ONE

Scully carefully probed the wound, checking for any signs of infection. Alex winced, cringing away from her fingers as she examined his side.

"Well, the good news is, the wound is clean and it doesn't seem to have penetrated any major organs, but the bad news is, it's pretty deep and he's lost a fair amount of blood." She told both Alex and Mulder as she straightened up.

Mulder nodded, then asked quietly. "Can you stitch it up?"

"Sure, I can." Scully replied with a sigh. "But with the amount of blood he's lost, I think it would be better if he went to hospital."

"No." Alex gasped, he struggled to sit up and Scully quickly pressed her hands down against his shoulders, gently restraining him.

"Take it easy Krycek." She told him, her voice firm. "Come on, the last thing you want to do now is start the wound bleeding again."

"Yeah, think of my poor couch." Mulder joked, then seeing the look on Scully's face, hastily added. "Hey I was just trying to lighten things up here."

With a roll of her eyes, Scully turned back to her patient. "Okay, if you don't want to go to hospital, that's fine. I can stitch the wound and give you some antibiotics to stop any infection from setting in, okay?"

Alex nodded, his face white and slicked with sweat. "Yes, that's fine....whatever. Just. No. Hospital."

"Okay then." Scully turned and started taking various instruments out of her medical bag, then she spotted Natty as the cat left her spot over near the fish tank and stalked over to where her human was laying.

"You're going to have to take the cat out of here while I do this." She told Mulder as she started preparing a shot for the injured man stretched out in front of her.

"Okay." Mulder walked over and scooped Natasha up in his arms, she tried to struggle out of his grip, wanting to get to her human, she was not sure if she liked this new smaller human touching her property.

"Hey, come on Nat, take it easy, Scully's here to help." Mulder told the distressed animal as he carried her over to the bedroom. Depositing her onto the bed, he quickly shut the door, locking her in, and walked back to where Scully was now administering a shot to a wincing Alex.

"There, that should help the pain a little." She told him soothingly. Even though she did not like the Consortium operative, she still hated seeing people hurt and suffering, that was part of the reason she became a doctor in the first place, to heal the sick and wounded.

Allowing her professionalism to take over now, she began to close the small but ugly looking wound.

Mulder watched, lower lip caught in his teeth, he stood by, waiting to help out if needed.

Finally Scully was finished, she carefully placed a large white bandage over the tiny black stitches, then gave him another injection, this time to guard against any infection.

"Shit I hate needles." Alex muttered as he watched the hypodermic slip out of his arm. Scully smiled as she pulled her surgical gloves off.

"All done now." She told him. Then she turned to her partner. "Listen Mulder, Krycek's lost a lot of blood, I've managed to closed the wound but he can't be moved, not for a few days at least, he's going to have to stay here."

"No problem." Mulder replied with a crooked smile. "He can have my bed, I can bunk out here on the couch."

Scully nodded, her face thoughtful. "You are going to have to call Skinner, let him know what's happened, you're going to have to get some backup to help protect Krycek from the guys that did this to him."

"No." Alex muttered. "Not Skinner, I don't want that bald headed son of a bitch anywhere near me... or Natty for that matter."

Scully turned to Mulder questioningly

"Uh, Natty is Alex's cat." Mulder replied.

Scully pursed her lips. "Oh, okay." Krycek...with a cat? That had to be one for the books all right.

"Don't worry Scully, I'll take care of everything" Mulder assured her.

She gave her partner a tired smile, then began to pack her medical equipment up once more.

"I'll come back first thing tomorrow morning to check on him." She said as Mulder walked her to the door. "And if anything happens, and I mean anything at all, you get him to a hospital straight away, is that clear Mulder?"

"Sure, I promise." Mulder replied lifting his hand up in a Boy Scout's salute. "Scout's honour."

She sighed. "Since when were you ever a Scout Mulder?" She asked. He opened the front door for her with a grin.

"Since never." He replied. "Oh and Scully, thanks for coming straight over, I really appreciate it you know."

She smiled at him. "Anything for you Mulder." She gave him a friendly pat on the arm, then turned and headed out the door and down the hallway, towards the lift.

Mulder watched her go, then turned and walked back over to Alex.

He looked up as Mulder crouched down beside him. "Is there anything I can get you?" He asked.

