A Warm Place Out of the Rain

by Ursula

E-mail address for feedback: ursula4x@Aol.com

Rating: NC-17

Pairing: Mulder/ Rodney Lange, Mulder/Krycek UST Date: 1-16-00

Archive: Yes

Series: Follow up to a story by Demi X https://www.squidge.org/terma/demi/prizefighter.htm

Category: Slash with a tiny case file

Disclaimer: The Highlander characters belong to Panzer and the X-File characters to Chris Carter and Fox TV

Summary: What happened to Rodney Lange after "The Fighter" (He was a minor character, played by Nick Lea.)

Warnings: male to male interaction and a discussion of serial murder.



A Warm Place Out of the Rain
by Ursula

Mulder walked Scully to the door like an older brother. She looked lovely. She wore a straight cut diaphanous coat over the green slip dress, allowing her to look a little more covered than the revealing lines of the simply styled garment intended, but she still looked ravishing. Mulder could see every curve of her through the fabric as she stood for a moment in front of her date. Duncan MacLeod, history professor, dojo owner, and antique appraiser seemed to appreciate the view. He was slightly shorter than Mulder, a dark complexioned man with handsome strong features, smoldering brown eyes, a sensuous smile and a look of lithe, almost smug, sexuality. Hell, under different circumstances, Mulder would have been jealous of Scully.

Today however, he was depressed. His thoughts were preoccupied with Alex Krycek. The last time he had seen the man was in his apartment where his lost lover and hated enemy had knocked him flat on his ass, kissed his cheek, muttered "Good luck, my friend" in Russian, and turned to disappear from his life.

The rain, the unceasing cold rain, hit the window as gusts of wind drove it with near gale force against the hotel window. After staring at the view for a while, Mulder opened his lap top computer, plugged it into the courtesy phone line at the Home Hotel and prepared to work. He looked up a few references on the current case, a run of the mill boy meets girl, boy eats girl, serial killer investigation. The accidental juxtaposition of the titles in the newspaper amused him. "Remains of Third victim of the Duwamish River Cannibal Found" "Successful and Innovative Menu Choices Make Republican Fundraising Banquet Unique"

Mulder guiltily hooked into a web site with the blaring catch line: "Male Escorts: Beautiful, discreet men on line, Why be alone tonight?"

Not bad, he decided, clicking on the picture of a running back type who wore a Sea Hawks jersey, a gleaming smile, and nothing else. He was blond and blue eyed and his resume said that he liked "Being a top escort". Mulder decided he was not in the mood to be topped. He perused the next row of possible and then decided to check out the search engine. He winced as he entered his choices, "Green eyes, dark brown hair, tall and well built, white, bottom, and bondage." Yeah, Mulder, he chided his self indulgent inclinations 'might as well add, "Speaks Russian and carries gun, must love this country"'

Lovely, he thought, as he saw that his choices had narrowed to six men. He clicked one picture, hmm, a little young. The next one was willowy, weak chinned, although he had a pretty mouth and nice eyes. The third, oh my, it couldn't be. The listing said, Rod, middleweight contender, open to extreme possibilities. He had dark brown lustrous hair, green eyes, luscious curling long soot-black eyelashes, a beautiful sensitive mouth, a perky nose, and a soulful look.

Mulder called immediately, his fingers trembling with eagerness. The man checked and said, "Yes, sir, Rod is available tonight. Do you wish to book him? How long will you require his services as an escort?"

Mulder replied, "Three days, off and on, but I will pay for all of his time. Oh, and have him pick up a Sears suit and a striped tie. Put that on my credit card too."

Mulder could hear the snicker in the man's voice as he filled in his blanks, but he didn't care. He hurriedly shed his suit and went to take a shower. He couldn't get his erection down without gratifying it, so he just waited, his hard on tenting the fresh suit he had put on. The tentative knock made his cock leap. Oh, god, more perfect than he ever could have hoped. Mulder restrained an urge to punch the escort, but he did pull him inside abruptly.

Rod must have been used to such tactics because he made no comment. Mulder said, "Uh, I'm Walter. You're Rod?"

"Rodney" the man said, his eyes shyly down cast. He was wearing damn near the same suit that Alex Krycek had been wearing the cursed, blessed day that he had walked into Mulder's life.

Mulder's knees went weak and he sagged onto the bed. Rodney shuffled his feet; he seemed depressed, reluctant, and withdrawn. He asked, "Is the suit what you wanted? Do I get to keep it?"

Mulder smiled and said, "The suit is perfect. Rodney, I think we should go to bed and then I'll take you out to dinner some place."

Rodney shrugged and said, "You bought three days. Uh, I have classes tomorrow...I was wondering if I could still go to them?"

Mulder nodded and said, "I have to work during the day. I just wanted to make sure you were available during my whole stay."

Rodney seemed mildly complimented about that. He started to tug the tie off. Mulder said, "I want to do that. Let me undress you."

First to look at him, the long, shapely legs, the round plush ass, the bulge outlined at his groin...so perfect. Mulder carefully untied the knot in the striped tie. Yeah, it was an untidy mess just like Alex used to make. Mulder held the two untied ends, tugging them lightly. Rodney flinched.

Mulder's brows quirked and he said, "Hey there, not going to hurt you."

Rodney exclaimed, "Oh, I thought you were going to choke me. A lot of times customers like to do that."

Mulder closed his eyes, that voice was perfect, husky, low, sexy, and just a trifle rough. When he reopened his eyes, he let the red striped tie fall to the lushly carpeted floor. He unbuttoned the first button on the crisp, new white shirt and the second. He parted the material. He could see a pulse beating in that long, grace note of a neck. He kissed Rodney there. He licked and delicately nipped his way around. His hands pushed the jacket off Rod's well-developed arms. The cloth whispered its way downward. He looked at Rodney's face. Rodney was passive within his embrace. His eyes gazed emptily at the ceiling. Mulder wondered what made him sell his body in this way? Rodney seemed to hate it.

Mulder continued to undress his doll like "date". Rodney looked away as Mulder slid off the suit pants. Mulder knelt and saw the shiny shoes. He encouraged Rodney to balance his foot on top of his knee and untied the first shoe. Black socks, just what he had ordered. He ran his fingers, tickling down the large, but well-shaped foot. He rubbed his face catlike against the muscular leg. Rodney looked down as if surprised. Mulder finished undressing the man and stood back. Other than a scar or two, this was Alex's body, just younger. Mulder held out his hand and Rodney took it in silence. Mulder led him to the bed, tumbling back the sheets.

Mulder undressed, standing over the beautiful man who looked like Alex. He hung his suit carefully and crossed the room naked. Rodney stirred, laying an arm over his face. Mulder froze. The sight of him was lovely and it hurt. Opening his shaving kit, Mulder took out condoms and lubricant. Rodney asked, "You want me front or back?"

Mulder said, "Do you know how to make love?"

"What do you mean? You mean have I been fucked before? What do you think?" the prostitute replied.

Mulder got into the bed and clasped Rodney's arm to turn him side-by-side, face-to-face. He said, "I mean, make love. Kiss, fondle, caress, leading up to a wonderful, mutual pleasure."

Rodney's laugh was a short disgusted bark. He said, "It's your money."

Mulder noticed that Rodney tasted different when he kissed him and his reaction was different. Alex made kissing an art form, he should have written a pillow book on the subject. This man was passive, almost flinching back. Mulder realized that however many men had been allowed to fuck this lovely whore; no one had touched his heart or even aroused his passion. Mulder decided that, before he left this city, he would make Rodney remember him with pleasure.

Mulder wondered if Rodney had the same sensitive spots as Alex. Behind those elfin, close-set ears, immediately under the chin, ummm, apparently, yes, because Rodney arched suddenly and, when, Mulder glanced at him, the man blushed. Mulder caressed over and over a certain spot on the arm until the touch became almost a torment for Rodney and certainly, a tantalization. Finally, those nipples, Rodney had beautiful nipples just like Alex had. Mulder outlined them with his tongue and nibbled. He was gentle. He could feel a ridge of tooth shaped scarring. Someone had bitten Rodney hard there. Mulder played with one nipple as he suckled the other. He licked his way downward, finding the prominent abdominal muscles fascinating. He moved to the minimal curve where the torso delved into the groin. He inserted his tongue, traced the little demarcation until Rodney squirmed and laughed.

Mulder looked up and said, "You have such a nice laugh."

"I do?" the man said, "I don't laugh much." He reached out to stroke Mulder's hair and asked, "Is this it? I mean; are you going to soften me up with this nice stuff and then, hurt me?"

Mulder said, "No, Rodney, no hurting. I am going to make you feel good."

Rodney laughed again and said, "That's my job."

Mulder said, "It's what pleases me."

Mulder explored the heated salty, musky wonders of that groin. His mouth and stroking fingers found remembered places, but again the taste was different. He asked, "Are you clean, Rodney? No diseases?"

Rodney replied, "Yeah, but I won't let anyone fuck me without a condom..."

Mulder said, "And I won't even try that. I just want to go down on you bare. Sit up a bit and watch me. You'll like what you see."

Rodney's sounds were so muted, so wondering that Mulder knew that he was penetrating the crass commerce of this arrangement. "Uhh," Rodney moaned, tossing his head against the pillows and disheveling the shining hair. He rubbed his nipples harder and harder as Mulder sucked until he was literally pinching them. His gasps became louder as he twisted his hips and tried to lunge. Rodney finished with an almost convulsive tremor. He lay gasping and Mulder crouched over him, enjoying the results of his efforts. When Rodney caught his breath, he said, "Oh, man, that was wow. And you are paying someone to do this to me?"

Mulder said, "Rodney, you are worth a hell of a lot more then money could buy."

"Yeah?" he asked

Mulder said, "Yeah"

Rodney said, "I want you to do me now. I'm all relaxed and everything."

Mulder was ready, but he wanted to take this slowly and carefully so he would see enjoyment instead of pain on that familiar face. This was heaven and hell to him, tasting the seeds of the pomegranate that would keep him in Hades. He knew from the first that this was madness. He should be doing everything in his power to forget his betraying, murderous, treacherous, passionate, heart-searing former lover.

Who was he kidding? He would never have anyone like Alex again. This fantasy with a paid player was as close to paradise as he would be allowed.

Mulder encouraged Rodney to lie on his side, propping a leg on a pillow to keep him comfortably open. His exploring finger found signs of scarring. Poor Rodney had been hard used for rough trade. He decided he would coax this man open as if he was a virgin. His finger found the spot and he stroked until Rodney was catching his breath at every touch. His second and third fingers gradually stretched the well-lubricated flesh. Now, he turned Rodney, smiling to see the returned erection. Rodney adjusted himself on the pillows. His face looked serious and earnest as if he wanted to please Mulder very much, but wasn't sure how. Mulder remarked, "You are beautiful."

The faint frown creased Rodney's nose in such a familiar way. He tossed his head against the pillow, the luxuriant hair glowed in the light; the red tones were like garnets set in onyx. Mulder resolved that he would at least make an attempt to sort out whatever mess had forced Rodney into this situation. Right now, right now, Mulder could resist no longer. He steadied his cock with one hand, holding Rodney open with the other. He went slowly, waiting as Rodney adjusted to his slow thrusts. Rodney's face wore a sheen of sweat. Mulder felt what always drew him to this act, the tightness, the heat, and the resistance of his partner's strong male body as he penetrated. Mulder moved slightly until Rodney squirmed beneath him, writhing in abandonment.

Mulder watched Rodney's face, both to savor the likeness to his Alex and to see that he wrought changes to the whore's indifference. When he paused, not wanting this to end yet, Rodney growled with frustration and said, "Don't stop now. Move, please, move."

Mulder said, "Your wish..." He knew he would not be able to hold back longer, but he didn't have to restrain his orgasm. Rodney was groaning and clutching the sheets. As Mulder came, he heard Rodney's keen and he enjoyed the rapid pumping of Rodney's ass against his groin. They fell apart, gasping like runners at the end of a marathon.

Rodney reached for him after their breathing leveled. "Never thought it could feel like that." He remarked, then he kissed Mulder and, after all, he did know how to kiss. He was not in Alex's league, but he was sweet.

Mulder had a new Lexus as a rental car. It smelled so clean that the pine tree that bobbed from the mirror was a mere affectation. Rodney asked, "You like jazz?"

Mulder shrugged. He wasn't devoted to any musical genre. The truth was he lacked a passion for music and just maintained enough awareness to pass in social situations. Rodney said, "There's a great club in the town, where I used to live. The food is great and the crowd is sophisticated. If you want to touch me, no one will notice."

Mulder capitulated. He drove to a store first and bought Rodney a pair of jeans and a good sweater. Gouts of rain still poured down, swamping the front end of the car at times. Soggy leaves occasionally blew against the windshield, plastering the glass like specimens on a slide. Rodney sat in his new clothing, looking much more at ease. Mulder asked, "What are you taking in college?"

Rodney replied, "Addiction intervention counseling. I get an associates degree and my certification so I can be a counselor. I'll be the first in my family to have a college degree." He sounded very proud and Mulder squelched his elitist reaction to the idea of a community college education.

Rodney said, "Used to have a bad drinking problem and I gambled too. That's how I got in this mess." Rodney winced as if he had said much more than he meant to reveal.

Mulder asked, "Is it money or something else?"

Rodney looked at him with those huge green eyes. Mulder had the irresistible urge to help this man from his situation. Maybe, if he had really sat Alex down, honestly confronted him and offered to help then he would still have him as a lover instead of as an addictive madness. Finally, Rodney ducked his head, tucked his chin low and said, "Both. I had gambling debts and this guy bought them up. He died and I thought I was free, but I found out he had a nephew who knew every dirty secret his uncle had. One day he showed up, announced that he was my new owner. I have a sister and they threatened her too. So I do this until he says that we are square. Sometimes I think the only way out is to mess up my face and body so no one will want me."

Mulder replied, "That would be a desecration. You tell me everything you know about this man and I'll see what I can do. Listen, Rodney, about situation here. You don't have to do anything for me if you don't want to do it."

Rodney said, "No, I mean, I want to get some more of that. I never liked it with those guys but I like it with you."

Mulder grinned and reached over to caress Rodney's leg before having to use both hands on the wheel again. Some idiot in a big truck swerved into his lane, sending a blinding wave of rain onto his windshield. He grumbled, "How do people stand all this rain?"

Rodney shrugged and said, "You just get used to it."

Mulder shuddered and said, "I wouldn't. No wonder the suicide rate is so high not to mention the number of serial killers who locate to this area."

Rodney blithely replied, "Yeah, we get the crazy ones. Right now, we got some kook beheading people with as sword. I was looking at statistics one night and beheading is the leading cause of death in Seacouver, the town to which we're going. Weird, huh?"

Mulder pursed his lips. Yes, that was strange. It was a wonder that there was not a task force assigned to that one. Of course, the Northwest had so many unsolved murders that every cop could have been assigned exclusively to one series. Mulder asked, "Did you hear about the Cannibal murders?"

Rodney said, "Sure, we were discussing it in class. We thought it was someone driven mad by school cafeteria food. The food at my school is a crime in itself."

Mulder laughed at that. They talked about Rodney's classes and Mulder was oddly envious about the man's enthusiasm for his education. Mulder's only doubt about college was Oxford against Yale rather then ever doubting that he would attend a cream of the crop school. Rodney revealed that he had been a middleweight fighter, but had quit because that was how he was drawn into gambling in the first place. "Besides", Rodney had said, 'Why risk brain damage if you are never going to be rich enough to afford a full time nurse when you are fifty?'

Joe's Bar was atmospheric in the best way. It reminded Mulder of the English pubs he had visited when he was in Oxford. It was dark enough to be intimate, but light enough so you didn't accidentally sit at the wrong table. He noticed a long nosed man with truly lovely eyes splaying his long legs out like an invitation as he sat at the bar. He was bantering with the proprietor, an oddly handsome older man whom Mulder would have picked to play Socrates without a qualm. They were joined by a beautiful youth, a hyperactive blond man who didn't really look old enough to be legally in the bar. The kid had various bar settings lined up, twiddling with them as if he was trying to demonstrate the battle plan for Gettysburg.

The music was tolerable. Rodney seemed to actually enjoy it. The food was out standing and the beer was excellent. Overall they had a very nice evening until MacLeod walked in the door with Scully on his arm. She briefly gave Mulder a "What are you doing look?" before her gaze turned to Rodney and her red lipstick outlined mouth gaped with shock. Mulder quickly said, "Scully, this is Rodney uh ..."

Rodney smoothly shot in with "Lange. I guess I look like somebody you know."

MacLeod snorted and said, "There's a lot of that going around."

Scully had recovered and said, "Oh, Mr. Lange, you really do look like a man with whom we worked, but you're younger."

Mulder uncomfortably avoided the accusatory stare in Scully's eyes. They had never discussed his affair with Krycek, but Scully knew him more intimately in every way, except sexually, than anyone. He said, "I was just going to drive Rodney home. He's a student so he needs his sleep."

MacLeod looked interested and remarked, "Rodney, does that mean you're in college?"

Rodney replied, "Yeah, taking classes to be an addictions counselor."

MacLeod said, "I'm very glad to hear that. Please tell Iris hello for me."

"Sure, MacLeod," Rodney replied.

Mulder's cheeks were burning as they left. Rodney's huddled position and averted face in the car finally drew him out of his own problems. He said, "Rodney, you had no way of knowing that my uh coworker was going to be at Joe's. We were having a great night. Let's just forget that incident. I'll deal with her in the morning. Will you come back to the hotel with me? You don't have to do it, but I would like to have you spend the night."

Rodney nodded at him and said, "Yeah, I want to."

Mulder forgot for a while how much like Alex this man was. When he took him to bed this time, it was Rodney that he held and Rodney that he kissed. Those shining green eyes and that small delicate mouth delighted Mulder and he didn't compare them to his traitorous darling's, not much at least. Of course, later, he lay awake and he could only think about Alex. Where was he? Did he often lie awake like this and dream about Mulder?

Rodney cried out, "No, no, please? Please, don't!"

Mulder carefully touched the man, "Rodney, it's fine. You're safe. Shh, calm down, no one will hurt you."

Rodney blinked and reached for Mulder. The covers fell away from him and he shivered pitifully. Mulder drew the blanket around them both as Rodney reached for him. Rodney muttered, "I'm going to miss you when you leave."

Mulder replied, "Maybe I can sort things out for you. It sounds like your Mr. Coleman and his heir had some ties to organized crime. Let me see if anyone is watching the bastard. There's witness protection..."

Rodney shook his head and explained, "I have a lot of credits and I'm not giving up my name. The bastards took everything from me, but my sister and that. No more, I won't back down any more. Iris, my sister, she has a guy, a nice ordinary guy wanting to marry her. If we run and hide, she loses that and, hey, it's all she really wants, just a little dream, but it's her dream"

Mulder rolled over to lie on top of Rodney, feeling the warmth of skin touching along their entire length. He stroked the cheeks, found indentations where smile lines would hopefully form, and then, rolled over bringing Rodney with him so he tumbled on top with a small throaty laugh. Spontaneously, Rodney kissed him. Rodney said, "You know, part of me wishes it could be like Iris, you know. Someone like you just rushes into my miserable life and scoops me up and out of this gutter. I know better, but I'm going to keep this, man. I'm going to remember." His voice dropping to a sultry whisper, Rodney said, "Do you think I could make love to you now? Can I do what you did?"

Mulder said, "Yeah,"

"Don't want to hurt you." Rodney said, "No one ever let me before. I mean, not that I wanted to do it until I met you."

Mulder said, "I'll teach you"

In the morning, Mulder did not want to get out of bed. He did not want to put on his suit, cloak himself in the garb and manner of his work. He wanted to stay in bed with this man who looked like his lost one yet was innocent despite his whorish status. Sighing, Rodney dolefully announced, "Sociology 105. The teacher gives a snap test in the first ten minutes so there goes a tenth of your grade point if you miss one. Got to go."

Mulder kissed Rodney, pressing him into the door. He asked, "Can I see you tonight?"

Rodney grinned and said, "What do you want me to wear tonight?"

Mulder braced his arms on the doorway and replied, "Anything I can take off you quickly. Okay, go ace that test, genius."

Part II

Scully's lips looked swollen. Hell, as they passed a mirror in the hallway, Mulder noticed that they both looked debauched. He paused and pointed. Scully said, "Hell, they'll be saying we sleep together again."

Mulder shrugged and said, "Well, it's a cover for me."

Scully sighed and said, "Mulder, it's always about you."

Mulder smiled again. Scully said, "Hopefully, your Rodney only has his appearance in common with Krycek. For one insane minute, I thought it was Krycek. Christ, couldn't you have fallen in love with someone normal like Skinner or what was that cute little lab geek's name?"

"Pendrell, and he lusted after you, my dear, not me." Mulder replied.

"Not my type, Duncan MacLeod is my type." Scully said.

"I go for the tall, dark and conceited type myself." Mulder commented.

Scully snapped, "He's a very sensitive man, intelligent, sexy, and mature. He doesn't try to hide behind junior high smutty jokes for one thing. He knows what he wants."

Mulder snorted and said, "Okay, I'll lay off you and you lay off me. Deal?"

Scully said, "Deal. So, what were you thinking about our serial killer, oh great profiler?"

Mulder said, "The usual, race, white, the victims were all Caucasian woman, mid twenties to early thirties, attractive enough that he must have something, charm and looks, to get to them. He has an off wheel vehicle, something common enough to be unremarkable. There was no penetration except with objects; I'm going to suspect he's impotent or not capable of normal sexual acts. The bites will be great evidence once we catch him."

Scully added, "We know he has great teeth, no unevenness at all in the bite marks."

The head of the special task force was a lumpy man, massive shoulders, a bulging stomach, which strained his shirt buttons, and a hairline going for the middle of his head. Ridges of wrinkles defined his broad forehead and his lower lip drooped like Huckleberry Hound's. Ed Aspen was an unhappy man. He announced, "Just a call on another one. Grab some waders and let's go. This one is floating."

The Duwamish River meandered through the urban setting like a little old lady, bewildered and lost, on her first visit to the city. Warehouses turned blind eyes on the banks. Scrub trees and thick bush growth overran this area, but there were trails, enough to make it obvious that people came and went.

Mulder darted to the side, noticing a scrap of material. It was a rag of a blanket, one of those thick, composite things handed out to the homeless. He wrinkled his nose as he went deeper. There was a deserted nest in there for a human rodent. Empty cans of foods, stale, moldy bread, and collections of cigarette butts marked the site as a long-term home for someone. Mulder could see the abutment and the overhang created a sort of concrete cave for an urban troglodyte.

Aspen yelled, "Mulder, you going to check the crime scene or beat your meat in the bushes?"

Mulder grinned and yelled back, "Coming..."

Scully's mouth was twitching as he rejoined the group. Mulder said, "Someone was living in there until very recently. He or she may have seen something."

Aspen snorted and said, "Yeah, we'll look into it for all the good it will do. You see Washington State had this grand idea that people have a right to be crazy if they are not presenting a clear and present danger to themselves or others. We cleaned out our mental hospitals out onto the streets. They got the freedom to starve and live in bushes."

Mulder was a little sensitive on the subject of mental health hospitalization so he didn't answer. Besides, by the number of empty liquor bottles, this person's problem was alcohol not mental illness. He said, "Have someone check the prints any way."

"You got it." Aspen said.

Mulder winced as he saw the body. She had been pulled to shore. She was nude. The ligature marks were plain, deeply embedded on her body although the item was gone. Mulder stepped close enough to observe that it was the same outline as he had observed on the other corpses. He thought it might be an electrical cord. The bites were numerous. The killer was truly a cannibal.

Following his hunch, Mulder hovered over the finger print technician for a computer match. The record spewed out a lazy length; impressively stretching it's flimsy paper for at least a foot and a half. The arrests were all petty crimes. The last residence was a homeless shelter. Mulder called up a picture and winced. The possible witness looked demented. A straggle of blackened nubs marked the remains of his teeth. His white hair hung in ragged curls, lopsided as if he had caught it on something or cut half of it before someone decided he shouldn't be trusted with scissors. His eyes looked as if they should have spun with crazed circles in an animated cartoon. His shoulders were narrow, crooked peaks and his neck looked like a turkey neck after it was boiled for Thanksgiving gravy. He was as thin as a living skeleton.

The shelter was cooperative once Mulder presented the court order. One of the victims had been the niece of a popular judge. Warrants were amazingly easy to come by. The stout, African American woman at the desk yelled, "Rodney!"

Mulder startled, thinking it was a coincidence, but it was not. Rodney galloped down the corridor and skidded to a stop before the desk. He was wearing a long sleeved sweatshirt, which was wet, very wet. He announced before he saw Mulder, "Char, that new guy passed out in the shower. He's awake now but I called detox to get him because I don't like the way he's breathing."

"Good, Rodney, this is Agent Mulder. He's a consultant on those horrible killings and he thinks that Mr. Redmond might have seen something. Is he back?" The stout, well-dressed woman asked.

Rodney had recovered well. He didn't even blink as the woman said, "Agent Mulder, this is Rodney Lange. He's volunteering for school credit. He knows Leroy Redmond very well. He might help you to make sense out of his ramblings."

Rodney nodded and said, "Yeah, I was surprised to see him so early in the season. He usually camps out under that overpass until the frost is thick every morning. He's going to be bagged ice one of these days."

Rodney didn't acknowledge their night in any way. He was bright and conniving. Maybe, he and Alex did have a gene pool in common. The possible witness, Redmond, was only fifty years old, but he looked a thousand. His skin was an unhealthy yellow and his middle protruded in a round swell as if he was pregnant with his own death. Rodney whispered, "Liver damage and he's almost a wet brain, brain cells corroded by alcohol beyond repair. You got to kind of get into his stream of thought and go with the flow until you get him back where you want him."

The small room was furnished with a battered desk and three chairs. Mulder took the one behind the desk. It rocked a little and the green vinyl had been repaired with layers of duct tape. Redmond huddled in another of the hideous chairs and picked at another rip in the bilious upholstery. His rheumy, sunken eyes wept tears and his venous hooked nose dripped green mucous which he sometimes wiped on his sleeve no matter how often Rodney handed him a tissue. Rodney had chosen to sit on the edge of the desk. His round, jean-clad ass was a subtle distraction, but Mulder tried to concentrate on his work.

Rodney could get the man to talk. Redmond said, "I used to be a fighter too, kid. They eat you alive. Yep, use you up and throw you away."

Rodney looked at Mulder and said, "I know, so hey, Redmond, how come you aren't still in your camp?"

"Lousy neighbors woke me up, loud truck, thumping. I went to look and he was dragging his missus naked to the river. Not decent, if you ask me."

Jackpot, Mulder exulted. He hadn't lost his touch after all. Mulder asked, "Redmond, what did your neighbor look like?"

"Big fellow in a slicker. I would like one like that; yellow like the water utility people wear when they check the drains. Had a nice coat a few weeks ago, but some bum took it. Class of people on the streets these days. Used to be people knew each other." The man said blearily, "Man, you got you a honker don't you? Nose like that you ought to be a cop. Nosy cop, get it?"

Mulder grimaced and said, 'Mr. Redmond, did you see the vehicle the man drove?"

"Wasn't driving no vehicle." Redmond said, wiping his nose with his sleeve. Rodney helpfully interjected, "What kind of car?"

"Kid, wasn't a car. It was a truck. Big ass black truck...old one with stuff in it. I just went up to take a look. Didn't take nothing." Redmond said.

Mulder decided to have Redmond placed in protective custody. Rodney followed him outside and said, "You know, Redmond does steal."

Mulder said, "I know. I saw his records."

Rodney said, "I know where he keeps his shopping cart when he's here. You want to take a look? I'm off here anyway."

Mulder grinned and said, "I think so. Are you done for the day? I'm ready to catch some dinner. I worked through lunch."

Rodney said, "Yeah, but I can't afford anything much."

Mulder said, "Well, you just became an informant so I can put it on my expense account."

Rodney guided him to another warehouse by the river. They had to get out of the car and walk a distance along the riverbank to come to a sheltered place, where the cart was hidden by bushes. Rodney explained, "They can't take their things with them into the shelter so the lucky ones have a stash like this."

Mulder drew out two pairs of rubber gloves and with distaste sorted through cans, bottles, half smoked and bent cigarettes, reeking blankets and clothing stiff and brittle with grime. Mulder poked through an assortment of bags while Rodney did the same. He was uncomfortably aware of how familiar this felt as if he had Alex back as his partner. Rodney said, "Oh, man, look at this...city worker ID. You got 'em, Mulder. Wow, I feel like I'm on NYPD Blue or something."

John Hartness was a tall, strongly built Caucasian male. He owned a truck, a ten-year-old black Toyota. He had never been married and had lived with his aged mother until her death according to the records that Mulder pulled up. Unfortunately, there was not too much evidence. The only hope was that this man was a collector.

Luckily for them, the 'protect your own' instinct still operated with the judge who handed out search warrants for the work locker and the home. The house was in Georgetown, a paint-scaled Victorian monstrosity with a tall spiked iron fence. The grass stood in soggy clumps around the house and brown remains of rose blossoms hung from untended bushes. Hartness wasn't home. Mulder moved behind Scully and the local police, waiting to see if his hunch had paid off and his luck had lasted. They crept down rickety stairs, expecting a charnel house, but finding rows and rows of homemade preserves. There was a supply of slickers, more than any reasonable man could have needed. All of them were bagged for evidence. Mulder also noted the case of rubber gloves and nylons that could be used to keep hair follicles from being left on the victims. However, the killer was a secretor so his effort was foolish.

A small, but tough looking, Indian woman was the one that found the evidence. She had the attic to search and had found a supply of blood stained underwear and swathes of hair hidden in the hollowed lid of a trunk. She stood akimbo with her hands on her narrow blue-clad hips. Her dark brown eyes reflected weary triumph as she said, "I think we have him."

Mulder read the badge and said, "Good work, Officer Harrington."

Captain Aspen added, "Good one, Linda. You are going to make detective yet." His round face reflected his relief. He added, "Agent Mulder, you are as good as they said you were."

Mulder said, "Yeah, but you have to catch him first before issuing your press release."

Mulder waited at the house, an occasional thought of Rodney keeping him warm. Around midnight, Hartness drove up in his truck. Surrounded by armored and armed officers, Hartness surrendered anticlimactically without a fight. Mulder listened with a certain satisfaction to the officer, reading the man's rights. This might not be saving the world from alien invaders, but at least it had a neat and tidy end.

Scully said, "Congratulations, Mulder. I have to say, this time it was you."

Mulder said, "And Rodney. He works at a homeless shelter and led me to where the witness left his stuff, including the wallet he removed from Hartness' truck."

Mulder nodded to Scully and said, "I'm done. I'm going back to the hotel."

Rodney was waiting, a sleepy heap in the hotel bed. He emerged with his hair deliciously tousled, pushing back the stubborn lock that tumbled towards his eyes. He stretched, ripples of muscles moving just so. Mulder thoughts sank to groin level and didn't want to return to higher functioning. He said, "No classes tomorrow. You want to tell me what happened first or just go to bed?"

Mulder said, "Bed for now. I'll tell you tomorrow."

Rodney through the covers open and his arms as well. He looked at Mulder with mischief in his eyes. Husky voice said, "Want you to do something kinky with me."

Mulder was sure he blushed. Any number of possibilities flashed through his convoluted and wicked brain. Rodney said, "Hmm, got to wonder what you were thinking. No, I just want you to tickle me. I had a girl friend who would do it, unmercifully, and it would just turn me on."

"Tickling, tickling turns you on?" Mulder inquired as he undressed. "I can oblige. Let's see, start with the ribs...are you ticklish there? Uh-huh, you sure are and under the chin? Yes, and here, oh my, where aren't you ticklish?" Mulder grabbed the lubrication and inserted a finger, surprised to find that Rodney was already greased and stretched. "Is that ticklish too?"

A moan interrupted the giggles. Mulder's lips twitched and he couldn't help letting the crooked smile conquer his whole mouth as he stroked the spot over and over. He wiped his hand and said, "But I forgot, you wanted tickling." He tried the underside of Rodney's knees until the younger man grabbed him and flipped him over.

Rodney said, "Enough tickling now, I want you to fuck me." The eyes smoldered, "Make me yours. Do it to me, Mulder..."

Oh, he sounded like Alex! Mulder felt a shudder of feeling cascade through him. This might be the last time that he made love to Rodney and he did want to be here with the troubled ex-fighter and not locked in his memories of Alex. He willed away the images, trying to keep his feelings about losing Alex locked beneath the rage, which was the only feeling to which he was willing to admit.

Rodney sighed as he lifted his legs high against his chest. Mulder took the time to prepare him just a little more although the general effect was to cause this lover to breathe in deep gasps as if any more would bring him over the edge. Mulder slid into the man, evoking a tremor and a groan. Rodney rested his legs over Mulder's shoulders, pushing forward eagerly each time Mulder thrust. Mulder timed his strokes over Rodney's hot, hard cock with his thrusts. Rodney smothered his cries by biting down on a fold of blanket, but he still sounded wild and out of his mind with pleasure.

Mulder's release was like snapping loose from earth's orbit. He collapsed for longer then he should have allowed and Rodney was left to untangle their limbs. Rodney's face was grave and open as he held Mulder in his arms. "Yeah." He said, "Yeah, that was perfect."

The media was excited by the capture. Not since Ted Bundy had one of these serial cases led to the hoped for denouncement. Mulder had told Aspen to keep his name out of it so the local police were in their glory. Scully was off on another date with Duncan MacLeod, 'some romantic,' Mulder thought, even he didn't think an archeological dig was a proper setting for love.

Aspen was very willing to introduce Mulder to the Organized Crime squad's head, Giovanni Pascal. The detective was a sour, worried looking man. Mulder could see Kevlar beneath his shirt and didn't blame him. This was a spot where corruption offered at every turn and, if that didn't suck you down into the swamp; there was always some hit man offering to buy you a section of it for an unmarked grave. The dark complexioned man frowned or rather his perpetual frown deepened. He said, "Coleman? The older one was murdered almost two years ago. Yeah, a nephew took over, Paul Coleman. We have a file on him that is rapidly becoming as thick as his uncle's. The young one is dumb. We are going to get him soon on income tax evasion and pandering, leading minors into prosecution. You got something on him?"

"No, I ran into someone who had problems with him and wanted to check to see if he was as dirty as the man suggested." Mulder said.

The shrewd black eyes narrowed further. Mulder had the feeling that the brain was processing something. Well, Mulder wasn't the first law enforcement type to fall in with hookers. Mulder said, "When are you going to move?"

"Soon." Pascal replied.

Mulder had to be content with that. He told Rodney that his troubles would be over soon. Rodney sighed and said, "Yeah, I hope so. I really hope so."

Mulder on impulse said, "Hey, come with me. I can help you with school. You could make a clean break."

Rodney shook his head and said, "No, I told myself I wouldn't run and besides, I could fall in love with you, but you would always be seeing that Alex guy that I look like. Oh, don't look so shocked. You cry out for him in your sleep and you said his name the first time we made love." Rodney smiled and said, "But now, this last few times, it's my name you say."

Mulder stared out through the heavy fog, which had lifted just enough to allow the plane to take off. He sighed, thinking of what he had found in that rainy city.

Maybe, just, maybe, it was enough to refuel him and keep him going. What had Rodney said toward the last? 'You ever ask that guy what made him do what he did? If it was I, I would. You don't get the real thing very often, Mulder and, if it comes to me one of these days, I'm going grab it and hold on tight. I'll tell him or her what I've been and then, I hope, they will still love me and forgive me. You think about it and you look me up if you're in Seattle again.'

Mulder glanced at Scully who was smiling with her eyes closed, red painted fingernails playing with a strand of red hair. Maybe they both had found a momentary rest, a warm place out of the rain in that dreary city.

EPILOG:

In Seattle, the rain fell harder. A shadow detached from a dark crevice in the wall. Alex Krycek had followed his twin to his appointment with his slave master. The kid had a night class and Alex wanted to make sure that Rodney was there, in plain sight so he wouldn't be blamed. Shit, he ought to hate the kid for screwing with his Mulder, but he couldn't. Alex's hand clamped on the hard construction of plastic and metal that hung from his shoulder. After watching Rodney go into the classroom, Alex went back to the crime lord's office. The bodyguard was a stupid piece of meat. Scars marked his face and his nose bore the look of play dough, mashed and reformed so often that it no longer could hold any shape. Alex knocked him out and entered the office on the top floor of the darkened bar.

The man he saw was about his age, a round faced character with thick waves of brown hair further adding to the impression of a huge head. He was wearing an expensive suit, but it couldn't make the man. This guy was a sleaze who could have cheapened Mulder's best Armani suit. The man licked his thick, pink lips and said, "Come back for more, Rodney? You know, I am in the mood for dessert after all. Bring that mouth to where I can use it."

Alex slunk over, but instead of kneeling, he straddled the broad lap, rubbing his torso in hot, enticing stokes downward. He closed his eyes, letting himself imagine it was Mulder's lap. He knew his mouth was open and that he was about to purr like a cat in heat. Coleman remarked, "Shit, someone feed you amyl nitrate or something? I thought you hated this?"

Alex said, "No, I don't hate it." He leaned closer and fastened his mouth on the moist flab of those lips. He continued to squirm until Coleman was arching, his cock tenting those expensive trousers. "No, with the right guy, what I want to do to you is just so, so, good." His flesh arm surrounded the thick neck. Coleman was transfixed like a rabbit the moment before the hawk sank in sharp talons. His expression changed as Alex's grip was reinforced by the strong, cold weight of his prosthesis. Alex whispered, "So good" as he twisted the fleshy neck upward and to the side in a sudden, strong motion. He quickly stepped back, watching Coleman die, the fat hips thrusting into the air as he fucked death.

Alex smiled and stepped around the man to rapidly search and remove every trace of information about Rodney and his sister. As a last gesture, Alex triggered the accelerants he had placed earlier. Alex blew a kiss at the corpse that lay in a puddle of yellow fluid. "It was good for me," he snarled as he walked out.

Alex was many blocks away when he heard the fire engines wailing like banshees. He smirked. 'There you go, kid.' He thought. 'You're free. Wish I was.'

Alex caught a cab to SeaTac and made his flight with minutes to spare. It was time to go home, time to check on Mulder and find out if making love to Alex's young double had sated the hunger or merely tantalized it. Alex bet that Mulder had a craving for the real thing, but Alex was not a gambling man. No, he was the type that when he wanted something, he made it happen. Yeah, and he would.

The End.

E-mail address for feedback: ursula4x@Aol.com




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Title: A Comedy of Errors
Author/pseudonym: Ursula
Fandom: X-Files with North By 60 crossover guest character
Paring: Skinner/Krycek, Krycek/O, Mulder/Lloyd Hillard
Rating: NC-17
Status: New
Archive: Anywhere, as a complete story. If you have a constructive critique and wish to use a portion, contact me directly.
E-mail address for feedback: Fan4Richie@aol.com or Ursula4X@aol.com
Series/Sequel: Mention of "A Warm Place Out of the Rain"
Disclaimers: X-Files characters belong to Chris Carter, Fox TV and et al. Mention of Rodney Lange, property of Panzer, Character of Lloyd Hillard, property of North By 60 studio and developers.
Notes: There will be a test. Take some.
Summary: Walter Skinner acts as an unlikely cupid for Mulder and Krycek.
Warnings: Slash, a little bondage and rough sex,


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A Comedy of Errors

Walter Skinner neatly hung jeans and sweatshirt in the wardrobe and posed for a moment in front of the mirror, not bad for a man his age, not bad at all. He was proud of his body; hell, he worked hard to maintain it against the overwhelming pressure to let bureaucracy strangle away his life. He ran a questing hand over the expanse of his broad chest; catching his fingers in the crisp, clean hair. He slowly circled his large nipples, imaging a scene with both of his fantasy partners suckling them.

Exercised, bathed, and massaged in the general part of the club, he was now ready for dessert. More often than not, he ordered honey skinned, large nosed sweethearts with pendulous lower lips and dark brown hair delivered. It added to his enjoyment that the "artists" were not allowed to speak a word unless he commanded and he seldom gave them leeway to do so. Lovely as Fox Mulder, but silent and submissive; now that was a charming fantasy! Tonight however, he wanted a musk of danger without the substance. He had asked for a certain artist who much resembled Alex Krycek. He usually ordered the young man in costume of a cheap suit, but hadn't tonight. Tonight, he had said, "Black leather and jeans." It was odd that the man had not been waiting, but the desk had said, "Go in, relax, and he'll surprise you."

