Part Three
 
But there's no relief, I'm wide awake in my kitchen,
It's dark and I'm lonely, Oh, if I could only get some sleep,
Creaky noises make my skin creep,
I need to get some sleep,
I can't get no sleep...
 
 
The ordeal
 
But the ordeal had only just begun. Mulder was awake during the trip to the 
hospital. He was awake at the ER when they examined him, made X-Rays and was 
prepared for a transfer to the OR. The piece of glass was embedded so deep in 
his flesh that they couldn't get it out at the ER. The X-Rays showed it came 
dangerously close to his kidney. In order to play it save, the piece had to be 
cut out surgically. 
 
The transfer to the OR happened fast. A team was gathered quickly to help him. 
An anaesthesiologist walked in quickly to put Mulder under. Most of the medical 
staff present in the room was surprised Mulder had been awake throughout the 
process. In a way he had been cut by a knife, so deep it might have killed him. 
But he was alive and alert and knew very well what was going on.
 
He watched numb as they talked to him assuring, telling him he would be put to 
sleep so they repair the damage to his internal organs. When the first injection 
was emptied in his arm, he felt dizzy, but not sleepy.  He just felt a little 
numb at most, not even realizing they were injecting him with sedatives.
 
His eyes closed as he remembered New York. He had been awake through the 
experience of being cut open. They had stopped him from talking or reacting. He 
had been powerless. Would they do the same thing here as well? 
 
It was enough to cause him to panic once again, and he pulled away his hand when 
they prepared to give him another injection. With the back of his hand he 
knocked the syringe out of the man's hand. 
 
From behind their masks they all looked the same. He couldn't distinguish their 
faces. In a flash he was back at that other OR, where they prepared to cut him 
open while being awake throughout the process. He didn't want to remember those 
details. Never before had he been so frightened. 
 
Suddenly he relaxed and didn't move when the nurse took him by the wrist and 
spoke to him. He saw right through her. He just wanted it to be over. If they 
wanted to proceed, let them. He couldn't care less anymore. 
 
The anaesthesiologist looked at the surgeon when the second syringe was emptied 
into Mulder's system and said, 'I don't understand this. He should be asleep by 
now. Why is he resisting this?'
 
The surgeon lifted his shoulders. A mask was placed over Mulder's mouth and 
nose, forcing sleeping gas in his nostrils. He felt dizzy again and everything 
seemed to tumble. But when the mask was removed, he opened his eyes and stared 
at the ceiling, praying for the ordeal to be over. 
 
'Do a local,' the surgeon ordered as they became nervous. 'If we don't get that 
piece of glass out, we stand to risk much more damage than ripped flesh and 
skin. And get someone in here to calm Agent Mulder down. He needs a familiar 
face.' 
 
A nurse left the room. The anaesthesiologist asked for assistance to roll 
Mulder's body and sedate him with an epidural. The agent felt their hands as 
they disinfected his back to stick the needle in, and closed his eyes. He moaned 
when the sharp needle entered his back, sending him back into the world of pain. 

 
'I'm sorry, Mr. Mulder,' the doctor said, looking at him from beyond the mask 
that concealed his mouth and nose. 'We need to do this to help you.'
 
Mulder nodded as they rolled him back, biting his lip as the pain slowly ebbed 
away. He wanted Scully to be there. As if she had heard his prayers, she stepped 
in, scrubbed up and ready to help. A mask covered her nose and mouth, but at 
least he could see her eyes.
 
'Hey partner,' she said, leaning forward so she could see her partner's pale 
face. He didn't smile. In fact, he looked very scared when he responded. 'Hey.' 
 
She made sure he felt the grip on his hand. 'Why can't you let the drugs do 
their work? You need to relax, Mulder. The only reason why you're not asleep 
right now is because your body is fighting back. You're fine here. You're in 
good hands. This is not New York.
 
'Believe me, Scully,' he said softly, 'if there was one time in my life that I 
would have been happy to pass out, it's this. I just want this to be over with. 
But I'm not allowed to sleep. I can't sleep until I find this guy.' 
 
'You haven't slept in four days. Your body cannot keep up this pace. You're in 
surgery. They need to help you. How can I help you?' she asked desperately. 
 
'I don't know. I simply don't know.' His hand still rested in hers. She knew he 
was terrified. But at least he seemed to be back and able to talk to her. He 
knew exactly what was happening to him. 
 
Finally they performed surgery, not speaking at all during the process. Mulder 
moaned when he felt a pressure to his side, as if someone was pushing him. But 
the feeling was bearable. He bit his lip, resisting the urge to scream. His legs 
were numbed up, as was everything from his ribcage down. 
 
 Scully touched her partner's hair, trying to soothe him and get his mind off 
things. He answered her questions, but she knew he wasn't there anymore. He had 
gone back into that special place in his mind where he always went when his body 
needed to cope with pain or hurt. She saw the change in his eyes, and knew it 
would take some time for the wounds to heal. He was back in New York, reliving 
the whole ordeal.
 
'Can't you give him more pain medication or something?' she asked desperately, 
trying to stop this ordeal. 'He's hurting.'
 
'I've already given him the maximum,' the anaesthesiologist said. 'If I give him 
more, his body will not be able to take it. I've never seen anything like this 
before. I don't know what else I can do for him, but try and make him as 
comfortable as possible.' 
 
Scully turned her attention to her partner and said comforting while she glanced 
at the surgeon at work, 'It's nearly over, I promise.' 
 
Mulder didn't respond. Suddenly his eyelids blinked, his eyes closed and the 
monitors in the room went haywire. 'What the hell,' the anaesthesiologist said, 
watching the heart monitor as it beeped and then showed a flat line. 
 
'We struck a bleeder,' the surgeon exclaimed, working his way in to stop the 
artery from bleeding. When he pulled back his hands, they were covered in blood. 
The surgical team moved swiftly, stopping the bleeding.
 
'Patches!' Scully ordered, preparing her partner so that they could easily 
access his chest. The green covers were pulled back. The surgeon handled the 
resuscitation, sighing deeply in relief when the monitor showed a heartbeat 
again.
 
'Let's work through this thing before he wakes up again,' he said, concentrating 
on stopping the bleeding and cleaning the wound. Fortunately they were in luck. 
Despite the blood loss, the kidney remained undamaged. 
 
A few moments later it was over. Scully walked by her partner's side as they 
transferred the bed into the recovery room, pulling off the green cap as they 
walked out of the OR.
 
Even before they had him hooked up on the monitors, Mulder opened his eyes in 
confusion. He had passed out long enough for them to finish up surgery. His eyes 
just stared at the white ceiling, as if his mind was still out there, buried in 
that safe haven. 
 
In silence she sat by her partner's side until he was to a semi-guarded room, 
still hooked up on the monitors. They were worried about the bleeder and wanted 
to make sure his heart hadn't suffered during the process. 
 
'Mulder?' Scully said as she sat down beside her partner, watching as the clock 
struck noon. She realized she was deadbeat. She too hadn't slept for so long 
now, and it felt like she would not be able to do so for some time still. 
 
He didn't look at her. He hadn't spoken a word since he woke up. He was in a 
place she couldn't reach him. She shivered as she realized she had seen him like 
this before  when his brain was going haywire. She didn't want to go back 
there. 
 
'Mulder,' she spoke, kissing his fingers. 'Talk to me, please. I need you to 
respond. You have to know. Margaret is fine. She's okay Mulder. It will be a 
while before she wakes up, but you saved her. You stuck to your guns and got her 
out of there. You need to know that.' 
 
He didn't respond to her but she knew he understood. Finally he blinked his 
eyelids and shed a tear that trickled down his left cheek. She moved forward and 
rubbed it away with her index finger. 'Oh Mulder,' she whispered, sitting down 
and putting her head on her arm. 
 
Finally he whispered, 'He's going for another one. There's not much time left.' 
 
She looked up as he glanced at her. 'I know where he's going to do it.' 
 
 
The fury
 
The fury struck him as hard as a sledgehammer. He was angry as hell, realizing 
it was over. Now that they knew about his set-up, he wouldn't be able to keep 
this up. But would he really stop? Could he stop? He didn't know.
 
Now that he had seen her and found her, he knew it would be impossible to stop. 
She was the one. He was as sure of it as anything that had ever happened to him. 
He held his own destiny in hands, and he knew he couldn't stop. 
 
In a few days he would set the trap, and she would be there. He had set his mind 
on it. He smiled. The thought of it even pushed aside the anger for not being 
able to kill Margaret. He would move on and enjoy things to come. 
 
He knew who she was. Her name was Mairad. And to his joy, she was to be by his 
side once again. 
 
