There's A Way
Chapter 14
October 3, 2000
9:20 a.m.
Adamstown was a small town and it didn't take us long to find Pamela Burke's house. The house was unassuming, surrounded by a small green fence. The entire yard was filled with gardens. Even at this time of year her gardens were lush. Since there was no work address in the file Mulder and I hoped that Pamela Burke would be home on Tuesday morning. The small burgundy car in the driveway led me to believe that our assumption had been correct.
Andrew had been fairly quiet for the duration of trip. In the car it was probably because of the way Mulder and I had been carrying on. I hoped it wouldn't take him long to get used to the difference between the way we behaved at home and the way we behaved work. After we left the car Andrew remained quiet and walked behind us. When I looked back at him he was looking around the yard taking everything in.
Once we'd climbed the stairs to the front door I noticed a symbol made of wrought iron nailed on to the doorframe. It looked to me like three flower petals extended out from the center of a circle.
"Do you know what this means, Mulder?" I pointed to the object.
"No, I've never seen that before," he studied it more closely.
"It's not like the pentagram we saw before," I noted.
"Not exactly, but it is similar," he ran his finger over the design.
"It's a protection symbol," a voice behind us explained.
"Ms. Burke, I presume," Mulder turned and extended his hand to the woman who was ascending the stairs.
"Wow, now they sent three agents? All I wanted was one person to take me seriously," the rather buxom brunette chuckled.
"This is Agent Mulder, and this is Agent Guernsey," I introduced my partners after I'd turned toward Ms. Burke as well. "And I'm Agent Scully."
"You decided to keep your maiden name, Agent Scully?" Ms. Burke inquired.
"Well, yes I did, professionally, but how did you...?" My eyes were wide with surprise.
"You have matching rings," she smiled broadly.
"Oh, right, I forgot," I felt myself blushing as I looked down at my ring.
"This is a protection symbol?" Mulder looked back at the symbol we'd been discussing." I thought a pentagram represented protection."
"The pentagram does mean protection, but it is actually more of an identification symbol these days," she explained. "Quite often it's used as a way for Witches to spot each other--our scarlet letter, so to speak," she winked. "Witches aren't the only ones who use pentagrams, but we often get lumped in with others who use them as well."
"Like who?" It was the first thing Andrew had said since we'd left the car.
"Satanists," she as she moved past us to open the door. "They call themselves witches, claim to be what the Inquisition was hunting. Personally, I don't think there ever were such witches. I think the Inquisition fed on itself, on its own fear -- they needed to blame the Black Plague on something, so they invented a scapegoat and went after it. Witchcraft as wisdom-- herbology, psychology, weather-working, magick-- predates Christianity, and probably predates stone tools. So how could it be based on a religion that wouldn't exist for millennia? Wicca, as a religion, can only be reliably dated to the twentieth century, though we consider it rooted in those past practices. So you might think it was based on Christianity...but it's not." She held the door open for us.
"So why the confusion?" Andrew was curious.
"A couple of reasons, I think," Ms. Burke directed us toward her living room. "Since the Satanists adopted the pentagram and used it for their ceremonies, it was easy for people to confuse the two. Others knew the difference, but used the similarity to convince people that Witches worshiped the devil."
"Who would want to do that?" Andrew asked as he sat down.
"Unfortunately, the Christian church has sought to undermine any competing faith from the day it first tried to expand into northern Europe. Initially the church assumed pagan holy sites and holidays, so many simple people were converted easily. In order to persuade the remaining and the priesthood, the Church convinced the newly converted that anyone who continued to practice the old ways worshiped the devil."
"What would that accomplish?" Andrew seemed to be asking all of questions.
"Conformity has always been a powerful thing. The church was simply using peer pressure to increase its numbers."
"Why would the Church want members who didn't believe in its doctrine?" Andrew continued to question Pamela Burke.
"Because there has always been something that has been more important to the Christian church than its doctrine," Ms. Burke nodded slowly.
"The almighty dollar," Mulder interjected, "And with more people there would be more money."
"That's a bit of a generalization, don't you think?" I finally spoke up.
"I think it's still true of a lot of so-called Christian churches," Mulder crossed his legs and leaned back in the chair he'd chosen.
"But there are still pious people out there, Mulder," I argued. "Lumping all Christians together as money hungry is just as bad as assuming that anyone who uses the pentagram must be a Satanist."
