From: Jim & Carla Date: Sat, 25 Sep 1999 21:00:49 -0400 Subject: Meet the Family by CarlaJane Source: direct Title: Meet the Family Author: Carla Jane Address: jimcarla@hotmail.com Rating: NC-17 m/m, me/f, f/f relationships...plus......Incest and some barely under-age participants. Classification - C (crossover) Spoilers - just the arm thing Keywords - Krycek, slash, crossover with 'Once a thief' Summary: Some lovers fight, some stuff gets stolen, and the crew gets to meet Alex's charming foster family. Date: September 1999 Disclaimers: Chris Carter, Fox, John Woo, Alliance entertainment, and the various actors and writers own everything...no profit...etcetera, etcetera. So what else is new? A beta reader! I've finally got a beta reader, woo hoo. This story never would have been written this year if Raz didn't do such a wondrous job on cleaning up the worst of my boo-boos and listening to me prattle about possible plot points. The 'Alexei' who lives inside my head insists that I toss virtual kisses (and other naughtier images) down to Raz for all she's done. Thank you. Notes: Okay, imagine this...The trio of former shadow-government agents from 'Once a thief' (Li Ann, Mac, and Victor) have a house and a business in Atlantic City, courtesy of Alex and his rather powerful crime family. Alex lives with them, and sleeps with Mac...on and off. The thieves met up with Mulder and Scully about two-three months ago and a couple of relationships are developing. This follows the timeline from my story 'Crossing Paths' which followed some other stories but you could dive in here without being too confused since the plot-line of this piece stands alone and I've done a fair lot of explaining. Victor and Alex are twins, separated at birth (an old stand-by, but useful) by a Russian spy network and reacquainted as of a year and a bit ago. I suppose the one advantage to 'Once a thief' being cancelled is that canon can never again disagree with what I want to happen. My stuff is going to clash with the sixth season of the X-files. I can't help it. So off we go into alternate universe land. At Raz' suggestion...here's the list of stories I've written in this universe in the order I wrote them: The Hong Kong Stories may be archived as Hong Kong Compiled. They are Hong Kong Convergence Hong Kong Connection and Hong Kong Conflict Then comes Re-Establish Contact and Crossing Paths There are also two NC-17, pwp, sidepieces to these stories (so far) about Alex and one of his old boyfriends called 'A training diversion' and 'Playing in puddles' Just scream if you want 'em and can't find the silly things. I've got MSWord versions at home with pretty pictures on them and everything... or there's plain text out on the net(like this). I hope you have fun with this one. December 1998 Dana Scully's feet hurt. Her tidy leather shoes with their towering heels were not made for running through back alleys. Unfortunately hairy, semi-human killers seldom gave her notice enough to change into track shoes. Occasionally Scully considered switching to flats but then she would stand beside her partner, looking way up, and the rumination would shatter into dust. Dana locked her car door and forced her feet to carry her just a little further with a promise of a bath and slippers. A shower would require standing, besides which, Scully had taken three within the last eight hours...one with flea shampoo. Mulder and Scully, freak magnets. Dana laughed softly to herself. They couldn't even stay out of trouble checking into the mailing procedures of a perfectly normal business. "So I guess you don't need cheering up after all." A long, slender figure gracefully unfolded on her doorstep. Scully had her gun out and aimed as quickly as her fingers would work. "Don't. Christ, Li Ann you scared me half to death." Recognition came a short breath behind the physical reaction. "A little on edge, are we?" Li Ann's hands were held palm out, a clear sign that she meant no harm. The oriental woman offered up a smile, inviting Dana to share in the humour. "It's been a tough couple of days." Dana explained, holstered her weapon. "Killer critters in Detroit. How did you know I was coming home?" She dug out her house-keys, shifting her carryall to the other shoulder. "I hacked in and got your flight information. No big mystery." Li Ann knelt and picked up two insulated bags. "I come bearing food and drink." She followed Dana inside and to her apartment door. "I figured after a week in Detroit with the ever-challenging Agent Mulder you could you some down time." Dana nodded, pushing open her door. "But I thought you were in Los Angeles." "I was, and then Atlanta." Li Ann walked confidently to the kitchen. She sat the bags on the counter and began un-zipping the lids. "I got back in yesterday." Li Ann shouted over one shoulder. "I meant to e- mail you but I never got round to it. I've been playing catch-up at the