...all MSR all the time..
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Chapter 4
"I beg your pardon?" I wasn't sure if the old man knew me or not. Maybe it was a coincidence that there was a fox embroidered on my new boots. I certainly had no idea how I might be connected to a white buffalo. "Do I know you?"
"No, but the one who does know you told me you would be here." His weather-worn face was completely serious.
"The one who does know me?" I repeated and I felt Scully's hand on my arm. "Who are you talking about?" I couldn't help scanning the area wondering if we'd been followed, despite all of our efforts.
"We do not speak the names of the dead," he informed us solemnly. "But I am one of the first ten."
"The first ten?" Scully asked warily.
"Someone who is dead told you I'd be here?" I had my own doubts.
"He told me in a dream," the old man nodded again, folding his arms over his faded denim shirt. "There have been many omens."
"What do you mean by first ten?" Scully repeated.
"I know about the merchandise." He lowered his gravelly voice.
"Were you a code talker?" Scully sounded incredulous. She looked up at me, her blue eyes wide with disbelief. Judging by the amount of gray in his once black hair, he would have been the right age.
"I was not, but the one who knows you told me the story and I told ten men. It is the way of our people," he explained.
"You knew --" Scully paused. She had turned to speak to the old man again, but she stopped and looked up at me uncertainly. "I'm not sure if I should say his name. Why don't you say the names of the dead?" she turned back to the vendor.
"It is taboo. If the dead hear their name, they will come back and bother you," he told us sincerely. His hand went to a string of beads he wore around his neck.
"Then how do we know we're talking about the same person," Scully sounded a little frustrated.
"You came to visit him and then he visited you. Is this not true?" the old man did not seem ruffled at all.
"Yes, that's true," Scully nodded.
"Then why do we need to say his name?"
"And he came to you in a dream and told you that we would come to this Pow Wow?" I was amazed.
"Yes and he told me to give you these things -- that you would need them," he pulled a small paper bag out from under the table and handed it to Scully.
Inside was a brown leather belt. A picture of a large buffalo standing over a smaller buffalo had been tooled into the leather.
"I didn't know that the buffalo were important to the Navajo people," I mused as I ran my fingers over the image.
"They have become important to all of the first peoples and they are important to you, as well." His answer seemed to be almost deliberately vague.
"Why are they important to us?" Scully asked as she threaded the belt through the loops in her jeans.
"This will all become clear," he smiled.
"Can't you just tell us," I furrowed my brow.
"You have to follow the omens -- let them guide you. I have not seen your omens, so I cannot interpret them for you," his tone was still very patient.
"Follow what omens?" Scully was sounding frustrated again. "How will we recognize them?"
"The omens brought you here," he smiled.
"What does this have to do with buffaloes?" Scully shook her head.
"The white buffalo woman will not be separated from her calf for much longer," he nodded sagely.
"What?" Scully brought her hand to her forehead and began to rub her eyebrows.
"I can tell you no more," he shook his head.
"No more?" Scully laughed helplessly. "You haven't told us anything."
"Just follow the omens," he smiled. "There will be others to guide you."
"What others?" I cocked my head at him.
"They will reveal themselves to you," he smiled.
"How much do we owe you?" Scully changed the subject. I could tell she was completely annoyed with the old man's riddles.
I knew he either couldn't or wouldn't tell us more, so I paid him and thanked him for all of his help.
"And don't take off that necklace, young lady," he called after us we walked away, making Scully turn and stare.
"The turquoise *is* important?" she asked, her fingers going to the beads.
"Don't take it off." He refused to elaborate.
"Okay, I won't," Scully promised, rolling her eyes at me when she'd turned around again. "Do you have any idea what that was all about?" she sighed when we were out of earshot.
"Not a clue," I shook my head. "But I'm not dismissing it either. He knew too much for it to be a coincidence."
"He did seem to know a lot, but he told us nothing," she frowned up at me.
"He told us that we've been heading in the right direction," I reminded her. "That's enough to make me stop and think."
"It's enough to give me goosebumps," Scully rubbed her arms. "But I still don't understand what it all means."
We'd paused by one of the many trash cans dotting the site so I could change into my new boots and dispose of the box. I didn't want to toss my sneakers, but we were beginning to stress the limited storage space on the bike. I hoped that Scully's knack for creating space where there was none would save us again.