 
The reason for it
 
Mulder sat up straight, leaning heavily against the pillows that supported his 
neck and head. The monitors were gone by now. He was making a very fast 
improvement. The wound was healing nicely. He hurt only when he moved too fast, 
straining his body. 
 
'Christ, Mulder,' Skinner said, folding his arms before his chest as he stood 
angrily in the room. 'If I knew you were suffering from sleeplessness, I would 
have dragged your ass back to Washington two days ago. Why the hell didn't you 
tell us how bad it was?' 
 
'Scully knew,' Mulder said, receiving an angry glance from his partner. 
'Besides, there is a reason for this insomnia.' 
 
'Scully told me about your theory. Are you saying that your insomnia is caused 
by this case?'
 
'Yes, sir.'
 
'You had it before you were put on this case!'
 
'I must have known instinctively that I was going to get it. Sir, I know it 
sounds crazy but all the details add up. I dreamt of a Barenaked Ladies-concert, 
thus related to the disappearance of Pearl Jennings '
 
'- You could have read that in a newspaper and remembered it.' 
 
'- All the women held in captive were kept awake during the process. I dreamt of 
them. I dreamt of Margaret before we found her. I knew she was in danger. If we 
had gotten there an hour later, like we originally planned, she wouldn't be 
alive right now.' 
 
'So you say that you are connected to your killer somehow?'
 
'It has happened before. Roche has been in my mind  I have been in his.' 
 
'This is not Roche we're dealing with, Mulder. It's a killer that doesn't even 
know you. How do you explain this?'
 
'I'm not connected to the killer, sir. I'm connected to the victims. Or at 
least, to the solution to all of this. I am supposed to solve this case, sir. I 
can't explain how, but I have a connection that has to do with this 
sleeplessness.'
 
'Calm down, Mulder,' Scully said, as she sat down and placed a hand on her 
partner's. 'Explain it calmly.' 
 
Mulder sighed deeply, realizing he only had one shot at convincing the others. 
Someone else's life could depend on it. 'During the few moments that I'm allowed 
to sleep, I've seen a lot of things, sir. I saw a concert by a band called 
Faithless. I saw something in the killer's hand. In my dreams he held something 
that I couldn't identify. I only realized what it was this morning. When I 
passed out during surgery, I saw it again, more clearly now.'
 
'What did you see?' Skinner asked. 
 
'Pearls. There were several pearls lying in his hand.  Megan Nome, the young 
grad student that was found murdered, was missing body parts. Scully told me 
this morning that the lab work showed all the parts came from her. John Willis, 
the one suspect, had the perfect alibi. Yet someone, using the name John Nome, 
worked at the Miami arena and all the others that had missing women. Our killer 
had a connection to both John Willis and Megan Nome. I'm thinking a friend or 
contact of both of them, probably from the same year.' 
 
'Go on,' Skinner said. 
 
Mulder moved agitated, trying to sum up everything he wanted to say. 'We have 
one man that can identify our boy because he had an argument with him. All the 
other managers didn't seem to know him. We unfortunately only have a vague 
description that could match just about anyone. Agent Grayson and myself have 
seen this man in a flash. It could have been anyone. We cannot go that direction 
and hope that we might stumble into him. Our guy is going to use another name 
from now on to reach the same goal.'
 
'So you believe he's going through with it?'
 
'Yes, sir,' Mulder said firmly, 'his desire for blood has become too great to 
stop. He wanted Margaret to suffer slowly. I believe that's why she was still 
alive when I got there. He never believed I had enough time to get in there and 
help her.' 
 
'What about those pearls then?' Scully asked curiously. 'What's up with that?' 
 
'It took me some time to figure that one out,' Mulder said. 'I called Agent 
Oates this morning and asked him to run a check for me. He confirmed it. The 
pearls weren't a clue to the whereabouts of the girls. It regards their names. 
That's how he picks them out. Their names all have the same meaning. Oates ran a 
check on the Internet. Margaret, Megan, Pearl, ... all the others had variations 
of these names. He selects them by that, and I'm thinking that's what he's 
looking for ... someone who can replace the first pearl he killed: Megan Nome.' 
 
'We cannot verify this with Margaret, Agent Mulder,' Skinner said. 'She's still 
heavily sedated. Yet we need to know what he told her, and hope that we can get 
a clue from there.' 
 
'Agent Oates ran another check for me, sir,' Mulder said, as he handed a faxed 
copy of a list to his partner. 'I never figured out why I dreamt of Faithless, 
so I ran a check once again. This band is finishing up a tour in the US before 
they'll return to the UK. Their last performance is in tomorrow, in New York. I 
know he's going to be there too. I can feel it.' 
 
Suddenly Mulder laughed bitterly. 'It's been some time since New York, but these 
past few days I've been going through the motions of those events again. Now at 
least I know why. It  this  was meant to be.' 
 
'I cannot justify this, Mulder,' Skinner said. 'I can't use your hunch to move 
the troops to New York. I need something more solid than that.' 
 
'Make up a story,' Mulder said. 'But don't ask me to lie about this. Sir, so far 
my hunches have been right. I know I'm right on this one as well. We need to 
move fast. We need to know who is going to attend that concert. We need a list 
of names. Every female name needs to be checked thoroughly. We need to warn 
these women. If there are a lot of possible victims, we need to make sure that 
there is someone watching each and every one of them.' 
 
'In meantime,' Scully continued, 'we need to go over the list of interim 
security guards that are being used by that concert. Acting as a guard is a 
great cover.' 
 
'Ask Mairad to do that,' Mulder said. 'Get Oates to check connections between 
John Willis and Megan Nome. He can do that from Miami. He's going to stay here 
and coordinate the search from here.' 
 
'And what are you going to do?' Skinner asked.
 
'What do you think?' Mulder said. 'You're going to book us tickets on the first 
flight out to Philadelphia.'
 
'Not a chance,' Mulder and Skinner said in unison. Scully got up from her seat. 
'Mulder, for once, listen to me. You have to rest. You can't do this anymore.' 
 
'I'm the one shot you've got and you know it,' Mulder said. 'I've seen this guy. 
I've sensed him. You need me and you're not going to stop me. Afterwards you can 
do whatever you like, but right now I'm going with you. There's a flight out 
this afternoon and we're going to be on it. I've already talked to Agent Grayson 
about arranging the tickets. She's coming with us. She knows the city and will 
be able to guide us through.' 
 
'No, Mulder,' Scully said. 
'I'm discharging myself, Scully. I'm not critically wounded.'
 
'You flatlined in the OR!'
 
'That was yesterday. This is today. Now, are you going to get me some clothes or 
do I have to get them myself?'
 
Skinner and Scully both knew there was no stopping him. In surprise Scully 
glared at her partner as he shifted his long legs out of the bed, swaying on his 
legs. Instinctively Skinner reached out to grab him. 
 
'No!' Mulder's strength seemed to return as he lifted his arm, stopping the A.D. 
from touching him. 'Don't!' Slowly the agent lifted himself up, returning to the 
tall, strong man he was. 'I'm doing this. If you don't like it, get lost!'
 
Skinner seemed shocked but not as shocked as Mulder, who realized he had uttered 
his thoughts. He didn't want to talk like this to the man that had become his 
friend, but there were more important things in life. He didn't have time for 
good behaviour right now, not while being so frustrated with the situation.
 
'All right,' Skinner said, standing clear from the agent. 'Have it your way. But 
one wrong move and I'm sending you to DC. Got it?' 
 
Mulder nodded obedient, admitting his weakness. 'Agreed.'
 
A few hours later the afternoon flight brought a group of FBI-agents and AD's to 
New York. 
 
 
 
Breathing down his neck
 
He could feel them breathing down his neck yet he didn't want to call it quits. 
There was still too much to do  too much that he still wanted to accomplish. It 
wasn't even that difficult this time to find her. She was an FBI-agent after 
all. One quick call and he knew where she lived. 
 
He went to her house that night with Margaret's blood still on his hands. He 
watched when she came home in the middle of the night. She closed all the 
curtains but he could see dancing shadows as she made her way to the bathroom. 
He envisioned her as she showered. In his dreams his hands were over her throat, 
and he was slowly strangling her. He kissed her when she died, and her fear was 
what fed him after all these years. He could finally have her to himself once 
again and get rid of the demons that started years ago.
 
What good fortune that he had found her. What luck that she was there. She was 
the one. He knew it, as much as he knew now that he had once killed her before. 
 
 
 
Her phone
 
At the Miami Field Office the phone on Mairad's desk rang for minutes before 
another agent finally picked it up, and told the man on the other side that she 
had left for New York on a case. 
 