office. Victor manages all of the company's practical work without any trouble, but he can't seem to keep up with the paperwork when I'm not here. I think he does it on purpose just because he hates filling in forms." The microwave's door dinged as it popped open. Dana stopped in the kitchen doorway. She watched Li Ann move about extracting what she needed to reheat the meal without having to ask for directions or look anywhere twice. Scully admired the other woman's unconscious grace. It was like watching a dancer move, or a thief, her unconscious mind provided petulantly. "So, where are all your boys?" Dana asked the traditional question that hung between them with more that a bit of trepidation. The answer had proved dangerously argument provoking in the past many a time. Li Ann dumped some vegetable and rice concoction from its cardboard box in to a deep dish. "Victor is home with his sister tonight. She officially moved into our basement apartment last week." The oriental woman added with a pleased smile. A layer of bite sized chicken pieces joined the rice. "Victor's hilarious. He is so hyped up about becoming an uncle. It's adorable. Allegra has him painting the smaller bedroom with a border of ducks and kittens." Li Ann laughed. "He tried it free hand but they came out looking like fish and pigs." Dana smiled at the image that built in her mind for several reasons. Victor was so sweet-tempered, completely unlike his twin in so many ways. "So he switched to stencils." She finished. A tall cup of sauce joined the dish in the microwave. "Mac is away doing some job with one of Alex's sisters." The hesitation was noticeable. "Far south of here." Li Ann stabbed some buttons on the control panel of the appliance then returned to the counter. "And Krycek?" Dana prompted when the silence stretched too long. "Lexi is in Europe on business for the Director. I don't know any more than that." Li Ann sighed at the petty lie she had just told and lifted a small bottle of wine from the second cooler bag. Dana Scully turned, pressing her forehead into the wall next to her. This evening could turn sour so easily. "What were you doing in California and Atlanta, Li Ann?" The other woman deserted the food to go to her friend's side. "Just designing a couple of security systems. They were both strictly legit jobs, Dana. I don't need to play dirty to turn a profit." Long fingers settled on the shoulder of Scully's trench coat. "I'm not doing anything that either you or I need to be ashamed of." "No, you leave that to the boys. Mac's in Cuba, isn't he?" She asked wearily. Scully was quickly learning to see through the younger woman's code of vague references and careful silences. "Why don't you get changed?" Li Ann declined to answer, confirming the guess. "I'll finish up here." "What's he doing in Cuba?" Scully persisted. "A job for Nicki." The taller woman admitted. "I didn't come here to hash out Mac, or Alex's..." She forestalled. "...dubious morality. Tonight isn't about the boys, yours or mine. Go get into something more comfortable. I brought dinner, a really fine wine, a video and my own charming self. Surely one of those things will cheer you up." A long nail flicked a lock of red hair and Li Ann smiled invitingly. "What video?" Dana teased, downplaying her pleasure at simply being with her companion. "Gone with the wind. When in doubt go with a classic...besides I was in the mood for it after looking at all those fancy manors for the last three days." Li Ann backed off. " I have a box of rocky road brownies." Dana pushed herself away from the wall. "Okay, for that alone you can stay, but I get control of the remote and you do the dishes." "Aren't you tired of playing power games after time in the field with Mulder." Li Ann baited gently but the other woman looked unmoved. "All right, but only if you promise not to burp and scratch yourself during all the mushy parts. My last client maxed out my Macho tolerance for the week." "Deal." Dana shrugged out of her navy-blue overcoat then dragged her light carry on into the bedroom. The larger piece of luggage was abandoned. She would deal with in the morning. The shower vs. bath question was reconsidered yet again. She and Li Ann didn't get to spend much time together. Wasting an hour of that time in the tub no longer seemed like such a good idea. A quick shower, some silky pyjamas next to her skin and a pair of fuzzy socks for comfort seemed the way to go now. Li Ann was just dishing the food onto the plates when Dana emerged from the bedroom. The dipping sauce made the meal too messy for the sofa so they settled in the dining room. "How is it that you manage to find such wonderful takeout?" Dana asked around a forkful of tender meat. "The other woman was deft with her chopsticks. She used them to eat and to punctuate her words. "I have a food taster." She laughed softly. "I swear Mac has tried every restaurant within