"Well, so far flying by the seat of our pants has worked, so let's just stick with it," I shrugged.
"I love you when you're decisive," she chuckled.
It took less than an hour to get to Tucson from the Pow Wow, but since we had a few things to do, we decided to find a place to stay. I would have liked to take Scully to a nice hotel, but we agreed that we didn't want to risk staying anywhere that had a computer. Neither of us wanted to risk any record of our journey. We weren't sure if anyone knew we were still alive, but didn't want to tempt fate, or the omens.
As it happened, the Black Mountain Motel boasted laundry facilities, so before we went computer shopping, Scully did two small loads of laundry. I offered to help, but Scully rolled her eyes at me, saying I'd only get in her way. When I said I could do it if she liked, she raised a skeptical eyebrow and declined my offer with no explanation. I suspected that she somehow doubted my laundry skills.
All of the laundry was dry by the time we left, with the exception of Scully's bras, which she left hanging in the bathroom. I never understood why women hung things up to dry, but it was one of those little mysteries that I chose to not to investigate. My lack of understanding might have had something to do with Scully's reasons for not wanting me to do the wash.
Still hoping for anonymity, Scully and I decided that when it came to computer shopping, bigger would be better. We knew what we wanted and didn't need the expertise offered by smaller computer stores. I also was worried that we might arouse more interest at a smaller store where the owners would have the time and toys to indulge their suspicions.
There was a Circuit City across from the Tucson Mall. It offered the kind of anonymity we wanted. We would have preferred to use cash, but we thought a few thousand in bills might garner more attention than we wanted, so we opted for one of the prepaid credit cards. We decided to go with one that didn't use the Rathburn name, going with a different alias. I knew I was being more paranoid than usual, but I didn't want a large purchase to be linked to the name we'd chosen to travel under.
It took no time at all to locate the store and once inside, finding the laptops was just as easy. There had to be at least twenty display models and each one seemed to be more fully loaded than the previous.
"Look at this one, Scully! A 1.5 gigahertz processor with a 40 gig hard drive! And it's loaded with memory--512 megabytes!"
"Yeah, hot," she looked like she was trying to pretend she wasn't with me.
"And look! A Sprint PCS wireless Aircard 500. We won't even need a cell phone to hook up to the net."
"Should I leave you two alone?"
"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm up for a threesome," I waggled my eyebrows at her, making her increase the space she'd put between us. "She's such a prude," I sighed to my digital friend.
"I'm going to look at carrying cases," she shook her head as she walked away.
Even knowing what we wanted, it still took more than an hour to get what we needed. With all of the extras required for wireless net access, the laptop and software ended up being over three thousand dollars. When we got back to the motel, I settled down on the bed to set up the computer.
"Do you mind if I go out while you do this?" Scully asked as I began to open boxes.
"Go out?" I looked up at her in surprise.
"I have an errand I'd like to run," she nodded.
"Do you need me to drive you?" I set the laptop aside.
"No, that was my point. You'll be a while here, and it won't take both of us to set it up," she explained. "So I thought now would be the best time."
"Time for what?" I wanted to know what she was planning to do.
"To see a doctor," she reached for the phone book.
"Are you sick?" I felt panic tighten my stomach.
"No!" she furrowed her brow at me. "I was going to get a prescription, remember?"
"Oh, I thought you were going to do that in LA," I grabbed the laptop again.
"Well, my period is due any time and I want to be prepared," she picked up the phone and began to dial.
After she'd called a cab and hung up the phone, she sat down beside me.
"You don't want to come, do you?" She set her hand on my thigh.
"I will if you want me to," I told her honestly.
"I can do this by myself while you play with the laptop, okay?"
"I'm just not sure I'm comfortable with being separated from you," I confessed.
"We can't spend every minute together, Mulder," she patted my leg. "And I've got my gun, okay?"
"We should have bought cell phones," I covered her hand with mine. "Can you blame me for being nervous?"
"I do understand," she smiled. "We can go back later and buy cell phones, but if I'm going to get there before the clinic closes, I have to go now."
As if trying to punctuate her point, a horn blared outside.
"There's my cab, Mulder," she stood up. "I won't be long and you have this to do." She nodded toward the mess on the bed.
