TITLE: V IS FOR VICIOUS AUTHOR: DONNILEE E-MAIL: DONNILEE@SNET.NET RATING: NC-17 SPOILERS: Little ones - Fire, FTF. SUMMARY: In the middle of a murder investigation, our duo realizes life is too short and finally give in to temptation. DISCLAIMER: The characters of Dana Scully, Fox Mulder, Walter Skinner and the Gunmen belong to Chris Carter, Ten Thirteen Productions and Fox Broadcasting. They would all have more active sex lives if I owned them! DICTIONARY WORD WEBSTER'S NINTH NEW COLLEGIATE DICTIONARY vi-cious \ 'vish-es\ adj. [ME, fr. MR vicieus, fr. L vitiosus-full of faults, corrupt, fr. vitium vice] (14c) 1 : having the nature of quality of vice or immorality : DEPRAVED 2 : DEFECTIVE, FAULTY; also : INVALID 3 : IMPURE, NOXIOUS 4 a : dangerously aggressive : SAVAGE b : marked by violence or ferocity : FIERCE 5 : MALICIOUS, SPITEFUL <^gossip> 6 : worsened by internal causes that reciprocally augment each other -- vi-cious-ly, adv. -- vi-cious-ness, n. INTRODUCTION (PG-13) WILSON'S RIDING STABLE ROUTE 118 LITCHFIELD, CT 5:00 PM - March 5, Monday We approached the scene at the farm. Several uniforms from the local police were standing in a semi circle around the corpse, probably obliterating any trace evidence. I pointed to the ground where there were large double wheel impressions in the ground. Mulder nodded. Mulder and I both flashed our badges. "Special Agents Dana Scully and Fox Mulder," I announced. "Who was first on the scene?" A man in his fifties with graying hair and a few extra pounds around the middle stepped forward and stuck out of hand, waving the other three away from the corpse. "Agent Mulder, good of you to come so quickly. This is weirder than shit." Slightly miffed that he had shook Mulder's hand and was ignoring me as if I wasn't there and hadn't been the one to ask the question; I asked, "Weirder than shit? Is that your official description, Officer? ..." "Huh? Oh sorry, Lieutenant Socks, State Troop L." He had the red flush of high blood pressure across his cheeks and the tiny broken capillaries on his nose that usually signified a heavy drinker. "As in stinky?" Mulder quipped. The overweight officer belly laughed as if it was the funniest thing he'd ever heard. "Well, I don't know if 'weirder than shit' will go in my report, but ..." he responded finally. "Why not?" I asked. "It goes in his all the time," I deadpanned, pointing over my shoulder at Mulder as I knelt down next to the corpse. "Hey, little lady, careful there, maybe your partner should take a look first." I turned to give him my death glare. I was pleasantly surprised when Mulder immediately rushed into the rift. " Lieutenant Socks, was it?" The man nodded. "My partner is not only a Special Agent and an equal partner in the X-Files, she's a licensed M.D. and one of the finest forensic pathologists ever to come out of Quantico. This part, corpses, is her area of expertise, so I would like to suggest that you give her some respect. She can be awfully prickly when dismissed out of hand." The man pursed his lips but said nothing. Mulder pasted his most innocent look on his face, circled the corpse to the opposite side but declined to kneel down. I snapped on some latex gloves and pulled the sheet off the torso. I used a small stick nearby to carefully lift the blood soaked shirt away from the chest cavity. A sucking chest wound was visible, or what would have been one earlier. Now it was turning black with dried blood. I glanced at the Officer in time to see him grimace and turn away. 'No stomach? Huh, pal?' I looked up at Mulder who was smirking away. Loud enough to be sure the Officer heard him, who had taken a few steps back, Mulder asked, "What have we got, partner?" I smiled a thank you at him and he nodded, almost imperceptibly. "One shot to the heart, close range." I hunched closer and peered down the lifted shirt. I shifted the shirt, not wanting to take it off, but wanted to look further down. "It doesn't look like any other organs were damaged... wait a minute." I paused, seeing a blackened mark on the waist band of his jeans which were unbuttoned and unzipped. I lowered the shirt and carefully pulled the tails of the brown flannel shirt out of the way. I flipped the sheet completely off the body. The jeans were pulled down below the groin. The flaps of the shirt had been covering it. "What is it Scully?" Mulder asked. I looked up and inclined my head toward the crotch as I held up the tails of the shirt. Mulder shouted, "Oh Christ!" I heard the Officer behind me gag and stagger a few steps back. Mulder swallowed and looked again, not thrilled, but knowing he should. "God, Scully, that had to hurt." I nodded unsympathetically, morbidly finding humor in this situation. The man's penis was severed from his body. His scrotum had been sliced open, and his testicles removed. "He would have bled out here too, that's for sure. Hard to tell which wound was delivered first without tests. I need to get this body to the morgue. I'll do an autopsy first thing in the morning. That's a surgical cut, Mulder." Mulder motioned to the Lieutenant. He warily approached. I grinned and pulled the sheet back into place, not wanting to appear totally unsympathetic to his sick stomach. Mulder spoke up, "Lieutenant, have the paramedics get over and load up the body. Take it to the morgue. Where's the closest one?" "New Milford, I think, about 30 minutes up Route 202." Mulder nodded. "O.K., take it there then, put it on ice and tell them that no one is to touch it until Agent Scully arrives in the morning. Did the other victim have his genitals ... defaced?" "Uh, no, not that I know of. I didn't see him, but that's not in the report. Officer Sclapone investigated that one." Mulder nodded, "O.K., get this man to the morgue. And have forensics out here to take a cast of those tire tracks. Maybe we'll get lucky and they will be unique." "You got it." He trotted away, seemingly happy to have something to do. I looked up at Mulder, putting a hand on the small of my back. He extended a hand and I ripped off the latex before taking it. I shivered slightly at the warmth of his hand as it engulfed mine as he tugged me to my feet. He smiled and then knelt down, looking at the ground around the corpse, waiting for the paramedics. "Look like anything you've seen before, Mulder?" He shook his head. "Not exactly. I've seen organ's torn out or removed, but usually they were removed by animals or by hands, not with surgical precision. Fortunately, I've never had the pleasure of investigating any missing genitalia cases. "Today's your lucky day." He grunted and stood as we made room for the paramedics. A young Trooper, holding his hat in his hands, and obviously way out of his depth approached. "Uh, agents, I was told to help you out if you was to need anything." I grinned as he smiled at me shyly. I looked at Mulder and found him glaring at the young man. He was probably 25 years old, blonde hair and blue eyes. He was well built but rather short, probably only 5' 9". I smiled at him and shook his hand. Good heavens, he blushed! I chuckled to myself, knowing he wouldn't appreciate it. "Agent Scully. And this is my partner, Agent Mulder." This officer stuck out his hand to Mulder as well. "Hi, I'm Clancy Severn. Can I do anything for you two?" Mulder spoke up. "I'd like to look in the barn." He nodded and waved to us to follow. We entered a well lit barn with 10 stalls lining each side, about every other one housing a horse. I asked, "How much do you know about horses, Officer Severn?" "Quite a bit actually, what would you like to know?" "Well, the man out there was an employee here, right? He wasn't the owner." "That's right." "Did you know him personally?" "No, but there's a gal who works here, takes people out on trail rides. Her name is Marguerite Wilson. She isn't here right now but lives right in town. I'll give you her address. We already called to say we'd be stopping by to ask some questions." "Good. So she can give us some information on the victim." "Headley Stores, yeah. I guess she must have known him pretty good. I mean they've worked together here for ages." Mulder asked, "Who's the owner?" "Lee Wilson." "Ahh, so Marguerite is his wife?" "Daughter." "Oh." We peered into each stall. They were clean with shavings on the floor. We entered the tack room and I was assaulted by the smell of leather and Neets Foot Oil. Nothing seemed out of place or disturbed, but then again, I didn't know what a tack room generally looked like. "Well, nothing looks out of place in here." Mulder glanced around. "Nope." Officer Severn said, "We called Marguerite. She said Headley usually closed up about 4:30 after getting the horses in and fed. He would normally be leaving about now, a little after five. He came in around 7:00 AM, but then left around 2:00 and returned around 4:00 to bring the horses in from the paddock and bed them down." Mulder nodded. "So we are working on a fairly short time frame here, say a half an hour between his arrival and his attack." "Looks that way," the young officer shrugged. "That mean anything to you?" I spoke up. "Well, it indicates that whoever assaulted Mr. Stores knew his schedule. Probably staked the place out or is a known acquaintance that would know his schedule. We are going to want a list of family members, known acquaintances, and the like." "I'll get right on that. Marguerite can probably help some with that." "What about the missing horse?" "We don't have a clue how that figures in. It wasn't one of the regular trail horses that they own here though. It was a brood mare, high class, apparently. Some richies in Litchfield had bought her and asked Marguerite to board her until she foaled." "Why bring her here?" I asked. He smiled at me. "Because of Headley, of course." "What was so special about Headley?" "He is ... was one of the finest vets in the area. Second only to Lee Wilson, but Wilson is an old man now, doesn't see to many horsey patients. Doesn't have the strength for delivering a foal anymore." "So officer," Mulder asked, "do you think this was a straight murder, or did the expensive horse have something to do with it?" The young officer looked at the ground. "To be honest, I don't know, but my gut tells me a little of both." Mulder nodded. Officer Severn continued. "These horse people can be weird. And it's a real competitive business. Not the riding stable, but the race horses." "Race horses?" I asked. "Yeah, the father of that foal was a race horse, a champion. If they are healthy, those foals are worth a lot of money." "How much money, ball park?" I asked. He grinned. "Million dollars." "A million dollars!" I exclaimed. He nodded sagely. "Yeah, and isn't money and greed a universal motivator for murder?" Mulder sighed. "So you think someone was maybe trying to snatch the horse and Headley stumbled into it?" "Maybe, but that doesn't make sense. If they cased the place, why not come during the hours when they knew no one was usually here?" "Good point," Mulder conceded. The officer smiled at the little bit of praise. "What about the first victim?" Mulder asked. "At the morgue, waiting for you." "No, I mean where was he found?" he asked. We already knew that. I guess Mulder was just asking to see if the Officer would give the same answer. I wondered why. "Oh, out in the woods on one of the bridal paths. He was a runner. Name of Olson Parks." I shook my head to myself, not seeing any connection yet. "Shot in the heart also?" I asked. The officer nodded. "That's what they tell me. But his 'little bits' were intact as far as I know." Mulder laughed, "Little bits? Wasn't very impressive, huh?" The officer laughed then. "Just a turn of phrase, Agent. I wasn't there." Mulder chuckled. I nodded. "Let's go Mulder. I don't think there's anything here." "Me neither. Oh, Officer Severn?" he asked. "Yeah?" "I know it's a long shot, but Andy Griffith out there didn't check for any foot prints in the dirt before the four of you ran circles around that body?" He grinned sheepishly. "I doubt it, but you could ask him." Mulder sighed loudly. "That's what I thought. Have someone put up some crime-scene tape around the body area and then have everyone stay the hell away from it." "Yes, sir." We walked out of the barn and headed for the car. "You were a little harsh, there, Mulder, don't you think?" He looked down at me innocently. "I don't know, Scully. I just hate incompetence. I mean, the basics of a crime scene, don't fuck with the trace evidence." "I know, Mulder, but this is a small town. How many murders do you suppose they get out here anyway? They never have to deal with this stuff. And Lieutenant Stinky Socks over there probably hasn't been in Evidence 101 in 20 years." Mulder threw his head back and laughed, graciously opening the car door for me and nodding his head for me to get in. I raised an eyebrow at his chivalry. He merely smiled and said, "Get in, Scully. Let's get some dinner. You're going to have a long day tomorrow in the autopsy bay." I nodded and slid into the car, curiously unruffled by his gentlemanly behavior. Somehow, Mulder could pull off being a gentleman without being condescending. Plus, he'd scored major points with me earlier by deferring to me in front of Lt. Socks. I loved it when he did things like that. Made me feel like an equal partner. But it also let me know how much he respected me. We rode in silence for several minutes. We were only about ten minutes from our hotel. Unbelievably, since there was little to choose from around here, we had been booked in the Litchfield Inn. It was a very nice place with steep white pillars flanking the front entrance. It boasted a large dining room, a bar, a ballroom for various large functions and very, very nice rooms. They started at $150.00 per night. The Bureau was going to have a cow when they got this expense report. PART 1 (R) THE LITCHFIELD INN ROUTE 202 LITCHFIELD, CT 6:30 PM I, however was in my glory. I told Mulder I wanted a shower and change of clothes before dinner so we returned to our adjoining rooms. I could taste the dust from the horse stable in my mouth. I was sure my hair was covered in it and I wasn't entirely sure that we both didn't smell like horses. Not a bad smell outside, but definitely less than fine inside a fine hotel. I stepped out of the shower and pulled out some dark gray slacks and a loose white blouse to wear to dinner. Simple but elegant. I slipped into my black pumps and combed my hair. I was deciding whether to blow dry it or not when I heard a knock on the adjoining door. "Come in." Mulder stepped into the room, having changed into dark charcoal slacks and a black silk shirt with two buttons undone and the shirt sleeves rolled up. His hair was still damp from the shower and he had polished his wing tips, repairing them from their encounter with the barn yard. The small lamp on the beside cast his face in shadow. I gasped at his appearance. I was struck suddenly with how unbelievably attractive my partner was. Not that I didn't know this already, but sometimes, it just ... struck me ... without warning. This was one of those times. When this happened, I was unable to ignore or deny my attraction. I always tried to hide it. I think I was successful most of the time. He looked at me, his head tilted slightly to one side. "Almost ready to go?" "Yeah!" Shit, I sounded out of breath. He smiled wide and I turned away to hide my blush. "I was trying to decide whether or not to blow dry my hair." "Leave it." I turned to look at him, hearing the roughened tone of his voice. It was soft, but rough. He met my gaze and said, "It's beautiful when you let it wave up." I sucked in my breath trying to think of an appropriate response. I was supposed to say something here right? Mulder didn't give me compliments like this, ever. What the hell was going on? "Mulder?" "The correct response is, 'Thank you, Mulder.'" I chuckled in embarrassment. "Thank you, Mulder." He grinned. "You're welcome. I called downstairs to check on the tie requirement and they said it was unnecessary. But do you think I should wear one?" "Depends, what did you bring along with you?" He grinned. "Well, there's the snoopy tie. I also brought along a dark blue and white striped one, and then I think I threw in the one with little green men on it, or was it the one with the flying pigs?" I laughed. "Forget it, go sans the tie. We want to relax anyway, right?" "I do." "Let's go then." I ran my hands through my still damp hair, a little self conscious about it. "Leave it, Scully, it looks fine, trust me." I shook my head at him and followed him out the door. His hand immediately went to the small of my back. It was a familiar gesture that you would think I would be used to by now. And most of the time I was. But there were times, like now, when we were 'off-duty' so to speak and we were dressed down from our normal FBI G-man and G-woman attire that it felt so ... warm and intimate to have him touch me in any way. I suppressed the shiver that wanted to creep down my spine as the warmth of his hand made its way through my thin, cotton blouse. We waited a few seconds for the elevator and dropped the one floor to the street level. He steered me to the dining room and stopped before the Hostess who had her nose buried in the reservation book. She looked up and beamed at Mulder, fluttering her lashes slightly. God, I hated these vapid women who drooled over my partner all the time. It really got annoying sometimes. "Oh, I'm sorry. How can I help you, sir?" she purred. Mulder gave her his mega-watt smile. "Mulder, table for two, please." She looked at her roster and ran her finger down the list, furrowing her pretty, little brow, tucking a died platinum lock of hair behind her Elven ears. She looked up saying, "Oh, here you are, table 8." Mulder glanced at me and I mimed sticking my finger down my throat. He barked out a chuff of laughter and followed her across the dining room after gallantly holding out his arm. I placed my hand on it and followed him, quite enjoying the playful mood he seemed to be in. Usually, the start of a case would drop him into his brooding, introspective mode as he dropped into his investigative role. "Why are you in such a good mood?" I whispered as we crossed the large dining room. He smiled down at me. "I'm not entitled?" "No, I'm thrilled, I'm just wondering why?" "I'm in a nice hotel with a nice restaurant about to have dinner with a beautiful woman. What's not to be happy about?" "Mulder!" I was shocked again. What was with all the compliments? He was treating me like a ... woman ... like a ... date. What the hell? He grinned at my shocked expression and I realized he was probably just trying to get a rise out of me and I was feeding right into it. I shook myself mentally and decided not to read into it and just enjoy the banter for once. We finally arrived on the far side of dining room and the hostess with the mostest indicated a table one row away from the wall. I looked at her and asked, "Oh, I was hoping to be near the wall, perhaps in the corner over there?" She furrowed her brow. Mulder gave me an amused look as if to ask, 'what are you up to?' "Umm," the hostess mumbled as she looked at her hand held roster. "I guess so, I don't think that one is taken." She looked up and beamed again at Mulder, looking at him over my head. I said, "Perfect, we want to be private. Thanks so much." I spun on my heel and headed for the corner table, Mulder close on my heels. The girl followed us and almost but not quite, dropped the menus on the table. A curt, "There you go." And she spun and headed back to her post. Mulder was grinning from ear to ear. "What was that all about, Scully?" "What was what all about?" I asked innocently. Two could play at this game. "Oh, you are enjoying yourself now, aren't you?" he asked facetiously, a grin on his face. "I get it. But why were you bothered by her?" Before I thought about it I blurted out, "Other than the fact that she's eyeing you like you were a chocolate sundae with a cherry on top?" He laughed now and his eyes twinkled as he gazed at me. "Jealous, Scully?" he asked smoothly. "No, of course not, I just get irritated with vapid, flirty women." "Try it sometime, you might like it." "What? Being vapid? Not my style." "No flirting, having fun." My smile faded. "What do you mean by that?" His smile faded too. "Nothing, Scully, sorry. I didn't mean that the way it sounded." "What? You think I don't know how to flirt? You think I don't know how to have fun? Or that I don't enjoy my femininity?" "Scully! Whoa! Whoa! Calm down. What's the matter with you? All I meant was you don't ever flirt with ME." I deflated, realizing that I was totally overreacting. Why? I sighed deeply. "Forget it, Mulder. I was trying to have fun and it took a wrong turn somewhere. I didn't mean to ..." "Didn't mean to, what?" "I don't know." I picked up a menu and buried my nose in it. "Let's decide what to order before the waitress comes." Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him looking at me curiously, a serious look on his face. I had piqued his curiosity. Outbursts like that were not common for me and he figured it indicated something deeper was wrong when it wasn't. Or was it? "Look at your menu, Mulder," I instructed without lifting my eyes from mine. He sighed and picked it up, scanning it briefly and setting it down. I looked up. "You decided that fast?" "Yup. I already pretty much knew what I wanted unless something on the special list caught my eyes, but it didn't." "What are you getting?" "The Surf 'n Turf." I scanned once more, deciding to go for broke. "I'm going to have the lobster." His eyebrows rose. "Going for the gusto, eh, Scully?" He was trying to revive our earlier light mood. I decided the least I could do was make an equal effort. "Mmm, I haven't had lobster in a long time. I'm a sea girl, remember? I love all kinds of shell fish. All that warm, gooey butter, I can't wait!" He chuckled but then froze as I licked my lips playfully. I stopped, realizing what I had done could have been taken as a flirt. The corners of his mouth twitched but he didn't say anything for a moment. Then he said, "I think I'm going to enjoy watching you eat it. Do you use your hands?" I just looked at him. "Some, some nut cracker, some hands, depends on the piece of meat you are trying to handle." He chuckled again. "Oh, you are getting good at this, Scully." "Getting good?" He nodded a conciliatory nod. "You ARE good." "What, Mulder? No witty come back?" I teased. "Wait, partner, just you wait." We ordered our food and Mulder ordered a bottle of white wine to go with it. There was a piano player in the corner playing jazzy tunes at a reasonable level. The atmosphere was relaxed and rather swank and I sighed, enjoying myself. When the food came, Mulder insisted on helping me tie my lobster bib. This time when his fingers brushed the back of my neck there was no hiding the shiver. He stopped after tying it. Then his hands slid down my neck to brush both my shoulders before he righted himself in his chair from his bent over position. I swear he did it on purpose. I decided to pretend I didn't notice the lingering touch. We ate with gusto, Mulder laughing as I struggled periodically with a particularly tough piece of shell. I broke one leg and squirted lobster juice across the table hitting him in the cheek. He had squealed in mock indignation all the while swallowing his laughter. I couldn't remember the last time we had just relaxed and had such fun. I don't even know how it happened but I looked up two hours later, dessert and coffee later, and realized I was flushed with good food and wine and had been flirting with my partner. He was holding his wine glass by the stem, peering at me over the rim. A lock of his chestnut hair fell across his forehead. The ambient lighting made his eyes look very green. He slowly licked his lips and took another sip of his wine. Several couples were out on the tiny dance floor in the center of the dining room. Mulder glanced at them and then back at me. He grinned. I opened my mouth to protest, knowing what he was going to ask. "Wanna dance, Scully?" "No." "Why not?" "Because, we're ..." "Having a good time?" "We're on a case!" "Not right now, we aren't. Not until 8:00 tomorrow morning." I couldn't tell him the real reason I didn't want to dance. I didn't want to be that close to him. He was having a weird effect on me tonight and I felt unusually vulnerable. But my protests were weak. He was my partner, for Christ's sake. And we were having such a good time. I didn't want to be the party pooper. His comment about my never having fun and flirting had hurt more than I was willing to admit. I'd set out to prove him wrong. I wanted him to see that I could be fun and 'play' with the best of them. The unfortunate side effect of that was that I had to drop the professionalism that always guarded me against his charms. He smiled sadly, taking my silence for a negative answer and said softly, "If you don't want to, that's O.K. I just thought it would be nice." He looked down at the table. "O.K., Mulder." His head jerked up. "What?" I stood up. "Let's dance." I knew I was in dangerous territory here, but my reasons for saying 'No' seemed distant and confused. He took my hand and I immediately started having second thoughts. Warmth flooded up my arm as he stood and tugged me gently to step in front of him. One hand on my back again, he led me onto the floor. A new song was just starting up, an instrumental I didn't recognize but with a slow easy beat. Mulder deftly slid an arm around my waist and caught up my hand in the other raising it up to his chest. He began rock to the beat and soon he was swaying back and forth and around with me clasped tightly to his torso. He was a good dancer and easy to follow and I found myself relaxing into his guided steps. I was overcome by a feeling of slight giddiness and leaned my head back, smiling up at him. "What?" he asked softly. "Nothing. You're a good dancer." He smiled a little wider. "Surprised? Yeah, this is nice." "What?" "Dancing with you." He pulled me against him a little tighter and said, "Feels good." What did he mean by that? I was no longer smiling but unable to take my eyes off him. He was staring deep into my eyes and I felt a tingle go through my body, a wave of heat. It made me nervous but slightly excited at the same time. "Mulder?" I asked quietly. "God, Scully, you are so beautiful," he murmured. And his head dropped to the side as he buried his nose in my hair. I shuddered and tried to pull away. This was not good. This was dangerous. What the hell was happening here? My attempts to back away only prompted him to hold me tighter, the hand holding mine against his chest moving to back of my neck. His fingertips played with the stray hairs at the nape of my neck. It was a warm tickle that caused another shiver. "Mulder, please!" I whispered, sounding desperate even to myself. I twisted in his arms. He lifted his head, loosening his hold, a shocked look on his face. He took a deep breath, his eyes darting over my shoulder and back to my face. "I'm sorry, Scully." Just then the song ended and he dropped his arms abruptly and turned away from me. He looked over his shoulder waving toward the table. "Sorry," he muttered again and walked away. I had to hurry to catch up as he strode to the table as though his ass were on fire. "Mulder!" I said in a frantic voice, trying to keep my volume down and not attract attention. He stopped and spun around just as I reached the table. We both froze and stared at each other. All the fun was gone now ... again. We'd dipped our toes over an invisible line and it had made us both nervous. "I'm sorry, Mulder, I didn't mean to panic." He swallowed and waved at my chair. He pulled it out and I sat as he scooted me back under the table and then sat in his chair. He leaned his elbows on the table, lacing his fingers together. He was staring at his hands. I glanced down to see his legs bobbing nervously under the table. It was unlike Mulder to have a nervous mannerism like that. Something was going on. "What happened out there, Mulder?" "I don't know," he whispered, glancing at me and back at his hands. "I think you do." He sighed. "Maybe, but you probably don't want to hear it." We sat in silence for several moments. Did I want to hear it? I wasn't sure. What I did know was that I didn't like this tension between us and it was partially if not all my fault. I'd freaked out just because he said it felt good to dance with me and said I was beautiful. And he'd touched my neck, playing with my hair. That had felt better than it should have. I didn't want to cop right now to how his words and actions had made me feel. Mulder thought I was beautiful. Jesus, when did that happen? How did that make me feel? Nervous for sure. Scared as hell, not that I'd ever tell him that. And, shit. If I was honest, it titillated me. He licked his lips and kept looking at his hands. His knuckles were white with the pressure of squeezing them together. I laid my hands over his clenched, laced fingers. He gasped but loosened his grip on himself. "Mulder, what's wrong?" "Nothing." "Oh come on, you can't even look at me! I'm sorry, Mulder. You just startled me. You never say things like that to me, and I ... it took me by surprise and I didn't know how to react and I ..." "Freaked out," he said softly. "Yeah, a little, but I'm O.K. now. I'm sorry. It has nothing to do with you. It's me." Why was I comforting him? He was the one that had made me feel uncomfortable. "This time it had everything to do with me." "What?" "It's not you, Scully. You're a beautiful, funny, sensual woman and if any other man had held you out there you wouldn't have freaked out. But you did, because it was ... me." He looked so sad and dejected. I didn't know what to say. Beautiful, funny and ... sensual? Good lord, why was he suddenly spewing these words at me? They threw me completely off balance. He never said things like this and now they were pouring out of his mouth all in the course of one evening. He was probably right. I hadn't been with anyone in a long time, but I knew how to be with a man. I knew how act on a date. I knew how to enjoy dancing. It was just that dancing could be so intimate and I wasn't used to being that close to Mulder, to touching him that way. And let's face it. Again, if I was honest, other men wouldn't have effected me that way. He did. "Mulder, look at me." He did, tentatively. "You're right. I wouldn't have freaked out if it was someone else." He face twisted into a grimace and the corners of his mouth turned down. My God, was he trying not to cry? "Mulder, you're taking this the wrong way." He blinked rapidly, still frowning but didn't look away. "I wouldn't have reacted that way because ... because someone else wouldn't ... effect me the way you do." He continued to stare at me, shaking his head slightly, indicating he didn't understand. I squeezed his balled up fingers under mine and he flattened his hands onto the table. "Mulder, it felt just as good to me to be held as it did to you to be holding." His frown dissipated but he didn't say anything. His mouth dropped open slightly and he licked his bottom lip again. I repeated, "Mulder, you don't usually ... say things like that. And you've never touched me that way. You touched my hair and the nape of my neck and it ... it felt ... it was ... intimate." "I know, I ... don't know why I did. I just ... I feel different tonight." "Different?" "I don't know what I'm talking about," he said in a self deprecating tone. I chuckled. "Let's pay the bill and get out of here. We'll go upstairs and talk some more, O.K.? It's early." He nodded and flagged the waitress. He yanked a MasterCard out of his wallet and handed it to her. We sat in silence until she returned. He quickly signed the slip and we stood. I stepped in front of him out of habit. His hand touched my low-back but then pulled back. I turned and looked at him. He was hesitating. Oh God, had I upset him that much by pulling away. Probably. I knew how sensitive he was. I tried to smile gently, not sure if I'd pulled it off. He gently laid his hand back on the small of my back. He flashed me a nervous smile and started to lead me to the elevator. We entered it and there were others in there so he dropped his hand. My back felt cold in its absence and I straightened my spine. The doors opened and we all piled off. Mulder followed me to my door. He quipped, "My place or yours," but it fell flat. I smiled at the door, not daring to look at him and simply unlocked my door. He followed me inside, turning to chain lock the door. I sat on the bed and leaned back on my hands. He looked around and then decided to sit on the lone chair that was near the tiny table in the corner. "Mulder," I said. He looked up. I patted the bed. "Sit here." He nodded, but looked unsure and came and sat gingerly on the edge of the bed. He turned slightly, pulling his long leg up onto the bed with a bent knee and turning to face me. We looked at each other in silence again and then he hung his head. I didn't know what was going on. I did but I didn't. I had no idea what to say, so I decided I should ask him. "Mulder, what's going on?" He looked up at me. "I'm not sure," he replied. "Why are you nervous around me all of a sudden?" He chuckled mirthlessly. "You don't know?" "No." He sighed. "I tried to pay you a compliment. I was having fun. I thought we were having fun, being friends. I felt so close to you down there for a few moments and then ... you pulled away ... you freaked out, Scully. Not badly, but enough and it ... hurt. I'm not sure why." He paused. "That's not true, I know why. So now I'm afraid to ... do anything to make you pull away more." "Because it hurts you when I do." "Yes." "Why?" He smiled then a sad smile. "You really don't get it, do you?" He was staring at me again. I shook my head. "Then there's nothing else for me to say." He stood up and headed for the connecting door. "Mulder!" He didn't stop. I leaped up off the bed and nearly shouted. "Damn it, Mulder, don't you walk away from me!" He stopped and turned around but said nothing. I realized I was panting and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. I stomped my foot and realized how silly that must have looked, especially after I saw the flash of amusement cross his face. "Please talk to me, Mulder," I said through clenched teeth. I was mortified to find that I felt like crying and I didn't want him to leave. And now he was the one pulling away and I realized ... it HURT!" Jesus! He watched my face and must have seen something because he slowly approached me. He took my hand and led me back around to the side of the bed and coaxed me to sit down. He sat as before, turned sideways, only closer this time. I whispered, swallowing the lump in my throat. "Why do I feel like ... if I let you walk out of here, things will be awkward between us for days to come?" "Because they probably would be," he answered, very calmly. "Why?" "Because all of a sudden I don't know how to act around you." "Why?" "Any other question in your repertoire, Scully?" I smiled and turned to look at him. "What really happened down there, Mulder? Be honest with me. And don't give me any bullshit about being too sensitive. What you did was different, out of character." He asked, "You sure you want to know? You sure you want me to be honest about this?" I nodded, rather jerkily but I managed. "O.K.," he said slowly. "Actually, it wasn't out of character at all for me. It's exactly how I always act when I'm with a woman I care about. How I usually act around you or force myself to act around you is distinctly out of character. What happened down there was I was having such a good time and was so relaxed that I let my guard down. I forgot that I'm not supposed to touch Dana Scully. I forgot that I'm not supposed to see my partner as a beautiful, desirable woman. I forgot ... that I'm not supposed to ..." "Not supposed to what, Mulder?" He looked at me for a few seconds, his lip curling up. Then he bit his lower lip and looked down. "What, Mulder?" I whispered again, encouraging him. My heart was beating fast and I wasn't sure if I was hearing correctly. He looked up at me again and locked his gaze with mine. His voice was raspy and gruff with desire and it made me shiver. "I forgot I'm not supposed to want you." My mouth dropped open on what I'm sure was one of my more shocked expressions. Mulder wanted me? WHAT? How did we go from friends having a nice time to this? "Mu...Mulder?" His hand raised slowly and slipped behind my neck. He slid his body in close and I gasped, feeling panic start to take a hold of me. He bent his head and his hot breath cascaded down my neck. His words rumbled into my ear and set up a humming vibration in my body. "Do you ever feel it, Scully? This thing between us. That vibration that sometimes flows between us and makes my body hum. It's there. I can feel it. I feel it all the time, and I pretend ... I pretend I don't feel it because I'm not SUPPOSED to feel it. But I do." "Feel what?" He paused. "And on those rare occasions when I can hold you, I CAN'T PRETEND I DON'T FEEL IT." His words were forceful but still quiet. My eyelids drooped closed and my head fell to my shoulder, in an unconscious action to dislodge his hand from my neck. It didn't work. His other hand came down to rest on my hip. I felt his lips brush across the skin below my ear and over my jaw. I should stop him! Damn it, I should stop him. What the hell is he doing? What is he talking about? I shouldn't be doing this. He shouldn't be doing this! "Fee...Feel what?" I asked again meekly. His thumb swept my bottom lip and I made an embarrassing squeaking noise in the back of my throat. "This," he said sharply. Oh my God - Fox Mulder is kissing me. His lips warm and soft, swept over mine, brooking no argument as his tongue swept over my teeth pushing it's way gently inside. I gasped and he plunged inside, rolling his tongue around mine and retreating to suck on my lips. I heard a whimper and realized a second later that it was me. What the hell? He pulled me close and deepened the kiss. I moaned and felt my head spin as waves of pleasure rippled through my torso. My hands came up instinctively and clutched his biceps for support. I don't remember leaning down, I don't remember being pushed. But the next thing I knew, I was flat on my back on the bed and Mulder was leaning over me, his hands in my hair and kissing me with a hunger and passion I had never imagined. I gave up and started kissing him back. There was no denying it now. Minutes, hours, I have no idea. Some time later, he finally broke the kiss when the need for air became paramount. We were both panting. He stared at me. He asked, his voice gruff, "Did you feel it that time, Scully?" This entire situation struck my hysterically funny all of a sudden. I knew it was the panic and the acknowledgement and the confusion all mixed together. But I began to laugh. I belly laughed, feeling tension flow out of my body and the arousal abate somewhat. He was smiling wide at me, and then began to laugh at the sight of me laughing. Before we were through, we were both sucking wind and wiping tears from our face with the sleeves of our shirts. We finally quieted and he smiled softly at me. He leaned in and gave me a quick, hard kiss on the lips. And said, "That's what was happening." He stood. "Get some sleep, Scully. I hope you won't hold it against me." With that, he turned and went to his door. He opened it and stepped through. He turned around and fixed his eyes on my face again. I was levering up on my elbows. He said, "You're the most beautiful woman in the world to me, Scully, inside and out. And you know what? I'm tired of all the bullshit. I'm tired of pretending. So I'm not going to anymore." He paused. "That was my serve, Scully. You're turn to lob." He flashed another smile, that one looking quite self satisfied and he closed the door softly behind him. I flopped back down on the bed and groaned. What the hell just happened? My body was buzzing with arousal and I was still breathing deeply. My mouth was suddenly dry as a bone. I heaved myself up and headed for the bathroom to get a drink of water. Maybe a cold shower too. Fox Mulder had just kissed me like I'd never been kissed, and made me feel sensations I'd never felt. Oh God, get a grip. What now? PART 2 (PG-13) MARGUERITE WILSON'S HOUSE MAPLE STREET LITCHFIELD, CT 8:20 AM - MARCH 6, TUESDAY How I'd managed to summon up the restraint to pull away from her, I will never know. I could have kept going. I know that. She wouldn't have stopped me. She had given in to the "thing" between us at last. She'd returned my kiss and it had felt like heaven. But what of tomorrow? I could hear all the justifications flying out of her mouth. I had too much to drink with dinner. We have to go back to the way things were or it will ruin our working relationship. We were relaxed and had our guard down. I need time to think. I could hear them all. And being relatively paranoid, I was sure that somehow, if I were to stay, she would regret it tomorrow. If we were ever to be together, she would have to come to me. She would have to approach me free of reservations, accepting of our fate, of her own free will ... hopefully sober. Because drunk or not, if she responded to me again, I didn't know if I would be able to push her away a second time. Something in the back of my mind had told me it was time to declare myself. It was time to drop the mask. This might be the end of us, but if something didn't happen soon, it was going to be the end of us anyway, because I couldn't stand the tension anymore. I wanted her too much to hide it anymore. That was the bottom line. I had seen something in her eyes when I turned to leave that first time. A desperation that I had never seen before. She was panicking over the fact that I was walking away. I was the one pulling away now, and I'd seen her recognize the hurt, and then identify with mine of earlier. I'd watched the realization paint a picture across her face. So when she asked me not to go, I couldn't continue to hurt her the way she had hurt me. Two wrongs don't make a right. Even I know that. But now what? Here I am pacing my room, walking funny because I am so aroused I can't think straight. I need to lay down and do something about the third leg that has appeared on my body. Because it's obvious that after ten minutes of nearly painful pacing and thinking, I thought, 'This isn't going to go away.' I'd already taken a shower, but maybe I should take another one. Lord knows had I started to sweat in there. Plus, I know Scully would be less likely to hear me if I jerked off in the shower than if I just laid down on my bed. XXXXXXXXXX Scully grabbed a ride to the morgue with Officer Severn early the next morning. I wasn't thrilled with the idea as I'd seen the way he looked at Scully the day before. Something was bothering me about him but I couldn't put my finger on it. And it had nothing to do with the way he eyed Scully. At least I didn't think it did. But I needed to make my way to Marguerite Wilson's place and pin her with some tough questions. Hopefully, our encounter last night would prevent Scully from doing anything stupid like accepting to go out on a date with that school boy. I drove our rental car down the two lane state road, thinking that the country side here was really nice. I was back in full G-man regalia, wearing a dark gray suit, blue shirt and navy silk tie, black trench coat and Ray bans. Figured I may as well look the part. Sometimes in these small towns, they were underexposed enough to be impressed with that shit. Then again, you didn't want to come off arrogant. I was a hypocrite too, because I was not above flirting with a female witness to get what I wanted. But I certainly didn't do it when Scully was with me, so maybe this would be best after all. She would be in the autopsy bay for two hours at least on each autopsy. I didn't expect to catch up to her until 1:00 or 2:00 this afternoon. I glanced at the sign and made the turn onto Maple Street, squinting to see the numbers on the mailboxes. I really needed new glasses. Then I realized I had my sun glasses on and not my 'scripts. I pulled off the suns and fumbled with the eye glasses in my pocket. Definitely not as cool, but much more handy. I could see now! Fancy that! I saw the bright green 436 painted on the black mailbox and swung easily into the wide driveway. I guessed I was only about a mile from the riding stable. She lived conveniently close, but then again, she would. I wondered if she lived with daddy, a/k/a owner, or if he squatted elsewhere. We had yet to meet up with him either. He, Mr. Lee Wilson, was on the top of my 'most want to meet' list right then. The jarring sensation of my partner going soft in my arms and vibrating under my kiss last night kept whirling through my head. My crotch was standing at attention again. I shook my head. I had to get my head back where it belonged. It wouldn't do to walk in here sporting wood. I took a few deep breaths, thought about the dead body I'd seen yesterday and that pretty much took care of any remaining upstanding problems below my belt. I slid out of the car and stretched, looking around the yard. The lawn was neat and mowed, the leaves raked. A small cement stoop led up o the front door. There was a light over the door which was not burning now at 8:30 AM. I knocked sharply three times and waited. No one appeared for a few seconds but then I heard shuffling behind the door. "Who's there?" A rough male voice sounded through the door. "Special Agent Fox Mulder with the FBI! I'm here to see Marguerite Wilson." The door cracked open and an elderly man peeked his head around the end of the door. I flashed my badge and he squinted for several long moments at it and then pulled the door back. He was in flannel pajamas with teddy bears on them and a long, ratty looking, red striped bathrobe that had seen better days. His feet were bare on the plain wood floor. He was going bald on the top, but the rest of his gray hair was probably normally combed straight back, but now was doing a willow tree impression around his liver spotted skull. I smiled easily at him as I slipped past him through the door. "Mr. Lee Wilson, I presume?" I asked, sticking my hand out. "Yeah, that would be me," he replied. Then he bellowed, 'MARGGGIIIEEE!" "Coming!" she shouted from somewhere down a hallway off to my left. A tall woman, probably 5' 9" rounded the corner wearing fawn colored riding breeches and tall leather riding boots with a gold buckle. Her white shirt appeared to be some sort of thick gauze with an open collar. It was unbuttoned enough so I could see the top of her generous cleavage. The breeches hugged her like a second skin. her legs were long and slender, but she had no hips to speak of. Her hair was long, thick and brown and bound into a perfect braid which she wore hanging over one shoulder and down her ribcage. Her skin was that ruddy brown that occurred from long hours in the sun. Her eyes were a odd color, light brown, almost gold and blended with her tan face slightly to create a disconcerted look, as though she was never really looking directly AT anything. I stuck out my hand and introduced myself. "Special Agent Fox Mulder. The locals told me that you would expect me?" She didn't look like she'd expected me and she didn't look like she was happy about my arrival. She looked me up and down, taking in my outfit and was obviously not impressed, not intimidated but not put off by it either. "What can I do for you?" "Well, I'd like to ask you a few questions." "About what?" About what?! She was kidding, right? "Headley Stores, Olson Parks, and the riding stable in general. Can you spare me a few moments? I won't take much of your time." She sighed deeply and said, "Sure, I don't have much of a choice now, do I?" I smiled what I hoped was an apologetic smile and shrugged, "No, not really. You could throw me out. But then I'd have to get a court order or a warrant for questioning, which would piss me off and then you'd get mad and then we'd still have to talk only you'd probably have to go down to the State Police barracks, ..." "I get the point," she said, cutting me off neatly, but then her lips turned up into a smile. She motioned towards a doorway and I followed her into a brightly lit kitchen and sat on a stool she indicated at a breakfast bar. "I need to grab some breakfast while we talk if you don't mind." "Go right ahead." She began frying eggs and said, "So, what do you want to ask me?" "How long did Headley Stores work for the stable?" "About eight years." "You knew him well?" She turned suddenly and glared at the old man who had appeared in the doorway. I hadn't even heard him approach. He slowly backed away and disappeared from my line of sight. Interesting. I wondered who was in charge around here? She looked at me and said softly, "Maybe we should wait until I finish eating. Then we could take a walk outside. What do you say?" I looked at her for a moment and she nodded her head towards the doorway. 