thirty miles of Atlantic City by now. The man can barely make toast." Li Ann took a sip of wine. "He doesn't even have an oven...just a stovetop and a microwave." "Men." The redhead snickered. "You know that's not exactly true, Dana." The admonishment lacked force. "Victor cooks, better than I do when it's for more than two people. I've never gotten past stir-fry, pre-packaged food and salads." Dana nodded agreement. "Omelettes and frozen food. The single woman's staple." She added wryly. "You work too hard." Li Ann settled back and really studied her dining companion. "What are you doing for Christmas? Tell me you're taking a bit of time off." Dana shrugged. "Mom's going to Bill's, baby's first Christmas and all, you know." Sadness tainted her expression. "I don't want to go. Not after what happened last year." Emily's death would be too heavy in her thoughts if she went back to California at Christmas time. It would suffocate her. "I thought I'd hang out here. Just have some quiet time. Maybe I'll touch base with some friends I haven't had a chance to see for a while." "You're going to brood." Li Ann translated. "Or let Mulder drag you about after some slime monsters or a demonic Santa impersonator. No way Dana." The younger woman protested. "How about you come stay at my place for a week? Victor and Allegra are all charged up over Christmas. Maybe it's a Canadian thing." The temptation was strong but Dana stared down at her plate. "Is Krycek coming home for the holidays?" The objection was clear to them both. "If he is, I just can't. You know what he's done to me." "He didn't shoot your sister." Li Ann said softly, catching Dana's eyes and holding them with the intensity of her gaze. "That's one of the things I've made sure of." "But he was involved." She shoved her plate away. "He worked with 'THEM'. He still does I suspect. He's a criminal, a murderer, a poor excuse for a human being." "He's my friend." "Don't count on it, Li Ann." Dana crossed, her blue eyes studying the other woman. A thought that had been preying on her mind for some time demanded to emerge. "Are you still sleeping with him?" "Damn it." The oriental woman stood abruptly. "I don't want to fight Dana, not with you, not tonight." "You are." Scully deduced. Her expression was icy. "Christ, Li Ann." "You don't understand how it is." An open palm forestalled another protest. "The guys and Allegra are my family." She put weighty emphasis on the last word. "Can't you try for some kind of peace treaty? Come over for a few days, for me. You're welcome to ignore Alex completely, just, try not to kill him." "That's not my style." "Then don't arrest him." Li Ann sensed a weakening in Dana's resolve. "Victor's cooking a turkey dinner with all the trimmings." "Why are you sleeping with him, Li Ann?" The older woman needed to hold on to her anger. She wanted answers. "He's an absolute whore. You've told me as much yourself. God knows whose bed he's coming to you from, or how many there have been even in the last year." "It's really complicated." She shoved her own plate to one side, studying her companion's face. Dana's expression was a mask of determination. "Lexi's got a lot of problems." Li Ann hesitated, trying to balance Alex's privacy against the need to have the FBI agent's understanding. "Sometimes after Mac has passed out Lexi comes downstairs to talk." Scully nodded. She'd picked up references to those encounters before. "Lexi can't separate intimacy and affection from sex." Li Ann explained. "If I want him to talk to me..." She winced at Dana's disapproving frown. "I'm trying to pull his life, his experiences, out of him. I need to understand him for so many reasons. Victor and even more so, Mac, they've grown too dependant on Alex. He's holding most of the power in our family and that's just not safe for the rest of us, especially since he's so terribly fragile in some ways. The three of us just got out of a situation like that. The Director tried hard to control us by keeping us in the dark. I hated it." Li Ann floundered. "It's for Lexi's benefit as well. I'm also trying to find out how he's put together so I can repair the worst of the damage Nicki has inflicted on him. I get the impression she thinks of him as a weapon not a person. No one deserves what she's done to him over the years." Her head shook and she repeated herself. "You don't understand. I need to make sure her control doesn't overpower his affection for us. Admittedly, sometimes I feel guilty, using whatever method I have to ensure his loyalty but it's a battle for his soul." "That's such a load of garbage." Scully accused unimpressed by Li Ann's justifications for the relationship. "Can't you just admit that the sex is good and you like it?" Dark eyes rolled in defeat. Dana wasn't in any mood to discuss this rationally. "Is that what you want to hear? Fine. The sex is phenomenal. He goes down on me like no man