"We're talking about the church hierarchy here, Scully. The same people who peddled indulgences and sold priest's wives and children into slavery all to fatten the coffers of the Vatican." Mulder reminded me of some of the unsavory aspects of the Catholic church's history.
"You can't think the Church still behaves even remotely like that, can you, Mulder?" I was shocked.
"I still think the pious Christians are few and far between, Scully," Mulder's tone was remained dubious.
"As are true witches, Agent Mulder," Pamela Burke reminded him gently.
"We can continue this debate later, Mulder. I think it's time to listen to what Ms. Burke has to say," I changed the subject abruptly.
Mulder nodded in silent agreement and opened the case file.
"Ms. Burke, we were told that you had recorded some of the threats you'd received and that you'd also been sent a letter." Mulder leaned forward in his chair again.
"Yes, I have all of it," Ms. Burke stood and walked to a sideboard in the dining room. From the top drawer she pulled out some papers and several mini cassette tapes.
"Do you mind if we keep these things for a while?" Mulder asked when she handed him the evidence she'd collected.
"Be my guest," she said with a wave of her hand. "As long as you can get them to leave me alone, I won't have any need for them."
"Do you have any idea who's been harassing you?" I asked as she sat down again.
"I'm fairly certain I know who is, but I wasn't about to take the law into my own hands," Ms. Burke replied evenly.
"Can you give us their names?" Mulder took out his note pad.
"Shouldn't you investigate to find out who it is?" Ms. Burke cocked her head. "Wouldn't I'd be biasing you?"
"We'll find out soon enough if your suspicions are incorrect," I assured her. "But if your suspicions are correct, we can get to the bottom of this much sooner."
"What makes you suspect these people?" I asked after Mulder had taken down the names.
"This all started after my issue of The Green Egg ended up in Barbara Clarey's mailbox," Ms. Burke shrugged.
"The Green Egg?" Andrew furrowed his brow.
"It's a magazine aimed at pagans and other earth religionists. It's not strictly a magazine for Witches, but a lot of Witches to subscribe, and a lot of the articles are written by and directed at Witches," Pamela Burke explained.
"So before that your neighbors didn't know you practiced Witchcraft?" I clarified.
"I never tried to hide it from anyone, but I don't have a billboard on my lawn, either," Ms. Burke seemed a little agitated. "I, like you Agent Scully, wear the symbol of my beliefs," she tugged on a chain around her neck and revealed a silver pentagram pendant. "Most people to just aren't observant enough to notice."
"Do you mind me asking what you do for living, Ms. Burke?" Mulder returned to the interview.
"Not at all," Ms. Burke seemed to calm down again. I gathered the insinuation that she'd been hiding something was a sore point with her. "I sell herbs-- mostly over the Internet."
"Is that why your gardens are so extensive?" Mulder seemed interested.
"I do grow a lot outside, but I also have a greenhouse, and I grow some things in the kitchen and some in the basement," Ms. Burke explained. "I'm surprised Barbara Clarey didn't go to the police claiming that I was growing pot in the backyard," she still seemed to have her sense of humor.
"And you can grow enough here to support yourself?" Mulder seemed surprised.
"Over the years I've become expert at cultivating some rare plants. That expertise has made me one of only a handful of producers of these herbs in this country. When I tried to hold down a regular job I couldn't keep up with demand, so several of my buyers suggested I quit my job and raise my prices. They were more than willing to pay the increased price because the supply increased as well," Ms. Burke seemed almost embarrassed as she explained how she'd come to earn her living.
"I wish I could find someone to pay me to stay home while I pursued my hobby," Mulder chuckled.
"Are you planning on starting up your own Internet business, Mulder?" I couldn't help laughing. "I think they already have enough sites devoted to that pastime."
Both Andrew and Ms. Burke looked at me quizzically, but Mulder changed the subject quickly.
"This afternoon Agent Guernsey and I will do background checks on the names you gave us and then tomorrow we'll start interviewing your neighbors," Mulder stood and reached for Ms. Burke's hand again.
"When should I expect to hear from you again?" Ms. Burke stood up to shake Mulder's hand.
"By the end of the week, I would think," Mulder smiled.
"I look forward to seeing you all again," Ms. Burke her extended her hand toward me.
