[X-Files] Fanfic: Variations on a Theme, Chapter 4 (PG)
Title: Variations on a Theme
Author: colebaltblue
Artist: TLynnfic
Word Count: 21,000 (this chapter 3,700)
Rating: PG
Warnings: no specific ones
Summary: Alternate universe. Dr. Dana Scully is a medical examiner for the city and county of San Francisco when she is assigned the Jane Doe #19292. In Washington, D.C. behavioral sciences unit FBI agent Fox Mulder becomes interested in Jane Doe #19292 and heads out to San Francisco to investigate. The rest, they say, is history.
Author's Notes: Written for the X-Files Big Bang 2010. Many, many, many thanks to Tracy and Cass for their comments, critiques, and corrections.
7:47 am
July 18, 1993
San Francisco City Medical Examiner's Office
San Francisco, CA
Dana Scully faltered a step when she walked in the front doors of the ME's office and spied a vaguely familiar form sitting in one of the chairs in lobby. Mulder's head snapped up when he heard the door she had just enter through close.
"Doctor Scully," he said, rising to his feet.
"Agent Mulder," she responded, tipping her head to the side. "How did you get in? The building isn't open yet."
He smiled at her, but didn't answer. She smiled back.
"Are you here to see me?"
"Yes, if you have a moment."
"What is this about?" No new cases had come up and they hadn't spoken since his phone call in the middle of the night a week before. She had expected him to call when he came out, not show up at her office.
"Emily Sims."
She turned and headed down the hallway towards her office. He followed.
"I'm not sure what that has to do with me, Mulder. The Sims are in Sacramento and Emily is missing, there's no body."
They arrived at her office and she juggled papers and coffee while she unlocked it and let them both in. Mulder seated himself in the chair across from her desk. She set her stuff down and settled in. He leaned forward and handed her a folder.
She opened it.
"They're Emily Sims's medical records."
"I can see that," she replied glancing them over before shutting the file. "Mulder, what are you doing with these? Why are you showing these to me? How did you get them?"
"That's not important. Read them."
"Mulder, I can't read someone else's medical records without permission. At least not like this!" Her voice had lowered to a whisper.
He glanced around and then leaned forward with a twisted smile. "No one will know," he whispered. "Just read them Dr. Scully, I need your opinion on them."
Scully sighed and then opened the file against her better judgment. She scanned the top page again and then began looking through the papers. Emily's file was uncommonly thick, especially for someone her age. The summary itself was nearly three pages long. Scully thumbed through pages and pages of print outs describing tests and treatments that included drug compounds she didn't recognize.
There had been no reports in the media of special medical conditions for her or anything so she was surprised to read about the treatments and therapies Emily seemed to be undergoing. Scully reached for her glasses and looked more closely at one of the later reports.
"Mulder?" she asked, looking up at him. She held the file open to a page describing a treatment for Emily. It included a picture of her pale and pinched sweat-drenched face. Mulder was watching Scully with a knowing look on his face.
"You see it too?"
"What is this? Where did you get this information?"
"That doesn't matter," he replied, knowing that she had spotted the evidence of the same kinds of treatment that would explain Jane Doe 19292's injuries. The resemblance between the two had been minor, but the picture of Emily looking near death had made them look uncannily similar.
"I've never even heard of these facilities," Scully said, reading the names of the laboratories and treatment facilities printed on the report page. They were located in the Bay Area, and while not familiar with every private facility in the area, she hoped that at least through all of her years here she'd recognize names. Especially if she was as sick as she seemed to be.
"You wouldn't have. They don't exist."
"What? How can they not exist?"
Mulder took a deep breath. On his way out here he had convinced himself that he could trust Scully with the information he was about to tell her. His stomach tightened briefly when he thought of the last woman he had trusted with information and her betrayal. But, that was years of time and experience ago. Something told him that Scully wouldn't betray him. She may not believe him, but she wouldn't betray him. It was now or never, he though to himself.
"Scully, they're all connected. Samantha, Emily, the Jane Does, and the other little girls I've come across in my research. They're connected by their anonymity, their injuries, and their disappearances. I think they're being abducted, experimented upon, and I think that the Jane Does are the ones that didn't make it."
"Mulder, what you're suggesting-"
He continued, ignoring her interruption. "I think Mrs. Sims was silenced because she objected to Emily being taken. I think she couldn't handle it and they considered her a risk."
"Who?"