'Ahh, so she didn't want the old man overhearing what she had to say. This was even more interesting. I nodded my understanding. "Coffee?" she asked. "Please, I'd love some. Only had one cup this morning. That's not enough to even get me into 2nd gear." She chuckled and poured out coffee from a pot into a generous mug and plunked it on the counter, waving casually at the cream and sugar off to the side. They looked like remnants from a greasy spoon diner, but I indulged anyway. She finished her breakfast while I asked her mundane questions about the area and what there was to see. Turns out there was a Fair going on one town over in a town called Harwington. I was hoping I would have time to take Scully. We'd never been to a Fair together. She had visibly relaxed in the wake of our mundane talk. She seemed like a normal woman, other than the fact that she was probably about my age and not married. But then, neither were Scully or I. Just thinking the word 'married' in the same sentence with Scully gave me a little pang. Did I want that some day? Not the time to ponder it. I followed her outside the house and we circled around to the back and headed for a large pasture. I looked over my shoulder to see the old man watching us out of the window. He was dressed now in a flannel shirt and dungarees. Curious, what was the old man so uptight about? "So," I began, after we were a distance from the house. "So," she replied, grabbing a tall stalk of grass and popping it in her mouth. Somehow it looked natural there. She was a handsome woman. The kind of woman that used to turn my head. I noticed now that we were out in the light that her brunette hair was streaked with lighter ash blonde strands, probably also from the sun. She was tall and big busted. I found it curious that she did absolutely nothing for me. She was looking at me like she liked what she saw. I shook myself mentally. Scully was the only woman who did anything for me anymore. The rest were just ... people. Scully was my touchstone, my center. "I need to ask some hard questions." She nodded. "How well did you know Headley Stokes?" "Very well." "Nice person?" "I thought so." "You said that like you know of others with differing opinions." "My father." My ears perked up. "What about your father? Didn't like Headley much?" "Oh, he liked him just fine, up until about a six months ago." "What happened six months ago?" "I started ... dating him for lack of a better term. It was weird. We'd been working side by side at this stable for close to eight years. We were friends, the closest. Then, something happened. One day, I just started looking at him differently. I can't explain it." "I think I understand." It must have been something in the tone of my voice, because she swung her head around to look at my face. "You have a lady friend?" I nodded, "Not in the traditional sense, but yes." She chuckled. "Define 'non-traditional' sense." I didn't know how much to tell her. "I'm supposed to be the one asking the questions." She smiled again, giving me a look that let me know that she was fully aware of my evasive tactic. She nodded, accepting it. "So, your father didn't like that Headley put the make on you." "Put the make on me? I haven't heard that expression in years!" I smiled. She continued, "No, he didn't. You see, my mom died when I was seven years old. Dad opened this stable when I was about eight. I've been riding since then, giving lessons, trail rides. It has been just me and him all these years. I've dated, but never got serious with anyone." "Never got serious in all this time?" She looked at me and was almost staggered by the look of sadness in her eyes. "Not until recently." "What are you not telling me?" I asked gently. "Nothing. I'm not sure it's really hit me yet that he's gone." I nodded. "Did you know the other victim? Olson Parks?" "Yes, he was a customer. He came here quite often. He was a runner and we gave him permission to jog on the bridle paths. It was a quiet place for him and he didn't have to worry about running on the road with all the traffic and all." "Did you date him?" Her head whipped around to look at me again and I saw a spark of something. Anger, maybe? Fear? I just wasn't sure. "Why?" she asked. "I'm just gathering information, trying to establish a connection between the two victims. At this point, there doesn't seem to be one, except that the two men were killed one week apart, both at your riding stable. Little odd, don't you think?" "Yeah." Her voice was far away and breathy. She was tearing up now. I didn't like it. I wasn't sure what the hell was going on here. "I have to tell you, I'm really shook by this whole thing. I'm scared. And I don't know what to think." She looked at the sky, then at the ground under her feet as we continued to walk slowly across the field. She paused then sighed loudly. "I've never been a very 'social' person. I'm a horse person." She said this as though it explained everything. "Truth be told, I like animals way better than people." I chuckled. "I know the feeling. But then there are those very few people who ... are something special." She smiled sadly. "Exactly, and Headley was one of them. I went on only three dates with Olson, but there was just nothing there. By mutual agreement, we decided to be friends. Headley though ... was different. "We'd known each other a long time. We just sort of drifted into the intimacy part. It's the first really healthy relationship I've ever had. I'd been in love with him for a long time, but was afraid to let it show, you know? Then he gave me a hint that he felt the same way. I was so thrilled. I thought I'd finally found someone I could spend my life with and now he's gone. "I'll tell you something, Agent Mulder. I screwed up. I let fear hold me back. I wish I'd told Headley how I felt years ago. I'd been in love with him for a couple of years. Now I think of all the time we wasted. God! What a waste." Her eyes became watery but the tears didn't fall. She blinked rapidly and then said, "The others, they were not healthy." "How were the others unhealthy?" She grimaced. "I was lonely, needy, went to them for the wrong reasons." "Those being?" "They asked." I chuckled. "That's hard to believe. You're a good looking woman, Marguerite, I don't see why you would have trouble getting dates." Little compliments never hurt, I thought. She beamed at me. "Thanks, but my father scared most of them off." "Why?" "He's a miserable old man. Don't get me wrong, I love him. He raised me all by himself and I never wanted for everything. But ..." "But?" "He was always a little over protective, and frankly, I'm all he has. I think he's afraid of being alone. He's afraid if I found a man, that I would leave him." "Wouldn't you?" "No. I would never leave him. I might move out of the house, but I wouldn't move far away. I couldn't. My life in that stable anyway, and I get it all when he dies. Its worth quite a bit of money now." I nodded. "Something's bothering me." "What's that?" "You dated both these men." She stopped walking abruptly and turned to face me. "I'm not a suspect, am I?" "No, but it's the only connection other than the stable that I've seen so far." "What are you thinking?" "I'm wondering if whoever killed these men did it out of jealousy." She threw back her head and laughed. "No one's ever been jealous of me Agent Mulder." "You'd be surprised. Ever turn anybody down who asked you out?" Her smile faded and she swallowed. She opened her mouth as if to say something and then shut it. "No." I looked at her and knew she was lying, or hiding something. "Marguerite, you're not a very good liar," I stated in a matter of fact tone. "I'm telling the truth. Other than Olson, and he's a victim, I've never turned anybody down." "Anybody you know that liked you but never asked you out, maybe too shy?" "Not that I know of." "Do you know Officer Severn?" "Yes, why?" "How do you know him?" "He comes and rides regularly on the trails. Good rider, excellent actually." "He ever ask you out?" I asked. She chortled. "No." "Did he know Headley?" She scrunched her brow. "Yeah, they were friends. Talked horses all the time. Why?" "No reason, just verifying some things. I need to know what everyone's relationship is to everyone else. It helps to make connections. Did he call to ask you about Headley's schedule at the stable?" "No, he knows it by heart. He wouldn't need to ask. He's been coming to the stable for almost a year." We stood in silence for a moment and she turned and we headed back toward the house. "Your father is a vet, isn't he?" "Yes, what's that got to do with it?" "Headley had his ... uh, testicles ... cut out." "And?" "They weren't torn out or pulled out, they were CUT out, with something very sharp ... like a scalpel." She stopped walking again. "Are you insinuating that my father did this?" The corners of her mouth twitched. "No, but he would have those types of surgical tools, right?" Could Wilson overpower a man the size of Headley Stores? I couldn't see it. "Yes." "And are they in a place where someone could easily access them?" Her mouth dropped open slightly. "Yes, I guess they are. They are in his office in the house in a cabinet. I don't think it's locked. We never had any children in the house so it wasn't necessary to lock things up." I nodded. "I'm wondering if I could see them." She nodded. "Sure." We returned to the house and went in through the back door into the kitchen. I followed her out into a hallway and down another hall that led down the back of the house. It ended in a door that she opened and I stepped in behind her. The room was large with a couple of big windows. There was a metal examining table, much like an autopsy table in the middle of the room. The walls were lined with cabinets, some with windows, some without. She went to a cabinet that sat on the floor with double doors. She opened it and waved me forward. I stepped around the open door and looked inside. There were four shelves, all neatly lined with scalpels, clamps, butterflies, sponges, gauze pads, rolls of sutures, and all the various accessories for surgery. I turned to her. "Does anything look like it's been disturbed?" "No." "Did Headley have similar tools?" "Yes." "Here?" "No, he kept his in the small examining room in the barn. He has a surgery bay at the stable that both he and my father used. Neither one of them had a need for it too much anymore." "I'd like to take these." "Why?" "I'd like to check them for fingerprints." She scrunched her brow. "Someone could have used them and put them back," I added. She nodded. "O.K., and reached for the first row of instruments." "No." I reached out and captured her wrist firmly. She looked at me with a puzzled expression. "Don't touch them. I'll send someone over to bag them up, someone from forensics." She nodded. "In the meantime, don't touch anything in here and don't let your father touch anything." "His prints may be on here. Will that incriminate him?" "No, I expect his to be on there. I'm looking to see if anyone else's prints are on any of these sharp cutting instruments." She nodded. "O.K., I'll talk to my father." We walked back into the kitchen and she offered me more coffee. "No thanks." "Is there anything else? I really need to be getting to the stable." "No, unless you want to tell me what you were hiding from me before?" She stiffened from head to toe and shook her head curtly in the negative. "I'm not hiding anything. I'm being perfectly forthcoming and cooperative with you." I held up my hands in surrender. "O.K., O.K." I pulled a card out of my wallet. "If you think of anything that might help, no matter how small, call me or my partner, Agent Scully. By the way, my partner is a woman and a doctor herself. So if there's something you would rather discuss with a woman, feel free to call her." She nodded, and her expression softened. A strange haunted look came into her eyes. "I'll let myself out. Let your father know that we may want to talk to him later, but for now, I think you've answered all my questions." "Agent Mulder?" "Yeah?" "Your lady friend ... are you intimately involved?" I hesitated. "Why?" There was only silence. "Not yet," I answered. I didn't really know why I answered. "Don't be the fool that I was, Agent Mulder. Life is too short. Don't wait out of fear or insecurity. I'm just realizing how short life can be. I wish I'd been honest with Headley a lot sooner. We might have had a lot more time together." I nodded. "I'll keep that in mind." I walked back out to the car, contemplating Marguerite Wilson. There was something ... off about her and I wasn't sure what. Although if she truly wasn't a 'social' person and had little experience with men, then that could explain it. But I didn't think so. It was just a vibe that told me that she was scared of something that had nothing to do with these murders. I wanted to know what that was. But I wouldn't find out by frightening her myself, or pushing the issue. Maybe I would send Scully back to talk to her. I got in the car and headed to the stable. I wanted to look around unhindered by the Mayberry crew and see if anything caught my eye. PART 3 (PG-13) LITCHFIELD COUNTY MORGUE NEW MILFORD HOSPITAL NEW MILFORD, CT 1:00 PM I was exhausted. My feet hurt and my back ached. My eyes were dry and burning. I finished scrubbing my hands and changed into blue jeans and a brown blouse shirt for my trip to the stable. I pulled out my cell phone as I headed outside. Officer Severn waved to me. He was waiting as promised. I slipped into the passenger seat and he slipped behind the driver's seat of his cruiser, firing up the engine. The phone rang three times. [Mulder.] "Mulder, it's me." [Oh, hey, Scully, what's up? All done out there?] "Yes. We have to wait for the toxicology report, otherwise, they're done." [Find anything interesting?] "Some things. Look, I'll write up my report at the room later, but I wanted to go out to the stable again and look around, before we go talking to relatives and acquaintances of the victims." [That's where I am.] "At the stable?" [Yeah, I met with Ms. Wilson this morning. Something funny there, but I'll explain it when you get here if you are coming out. What are you doing? Taking a cab?] I laughed. "Cab? Out here? I don't even think they know what they are. Officer Severn picked me up and he's giving me a ride out." [Officer Severn again huh?] Was that a note of disgust in his voice? "Yeah, he's been real sweet." [I'll bet. Did he hit on you yet? He will.] "Mulder!" [Forget it, Scully.] I didn't want to say much with Officer Severn sitting in the car next to me. "I know what you're thinking, Mulder and you're wrong." [Am I?] "Yes, where I'm concerned anyway, there is nothing to worry about." [Sorry, Scully. I have no right.] "Yes you do." [I do?] "Yeah," I said gently. I heard him hum. [See you in a little while then?] "You bet, twenty minutes or so." [O.K., see you then.] He ended the connection and I hung up. Officer Severn glanced at me and asked, "You're partner upset with me?" "Why would you say that?" "He didn't seem to like me." "Oh, it's not you. He's a little strange, especially when he's in his investigative mode. He's very good at what he does and he's a little impatient with people who aren't as smart as he is." "And he's pretty smart, huh?" "He's a genius." Officer Severn snorted. "That you're personal opinion?" He almost sounded sarcastic and I had a weird sense of foreboding all of a sudden. I shook it off. I grinned at him. "Both my personal opinion and a proven fact. He's a doctor of psychology, graduated from Oxford with honors, and he literally has a genius I.Q. He's a top criminal profiler. Considered one of the best." "Oh, that is impressive." "Not everyone thinks so." "I do. I have a brother who's got a thinker like that. Always made me feel inferior." "Mulder isn't like that. He tries very hard not to flaunt it. But his mind can make leaps that the rest of us can't make." "He doesn't make you feel inferior? My brother used to talk down to me all the time. Made me feel like an idiot. I hated that. He was smart but he knew it too, you know?" "No, Mulder doesn't do that. If I feel inferior, I brought it on myself. I know I'm intelligent." "Obviously, you don't get to be a doctor and an FBI Agent by being dumb." I chuckled. "Thanks." "I know it's even harder for a woman." I smiled at him then. He really was a nice kid. "Thanks again. My partner knows that too. He also knows that I'm a little sensitive about being judged because of my gender. He respects me, and I appreciate that." "I heard him put the Lieutenant in his place yesterday when you arrived." I chuckled. "He can be very sweet that way." "I like strong women myself. I was laughing at your partner's comments, silently of course, I have to work for the Lieutenant so laughing out loud would be a serious CLM." "CLM?" "Career Limiting Move." We laughed together then. "That's good, I'll have to remember that one." He grinned. "So why do I get the feeling that if I asked you out to dinner, I wouldn't get a positive response." My smile faded and I shook my head. "No, I'm afraid you wouldn't." "I thought so. You're pretty taken with your partner, aren't you?" I sighed. "We're just friends." "I don't believe you. I was looking. Men tend to notice the competition. I saw the way he looked at you. And the way he glared at me." I grinned and laid my head back on the headrest. "What are you talking about?" "He noticed me too, didn't he? Like I noticed him?" I turned my head to look at him without raising it off the headrest. "Yeah, I guess he did." "He knew without even asking that I took one look at you and was ... attracted to you, taken with you. So is he. If you're just friends, it's on you. He wants you as more than a friend. Trust me, guys know these things." I blushed now. Damn my lily white skin. For God sakes, he was just a kid! Then I remembered how much I hated it when I was 25 years old and was called a kid. He was a man, regardless of his age in comparison to mine. I had 12 years on him. But it felt good to have someone young and handsome find me attractive. I would be lying if I said differently. "I'm flattered," I said quietly. But I knew in my heart, that Mulder was the only man for me. And now, he'd made it very clear that he wanted me too. That thought churned up a new nest of butterflies in my stomach and I mentally shook myself. Not the time to be thinking about that. This guy didn't need to know how I felt about Mulder. I was getting uncomfortable with the personal nature of this conversation. "Agent Scully?" "Yes?" "Life's too short, I always say. You have to grab happiness where you can. Do whatever you have to in order to get it, regardless of the costs. Any of us could be gone tomorrow." I remained silent, not sure how to respond. We pulled into the driveway of the stable and my eyes found Mulder immediately. It was like the man had a magnet on his forehead. I always knew whenever he was within 50 feet of me. The Officer slid to a smooth stop and killed the engine. We both exited the car and he whispered to me over the hood. "Psst, Agent Scully. He's a lucky guy." I turned to look at him, shaking my head in a slightly exasperated fashion. He graced me with a dazzling smile, "Go get him!" I threw back my head and laughed, shaking my head. If it made it easier for him to blame it on Mulder, then so be it. He was accepting his non-chances with grace and humor. Mulder strode toward us with a semi-scowl on his face and Officer Severn just smiled even wider, raising one eyebrow. I had to stifle my laughter at his using my patented eyebrow move. Mulder reached me and stopped only when he was invading my space and towering over me. "Hey, partner." "Hey, Mulder. Find anything?" "Maybe, why don't we take a walk and you can tell me about the autopsies." I turned to Severn. "Thanks, Clancy." Officer Severn waved and said, "Good bye, Agent Scully. It was a pleasure. Call me if you need anything. I'm only a phone call away." Mulder scowled and I smiled. "I will, thanks." He slipped back into the car and shut the door, the engine roaring to life. We stepped back as he pulled a wide U- turn and headed out of the driveway. I turned to find Mulder staring down at me. He wasn't frowning but he wasn't smiling either. "Clancy now, is it?" he mumbled. "You're on a first name basis?" "Oh, wipe that hurt look off your face right now." He opened his mouth and then closed it again, his eyes darting out to the horizon and back to me. "So, what'd you find?" He was changing the subject. "Mulder." "What?" He sounded irritated. "Are you angry with me?" "No." "Then why the puss?" "Puss?" "Yeah, the sour puss?" He sighed. "Sorry, Scully. I'm being a jerk and I know it. Just let it go, O.K.?" "No." "No?" "No, Mulder. You're upset because I was laughing with the Officer, right?" He swallowed and looked at the ground. "I shouldn't be." "No, you shouldn't be, is right." "I'm sorry, Scully." "Stop apologizing, it's starting to annoy me." He clucked his tongue. "What do you want me say?" "Nothing." He looked at me and nodded. "O.K." He sounded curt. "Mulder, do you want to know what I was laughing about?" He shook his head. "Not really." I laughed then. This was so ridiculous! "Mulder, Officer Severn over there figured out that I was 'taken' with my partner. Told me you were a lucky guy and when we exited the car he said, 'Go get him.'" Mulder's eyes widened and a smile crept over his face. "Really?" "Really. No stop this jealousy nonsense and let's get to work." "O.K., partner, you first." "O.K. Well, the testicles were surgically removed. Good job too but not the cause the death. The obvious bullet wound was the cause