ever has. His tongue practically shoots sparks." Li Ann snapped out, her temper breaking loose. "How does that feel, Dana? Do you get some sense of satisfaction from knowing Lexi is a dream in the sheets? No one he's ever made a run at has turned down a chance to do him. Even Mulder can't keep his hands to himself around Lexi despite all his ranting and raving on Alex's contemptible character. Maybe you'd understand better if he tried out his wiles on you." A sudden remembrance of how he had affected her during that fiasco with the diplomatic pouch assaulted Dana. She hadn't allowed it to show but being in the car with him on the way to the airport had been a brutal exercise in self-control. Dana had been disgusted with herself for reacting that way to Krycek's proximity. "I think you should leave, Li Ann." Scully pushed away from the table. She needed distance. "Maybe we can get together some time in the New Year." Dana lied coldly. "No." The younger woman stated flatly. "I'm sorry, that was completely out of line. I really am sorry. I'm just on edge and I took it out on you." Her tone was sincerely regretful. "But I won't let you push me away. You're almost as bad as Lexi. You're just looking for an excuse to end this, end us, and go back to your nun- like existence." She was out of her seat and catching at Dana's arms in an instant. "I don't give up on important relationships that easily. The fact I live with three of my exs is proof of that." "And how is that a good thing?" Scully crossed. "Sometimes you have to let go in bad situations." She grumbled. "And Krycek is the worst of a bad one." "Black and white." Li Ann sighed. "He warned me." "Pardon?" "This thing between us, I want it. You want it, but it's uphill all the way because you insist that everything be black and white, Dana." Li Ann elaborated. "I've been on the shady side of the street ever since I was a kid. That's why I loved Mac. That's why I can understand Alex." She acknowledged. "But white is like a magnet to me as well, you and Vic are proof of that, but we, Alex, Mac and I, we've got all these ambiguous colours in our backgrounds that you can't seem to appreciate." She closed her eyes, emphasising the heavy darkness of her make-up. "I know you want me in your life, you need me and what I represent. Expand the realm of what's acceptable and what's not. You've taken a few baby steps but you're going to have to come a little further." Glossy red hair shook. "Why am I always the one who has to change?" Dana's expression was harsh. "I've bent so far already for you, for Mulder." Li Ann swooped down and placed a kiss on the corner of her companion's mouth, shorting the argument out. Long fingers slid over Dana's shoulders and down her back. "It's your decision, Darling. How about we skip the movie, get some rest, then in the morning you can think it over with a clear head?" A twinge of guilt bit at Li Ann. This was the Alexei way out of an argument and she hated it when he used it on her. Still, if she were going to get dumped, Li Ann would rather have it happen in the morning. "Cheat." The older woman accused. "You argue like a man." "I don't spend enough time with women." Came the excuse. "Maybe you could take me on as a scientific project if you can't deal with me as a lover." Heavy lips brushed over Dana's forehead. Thinking became a chore. "I need you to stop sleeping with Krycek." That demand still managed to emerge. "Maybe we can work on the rest, but I won't share your body with HIM." "In the morning." Li Ann reminded. "How do you feel about brownies in bed?" A black brow lifted devilishly. "Without a plate?" "You said they were rocky road. Ouch." Dana's nose wrinkled. "It's all in the technique." Releasing her lover, Li Ann smiled. "Trust me." ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "What are you looking for Victor?" The inquiry caught the man in question completely by surprise. Victor's gaze, which had been wandering about the dimly lit club, snapped back to his drinking companion. "Nothing really." He lied. "It's an occupational habit. I spent too many years as a cop, then as an agent." He shrugged. "I can't stop scanning the crowd, checking for potential trouble. You must do it too, Mulder, what with all your years at the Bureau." Victor Mansfield turned his half-empty glass absently in his hands. "Right?" A brief chuckle was the immediate response. "You should have figured out by now that I'm hardly a typical example of the best the Bureau has to offer. My paranoia tends to be towards less tangible threats." Mulder took a sip of his now-warm beer. The small blues band had wrapped up a few minutes ago and left the stage. The emotionally loaded silence between the two men had become more pronounced since the music no longer masked it. "So, what are you really looking for?" Mulder repeated the question. A corner of Mansfield's mouth twitched at his insistence, speeding