Walter heard the door open and he swept back the covers to admit his plaything. "Nice view," commented a caustic voice.

Walter looked up into the smiling face of the real thing. Where the hell had he left his gun? He didn't have a chance. Krycek was pointing a large Glock directly at him. Krycek really looked good in leather, sleek, deadly, and very sexy. Somehow the danger sent some unwanted message to his groin and his waning erection stood straight up. He reached to cover it with the bedding, but Krycek said, "Mmm, no, I like the view. Has Mulder seen it? I mean up very close, at nose's length so to speak?"

Walter understood immediately and part of him wanted to lie and watch jealousy twist and sour that elegantly featured face. He shook his head as self-preservation won over bullshit. He wasn't Mulder and he didn't have the impetuous agent's nine lives to bail him out. Walter bluffed, kicked the blanket entirely off and crossed his arms behind his back in classic macho pose. "You like what you see? Get an eye full, Krycek," he challenged.

Krycek looked amused and strolled over as if strutting to an invisible sound track, something with a drumbeat, something wild, unpredictable and sexy. Krycek sat on the bed and said, "Keep your hands just like that."

Skinner's erection deflated immediately as he saw the palm pilot. "No," he said, trying to sound commanding instead of pleading. "Just kill me. Just do it. Stop playing with me."

Krycek said, "I wish I could say this wasn't going to hurt, but it will." He leaned over, close enough to kiss, one arm on each side of Walter's goose pimpled chest. He said, "You've been a good boy, Walter, a very good boy. Couldn't have done much better myself, taking care of Mulder so I'm going give you something."

Walter was oddly distracted. The left arm had brushed his side and it felt wrong, stiff, rigid, and unnatural. He was tempted to grab it and see what was going on with Krycek now. For every misery that Alex Krycek had inflicted, it seemed as if fate slapped him right back. Krycek followed his gaze and asked, "You think I'm sexy, Walter? I used to see the way you looked at me when I was your adorable little agent. You ever think that if you had made the first move, it would have been you and I not Mulder and me?"

Krycek actually closed his eyes, lids colored with nature's palette, dusky, mysterious lids and those lashes, Walter had dreamed of them when he was not dreaming of Fox Mulder's lush, ripe lower lip. Hell, the best dreams involved both of the young men. Even now, even terrified and infuriated, he couldn't help being fascinated with Alex Krycek. Those eyes opened and the man licked his lips as if he as well had been dreaming of Mulder's honey colored skin and the taste of his mouth.

Krycek smiled slightly and said, "Anyway, I intercepted your boy and I did notice a certain resemblance to me, thank you. I came here to set you free" Krycek added, "and I mean that in a good way. Yeah, I am going to deactivate those nanobytes. It's going to hurt and you won't feel very good, but I'm going to take good care of you, just you see."

It was like an itching, burning pressure all over him. It was almost like the time when he had died of these very same things. Terrified and in pain, Walter listened to that indescribable voice, that husky, rough-edged rumble, with the bedroom whisper undertones. Krycek said, "It's going to be better. Damn, I know this is bad, but I've had worse, Skinner, believe me. You feel any better? You need some water? The bathroom again? Come on; let me help you. Almost done now, Skinner, don't you worry."

During one of the stumbling trips to throw up or to sit racked on the toilet as his guts tried to expel themselves, Skinner saw what was wrong with the arm. Krycek had taken one glove off with the jacket that now lay over the top of the comfortable chair by the window. The other had stayed until Krycek tried to help him take a sponge bath. With a blush, and Skinner was surprised that the man had a blush left; he had drawn off the other glove. Skinner had grimaced as he saw his vision of a perfect, naked, submissive Krycek in his arms was never going to be granted in this life.

Skinner awoke and he noted that the linen had been changed and he had been sponged clean. Krycek was sleeping next to him; his clothes and the prosthetic arm lay across the room. Skinner could see the edge of the Glock peeking out from the pillow. Krycek's cheek was rumpled from sleep, folds of the pillowslip imprinted on the rosy skin. Krycek pursed his lips wistfully then rubbed his nubbin of a nose over the white linen case. Stealthily, Skinner reached for the gun. Like lightening, the sweet sleeping boy was banished by an alert tense face.

Krycek questioned, "What's it going to take, Skinner, to make you believe I just came to make things even? Don't you remember one moment of last night?"

Skinner said, "We're not even yet; I think I have said that before. I do remember, Krycek, and I am just fool enough to believe you are telling the truth. You didn't just sit there and let me squirm this time."

Krycek asked, "So what's the deal? I'm not asking that you canonize me or anything. I just want to leave off the danse macabre the next time we meet."

Skinner said, "It seems to me that I was about to have a nice evening with a friend before you decided that this room was your own private St. Elsewhere."

A corner of the cat mouth twitched with amusement. He said, "Hell, Skinner, I just thought you wanted to play doctor with me. I thought when you hauled my ass in to beat me when I was chained on your balcony that the belt was your idea of foreplay, but I was wrong."

Skinner reached out to draw back the sheet, watching Krycek's expression. He said, "I'm not a rapist, Krycek, but things haven't changed. I know I was never your first choice, but I thought I was somewhere on the list."

"Yeah, I liked older guys a little back then." Krycek answered, "Did you notice that there's something missing besides my pudgy baby cheeks?"

Skinner said, "I can see that without my glasses. Do you really think anything could change my desire for you ... When the stars threw down their spears, And watered heaven with their tears, Did he smile his work to see? Did he who made the lamb make thee?"

Krycek smiled at that and said, "Mulder never bothered with much poetry, but then he never need to do anything other than to reach for me. So you think I'm a tiger, huh? What does that mean? A fancy way of saying I remind you of a wild beast or do you, maybe, like tigers?"

Skinner stroked the velvety flesh of the belly and sad, "I'm reminded of the adage, the one about riding the tiger, but yet, who wouldn't be tempted. Make it even for me, Kry..Alex. Just one time, just one time, give me what I desire."

Krycek sat up and carefully moved the gun across the room. He said, "Okay, just because, just because I can't show this to him. Hell, if you still want this messed up body, you can have it. Just wait a bit, I'll grab a quick shower."

Skinner brushed his teeth and shaved. He felt clean although he swore he must have been in some other world when he slept through the pretty fantasy of Alex's hands moving over him, anointing his sweating body with soap and water, perhaps, pausing to admire the sweep of his chest, the might of his shoulders... if he didn't cool his thoughts, he would come from his thoughts and never get the offered treat. Leaving the bathroom to Alex, he laid back the cover and made sure the lubrication and condoms were in reach.

Alex came out of the bathroom naked, his skin glowed in the sensual lighting provided by this place. His damaged beauty just made it more real. The smooth slide of his body, the silken movement as he glided to the bed was a dance that Skinner could appreciate. He stood over the bed smiling slightly. Skinner reached for him, jerking him hard down on the bed, rolling on top of Alex with the momentum of the motion. Skinner watched the first response, that sneer of defiance that sought to hide the man's fear. He felt Alex's body slackening under his as the mocking expression faded and the face put on yet another mask, this one wearing a concupiscent expression.

"Yeah, do it to me, Walter, make me feel good." Alex purred.

"I am. I will" Said Skinner, nuzzling that beautiful neck. He framed Alex with his arms, feeling very powerful and enchanted to finally have at least one of his dreams in reach. Alex drew him down into a moaning kiss. Skinner felt Alex's hand caressing his back, stopping to explore the powerful muscles along the way.

"Damn, you don't feel like Mulder!" Alex remarked. He slyly pinched Skinner's firm ass cheek and said, "You feel good though."

Skinner said nothing. He was kissing his way down Alex's stomach, hands gently exploring every curve and hollow. He paused at the minute depression below Alex's collarbone, nibbling gently until Alex squirmed for him and pushed his head lower. Alex whispered in a pleased voice, "You gonna do that for me? I wouldn't have thought you were the type."

Skinner grinned and said, "Then let me surprise you."

Hell, Skinner knew he couldn't compete with true love, but he could at least show Alex that he missed something with his choice. He had no problem with anything Krycek could imagine. He knew who the hell he was and was confident that he was in control no matter what they did.

Alex was so sensitive and responsive. No wonder Mulder couldn't find anyone that he liked as much. Alex smelled like a cat, a clean cat, but definitely not neutered. Skinner began to tease Alex's cock with whispering strokes of his tongue. The smooth thick head struck him as interesting in texture, he moved around it, darting his tongue enticingly until he had to hold Alex down to keep him from thrusting hard up at him.

With amusement, Skinner asked, "What's the matter, Alex? Don't you think I know what I'm doing?"

Alex answered only with a moan. He arched off the bed, that delightful all out surrender to pleasure that Skinner adored in his lovers. Skinner moved down the shaft, exploring the nerve-rich under surface of the plump cock. He stretched his tongue out to hit places where he hoped even this wanton had seldom been touched. Alex whimpered and his head rolled on the pillow. His eyes were like green fire and his mouth opened in a delicious moan. Skinner held Alex's legs apart, open to him. His thumbs massaged circles as he began the rapid movements that would end this. With a wild cry, Krycek shot. His semen tasted as sweet as he seemed in this moment. Skinner swallowed, savoring him. His tongue swirled a few more times until Alex sighed and gave that small pull away that said, enough.

Skinner could wait. He moved back up on the bed, not much surprised when Alex moved into his arms. A snuggler, somehow it didn't surprise Skinner. He had noticed how Alex had always liked to be physically close to Mulder when they were partners and lovers. His first clue about having lost the race to court beautiful young Krycek was watching Mulder in the hallway, laying a possessive hand on Alex's arm as they spoke. It could have passed, as a mere friendly gesture except Mulder was not the kind of person who ever touched people casually.

Skinner stroked the side of Alex's face softly, admiring the soft skin. "Mmm, I feel good." Alex said.

Skinner caressed and said, "Yes, you do."

Alex angled down, spending a great deal time suckling Skinner's nipples. Bottle-fed baby, Skinner thought, but the joke passed as the tugs and swirls of Alex's tongue sent messages down his spine. Alex traveled lower, a teasing trail of kisses ending with a sudden nip. Skinner reproved, "No biting, no teeth."

Alex laughed, a soft, delightful, breathy chuckle that sounded enticing as the rustle of a velvet gown, the soft babble of water through mossy rocks. "It's a jungle down here. Hmm, can't find it." Alex reported.

Skinner said, "You must be blind then. I don't think anyone has ever said that I lacked in substance."

Alex said, "Nope, I have to admit that you're impressive."

Any further words were drowned in the sudden rapid assault on Skinner's cock. He knew that after all his anticipation that he wouldn't last long, but Alex was blitzing him with one sensation after the other. That was a hell of a talented mouth! It took will power to move, but damn it, after waiting so long, he wanted to see that lustrous head of hair bobbing between his legs. Skinner saw Alex's eyes come up to meet his, dancing in enjoyment of his power. The eyes fluttered as Alex took him deeply, letting Skinner's cock merge to the limit. Alex was nearly bent over him, working at this with an eagerness that suggested he was turned on by what was happening. Skinner prided himself on his control letting Alex make this his command performance. With a shudder and a hoarse yell, Skinner felt the world blot out delightfully. Panting, he lay on the bed, feeling as if he snapped every muscle in his body when he came, leaving him so loose-limbed that he could not have moved if the holy grail danced through the room.

Alex insinuated himself into Skinner's arms after a casual clean up. He said, "I'm tired. Call them and tell them you need the room for another eight hours."

Skinner snorted and said, "You want to use take a nap in this expensive whorehouse, using my credit card?"

Alex blinked sleepily and said, "Make it worth your while in the morning, Walter."

Skinner said, "That's a deal. Call me sir, though. I like that."

"Sir Walter? Okay, gonna rescue me from my plight? Throw your cloak down so the dirt doesn't cling to my dainty feet?" Alex asked.

Skinner said, "Shut up, Alex, and your feet are hardly dainty."

Alex moved to lie closer, an arm full of affectionate assassin, but he hardly looked the part like this, dusky lashes brushing his cheeks, a peaceful expression painted on his boyish face. One last sleepy blink and he was out, lips parted for soft deep breaths, either a real show of trust or the man was that tired. Skinner moved carefully, trying not to disturb his sleeping lover. He thought he could surprise the man. He would genuinely do something knightly and noble. Skinner chided himself, something idiotic, but much as he would like his pretty fantasy, he knew that neither Alex nor Mulder would ever be totally content with him. They wanted and needed each other and he had an idea that would make that happen.

Alex smirked as he called up his choice. This one looked enough like Mulder to be a younger brother or a clone. Missed his mark there. Should have put in an order for a Mulder clone before all the old men and lab geeks went to their fiery graves. Still even a sweet, pliant Mulder clone wasn't going to be the real thing. No, hell, Alex had slept with handsomer men. It was Mulder's mind that he adored although he wouldn't scorn the wrapping paper to get to it. Maybe that was why he enjoyed screwing with Mulder's reality so much. Maybe he just had a great unrequited desire to fuck his mind. And, right, that explained why his black little heart beat faster every time Mulder even looked at him, stupidly excited although too often the look seemed to be calling up a diagram from the butcher to decide where to carve the first steak out of him.

Alex watched the tall, lean and lovely man peel off the expensive suit in a graceful strip tease. He really should have directed the man to knock off the flourishes, but he seemed to enjoy his little theatrical display for one. Alex had to admit his Fox was foxy, but he didn't have those moves. Mulder couldn't dance if you had a gun aimed at his feet, but he knew where to put his parts when it counted.

It had surprised Alex when Skinner turned down the chance for a return match. Although Skinner was not his type physically, Alex had liked the night they had spent together. Skinner had been tender and he really was surprisingly talented. Yeah, that cock was a bit on the large size for comfort, but Skinner had kissed the owie before and after. He even was willing to return the favor and the guy genuinely liked to be fucked, which was a real surprise.

However, when Alex had admitted that he was not adverse to another tryst, Skinner had showed him the profile of the Mulder like artist and bought him two nights of that. This third performance was on Alex's own credit...well, not exactly. Actually, Spender hardly ever checked to make sure all his established alternatives with lines of credits were not leading amusing lives of their own.

As the Mulder substitute sauntered to his bed, Alex sighed. No matter how good this man was; it was never going to be quite right. Mulder, Mulder was the one he craved as his heroin and no methadone would suffice for long.

Mulder looked out into the night. It was snowing and that made him think about Russia and Alex. He touched his cheek where that kiss seemed to burn and he mourned. He rose and went to the coat rack, spinning the billiard ball finale as he retrieved his coat. He felt a sting of shamed conscience as he considered his destination. What was he to do? Wait around like a princess in a tower until Alex chose to rescue him? He wished he could go to Seattle. Rodney's letters to him were increasing upbeat. The man who owned him had been found murdered and no new evil pimp had come forward to claim his body or his soul. Rodney would sleep with him for sympathy if for no other reason. However, Skinner had him stuck to the local area, lecturing new agents about serial killers and the supernatural.

Mulder had taken to trailing Skinner for a while and noticing him visiting a private club. A little investigation had identified the place as a sex club and Mulder had been intrigued. This place was discreet. You showed your pass and were let into a private, soundproof booth to select your partner of the hour or the night. Mulder hadn't bothered Skinner about his habit. He simply joined after confirming that they catered to a broad array of tastes.

Mulder caught a cab, getting out a block away to avoid a trace. He trudged through the frozen slush in the road. It had warmed briefly just long enough to pack the snow and turn it into a volcanic landscape of peaks, depressions, and mounds. The trash uncovered was unbelievable even in this relatively posh area of town. Mulder noted the snow was covering the mess, which was a blessing. He waited in a doorway, looking back as the snow filled in his tracks. He didn't want someone to stalk him as he had stalked Skinner. He wasn't even sure why he had done that; had it been boredom, anxiety, or a desire to gain some petty advantage over the assistant director?

Sighing, Mulder took the main elevator to the lobby where he inserted a key card to gain entry. As always, there was a delay to make sure that no patron passed another. A receptionist directed him to a private booth immediately. The booth was appointed like a broker's cubby. Mulder sat in the leather armchair and poured himself a drink from the decanter that sat ready on the small table. The loose-leaf notebook sat at ready, but Mulder preferred the video presentations instead. He picked up the remote and turned on the small, flat screen monitor. He entered his usual preference, dark hair, green or hazel eyes, medium complexion, male, between twenty-one and thirty-five, five feet eleven to six feet three inches tall, weight one fifty to two hundred pounds. He rapidly selected, Bottom, mild bondage, mild BDSM, and waited. A series of thumb nails flickered and Mulder leaned forward to study them.

Somebody new was in the stable. Mmm, now he looked like Alex, just a little younger and plumper. He clicked the image to get the thumbnail to enlarge and speak. The boyish young man fluttered long beautiful eyelashes and spoke, "Hi, I'm Lloyd. Hey, ya' wanna play? Gotta warn you; I play rough sometimes. See ya, babe." The brunette beauty let his terry cloth robe open just a bit. Mulder could have drooled on the screen. God, perfect, where did they find that one? He could almost believe it was Alex.

Quickly, Mulder keyed in the identification for Lloyd and smiled as he received the confirmation that he was available. He used the credit card he kept in the name of Marty Walters and paid for his treat. An expressionless attendant led him into a small elevator that was lined with mirrors and ornately trimmed with brass etchings. Mulder tipped the tuxedoed staff member and entered the room. He hadn't specified a setting and blinked with surprise to see what the courtesan had chosen.

This was jailhouse motif. The room was divided in half. The entry contained the usual well-appointed bed, television and VCR, wardrobe for costumes and toys, and mini-bar for snacks and drinks. The smaller area was a realistic cell, bars, hard little bunk, combined sink and urinal, and drab institutional paint. A man sat on the bunk, dressed in a prisoner's coverall, his knees spayed wide, and his feet clad in the slippers issued to high-risk prisoners. The man cast a surly gaze in Mulder's direction and slumped back on the bunk as if he was alone. He raised a leg, leaning it against the wall, and slowly unzipped his garment. He revealed a white V-neck tee shirt and as the zipper lowered to the end, a neat, smooth landing of black glossy pubic hair.

Mulder walked over and gripped the bars of the mock cell. He had lost control of this scene, but it was delightful chaos that ran along his nerves. Lloyd growled in a voice that shared some of Alex's delightful tones, "You a cop?"

Mulder startled and almost nodded or worse explained that he was an FBI agent. He realized that this was a part of the game that they would play and he said, "Yeah, get your ass out here, kid. I heard you were carrying. Come on, strip for me and spread them."

Lloyd stood up and toed off the slippers. His face was a blank, but his eyes challenged Mulder. He slid the overall down, showing that he had chosen to wear no underwear at all. He let the hideous garment sink to his feet and stepped out. He posed there, rolling a corner of his tee shirt up teasingly. Mulder liked the picture that made. Mulder hoarsely ordered, "Take it off."

Lloyd took his time, letting that cheap white undershirt slide over the hard lines of his body. He looked a little different from both Rodney and Alex as if they had all started as the same man, until life molded them in different directions. His body was molded, proportioned with an almost inhuman evenness. The shirt went over his head and he threw the shirt at the bars. Mulder walked over to the bed and moved back one of the panels to remove the lubricant. He noticed a snarl of contempt on the man's face. "You don't need that." He snapped.

Mulder shook his head and said, "Grab those ankles."

His ass was as toned as the rest of him. He must have spent hours in the gym. Mulder saw a few regular scars contrasting with the smooth flesh. They looked relatively recent although not fresh enough to be other than pinkish lines. Mulder used the lubricant to mock the process of search, the only thing he really wanted to find was...an arch and a cry told him he succeeded. Mulder stroked the same spot again then shoved the man forward, making him crab walk to the bed. He didn't for some reason feel the urge to be gentle that had overwhelmed him with Rodney. This man genuinely seemed to want his abuse.

Mulder shoved the man over the edge of the bed and ordered, "Keep it there." His hands shook as he drew on the condom. He felt angry, with himself, with Alex, and with this man because he was not who he wanted. He entered roughly, listening to the man's breath expel. The voice, velvet sheathed switchblade, groaned. "Yeah, that's it. Make me. Hurt me. Harder-harder!"

Mulder muttered, "Shut up." He pushed in faster, his strokes pistoning. He watched Lloyd's fists pound the bed as he uttered grunts of pain that still seemed in part, arousal. Mulder finished, tying off the condom with practiced ease and casting it in the convenient garbage can. He felt and found that Lloyd had not come. Frowning, he ordered, "Turn over"

Lloyd sneered at him when he faced Mulder and said, "Is that the best you can do? Do you think that was rough?"

The slap felt good to Mulder and he did it again, watching the face turn red. A hard clout caught Lloyd's nose and the trickle of blood suddenly reminded him of his confrontation with Alex in Hong Kong. Lloyd reached his fingers up to touch the blood and he smiled. "That's more like it."

Mulder was shocked; both at his own actions and that he was becoming aroused again. He jerked Lloyd down flat on the bed and spread his legs roughly. He didn't taste like Alex. He tasted bitter and salty. Alex always seemed sweet to him like the decadent dessert that he was.

Mulder slid his lips down the length of hard cock. Lloyd protested, "Hey, that's not what I do. Fuck me, that's what you paid for."

Mulder said, "I paid to do anything that lets you walk out of here able to work tomorrow. I want to do this."

The way Lloyd reacted; he hadn't had many blowjobs. He moaned, tossing his head, the short, military, dumb ass haircut rubbed against the pillows. "Uhhh," he groaned, "no, I don't want to..." He arched and shoved deeper into Mulder's mouth. Mulder held him down, keeping those legs spread open, enjoying the vulnerable sprawl of them. He took the man deeper, listening to the voice, for the moment pretending that this was Alex.

When Lloyd came, Mulder quickly moved on top. He didn't want to penetrate him again, not the way Lloyd reacted, as that was a solicited act of rape. Instead, he whispered, "Hold your legs together." The slide of their flesh was enough, thrusts made slick by sweat. Mulder closed his mouth over Lloyd's, imitating his movements with the rub and probe of his tongue. He felt the man's mouth try to close and pull away. He jerked Lloyd's face back, wondering at this game and why it pleased him.

Lloyd ducked his face aside and down, biting Mulder hard on the shoulder and whispered, "Not like that, you have to do it hard. You have to punish me. Come on, do it for me. You know you want it. You know."

The strangely erotic demand finished him. Mulder sagged exhausted on top of Lloyd until the whore shoved him aside and said, "Get off of me, you pervert."

Mulder said, "You are trying so hard to make me hurt you. I should just oblige. But I'm a contrary man; all my friends say so. So, you know, I'm going to frustrate you. I'm not going to hit you, Lloyd. I think I am going to make love to you instead."

Mulder knew that he shouldn't go back, but he reserved Lloyd the next night, ordering one of the ordinary rooms. Lloyd entered sullenly, allowing Mulder to undress him with limbs woodenly cooperative. His green eyes were resentful and every touch was stiff. Even so he was beautiful, Mulder remembered when Alex had looked this young. But even if Lloyd was youthful, he lacked something. Yes, the stubborn refusal to cringe from pain was familiar, but Alex had never looked for violence from him. Every time, he hit Alex, Alex had shown in his eyes the question, his anger that Mulder betrayed what they had been with his actions. Lloyd wanted the pain. Mulder had the feeling that he craved punishment.

Perhaps it was cruel to coax him to pleasure instead. When he forced him to orgasm, Lloyd wept as he subsided. Mulder reached to comfort him and was surprised when the young man allowed him to hold him. "Why don't you tell me what's wrong?" Mulder said.

Lloyd shook his head. Mulder remembered Rodney and asked, "Is someone forcing you to do this? Do you need money? Protection? Let me help you."

Lloyd pulled away, sitting hunched over on the side of the bed. He said, "You want to help someone or what ever? Go find what guy you are trying to make me be, because I'm not him. If you knew, if you understood what I really was, you'd hate me as much as I hate myself."

Lloyd stood up, grabbing his clothes and he said, "You can tell the management that you want your money back. I'm not staying and you can't make me. Don't ask for me again."

When Mulder went back the next night, Lloyd's thumbnail was gone. He called the management and they said, "His resume was not as he represented so his services were no longer desired."

Mulder snapped, "Well, I desire them. How do I reach him?"

The purring voice replied, "Lloyd has left the area rather suddenly. He didn't leave a forwarding address."

Mulder walked out of the place, but he had no intention of letting it lie there. If he couldn't have Alex, he would have Lloyd. Actually he was rather pleased by the news. He could possibly offer the young man enough money to make him agree to a long-term arrangement, a little apartment somewhere and pin money to entertain him self between visits. Mulder's cock rose at the prospect. He visited the Lone Gunmen and found Byers alone again. John shrugged and said, "As if I didn't understand obsession..."

It took several visits to hack into the Destiny Club files, but John succeeded and called Mulder to allow him to reap his harvest. Lloyd was 2nd Lt. Lloyd Hillard, formerly the US Air force finest, drummed out a year back. Mulder did some more hacking and found the sordid precursor to this event. Rape! He had been involved in a drunken episode of rape and of an underage girl at that! Mulder reeled back, understanding why Lloyd forced him to enact that play with him. All he had been was an instrument of punishment. When Lloyd found that he was enjoying his abuse, he had fled. God! Mulder shuddered, wondering what the man would do when humiliation and role-playing wasn't enough?

A week later, Mulder entered his usual preferences and was surprised to see a black screen with a glowing and pulsating question mark instead of thumbnails. A message scrolled lazily across the screen, "Push enter to choose the mystery lover. You have thirty seconds to decide."

Mulder wanted to laugh or ask the desk about this new game, but shrugging, he pushed enter. As always, the attendant came promptly to guide him. Mulder stepped into the suite and was pleased; this was more like it. The room held a four-poster bed, made up with numerous brocaded pillows and plush spread, all matching the draperies. There was even a fireplace, with a warm, real fire, the crepitating sounds adding an illusion of intimacy to the room. The sideboard was laid with a miniature feast of finger foods. Mulder was amused, titillated. He hoped the man, he hoped his surprise was male, was as charming as this room embodied.

To his surprise, the door to the outside opened. At first, he thought it was Lloyd and had to admit that he was disappointed. Truthfully, the violence of his encounters with the man didn't meet his need. Mulder frowned, as the Alex look alike seemed more surprised then he was.

While in yet another room, a man with hair like dark rich Russian Amber met another who boasted of eyes as mixed in hue as the oceanic depths. They stared at each other and then each said, "Haven't I seen you around as in working here?"

"Yeah," said the green eyed pretty. "The weirdest thing happened. I was on my way to one of my regulars and management tells me that I should go to this room instead and do what ever the other guy wants to do."

"And the same thing happened to me. In fact, my regular looks a bit like you except he's missing an arm." The tawny tall charmer replied.

"So here we are, two incredibly sexy guys, being paid a hundred dollars an hour for our services and in this great room." Mr. Dark-haired and Lush-Lashes remarked.

The tawny lovely lad looked at his coworker through his lovely long lashes and asked, "So what do you want to do? Make love?"

The dark haired man sighed and said, "Nah, too much like work. Let's break out the chips and beer, kick back and watch football."

"I like your ideas, man," his companion agreed. And thus two most entertaining men had their first ever paid vacation and found it very relaxing.

Alex fumed silently. Double-booked in deed, what kind of service was that? He, or rather Spender's false identity was paying a pretty price for this membership and service. Then, they told him he was getting a free night with a mystery artist. Great, somehow, he imagined some tattooed Dom waiting for him. He was hardly in the mood for that. He almost turned around. He knew where Skinner lived. Hell, he knew where Mulder lived too... Shaking his head, Alex told himself that he was not in the mood for Skinner and he was a bit unsure of his welcome anyway. Skinner's rejection had shaken his self-confidence a bit. As for Mulder, the best Alex could hope for was a beating from him.

Alex entered and stood stunned. Wow, this one was Mulder in exacting detail! That sulky lip, those incredible hazel eyes, gold and brown, and that silly expression of shock were all those of his lover. Alex took a deep breath and said, "God, now I'd pay double! Where did they find you, Foxy?"

The man stared back and then said, "Alex? Alex is that really you?"

Alex started to back away, to turn and run. What kind of joke was this to send him to the real Fox Mulder? Mulder uttered a cry of pain and Alex had to look to make sure he was all right. Mulder used the moment to catch up with him and trapped him against the door, pushing him back into it. That touch...Alex felt his limbs go limp. He was torpid with lust, stupid with love and Mulder was probably going to kill him.

"Alex, Alex, Alex, I can't believe I found you." Mulder murmured, his hands pushing Alex's jacket aside, dropping it with a heavy clank of various knives, brass knuckles, and other essentials. Alex moaned, allowing Mulder to start on his shirt before he remembered what the thick sweater concealed.

"No!" Mulder screamed and Alex turned away; he couldn't bear to see the repulsion in his former lover's face. Mulder pulled the sweater away, lifting it off and letting it join the jacket. "I didn't mean for this to happen to you."

Alex reached for a sneer. He wasn't going to do what he had done in the past, submitting, trying to win Mulder back with his body; no more chances now that he wasn't beautiful anymore. He said, "Bet this was your idea, getting me sent here. Well, I don't always have to pay for it, you know. Even like this, there are guys who want me. Your boss for instance!"

Mulder's face lost its look of horror. He wore that enraged expression that now seemed more familiar then the enraptured one Alex used to see. He pushed Alex back, one hand reaching for Alex's zipper. "He had better keep his hands off you or I'll kill him. I swear that I will. You're mine, Alex, mine." The damn zipper wouldn't release and Mulder yanked, breaking it. Alex wondered briefly how he was going get out of here with his clothes like this and then it hardly mattered.

And that last 'mine' was buried in a kiss. They fought each other, struggling against that door to rip off each other's clothing, to tear the years and the differences away. Alex leaned back, his hips forward as Mulder's mouth devoured him. Mulder's lips were sweet consumption. His hands were greedy heated things as they moved relentlessly conquering Alex without a battle. Mulder pulled away his boots, his socks, freed his legs of his jeans. Mulder knelt there as if in worship for a moment. He said, "You are more beautiful than I even remembered." Mulder stood and he held out his hand. "Come to bed with me. Come back to me. I don't care what you've done. I want you back in my life. I want you to stay."

It must have been levitation. Alex didn't remember walking. There was no finesse to what they did. They were too frantic to remember anything but need. One moment they were kissing, trying to touch each other all over, to reclaim this territory of the flesh and soul from which they both had been such lonely exiles. The next, they were momentarily satiated, lying together, old love words back on their lips, the past reeled back to that first time when it seemed to Alex that he could do anything if Mulder loved him.

Mulder rolled on him and said, "You're not leaving me, anymore, and no one touches you! Not Marita, not Skinner, no one, but me! Do you understand?"

Alex nodded, wondering how Mulder knew about Marita. He asked, "What about you? Diana? Rodney?"

Mulder said, "No one, but you."

Alex said, "Good." He flipped Mulder over, wanting to show him that he might have lost a limb, but he was far from helpless. Alex grinned down and said, "We have the whole night to figure out how this works." He lowered his lips to meet Mulder's. This was heaven. This was home and he thanked whatever providence brought it about.

Walter sighed and turned off the video feed. He had done his good deed for the century and he wished it didn't feel so hollow. He could have watched them make love. It would have been his just reward for all the money and the mechanisms that it took to set the comedy of errors up, but he chose not to be tormented by a vision that he could not share. Maybe he would tell them one of these days or maybe the bright boys would figure it out. Meanwhile, he had a trip out of town to meet his old friend Commissioner Scalli. Supposedly, the man had a bright ambitious boy that needed a sponsor to the FBI academy. Walter smirked, Ricky Caruso, another Italian kid. Scalli did like those old country names. Skinner smiled and decided if the boy were any good, he'd give him a trial here after the academy, something to take his mind off Fox Mulder and Alex Krycek.

Skinner stretched. Hell, maybe he'd meet someone new...he'd paid his dues and played cupid. Now, it was his turn. Let's see what providence could do for him.

The end.




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Title: A Garden of Earthly Delights
Author/pseudonym: Ursula
Fandom: X-Files and The Commish
Pairing: Walter Skinner/Ricky Caruso and UST K/S
Rating: NC-17
Status: New
Archive: Anywhere as a complete story
E-mail address for feedback: Fan4Richie@aol.com or Ursula4X@aol.com
Series/Sequel: Is this story part of a series: Shade and Knight
Other websites: My page at RatB, thanks to ned & leny: https://www.squidge.org/terma/ursula/ursula.htm
Disclaimers: Walter Skinner, Alex Krycek and Fox Mulder belong to the X Files, Chris Carter, and the actors who created them. But I can drool and wish, can't I? Stephen Cannell and Three Putt Enterprises own the character of Ricky Caruso, but I may never give him back.
Notes: After A Comedy of Errors and Cops, Double Agents and UFOs, before Shade and Knight and Inextricable Differences
Dedication: To Doctor Ruthless, Alex Krycek, Ricky Caruso, Anson Green, Victor Mansfield, Cory Raines, Rodney Lange, Tony Edwards, Baines, Tom Andrews, Lloyd Hillard, Ryan Simms, Mac 27, Jacob Hardy and the rest of the lovely crew.
Surprise Package: There's another Nick Lea Character in the story.
Additional Dedication: As always, the Theban Band; equally for the hard work on the arhive and the always inspirational pictures.


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A Garden of Earthly Delights
by Ursula

Fingers forming a steeple on his chest, Walter leaned back in his chair. The pile of work, that usually kept him from everything but a hurried trip to the bathroom, had inexplicably vanished. His next appointment was...Walter punched up his schedule and groaned. Oh shit, the last thing he needed after last night was Ricky Caruso, Mr. Pink Cheeks, that adorable Alex look-a-like.

He had felt like a starving man invited to a feast and forced to watch others eat. He'd met with Mulder and Krycek to discuss what they referred to as the game. Every unconscious gesture between the two proclaimed how successfully Walter had played cupid. It killed him.

Walter knew it was wrong to be torturing himself with might-have-beens when he should only have been thinking about the deadly serious game they were playing. The covert operations they were running against the aliens, the consortium, and even to some extent, the alien rebels were the real war. Most of what Skinner handled every day on this job was bullshit, unmitigated bureaucratic bullshit. If he didn't have to stay in position to tap official resources, he might have flushed the whole thing.

Ricky wasn't part of the covert operations. Alex had a sentimental streak toward his young clone. He seemed to regard Ricky as a younger brother. He wanted Ricky to keep his innocence, the innocence that had been ripped from Alex when he was just a kid. Walter and Mulder agreed.

Ricky wasn't even in Skinner's department. He was an intern in a domestic terrorism. For some reason, the director wanted Ricky on a political hot potato of a case that had just been assigned to Mulder.

Ricky bounded in. Walter thought he resembled a Golden Retriever, not that he was a blond, oh no. His sister, Beatrice, had a Golden Retriever that seemed to believe it was one of her energetic kids. When Walter visited, the dog always started with a play bow, put a paw on his knee and gazed at him sincerely as if about to propose marriage. If Walter encouraged the dog even slightly, it would crawl up on the couch and present its silky belly for a rub.

Walter momentarily had a vision of Ricky offering his naked belly for the same treatment. Shit! 'Naughty Walter, you need to get laid." Walter chided his straying mind. He'd have to make an appointment at the club. He was too busy for a real romance, male or female and honesty compelled him to admit, if only to himself, that he was not really interested.

Peel away the hate he had layered over his previous passion for Alex and what was left was just the thwarted desire to pick up the threads again. Walter pictured the way Mulder and Krycek had been looking at each other and thought... 'not in this lifetime'.

Ricky offered his hand, somehow overbalancing the file he held with the other. Papers spun lazily to the floor. Ricky blushed and said, "Oops, just a minute, sir."

Walter spotted a picture that slid under his desk and reached for it. Ricky reached at the same time and their hands met. Ricky blushed again and said, "Ah, yeah, that's the one I wanted Mulder to see..."

Almost on cue, Mulder's laconic voice remarked, "Hmm, I think I recognize those shoes. Agent Caruso? Sir, did you want me to come back later?"

Walter managed to extricate himself despite Ricky's effort to tangle him in a set of long, long legs. Flustered, Walter sat back behind his desk. Ricky brushed back a straying lock of hair and muttered to himself as he tried to put his file back in order.

Mulder looked very amused and settled in the other chair as if getting ready to watch a comedy. Walter snapped, "Agent Mulder? Am I entertaining you?"

Mulder at least had the courtesy to pretend to be intimidated. He sat a little straighter and said, "No, sir."

Walter glanced at the black and white crime scene photo and winced. The two men in the picture had been tortured. They had been left to die of their injuries in a little traveled part of a state park not far from where they had lived. Walter swallowed a lump in his throat. Even in death, the two men clung together. The older, much older lover, draped over his young sweetheart protectively, probably trying to keep him warm.

Mulder said, "It's not an X-file. I guess the Senator must have heard something good about me and suggested that I take the case. The younger man was his son."

Walter nodded although it surprised him that they were willing to use Mulder. His reputation was more often the subject of amusement than praise. He turned to Ricky and asked, "What's the domestic terrorism angle?"

Ricky blushed and said, "There isn't one. My boss gave the file to me because the director seems to think I could go undercover on the case."

Mulder looked from Walter to Ricky and said, "The director had a good idea. I can see it. I'd be willing, but the age difference is really better between Skinner and you, Caruso."

Walter checked the pictures again and said, "No."

Mulder said, "I'm sorry, sir, but the director wants you on the case if I'm on it. He doesn't want any screw-ups and I guess he doesn't trust Scully to keep me in line. He's the one that suggested you play December in the affair. I think he initially had me in mind for the May, but Ricky was a better thought. This way Scully and I can skulk around on the outside, someone to watch over you two..."

Walter could have said, 'No'. He went to meet with the director intending to say, 'No".

Correction, he could have said, 'no' and the political backwash would have lasted for years. He heard the director say, "Solve this case and I don't think we have to worry about Ways and Means for the next four years."

That said without saying, that if they didn't make every effort to bring the killer to justice, Mulder's X-Files would be the first to go. The current administration had enough to worry about without the cool, clear light of science shining into Mulder's spooky basement of horrors.

Walter went home, mind racing. It was late and his bedroom was dark. He was down to his briefs when the darkness spoke with Alex's voice. "I know someone who can help with the case."

Alex knew someone? Of course, Alex knew someone. Didn't he always? Walter didn't turn on the lights. He loved Alex at midnight; sleek, nocturnal animal that he was...moonlight became him. Walter struggled to just hear the words, but the voice beguiled, so invitingly rough yet enticing. Something like fine whiskey...smoky, burning, yet with an underlying smoothness that burned its way into your veins and made your blood rush.

Alex said, "I have an old friend. He's looking for someone to lease his cottage, but he could put it off for a while so you and Ricky can use it as a front. It's five houses down from the home of the murdered men. The killings are all in that community so it's perfect."

Walter nodded. That was all that really had to be said, but he wasn't really ready to have Alex leave. He seldom saw the man without Mulder.

Walter thought of those clandestine meetings and secret missions; it was the stuff of Russian novels. Mulder sprawled, legs wide open, hair like sage honey, lips parted, sleepy eyes and silken slur of voice discussing life, the universe, and everything. And Alex...antithesis of his lover, dark, yes, but at those moments, his shades were all deep velvet...seductive, enticing, and plush. Walter closed his eyes for a moment, seeing in his mind's eye: Alex prowling across the floor, incandescent with his dark fire. He was like a never-ending night, a timeless space spent in some pillow-like bed, secrets exchanged in lover's voices, pleasures that would whisper forever in your mind. Walter between the two was helpless with lust, sternly maintaining a façade while he pretended to be the strong one, the logical one. Just once, damn it, just once, Walter wanted to be whom he used to be, passionate and fierce, a warrior, a soldier, a lover.

Alex reached out to touch him, his fingers brushing the top of Walter's hand. He said, "Take care of Ricky, please. He's a tough kid, but not as tough as he thinks."

Walter replied, "I will. It wasn't my idea to use him, you know."

Alex said, "I know. Hey, he's ambitious. I know he leaped at the chance. And he's pretty comfortable with the role." Alex turned so his profile was cameo-like against the full moon's caress. Walter wished he could trace those lines, the elegant carving of that face.

Walter asked, "Alex, who the hell is he? Your brother?"

Alex said, "In a way, another clone...but I don't know. I feel differently about him. When I look at him, I see myself. As if part of me got away before the smoking bastard stole my life away."

