Inside the building, they went through a series of locked doors, Cooper swiping his card key through several of them.
They stopped at a guard station and they both held out their NSA badges.
The young man looked up at them. �Project name?�
�Purity Control.� Cooper answered, causing Scully to cringe inwardly.
They walked through a maze of hallways, through door after door, left after rights. Scully tried to keep mapping out their trail, but couldn�t quite keep up. They finally arrived in a lab that was so cold, it seemed to be existing in Sub-Zero temperature.
�Dr. Jenkins.� Cooper strode up to an older man and Scully followed. �I�d like to introduce you to Dana Scully, the scientist I was telling you about.�
The man had hard, cold eyes and Scully�s matched. �Dr. Scully.�
�Dr. Jenkins.� She said, willing her fact to relax. �It�s an honor, I�ve followed your work on Quantum Mechanics.�
�Have you now?� He asked, a tiny grin surfacing.
�Schroedinger�s cat�Wave interference�Fusion anomalies�Particle energy.� She forced herself to smile back at him. �I�ve always been fascinated with Quantum Mechanics. I believe it is the next religion.�
�The next religion?�
�Of course. What better time for science to be the dominant belief? The thought that we are all energy? That everything in existence is built up of nothing more than electrons, protons and neutrons?�
Cooper had taken off back to the NSA and she felt leery hanging around here without him. Scully again forced herself to relax throughout the morning as Dr. Jenkins took her around to show her the ropes. She was introduced to scientists, military officials, people in government service, mostly people she�d only read about
She was being shown around the building, had seen the medical facilities, the clean rooms, the labs.
�What you see here are all of our current subjects.� Dr. Jenkins said. �Twenty in all. We monitor them twenty-four-seven. We never know what oddity will be surfacing or when it will happen.�
Scully�s face burned as her gaze wandered over the monitors. These people, being held captive and tested upon like she herself had been.
Her gaze stopped on number 13. It had been over four years, and he�d grown up quite a bit, but she could recognize him plain as day. Gibson Praise. How old must he be now? Fifteen or sixteen? He was sitting on the floor, his head titled back on the wall.
�You�re a very special boy, Gibson.�
�I�m a very special lab rat.�
She could feel the anger boiling inside at the thought that he�d spent most of his younger years cooped up in a lab, in a cell, having tests performed. He should be in high school, going to dances, driving cars and flirting with girls.
But this was not the time or place to be thinking of this.
Scully forced her gaze to wander down the line, but her stare stopped on the next monitor. Number 14. Her blood went cold; her face automatically closed in fear of any emotion.
It was Alex.
***
She stood staring at the monitor, crossing her arms in what she hoped seemed casual enough. In reality, it was just a symbolic way to hold herself together. Her vision doubled, then tripled, and she forced herself to breathe. She stared at the monitor, biting her lip.
She was definitely not prepared to handle this.
Krycek seemed fine, thinner, of course, but well enough. He was sitting on the floor, leaning back against the wall. In fact, if there were no wall, he and Gibson would be sitting back to back.
�Number�s 13 and 14. Gibson Praise and Alex Krycek.� Dr. Jenkins voice interrupted her seething anger. �Those two are quite a pair. They are the most gifted here and have attitudes to match.�
Scully couldn�t tear her eyes from the monitor. She knew she was trembling and was afraid to speak. She couldn�t wait to get her hands on Cooper. Didn�t he know who Alex Krycek was? Why didn�t he tell her that he was here? Her thoughts suddenly spun to Skinner. God help him if he had any idea what was going on here. She would be addressing that issue the second she could.
In the meantime, she really needed to get a grip on herself before Dr. Moreau became suspicious. She only hoped that when she did squeeze the words out, she wouldn�t sound like a soprano wailing out a high C, full of vibrato. �Gifted how?�
�The little boy, Gibson, has amazing mind reading abilities. Word for word, he can recite what you�re thinking. He has complete control of what he hears and what he projects. Number 14, Alex, lacks the control that Gibson has and tends to feel emotions more strongly than any clear words. But he makes up for it with his telekinetic abilities.�
Scully recalled a scalpel flying into Krycek�s hand. The one he�d slit Diana�s throat with. It was the only time she�d ever seen him do anything of the sort. She wasn�t sure he�d really known what he�d done, thought that maybe it was just one of those things. �Telekinesis?�
�I�ve only seen him do it a couple of times.� He replied. �And he will not do it on command. He turns the electronics off sometimes, just to irritate us and he slid my coffee mug around the table one day, keeping it from me whenever I�d reach for it.�
�I�m assuming you believe he�s somehow manipulating the energy around him?� She said, hearing her voice from a thousand miles away.