He ignored her, not even sure if he knew the answer to that question himself. "It's a pattern that's repeated in the family of the missing girls, they either keep quiet or they're killed."
"Mulder…" Scully said.
"Scully, I need your help. I'm so close to figuring this out. I need your help." He hoped he didn't sound too desperate.
Scully stopped and looked at him, not sure what to say. "Who is Samantha, Mulder?" she asked, sensing that she was the key to all of this. "What is she to you?"
Mulder hung his head and was quiet for a moment. "She was my sister," he answered, his voice slightly muffled.
Scully sighed. This was dangerous. This was more than dangerous. Mulder was too close to this case and they both knew it.
"Scully, I'm not crazy," he said, pleadingly. He wasn't sure whom he was trying to convince.
Scully started to shake her head no. Maybe he wasn't crazy, but he was close. "Mulder, you're too close to be objectionable here, it's led you to draw conclusions that just aren't there."
"Scully…"
Scully pressed her lips together. Something had bothered her about Jane Doe 19292 and then Emily Sims. She didn't think Mulder was right, but she also wasn't sure he was entirely wrong either.
"All right," she said, against her better judgment. Mulder looked relieved and worried at the same time.
He stood up before she had a chance to say anything more, as if she'd change her mind at any second. He turned to go, then stopped and turned back.
"Thank you, Scully."
"What do you need me to do, Mulder?"
"I'll meet you for dinner? Eight? That Italian place from last time?"
Scully nodded in response. She looked down at her desk and he left. Emily Sims' file was open on it. Not knowing exactly why, she closed it and put it in her locking file drawer, in the back, and let it slide down between two files, hiding it as best she knew how. She couldn't help but feel she had just fell down a rabbit hole.
She spent the rest of the day, hard at work on her normal caseload. Lake most large city medical examiners, they were understaffed and overworked. The San Francisco ME's was an old boy's club and Scully couldn't help but feel like she'd gotten the job there so that she could be a token female doctor on staff. George was good to her, nice, polite, and as friendly as he could be, but other than him, she was ignored for the most part. Unless someone had a case they didn't want or a problem.
It worked for her though. She did good work and despite the fact that she wasn't "in" with her coworkers, they knew that. There was a sense of grudging respect from her fellow doctors even if it was tinged with condescension or she was outright ignored. It meant, though, that she could do her job in peace, her decisions weren't questioned, and if she asked for something then she usually got it without a fight.
By five her feet hurt and she stank. Being generally ignored by her coworkers was only beneficial to a point, and that was the point at which she got all the bodies that no one else wanted to deal with, despite the fact that policy was to distribute bodies evenly. This one had been discovered in a residential hotel in the Tenderloin and had been dead for days before the complaints of the stink were numerous enough the police realized it wasn't just the usual hotel stink the drug dealers, pimps, and prostitutes that occupied the building were smelling.
But, a suspicious death was a suspicious death and an autopsy had to be done. She had taken samples, of the dirt under his finger and toenails and what body fluids she could. The organs were in such a state she wasn't sure if a determination would be possible of what killed the man. Although no one would claim the body and no one would probably care, she still did her level best on the autopsy. It was her job after all.
She hoped to get done in time to go home and shower before dinner, but now she wasn't sure if she could. She had also wanted to go over the Jane Doe from Marin's file before she went so she could talk to Mulder about it. Then, Ethan had called and asked her what she was up to for the night. He was at her apartment and wanted to know if she'd be home soon. If she went home to shower, she'd have to explain why she was leaving again and she wasn't sure if she wanted to. Scully sighed. Some days… she thought to herself.
Checking the time, she pulled Jane Doe's file towards her and started scanning it. It wasn't very complete, but the pictures of this Jane Doe's injuries were similar to her Jane Doe's. She pulled 19292's file out from her drawer and looked over it again, holding up the two Jane Does side by side. Now, it was more apparent that there could be a connection between the two. With Marin's Jane Doe's photo next to 19292's, even the physical resemblance of the girls was striking.
Scully opened Emily Sims' medical records again and looked through the thick reports from her treatments. She grabbed a pen and piece of paper and scribbled down some of the drug compounds. She'd have tests run on 19292's blood in the morning. Maybe there was a connection, maybe there wasn't, but a test wouldn't hurt and it would bring peace of mind. If there were, she'd see about getting tests done on Marin's Jane Doe.
