Chapter 6

The next morning was bright and sunny. As Scully ran her brush through her damp auburn hair, she reviewed the report she was about to send to Skinner via modem. She had 20 minutes before the phone lines went down and she wanted to make sure she had covered everything. With a sigh, she finally pushed send.

She lay back on her cot, rubbing bloodshot eyes that still saw dead body after dead body. The sheer mental exhaustion was like nothing she had ever experienced. A soft moan escaped her lips. (Jeffrey Spender.) She didn't think it would ever sink in. (My God. I worked with him.)

But, now it was over. This case was finally over. Now all that was left was to pack her things. She looked around the tent that she had called home, well, not home, she amended. Shelter. She wanted to make sure that she left nothing behind. As she closed her suitcase, she smiled. She still couldn't believe that she and Mulder were headed for Lake Tahoe. It would mean shopping for clothes, but this was definitely worth the added expense.

"Dr. Scully."

Lost in her own thoughts, she started violently at the sound of an unfamiliar voice just outside.

(Get a grip, Dana,) she berated herself as she went to the flap and pulled it back to reveal a young man in an Army Corps uniform. He was nervously clutching at his hat and with his pale blonde hair and wide blue eyes, he looked about 16 years old. This, despite his height of 6'2".

Scully kept her face neutral. "Yes, Private?" She prompted, when he continued to just stand there staring down at her.

"Uh - Ma'am - the Major sent me to tell you we're - that is - we'll be taking your tent down in 30 minutes," he finally managed to get out.

Scully opened her mouth to respond when the young man suddenly flushed beet red. "I mean only if you're ready, Ma'am. If you need more time..." He was babbling.

Scully held up her hand to silence the poor boy before he fell apart. "It's okay, Private. I'm almost done." She took pity on him as he stared down at her, again unable to move. He seemed to be noticing that she was dressed in her blue jeans and a blue silk blouse instead of the shapeless scrubs she'd been wearing over thermals.

"Was there something else, Private?" She asked gently, more than just a bit flattered by the frank admiration, despite being called "ma'am".

The private came to quick attention. "Oh - uh - no, Ma'am!" and with an abrupt about-face, he beat a hasty retreat, almost knocking down Mulder, who had stepped up behind him unseen.

"So, Scully, breaking young men's hearts again, I see," he smirked.

"Very funny, Mulder," she snapped to mask her embarrassment as she turned away to finish her packing.

Mulder stepped inside, staring at his partner as she moved about. He didn't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out what was going through the kid's head. The blue silk of Scully's blouse matched her eyes perfectly, complimenting the auburn hair that softly framed her small face. With her porcelain skin and lush lips that he longed to cover with long, slow languid kisses...He gave himself a mental shake to bring himself back to his senses. Scully was talking to him.

"What?" he asked all innocence, realizing that she had been talking to him for a couple of minutes while he fantasized.

"I said: would you mind taking the laptop to the car?" She was staring at him, hands on her hips.

"What?" he repeated, knowing perfectly well, but wanting to maintain some semblance of dignity.

"I'm just wondering what's going though that so-call mind of yours. As if I didn't know," she said suspiciously.

"Nothing!" Mulder declared, meeting her gaze with his hazel eyes purposefully wide.

Scully shook her head. "Oh no you don't. Don't give me the 'soulful puppy dog' look," she admonished him, even as her heart melted.

"Why?" Mulder asked with a devilish gleam in his eyes. "Does it turn you on?"

Scully's jaw dropped as she felt her cheeks flame. After a moment's pause, she again shook her head, keeping her eyes averted. "Please, Mulder, the laptop."

"Sure, Scully, I'm going." He grabbed the portable computer and quickly made his escape, barely keeping from laughing. The best defense was a good offense and he had definitely scored on that last one. It felt so good to get back to their Game. He wanted nothing more than to get past all this and back to some sense of normalcy.

Scully sank to the cot, her head in her hands, trying to cool her burning cheeks. That puppy dog look. It got her every single time. But the electrical current that coursed through her like liquid fire was definitely new. Usually she had better control. Did it turn her on? (God, yes,) she thought helplessly, followed by (What am I doing? What am I thinking!)

Quickly she stood up and poured herself a glass of water from the carafe she kept at her bedside. She gulped half and splashed the rest on her face. (Better. Much better.) She grabbed her suitcase and hurried out.

Mulder was waiting for her at the car and without a word, took her suitcase and put it in the trunk. "Do you still want to take the first leg?" He asked carefully, so as not to sound patronizing.

"Yeah," Scully answered, studying the map carefully. "I'm kind of wired right now." She looked up to see Mulder staring at her, one eyebrow raised, a smirk on his lips.

"Three cups of coffee will do that," she hastened to clarify, unwittingly giving him more ammunition.

"Right," Mulder said knowingly, infuriating Scully on purpose. He was definitely on a roll.

Scully sighed heavily. (Just get me out of here,) she silently begged the heavens above, (Please.) She was too far behind in the Game today and knew she had little chance of catching up.

"You know, there's probably not too many rest stops along our route," Mulder supplied helpfully.

"Would you just get in the car, Mulder?" Scully cried, exasperated.

Laughing, Mulder threw up his hands in surrender and got in.

Scully roughly folded the map and resisted the urge to burn rubber as they drove off.

After 20 miles of silence, Scully surreptitiously looked over at her partner.

(Lucky for him,) she thought wrathfully, (that he's asleep.) Casting her eyes back to the road, she exhaled with a huff. She knew she wasn't mad at him, not really. She was mad at herself. (How could I be mad at him? Look at him.) In sleep, he always looked so vulnerable; untouched by the horrors they'd both been through.

She huffed again. (Why do you let him get you?) She asked herself.

(Because you like it,) her self replied promptly. And, truth be told; she did.

As the miles flew by, Scully felt herself begin to unwind. She concentrated on the road, refusing to even think about the past 10 days. Every so often she would look longingly over at Mulder, who incredibly slept on. (This must be some kind of record,) she thought. It had been almost 4 hours and he had barely moved.

She marveled at how completely relaxed he was. She had seen him sleep before, but this was obviously much deeper. This was unconscious. Only his steady, even breathing reassured her and kept her from checking his pulse. She was, however, unable to keep from brushing a lock of hair from his forehead, wishing that she could just pull the car over and crawl into his arms.

The desolate highway unwound as they moved through Nevada to Lake Tahoe. Scully had never been and was anxious to see if it was as spectacular as the pictures.