When the door thudded closed, I looked at the mess on the bed. Picking up one the manuals, I opened to the index to read up on wireless internet access. I hoped that all my fears were for naught. Scully had managed without me for almost a year. No doubt she could handle a doctor's office on her own. Setting the manual back down on the bed, I stood up and stretched. Scully had bought some drinks and put them in our little fridge. It hadn't been stocked to begin with, but Scully would have bought our own stuff anyway.
After downing one of the iced teas she'd bought for me, I sat back down on the bed and picked up the manual again. I thought back to the cobbler at the Pow Wow. It was unsettling how much he knew about us. It was no wonder that Scully was always questioning my beliefs. Normally I didn't trust anyone, but some old coot babbles a few spiritual words, and I buy it hook, line and sinker.
I jumped off the bed and paced the fifteen feet between the outside door and the bathroom door. What if we'd been followed? I had no idea which clinic Scully had chosen. What if it wasn't a real cab driver? I hauled the motel room door open and looked outside. There were no mysterious black sedans in the parking lot. I closed the door and stepped back inside. I was tempted to hit redial and talk to the cab company that Scully had called. I wanted to make sure she'd made it to the clinic.
My finger was hovering above the redial button when I realized that if Scully's call had been intercepted, I'd just end up talking to Them again. I should have gone with her. The computer could have waited. I slumped to the floor and leaned back against the bed. I couldn't even jump on the bike and drive to the cab company. I couldn't be sure which one she'd called. And even if I did know, and did find out where she'd gone, I might miss her enroute. The best thing I could do was to stay put and stop panicking.
I divided the next hour and a half between wearing down the motel room carpet and staring blindly at the index of the computer manual. That didn't include the countless number of times I almost picked up the phone or grabbed the keys to the bike and opened the motel room door.
I happened to be standing with the door open when a cab pulled into the parking lot. It pulled up beside the bike and I watched as Scully paid the driver.
"Going somewhere?" she nodded toward the keys in my hand as she closed the cab door.
"Umm," I looked down at my hand. "Nope," I turned in the doorway to let her pass.
"Did you get it set up?" she asked as she set a drug store bag down on the dresser.
"Uh, no. I was -- I couldn't figure it out." I didn't want her to know that I'd spent the whole time worrying about her.
"Really?" She sat down on the bed and picked up the manual. Fifteen minutes later, Scully had installed the software that hadn't come pre-installed, including a copy of Internet Explorer that came with an Earthlink sign-up disk and was logging onto the Earthlink homepage. "What was so hard about that?"
I could only shrug.
"Mulder." She stood up and started to gather up the shrink-wrap and cardboard that was littering the bed. "What was the problem?"
"Well..." I hesitated.
"I should have just brought you with me, shouldn't I?"
"That obvious?" I tried to look pitiful.
"I thought I was killing two birds," she smiled at me as she shook her head slightly. "Not worrying one Fox."
"I couldn't help it," I confessed. "I kept imagining all of these scenarios," I explained as she set the laptop on the small desk that doubled as a vanity.
"If I'd known it was going to bother you that much, I wouldn't have gone alone." She patted my back as she passed me.
I watched in silence as she crawled across the bed to retrieve an errant scrap of paper. A small sigh escaped my lips when she stretched to reach for it.
"Scully, don't move," I squeaked as she grasped the piece of paper.
"What?" she looked back over her shoulder at me.
"You -- that -- God, you have a great ass."
"Mulder," she protested with a roll of her eyes.
"Honestly, Scully," I got onto the bed behind her. "Your ass..." I reached out to touch her.
"Mulder," she repeated, but this time her voice had a certain sultry quality to it that made my pulse quicken.
"C'mon, Scully," I began,as I ran my fingers over her. "You must know how much I love your ass, and how long I've loved it."
She was still looking over her shoulder at me and I could see that her eyes had grown dark. Saying nothing, she just shook her head slightly. She seemed to be having trouble breathing normally.
"I noticed it even before you let me get up close and personal on our first case," I moved closer to press my growing erection against her. "But now I can let you know how much I appreciate it."
"Oh, God," she groaned and wiggled back against me.
Suddenly my jeans were incredibly tight. Standing up again, I stripped them off quickly. My eyes never left Scully and she was watching my every move. Remembering to first grab a condom, I got back onto the bed. Scully's ass began to move in anticipation before I reached her. I couldn't resist grabbing her cheek and squeezing it firmly. My cock surged anew when she dropped her head and moaned in response. I dropped the condom onto the bed.