Surprised he put down the phone, wondering if she was off his case. Was she no 
longer looking for her? Furiously he called the airlines and reserved a ticket 
on the first flight out to New York. If she were neglecting him, he would go 
after her. He wanted her to know it was he that would kill her. 
 
 
Another favour
 
Before long he booked a hotel room in the city. He was frustrated as he realized 
that she had interfered with his plans. In Miami he could have used his 
knowledge on the arenas to get to her. Now he had to settle for another 
solution. He could no longer take her the way he had taken the others. Or could 
he? 
 
He reached for his cell phone and called the one that had always helped him out. 
If he knew anything that might help tracking her down, he would tell him.
 
'It's me,' he said. 'I need another favour.' 
 
'I'm tired of these favours,' the man on the other side said. 'You do realize 
that the FBI's been here looking for you? I want out of your activities.'
 
'Really? What did they ask?' 
 
'They think you'll be at some concert in New York. Please tell me you're not in 
New York.' 
 
The killer laughed. 'What do you think?' 
 
'Please let this one go. They'll be all over you. If you want to track her down, 
don't do it now. She's not worth the effort. Hell, what am I saying? Just stop 
doing this! You're putting their lives in my hands and I don't like it.'
 
The killer paled as his hand clawed around the cell phone. 'It's too late to 
back out now. You're doing this for me, or I'll kill your daughter and then your 
wife. I'll make you watch. You know I'll do it.'
 
After a long silence on the other side, the man said, 'Just promise me this will 
be the last time. I'm afraid.'
 
'After tomorrow, I'll have what I need,' he said. 
 
'Where can I deliver it to you?'
 
'I'm staying at the Centre Holiday Inn. Have the package delivered there by 
tonight, and tell them I'll report first thing in the morning.' 
 
'Agreed.' The man hung up, not wanting to hear his 'old friend's' voice any 
longer. 
 
The killer smiled as he looked at himself in the mirror. Would she recognize 
him? Of course not. She would pretend that she didn't know who he was. But he 
knew who she was, and for now that would suit him just fine. Tomorrow night she 
would be his, and he could retire. 
 
 
Exhaustion
 
Exhausted Scully had fallen asleep on the bed. He watched her as she slept. She 
had given him a sleeping pill to catch a nap as well, but it hadn't taken. When 
she finally closed her eyes and slept, he placed a blanket over her body and lay 
down beside her. She seemed so tired. She needed the rest. 
 
And the irony of the facts was that she had come into his room to make sure he 
could sleep. But he couldn't. He hadn't slept for so many nights now that he 
hardly remembered what it felt like to close his eyes and nap. 

He wanted to sleep. Of course he did. He had never felt this exhausted in his 
life. But nothing seemed to work. Even when he drifted off, his body was in full 
alert, ready to jump up at any sound or movement. And now even that wouldn't 
come anymore.
 
When he looked in the mirror, he saw a deadbeat man with eyes that hardly seemed 
to focus on anything anymore. He hadn't shaved properly for days. Somehow that 
only added to his fatigued features. When he walked about, it felt like 
everything about him was ready to fall apart. 
 
And when the morning came and first sunlight poured into the room, the only one 
sleeping, was his partner. 
 
 
 
Tension
 
The day grew tenser when the first results of the ticketing agency came in. 
Going on Mulder's advice, out of the 9,000 sold tickets, twenty-three women were 
potential subjects. And that only included the named tickets. There were still a 
lot of potential "candidates" left that they didn't know about. 
 
Mairad took it upon her to contact all the women and inform them about the 
potential danger. Most of them waved away the danger, saying they were in 
company. Talking to them by phone, it was impossible to know what they looked 
like. Mulder insisted that the killer wasn't about to select just anyone. He 
wanted someone with the particular features that Megan Nome had. 
 
The day became more and more hectic when Mulder and Scully drove to the arena 
and talked to the manager, informing him as well of the potential risks. Of 
course they couldn't cancel the concert. It was too risky. The killer would 
simply move on and pick out another concert. He wouldn't stop. 
 
When they sat inside the manager's office, drinking coffee while waiting for a 
list of security guards, Scully leaned to Mulder. 'I hope you're right about 
this, Mulder,' she said softly. 'If he picked out another concert, we're 
screwed.'
 
'I know we're right about this one. I can feel it in my bones.' 
 
Mulder refused to look at her as he focused on the list of employees that were 
hired for tonight's concert. John Nome was nowhere in sight. Yet Mulder knew he 
was amongst them. 
 
'Can we talk to them?' Mulder said.  
 
'Most of them come in tonight.'
 
'Are there men on this list you don't know?' 
 
The manager glared at the list and frowned. 'I don't know all of them by heart. 
You should know that there are a lot of security guards during a concert like 
this. I can't pinpoint them all out to you. But I can tell you that we always 
work with the same agency. I have no reason to distrust them.'
 
'Grand Security?' Scully asked.
 
'That's right.'
 
'Who is your contact there?' 
 
'Tim Johnson. He's been my contact for years.' 
 
Scully and Mulder shared a glance. They had heard the name before. The one link 
they thought that would never lead to the killer, turned out to be more than 
valid. Could it be that simple after all? 
 
'Can you tell me where Mr. Johnson works, sir?' Mulder asked. 
 
'He's got an office right here in New York, but he travels around quite a bit. 
To be honest, I've never even seen him. He became my contact when the last one 
died of a heart attack a couple of months ago. I can give you the address and 
his phone number.' 
 
'That would help us a lot, sir,' Scully said, jotting down the data on her 
notepad. A few moments later the agents were on their way to the offices of 
Grand Security, that worked nationwide. Mulder knew they would find Tim Johnson 
there. And he probably had an interesting story to tell. 
 
On the way out, Agent Oates called and told them he had a list of people that 
were in Megan Nome's graduation year. There were about four men that matched the 
description of John Nome. And two of them were unaccounted for. 
 
 
Fear
 
The young woman shivered when she talked to the FBI-agent on the phone. The 
explanation of how she could be a potential victim struck her. She had read in 
the newspapers about this case. She had seen photos of the victims on the 
Internet, where some serial killer-search site had all the gory details. She had 
been repulsed by what she had seen, yet at the same time she had known all along 
she could be a victim as well. 
 
'Miss Weatherby,' the friendly agent said, 'you have nothing to fear, but I do 
have to ask you if you have seen anything out of the ordinary lately. Do you 
believe you might have been followed? Have you noticed men that you haven't seen 
before?'
 
'Agent Grayson,' the woman said patiently, 'I live in New York. Every single day 
there are people passing by I've never seen before. I don't know. But if you 
feel that I'm in danger, I'm not going.' 
 
'Can I ask you what you look like, Miss Weatherby?' Mairad asked, jotting down 
notes on a large pad before her. 
 
'I look just like those other victims,' the woman said. 'I'm Irish. And to be 
honest  I'm very much afraid.' 
 
'Would you mind if I came down to talk to you?' 
 
'Sure. I'm at home right now. I'm sure you've got my address.' 
 
'I do,' Mairad said. 'Thank you.' The agent hung up and left a message for 
Scully before she took off. If there were just a remote chance that this woman 
was their victim, she would have to do anything to help her. 
 
When she arrived at the woman's house, the clock struck two. The hours were 
passing too fast, and she didn't like it. 
 
 
 
Changing features
 
He knew now she was staying at the Regency. The FBI could afford a decent hotel. 
But he wouldn't take her there. The night before the package had arrived at the 
hotel, sent to him by courier. It didn't take too long this time to arrive. 
After all, it just had to come across town. 
 
When he had opened it, a copy of a map dropped on the table. He looked at it, 
going over the old corridors and hallways that were used in the past. There was 
nothing he could use, except for a small room. It would be too dangerous to use 
this time. He needed time with Mairad, to make sure she was the one. No, this 
time he would take her outside, even if it meant taking some risks. And looking 
at the map, he knew exactly how to go about it.
 
He glanced at his watch. It was after three. In a few hours he would have to go 
to the arena. He would dye his hair first, and get rid of the black moustache 
he'd had for months. He knew he looked completely different without it. They 
wouldn't recognize him for sure. 
 
In the package a new badge had been placed. All he had to do was place a fake 
photo between the plastic flap and he was all set. 
 
He took his jacket and went out to buy colour shampoo and a shaving kit. Two 
hours later he looked nothing like the man he had been for years. Not even his 
old classmates would recognize him now. He smiled as he grabbed his 'Grand 
Security' outfit and left for the arena. In a few hours he would see her again. 
 
 
Johnson
 
Tim Johnson, a man in his late forties with wife and child, sat nervously behind 
his desk as the agents took a seat before him and started asking him questions 
about the schedules of his security guards that were used for concerts. 
 
