A man walked down the stairs to an office door, the office previously belonging to Special Agent Mulder. His fingers swept over the gold letters that spell out Special Agent Spender and Special Agent Fowley. He pulled out two pieces of wire and began to pick the lock the lock of the door. He succeeded.

Inside the office, it was dark. The man walked over to the desk and rifled through a few papers. He wasn't sure what he was looking for, but he'd know it when he found it.

He finished one stack of documents. As he replaced it on the desk, the lights turned on.

Agent Mulder whirle around to see Agent Spender in the doorway.

"Agent Mulder!" he said. "What are you doing in here? I could have you demoted!"

"I'm sure you could," Mulder said coldly. Then he added, "Junior."

Spender's head began to spin. 'What does he know?' he thought, 'HOW does he know?' His mind scrolled back to the night before when he listened to his newest self-help therapy tape entitled "How to Make Yourself Believe Anything." His confidence began to increase. 'He couldn't possibly know anything,' he thought, 'He doesn't know anything. I am invincible!'

"What are you doing?"Spender asked again.

Muldr looked down, then back up at Spender and said, expressionless, "Standing."

"I'm not amused."

"I'm not surprised," said Mulder, heading out the door.

"There's nothing in here that belongs to you!" Spender yelled after him. "This is no longer your office!" Spender watched Mulder start up the stairs. "You better tell me why you were here!"

Mulder turned around. "I don't have to answer to you."

"No. You have to answer to A. D. Kersh."

"That's funny," Mulder said, continuing up the stairs, "I thought his name was Hilter."



The DC Indoor Pool and Health Spa
11:21am
Same day

It was below zero outside, but inside the health spa it was as warm as June. Special Agent Scully was strected out on a blanket next to the pool, 'sun-bathing' in the flourescant lights. She was near sleep when she heard a sound coming from her tote bag.

"Ugh!" She said. "Why did I leave that on?"

She reached in her bag and pulled out her cell phone. She just looked at it as it rang two more times before she answered.

"Hello?"

"Scully, it's me."

"Mulder? Mulder! Mulder, we're on vacation. Why don't you go somewhere and relax? That's what I'm doing."

"Yeah, I know. Nice suit."

Scully sat up and whipped her head around. She stopped when she saw Mulder, standing behind the glass doors that separated the inside from the out.

He waved.

She winced.


Scully changed and met Mulder outside.

"What's going on?" asked Scully, partially annoyed.

"I have a hunch on Gibson. Come with me to check it out." Mulder headed down the street toward his car, glancing over his shoulder every few seconds.

"Why do you insist on working--"

"This isn't business, this is personal."

"Well, what makes you think I'd cut my vacation short for another one of your hunches?"

"Scully, I know you. If the world was flat, you'd follow me clear to the edge."

"Only to push you off!" Scully smirked. "What's this hunch?"

Mulder unlocked the passenger door and opened it for Scully. "Diana thinks he's still in the power plant, hiding."

Scully stared at mulder in disbelief. "What makes you trust her?"

"Why shouldn't I?"

"Oh, no reason, except that the last time you did, she pointed a gun at your head."

"Why are you so quick to distrust her?"

"I..." she stopped. She looked up into Mulder's eyes, but feeling hers filling up with tears, she stared at the ground. "I guess I'm just used to being the only one you trust."

Mulder was silent for a moment. "Oh," he finally said, softly.



The FBI Building
12:45pm

Mulder and Scully drove into the parking lot of the Federal Building.

"What are we doing here?" Scully asked.

"Diana's waiting in my...in her office. Go with her to the plant. I've got to check on something else."

"Mulder!" Scully felt her voice rising to a whine.

"Please...for me."

That did it.


The FBI Building Basement
Agent Fowley's office

Agent Fowley had spent all morning preparing her office for Mulder's visit. Flowers on the table, champaigne on ice. 'Perfect!' she thought.

Hearing footsteps outside the door, she took off her jacket and sat in her chair, legs up on the desk. 'I'm ready!'

The door opened to reveal Agent Scully. Fowley shot up and looked past Scully to the stairs.

It took Scully a while to take in the scene. "Gee. All this for me?"

"Where's Fox?" Fowley demanded.

"Who? Oh...Mulder...right...Fox. Um, he couldn't make it." Scully met Fowley's eyes. "Looks like it's just you and me."



Assistant Director Skinner's Apartment
1:32pm

Walter Skinner heard a knock at his door. He wans't expecting anyone and wasn't in the mood for company. Nevertheless, he stood up and opened the door.

"Mulder!"