"I hope we'll have this all resolved by then," I smiled as I took her hand.
As soon as our hands touched Pamela Burke's head seemed to jerk and then she looked at me in awe, but then a gentle look crossed her face. "You don't need to worry--your father is very happy for you; he always has been."
"P-P-pardon me?" I stuttered.
"He visited you recently, didn't he? I can feel the presence of someone you respected and loved. I only assumed it was your father. I sense that he's been visiting you often, but you've only been willing to see him a few times," her tone was soft.
"But how did you--" my voice trailed off.
"You have more energy flowing through you that I've ever felt before," her eyes were wide. "It amazes me that you don't feel it. Have you been visited by anyone else recently?"
I shook my head, not being sure of my voice.
"I feel other people here, and they're happy for you, too," she was keeping her voice low. "Try to open yourself up to them. There's more in the world than you can see with your eyes, hear with your ears, and feel with your fingers. Try to see with your soul, hear with your heart, and feel with your skin. You'll be amazed at everything you've been missing."
"Okay," I answered stupidly after she released my hand.
"Agent Guernsey," Ms. Burke turned toward Andrew. "It was nice to meet you and don't worry, you did fine."
"Thank-you," he smiled as he shook her hand. It wasn't until we were walking out the door that he turned back to give her a curious look.
Once we were in the car again, Mulder turned to me with a questioning look on his face. "What were you two talking about?"
"I'll explain later," I said firmly, letting him know not to pursue the subject any further now.
"How did she know that I was afraid she would think I was a rookie?" Andrew turned toward Mulder.
"I'm guessing she knew a lot more than she was letting on," Mulder raised his eyebrows.
"But how?" Andrew was still confused.
"I'm assuming she's telepathic," Mulder shrugged.
"Do you think she's telepathic, Dana?" Andrew craned his neck to look at me.
"After seven years of working with Mulder, I've learned not to rule anything out," I smiled, and let my eyes twinkle at him.
It was after 11:30 when we got back to the office, so I barely had time to start a working file on the case before it was time for me to leave to pick up Jordan.
As much as I enjoyed being back at work, I was equally happy to be at home having lunch with Megan and Jordan. After we'd eaten I spent some time playing with Megan while Jordan went outside with Guinness. Mulder and I had been encouraging him to work on some simple commands with Guinness. It wouldn't be long until the dog was far larger than Jordan was, so we thought it would be a good idea to establish their roles early. We'd had the dog less than two weeks and his training was going well. Now that I was pregnant it was more important than ever to make sure the dog was very well-trained and very well behaved.
Once the kids were asleep for their afternoon naps, I started some laundry and then spends more time on the working file I'd started for Pamela Burke's case. I typed up all of my notes so that Mulder could have a copy of them at the office as well. When I signed on, I found that Andrew had been busy as well-- entering some of the preliminary background work they'd done.
I only had time to do about an hour's worth of work before I had to tidy my work and think about what I was going to do about supper. Jordan loved spaghetti and it was easy to make, so I pulled some hamburger out of the freezer and put it in the microwave to defrost it.
I was halfway through chopping the vegetables when Megan woke up. After I took her out of her crib, I brought her down to the laundry room with me while I put the clothes into the dryer. By the time we got back upstairs, Jordan was up as well. I made them both a snack, and while they were eating I finished preparing the sauce.
When Mulder and Andrew got home, we had adjourned to the backyard-- Jordan was playing with the dog again while Megan and I were occupied in the sandbox.
"Hey," Mulder smiled from the back door, "I got a call from Brent this afternoon-- our offer has been accepted." He was grinning from ear to ear.
The whoop that I let out startled Megan and she began to cry, so I scooped her up and then ran over to Mulder. "So what do we do next?" I asked as I hugged him as best I could with only one arm free.
"I made an appointment for us to see Brent tomorrow afternoon. Do you think your mother will be able to stay for a couple of hours while we take care of this?" he wrapped his arms around Megan and me and gave us a squeeze.
"I'll call her right now." I handed Megan to him and headed for the phone. Luckily, my mother had no previous engagements and was happy to watch the kids while Mulder and I went to the lawyers office.
When supper was over Mulder took Jordan and Megan upstairs to give them a bath. It was earlier than their normal bath time, but Megan was covered from head to foot with spaghetti sauce and Jordan was almost as bad. I was still cleaning up the last of the mess off Megan's tray when I heard them trouping downstairs again. A few moments later I felt Mulder's arms around my waist.