She glanced at the clock and realized with a shock she'd been at work on the files for over two hours. "Shit," she muttered to herself, hastily shoving papers back into the files. She opened her desk drawer and shoved the files in the back, letting them drop, before she shut it and locked it. Usually she kept the keys in her desk, in case anyone needed her files, but she dropped them into her purse instead tonight. Maybe what Mulder said got to me, she thought.
She hurried to the work locker room, calculating how much time she had for a shower before she'd have to catch a cab or be late. She stunk too bad not to take a shower, but she wasn't sure if five minutes would do the trick. Maybe she'd just be late. Not having time and being pretty sure she was the last doctor at the morgue, she just dropped her purse and her bag on the bench in front of her locker and left it open as she went into the showers.
As quickly as she could she scrubbed herself with the harsh soap provided by the morgue. It was hard on the skin, but usually managed to take most of the stink off. She'd smell like antiseptic when she got to dinner, but that was better than smelling like autopsy. She turned off the spray and cocked her head as she thought she heard the door to the locker room close. She was one of only a few females on staff and she wondered who had come in, or just left. Curious, she wrapped her hair in a towel and stepped out.
"Hello?" she called out, but no one answered. She felt strange though, as if someone was in the locker room still. "Hello?" she asked again, heading towards her locker. As she rounded the corner, the motion of the door closing caught her eye. Someone had been in the locker room. But, they hadn't answered her. Scully suddenly felt dirty and violated. She hurried over to her stuff and got dressed as quickly as she could. As she left, she shook her head, not quite able to let go of the feeling that something was not quite right.
Mulder was waiting for her when she got to the restaurant. He smiled at her and rose just slightly out of her seat as she sat down.
She smiled wryly, "I see someone taught you manners at some point."
Mulder looked chagrinned and gave her a quick grin. "That's what East Coast money will get you, all manners and no class."
Scully let the smile drop from her face. Mulder furrowed his brow at her.
"What happened?"
"What?" she asked.
"What happened?"
Scully briefly considered denying it, but she was pretty sure Mulder would be able to tell she was obfuscating and she wasn't sure he'd let it go. "Something happened in the locker room right before I left work," she began. "I'm not quite sure what, but I'm pretty sure someone was in there and left right as I got out."
Mulder looked at her, waiting for her to continue.
"I called out when I thought I heard something, but nobody answered. Then, I saw the door closing. I don't know why no one would answer if they were in there."
Mulder nodded. "Do you think it was one of the other doctors?"
Scully shook her head. “No, I'm pretty sure I was the only one left down there."
"Is anything missing?"
"No, my wallet and cell phone were still there. So were my clothes."
"Did you have any files with you, anything related to the Jane Does or Emily Sims?"
"No, those can't leave the morgue." Scully paused. "It must've been my imagination."
Mulder looked like he didn't believe her, but let the subject drop. The placed their order.
"I drove around to the addresses listed in Emily's medical records," Mulder began. He reached down into a bag he had on the floor next to him and pulled out a stack of pictures. "Do these look like they could be medical facilities that'd have the equipment necessary to treat her?" he asked, handing them to her.
Scully looked through the pictures. Most of them were of deserted commercial business park storefronts. Some of the names on the doors didn't match the name of the laboratories that Mulder had scribbled on the back of the photos. He had obviously done some snooping and there were a few shots that looked like they had been taken through mail slots of empty, dusty interiors.
"It's hard to say, but no, I'd say that none of these look like active medical practices," Scully replied as she looked at the photos. "You never know sometimes, with the private clinics," she added.
Mulder looked satisfied.
She knew she should bring up the issue of the similarities between Emily and her two Jane Does, but she wasn't sure if she did that she'd be able to get Mulder to talk about Samantha. Samantha was at the root of his investigation into these little girls, and Scully guessed, the key to both Mulder and his obsession with the cases. She wanted to know more before she delivered what he'd take to be as a confirmation that he was right all along about these cases.
"Tell me about Samantha," she asked, leaning back and resting her hands on the table.
Mulder's expression changed, becoming more guarded.
"She was… is my sister."
Scully cocked her head to the side. Mulder sighed in resignation.
"She was abducted in 1973 from our house on Martha's Vineyard while my parents were out and I was babysitting." Scully knew from the way he talked about her, she had never been found.
"I've been looking for her ever since." The simple sentenced carried a lot of weight, and although she didn't know Mulder well, she could tell that he meant that he had been looking ever since that day, that his entire life had been dedicated to finding his sister.
"So, these monsters that you profile as part of your work with the FBI?"
