THAT'S ALL-PART 2 ************************************************* Wolfcove County Coroner's Office Wolfcove, Minnesota Scully stepped out of her car and took a deep breath, taking note of the wet smell in the near freezing air. Wolfcove was situated right on the tip of Wolfcove Lake, one of the many, many lakes that dotted Northern and Central Minnesota. Forest surrounded the town, but there were plenty of open fields dotted with farms. It was borderline wilderness, and Scully knew that wolves were rarely seen here, being much more common in the less populated north. She didn't question how she knew this. However, she did continue to fret over how she was going to act around a certain FBI agent this morning. The sun was just peeking over the horizon when she took her keys out and unlocked the door to the office. She was always the first one here. Since she and her assistant/secretary were the only full-time employees, there were some days she was the only one here. She was confident Brandi would be in today; the young woman had been greatly interested in the goings-on with the 'wolf-man killings,' especially since her own Rottweiler had been one of the dogs killed by the mystery creature. Flipping on lights, Scully headed toward her office, knowing she had to finish some paperwork on Gloria before she could release the woman's body for burial. She took a deep breath. She had known Gloria; the woman had lived only a couple of blocks away from her. For the first time, Scully felt a hint of unease that had nothing to do with Mulder and his imminent arrival. Who, or what, was killing these dogs? And were any other people in danger? Scully paused upon entering her office, startled for a moment by the name on the desk: Dana Waterston. It amazed her how everything here was familiar and yet strange at the same time. Never had she had a dream this bazaar before, and she had had some strange dreams since she had started with the X-Files. Turning on her computer, she sat down and started to work, finishing Gloria's paperwork, then flipping through everything she had on the case. She wasn't about to be caught off guard when the FBI started asking her for details. She paused. She was thinking like Dana Waterston. Like a woman who was about to meet a person she didn't know from an agency she was personally unfamiliar with. Odd. A knock on her door caused her to jump. It was Brandi. "Morning, Doc," the brunette said with a smile. "Feels like snow, doesn't it?" Scully nodded, once more caught between what she was beginning to think of as her two worlds. "Yes," she said softly. "Let's hope it doesn't interfere with the investigation." "Ah, I'm sure Jake can handle any kind of weather." Jake. Detective Lennox. Instinctively, Scully knew that Brandi had a crush on the Detective. The image of the man's face flashed through her mind's eye. He was tall, dark, handsome, with black hair and blue eyes, a wicked sense of humor and a love of the outdoors that bordered on obsession. "Yes, I'm sure he can." Scully heard the door to the outside open and saw Brandi turn to face the visitor. She smiled and moved away from Scully's line of sight. "Hi," Scully heard her say. "Can I help you?" "I'm looking for Dr. Waterston." Though she had been expecting him, the voice still caught Scully off guard. She tensed and started to rise from her seat. "And you are?" Scully headed for the door to her office. "Agent Mulder from the FBI. Detective Lennox was going to meet me hear this morning." Scully reached the door, paused, then walked out just as Brandi gushed, "Oh! You're here about the Wolf-man killings!" Mulder didn't reply as his attention had turned toward Scully. She stopped, struck speechless by what she saw. It was Mulder, no doubt about it, but he was different. He was too thin, his hair was longer and it appeared dull in the light of the front office. His suit was wrinkled ever so slightly and his sedate brown tie was askew. His shoulders seemed to droop, and he looked exhausted. In both appearance and manner, he was far different from the immaculate, confident Mulder she had known. "Mulder?" He seemed to stand a bit straighter at her entrance, and his eyes widened at her familiar usage of his name. Belatedly, she remembered Yasuo's warning that Mulder had never met her. 'This is just a dream,' she repeated to herself. "Have we met?" Mulder asked. But before she could reply, he continued. "Because I'm sure I would have remembered you." His pitiful attempt at flirting only saddened Scully, the words depressing her for no apparent reason. She took a deep breath and composed herself. "No, I'm sorry. I..." Think, Dana! "Jake told me you were coming, but I didn't expect you until later." A sad smile appeared on his face. "Jake," he whispered. As if on cue, the outside door opened and Jake walked through. They all turned to face him. "Speak of the devil," Mulder said. "We were just talking about you." Jake's eyes swept over Scully before meeting Mulder's. "Oh? Was Dana telling you stories of my incredible skills as an investigator?" Scully couldn't help but respond to his playful boast. "Yeah, so incredible, you had to call in the FBI to help." Brandi laughed as Jake scrunched up his face in reply. Scully smiled, and then noticed Mulder's discomfiture at the apparent familiarity between the three residents of Wolfcove. "So, Agent Mulder. Jake told me you were a profiler?" Mulder looked up from the floor, his tired eyes meeting hers. "I used to be. Right now I'm working for the X-Files." Right on cue, Brandi asked, "The X-Files?" "It's a department in the Bureau that investigates unexplained events," Jake told her. "Unexplained?" Scully pushed, keeping her attention on Mulder. "The paranormal, mostly." His voice was rough and his gaze was unsteady, as if he was embarrassed. Mulder, embarrassed about the X-Files? "Paranormal?" Brandi asked. "Like ghosts and things?" "Yeah, like ghosts and things." "But you don't think the killings here in Wolfcove are due to a ghost, do you?" Jake looked a little uncertain. "I mean, Moe told me that while you investigate the paranormal, you're damn good at catching earthly beings, too. You caught Donnie Pfaster." "Hey, wasn't he the guy that killed all those women down in the Twin Cities?" Jake nodded. "Moe Bocks called in Agent Mulder, and the two of them managed to track Pfaster down." "Not before he killed the woman he was holding captive at the time," Mulder said softly. 