'Look,' Johnson said as he played with his pen, 'I've responded to all these 
questions a few days ago. One of your colleagues came here and asked me exactly 
the same things. I am responsible nationwide for the ticketing service, yes. I 
travel around the country and meet with the local offices on occasion. I have a 
lot of people working for me. There's no way I can keep a watch on everything. 
It takes up too much of my time.' 
 
'But you do know that one of your guards might be a serial killer?' Mulder said. 
'Or haven't they told you?'
 
'It's nonsense. I know it is. Whoever this person is, he's there without me 
knowing about it.'
 
'Would it be that easy to infiltrate your group, sir?' Scully asked. 'Someone on 
a high level that can manipulate personnel files must know about this. This man 
cannot have done this by himself. He cannot put himself on those lists, unless 
he breaks into your systems and puts his name there. You do realize that your 
name has been under all the contracts and approvals?' 
 
'Are you implying that I'm involved?' Johnson asked as his face turned a bright 
red and his hands started fidgeting with the pen even more. 
 
'Can you tell us you're not?' 
 
'If you think I did it, why don't you arrest me then?' Johnson got up from his 
seat. 'Go on, arrest me. But you don't know for sure, do you? How dare you enter 
this office and accuse me of such horrible things?' 
 
'Who is John Nome, Mr. Johnson?' Mulder asked. 'Can you go through your files 
and show us a photo of this man?'
 
'Of course I can.' Johnson relaxed and sat down, typing away on his pc until he 
found the personnel file. He turned his screen so they could see the same photo 
they had tracked down in Miami. It was a photo of John Willis. Yet in Miami, the 
manager had clearly stated this was not John Nome. The personnel files were 
doctored with. 
 
'This is not John Nome,' Mulder said. 'If you cannot tell us who hired this man, 
we have no reason than to suspect you, sir.'
 
Johnson again flushed. 'I've got nothing to do with this. Arrest me if you 
will.' 
 
Mulder got up and looked at the closed cabinet behind the man. They knew they 
needed a search warrant to go through his things, but something told him he 
would find a lot of evidence in that cabinet. 
 
'Do you mind, sir?' Mulder said, as he stepped behind the desk. Johnson got up 
and said furiously, 'That's private property!'
 
'You've got nothing to hide, do you sir? After all, you're innocent.' Mulder 
quickly opened the cabinet doors before Johnson could utter another word. On the 
shelves lay several maps of arenas and concert halls. Most of them were quite 
old and dusty. But it didn't take an expert to see that they shouldn't have been 
there.
 
'How did you get these maps, sir?' Scully asked as she moved forward. Johnson 
looked more nervous now. 
 
'I collect them,' he said. 'My father used to work at a concert hall and started 
this little hobby. He gave them to me after he retired. That was the reason I 
stepped into this branch.'
 
'We are going to have to place you under arrest, sir,' Scully said, as she 
grabbed Johnson's hand and pulled it behind his back. 'You are suspected of 
conspiracy to kill. You have the right to remain silent. Anything '
 
'I know my rights,' Johnson said, as he lowered his head. He knew it was over 
but he just wouldn't believe it. His eyes focused on his daughter, the girl he 
was so proud of. What would she think if she knew he had helped to kill after 
what had happened to Megan? 
 
Tim Johnson sighed deeply and turned towards them. 'I'll tell you what I know,' 
he said. 'It's no use for me to keep on lying. I've grown so tired of it. I know 
what I've done and what I'm guilty of.' 
 
'What are you guilty of, sir?' Mulder asked. 'You helped him find his shelters, 
haven't you?'
 
'Yes.' 
 
'Why?' 
 
Johnson took a deep breath. 'He threatened to kill my daughter like he had done 
Megan. And I knew he wasn't kidding. I know what he's capable of, and I know 
what he's done.' 
 
Mulder stared at the man in surprise, suddenly realizing they had been so close 
all this time, yet so far away from the truth. And when it came down to it, all 
trails lead to Megan Nome. 
 
 
The confession
 
Mairad felt that she had struck the right cord after talking to Laurie. 
Everything about her reminded her of the ways of lives of the other victims. She 
had their looks in common and of course the name. She could be the one. 
 
After requesting Laurie to drive downtown with her, the woman reluctantly 
agreed. At the New York Field Office, both women were overwhelmed by the busy 
activity. In an interrogation room she saw Mulder and Scully talking to an older 
man.
 
'Wait here, Laurie,' she said, pointing the girl to a seat near a desk. AD 
Skinner stood before the window and watched. The sound was turned up, and they 
could hear everything that was being said. AD Davis was on the phone with DC. 
 
'Is that him?' Mairad asked tense.
 
'No,' Skinner said. 'It's his snitch.' 
 
The AD turned his glance back to the window and listened attentively as Mulder 
questioned the man. But there was no need to force the truth out of him. Johnson 
was talking by himself. 
 
'I knew Megan Nome,' the man said. 'And I knew him. My daughter graduated with 
him. There was a bunch of them  a group of friends that were very close. John 
Willis was in that group as well. Everything went fine for years until Willis 
started developing a crush on Megan. My daughter told me about it, and said that 
Megan felt flattered but wasn't interested. Then Megan got murdered. We all 
thought Willis had done it, but he had the perfect alibi. My daughter never 
believed he was the one and started asking questions. Then she noticed that he 
was acting strange as well, even though he tried to hide it. She told me about 
her suspicions and found herself being silly. But I too noticed it. And one 
night, when he was at our home, I caught him looking at my daughter the way he 
had looked at Megan. And so I confronted him with it.' 
 
'What's his name, sir?' Scully asked. 
 
'Morris. Morris Aldham. He was one of Megan's best friends. Yet he slaughtered 
her like an animal, and I knew he was going to do the same with my daughter if 
she kept on questioning the facts. They talked to him. He too had an alibi, 
provided by someone he no doubt paid off. But he was never under real suspicion. 
Willis had the stamina of killer written all over him.' 
 
'What happened when you talked to him?'
 
'He just smiled and said I was nuts. Then he leaned forward and I'll never 
forget what he said. His eyes  god almighty  I've never seen such cold eyes. 
They looked into mine and he just smiled and said that he was going to cut off 
my daughter's hands as well, like he had done Megan's. He said that he kept 
parts of Megan in a freezer, just as a memento, and that he liked to take them 
out and just look at them.' 
 
'And he threatened your daughter?' Scully asked.
 
'Yes, of course he did. He knew how far to go to scare me. And it succeeded. For 
years I kept my mouth shut, fearing that my daughter might some day disappear as 
well. But she never did. And then a few months ago he knocked on my door and 
said he needed my help.' 
 
'Did you know what he was planning to do?'
 
'No. He asked me for the maps. My daughter had told them once that I collected 
them. And now he wanted copies of them. I didn't ask why. I just gave them. And 
when I read about the first murder, I knew it was him. It wasn't a coincidence. 
By then I was in head over heels.' 
 
'Why didn't you call the cops? They could have protected you.'
 
'He's like a chameleon,' Johnson sighed. 'I was too afraid for my daughter.'
 
'Yet you stood aside and watched him kill the others. You knew you could have 
saved a lot of lives, but you did nothing. You bargained your daughter's life 
against his, knowing that he wouldn't stop. Have you helped him now too?'
 
'Yes.'
 
'What name is he using?'
 
'Morris Peters. I provided him the badge but I don't know what disguise he's 
using or what he looks like.' 
 
Mulder glanced at Scully who nodded and left the room. Then the FBI-agent leaned 
forward and whispered, 'Do you think your daughter will be proud of you, sir?' 
 
Johnson didn't give an answer and leaned forward, hiding his face with his 
hands. Mulder got up and left the room, closing the door behind him. Now they 
had a name. But did they have their killer? 
 
 
Morris Aldham
 
Agent Oates received a call around five to investigate the past of Morris 
Aldham, one of the graduate students that were now under official suspicion of 
Megan Nome's murder. A check on the man revealed he was a salesman, travelling 
around the country on an independent basis. He sold life insurances. And no one 
had ever noticed that he sometimes disappeared for two or three days in a row. 
No one had ever seen he was at the cities where the murders took place. 
 
He brought in his travelling expenses and somehow managed to sell insurance 
between the kills. He was a normal, decent guy with black hair and a moustache. 
There was nothing extraordinary about him. He seemed perfectly normal. 
 
Yet he had slaughtered several women and enjoyed every second of it. He had done 
it in a public place, relishing the fact the world was looking for him. 
 
And no one had noticed. Until today. And the most frustrating thing was that all 
this time someone had known who he was, and hadn't done anything to prevent it. 
All these deaths seemed so useless. 
 