Mulder nodded, understanding what she was asking, "I'm hoping to find out who took her."
"Were there any clues?"
"You mean, besides the fact that my father never spoke to my mother again?"
"Well, that isn't-" Scully began. Mulder was already shaking his head no, knowing what she was trying to say.
"No, it was something else. No, no trace of her, and I can't even remember what happened. I saw a bright light and blacked out."
Mulder was quiet as their waiter arrived and put their salads in front of them. Scully picked up her fork and started eating right away. Mulder just stared at his for a moment.
"A few years ago, I thought I had found her killer. A vacuum salesman had been on the island that summer and he had been connected to a string of kidnappings all over the east coast."
"But it wasn't?" Scully asked, around a mouthful of lettuce when Mulder paused.
"The body he said was my sister's … it wasn't her's. I had it DNA tested against mine and everything."
Scully was impressed, DNA testing was in its infancy, but it had very strong practical applications and it was smart of Mulder to try it.
"Well, she was someone's little girl. And you found her," Scully said, compassionately.
Mulder sighed. "Yes, but when I went to my father to tell him, he told me to drop it."
Scully raised an eyebrow at him. Mulder grinned sardonically in reply.
"Well, he didn't use those words, but that was the general idea." Mulder ate a few bites of his salad mechanically. "I guess I knew I was on to something, though; it was the first acknowledgement my father had made of my sister's disappearance, one way or another."
Scully followed the pine nuts around her plate with the tines of her fork, finally managing to trap one. She lifted it to her mouth and caught Mulder's look. He smirked at her. She smiled and shook her head.
They were silent for a moment and Scully watched as Mulder picked a bit more at his salad. Their dinner arrived before either one of the broke the silence.
Scully ate a few bites of her gnocchi before she spoke.
"I may have found something today."
Mulder's demeanor changed suddenly. His fork stopped halfway to his mouth and he looked surprised and annoyed at the same time.
"I think it may be possible that the three cases are related," she continued before he had a chance to recover. Mulder stared at her with impatience.
"Their physical resemblance is uncanny for three seemingly unrelated cases so close to one another. It’s like they could be sisters. And, the injuries that the other Jane Doe sustained could be related to my Jane Doe's. Nothing is conclusive, though."
"Scully!" Mulder began, excitedly.
She held up her hand, stopping him.
"It's similar, Mulder, but certainly not the same."
"But-"
"And, furthermore," she continued, "I don't have any proof."
She considered not saying anything to him until she had the results back, but figured she was in it up to her neck already, "I am, however, having my Jane Doe's blood tested for the same drugs that were listed in Emily's medical report."
Mulder looked excited. Scully shook her head; not knowing if that was necessarily good.
"That's excellent, Scully!"
"I don't know any more, and the tests may not show anything, Mulder. Try not to get too excited." Mulder waved his hand at her, as if to say he didn't care. Scully sighed, knowing that he was not going to ever let the cases go. Oh well, she thought, oh well.
They finished their dinner. Mulder had talked about past cases he had investigated and pestered Scully for opinions on whether or not they were connected to the current three cases. Scully reminded him constantly that they had no proof the cases were connected at all. It was a lively discussion and Scully could tell Mulder was enjoying himself. Although they were clearly on different pages when it came to these cases, she couldn't help but enjoy herself either.
They had stepped out into the cool San Francisco night as the restaurant and closed behind them. The North Beach neighborhood was still active and lively even at ten as crowds of people moved in and out of bars and a few shops that stayed open this late.
The night was balmy, rare for San Francisco in July, but a welcome treat and the locals and tourists alike seemed to be enjoying the fact that they could be out without jackets, a rarity at this time of year.
"Thanks for dinner," Scully said, as she scanned Columbus Avenue for a taxi. They were plentiful tonight and she looked back at Mulder just in time to catch a smile.
"No problem. I'll be in town for a few more days and I'll let you know if I find anything," he said. Scully nodded.
"Well…" she trailed off, then shrugged. "That sounds good." She gave him a half smile and turned towards the street. Stepping out a bit she raised her hand. She glanced back at Mulder as the cab slowed and pulled up next to her. He stepped forward as she opened the door and put his hand on the doorframe.
"See you," he said.
"See you," she replied as she got in. He closed the door for her and smiled before turning away. She watched him for a moment and then looked up at the review mirror. She blushed when she realized the cabbie had been watching her. "Van Ness and Pacific," she said softly and sat back as the cab pulled into traffic.