�Basic Quantum theories, Dr. Scully.� He replied. �Although rest assured that Alex would rather die a horrible death then help us determine how he uses the DNA he was given. I doubt he�ll ever cooperate.�
Scully was silent for a moment, steadying herself to speak again. �What else?�
�We can�t accurately test their IQ�s because they�re always playing games with us. It�s the way they amuse themselves, and each other. When we administered the first Cattel B, Alex answered everything wrong. He picked out the least logical answer. He made Forrest Gump look like Einstein.�
�Implying that he would know the correct answer in order to pick the one most contrary.� Scully said.
�Yes.� Dr. Jenkins said. �He was showing off.�
At least his spirit didn�t break, she thought. Still as obnoxious as ever.
�Gibson, however, would give the correct answer before the question was out of my mouth. And they both soared off the charts with Raven�s Advanced Matrices and Wechsler Scale�s. We don�t the capability to interpret results like that. Especially considering we don�t know how much is coming from their cognitive abilities.�
On the monitor�s, Krycek and Gibson smiled at the same time.
�They can communicate with each other?� Scully asked, surprised. She hadn�t been able to sense anything in her tin can and had noted that only when she was brought into Spender�s office for the first time had she been able to reach out to Krycek.
�They�re the only two who can.� Dr. Jenkins answered. �Gibson told me that they play chess together, in their minds. Sometimes they can sense when they�re being watched and make it painfully obvious. I don�t think the director of the CIA was used to getting the finger.�
�No.� Scully said, suppressing a grin. �I can�t imagine he would be.�
Dr. Jenkins looked at her, then reached in his pocket to hand her a handkerchief. �My dear, you have blood on your lip.�
Scully swiped at her mouth in surprise then took the offered handkerchief. She had bitten her bottom lip so hard it was bleeding. �Thank you.�
He nodded, then turned towards her. �If you�d like to see their records, we can move onto my office.�
Scully nodded and then froze, staring at the monitors. Both Gibson and Krycek were looking into the camera. It seemed they were looking right at her. Her heart stopped. Tears surfaced in her eyes. She briefly felt the touch of Krycek�s mind and tried to respond.
I�m here, Alex. I�m here.
On the monitor, Krycek looked away in disgust.
�At least you didn�t get the finger.� Jenkins said.
Scully turned her back on the monitor�s and followed Dr. Jenkins out of the room.
***
�Mulder.�
�It�s me.� Frohike said. �Where are you?�
�Just pulling up in front of Skinner�s.�
�We�ve got something you need to see.�
Mulder put the car in park and glanced over at Koskie. �What�s up, Frohike?�
�Yoo-hoo, lover boy.� Koskie crooned towards the phone at the mention of Frohike�s name. �Where you at you sweet thing, you? Daddy needs some luvin�.�
�You can tell that freak that I got some luvin� for him.� Frohike said. �And it�s the kind that comes with a footprint on the ass.�
Mulder grinned over at Koskie. �He said he misses you too.�
�Oooh, sugar,� Koskie sighed, �you need to bring your sexy little self over here-�
�Mulder, we need to show you something.� Frohike interrupted. �It�s important.�
�How important?� Mulder asked, suddenly listening to his friend�s somber voice.
�Very.� Frohike said. �As in, I�m sure Skinner will want to know too.�
�Well, hell.� Mulder said, getting out of the car and heading to Skinner�s front door. �What is it about?�
�Can�t say.�
The front door opened as Mulder held a hand up to pound on it.
�You�re late.� Marie said. �And you know how he gets when he�s hungry.�
�Tell Marie I said hello.� Frohike asked.