Frustrated Mulder rummaged through the file, reading about the man's past. He 
regretted not having this information sooner. But what could he have done about 
it? This was always what happened. Through research and the gathering of bits 
and pieces the truth came out. At the end that was their job. 
 
 
 
Running out of time
 
Time passed quickly. They were running out of it. Before long the doors would 
open and the crowd would step in to listen to the band. And they couldn't 
postpone or cancel the concert.
 
Mulder listened in silence as Mairad explained about Laurie's fears, stating 
that it could be a chance for them to catch the killer in the act. If indeed he 
was after her, they couldn't afford not having her there. But how could they 
have her play a victim? Their first priority was not to jeopardize the woman's 
life. Yet using her to set up a trap seemed logical and straightforward. 
 
Mairad took it upon her to talk to the woman and ask her what she wanted to do. 
She had planned on going to the concert by herself. She was still new in town 
and hardly knew anyone that could have gone with her. But now she wouldn't have 
to go by herself. An agent would be by her side at all times, keeping a watch on 
her while they searched for their killer. 
 
Hopefully, Mairad thought, it wouldn't be necessary. She thought of Mulder and 
Scully who were on their way to the arena right now to talk to all the hired 
guards. As soon as they found Morris, they would prevent the danger from 
happening during the concert. 
 
She shivered when she remembered the photo they had shown of this man. His 
expression had seemed so cold, even when he was eighteen years old. In just a 
few years he had become a gruesome murderer that wouldn't stop until they 
stopped him. She had seen Margaret and remembered the blood. He had tried to 
strange her without remorse, cutting her skin and flesh so deep that it had left 
a large mark that would forever remind her of what she had been through. 
 
Even now she was still kept unconscious, to give her body and mind the time to 
heal. They all knew that she would not be able to give them sensible 
information, and now she didn't need to. 
 
Just get him, Mulder, Mairad thought as she waited tense for news. If nothing 
positive came, they would have to head out to the arena themselves and try to 
make the best of an impossible situation. She didn't want it to come that far. 
 
Instinctively she knew it would. 
 
 
The ID's 
 
Before long the guards that were already there showed their ID's. Mulder talked 
to all of them, taking his time as he tried to figure out if one of them was the 
man he was looking for. But none of them wore a badge with the name of Morris 
Peters. He wasn't there yet. 
 
Frustrated Mulder glanced at the entry and exit-doors of the empty arena. In a 
few hours this place would be packed with people. How would they be able to go 
through the motions with so many people inside? They couldn't check everybody, 
could they? 
 
Mulder looked around as the guards became impatient and were dismissed to go 
back to work. At the same time they were sent back, Morris stood behind the 
exit-doors and glanced at the agents inside. He recognized the man he had 
stepped.
 
Morris cursed under his breath. When the agent fell, he had hoped he was a 
goner, but here he was  alive and kicking. And he could ID him. 
 
'Hey,' Morris said, grabbing another guard by the arm, 'what's up with these 
folks?'
 
'Don't know. They're looking for someone.' 
 
'Are they?' Morris said softly, glaring at the guard before him. They looked a 
bit alike. Morris turned around and said, 'I was wondering if you could help me 
out. I've got a bit of an issue back there.' 
 
'Sure,' the guard said, walking with him through the doors that lead to a shut 
room. Morris delivered the key chain he had stolen from the security guard's 
office and opened the door to a small storage facility. 
 
The other guard tried to switch on the light but it didn't work. 'The lights 
don't work,' he remarked.
 
Morris smiled in the darkness. 'I know.' 
 
 
Big trouble
 
Mulder walked through the building and looked at the blonde guard that walked to 
the middle and seemed to be checking out the safety measures. He was wearing a 
'Grand Security'-outfit. Quickly the agent came over and flashed his badge. 
'FBI,' he said. 'Can I see your ID, sir?' 
 
'Sure,' the guard said, showing his ID. 
 
Mulder's eyes examined the guard's calm features. 'Thank you.'
 
'Is there something wrong?' the guard asked.
 
'We're looking for someone named Morris Peters.' 
 
'I'm sorry  never heard of him,' the guard said. 'Excuse me if you please, we 
have to get everything ready.' 
 
'Sure.' Mulder watched as the guard turned and walked away. This man looked 
nothing like Morris Aldham, yet at the same time there was something vaguely 
familiar about him. But the man walked about as if nothing was wrong and 
continued to do his work. 
 
Mulder shook his head and walked away. 
 
Less than an hour later the doors opened and the first concertgoers were let in. 
Within an hour the place was packed. And Mulder knew they were in for trouble. 
Big trouble.
 
 
 
Part Four
 
I can't sleep, something's all over me,
Greasy, insomnia please release me,
And let me dream about making mad love on the heath,
Tearing off tights with my teeth.
 
 
The Concert
 
Mulder felt a sting in his side as he joined the group of agents gathered at the 
entrance of the concert hall. They watched as hundreds of people moved forward, 
showing their ticket and receiving a stamp before coming in. There was laughter 
and joy in the air. No one seemed to care about anything but the music they were 
about to hear. 
 
'Anything?' he asked in anticipation as Scully frowned and bit her lip the way 
she always did when she was nervous. She shook her head. 'This is hopeless. We 
have to get him when he gets to Laurie.'
 
'If he gets to Laurie.'
 
'She's our best shot right now. Grayson is coming over with her. She agreed to 
play the decoy.' 
 
Mulder felt warm in the sticky heat of the arena. The fact that the concert was 
indoors only added to the claustrophobic feeling. 
 
'Morris Peters didn't show up,' he finally said, taking off his jacket. He was 
still wearing a tie that he loosened with the thumb of his right hand. He was 
painfully aware of the fact his gun was in sight. Several concertgoers glanced 
at him before passing through. Fortunately they probably thought he was part of 
the security. 
 
'He didn't?'
 
'All security guards had to check in before seven. He wasn't amongst them.'
 
'Do you think he knows we're here?'
 
'Probably. But that won't stop him from coming. He's enjoying the game too 
much.'
 
'So he's probably amongst the crowd then. He could be anyone.' 
 
'He always took his girls from the front. Somehow he knew they were there. He 
had to be checking their habits for some time. He must have had details on 
particular habits in their lives  including the concerts he went to. If he's 
after Laurie, he must have done the same with her. So he knows she likes to 
stand near the gates in case she feels faint. All of his victims did that.' 
 
'It would make it easier for him to take them away. The safety gates lead 
straight to the emergency exits, and thus to the other corridors,' Scully said, 
glancing at the busy crowd. They all knew the place was going to be packed. 
 
Before long Laurie stood before them. Mairad was walking beside her. Laurie 
looked very nervous. 
'You're going to be fine,' Scully said reassuringly. 'There will be three agents 
near you. You'll be safe all the time.'
 
'I know,' Laurie said with a pale smile. 'Thank you for your efforts.' 
 
'Thank you for wanting to do this,' Mulder answered, smiling back as he put a 
hand on her shoulder. Laurie nodded and looked at the agents that were there to 
protect her. Mairad watched as they took off in the crowd. Now all they could 
do was hope that this was the woman he was after. 
 
The concert didn't start for another hour. As the warming-up act started, the 
crowd was up and about, swinging and dancing as the band brought the best of 
them. There were still groups of people gathered in the lobby. Mulder walked 
past them and dropped his jacket off in the security office where all the guards 
were monitored. 
 
'Bob, have you seen Jack?' the chief officer asked. 
 
'Negative,' a voice responded. 'He was supposed to be here about an hour ago. I 
haven't seen him since this afternoon.' 
 
'Thanks. Ask the others if you will and report back to me.'
 
'Sure.' The voice cut off as the chief officer sighed and frowned. 
 
'What's wrong?' Mulder asked. 'Who's Jack?' 
 
'One of my regulars. I wonder where he is. It's not like him to bail out on us. 
I know his wife is pregnant but he would have called me if he had to go.'
 
'What does he look like?'
 
The chief officer looked surprised. 'Blonde, tall, regular guy.' 
 
'I've seen him,' Mulder remembered. 'We talked briefly. He showed me his ID. He 
wore glasses.'
 
'Jack doesn't wear glasses.' 
 
'Yes, he did  he ' Mulder stopped, slowly recalling the feeling he'd had when 
he spoke to 'Jack'. It wasn't so difficult to disguise yourself. Change the 
colour of your hair and get rid of the moustache, and you would be a completely 
different person. 
 
'What is it?' the security officer asked agitated.
 
'Search this place. If my hunch is correct, Jack is still here and he might be 
in trouble. Search all closed up storage facilities, booths, whatever -,' Mulder 
said, recalling very clearly the ID of the security guard he had spoken to 
before. If he was correct, Morris Aldham/Peters was now walking around with the 
ID of Jack Smyth. 
 
