Disclaimer: I don't own the X-Files, I borrowed the characters for my story. I'm not making any money from this. If you want to sue me, you'll have to get in line behind the student loan people.

A/N. I borrowed some characters from my favorite cop show to write the next two chapters. For those who are not familiar ... They are from Third Watch. There are some differences though...That show took place in New York ... and here Mulder and Scully are in Iowa. Bosco and Faith worked the third watch, which is Chicago police slang for second shift. (don't ask me why - my roommate is a cop and at his department second shift is second shift). Anyway ... in my story Bosco and Faith work 1st shift ... which in their show would have been called second watch)

Dulles International Airport

6:50 a.m. eastern time

Driscoll looked at his watch for the tenth time in three minutes and craned his neck down the concourse. Mulder was not at the gate, and he was concerned that he was going to miss the flight. Driscoll's cell phone rang and he looked down at the caller ID, hoping it was Mulder.

"Driscoll," he answered, recognizing the Galena phone number of the Spinster Sister's Inn.

"It's Kelly," the female voice replied.

"What did you find out?" he asked flatly. He had sent his cousin on a covert mission to check on Scully. Just peek in on her to make sure she's okay, he thought as he remembered their conversation a short five minutes ago.

"She's not in her room. The bed hasn't been slept in," she replied.

"What!" he exclaimed feeling his heart sink to his stomach. "Are you sure you checked the right room?"

"Are you serious? Of course I checked the right room," Kelly replied, completely annoyed by him. "Just because you woke me up outta sound sleep in the middle of the night doesn't mean I wasn't awake when I went up there."

"Okay, sorry ….. thanks," Dris mumbled as he ended the call CRAP! So much for calming Mulder's concerns about his partner …. He scrolled through the directory and dialed his dad's house. Poppa D answered on the third ring.

"Hello," grumbled the groggy Assistant Director as he rolled over and squinted at the alarm clock. It was 5:52 a.m. Geezus, can't a guy have a decent night's sleep? he thought to himself. "This better be good, Mister. I just tamed a two year old's nightmare," he mumbled.

"Dad, It's me," Dris replied as the gate agent made the first boarding call. "We've got problems."

"What?" his father answered. He could tell by his son's tone that he was serious.

"Neither Nester nor Scully have answered their phone all night," Dris started. "I just had Kelly check Scully's room at the Inn. She isn't there, and her bed hasn't been slept in."

The Assistant Director was wide awake immediately. "They left the office yesterday afternoon working a lead on their case." He was quiet for a moment as he recalled the activity when they were leaving. "I'll get Agent Jasper up and determine where they were headed."

"Okay," Dris replied cautiously. If anyone would be able to find his partner, his father would … but knowing he would be stuck in the air and out of communication for three hours was making him uneasy. "They're calling the flight…."

"I'll have someone meet you at the airport in Moline," his father replied curtly and ended the call.

Dris closed the phone and turned around to head down the gateway. The gate agent was making the final boarding call and Mulder was still nowhere in sight. As Dris was settling in his seat, he heard some commotion in the front of the plane and turned to see Mulder burst through the door just as the flight attendant was about to pull it closed. Dris looked up at his friend and shook his head. Mulder appeared a little disheveled, to say the least…eyes red, bed head, the five o'clock shadow still creeping across his face. Dris eyeballed Mulder as he plopped into his seat and quickly clipped his belt.

"Tell me you brushed your teeth at least," Driscoll said to him as he marveled at his partner's appearance.

"Yeah," Mulder gasped out. "That's about all I did… I thought I hit the snooze, but…" Mulder shook his head and tsked his tongue. "… I shut off the alarm instead."

"I'm surprised they let you on the flight," Dris said as the flight attendant passed.

"I had to pull a Nester … F…B….I," Mulder replied, mocking Nester's 'I'm a cop hear me roar' attitude.