�Frohike say�s hi.� Mulder smiled at her and they exchanged a quick kiss before he nodded his head towards the car where Koskie was emerging. �And blame your brother for our tardiness. He got his foot stuck in a sewer grate.�
�Sewer grate?� She asked, raising an eyebrow as she looked past Mulder�s shoulder towards her brother. �Steven, how on earth��
�Well, you see.� Koskie said, slinging an arm around her shoulders. �That�s a funny story.�
�Stories involving your usual grace are always amusing, brother.�
Mulder headed towards the kitchen where Skinner was. �Frohike say�s he has something-�
�I�m starving.� Skinner flipped a towel over his shoulder and gave Mulder a stern look. �You think as much as that damn cell phone is attached to your ear, you�d learn to call if you�re going to be late.�
�I don�t know, Frohike.� Mulder said. �He seems kinda cranky. But after he eats-�
�What�s that, Agent Mulder?� Skinner asked, stirring something on the stove. �You want to get busted down to jump-out squads?�
�Oh please, say it ain�t so. Anything but that.� Koskie said, appearing behind Skinner and sticking his finger in the pot. �Ouch, damn that�s hot!�
Marie looked at her brother. �Yeah, and all that steam rising up surely couldn�t have been a clue.�
Skinner laughed and shook his head. �Sometimes it�s painfully obvious who got the brains in the family.�
Mulder leaned in close to Skinner. �Frohike has something he thinks we should see.�
�Lasagna for everyone.� Skinner said. �Tell them to come on over.�
�And tell them to bring more Chianti.� Marie said.
Koskie grabbed the phone from Mulder and sighed into it. �I am counting the minutes until I set eyes on your lovely attributes, my lover.�
�You know, Koskie,� Frohike said, �If you weren�t so damn sexy, I�d kick your ass.�
�Grrrr.� Koskie purred. �You know how that tough-guy talk just turns me on��
***
The Lone Gunmen arrived just as Marie slid the lasagna into the oven. Langly walked into the kitchen and held up a twelve pack of Miller.
�Mind if we stash this in your fridge?�
Skinner shook his head and Marie grimaced. �That�s disgusting, Garth. Beer doesn�t quite go with Italian.�
Langly gasped as Frohike ripped open the pack and took one out for himself. �Beer goes with anything.�
She shook her head and cracked open a bottle of wine as Skinner set glasses on the counter.
�My dear bachelor.� Marie said, shaking her head. �What happened to that set of goblets I gave you last Christmas?�
�They�re probably still in the box they came in, stashed in his basement.� Mulder said, reaching into the top cabinet to scrounge up anything that resembled wineglasses. He found odds and ends and pulled them down.
�You giving me a hard time, Agent Mulder?� Skinner asked, smiling at him.
Mulder fixed him with a look. �Am I right?�
Skinner shook his head. �I don�t know what you�re talking about.�
�That�s what I thought.� Mulder said, then turned to see the somber face of Byers. �You finally ready to give it up?�
�I�m not sure it�s a good idea right now, Mulder.� Byers said. �Maybe we should wait until you can-�
�I think he�s saying that I shouldn�t be around.� Marie said.
�As well as your brother.� Byers replied. �No offense meant.�
She shook her head. �None taken. We can disappear for a bit, but your going to have to sacrifice a bottle of wine.�
�Nonsense.� Mulder said. �Anything you have to say can be said here.�
Langly and Frohike looked at each other, then back at Mulder.
�What?� Mulder asked.
Frohike sighed and tilted his head. �It�s about Scully.�
The silence in the kitchen stretched out for a minute. Both Koskie and Marie looked at Mulder.
�What about Scully?� Skinner asked in a flat monotone.
Byers shook his head and walked into the living room. �A tape was given to me today by one of my contacts.�
�Not Susanne?� Mulder asked, following Byers to see him sticking a tape in the VCR.
�No.� He replied. �A contact in the CIA.�
Everyone huddled behind Mulder as the tape began to play. It was a laboratory. Scientists and men in suits drifted back and forth in front of the camera.
�What are we looking at?� Skinner asked, looking down at Frohike.
�There.� Byers pointed at the screen.
Everyone leaned closer to take in the picture. A man and woman stopped in front of the camera, both wearing white lab coats. The woman was being introduced to several others.
Byers turned and looked at Mulder.
�It�s Scully.�
Mulder couldn�t look at anyone. He didn�t know how to respond. He didn�t know if he should. He knew she was alive, but no one else did. What was he supposed to say? He knew she couldn�t be working with anybody. What did she think she was doing? One thought kept invading his mind.