'I can't alarm the other guards without alarming the fake Jack too. He'll hear.'
 
'Can you use an alternative frequency?'
 
'I would still have to alert the others. There's no way.'
 
'Locate the guards that you trust and inform them. They'll locate him. We're 
looking for a short, blonde man wearing a fake ID. He'll most likely hang around 
the safety gates. He has a map of this arena. He can be anywhere.' 
 
Mulder rushed outside where he met Grayson, Skinner and Scully. Davis was 
coordinating the search from the other side, monitoring all the emergency exits. 
'He's here,' Mulder said. 'He probably killed one of the guards and took his 
place. There's one man missing. Let's go.' 
 
Mulder pushed himself a way through the crowd, just as the main act started to 
perform. Faithless instantly started off with a bang, moving the fans up and 
about as they began a rhythmic tune. 
 
Scully grabbed her partner's arm, stopping him in his tracks. 'There are too 
many people here, Mulder!' she shouted over the noise. 'We'll never find him 
like this!'
 
'We don't need to find him. We need to find Laurie before he does!' 
 
'I know where she is,' Mairad said. 'Follow me.' 
 
'Check all regular exits,' Skinner ordered the agents that stayed behind. 'Make 
sure that no one leaves without a thorough check-up. Compare every woman with 
the picture you have. The rest of you, come with me. Agent Mulder, you stay 
here.'
 
'Not on your life,' Mulder simply said. 
 
Mulder swayed on his feet as he pushed himself into the crowd, feeling too hot 
in the business suit, even without the jacket. His tie felt choking. The crowd 
was already swarmed with dancing people, all getting in the mood as the second 
song started and caused a shout of recognition and joy.
 
They moved through the crowd, using the safety gates as a reference not to get 
lost. They held back most of the people. Several thuds and thumps later, Mulder 
thought he couldn't go on any longer. Someone had hit him hard in the side, 
causing him to sway on his feet again. He could feel a sharp pain going through 
his side where the stitches reminded him that he was still wounded. 
 
The others followed behind him. Suddenly, as the next song started, Mulder got a 
hard push as a woman screamed that this was her favourite sing and jumped up and 
down to prove it. He turned to move back to the gates, and then realized he had 
lost the others. 
 
They were all gone. Scully was no longer behind him. Just a second before she 
had been right after him. He had felt her touch when she had put her hand on the 
back of his neck, as if to show him she was still there. He turned to find her, 
seeing nothing but blurry faces. It hadn't been a good idea to move through the 
crowd. He felt dizzy and unstable. 
 
Quickly he lost the tie, simply dropping it to the ground. As it dropped he 
remembered that Scully had bought it for Christmas once. A sting of sadness 
passed through his system. Then he shrugged and moved on.
 
He pushed forward again, ignoring the shouts and protests of people while doing 
so. They didn't like intruders in their carefully sealed-off area. They had 
fought hard for this privileged spot so close to the stage and weren't about to 
let go of it.
 
'Sorry,' he muttered several times, carefully keep his hand on his gun that was 
still strapped to his clothes. If someone noticed it, panic would arise and he 
wanted to avoid that at all cost. He didn't feel like causing a mortal incident.
 
Finally he reached the front area where the biggest fans gathered to wait for 
their band to perform. By then everything just swayed. He could hardly make out 
the faces. He grabbed onto someone, trying to keep on his feet.
 
'Get off me, drunk!' he heard a woman shout and she pushed him away. Her hands 
pushed hard in his side, and he shouted as the pain struck him. Then he realized 
he was bleeding underneath his white shirt. Damn it, another shirt gone to hell, 
he thought as he turned away from her. 
 
Where the hell was Scully? Why couldn't he find Skinner? And where were those 
damned gates?
 
Suddenly he saw a guard and realized he was closer to the gates than he thought. 
Quickly he pushed himself forward, flashing his badge to make way. Now they all 
passed and ignored him as a calmer song started, and excited people shouted to 
each other how much they enjoyed the concert. 
 
'Mulder, FBI,' he shouted against to the guard that stood behind the gate. The 
man looked at him curiously, examining him. He was African-American. At least 
one guard that couldn't be Aldham, Mulder thought wry. 
 
'Did you see this woman?' Mulder held up the photo of Laurie they had received 
before in case of emergency. He had held the photo in his pant's pocket. It was 
torn and wrinkled.
 
The guard first shook no, then looked curiously at the photo again and said, 
'Two of yours  both women  picked her up and brought her to the emergency 
exit. One of my colleagues helped them over the gates and is bringing them to 
safety.' The guard pointed towards the small exit area created in the midst of 
the gates. 
 
Mulder felt relief, realizing that Laurie was safe by now. It was over. Now, all 
they had to do was find the fake 'Jack' and bring him in for justice. 
 
Mulder crawled over the gates, nearly losing his gun as he did. His shirt was 
soaked with blood by now. He felt the guard's eyes on him but ignored him. A few 
people stared at the weapon that was clearly visible, but turned their faces to 
the podium again, hoping not to miss a single thing. With the guard behind him, 
Mulder hurried through the passageway, towards the emergency exit. 
 
When he pushed open the door, the first thing he saw, was another guard that 
looked at them curiously. In the darkness it was difficult to tell who it was. 
He was talking to Mairad who stood in the darkness, looking much more relaxed 
than she had done for some time.
 
'Agent Mulder,' she said. 'Laurie is okay. Agent Scully and AD Skinner brought 
her away.' 
 
Mulder nodded relieved. 'Are you okay, Agent Grayson?'
 
'Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just glad that she's okay. I just wish we could nail that 
bastard.' Mairad turned her attention to him, spotting the blood. 'You're hurt. 
Are you okay?'
 
Mulder nodded. 'I'm fine. Let's go.' His eyes caught the guard in the shadows, 
suddenly realizing it was the same guy he had seen before. The badge was gone. 
He wasn't wearing any. And the others hadn't recognized him. Mairad had brushed 
by him and didn't know it was Morris. His eyes stared deadpan at them, waiting 
for them to make the connection. For he knew they would.
 
Suddenly, within a few seconds, they all realized what was going on. The 
African-American guard glared curiously at the man standing in the shadows and 
said, 'wait a minute. Who ?' 
 
Mulder pulled out his gun, reacting already too late when the blonde guard got 
out a gun and shot his colleague. With his other hand he grabbed Mairad, 
pulling her so close to him that she gasped for breath. 
 
His hand was inside her jacket, and dropped her gun on the floor. He kicked it 
to the far wall with the tip of his right shoe. 
 
Mulder aimed his gun at the killer. His fingers trembled as he tried to get a 
good shot in the darkness. But he knew he couldn't get a clean shot  not in the 
state he was in. From the corner of his eye he stared at the dead guard on the 
floor. No one had even heard the shot. It had been tempered by the music and 
noise outside. 
 
All help would come too late. He was dead. His eyes stared into nothingness. 
 
'Let her go, Morris,' Mulder said.
 
Morris Aldham smiled. 'Finally you know my real name. It was about time, Agent. 
Now, why don't you drop that gun? You know I'll enjoy killing her.' 
 
Mulder was surprised by the softness of the man's voice. Before they had hardly 
spoken. He had expected a hard voice, just as hard as the dead look in his eyes. 
Instead the man seemed to keep his head tilted a bit, as if he couldn't hear 
that well. There was nothing dangerous in his features, except of course for the 
fact he held a gun on Mairad. 
 
'You didn't get Laurie,' Mulder said. 'Agent Grayson is not your means to get 
out of here. Not one FBI-agent in the country will allow for you to pursue 
this.'
 
'Laurie?' Morris smiled softly. 'Whom are you talking about?' 
 
Mulder stopped in his tracks as his eyes met Mairad's. Then he knew she had 
known all along she was a possible casualty. It was written all over her face. 
Hadn't she told him she had Irish blood running in her veins? 
 
The woman swallowed as she closed her eyes and bitter tears dripped down her 
cheeks. 'My father used to call me Margaret,' she spoke softly. 'I'm sorry, 
Agent Mulder. It was the only way.' 
 
'She lied to you,' Morris remarked with surprise in his voice. 'You knew I was 
coming after you, didn't you?'
 
The woman swallowed away the lump in her throat. 'I felt it the moment we 
brushed against each other in that damned hell that you created.' 
 
Mulder bit his lip, angry with himself for not making the connection. Why hadn't 
he realized it? He had seen Mairad in his dream. He had seen her as a victim. 
But he had waved it away, too busy putting his theory together. And Mairad had 
become a willing victim in order to help others survive. She would become an 
excellent agent one day. If she lived to see the day. 
 