"Where are the kids?" I asked as I leaned back against him.
"With Andrew," he informed me as he began to kiss my neck. "I could get used to having a live-in baby sitter."
"We won't have one for long," I reminded him as I leaned my head to give him better access to my neck.
"Then I'd better take advantage," he chuckled against my skin.
"Mmm," I sighed and rubbed against his growing erection.
While he continued to nibble my neck, his hands began to travel up from my waist toward my breasts. Other than the way I was moving against his cock, I had no input into this heavy petting session-- and I was enjoying it. I loved that I could feel exactly how much Mulder was enjoying it, too. I was sure he could tell from the way I'd practically collapsed against him that I had no objections at all to what he was doing. In fact, from the way my nipples had hardened at his touch, he must have known how thoroughly aroused I'd become.
At another point in my life I would never have been able to let my guard down and given my lover such free rein with my body, but the trust that Mulder and I shared allowed me to savor the way he was making me feel without worrying about how he would interpret my action.
"What are we doing here, Scully?" Mulder's whisper was harsh in my ear.
"I think it's technically known as fooling around," I informed him breathily.
"Scully ..." he was as breathless as I was, "You are so damn sexy."
"All I'm doing is reacting to you," I informed him and then swiveled my hips to accentuate and my point.
"Oh, it's so much more than that," his breathing was becoming even more labored.
I was about to ask him to elaborate when I heard the kitchen door swing open.
"Oops, sorry," I heard Andrew mutter.
When we turned around the door closing again and Andrew was on the other side of it.
"What was that you were saying about live-in baby sitters, Mulder?" I had to laugh.
As it turned out Andrew had been trying to tell us that Megan needed changing. Apparently his live-in baby sitter functions did not extend to changing dirty diapers when we were home.
While I was upstairs with Megan, I couldn't help thinking back to what Mulder and I had been doing in the kitchen. Just thinking about the way he was touching me was enough to make me warm again. I loved knowing that he had no compunctions about approaching me that way-- and I loved the way it felt like he totally possessed me.
As I was carrying Megan back down to the living room, a thought suddenly occurred to me. Mulder and I had never made love on all fours. We'd used many positions and some had become our favorites, but he'd never taken me from behind before. After our romp in the kitchen, I wanted that to change, but I wasn't sure how to approach the subject of Mulder. It wasn't as if I could say 'how come you haven't fucked me doggie style, Mulder?' I would have to think about the best way to approach this issue. I hoped the time between my realization and the kid's bedtime would be enough.
Mulder put Jordan to bed, while I settled Megan into her crib. Since he read to Jordan, Mulder was upstairs longer than I was. When I got downstairs again, I went into the kitchen and waited for him to finish. When I heard his footfalls on the stairs I called out to him.
"Mulder, can you come in here and help me?"
"Sure," I heard his voice through the door. "What do you need?" he asked as he came through the door.
I was standing at the sink the same way I had been earlier. "I thought we could pick up where we left off," I smiled at him over my shoulder.
"I had a dream that started like this once," Mulder waggled his eyebrows as he walked over to me.
"And how did that dream end, Mulder?" I asked as his arms slid around my waist.
"With you naked on the kitchen table," his breath was warm against my neck.
"Just when did you have this dream, Mulder?" I was giving him more access to my neck again.
"About an hour and a half ago," he chuckled as he nipped at my skin.
"I see," I sighed as his hands covered my breasts. "Unfortunately, our live-in baby sitter pretty much precludes that activity."
"We could give him 20 bucks and send to a movie," Mulder suggested.
"Or we could just go upstairs," I wiggled my ass against him.
"If I promised to be really quiet, would you consider the table?" Mulder was caressing my nipples through my shirt.
"I would if Andrew wasn't here," I squirmed out of his grasp and began to walk to the door. "Are you staying here, or are you going to come upstairs with me?"
"What if I'm really, really quiet?" Mulder was asking as I went through the door. "I'll take that as a no," I heard his dejected voice through the door.
Practically running up the stairs, I closed the bedroom door behind me and quickly stripped off my clothes and threw them in a pile by the foot of the bed. I could hear Mulder following me as I climbed onto the bed. I was on my hands and knees with my rear end facing the door. Even before Mulder opened the door my knees were quivering with anticipation. I shut my eyes and waited for the sound of the door. When I heard the knob turning I took a deep breath.