Alex saw the genuine concern in the other man's hazel eyes and was touched. "Umm, some water would be great." He replied, his voice weak, the painkiller that Scully had administered was already working, making him sleepy.

"One glass of water, coming right up." Mulder said with a grin, then headed into the kitchen to get it.

Alex accepted the glass of water gratefully, his mouth was dry, the blood loss making him dehydrated. Mulder perched next to him, helping him as he drank, tiny drops of liquid, sliding down the sides of his mouth as he swallowed the water, his throat working painfully.

Finally Alex finished the water and handed the empty glass back to Mulder.

"Thanks." He whispered, settling back against the cushions. Mulder noticed that some colour had crept back into the assassin's cheeks, that was a good sign, but he still looked haggard with pain. Fine lines had appeared around Alex's mouth and there were dark smudges under his eyes, making them look deeper set then usual.

"Are you sure you won't go to hospital Alex?" He asked gently. The younger man shook his head.

"Not safe there Fox." Alex whispered hoarsely. "They'll find me there, you know that."

"Okay then." Mulder reached down and touched the younger man's face with his tips of his fingers, lightly brushing the cool clammy skin. "Come on, let's get you into bed, that way you'll be more comfortable."

Taking the greatest of care, he help Alex to his feet, propping him up as best he could, Mulder half helped, half carried Alex over to the bedroom. He managed to open the door and get Alex inside the room, helping him over to the bed.

"Come on Nat, off the bed." Mulder ordered the dozing cat, who of course ignored him. She watched as her human was stripped of his clothes and settled down between the sheets. The other human fussing over him.

The next thing she knew, she was swept off the bed and carried out of the room and placed unceremoniously onto the couch.

"You stay there Natty and I'll get your dinner for you." Mulder told the outraged cat as he headed for the kitchen.

Natty glared after him for a moment, then with tail imperiously held in the air, she headed straight back to her human, and her place on the bed.

Mulder quickly filled Natasha's bowl with her favourite food and set it down beside her water bowl. Then he heated some soup for Alex.

Setting the steaming bowl and some dry toast on a tray he carried it into the room.

"I've some soup for you Alex..." Mulder began, then stopped, seeing a black shape curled up on Alex's legs, the assassin was stroking her sleek black fur while she purred, the very picture of contentment.

"Oh for the love of..doesn't that cat do *anything* she's told."

Alex gave the annoyed FBI agent a lazy grin. "Nope."

Mulder set the tray down on the bed over Alex's knees. Then he scooped Natty back up once more.

"Eat the soup Alex, while I take care of her Highness here." With that, he carried Natasha out of the room once more.

Alex watched them go, chuckling, then he drew his breath in sharply. God but his side hurt. He reached over and picked up the spoon, tasting the beef and vegetable soup. It was tinned, but not too bad. With a shrug, he finished it, and the toast as well, then feeling better than he had for a while, settled back against the pillows and closing his eyes, drifted off to sleep.

TWO

Skinner knocked on the door to Mulder's apartment. He had received the call from his agent an hour ago and he had left straight away and headed over to where Mulder lived.

He had given the large Assistant Director a brief outline of what had happened, requesting special protection for Krycek.

Skinner wanted to speak to the Consortium operative himself before he agreed to anything, that was why he was standing in front of Mulder's apartment door right now.

Mulder opened the door, Natasha draped in his arms, large golden eyes regarding this newest human solemnly.

"Hi Mulder, I came over straight away...whatever is that?" Skinner stared at the cat, then up at his agent clearly puzzled.

"It's a cat Sir." Mulder replied.

"Oh, I had no idea you owned a cat." Skinner replied. He reached out to tickle Natty behind her ear, Natty's purring instantly went up a notch.

"It's not mine, It's Krycek's." Mulder explained as he led the AD into his living room.

"Oh..err, I see." Skinner replied, Krycek..with a cat? Would wonders never cease?

"And speaking of Krycek, where exactly is he now?"

"In my bedroom Sir." Mulder replied. "He was injured, one of the men that ambushed him stabbed him. Scully managed to patch him up but he's lost a fair bit of blood so it's not safe to move him right now."

Skinner nodded thoughtfully, then replied. "Well, may as well go in there and speak to him, find out if he's willing to cut a deal with us." The AD turned to Mulder, lowering his voice.