Morris pointed his gun at Mulder's head now, still using the female agent as a 
shield. 'It's up to you, Agent. Shoot to save yourself. Kill her in order to 
live. You know you won't get a clean shot. So why don't you shoot her and then 
me and get it over with? Just one casualty more or less  what the hell does it 
matter anymore?' 
 
Mairad's scared eyes found his. He had remembered how she had done everything 
she could to help him out. She had put herself beyond and above the call of 
duty. He couldn't do this to her, not even when it meant being killed himself.
 
Suddenly the abyss leaned towards him. He had the choice between life and death 
right here and now. And he chose death above murder. 
 
'No,' Mulder said, lowering his gun as Mairad tried to hold back her 
frustration. 'I'm not killing her.' 
 
'Fine,' Morris said, pointing his gun at the male agent. 'Have it your way.' 
 
'Don't!' Mairad screamed, pushing herself so hard against her attacker that 
they both swung against the brick wall behind them. Morris shouted but didn't 
let go of his gun and her as the shot went off and hit the opposite wall. It 
passed Mulder's ear within an inch. 
 
The second shot struck the agent's shoulder, sending him hard against the wall. 
Mulder fell, dropping the gun before him as he leaned heavily on his knees, 
heaving as his exhausted body tried to gather its strength. 
 
Tremendous pain shot through his shoulder, but it wasn't as bad as the 
exhaustion that simply took over, refusing to allow him to stay on his feet for 
another second. 
 
Not now, Mulder prayed. Don't let it be over now. I don't want to die a useless 
death. 
 
Morris shouted something that he couldn't hear. Then Mulder felt a rough hand 
grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, and then he was shoved inside a small 
room, hidden behind a heavy door. They were on the move but Mulder was hardly 
aware of it. 
 
Someone supported him gently. This time the rough hand was gone. He heard 
Morris' voice behind him speak, and then they were inside another room and the 
doors were locked. 
 
Morris sighed deeply as he glared at his two hostages. The footsteps had sounded 
hard. He had known they were coming. And now his chances of getting out of here 
with her were gone. But he still had them, and he wasn't going to let them go. 
They were his ticket out. In order to have the woman do what he said, he had to 
keep the man alive for now. But as soon as they were outside, he would kill and 
dump his body. 
 
Then he put his attention to the woman leaning over her colleague and smiled as 
he grabbed her by the arm. 'I've waited quite some time for this moment, my 
little pearl, and now you're mine.' 
 
 
 
The hunt
 
Scully knew her partner was in trouble. His blood was all over the place when 
they rushed back after Mairad's and Mulder's sudden absence. Everyone was 
accounted for, except for the two of them. And Mairad had stayed behind to find 
Mulder. 
 
Laurie was brought home by one of the agents. The concert was coming to an end. 
Everyone was taking off. But there were guards missing. Scully remembered the 
guard with the black cap that was pulled widely over his eyes. She hadn't known 
him. And he hadn't been wearing a badge.
 
'Damn it,' she muttered under her breath, realizing she had been too busy 
minding Laurie's safety. That had been her first priority. And now she might 
have delivered her colleagues in the hands of a killer. 
 
She rushed back to the spot with Skinner and other agents behind her. The guards 
were making sure everyone left calmly. The place would be deserted soon. The 
search for the missing guard was still ongoing.
 
Blood was on the wall and floor. The traces lead to a locked door. And there 
were the guns. Mairad's and Mulder's both lay on the floor. It was a token of 
their imprisonment. 'Does anyone have the key to this room?' she shouted. The 
chief security officer had followed them and used his key chain to open the 
door. They were in a small room. Scully realized she had been in the same 
situation before. She wasn't about to find Mulder in danger again. They had to 
move faster than that. But she knew she wouldn't like what she was going to 
find. The blood trail seemed to be everywhere. 
 
And then it just stopped. The agents looked around, trying to figure out where 
they could have gone, until Skinner discovered a small doorway that lead to a 
storage room. There the blood trail started again. 
 
 
The shelter
 
Morris laughed as the male agent moved his body. He spoke to him yet he seemed 
to be somewhere else. His shoulder wasn't even that bad. A through and through 
had caused some bleeding perhaps, but he had been lucky. 
 
Mairad rested in Morris' hands, listening to his senseless words. Yet at the 
same time everything seemed to make sense as well. The pieces finally fell 
together. 
 
'I've missed you for so long,' he whispered in her ear, keeping an eye on Mulder 
who sat on the floor, leaning with his head against the wall. 'I knew I would 
find you one day though. But you shouldn't have messed around with Willis, 
darling. You knew I had a crush on you. Why did you fuck me and him at the same 
time?'
 
Mairad listened in shock as Morris was dragged back to the past. Suddenly it 
didn't seem to matter anymore that there were people outside these doors trying 
to find them. Time had come to a stop and there was nothing else but the past, 
leaning heavily as a blanket over them all. They were forced to go back in to 
the past with him, and accept what it had brought them.
 
'You knew I wanted to marry you, but no  you went out and fucked him instead, 
and left me alone in the darkness. But I gave you your darkness too, didn't I? I 
punished you for what you did, and left pieces of you all scattered all over the 
country. You guided me to find you again and now that I have, you will be mine 
forever.'
 
She looked straight into his eyes and her look seemed very confident when she 
smiled. 'You're right,' she said. 'I have been denying it, but here I am. You 
can do whatever you want with me.' 
 
His eyes changed as she willingly took her place into the past. 'You won't fight 
me anymore?'
 
'I won't.' 
 
He kissed her. His tongue was on her lips and inside of her mouth and he grabbed 
her so tight that she could feel the barrel of the gun sticking in her back. If 
he moved his finger now, the gun would go off. She let him kiss her. She closed 
her eyes and accepted what he wanted to do with her. There was more to consider 
than reality. There was more to do than protect her own life. She was 
responsible for Mulder's condition. She had to get him out of here. 
 
She stopped him. 'They'll be here soon. You have to tell them that you want us 
to leave. But leave Agent Mulder here. He's hurt. He won't do you any good.' 
 
Morris let go of her. 'I'm going to kill him. He tried to stop us.' 
 
'He's not worth it. If you kill him now, you'll get everyone to come after us,' 
she said softly and sensual. 'I'll come with you, I swear. But you have to leave 
him behind.'
 
'No.' Morris said, aiming his gun at the agent's head. Mairad shoved him hard. 
With one hard kick he sent her against the far wall where she hit her head and 
dropped like a log. She was out like a light. Mulder moved from his position, 
crawling towards her. 
 
Morris laughed out loud, looking at the agent crawling on the floor on all 
fours. Was this the FBI-agent that had tracked him down? He was nothing but a 
scrubby man, someone who didn't look like he was able to think straight. He 
seemed like a madman, the way he crawled there pathetically. 
 
The killer kicked him in the ribs with the tip of his shoe, sending the agent 
rolling on the floor. Mulder moaned as he rolled on his back and again on his 
belly, biting the dust. His shoulder was burning like hell. His body seemed to 
be at the end of its rope. He shook his head softly, trying to gather his 
thoughts. 
 
He ended up on his back again, trying to focus on reality. He needed to stay 
awake. If he didn't, it would all be over. Mairad would die.  
 
'No,' Mulder moaned, protecting his ribs as he tried to get up. 'Leave her alone 
' 
'Not on your life,' Morris said, walking slowly towards the agent, making 
circles around his body. 'She's a bitch, just like Megan was. I know now that 
I'm meant to do this. I'm chosen to kill women like her. All they do is lie and 
cheat and feed us what we want to hear.' 
 
'You're a coward, Morris,' Mulder said, opening his eyes slowly. 'You feed on 
innocent women because you can't stand it that you killed the one you loved. 
You're nothing more than a pathetic bastard. Mairad's done nothing to you. None 
of them have. You pick them out on looks. You think you control life and death. 
But you're nothing more than a coward and a loser.' 
 
Morris turned towards Mairad who lay on the floor. 'I'll show you what a loser 
I am,' he said, turning his back towards Mulder. 'I'll kill her before your eyes 
and you'll stay alive with the knowledge it was your words that drove me to it.' 

 
The moment Morris turned his back towards the agent and attempted to kneel down 
beside Mairad; a shot went off, striking Morris Aldham in the side. Morris' 
surprised glance was turned down as he spotted the trickle of blood that slowly 
became a pool. And then it just poured out. 
 
Morris turned and saw the strapped ankle holster, now visible. And he saw the 
small handgun in Mulder's hand. Morris mumbled something, the gun still in his 
hand. A second shot filled the room. Morris fell flat forward, his hand 
stretched out and finally losing the gun. 
 