Chapter 5
Author: colebaltblue
Artist: TLynnfic
Word Count: 21,000 (this chapter 3,700)
Rating: PG
Warnings: no specific ones
Summary: Alternate universe. Dr. Dana Scully is a medical examiner for the city and county of San Francisco when she is assigned the Jane Doe #19292. In Washington, D.C. behavioral sciences unit FBI agent Fox Mulder becomes interested in Jane Doe #19292 and heads out to San Francisco to investigate. The rest, they say, is history.
Author's Notes: Written for the X-Files Big Bang 2010. Many, many, many thanks to Tracy and Cass for their comments, critiques, and corrections.
7:47 am
July 18, 1993
San Francisco City Medical Examiner's Office
San Francisco, CA
Dana Scully faltered a step when she walked in the front doors of the ME's office and spied a vaguely familiar form sitting in one of the chairs in lobby. Mulder's head snapped up when he heard the door she had just enter through close.
"Doctor Scully," he said, rising to his feet.
"Agent Mulder," she responded, tipping her head to the side. "How did you get in? The building isn't open yet."
He smiled at her, but didn't answer. She smiled back.
"Are you here to see me?"
"Yes, if you have a moment."
"What is this about?" No new cases had come up and they hadn't spoken since his phone call in the middle of the night a week before. She had expected him to call when he came out, not show up at her office.
"Emily Sims."
She turned and headed down the hallway towards her office. He followed.
"I'm not sure what that has to do with me, Mulder. The Sims are in Sacramento and Emily is missing, there's no body."
They arrived at her office and she juggled papers and coffee while she unlocked it and let them both in. Mulder seated himself in the chair across from her desk. She set her stuff down and settled in. He leaned forward and handed her a folder.
She opened it.
"They're Emily Sims's medical records."
"I can see that," she replied glancing them over before shutting the file. "Mulder, what are you doing with these? Why are you showing these to me? How did you get them?"
"That's not important. Read them."
"Mulder, I can't read someone else's medical records without permission. At least not like this!" Her voice had lowered to a whisper.
He glanced around and then leaned forward with a twisted smile. "No one will know," he whispered. "Just read them Dr. Scully, I need your opinion on them."
Scully sighed and then opened the file against her better judgment. She scanned the top page again and then began looking through the papers. Emily's file was uncommonly thick, especially for someone her age. The summary itself was nearly three pages long. Scully thumbed through pages and pages of print outs describing tests and treatments that included drug compounds she didn't recognize.
There had been no reports in the media of special medical conditions for her or anything so she was surprised to read about the treatments and therapies Emily seemed to be undergoing. Scully reached for her glasses and looked more closely at one of the later reports.
"Mulder?" she asked, looking up at him. She held the file open to a page describing a treatment for Emily. It included a picture of her pale and pinched sweat-drenched face. Mulder was watching Scully with a knowing look on his face.
"You see it too?"
"What is this? Where did you get this information?"
"That doesn't matter," he replied, knowing that she had spotted the evidence of the same kinds of treatment that would explain Jane Doe 19292's injuries. The resemblance between the two had been minor, but the picture of Emily looking near death had made them look uncannily similar.
"I've never even heard of these facilities," Scully said, reading the names of the laboratories and treatment facilities printed on the report page. They were located in the Bay Area, and while not familiar with every private facility in the area, she hoped that at least through all of her years here she'd recognize names. Especially if she was as sick as she seemed to be.
"You wouldn't have. They don't exist."
"What? How can they not exist?"
Mulder took a deep breath. On his way out here he had convinced himself that he could trust Scully with the information he was about to tell her. His stomach tightened briefly when he thought of the last woman he had trusted with information and her betrayal. But, that was years of time and experience ago. Something told him that Scully wouldn't betray him. She may not believe him, but she wouldn't betray him. It was now or never, he though to himself.
"Scully, they're all connected. Samantha, Emily, the Jane Does, and the other little girls I've come across in my research. They're connected by their anonymity, their injuries, and their disappearances. I think they're being abducted, experimented upon, and I think that the Jane Does are the ones that didn't make it."
"Mulder, what you're suggesting-"
He continued, ignoring her interruption. "I think Mrs. Sims was silenced because she objected to Emily being taken. I think she couldn't handle it and they considered her a risk."
"Who?"
He ignored her, not even sure if he knew the answer to that question himself. "It's a pattern that's repeated in the family of the missing girls, they either keep quiet or they're killed."