Walter understood. He moved closer to Alex, approaching him as if to some wounded creature, wild, feral, yet demanding his help. He touched Alex's cheek, tipped up that delicate chin. He wanted to kiss him and sensing that would be allowed Walter leaned closer. A sweet, intoxicating kiss more inebriating than any wine.

Alex moved back. He said, "Mulder wouldn't like it."

Walter nodded. Alex said, "Ricky likes you. He likes you a lot. What ever we had...don't let it stop you if it goes there. Just don't hurt him, okay?"

Walter understood what was left unspoken, 'don't hurt Ricky as you hurt me..."

Alex said, "And you be careful, Walter. Mulder and I need you."

When Alex left, Walter felt as if some cold void had sucked all life from the room. He sat on the bed, bowed his head, knotted his fists together and stared at their dim outline. His mouth tasted bitter as if the sweet wine of that kiss was now poisoning his soul. He might have sat there until morning, but the phone rang. It was the director confirming that Ricky and he should go undercover promptly. Walter explained Alex's idea, describing the cottage as belonging to friends of a friend.

____

Walter sat in a flower-upholstered chair and looked around at the cottage. It was bright, warm, and tastefully decorated. The wallpaper was art deco, handsome velvety shades in a frame of expensive wood. The furniture was comfortable and fit Walter's large frame very well. No surprise, the younger of this pair looked as if he had been a big man before cancer ate him from within. Right now, he sat with an oxygen tank close at hand, an occasional grimace crossing his face. His older companion held his hand, brown eyes misted as watched his lover suffer. Mr. Huntington gestured at their surroundings. He said, "Since David and I need to be away, I felt it proper to offer this residence for your operation. I'm a friend of Senator Fielding and I knew his son. I was the first person he told when he decided to come out. Tony and I helped Lee and Paul plan their commitment ceremony. I knew two of the other four victims. This is one little thing that I can do to stop the monster that is preying on my community."

Mr. Huntington gazed at Ricky, who was perched on the edge of his chair, big green eyes blazing in his serious face. The seamed old lips parted in a sigh. He said, "Beautiful."

Walter flinched. He agreed with the old man. The director had no idea how hard it was going to be to have to share a bed with Ricky Caruso. The man looked the image of Alex Krycek when he'd been an agent under Walter's command. He looked like Walter's sweet young lover whom he had rejected to chase the will-o- the-wisp that his reconciliation with Sharon had turned out to be. Posing as May-December lovers in this mostly gay artist's colony was going to hurt like hell...every moment reminding Walter of what had once been his and what he longed to taste again.

Ricky bounced up, wandering around a little. He was coltish; you wanted to move breakables out of his way. He moved to the window, staring out at the garden. "Pretty." He said. "I used to help my mom in her garden. Do you have someone in or do you want me to take care of it?"

Huntington asked, "Do you really want to work on it?"

Ricky smiled and nodded. He stretched, his suit threatened by the swell of his muscles. Enviously he said, "Man, I'd love to have a place like this. I'm so tired of apartments!"

Huntington said, "Well, we are thinking of leasing it...perhaps selling it. Only to the right person, of course."

Ricky sighed, his heart shaped lips parting softly with the puff of air. His velvet lashes slowly lowered and as slowly rose. Ricky said, "Yeah, I'd love it, but I'm lucky to afford the place I have now."

In that moment, Walter wanted to buy him the house, offer him the moon, anything. The words were out of his lips before he had a second thought. "I might be interested in buying. I'm tired of my apartment."

The handsome, haggard Mr. Huntingdon said, "That's very good. And there's plenty of room for two. Here, let me show you around."

Leaning down, Huntingdon kissed the silver hair, brushing aside a reckless strand. "I'll be right back, Tony. Ring the buzzer if you need me sooner."

Walter sighed as he saw for one moment the beauty behind the papyrus skin and pain-filled green eyes. Huntington said, "Tony and I have been together since a few years after World War Two. Almost sixty years, not many couples can claim that."

Walter nodded, wistful thoughts passing through his head. Huntington said, " I remember the first time I saw him, those shoulders bunching beneath his tight tee shirt... It was at a minor league baseball game. He hit a home run and ran like a deer. I fell in love right there. However, I courted him for two years before he realized that I wanted more than just his friendship; another year after that, before he realized that he wasn't afraid to try what I offered. I have no regrets. He's worth every moment."

Walter saw Ricky's face, curious, unashamedly wanting. He brushed the young agent's elbow and said, "Agent Caruso? Excuse me."

Ricky realized he was blocking the doorway and moved on. They entered a hallway and from there moved into a room with a vaulted ceiling. It was a large bedroom. An alcove with a window seat created a private space out of ornately framed stained glass windows. Beyond that, a sliding glass door led out into a courtyard. The king sized bed was massive. Walter thought it was big enough for three men; briefly flashing on whom he would want the other two to be.

Ricky said, "Wow, damn, that's an incredible bed."

Huntington said, "Custom made. Haven't been sleeping here lately. Tony needs a medical bed and I can't bear to sleep apart from him. We've been using the other bedroom. Come through here and see my masterpiece."

Walter thought it was decadent...delicious and frivolous and wonderful. It was a bathroom fit for a Roman orgy or the seduction of a vestal virgin. A whirlpool bath stood surrounded by curving walls. A large skylight above nourished an abundance of plants. Stairs surrounded it so a man could sit there, dabble and play with someone in the tub. Not that there wasn't plenty of room for two to bathe in the Jacuzzi. Walter had never seen such a large spa.

The more prosaic features were slightly separate, but they all matched the jade marble finish of the spa. Walter said, "This is incredible."

Huntington said, "I like to indulge myself and Tony. It hasn't always been easy for us."

Walter nodded. Caruso was kneeling on the stairs, peering into the tub. He said, "You really won't mind us using this tub?"

Huntington laughed quietly and said, "I only regret not seeing you, young man. If I was sixty years younger and if I wasn't still as madly in love with Tony as I was from the first time that I saw him..."

The rest of the cottage consisted of a cheerful kitchen, a sunroom converted into a dining room, and the smaller bedroom, currently furnished with a large hospital bed. Huntington said, "I'll have that moved out later. Tony and I...won't be coming back after this cruise. If you do decide to buy it, I'd appreciate it if you kept the other furniture. Most of it was made for this house or collected to suit our tastes."

Walter said, "I won't change a thing if I can afford it."

Huntington smiled and said, "Really, Mr. Skinner, you'd be surprised. It was all paid for long ago when the dollar could buy more. Your young man would look as beautiful as my Tony in this setting. I would be honored to think that this cottage would again hold such beauty."

Somehow Walter couldn't explain that Ricky and he weren't a real couple...it seemed to give Huntingdon such pleasure to think they were. As he took down the contact information, he saw Ricky wheeling Tony Edwards-Huntington in the garden. They seemed lost in conversation. Caruso was easy to talk to. Much as Alex had been when he first played his rookie role in those bygone days.

Two days later, Walter met Ricky at his apartment, a place hardly worthy of the name. It was a little larger than a housekeeping room, but not much. The rug smelled of pesticide and old urine; the hallway reeked of greasy cooking. Ricky looked embarrassed and said, "Well, I'm out of here regardless. I decided not to renew again. I'll stay with ...a friend if I can't find some place better."

Walter found himself saying, "You could rent that spare room. I've pretty much decided to buy the cottage. Huntington is all but giving it away."

Ricky said, "I know. Um, this cruise, I don't think that they're coming back."

Walter said, "I know. I assume that Huntington will want a place near the hospital."

Ricky shrugged and said, "I don't think so. The way Tony was talking...they just sail on and one day, well, they take their boat out and ...you know."

Walter stared and said, "He told you that?"

Ricky said, "Not exactly, but hey, if it was me...if I loved someone like that."

Walter shook his head. Ricky had some of Alex's situational morals... but perhaps he was right. If the two men didn't want to part, then he wouldn't stand in the way of their lover's pact. He grabbed a box of assorted sports equipment and walked out to the car.

Ricky's boxes provided a natural activity to catch a watchers interest. Neighbors dropped by at intervals; a lovely pair of women, Audra and Natalie Moore strolled by with a delightful curly haired toddler in tow. The little boy took to Ricky instantly, chubby, grubby hands further mussing the young man's chestnut hair. Both women were in their mid-thirties and elegant, one light and the other dark. Natalie had a mass of honey colored curls of her own. She was winsomely plumb and very vivacious. Audra was black haired, slender and tall, with an old fashioned elegant carriage that made her seem older than her smooth olive complexion suggested.

Audra warned them about the serial killer adding that, so far, the killer had chosen couples that were further apart in age.

Walter gravely listened to Audra while Ricky played with the little boy and chattered with Natalie. They could compare notes later. Audra was an interior designer while Natalie was a photographer. Walter wasn't surprised to hear from Ricky that Natalie wanted to use him as a subject. Both Alex and Ricky photographed well. The women walked on after inviting Walter and Ricky to a neighborhood watch meeting with the police the day after tomorrow.

Everything settled in place; Ricky and Walter moved back outside. Ricky had on shorts. Cutoffs. His legs sprawled across a length of garden as he relaxed on the bench in the courtyard. He had lemonade in hand and ran the frosted rim of the glass over his pink and sensuous mouth. "Mmm, this is the life!" Ricky remarked.

Walter's eyes followed a drop of condensation down the pillar of throat, curving off at the Adam's apple, slithering as if it lusted for the flesh it explored. Ricky reached up, a finger dabbing up the drop. His legs sprawled further apart, revealing that one of the frayed ends was ripping yet higher. Walter's eye traced the tear until his eyes hit the pale glistening hint of Ricky's inner thighs. Ricky spread his legs languidly, one hand curved gracefully over his roundly muscled leg.

Sourly, Walter grimaced and remarked, "Don't get too used to it, Ricky." More civilly, Walter added, " I'm going to make dinner."

Ricky asked, "Want help? I could manage a salad or something."

Walter said, "No, stay out. I can take care of it."

Ricky ate as if it was his last meal. No one had worked on his manners and he ate with a robust carelessness very different from the polish that someone had drilled into Alex. The Beef Wellington might as well have been a hamburger on a bun for all the time it took for the young man to devour it. However, Ricky made appreciative noises and said, "Sir, if it was allowed in this country, I'd propose marriage on the spot. Wow, I used to think I was doing well if I got the gourmet kind of frozen dinners. Of course, Alex can cook. He ever cook for you?"

So Ricky didn't want to play a game and pretend the other was not well acquainted with Mulder and Alex Krycek. Walter said, "A time or two."

Ricky said, "He's a good cook. Good at most things, I guess. Not that I'd trade lives with him even if it meant..." Ricky smirked and said, "'Having all the good men' to misquote Conner MacLeod."

Walter sighed. Not Ricky too. Mulder and Krycek were always laughing over the television series and making jokes about taking each other's heads. Walter couldn't understand it himself. He didn't mind a little swashbuckling, but he preferred a classic Errol Flynn or the Three Musketeers.

Ricky stood up and said, "I'll do the dishes. You cooked."

Walter stepped outside for a while. He knew Mulder was watching out there and he suspected that Alex was as well. Hopefully, their arrival was noted by whoever was killing happy couples in this formerly Elysian community. They matched the profile as if it was designed for them. Older men, powerful men with an air of authority and well exercised bodies. Younger, beautiful men as lovers...

The killer, he decided, was not just homophobic. He was picking and choosing his victims with care. He drugged them first. Each had been gone for more than a day before they were found dead. The couples were dumped alive although none had lived long enough to tell anything about their killer. Despite the torture, the killer left the faces untouched and the genitals intact. The men were always arranged tenderly. Some obviously had been clinging to each other in the final moments, but others must have been placed in the loving positions in which they were found, hands joined, younger man's head cradled against older man's chest. It reminded Walter of something, but the subtext eluded him.

About to go in, Walter was surprised to feel warm arms embrace him. Ricky pressed his freshly shaven cheek against Walter's rough one and said, "You should kiss me out here."

Walter stood suddenly, having to catch Ricky when he threw him off balance. "What?" Walter demanded, sounding like a nervous virgin.

Ricky said, "You know, if he's watching and he's looking for a loving pair, you had better show some tenderness, sir."

Walter knew that was the truth. Hesitantly, he touched Ricky's hair. Ricky embraced him, leaning closer, nuzzling Walter's throat. Ricky looked up and his voice sounded like Alex's, sounded like it was fresh from some heated bed, rough from moans of pleasure and screams of delight. The contented sigh Ricky made when Walter's arms drew him close was exactly the same sound Alex made when they kissed after closing some door behind them.

There were differences. Ricky was not as yielding. His kiss was questing, demanding from the first. Walter finally struggled away from the pleasure and looked at Ricky's kiss reddened mouth, the shine of arousal in his eyes.

Ricky laughed shakily and said, "Well, that ought to fool them."

Walter couldn't laugh. He was fighting back the urge to drag Ricky into the house. To peel those shreds of denim from his lithe body and plunder his treasures with greedy abandon.

Ricky held out his hand and said, "If we were lovers, you'd take my hand and we'd walk toward the door..."

Walter found himself obeying. Ricky paused in the open doorway. The play of light and shade suited his features...Da Vinci would have loved to paint him. Ricky looked at him; malachite eyes in an ivory face. Ricky said, "We would kiss here."

Walter leaned on the doorway and kissed Ricky; he loved to frame that face with his hands, feeling huge and crude, a beast to his beauty. No, that was Alex. He needed to remember that, what ever happened. He brushed back the dark chestnut hair, traced the winged brows. Ricky turned to kiss his hand.

Ricky said, "I want you."

Walter knew one thousand reasons why he should not do this and he knew that he would eventually give into Ricky's beauty. Still fighting temptation, Walter said, "It's not going to happen."

Ricky asked, "Why not?"

Walter said, "Because you are a rookie agent and I'm an AD."

Ricky said, "That's not a good reason." He stomped away. Walter locked up and noted Ricky scowling and sprawled on the couch. He was watching some show involving squealing tires and gunshots. Walter picked up a book, "Beloved and God: The Story of Hadrian and Antinous"

Walter was pages into the book before he finally realized that he was reading about a passionate love affair between a youth and the Emperor Hadrian. Great. Wonderful choice. He kept reading though; he hadn't seen this before and he enjoyed history. Hmm, well, maybe Ricky wasn't all that young after all. Antinous was beautiful. Walter wondered if the youth had been murdered? The writer didn't think so, saying he had no enemies. The investigator in Walter snorted at that. That's what people said in a hell of a lot of murder cases. Show him a person who had no enemies and Walter was sure he'd be at his or her funeral.

Ricky came strolling in. Nude. Wet. Not even a towel. Walter was wearing sweat pants worn comfortable and thin with time. He was bare-chested. He never could stand to sleep with anything on his chest...unless it was a lover's head pillowed there.

Walter said steadily, "If you forgot pajamas, I could loan you something."

Ricky posed at the window. He was pale, of course. Fair skinned like Alex. His white skin looked as marble-like as the statue of the beautiful Antinous. The night sky was the perfect backdrop. Ricky said, "I don't wear anything to sleep. Pajamas make me itchy."

Walter wished there was still a bed in the other room. The couch was comfortable, but if anyone was watching they might notice that the lovers slept apart. Walter could see the stubborn set in Ricky's chin and the glint in his eyes. All right. He could ignore it. Walter set aside his reading glasses atop the book. He switched off the Tiffany lamp on the antique bed stand and rolled over facing away from Ricky.

Ricky muttered something scatological and got into the opposite side. He turned off his matching lamp and said, "You can at least say good night."

Walter smiled, feeling that he had won this round. He said, "Good Night, Ricky."

Ricky seemed to have forgotten his peevishness in the morning. He downed a bowl of oatmeal with apparent enjoyment and finished unpacking his boxes. Walter regretted his offer of a room. What had he been thinking? The only way he could get out of it was to not buy the cottage. And really, he hardly wanted to do that. The price Huntington had quoted may have been what he had paid, but on today's market, it wouldn't buy a condo in a tenement.

Ricky said, "Sir, look. About last night..."

Walter said, "Forget it."

Ricky said, "Not what I intended at all. I just meant to say that I haven't changed my mind."

Ricky was wearing even scantier cutoffs than yesterday. He stood, sans shirt and in those obscenely tight denim scraps. He said, "No strings, Walter. Where would I hide them? Come on. Relax. It doesn't have to be complicated."

Walter wasn't a saint or monk. He examined his conscience and shrugged it away. He said, "Maybe. Just maybe. But it can't get in the way of our work, Ricky."

Ricky held out his hand and said, "Deal."

When Walter took the hand, Ricky pulled him close and wrapped around him. Walter took control of the kiss. Tempting to just drag the young beauty back to the playing field of that vast and comfortable bed. Walter grabbed for a shred of discipline, swatted Ricky on the ass, and said, "Tonight. We have work to do. Being seen. Right?"

So they made rounds of the suburb. Went and enrolled at the gym. They were given the tour and then left to enjoy the well-equipped gym. Ricky went to the free weights. Walter observed briefly then corrected his grip and stance. Ricky grunted, reminding Walter that this wasn't Alex. Even before Alex lost his baby soft looks, running from everyone and everything, he had always been extremely fit. Ricky was lithe and, of course, active but he needed to develop a little more to fill in the gawky places.

After the gym, they had an invitation to lunch with the Moore women. Not at their house. The women had laudable caution. They met at a sidewalk cafe that served excellent hearty soups and salads, hunks of freshly baked breads, steaming on the side. Walter let Ricky handle the social chatter. He was watching, looking for the patterns and flows of the community. The murderer was someone who had many chances to observe his victims. Walter looked for someone who might have access to the victim's home. Someone who no one would be surprised to see in all sorts of place.

Audra mentioned one possibility. She had been discussing the murders, an amateur sleuth of sorts. She pointed at a grocery delivery truck and said, "See, he could be one of those delivery men. That store delivers to half the people in this community. He could case the houses, gain the victim's trust and..."

Her partner looked amused. She said, "Audra is a mystery buff, you know. We met at one of those events where you enact a murder mystery. I was with a friend who was mad about the things. Of course, she was the first victim and had to spend the rest of the weekend over at a different bed and breakfast. Natalie laughed and said, "Audra came back and questioned me four times before asking me to dinner. Someone else solved the mystery, but we were the ones that really won the prize."

The women clasped hands; affectionate looks exchanged across the table. Walter smiled at them. Natalie asked, "And how did you two meet?"

Ricky said, "Oh, we work together. Haven't come out there yet; it's not that kind of place. No personal lives allowed. But one advantage is that no one socializes out of work very much so we thought that we could have a home where we could relax and fit in."

Audra said, "Well, as soon as this killer is caught, you'll be able to relax." She smiled and said, "We have to pick Matthew up from Montessori school. Now, don't forget about that meeting tomorrow."

The rest of the day was spent in mock indolence. They chatted, sat and read newspapers, listening to undercurrents. Drank espresso until their bladders threatened to give out. Of course, everyone was talking about the murders, but Walter didn't hear any real hints that anyone knew who was doing it.

When they finally went back to the house, both men ended up in that lovely garden again. Ricky was befriending a feathered resident, an Oriole Tony Edwards had raised from a naked foundling. The bird was interested in the crumbs of bread with which Ricky enticed it. It was just a little nervous, bright black eyes jittering from cocked head.

Ricky threw the rest of the bread and then sprawled again. Walter took his qualms and shoved them into a locked drawer of his subconscious. He put an arm around Ricky and felt the warm supple body mold into his.

Walter asked, "Are you certain that this is what you want? You're very young, Ricky."

Ricky guided Walter's hand to his tightly clad crotch. Walter felt the heat and the straining even against the harsh boundary of the cutoffs. "Yeah, I may be young, but I'm not that innocent."

Ricky stood up and held out his hand again. This time Walter pulled him close and set out to kiss the ambient temperature to Sahara gradients.

Ricky shut the door behind him and locked it carefully. He smiled again and said, "I hope that madman doesn't plan on making a try for us tonight."

Walter said, "I'll protect you." And laughed harshly at his words. He hadn't been able to protect them before. Couldn't help Alex. Couldn't stop them from taking Scully. He couldn't stop Spender from playing cat to Mulder's mouse. But he tried and he always hoped he would succeed someday. Put the right sword in his hand and he would be the knight to stand fast before the darkness.

Ricky walked to the bedroom and turned again. He said, "Not much to take off me, but do you want to undress me?"

Walter nodded. He gently undid the button, brushed the little indentation between navel and groin. Alex liked it when he kissed him there. Ricky shuddered and said, "Yeah, that's nice."

Ricky wasn't wearing underwear, no room under those skintight shorts. Walter eased them down. Ricky kicked off his battered running shoes and he was naked, perfect, strong chest, smooth pectorals, slim waist, and legs that made Walter want to kiss every inch of them. Walter groaned as Ricky returned the favor, removing Walter's more substantial clothing, jeans and an old white shirt.

Ricky ran his hands over Walter's chest, tangling his hands in the thick fur. He kneaded Walter's muscles in admiration and said, "Damn, you do work out."

Walter said, "I have a lot of frustrations I take out in the gym."

Ricky said, "I might be able to help you with those." Ricky reddened a little and said, "Um, I haven't done a lot with guys. Only let one guy inside me. Only trusted one enough."

Walter said, "That's all right; I don't need that." Walter hesitated and then asked, "Mulder?"

Ricky reddened more and said, "Alex. I trusted him."

Walter nodded. There was an awkward moment as they lay down and turned to each other. Finally, Ricky broke the impasse, scooting forward into Walter's arms. He said, "I like to be kissed all over. How about you? Anything you don't like?"

Walter said, "Lot's of things, Ricky, but none that you probably know about. I like kissing too."

Ricky was apple pie; Walter decided. Spicy, sweet and wholesome. He wasn't Alex, but he was dear and delicious. He certainly did enjoy kissing and he was even more oral than Alex. He had the recovery of a twenty year old, which was a good thing. Walter had just been stroking him while they kissed. The substantial cock had shuddered and Ricky gasped as he came over Walter's hand and his stomach. Ricky said, "Whoops."

Walter said, "I'm glad that I excite you so much."

Ricky said, "Oh, yeah, you do. It feels different. I mean, Alex and Mulder...we're all, you know, like peas in a pod. Well, I know that sounds stupid, but even Mulder seems like part of Alex when we do it. You definitely aren't part of me. You are big, solid, strong, and fucking beautiful."

Walter was amused. He said, "You and Alex must have the same odd gene. He was always saying that too. I don't see it."

Ricky said, "Mmm, like one of those big horses the knights used to ride."

Ricky slithered down Walter's chest, a kiss, a lick, a nibble, tracing his way. He nuzzled Walter's cock before taking the head in his mouth. Walter groaned at the touch, moving up to lie back against the pillow. He always liked to watch his partner do this. Walter could feel the silken hair brushing his thighs; Ricky's face was dazzled with lust; eyes heavy lidded and face a pretty rose color with the heat of his actions. Ricky teased his slit before running his tongue under the heavy head to play with the shaft. He said, "Mmmm. Mmmm." Walter loved that, the buzz on his sensitive flesh making him harder yet.

Ricky took him in his mouth, moving faster. Walter restrained him self, giving all the control to his lover. He dug his hands into the bedding as Ricky allowed him deep. His heart was racing. It felt like liquid fire running through him, overwhelming him, blotting out the world. Walter heard his voice gasp, "Ricky, ah, Ricky." Before the scarlet rush took him away for a few minutes.

Walter opened his eyes, finding Ricky's face inches from his face, cat-curious. Ricky leaned down and kissed him as soon as Walter stopped gasping. Ricky said, sounding pleased with himself, "Not bad for amateur night."

Walter said, "Very, very good, Ricky."

It took a little leverage to flip Ricky over to ravage his lips, mark his neck savagely, and then tease each nipple into crimson peaks. Walter took Ricky all the way in and worked him until the hips thrust hard at him.

Walter stood up; he had brought lube and condoms so maybe he always planned this. Either that or he hoped the fuck fairy was late coming for his wisdom teeth.

Ricky looked at the things and his eyelashes veiled his green eyes. The lips parted, but he didn't say, 'No'

Walter said, "I don't do this for everyone either. Just a few times. Even for Alex, just two times, but I'm good at it. Or so I'm told."

Ricky understood. He took the supplies and laid them aside. Walter wanted to see Ricky; wanted to watch that beautiful face wild with passion. He said, "Do you need help? Know what to do?"

Ricky nodded and said, "Mulder likes it as much as Alex does."

Walter winced at that. Jealous. He had no wonder that the two let Ricky inside while they kept him out. Mulder wouldn't be able to resist this beauty that looked like his lost love. As for Alex, well, maybe this other self intrigued him.

Ricky whispered, "Maybe they just didn't think I was enough to threaten their relationship as you would?"

Had Walter said anything aloud? He didn't think so. Ricky just had that same preternatural awareness that Alex had. Walter said, "It doesn't matter."

Ricky bent over him, teasing him back from his satiated collapse before settling Walter's legs over his shoulders. Walter felt the slide of a finger inside him. His entire body heated, quickened with anticipation. He willed Alex away. This was Ricky and Walter wanted to show him that he wasn't just a taker. As much as he would like to get inside Ricky, he could wait and in the meantime, this was bliss. There was just a whisper of pain as Ricky stretched him. Walter was surprised to find himself hot, hard, sweating with anticipation. Ricky groaned deeply as he pushed slowly into Walter.

Ricky was bowed over him; his fingers white on Walter's sides. His mouth was open, panting as he thrust. Walter felt that first implosion of feeling. It was not only the sensation of Ricky's cock finding that spot within him. It was the connection...feeling as if they had merged into one achingly yearning creature, hurling in all this fiery flesh closer and closer to some penultimate goal. Walter heard his own voice, barely recognizable as he pleaded madly for Ricky to move faster, to surge deeper with him. They grasped at each other, needing so desperately to connect, to find one being out of their incomplete souls. The sound that rang from their throats as first one burst over the edge and then the other was not only pleasure; it rang hollow...one being separating into two.

Walter found himself holding Ricky, sweat damp, breathing like a marathon runner, hair plastered to his face and eyes like green fire, burning even from beneath the half closed eyes. He swept the wild locks of hair aside from the heated forehead. He nuzzled his way down and found the lips he loved to kiss. Sighing, they lay together, errant caresses lazily defining territory of each other's flesh.

The bath finally drew them from the post coital indolence. A quick shower in the over sized stall sluiced away the effluvia of their sexual play before they entered the mammoth bath. Walter sprawled back, feeling as if he was dissolving in the caressing currents of the spa. One of Ricky's long legs invaded his space; a toe stroked the inside of his thigh. Walter caught the foot and said, "No use nudging...it's dead."

Ricky said, "I believe in resurrection, Walter."

Walter laughed and rubbed the foot, pressed a kiss on the sole. He played with the toes before tickling the foot until Ricky pulled it back. Ricky sighed and said, "That was good. Next time, you can do that to me."

Walter said, "It's not tit for tat, Ricky. I wanted you that way."

Ricky said, "Well, me too...I just needed to know if I could trust you. I don't want to spoil that for myself. Alex says that if the other guy does it wrong that it hurts. I don't like pain. Alex does, at least a little, I think. But not me. I'm not a complicated guy."

Walter said, "You don't have to be. You know I shouldn't be doing this."

Ricky said, "Fuck "should" I wasn't getting anywhere with all my should do and shouldn't have done. This was good. I promise you I won't fall in love with you or cause you any problems. I like you. I like your big strong body. I like the way you make love to me."

Walter nodded in agreement and sighed. If he didn't get out of this warm, comforting bath, he was going to fall asleep. He got up, drowsily remade the ravished bed and lay down. Ricky snuggled close; face pressed between his shoulder and neck, a claiming arm around his body and soon subsided into deep untroubled breaths. Walter lay awake, his eyes open to the darkness. So close, so beautiful and never enough....someone else...a man who lived edged in darkness, but he was no demon for all he had done.

Walter overslept, a crime of which he was seldom guilty. The bed was cool beside him. After a shower and a badly needed shave, Walter made his way to the kitchen to find Ricky laying bacon strips next to sunny side up eggs. Ricky looked up with a smile. He said, "Hey, want to make some toast? I want to try out the juicer."

Walter shrugged. What the hell...may as well abandon all the strictures in which he bound his life...he'd do his penance later.

Walter and Ricky spent the day much as they did the day before. The tennis court, a local cafe, several small shops...Walter's well-trained eyes looked for any unusual interest, but spotted none. That was no surprise. Many serial killers masqueraded so well that even wives and lovers didn't realize what kind of beast they slept with every night. It could be anyone...the overeager sales clerk at the pottery store or the scowling muscle man posing at the park...less likely given that most serial killers were white males, but still it could have been the agile woman who trounced Ricky so thoroughly on the court that he returned to Walter's side, muttering about being tired from the night before.

As Ricky relaxed, Walter was amused to find out that the seemingly diffident agent had a smart mouth when pressed. He was clever, brash, and very naïve in his way. Ricky was Alex with none of the baggage and twice the energy. He was still coltish, long legs and long arms not quite so smoothly developed, but the ass must have been nature's gift because Walter was not the only person male or female who had a constant eye on it.

Ricky had inveigled a game of basketball. Walter stretched for a while and did some shadow boxing before contenting himself with being a spectator. Ricky was good, very competitive and ruthless in his play. Walter didn't get up from his shady knoll when Ricky had won. He watched as a moderately good looking man with a bland face and thinning dishwater blond hair circled Ricky like a lion seeking prey. Walter snorted. That trim body was developed at a gym. If he stopped, no doubt it would soften quickly. Walter shrugged feeling the heavy roll of his considerable muscle. He was proud of his body; nature had provided the template and will had completed the picture with brawn that came from his varied labors and sports. It would have taken deliberate indulgence and abuse to ruin his alpha male physique.

Walter waited to see how Ricky would deal with the heavy-handed pick up techniques of the cruising blond. Ricky's lips curved in a smile as he listened to the man drop car, club, job, and other brags. Ricky said, "Excuse me. I'm with someone."

Ricky bounded over and threw his sweaty, testosterone rich body down next to Walter. The blond followed and said with an incredulous sneer, "That old man? You can do better."

Ricky smirked and said, "Not from where I'm lying." Ricky reached out and patted Walter's groin. "If I'm with a man, I want him to be a real man." The blond huffed off. Ricky waited until even Superman would have had to strain to hear him. "Hmm, think that could be him?"

Walter couldn't resist a swat on the teasing ass that wiggled beside him. He said, "Could be, but I doubt it. The one that we want has intense feelings about the older man, younger man pairing. Although he's killing the couples, he also is enshrining them. That guy just saw the age difference."

Ricky said, "Ha, he should have seen you last night."

Walter smiled, but only replied, "You need a shower, Ricky. The meeting Audra and Natalie spoke to us about is two hours from now. And we'll want dinner before we go."

The meeting room at the library was full. Walter and Ricky ended up standing. That suited Walter anyway. He bet the killer was among the people here. Serial killers often played cat and mouse games with the police. They saw themselves as supernatural figures, above being caught by mere mortals. He looked carefully at expressions and knew Ricky was doing the same. He assumed that Mulder and Alex were also watching from some hidden place. Ricky's hand crept into his as Audra Moore stood up to speak.

Walter diverted a little attention to hear his neighbor speak. Her questions were to the point and her demands for increased police attention were reasonable. Of course, she didn't know about the FBI investigation. The room applauded as Audra sat down. A few other people spoke.

The police spokesman was nervous. He kept pulling at his collar and fidgeting with the microphone. He was definitely not at ease with the issues here. Of course, the question of hate crimes was raised. Walter dismissed that. No, these crimes were more than hate. It was an elaborate and twisted play for the person who perpetuated the murders. For all Walter knew, the murderer could also be gay.

Walter and Ricky stayed to the end, covering their vigilance by helping to fold up the extra chairs in the meeting room. The Moore family also lingered. Audra seemed quite the community organizer. Walter complimented her on her questions and said, "Have you thought about running for the city council?"

Audra nodded and said, "I've just started putting together a campaign. Much as I abhor the vacuous discharge of politicians, this community should be represented. For example, couldn't they have sent someone more confident over to speak?"

Chatting led to dinner and then to a nightclub. The place was tasteful. Lots of couples of either and any gender. No obvious groping although no one blinked at kisses exchanged between the same sex pairs. Ricky wanted to dance and pulled Walter onto the floor. He moved well; hints of future grace in his choreography. It had been years since Walter had taken a chance like this, dancing with a man in public. Of course this was in the line of duty...

After saying good night to the women, Walter and Ricky drove home. Ricky stayed behind the wheel and said, "I have to get some snacks. Do you want anything?"

Walter said, "No, but be careful, Ricky. We really don't know how the couples were taken. It could well have been separately."

Ricky shrugged and said blithely, "I can take care of myself, Walter. Don't worry."

Walter moved out into the garden, feeling adrift and unsatisfied. He rubbed his temples; it had been a long day and tense with the watching. He sat on the bench, drowsy until he heard a noise.

Walter thought it was Ricky at first, thought that Ricky had forgotten something. Ricky was a little on the absent minded side in everyday things. But no, Ricky didn't wear the darkness like a velvet cloak. Ricky did not glide like a panther out of the shadows. It was Alex.

Alex tilted his chin at the door and said, "Better go in."

Alex wore his dangerous face. The one that Walter still saw in nightmares. Walter checked the man's hand. He was relieved to see neither gun nor a reemergence of the palm pilot that controlled the nanobytes. Although Alex had assured him that they were gone and that he had destroyed the science that developed them, Walter still felt some fear that it was all a trick.

Alex moved to the shadows in the comfortable room. Walter followed. He said, "You shouldn't be here."

Alex said, "I've been watching. I was watching last night."

Walter blushed. The heat ran through him no matter how foolish it was. He knew that Alex had no cause to be jealous. He had Mulder and why would he need someone like Walter, who knew he was not beautiful like his extremely difficult and attractive agent? Walter said, "You know that Ricky and I are playing a role here."

Alex hissed, so dangerous, so feral, so incredibly fascinating, "Playing it to the hilt, are you?" And that green venomous gaze turned its fire and ice focus right at Walter's groin.

Walter said, "I won't hurt him." He left unspoken the words, 'As we did each other.'

Alex turned away; his profile was cool and sharp, distantly lovely, a cameo cut against the dark skyline. Alex said softly, "He's not me. If you care about him, remember that..."

Irresistible, Walter stepped forward, was drawn closer and closer, a bird fascinated by a serpent, a moth to the flame. He stretched his fingers toward this icon of his desire. Touched flesh, which was neither fire nor ice. Just a man. Alex allowed the touch, turned toward Walter with his old expression, longing, fear, the expectation of pain.

Walter helplessly drew Alex into his arms. He always wanted to shelter him there when they were lovers. Somehow he always knew that something was wrong, terribly wrong in his young agent's life, with his beautiful darling.

Walter tilted up the chin. Sharp little chin...delicately he traced the line of the jaw until he stroked a finger underside the full under-lip. He thought of Mulder, hard to think of one without the other. Mulder's lip was plump and heavy, like fruit hanging ripe on the vine. Alex's lips were like cherry blossoms, ephemeral and lovely, sweeter for all the transitory nature.

And thinking of cherry blossoms, Walter had to ravish that lip, to crush its delicate beauty beneath his profaning mouth.

Alex pressed against him, his body speaking a language Walter could hardly forget. Walter said, "There's never a day that I don't think about you, you know. Sometimes I wake up and I can taste you. I feel you like...like something missing; a phantom part of my soul."

Alex withdrew a little. He looked at Walter with a hard expression, apparently thinking that Walter was mocking him. Walter hung his head, 'Good going, Walter, learned that in all those human resource classes, did you?'

Walter said, "I wasn't thinking, Alex. I'm sorry, but it is how I feel."

Alex's lip twisted in that blade of a smile, an expression that went sharp and deep into Walter's heart. He said, "And when did you discover I was your missing soul, Walter? When I had to run from you and Mulder? When the two of you bought Spender's cute little trick with the cigarettes? When I played a cowardly goon, pounding on your helpless body in that stairwell? When you beat me in your apartment? Or maybe when I held your life in my hands, huh? You a masochist, Walter?"

Just to shut him up, to stem the flow of the acidic words, Walter surrounded that face in his strong hands, captured his lips all over again. He felt Alex's hand on the back of his neck, holding on to him desperately for a long moment.

Alex pushed him away. Walter felt the hard thrust of Alex's desecrated arm. Alex's lips were open and glistened, shiny with the effects of their lust. His eyes were wild, showing their whites, pupils huge. His face was flushed, burning. Alex said, "I can't, Walter. God damn it. I can murder, cheat, spy, and it hardly hurts at all anymore, but I can't betray Mulder again. It's too late for us, Walter. I'm sorry. Just be good to Ricky. I had no right to be jealous."

Alex was gone so swiftly that it seemed he was a demon in the night. Walter sat alone in the dark for a very long time. Finally, he made his way to bed. Ricky wasn't back yet. It worried him, but then again, Ricky was young. He might have found a million distractions on his way back here.

Walter lay in the bed and, despite his weariness; sleep wouldn't be coaxed to ease him away. He checked the clock. It was near midnight. Not too late, but Ricky should have called. They were working and despite Ricky's playfulness, he took his FBI position seriously.

Ricky still hadn't come home or called by morning. Walter sat by the phone waiting. When it rang, it was midmorning. Walter picked it up, thumbing the button that alerted the wiretap team at the same time. It was probably a futile gesture, but Walter was hardly a careless man. The voice that whispered in his ear was distorted. He assumed that the man was using some type of voice distortion. "He's beautiful, really hot and sweet. I'm so tempted, but then, he's not for me. Do you love him?"

Walter said, "Who the hell is this?"

The voice answered, "I'm your avatar. Your chance to prove your love...Haven't you wondered what you would do for him? What he would do for you? But I'm forgetting something. Listen..."

It had a tinny sound as if it was recorded, but it was Ricky's voice. It sounded thick, drugged, and very, very pissed. Ricky's voice said, "Get your God-dammed hands off me, you bastard. Get the hell away from me." There was more, ending with a gasp and a groan.

Walter said, "What have you done with him?"

"No questions. It's time to see if you are worthy. If you love him, meet me at the lion's gate. Take the taxi that you see there." The distorted voice ordered.

Walter hung up, chilled to the bone suddenly. He used his mobile phone to call the wiretap team. "Did you get anything?"

The familiar voice of Sparky Morton answered. He said, "Nada. We got nothing. He's running it though a computer program, bouncing the signals all over the map. We'll see if we can do a trace anyway through a back door program. I don't have a lot of hope. Guy's a geek."

Walter called Mulder next. Mulder said, "Yeah, I heard. Shit, Scully was on Ricky, but she couldn't follow him into the men's room at the gas station. I don't know how he got Ricky out the window, but he sure and hell didn't walk through the wall with him."

Walter said, "All right, stay out of sight. I don't want to inspire any drastic actions."

The Lion's Gate was simply an imitation of a Greek ruin. The arch had bas relief works of men hunting lions from chariots, which explained the name. Walter saw a Gray Liner taxi and got into its' musty smelling interior. He looked at the driver. Was this the killer?

The man said, "Man said to bring you to the corner of Antioch Street. He'll meet you in the alley."

Shortly Walter was standing in an alley waiting. No one met him. He didn't want to leave, thinking that this was part of the test that the man mentioned. After an hour, he decided to check his voice mail. A different distorted voice said, "Bad man. Very bad man. Listen..."

Ricky's voice cursing and then groaning in pain emerged from the phone. The killer's voice said, "He's suffering for your sins. You're supposed to be his shield, Walter. How could you let me hurt him? I saw the man following you. Lose him. Lose him or lose your beautiful boy."

Walter stood there numb. He couldn't tell Mulder. Mulder wouldn't listen. But lose him; Walter could do that. The problem was that Alex was watching as well. Losing Alex was a talent that Walter didn't think he could develop any time soon. An almost smile crossed Walter's face. He realized it wasn't a problem. He might not be able to lose Alex, but he doubted that Alex would be seen either.

Walter said, "Where do you want me to meet you?"

The man laughed and said, "Do you think I'm a fool? I'll meet you when and where I choose."

Walter said, "Don't hurt Ricky any more...please."