'But you caught him, Mulder,' Scully thought. 'You caught the bastard.' "So what do you think is killing our dogs, Agent Mulder?" Scully asked, breaking the silence that had descended after Mulder's terrible words. He focused on her again. "Probably a man," he said. "Another nutcase like Pfaster." Scully opened her mouth to argue, knowing from re-reading her files that it was unlikely that a human had killed the dogs and Gloria, but Jake spoke first. "Do you think he'll kill more people?" "Not if we catch him first." The words were confident, and to someone who didn't know Mulder, his attitude might speak of experience and ableness. But Scully knew Mulder. He may be acting like he was interested, but she felt that he really didn't care. It scared her. "Well, let's take a look at the records on the dogs," Jake said, walking toward Scully and waving her back toward her office. "After the first two deaths, we asked Dana to take a look at the dogs and assess their wounds..." "Which is why I know no human is doing this," she interrupted, facing Mulder. "I don't know if you know of some of the horrible things men have been known to do, Doctor..." "I do know, Agent Mulder," Scully interrupted yet again. "Believe me, I do." An uncomfortable silence descended on the group until Jake once again herded them toward the office. "Hold all my calls, Brandi," Scully told her assistant. She glanced at Mulder, as if daring him. And for the first time since the man had entered the building, his eyes flashed back, as if answering the dare. ************************************************* 'Who the hell is this woman?' Mulder asked himself. Confident, smart, beautiful. Never in his life had he met someone like her. She was intriguing, and yet she scared him, too. It was almost as if she could read his mind, and she was definitely challenging him. He knew there was no way he was up to the challenge, but he would try. As he watched her state her argument about the identity of the killer, he found he couldn't dispute her facts. She was a doctor, and a damn good one by all accounts. She wasn't making any of this up. Especially the tooth she had pulled from the body of the pit bull that had been killed two days ago. Mulder stared at the large molar, safely encased in a plastic bag. It was definitely a tooth, from something large. Like a wolf. "So you think it was a wolf, then?" For the first time, Dr. Waterston showed a bit of insecurity. She glanced at Lennox, who sat still, a grim look on his face. "I don't know if I think that," she said. "I know a little something about wolves, and Jake knows a lot." Mulder already knew that the Detective had studied wildlife biology as well as criminology. "For a wolf to attack a human, or even a large dog unprovoked, it would have to be either sick or injured. And a sick or injured wolf would have a hard time escaping notice around here." "We have found tracks that appear to be wolf-like in the area," Lennox added. "But as you know, the ground at the crime scene was too disturbed to pinpoint any kind of tracks." "So, it could be a wolf, but it's unlikely, is that what you're telling me?" Mulder was suddenly tired. He had had far too many cases recently that had appeared to be paranormal, but had turned out to be hoaxes. It was all he was ever sent on, anymore. He was tired of it. He would never have taken this case had it not been Agent Bocks, a man whom he had worked with and respected, who had asked him to help out. Waterston seemed to take an uneasy breath. "Agent Mulder, have you ever heard of a Manitou?" Amazed, Mulder didn't know whether he should laugh or cry. "Are you suggesting that that is what is killing these dogs?" "What's a Manitou?" Lennox was ignored as Waterston continued. "This area was once populated by several Indian tribes, Agent Mulder. Legends persist." "Why don't you just go all out and claim it's a werewolf, Dr. Waterston?" He couldn't help the sarcasm in his voice. "Why do you think the people here have started calling it the Wolf-man Killer?" He stared at her. She was serious. Absolutely, frigging serious. "Well, maybe the Detective here should start carrying silver bullets." "Agent Mulder," Waterston continued, undaunted. "Can I ask you a personal question?" Mulder shrugged, a bit nervous now. And completely aware that Lennox had become silent, watching the byplay between them nervously. "How can you work for a department that investigates the paranormal when you don't believe in it?" He clenched his teeth, angry with the redhead for no reason that he could fathom. "I was the only one qualified." "Meaning?" "I opened the X-Files several years ago, with a partner that believed, as I did." Memories of Diana left a bad taste in his mouth. "When she left, I went through a string of partners, but nobody would stay. I finally woke up and quit, too." He paused. "Last year, for some god-forsaken reason, they re-opened the X-Files and put me back on them." Waterston looked sad. Hell, she looked like she was about to cry. "Hey," he continued. "Maybe you should join the Bureau and take over. You sound like you might like the work." Like he used to. Before... The silence in the room was dreadful. Painful. Mulder was glad when Lennox broke it. "Whatever it is that's killing these people, man, beast, whatever, let's catch it before it kills again. Can we at least agree on that?" Mulder nodded, as did the doctor. Unnerved by what was occurring, Mulder asked to look at the medical records of the seven known mutilated dogs and the old woman. He managed to discuss the case as professionally as possible with his two companions. Not once did he meet the eyes of the woman across the desk. ************************************************* END PART 2