What the hell has she gotten herself into?
�You okay, Mulder?� Frohike asked.
Koskie�s voice came next. �Mulder?�
Marie put her hand on his arm and he knew that he was going to have to put on the best acting job of his life.
�It can�t be Scully.� He said breathlessly.
He was saved when someone knocked on the door.
***
Cooper had arranged for Scully to have a car waiting for her when she disembarked the chartered jet.
She had finished out the day in the building and flown back to DC that evening. Upon her mad dash to Skinner�s house, she took a drive by her old apartment in Georgetown. She sat out front in her car for a few minutes, staring at her old living room window as a Wallflower�s song played on the radio.
��This place is old�It feels just like a beat up truck�I turn the engine but the engine doesn�t turn��
She didn�t know why she had come by, she just knew that she needed to. Needed to face her past, the one she hadn�t received any closure on, and visit her old ghost.
��It smells of cheap wine and cigarettes�This place is always such a mess�Sometimes I think I�d like to watch it burn��
She glanced at herself in the rearview mirror. Her face done and her hair in a French Twist. She kept her hair up in the hope that no one would be able to tell how long it really was. That way, she would still be able to have her long hair the next time she ran away to hide. No one had really seen it long before and she doubted anyone would recognize her with it.
��I�m so alone�I feel just like somebody else�Man I ain�t changed�But I know I ain�t the same��
Good old, professional, somber Agent Dana Scully. In her tailored suit and high heels. She looked into her eyes for a few minutes.
She didn�t know that person anymore.
***
The second that Skinner opened his front door, Scully stormed inside and angrily spun around to face him. Seeing Krycek had taken its toll and she�d had nothing to do on the way down here but simmer in bitterness and anger. All she had managed to do was get worked up and by now she was furious.
�You neglected to tell me that fucking Alex would be there!�
Skinner reached out for her arm. �Dana-�
�What were you thinking?� She yelled, pulling her arm away and walking further into the living room. �That I would find out for myself when I happened to walk by him in the hall one day?�
Her words trailed off as she turned the corner to see people crowded in Skinner�s living room.
Her feet quit moving, her mouth fell open and her world seemed to stop. In her fury and heartache, she never stopped to think that her previous superior might have actually picked up a life of his own.
Mulder, the Lone Gunmen, Agent Koskie and a woman who she assumed was Marie stared back at her. The looks on their faces indicated that she may very well be mistaken for a snarling and snapping Velociraptor that had just hopped into the room. She tried to take in her surroundings; tried to keep a level head, but she had just come here from one of the worst days of her life. She was barely clinging to any sense of sanity. Seeing Krycek imprisoned and having a telepathic conversation with Gibson Praise was a bit more than she had been prepared for. She wanted to look back at everyone, to return their catatonic stares, she tried to, but the only person she could really see was Mulder.
Oh, this is so not good. She thought to herself. What is he going to think?
She had just barged in and inadvertently incriminated Skinner. Her presence here had just announced to everyone that she was alive, and apparently, working with the �bad guys�. Cooper walking in behind her didn�t help things much.
�Hail, hail. The gang�s all here.� He said. �Agent Koskie, Agent Mulder, wonderful to see you again.�
Skinner put his hands over his face and slid them down to his mouth as he exhaled. Cooper went to Scully�s side and looked at her.
�I received your page through my office, I couldn�t get in touch with you, but figured you�d be here.�
At the sight and sound of Cooper, Scully felt a sizzling wave of anger wash over her and she was again reminded of why she came here in the first place. Without realizing what she was doing, she turned towards him and got an arm halfway up before Skinner grabbed it.
�Not here.� He said softly. �Not now.�
�I understand your anger, Miss Scully.� Cooper said in that soothing voice of his that she was finding highly irritating right now.
�You don�t understand anything-� She said loudly. He went on as if she hadn�t spoken.
�And I can only hope you believe me when I say I�m truly sorry. I didn�t think.�
�Well, I for one, am really confused.� Koskie said. �I would rather have other, more important issues addressed than watch the three of you have a private argument amongst yourselves.�
Scully stood in between Skinner and Cooper, wishing there were a magical phrase she could utter to make this situation all better. She could sense Mulder�s confusion. She desperately tried to reassure him, to let him know that she could explain all this, but she didn�t know how effectively any of her thoughts were getting through.