up the older man's heartrate. It was such a temptation to do nothing but stare at Victor's face to the exclusion of all else. Jeez, not the lashes. Mulder protested internally as Mansfield's eyes dropped to the cluttered tabletop. His cock hardened in automatic response to the sight. The younger man leaned slightly forward. "I was wondering if you want? I got us a room tonight." The words blurted out, not in the seductive tone he'd intended but in a rather breathless panic. It didn't get much better than this. There was no sign that they were under surveillance this evening. Victor's extremely obsessive and less than stable brother, Alex, was supposed to be in another country. Lastly, a mission was threatening on the horizon that would drag Vic and the team out of town and away from Mulder. Damn, but he wanted a bed for a change, not the chill interior of one of their cars or the smelly, damp darkness of some out of the way alley or park. There was no way they were ever going to get beyond heavy groping and blowjobs without a locked door and sturdy surface. Neither of them would dare to suggest going back to either of their apartments. Mulder's was probably under constant surveillance by some faction or another and Victor shared a building with a couple of people who might not take Mulder's presence very well. Alex, the most volatile ingredient in the mix, would likely go straight to Mac's apartment when he did come home and it was a mere two stories above his brother's. "You sure?" The federal agent hid his body's enthusiastic tremor of reaction behind reaching for an unwanted handful of peanuts. "Quite. What about you?" Victor Mansfield shifted until he caught Mulder's eye. "Have you got a tight enough grip on who I am and who I'm not?" They'd gone two encounters now without Mulder slipping into reacting to Victor like he would with Alex, Vic's twin. That had been the main stumbling block to their taking their budding relationship any further. A smile lit up the older man's face. "You're fun, gorgeous and just being with you makes me feel good. Your integrity is intoxicating. You're absolutely perfect. Yeah, I think I'm well aware of who you are." His mind no longer had to chant 'NOT KRYCEK, VICTOR!' in the background constantly, but he wasn't about to tell his companion that's what he'd been doing all this time, not right now anyway. Victor's cheeks heated and his head ducked. "I want..." A chuckle gusted out. "Let's get out of here." He rose to his feet. A battered brown leather jacket was snatched off the back of the chair and shrugged on. Victor went out of his way not to wear black around his lover. His jeans were always blue. He avoided stark colours in favour of soft cotton shirts of greens and blues. Victor even left the boots he preferred at home in the closet and wore running shoes instead. "I already booked a room in a place down the street, one that didn't look too sleazy. Come on." Mulder took in the view for a second, denim straining across lean hips, before following suit. All of a sudden he couldn't pull his own coat on fast enough. Mulder followed closely but was careful not to make contact, certain that actual sparks would fly if they accidentally touched. The cold air slapped them as they stepped outside, taking the sharp edge off their nervousness. "You can leave your car here. It's only a block down." Victor tipped his head to the right. A fleeting smile was shot Mulder's way then the younger man led the way. He walked swiftly, confidant that the agent's long legs would close the distance between them easily enough. His breath puffed steam in the chilled air, betraying how shallow and quickly his lungs were working. They traversed the distance to the motel in complete silence. Victor stepped forward as they approached the brightly painted doorway. He dug a key with a bulky plastic fob out of his jacket pocket. Victor then waited with one hand on the knob and caught Mulder's eyes with his own. "What's my name?" His tone was dead serious. "Victor." The older man leaned in. His mouth almost brushed up against the other's diamond earring. "Please Victor. I'm so ready for this. I'm dying for this." The pause lengthened and Mulder had to fight against the impulse to push, knowing the delay was one last test. He would have thrown Krycek face first into the door and torn at his clothes by now. "Vic." His voice was strained. "Come on don't torture me." "I'm sorry." Mansfield whispered. "I just had to know." He shoved the door open. "He said..." "Nothing HE said matters." Mulder assured, following the object of his affection into the dimly lit room, slamming the door behind them. The key landed with a clank on the bedside table. Victor turned in place slowly, shrugging his jacket off and letting it fall to the floor. "Watch me, Mull-dhar." His drawling whisper cut the older man to the core. All Mulder could do was nod and stare. They'd