Dris smirked and shook his head. "I just talked to Dad," he ventured, trying to sound casual about the conversation. "He's going to buzz Nester's hotel to check on him." He looked over at Mulder and shrugged his shoulders. "He didn't answer his phone when I called him this morning."

Mulder stared at him in disbelief. "You called Nester this morning? Isn't it a two hour time zone difference? What is it… four o'clock there?"

"It's an hour," Dris replied dryly.

"And you woke your Dad up, too? Yikes."

"Dad was up saving my daughter from her nightmare," Dris replied defensively. Why am I defensive about this? He was freaking out that he couldn't reach Scully last night. "You hung over?" He watched Mulder roll his eyes. "Maybe I should ask the pilot to drop the air pressure in the cabin so you can go back to sleep."

"Funny," Mulder replied as he closed his eyes.

Driscoll looked over at Mulder and ran his tongue across the inside of his cheek. I'll just leave it at that. No need for him to get all worked up over Scully right now. It's not like he can do anything about it in-flight anyway, he thought to himself as he opened his book and started reading.


Bunker Hill Golf Course

6:57 a.m. Central Time

"Five, Five David to Central."

"Five Five David go ahead."

"Have you called the dealership to find out why this truck is parked at Bunker Hill?" Officer Maurice Boscorelli asked the dispatcher. Boscorelli was a tough, street smart, wise cracking officer of Italian descent. He was a short man, but what he lacked in height, he made up for in attitude.

"Negative Five Five David. Stand by, making the call now."

"Bosco!" his female partner yelled at him and waved him over to the Black Jeep. "The doors are unlocked," she said as he approached.

"The doors have been unlocked all night and those jag-offs from third and first watch couldn't get out of their ovens to check it out?" Bosco shook his head. "That's fricken ridiculous! What if someone needed police assistance?"

"Stop your bitchin'. You used to be one of those jag-offs," his partner Faith Yokas replied smartly. She was tall, blonde and tough. She had been partnered with Boscorelli since they graduated from the academy and had learned the hard way how to put up with him. The other officers on the force considered Yokas Boscorelli's "handler". Yokas followed the rules and stayed within the lines of conventional thinking. Boscorelli was a hot head and tested the line with authority.

"I have never been afraid to get out of the car in any temperature," Bosco retorted.

Yokas opened the door and found the black pea coat laying on the backseat. She picked it up and rifled through the pockets. "I got something …a wallet," she said as she pulled the flat black wallet out of the pocket.

Officer Boscorelli snatched the wallet out of her hand and flipped it open. "It's a FBI ID badge," he said as he scanned the information. "She's cute. Special Agent Dana Scully. Is there anything else in the coat?" he asked looking up at his partner.

"Keys and a cell phone, thirteen missed calls," she muttered staring at the display. "Last one was 3 minutes ago."

"Call the number back," he looked at her and winked. Yokas shrugged her shoulders and pressed the send button on the phone. The line rang four times and went to voice mail.

"Hi, you've reached Special Agent Fox Mulder, leave your message at the beep and I'll get back to you as soon as possible."

Yokas closed the phone before leaving the message. "It's another agent … Fox Mulder or something…probably her partner." She scanned the area in the sightline of the parking lot, biting her lip.

"Bosco, that Jane Doe that was found after Christmas … didn't they find her out here?" Yokas asked her partner as she shut the truck door.

"Yeah …. They found the body on one of greens, why?" Bosco responded with an annoyed tone in his voice. Two other shifts see this truck parked out here and nobody bothers to search it? He started walking back to their squad.

"I think that file was turned over to the FBI along with the others from the kidnapping case," Yokas replied, following him.

"And you are telling me this for what reason?" Bosco asked flippantly as he looked back at her over his shoulder.

Yokas scowled at her partner for a moment. He can be such an ass at times, she thought. "Well, maybe this Agent Dana Scully came out here to look at the crime scene and something happened to her."