She met Mulder�s surprised gaze and saw the wheels spinning. She was thankful when he managed to look heartbroken, scared and confused when he spoke.
�Hey Scully.�
She sighed and looked down at the floor. She put one hand on her hip and the other over her face, massaging her forehead.
Skinner put a hand on her shoulder. �Maybe you want to sit down.�
�Scully.� Frohike said softly. �You�re alive.�
�Winner! Give the man a prize.� Koskie�s voice rang out. It was abruptly silenced when half the people in the room threw him a look.
�Dude,� Langly said, �don�t you ever shut up?�
�No.� Skinner and Marie answered in unison.
�Well.� Cooper said. �This was bound to come up sooner or later.�
�Later would have been better.� Skinner replied.
Mulder narrowed his eyes at Skinner as a thought hit him. �You knew she was alive?�
�Just recently.� Skinner said, looking away.
�When were planning on telling me this?�
�I wasn�t sure what to tell you, Agent Mulder.� Skinner said, looking him in the eye. �It�s complicated.�
�Y�un�s ain�t usen them big words again are ye?� Koskie drawled. ��Cause I ain�t no educated maaain.�
�I didn�t mean that, you imbecile.� Skinner barked. �Complicated in other ways.�
�How did you know she was alive?� Mulder asked, meeting Scully�s eyes. She wasn�t looking too good.
Silence went around the room again as the accused clammed up, deciding it was prudent not to say anything at all. Scully stood in front of everyone, in between Skinner and Cooper, looking cold and defeated.
Mulder couldn�t have planned a better scenario in order to bring Scully back home. He was concerned about what she had been doing, and what she had said about his brother when she stormed in. But he knew there had to be a reasonable explanation for all of this.
Oh sure, he had just been in California a week ago and she hadn�t said anything. True, Skinner and Cooper knew she was alive and hadn�t said anything. Yes, she had been caught on tape keeping with the worst of company she could fine. What were people supposed to believe?
But he knew that was probably the point.
Mulder looked at Skinner again. �Who told you she was alive?�
�I did.� Cooper answered.
�You knew?� Mulder asked his friend, playing the part out as best as he could. �You saw me have a nervous breakdown, you knew what I was going through, and you never decided to tell me that she was still alive?�
�It�s a little more complicated than all that.� Cooper said softly.
Mulder grinned humorlessly. �There�s that word again. Complicated.�
Skinner looked over at him. �Mulder-�
�What do you want to say to me, Sir?� Mulder responded. �Let�s hear it, because I�m about to start feeling betrayed. Maybe offended. Insulted at the very least.�
�Let�s not dwell on these things right now.� Cooper said, putting a hand around Scully�s arm.
�Dwell?� Mulder raised his voice. �No, I only dwelled these things for three years of my life.�
Skinner stepped forward, putting his hands up. �Mulder-�
�You, of all people, have hidden this from me?� Mulder asked, glaring at Skinner. �And you, Chip, supposedly my friend? You would hide this from me, knowing all I was going through?�
Mulder was genuinely irritated at the fact that there was something going on that he wasn�t a part of. But he also knew Scully. He knew that whatever she was doing, and whatever Skinner and Cooper were hiding, that there was a damn good reason for all of it.
�And you, Scully?� Mulder asked softly, stepping in front of her. �You were my best friend. You were the only person I trusted. And I find you, conspiring with the enemy, hiding your survival. Hiding from me.�
Scully didn�t look at him. He was playing his part well. She was afraid she�d burst into laughter, which would inevitably lead to tears after this hideous day, week, month, year, decade that she�d endured.
�How could you do this to me?�
Scully forced herself to look up at him, to meet his serious gaze. Never mind that he�d just left her side in Newport Beach just a few days ago. She knew that finding her here with Skinner and Cooper must be confusing for him.
Cooper pulled a bit on her arm and looked at Mulder. �If you�ll let me have a moment, Agent Mulder, I need to have a quick conversation-�
�Oh no.� Mulder said, not breaking eye contact with her. �I�m first.�
�This will only take-�
�Maybe you didn�t hear me, Mr. Cooper.� Mulder glared at his friend. �I�m first.�
***