"As beautiful as you look in these..." I reached around and began to fumble with her fly. When it was undone I realized that I wasn't going to be able to get her jeans off when she was on her knees.
She must have sensed my dilemma, because before I said anything, she lay down on her stomach so I could pull them off. I was gong to pull them off quickly, taking her panties at the same time, but as soon as I exposed her ass, I had to stop.
"Mulder," she protested weakly when I pressed my lips against her warm skin.
"Mmm, what?" I kissed her again.
"I thought you were taking my jeans off."
"Anxious, Scully?" I chuckled and gave her another squeeze.
"I -- well --," she stammered.
"I'll take them off. Don't worry," I assured her. "Just give me a minute. I'm a little distracted right now."
"Mulder?"
"Yeah," I lifted my lips from her soft skin.
"I love you," she sighed.
"You like this?" I chuckled.
"What I like is how much you like it," she breathed. "And I like that you seem to feel the same way about all of me."
"Seem to?" I gave her a little nip, making her squeal. "I do feel the same way about all of you. It just takes me a while to make sure you get the attention you deserve."
"And I do love your attention," she wiggled beneath me again.
"I know you're enjoying this, but is it okay if I attend to something else now?" I got to my knees again.
"If you must," she chuckled as I finished pulling off her jeans.
When I turned back from tossing her jeans onto the floor beside mine, I found that she'd removed her tee shirt and was working on her bra.
"Let me help," I offered graciously.
Once I'd unfastened it, I took hold of her hips and pulled her back to her knees.
"Oh, you want me on my knees," she looked back over her shoulder at me.
"I thought it would make it easier to take your bra off," I assured her innocently.
"I see." She sounded quite amused as I pushed the straps of her bra off her shoulders. It fell to the bed and she didn't move to toss it onto the floor.
Seeing her kneeling in front of me was almost too much for me to bear. Even though we'd been making love regularly, I had a feeling I wasn't going to last long.
"Scully?" I reached for the condom I'd tossed onto the bed.
"Yeah," she pushed back against me. My cock was now pressed up against her hot flesh and the condom wrapper went blurry in front of my eyes.
"Slow down," I took a deep breath.
"Sorry," she started to pull away.
"No," I grabbed her hip with one hand. "Stay there, just don't move. I wanted to ask you something."
"Okay," she breathed.
"You know how we used to like to -- well, not separate right away after we made love?" I began.
"Yeah?" I felt her hips move slightly.
"And we can't do that now, because of the condoms," I continued.
"Mmm hmm," she nodded.
"Would it be okay with you, if before we get started, but after I'm inside of you, we just stay like that for a little while? I just miss being inside of you."
"Oh God," she groaned, and thrust her hips back against me.
"Does that mean okay?" I asked as I rolled on the condom.
"Do you really have to ask?" she panted. "Mulder, sometimes you say the most beautiful --" she stopped in mid sentence when I slid into her. "Things," she finished with a moan.
"This feels fantastic," I confessed breathily.
"I missed this too," she moved her hips slightly. "I love the way you feel."
I had intended to remain still, but I couldn't control the urge to move. Pulling back slowly, I stopped before I withdrew completely. Scully's muscles tightened around me immediately.
"God," she shuddered and dropped to her elbows.
Going as slowly as I could, I eased back into her. Even with the condom on, I could still feel how hot she was. When I'd filled her completely, I paused again. Scully's hips were still moving and I could feel the tension building in my muscles.
"Scully," my voice sounded choked, "I won't be able to --"
"S'okay," she clenched her internal muscles again. "I'm -- oh," her voice faltered when I slowly eased out of her again.
"Are you close?" I leaned forward to squeeze her breast, making me slide into her once more.
"Yes," she drew a shaky breath.
I was amazed that she was as close as I was and we'd hardly begun. I hadn't thought the attention I'd been paying to her ass would have excited her as much as it did me. Sometimes being wrong was a wonderful thing.
I tried to keep the pace slow, but my body had other ideas, as did Scully's. We'd both begun to move faster. I was so close that my entire body was beginning to quake.
"God, Mulder," Scully groaned. "I love the sounds you make."
Her words were the last straw. I couldn't hold back any longer. My final thrusts were anything but gentle and I felt Scully's body trembling with mine when my orgasm overtook me.