of death." "Was he dead when he was cut open?" "Probably not, although he was probably unconscious. There were indications that drugs were in the system. We'll have to wait for the toxicology screen before we know for sure. The first victim had his 'little bits' in tact, as you know, Headley Stores did not, indicating that the killer had more animosity towards Headley than towards Olson." Mulder scrunched his brow. "What is it?" "I spoke to Marguerite earlier. She's a little strange, a loner, not much of a social butterfly. She'd dated Olson about three times she said but there was nothing there and they mutually decided to be friends." "Are you telling me that this is a connection." "It might be. She was seeing Headley Stores now. Just recently. They'd worked together for eight years, become friends and according to her, eased into the intimacy part of their relationship about six months ago. She prefers animals to humans but said Headley was 'different', that he understood her and her life style." "Hmm, interesting? So she had romantic contact with both men." "Yeah, but she didn't sleep with Olson." "But she did with Headley." "She didn't come right out and say that, but that was the impression I got. And I also got the impression that she isn't very experienced with men despite her ..." "Despite her?" I raised an eyebrow. "Despite her appearance." "Which is?" I asked him, a slight tease in my voice. "She's a ... good looking woman." "How good looking?" Now who was being jealous, Dana? He smiled at me. "Very good looking for a woman of 40, but not anywhere near as sexy as you." I coughed and nearly choked on my own saliva. "Mulder!" He chuckled. "Let's walk." We walked side by side, arms brushing as we circled the paddocks, casually eyeing the horses. "She said her old man was very protective and always liked Headley until they became an item." "Do you see him as a suspect?" "Maybe, but I met him. He's got to be 70 if he's a day. He's not feeble, but I don't see him taking down a man 6'2" and 200 lbs." "Unless he was drugged," I suggested. "Possible, I didn't think of that. But, ... I don't think so." A Chevy, John Deer green, pick up truck with dual wheels came bouncing up the drive and came to a stop in front of the main barn. A woman in tight breaches and a gauze shirt swung out of the cab and headed around to the rear of the truck, dropping the tailgate. I raised an eyebrow in question. Mulder nodded. "That's her." I watched her silently for several moments as she threw two large bails of hay onto the ground and slammed the tailgate shut. She proceeded to pick up one bail in each hand by the twine binding them and march into the barn. "Christ, who is she, Amazon woman?" Mulder laughed. "She's in good shape." I scowled. He chuckled again, irritating me even more. "Not my type, Scully." "Doesn't matter." He smiled and tilted my chin up with two fingers on my chin. "I think it does matter, just like the attention that young handsome officer paid to you mattered to me. And it's O.K. I'm flattered." I pulled my chin away from him. "She is your type, Mulder." "How's that?" "Tall, brunette, big boobs, long legs." He laughed outright now. "Given this some thought, Scully?" I felt the heat creep up my neck. "Not really, it's obvious." "Wrong." "Right! Mulder, every woman you've ever been with was tall and brunette." "Not by choice." "What do you mean?" "Coincidence." "Yeah, right." "Scully, nobody's turned my head but you in a long time." I turned to meet his eyes then and they bored into me. "What's happening with us, Mulder?" He smiled gently. "Something wonderful, I hope. Something I think should have happened a long time ago." "Which is?" I cursed the breathy quality of my voice. "We're heading into the final frontier." I chortled. "Space?" He laughed but then sobered. "No, intimacy," he said with a perfectly straight face. I swallowed hard. "Mulder, we're supposed to be working." "Oh yeah," he said casually. I chuckled. "So what's wrong with Marguerite?" I asked, changing the subject. "I'm not sure. She acted funny around the old man. Asked me to walk outside with her when she realized he was listening to our conversation. And I felt like she was not telling me something at one point. I sensed that she was scared." "Interesting. But two men have been murdered on her property. That would scare me. What about Mr. Wilson?" "He has an office in the house. I called and sent a forensics team over to confiscate all his surgical knives and such." "What are you thinking?" "That maybe we'll get lucky and find a print." "Besides the old man's?" "Yeah, worth a shot. She said Headley kept a similar set here, so I told the forensic person to come here afterwards and get the tools from here also. Maybe we'll get lucky." "We're never that lucky." He sighed. "Did we get results on the tire tracks?" "Yeah, I got a call from the lab while I was in the autopsy bay. Tires are used on dual wheel pick up trucks, usually ones with a gooseneck trailer hitch." Mulder pointed to the truck that Marguerite had arrived in. "Like that?" "Just like that." "Damn, I was hoping it would be something different." "We should have forensics look at the truck for trace evidence anyway when they get here. Couldn't hurt." "No, couldn't hurt." "Any theories yet, Mulder?" "No, but I think we need to talk to the owners of that missing horse. Find out if they had any enemies or people that were out to get them." PART 4 (NC-17) 263 TORRINGTON ROAD LITCHFIELD, CT 3:00 PM - MARCH 6, TUESDAY Mr. And Mrs. Matthew and Isabella Martin were stuck up. That was obvious from the minute we walked in the door. They were defensive and snotty from the word 'go.' They weren't uncooperative but seemed always to be looking down their noses at us. They owned the brood mare, Lucky's Charm, who was about to foal an offspring from the stud, Crown Royale. Said foal would be worth about $750,000, if it was healthy, which they had every reason to believe it would be. They were in it for the money and infinitely more upset about the loss of the foal than the loss of Headley Stores. They served tea and little sandwiches with the crusts cut off while we talked. Having not had lunch, I wolfed down several while Mulder abstained and continued to ask questions. He finally softened them up after asking if they'd ever been to Martha's Vineyard and began to regale them with stories of his childhood there. Upon realizing that Mulder was an Oxford graduate and obviously came from money, their attitude had done a 180 and suddenly they were answering his questions with speed and detail. They even put forth several theories and opinions on the people that worked at Wilson's Riding Stable, including Marguerite, whom they weren't especially fond of. They respected her horsemanship but thought she was aloof and weird. I found that ironic since aloof didn't begin to describe these two. She was obviously of another 'class' of people and therefore didn't warrant much of their attention. And although Headley was 'beneath them' as well, they were depending on him to deliver their foal safely. They seemed more upset about the fact that he wouldn't be able to do that now than they were that he was dead. What were they going to do now? I wanted to say, 'Who gives a shit? A man is dead.' But I decided that wouldn't help right now and so let Mulder handle this one. Even knowing he was playing a role I was a little repulsed by his fake attitude of superiority. We finally left and slid into the car about 5:00 PM. I was good and ready to return to the hotel for a hot shower. "So, what do you think, Scully?" he asked. "I think they're snots, Mulder." He laughed. "Indeed they are. But besides that?" "I don't know." "Are you upset with me?" "No, it was just weird to see you behaving like that. You slipped into that role pretty easily." He eyed me curiously. "You do know I was acting, right?" "Yes, it was still disconcerting." "Why?" "Reminded me of how different we are. How different our upbringings were. I forget you come from money." He was silent for a few minutes. "Sometimes I wish I didn't." I looked over at him and the frown on his face. "I know that wasn't really you in there, Mulder." He sighed. "Teena taught me well. All I had to do is think of what my mother would say and the act came to me." I reached over and squeezed his thigh, feeling sympathy for him well up in me. I knew he didn't want my sympathy, so I didn't say anything. His mother had been such an unfeeling, cold bitch. Money or no, I had been loved and had a warm mother who gave out hugs and kisses liberally. Mulder had never known that. I felt a wash of sadness as I realized that Mulder had never been really loved. His parents hadn't really loved him the way a child should be loved. Phoebe had mind-fucked him with her head games, and Diana had taken advantage of him and then left at the first opportunity that didn't jive with maintaining a relationship with him. The man had never had anyone love him unconditionally. It was amazing he was as compassionate and caring as he was. It was no wonder he retreated into his mind and formed a hard candy shell over his psyche. I had seen under the shell and knew there was a passionate, loving soul in there just screaming to get out. But he'd never been able to trust anyone with his heart. I could hurt him very easily. I realized that. I was suddenly realizing that I could also bring him great joy. That thought was especially titillating. Despite his reservations, his past hurts and his reason to be gun shy, he trusted me. He was willing to take a chance with me. He was willing to risk his heart again, for me. That was a humbling thought. I don't know, given the same history, if I would be as brave. My heart swelled in my chest as I realized how much courage it had taken for him to talk to me, to kiss me and then to walk away. He'd put the ball in my court. It was my move now and he would wait. He would wait for me to come to him. Was I ready? Could I handle an intimate relationship with Mulder? God, we were so entangled as it was. Would there be no breathing room were I to let him inside my heart, my head? Could I be everything that he needed me to be? A romantic relationship with Mulder would be the challenge of a lifetime. And I loved a challenge, God knows. But challenges at work and challenges in my personal life were two different things. I sighed and closed my eyes, remembering the feel of his lips on mine. They were soft, gentle, but firm enough to convey need and desire. They weren't demanding, but they were seeking, asking. I felt my chest flush hot, my nipples harden and a tingle invade the juncture between my thighs. He was a good kisser. Oh man! Just thinking about it and I was aroused. What would happen if I was to give in to these purely primal urges that were invading my mind on a daily basis now. He'd given me a taste of something wonderful. It had made me disoriented and dizzy, excited and scared. How brave was I? I must have made some sort of sound because his voice penetrated my contemplation of his kiss. He sounded concerned. "Scully, are you all right. Do you feel sick?" I opened my eyes. "Huh?" "Do you feel sick? You moaned." Oh God! I'd obviously moaned in arousal and he thought I was sick! "Uh, my back hurts a bit." He said, "I'll rub it for you when we get back to the room." "Mulder, I'm fine, I don't..." "No buts, and you're not fine. You performed two autopsies today. I'll bet your feet are killing you too." I sighed. "Yeah, they are." "I give a good foot massage." "Do you now, Agent Mulder?" I teased. He grinned. "Just you wait, Agent Scully. I have many hidden talents." I felt myself flush warm again. Oh god, what would it feel like to have his hands on me? I suppressed a shiver, knowing it would feel wonderful. XXXXXXXXXX LITCHFIELD INN LITCHFIELD, CT 5:30 PM - MARCH 6 - TUESDAY We both showered and I slipped into some clean cotton underwear and threw my robe on. I was searching through my suitcase for a tee shirt when I heard the knock on the connecting door. "Come in." Mulder entered and shut the door behind him. He was wearing a faded blue tee shirt that hugged his chest and worn out black jeans. He was in his stocking feet and his hair was still damp. "Whatcha doin?" he asked. "Looking for a shirt." "Forget it. Lay down." "What do mean, forget it?" "I mean forget it. Just wear your robe, be comfy, lay down." I watched him warily as he stepped up to the bed and sat down, cocking on hip on the edge and waving toward the bed. He laughed suddenly. "God, Scully, you look like I'm Jack the Ripper! Relax. This is all for you. Let me do something nice for you for a change." This was Mulder. He wouldn't do anything I didn't want him to do. I knew that. The problem was that I wanted him to do things that I probably shouldn't. And although I wanted his touch, I was a little fearful of it. I knew it was going to affect me and I wasn't sure I would be able to hide it. Although I was dying for a back rub, I found myself suddenly nervous. I didn't have a voluptuous body. I had decent sized breasts but they weren't the hooters I was used to seeing on the woman that turned his head. I didn't have long legs and I was pale skinned. I was suddenly very worried about what he would think of my body. I needed to stop this! What did it matter? But it did. I tentatively made my way to the bed and crawled up and laid back nervously. "Where do you want me?" He smiled softly, almost a tease but then looked like he thought better of it. "There's fine. I'll start with the foot massage, how's that?" I nodded. He went on all fours and crawled to the foot of the bed and knelt there. He raised one foot and placed it on his thigh. His big warm hands wrapped around my foot from either side and squeezed. I moaned, feeling the rush of blood that flooded my foot when he released his grip. He grinned. "Wow, you were easy to please." I made as if to kick him and he laughed. His thumbs began long sure strokes over my heel and instep. I bit my lip to keep the sounds in. The room was silent but for my breathing. He whispered, "You don't have to be silent, Scully." I knew that, but somehow I didn't want to sound like I was enjoying it too much. Why not? I let the moans come as he massaged each tendon on top of my foot and rubbed each toe. His hands were like magic and I could feel the tension draining out of me. He startled me when he lifted my foot and placed a soft kiss on the ball below my toes and then lowered it to the bed. I gasped and looked at him. He seemed to ignore my reaction and picked up the other foot, repeating the slow procedure of massaging every tiny muscle in my foot. This time, I let the sounds come. By the time he was through I was moaning loudly and gasping, "Oh God, Mulder," as he continued his assault on my sore and tired foot." Finally, he stopped, kissing this foot and placing it down on the bedspread. I opened my eyes and realized my legs were spread on either side of his knees. His eyes caught me and I froze. He was breathing shallow and staring at my face. I was suddenly very self conscious and tried to put my legs together. He graciously tipped his legs to the side and let me close my legs. Could he see my underwear before? I was torn between being grateful I had them on and wishing I'd worn something sexier than white cotton Haynes Her Way. He cleared his throat. "Turn onto your stomach, Scully." I felt like a deer in headlights. His eyes were nearly black, his lids hooded and lazy. His voice was unmistakably deeper and gruffer than I'd ever heard it. Was he aroused? I thought he was and a tiny thrill raced through me. He ignored it and didn't mention it so neither did I. I rolled over onto my stomach and then remembered that I didn't have a shirt on. "Mulder, I don't have a ..." My words broke off as I felt him straddle my rear end and his large hands come down on my neck. I groaned as he began to work the cords of muscle down the sides of my neck. I tipped my forehead into the pillow and concentrated on breathing. Oh it felt so good. He slowly moved down, pushing the collar of my robe ahead of his hands as he slowly worked the muscles of first one shoulder and then the other. I felt him shift down so that he was straddling my thighs. He hadn't put any weight on me. He didn't hesitate and he didn't ask, he merely reached up, grasped the collar of my robe and slid it down over my biceps. One hand followed and the other tugged the sleeve of my robe off my arm. He repeated the process with the other arm. Then he slid it down to bunch around my waist. I felt the cool air hit my back and I tensed. I was now bare from the waist up and I took a deep breath. I brought my arms down to my sides, making sure the side of my breasts were covered where they squished into the mattress. I cleared my throat. Should I ask for a shirt? How would he massage me with a shirt on? He could rub through the shirt, couldn't he? "Muld..." His hands came down on my rib cage and I shivered as he gently drew them up my sides. I squeaked in surprise and then moaned again as he began to make long strokes up first one side of my spine and then the other. He concentrated on the area between my shoulder blades, working all my trigger points. Then he slid backwards a little more on my legs. I felt confined and made to move my legs a bit and gasped when my leg fell into the juncture of his thighs just as he leaned forward. The jeans he was wearing were soft and well worn. They weren't new, stiff denim. I could clearly feel his erection pressing into the back of my calf muscle. The heat of it was seeping right through his jeans. At the second of contact, he moaned. A low, loud, drawn out moan from the back of his throat and his hands froze on my lower back. Oh shit, he was so excited. He was so hard. I didn't have to wonder now. This was exciting him. My breasts felt heavy and we both breathed heavily for a few seconds as if afraid to move. Finally he croaked out, "I'm sorry, Scully. It doesn't mean I'm going to do anything about it." My next question was stupid and obvious but my brain seemed to have gone on 'Pause.' "This is arousing you?" Was that my voice, low and ragged? He chuckled low. "How could it not, Scully?" "It's just my back," I quipped, trying to sound light and failing miserably. "I know. It's YOUR back, YOUR creamy, silky smooth skin." I didn't know what to say. "I'm pale." Oh brilliant, Dana, I thought. "You're beautiful," he whispered. Another few seconds went by and then he asked, "Do you want me to stop?" I didn't even think and blurted out a little too quickly, "No!" He chuckled and began to stroke my back again, this time concentrating on my low back. He shifted his erection off my leg and I was grateful. The warmth was invading my skin. His hands were making my skin tingle where ever he touched. I seemed to be super sensitive, like my skin was raw and electrified. I felt his hands slip under my stomach and I blurted, "Mulder, what are you doing?" Instead of answering, he grasped the loosely tied strip of material holding my robe closed and pulled it apart. Without asking, he lifted up onto his knees and pulled it off. I came up on my elbows, gasping. "Mulder!" "Shhh, relax. You know I won't do anything you don't want me to do." I took a shaky breath and retreated into the mattress, my arms out at my sides, my hands by my head on the pillow, clenching the material. To my embarrassment, I felt myself start to tremble. I felt so exposed. He leaned over me on all fours and I whimpered, feeling the heat of his body blanket my back. He leaned down into my ear. "Don't be frightened of me Scully," he whispered. I shivered at the feel of his hot breath on the shell of my ears. My ears were really sensitive. He had no way of knowing that, though. He spoke again. "I would never hurt you. And I would never take advantage of you. I just want to make you feel good. Can I keep doing that?" He waited patiently while I tried to think. But I couldn't, not with his body hovering over me like that. Finally, he sighed and sat back on his haunches. He picked up the robe and tossed it next to my head. "Put it back on, Scully." He was upset. I realized my non response was probably making him think I didn't want to continue. If I stopped him, was I saying I didn't trust him not to put the moves on me? Just a few minutes ago, I was afraid I wouldn't look good enough for him. Which was it? What the hell did I want? I realized I needed to make a decision and I needed to make it fast. I remembered the officer's words, 'Life is too short, I always say.' He was right about that. Mulder could be dead tomorrow and I would have to live with the fact that I never told him how I felt. I felt his weight shift on the bed and knew he was going to get off. I sharp dart of panic went through me. It wasn't what I wanted. "No!" I said quickly. He froze. "Scully, look, this is obviously making you uncomfortable. This is obviously too much for you. I'll just go back to my room now." "No!" I felt his weight shift again and he laid on his side next to me, facing me. He didn't look down at my now naked torso pressed into the mattress. He took in my hunched posture as I tried to hide my breasts from him. He smiled gently. "What do you want, Scully?" I met his eyes and they were so sad and full of longing I thought it might make me cry. I blinked rapidly and took a deep breath. I wanted him. God, how I wanted him and the look on his face told me that he wanted me just as much, probably more. He had been such a gentleman about this. He hadn't touched me inappropriately. He really had been just trying to make me feel better and I was acting like a ninny. It wasn't his fault that it turned him on. If I was honest, I was thrilled that it had turned him on. What the hell was I afraid of? I continued to hold his gaze as I raised up on my elbows. He eyes flicked to my chest and back to my face. I smiled, not daring to look down although I knew the view I was giving him. He breathing was suddenly quickening. I slowly but deliberately lifted my arm and flipped over onto my back. My nipples hardened instantly in the cool air and I watched him gasp, his eyes trekking between my breasts and my face. "Scully?" Oh God, that voice. "Are you going to massage the front too, Mulder?" He smiled a nervous smile and scooted closer to me. He raised up to sit on one hip. His hand reached over and landed on my belly, searing me through with its heat. I inhaled deeply feeling the warmth spread out in waves from his hand. He moved slowly and swung his leg over to straddle my front. I had been teasing but he did exactly what I asked. He massaged my shoulders, and down each arm. He ran his thumbs between every rib. I was panting lightly when he pulled the edges of my panties down just enough to see my hip bones. His thumbs rubbed circles over them and I felt a hot gush of warmth in my crotch. I moaned without warning. "Oh God, Mulder." He stopped and looked at me, blinking slowly. "Scully, I have to stop ... touching you, or I'm not ... going to be able ... to stop ... touching you." But his thumbs didn't stop their circular motion on my hip bones. Darts of excitement were shooting into my womb. His voice was a ragged whisper, "Tell me to stop, Scully." His hands ran up around my waist and continued to climb. I couldn't say a word. I didn't want him to stop. Screw it. I didn't want him to stop, ever. I wanted him too much. His fingers traced the sides of my breasts and I gasped. Then they slid slowly over my flesh and gently tested the weight and he squeezed gently. I moaned and reached up and captured the back of his neck in my