No answer. Walter walked out of the alley. He ducked into traffic; climbed onto a waiting bus, rode a block before doing his best to blend with the large group of people also disembarking. He moved into the warren of arts and crafts stores. The place was having a show, which explained the large number of people who took this stop. Walter moved in and out of the crowd. He spotted Mulder in a mirror displayed among myriad others, all etched with trivial designs. Walter was amused as he saw the man blocked by a trio of chubby ladies with strollers and bags. He ducked into another small shop and was gratified to see a back door. He barreled through it, as the proprietor was busy showing a customer a tray of beads.

Walter noted that he was in a narrow hallway, which linked the stores from behind. He faced a restroom and another door marked, janitor. Walter followed the maze like passage out and found himself in another alley. He caught a cab by dint of extreme rudeness, shoving aside a harried man before he reached the door. The driver protested until Walter dropped a twenty on the seat. Walter spent the next two hours, moving from place to place. He was tired. Hadn't slept more than an hour last night. Walter drifted to the park, back to the basketball court. He stood for a moment thinking about Ricky playing basketball, sweaty, color high, a happy healthy young animal in his exuberance.

A voice came from near by. "I was watching. I watched that man try to pick him up. He looked so lovely. Don't turn around, dear Walter and don't try anything. If I don't get back to your beautiful boy, he will not be happy. He will be very unhappy."

Walter walked ahead of the man, following his directions. He walked to a battered white van. He felt a sudden sharp pain. Dizzy, he collapsed forward. The still unseen man said, "Walter, Walter, I told you not to drink so much. Here let me help you."

Rough strong hands helped him into the van. Walter blinked as his fading vision caught sight of the man. Handsome, handsome and blond, hair cut short, features like a Macedonian coin. Walter fought the drug for a moment and then, feeling ill and numb, he lost his battle. He tumbled into the well of darkness.

Walter woke shivering; cold air circulated around him. He looked up into a mirrored ceiling. Fuck, he was naked and tightly bound to a medical examination table. He looked to the side. Ricky occupied another table. Walter winced at the burns now marking Ricky's nipples and his groin. He said, "Ricky?"

"Yeah." The agent said, "I'm here. I know this has to be some kind of plan because we aren't stupid enough to both end up caught like this."

The man entered. He wore a white tunic and Grecian sandals, leather bound up his strong legs. "Awake already. You're strong. The strongest yet, I think. The strongest and the most beautiful. It's perfect."

Walter growled, "Now what?"

The man rubbed his hands together and said, "Now, you get the chance to die gloriously or perhaps live. I really wanted to have a chance for you to fight...you do know how to use a Theban short sword don't you? But if one goes about hiring thugs, word gets out, don't you think? Now, I think you are ready. The rules are simple. No cowardice and you must have perfect faith in each other. The others did well enough, most of them, but not quite perfect enough, never good enough. Better than him though. He betrayed me. Wanted a younger one when I lost my ephebes."

Walter said, "If you're angry with him...why not take it out on him?"

The man said, "Because he's gone. He and his new lover. They weren't perfect. Not willing to lay down their lives for each other. No single shield..."

The man shook out a case and withdrew a syringe. "A little sleep and then the opportunity of a lifetime."

Walter grunted as the needle bit into his skin. He watched as the man did the same to Ricky.

"So beautiful..." the man said, tracing the lines of Ricky's face. "Be in me as the eternal moods of the bleak wind and not as transient things are; gaiety of flowers. Have me in the strong loneliness of sunless cliffs and of gray waters. Let the gods speak softly of us in the day's hereafter. Shadowy flowers of Orcus, remember thee." The man said, "It's better to die when you're so beautiful, so young. I won't touch your face. Trust me."

The man's finger strayed too near Ricky's mouth. Walter heard the yell as the man drew back half bitten through fingers. Walter thought as the drug subdued him, 'Good teeth, Ricky and Alex both have good strong teeth...'

Walter woke up untied. He was lying on a cold floor. It was dark. He heard a soft moan. The man had dressed them as they slept, but it was damp in here and the moisture had seeped through to his shivering skin. He said, "Ricky?"

"Yeah." Warmth scooted nearer.

His head clearing, Walter realized that there was something on his eyes. He reached up and explored, finding patches. They wouldn't come off. He'd used some sort of surgical glue. Walter kept trying, but he only succeeded in hurting himself.

Ricky said, "Your eyes and my hands. I'm cuffed behind my back."

Walter said, "What's his game?"

Ricky said, "He kept talking about lab rats and mazes. I guess we're the rats. Alex has us bugged, but the guy knows that. He couldn't find get the transmitter. He said it must be inside us, but he did jam it."

Walter said, "Mulder and Alex will find us. We just have to stay alive until they do."

Ricky whispered, "He wants to make us suffer. See if he can break us. Get one to abandon the other. So that's why each of us has a handicap."

Walter said, "We could sit right here and not entertain the bastard."

The sound of laughter came wet and repulsive. It made Walter feel filthy just to hear it. The man said, "You need some encouragement."

At first, it was just alternating jets of water. It wasn't pleasant, but Walter had showered in water just as cold and stinging. He and Ricky stood, turning to the wall to shield their faces. Walter felt the first tingle of electricity with an instant knowledge that it would get worse. And it did. Painful shocks moved them further into the room. Walter clung to Ricky as he moved through obstacles set in the room.

It took a few moments to establish a rhythm...for Walter to remember to let Ricky lead him. Even so, he stumbled into some of the barriers. Sometimes it was no more than furniture. Other things gave out a painful shock. A few were edged jagged with something fine and sharp.

Ricky guided him through another narrow opening. Walter was frankly terrified. He felt so helpless without his vision. He was panting, his wet clothing stuck to him and he shook with cold and tension. Ricky was in no better shape. Walter put his arms around his lover for a moment. Ricky leaned into him, shivering just as hard as Walter was. Ricky said, "Alex will beat the jamming. I know he will."

The jet of water alerted them to move on. Ricky said, "These rooms are big, but not as big as they must feel to you with all the turns we have made. He has them cluttered with stuff, plywood walls in some places, in others, barb wire, and old furniture embedded with broken glass and razors."

At one point, they had to squeeze through a tunnel. Each time, Walter brushed a wall the shock was agonizing. At the last, Ricky had to drag him the last few inches. They collapsed on the floor, clinging to each other.

Their torturer gave them ten minutes to rest before his oily voice said, "Not that you don't look sweet together, but it's time to move on."

Cut, bruised, nerves trembling from shocks, cold, and exhaustion, Walter might have given up were it not for Ricky. He knew that Ricky felt the same. He knew that Ricky was drawing strength from his embrace and he gave it willingly.

Finally, they were in a larger space. Walter's skin, hypersensitive from pain and fear, could feel the difference. They were holding each other upright, welded together as if they were one being.

Walter felt a brush of warmth. Him! Walter could smell him. Could feel the difference in the air. Berserker strength arrived from some unknown Nordic ancestor. He bellowed like a silver back gorilla and blindly charged. He heard a scream gone high with surprise. They hit the floor together, Walter's weight slamming the man breathless. Walter's hands found a soft throat and despite the panicked resistance, he squeezed, thumping the hated head again and again against the floor.

Walter was dimly aware of the man going limp in his hands. He couldn't stop. Over and over still screaming in rage, he smashed the man against the hard floor.

Walter half heard Ricky saying, "Walter, he's dead. It's over. It's all over." Still, his world narrowed to the pulpy sounds that resulted as he exerted his mad strength on his dead enemy. Finally, Alex's voice called him out of it. Even in his madness, he knew who that was.

Alex said, "Walter, time to stop. Here, let me see your eyes. Come on, I can help."

Walter slumped back on his heels. He would have fallen except Alex was there to catch him. Walter yelled, "Ricky!"

His young lover folded free hands around him. Ricky let loose a sobbing sigh and then caught it back. Ricky wearily said, "Okay, now. We made it and I am so glad, so very glad that he's dead."

Although they wanted to admit them both, neither Ricky nor Walter wanted to stay at the hospital. Walter's eyes still stung from both the lingering results of the adhesive used to bond the eye patches to his skin and from the dissolving agent that the doctor in emergency had applied. He wore a pound or two of bandages on the outer parts of his body and he was sore from head to foot. Ricky was in no better shape. In one accord, they moved to the bedroom the instant they were back at the cottage. They gingerly crept in the big bed, moved to the center, and wrapped each other tightly despite the aches.

Alex sat on the bed, kissed each forehead and gently patted each face. "Don't worry. Mulder and I will be right outside. We'll watch over you."

Thus assured, Walter snuggled Ricky even closer and let himself sink deep into the healing arms of sleep.

The following day, back at headquarters, Walter was disconcerted to learn that they had lost an entire day and night in the maze. It didn't surprise him in the least, however, that it was not the ant's nest of police and official resources that belatedly found them. It was the combined efforts of Alex, Mulder and the Lone Gunmen, who finally found a way to chart their location by calculating the effects of the jamming device's distortion on the transmitters that Alex had thoughtfully implanted in their bodies.

Still limping and feeling like he had gone ten rounds bare handed with a dragon, Walter lowered himself into the offered seat. The Senator looked pale and drawn. He said, "I hear that you were the one who killed that monster. I want to thank you."

The Senator's hand trembled as he brushed under his eyes. He looked old and frail, a face he never showed on the campaign trail. He said, "I loved my son. We argued about his life style. Hardly spoke after he moved in with that man. Now, if I could take it back..." A quiet sob interrupted his words. The Senator stood, moving for the door. At the last moment, he turned back and asked, "Do you think in the end he was not afraid because he was with someone who loved him?"

Walter said, "I know he was comforted by his lover, sir. And I'm sure that he knew that you still loved him."

The Senator said, "I hope he did. By God, I'm going to do something. He wanted to marry his lover. I probably will lose the election for supporting that bill for same sex marriages, but I'm going to do it. I'm really going to do it."

No one had anything to say as the stricken man left. Walter's eyes moved around the familiar room. Same portrait of the president...always the same frame through four presidents so far. The oak desk so immense that it seemed the room was built around it. The director's hands were clasped in the middle of a snowy white scratch pad. Walter noted they were trembling.

Walter said, "I'm going to take a few more days off. I'm moving, buying that house. Agent Caruso is going to...bunk down with me for a while. We became very close during that ordeal. I know it's against regulations, but frankly, sir, I don't give a damn."

The director sucked in his already cavernous cheeks. He said, "I don't have a problem with it. Election doesn't come up for another two years for the Senator. For right now, we have a staunch ally and after that, well, I'm retiring in a few years anyway." A smile, fleeting, but sincere, crossed the lined face. He said, "Walter, you're one of the good ones. What ever makes you happy...."

____

They knelt on the warm earth together, gently pulling the weeds from around the tender pea plants. Their hands met as both reached for the same blade of grass. Walter stopped, drew Ricky's face close and kissed him. The oriole sang in the trees. A zephyr touched Ricky's richly colored hair and displaced an errant lock. Walter brushed it back, held the face cupped in his hands. Just for now, a cherry blossom caught in a perfect moment...

The two men walked inside, leaving the door open behind them. And the garden sang with love shortly after.

The End




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Title: Shade and Knight
Author/pseudonym: Ursula
Fandom: X Files
Pairing: Alex Krycek/Fox Mulder Alex Krycek/Walter Skinner
Rating: NC-17, for violence and discussion of rape
Status: New
Archive: Anywhere, as a complete story. If you have a constructive critique and wish to use a portion, contact me directly.
E-mail address for feedback: Fan4Richie@AOL.COM
Series/Sequel:Sequel to A Comedy of Errors with stories to come on either side of the time line.
Other websites: My page at RAT B: https://www.squidge.org/terma/ursula/ursula.htm
Disclaimers: 1013, Fox, Chris Carter, not mine. Ricky Caruso is not mine. Rodney is not mine.
Notes: Sequel to A Comedy of Errors: In that story, Alex Krycek frees Skinner from the nanobytes. In return, Skinner tricks Mulder and Krycek into meeting at a house of ill repute, allowing the two to renew their love affair.
There are two stories, not yet written, that are referenced in this story. In one, Walter has an affair with Ricky Caruso, (Nick Lea character from "The Commish"). In another, Skinner has a weekend affair at a training seminar with Alex Krycek before Duane Barry and after Sleepless.
Summary: Walter Skinner rescues an abused rat.
Warnings: Male to Male sex. Rape recovery story
Thank You to Karen-Leigh and Alex (Rat Boy) for beta reading and plot tips.


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Walter watched the plane's progress from the terminal window. "I wasn't in love with him." Walter thought. "It was never love with either of us."

But it had been fun, a silly, but enjoyable middle-aged fling for Walter. As for Ricky, he was a young man who craved recognition, attention, and affection. Walter had been a sure source of the adoration Ricky had wanted and Ricky had given back as much as he had received. Walter regretted seeing the young agent go, but New York was a great posting. He couldn't hold his lover back from it for sentimental reasons.

Walter tried Mulder's phone number again. Just before leaving to drive Ricky to the airport, Walter had gone to Mulder's desk to leave a note. He noticed the case file and the plane ticket lying beside Mulder's in basket. When he tried calling Mulder, the man hadn't picked up either phone. He had left messages, telling Mulder to call him. He had also tried Scully's number, but she hadn't answered either. He had made numerous attempts since with no luck. At the time, he had hoped that Mulder would meet him at the airport. Now, he decided to try Mulder's apartment. He worried just a little that something had happened to his friend.

*****************

Walter maneuvered through the heavy airport traffic, trying to keep his temper. He observed that the planes flew faster, but it took longer and longer to get to and from them. He glanced at the case file next to him on the car seat. He thought of Mulder, ah, Agent Mulder, brilliant, persistent, and as scatter brained as a monkey at times.

There had been a time when Walter had desired Mulder almost obsessively. Now, Mulder and he were up to their ears in a conspiracy on their own. They were part of an odd alliance; three FBI agents, three paranoid hackers and Alex Krycek, a man who could only be expected to do the unexpected.

Some of the glamour had faded from Mulder with the constant contact. Walter realized that they had never consummated their sexual interest in each other for many reasons. One of the main ones was the subtle competition for leadership between them. Their small group centered on Mulder, but Walter had a better sense of group strategy. Sometimes, Mulder and he circled like rival stags.

As always, it was difficult to think about Mulder without considering Krycek. Alex wasn't a follower, but he didn't care for leadership either. He backed whoever made the most sense. Walter thought wryly about how much Mulder disliked it when Alex thought that Walter was right.

Alex still fascinated Walter. The more time that they spent together the more Walter yearned for another chance. He found himself dwelling on the one weekend he had spent with Alex so long ago before everything had changed. Alex had been so young then and Walter had been so... married. The occasion had been a training seminar on "Victims of Sexual Assault"

Mulder was supposed to room with Alex, but had called in sick immediately before the plane left. Skinner doubted that entirely, but there was nothing he could do. Upon arrival at the hotel, Skinner found he was to share a room with B.J. Harrison. Only B.J. Harrison was Bernice Jane and was not interested in a male roommate.

Krycek offered to share his room. Things, unintended, heated, wonderful things had happened that weekend. If Walter had not been married...if Krycek had not been a double agent, maybe it would have been more.

Soon afterwards, Mulder started coming to work with grins on his face. He no longer complained about his wide-eyed younger partner, not at all.

Ultimately, both Mulder and Walter had additional reasons for terror. Oddly, for everything else he had done, Alex never blackmailed them with the sexual affairs. His betrayal had been professional, not personal.

Walter remembered one additional night. That had been a truce and a benediction, a sweaty sweet passion of mutual forgiveness. Alex had given himself to Walter with the disinterested generosity of a man who put little value on his body. Afterwards, Walter had made the decision to help get Mulder and Krycek back together. He had pulled it off, mended hearts and lost a little bit of his own in the process. Sometimes doing the right thing was the worst thing for you personally. Walter resisted his own desires. He believed that Fox Mulder, his friend and ...Alex Krycek, comrade, object of desire, and sometime worst enemy, needed each other.

Walter knew that his vain longings would never come to anything; Alex and Mulder were together. Hell, Walter had helped them find each other again. That didn't mean he didn't have his thoughts.

******************

Walter's car smoothly replaced an exiting taxi in a parking spot in front of Mulder's apartment. As he leaned down to pick up the file and ticket, the folder fell open to a ghastly crime scene photograph. Walter frowned as he thought about the case in hand. It wasn't about aliens or government conspiracies. It wasn't even about the paranormal. This was a perfectly ordinary case, involving a serial killer, probably only as inhuman as any of his ilk. Still, they needed Mulder's talents.

Walter followed a careless tenant through the so-called security door. The buzzer to Mulder's apartment only occasionally worked and he was in a hurry lest Mulder be late for his flight. Walter grumbled to himself as the elevator ratcheted to the fourth floor. Walter wondered why Mulder didn't move. He had inherited good money from his parents. There was no reason to live in this dangerous and questionably maintained building. As he reached apartment forty-two he heard Mulder's voice even through the closed door. That nasal voice, which spoke of his New England blue blood ancestry, was well suited to convey anger.

Before Walter could ring the doorbell, Alex Krycek opened the door. He was startled by Walter's appearance. Mulder rushed up behind his lover, face contorted with anger. He said, "If you go out that door, Alex, don't come back."

Alex shouted back, "You told me to leave. I'm leaving."

Mulder's face reddened as he noticed Walter. He said, "Skinner?"

Krycek pushed past Walter. He was carrying a suitcase, with his artificial limb tucked beneath his right arm. He looked pale and shaken...in no shape to be going anywhere. Walter asked, "Where are you going? Do you have a place to stay?"

Krycek shook his head slightly and Walter said brusquely, "Now, you do." Mulder stood frowning, but Walter handed him his ticket and the brief, saying, "We'll talk about this later. I'll calm Alex down. Don't worry about it. Go catch your plane."

Walter found Alex waiting by the elevator. Alex staggered slightly as he left the support of the wall. Walter took the suitcase in one hand, offered an arm and guided him onto the elevator. Alex turned to the wall. Walter saw the tears and sighed. Alex said, "I hate him."

Walter said, "I know."

Alex shuddered and bit his lip, his face twisted in an effort not to sob. He said, "Because I love him so much."

Walter said, "I know that too. Come on."

*******************

In the car, Alex pressed his head to the cold glass. He was wearing his battered jacket and his black denim jeans. He looked no older than he had when Mulder hauled him into Walter's apartment and left him there, as tempting to Walter as a candy bowl was to a kid. Walter asked, "What was this one about?"

Alex sighed and made a small snuffling sound, very incongruous coming from a tough guy and a spy. He said, "About having sex with someone else."

Walter jerked on the steering wheel in surprise. He asked, "Did you? I know it's none of my business, but I had the impression that you were very happy with Mulder." He stuffed down his resentment that some other man had collected what he still desired.

Alex said, "The smoking bastard called and I had to go meet with him. Creep wanted to play with me and had two big thugs to help and share."

Walter processed this. He said, "Alex, are you saying you were raped?"

Alex said, "Don't get into drama."

Walter had to pull over. He found a spot, deftly parked, and folded his arms in his best A.D. lecture mode. He asked, "Did you tell Mulder?"

His voice quiet and husky, Alex said, "No, he knew when I came back that I'd had sex. He just started yelling at me. I didn't want to tell him what really happened. I thought he would think it was my fault. It wasn't my fault, not exactly. I was careless and they got the jump on me. If I had resisted, they would have really hurt me."

Walter said, "You need to go to a hospital. Uh, did they use protection?"

Alex said, "I am not going to any hospital to have them look at me the way they do. No police either. I don't want to have some cop laughing at the stupid faggot, who got what he deserves. I'm okay. Spender and his goons used condoms. They know that much. It just made me sick to have Spender touch me. I'm going to kill him no matter what Mulder says. I should have known that something was up. Why was I so stupid?"

Walter said, "I seem to remember you attending a sexual trauma workshop shortly after being assigned to my division. I remember it very, very well. Did you sleep through the lectures?"

For a moment, Alex reacted like the sincere young agent he had once seemed and said, "Oh, no, I paid attention. I knew it was important!"

Walter said, "Do you remember what they said about blaming the victim?"

Alex nodded, getting the point. His lip curled in a faint acknowledgement of defeat. He said, "Okay, I guess I know that."

Walter said, "Yes, I think that you do know it wasn't anything you did. I'm taking you home and I'm going to call Scully to examine you. Then, you are going to stay at my home for as long as you want. No obligations."

Alex looked at him and asked, "Why?"

Walter said, "Because I care." He saw the edged smile and knew Alex didn't believe him. Still, Alex was too dispirited to argue. Walter nodded; satisfied that he had won the first battle. He restarted the car and headed for his home.

*******************

Walter took Krycek's arm to help him from the car when they reached the house. Alex looked and said, "The garden looks good."

Walter nodded and surveyed the small yard. Ricky, raised in an old world family, didn't think much of grass. Instead, the whole space was divided into patches of vegetables, clumps of herbs, and borders of flowers. He might have to hire a gardener now; he would hate to see all the work go to waste. Walter grabbed Alex's suitcase, surprised again at how heavy it felt, and tucked his arm around Alex to bring him inside.

Alex didn't want to lie down. He said, "I want a bath."

Walter sighed and said, "Are you sure you don't want to prosecute?" He knew Alex understood the question. He knew about physical evidence in a rape case. The boy had been a good agent, which in part explained the fury that Walter felt when he found out that Alex was a plant.

Alex shook his head, bit his lip, and stared down at the floor. Walter set the suitcase and the arm on the coffee table. He announced, "I'm going to help you."

Walter walked Alex into the bathroom, his arm around the man's waist. Alex's eyes lit when he saw the bathroom. The previous owner had been a sybarite. The upper wall and most of the roof was a greenhouse like skylight. Large ferns in baskets hung from the ceiling and added to the impression of a woodland pond.

The tub was a sunken Jacuzzi, large enough for three. God, Ricky had loved that thing. He used to stay in until his skin was pink and wrinkled. Sometimes, Walter thought that the reason Ricky adored him was for that piece of luxury.

The toilet was in an alcove complete with a bidet. Alex looked around and said, "Skinner, this is great. I didn't think you had it in you!"

Walter explained, "This, the master bedroom, and the library sold me on the place. The man who owned it was dying. This was his pied-a-terre where he spent weekends with his lover until he died.

He wanted it to go to someone who would respect what he had created. I think he was mostly impressed by Ricky."

Alex said, "I'm not Ricky."

Walter helped Alex take the jacket off and replied, "He wasn't you."

Alex muttered, "Lucky for him."

Walter waited for the rest of the clothes. Alex shoved off his boots, his socks, and followed with his jeans. Walter exclaimed as he saw the bruises, the gouges of fingernails, and the stain of rust down one tender thigh. He moved forward and said, "Alex, let me see."

The man drew away; his face wore the hurt innocence of an abused child. Walter said, "Alex, I just want to help. Come on. Let me see if I should call Scully or take you to emergency."

Alex muttered, "You would have to take me kicking and screaming."

Walter said, "Don't think I couldn't do it. How do you think I've handled Mulder all these years? For all his drama, he hates doctors. Scully and I have to force him to go."

Alex said, "You're a bully. I knew that." He leaned against the wall, his head supported by his arm.

Walter took out his first aid kit and put on disposable gloves. Alex hissed even though Walter was as gentle as he could be. Walter saw a small amount of blood and found two small tears from the rough use. As far as he could tell there was no massive trauma to the flesh.

Walter was more worried about Alex's mind. How much more could the man endure? He said, "You'll be fine, but I want Scully to look you over anyway, run a few tests, and make you more comfortable."

Alex turned around and said, "Yeah, okay, if it'll make you feel better. I have to use the john. Will you run a bath for me?"

Walter said, "Yes, I'll do that and I'll call Scully." He followed Alex's progress, making sure that he didn't fall. Walter started the bath and then went to call Dana. He knew this was asking a lot of her. Still, he trusted that Dana would understand why Alex couldn't or wouldn't go to a regular doctor.

Walter reflected that it was lucky Scully wasn't needed on Mulder's case. Los Angeles boasted of an outstanding pathologist, a curmudgeon by the name of Quincy. The man was nearly as quirky and effective as Agent Mulder. Skinner had worked with Quincy on a case just before he made AD. They still corresponded on occasion and he imagined he would hear some comments about Mulder.

Scully was home. Clearing his throat, Walter hesitantly said, "Dana, it's Krycek. He had some trouble and won't go to emergency. I think he'll be okay, but I'd feel better if you examined him."

A long drawn out sigh was his first answer. Dana hadn't adjusted easily to Krycek's intrusion in their lives. They all had their own reasons for not fully trusting Alex. She asked, "What kind of injury?"

Walter finally decided that the truth held the only motivator for Scully. He knew she made time in her busy life to volunteer at a sexual trauma center. He baldly stated, "Alex met with Spender to try to wheedle some information out of him. The bastard set him up for a gangbang. I don't think he's seriously hurt; but I want you to look at him."

Scully asked, "Does Mulder know?"

Walter said, "Alex didn't tell him. Apparently, Mulder sensed something and they had another of their famous arguments. Alex packed his bag and walked out. Mulder let him. Right now, Alex needs your help regardless of whose fault this quarrel was."

Scully said, "I'll be there. I take it that Krycek has no interest in prosecution?"

Walter said, "He's right. It wouldn't do any good."

Scully replied, "It will take a while to pick up some supplies. Keep him quiet and warm in the meantime. Watch for shock. If he seems overly pale, cold, and unresponsive, don't ask him. Take him to the emergency room."

Walter said, "I will. Thank you, Dana." He hung up the phone, thinking he was lucky that the tough, serious, and well-rounded woman was on his side.

*****************

Alex was in the tub, leaning back, his eyes closed. Walter thought he looked better just from the bath. Alex looked up warily. Walter said, "Scully will be here shortly."

Alex nodded and asked, "Would you wash my hair? My arm is sore."

Walter had noticed the finger shaped bruises on Alex's arm. He said, "Of course." He poured shampoo into his hand and started the handheld shower. Alex tensed at his first touch, but endured it. Someone had splattered or rubbed come in his hair. Walter gritted his teeth. He hated Spender and this was one more thing for which to hate him. Raping Alex was needless cruelty.

Walter went to get one of his robes as well as a large bath towel. Alex glared at him when Walter helped him out of the tub. Walter returned stare for stare and felt that he'd won the match.

When Alex was dry enough, Walter helped him into the robe. He had to roll up the one necessary sleeve so Alex could have the use of his hand. Alex looked buried in the white terry cloth. He caught sight of himself in the steamy mirror and laughed. He remarked, "I look like a kid playing in his daddy's clothes."

Walter took Alex to Ricky's old room...not that Ricky had ever slept there. When Ricky wasn't dating, he had slept with Walter.

Alex looked around as they entered; that was an understatement. When Krycek entered any space, he cased it. His eyes marked exits, possible hiding places. He probably even figured out where he would plant surveillance devices.

Walter said, "You're safe here." As soon as he heard his own words, he regretted them. He wished he could take back that long ago sarcasm when Mulder had walked in with Krycek in handcuffs. 'He'll be safe here' indeed. The most Walter could say for himself was that he had not acted on that horrid thought that had flitted across his brain. He hadn't raped Krycek when he was vulnerable, but he had hit him and later beaten him. He had left him outside in weather that no reasonably kind person would have tolerated letting a stray dog endure. Walter said, "I mean that this time."

Alex said, "It's okay. We need to forget about the past if we're going to keep working together."

Alex lay down on the bed, adjusting the folds of the robe to cover most of his body and then pulling the blankets up tightly. He said, "I hope Scully brings pain pills." He looked around him and said, "I can tell this isn't your bedroom. I won't sleep well, you know. I got out of the alone habit."

Walter said, "You can sleep in my bed with me, Alex, and I won't touch you."

Alex narrowed his eyes and asked, "Why? You think I'm dirty now?"

Walter wondered if Mulder had faced this much resistance to any kindness. He said, "I mean, I understand how you feel about Mulder. You can trust me."

The bell rang and he said, "That should be Scully." He saw the dark look of dread and said, "I know, Alex, anyone would find this difficult. Still, let Dana and I help you."

Dana carried a heavy bag, which Walter took. She looked around, remarking, "It seems empty without Ricky."

Walter nodded and said, "Yes, to me too. Come on, Alex is in the guest room."

Alex lay with the covers pulled tightly to his chin. His knees were up and his body huddled, as plainly saying, 'Don't touch me' as if he wore a sign. Scully nodded and said, "Hello, Alex. Walter says that you need my help."

Alex bunched his body tighter and replied, "Maybe."

Scully said, "I won't do anything until you're ready. You want to know what I'm going to do?"

Alex nodded. Scully opened the bag and said, "I want to take some blood, just make sure that there's no infection and I need a swab. I should have told Walter to have you wait anyway even if we can't tell the police. I just want to make sure that they didn't give you anything."

Alex said, "They wore condoms. They didn't come in my mouth and when...anyway, I know it didn't go in my eyes or any place that could be dangerous."

Alex sighed and said, "Besides, the consortium runs blood tests all the time. Spender wants to make sure his stooges aren't shooting anything that doesn't come out of a gun. Spender also worries about clones and shapeshifters. He has random blood tests done at least once a week. He'd know if they were sick. If someone had AIDS or any other serious disease, well, let's say the medical policy sucks."

Scully said, "I'll run a few tests anyway. You know I have to examine you."

Alex nodded. He said, looking at Walter, "Let's get it over with, Scully."

Dana rapidly took Alex's pulse, checked his eyes for uneven dilation, and took his temperature with an electronic thermometer. She said, "You must be feeling a little shaky, Alex, but everything is fairly normal. Now, I need to take a look at where you were hurt."

Walter sighed with relief and said, "I'll go make some coffee. Tea for you, Alex?"

Alex startled and said, "No, stay, please stay?" Walter felt a rush of feeling, nearly dizzy with it. Alex wanted him there? He wanted whatever comfort his presence might bring? Walter nodded and said, "Of course" as if he hadn't had a revelation.

Alex asked, "How do you want me?" and then his face turned very red as if his mind made the same connection that Skinner's did. Walter had heard Alex ask that question once or twice under much happier circumstances.

Scully didn't notice or didn't comment. She said, "Lean over the bed so I can make sure that there's nothing that requires hospitalization. Walter, can you help support him?"

Walter sat on the bed as Alex struggled up to take the position. He substituted his knee for Alex's arm and laid a comforting hand on the man's shoulder. Alex shuddered as Scully carefully lifted the robe to examine him. She said, "If you need a minute or if I hurt you, tell me. Don't try to be tough."

Walter could see her face when she saw the marks. Dana met his eyes, her sympathy showing in her soft eyes. Then her professional mask slipped down. She snapped on her gloves.

Alex tensed and his hand dug into the bed. Dana said, "Alex, do you want a minute?"

Angrily, Alex snapped, "Get it over with."

Alex jerked as she examined him, a sharp intake of breath escaping him. Out of the corner of his eye, Walter saw the swabs and the instruments used and set aside in sterile bags. Walter was ready to ask Scully to stop a long time before Alex said anything. He was relieved when Alex said, "Scully, wait. Okay. Hey, could I have something for the pain?"

Scully said, "Of course, I should have done that first."

Alex sat up and Walter pulled the robe around him. Scully said, "I'm going to give you a couple shots. One is for the pain and the other is a good strong dose of antibiotics."

Dana's touch was deft. You would never guess her clients most frequently had no capacity to appreciate her skills. Alex leaned back against Walter's support and rested. He said, "I want to go to sleep."

Dana said, "I'll bet you do. Just a little more, I want to make sure those gouges are thoroughly clean. Fingernails are nasty things. Okay?"

Alex nodded and said, "Thank you, Scully. You're good at this."

Scully said, "Lots of experience. In fact, well, the place I volunteer has a small support group for male victims. You might think about it."

Alex shook his head and said, "No, it's not the first time, I can handle it. I always do."

Scully said, "No one's that tough. There's even a support group for family members and friends. Maybe Mulder will go once you tell him. I'll leave the card with Walter." Scully laid her hand on Alex's cheek. It was a brief gesture, but a mark of fellowship that perhaps was a step toward more than a forced alliance.

****************

After he had put Alex to bed, in his bed, Walter walked Dana to the door. She said, "I want him off solid food for the next two days and make sure he takes those pills. I'll run the blood tests through the clinic. It won't be the first fake name on a file. Many victims refuse to have any records made. I wish I could tell them there was really no stigma, but I'd be lying. It's a tough hurdle even in a normal relationship and Mulder and Krycek don't even fit at the far end of the normal curve." She shook her head ruefully.

Glancing in the direction of the bedroom, Scully asked, "What do you think Spender was up to? Do you think he knows Alex is working with us and this was his way of giving us a message?"

Walter shook his head and said, "I think not. That message would have been a corpse with a bullet between the eyes. No, this was about power. Krycek frustrates Spender just as I do by never letting him own him entirely. With me, it was the nanobytes. For Alex, a rape."

Scully nodded and then she said, "Walter, you're not going to try to take him from Mulder are you? Not that I've ever understood or approved, but even I know they seem to need each other."

Need, Walter tasted the word in his mouth; he had helped them get back together in a fit of generosity. He wondered now if it had been the right thing?

Walter had accepted sex from Alex, knowing at that time that he was second best. He sometimes thought that Alex had slept with him that last time as an obligation, an attempt to give restitution for the nanobytes.

On second thought, Walter didn't think that Alex had been acting his pleasure. Perhaps selfishly, he was convinced that he was better for Alex than Mulder. He had tasted the bitter fruit of compromise and partial surrenders. He had done it to protect his wife, family, Mulder, Scully, and his other agents. He suspected that Alex had some of the same motivations although they hadn't discussed the issue.

Mulder had never bent to Spender. Walter admired Mulder for his courage and will. Yet, Mulder wasn't the only one that paid the price for his stand. There was a trail of ghosts behind Mulder, marking every truth dearly won. Walter had never felt at ease with sacrificing other people. He was hard on himself, but protective, perhaps too protective of his family and friends. His ghosts were compromises meant to save them and sometimes succeeding.

Maybe Mulder was the better man and he would have made different choices in Walter's situation. Yet, Walter felt that he had always kept to the middle of some invisible line. He must have made some correct decisions. After all, they were all alive and able to fight on one side now.

Walter said, "Dana, I am very sure that Alex won't be ready for any kind of a relationship any time soon." He added, "I won't pretend that I don't have feelings for Alex, but that doesn't mean I would act on them. You know I care about Mulder. Still, it's up to Alex. Isn't it?"

Dana said, "I suppose. I just don't want trouble between the three of you."

Dana leaned up, her hands flat against his chest and said, "Take care, Walter. Don't get your heart broken." She looked up at him and said, "I know you'll do the right thing."

Walter felt that burden fall heavily on him. What was the right thing? He'd given up Mulder and Alex to each other once. What if that had been the wrong choice? Maybe they were better apart? Maybe Alex would be better off without Mulder?

Walter shook his head and sighed as Dana left. It had seemed so easy to offer Alex shelter. He thought his motives were altruistic. Now, the situation was convoluted and volatile enough to compromise their integrity as a team.

Walter went to check on Alex, finding him asleep. His brow was slightly furrowed as if even his slumber was troubled with pain and fear. Walter wanted to ruffle that crisp, dark brown hair and kiss the creases from the broad forehead and trifling nose. Instead, he adjusted the lights, remembering from missions that Alex hated the dark.

Walter returned to the bathroom and gathered up the mess of towels and the soiled clothing. He carried them to the small laundry room, which overlooked the backyard. The jeans were stiff with blood and dirt; the zipper was broken and the button had been ripped away. He threw them away in the outside garbage as if that would hide the ugly images from his mind.

After cleaning the bathroom and unpacking Alex's few clothes and many weapons into Ricky's vacant dresser, Walter prepared for bed. He preferred sleeping in the nude, but because of the situation wore boxer shorts and a tee shirt. He tried to be stealthy, but green eyes stared at him as he slipped under the covers. He said, "Not going to hurt you, Alex."

Alex's sleepy voice sounded mildly querulous as he said, "I know."

Walter was very pleased by that simple statement, even delivered in such ungracious tones. As he turned to lay on his side, he felt Alex move closer until they were back to back, not as sweet as a spoon, but much more than he expected.

****************

Walter woke up shuddering. It took him a moment to realize that Alex was scrambling out of bed, his mouth agape in a rictus of terror. Walter remained still, but said calmly, "Alex, you're safe. Remember you said you knew I wasn't going to hurt you?"

The green of Alex's eyes was nearly consumed by the black of his pupils. He crouched in the corner, his one hand gripping the mutilation of his left arm. He panted with fear. His tee shirt was soaked with sweat. Alex said, "You just want to use me. Just like he did."

Walter moved to the end of the bed and swung his legs over the edge. Walter could see Alex's eyes calculating the distance to the drawer where his Glock was. It scared the hell out of Walter. He knew what the man was capable of doing.

Walter said, "Alex, I didn't hurt you this time. Let me help you."

Alex appeared to be fully awake now. He said, "I don't need your help. No one helps me. All I need is my Glock. I'm going to go find Spender and kill him."

Walter said, "Okay, if that's what you need to do, let me get my gun. We'll do it together."

"Really?" Alex asked

"Really," Walter answered. "Of course, we'll probably be killed, and then Mulder will do something stupid to avenge us, dragging poor Dana with him." Walter shrugged and said, "It's okay. I'm sure Frohike, Langley, and Byers can handle saving the world on their own."

Alex frowned, but he no longer looked like a cobra about to strike. He said, "You're making fun of me."

Walter said, "No, I'm not. I would prefer to wait until we had a real plan, but if that's what you need to do to survive..."

Alex allowed Walter to approach him and squat in front of him. Alex sighed and said, "Someday, someday, I'll kill him."

Walter said, "And I hope I'm there to see it."

Alex shivered and said, "I'm cold."

Walter said, "I'll get you something to wear." He opened the drawer and took out the battered sweat suit he had noticed when he had put Alex's clothes in the drawer. He remembered seeing this on Mulder one day when he had picked him up from the park where he usually ran.

Alex put on the sweat suit, but put Walter's robe on top. He curled back into the bed, but his eyes were wide open. Walter asked, "You want to talk about it?"

Alex said, "If I can't kill Spender, I wish I could forget what he's done to me. No, I don't want to talk about it."

Walter said, "It's your choice." He rolled back into bed. Alex said, "You still think I'm sexy? Even after having Ricky in your bed?"

Walter said, "Listen, Alex, I thought you were beautiful when I hated your guts. Now, I know you're beautiful."

Alex persisted, "As beautiful as Ricky?"

Walter said, "He may be your clone, but you're different people. I'll never forget my time with him. But he's young and needs to find his own way in life."

Alex said, "Yeah, I'm glad he's gone. Being here was dangerous for him. I want to keep him the way he is. Innocent, expecting to lay the world on its ears. Shit, a few years ago, I was that ambitious. I told someone that I was going to rule the world. Next thing I knew, I was chained and collared again. Now, all I want is to see it through."

Walter said, "I think you've grown a lot, Alex. There was a time when you never would have taken the chances you have lately."

Alex smiled and said, "I got tired of living with the rats." He yawned, covering his mouth. He said, "Do you have any coffee?"

Walter said, "You need to sleep. Would it make you feel safer if I stayed up and watched over you?"

Alex said, "Don't humor me, Walter."

Walter said, "I wasn't."

Alex moved closer and said, "I can sleep. Maybe I'll dream about killing the smoking bastard."

Walter watched until Alex was dragged back into sleep. He thought about getting up and hiding weapons. He decided just to hope if it happened again that he could calm Alex. He knew that Alex wouldn't feel safe without his guns. Walter closed his eyes, exhausted from strong emotions and a very long day.

****************

Walter woke, feeling pleasantly warm. He said, "Ricky," as he felt the long, sweet press of a hard body against his own. It took him a moment to realize that Ricky was gone.

It was Alex who had moved so close in his sleep. Walter could feel Alex's breath against his shoulder and the brush of his silken hair. Walter didn't want to wake Alex, but his bladder was full and it was going to be a disaster if he didn't get up soon. He tried to move away, but Alex muttered, "Mulder, don't."

Walter winced. Well, they hadn't done anything that warranted remembering who was really in bed with them. He said, "Go back to sleep, Alex. You're fine."

Alex frowned and then smiled faintly. He said, "Walter."

Walter grinned. That was something. That was really something. He left quietly, leaving the door open in case Alex needed help.

His houseguest padded into the kitchen as Walter ate oatmeal and read the paper. Walter had heard the shower running and Alex's hair was damp. For some reason, he had put the sweat suit back on and was still wearing the robe.

Alex moved slowly and stiffly. A bruise that Walter hadn't even noticed yesterday had ripened on Alex's cheek to a plum colored sunburst.