"Jesus, Scully," Mulder gasped and shut the door quickly.
"Hi," I grinned over my shoulder and wiggled my ass at him.
"Oh God," he groaned as he began to pull off his clothes. "Are you sure about this, Scully?" he asked as he pushed off his jeans.
"Of course, I'm sure, why else would I be kneeling on the bed like this?" I spread my legs a little further apart.
"No, I mean the baby-- is it safe?" Concern was written all over his face
"Are we going to go through this every time we have sex, Mulder? If this position was unsafe the human race would have died out a long time ago," I had to chuckle. "I promise, Mulder, I will never let you do anything that would hurt the baby. Will you promise me to stop asking that question?"
"I'm sorry, Scully, this is all so new to me," he apologized as he approached the bed.
"I'll forgive you this time," I lowered myself to my elbows-- I was so excited that my arms could no longer hold me up.
"I have to ask, Scully, why are you doing this now?" he climbed onto the bed behind me.
"After making out in the kitchen, I realized that we had never made love this way before-- and then I wanted to," I admitted to him.
"You--" his voice was trembling, "This is--" I felt his right hand gently come to rest on my ass.
"Why haven't you ever asked me to do this before," I closed my eyes and enjoyed his caress.
"I--I," his voice was still on steady as his left hand began to caress me as well.
"What is it, Mulder?" I looked back over my shoulder at him. "Is there something you're afraid to tell me?"
"I didn't think you'd want to," his voice was quiet.
"Haven't I told you, Mulder, that I'm willing to try anything with you?" I moved back slightly until I could feel the hot flesh of his cock against me.
"God, Scully, you're so wet," he groaned.
"I'm not surprised, I've been thinking about this since before supper," I shimmied back against him again trying to get him inside of me.
"I love the way your ass looks," he finally slid his cock into me. "And how tiny your waist looks."
"That feels so good," I moved in time with his strokes.
From this position his cock felt larger and harder than I'd ever felt it before. It felt heavenly, and I loved the way this new angle allowed him even deeper access than we shared before.
"Scully," Mulder panted, "There was another reason."
"Another reason you didn't want to tell me?" We were moving with a fair amount of energy.
"Yeah," his hands closed around my waist as he began to thrust harder.
"Tell me," my muscles began to tighten as my orgasm approached.
"I didn't think you'd ever want to be submissive-- to give yourself to me in this way," his voice was more of a growl.
I hadn't thought of it in the way, that I was giving myself to him, submitting to him, but hearing him say that made something inside of me surge. My orgasm traveled through me in a long slow wave, curling my toes and making every muscle in my body shudder.
"Jesus," I heard Mulder grunt through closed teeth.
His thrusts became even more powerful and he held me by the waist to keep me on my knees. I could tell by the way his muscles were quivering that he was close to coming, too.
"I do want to give myself to you. I always have, Mulder," I panted. "Every part of me is yours, completely."
"Yes!" Mulder's hands tightened and I felt him begin to quake.
His final thrusts almost knocked me to the bed despite the fact that he was holding on to me. I felt every pulse and throb of his orgasm inside of me. When the shuddering stopped I dropped my chest to the bed and tried to catch my breath.
"Are you okay, Scully?" Mulder's voice was still shaky.
"Oh, yeah," I breathed and pressed my ass firmly back against him.
"Aren't you done?" he sounded worried. "I'm sorry, Scully, I didn't do anything for you."
"Oh, yes, you did," I assured him with another wiggled of my ass. "I was just enjoying the feeling of you being inside of me a little longer."
"Good," he sighed with relief. "I thought I'd felt you come."
"Mmm, you did," I sighed as we rolled to the bed.
"Sorry that was so fast," he pulled me into his arms.
"I think it was all the foreplay in the kitchen," I snuggled against him. "We both came pretty quickly. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it."
"I'm glad," he was beginning to sound drowsy. "Because even though it's early, I could go to sleep right now."
"Did you make arrangements with Andrew for the dog again?" I asked.
"No, I forgot," he groaned. "Maybe Andrew will do it anyway," he sounded hopeful.
"Mulder," I warned.
"Whose idea was it to get the damn dog anyway?"
end chapter 14