"Mulder…" Scully said.
"Scully, I need your help. I'm so close to figuring this out. I need your help." He hoped he didn't sound too desperate.
Scully stopped and looked at him, not sure what to say. "Who is Samantha, Mulder?" she asked, sensing that she was the key to all of this. "What is she to you?"
Mulder hung his head and was quiet for a moment. "She was my sister," he answered, his voice slightly muffled.
Scully sighed. This was dangerous. This was more than dangerous. Mulder was too close to this case and they both knew it.
"Scully, I'm not crazy," he said, pleadingly. He wasn't sure whom he was trying to convince.
Scully started to shake her head no. Maybe he wasn't crazy, but he was close. "Mulder, you're too close to be objectionable here, it's led you to draw conclusions that just aren't there."
"Scully…"
Scully pressed her lips together. Something had bothered her about Jane Doe 19292 and then Emily Sims. She didn't think Mulder was right, but she also wasn't sure he was entirely wrong either.
"All right," she said, against her better judgment. Mulder looked relieved and worried at the same time.
He stood up before she had a chance to say anything more, as if she'd change her mind at any second. He turned to go, then stopped and turned back.
"Thank you, Scully."
"What do you need me to do, Mulder?"
"I'll meet you for dinner? Eight? That Italian place from last time?"
Scully nodded in response. She looked down at her desk and he left. Emily Sims' file was open on it. Not knowing exactly why, she closed it and put it in her locking file drawer, in the back, and let it slide down between two files, hiding it as best she knew how. She couldn't help but feel she had just fell down a rabbit hole.
She spent the rest of the day, hard at work on her normal caseload. Lake most large city medical examiners, they were understaffed and overworked. The San Francisco ME's was an old boy's club and Scully couldn't help but feel like she'd gotten the job there so that she could be a token female doctor on staff. George was good to her, nice, polite, and as friendly as he could be, but other than him, she was ignored for the most part. Unless someone had a case they didn't want or a problem.
It worked for her though. She did good work and despite the fact that she wasn't "in" with her coworkers, they knew that. There was a sense of grudging respect from her fellow doctors even if it was tinged with condescension or she was outright ignored. It meant, though, that she could do her job in peace, her decisions weren't questioned, and if she asked for something then she usually got it without a fight.
By five her feet hurt and she stank. Being generally ignored by her coworkers was only beneficial to a point, and that was the point at which she got all the bodies that no one else wanted to deal with, despite the fact that policy was to distribute bodies evenly. This one had been discovered in a residential hotel in the Tenderloin and had been dead for days before the complaints of the stink were numerous enough the police realized it wasn't just the usual hotel stink the drug dealers, pimps, and prostitutes that occupied the building were smelling.
But, a suspicious death was a suspicious death and an autopsy had to be done. She had taken samples, of the dirt under his finger and toenails and what body fluids she could. The organs were in such a state she wasn't sure if a determination would be possible of what killed the man. Although no one would claim the body and no one would probably care, she still did her level best on the autopsy. It was her job after all.
She hoped to get done in time to go home and shower before dinner, but now she wasn't sure if she could. She had also wanted to go over the Jane Doe from Marin's file before she went so she could talk to Mulder about it. Then, Ethan had called and asked her what she was up to for the night. He was at her apartment and wanted to know if she'd be home soon. If she went home to shower, she'd have to explain why she was leaving again and she wasn't sure if she wanted to. Scully sighed. Some days… she thought to herself.
Checking the time, she pulled Jane Doe's file towards her and started scanning it. It wasn't very complete, but the pictures of this Jane Doe's injuries were similar to her Jane Doe's. She pulled 19292's file out from her drawer and looked over it again, holding up the two Jane Does side by side. Now, it was more apparent that there could be a connection between the two. With Marin's Jane Doe's photo next to 19292's, even the physical resemblance of the girls was striking.
Scully opened Emily Sims' medical records again and looked through the thick reports from her treatments. She grabbed a pen and piece of paper and scribbled down some of the drug compounds. She'd have tests run on 19292's blood in the morning. Maybe there was a connection, maybe there wasn't, but a test wouldn't hurt and it would bring peace of mind. If there were, she'd see about getting tests done on Marin's Jane Doe.
