Chapter 9: Another One.
Scully had zipped to the bureau and found herself once again in a location which held much comfort to her. She loved working in the lab, loved the science that had been such an integral part of her career, and yet sometimes even her beloved science didn't give her the answers she wanted. Once back behind her microscope and careful not to loose the one precious speck she had found, she laid it out and looked at it through the magnifier. It wasn't long before she realized that the speck was indeed gold and wondered how, if not by coincidence, it had ended up in the back seat of the victim's car.
Scully was mulling over different possibilities, wanting more than ever to get back to the body that was not yet released to the family, to investigate some of her ideas when her phone rang and hear heart dropped. Things would have to wait for another time and another place, because Agent Scully would be performing the duties of Doctor once again, very shortly.
Mulder was just in the process of briefing the forensics team when Scully pulled up to the apartment and headed up the stairs. She had been working in the lab when the vehicle, that they had located, showed up and the dreaded call came in. She cleaned up her station, hung up her lab coat and rushed out to find Mulder.
"What's going on?" Mulder asked as he watched his partner walk down the apartment hall toward him.
"Play times over, we've got another one," Scully stated and watched as the forensics team turned to stare at her. "You'll all be staying here; we'll get another team to assist in the field." She added addressing the forensic team.
"How long ago?" Mulder asked shocked by what his partner was telling him.
"She's been dead for less than twelve hours, from what we can guess. I got the call to head back to Quantico to do the autopsy, the case is ongoing but because of the similarities we are on first response on this one. You can drop me off on the way. You need to get right on this new case; we are only hours behind him this time. Hopefully he hasn't had time to clean up yet."
"Are you sure it's the same guy?" Mulder asked as he turned to leave with Scully, having waved off the forensic bystanders and feeling confident that they knew how to do their job.
"Well the girl hasn't got any hair, or fingers and was dumped in a dumpster," Scully stated as they walked out of the crowded apartment and into the stairwell, "and the police found traces of gold where the girls fingers should have been," She added now that they were well out of ear shot from anyone who may have been eavesdropping.
"It's the same guy," Mulder sighed and rushed with Scully back to the vehicle.
"I'm pretty sure that it is Mulder, and my speck from the back seat of Leslie's car is definitely gold." She whisper as the drive began. "I have some ideas that I didn't look into on the last autopsy, and the visit with Doug may have taught us something after all. What if the transformation is happening all throughout the girl's circulatory system? It means in every vein and artery we would potentially find gold."
"It's a good hypothesis Doctor Scully," Mulder stated driving faster than he intended. "I hope you can prove it."
"I'll be checking this body very carefully," Scully stated as they pulled up to the medical center at Quantico and she jumped out of the car before it had come to a complete stop.