Bosco stared out at the golf course in silence for a moment. When he was about to reply to her, central dispatch called him.

"Five Five David"

"Go ahead, Central."

"Five Five David, Archer Chrysler Jeep advises the vehicle was rented to Agent Fox Mulder of the FBI."

"Bosco," Faith whispered. 'That's the same name on the voice message."

Bosco looked at his partner for a second before responding to dispatch. "Ten four Central. I found an FBI ID in the vehicle for an Agent Dana Scully. Could you call the Dubuque Field Office and ask if they know the whereabouts of either Agent?"

"Ten four, Five Five David. Stand by".

"Central, can you also advise the crime scene location of the Jane Doe homicide that was found during Christmas?"

"Five Five David, victim was discovered on the Thirteenth Green."

"Ten four Central, put us out of the car at Bunker Hill." He hesitated at the car door for a moment and then pointed across the roof of the car at his partner. "Get in the car."

"Why? You just put us out here," she replied, confused by his directions.

"Yeah," he replied in frustration. "I'm gonna drive down to the Thirteenth green."

"Bosco, you can't drive the car across the golf course," Yokas yelled back at him.

"I can drive my squad car anywhere I want … this is city property, I'm a city employee," he retorted. He stared at her for a moment, daring her to continue to argue. "You can walk if you want to … but it's freezing out here and it'll take you almost 15 minutes to get down there."

Yokas didn't move for a second, and then stepped to the car and opened the door. Why do I always have to follow the rules while he breaks them? she thought to herself as she settled in the seat. They were halfway to the back nine when the central dispatch called them with an answer.

"Five Five David."

Yokas keyed her shoulder mic and answered the call. "Five Five David. Go ahead."

"Five Five David, Dubuque Field office reports Agent Mulder is in transit to Dubuque from Washington DC on a.m. flight. There has been no contact with Agent Scully or her partner Agent Nester since yesterday afternoon."

Yokas and Boscorelli stared at each other for a moment. As Yokas acknowledged Central's transmissions, Boscorelli hit the gas and fishtailed on the snow. "Yokas," he yelled over the sound of the roaring engine. "I do not like the sound of that at all."

Boscorelli zipped down the slope of the fourteenth fairway to the tee box. He skidded the car to a stop in front of the tee box and both he and his partner bailed out of the vehicle quickly. He walked to the tee box and saw Scully's footprints immediately. He looked back at his partner.

"Faith, she was definitely out here … look at the footprints," he said as the winter air stung his lungs.

"Someone was with her … with big feet," Yokas said pointing to the ground. She walked across the tee box, following the prints, and stepped through the shrubbery that separated the tee box on 14 from the 13th green.

"BOSCO!" her piercing voice rang out.

He bolted through the shrubbery with his weapon drawn and stopped abruptly at her side.

"Holy shit!" He exclaimed as he viewed the sink hole in front of him. He looked down at the footprints leading down the slope and disappearing at the edge of the hole. He grabbed the sleeve of Yokas' jacket and pulled her back as she started to venture toward the hole. "I bet she fell in when the ground collapsed."

Bosco cautiously walked around the edge of the cave in, trying to get a better view of the inside of the hole. He sniffed the air as he got closer, "I smell smoke," he muttered and pointed his flashlight into the hole.


Lead Mine under Bunker Hill Golf Course.

7:04 a.m.

Scully leaned into the cradle of Nester's embrace as they huddled in front of their makeshift camp fire. They had scrounged up a few pieces of wood from the tunnel bracing, some grass, and reluctantly agreed to burn their blazers in an attempt to keep the fire going. The cavern was silent except for the sound of the fire crackling against the logs and the couple's ragged breathing. They had been through hell, nearly freezing to death, and finally had some warmth from the flames in front of them. Scully knew the victory would be short lived however, considering that she still couldn't feel her feet. She was very drowsy and extremely dehydrated.

Nester jerked his head to the side and pulled back from her slightly. "Did you hear that?"