Walter said, "How do you feel?"

Alex said, "Like an idiot. Jesus, Walter, I know that we can't kill Spender. He's the one we know. We need him to trace the others. The new collaborators and the ones who were smart enough not to show up at that warehouse."

Walter nodded and stood up to get the fruit juice that he had made. Alex explored the kitchen methodically, probably not really noticing what he was doing. Finally, he gingerly sat down. He asked, "You were just humoring me last night, weren't you?"

Walter shrugged and said, "I guess we won't know that for sure. Killing Spender is more of temptation than ever now. Here, have some juice."

Alex grumbled, "I missed lunch and dinner yesterday. I like oatmeal."

Walter said, "I promise to get you anything you want when you're ready. For right now, Dana said stick to juice and broth. Later, I'll go shopping. Do you like Jell-o? That's on your menu too."

Alex shivered and said, "No, I hate the way it sits there and quivers like it might want to crawl down your throat."

Walter knew about the origin of that thought too. All right, so this was going to be almost as bad as nursing Mulder. Alex apparently read his dissatisfaction. He said, "I'm sorry. I'm not usually a whiner. I just had hoped that things would improve from here on."

Walter said, "I know. I can live with it. Go back to bed and rest while I go to the store. Don't eat anything. If Scully says liquids today and tomorrow, that's what she means. "

Alex said, "Yeah, okay. I know why."

****************

Walter automatically went to the small shop that Ricky had preferred to the supermarket. Mr. Bianco owned this small store. He was a hale seventy and still had genuine black hair mingled in his gray. His eyes were big and brown, but seemed shrewd instead of soft as was suggested by their color and shape. His broad mouth held a genuine smile as he greeted Walter with a hearty hello and said, "Hey, Mr. Skinner. I'm glad to see that you don't just go back to the big store now that Ricky has gone to be a big shot."

Skinner smiled and decided he did like the store. He moved through the aisles, selecting a variety of juices and then as many kinds of clear soups as he could find. Mr. Bianco rang him up with the comment, "Someone must be sick."

Skinner nodded and said, "An old friend was injured and his doctor said that this is what he could have."

Bianco nodded. Walter thought the old man suspected the relationship between his young housemate and himself, but the man never seemed uncomfortable with them. He kept his prejudices to rail against people who tried to hurry him and shoplifters. Mr. Bianco added a rose to the top of the bag and said, "No charge, your friend probably needs cheering."

***************

Walter returned, noticing a movement at the front window. He hoped Alex wasn't in a shoot first; recognize your host later mode. He unloaded his spoils into cupboards and the refrigerator. Alex came in stiffly and watched. Walter asked, "Are you ready to eat some soup?"

Alex nodded. He sat at the table, tracing a pattern on the cherry-wood table with a finger. Alex ventured, as Walter warmed broth, "There was a bird singing its heart out by the window. It sounded nice."

Walter said, "Yes, it's an Oriole. The man who used to live here raised it from a nestling. He set it loose, but it stays close. Ricky thought it was looking for the old man when it came to the window."

Alex nodded and said, "When I feel better, I'd like to sit out there and maybe that bird and I will have something in common, not tame and not quite wild, trapped in the no where in between."

Walter said, "Mulder didn't tame you. You found the truth and acted upon it."

Alex shrugged, wincing as the motion pulled on a sore spot. He said, "That's nice of you to say, Walter."

"It's the truth." Walter said.

Alex looked around and smiled. He said, "This is a great house. I wanted to move out of Mulder's apartment to someplace with more room, but he got mad when I suggested it. He said that I was welcome to get my own place. I looked and found one that I liked. Mulder was so upset. He said if I moved out it meant I didn't love him. Sometimes, I just can't do anything right for him." He added thoughtfully, " I wonder if Mulder would ever want to live someplace like this?"

Walter looked around at his immaculate kitchen; his efficient state of the art stove with the gleaming pots hung overhead and said, "Not in this life."

Alex laughed, sounding like a boy as always. Alex said, "I guess I better enjoy this while I have a chance then." He asked, "Do you mind if I use the Jacuzzi again?"

Walter said, "Anytime, Alex."

After a long soak, Alex prowled back out. He had changed but was still layered in clothes. What little skin that Walter could see looked scrubbed almost raw.

***************

Alex spent the next two hours cleaning his guns. He seemed obsessed over the details and so nervous that Walter hoped the weapons would stay in pieces. However, Alex finished and roamed around the house, checking the alarms, making sure there were no bugs, and then making the same rounds again. Walter watched, making no comment until Alex sat down to take his Glock apart again. He asked, "Alex, do you play chess?"

Alex frowned, and repeated, "Chess?"

Walter said, "Yes, you know the game of kings, not to mention queens, rooks, knights, bishops, and pawns."

Alex said, "I play."

Walter said, "Ricky was a rotten chess player."

Alex said, "He might learn when he's older. Funny how different he is from me even though we're really the same."

Walter said, "Nurture versus nature, but I can see things you have in common, especially when I remember the way you were."

Alex walked over and sat down. He said, "I'll be the black pieces."

Walter spent as much time watching Alex as he did thinking about the game. Alex played chess with a passion, but then he was an intense man.

Walter had talked to Scully and looked up some information on the Internet to bolster his dimly remembered workshop. Now, he tried to compare the alert, wary comrade of recent missions to this current incarnation. Was Alex's startling at every sound new or had he always been this hyper-alert? Alex shoved the board aside and said, "I want a drink."

Walter said, "Not a good idea."

Alex remarked, "Alcohol is a liquid."

Walter asked, "Did you take your medication?"

Alex glared, but after a long staring contest; he looked away. He asked, "Did Mulder call yet? You should have sent Scully with him. What if he gets distracted or something?"

Walter said, "He'll be okay. He's a good agent."

Alex said, "What if Spender is after him too?"

Walter said, "I don't think so. He seems to hold some affection for Mulder." Walter saw the expression in Alex's eyes. He knew or surmised the reasons why Alex hated Spender. He suspected there were more reasons... perhaps almost unbearable ones that Alex never told him. Alex walked into the living room. Walter followed him, finding him wound in the patchwork quilt that his sister had sent for Christmas. Alex's body was bunched in a hostile, protective huddle.

Walter pulled up the hassock and sat. He said, "You should talk about it."

Alex cast a viper like look at Walter. It was hard not to jump back, remembering that face snarling at him over that deadly machine. How Walter had hated him then and feared him! Alex said flatly, "Why? It wasn't anything. Isn't that what people think? That I'm a heartless whore? Hell, I liked it, not Spender, of course, but the other two were buff, really good looking studs."

Walter said the words slowly, "Bullshit."

Alex snarled, "What do you know about it?"

Walter said, "I know that many years ago, on a special weekend a very beautiful young man allowed me to make love to him. When he betrayed us all, I waited for him to use the brief affair with me or the longer affair he had with Mulder as blackmail. He never did. Not that I excuse everything you did, Alex; I know you thought most of your actions were necessary and the rest were because you were afraid like I was." Walter stopped suddenly.

Walter frowned. Alex wasn't a coward and neither was he. He knew how he had been coerced. He wondered whom they held over Alex's head besides Mulder. Skinner didn't ask now; if Alex trusted him, some day he might tell him. He continued his previous line of thought and said, "And I know that whatever happened between us was personal. You're not a whore, Alex, and you're far from heartless."

Alex came out of his huddle and said, "I'm going to take a bath."

Walter let him brush by. He knew that Alex enjoyed the Jacuzzi, but he didn't think that was what this was about. He went to check his phone messages. Mulder had called, but had only said, "Tell Alex I want to talk to him when I get back."

Walter knew Scully was coming back to check on her patient. He went to make some coffee and ran some fruit through the juicer to make Alex at least feel as if he was getting something special.

Alex came into the room just as Walter was finishing. He had left the appliance off again, but was bundled in several layers of clothing. Walter handed him his pills and a glass of the juice. Alex sniffed and then nodded. He said, "You're fussing."

Walter said, "Sometimes a man likes someone to fuss over. Ricky would eat anything you know."

Alex managed a wry smile and said, "Yeah, I know."

Alex startled as a car pulled up in the driveway; the glass shaking to the point where Walter had to rescue it. He said, "It's Scully." But Alex was already sliding out of the room, automatically avoiding windows and oddly graceful despite the abruptness of his moves.

Walter sighed and shook his head. He followed and made sure that the gun in Alex's hand didn't quake hard enough to accidentally fire. Dana looked at the gun steadily as she entered. Alex put it away. He said, "I'm fine. You don't need to look at me."

Dana said, "What if I just take your temperature and things like that?"

Alex brooded on his answer then nodded. He complained, "I'm starving and all those liquids are making me camp in the can."

Dana said, "One more day then you can eat something solid." She opened her bag and studied Alex's heavy black sweater. Walter noticed that it was another one of his garments. There was another shirt showing at neck and under the partially rolled sleeves; Dana said, "I need to be able to get to you, Alex."

Alex had a long sleeved tee shirt under the buttoned shirt. Alex's eyes dared either of them to say anything. Alex asked, "Scully, did you talk to Mulder today?"

Dana said, "Yes, he asked about you."

Alex looked down as she took his pulse. He said, "After he comes back, you can tell him for me about what happened."

Dana said, "It might be better to tell him yourself."

Alex shook his head. He said, "No, he'll listen to you. I don't want to talk about it really. It's just another thing that happened. I'm alive. I survived. That's what I do."

Dana looked at Walter who simply rolled his eyes. One thing that Mulder and Krycek had in common, no one could tell either of them anything once they set their stubborn minds on a path. Dana finished with her examination and said, "I'll have the results of your tests tomorrow."

Alex said, "I told you I wasn't worried. I just want to forget it happened like I forgot all the rest." Alex looked away, his long lashes beating a semaphore signal of deception. He said, "You can give them to Walter though. He might want to see them. I'm going to bed."

Trailing his multi-layers of clothing, Alex walked off with his old strut in place. Walter said, "Give me the results when you get them. I think he does want to know for sure. He's too pig-headed to admit it. Scully, isn't there anything I can do? This is bothering him. Krycek has always been spooky, but he's on a hair trigger. This morning he was convinced that the diaper delivery truck was really a surveillance vehicle. I had to stop him from rushing out to assault the "Baby-Fresh and Clean" man."

Dana said, "We can't force him to face what happened. He'll have to deal with it in his own way."

Walter nodded and invited her into the kitchen for coffee. He enjoyed her company. Since they became their own little resistance, all of them experienced a deepening of trust. Walter had always felt a great deal of affection for Dana. Now, he felt that she was one of his closest friends.

Dana and Walter talked about Ricky, fixing his youthful exuberance and pride in their minds. He was going to be a star some day. Maybe Ricky would be able to work in an FBI free of consortium corruption. Walter could remember the hope and the pride that he had felt many years when he had been as young as Ricky. He'd like to retire, some day, not soon, with that same feeling.

After Dana left, Walter washed the cups and checked the alarm system. He dressed for bed in the bathroom. Alex's presence in his current state had changed Walter's habits considerably. He would seldom have been so modest with any other houseguest. At least, not with one with whom he had shared a bed. Walter heard the click of the Glock as he entered. He said, "Alex, it's just me. Can you put that away?"

Alex had chosen the right side of the bed for a reason. He reached over, a little unbalanced, and put the gun in the drawer. Walter slid into his side of the bed and shut off all the lights except the thirty watt one that illuminated a Degas he had inherited years ago from an art-collecting uncle.

Alex moved closer to him and reached under his tee shirt, caressing. He said, "You don't have to wear clothes to bed for me. Walter, you want me to make you happy?" A swipe of his pointed agile tongue illustrated his intentions.

Walter said, "Alex, no."

Alex sat up and said, "Why? You liked me before?"

Walter said, "And I still want you. But I will not accept what you're offering now." He firmly placed his hand on Alex's leg and felt the muscles bunch into a tight coil of rejection. He said, "Feel that, Alex. You tense at my touch. That's what you feel, Alex, so don't pretend with me. You don't have to have sex with me to be my friend."

Alex turned away. Walter assumed he was angry, but just as he was about to drift off to sleep, Alex rolled toward him again. Alex said, "Every time I close my eyes, I see them. I feel how it felt and I remember all the times...I want to make it go away. I want to claw the thoughts out of my head. I thought about eating my gun today, but I won't. I'm not going to let him kill me that way and I know I have obligations."

Walter thought about getting up and locking away the guns, but there were always methods to commit suicide. He said, "If you feel that way again, tell me. Talk to me. I'm here."

Alex said, "Yeah, you are. I never really knew you did I?"

Walter said, "We both have done things we deeply regret, but we're alive. We can build bridges."

Alex said, "Rock bridges. You're my rock, Walter, that's what you are."

Alex moved into his arms, lying enfolded in them. At first, every cell of Alex's body seemed to set up brittle walls against the contact, but then he relaxed. Walter didn't comment on the wet patch that grew on his tee shirt. Instead, he wondered who taught the man to cry in such great silence.

****************

It was Monday morning. Walter didn't usually mind Mondays; he often only noticed because his quiet office was suddenly noisy. Today, he actually picked up the phone to cancel all his meetings. He was starting to tell Ms. Montoya when Alex entered and shook his head vigorously. He said into the phone, "Never mind, Ms. Montoya."

Walter said, "I can take a day off you know, Alex. The world won't stop."

Alex replied, "Don't make me feel more obligated."

Walter groaned and went to pour his new concoction. He thought it was the best yet. He had drained the pulpy part to taste it and to make sure that Alex's digestion would remain unchallenged. The ginger ale was a perfect touch, reminding Walter of his rare childhood illnesses. He remembered his mother's broad hand covering his forehead and the taste of the ginger ale spicy in his mouth. He handed Alex a glass and watched as he tasted. Alex pronounced, "That's good."

Walter said, "Give me your word that if you need me, need to talk, you'll call on my mobile phone. I think you know that number all too well. " He caught the guilty quirk of a grin and felt satisfied that he had charmed that out of Alex. He said, "and you stick to liquids. For lunch, I'll stop at Enrique's and buy you some of their beef broth. Even without a sandwich to dip, it's good. Now, promise?"

Alex smirked, "You think my word is worth anything?"

Walter said, "Yes, I do."

Alex commented, "I thought you were smarter. Okay, you have it and I won't shoot anyone, not even that guy who weed-whacks at seven am on a Sunday."

Walter smiled and said, "I could make an exception for him. All right, see you at noon."

A kiss, it surprised him. It was the least sexual kiss that Alex had ever given him, but the soft brush of lips, the quick flutter of lashes as he momentarily rested his face against Walter's was heart-stopping. He said, "A man could get used to that."

Alex smiled and said, "You deserve to get used to someone sending you off like that, someone less screwed up than me."

Walter said, "If you knew how much I envied Mulder..."

Alex had no return to that, just a speculative look as if he was considering the weight of the words. Walter patted his cheek and said, "Get some rest, Alex."

****************

Mr. Harkness was surprised when Skinner looked at his watch midway through a long diatribe about budgetary overruns. Walter said, "Send me a report when you've found ways to cut ten percent in your department. That way I'll use it as a good example before I present it to the field division."

Should have tried that a long time ago. The comical look on the frizzy haired accountant's face was a salable item. Walter wistfully imagined it surrounded by a bull's eye and rings.

Walter breezed out of the office and announced to his fierce and protective secretary, "Ms. Montoya, I'm taking a long lunch. Have Sally screen my calls. My mobile phone is on, but it better be another Waco if someone interrupts my lunch."

Ms. Montoya smiled and said, "Excellent, Mr. Skinner. I will advise her."

Walter was dimly aware of Mr. Harkness trying in vain to wrangle another appointment. He was satisfied that Connie Montoya would handle that exactly right. Harkness could have ten minutes, two weeks in the future.

Having called ahead to Enrique's, Walter found his sandwich and the large container of broth waiting. Enrique's normally didn't do takeouts, but Walter had known the owner since high school. He had patronized his friend's restaurants since the first hole-in-the-wall deli with Enrique's name on it.

Walter took his time coming up the drive, letting Alex absorb his presence and calm down. He saw the curtain move, but Alex was in the library when he entered his house. He saw that Alex was wearing one of his sweaters again and it continued to please him although he didn't know why.

Alex had the computer on. Walter saw that Alex had been checking some of the same sites he had book-marked for his own use. In fact, Alex had hacked into the name he used for non-business transactions on the web. Alex said, "My password stealer ate your random letters and numbers so easily that you may have as well stored it or published it. I called Frohike and he's going help me set you up for something better."

Walter considered blowing his top and then decided that this was Alex's misguided attempt at helping. Besides, Frohike and Alex were entertaining together. Maybe it would make Alex feel better to talk to someone who didn't know and have something to do. He said, "Fine. I'll look forward to seeing what you come up with. Let's eat before this gets cold."

Walter set out the broth, having eaten his sandwich on the way here, choosing not to tempt Alex. Truly, the broth was a mini-feast, robust and exploding with flavor, not an onion-clouded mess that many restaurants served. Alex spooned up a bowl and gladly took a second. He stirred this serving and said, "Mulder called."

Walter asked, "Did you tell him?'

Alex said, "He's working. I didn't think it was a good idea. He asked if I was having sex with you. I told him that wasn't what this was about. I don't know if he believed me. He hung up on me."

Walter said, "He'll feel guilty when he finds out."

Alex said, "I'm tired of that. I used to think, someday he'll understand. Someday, we'll be on one side again. I thought it could be the way it was when we were first in love. Both of us were so innocent in many ways back then. Now, we're not the same people. Now, we have wonderful days and we have miserable days, hardly ever just a normal place and time. It's passion and anger; hurting words and making love. I know it's not one sided, but I don't want it to always be yelling first, listening later."

Walter said, "Dana did suggest counseling."

Alex shot back an amused look. He said, "That would be good. Hey, doc, we want to have a better relationship and we have a few problems. Yeah, he betrayed his country and me; I beat him up every time I saw him and got his arm chopped off in a frozen wasteland. Oh, and I thought he killed my father, but I mostly believe he didn't now. Then, there are these aliens and these collaborators who keep trying to kill us and destroy the human race. Presto, heavy medication and a least restrictive placement hearing."

"Alex," Walter started before surrendering. He said, "Have it your way."

Alex nodded, apparently feeling that he had won that round. Walter had seldom met two men more resistive to normal mental health than Mulder and Krycek. If more people were like them, it would be an unbearably exciting and dangerous world.

****************

Leaving Alex to wash the dishes, Walter returned to his day. He worked as hard as usual, but when the clock said Five Thirty PM, he cleaned his desk and secured his computer.

The security guard remarked, "Sir, you're leaving early. You never leave early."

Walter smiled and said, "Times change."

Walter hadn't changed his overtime habit for Ricky. The young agent was seldom home, either studying for his master degree in law enforcement or out exploring the city's social life. Now, Walter wanted to be home in the evening, enjoying the experience of being needed on a personal level, not for his job, but for himself.

Alex smiled at him as he came in the door. He was waiting, Making no pretense of indifference. Walter said, "I missed you today. How do you feel?"

Alex said, "I'm fine. Hungry. I wanted to wait until you came home to eat. Company is good, isn't it?"

Walter said, "Very good."

After a light dinner for Walter and soup for Alex, they set up the chessboard. Alex won the first match. Although Walter had a feeling that one of his pawns had not quite been in that position until he left the room. They started another game and Alex won again. This time, there were no odd moves on the part of Walter's pawns. Alex said, "Again."

Walter dutifully reset the board. He had more of a feel for Alex's moves now; since the seemingly random movements covered hidden attack plans. In another life, Alex would have been a brilliant general, an Alexander the Great. Walter let go of the book and routed Alex in a hard won game that took them to bedtime. Alex said, "I didn't think even once about Spender all that time."

The embrace and the kiss that followed were an odd mixture of gratitude and, for Walter, of excruciating temptation. Alex broke it off and stood, open mouthed, soft eyed, and cheeks pink. "I didn't know I felt that way about you." He said, before fleeing the room.

Walter went to bed alone, but woke hearing a cry. Shortly after, Alex returned and burrowed under the covers, pressing into his back until slowly Alex's body relaxed. Walter said nothing and pretended to sleep, but he lay awake even after Alex's breath took on deep slumberous tones.

********

Alex was still sleeping when Walter shut off the alarm clock, catching it before it rang. He hurried through his morning exercises and shower to have time to soft poach eggs, toast bread and prepare fresh ground coffee.

Alex came out, clad in a tee shirt and jeans, looking suddenly pounds thinner without the armor of layer clothing. Walter said, "Breakfast."

Alex grinned and said, "Thank you, lord! I was beginning to understand the concept of cannibalism."

Walter spent much of his own meal watching Alex eat. The good-bye kiss was almost expected and he was not disappointed.

****************

Walter came home for lunch again, this time with chicken soup. Enrique's chefs made it from scratch. Even the noodles were fresh and rich in flavor. Alex said, "Just like mother never used to make."

Alex said, "Frohike is coming over. I told him that we were working on something. He knows about Mulder and me. He and his soul mates like to spy on Mulder as much as I used to like it."

Walter said, "All right. Do what ever makes sense."

********

Frohike was already gone when Walter arrived home. He noticed that his alarm system had been altered and that his CPU was suddenly larger. Alex said, "The alarm has three layers of backups now, two that aren't dependent on your home power. Uh, we couldn't get enough memory with your old unit, but everything will work just like before."

Walter said, "Alex...did you rearrange my underwear drawer too?"

Alex let a glint of mischief show through and he commented, "Byers will help me with that tomorrow." He looked askance and asked, "Are you really angry? I could change everything back. I'm not good at boundaries. I supposed you noticed that."

Walter sighed and said, "Just ask before you make any other major changes. I thought we'd cook something together to celebrate your return to solid food. What would you like?"

"What ever you want." Alex said.

They decided on chicken as the easiest meat to digest. Chicken Kiev was Alex's choice and it was interesting to watch him approach this task as if his life depended on the results. He had no problem with directing Walter, relegating him to the pounding and chopping chores while he took care of seasoning and the placement of the pats of butter as if this meal was a work of art.

Walter had always thought of Alex as catlike, but working with him in the kitchen changed his mind. His ex-wife had once taken in a stray cat. It had been so consistently under foot that Walter thought it might as well be six cats. In contrast, Alex always seemed to know where he was without looking.

Alex said, "This is fun. I like your kitchen."

Walter asked, "Where did you learn to cook?"

Alex replied, "Where I learned most of my skills. I was supposed to be something special before I screwed up with Mulder. I heard one of the old men say that I was like a finely calibrated instrument. I know enough about a lot of things to pass in any role for a few hours or a few days. I learned to wear masks, so many that that there were times that I didn't know if there was a real Alex anymore." Alex put the chicken in the oven. He stared at the floor for a long time. He said, "I never understood why Spender tried to kill me. The old men spent a lot of money on making me."

Skinner said, "I suspect they had an inkling that you were not going to be easy to control."

Alex nodded and said, "No kidding."

They enjoyed the dinner together and went to sit in the garden afterwards, as the evening was clear and warm. The Oriole sat on a low branch of the cherry tree, finally serenading them. Walter thought that it was sure that they were harmless like the human who raised it.

Alex said, "When everything is over, if I make it, I'd like a place like this, a place that was built with love." He looked off into the distance and said, "A kid would like this place."

Walter said, "I suppose. I haven't had my nieces or nephews over. I'm nervous about being around them in case..."

Alex said, "I know." There was a long silence and then Alex said in such a quiet voice that Walter had to think about it before he was sure of what was said, "I have a son, Walter."

Walter stared. It would never have occurred to him. He asked, "A wife?"

Alex said, "Not any more. Cancer got her, natural or not. He lives with my aunt. Mulder knows. I think he finally got it, when he met Nicky, that I was a real person, not just a boogieman who popped in and out of his life. Of course, that didn't stop him from pounding me on the head and throwing me in that truck."

Walter said, "Mulder never mentioned it."

Alex said, "I don't tell anyone. Mulder and you are the only ones that know. My family in Russia guards him well and I play the game with Spender so he doesn't seriously go after him. I don't want him to grow up like I did."

Walter said, "I understand that."

Alex shivered and said, "I'm going in."

Walter listened to Alex throwing up in the bathroom, but didn't say anything. He waited until the shower ran again and Alex went to bed.

It was early, but he went to bed as well. Alex moved into Walter's arms and said, "If something happens to me, you look after Nicky, help keep him safe. Mulder promised me that he would and I know he will, but it might need both of you."

Walter said, "Spender can take me apart a cell at a time before anything happens to your child, Alex." That was no light promise from a man who had experienced something very like that once upon a time.

Alex said, "You're my rock, Walter. Mulder's like my sun. He's like the light and heat to me, but sometimes, he burns me."

Walter said, "Alex, I..."

Alex silenced him before he could say it. He said, "Walter, please, don't make me more confused than I am."

****************

Mulder returned the next day, late in the evening. Walter arrived home in time to overhear most of Mulder's telephone call. It was another argument. Walter tried not to hear, but could tell from Alex's side that it was about him. He also could tell that Alex hadn't told him what happened.

Walter took Dana out to lunch and formed a battle plan. He had finally decided that he needed to intervene again. Dana agreed with his thoughts. She said, "If we leave it to them, they'll argue until the aliens march us all away."

********

Mulder didn't answer the door so Dana used her key. He sprawled on his couch, looked like a wreck. He was unshaven and had raccoon rings around his bloodshot eyes.

Mulder eyed Walter and said, "Are you ganging up on me? Walter, you stepped right in the middle of a private argument. Alex would have come back if you hadn't been right there."

Walter said, "I saw that something was wrong."

Mulder retorted, "Yes, something was wrong. Alex goes to a meeting, not telling me what it's about. When he came home, he stank of someone else. How would you feel if that was your lover? I know, Alex and I used to play games with other people, but I thought we had moved beyond that. Did he tell you who he was with?" Looking directly at Walter, he said, "Or do you want him so badly that none of that matters?"

Walter said, "I won't lie to you, Mulder. You know that there was something before you ever got together and you know there was something before you found each other again. However, Alex isn't in any shape to even consider an affair now." He said, "Dana, do as Alex asked, I'll wait for you outside."

Mulder came to Walter's car with Dana. He asked, "May I get in? Can I talk to you?"

Walter nodded and Mulder slid in beside him in the front seat. He said, "He didn't tell me. It was all so crazy. We just started yelling at each other and he seemed so defensive. My God, I wouldn't even have left if I had known. Is he all right? Physically, I mean?"

Dana said, "The lab tests are all negative. I did a SUDS HIV-1 test, which was negative and I'm running an enzyme immunoassay as well. Walter says he appears to be healing all right. He has refused to be examined since the first night. Psychological damage is another issue, Mulder."

Mulder asked, "Will he talk to me?"

Dana said, "Why don't we talk a little more? You can call and see if Alex is ready to face you later."

The two got out of the car and started walking. Walter could see how agitated Mulder was and thought Dana had the right idea. Let Mulder start to deal with his own guilt and anger before he talked to Alex.

****************

Walter picked up dinner from Enrique's. Over murmurs of contentment, the two men ate blissfully and engaging in no more conversation than 'try this' or 'pass that'. Walter washed the dishes when they finished and both sat in a pleasant torpor on the couch, pretending to watch a soccer game, but really just vegetating.

Alex leaned in after a time and Walter responded to the invitation by placing an arm around his shoulders. Alex sighed contentedly and seemed to drowse. He wiggled lower, putting his head in Walter's lap.

The phone rang and Walter picked it up reluctantly. Mulder's voice asked, "May I talk to him?"

Walter considered hanging up, but he looked at Alex and said, "Mulder wants to talk to you."

Alex took the phone, but said to Walter, "Stay."

Alex said, "Mulder." It was an oddly clipped version of the way he usually said his lover's name.

Alex listened for a while and answered, "You just started yelling like you always do. I didn't have a chance to tell you. By the time you were done, I didn't think you cared. I didn't like what you were saying...I'm listening. All right...yes."

Alex was silent for a long time as he let Mulder talk. He finally said, "Let me ask Walter."

Alex said, "He wants to talk to me face to face. I want it to be here. Maybe we won't just start yelling if we talk here. Is that all right with you?"

Walter nodded. He went to make more coffee and to collect his thoughts. He was beginning to feel like Saint Walter and he didn't like the role. Some selfish part of him clamored, "What about me?"

Mulder arrived twenty minutes later. He walked straight to Alex, knelt, and said, "Alex, I'm sorry. You don't know how I feel. If I had even a hint about what happened, I would never have yelled at you. Please forgive me."

Walter sighed. He thought, so much for his infinitesimal hope that Alex would remain with him. Mulder was crying. Alex touched Mulder's cheeks, enchanted by the tears. Walter was touched when the man bent his head to Alex's lap, weeping.

Walter decided to go for a walk, get a newspaper and clear his head. He was surprised at the nip in the air. He had forgotten his coat, but did not want to interrupt that reconciliation to get it. He resolved none of his own feelings, but it wasn't warm enough to walk further after he came back from the store.

Alex was packing when Walter returned to the house. Walter expected that. Mulder looked at him and said, "Can we talk about a few things?"

Walter nodded and said, "How about in the garden?" This time he knew to take his coat.

Mulder nodded and they went out. Mulder said, "Nice, but a lot of work. Ricky likes to garden. He'll miss that in New York."

Walter said, "I wouldn't put it past him to start a roof garden." He took in Mulder's haggard appearance and said, "That was a rough case."

Mulder nodded and said, "Yeah, it reminds me of why I left the profiling unit."

Mulder scuffed a hole in the dirt, concentrating as if he thought he could find one of his truths in the soil. His long silence surprised Walter. Mulder usually spoke first and regretted later. He said, "Alex and I talked. He said he liked it here with you."

Walter said, "Taking care of him made me feel good about myself and he's a good companion. We played chess, enjoyed some good food, and talked."

Mulder stood up, too restless to sit any longer. He walked around the garden for a while and then returned. Mulder leaned over him as he sat on the wrought iron bench. For a moment, Walter had the unpleasant thought that Mulder was going to start a fight with him, but he merely asked, "Are you in love with him?"

Walter never pretended to be a man who never lied, but lies rankled him. He said, "I could be."

Mulder asked, "What do you mean?"

Walter said, "If he was available. But he's not, unless you reject him."

Mulder said, "Thanks, Skinner." He held out his hand. Walter took it and pressed it between his own. Mulder leaned even closer and their lips suddenly met in a kiss. It was surprisingly sweet.

Mulder straightened and said, "For what could have been, Walter."

Walter thought it was the first time that Mulder had ever called him by his first name. He stood and walked through the door. He remembered at the last moment the card and the pamphlets that Scully had given him. He handed them to Mulder.

Mulder looked at the items and asked, "Do you really think that's necessary? Alex has always survived everything that's thrown at him."

Walter shrugged and said, "Maybe he's reached his limit. Take care of him, Mulder."

Mulder nodded and they walked back into the house. Alex had his suitcase packed. He sat by the chess table, rolling a piece in his hand. He set the chessman down on the board. Walter noticed it was the white knight and smiled. Alex stood and said, "I'll have to come over and play. Have to keep you on your toes."

Walter said, "I'd like that. Anytime."

Alex surprised him with a good-bye kiss. Despite the circumstances, the kiss felt like a promise. Walter smiled as he whispered, "Anytime, you need a place to stay or a man to cheat at a chess, you remember the address."

Alex nodded. Mulder carried his suitcase and had his lover in arm. Alex looked back as Walter stood in the doorway. Walter watched until the car drove out of his sight and went back in to straighten the chess game. He wondered if he would ever have to check to see if his pawns had moved without him again.

****************

Mulder called the next evening. He asked, "Is Alex there?"

Walter frowned and said, "I haven't talked to him since you two left yesterday."

Mulder said, "I was hoping that he was with you." He said, "Not that I expected to feel that way. He was very strange yesterday. At first, he seemed no different. Then he just couldn't seem to settle down. He was pacing, talking about moving to a security apartment. I said, sure, we'd look on the weekend. He hardly slept at all last night and this morning he wouldn't get out of bed. When I came home from work, he was gone. His stuff is here, but he didn't leave a note and he hasn't called."

Walter asked, "Did he tell you where he met Spender? I think he may have gone after him."

Mulder said, "No." Alex had never told Walter either. Frantic searching didn't do any good. Walter sat with Mulder at his apartment, watching the clock edge toward midnight. Mulder slumped on the couch, his hands dangling as if he were too weary to hold up even so much as their weight. Walter reached over to rub Mulder's neck. He said, "He'll be back."

Mulder said, "Why do I screw everything up? He was fine with you since it happened. I take him home and he's off trying to get himself killed the same day."

Walter said, "He thinks if he kills Spender that he'll kill the memory."

Mulder said, "If that was true, I'd devote night and day to the effort."

Mulder had dozed off for a few minutes when Walter heard the key turning in the lock. Alex walked in, ghostly pale. The remaining greenish yellow of the bruise on his cheek was the only color in his face. Mulder woke and rushed to his lover.

"Alex, where have you been? Do you have any idea how worried I've been?" Mulder asked. He hugged Alex then held him at arm's length to make sure he was uninjured.

Alex laughed, a hollow noise. He said, "I went to see Spender. Thought I'd make him number one with a bullet. I was good, Mulder. I got all the way through to him, but he just looked at me with that smug little smile on his lizard lips. He had new pictures of Nicky. If I kill him, he's paid to have Nicky taken just like I was."

Mulder enfolded his lover and said, "I'm sorry. I am so sorry. Come on. Let me put you to bed."

Alex said, "I want to go to Walter's house."

A flash of fury made Mulder's normally attractive face demonic. He controlled it, slamming on a blank mask. He gritted, "If that's what you want Alex."

Alex shook his head and forced his way back into Mulder's arms. He said, "No, you don't understand. With you! I want to go there with you because it's safer. He let Frohike and me put in good security. And he'd help keep us safe."

Walter said, "He's right. Humor us, Mulder. Pack a bag and let's go."

Walter wanted to surrender his bed, but Mulder refused. They slept in the guest bed although at one point in the night, Alex crept in and silently crawled into Walter's arms. Walter guiltily held him until they both slept. He was gone in the morning and Walter hoped Mulder hadn't noticed.

Walter made breakfast, omelets and orange slices. Mulder started by refusing anything but coffee and ended by eating at least half of Alex's omelet, the two of them sharing the plate and perched on the same chair like Siamese twins. Walter thought it was a pretty picture and it was tempting, very tempting to see if he could lure them into his bed. If he didn't have such a full schedule, he might have tried.

Alex said, "Stay with me today, Mulder. Help me put in a system at your apartment so I can sleep there."

Walter said, "Do it, Mulder. You have enough vacation time to take a year off."

Mulder surrendered. They were off to whatever clandestine supplier preferred by Alex and Frohike.

Not that you needed to know an underground supplier these days, the Internet could supply everything from a parabolic sound receiver to a near professional security system.

****************

A week after Alex and Mulder spent the night; Walter was having an internal argument about an invitation from Ricky. Ricky had called and asked him if he wanted to spend the weekend with him in New York. It was tempting, but there was so much going on here and he wasn't sure how sincere Ricky was about missing him.

The doorbell surprised him as he went to call Ricky to decline. Alex stood there, looking more like his old self. He wore black leather, black jeans, and a black shirt. Walter said, "This is a pleasant surprise. Come in."

Alex said, "Mulder took Dana out to dinner. I thought they could use some time alone. I was restless and I started to think about playing chess with you. Promise I won't be, uh, creative."

Walter laughed at that and ushered Alex inside. "Have you had dinner?"

Alex said, "Had it is the word. Had it and lost it. Turned on the TV and there was some prison thing on the cable. OZ? When I looked at the guide, I thought it was Judy Garland, rainbows, whatever. Then there were these guys and this kid..."

Walter said, "Shit, well, you want to try again? Roast beef sandwich?"

Alex said, "Do you have horse radish?"

Walter said, "Plenty."

Alex nodded and went to set the board up. Walter came back with sandwiches and drinks. He had the white as usual and they settled down to play. Walter wondered if Alex was as content as he was to explore this familiar ritual. It was strange how chess and food had made them feel at ease for those few days.

Alex lost badly for once. He wasn't concentrating on the game. Walter put it aside and went to wash dishes. Alex followed him into the kitchen. Walter washed and Alex dried, a small ritual they had worked out over Alex's stay.

Sitting in the garden was another habit they had developed. Alex found a sprig of early mint and held it, nibbling on the tiny leaves. Walter didn't push anything. If Alex wanted to sit out here silently for hours, it was still good.

Alex, however, did have something he wanted to say. He said, "It's not going well with Mulder and I."

Walter asked, "What's wrong?"

A slant of mouth and a darkening of eye told more than the words. Alex said, "I don't know. He's trying to be nice, but we've always been pretty physical, one way or the other. I get things started and then it doesn't work. I told him just to go ahead, but he wouldn't do that."

Walter said, "I'm glad to hear he didn't listen to you."

Alex said, "But if we don't have sex, what do we do with each other?"

Walter said, "Things like we did tonight, play chess, have good meal, and a discussion."

Alex laughed at that. He said, "Play chess with Mulder?"

"Talk about books then, Mulder and you both are readers." Walter said. "Talk about UFO's."

Alex said, "Books, yes, UFO's no. I can't even read a science fiction book about aliens without having flashbacks." He said, "Mulder and I used to do things when we were partners. Now it seems we fight the aliens, the consortium, and each other between screwing."

Walter said, "I'm sure it will get better." Not that he was remotely sure, but it did seem like the right thing to say. He stood up and said, "Come on, let's go inside. It's getting cold."

Alex followed him. Walter started a fire and decided to make hot chocolate. Alex was still very thin and he could use the calories. Walter would pay his penance tomorrow at the gym. They sat on the couch, sipping, staring into the flames, which danced over the embossed bricks of the lovely hearth. Walter picked up the cups to wash them an indefinite time later. Alex was asleep on the couch when he came back. Walter covered him with the quilt, thinking that the man needed his rest.

Mulder stormed in the door just before eleven, startling Alex out of sleep into a quilt-tangled heap on the floor. Mulder glared at Walter and said, "You just can't leave him alone, can you?"

Alex was fully awake now. He put his gun away and freed his legs from the blanket. He said, "Mulder, I came over here uninvited. I saw something on the TV that bugged me and I didn't want to take away your time with Scully."

Mulder finally said, "I know, Alex. I know you had sex with Skinner and I know he wants more."

Alex said, "How did you know?"

"Spender told me a while back about you and Skinner at the club. It wasn't as discreet as we all seemed to think."

Alex groaned and said, "Shit, I think I know why he did it now besides general meanness."

Walter wanted to dig a hole and bury himself. How could he have been so careless? You would think he would have known better after that woman had been killed in his bed. He wondered if Spender had it all on tape. Walter thought guiltily about the look-alikes for Mulder and Krycek. Then there was the one night with Alex before he engineered the trick that gave the two lovers the chance to get back together.

Mulder seemed to have realized that he had no reason to be jealous tonight. He said, "Alex, Skinner, I'm sorry. Come on, Alex, let's go home."

Walter poured himself a drink after they left. Thinking better of it he poured it out and went to call Ricky. It was better to get some of this out of his system. Ricky didn't ask for a commitment nor did he offer one. They were friends who fucked each other, not lovers.

***********************

After his weekend in New York, things stood in better perspective. Alex and Mulder were as they used to be, he thought... although Mulder didn't like Alex visiting him alone. Walter tried to make Mulder feel more comfortable about it, letting him see that it was chess and conversation not passion that drew Alex to him.

Well, maybe there was more, but nothing overt. Like Jimmy Carter, there was lust in his heart, but not in his actions. Still Mulder stared at him with suspicion. Walter perhaps should have insisted on more distance, but who could resist Alex?

Alex met him for lunch mid-week. They went to Enrique's, enjoying a quiet table and VIP treatment from the staff. Among the things Walter admired about Enrique, the man knew how to train his staff. When he and Alex were talking to each other, there was no hovering waiter. The minute Alex touched the teapot; a waiter came to refill it.

Alex checked Walter's car before getting in it. B for bugs and bombs was always the letter of the day with Spender. The car was clear. Alex slid into the passenger seat. Walter had offered to drop him off at the main library. He probably didn't want to know what Alex was doing. He somehow doubted the moody expression meant a passion to read Resurrection in the original Russian.

Alex asked, "How's Mulder been at work?"

"The same, fewer pencils in the ceiling than usual. Why?" Skinner asked.