palm. He looked into my eyes and I gently tugged him and he slowly lowered his head. When he was an inch away I whispered, "Kiss me like you did last night." He hummed in the back of his throat and slanted his lips over mine. We kissed softly for a few seconds but it was soon not enough and his tongue asked entrance by stabbing at my teeth. I let him in and his hands went to my hair, his elbows taking his weight as he deepened the kiss. He was still kneeling, keeping all his weight off me, his legs straddling my thighs. I wanted to feel him and reached up to run my hands along his sides. I delighted in the shudder that went through him. He broke the kiss panting. "Scully, what do you want? I'm ... I'm too excited. I'm ..." "Going to get undressed, I hope. I'm starting to feel this is terribly unfair." A grin that lit up the room spread over his face. He shook his head slightly as if not sure he heard me right. I giggled at his expression as his smile faded. "If I take off my clothes ..." "You won't be able to stop?" He nodded. I took a deep breath and took the plunge. "I don't want to stop." "Oh God, Scully?" "I want to do it." "Do it?" He grinned. My smile faded as the enormity of what I was doing overwhelmed me for a second. No, I was not going to chicken out. I was tired of depriving myself of this. I was tired of depriving myself of him. He loved me, I loved him. Screw our enemies, screw the Bureau, I was tired of being frustrated and unhappy. I smiled again. "Make love to me, Mulder." His eyes closed and reopened. "Oh God, Scully." "You said that already." He grinned and leaped off the bed. I rolled onto my side, propping myself up on my elbow and he ripped his tee shirt over his head. "Slow," I said. He nodded and reached for his waistband, slowly unbuttoning and unzipping the fly. He slid them down slowly, pulling first one leg and then the other off. He ripped of his socks and stood up in nothing but blue boxer briefs. The bulge in front was impressive and I couldn't wait to see it. I felt another wash of excitement seeing how aroused he was. "All of it," I whispered. He glanced at my panties. "What's good for the goose..." He let the sentence trickle away. I reached down and flopped onto my back, yanking my underwear down and tossing them over the side of the bed. I rolled back up onto my side and there he was. He was standing very still, arms at his side, completely naked. He was fucking gorgeous. His broad shoulders tapered down to a lean waist line. His defined pecs and muscular abdomen stood out under a light dusting of chestnut hair that matched his head. I spotted a few gray hairs on his breast bone. I followed the line of hair down where it thickened slightly below his navel and emptied into an unruly mass of pubic hair framing his erection. It was standing tall and proud, bobbing slightly. I nearly moaned at the sight of this evidence of his arousal, now uncovered. He was pretty big, long and thick. That was going to feel so good inside. His thighs were large from running, but the muscles were elongated from swimming. His skin was a golden brown, slightly whiter below the waist. I motioned with my hand and he approached and straddled me again as I rolled onto my back. His hands landed in mine and he placed them at the sides of my head. He dipped down and caught my lips, kissing me hungrily, but then he slowed and began to savor every moment. I did the same. Our hands explored each other's bodies. I rolled him onto his stomach and explored his back, placing kisses down his spine. I made him squeal when I squeezed his ass with both hands. He hadn't been expecting that. I giggled and he chuckled at me. I murmured, "God, your ass is gorgeous." He laughed louder at this and raised said ass off the bed, bouncing me off him and grabbing me as I fell. I squealed and we both laughed as he crawled between my legs, nudging them open with his knees. He grabbed my hands again, lacing our fingers and pinning them to the bed. I mock struggled. In the process, I raised my hips and brushed the length of his erection. We both groaned and he let his weight fall onto me, pinning my hips to the mattress with his own and gently grinding his pulsing shaft against my center. Our smiles faded and we stared at each other. "Last chance to run screaming," he said. I shook my head. He smiled. "Now?" "Now," I whispered. He reached down with one hand and cupped my bottom. I raised my legs and wrapped them around his hips. I looked down and caught my breath at the sight of him, huge and hard, hanging between my legs. He watched too, as he gently poked my entrance. I felt my wetness burst loose and cover the end of his shaft. "Oh!" I blew out. He took a deep breath and slowly pushed his way inside. I could feel him pushing my walls aside. I was incredibly wet. My walls parted like a wave as he slid inside. We both groaned at the sensation. Near the end, he was stretching me so taut. It was on the edge of unbearable and I could feel the warm burn of muscles stretching. He was staring at himself as he slipped inside. I had never been this full! "Aaaawwww, Scully. Aaaawww, oh this is so incredible," he murmured. He paused, sensing my mini distress and waited. I willed myself to relax and blew out another breath. I nodded and he flexed his hips, driving the last of himself inside and pressing his sac against my ass. He was in so deep. We both groaned. We stayed that way for a minute, humming at the feel of penetration. He finally moved his arms up to take his weight on his elbows. He looked down one last time as if to confirm that this was really happening. "So beautiful," he whispered, and started to move. I couldn't seem to prevent the mantra of "Oh, oh, oh," that began to emerge with every deep, slow stroke. I closed my eyes as the pleasure washed through me. My walls loosened a bit and the feel of him, hot, hard and huge, sliding in and out of me was exquisite. I'd forgotten how divine this feeling was. He dipped his head and took one of my breasts in his mouth. I shouted "Mulder!" and arched my torso off the bed, pushing myself into his warm, moist mouth. It felt so good, tingles of arousal shooting from my breast to my clit. I choked out. "Harder! Suck it ... harder!" He moaned against me and I felt the vibrations wash through my breast and into my womb. He began to suckle me harder. As my groaning increased, so did his suction. He was sucking ferociously, his back hunched over to reach. My hands ran over his back, feeling his ropy muscles move under his taut skin as he pumped himself in and out of me, never losing his rhythm. I felt my spine start to tingle and urged him on, my hands on his ass, pulling him as deep as he could go. "Faster, Mulder, harder!" He released my breast with an audible pop and buried his nose in my neck, sucking on the sensitive skin over my pulse. I shouted as he began to pound into me, feeling him push my walls aside over and over, the slight burn of stretching escalating the sensation. "Oh, God, Mulder, yes, right there, right there." I didn't think he could hit me any harder, but he did. He began to slam into me, my ass bouncing on the mattress from the impact. His hands curled under my shoulders for leverage and pulled down from the top with every lunge inside me. My belly tightened with that exquisite cringing sensation that happens just before an orgasm. "Little more, little more," I panted. "Don't stop!" I shrieked, "Ooohhhh yeah, Muullddeerr! Yes, Yes, Awww, yeah!" as my climax hit with the force of lightening, ripping through me from my core walls and spreading out over my whole body. My scalp tingled and my nipples were so hard they hurt as his chest hair scraped across them as he continued to pound into me. He shouted, "Oh God, Scully! Oh, oh, oh!" "Let go!" I nearly shouted at him. He shouted as he began to jerk his hips and empty into me. I could feel the hot splash of his semen slam into my cervix and I tightened my wall muscles as hard as I could. "Scully! Oh God, Oh God, Sccuullee! Oh yeah! Oh Jesus! Scuuulllyyy." He quivered to a stop, his weight delicious as it pinned me down. We were slick with sweat and panting. I was still dizzy from my climax when he began placing quick, little kisses all over my neck and collarbone. He slid his head up my cheek and finally looked me in the eye. "Christ, Scully. That was so good." "Hmm, for me too." "You are so beautiful." "You too." "I love you, Scully." The silence reigned for a couple of seconds. I saw his eyes close and knew I couldn't keep it from him anymore. "I love you too, Mulder." It was a whisper, but it was out. His eyes snapped open and began to water. He sucked in a deep breath. "Scully, oh God." He hugged me fiercely. "You're saying that a lot lately." He chuckled into my neck. "I can't believe this." "It is a little unreal, isn't it?" "A lot unreal." "I was scared." "Of me?" "No, of me. Of how intensely I reacted to you, just your kiss. It frightened me to think of how lost I was going to be when you really touched me, or made love to me." "And the verdict?" "I was as stunned and lost as I thought I would be." "And?" "And it was O.K., because you were right there with me." He nuzzled my hair. "Always, Scully. I'm just as lost as you are, probably more." "What now?" "I don't know, but I know that I love you. And I know that I'm not ever giving you up." I chuckled as he rolled off me and pulled the blankets up. I curled up to his side and put my head on his shoulder. "That door swings both ways, Mulder." "I'm all yours, Agent Scully. Have been for a long time." I pondered that for a moment and then decided I wanted to know. "How long?" "What do you mean?" "How long have you been 'all mine.'" He peered down at me and I looked at him sheepishly. He chuckled, "Ever since you were returned to me." "From Antarctica?" He chuckled again. "No, from Duanne Barry." I gasped and looked up at him again. "You're kidding, right?" He didn't smile. "No, I'm not. When you were gone ... that's when I realized I was in love with you." My head spun a little with that knowledge. "So you've been ..." "Waiting a long time," he finished for me. "In love with you for a long time. What about you?" I was trying to think of when I admitted that I was in love with him. Frankly, it hadn't been too long ago. But if I thought back to when the jealousies started, when the possessive feelings started, that was a different story. I'd been in love with him a long time, I realized. I just hadn't identified what it was I was feeling. I had disguised my feelings under the partner and friend headings. He said, "Don't worry about it, Scully. As long as you love me now." I realized I'd been silent a little too long. "No, I was just trying to think and I can't pin point it. But its been at least, ... three years." He sighed and pulled me into a tighter embrace. "Why'd we wait so long?" he asked. "Fear, I guess. Plus, we both had stuff to resolve, work out before we could give ourselves to each other freely." "Is that why ... now? Because you can give yourself to me freely?" he asked. "I think so. I have no more hang ups about the Bureau and my career, what my family thinks, what might have been had I chose another path. Plus, Severn said life was too short and we should grab happiness whenever we can, however we can and he's right. Plus, you hit on me." "Hey!" he exclaimed. Then he sighed deeply. "You still have choices, Scully." "No! I don't. That's the point. All roads lead to you, Mulder. I wouldn't be happy anywhere else, don't you see? I wouldn't be happy because you wouldn't be there with me." He pulled me up onto his chest, captured my head in his hands and brought me down for a bruising kiss. It was a kiss of claiming, a kiss of affirmation and a kiss of gratitude. I gave as good as I got. Finally we broke for air and smiled at each other. "I don't know how I got so lucky," he said. "Ditto." He smiled. "I love you, Scully." "I love you too, Mulder." He beamed at me. "Hungry?" "Starved!" He chuckled rolled me off him. "Let's go eat, then." PART 5 (NC-17) LITCHFIELD INN DINING ROOM 7:30 PM - MARCH 6 - TUESDAY Dinner proceeded and as usual, we couldn't keep our minds off a case for long. Out of the blue while we were sipping coffee and relaxing at the table, Mulder asked, "So what's with Officer Severn?" "Nice guy, why?" "Something's bothering me." "What?" "When we asked if he knew the victim, he said he didn't but Marguerite knew him and could fill us in." "So what, Mulder?" "Then when we asked why folks would bring a mare to the stable, he said because Headley was the best vet around." "That doesn't mean anything. You could know of someone's reputation and not know them personally." "True, but later, Scully, when I was talking to Marguerite, she said that Severn was a regular customer for trail rides and that he and Headley were tight friends." "Hmmm. Well, maybe he misunderstood your question or simply didn't want to be associated with the victim." "He also said he had called Marguerite and she'd told him Headley's schedule. Marguerite says he never called. He knew Headley's schedule by heart as he had been coming there for nearly a year." "Still, not conclusive. He is a rookie. He may be afraid details like that will point to him." "Or he lied deliberately and accidentally contradicted himself." I sighed loudly. "Why would he lie deliberately?" "Because he didn't want to get caught. Wanted to lead us to Marguerite and her old man." "Caught at what? Being a friend to the victim?" "Being caught as the killer." "WHAT? Are you crazy, Mulder? He's a cop!" "A lying cop." "I think you're stretching." "I don't. I'm not saying it's him, but it's enough of a discrepancy to look into, don't you think?" I sighed again. I knew what this was really about. "This doesn't have anything to do with the fact that he asked me out, does it?" His jaw dropped. "I didn't know he did," he replied softly. I gave him the eyebrow, but his expression didn't change. "Yeah, he asked me what his chances were for taking me out to dinner." Silence. "I told him not good. He guessed that I had a thing for you. I told him we were just friends. He mentioned that he saw you 'sizing up the competition' and 'giving him the evil eye.'" Mulder asked, "Just friends? You told him we were just friends?" He sounded so hurt. "Oh, come on, Mulder! It was before all of this happened between us and even if it wasn't, I probably would have given him the same answer. We don't need people knowing that we are involved." "Are you ashamed?" "Hell no! Mulder, for Christ's sake, stop being so insecure. If people find out, fine, but we don't need to advertise it is all I'm saying." He took a deep breath. "You're right. I'm just relieved that you turned him down." I was trying to remember our conversation when something suddenly occurred to me. "He did say something a little strange. Not strange, but just out of context to tell me something personal. I didn't think anything of it at the time. I mentioned how bright you were, a genius." "So? Uh, thanks, don't spread that around, will you?" he quipped cockily. I smiled at him. "He asked me if you ever made me feel inferior and went on to say that he had a brother that made him feel inferior because he was so smart. Rubbed it in all the time." "Interesting." "Don't go reading into it. Probably just sibling rivalry, but I thought I would mention it." "I don't like this, Scully. I have a funny feeling." "Uh, oh. You and your funny feelings," I teased. He smiled and we chuckled together. It felt good. Then he looked at me seriously. "Can we agree to keep our eye on him, Scully? That's all I'm asking. Pay attention for any inconsistencies." "Yes, I suppose so, but I think you're barking up the wrong tree." He added, "Good. I also want to ask someone to bring us out to the site where the first victim was found." "Good idea. Andy and Barney may have missed something." He laughed at my joke and we headed back to the room. XXXXXXXXXX WILSON'S RIDING STABLE ROUTE 118 LITCHFIELD, CT 9:00 AM - MARCH 7 - WEDNESDAY I decided to call Officer Severn and casually asked if he could meet us in the morning and bring us to the first crime scene. He readily agreed and we set a time to meet. I wanted to keep an eye on this guy. Something wasn't right. Then again, I wondered if it wasn't good old testosterone speaking. After hearing that he'd asked Scully out, I liked him even less than when we had started. We drove in Officer Severn's cruiser out into the field as far as we could go and then got out to walk the trails on foot. He looked at us, "You sure you don't want to ride, would make this a lot easier." "We're sure," we said in unison and then grinned at each other. He shrugged and began leading the way down a bridal path into the woods. I quickly decided I was going to have to invest in some bug spray for the rest of this investigation. We had both worn casual clothes in deference to our little nature hike. Scully looked like a little girl in her blue jeans and big gray sweatshirt. Her trench coat nearly swallowed her. Her make-up and hair was perfect as usual, but she looked so different than when buttoned up in her official G-woman suits. I was used to standing next to her in heels which gave her a good three inches. Now she was wearing sneakers and I was struck by the difference in our sizes that I didn't usually take time to notice. Officer Severn was the sole of solicitousness with Scully, holding tree branches aside and telling her to watch her step whenever a big bad tree limb interfered with the path. If he only knew how capable she was, he wouldn't have bothered. Then again, she was smiling and I had to wonder if she didn't want that kind of consideration after all. I was always afraid she would see it as patronizing. Then again, she worked with me, not with Officer Severn and that made a difference too. After a half mile or so on the winding path, she looked up into the trees and did stumble over a branch at her feet as she wasn't looking. My reflexes kicked in and I swooped down on her, catching her up around the waist and lifting her right off the ground. She grunted then whooped as I twirled her around and sat her back down on her feet. She was smiling up at me and our eyes locked. A sizzle of tension ran between us and I slowly lowered her to the ground, never losing eye contact. I dropped a chaste peck on her forehead and murmured, "Be careful, Scully. No casualties, today, huh?" She lowered her head, obviously a little embarrassed by my display of affection. I looked up and ahead of us to find Severn waiting and glaring at me. His expression vanished as I turned to him but I caught it. "You, O.K., folks?" he asked. "Just fine," Scully replied. "Let's keep going. How much further?" "Just a couple hundred yards." I couldn't resist. "And how do know that exactly?" Scully gave me a disgusted look and Severn spun around to look me in the face. "What do you mean?" "How do you know where the body was?" He hesitated. "You didn't investigate this one, right?" He nodded. "I uh, read the police report that Lt. Socks filled out. It was fairly thorough." "Oh, just curious," I said as casually as I could. Lt. Socks hadn't investigated Olson Parks either. I watched his body language and I had put him on alert. If he was hiding nothing, I wouldn't have affected him. But I did. He was wary now, casting furtive glances over his shoulder and wondering what I was thinking. We came to a clearing of sorts where the path widened and there was crime scene tape strung around the trees that circled the area like sentinels. We walked the perimeter and then ducked under the tape. Scully and I took opposite directions and then made our way carefully to the center of the circular area. I turned to look at Severn and Scully bent down, pulling a latex glove out of her pocket. He was peering into the trees and I returned my attention to Scully. "Mulder, what's that?" She pointed to the ground. I couldn't see anything and so I squatted next to her. There was a small metallic object shaped vaguely like a boom-a-rang. She picked it up so we could get a better look. She squinted at it, pointing to the tabs on the sides. It was bent slightly out of shape. "It's a boot tip," I replied. "A boot tip?" "Yeah, there's probably an official name for it. But, you know, it's one of those silver things you put on the tips of your cowboy boots to keep the toe from getting scuffed." "Oh." She pulled a baggy out of her trench coat and plopped it in, sealing it up. "I'll have the lab run it for prints. Our victim was a jogger. I saw him and his personal effects. He was wearing Nike running shoes and sweats." "Think this belongs to our killer?" "Could be, or could just be someone lost a boot tip while riding. God knows how many people travel these bridal paths in a week. And they probably all wear cowboy boots." "This one hasn't been used since the murder." "Yeah, but it was before." "What are the chances of it being lost right here where the body was found." She pressed her lips together. This was a sign that she did not want to debate the issue any longer. I nodded in silent agreement. We were just speculating. I raised my head and asked. "So what type of cowboy boots would these fit ..." Officer Severn was nowhere to be seen. "Scully?" She looked up and we began scanning the clearing and into the trees. "Where the hell did he go?" she asked. I shrugged and then shouted. "Hey, Severn! Where you get off to? We have a question!" Silence. "Clancy!" Scully shouted. "Where'd you go?" A second or two later, we heard the crunch of a dead branch and both drew our weapons and stood back to back. Scully mumbled, "What the hell? What direction did that come from?" "I don't know," I replied softly. "Am I spooked for no reason?" She sighed. "I don't know, but so am I." "I don't like this." "Neither do I," she replied. Just then we heard the sounds of someone hurrying through the woods off to our left. "It's moving away from us, Scully." "Should we follow?" "I don't know." "I vote yes," she said. "I vote no." "Why?" "Something's wrong here." The sounds ceased as abruptly as they began. "I put Severn on edge with my question about how he knew where the body was found. He hesitated too long before saying he read it in the police report. He was lying." "Oh Mulder, you don't really think ... " She let her sentence drift off as her eyes got wide. "Could this boot tip belong to him? And he saw us find it and so he ..." She was whispering now. "He said he read Lt. Sock's report, but he wasn't the investigating officer on Parks. It was some guy named Sclapone." "Shit, I didn't catch that. You think he's bolted?" "Didn't know what to do so he pulled a disappearing act? Maybe. But that doesn't sound right either. Unless that boot tip is his." I walked to the edge of the path and pulled a log out some from the tree line so we could sit on it. It wasn't huge but it would do. We both holstered our weapons, trying to decide what to do. She asked, "So now what?" "Let me think." She was obediently silent as I mulled over this situation. Why would he take off without saying anything? How did he do it so silently. There was dirt, rocks, leaves and branches all over the place to make noise. About 20 paces into the woods, a small flock of birds was disturbed and took to the skies squawking their displeasure. We looked at each other and stood at the same time. We both drew our weapons again and began walking slowly toward the tree line, facing each other. We had just entered the tree line when a shot rang out. We both instinctively ducked as bark flew off the tree next to my head. "Christ!" I exclaimed. "It came from that