Mulder sighed deeply as he stared at the man's dead eyes. Mairad's eyes opened. 
The female agent seemed out of it. The back of her head bled where she had hit 
the wall. Her eyes caught Morris' body. Then she stared at Mulder. 
 
They both felt the same regret. 
 
 
Safety
 
'Mulder,' Scully said, hurrying towards her partner who sat with his back 
against the wall again, awaiting their next moves. At first he hardly seemed to 
notice her. His eyes sought out Mairad's. She seemed fine on the outside, but 
he knew she needed mending on the inside. 
 
Then he looked up curiously to see who was touching him. His partner held her 
fingers against his throat to check his pulse. She frowned when she saw the 
damaged shoulder and the bloody shirt. From the corner of her eye she saw that 
Mairad was talking to Davis. Someone took a look at the back of her head. She 
was cared for. 
 
'Hey ... Scully,' her partner said with a faint smile. 'Fancy seeing you here.'
'You're delirious, Mulder. What the hell have you done to yourself?' 
'Me?' he said with a grin, 'nothing. I'm fine, can't you tell?'
'Like hell you are,' she said. 
 
'How did you find us?'
'That wasn't so difficult. We just had to follow the blood trail you left 
behind. If I didn't know better, I would say he was trying to lead us to his 
shelter this time.' 
 
'I think he was,' Mulder said softly. 'He wanted it to be over with.'
Scully thought her answer over for a second and then smiled to reassure her 
partner. 'I guess so.' 
 
Mulder's eyes drooped as she worked on stopping the bleeding. He bit his lip in 
pain when her experienced hands moved. He had been shot on exactly the same spot 
she had shot him so long ago. She knew he would heal quickly. 
 
But his reactions worried her. 'Stay with me, partner,' she said. 'Don't pass 
out on me now.'
 
She glanced behind her to find Skinner's worried look. But Mulder's eyes closed 
as if they were finally allowed to do so. He slid aside, losing his balance 
against the wall, and slumped slightly forward, into her arms. 
 
Skinner helped her to put her partner on the floor in a more comfortable 
position. Frantically she felt Mulder's pulse again. Then she looked at Skinner 
and Mairad in surprise, as she said, 'He's asleep.' 
 
'You mean passed out,' Mairad said. 
 
'No. I mean asleep.' 
As if to support her words, Mulder opened his eyes briefly, glanced at them, 
mumbled something, and closed his eyelids again, trying to slide on his side as 
if to take a nap. 
 
Scully remembered what Mulder had said before. Once I get this case solved, I'll 
be allowed to sleep. Somehow, he managed to do just that. After nights of 
sleeplessness, his body was finally resting. 
 
How he did that, kept on surprising her. 
 
 
Sleep
 
 
Mulder slept for over twenty-four hours before finally opening his eyes, 
wondering where in the world he was. He wasn't so happy that he woke up in a 
hospital though. Scully found him arguing with the doctor over it. 
 
They both had to convince her partner he had been shot and had managed to rip 
open the stitches to his side again. This time Skinner and Scully were not as 
easy as they had been before. There was no way out of a recovery period. 
 
That, Mulder had to find out for himself when he was ordered to stay for at 
least three days. Despite his protests  proving to Scully he was fully alert 
and feeling much better  he was ordered the rest by Skinner, and he knew his 
boss would live up to his promise. 
 
And so he slept. 
 
 
Concluding
 
'Did you know that this band  Faithless  has a song called 'Insomnia', 
Mulder?' Scully asked as she put the roses sent by the security guards in a 
vase. 
 
'Yeah, I do,' Mulder said. 'Why?'
'I don't know. It kind of suits you right now. You couldn't get any sleep. 
Basically, you do realize that you have made an X-File out of this case?'
'Because of my dreams?'
 
'Because of the fact you wouldn't sleep, not even drugged and filled up with 
medication. That in itself is an X-File.' 
 
'We've seen cases before where people were having trouble sleeping,' Mulder 
said. 'There were medical reasons for that  unnatural causes. I cannot explain 
why I wasn't able to sleep during this time. I just know that somehow I was 
connected to this case. Perhaps, in a way, my mind was preparing for this case  
already going into that world Morris had created. I don't know how else to 
explain it.'
 
The day before, Scully had told him that the real Jack Smyth had been found 
badly wounded in a small storage facility near the lobby of the arena, stabbed 
in the back with a sharp object. But he survived. He had lost a pile of blood, 
but at least he was able to pull through. At least there was one survivor out of 
this ordeal.
 
Mairad had not been admitted to the hospital. She had needed stitches and had 
been thoroughly checked but except for a bad headache, she was fine. Mulder 
wondered why she hadn't come to see him though. He had wanted to talk to her 
about the events, but she had radically refused to do so.
 
Scully sat down on the side of the bed. 'Do you know that Mairad has given her 
resignation?'
 
'What?' Mulder said. 'You're kidding me.'
 
'Don't worry. Davis refused to accept it. She's going to talk to an 
FBI-counsellor about this case. I guess she learned the hard way that an 
FBI-agent's first task is to keep herself and her colleagues out of harm's 
ways.' 
 
'She did just that,' Mulder objected. 
 
'She should have told us her suspicions. She jeopardized you and herself.'
 
'Doesn't anyone of us do that, every single day, Scully?' her partner asked. 
'Let's be honest. Every time we go out on the streets, we know that it can be 
over. I encourage her for trying to find her own way. She knew instinctively 
that she was a potential victim. She crawled inside Morris' head and wasn't 
afraid to face the danger. She's going to be an excellent profiler.' 
 
'Are you planning on mentoring her?'
 
Mulder sighed. It was a discussion he didn't want to have. 'I don't belong to 
the VCS.'
 
'But next time Davis asks you, you're going to be there again. You can't say no 
to these cases, can you?'
 
Mulder looked at her seriously, realizing she was afraid that he would leave her 
and The X-Files some day. 'I can't say no,' he said slowly, 'because it's a part 
of who I am. Scully, I studied psychology because I knew that some day I would 
be doing this line of work. If Samantha hadn't been there ... I guess I wouldn't 
have worked on The X-Files in the first place. But she was there, and I don't 
regret my decision. I just want to find a way of combining my work. I know I 
have a value here. I can't just turn my back towards it.'
 
Scully looked sad, yet at the same time there was a pride in her eyes he hadn't 
seen before. He grabbed her hand. 'I'm not leaving you,' he said forcefully. 
 
She smiled and touched his face. 'I know. I'm just afraid that one day I won't 
be visiting you at a hospital anymore, but at a morgue, staring down on your 
body. I can't bear it if that should happen. I can't go on without you.'
 
'I promise you here and now that will never happen,' he said. 'I cannot 
guarantee it, but I'll try. Don't ask for anything more. And please don't ask me 
to make a choice.'
 
'I'm not,' she said as she kissed him. 
 
He smiled. 'Now then, when are you going to let me out of here?'
 
She laughed and waved her finger like a schoolteacher would. 'Don't push your 
luck, buster.' 
 
 
Insomnia
 
They were pleased about her. They didn't hold the events in New York against 
her. Mairad realized that the moment Davis called her up and told her she was 
getting a new case. This time she would be the main profiler. She would still be 
able to count on the support of her more experienced colleagues, but they were 
certain she could handle it. 
 
She didn't sleep that night. She kept on revisiting that night, with Mulder's 
life in her hands. She knew she could not change the past. She could only work 
on her future. 
 
And when she got to work the next morning, she was setting up the profile, 
putting the pieces together as if she had never done anything else. She had 
learned from the best after all.
 
She found their killer. She found the victims. And she became good at her job. 
The next case was already lining up.
 
But at night, she found herself staring into the abyss, realizing there was 
merely a thin line between sanity and insanity. She didn't know where to draw 
the border between what was right and wrong anymore. She found herself 
distrusting everyone. She sold her house in Miami and moved back to New York.
 
She didn't want to walk that line between good and wrong. Yet at the same time 
she knew she was already doing it. She couldn't stop herself.  
 
She looked into the abyss. And there was no one to drag her out. 
 
She dreamt of the kiss she had shared with Morris when she was trying to get 
them out of that room in one piece. She dreamt that he was still alive and near 
her. In her next dream he was strangling her. And his mind and thoughts was 
passing on to her. She had become him and he had become her. 
 
She woke up startled from those dreams. She looked at her hands and noticed 
there were still in one piece. He hadn't cut them off and left pieces of her 
body all over the globe. 
 
During the days she saved people. During the nights she killed them. 
 
One day she would contact Mulder and tell him about it. He would understand. But 
she wouldn't do that just now. Right now she had to deal with her past and 
present. She would have to cope with the future. 
 
And she knew she could only count on herself in this hard, cruel world.  
 
 
- The End -