Scully looked up at him and shook her head, "Hear what?"

"I hear voices," Nester replied and pushed her out of his embrace.

Scully scoffed and chuckled quietly. "You're hearing things," she murmured as he stepped around her.

Nester walked toward the opening from the cave in. The flashlight beam from above hit him square in the face just as a voice yelled down to him.

"Hey! Is anybody down there?"

"Yeah, down here!" Nester called back feeling relief wash over him. "We've been trapped in here all night!"

"Are you Agent Nester?" the male voice attached to the flashlight asked.

"Yes," Nester yelled.

"Is Agent Scully down there?" the male voice called down to him.

"Yes!" Nester replied looking down at her. "Agent Scully is here with me."

Officer Yokas reached for her shoulder mic and called dispatch immediately. "Five Five David to Central … respond EMS and fire to our location forthwith. We have a cave-in on the thirteenth green. FBI agents are trapped. Have rescue enter on the access road off Grandview Avenue. Respond street commander and notify FBI field office immediately."

"Just hold up a few more minutes," Bosco yelled down the hole. "Help is on the way."


Quad Cities Airport

9:54 a.m.

Driscoll and Mulder followed the rest of the disembarking passengers down the gateway into the main terminal. The two men made idle conversation as they emerged through the security doors. They walked past the check in desk and were greeted by Agent Pirc from the Quad Cities Field Office and two uniformed police officers. The Agent cut straight to the point.

"Agent Mulder, Agent Driscoll, Assistant Director Driscoll sent me to meet with you," she said curtly.

Mulder recognized the firmness of her voice and acknowledged that this was no social reception.

"Your partners Agents Nester and Scully were injured in a cave-in at a Dubuque golf course yesterday. They were located this morning trapped in the rubble and taken to a local hospital. Their conditions are reported as guarded." Agent Pirc paused for a moment, allowing the information to sink in with the two agents. "We've arranged for a chopper to take you the rest of the way to Dubuque. If you will follow me," she said as she gestured to the left.

Mulder followed the Agent as instructed, thoughts racing through his head. I knew something wasn't right with Scully, he mused silently, kicking himself for not being there for her.


Dubuque, Mercy Hospital

11:07 a.m.

The chopper landed on the helo pad at Mercy Hospital in Dubuque. Mulder and Driscoll exited the aircraft and were met at the safety gate by Agent Jasper. He escorted them into the Emergency Room to be debriefed by Assistant Director Driscoll.

The Emergency Room was bustling with activity as Mulder walked through the doors. There were three ambulances and several police cars parked in the bay and the trauma rooms were full of victims from a major car accident. The scene played out in slow motion as Mulder's thoughts were only on Scully and why he hadn't been there to protect her. He could hear the drone of Agent Jasper's voice in the background amidst the sea of hospital clatter, and it all just seemed surreal to him.

"Mulder!" Driscoll called out to his partner when he realized he was zoning out. He watched Mulder turn his head and blink a couple of times. "Knock it off, man. You're starting to freak me out."

"I …ahh…sorry," Mulder stammered.

"Guarded, Mulder … not dead. Calm the frick down. Dad lists everybody as guarded, because he puts a detail on the door," Dris remarked as he craned his head to the side when he heard his father's voice bouncing down the hall. "They probably don't have anything more serious than a hang nail."

Okay, maybe I am over reacting. It just seems different now that she's my lover and not just my partner, he thought as he stood at the admitting counter.

"Agent Mulder?" a female voice called to him. He looked around and made eye contact with a young woman standing behind the admitting desk.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt ….. Agent Scully has you listed as her next of kin. Could you fill out a couple of forms for her?" she asked and handed him a clipboard with several forms attached.