way," I said, pointing back the way we had come. We crossed the clearing and entered the woods at a run. I was outdistancing Scully and slowed so she could catch up. Neither of us was that fleet footed on this terrain. "Shit!" "What?" she asked, sounding slightly out of breath. She was winded more from adrenaline than running, I thought. "I don't know which way to go!" I sounded exasperated even to myself. "I think we should go back to the stable and call for some back up. We don't know these woods. We could get lost and then what?" I sighed heavily. "Somebody just took a shot at us, Scully! He's going to get away and I'd bet dollars to donuts it was Severn!" "We don't know that!" "Who else totes a gun around in the woods?" "A killer." "Exactly." "No! I mean criminals often return to the scene of the crime. If he saw us here digging it could have made him nervous. He's bound to make a mistake." "Or we could." "Exactly." "You're right, Scully it isn't worth the risk. He has to return to the barracks at some point. We bide our time. If it's someone else that just took a pot shot at us, then we can get a search going of the woods with people who know the area." "Marguerite for one." I nodded, and took her hand, leading her back into the clearing and heading back down the bridal path. We holstered our weapons again. We were both alert as we made our way as quickly as possible through the sometimes awkward turns in the path. "Scully, did you notice what Severn was wearing on his feet?" "No, did you?" "No, I don't generally look at guy's feet. Cops usually wear those black, polished shoes with the thick soles." "Someone must know." We were both tired when we reached the stable. I called Lt. Socks and then Marguerite, asking her to come to the stable. She said she was on her way anyway. When the Lieutenant arrived we told him our story and he seemed incredulous. "I don't like what your insinuating." I took a deep breath and tried to keep my aggravation out of my voice. "Look Lieutenant, I'm not necessarily insinuating anything, but that's what happened. Severn is missing." "Someone could have grabbed him. He may be the next victim. It could be somebody killing off all the people associated with the stable." Scully raised an eyebrow. "How is Severn associated with the stable?" she asked. He grunted. "He rides a lot." "So we heard. Then why did he tell me he didn't know Headley?" The Lieutenant's jaw dropped. "He did?" Scully nodded. I think she was shook up more than she wanted to admit and was beginning to come over to my way of thinking. I just had a gut feeling about this guy, Severn. My gut got me into trouble but it was rarely wrong. Usually I would have not thought twice about charging into those woods after whoever took a shot at me. But I had Scully now and this thing between us was so new. I knew I shouldn't be thinking about that right now, but I didn't want one of us to get killed over something stupid like my bad judgment and have this thing end before it had even begun. "Well," I said. "Something's not right. Either Severn was snatched and we are going to need to look for two people or he wasn't and we need to look for him. Either way." The Officer nodded and strode to his car to use the radio. "What do you think, Scully?" "I just don't know, Mulder. If he was snatched, wouldn't we have heard some kind of struggle?" "That's what I was thinking. But Andy over here, doesn't want to hear it." The corners of her lips twitched at my Mayberry reference again. We had yet to tell the Lieutenant about the boot tip. We said we'd been bagging a metallic object, but I had intentionally not said what it was. He came back to us saying, "O.K., I got eight officers on the way. We'll fan out and search. We'll wait for Marguerite. She can get us started and tell us which bridal paths are open. We'll probably start with the ones that aren't." "Sounds good," I replied. Scully surprised me then, "Lieutenant, do you know what kind of shoes Clancy Severn wears?" "Why?" "Do you?" "Did you see foot prints up there. There were dozens of people all over that clearing." "I know," I mumbled. She shot me a dirty look. Scully gave him the 'don't piss me off' look. "Just answer the question. Do you or do you not know?" He sighed. She pushed. Does he wear standard issue black shoes like you do?" she asked, looking at his feet. He pulled up his pants by the belt as they sagged dangerously close to lemming off his hips. "He never wears shoes, only cowboy boots with a heel. Says low shoes hurt his feet cause he's been wearing boots all his life. Folks around here don't care, so I never got strict about the dress code as long as the officers wear their uniforms." "I see, thank you." "Is that significant?" he asked Scully. "Could be. Maybe not. I don't know yet." We exchanged a meaningful look. "What?" he asked. "There's more, isn't there?" I looked at Scully, shrugging. I was telling her that it was up to her whether he told him or not. I was leaving the decision up to her. Ms. Full Disclosure herself surprised me when she said, "No, no more, except the mystery of where Severn got to." She readjusted her weapon in the back of her pants and turned away, heading for the barn. "Scully?" "I have to make a phone call," she said over her shoulder. "I'll be right back." I wondered who she had to call, but decided it could wait till later. I needed to keep the Lieutenant busy till reinforcements arrived. XXXXXXXXXX WILSON'S RIDING STABLE ROUTE 118 LITCHFIELD, CT 6:00 PM - MARCH 7 - WEDNESDAY The search was an enormous waste of time. Bridal paths and woods were combed and nothing was found. We were all dirty and exhausted by the time we made our way back to the stable. I slid behind the wheel and we drove in silence back to the hotel. Lt. Socks had told the barracks to inform him if Severn turned up there. As of now, 6:00 PM, he hadn't shown. The silence continued as we made our way back up to our rooms. XXXXXXXXXX THE LITCHFIELD INN LITCHFIELD, CT 6:30 PM - MARCH 7 - WEDNESDAY I followed her into hers and said, "Look Scully, we're exhausted, we both need a shower and some sleep. You probably want to be left alone so I'll just grab a shower and hit the sack." She peered at me curiously and a smile spread across her face. "You can be a real wing nut, sometimes, you know that?" "Hey!" I exclaimed with mock indignation. She laughed. "I do want a shower and sleep. However, the last thing I want is to be left alone." "Oh. Well, um, then you want to shower and meet back here after?" She grinned. "No, I want you to order room service for us and then I want you to join me in the shower." I felt my heart rate accelerate and my mouth go dry. Christ. Just the suggestion of taking a shower with Scully and my body was going on hyper alert. "Yes, ma'am," I drawled. She chuckled and headed for the bathroom. After ordering room service to be delivered in an hour, I shucked my clothes off and ventured naked into the bathroom. I stood and watched her through the opaque curtain. Her shadow moved with a sensual grace. She had no idea how beautiful she was. I wanted to finish this case. But I also wanted to be with her. And although being home would cause it's own complications, I was anxious about things changing once we were back on our home turf. I hoped not. I wanted to make love to her in her own bed and fuck her silly on my couch. I shook my head to rid it of these thoughts. She wanted to be with me and I should be happy for that. She was exhausted. She probably didn't want sex, just company. I hoped she would let me sleep with her in her bed. I cleared my throat to announce my presence and she said, "Are you going to stand there staring all day or are you going to get in here?" I chuckled as I realized she'd known I was there the whole time. I stepped gingerly into the shower around the curtain and caught my breath. I'd seen her naked yesterday, but it was shock all over again. The warm water was cascading over her chest, parting into two tiny rivers around her perky nipples. Her hair was slicked back and her face was flushed with heat. I just stood for a minute and gazed at her. My dick hardened slightly just looking at her. "Your turn," she said softly and maneuvered me under the spray. I washed my hair and was tipping my head back to rinse it out when I felt her soapy hands make contact with my chest. I sucked him my breath and finished rinsing as her hands began to wash my chest, not missing a spot. I decided to return the favor and we carefully washed each other. I was considering whether I could talk her into sex in the shower when the water began to run cold. I shut it off quickly and we piled out. I took great pleasure in drying her carefully, dragging the fluffy white towel over her damp skin and watching her grow aroused from my touch, even through the towel. I couldn't believe I affected her this way. It was a heady feeling. I ignored my raging hard on and dried myself quickly while she ran a brush through her wet hair. When she was finished, I scooped her up and carried her into the bedroom. I expected a protest but none came. The air in the room was cool and I felt her flesh and mine goose bump with the chill. We slid quickly under the covers and I moved to lie half on top of her, burying my fingers in her hair and my nose in her neck. She sighed and squirmed a bit. "Warmer?" I mumbled. "Um, hmm," was her only response. Her fingers began moving over the muscles of my back, barely touching. It almost tickled, but instead send shocks of tingling electricity through my torso. I moaned softly and her touch became more apparent as her entire hands began to smooth their way up and down my back. I felt my muscles ripple under her tiny, warm hands and was helpless to stop it. She chuckled. "You feel so good, Mulder." "You too, I love your skin." I nuzzled her neck and kissed her ear. She shivered and jostled me with her shoulder. I looked at her face. She said, "Kiss me, Mulder." I felt a soft wave of dizziness and lowered my head to hers. She wanted to be with me. I couldn't get over it. Hearing her ask me for anything, even a kiss was like a fantasy come true. Other parts of my anatomy were screaming for more than a kiss by the time she was through chewing on my lower lip and sucking on my tongue. I rolled up to be completely on top of her, taking my weight on my elbows and sliding between her legs. They opened for me and I sank down, my engorged cock coming in contact with her moist center. We both groaned and kissed again. I broke the kiss and whispered, "Are you too tired?" "Too tired for what?" I detected the teasing tone of her voice. Instead of answering, I nudged her core with the tip of my penis and she let out a cute little grunt. "Too tired to be jumped," I quipped. She smiled and opened her eyes. "You're such a romantic, Mulder, I don't know if I can stand it." I chuckled and then let the smile slide off my face as I watched her eyes. I was a little alarmed at the rough tone of my voice when I spoke. "Then how do you feel about me making love to you. I'll do all the work." She grinned. "I don't think so," she said. I sighed and lowered my head to her shoulder again, resigning myself to the fact that I wasn't going to get to make love to her tonight. At least she was here in my arms and showed no signs of kicking me out. Her lips brushed my ear and I cringed. "Don't do that unless you mean it, Scully. No teasing." She chuckled and then I felt my heart soar at her next words, "No, I think I want to do the work. I want to be on top." I jerked my head up and looked at her. She broke out into a peel of laughter. The look on my face must have registered my surprise. She pushed on my shoulder and I rolled willingly onto my back. She straddled me and began kissing her way down my torso. I was helpless to stop my hips from bucking into her face as she took my shaft into her mouth. It felt so hot and wet. Her talented little tongue was laving the underside of my shaft as she pulled back and took me in over and over. Her hand grabbed the end of my shaft and she retreated to the top, sucking hard on my head and swirling her tongue over it. I groaned and felt a surge of tightening in my balls. I pushed gently on her shoulder and she let go, looking up at me. I moaned again just from the sight of her there between my legs, my throbbing shaft still in her tiny hand, her wet, shining red lips hovering over my cock. She grinned. "Scully, no more, not unless you want to end the evening that way." She smiled and slid up my torso, straddling my hips. She raised up on her knees and took me in hand, placing me at her entrance. She rubbed back and forth, teasing me with the warmth and wetness I knew was waiting for me. I whispered, "Scully, I still can't believe this - you and me." She said one word, "Watch." We both did watch as she lowered herself slowly down my shaft. I grasped her hips to steady her so she could let go of me and balance her palms on my shoulders. We both moaned when I was embedded. She grunted. "So deep ... this way." I nodded and waited for her to set the pace. Just when I thought I couldn't stand it anymore. She lifted herself almost completely off and sunk back down harshly and quickly. My hips thrust off the bed to meet her and she shouted, "Awww." She stopped again and I said, "Scully? Did I hurt you?" "No! Yes, I mean, a little." I held as still as I could. She opened her eyes and said, "But it was a good hurt." I couldn't help the chuckle that came out of me as relief washed through me. I'd never forgive myself if I hurt her. I had to remember how small she was. The tightness of her core walls hugging my shaft should be a good enough reminder, but like most men, I could get lost in the moment very easily. I reached up to toy with her breasts and delighted in the mewling sounds of pleasure she made as I squeezed her breasts and pinched her nipples. She began to rise and fall at a more leisurely pace and we were both soon breathing heavily. It was heavenly. That was the only way to describe it. She was so snug and I loved the feeling of actually pushing inside her. Unlike with other women I'd been with, she was tiny and it felt different. I felt like I was 'pushing' my way inside. I could feel the resistance of her muscles with every stroke and the sensations were exquisite. I was surprised at a gush of warmth and a quiver around my shaft as though a hundred tiny muscles were squeezing me tight. Ripples of pleasure washed through me as she began to lift herself quickly and impale herself harshly on my cock. I was afraid of hurting her, but she was controlling this show, and I supposed she would stop if it hurt. She looked beautiful and I decided I should tell her. Her comment about my lack of romance had hit home. I was going to have do something about that soon. "Oh Scully, you feel so good, so tight. Oh god, you're hot inside. You're so beautiful, Scully." Her head was thrown back, her eyes closed, her chest flushed pink. A fine sheen of sweat had broken out on both our chests. She hummed in the back of her throat and picked up her pace. "Oh, oh, oh," was the only sound she made each time she landed. "Look at me, Scully." Her eyes snapped open and locked with mine. She began moaning and grinding her pubic bone into mine at the bottom of every stroke. I reached between us to try and do that for her. After a couple of misguided swipes, I found her engorged, slick bud and pressed it firmly against my shaft, rubbing back and forth as she began to rock wildly on me, keeping me fully embedded. "Yes, Yes, Mulder! Right there!" I pressed harder and she broke. "Oh God, Mulder, yes! Oh Jesus!" Her walls contracted around me in a series of rippling grips and I couldn't hold back anymore. I began thrusting up into her and holding her waist firmly. I followed behind her feeling my balls clench and ache with every ejaculation. I shouted something like her name and deflated into a boneless heap as I felt her land on my chest. She hummed contentedly. Her words were slurred but she said, "Sooo good, ... love ..." She was out cold. I would have been quite proud of myself if I hadn't known how exhausted she was before we began this little adventure. I squirmed to get comfortable, wrapping my arms around her waist and tucking her head under my chin. I reached and pulled the covers over us that had been kicked to the side in all the excitement. I sighed. Scully blanket. Warm, sweaty, Scully blanket. Yup. I could get used to this. PART 6 (NC-17) MARGUERITE WILSON'S HOUSE MAPLE STREET LITCHFIELD, CT 9:00 AM - MARCH 8 - THURSDAY Morning came early and the hunt was back on. Scully and I decided we could make ourselves useful in other ways. We decided to pay another visit to Marguerite and her dad. It was decided that she would talk to the old man, and I would talk to Marguerite again. XXXXXXXXXX "Mr. Wilson, do you have any idea who might have done this?" I asked. He shook his head, looking at the floor, his bottom lip protruded slightly with the slack wobble of the elderly. He always looked like he was on the verge of drooling, but it never quite got that far. He scrunched his brow and I gave him a minute to collect himself. Finally he said softly, "I don't know why anyone would want to hurt Headley. He was a nice boy, and a talented one too. He could handle those horses like it was nobody's business. Best vet around." "I was told you were the best vet around." That earned me a raised head and a smile. "Used to be, but Headley was better." "Did you approve of his relationship with Marguerite?" He scowled. "I had my doubts at first. My Margie isn't the worldliest woman, you know? But I liked Headley. I did warn her about him, not to be blinded by his attention. I was worried that their relationship would interfere with their working one, you know? But I was coming around. They seemed to be handling it all right." "What about Olson Parks?" "What about him?" "Did you know him?" "Yeah, slightly. He came around on a few trail rides. He was sweet on Margie but she said there was no spark there. I think they remained friendly. We let him jog on the bridal paths when we weren't open for business." He chuckled, sounding ironic, "We all thought the bridal paths were a SAFE place to run! Streets are dangerous, even out here in the country. This way, he could run and not worry about traffic. Safe! What a joke that turned out to be huh?" "Did either of those men have any friends that hung around?" "Not really, not that I recall." "Did either of them mention to you any disagreements with family members?" "No." We were getting nowhere fast. I took a deep breath and schooled my voice to calm. "Mr. Headley, I'm looking for clues here. Anything you can tell us might be helpful." He looked away, looking I thought, rather guilty. What was he hiding? "Mr. Wilson?" "Agent Scully, I'm going to tell you something. I hesitate because it's just a gut feeling, you know? I have no proof, not even a vague reason for feeling this way, but ..." "But?" "That young Officer, something's not right about him." "Officer Severn?" "Yeah, that's the one. When he first came around, he introduced himself as Clancy. He's never asked Marguerite out, but I've caught him staring at her quite a few times. He was friendly with Headley and with Parks. They would all hang out and drink beer after the work was done sometimes." "So what's not right about him?" "Well, one day this gal pulled into the stable in a little Geo Metro. One of those little fiberglass death traps. You know the ones?" I nodded. Just then Mulder and Marguerite joined us. He looked up. I glanced at Mulder. "You should probably hear this Mulder." He nodded and they took seats on the sofa. I was sitting on an ottoman, the old man was in his easy chair. "Well, this gal jumped out the car and shouted to the officer who was just then following me out to see who it was. We had been in the barn." He paused and closed his eyes as if trying to remember. "She was a little blonde thing. She had a smirk on her face. I could tell that the officer recognized her immediately. He wasn't in uniform. He'd just finished riding. He trotted to her, waving me back as if to say he'd handle it." "I didn't think much of it, but when I turned to go back in the barn, I heard her say, "Well, Claude, of all the places to find you. This isn't at all what I expected." Mulder asked, "She called him Claude?" "Yeah, so I made myself look busy raking up some extra hay so I could try and listen. Could have just been a nick name." "But then he said, 'shut up you stupid bitch. How did you find me anyway?'" "She told him to get in the car and then I couldn't hear anymore, so I went inside." Marguerite said, "I think you're overactive imagination is running away with you." I cleared my throat. Mulder was raising his eyebrows at me. I addressed Marguerite. "Maybe not. Officer Severn is missing as you know." "Yes, but I thought we were assuming he was snatched, afraid he would turn up another victim. I've been worried sick." Mulder spoke up. "He was with us when he disappeared. He never called out for help. He never made a sound, just vanished while our backs were turned. We also found some inconsistencies in his story. He told me he didn't know the victims. Marguerite, you told me Headley and he were friends." Her mouth dropped open. "He said he didn't know him?" "At first, then he told us those people brought their mare here because he was the best vet in the county. It didn't add up. He also told us that mare was worth a lot of money as if Headley would have been killed over it. But then he contradicted his own theory by saying that if someone was casing the place, it would have been a hell of a lot easier to snatch the mare when no one was there, after Headley left at night." I looked at Mulder. "So you're fairly certain that the killer was after Headley and not the mare." "Yes, because Olson Parks was the first victim and he wasn't even at the stable per se, but out in the woods on that path, and the mare wasn't taken or harmed then." We all sat in silence for a few moments. I could almost hear the gears turning in Mulder's head. Mr. Wilson must have picked it up too, which was unusual. To most people, that was his blank face. "What is it, Agent Mulder?" he asked. Mulder sighed heavily. "I hesitate to say anything before I know more. I want to call D.C. and do a check on Clancy boy, see if he's known or has an alias. Scully, can you go the police department and see if they'll let you peek at his personnel file?" "I can try although we might need a warrant." "I doubt it. You can sweet talk them." I made an unladylike snort and Marguerite smiled. She said, "Well, he's missing, so you would have a legitimate reason to investigate him, he is a missing person. And I would think the cops would want to do everything they could to find one of their own." "Good point," I conceded. "Well, it looks like we're done here. Mulder?" "Just one more question ... for both of you. It's out of left field, but neither of you have any known enemies, do you?" Mr. Wilson looked at Marguerite and their eyes locked. Marguerite swallowed heavily and then said, "Not really." Mulder looked at her. "People's lives could be at stake, you need to tell us anything you might think is significant." "Well, about a month ago, I started receiving crank calls." "Crank calls?" "Yeah, you know, guy breathing heavy, his voice all garbled, asking me if I wanted to fuck." Mr. Wilson winced at her use of the F word. "Sorry, Dad." "S'Okay. If I answer, he hangs up," he added. I asked, "How frequently?" "About twice a week, this last week it was three times." I looked at Mulder. Marguerite