She glanced at the clock and realized with a shock she'd been at work on the files for over two hours. "Shit," she muttered to herself, hastily shoving papers back into the files. She opened her desk drawer and shoved the files in the back, letting them drop, before she shut it and locked it. Usually she kept the keys in her desk, in case anyone needed her files, but she dropped them into her purse instead tonight. Maybe what Mulder said got to me, she thought.
She hurried to the work locker room, calculating how much time she had for a shower before she'd have to catch a cab or be late. She stunk too bad not to take a shower, but she wasn't sure if five minutes would do the trick. Maybe she'd just be late. Not having time and being pretty sure she was the last doctor at the morgue, she just dropped her purse and her bag on the bench in front of her locker and left it open as she went into the showers.
As quickly as she could she scrubbed herself with the harsh soap provided by the morgue. It was hard on the skin, but usually managed to take most of the stink off. She'd smell like antiseptic when she got to dinner, but that was better than smelling like autopsy. She turned off the spray and cocked her head as she thought she heard the door to the locker room close. She was one of only a few females on staff and she wondered who had come in, or just left. Curious, she wrapped her hair in a towel and stepped out.
"Hello?" she called out, but no one answered. She felt strange though, as if someone was in the locker room still. "Hello?" she asked again, heading towards her locker. As she rounded the corner, the motion of the door closing caught her eye. Someone had been in the locker room. But, they hadn't answered her. Scully suddenly felt dirty and violated. She hurried over to her stuff and got dressed as quickly as she could. As she left, she shook her head, not quite able to let go of the feeling that something was not quite right.
Mulder was waiting for her when she got to the restaurant. He smiled at her and rose just slightly out of her seat as she sat down.
She smiled wryly, "I see someone taught you manners at some point."
Mulder looked chagrinned and gave her a quick grin. "That's what East Coast money will get you, all manners and no class."
Scully let the smile drop from her face. Mulder furrowed his brow at her.
"What happened?"
"What?" she asked.
"What happened?"
Scully briefly considered denying it, but she was pretty sure Mulder would be able to tell she was obfuscating and she wasn't sure he'd let it go. "Something happened in the locker room right before I left work," she began. "I'm not quite sure what, but I'm pretty sure someone was in there and left right as I got out."
Mulder looked at her, waiting for her to continue.
"I called out when I thought I heard something, but nobody answered. Then, I saw the door closing. I don't know why no one would answer if they were in there."
Mulder nodded. "Do you think it was one of the other doctors?"
Scully shook her head. “No, I'm pretty sure I was the only one left down there."
"Is anything missing?"
"No, my wallet and cell phone were still there. So were my clothes."
"Did you have any files with you, anything related to the Jane Does or Emily Sims?"
"No, those can't leave the morgue." Scully paused. "It must've been my imagination."
Mulder looked like he didn't believe her, but let the subject drop. The placed their order.
"I drove around to the addresses listed in Emily's medical records," Mulder began. He reached down into a bag he had on the floor next to him and pulled out a stack of pictures. "Do these look like they could be medical facilities that'd have the equipment necessary to treat her?" he asked, handing them to her.
Scully looked through the pictures. Most of them were of deserted commercial business park storefronts. Some of the names on the doors didn't match the name of the laboratories that Mulder had scribbled on the back of the photos. He had obviously done some snooping and there were a few shots that looked like they had been taken through mail slots of empty, dusty interiors.
"It's hard to say, but no, I'd say that none of these look like active medical practices," Scully replied as she looked at the photos. "You never know sometimes, with the private clinics," she added.
Mulder looked satisfied.
She knew she should bring up the issue of the similarities between Emily and her two Jane Does, but she wasn't sure if she did that she'd be able to get Mulder to talk about Samantha. Samantha was at the root of his investigation into these little girls, and Scully guessed, the key to both Mulder and his obsession with the cases. She wanted to know more before she delivered what he'd take to be as a confirmation that he was right all along about these cases.
"Tell me about Samantha," she asked, leaning back and resting her hands on the table.
Mulder's expression changed, becoming more guarded.
"She was… is my sister."
Scully cocked her head to the side. Mulder sighed in resignation.
"She was abducted in 1973 from our house on Martha's Vineyard while my parents were out and I was babysitting." Scully knew from the way he talked about her, she had never been found.
"I've been looking for her ever since." The simple sentenced carried a lot of weight, and although she didn't know Mulder well, she could tell that he meant that he had been looking ever since that day, that his entire life had been dedicated to finding his sister.
"So, these monsters that you profile as part of your work with the FBI?"
Mulder nodded, understanding what she was asking, "I'm hoping to find out who took her."