Next of kin, Mulder smirked and began to fill in the blanks. He had done this a hundred times before as her partner, but today it was just different. He was no longer just her partner ….. he was her ….significant other. "Relationship to patient," Mulder said aloud to no one in particular as he filled in the blank. He hesitated before starting the pen stroke. "Co-worker." Mulder had the forms completed in short order and handed them back to the admitting clerk along with Scully's insurance card that he kept in his wallet. He turned to the left, looking for Driscoll, and caught sight of him down the corridor standing next to his father and another man in a white police uniform. He walked away from the desk toward Driscoll. He was still caught up in his thoughts and didn't hear the admitting clerk calling his name.

As Mulder approached the three-some, he heard AD Driscoll refer to the police office as Chief. From the sound of it, their conversation was just ending, and then the police chief walked away.

"Assistant Director," Mulder greeted him as he watched the chief walk down the hall.

"Agent Mulder," he replied calmly. "Scully's admitting forms all complete?"

"Yes," he smirked. "It's a little unsettling that I can do that from memory now," he looked over at Dris and shrugged his shoulders. "How is she?"

"She and Nester are out of the woods. I listed them as guarded because I have a detail on the door," the AD replied flatly. Mulder glanced at Dris and caught him winking back. "They were both suffering from hypothermia when they were brought in. Dana has second degree frostbite on her feet, and she'll be in some pain for a while. She has some minor frostbite on her cheeks and fingers and is extremely dehydrated. She was pretty out of it when they were rescued. Nester is in much better shape, dehydrated, broken arm, some minor frostbite."

Mulder reached into his coat pocket and absent-mindedly stuck a sunflower seed in his mouth. "What happened?"

AD Driscoll sighed. "Well, that's where I have an issue with the local PD. From Nester's report, yesterday afternoon about 1600 hours they were at the golf course viewing the crime scene from their case. They were walking between the tee box on 14 and the green of the thirteenth when the ground collapsed. They fell about 25 feet into one of the abandoned mine shafts below the street. Patrol officers from third and first watch saw the rental in the parking lot, but no one got out of the car to investigate. It wasn't until 0700 this morning that Officers Yokas and Boscorelli found the vehicle unlocked, searched the car and then put all the pieces together. This whole thing could have been averted had the police just done their jobs. It was damn cold last night. "

Mulder nodded and bit his lip. The thought of Scully freezing overnight in a tunnel…. gave him the chills. He looked around the waiting area at the people milling around it. There were two police officers at the far end of the room talking to a firefighter. "What's her room number?" Mulder asked, suddenly feeling the need to be with her.

"She's in 307. The elevators are down the hall," the Assistant Director replied noting the concern on the Agent's face. He watched Mulder turn toward the hallway and called after him. "Mulder."

Mulder turned toward the Assistant Director's voice, but didn't respond to the man.

"I don't expect to see you back in the office today," Poppa D remarked. "Officially you're on assignment."

"Thank you, sir," Mulder replied and he turned to walk down the hallway to the elevator.


"Mulder."

Mulder opened his eyes and turned his head to the right to see Dris standing in the doorway of the hospital room. He motioned with his head for Mulder to meet him in the hallway. Mulder nodded and sat forward hesitating for a moment. He glanced at the monitors above Scully's bed and squeezed her hand. She shifted on the bed and blinked at him.

Mulder stood and leaned over her, gently brushing his lips against hers. "I'll be back in a little while," he whispered to her. "Do you want me to bring you anything? Some Power Bars maybe?"

Scully looked up at him and shook her head. "Definitely not Power Bars, Mulder," she replied and smiled. "How about some lime jello instead?"

"With bananas or without?" he kidded her. Mulder ran his hand across her cheek and stood up. He winked at her and then walked out of her room.

Mulder found Dris in the waiting area. As he approached his friend, he ran his hand over his brow and down his face.

"I'm having flashbacks to a few days ago," Mulder said with a sigh. He turned his wrist to look at his watch. It read 3:30 pm.

"Yeah, I figured you probably needed some air," Dris replied. "How is she doing?"