continued. "Sometimes he asks me if I'm naked, or what I'm wearing, all the usual juvenile shit. His voice is a little high pitched. I figured it was some kid out for jollies, calling the old maid, you know?" "Maybe, maybe not," I replied. Mulder addressed them both. "Look, we should have some lab results this afternoon on the instruments we took and then be able to return them to you, unless there was something on one of them. I want you two to stick together until this is over, travel together, lock the doors at night." They both nodded. "Let's go, Scully." XXXXXXXXXX LITCHFIELD INN LITCHFIELD, CT 3:30 PM - MARCH 9 - THURSDAY I hung up the phone and turned to Mulder. "Well, that's interesting." "What?" He looked up from the files in his lap. His glasses were perched on the end of his nose. His sleeves were rolled up and his shirt was half untucked. He'd slipped his shoes off and one leg was hitched up onto the bed. That stray lock of hair was falling across his forehead. He looked adorable. "Scully?" I shook my head. "Uh right." He chuckled and I blushed. "What were you looking at Scully?" he teased. "I was looking at you Agent Mulder." "Ah, were you now? See anything you like?" "Yes, I did." "And what would that be?" I just looked at him for a moment. He waited patiently, smiling. He was relaxed and it was nice to see. "God, you're sexy with those glasses on." He snorted out a bark of laughter and then grinned. "I did not know this little factoid. I'll have to wear them more often." "Please do." "Now, back to the matter at hand. What's the skinny?" "Well, once again, your instincts served you well. The police station file showed that Clancy transferred her from Pittsburgh. So I called the precinct where he used to work and asked them to fax over his records and a picture. Sergeant Weiss is sending it to my e-mail now. Says he left without notice, just called in one day and said he was moving and was sorry for the short notice." "Interesting." "It gets better." "How so?" "He has a brother named Claude, whom he had down as the beneficiary of his life insurance policy." "Oh, that is interesting." I sat down and booted up my lap top as I was talking. "Not only a brother, a twin brother." "Twin brother?" "Yup, not identical, but close." "My, my, you have been a busy girl, haven't you?" "Yes. So what did you find out? Or since Marguerite gave you a ride back here, were you just spending the day flirting?" He grinned. "I bought her lunch on the way back. It was nice of her to take me so you could have the car." "Yeah, she's a real sweetheart." "Do I detect a note of jealousy in your voice, Agent Scully?" I looked at him and smiled. "Who, me?" He just chuckled again and went back to looking at his files. But then he started filling me in. Seems Clancy hadn't come up on the FBI database, but Claude had. Although the twin thing had been overlooked, Claude had a record. It included breach of peace, aggravated assault, possession of a deadly weapon, third degree larceny, suspicion of arson, risk of injury to a minor, breaking and entering, ... and the beat goes on. I was whistling by the end of his dissertation. He went on to tell me that he'd served several short stints in jail in New York State and Pennsylvania, but never any lengthy hard time. Must have had a good lawyer. Brother Clancy was a cop with an exemplary record, commendations and the whole nine. I had found out that he was well liked and respected. I suddenly had a thought, like the proverbial light bulb going off. "Oh my God!" "What?" Mulder asked. "School records!" "School records? When you start making sense, Scully, I'll let you know," he deadpanned. I raised an eyebrow. "When he gave me the ride, remember? He said that he had a brother with a genius I.Q., who flaunted it and always made him feel inadequate." I saw the moment Mulder made the connection. "You're right, Scully. I'll bet we are looking for Claude, not Clancy. And I'll bet Clancy was the smart one, the cop. And I'd be willing to bet that the real Clancy is pushing up daisies." "Let's not jump to conclusions." "You're right. Get on the horn to Pittsburgh Police and have them dig up a parents address, and any school information. See if they have any missing person reports for a week prior or following Clancy's departure from the force there. See if Clancy had a girlfriend. Maybe we can visit the parents and find out if either of them had a girlfriend." Silence fell as he stared at me. "Anything else, Massa?" I asked. He blew air out of his pursed lips. "Sorry, Scully, I didn't mean to make that sound like a command." "I know, but you need to work on that. I know I'm the junior Agent here, but ..." "I'm sorry, Scully. Would you do those things? Please?" he asked quietly. He looked so chagrined. I pressed my lips together to suppress my amusement. "Yes, I will. But I'm your girlfriend now, Mulder, and there's some shit I won't put up with anymore." He looked blank for a second and then he smiled. "Girlfriend?" I chuckled. "Sounds lame, huh?" "No, it sounds divine." I held his gaze for a moment, stood up and walked over to place a light kiss on his lips. He was still smiling. "I love you, Scully." I beamed. God it felt good to hear that. And it felt good to hear it when we weren't in the throws of passion. Somehow it meant even more now. I hugged him and stood up briskly, knowing if I relaxed into his embrace, I wouldn't move for the rest of the afternoon. He looked disappointed, and I hid my grin as I headed for the bathroom. I thought I heard him mumble, "Girlfriend," under his breath. I emerged several minutes later after answering the call of nature and Mulder was standing in front of my lap top. He shouted, "Bingo!" "What?" I hurried over and sat down in front of him in the chair he was standing behind. There on the screen was a picture of Clancy Severn. The resemblance was remarkable, but there were differences. Mulder pointed out the first one, "I think Clancy had his nose broken at some point." Our Officer Severn did not have the lump in the cartilage that this man had in the middle of his nose. I pointed to the screen, to the eye on the left. A moon shaped scar about an inch long, wound from the end of his eyebrow around the eye socket. It was small, but I was sure our guy didn't have that scar. I would have noticed. Mulder nodded. We need to get this over the barracks right away and let these people know that we are dealing with Claude. If this is Clancy, our guy is surely the brother, and he's taken on his identity. God knows why. But with his rap sheet, we're not dealing with a punk here. This guy is dangerous. And he has a service weapon on him." "Mulder, did that rap sheet say what the deadly weapon was that he was arrested for?" Mulder strode over to the bed and yanked up the sheet from the sea of paper spread out there. He turned slowly and looked at me. "A knife." XXXXXXXXXX WATER STREET APARTMENT TORRINGTON, CT OFFICER SEVERN'S APARTMENT 6:00 PM - MARCH 8 - THURSDAY After calling the barracks and e-mailing everything we had over to them, we ran out to a restaurant on the green in Litchfield called the West Side Grill. We ate a quick dinner and headed out to Torrington, the next town over to check out the Officer's apartment. The land lord was pathetically easy to get around when we flashed our badges. He figured we were friends of the nice "cop" that rented from him. I didn't imagine they saw too many feds around here. Scully headed right to the bedroom while I made a tour of the small kitchen and the bathroom. I was still in the bathroom when I heard her call me. "Mulder, come here." I rounded the corner of the bedroom door and looked at the bed where she was pointing. There was a black attaché case opened. It was filled with a piece of gray foam from which neat slices had been removed. In each spot was some sort of cutting device. Scalpels of several sizes, all the way up to a 6 inch hunting knife. "Where?" "Under the bed." I nodded and we headed for the closet. I yanked open the door. Rows of clothes hung neatly on the hangers, shoes arranged methodically in rows on the floor. The place was spotless. No pictures adorned the walls though and there were no nick knacks. Scully peered around my arm into the closet. I said, "Obsessive Compulsive much?" She chuckled. "My closet looks the same way, Mulder." "My point exactly." She slapped me with the flat of her hand on my stomach. I gasped in mock pain. She shook her head and walked away. Further searching turned up a draw full of unpaid bills and gambling markers. Seems Officer Severn was in hock to the bookies up to his ears. Enough motive to kill? Enough motive to steal a million dollar mare? We bagged up our discoveries and headed back into town. It was late but we decided to get into some warm clothes and go on a little Officer hunt. Bunches of police crashing through the woods and calling out for their fellow officer was not going to flush out this bird. Now they knew that he wasn't who he appeared to be, but they had already given him plenty of warning of their advance the day before. I didn't think he would be in the woods at this point. Lt. Socks had found the name of a horse auction place in New York State called Luther's. We called and found out that a man fitting his description had shown up there several days ago in the morning and put a pregnant mare on the block. She had sold for $600,000 to a Mr. And Mrs. Cannes of New York City, who kept a summer home in Brewster, New York. More leads to follow. I didn't want to leave the area just yet, so I asked the police to go gather up what they could from Luther's and the new owners of the mare. The mare was evidence and was hot, so to speak so we would be able to confiscate her. Maybe the Cannes and the owners could work out a deal. The horse wasn't my problem. A fugitive with $600,000 was my problem. We put out an APB on Claude Severn a/k/a Clancy Severn. In the meantime, the Pittsburgh police called with the names of the parents, Betty and Clancy, Sr. XXXXXXXXXX LITCHFIELD INN LITCHFIELD, CT 7:30 PM - MARCH 8 - THURSDAY I decided to let Scully make that call as we both know she was the more tactful of the two of us. She made small talk with them, which drove me nuts, but that's why I let her do it. She knew how to handle people like this and get information without pissing them off or insulting their offspring. She managed to find out that Clancy did have a girlfriend named Sandra Benson. It was obvious that the parents did not approve of her and thought she was just using Clancy. Said that she thought it was glamorous to date a cop. Betty indicated that she didn't think Sandra was too bright and couldn't figure out what Clancy had seen in her. She said Clancy had moved to San Diego. Left them a note and was gone about a year ago. They received letters periodically. Of Claude, they knew nothing and good riddance. The father pretty much said they were the classic case of good and evil twins. They had problems with Claude since he was boy and he just escalated the trouble he got into as the years rolled by. They hadn't heard from him in over a year and although Betty wished she knew if he was all right, the father couldn't have cared less. As far as they knew, Clancy was living in San Diego and working as a cop there. Further investigation revealed that there was no cop named Severn in the San Diego police department. There was however, a woman named Sandra Benson living in a modest home in a suburb nearby there. Some tactful questions and some creative snooping by a friend of Scully's in the Burbank field office revealed that the lady lived alone. When questioned, she said Clancy had left her. She worked as a waitress and there was some speculation as to how she was supporting her home. She said she rented from a real estate agency, but the agency revealed that they had sold her the house. Ocwen Bank had given her a mortgage with Clancy Severn as the co-signer, a cop from Pittsburgh, PA. Little did they know that Claude was probably the one that signed the papers. I was betting little blondie girl who visited the stable was Sandra Benson. And I bet she was working both twins, well, only one now. A background check on her turned up a couple of arrests for possession of marijuana and one arrest for solicitation. A cop and hooker. God Bless America. Back to the folks in Pittsburgh and Scully weaseled a conversation out of an officer who was his partner. According to him, Severn wasn't dating Benson, he was trying to straighten her out and get her off the street. Seems she was the kid sister of one, Lee Benson, who was a buddy that attended the academy with Severn. Pieces were beginning to fall into place. We checked and found out Clancy had a MasterCard, Visa, Discover, and even a Diners' Club card. Records showed vigorous activity in the last year and outstanding balances in the thousands. Seems Claude knew how to spend money but wasn't so good at paying it back. Now he was on the lamb. I wondered why he had hung out after selling the horse. Why didn't he just split? Did he want to keep an eye on the investigation? Could he be sick enough to commit two murders just to cover up the theft of a horse? All these questions remained unanswered for another day as we flitted from pillar to post, and conducted interviews and made phone calls to acquaintances. The vet surgical tools turned up nothing, no prints. If he'd used them, he wiped them clean of prints. Of course, now we had a case full of cutting tools, but they didn't have his prints either. However, knowing how anal and obsessive compulsive this guy was, he probably washed and buffed them carefully before putting them to bed in their little foam home inside the case. We were tired. The APB hadn't turned anything up yet. There were millions of places a guy like this could hide. We just had to wait for him to make a move. Scully and I fell into bed that night too tired to do anything but snuggle. But I was enjoying waking up next to her, finding her little derriere pressed into my lap. I was sleeping better and I knew it was because I didn't have to spend half my night worrying about whether she was all right or suffering from separation anxiety. Yes, I knew what my problem was! I understood obsession well. I was obsessed with Scully. But I hoped my obsession never turned to something sick and dangerous like this guy. I still didn't know how Marguerite figured into this, but there had to be a connection. Maybe I was barking up the wrong tree though. The fact that she dated both victims could be a coincidence. They could have been targets because of some other link to the stable besides her. I liked her. I didn't want to believe that she was involved. I finally shut my brain down and drifted off to sleep. XXXXXXXXXX LITCHFIELD INN LITCHFIELD, CT 6:00 AM - MARCH 9 - FRIDAY I woke up feeling extremely warm and cozy. I hummed and stretched my low back a bit from its stagnant position and immediately encountered the hard evidence of Mulder's morning woody. Hmmm. What to do? What to do? We were on the fifth day of this case, and we hadn't had the energy or the time to get it on in the last two. I realized that Mulder was probably going to be like a drug. Once you'd had him, you were going to need a daily fix. And I was going to jones when I didn't get it. He was still asleep but pulled me tighter against his chest in response to my squirming. I carefully slipped my panties off and kicked them to the foot of the bed under the covers. I reached back and ran my hands under the elastic waist of his boxer briefs. He sighed in his sleep and his grip loosened. I carefully eased onto my back and watched him sleep for a while. He was so boyish looking in sleep. The worry lines were gone from his forehead. I could see crow's feet around his eyes that weren't there seven years ago. I brushed hair off his forehead and he smacked his chops, bringing a soft smile to my face. Holy shit, I was so in love with this man. I moved away slightly and took my tee shirt off, tossing it over the side of the bed. I rolled back to face him and saw his eyes were open half way. He was watching me lazily from under his hooded eyelids, still heavy with sleep. The corners of his mouth turned up but he said nothing. He stared at me until I was slightly uncomfortable. "What?" I asked quietly. "You're so beautiful. I love waking up and finding you here." "I could get used to it myself," I replied. He smiled wider. "I especially like waking up and finding you here, NEKKED." I grinned now and scooted over to him, reaching for his boxers. He stopped me with a hand on my wrist and pulled them off himself. He wasn't fully erect but he was getting there. He coaxed me onto my stomach and straddled my legs slowly. He let his weight come down gently, supporting himself on his elbows. I felt his penis slip into the well between my butt cheeks and moaned softly. He hissed a little and I felt him harden against me. I loved that feeling. He whispered, "Oh, you feel so good, Scully. I'll never get enough of touching your skin." With that, he began kissing my neck and pressing his erection against me. One hand stole underneath, palm up and grasped my breast. I moaned as he began kneading it and felt my juncture grow moist. When he grabbed the nipple and pinched lightly with his fingers, I felt my nether lips grow swollen and tingle. I moaned again. He lowered his lips to my ear. "I love hearing your sounds and knowing I caused them." "Payback's going to be a bitch." I could feel his smile against my ear. "I'll look forward to it." He slid his arm down under my waist, and lifted just a bit, tilting my hips up. He teased my entrance with the tip of his cock. "Mmmm, you're really wet, Scully." I grunted as an answer. The arm under me moved and his hand slid down to tweak my clit. I bucked up a little and the head of his cock slipped inside. "Oh!" was all he said, but he didn't pull away. He repositioned himself more squarely, pulling his arm out. He pulled his knees up on the bed some and then pushed inside. We both groaned, still sleepy and fuzzy. He stroked into me slowly. His hips began to swivel a little and I raised up onto my elbows. He said, "Touch your breasts, Scully." I flushed. Touch myself, in front of him? "Mulder, I ..." "Shhh, just touch your breasts. Please." He sped up his strokes slightly and parked his chin on my shoulder. "Let me see." I knew my head must be the color of a tomato, but I brought one hand to my breast and squeezed it. His breath brushed my cheek as he said, "Ahhh, yeah." Encouraged, I grasped my nipple with my thumb and forefinger and began rolling it, pinching hard and feeling warmth wash through my torso. He gasped and whispered, "Oh God, Scully. You're pinching so hard. I'd be afraid to pinch that hard." I groaned and began pulling my nipple out as I twisted it. The more excited I got, the more numb my breasts were and I needed the added pressure to get stimulation. He groaned so low in the back of his throat that it gave me shivers. "Oh Scully, oh that turns me on. Keep touching yourself." His strokes sped up and became shorter. He kept his chin on my shoulder and his I knew his eyes were on my fingers as they abused my breast. He began grunting with every impact. Without warning, he put his mouth on my shoulder and bit down softly. It send me over the edge and I shuddered through the tremors originating in my womb and flowing out like a ripple in a pond. I felt my walls grasping him in a sort of slow motion flutter of release. "Mulder! Oh yeah, oh yeyeyesss!" He grunted and let go. "Scully! Oh Jesus, Ahh Christ, oh yeah!" He collapsed on top of me, panting on my shoulder. I mumbled, "We need to take a shower." "Mmm. Party pooper," he mumbled. I chuckled. "We can't stay here all day," I stated obviously. "You sure?" PART 7 (R) LITCHFIELD STATE POLICE BARRACKS TROOP L LITCHFIELD, CT 9:00 AM - MARCH 9 - FRIDAY We called the credit card agencies and asked to be notified of any use of the cards. A check of the airports, bus and train stations turned up nothing. Severn's cruiser was left at the stable the day he disappeared. Where ever he went to, it wasn't back to his car. Lt. Socks had taken it back tot he barracks. I nearly smacked my head in disgust when I realized that we hadn't even checked the cruiser. We went through the glove box and the trunk and found nothing. I noticed that the carpet was glued down on the edge and thought that was strange. There was supposed to be a tire in here. I was in the process of prying the edge up with my pocket knife. Scully was standing at my elbow scolding me. "Mulder, you are defacing State property. There is no reason to tear the car up. We've found nothing to indicate a further search ... " Her words cut off suddenly as I finally worked the corner free and ripped the carpet back. I looked at her, unable to hid my gloating smirk. There, where the spare tire should be were stacks of neatly arranged bundles of bills. "Wwhheeww," I whistled. "What do you think, Scully? I guess $600,000? You?" She sighed heavily. "Scully?" I asked again when I got no response. She gave me a dirty look, her lips pursed. "Sometimes, I hate it when you're right," she mumbled and turned to reenter the building. I laughed out loud now. I couldn't help it. Exasperated Scully was a cute Scully. However, I didn't think now was the time to point that out. We moved the cruiser to a remote section of the parking lot around in back of the building. Severn was going to want his cash eventually and come for it. Scully and I decided to come back after dark and stake it out. My cell phone rang and I answered it as we were heading to our car. "Mulder." [Agent Mulder, this Marguerite Wilson.] "Hello. What can I do for you?" [I just got another call.] "Another call?" [Crank call.] "Oh, tell me about it." I slid into the driver's seat and Scully piled in beside me, watching me with a quizzical expression on her face. [He sort of threatened me this time.] "Sort of threatened? What do you mean? What did he say?" She hesitated. "Would you feel more comfortable talking to my partner about this?" [Umm, yeah, I think so.] "O.K., hold on a sec." I covered the mouth piece. "It's Marguerite. She got another crank call. He threatened her. She'd rather tell you." I handed the phone to Scully. Her voice was instantly soothing and I felt a wave of affection for her. Scully was such a good woman, in every way. "Hi Marguerite. This is Dana Scully. Are you O.K.?" I should have asked her that first. But no, not me. I had blurted out questions. No wonder I made her uncomfortable. I really had to work on my people skills! Now I couldn't hear the other end of the conversation. But I saw Scully's mouth drop open. "Anything else?" she asked. Her face grew strained and then angry as her eyes squinted and her lips drew into a thin line. "O.K. Look, I'm going to send an officer over there to hang out at the house tonight, O.K.?" I could hear Marguerite's voice raised, but couldn't understand what she was saying. She was obviously upset though, probably getting a bit hysterical. I wasn't good with hysterical woman. That's one of the things I loved about Scully. She got upset, but I couldn't ever remember her being hysterical. "O.K. Try to clam down. Take a couple of deep breaths. Is your father there?" Pause. "Well, make sure he stays with you. If there are no female officers here, I'll come myself." Pause. "O.K., try not to worry. I know it's scary, but we'll look after you." Pause. "We don't know that yet. O.K., I'll be in touch." She hung up and pinched the bridge of her nose with one hand as she handed the phone back to me with the