the rain dotted windshield.
She felt numb by the whole situation. She was angry at her father for making her swear that she would never speak a word of the truth to Will. She was angry at her mother for letting her father make her swear on something so important to her.
She was angry at Mulder and Scully for ever giving him up.
More than anyone, she was angry at herself. She had been living in a lie her whole life. A lie that she helped make.
She shook her head, trying to free her mind of all the thoughts that seeped in and put the key into the ignition. She turned the key only to hear nothing.
"Shit," she muttered, trying again. No luck.
She rolled her eyes and opened the car door. Before she even got her foot out of the car, she felt a sharp pain on her temple and she screamed as a hand went for her neck.
The strong arm pulled her from the car and she wriggled in his grasp, choking out silent pleas for help.
Her eyes met the man's cold ones and she whimpered as she saw him reach into his pocket for something.
She squeezed her eyes shut and flinched when she heard a loud BANG.
The hand slipped from her neck and she fell heavily against her car, gasping for air. Her eyes stayed trained on the man's face…that was now unrecognizable due to the bullet that massacred it.
"Mel!" Will yelled, stumbling behind his parents.
Mulder was at Mel's side first, gun still poised.
"Are you alright?" he asked her, placing a hand on her shoulder.
She nodded, touching her hand to her bloody temple.
"Lets get you inside," Scully said, helping her up.
Mel met Williams eyes and she was frightened by what she saw.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Monica knew something was wrong by the way John's face tensed as he spoke on the phone.
He hung up and grabbed his coat.
"Did something happen to Will?" she asked, following him out to the car.
"No," he muttered.
"Melanie?" she asked, already knowing the answer.
"She was attacked," he told her, backing quickly down the driveway.
"Not again…"
"This time Mulder was the one that killed the attacker," he told her.
Monica flinched, her mind drifting back to her daughter that one night. The night that changed their lives.
Mel was only thirteen when she had killed her first human. Monica and John had raised her to defend herself, knowing that this was the way that their lives would be. They would always be connected to the X Files and to the two agents that had a whole other world as their enemy. Mel had been walking home from school with Will and she spotted a man following them across the street. She knew what to do. She had to protect Will and make sure he remained oblivious to the war against him. She watched the man who watched her the whole way home. She told Will to go in without her…she had something she had to do. Her parents weren't home so she had to retrieve a gun they kept hidden under the porch. The man approached her from behind, grabbing her shoulders. She spun around and kicked his groin as hard as she could. Before his fist could connect with her face, her bullet connected with his chest.
That was only the first time Mel had to kill to ensure Will's safety.