Alex shrugged and said, "Got all the way through it finally."

Walter knew what Alex had meant although he didn't like the implication that he had approached resuming his sex life as an ordeal.

Alex said, "Maybe if there wasn't so much to do. I want to go some place warm; some place entirely different." Alex rolled his eyes and said, "I sound like a whiny kid." He added, "One of my sources had a lead for us."

Walter said, "Just make sure that you don't meet with any of them where Spender has a chance to get to you. Keep to public places."

Alex said, "You don't have to tell me that."

******************

Alex called in the evening to ask for a Saturday meeting. He and Frohike arrived early to do a better than average job of debugging. Walter could tell that Alex either was brooding about what happened to him or something else had happened. Alex blew up with Frohike over some minute technical issue and stomped out.

Frohike continued to work, but grumbled steadily. He said, "Shit, I always saw Alex as the cool head in that pair. Lately, he's been acting like he's losing it."

Walter said, "He has a lot on his mind."

Alex came back and said, "Tell Ricky I weeded the herb bed." He went in to wash up and Walter heard him quietly apologize to Frohike a little later.

Mulder had been running. He came in sweaty and delectable. Walter reminded himself that he was not interested in the man, no matter how glowing he looked like this. Alex stood for a brief kiss then went back to work. Mulder looked at him uncertainly, seemingly puzzled. He asked, "Okay, if I use your shower and change? I forgot the time. It felt so good to be moving in this beautiful weather."

Walter said, "Use away."

Scully arrived with sandwiches and took a safe seat where there was no chance that her worshipper, Frohike, could find a way to sit close to her. Byers and Langley also appeared, huddling with Frohike immediately as if one organism reunited.

Mulder took charge, energized and intense. He lined up some photographs. Walter leaned in close to Mulder. They peered at a blurry picture of rows of tanks. The objects were almost coffin like in shape and size.

Mulder followed these with what appeared to be pictures of a two armed and blank-faced Alex walking with Spender leading him. Mulder said, "Alex's contact gave him this. These pictures were taken in North Dakota, not too far from the silo where the alien ship was stored."

Walter looked at Alex and saw that he was hunched in his chair, his face as blank as the man in the picture. Mulder said, "This appears to be a fund raiser for Spender. The man in the picture is a clone, a hybrid, force-grown to rapid adulthood. Spender has some bids for these creatures."

Byers asked, "Why? What use would that be?"

Alex said bitterly, "They rapidly gain adult strength and can be taught any task readily. Yet, they aren't truly individuals. They don't need to be paid. Sex, food, drugs, or love won't distract them. They do as they are told. They would make perfect assassins or incorruptible guards."

Scully asked, "Why make clones of you, Alex?"

Alex replied, "Because, like Mulder's, my parents belonged to the project. My cells have been available since before my birth. You've met human clones of me - Rodney and Ricky. I'm sure that there are others. Besides, I'm Spender's favorite rat. He likes to play with his prey. This is another mind fuck." Alex looked at the picture of Spender and the clone. He looked abruptly and intensely ill before he ran out of the room.

Mulder growled, "Fuck" and went after his lover.

When the two men reappeared, Alex sat next to Walter on the couch. Mulder went back to his explanation. They agreed that Alex, Byres, Frohike, and Langley would leave to reconnoiter the project immediately. Meanwhile, Walter would find some excuse to get Mulder and Scully into the area.

**************************

Several days later, the scouting party returned. Frohike asked for a private meeting. Walter looked at the scrofulous looking character and had to keep reminding himself to take him seriously. He and his cohorts were amazingly effective despite having no organizational support. Walter thought about the last strategy meeting within the FBI that he had attended. Maybe they were effective because they were outside of any bureaucracy. Hell, if evolution had happened by committee, there would be amoebas oozing around as the highest form of life.

Frohike said directly, "What's with Krycek?"

Walter asked, "What do you mean?"

Frohike said, "He's spooked. He didn't screw anything up, but he spends so much time barfing; Langley said that Mulder must have knocked him up."

Walter said, "I bet he didn't say that to Krycek's face."

Frohike poked at the magazine in front of him on the coffee table and said, "You'd win. Look, I think you know what's wrong. I thought maybe Mulder and Krycek were arguing, but from what I have seen that is a constant. It's more than that. I'm not saying tell me what the problem is. Just fix it."

Easier said than done. Mulder seemed to believe that Alex had recovered. Maybe he just needed to believe that. Walter wished there was some way to approach this without using Krycek, but there really wasn't. Mulder's plan was to have Alex pass for one of the clones made for demonstration. He wanted Alex to get in, let the rest of them in, and blow the facility after the gunmen tapped the records.

It really was the only plan. Walter just hated it. The clones, a silo like the one where Alex had nearly died, and the risk of being caught by Spender made the whole project intense psychological torture. Mulder wasn't oblivious, but he was merciless to himself and to everyone else when it came to his quest. Hell, Alex had proved he was the same on many occasions, as had Skinner. That didn't make the knowledge of how much this hurt Alex easier to bear.

*********************

Walter found a case in North Dakota for Mulder and Scully. It was a follow up investigation to one that they had worked upon earlier. The local authorities had requested assistance because of another group of incidents involving cattle mutilations and missing teenagers. His own time he arranged by taking some of his accumulated vacation.

Walter rented a car at the small airport. He paid in cash, using a fake ID and a reference credit card provided by Alex. He drove to a mall and checked it for bugs, finding none. Walter followed instructions, meeting Alex in town after turning in the rental car.

Alex drove a jeep. The road was rough and Walter was glad that he no longer was in the rental car. The gunmen had arranged for a time-share at a recreational property. It was a big ranch style house with three regular bedrooms. It featured a replica of a bunkhouse. The lone gunmen had commandeered that as their roost.

The next morning, Mulder and Scully called, letting Walter know that they had wrapped up their case. The teenagers had simply made their way to a summer cabin to party. The cattle mutilations were the results of an angry rancher, looking for a way out of his bills.

Since Mulder was often followed, Dana and he would take a roundabout route to join the group. They had tickets on a commercial flight. They would walk onto the plane, but exit unobserved disguised as baggage handlers. A small private plane would bring them to the small field nearby.

Walter went to tell Alex that Mulder and Scully would arrive soon. Walter found him throwing rocks into the small pond. He sat on the grass and batted away the mosquitoes that seemed to be zeroing in on him rather than Alex. Walter asked, "What's bothering you?"

Alex said, "I'm pretty sure that Spender is screwing my clones. I saw him leading one around that wasn't wearing more then a thong."

Walter said, "They aren't you. They have less in common with you than Rodney and Ricky or even what ever his name was...the other clone that Mulder met."

Alex said, "Still...it gives me the creeps."

Walter nodded and said, "There are advantages to lack of beauty."

Alex smiled at that and said, "You aren't pretty, but I wouldn't mind finding you under my Christmas tree. There's beauty and then there's sexy. Even Mulder thinks you're sexy."

Walter found that intriguing. He asked, "How did that come up?"

"How else? We were fighting. He said if he'd wanted someone who was always giving him shit, he would have had an affair with you. He told me on the way to Tunguska that I was a lousy lay. He said that you and he were in having a good time while I froze on your balcony."

Walter said, "If that's so, I missed the experience. I might have done it if Mulder offered, even if you had been watching. He didn't offer."

Alex said, "I wondered. Hmm."

Walter said, "What does hmm mean?"

Alex said, "Nothing much. I'll tell you some other time."

Alex stood up, casually grabbing a hungry mosquito before it landed on Walter's arm. He said, "We better go in before you turn into a mass of welts."

****************

Mulder and Alex went to have a last look at the facility. They came back showing every sign of having had a serious argument. It was lousy timing. They were all on edge, keyed up about the mission.

Mulder said, "He doesn't want to go in."

Alex shot back, "I told you I would go. Can you blame me for being nervous after what happened to me? I just said that I wished there was another way."

Mulder waved a dismissive hand and remarked, "You know there isn't. The plan requires that you disable the security from the inside."

Walter roared, "Enough. Now, Alex, can you do this or not?"

Alex said, "I'll go. After all, it's copies of me being sold as assassins and guards."

Mulder muttered under his breath, "Should have sold them for whores."

Walter stood and lifted his intransigent agent to his feet and shook him lightly, a sign of his great anger, that he needed to show such restraint. "Enough! What is your problem?"

Mulder jerked away angrily, pointed at Alex, and said, "He had sex with Spender. I mean, voluntarily."

Alex blushed, turning a rich scarlet hue. He exclaimed, "For God's sake, Mulder, that's not what I said. I said that Spender was doing to the clones what he did to me when I was young and powerless."

Mulder muttered, "Excuses."

Skinner said, "I said, enough. You leave this type of thing at home, Mulder. We have a mission."

Mulder asked, "Who put you in charge?"

Every other person in the room looked at Mulder and then to Skinner, which was certainly an answer although not the one that Mulder wanted. Walter sighed, knowing that everyone here loved Mulder, hell, even he did, but working with him was difficult.

Teamwork to Mulder meant everyone running after him, trying to keep up with his sometimes brilliant and sometimes foolish leaps in logic. Walter felt dull in comparison, but he plodded along, usually in the right direction, without the fits and starts of their resident genius.

After rehearsing their strategy, they went to their cars. Alex straddled a black Harley Davidson, looking like a dark knight waiting for his lover's token. He got no more then a surly glance from Mulder who was to go in with Scully.

Skinner rode with the lone gunmen whose on-going quibbling seemed almost soothing after Mulder's show of temper. Frohike had yielded the driver's seat of the armored van to Byers and he slouched next to Walter.

Frohike said, "That arguing has to stop. Krycek is good, but he lets Mulder get to him."

Walter smiled at that and said, "Tell me something new."

Frohike said, "It's getting worse."

Walter nodded, but said, "I bet Romeo and Juliet were no joy to be around either."

Frohike laughed, but then he frowned and said, "I may have been skimpy on my English literature credits, but even I know what happened to them. That's not a good omen, Skinner."

Skinner fought the urge to cross himself, a relic of a Catholic upbringing long forgotten. He stared out into the darkness, willing the plan to go smoothly.

*************

The place was another silo or a cluster of them, linked by a substantial underground base. It had been built as a huge bomb shelter to house "Necessary people".

Skinner often wondered how politicians and the other elite who were to be protected in this thing could ever imagine that their skills were the ones that would be needed after the envisioned holocaust? Did they think that the harsh post-nuclear winter predicted would call for many speeches and parades of four-star generals?

As they waited for Alex to call, Walter dismissed his rambling thoughts. He checking to be sure that his explosive charges were in place and went through a physical and mental inventory. His beeper buzzed three times. The all clear signal from Alex.

The Gunmen's van was left out of sight concealed by the shadow of the silo they planned to use as an entrance. Alex had already disabled the security camera and there was no guard. Walter did not plan to ask what happened to the sentry that had been posted there.

The elevator ride was dark. It seemed like a descent into some cold land where sound and light never reached. Walter wondered how Alex was doing in this nightmarish place?

Langley's loud whisper sounded as they wound around the corner. "Just suppose we save one or two of them? They would be perfect and pretty. They'd have an arm and everything."

Byers answered before Skinner could. He said, "First of all, these are alien hybrids, not human no matter how they look. Real clones take as long to raise as normally conceived people. These things lay around in tanks until someone decants them. Second of all, how would you feel knowing someone was screwing a sex slave with the mind of a child and your face?"

Frohike snickered, "If it was Langley, who could tell the difference?"

Walter said, "Gentlemen, silence, we are in enemy territory."

Alex let them inside and gave them maps to this vast underground facility. He had uniforms ready as disguises. The team all wore Kevlar except Alex. He said that there was a chance he would be searched. They were all in teams. Skinner had Byers. Frohike and Langly were working together, attending to the computer banks.

Mulder and Scully were a given as a team. They were to check the laboratories and make sure the paper records were destroyed. This left Alex to attend to the main security room. His job was to disable the audio and video pickups so the teams had a chance to plant their bombs.

Skinner had given himself one of the worst jobs. He and Byers walked into a room, which hummed with sound. Rows of tanks lined the room. In each one of them floated copies of Alex. They were smooth of face, almost mannequin like in their features without the animation and intelligence of Ricky or Alex. Walter set his charges, almost screaming as one of the clones opened green eyes, long lustrous lashes fluttering.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry." Walter whispered as he set the charge. He prayed as he had not since he was a little boy, "Let them feel no pain, God, if you're out there, let them just never awaken."

*************

Regrouping, the five men and one woman looked at each other with ashen faces. This was bad and Alex had said there were many more of these factories. Walter waited, looking at his watch. He glared at Mulder who was now staring back at the facility too. "Where the hell is Alex? You and Scully were supposed to meet with him and make sure he was out."

Mulder said, "I'll go back in. There's time. I just wanted to have a crack at the files. Some of the records were on paper and... Samantha, they might have told me what happened to her. Whether any fully human clones were made..."

Walter said, "We'll both go back in. We have ten minutes."

They didn't need the full amount of time. Gunfire announced Alex's whereabouts. Skinner hit the floor, pulling Mulder down with him. They crept forward as loud exchanges of automatic weapons firing made their ears ring. It felt like they were in a metal barrel with a round of firecrackers exploding around them. Walter winced every time he heard a scream announce that a target had been hit. He growled at himself, cursing the language he learned to distance from the enemy. They were not targets; they were men.

The dark figure that ran, spun, fired and crouched was unmistakable. "Mother fucking beautiful bastard!" Mulder whispered.

Skinner, more practical, aimed and hit a man who looked like he had a good shot. Alex grunted as a bullet still found its way into his flesh.

Walter pulled Alex to the relative shelter of the staple food filled barrels left over from the original purpose of the bomb shelter. Alex groaned, but managed to get his gun up high enough to shoot the boldest of his remaining pursuers. They crabbed backwards, working as an efficient team, covering for each other. Walter could feel Alex's blood running a warm, sticky trail down his side.

Mulder glanced and said, "Go, Walter. You can carry him. This is my fault. I'm the one that should pay."

Walter said, "Like hell, just keep moving. We're all going to get out."

As they slammed out the door, their backs were inundated with an incredibly bright light. Spotlights magically turned on, shining blindingly. The effect unfortunately disabled enemy and friend equally.

Frohike's voice said, "Groovy. Come on, boys, let's blow this joint." Walter couldn't see him, but his voice guided them.

Frohike led them out, Walter and Mulder bearing Alex between them. Alex was holding his own, a tough man in many ways as Walter had observed before.

***********************

Inside the van, Walter's eyes ached, but they were beginning to work again. He heard the sucking tornado of sound behind them. John Byers drove like a madman to escape the debris. Langley rode shotgun, working controls that hopefully would prevent them from being tracked.

Frohike threw aside the odd insect-like mask he wore to block the blinding floodlights. He moved at Scully's bark to help cut the clothes off her patient. Alex laid on the floor, looking pale, face rigid with pain. Mulder scrambled down to try to hold Alex's hand, but Alex made a pushing gesture and asked, "Where were you? I was looking for you because you were not at the meeting place."

Mulder drew back and said, "I was distracted. The records..."

Alex nodded, "The records were worth more to you than my life. How did I guess? No more, I've humbled myself. I've crawled for you. I've overlooked things that would have made me kill anyone else. Mulder, from now on, you don't back me on anything. You go in and you do whatever the fuck pleases you, just don't expect me to get shot again, thinking that you would be where you were supposed to be."

The words were broken in a sob, as Mulder backed as far away as he could get from his angry lover. Alex looked up and said, "Walter, I think I want to go back to your house. May I?"

Walter tried not to smile. He wasn't sure if he believed this, but he'd be damned if he'd say no.

************************

Two days later, Walter helped a still shaky Alex up the stairs and into the house. He brought him straight to his bed. Alex sighed and said, "Now get in with me. Hold me. Tell me I did the right thing."

"You did the right thing." Walter assured. "When Mulder grows up, if Mulder grows up, then you go back. Even Scully said that it's the right decision."

Alex sighed and looked at Walter. He said, "I want you to make love to me now, Walter."

Walter said, "Are you sure, Alex? You don't owe me anything."

Alex looked at him and Walter saw in his face all the incarnations of this lusted after, hated, and now loved man. Alex closed his eyes and opened them. He caught his breath and asked, "Does that mean we're even?"

Walter smiled and said, "We're even, boy."

Alex moved into his arms and said, "Then kiss me, because I need you, Walter."

Walter obeyed and he was shaken by the first touch of Alex's lips. This was not about anything they had shared in the past. This was like a first kiss, like a step toward something very real.

Walter knew that Mulder and Alex weren't finished with each other, but this was his time. To hell with worry about the future. Alex was in his arms tonight and that was enough for Walter.

The end.




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Title: Inextricable Relationships
Author/pseudonym: Ursula
Fandom: X Files
Pairing: Mulder/Krycek/Skinner
Rating: NC-17 Slash
Status: New For the May RatB Challenge
Archive: Yes, anywhere
E-mail address for feedback: Fan4Richie@Aol.com or Ursula4X@Aol.com
Series/Sequel: (Just A Taste: S/K First time M/K first time (in outline only)) A Warm Place Out Of The Rain, A Comedy Of Errors, (A Garden Of Earthly Delights: Sk/Ricky Caruso story title and idea mostly at this point) Shade and Knight, Inextricable Relationships, Wonderful World, The Little Prince
Other websites: RatB archive: https://www.squidge.org/terma/ursula/ursula.htm
Disclaimers: I do not own the characters I abuse and soothe in this story. This was written as fan fiction only and is not intended to infringe on the rights of Chris Carter or Fox TV.
Notes: Nikolai first appears in Orpheus Descending and is Krycek's son from a college romance. Orpheus Descending doesn't really fit with this story line, but Nicky is a bright and energetic kid who doesn't like to just sit around in an archive. He likes to play in new stories.
PS, if you read an article on transplant rejection therapy (Thinking of a story where Alex gets a new arm) watch Dr. Moreau for the fifth time, and have your mind on the May challenge for RAT B, what do you get?
PS I put Spender in the wheelchair before I so much as saw a trailer for Requiem
WARNINGS: Schmoopy angst: Walter rape. Clone sex. Sentimental Krycek. Caring, loving Mulder stuff....
Thank You to L. Shan for beta and thoughtful story advice...


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Stroke, stroke down the oiled, quivering flesh of his cock. Mind blank, face blank, sitting in the chair into which Alex had once angrily thrust him before giving into his desires and kissing him. The TV flickered, but not with any of his professional videos. Alex writhed under him in the video. It had taken See's dark chocolate assortment and six hand made truffles from the most expensive candy confectioner in town to persuade Alex to allow Mulder to film their lovemaking.

Alex's dialog was not like the porn flicks. His words were "I love you. I love you. Don't ever stop. Don't ever stop loving me."

Mulder came as the last plea was buried in the fuzz at the end of the film. He looked at his semen-covered hand and smeared it down his chest. He sobbed, a wet, juvenile sound that echoed in the dark room to taunt him. Shit, he was so fucked. No, he was so unfucked.

Mulder heard the phone ring. Last time he picked it up was to hear Rodney apologetically saying, "Mulder, I'd love to see you, but I met someone. You would not believe how much he looks like you. He's a doctor...well he used to be one. Now, he's doing substance abuse counseling like I am."

Rodney didn't sound like the scarred prostitute he had been when Mulder had met him. He sounded young, happy, in love. Great. Rodney's voice caught Alex's husky tones exactly. "Mulder, I'm sorry. I could have loved you, but I know it was never just me that you saw."

Mulder had stammered out, "No, that's great. I'm happy for you. I want to meet him someday."

Right, Mulder devoted the next ten minutes after he hung up to reciting the word 'fuck,' in as many languages as he could muster. No Rodney, No Alex, not even sad and sick Lloyd Hilliard. Yeah, he had been desperate enough to look for the man, desperate enough to offer him the pain and punishment just to be allowed to gaze down at Alex's face as he fucked a substitute. No luck, didn't find the man. Maybe, Lloyd found the right guy and now lay dead in some unmarked grave, punished enough at last.

The phone rang. Mulder reached for it. He scowled as he realized that his hand was still sticky with come. Shit, better remind himself to clean it before Scully decided to visit. These little housekeeping details bugged her.

"What the hell do you want?" Mulder snarled into the phone.


Alex's voice...Mulder grinned. God had granted his wish. Skinner was in Chicago, ordered to some week-long seminar on personnel relationships. Obviously, they hadn't noticed that Skinner had covered those thoroughly in the brief weeks that Alex Krycek had been an FBI agent, Mulder thought bitterly. Of course, he forget the essential one, if you are going to have an office affair with a double agent, don't jilt him.

Mulder thought, 'Yeah, Skinner was out of town and Alex hated to be alone now. He wanted Mulder to visit and hold him in his arms, lying naked in Skinner's massive bed. Mulder already had a plan. No demands, just cuddling unless Alex started it on his own. He would prove to everyone that he wasn't self centered and...

Alex wailed, "They took him. Mulder, you have to help me. Right now."

Jesus, took whom? Mulder felt a stab of anxious guilt. With Skinner off on his own, it would have been the perfect opportunity to strike at the team. Mulder said, "Alex, we'll get Walter back."

Cold venomous voice...hell of a long time since Mulder had heard that from Alex. Alex enunciated, "Not Walter, they took Nicky. They shot my aunt Sophia. They don't even know if she's going to live. Mulder, you have to help me. Right now!"

Mulder's heart really skipped a beat. He cried out, "No, oh shit, Alex, calm down. You wait for me. Did you call Walter yet?"

Alex said in a dead voice, "I'll page him now."

Mulder felt a guilty pleasure that Alex had called him first. He threw it aside and said, "Good, I'll get Scully and the Lone Gunmen. One for all and all for one, Alex. This is about all of us."

____

There was yet more guilt as Alex folded into his arms, trembling with rage and terror. Alex said, "It's my fault. Because I wanted to be a hero. Now, they're going to do to Nicky what they did to me. Mulder, I want them all dead. All dead. No more threats to Nicky."

Mulder was suddenly looking into emerald green fires of hell. Over the past two years, he had allowed himself to forget Krycek. There had been sweet, loving Alex, the shaking reed who needed him so desperately. He had been stupid and careless; allowing Skinner to take what Mulder had thought would always be his. Still, Skinner's Alex was, if anything, softer and more honeyed than the one Mulder had abused. The face that confronted Mulder was one he had seldom seen turned on him. This Alex would kill, torture, maim, betray, and commit every crime that Mulder had ever accused him of doing. And you know, Mulder didn't blame him a bit. He grabbed Alex's hand and said, "I'll help you. No one stands in our way."

Scully and the gunmen arrived. The techno-geeks went straight to Alex's command center to see if any of the known consortium hiding places had seen any increase in activity. Scully tried to coax Alex into taking a tranquilizer. He was pacing like a tiger, fear, grief, hatred and frustration keeping him dancing on the edge of madness. He turned on Scully, eyes wide and crazed.

Alex's voice was rough as if from screaming. He said, "Scully, do you know what they did to me? They could be raping Nicky right now. They could be selling him to filthy old perverts. Oh shit, oh shit, I can't just stay here and wait." Alex looked around, grabbed Mulder and said, "Go with me. Let's go see if we can find Spender. I bet he has Nicky. Please, Mulder!"

Scully actually chased them down the road in her car, but they had grabbed the Harley that Alex seldom rode anymore. She lost them the first time Mulder drove the fast, fierce beast down a paved walkway, flying over the curb and maneuvering down a narrow walkway between two buildings.

It was almost fun; Alex was clinging to him. Mulder was used to the feel of the prosthesis. It hardly bothered him anymore. If he couldn't feel Alex shaking in rage, he might have regarded this as a moment stolen from Walter. Anyway, any time he spent with Alex was good. Maybe this was his chance to show Alex that he could be all the things that Alex needed him to be.

Alex and he rented a car in Baltimore. Spender had a cottage that he thought Alex didn't know about. Alex commented, "He's stupid on the rare occasions that you can get him to come...falls asleep right away. I hacked into his computer a few times. This place was supposed to be one of his hideaways like that cabin up in Canada was."

Mulder tightened his lips and managed to say nothing about Spender and Alex although the thought of that man's hands on Alex made him crazy.

Mulder understood now that none of that had been Alex's fault. They had talked about since Alex move in with Walter. They had talked a lot since then. Mulder finally understood that Spender was a sick, pathetic rapist who got off on manipulating people's lives. Alex never had a choice about being fucked by him.

Alex looked at him, wincing slightly. As he saw that Mulder wasn't angry with him, he expressed his gratitude in a fondling touch on Mulder's thigh. Mulder hated that he had taught Alex to anticipated punishment for confessing to the atrocities that Spender had committed upon him. He just regretted that he came to his senses too late. Walter had been the better man; the best man for Alex.

Mulder sadly reflected that he could understand that, but his heart wouldn't listen. He still loved Alex; he loved him more then ever.

Mulder said, "Someday, Spender's going to pay for what he did to you."

Alex said, "I hope so. Mulder, thanks. Thanks for coming with me. Thanks for showing me that you still care."

Mulder replied, "What makes you think I care about you, Alex?" At the hurt look, Mulder continued, "That isn't the word. Love, Alex, love, need, obsess upon, and adore,. Those are the right words for the way I feel. I know I screwed up all my chances, but I want you to hear it once more. In case."

Alex said, "I know, Mulder. It didn't change for me either. I'm not saying that I don't love Walter because I always will. I never meant to hurt either of you. If I had my way..."

"Rub a dub dub, three men in a ...what kind of bed is that?" Mulder asked.

"Custom made king with a sleigh frame. Big enough for a football team." Alex said.

Mulder tried to imagine sharing Alex and he could. Only with Walter because, despite the jealousy, he still felt something stronger than friendship for Skinner.

A few miles from the estate, Mulder had this brilliant insight. Call for backup. He stopped the car at a rest area and made the call to Skinner. Somehow, he knew they would gather there. Walter's voice answered, shaken, angry. "Mulder, where are you?"

Mulder said, "The George Washington rest stop on the Baltimore turn pike. Alex and I are going in to one of Spender's hideouts. Alex thinks that Spender isn't on to him knowing about this one."

Walter asked, "Can you slow him down? Wait for the rest of us?"

Alex had returned from the restroom and he pointed at the car. Mulder said, "Alex, Walter wants you to wait."

Alex took the phone and said, "I love you, but I can't wait. That's my kid. Every minute Spender has him worse things could be happening to Nicky. Get here quickly, Walter. I love you."

Mulder nodded and walked toward the car. Just this time, he felt he had did everything right. They drove the few hours to Spender's cottage. Mulder had that feeling he had sometimes. They were flying head first into danger. There were no guards visible. Mulder put his hand on Alex's back and said, "Alex, love, I think we are about to walk into a trap. Are we going to do it anyway?"

Alex turned moss green eyes on Mulder. Sadly, he said, "Yeah, I agree. Maybe ---Spender always thinks ahead. Maybe he knew he would want me to remember this place. I still have to do it. I'm Nicky's father."

Mulder managed as laugh and said, "Okay, well, I'm not willing to be his mother so the kid will have to make do with tw-three dads and Scully. Let's go then, partner."

The cottage was walled and secured with multiple surveillance devices, none of which seemed to even vaguely challenge Alex. He opened his bag of tricks and set to work overriding commands, zapping through codes, quick, calm, and professional now that there was work to be done. Alex growled to himself as one sequence gave him a momentary hitch, but he quickly defeated it. "Too easy." Alex remarked.

Mulder said, "But we go in anyway, don't we?"

Alex nodded and then said, "He's my kid. I have to do this. Mulder...you don't have to take the chance. You could wait out here until Walter and the others get here. But that helicopter...I can't let them leave with Nicky. I don't know all of the places Spender could hide my son."

Mulder said, "As far as I am concerned, Nicky is as close to a son as I ever would want to have. So let's shut up and go."

Alex's smile, sweet beyond belief and his eyes lightening in that way that made Mulder want to be a hero...made him feel the way he had when Alex was mostly just pretending to look up to him. Now they were as near the truth in their relationship as two such masters of subterfuge could be.

Nicky was in a small bedroom toward the back. He looked uninjured, but was chained to the bed. He was watching TV, but when Spender entered the room, the small boy eyed him like a tiger cub.

Mulder noted that Spender looked like a days old corpse, skin hanging yellow and loose on his face. He was in a wheel chair and his claw like hands shook constantly. He harangued at the boy, probably trying to frighten him. Nicky shook his head, eyes bright with unshed tears, but his head held proudly despite that. Mulder felt ridiculously proud of the child as if Nicky were his kid too.

Spender left, but the burly guard remained. Mulder nodded and Alex slipped away to use some of the plastic explosive they had bought to create a major distraction.

When the fourth of July arrived early, Mulder used the speed glasscutter to bore a hole in the window. Alarms rang out. He could hear them over the chaos. One of Spender's men came running in. Mulder aimed his gun straight on and blasted the man in an academy perfect shot right to the chest. Nicky asked, "Where's my papa?"

Mulder could hear a chopper. He hoped it was Skinner. He said to Nicky, "Alex is waiting outside." He found the key to the handcuffs and freed the boy. Nicky was steady on. He didn't scream at the sight of the bloody corpse or tantrum because he didn't see his father right away. Mulder picked him up and shoved him through the window. He caught sight of Skinner and grinned. He yelled to Nicky, "Run to Uncle Walter. Go now, Nicky!"

The kid was fast. Walter sprinted toward the boy, scooping Nicky up, not hesitating a moment. He turned and ran with Nicky. Mulder was about to follow when darkness arrived in the form of a red-hot explosion of pain to his head. His last thought as he plummeted to the floor was of Alex.

Mulder woke up feeling very ill. His wrist hurt and he was lying atop someone. He knew whom. He knew Alex by the scent of him, by some fricative sense of his skin. Other people, knew hot, cold, soft, hard, smooth, rough. Mulder knew Alex texture. Alex weight. Things couldn't be too bad if he was lying here with Alex.

Mulder felt the floor vibrating under him. He heard the beat of helicopter blades and the throb of powerful engines. He corrected his first thought. Things could be terrible despite being with Alex. Oh, fuck, where in hell were they being taken?"

Mulder fully awoke and opened his eyes. He was handcuffed to his lover. They lay on the floor of the copter. A few feet away, Spender sat in a passenger seat. He was coughing and spitting into a metal bowl held by a white costumed woman, as he sat not far from where Mulder sprawled on the floor. The distinct noise of a helicopter surrounded Mulder and then he was more concerned with Alex's moans. "Are you all right, baby?" he asked.

Alex snarled, "Right! Someone hit me with a two by four. I can't feel my hand. Your knee is right on my bladder and I shouldn't have grabbed that coffee at the rest stop. I am just grand. The good news is that I heard them talking before I passed out. Walter has Nicky and they didn't get any of the team except us."

Mulder moved his knee and they wiggled around to relieve the pinch of the handcuffs. Alex found as comfortable position as he could find with the cuffs and used Mulder's chest for a pillow. Spender had turned when he heard their voices. Mulder spared a moment to observe the mad hatred on Spender's face before retreating to sleep as Alex had.

Mulder woke as the copter landed. He and Alex were tossed out on a sandy beach where they wallowed several minutes. They were handcuffed...Alex's one wrist bound to a belt at Mulder's waist. Mulder's left hand also tethered tightly to the band. With one free hand between them and bound so closely with each other, they didn't have a chance in the world to run. As pissed as Mulder was, he bit his tongue about the situation. He hoped that he could pull the daddy shit with Spender and perhaps keep the crazed man from abusing Alex.


Mulder didn't have an immediate chance to talk with Spender. They were marched to a jeep from the small landing pad. The road was paved although the tarmac had buckled and split to a level that made it a dubious excuse for a road. The setting looked tropical. Mulder tried to recognize some distinct vegetation that would tell him their location, but the drive jounced along the rough road at light speed.

A walled compound, topped by patrolling guards was not far away. As they entered the gate, Mulder could hear monkeys screaming in the background. Unfortunately, the human voices drowned them out with a chorus of different languages, all speaking the same message of pain.

There were several outbuildings, but they were brought to the main building. It was a well-kept antebellum looking mansion. The air inside was cool and refreshing after the sodden weight of climate outside. The nurse immediately wheeled off Spender, who was wheezing as if it was his last breath.

Alex and Mulder were forced to stand in what appeared to be a lobby. It glistened with marble, a lush pink mottled stuff. The place was well furnished, but the guard herded them to an open spot in from of a throne like chair and glowered at them from under his thickly browed and Neanderthal bulging forehead.

Mulder whispered, "Alex? Any idea where you are?"

"No talking!" the two ton Teutonic monster who guarded them thundered. He reinforced his command by hitting them both with the butt of his rifle. Mulder grabbed his aching stomach and grimaced. Alex, handless, just leaned on him and tried to shake the pain away with that characteristic toss of his head.

Spender reappeared in a wheel chair. He looked frostily at Mulder and remarked, "I thought you were over it at last. Walter Skinner had never been more than a puppet. It didn't surprise me when he took became the whore's lover. You...I had aspirations for you. I am very disappointed in you, my boy. You should have left Alex alone."

Spender's gaze traveled over to Alex. His expression was one of possession. Alex lowered his eyelashes for a moment then seemed to force himself to look his former master in the eye.

Spender said, "Did he tell you I fucked him before you had him? I used to lay him out on a table to entertain my guests. How does it feel to fuck a whore, Mulder? Does that thrill you? Of course, I know it doesn't bother Skinner. It's probably the main attraction for him. He does have a thing about prostitutes."

Spender commanded, "Remove the chain from Alex. Alex, on your knees."

Alex knelt. It killed Mulder to see it. Alex said, "Spender, if it's me that you want to punish, here I am. I'll do whatever you want. Let Mulder go. You told everyone that he's your son. Act like a father. Let him go."

Spender cackled and coughed. He said, "I don't have to let either of you go. Getting you was my whole plan. Did you think I wanted Nicky? Why? I have a purebred Alex of my own. Spender hit a button and said, "Alexi, come."

In walked beauty. This clone was no more than twenty. He was ethereal, dreamy eyed, looking even sweeter and prettier than Alex the first time that Mulder saw him. Mulder couldn't tell by looking if this was a real clone or one of the alien hybrids. Which ever, it smiled and sidled up to Spender to say, "Papa, you're back."

Spender's liver spotted hand fondled the clone. Reached between the legs and masturbated it. It braced itself and thrust his hip forward, cooing with pleasure. Spender asked, "Were you a good boy while I was gone? You didn't touch this except to pee."

"No, papa, I was very good. I know that it's yours. Yours not mine. Only papa makes Alexi feel good."

Alex muttered, "Hand me a barf bag. This is the worst clone I've seen."

Spender continued to play with the clone until it came. It giggled and kissed Spender before staring out from Alex lashes at Mulder and Alex. The clone asked, "This is the bad boy that betrayed papa? And that is the bad man who cut off the bad boy's arm?"

Spender said, "Yes, Alexi. That is they."

Alexi said, "But papa won't let that happen to me?"

Spender replied, "As long as Alexi is my good boy."

Alexi crept closer to Mulder and said, "You do look like Foxy-Baby except you're old." The pretty pink mouth trembled a little and he said, "Foxy-Baby and Sasha were very bad and now they just lie there. They don't play any more."

Mulder looked from this dewy fresh creature to his lover. God, now he had some inkling as to how Alex felt to find version after version of himself. But Alex was beautiful. It made him ill to think that Spender enslaved even a flawed copy of his beloved.

Spender had a coughing fit and needed a shot plus more oxygen. The clone didn't seem to react. Mulder wondered if it was stupid or perhaps just uneducated. Give an Alex an inch and he'd take a mile. It was hard to believe that even a manipulated copy could be so passive.

Spender recovered enough to say, "Alexi, let's take the bad men to see what papa is going to look like when his doctors make him well."

Alexi took the handles of the chair and wiggled along out of the room. Alex whispered, "I know Spender's plan now. He is trying to kill me with humiliation. God, what is this creature stuck at, age five or six?"

Alexi stopped pushing and stomped his feet. He said, "Papa, the bad men are saying I'm stupid. Punish them."

Spender assured, "They will be punished. My Alexi isn't stupid. He is just as papa wants him to be."

Distracted by a caress on his naked groin, Alexi went back to pushing the wheelchair. They entered a locked room. Mulder wasn't surprised at what he saw, but he was appalled. A Mulder clone and an Alex clone slept in glass beds. Alexi touched the box that held his slightly older double. He looked grieved and said, "Sasha will love you when you look like Foxy-Baby. I'm sure he's very sorry."

Spender gloated, "Soon, the doctors will try the new medicine on the bad men and if they don't die, papa will be next." He used his electric controls to push near the vat to caress the clone's genitals. "When papa is in this body, he won't just have to watch pretty Alexi." A finger slipped between the Alex clone's buttocks. Papa will put his cock right in you and it will feel so good. Even better than this feels, my beauty. Maybe I will give Sasha another chance...I may be able to make two of you happy."

Alexi had braced himself and he was moaning as Spender finger fucked him. Mulder glanced at his lover's face, seeing the rage and the agony. He understood now, a little, what it had been like for Alex, growing up in Spender's "Loving" care.

Alex said, "Spender, I always knew you were insane, but now you are so far around the bend, you should be able to fuck your own wizened ass. You know, eventually Alexi will grow up no matter what you do to keep him ignorant. And when he does, it will be the same thing all over again."

Spender's anger showed in a rough jab of his finger. Alex promptly protested, "Papa, that hurts."

Spender withdrew his hand and took a small whip out of the side of his chair. He said, "Alexi, that was bad. Grab your legs and bend."

"No, papa, no, please papa." The frightened clone cried. Spender couldn't put much into the blows, but the clone was not used to pain apparently. He cried profusely. Spender's face lit with pleasure and he turned the job over to one of his men so he could watch.

Mulder almost smiled. Alexi curled up in a ball on the floor when the guard stopped, but Mulder caught one evil eyed look at Spender. The old men had just made his first mistake with the clone. An Alex treated with loving kindness by Spender might cause no trouble, but apparently there was a streak of vengeance right in the genetic pattern. The pretty clone was very, very angry.

Spender had a coughing fit and the nurse fussed with his oxygen tank. He hit her with the crop repeatedly as soon as he was strong enough. That wore him out, but he slumped gray faced in his chair, watching as his men beat Alex. No matter how much Mulder screamed for them to stop, to take him instead, every blow, every fall of the whip went to Alex. Soon Alex was a limp heap on the floor. When the blows didn't even make Alex twitch, they finally stopped and put him in Mulder's arms. Mulder buried his face in Alex's chestnut hair, smelling the fear and despair in his lover's sweat as he never had wanted to do again.

Spender ordered them chained, Alex's one arm bound to a belt at Mulder's waist. Mulder's left arm locked to the belt as well. Spender perused the picture and said, "Get used to it. This is the way that it's going to be. You want Alex to be part of you? He says he can't live without you? So be it." Spender explained, "When my doctors are finished, you will have three legs. We'll fuse the middle two into one large one. As for the arms, Alex already has part of the job done, but we'll remove the remainder and fuse it with your shoulder. We'll unzip your skin and sew the entire side together. Of course, you won't be able to fuck that way, but you'll be together and this time, even Skinner won't be able to part you."

A cool alcohol pad cleaned a spot on Mulder's stomach. Alex was just waking from his faint when they rammed the needles home. Spender uttered a mad laugh and said, "By tomorrow this time, you two will be joined together, the subject of horror and laughter. Mulder, as much as you love the grotesque, maybe I will donate you to a freak show. I can't wait to see Skinner's face when he sees what I've done to you both."

Laugher and coughs wafted out of the room. Mulder felt woozy. The injection must be causing some biochemical changes already. It was divine justice, he thought. It was his fault that Alex lost an arm and now he was going to lose one too. Not that he believed they would survive. He couldn't imagine the operation would work. Dr. Morrell who had developed the formula had lost his medical license and had to flee Peru when the authorities found out about his human experimentation. He might have sold Spender on his abilities, but Mulder had read that the man suffered from a major personality disorder. Which was perhaps a neat way of saying he was devoid of human values and incapable of moral judgment.

The room to which they were dragged was no cell although the windows were barred. It held an enormous bed, which looked soft, clean, and incredibly inviting after the past few hours. The guards dumped Alex and Mulder on the bed and left. Mulder slept for a while; he couldn't help it. He was exhausted and aching. He woke with Alex softly groaning beside him. Mulder turned as far as the chains would allow and asked, "How are you, baby?"

