Mulder felt as if he were in a dream state when Doggett stopped talking. He couldn't control his emotions any longer, he stood up knocking the chair behind him to floor and he threw the toy train he'd been holding onto for hours across the room.

"How did this happen!"

"She went after Dana, she was certain she could find her and William, she had a sense of them close by. We lost sight of her, one minute she was there and the next she was gone."

"So you're telling me that now I've lost her too?"

"No, we'll find her, we'll find them all Mulder."

"You don't know that. Fortune has it that when people in my life disappear it's for good."

"Not this time. I don't care what your Mulder family history tells us, I won't let them go unfound."

"You don't understand, this is how my life works. I lose the things that matter the most to me, I should have known it would only be a matter of time before I lost the woman I loved, my son. And my sister."

"Mulder I know what it's like to lose someone, believe me, and you might have given up on finding them but I haven't, and the Mulder that I know wouldn't just sit here and let this happen. If you don't do anything, you will lose." Mulder looked at Doggett and calmed himself. Then he began to slowly nod his head.

"So where do you suggest we go Agent Doggett?"

"Back out to where we found Dana's car. Follow Monica's tracks and find them all, and bring them home."

"Sounds like a plan to me. Lets get out of here." The two men left the apartment unnoticed and made their way back out to the location of Scully's car. They weren't achieving anything by sitting around worrying.

At the roadside the other agents had disappeared. The car had been removed from the roadside and they were both staring at where it had sat. Mulder felt a lump in his throat as he imagined William afraid and confused about where he was and what was happening. He ached to have Scully beside him, to hold her and to cherish her as she carried his second child. So much he wanted to say and to do, he couldn't let this be the end, when the end came they'd fight harder than this, so why was he being so resistant to fight back now? He wanted his family back and whatever it took he would find them.

"Which way did Monica go?" Doggett looked around him for a second and then lifted his hand to point across the open land.

"She was right there, and then I turned away for a second and she was gone. But it's just open land for miles Mulder, I think maybe she found Dana and William and is waiting for us to bring them all back, otherwise she'd be back by now right?"

"Right. So lets follow her tracks." They headed into the distance and didn't look back once, not even to see how far they had gone. But when they saw the same abandoned barn that Reyes had seen they could only hope to find the people they loved most inside.


Reyes couldn't focus on what was going on around her. She could hear Dana's voice but she couldn't tell where it was coming from. Everything seemed so dark and all she could remember was the bang. It had been instinct. William had run towards Scully causing the man outside to come and see what the fuss was about. He aimed his gun at the boy with intent to kill. Scully had grabbed her son and shielded him with her body. The gun was on her now. And Reyes didn't even think about standing in front of the small family in an attempt to protect William, Scully and her unborn child. The bullet hit her square in the chest and she could feel no pain as she lay in a pool of her own blood as the room faded to black.


Four hours. Four hours and nothing. The man who had shot Reyes was in custody. He had been caught running from the barn by Mulder and Doggett who secured him and then ran to find a nightmare come true. Mulder had rushed to Scully's side and held her and his son so close that they were all startled by the show of affection. Doggett had sat by Reyes, her hands in his own, willing her to wake up, to smile at him and tell him she was ok. But she had remained still and unconscious until help arrived, and now four hours had passed since they had been found and Reyes was still being operated on.

Scully walked down the hospital corridor wide-awake despite how tired she was. It was almost midday and she was confused about the day and date, all she knew was that she owed Reyes her life. She arrived at the relative's room to find Doggett and Mulder sitting in silence with their heads buried in their hands. Mulder stood up and hugged Scully as she walked in and she smiled supportively and turned to Doggett.

"Any news?"

"No." That was all he could manage. Nobody had told him anything and all he had been able to do was imagine the worst. Mulder turned Scully back round to him and frowned at her.

"What are you even doing here? You should be at home resting."

"I couldn't rest knowing that... I had to be here. My mom's sitting with William."

"How's he doing?"

"He's fine. He's tired, I left him sleeping. I only gave my mom a brief outline of events, I couldn't handle telling her everything and getting another lecture about how dangerous my life is."

"She's right though. Did you have a doctor check you over?"

"Yes. Mulder I'm fine, really. But I spoke to Skinner on my way over. The man you arrested isn't talking. He wont say who he was waiting to meet, he's just sitting in a holding cell. Skinner was on his way into the bureau to talk with Kersh before going back to the city lock up." Mulder nodded his head and took Scully's hand. They sat down together and looked at Doggett. He wasn't moving; he just sat there completely still. They squeezed each other's hands to show they were relieved to be together, to be safe. But no one dared to mention Reyes' name or the fact that this was no longer a case of no news is good news. No news now was lessening the chances of any of them seeing Reyes alive again.

When Skinner arrived at the hospital he really didn't know whom he should be asking for. Who should he tell the information to that he had been given? Finally they had a story that more than one person could verify, but it was a story that even he was having a hard time believing. But the accused party was the only person he hadn't been able to locate, suggesting that the stories were true, that they had a corroborating source and somewhere to go, someone to ask, for answers. Upon reaching the small room where Doggett, Mulder and Scully sat waiting for news in their fifth hour of wait, he stepped inside reluctantly and asked to speak to Mulder. After eleven years it could only be Mulder he could share this information with. There was no one else.

They stepped outside the room and Scully moved to sit beside Doggett. She took his hand and he smiled appreciatively but she knew that she wasn't really helping. Skinner took Mulder to one side in the hallway and took a deep breath.

"I had a meeting with Kersh just before getting here, and I don't know how to explain what I now know, and I don't know if you're even going to believe me, but we know who the man that shot Agent Reyes was waiting for."

"Who?"

"Gibson Praise." Mulder replayed the name in his head almost as if he should know of two Gibson Praise's because the one he knew was a friend and ally.

"What!"

"Gibson is the person who contacted Kersh about the new alien race, Gibson contacted Krycek and told him that Reyes was the one to protect you all."

"Yeah, it's like Scully said, they wanted us all to turn our backs on one another, to make us vulnerable. But what does any of this have to do with Gibson? He's on our side." Skinner looked to the ground for a second as if even he needed to prepare to hear what he was about to say.

"Gibson Praise is the new alien race. And he has more power than any other race put together, human or not, and I don't know that we stop him. Certainly not without help from the shooter."