"If he agrees to turn state's evidence, then we can have him placed into a safe house and cleared of any charges that may be brought against him. But he has to agree to help us first."

Mulder nodded. "I can't say for sure AD Skinner, but I think he might agree, he told me earlier that he wanted out of the Consortium, as a matter of fact it was when he was trying to set up his escape that he got ambushed in the first place."

"I see." Skinner replied thoughtfully. "Well, let's see what he's willing to agree to then shall we?"

With a cursory rap on the door, Skinner entered the bedroom, where Alex was settled up against the pillows watching Mulder's small portable TV. He looked up as both Skinner and Mulder entered the room.

Seeing Skinner, his mouth tightened perceptibly, his eyes darting to Mulder.

"Why is he here?" Alex asked, his voice cold and hard. It was easy to see that he did not like the tall heavy set man standing near the door of the bedroom.

"Calm down Krycek, I'm here to help you, okay?" Skinner told him as he walked over to where Alex was sitting, propped up in bed. He noticed how pale and worn the younger man appeared.

"Help me...how?" Alex asked, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"You need protection from the men that did this, and we need information, information that can help us bring down the Consortium once and for all. I think we might be able to help each other out in that respect." Skinner told him.

"And what do I get out of it...other than your...'protection'?" Alex asked, he did not trust the big man standing in front of him. Not one bit.

Skinner shrugged. "You won't be prosecuted for any of your crimes, not if you agree to testify against Spender and the rest of them, that's for a start, we will provide you with complete round the clock protection...." He stopped when Alex began to laugh.

"What...what is it?"

"Protection?" Alex replied harshly. ""Do you think you can protect me from these people Skinner? Oh come on, you know how powerful they are. You know what they are capable of, how many high ranking officials they have in their pockets. How can you protect me from these men, you can't even protect yourself."

Just then Mulder stepped forward, still holding Natty in his arms. "Alex. Skinner came all the way down here, the least you can do is hear him out."

Alex glanced at Mulder, then sighed. "Okay then." He replied. Natty chose that moment to leap from Mulder's arms to land lightly on Alex's lap. Alex scooped her up, holding her close to his chest.

"Hi there girl." He murmured in her ear lovingly. "Who's a pretty kitty then, hmmm." Nat meowed delicately, happy to be where she belonged, with her human.

Both Skinner and Mulder both had to repress smiles, it was so strange, seeing this side of the normally cold and deadly assassin. He was more given to holding guns, not cuddling cats.

"Alex, can I ask you a question and get a straight answer?" Skinner asked the younger man.

Alex glanced up at him, then nodded. "Sure."

"Do you want out of the Consortium or not?"

Swallowing hard, Alex nodded again.

"Fine, then we can help you." Skinner told him. "But that means you have to help us, understand?"

Alex thought for a moment, absently stroking Natasha. Both Mulder and Skinner waited, then Alex replied. "Okay, but there are some conditions of my own."

Skinner lifted his head. "Okay Alex, what are they?"

"First of all you'll get my help, but I want in on the ground floor, I want to be there when those bastards are exposed once and for all. And I want a safe place for both Natty and myself to stay while I'm recovering, somewhere remote where they can't get to us, and after this is all over, I disappear and no one comes looking for me. That's the deal Skinner. Take it or leave it."

"Depending on how much help you are willing to give us, I can't see that any of that is a problem." Skinner replied easily. "And don't worry Alex, I will hide you somewhere so remote no one will be able to find, not even the devil himself, you have my word on that."

Alex looked up at the Assistant Director, gauging the older man, trying to see if he could sense any deception at all, then finally deciding that he could trust him, nodded.

"Okay Skinner, I guess we have a deal."

Skinner smiled, then turned back to Mulder once more. "Come on Agent Mulder." He said quietly. "We have a few things to discuss."

THREE

It was not until the following week that Scully finally declared Alex fit to travel. Skinner was as good as his word and arranged a safe house up in the mountains, a remote cabin that was rarely used and barely known about.

Both the AD and Mulder were seated in the front while Alex, holding Natasha in her cat carrier, where sitting in the back, Scully was driving in her own car behind them.

He was looking out at the breathtaking panorama before him as they made the their way up the winding narrow road.