We both collapsed to the bed, breathing heavily. I hated having to deal with the condom, but I had no choice. When I got back to the bed, Scully was still lying on her side with a contented smile on her face.
"So, Scully?" I snuggled up to her. "Exactly what sounds do I make?"
"Mmm, I meant the sounds you make right before you come," she snuggled back against me.
"And what sounds are those?" I wasn't aware that I made any noise.
"Well, I'm not going to try to imitate them," she laughed. "You, well, grunt, and say my name."
"I grunt?" It didn't sound very attractive to me.
"Sort of -- it's hard to explain. You make noises that let me know you're close. Those sounds alone almost make me come." She whispered her confession.
"I didn't realize that I made any noise, beside saying your name."
"You're probably too distracted to notice," she chuckled.
After snuggling on the bed for a few minutes, we both agreed we should order in some pizza. Breakfast had been a long time ago, but I hadn't noticed I was hungry while Scully was gone. After making love, my stomach suddenly made its unhappiness very apparent. I don't think Scully liked those noises quite as much.
We ordered two small pizzas because Scully always complained about the grease on my meat lovers pizza. When I finished my pizza, I eyed up the three pieces of Scully's veggie special.
"Go ahead," she rolled her eyes. "I can't really save it anyway."
"Thank you," I gave her a greasy smooch.
"Don't mention it," she reached for a napkin.
Ten minutes later both boxes were empty. My stomach wouldn't be complaining any time soon, about being empty anyway.
"Now that we have net access we should do some research into magnetite. I don't know if it's even feasible to make it into shot," I expressed my concerns as a threw away the pizza boxes.
"Do you think it might not work?" she straightened up in concern. "I thought it was a good idea."
"Yeah, but I don't know where we'll be able to lay our hands on that much magnetite," I pointed out. "And even if we do find enough, how do we know what the effects of firing it out of a gun might be?"
"Do you think the heat will change it somehow?" she furrowed her brow in thought.
"I have no idea," I shrugged.
"We could always insulate it -- embed it in something that will protect it from the heat," she suggested.
"Do you think it will still be effective that way?" I wasn't convinced, but I had nothing to base my concerns on. "I don't want to find out at an inopportune moment that we were wrong." I retrieved the laptop from the desk and brought it back to the bed.
"It was effective in low concentration at the pueblo," she reminded me. "Are you afraid that insulating would negate its effect?"
"I have no way of knowing if my fears are founded, but yes," I sat down on the bed heavily.
"What if we used an air rifle of some kind," she tilted her head in thought. I'm not sure what kind of range they have, but I don't think that's an issue. That would solve a lot of problems."
"That just might work," I grinned. "No heat, or very little and I bet it's much easier to get air guns than shot guns."
"And it'll probably be easier to get the magnetite in pellet form, like B.B.s," she nodded her head, liking the idea.
"Now all we have to do is find a source," I raised my eyebrows as I fired up the laptop. "I'm just going to check my e-mail, first. I've been talking to this really hot chick," I winked at her.
"Well I hope she sent you something recently," Scully chuckled, "Because I didn't."
"I've been talking to Gibson, too," I admitted. "I was hoping he might have some information. Maybe he could get in touch with Doggett and Reyes, or maybe he's already been in touch with them. I really want to know what kind of fallout there's been."
"I wish I could talk to my mother," Scully sighed. "I wonder what they've told her."
"I don't know," I put my hand on her knee. "But I'm sure they're watching her around the clock."
"I know," she shook her head, not meeting my eyes.
"Your mother has seen you make it through far worse, Scully," I reminded her. "I think without definitive proof, she won't be convinced."
"That's true, I guess," she conceded, but her face didn't brighten at all.
"What's this?" I leaned closer to look at a message in my inbox.
"Ninjitsu Princess?" Scully raised a single eyebrow. "Is that your hot chick?"
"I've never seen that name before," I pursed my lips as I opened the message.
It had no greeting and simply read, "We have to talk."
"I don't think so," I moved the cursor up to delete it.
As soon as my finger left the touchpad the entire screen went black.
"What happened?" Scully gaped at me. "Was it a virus?"
Before I could answer a familiar tune began to emanate from my dual built-in stereo speakers.
"Heavenly shades of night are falling. It's Twilight Time."
| <- Return to Story Index | Next Chapter -> |