Alex moaned, "Don't call me 'baby' right now. Makes me think of Spender and that awful clone."

Mulder sighed and said, "Yeah, I know. But hey, did you catch the expression on the boy's face when Spender had that guard beat him? Spender might think he has a tame Alex, but I think it's in the blood, love. He's just holding trouble by the silken balls."

Alex dryly commented, "Somehow, I don't think we'll be around to enjoy that comeuppance. Or if we are, we'll be clapping with one set of hands."

Mulder knew Alex could quickly plummet into depression or near hysteria in captivity. It was a relic of the silo that he could not lose. He moved around, trying to find a way to hug his lover, but the position in which they were chained made that a true Chinese puzzle. The chains clinked as Mulder squirmed to Alex's side.

"Oh, these chains of love." Mulder chanted. Alex didn't respond to the feeble joke. He adjusted his weight so his remaining hand wasn't crumpled underneath both their weights. Mulder tried again, "Well, this is a fine mess that you've gotten us into this time, Ollie."

Now Alex, a bit more comfortable, forced a smile. He replied, "but Stanley..." He couldn't sustain the joke. "I'm sorry. Not for me. Walter and Scully have Nicky. They'll take good care of him; love him almost as much as I do. I'm sorry that I dragged you into this. I just didn't think. Walter wasn't there and besides, I know he would have told me to do something sensible. You never do that."

Mulder lost it at the last sentence. Damn right, HE would never force Alex to do anything sensible. As he laughed, he felt Alex start to laugh with him. When he could talk again, he said, "Love, I am so glad that you knew that I would go with you. That shows that I didn't screw everything up before. You know something? There's nothing more that Spender can do to us."

Alex looked at him. His hand jerked, unable to move from the position at his waist to which it was chained. Mulder made a guess and hoped he was right. He had one hand free and he used it to caress his beloved. Alex sighed and said, "Kiss me."

Mulder warned, "Spender's watching."

Alex returned, "Fuck him. No, Mulder, fuck me. Show him what it's like to have someone who loves you."

Mulder said, "We don't have anything to make it comfortable, baby."

Alex said, "We have spit and I know I want you in me so badly that I won't tense."

Mulder made one last heroic effort. "Alex, we don't want to hurt Walter."

Alex sighed and said, "I never promised him that I wouldn't make love to you. He never asked that of me. He knows. I love him. I adore him. He takes care of me and makes me feel so safe. I never feel safe with you, Mulder, but I crave you. If there was one quivering cell left on me on one of Spender's slides, it would know you."

Oh God, Mulder knew what Alex meant. First time that they had kissed, it was like light and warmth fire balling into a deep, dark, empty void. Whatever the dance they danced, it was lock step with each other, never able to break free. Mulder looked down into Alex's eyes before kissing him. Never wanted to be free of him...

It was damn near impossible. Mulder kept falling on Alex. Alex would almost get his legs in place and they would get tangled. The up side was that they were sweating enough to not need much else as lubricant. Mulder finally managed to get his fingers inside to open Alex. Alex braced him with his incredibly strong legs so Mulder could use his one free hand without collapsing.

Alex said, as if praying, "Mulder, want you. Wanted you for the longest time. I'm such a slut. Want him. Want you. Want you both."

Mulder said, "Shush, you're not a slut, Alex. You're not a whore. You're just so precious that one man shouldn't have you all. I promise. When we get out of this, it will all be different. We'll explain to Walter and make it right. Hell, he can fuck me too if he wants."

Alex giggled. "Might hold you to that. I never told you this, but you are both lousy on the bottom. I can just hear you both thinking. /Aren't I just so nice? Now as soon as Alex gets his treat, I'm going to climb on top and reassure myself that I'm in control of everything. /"

Mulder was pushing in at that moment so he didn't spare a complaint. He'd just show Alex later that he could lose control and enjoy it better than the next guy, especially if that was Walter.

Mulder's sigh as his entire length was encased in his lover was not only pleasure. It felt like breathing again to be with Alex this way. /Don't ever mess it up/, he threatened himself. Never again.

The slide of their flesh was all that mattered. The slap of flesh against flesh, old entrancing rhythms reestablishing. His scent, the way Alex's eyes would start to close then open as if he could not bear to lose sight of his Mulder. Mulder was in Alex, the gates of paradise were open to him and he was in a vortex of desire, pleasure, completion and joy. He knew he had to come, but didn't want that release, good as he knew it would be. He couldn't stand to fall apart again, to be alone. Spender in his twisted, but insightful way planned to mock that by desecrating their bodies. Yet, Mulder vowed even if it happened, no matter what happened, he had to remember that he had another chance to be with the man he loved. No many were granted so many second chances.

At last, Mulder couldn't hold back. Ah, grief, to feel his flesh slide from Alex, to be parted. Ignoring the chains, Mulder wiggled until he could embrace Alex. It wasn't comfortable, but neither complained.

A voice that sounded like an oiled version of Alex thoughtfully remarked, "Eva said I could come here and play until she figures out how to wake Fox-baby and Sasha."

Alex let out a heavy sigh and grimaced as he tried and failed to wipe the come off his stomach. He said, "Hey, Alexi, I thought you were angry with us?"

Mulder peered at Alexi. The clone sidled over and sat on the bed. He said, "Eva said that I am not stupid, just uneducated."

Alex said, "That's right, Alexi. Spender thinks he can keep you in the dark and always have a slave. Alexi, Papa Spender is not nice and he's lied to you about lots of things."

Alexi hardly listened to his original. He moved closer to Mulder and reached to caress between his legs. Alex said, "But I saw one thing that was true. It feels better to have this in you than to just have someone play with yours. Sasha didn't like it when Papa did it to him, but he liked it a lot when Fox-Baby did it."

Mulder blushed as he realized he was reacting. He sternly told his interested cock, /not now! You single headed thing, that's not Alex and if you keep doing that, you're not getting any more from Alex. Alex said, "Alexi, let us loose and Mulder and I will show you really nice games."

Alexi might be a child in intellectual development, but he was bright in potential. He shook his head and said, "No, first, Mulder shows me how nice that game can be and then I'll help you."

Alex said, "I think I like him better already. He has some sharp instincts."

Mulder shook his head and said, "Alex, I can't make love to him."

Alex said irritably, "Like hell, what's that standing up? A traffic marker? Just do it, Mulder. Hell, close your eyes and think of Russia."

Mulder wished his embarrassment would cause his cock to shrink in shame. No such luck! Alexi buried his head between Mulder's legs and teased him to full erection.

Nuzzling him, Alexi said, "Your thing is pretty like mine is. Papa's is ugly and it doesn't work. I think that's why he's so mean."

Alexi lifted his head and smiled happily. He said, "Now, I get to really play." He blithely climbed on top; ready to mount Mulder's now fully engaged interest.

Alex quickly said, "Mulder, he's a virgin. Don't hurt him."

There was a story in Alex's voice. Alex had never said who taught him the tricks in his repertoire. He just said that it wasn't enjoyable. Mulder said, "Alexi, you need to go and find some...something to make you slick inside. Does Spender ever put anything on his fingers when he plays with you?"

Alexi nodded and said, "Uh huh, I have it in my room. Because I lied. I didn't save the fun thing just for papa."

Alex added, "The keys to the handcuffs would be nice too, Alexi."

Alexi said, "Papa has them. If I try to get them, he'll wake up."

Alex sighed and said, "Just get the lube."

After Alexi sped off, Alex said, "That's my boy. Sees you and instantly wants to fuck. Mulder, if we get out of here, we have to make sure Spender doesn't have those clones to use as vehicles and we have to take Alexi with us." Alex subsided and then added, "Got to let those people loose too. Whoever Spender is experimenting on...that will give us cover to escape."

Mulder smiled tenderly at Alex. He said, "You don't want to admit that you care, do you?"

Alex muttered, "Don't fool yourself, Mulder. I'm still a rat."

Mulder said, "My rat..." He guiltily added, "but Walter still gets his share."

Alexi returned waving a tube of lubricant in his hand. Mulder tried to tell himself that this was a duty. And poor Alex having to lie next to him while he screwed this pretty mirror image of him. It wasn't like when they took Ricky Caruso to bed. Hell, they had still been in denial at that point most of the time. They had tried to pretend it was all sex between them, but it never had been. Mulder adored Alex's body, but he could have had Rodney if he wanted only the flesh. It was the big one with Alex, the love word.

Mulder dragged his attention back to Alexi. He said, "Alexi, are you sure you can't find the keys to these chains."

Alexi said, "Papa has them. And I'm afraid of him. Sasha was bad with Fox-Pretty Baby. Papa made him scream and scream. Then he put Sasha in that box and the Fox-Baby too. I miss them even though Sasha wouldn't share the Fox-Baby..."

Mulder almost totally lost his erection. His clone in that glass coffin suddenly seemed to be a person...a man in love with his version of Alex. They had to save them. Alexi looked wistful then went back to kissing Mulder's cock back to life. He had an impressively one-track mind. Mulder could feel Alex's hand nestle in his bound one reassuring him.

Alex said, "Mulder...Muhhlder. Make it nice for him. I want to see what it would have been like to be able to choose who took your cherry."

Alexi had to hold himself open for Mulder to prepare him, but he seemed to still be on top of the experience. He was really cute, a bundle of wiggles and totally unembarrassed about any aspect of sex. His face was thoughtful as between his efforts and Mulder's, Mulder's cock slid home.

Alexi said, "Well, it's not fun yet. It just feels like having to poop."

Alex said, "It gets better, Alexi. Just slide up and down, maybe a little faster then that, love."

Alexi obeyed and as he wiggled, he must have hit the right spot. He exclaimed, "Oh, oh, I do like this."

Mulder stroked Alexi's cock in time to his downward thrusts. The clone was off in his own world, pearl teeth, bared, pink lips stretched in a snarl of pleasure. He glowed with the effort and with the ruby hue of his arousal. His hands gripped Mulder's waist hard enough so Mulder knew he was going to be marked. Alexi jounced faster and Mulder felt the all over quiver start. He was tightly strung, bow arched upward and then the world dissolved to nothing but the pleasure exploding. Mulder fell back, erection fading and sliding from the sweet young body. Alexi slumped forward; he was slighter than Alex was in his maturity, but it still wasn't comfortable.

Alex's voice easy and calm said, "Alexi, baby, you need to move aside and let Mulder breath."

Alexi obeyed, curling up, oddly enough on Alex's side of the bed. For a few minutes, there was nothing but the strong smell of sex and the labored breaths as Mulder and Alexi recovered...

____

Alex closed his eyes. He was incredibly turned on and also incredibly jealous. What the hell was wrong with him? How could he expect Mulder to accept his relationship with Skinner and not give him equal freedom to roam?

But with his clone...his mirror image, whole, young, and innocent. That killed Alex. He thought that he could lose Mulder for real this time. The clone could be anything Mulder wanted him to be. An Alex without the taint of the past clinging to him.

Alexi drew Alex from his bitter contemplation. He said, "Alex? Are you mad at me for doing that with Fox? You can do it with me too. Would that make it all right?'

Alex managed a smile. He couldn't hate the clone, not really. Alexi was just a kid as Alex had been once. He didn't know any better and, hell, he deserved to have someone besides a sick old pervert screw him. Alex took a deep breath and said, "No, thank you, Alexi. Maybe later. Now, who is this Eva?"

On cue, a woman entered. She had reddish-brown hair, prominent teeth and a somewhat recessive chin. Her eyes were blue, powered by an intense fanatical light. Alex recognized her as an Eve, one of the first clone experiments. Most of her line was insane. He wondered if this one was. She held bundles of equipment and was followed by the two former sleeping beauties.

The Mulder clone and the Alex clone held hands tightly. Alex understood and wondered if it was something in the genes. Now if Spender had made a Skinner that would have been interesting. Alex would find out it his passion for the two men was something deep in his chromosomes. Sometimes he thought it must be. After all, his love for Mulder and Skinner had broken his heart, led him into pain and danger, and complicated his life to incredible degrees. If love were a choice, wouldn't he have chosen lesser men who he could have manipulated? It seemed beyond all rational thought for him to choose the two out of all the less complicated lovers he could have embraced. No, it had to be fate.

Alex's clone seemed to have no doubts. He was whole, complete with an arm and a Mulder who loved him without reservation.

Alexi jumped out of bed with a delighted squeal. He ran to his slightly older double and hugged him fervently. He murmured, "My Sasha, my Sasha, I missed you so much."

A few moments later, Alexi was saluting the Mulder clone almost as happily. The younger version of Fox grinned and said, "God, Alexi, you've really grown up!"

Eva snapped, "Boys, get ready to go. Alexi, put those clothes on, baby."

The tired looking women seemed to be in her mid to late forties. Her appearance was haggard, but she had an air of command. She turned to Alex and said, "I couldn't find the keys, He must have them and he sleeps surrounded by clones programmed for complete loyalty. There are tools on the yacht if we can make it that far. Spender also keeps all the vehicle keys with him when he sleeps."

"Fucking great!" Alex grumbled. Now that there was a chance, his body was jumping with adrenalin. That was just the fucking way it was...every time he started to give up, another escaped route presented. And he always went for it...rat in a maze.

___________

The afterglow of sex was quickly dispelled by the reality of the situation. They were in tremendous danger. Mulder saw the hot gleam in Alex's eyes and thought that he was in deep shit for more then one reason. Alex's expression softened and he cast a wry smile at Mulder as he coaxed his clone for information.

Mulder was cleaning the sticky residue of his pleasure off himself with a fold of the sheet when a woman rushed in. He recognized her in a moment. An Eve! His eyes were riveted on the two young men who followed. His clone looked exactly like Mulder had when he was at Oxford. The difference was the lack of shadows and the lack of doubt. This Mulder clung to an Alex clone devotedly. Lucky Mulder to have an Alex all to himself!

The female clone snapped, "Well, get moving. I want my boys out of here. Come on, before Spender finds out what I've done."

Eva had brought their clothes, but the best Mulder and Alex could do was to wear pants and shoes. They tied their shirts around their necks to give them some protection from the voracious insects. The clones helped them eagerly, pulling them along and bracing them as they ran through the ornate house. Mulder was frightened and very tired, but he couldn't help observe the young version of himself. Such constant jittering energy! How could anyone have ever stood him?

Out of the house.... As they passed through the foreboding walls, Eva turned and hit a remote several times. A tight lipped smile creased her face and she said, "Lions, and tigers and bears, oh my! I already let the people go, poor things. The wild creatures are mostly drugged, but I think they will add their piece."

Alex spared a bitter laugh and remarked, "as long as they don't eat Spender. We'd be in trouble with the humane society for poisoning them."

Mulder saw naked people running everywhere. Some of them, even at a distance, looked odd and others were obviously hurt. He wanted to help them. But Alex...he had to get Alex back to Nicky.

Nicky had finally settled down to bed after Walter consented to lie down with him. The heavy hard warmth of the head against his chest reminded him of Alex. There was nothing better than waking up.... Arm and shoulder going numb from the sweet burden of his lover. Walter softly brushed back Nicky's hair. The kid was due for a hair cut. Walter should do something about it before Nicky went back to Russia. Still, Walter mused, Nicky had the same lustrous glow in his variegated hair as his father did. It always seemed a shame to cut those lovely strands.

Walter steeled his thoughts away from the image Alex's shining hair clutched in his hands as he pressed the suckling, teasing mouth to his cock. Would he ever have that again? He reminded himself that Alex was a survivor. Still, as Scully always said, if you had Mulder and Krycek together, you could predict nothing except that dangerous and interesting times would follow.

Walter wasn't sure if he believed in God, but he calculated a bargain anyway. /"Bring Alex back safely and I will never be jealous. I'll share him. I'll even give him up if I have to do that to make you happy. /

Walter carefully slid away from Nicky. The boy stirred, but then settled. Walter had never been comfortable with children, but Nicky was different. First of all, the boy looked exactly like his father. He was the most beautiful child that Walter had ever seen. Secondly, he was bright, observant, and endearing. If Alex didn't come back, Nicky would not lack for a father. But Alex had to come back.

In Walter's mind, his life had four major chapters, childhood, idyllic, crowded with younger siblings...Vietnam, two years that represented shrapnel in his life. He had gone there a big, goofy kid so naive that he was nicknamed, Walt-boy by one of the unit wags. Two years later, the play and humor had drained from him.

Next, there was his wife.... Hope for a normal life, happiness, kids, growing old together as his parents did. All ending in a dismal failure that neither of them understood.

The chapter he hoped had not ended was now. Alex...a chimera of changing personas held together by an underlying sweetness that had survived hell and back. This last year with Alex hadn't been easy, but every moment was precious. Walter knew that Alex had never stopped loving Mulder, but he had the joy of knowing that Alex loved him too. He drove away the nightmares and made Alex feel safe. He thought that Alex never made any unfavorable comparisons in bed either. Walter was proud of his imagination and stamina as a lover. And Alex brought out the best in him. Walter shook his head. Maybe it had all been just too good to be true. Maybe this was to be his punishment for being happy ... to live on without Alex. Not much of a life...


Walter stopped by the bathroom, pissed, and took a quick shower. He was tired, but he couldn't sleep. His mind conjured the horrors that might be happening to Mulder and Alex. Hopefully, they, at least, had each other. They would take care of each other as best as they could. Walter felt an unwarranted tightening in his throat. Shit, at his age, he should have outgrown wasting energy on tears. He leaned against the wall for a moment before he forced his grief away by thinking about inventive ways to kill Spender. The man Mulder called Cancer-man had twisted and strung their lives into barbs of wire that had wounded them all. Alex had suffered the worst of all and someday, Walter would make him pay. Someday...

Scully sat in the kitchen, attended like Snow White by her cartoon-like companions. Frohike was, as usual, as close as she would allow. Byers had found Alex's tea, which he was drinking out of antique china. Walter childishly could not stand to see Alex's cup in someone else's hand. He walked over and said, "John, let me get you another cup. That's Alex's."

The dapper man met his eyes soulfully and replied, "Of course, I should have remembered. You bought that one for him when we were in Idaho. He was bitching about having to drink his tea from a Styrofoam cup."

Walter nodded, remembering Alex's confusion when he handed him the wrapped package. Alex was so programmed to believe that he could have nothing, keep nothing in life without stealing it and savaging to protect it. Kindness floored him and thus it was Walter's delight to watch for every small occasion to prove to him that the world could be different. The small gift had earned a smile and later a through kiss. The teacup was added to Alex's horde of treasured objects. Walter carefully washed it and put it back in place. He hoped he would see Alex drinking out of it soon again.

Frohike grunted and stood up, pressing a hand to his back and rubbing it with a strained expression. He said, "I finally got into some of Alex's private files on the computer. He has a list of consortium property. I'm running a tracking program to see if any on them show private flights in or any increase in activity. It'll take a while. I mean, that's supposing Spender didn't just dump them in the ocean." Frohike guiltily ducked away from Walter's glare. He said, "Hey, man, not that I think he did that or anything."

Scully said, "He wouldn't. Spender's obsessed with us, you, Walter, Mulder, Krycek, and myself. If he wanted us dead, we'd be dead. He just likes to toy with us and play us as his pawns when we're stupid enough to let him."

Scully stood and walked over to Walter, stroking his arm lightly. She asked, "Did you get Nicky to sleep?"

Walter said, "Yes. God, poor kid was exhausted, but hoping we could just pull his dad out of a hat or something. He's trying to be brave, but he is a very frightened and sad little guy."

Scully touched her abdomen and remarked, "I've spent so much time railing about my inability to have children. Now that I have seen how they use Nicky against Alex, I think they may have inadvertently done me a favor." Her fair skin showed the puffy, darkness under her eyes. She yawned.

Walter said, "Dana, why don't you join Nicky on the bed. He'll sleep better that way."

Dana nodded and said, "Walter, you know staying up isn't doing them any good. I could give you something."

Walter leaned down and kissed her forehead. He said, "Dana, the one thing I want...you can't give me."

Walter decided to go find the low life that Spender used to send to fetch Walter to see him. If the man knew anything about this situation, Walter would find out if he had drag the man's brain out his asshole to get the information ...

_________________________________________


You never knew how much you use your hands for balance until you don't have one. Mulder bit back his complaints. Alex lived this way permanently. Right now, his lover had no usable hands. Mulder tried to keep the creepers and tree branches out of both of their faces, but the path was heavily overgrown. Mosquitoes were feasting on their mostly uncovered chests although they didn't like Alex as much as they liked him. However bees were attracted to Alex enough to make the difference. Mulder waved a particularly big and persistent one away. He missed an exposed root and the two of them fell; Mulder on top. Alex uttered a sharp cry and Mulder struggled to get his weight off Alex's sole surviving arm.

The clones grabbed them to their feet and Alexi said, "I'll help you. One for all and all for one...like Foxy and Sasha and me."

Alex looked gray faced. He said, "I won't turn any help away, Alexi." He turned his face to Mulder and said "I think I tore a muscle in my arm. It hurts like hell."

"Shit," Mulder summarized.

Eva turned toward them, a leaf caught in her gray tinged blond hair. She said, "Hurry up. Spender is paranoid. It won't take him long to remember the yacht. One of the lower level men bought it for him, but Spender has been too sick to use it for months. I got to take Alexi for a ride and made a copy of the keys."


Mulder forced himself to forge along the rough path, pushing to the edge of his endurance. He could tell that Alex was running on the last of his reserve energy. The stress of having his son kidnapped, the beating, and the drugs had all served to challenge his admirable stamina. Alexi had glued himself to his original's side, serving as an extra pair of limbs whenever he could. Despite the support, Mulder and Alex were staggering, leaning on each other for support. The only blessing was that over the time they spent chained together; their bodies had found a meshed synchronicity that would have been a marvel to behold if they were not both so exhausted.

Eva called out, "Almost there..."

Mulder growled, "Better be."

Alex smiled faintly; his sphinx smile instead of the sunnier expression he showed his lovers. "Mulder, there's no use bitching. You just take it."

Mulder teased, "Krycek Philosophy 101. Hmm, I may have liked it better when you recited DOT stats."

Alex now smiled wanly, but with a flash of real humor. He said, "Muhhlder, I bet I could make you come from reading DOT stats if I wanted to do it."

Mulder kissed Alex quickly on his grimy forehead and said, "You're on, love."

The two older clones had removed a disguise of underbrush, revealing a narrow gap in the rock face. Eva checked her gun and handed weapons to the clones, even to childlike Alexi. The Mulder clone kissed his Sasha fervently and said, "What ever happens, don't let Spender have me."

Sasha hugged his lover with a sweet youthful passion that was devastating for Mulder to see and said, "If you die, I want to die too."

Mulder saw the look in Alex's eyes. Was that what could have been for them without Spender's interference? Would they have met and loved in such innocence, free of the agony of their lives?

Alex read his mind and said, "Can't change the past, love. Just make sure that we have a future."

Eva allowed Fox to lead the way. Sasha followed his lover and Eva was next. The path was steep. Treacherous. It was going to be hell for the clumsy organism that Mulder and Alex had become. Alexi opted for last, saying he could help them navigate the narrow trail. The others used both hands to hold onto the cliff when the trail narrowed to a mere shadow of a foothold.

Between the two of them, Alex and Mulder only had use of one hand. Mulder edged along in advance trying to develop suction on his fingers. One misstep and they would have plunged down onto the jagged rocks. Alexi steadied them at intervals, his strong grip anchoring them. Mulder took back his slight resentment. The clone was a good kid.

Mulder paused, tried not to look down. Alex leaned on him and panted. Sweat dripping from their insect bitten bodies, filth from the jungle covering them yet they were more in harmony then they had ever been in their troubled lives. Alex edged along, following him as if he always had belonged there. Mulder concentrated, but at least he had done everything right with Alex up to this point. So even if they fell...

But they didn't fall. They reached the bottom and everyone sank to their haunches for a few moments, looking back at the hairpin turns of the steep trail in disbelief that they had all succeeded in climbing down it.

Eva hugged each of her surrogate children in her arms. It hurt Mulder to see it. It would be an open wound for his whole life that his parents had not loved he and Samantha enough to protect them. Eva was risking all for these young men she had raised but with whom she had no biological connection. He kissed Alex again and said, "Everything is going to be fine. You know how I know?"

Alex eyes were violet smudged beneath with weariness and his usually clear complexion was yellow as if bruised. He leaned on Mulder; the way he did with Walter and agreeably asked, "How do you know?"

"Because Walter will kill me if we don't make it out of here alive." Mulder asserted.

Alex smiled at that. Mulder took the gun that Eva offered. But unlike Fox, he didn't plan to do the fate worse then death alternative. Even if Spender managed to complete his experiment, he would be himself and alive with Alex.

Eva said, "Let's go. Foxy, don't do anything stupid, baby. Think of Sasha."

Mulder's clone nodded and they edged forward, pushing cautiously out to a clearing. Eva walked toward the guard with Alexi. She cheerfully said, "Hi, Henri, Mr. Spender wants me to take the boy out on the water again."

Henri scowled. He was a large man with a small head, his face looking as if some giant had squeezed it into this distorted form. He stroked his scruffy dun colored mustache and said, "I'll check."

Eva allowed him to turn and then shot him. He fell to the ground and she kicked the rifle away from him. With a growling emphasis, she yelled, "Get aboard now!"

Eva thrust the keys in Mulder's hand and said, "Get it started."

Mulder had just helped Alex on to the deck when gunfire caused them all to duck for cover. Mulder decided to stay down, given that he and Alex were handicapped by the chains that bound them to each other. The clones were firing steadily. Alexi yelled, "Eva!"

Sasha dashed back to the dock before Mulder could say anything. Mulder watched as Sasha ran like a gazelle toward Eva. As the clone reached his surrogate mother, Mulder yelled, "Alexi, you are going to have to help me run this boat. Come on."

The small cabin was crowded with the three of them in it. Mulder uttered commands, getting Alexi to follow them with minimal confusion. The clone was correct. He was far from stupid. The engine roared to life and shuddered on the water. Mulder wanted to get as far away from that museum of horrors instantly, but Eva had risked her life to free them. They had to wait to see if she was alive.

Fox ran in and said, "Eva's aboard. She's hurt, but Sasha said that it's not too bad."

Mulder asked, "Do you or Sasha know how to run this?"

Foxy shook his head. He replied, "Spender never trusted us." Mulder's own smile glinted from the baby face. The clone added, "Smart man."

Mulder said, "Okay, find something to get these chains off."

Foxy nodded and ran. Mulder left the sounds of pursuit behind, mostly using Alexi's hands to steer, his own only fine-tuning the wheel. The water was choppy and Mulder was glad that he was island bred. Yachting was a mandatory skill for people of his class and geographic origin. He needed every iota of his training to keep the small yacht on an even keel.

Alexi drew out the charts and Mulder said, "Shit, we're in the Bermuda triangle."

Alex said, "Figures. But it's not so bad...we're near the Florida coastline. We should be able to get to land."

Mulder expected a helicopter in pursuit, but none followed. Foxy returned with a tool kit. Mulder and Alex sat on a bench as the clone struggled with the tools. The diamond edged saw was a lifesaver. After the links were weakened with a few blows of a mallet, the saw took care of the rest. Alex grunted with pain as his arm was jarred, but otherwise made no complaint. As the cuffs fell away, Alex remarked, "Shoddy shit...someone's sex toys not the real thing."

Mulder answered, "That was a blessing. Here let me see if I can find something to immobilize your arm."

The first aid kit was industrial. Mulder selected two ace bandages and the canvas sling, trying to be gentle as he could, but there was not doubt that Alex was in pain. He was drenched with acrid sweat by the time Mulder had tied the knot to hold the sling. Mulder kissed Alex's forehead and then his lips. He said, "I'm going to have Alexi take you to the cabin to lie down."

Alex nodded. He commented. "I have to be nuts to fell safe adrift in a small boat in the Bermuda Triangle with Fox Mulder, but I do."

Alexi promised, "I'll take care of him, Fox."

Mulder corrected, "Mulder. My name is Mulder."

Alexi stared at him and said, "But we're friends. Friends use first names."

Alex said, "Mulder's the exception to a lot of rules, moi brat. Don't worry about it. He likes you."

Alexi smiled widely and helped Alex out of the room. Mulder sighed. He was so tired that his eyelids felt glued together. He showed Fox, his clone, how to steer and went to see if he could reach the Coast Guard. The radio appeared in working order, but all that came out of it was static. Mulder groaned and looked at the spinning compass. He supposed he would have to take lead from Captain Kirk and just sail straight on into midnight. He glanced at his clone and asked, "Do you know how to make coffee."

His clone frowned at him and replied, "I can do almost anything you can do, Mulder. Maybe better."

Mulder replied, "I'm sure you can."

His clone nodded and went to find the galley. When he returned, his Sasha shadowed him. Mulder could already tell the difference readily between the two Alex clones. Sasha was slightly older, but the real difference was that Sasha had the familiar sadness in his green eyes. And for the same reason...that bastard Spender.

Fox gave him a cup of coffee, taking over the steering. Sasha wrapped himself around his lover, swaying slightly with the motion of the yacht. Two arms. Mulder choked on it. His god dammed fault that Alex would never be really able to embrace him like that again. Why did it have to happen? So much pain and history between them...could they really learn just to love again?

Mulder wanted to go check on his lover, but the weather was not fit for amateurs to navigate. He finished his coffee and took the wheel back. Fox asked, "Do you need me here right now?"

Mulder shrugged and said, "Not really."

Fox nodded and said, "Then we're going to find some place to be alone. Spender kept us apart, locked up for a long time. He raped my Sasha, you know."

Mulder looked into his double's eyes and replied "My Alex too. And worse. Yeah, go catch up with each other. I wish I could be with my Alex. Do you think Alexi is responsible enough to take care of Alex and Eva?"

Sasha said, "He 's really sweet. Spender told Eva if she taught Alexi to think independently that he would torture us to death. I'm different. I am as much like Alex in every way as I could be made. Spender even implanted false memories. I really believed it was all my childhood before my teens until I hacked into his computer. The only thing different was that he tried to make me love him. But I couldn't. I just couldn't. I could only love Fox."

Mulder smiled at that and he said, "That's because Spender didn't make a Walter clone. I have to share."

Fox pulled impatiently at his lover and said, "Stop talking, Sasha. Let's go."

Mulder resisted the urge to bestow some sort of blessing on the pair. He smiled wistfully as he heard the slap of flesh. Fox must have not been able to keep his hands off his Sasha long enough to even fully close the door. He heard Sasha's laugh, struck by the realization that both Sasha and Alexi had lighter toned voices than Alex's. Alex's voice held a permanent rasp from screaming.

Mulder could hear Fox's voice imploring and demanding at the same time. It amused him. Foxy had it bad; maybe worse then he did. Mulder turned his attention to the wheel; the instruments still didn't work. He was steering as straight a course as he could, hoping that he was following some homeward instinct.

______________________

Hours later, Mulder's back hurt from exertion and from standing so long. He smelled like a ripe garbage heap and his eyes burned from staring into the mist that cloaked them. Alexi brought him coffee and a sandwich. He was totally naked again, unashamed.

Mulder pretended not to notice and asked, "How is Alex doing and Eva?"

Alexi replied, "Eva is good. She says it was just shock. The bullet just grazed her arm..." Alexi pointed at his upper left shoulder and said, "Right here." Alexi smiled and said, "Alex is fine too. I gave him a bath. It was fun, but he wouldn't let me make him feel good for some reason."

Mulder said, "I think Alex only wants Walter and me to do that for him, Alexi."

Alexi frowned and sulkily stated, "That's not fair. Sasha had Fox. Alex has you and Walter. I think I should have you or Walter. Alex should give me one of you."

Mulder laughed at that and said, "Somehow, I don't think he will. Don't worry, Alexi. Grow up a little and someday you'll find someone."

Alexi sucked in his lower lip a fraction and it emerged pink and gleaming. He looked so much like the Alex with whom Mulder had fallen in love that it hurt. He leaned against Mulder and said, "I do want to grow up. Even when Papa hurt Fox and Sasha, I still thought that he was always right. But I think now that what he did with me wasn't right. Even if I am a copy of Alex, I feel like a person and people shouldn't be owned."

Mulder said, "You're right. Spender had no right to created human beings and use them as toys. But you'll be fine. You have Alex's intelligence. You just have to learn to use it."

Alexi nodded and said, "I will." His nose crinkled. Every time Alex did that, Mulder wanted to kiss the frown line that formed at the bridge of the nose. Alexi said, "Mulder, you really smell bad. Do you want me to give you a bath like I did for Alex? I could just bring a basin right here."

Mulder said, "That's tempting. But I can wait. I don't want to be distracted."

Alexi looked sulky, but he stayed in the cabin anyway, rummaging around the various storage niches. He was as curious as a monkey and Mulder had a difficult time keeping him from playing with the instruments. Finally, Mulder said, "Alexi, love, go check on Alex for me."

The clone didn't return so Alex must have realized that Alexi had been up to mischief. Mulder's vision blurred with weariness. Maybe if he tried to think like a Cuban refuge, the coast guard would show up and rescue them. Mulder gripped the wheel feeling like the pilot of the Lost Dutchmen. Of course, it was unlikely that he could grow frost in his beard in the Bermuda triangle, but he certainly felt as if they had been lost in this mist forever...

____________

An indefinite time later, Mulder startled at a touch on his arm. Eva smiled at him. She wore a neat bandage on her shoulder, seemed a bit pale, but otherwise seemed in good shape. She said, "I'm done with laying abed. Let me take a turn here. You go get some rest."

Mulder asked, "You're sure? The arm isn't going to bother you?"

Eva said, "The farther we get from Spender; the better I feel. I'm fine. Go get some rest and see your Alex. He's playing with the boys."

Mulder flexed his hands in relief as he walked toward the passenger cabin. Eva did seem well enough to take a turn at the wheel. Mulder didn't think it would ever strike him as fun again to go boating after this. As soon as he opened the door, he heard his name. "Muuhllldher...."

Alex needed him! Mulder's heart gave a leap. He was eager to take care of Alex. Show him that Walter wasn't the only one that could be kind and nurturing! However, like as chorus of ducklings learning to quack, he heard..."Maahdllder"

And a voice near identical, "Muhllder"

Finally, his own voice at a slightly more rapid clip and higher pitch, "Muhlder"

Alex was sprawled on the bed, nude and surrounded by all three clones. Alexi was massaging Alex's feet. Fox---Mulder refused to call his clone "Foxy-Baby" was rubbing Alex's temples and Sasha was working on Alex's shoulders. Mulder had to stop to appreciate the scene. Minus his own clone, he would love to re do the scene with himself as a naked pasha in the middle. With a blush, Mulder decided, nah, go for kinks, include Fox in the scene. His baby faced self was cute.

Alex said sternly, "No one got it right. Alexi, you were closest, but make an uh sound and pull it out just a tad longer. Sasha, you just have to get that little rumble in your voice and stretch the vowel a tad."

Fox asked, "What about me?"

Alex replied, "Baby, you sounded very nice, but I don't think you can do it with that accent. How did you get Mulder accent anyway?"

"I listened to tapes of him from the time I can remember. Spender didn't check them all to make sure I only learned what he wanted me to know. That's how come I knew I was supposed to love Sasha not Spender."

Sasha commented, "Ha, I didn't have to know it from the tapes. I knew it in my heart even when we were little. I used to kiss Foxy on the swings when I was just a small boy. And later, every time, Spender fucked me, I had to wash it away by doing it with my Fox."

Mulder cleared his throat and asked, "Alex, exactly what kind of school are you conducting here?"

Alex chuckled and said, "I'm teaching my clones how to say your name my way."


Mulder calculated and decided he could just fit on the bed. As soon as he sat, Alexi insinuated his body as close as he could manage. His rosy ass, Mulder hated to admit it, was even prettier at Alexi's age then it was at Alex's thirty-three years. He couldn't help looking. Alexi lay inches away and as one foot kicked the air, the beautiful ass flexed.

Alex observed, "Mulder, stop looking at my ass unless it's on me."

Mulder chuckled at that and asked, "So are you jealous? I'd love it to be your turn."

Alex flopped back and said, "Yeah, well, you have a point. I supposed I don't leave myself any grounds for that."

Mulder said, "Don't look like that, Alex. I don't want a younger you. If I did I could have pursued Rodney or even Ricky. I love Alex, for better or for worse."

Alex made a sound, almost a sob. "Mulder, don't say things like that to me."

Mulder elbowed Alexi aside and wiggled up close to his lover. He twisted to straddle Alex, hoping the man didn't mind his still raunchy odor. "I'm going say things like that because they're all true and I'm more afraid of losing you now then of telling you that I love you. I love you."

Alex caught his breath. His lashes shaded down until only a remote green glint showed beneath their glory. Mulder tenderly kissed each eyelid, felt the vibration beneath and he was lost. It felt like being incredibly drunk, as if he had a blast of pure oxygen. It felt like Alex. It made Mulder want to sing and shout, but instead he carefully lifted his weight away and said, "I have to shower. You dismiss your court, love. You need to rest."

"Yes, Mulder." Oh God, the throaty sound of it...that sweetly submissive voice he hadn't heard since Alex was his lamb-white partner so many years ago. Mulder paused to slap Alexi lightly on his bottom before going to wash the jungle off his exhausted body. When he returned, the clones had disappeared as instructed, but Alex was still awake. Mulder slid in beside him, choosing the damaged side of his lover.

Alex breathily complained, "Mulder, don't do that. I want to touch you with my hand. I want to know that you're with me."

Sighing, Mulder got up and lay back down, pressing close so Alex could trace his flank with the trembling touch of his remaining hand. Mulder pulled Alex a little closer, ignoring the sticky heat. Despite his weariness, his cock stirred lazily at his lover's touch. He didn't do anything with that though. He just secured Alex to him with a possessive grip and let sleep enfold him, taking him deep as Alex so often had.


Mulder woke to his shoulder being shaken. His clone peered at him and said, "Hey, Eva needs a break. You have to take the helm. I'm learning to run the boat so I can help you. Mulder noted Alexi and Sasha cuddled around each other in a nest made out of a rubber raft and a grip of blankets. He smiled at that sight, but Alex was lovelier to his eyes. He stooped to kiss Alex and his lover woke to smile at him. Mulder ran a finger down Alex's tilted little nose. He brushed Alex's lips and felt the lips form a kiss. He said, "Love you."

Alex smiled, glowing with happiness. "I love you, Mulder."

Fox was smiling at him. As they walked toward the smaller pilots cabin, Fox said, "Mulder, why did your Alex go and stay with Walter Skinner?"

Baldly, Mulder answered, "Because I fucked up...Spender raped Alex and set him up for a gang bang. I couldn't handle it. I was angry that I could not protect him and I treated him like shit. He went to Walter for comfort and he got it."

Fox shuddered and said, "I'd die if I lost Sasha. I don't understand. Spender used to make us both have sex with him all the time before he became so ill. Why would I blame Sasha for it?"

Mulder twitched his lips into an approximate of a smile. "You shouldn't, Fox. I did because I'm a sick puppy. If you studied our lives, you must have seen what Alex and I have done to each other. You and Sasha are very lucky not to have that baggage in your lives. Not that Walter is a burden on Alex. Far from it. He gives Alex things I can't or won't give him. But I'm working on it." Mulder grinned and said, "I'm going to ask for lessons."

Fox solemnly nodded and said, "You should. I know the world is a lot bigger than that island, but I still think there's nothing better in it then my Sasha."

Mulder said, "You're probably right."

Eva looked weary. She relinquished the controls gladly. Mulder took over, still steering the same straight course. Either they would see Florida soon or be wide adrift on the ocean.

_____________

It took several calls to track down Clarke. Most of the numbers that Walter had been given to contact Spender were no longer in service. Clarke however was his main contact. It had been a while since Walter had even pretended to bow to Spender's wishes, but he knew Clarke was around. Knew Clarke watched him for Spender.

One of the numbers finally rang through. Clarke answered and Walter said, "You know who this is. Spender contacted me. He has Mulder and said he would trade him for some information. He said that I should give the information to you."

Clarke laughed and said, "I know about Mulder and I know about Krycek too. So don't try to snow me, Walter."

Walter said, "Spender really wants this information. Why do you think he took the boy? Why do you think that he kidnapped Mulder and Krycek?"

Clarke laughed and said, "The old man has a thing for Krycek...Mulder too."

Walter said, "Don't be stupid. Even Spender wouldn't tie up your resources at this critical stage just to play games with Alex Krycek and Fox Mulder. Meet me at the Store and More on Fifth Street. I still have the key Spender gave me."