other. "Scully?" I asked softly. "Mulder, I feel so sorry for her. She is so frightened now." "What did the caller say?" "She said it started out like a usual call and she was about to hang up on him when he said that they were going to meet soon and she should be ready for him. And she should wear her green teddy to bed every night until he came for her." "Jesus." Now I was getting the picture. There were times when I was really glad I was a man. "That freaked her out. She claims that Headley was the only one that knew her nightly wardrobe. Not even her father knows what she wears to bed. She wears teddy camisoles." "What did she say to him? Anything?" I asked. "She asked how he knew she owned a green teddy and he just laughed at her. Then she said she panicked and said her father was there with her. He apparently laughed and said that her father would be easy to get rid of when the time came for them to have some time alone." "Oh Christ." Scully sighed again. "So now she fears her father will be hurt and this guy is coming to rape her or kill her. Her imagination's gone wild. She's sure it's the killer. Of course, our killer has only gone after men so far as we know." "So far as we know," I repeated. "Does she know we have nailed Severn as our main suspect?" "I don't know. I don't think so. She knows he's missing but doesn't want to believe it's him." "So now what, Scully?" "I have to go back inside and see if there's a female officer on the troop here. She doesn't want any strange men in the house, even if they are a cop and I can't blame her." She paused. "God, I'm tired." "Go ahead inside. I'll run down the street to that diner and get us some coffee, O.K.?" "Yeah, that sounds good." Another pause. "This case really sucks, Mulder!" "Yeah, it does." By the time I got back with the coffee she was waiting by the car talking to a tall blonde woman in uniform. They were laughing. I paused in my advance a moment to watch her. She was so beautiful, especially when she laughed. She turned and saw me, waving me over. I handed her the coffee and stuck out my hand to the female officer. "Fox Mulder." "Lisa Irving. Nice to meet you." "Likewise. Will you be going to the Wilson place?" "That's what your partner tells me. Boy, this is a strange one, huh?" Scully interjected. "Yeah, the problem is that this crank call stuff may not even be related." I looked at her. "You don't believe that, do you?" She sighed. "No, I think it is related but I don't necessarily want Marguerite to know that. She's worked up enough." Lisa responded, "Don't worry. I'll take care of her. Maybe I'll pose as her in the bedroom ad have her sleep with her father." "Kinky," I mumbled. Lisa grinned. Scully scowled. "Oops," I blurted out. "Bad joke." Then Scully laughed too. "Mulder, you're a sick man," she quipped. I grinned and motioned toward the car. "Let's go get some lunch." "You're on," she responded. She turned to Lisa. "I'll catch you later. You have our cell phone numbers, right?" Lisa patted her breast pocket and waved as she headed back into the station. XXXXXXXXXX MARGUERITE WILSON'S HOUSE MAPLE STREET LITCHFIELD, CT 11:00 PM - MARCH 9 - FRIDAY The room was pitch black. She felt exposed wearing nothing but a camisole and her panties. She pulled the covers up to her neck and reached under the pillow next to her and fondled the grip of her service revolver. It comforted her quite a bit. Her ears picked up every sound in the dark room. Crickets sang outside the window. Floor boards creaked as they settled in the old house. Silence for the last two hours and it was starting to drive her crazy. She wondered if this wasn't a big waste of time. If this was some kids fooling around, she was going to be pissed. Then again, if it wasn't, she wondered what the hell she was doing here. She'd never done anything like this before. She had no back up. Her cell phone lay under the pillow with her gun. She had programmed the Agent's number into the speed dial. A sudden loud creak in the floor boards broke her out of her thoughts. She went rigid and alert, her ears straining but heard nothing but silence again. After what seemed like an eternity, she let out the breath she was holding and relaxed back into the mattress. No sooner had she closed her eyes when she heard a blood curdling scream. Even months later, the details would be fuzzy. She rolled out of the bed, nearly falling as her toe caught on the bed spread. She would never remember grabbing both her gun and the cell phone, one in each hand as she rolled out of the bed. She found herself down the hallway not knowing how she got there. But she would remember arriving at the door to Lee Wilson's room and shouldering her way through it, suddenly realizing her hands were full. An odd second of stillness descended for several seconds where everyone was frozen. Mr. Wilson lay on the wood floor of his room, blood trickling from a blow to the temple. Marguerite Wilson was flat on her back, diagonally across the mattress, her hands grasping desperately at the arm that was laid across her throat. A man wearing a black ski mask was straddling her, his pants unzipped and his equipment hanging out. She didn't see the gun laying on the bed on the far side of Marguerite until the man grabbed it and swung his arm around to fire at her. She gave no thought to what she looked like, standing there in nothing but a camisole and panties, bare-legged and crouching in a firing stance. She didn't remember hitting the speed dial or dropping the phone to the floor but she must have. As the man's gun barrel came to bear on her chest she fired her own weapon at his shoulder and dove towards the foot of the bed. She did a perfect summersault and came up on her feet again. Her gun aimed at the body which had now toppled to the side and was reaching desperately for his fallen weapon. Marguerite Wilson let out another scream and scrambled off the bed to kneel next to her father, gathering his head into her lap. As Marguerite slithered off the bed, the man's weapon, identical to her own, fell to the floor and discharged. She jerked at the sound and heard the mirror to her left shatter. Then all was still but for the sound of heavy breathing from herself and the man laying on the bed, clutching his shoulder. A little late, Lisa remembered protocol. "Police, don't move, stay right where you are." The man made no attempt to move. She looked at Marguerite. "Marguerite, I need you to go to your room and get the handcuffs off the bedside table." Marguerite nodded furiously and pushed herself to her feet. She was shaky but bolted out of the room. Lisa kept her gun trained on the man, alert for any sign of movement. She was suddenly self-conscious about her lack of clothing but tried very hard to ignore it. Marguerite reappeared with the handcuffs and a pair of sweat pants. Lisa took the handcuffs and indicated with the barrel of her revolver that he should roll over. "Hands behind your back." He did and she quickly slid the cuff onto one arm. As she was reaching for the other arm, the injured one, the man swung his arm up, cuffing her in the chin with the hard metal cuff. She heard a crack and tears filled her eyes as pain exploded through her jaw. She screamed in pain and anger through clenched teeth, dropped her weapon and yanked his arms down, finally cuffing them together. He grunted in pain and she slid off the bed, taking her gun with her. She quickly stepped into the sweat pants. Just then she could hear a voice from across the room, [Officer Irving!] She realized it was coming from the phone on the floor. She picked it up and placed it to her ear. "Irving," she said in a shaky voice. Her hands were shaking and her heat beat hard against her rib cage. She took a deep breath trying to get control. [Officer Irving, this is Agent Scully. Are you all right?. We heard shots.] "I'm all right, but I'm going to have a shiner on my jaw. Send an ambulance would you - two of them actually. Lee Wilson is out cold from a blow to the head." [Who's the second one for?] "The perp. He's cuffed but I shot his shoulder out." [Is Marguerite all right?] "Yeah, she's shaken but not stirred. She'll be all right. She'll probably go to the hospital with her father." [We're on our way. Who's the perp?] "Hold on a sec," Lisa replied. She strode to the bed, taking a moment to realize how stupid it was that she hadn't removed his mask. She grabbed his mask roughly, yanking his hair in the process and he yelped as she pulled it free, his head flopping onto the bed into the pool of blood that was forming under him from his shoulder. Marguerite gasped. "Oh God, No! Oh Lord." Her voice was a whisper as she stared at the man on the bed. "How could you?" She collapsed next to her father on her knees. She smoothed his face with her hand and he mumbled, beginning to come around. [Lisa?] Agent Scully prompted. "It's your man, Agent Scully. It's your man." XXXXXXXXXX STATE POLICE BARRACKS TROOP L LITCHFIELD, CT 10:00 PM - MARCH 9 - FRIDAY We'd been sitting here for two hours. I'd downed three cups of coffee and was starting to feel sick. We were in an unlit portion of the back of the parking lot behind the barracks about 50 yards from Severn's cruiser. Mulder had pulled me to him and put his arm around my shoulders. I was sleepy and yawned, trying to stifle it behind my hand. "Sleep, Scully," he said softly. "No, I'm O.K." "Go ahead. I'm not tired yet. I'll wake you if I get tired." I nodded and snuggled my head into his shoulder. I felt his light chuckle. I must have dozed off because it seemed seconds later, Mulder was shaking me lightly awake. He was whispering, "Scully! Wake up. We have company!" I bolted upright and blinked rapidly, trying to focus on the car across the lot. Someone was approaching from the embankment behind the parking lot, swiveling their head from side to side. They increased their pace and crouched down as they approached the vehicle. I could see now as my eyes adjusted to the gloom that they were carrying a large canvas duffel bag. We opened the doors carefully, Mulder, hitting the switch to kill the dome light before it came on. The keys were not in the ignition, so there was no tell tale bells and whistles. We left the doors open and circled up the embankment to come down behind the cruiser. It was parked with its nose to us and we could see someone standing at the trunk. It definitely wasn't Severn. But a set of keys were produced and the trunk was popped open. The person was wearing a ski mask and looked around furtively as we hid ourselves behind the few trees lining the embankment. The sound of carpet being lifted away from tape we'd replaced the glue with was harsh in the silence of the night. We could hear the thunk of bundles of cash being grabbed up and dumped into the open duffel bag that lay on the ground at the person's feet. Mulder pointed right and indicated with hand signals that I should go left. I nodded and we crouched, drawing our weapons and quietly making our way out further and down, flanking the suspect. I was only a couple of steps from the pavement of the parking lot when I stepped on a twig and it snapped. The person whirled in my direction and I dropped into a squat, aiming my weapon. Mulder shouted, "FBI, FREEZE! HANDS IN THE AIR!" The person dropped the bundle of cash and raised their hands in the air. We approached warily, not knowing if they had a weapon. As I drew close, I could see that the person was tiny and dressed all in black. They suddenly ducked their hand into the trunk and came up with a pistol. I saw moonlight reflect off it in a flash and dropped to the ground and rolled. Two shots went off simultaneously. The body dropped to the ground on its knees and let out a shriek. A very ... feminine shriek! XXXXXXXXXX STATE POLICE BARRACKS TROOP L LITCHFIELD, CT 10:45 PM - MARCH 9 - FRIDAY Susan Benson was arrested and finger printed. A little good cop, bad cop and the story emerged. She had approached Clancy Severn at the prompting of his brother Claude. Claude hated his twin and knew that he had money in the bank and credit cards. Clancy had turned him down for a loan and he was pissed. Benson had been a part time hooker, but also Claude's sometime girlfriend. Clancy would give her money to help her get off the streets, or so he thought and she would pass it along to Claude to pay off his gambling debts. Unfortunately, Clancy followed her one night to her rendezvous with Claude and all hell broke loose. The two brothers got into a knock down, drag out fight at which point Benson had fled. The next day Claude had caught up with her on the street and told her that he had killed his brother and they had to get out of town. He had buried his brother in the woods out behind their parents house. Between the two of them and some shady friends they had faked some letters to the police department and the parents and fled to San Diego. There, Claude had assumed his brother's identity, co-signed a mortgage for the house. He did not feel comfortable in San Diego and felt he would be less visible in a small town police department. He had stolen his brother's credit cards and identifications which he had altered to show his own picture. He had come to Connecticut where he was isolated but close enough to keep an eye on his parents and make sure they didn't get too nosey. Every few months he sent her a letter from Clancy which she then forwarded to the parents. They were none the wiser, yet. It had been less than a year. Claude had stopped sending money for the mortgage payment which had prompted her to come out here and confront him several months ago. She threatened to expose him and he promised to come up with enough money to keep her settled for a while. They hatched the scheme to steal the mare and sell it for money. The problem was Claude was a sicko. Tell us something we didn't know. He had some weird sexual preferences and liked it rough, among other things. He liked to dominate women. That didn't bother her much. She knew he was after other women all the time but she didn't care. She was only dealing with him for the money. He was an easy bribe. She was the only one who knew his secret. She went on to tell us that he thought entirely too much of himself and would become enraged when a woman rejected him. He had a thing against 'society bitches' or 'goody two shoes' who thought they were too good for him. She'd learned to just give in and let him get it over with. Charming. He had called her for help when he'd had to flee from the authorities, he told her because 'they were on to him.' He wanted her to retrieve the money while he took care of a 'goody two shoes' who was two good to look at him. He had mentioned that he was going to make the guy who lorded his relationship with her over him, pay for his arrogance. She had no idea what that meant. Right. In the middle of this interrogation and confession which was being revealed in a trade for lighter charges or larceny against Ms. Benson, my cell phone rang. XXXXXXXXXX Listening to the screaming and the shots being fired over the phone was possibly more nerve racking than being in the middle of a fire fight. At least then you know what is happening. We left Ms. Benson in the care of the Troopers and raced to our car in route the Wilson residence. I was giving Mulder a blow by blow as he raced down the street, his knuckles white on the steering wheel. We arrived a the Wilson house before the ambulances and hit the front door at a dead run. I examined Marguerite and Mr. Wilson after we got over being stunned by the sight of Severn handcuffed in the middle of the bed in a pool of blood. His need to exact revenge on Marguerite for her inattention had been his downfall. If he'd gone for the cash himself or been more careful he could have slipped away with the cash a week ago and we would have been on another goose chase, following him around the country. But arrogance on his part, worked in our favor. He was conceited enough to stay around and monitor the investigation. He was arrogant enough to think that he had everything under control. He slipped up again by warning Marguerite of his impending arrival. The temptation to frighten and subdue her had been too much and he had given us the opportunity to lay in wait for him. It was a long night of bookings, interviewing, and hospitals and phone calls. Severn was arrested for the murder of Headley Stokes, Olson Parks and Clancy Severn. In addition he was slapped with breaking and entering, attempted rape, assault on an officer, grand theft of a horse, obstructing a federal investigation and a myriad of other lesser charges. But finally, everyone was tucked away where they should be, except us. Another vicious killer behind bars. Our job was done here, I thought sarcastically. We staggered back to the Inn at 4:00 M and fell into a coma sleep without even bothering with a shower. EPILOGUE LITCHFIELD INN LITCHFIELD, CT 12:00 PM - MARCH 10 - SATURDAY I slept like the dead and woke at noon to sun light streaming in the window of our room. I pulled Scully tighter to my chest and felt her butt come in contact with my straining erection. I moaned softly and felt her hair tickle my nose as I let out my breath. She stirred in my arms and I flexed my hips into the soft cushion of her derriere. She made a humming sound in the back of her throat. I was still half asleep but waking to my arousal. We had fallen in bed naked. Her skin was like silk against my dick. My hand wandered to her breast and squeezed her weight gently. I didn't want to wake her if she was still tired, but I wasn't willing to wait anymore. I was now officially addicted to sex with Scully. Her hand reached back and rubbed my flank. I knew then she was awake. I kissed the nape of her neck and then latched onto the tendon where her neck meets her shoulder. She moaned softly and I surged to fully erect. "Scully, I want you so bad." She hummed and rasped out in a morning voice, "Again?" "And again and again and again." She giggled and pulled away. I grumbled in protest, but she flipped onto her back and peered at me from under half open lids. "You are so gorgeous," I whispered. She smiled. I slid my hand from her breast down her stomach and snaked a finger between her legs. She grunted softly and opened her legs. Little moves like that made me so aroused I felt dizzy. I loved to see and hear her respond to me. It was a miracle I never intended to take for granted. I slipped a finger inside and gasped to find her moist and hot. "Scully!" "Hmm, wet already. Surprised?" "Amazed," I murmured and bent down to kiss her slowly and thoroughly. Her hand shot out and grabbed my dick and squeezed firmly. I groaned into her mouth. She began pumping me slowly, squeezing me firmly and I shuddered. She smiled against my lips, apparently enjoying my reaction. I slid two fingers inside her and spread her wetness out and up over her bundle of nerves. Her hips bucked slightly off the mattress. I wanted to try every position known to man with her, but I knew she was probably still half asleep so I asked. "Can you sit up, Scully?" She arched an eyebrow and nodded. I smiled and sat up, scooting up against the headboard and kneeling. She followed and straddled my lap. We kissed again as she ground her crotch into my throbbing erection. I grasped her hips and lifted. She perched on top of my shaft and I looked down, marveling once again at the sight of myself sliding inside her, between her narrow hips. "Awww, Scully." Her hands went to my shoulders for balance and she began pumping herself up and down my shaft slowly. I captured her nipple and sucked on the already hardened bud until she was whimpering with pleasure. I couldn't get enough of that sound. I wanted to make every time as good for her as it was for me. I knew that was impossible, but it wouldn't be for lack of trying. My finger slid down into the crack of her ass and messaged her anus. She groaned loudly and began impaling herself faster. Ooo, I'd found something else she liked. I wondered if she would ever let me in there. Just the thought of it and I expanded inside her although I would have thought it impossible to become any harder. She grunted and panted, "So hard, you're so hard." She sped up again and started grinding her pubic bone into mine at the bottom of each thrust. I held her hips tighter and began thrusting with her. Our pace increased until she was slamming herself down on me. I felt her walls fluttering around me. "Yeah, Scully, that's it, come for me. You're close, I know your close, come for me." She sucked in a sudden harsh breath of surprise as I pressed my finger inside her ass up to my second knuckle and swirled it around. She screamed my name and began convulsing tightly around my cock. I groaned loudly and held myself embedded so I could feel every last spasm around my aching flesh. "Mmuullddeerr! Ooohhhh! Gooodddd! Ahhh, Jesus, Mulder!" She was still quivering with aftershocks when I couldn't hold it anymore and I shouted, pulling my finger out of her and squeezing her hips tightly. I emptied into her feeling hot cum surge through my cock and race into her quivering tunnel. She fell limp against my chest and we sat there still joined for some time, catching our breath. My hands soothed up and down her back until she lifted her head from my shoulder and looked at me. She was wearing the lazy smile of a sated woman and I smiled in response. "Mulder, you're going to kill me," she murmured. "I hope not, baby, because I'm not even near done with you!" She chuckled. "Baby?" I shrugged sheepishly. She smiled again, all teeth. "Only in bed or I may have to get rough with you." "Oh yeah, get rough with me! Please!" I begged. She swatted me playfully and I moved down to lay flat on the bed. She went to roll off me and I held her there, my arms around her waist. Her head was tucked under my chin and I mumbled into her hair. "I can't wait to get back to D.C." "How come? You never want to go home." "That was before." "Before what?" "Before US." "Oh." "I want to make love you to in your bed, on my couch, your kitchen table ... " "My kitchen table!" I chuckled. "I want to christen every piece of furniture in your apartment and mine!" "Oh, I am in so much trouble. I've created a monster." "Just a horny monster." "Uugg!" "Think you can keep up, Scully? I wouldn't want to tire you out." "Is that a challenge Agent Mulder?" "I do believe it is, Agent Scully." "I accept your challenge. I can keep up with you any day." "Ahh, be careful little girl, you've haven't even begun to scratch the surface of my sexual prowess." "Think quite a lot of yourself, don't you?" I laughed. "You inspire me." "Is that so?" "Just so my lady." She giggled. "Oh and Mulder?" "Mmm?" "If you call me 'little girl' ever again, you can forget getting any for at least a week!" "Ouch! I'll definitely remember that!" We lay in silence for a while just enjoying the intimacy of laying with each other, our naked bodies pressed together. I squeezed her tight and she squeezed me back. I whispered to her, feeling overcome that we had come so far in a week. I still wasn't sure something wasn't going to end it all abruptly. "I love you, Scully." "I love you too, Mulder." She paused. "Let's shower and get out of here. We have a lot of work to do this weekend." "This case is over, Scully! We can finish the reports on Monday!" She laughed. "No silly. I mean we have lots of furniture to christen and the sooner we get to it, the better!" I laughed with her. "You're a wicked, wanton woman, Scully." "And you wouldn't want me any other way." "You're right about that. Don't ever change. I love you just the way your are." THE END.