"She's been sleeping on and off the past few hours. She's in some pain from the frostbite," Mulder replied and sat on the end of the couch.

"They got her on meds?" Dris asked, shoving his hands in his pocket.

"She still hooked up to the IV, but she's having a hard time relaxing," Mulder replied and then laughed. "She doesn't make the best patient."

"Who does?" Dris laughed with him. "Are you hungry? Want to get some lunch?"

"Sounds good," Mulder said as he stood. "I want to run by the office and take a look at the case file they were working on. I talked to Nester about it and it sounds like they were on to something."

Mulder and Driscoll stepped to the elevator and took it down to the ground floor. They were walking through the Emergency Room entrance just as two uniformed police officers walked in the ER sliding doors. The officers were male and female and walked to the desk just as Driscoll and Mulder passed by.

"Oh, Agent Mulder?" the admitting clerk called to Mulder. He turned to look back at her. "Sorry, I forgot to return Agent Scully's insurance card to you earlier." She waved the card at him and Mulder stepped over to the desk to retrieve the card from the woman.

"Agent Mulder?" the male police officer addressed Mulder as he pulled out his wallet to tuck the card back in.

"Yes."

"Officer Boscorelli, I found Agents Scully and Nester this morning," Bosco remarked and extended his hand.

"Oh, I was looking for you earlier …. I wanted to thank you. From what I heard, you two put the clues together quickly, and that facilitated their rescue," Mulder said, shaking Boscorelli's hand.

"Just good police work," Bosco replied. "How is Agent Scully?"

"She's okay," Mulder replied, eyeing the officer. "Agent Driscoll and I are headed back to the field office to look over the notes of the case she was working on."

"Oh, the golf course homicide," Boscorelli replied. "Let me know if you need any help with that ….. I know that sometimes access isn't easy for the Field Office, but you two aren't local are you?"

"No," Mulder replied cautiously. "We're from D.C. Why do you ask?"

Boscorelli laughed. "No offense … but the local agents are all a bunch of jag-offs that think they're better than the rest of the law enforcement community." He shrugged his shoulders casually.

Mulder nodded his head and could see Dris getting a little uptight out of the corner of his eye. "You know, there is something you could help out with," Mulder said trying to diffuse the situation. "I went over the case notes with Agent Nester this afternoon. He and Agent Scully were working an angle with the retail centers….that perhaps the victim worked at a store and had an altercation with a customer or another employee. Do you remember any calls from that week that stand out in any way?"

Officer Boscorelli pulled out his notebook from his shirt pocket and flipped through a few pages. He shook his head. "Naaa….I don't remember anything off the top of my head. I can check the call log and get back with you if that will help."

"Yeah, that would be helpful," Mulder replied calmly. He handed Boscorelli his card. "You can reach me on my cell . Otherwise, we'll be at the Field Office for the next couple of hours."

"Sure, no problem. Glad to help out," Bosco replied as he took the card.

Mulder and Driscoll left the ER and walked across the parking lot toward Scully's rental. "Jag-offs?" Driscoll muttered as he stormed to the Jeep.

"Why are you getting all personal about it?" Mulder chuckled. "I seem to remember you making a similar comment about them a couple of days ago."

"I'm going to take it personally … it's my dad's office," Dris replied defensively.

"Yeah and your father scares the crap out of people …so it's no wonder his agents all act like prima-donnas." Mulder opened the passenger door to the Jeep and climbed in.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Dris asked, not understanding.

Mulder sighed. "Overbearing father … kids that act out when they aren't around him? Sound familiar?" He tapped the glass with his fingertips and pulled his bag of sunflower seeds out of his pocket.

Driscoll slammed the truck in gear and backed out of the parking lot. "Okay, Dr. Mulder," he replied sarcastically.

"Look, I owe Officer Boscorelli….I spoke to Scully's doctor. A couple more hours in the cold and she would have been a lot worse off."

TBC