Clarke was silent for a moment and then said, "Sure, Walter. Sure. Meet you there in an hour."

Walter slammed the phone down and stood, rage searing his veins and inveigling him to madness. If he ever had the chance to get Spender without all those gadgets and guards...Walter growled, "Fucking Spender, why can't you just leave us alone?"

Suddenly aware of Nicky's presence, Walter regretted his language and said, "Nicky, you're supposed to be asleep. Go lie down with Dana. Your papa won't like it if you're sick from not sleeping when we get him back."

Nicky disobeyed, coming over and crawling into Walter's lap. He laid his head against Walter's chest and clung. Walter rocked the child silently, feeling the soft vibration of the muffled sobs. "Shh, shh," Walter soothed, not meaning to quiet the boy, just wanting to let him know that he wasn't alone. "We will get your papa back, Nicky."

Walter held the boy until the sobs stopped and then carried him back to the master bedroom where Dana slept, a petite diamond against the plush jade of Alex's favorite silk comforter. Dana stirred faintly when Walter set Nicky down. She murmured, "Walter, you should sleep too. This bed is huge. Lie down."

Walter said, "In a while."

He couldn't bring himself to risk any of them. He silently prepared for the meeting. Kevlar vest. Back up guns. Cuffs. Walter wrote a note to Dana and looked around his home. Place was empty without Alex even with Dana, Nicky, and the gunmen sleeping here. Walter sighed. If he had the nanobytes, he'd use them on Spender's delivery boy. He' d do anything to get Alex and Mulder back.

The meeting place was at a storage facility. Walter looked around and didn't see Clarke anywhere. He wondered if the man had checked with Spender and knew that Walter had nothing to give him. Walter caught a shadowy movement and aimed at it. Something hit his arm, a red-hot pain that quickly changed to numbness. The gun clattered to the floor.

Clarke grinned. He was a thin, pale man with a rodent like cast to his face. He wore an expensive suit badly as usual. On this occasion he had accessorized with a big thug from Thugs Are Us. The guy was ox like, massive, stupidity veiling his gaze. Walter jerked his chin at the brute in an Alex-like gesture and said, "I see you brought the brains of the operation."

Clarke giggled. He had a high-pitched voice sounding like an inane comedian Walter had once been forced to view with one of his less discriminating nephews. Bobcat something or other. He said, "Spender says we don't need you any more. He says dispose of you. But I can take my time, can't I?"

Abruptly the man gestured with his gun..."Take it off, AD Skinner. Take it all off. You're not my type, but I just want to see what that bitch Krycek thinks when I say I fucked his lover just before killing him."

Oh god...Walter had told Alex that it wasn't his fault when it happened to his beautiful love, but this...No back up. After all the times he had warned Mulder about NEVER going into a situation like this without telling someone...

Walter thought about it. Clarke said, "Hurry up...because if I shoot I'm going to aim for someplace where it really hurts. Come on, now...show me."

Mulder might have defied. Alex would comply. Survive, Alex would say. Survive and revenge another day. Walter toed off his shoes. His black socks hit the floor. Clarke giggled and remarked to the bodyguard. "Look at that big macho guy and he lets that wuzz Krycek fuck him...not often I guess, but he does." Pointing his gun at Walter's pelvis, Clarke sneered and said, "Hurry up. I want see that missile launcher they say you have."

Walter dropped his jacket, pulled his sweater off. Clarke said, "Nice chest. You work out a lot, I hear. Does Alex go for all that hair?"

Walter said, "I haven't heard any complaints." He unbuckled his belt and shucked his trousers. In his hurry, he had grabbed a torn pair of briefs. The fly sported a rip that was a reminder of an impatient Alex moment. His testicles drew up shyly against his crotch as he dropped his underwear. He stood proudly, refusing to give Clarke the satisfaction of showing any shame. He had nothing to be embarrassed about.


Clarke grunted and unzipped his fly. He swaggered over and pulled out his long skinny dong. He said, "On your knees. I want some good head...I'm on the list you know. Spender's going make me a sweet assed Alex-clone. Course I got the real thing already. I was a good boy. There he was tied to a table, ass in the air. Just had to walk up and put it in and he couldn't do anything, but take it. Yeah, I did him twice."

The memory stiffened the man and he said, "Take this, bitch."

Walter hesitated. He was about to refuse, but Clarke grinned at him and said, "Too good for what I gave your lover?"

Walter opened his mouth, a savage thought crossing his mind. He didn't know if it would work, but Alex would have tried it. As Alex always said, men were stupid when they were aroused. Walter's nostrils were overwhelmed by the sour, yeasty odor of Clarke's groin. Didn't the man ever wash? Walter took the filthy cock deep. His tongue explored the foul tasting flesh. Walter refused to gag at it. He could have been noble and heroic, but he needed to stay alive and he thought he knew exactly how.

Clarke rocked back, squealing, "Oh baby, do that some more and I might be convinced to keep you. Come on, Skinner, just take it."

Clarke grabbed Walter's head, holding his ears like handles. Walter gave it his best, trying to replace the foul taste of the man in his mind with Alex's clean salty flavor. Clarke started a mindless rutting, pushing deep in a way that would have choked a less experienced man. Walter didn't waste time on shame. And he was far from inexperienced. He worked his tongue, meaning to overwhelm the man. Make him unable to think with the head on his shoulders. Clarke was jerking, his body arched back and trembling with the force of his thrusts.

Walter bit hard, not quite breaking the flesh. He barreled up to his feet, charging at the distracted guard. He almost had it. Almost reached the man when Clarke tackled him from behind. Moments later he lay on the ground helplessly, the muscleman's foot on his throat as Clarke kicked him, cursing him in a steady shrill tirade.

Tiring, Clarke drew out his gun. Walter met the man's eyes. He was more angry then afraid. Who was going to save Alex and Mulder now?

"Get on your knees again, Walter. This time you get to eat something a little harder then my cock." Clarke said gloatingly. The muscleman was grinning. Walter pushed up from the floor, meaning to get to his feet. Meaning to die on his feet not on his knees.

As he rose unsteadily, Clarke moved to push him back down. Walter saw something moving just beyond the shadows. The dizziness left him as he recognized Nicky. Oh shit, now what was he going to do?

Nicky had acquired a baseball bat from some place in the storage facility. He moved steadily and quietly toward the consortium goons. Walter pretended to fall, sagging ground-ward with a realistic groan. Clarke stepped forward; the gun aimed straight at Walter's head.

Nicky's determined little face grimaced as he swung the bat with all of his might. The muscle man must have had a weak spot in his knees. He plummeted down with a yelp. Walter's fists slammed home into Clarke's soft belly as the man half turned to see what was going on. Walter grabbed the gun from Clarke's startled hand. He didn't think, just fired at the roaring brute before he could hurt Nicky. Walter watched him fall before he grabbed the cuffs and secured Clarke. Checked the bodyguard. The gray eyes were clouding over as he drooled and gagged on his own blood. Walter disarmed him anyway.

Nicky stood with his hands crammed in his mouth. Walter disregarded his nudity and knelt to embrace the child. Nicky let out a whimper then held him so tightly it was hard to breath. He rocked Nicky and said, "I'm sorry, Nicky. I'm so sorry. What were you thinking? Why did you follow me? How did you follow me?"

Nicky pulled in some deep, shuddering breaths. He said, "Back-up. I heard you yelling at Uncle Mulder. Never go in without backup. And papa said you were right. So I was your backup. I just hid in the car until you went in the building. I was very quiet just as papa taught me to do if there are bad men around. But I heard what they said and I knew I had to do something."

Nicky calmed down quickly. He had been around his father enough to understand danger and violence despite Alex's best efforts to keep it away from his son. Nicky drew a hiccup of a swallowed sob then his eyes widened. He pointed out, "Uncle Walter, you don't have any clothes on."

Walter groaned and cursed himself. He let Nicky go and grabbed on his clothes. As soon as he was dressed, Walter took Nicky to the car. He said, "Lock the doors and stay put."

Back in the storage facility, Clarke had a look in his eyes. It was an expression of total abandonment to fear. He said, "Give me your word that you won't shoot me and I'll tell you. I know where Spender has them and I know that they're alive."

Walter's body and mind screamed to revenge itself. He felt filthy, used; a part of him would never be the same. But Alex and Mulder...he was violated, but he could live with that. He couldn't live without Alex and, surprisingly, he felt the same about Mulder.

Walter said softly, "This time...I give my word. But your ass is going to the biggest cesspool of a prison that I can find. And I hope you get a roomy that makes what you did to me seem like a valentine. Now, tell me before I forget how much I want your information."

________

It took time to arrange for agents to pick up the dead goon and the living creep. Walter didn't suppose the man would want to explain how his balls were injured. Walter had twisted them into a knot to the best of his ability before leaving the screaming man on the floor, tidily cuffed. Walter sat in the car and tried to collect his thoughts. Nicky sat silently next to him, wearing his papa's truculent expression. That one that Alex had when Walter caught him doing something his own way, a way that Walter would never have approved if he had known ahead of time.

Nicky had saved his life, but Walter felt that he couldn't thank him. And he knew his other impulse was definitely out. Alex had once remarked that the first one who laid a hand on his son was going to have it rammed back down his throat...severed. So a spanking was out of the questions.

Walter's mind whirled. He had vomited in the storage facility. He was fighting the urge to do it again. He hoped Nicky had entered the facility after Clarke was done with him, but he wasn't sure. He asked, "Nicky, how long were you hiding in that place? What did you see?"

Nicky said, "I saw the man take your gun and I knew I had to do something. So I went to look for something to hit the big man with. I was thinking that a rock would be good, but I couldn't find one that was big enough even though I looked all over outside. Then I saw the baseball bat in the trash. Uncle Mulder's been teaching me how to play baseball. He said I swing the bat good enough to knock the skin right off the ball so I grabbed the bat to hit the man. When I got back, the man was kicking you and the big man was watching him. I thought if I hit the big man hard, you could get away from the little man. I was right too. I know that was a bad thing to follow you, but it's my fault that papa and Uncle Mulder got caught. I had to help somehow. I thought that I could help you."

Nicky looked at him tragically, big green eyes glistening with tears and lip quivering. Walter couldn't yell at him. But he had to let the boy know that he couldn't do anything like this again.

Walter said, "Nicky, it's not your fault that they took your papa. They could have used me or aunt Dana and it would have been the same. Let me tell you this one thing. Your papa has had all kinds of bad things happen to him, but the very worst thing, worse then losing his arm would be for anything to happen to you. So you have to promise me that you will never do any thing like that again."

Nicky pursed his lips and hesitated. "My papa says that it's not a deal unless you both get something."

Walter grimaced. Nicky's eyelashes swept down and he gazed out from under the fronds. That must be right on the chromosomes, Walter decided. He said, "What do you want then, Nicky." He expected a childish request for some new toy.

Nicky said, "Don't go any place without back up again."

One smart kid. Walter put out his hand and said, "Deal."

____

Scully know something was wrong. She had put an a hand on his arm and said, "Something happened, Walter. What was it?"

Walter moved her hand, patted it. He said, "Nothing I can't handle. Don't worry. Come on. Let's get to the airport."

Telling the truth would have gotten them nowhere. However promising the Narcotics and Firearms people a vast cache of both was effective. A judge was eager to sign after Walter produced the lone gunmen's slightly altered surveillance pictures. Walter couldn't and didn't want to include the gunmen in this raid. Instead, he left them in Jackson with Nicky and instructions to watch the boy closely.

____

Walter's blood was pounding in his temples. He was boiling hot in the body armor. The helicopter's noise made him feel crazy. He closed his eyes, trying to blank out his mind, trying to find the reflex driven automation that he had to become to survive in 'nam.

Scully sat beside him, checking her equipment, her pale complexion even paler above the black of their uniforms. The helmet crushed her hair, making her look severe and serene, a sort of SWAT nun.

Walter took a deep breath as they dipped toward the earth. The landing pad was deserted. The compound they had watched appeared lifeless. The gates hung open. Furniture, clothing, and bloody meat lay scattered at random over the grounds. Scully moved from shredded corpse to shredded corpse. She said, "It's going to take DNA matches to figure out who any of these people were. They look as if they were torn apart by wild animals."

Walter grunted. He had hoped. He had blotted out any thought that they would not be here. Funny thing was he had given the Narcotics and Firearms people what they wanted. Spender was raising money here the old-fashioned way, drugs and illegal arms. However, the honchos were gone. The only staff members they found were a terrified houseboy and a woman in a nurse's uniform. The two were hiding in a large closet in the mansion that occupied the central position in the compound.

Walter made the agents check every possible place where two men might hide or be hidden. Nothing, It was as if Mulder and Alex had never been here. Had Clarke lied? Walter couldn't bear it if that was the case. He could only endure what had happened if it resulted in Alex and Mulder being saved. And the stray thought...the one about those anonymous shredded corpses...that couldn't be. It just couldn't be.

_______

It was evening before Walter had his chance to question the prisoners. Everyone wanted a chance to grill them about the situation here.

Scully and he went into the room that was being used for interrogation. This place was the opposite of Spender's usual digs. He usually lived in dismal apartments. Skinner wondered what all this luxury meant? It wasn't new. It was as if Spender had kept a part of him secret...a split personality?

Scully folded her arms. Her blue eyes were flashing. She looked ready to add to the mangled corpses. Scully said to the massive, but fit nurse, "The one armed man and the other one...the house boy already said they were here. What happened to them? Where are they?"

The tall blond nurse with the massive forearms replied, "Yes, I remember them. They were the originals."

Scully asked, "What do you mean? Originals."

Sounding impatient, the nurse said, "Spender has clones of them. Human ones, I mean, not those other things. He has- had two of the one who has only one arm. He had a clone of the one with the mouth too."

Walter winced. That fit what Clarke had said. Fucking bastard had made copies of his lover and his friend to use as toys. Walter said, "Where are they now? Did Spender take them?"

The woman said, "No, the bitch took them, I guess. All I know is that Spender was in a terrible mood. He hit me. He even hit the idiot clone. He never did that before. It was something about Alex Krycek. He has a mania about the man."

Walter asked, "What bitch took them? Where did they go?"

The nurse said, "Her name is Eva. She is about forty or fifty. She is a sort of a nanny for Alexi."

"Who is Alexi?" Walter asked.

The nurse said, "A clone, very pretty, but Spender made sure he doesn't know anything. Spender had two more that he kept in some sort of suspended animation. He said he was going to have his brain put in one of the bodies. He's crazy. I guess Eva woke them up and they all ran off in Spender's yacht. They let all the crazy people and animals go that Dr. Morrell had in his laboratory. Next thing I knew...Spender was hauling out of here in a helicopter, leaving me behind. Pablo and I hid in a closet until your men pulled us out. Everyone else who didn't get on the helicopter is dead."

Walter groaned and looked at Scully. He said, "It looks like we were a day or two too long. They escaped on their own. I'm going to notify the Coast Guard. Hopefully, they're just lost out there..."

____________


Back in Jacksonville, it felt like a wake. Nicky was increasingly silent. Even the Gunmen were growing too quiet, not even indulging in the ceaseless squabbling and one up-man-ship that marked their affection for each other. The Coast Guard had been looking for two days. They found nothing. No yacht. No wreckage. Perhaps it was a fitting way for Mulder to die...lost in the Bermuda triangle.

As for Alex, Walter sighed. Was it hubris to believe that he met Alex's needs? There was something about Mulder and Krycek that was meant to be. Walter thought that his part was just as fated, but maybe it was indulgence...

As Walter slowly rocked Nicky, trying to get the boy to sleep. Dana Scully walked into the room at the time-share house that the Gunmen had "Borrowed" for them. Her face was shining with tears. Walter felt his heart burst. Oh god, no! They must have been found, dead.

Dana's voice shook. She said, "They found them. Wind burned. Thirsty. Hungry. And Alex, as usual, is banged up, but they are alive. We can go meet them at the coast guard headquarters."

Cramming into the Gunmen's van, they got in each other's way, laughed, cursed, and finally achieved one person per seat. Walter held hands with Nicky and Dana, all three of them trembling with emotion. Nicky asked, "How long now? Soon?" at every traffic stop.

Walter felt the same way. "Soon" he said.

Finally soon was here. The Coast Guard installation was a big white building full of chrome and glass, but it looked like paradise to Walter. The rescued group was housed in the migrant detention center, but only for convenience. Walter pushed Nicky ahead of everyone as they came to the door.

Alex let out a wild cry and knelt. His one arm was bound in a sling, but he hugged his son with it anyway. The two held on to each other, lost in a soul deep communication that had no room for even a lover. Walter smiled although his arms ached for Alex. He glanced at the four people in the back.


A pair of dewy eyed, two-armed Alex clones stood in the company of an extra Mulder, a thick haired smooth faced one that was younger than Mulder had been the day they had met. A middle-aged woman stood with them. Walter recognized her face from one of Mulder's mysterious cases. Was she another of the clones? Or, by her age, perhaps this was the original, hopefully saner then the others.

Mulder and Scully were hugging. Walter smiled at them. Yin and Yang, female and male, logic and intuition, science and magic. That was the two of them. Mulder let go and approached.

Walter said, "Welcome back."

Mulder said, "Yeah, Walter?"

His arms full of Mulder...Startled, it took a minute before Walter hugged back. Mulder leaned into him, so close. He reached up and pulled Walter's face to his. He angled his face and Walter was pulled into a kiss that rivaled even Alex's. Mulder looked at him with bright eyes and said, "It is all going to be different. No more jealousy. No more idiocy. I promised him and I promised myself. We'll share and if you want...if I haven't pissed you off too much, well, I want you."

Walter pretended to kiss Mulder's forehead, actually checking for sunstroke or the clamminess of heat exhaustion's shock stage. Mulder's skin felt warm, but not overly so.

Mulder ducked back and said, "I'm fine and I'm serious." Mulder was seldom diffident, but that was his expression now. He said, "Not rushing you or anything, but I had to get it out before I lost my nerve."

Alex had finally rediscovered the lover, as always second to the needs of his child. He moved Mulder aside with an impatient nudge. He leaned into Walter and said, "Kiss me." He reached up with his bandaged arm. Winced, but managed to hold on.

Kissing Alex...an infinity of kissing Alex. Running an exploring tongue over the slight crease on his lower lips. Memorizing the curve of his teeth, sucking in his tongue. Feeling his sweet weight leaning fervently against him.

Words only when they had caught their breath after a second kiss. Walter's head was swimming, drunk on his beloved's breath, bedazzled by him all over again. Walter said, "I thought I had lost you forever."

Alex said, "Never...never...God, I have so much I need to say to you."

Walter explored the curve of Alex's cheek. Gently stroked the side of his mouth, that sweet cupid's bow of a mouth and then cupped his cheek. He gazed into the mossy depths of the eyes and said, "You and Mulder..."

Alex's eyes hid beneath his lashes and then he said, "Yeah, us. Walter? Things haven't changed. You're the stone that I can stand upon. Mulder is the fire that warms me and burns me. But I have an idea now. Build a hearth. You put rock and fire together and that's what you get. That's what I want. What do you want?"

Walter answered, voice breaking, "You always. And," he reached out his hand. "I want what ever it takes to make you happy."

Mulder entered his embrace. Walter said, "I'm going to take care of you both. That bastard isn't ever going to get his hands on you again."

___________

Riding back in the van was interesting. The chatter filled the walls and the car jounced as Langley attempted to drive and enter the various conversations. Walter was wedged into the backbench. He sat between the constantly kissing Mulder and Alex clone with his right side occupied by a wiggling sexy twenty-year-old Alex. The boy was batting his eyelashes and kept...accidentally... brushing against Walter. Walter found his relieved exhaustion did not make him immune to the creature's sexual appeal.

Alex had fallen asleep, innocent appearing as a child, head pillowed on Mulder who was equally asleep although not as angelic in appearance. Nicky cuddled against his father, face pressed hard to Alex's chest. Walter leaned back. He was exhausted, but fought sleep off longer to look at them. All safe. Thank God, they had survived again against all odds. Just maybe, Walter could believe.

Walter closed his eyes for a moment. Closed them until he felt an inquisitive touch.

Walter removed Alexi's hand from his crotch and said, "Um, Alexi, I know the island was different, but you really don't touch strangers like that. It gives the wrong impression."

Alexi looked puzzled and replied, "But I'm just like Alex and you belong to him so we can't be strangers."

Sasha, older brother of sorts, corrected, "Alexi, you're not just like Alex. You have to learn to be yourself."

Alex snapped, "Huh, you say that because you have Foxy. I don't have anyone and I want someone."

Walter said, "Alexi, that someone isn't me. I have my hands full already."


As if that was a real complaint. Alex back with him. Mulder in his bed. Walter caught his breath. It was an old dream. One he had let go long ago. Would it work? Who knew...but the thought of the two of them in his bed made him feel an unbearable hunger. It was worth what Clarke had done to him, but he needed to wash Clarke away in Alex's cleansing fire.

Walter wanted to go home. He had tried so hard to understand, to comfort when it happened to Alex. He said all the right things and did all the right things. Got the Prize too; didn't he? Well, now he had paid.

Part of him compared the torment that Alex had been through and wanted to dismiss his own lesser trauma. But it didn't feel lesser. Walter brushed his mouth, wanting to spit again. He closed his eyes, willing the pain to leave him.

______

"Walter, wake up, love." Walter tried to crawl deeper in slumber, safe in a dreamland where Alex had been found. Alex's voice persisted. "Walter, you're going to have such a stiff neck if you don't wake up and go to bed inside."

Jounce! Nicky's weight hit him, small knee painfully making contact with his groin. He had better wake up. He needed a restroom now! Nicky said, "Give me a piggyback, Uncle Walter."

Walter cautiously opened his eyes. Either he was really good at dreaming that he was awake or the rescue had actually happened. Nicky bounced on his lap until Mulder, somehow sensing his predicament, lifted the boy off. Mulder said, "Nicky, your horse can't get up with you on his lap." Mulder grinned and announced, "Nicky and I are going to do some male bonding, tomorrow with the Gunmen. Scully is going to take the clones and Eva shopping."

Walter cautiously asked, "What are Alex and I doing?"

Mulder quirked a tilt onto his grin and said, "I'm sure you'll think of something."

Walter indulged Nicky and swung him high. God, the kid trusted him. It felt incredible. He just wished he could make things really good. What the hell were they going to do? Even Russia wasn't safe for the boy. Walter walked in the door, feeling Nicky lean low to clear the doorway. He sat Nicky down and the boy ran to hug his papa again, sparing some affection for Mulder on the way.

Nicky announced, "Now we need to have a party...pizza, Chinese food, McDonalds! Chocolate cake and ice cream."

Walter shrugged. Well, he had totally lost control of the situation. As Alex would say, live with it. The gunmen sped away to collect the food for the little prince.

______

Morning...sun falling across his face from between the blinds; slats of light illuminating the wreck of Alex's arm, trustfully thrown across the expanse of Walter's chest. Mulder hiding from the light, face down, lanky leg falling out of bed and one hand holding onto to Alex as if to anchor him to earth. Walter reached out, traced Alex's nose, saw it wrinkle, and then Alex rubbed against his hand in response to the tickle. Walter repeated his gesture. Alex mumbled, "If you don't quit that, I'm going to kill you and I'll be very, very sorry, but my nose won't itch."

Walter stopped and Alex wiggled away from Mulder to sit up. Alex sat cross-legged on the bed. He had a certain expression that did not bode well. Walter reached over and flipped the sheet away from Alex. Alex, distracted, asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Walter replied, "If I am going to have my ass chewed, I want to look at all my motivations for taking it like a gentleman. And I can tell by the look in your eyes that something is bothering you."

Alex tossed his head. He must have been in the sun. The red highlights were out in his hair. Walter reached out and petted the smooth pelt that neatly defined Alex's groin. There was no tan line. Alex had been sunbathing nude. Walter asked, "Would it help if I said that you were the most beautiful, fascinating sexy creature I have ever met?"

"Maybe." Alex replied, giving the word his stylish purr. He clipped his next words though. "Nicky had a nightmare last night. Something about you, a white headed man, a baseball bat...and the man made you take your clothes off. "

Walter guiltily blurted, "Nicky didn't see it happen."

Alex's face drained of color. His voice flat and emotionless, he asked, "What didn't Nicky see happen?"

Walter didn't want to tell Alex, but he was sure to find out. Clarke was singing like a bird in jail, desperate to be moved to a safe house to be protected from his own kind. Walter said, "I met with Ogden Clarke to see if he knew where you were. He was my contact when Spender was blackmailing me. I know that Spender finds him useful and I thought that Clarke might have heard something."

Alex stared at the bedding, traced a wrinkle in the blanket with a quivering finger. He met Walter's eyes after a moment. He said, "I know Clarke. I know what kind of man he is. Walter, why did he make you take off your clothing?" Alex let out a harsh sound meant to be a laugh. He said, "As if I have to ask. He's a rapist. Did he rape you, Walter? Walter? Don't leave me in the dark. Let me in."

Mulder stirred on the bed. He said very quietly, "Guys, I'm awake."

Shit, Walter looked at his lover's face and at the man who he loved the most next to Alex. Neither one of them could leave well enough alone. If they thought he was holding back something, they would prod and probe until it was all out. Walter surrendered. He would tell them. Best give them the truth before they imagined worse. Walter told the story in as few words as possible. The pain he had not let himself feel was reflected in both of their faces.

Alex grabbed him, clutching him to his warm, smooth skinned chest, and rocked him, moaning, "The bastards... the fucking bastards! They got to mess up anything good. Oh, God, Walter, you have to let me kill Clarke."

Walter wasn't sure about this role reversal. He was Alex's rock. He was the one that took care of Alex and Mulder too. Walter shook his head and said, "Leave him alone. Let him suffer in that prison. Why let it be over in a few moments?"

Alex rebelliously said, "I could make it last longer. A very long time."

Walter said, "No. If you want to help me, then let me...let me forget it happened. Let me wash it away in your love, Alex. That's what I need."

Walter reached out to rub the almost invisible scattering of hair on Alex's well-defined thigh. He nudged Alex's legs open a little so he could just hold his cock in his hand. He felt it's quivering interest and stroked its length. That was the comfort he could accept right now.

Alex asked, "We are going to talk about this, Walter. It's no use trying to distract me."

Walter replied, "Listen, if you want to help me, do this now. I promise you... later I'll talk to you. I know what I need, Alex. I'm not fooling myself. I need this and I need this now." Walter pulled no punches. He said, "Alex, if you still love me...if you don't think less of me." And there was a truth there. He had done it for Alex. To stay alive to help his lover. Now he was afraid that he had lost Alex anyway.

Alex said, "Walter, you know that I love you. And you know that I want you. If you're sure..."

Walter said, "I know what I need. I need you, Alex. I need you now."

Alex nodded, lying back, soft eyed, beautiful, every thing Walter had dreamed about every moment that he was gone. His...

Mulder asked, with disappointment clearly in his voice, "Suppose you want me to make my self scarce now?"

"Mmm," Walter replied, more interested in Alex's rippling movement as he stretched out on the bed. He said, "Watch, but no color commentary, Mulder." Walter eyed Mulder's face, still sleep blurred, but very beautiful anyway. Had to start this new relationship some time. May as well start now when all the feelings of relief and love were still very strong.

Turning his attention back to Alex, Walter said, "Have I told you what a pretty cock you have? I love the shape of it. I love the way it curls toward your belly when I pet it."

Walter grabbed Alex's ankles suddenly, sending Alex sprawling with open thighs. He spread Alex's legs wantonly, rubbing his thumbs down the inner thighs. He traced the hard ridge that he always believed pointed nicely to Alex's delightful hole. His thumbs massaged and Alex lay on his back, pushing up with his feet to give Walter access to wherever. Walter watched the wink of Alex's anus as he rubbed circles around the firm rounds of his ass.

Walter straddled his lover and leaned down to kiss, his eyes, the side of his cheek, taste the little pointed nose and nip it. The lobes of his pixie ears needed to be sucked and then there was that spot right at the base of his neck that always made Alex writhe uncontrollably. Alex tasted as he always did. He was salty, sweet like a perfect chocolate truffle. Walter sighed with relief. He knew this was right for him. Knew that Alex would cure him of the miasma Clarke had left on his soul.

Alex's nipples were pinkish brown, like little roses. They bloomed under his sucking. Alex was already starting to hump upwards. His legs were powerful enough to lift Walter momentarily. Walter said, "Slow down, love. This isn't a race."

Enraptured, Walter finished laving each nipple to peeked perfection. He nuzzled under Alex's right arm and then carefully, cautiously checking to see if Alex would permit, he did the same with Alex's truncated left. He briefly kissed Alex's scars, just above the stump. It wasn't that he was perverse enough to enjoy the ruined limb. It was that Alex hated for people to look at it, much less touch it. For Alex to permit him, to kiss him there was more intimate then any other act. He swiftly moved down, mocking penetration with his tongue as he reached the depression of naval. He found the guideline of hair and traveled it. Alex's cock was curved up, pointing to his belly.

Alex said, gritting his teeth. "Exactly how long do you expect to torture me?"

Walter laughed at him and went back to play, nibbling the inward curve of Alex's legs. Alex suddenly captured him. The legs were like steel girders. Alex said, "Fuck me now or I won't let you go."

Walter answered in a strangled voice. "Alex, that isn't fair."

Alex replied, "I am ...an invertebrate scum-sucker whose moral dipstick is about two drops short of bone dry." A teasing glance at Mulder identified the origin of that comment. Alex snarled, "Fuck me. Now! Or I'll prove how depraved I can be."

Mulder pressed a tube of lubrication in Walter's hand. "Here use this. It's purple."

It was very purple. Walter hoped the dye wouldn't do anything horrible to them. Mulder reached over and held one of Alex's legs for him. He turned away, capturing Alex's mouth with his own. His runner's ass was flexing steadily, rubbing against Alex and the bedding in a frantic rhythm. Walter couldn't resist the impulse to slap Mulder's trim butt. Mulder yelped, "Hey, ow! What was that for?"

Walter said, "Because it was there, Mulder."

Mulder blinked at him then said, "Walter...come on. I can't just watch."

Walter rumbled deep in his chest and then said, "All right."

Alex's asshole was already pulsating in time with the bobbing of his swollen cock. Walter pierced it with his tongue, played around the edges then thrust deep. Alex let out a hoarse wordless imploring sound before Mulder silenced him with a kiss. Walter obsessed on his movements, knowing it was perfectly possible to make his lover come just from doing this. However a yelp of pain from Mulder interrupted him.

Mulder complained, "Walter, he bit me. He bit my lip."

Walter said, "I'll kiss it better later."

Alex said, "I bit him because you are driving me crazy! Fuck me now or Mulder's lower lip goes before you ever feel it stroking your beautiful, big cock. And it would be a shame, Walter, because I know how good that feels. I know he really wants that."

Walter was ready now and he had teased Alex more then enough. But he just had to look a while longer at Alex laid out on the bed, legs askew, ass lifted to receive him, face dewed with the sweat of his arousal. Then, Alex made a demanding sound and Walter gave in willingly. He pressed against the opening, holding it apart with his fingers until the head of his cock was inside. He panted, his ass twitching with the desire to just pound into his love. He caught his breath, reached for Alex's cock, which bobbed skyward.

Alex said, "Ah, wait...I don't want to come yet and I'm too close."


They held there connected until Walter felt ready to push slowly in. He closed his eyes, focused on the slide of his cock deeper and deeper into Alex until his balls lay pressed against Alex's ass. When he started to move, he opened his eyes again, needing to see Alex's face. Loving the way his head was flung back, long white throat arched as if for sacrifice. He sped his movements, hearing Alex's muffled grunts and groans. His perceptions narrowed to the heat enclosing him, the press of his legs encasing Alex's ass, the smell of them together so familiar, so perfect. Couldn't last another minute. "Alex..."he cried, his body white hot, consumed with pleasure.

There was always the reluctance to part. Walter leaned down as Alex arched up. One last kiss while they were still joined. Mulder was still stroking his erection, eyes closed, fluttering eyelashes almost as pretty as Alex's were. Walter caught his breath, rolled away and pulled Mulder back against him. He replaced Mulder's hand with his own, finding a fast hard stroke that had Mulder biting his lips to keep quiet. Walter whispered, "Do you want to come for me, Mulder. Is that what you want?"

Mulder pressed back. He shuddered and said, "Yes..."

Walter teased, stopping his stroking. "Are you sure? Sure you don't want to be in charge?"

Mulder complained, "Walter! Please! Do something!"

Walter even sated as he felt could be interested in Mulder's ass pressed against his cock. It felt different. Not so round as Alex's. Not quite as silken. But nice. Very nice... He kissed Mulder's neck, glanced at Alex who was watching, slit eyed and greedy; a tip of pink tongue just showing as if he wanted to taste the scene. Alex slid over so they held Mulder between them, the three of them exchanging kisses, the two of them hands on the third, coaxing him until he convulsed and came hard. Mulder sprawled in abandonment when they let him go.

Dolefully, Mulder remarked, "I think this kind of male bonding is more fun then what I committed to yesterday. Do I have to go?"

"Yes!" Alex and Walter answered together. They grinned at each other as Mulder dragged sulkily out of bed.

Alex said, "I have to be nuts, letting my kid go someplace with Mulder and the gunmen."

Walter brushed Alex's hair, which was till sodden with sweat. He said, "Come on. Let's take a shower."


Alex played statue at Walter's request, allowing Walter to turn him, run the sponge over him, reasserting his territory. He leaned back against the wall; eyes only open a slit. It was still too soon after their vigorous lovemaking for more then play. Walter found all the new bruises and marks. Someday Spender would pay for every mark. Someday...He tenderly kissed all the injuries. Alex gazing at him with that expression, so open, so needy until Walter felt like he was sinking into the green depths, drunk on Alex and addicted, hopelessly addicted to him all over again.

"Mine." Walter said greedily.

"Yours" Alex agreed.

Satisfied, Walter drew his lover out of the shower and enfolded him in an enormous white bath sheet. He lifted Alex's chin, looked in the luminous eyes. "Can we make this work? Do I have to share you?"

Alex turned away slightly. His lip trembled. Quickly, Walter said, "No, pretend I didn't say that. It will work. It has to work."

Alex said, "Walter, I know I'm being selfish, but I can't choose. And Mulder loves you in his way. I know you feel the same." Voice dropping to velvet, Alex added, "and I want to watch you make love. I want to watch my lover's taste each other. I want to see you in him..."

Oh god, what had Walter thought about not being up to more? His mind might have doubts about adding Mulder to his bed, but his cock seemed to think it was a very good idea. Alex sank down, took him fast and furious before Walter was even sure what was happening. A few minutes later, Walter complained, "I might have been saving that for later."

Alex purred, "I can find you another one...after the guys are gone on their errands. And, after, we talk."

______

The house was deserted after the two groups forayed off to explore the area. Walter knew that Alex expected him to talk. He paced instead after trying to turn the conversation in every direction, but the intended. Finally, Walter said, "All right, Alex. It happened. That's what you said. I can live with it. I have to live with it. Besides, you've had worse."

Alex said, "I know, but, I'm used to it. Spender's made me his fuck toy since I was only a few years older then my son."

Walter said, "But that doesn't change the fact that you are human. And I am human. So, yes, it does hurt that it happened. And, no, it's not something I want to talk about anymore."

Alex said, "You will ask if you need me? You will give that to me?"

Walter smiled. "I can do that."

Alex said, "Good. Because I want to take care of you too, Walter. I love how you are with me, so gentle, and trying to wrap me up and keep the world from tossing any more shit at me. Still, Mulder and I found out something. The two of us chained together. If you both try to lead, it doesn't work. Same thing if you both wait for the other to make the first move. You move together; you support each other and it really works."

Alex looked at him with shining eyes. He said, "The three of us can make it work. It doesn't have to hurt anymore."

Walter nodded and said, "All right. That's the way it will be."

______

The next day, they all piled back in the van; crammed in so tightly that if you took a breath someone had to exhale. Destination, Fernandina Beach.

Scully directed the gunmen in unloading the picnic supplies. This was an enterprise as Alex and his clones had hearty appetites. The three of them wore black very skimpy swimming suits that Dana had picked out. Hmm, maybe Dana's friendship with Alex had some hidden depths. Alex had added a long sleeved shirt, but then, pursing his lips, he had shed it. Walter was pleased. Alex was still beautiful and it was a shame to hide the smooth, sleekly muscled lines of his chest because of the ravaged arm.

Eyes turned as Alex and his clones sashayed, perhaps oblivious to the impact of three such beautiful and near identical men or perhaps not by the gleam in the matching sets of green eyes. The Fernandina Beach front would probably never recover from such a stunning parade. Nicky ran ahead, whirled back. Alexi followed at times, having adopted Nicky as a baby brother.

Tomorrow the clones would be leaving to a new life. Alex and Frohike had made an unauthorized visit to a large computer manufacturing company. The resulting hack gave the clones and Eva secure new names and background. In the meantime, Alex appeared to have accepted his copies as an extraordinary kind of family.

Alexi wanted to stay, but he also wanted to go. Walter voted for go. The clone had no boundaries. Between gently dissuading him from sitting on his lap to chewing Frohike out for groping Alexi, Walter thought the clone was a package of adorable trouble. Better to let Eva, Sasha, and Fox deal with him.

Alexi saw the water and ran down the beach. He danced in the waves. He was free. Walter smiled. Extremely adorable trouble...


Alex shared an ice cream cone with Nicky, chocolate dribbling down the tilt of the delicate chins. Walter didn't bother to look around to see if anyone was watching. He kissed a drop away from Alex's nose before wiping Nicky's face. Mulder strolled ahead. He was deep in conversation with his younger self, walking with Sasha between them. Walter smiled at the scene. They were arguing companionably about some esoteric belief of Mulder. Sasha seemed to follow the argument with wide-eyed innocence, the picture of Alex the first day they had met him. Walter sighed. No regrets, no rehashing of the past. That was the rule.

Walter had allowed Mulder to buy him a loud beach shirt, but he had enough of it. He tied it around his waist as they reached a bare patch of beach. Almost instantly, Alex produced suntan lotion. His one hand slid over Walter's torso, pretending that it was just necessary to rub a little harder when he reached Walter's pectorals. Another set of hands joined Alex's. Walter sighed and craned back to look, expecting Alexi to be imitating his original. Mulder smiled at him and said, "Nice, Walter. I never really let myself look before."

Alex slid his hand up, pretending that the graze against Walter's nipple was an accident. And the second lingering touch was one too, of course. Like hell.

Mulder gripped it and together the hands massaged Walter's shoulder. Walter reached for a beach towel and draped it across his crotch for good reason. He noted that the clones and Nicky were now tossing a Frisbee around, someone's Australian Shepherd gleefully joining in the game. Dana was fending off suitors as she sat, protecting her fair skin under a rented beach umbrella.

"Nice." Mulder mused. His fingers worked over Walter's muscles enticingly. "Very, very nice."

Alex purred, "Mine." Sloe eyed blink, and then a sultry voiced, "But I'll share." A laugh, incredibly sexy laugh. "Enough here for two of us." His hand delved lower beneath the towel.

Sighing, Walter stood in oiled splendor and walked toward the water. The sacrifices he must make...he winced as the cold water relieved his other discomfort. Mulder and Alex were going to pay for that game...Walter walked deeper as the thought of how he could exact revenge managed to dispel the effect of the cold currents.


MUCH LATER...WASHINGTON DC

Shadows...their life was full of them. Watching Nicky leave with Alex's aunt, Sophia tore out Walter's heart. He kept an arm around Alex, watching the plane lift away. Sophia would take Nicky deep into Russia this time. Take him where any stranger would stand out instantly. She had an estate deep in the Urals where time had hardly touched the locals. She said they were fiercely loyal and would die to protect them.

Spender needed to pay for this too. Nicky in Alex's arms as they hugged until the last moment. The child turning as his grandaunt and he walked toward the tunnel that would take them to the plane, one final look back.

Someday, someday they would be a family. Walter glanced at Alex, who turned to face him, leaning into him for comfort. Mulder put his long arms around them both, digging his sharp chin into Walter's shoulder as one hand circled Alex's back. An odd sort of family...but a family all the same. Walter gripped Mulder's hand and Alex's in silent promise.

Mulder looked at him, squeezed his fingers. It wasn't quite right yet, but someday soon. Alex walked between them back to the car. Walter caught a glimpse in the gleaming metal surface of a modern art piece. The wavy distortion blended the three of them into one...they could do this. They really could.



The End