"Mind if I come in?" Mulder asked as he walked past Skinner. He stopped and looked around. 'If I were a bug, where would I be?' he thought.

"You shouldn't be here," Skinner said, with concern.

"Boy, things have changed around here. Wasn't there a rat hanging from your balcony the last time I was here?" He laughed recalling the incident, but stopped short, remembering why he was there. For the past few weeks he felt as if he was being followed. If he was, he'd know soon. They wouldn't let him get away with seeing Skinner.

"It's good to see you...but..."

"I know. I just...wanted to see how you've been," said Mulder.

"As good as can be expected. How about some coffee?"



Somewhere in DC
2:02 pm

Many men sat in a smoke-filled room. One stood up as another man entered. The man who entered took out a pack of Morley cigarettes, picked one and lit up.

"Did you have him followed?" the Cigarette-Smoking man asked the first man.

"Yes," replied the First Elder.

"Where did he go?"

"To Assistant Director Skinner's apartment. We should get rid of him. He's a nusance. A pest. He'll keep pushing, no matter what obstacles we send his way."

Cancer Man jerked his cigarette out of his mouth. "We're not going to kill Mulder. Don't you understand? We can't!" He took one last drag on his cigarette before tossing at the feet of the First Elder. He glanced around the room at the gray faces of the rest of the Syndicate. "We can't!" he repeated. Then he left.

The First Elder watched him go. "We'll see."



Mulder's apartment building
3:14 pm

Agent Mulder walked slowly down the hall to his apartment. He noticed the door was open. 'Scully and Diana can't be back already,' he thought. "Diana? Scully?" he called as he entered. But to his disgust, Agent Spender was who he saw.

"How the hell did you get in here?" he demanded.

"How the hell did you get in my office?" Spender countered.

Mulder was right! He WAS being followed. By one person that he knew of...and one that he didn't.

In the building directly across the street, a sniper sat, looking for the perfect aim. As soon as he had Mulder in sight, he would pull the trigger.

"Leave!" Mulder yelled.

"Why did you go to Skinner's apartment?"

"Oh, so now you're not only his flunky, you're also his private detective."

"I don't know who you're talking about."

"Him! Stinky! Mr. Morley! You know exactly what I'm talking about!"

"All I know is by seeing A. D. Skinner today you were disobeying orders!"

Mulder's rage was fuming. "No one can order me not to have coffee with an old friend! Not even your yellow-toothed, black-lunged boss!"

Mulder started toward Spender. He entered the sniper's view. Mulder grabbed Spender and spinned him around. The sniper fired. Mulder and Spender struggled until, finally, they both fell to the floor.



The FBI building basement
Fowley's office
3:26 pm

Agent Fowley paced back and forth, trying to figure out what went wrong. She planned everything so perfectly! How could this happen?

At that moment, Agent Scully reentered the office. "I hate paperwork!" she complained. "But it's finally done. I got us two tickets to Arizona and a rental as soon as we step off the plane."

Fowley didn't even look up. She was still upset.

"Aren't we going to Arizona?" Scully asked. "Isn't that what you and...Fox were going to do?" "I was hoping we would get to that."

"After you seduced him in his own office? You're a real slick bitch, you know that?!"

"Where do you get off?" Fowley was an inch form Scully. "Coming into MY office and insulting me! You pint-sized, poor excuse for an FBI agent!"

"Ouch," said Scully. "That hurt."

"Well, maybe this will: I already know how jealous you are of my relationship with Fox, so I think I'll add another log onto the fire. Fox and I have shared a bed! A pleasure you will never experience!"

Scully could no longer control her temper. She felt her arm swing back. Her hand clenched to a fist as she brought it forward. Noth until she made contact did she realize what she had done. Her eyes widened as she looked at Fowley, now on the floor. She was out cold.



The DC Hospital
6:03 pm

"How does it look?" Scully asked one of the doctors.

"No need to worry, Agent Scully. Agent Spender will be just fine."

"Damn!" muttered Mulder.

"Mulder!" Scully chastised. But she was smiling. "Well, Agent Fowley's face will never be the same again."

"I can't believe you did that!" The two of them laughed as they walked down the hallway to the elevator.

"I can't believe I trusted Diana," Mulder said. "I should have known! She was lying to me the whole time! She just wanted to-!"

"Mulder...the truth IS out there. But so are the lies. It takes a real man...and a real woman to find them both, discern between the two, and expose those who produce the lies and conceal the truth."

They boarded the elevator.

"A real man and a real woman," said Mulder as he punched the button for the parking level. "You and me, Scully."

"You and me, Mulder."

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