"Were there any clues?"
"You mean, besides the fact that my father never spoke to my mother again?"
"Well, that isn't-" Scully began. Mulder was already shaking his head no, knowing what she was trying to say.
"No, it was something else. No, no trace of her, and I can't even remember what happened. I saw a bright light and blacked out."
Mulder was quiet as their waiter arrived and put their salads in front of them. Scully picked up her fork and started eating right away. Mulder just stared at his for a moment.
"A few years ago, I thought I had found her killer. A vacuum salesman had been on the island that summer and he had been connected to a string of kidnappings all over the east coast."
"But it wasn't?" Scully asked, around a mouthful of lettuce when Mulder paused.
"The body he said was my sister's … it wasn't her's. I had it DNA tested against mine and everything."
Scully was impressed, DNA testing was in its infancy, but it had very strong practical applications and it was smart of Mulder to try it.
"Well, she was someone's little girl. And you found her," Scully said, compassionately.
Mulder sighed. "Yes, but when I went to my father to tell him, he told me to drop it."
Scully raised an eyebrow at him. Mulder grinned sardonically in reply.
"Well, he didn't use those words, but that was the general idea." Mulder ate a few bites of his salad mechanically. "I guess I knew I was on to something, though; it was the first acknowledgement my father had made of my sister's disappearance, one way or another."
Scully followed the pine nuts around her plate with the tines of her fork, finally managing to trap one. She lifted it to her mouth and caught Mulder's look. He smirked at her. She smiled and shook her head.
They were silent for a moment and Scully watched as Mulder picked a bit more at his salad. Their dinner arrived before either one of the broke the silence.
Scully ate a few bites of her gnocchi before she spoke.
"I may have found something today."
Mulder's demeanor changed suddenly. His fork stopped halfway to his mouth and he looked surprised and annoyed at the same time.
"I think it may be possible that the three cases are related," she continued before he had a chance to recover. Mulder stared at her with impatience.
"Their physical resemblance is uncanny for three seemingly unrelated cases so close to one another. It’s like they could be sisters. And, the injuries that the other Jane Doe sustained could be related to my Jane Doe's. Nothing is conclusive, though."
"Scully!" Mulder began, excitedly.
She held up her hand, stopping him.
"It's similar, Mulder, but certainly not the same."
"But-"
"And, furthermore," she continued, "I don't have any proof."
She considered not saying anything to him until she had the results back, but figured she was in it up to her neck already, "I am, however, having my Jane Doe's blood tested for the same drugs that were listed in Emily's medical report."
Mulder looked excited. Scully shook her head; not knowing if that was necessarily good.
"That's excellent, Scully!"
"I don't know any more, and the tests may not show anything, Mulder. Try not to get too excited." Mulder waved his hand at her, as if to say he didn't care. Scully sighed, knowing that he was not going to ever let the cases go. Oh well, she thought, oh well.
They finished their dinner. Mulder had talked about past cases he had investigated and pestered Scully for opinions on whether or not they were connected to the current three cases. Scully reminded him constantly that they had no proof the cases were connected at all. It was a lively discussion and Scully could tell Mulder was enjoying himself. Although they were clearly on different pages when it came to these cases, she couldn't help but enjoy herself either.
They had stepped out into the cool San Francisco night as the restaurant and closed behind them. The North Beach neighborhood was still active and lively even at ten as crowds of people moved in and out of bars and a few shops that stayed open this late.
The night was balmy, rare for San Francisco in July, but a welcome treat and the locals and tourists alike seemed to be enjoying the fact that they could be out without jackets, a rarity at this time of year.
"Thanks for dinner," Scully said, as she scanned Columbus Avenue for a taxi. They were plentiful tonight and she looked back at Mulder just in time to catch a smile.
"No problem. I'll be in town for a few more days and I'll let you know if I find anything," he said. Scully nodded.
"Well…" she trailed off, then shrugged. "That sounds good." She gave him a half smile and turned towards the street. Stepping out a bit she raised her hand. She glanced back at Mulder as the cab slowed and pulled up next to her. He stepped forward as she opened the door and put his hand on the doorframe.
"See you," he said.
"See you," she replied as she got in. He closed the door for her and smiled before turning away. She watched him for a moment and then looked up at the review mirror. She blushed when she realized the cabbie had been watching her. "Van Ness and Pacific," she said softly and sat back as the cab pulled into traffic.
Chapter 5