"Wow Skinner, when you said remote, you sure weren't joking." He remarked with a smile. In actual fact, he was swept away by the wild beauty of it all.

Skinner spared him a glance back. "It's the safest place I could think of Alex." He replied mildly. "No one knows about it, and it's totally secure, so no one can get in...or out." He let the last words sink in.

Alex shook his head. "I'm not going to try and escape Skinner." He replied quietly. "After all, I have no where to go, no cash to go with, I'm still recovering from this stab wound and now I have a cat to feed."

A loud meow from the carrier made all three men burst into laughter, Natty's timing was perfect.

A few more minutes, then a large modern looking cabin came into view. Alex nodded, impressed.

"This is it?" He asked.

"It sure is." Skinner replied. "Both you and Mulder will be staying here until we think it's safe for you to return to DC."

He pulled the car he was driving up in front of the long porch. The three of them were climbing out of the car, when Scully pulled up behind them.

They watched as she got out from behind the steering wheel and walked over to where they were all standing.

She surveyed the outside of the cabin, then turned to Skinner. "It's lovely." She said, they could hear the approval in her voice.

"Wait 'til you see the inside." Skinner replied with a grin. He led all of them up to the house, pulling a set of keys out from the pocket of his overcoat. The ground had a good covering of snow, and they carefully made their way through it up to the cabin.

The AD unlocked the front door and pushed it open, stepping into a large and comfortably furnished living room.

The others entered behind him, Mulder whistling in appreciation at the surrounding, he had half been expecting some primitive log shack complete with a banjo playing idiot sitting in the dirt out front. Suddenly an image of the Peacock brothers flashed through his mind and he shuddered.

Alex gave him a keen glance. "You okay?" He asked.

Mulder looked at him, was that concern he heard in the assassin's voice? Aloud he replied. "Yeah, I'm fine, just a little cold is all."

Alex nodded, still not quite convinced. He turned to Skinner who was explaining about the security system.

"The control panel is over here." He was saying, indicating towards a small gray coloured box near the door. "All the codes are written down, I'll give them to you before I leave."

Skinner then gave them a run down of the cabin, explaining to them where everything was, both Mulder and Alex listened to the older man, Alex holding Natty firmly n his arms, he had released her from the carrier and she she was now looking around the room, eager to check out her new surroundings.

Finally Skinner handed the keys over to Mulder, who took them and put them in the pocket of his jeans.

"I expect you to check in once a day on the special number that I have given to you." Skinner told him. "There's plenty of food in the kitchen and any new supplies that you need will be brought up to you by either myself or Agent Scully, only she or I will have any contact with you, the less people that know that you are both here, the better."

"Amen to that." Alex muttered under his breath. Natty purred and rubbed her head against her human's chin in complete agreement.

Skinner gave the younger man a grim smile. Then he turned back to Mulder once more. "Anything at all happens Mulder and you are to contact me immediately, no trying to handle things on your own. I will expect a full report on everything that happens here, and as for you Alex..."

He turned to the younger man, his face set in stern lines. "Just remember that it's in your best interests to give your full cooperation while you are here. Any trouble and I will have you placed in a high security lockup, is that clear?"

Alex nodded. "Yes it is." He replied, his voice soft, but firm. Skinner nodded, satisfied, every instinct was telling him that this time Alex Krycek was on the level, and Skinner was a man that trusted his instincts implicitly.
"Well then, Scully and I will take our leave of you." Skinner said. He glanced at Alex. "Scully will be back in a couple of days to check on you, make sure you are recovering."

"Okay." Alex replied, that had been part of the agreement, that Scully would be able to drive back out to the cabin to check on her patient, his wound was healing nicely, but she did not want to take any chances with it.

Finally the Assistant Director and Dana Scully left, both Mulder and Alex watched as the car drove away, heading towards the main road and back to the city. The car that Skinner had drove them up in was still parked outside the cabin, a light dusting of snow was already starting to fall.

Mulder looked at Alex, then smiled. "Well I guess we had better get out stuff out of the car and inside before it starts getting heavier."

"Yeah, you're right." Alex replied. He looked up at the heavy gray clouds overhead. "It looks like we are in for a storm alright."

Natty gave no opinion, she was merely happy to snuggle deeper into her human's arms and watch as the snow began to fall.