yet to see one another completely nude. Only necessary bits of flesh had been displayed, as the act required. Victor toed off his sneakers one at a time then lifted his feet to pull off his socks. Straightening, he slowly dragged the flat of his hand up across his crotch, letting out a hiss of air at the contact. "Christ Victor." Mulder took a step forward. "No." Came the warning. "Just stand there and watch me, damn it." He pumped his hips slightly and let out a shivery sigh. The spectre constantly loomed between them. Vic realised that he wasn't a match in skill to Alex so he needed to make his own unique impression on Mulder. A bit of rough friction up his zipper sent a quake down his legs. Victor had to pop the top button on his jeans in order to keep breathing. A smooth movement pulled the tail of his shirt out of the waistband of his pants. One by one Victor flicked open the buttons, pausing between each to stroke the skin that the action had revealed. The urge to close his eyes pressed at him but Victor gave in only halfway gazing through heavy lashes. He needed to watch Mulder's reaction to the strip show. "Victor please." The other whispered his plea. "Just let me come a little closer." Mulder inched forward when no refusal was voiced. He stopped just before touching, falling to his knees in front of his lover and inhaling deeply. Victor finished with the shirt buttons and coasted his palms down until they were braced on either side of the taut fabric before Mulder's face. He bowed his back slightly, thrusting forward until he could feel the older man's shallow breath through the damp denim. "Victor." Mulder whispered, provoking a violent tremor when his bottom lip made accidental contact. "Take your pants off." He requested. "No." Strong fingers shifted to tickle Mulder's nose. "You do it." Victor suggested. The jarring trill of a cell phone startled them apart. "Fuck!" The younger almost fell over in surprise. Mulder, knocked back on his heels, dragged absently at his jacket to locate the source of the noise. When the ring came again he glared at Victor's discarded coat. "It's yours." He frowned. "Ignore it." "I can't." Victor scrambled after the intruding presence. "It wouldn't ring if it wasn't important." Everyone knew he disliked the cell phone. "Yeah." He fumbled, almost dropping the thing. "What is it?" "Viktor darling." A feminine purr slipped into his ear. "You need to come home. Right now." The faint Russian accent in her voice was enough to send a trickle of fear down Victor's spine. That one of the core family members would call HIM rather than the house boded no good. "Catherine?" He tested. "Riene." She specified. All four of the Catherines sounded identical. "Mac is back. Kiska, Alexei and Anastasia are here at the house too. Something very big has suddenly up, Viktor sweetie. Get yourself home right away." "Alex is home?" He sat down hard on the edge of the bed, tossing a nervous, involuntary look at the door to the unlocked motel room. Mulder was frowning up at his lover. Those simple words had the power to destroy everything he was desperate to experience this evening. "I'll be home in..." Victor began. The promise was cut off. Mulder lunged forward, grabbing after the phone. "Don't! Please." His tone was frantic. "Don't you leave me like this." Distressed shouts were coming from the dropped cell phone. Victor grabbed it with one hand, laying the fingertips of the other against Mulder's heavy lips. "It's okay. Hush." He cautioned, raising the phone. "I'll be home in three hours. That's the best I can do." Pushing the disconnect button silenced Riene's protests. Mulder wrapped his arms around Victor's waist and buried his face into warm, bare flesh. "Thank you." The words blurred into kisses on the hot skin. "...left me like this...think I'd die. You could never be so cruel." Mulder's mouth dragged up as the kneeling man straightened himself out. "Not my sweet Victor." Teeth threatened to mark but never actually pressed hard enough to break the younger man's skin. "Mulder, first lock the door, then get your gear off." Victor suggested. He wanted the slick sensation of bare skin that they had yet to feel. Those changeable eyes were blurred with need but eventually the words penetrated. Mulder shoved reluctantly away. He crossed the room in three steps and was back again before Victor had time to catch his breath. Mulder pulled off his clothing with a hurried lack of artistry and practically threw himself down beside his lover. "I'm not going anywhere, not for a little while." Victor assured the other. "Relax." "I just..." Mulder shook his head and set to skinning the ex-cop out of his jeans. When the frantic actions grew too rough Victor attempted to help, only to find himself shoved back down on the mattress. "Ease up!" The younger man protested loudly, bucking his lover off. Mulder froze in place at the sharp complaint. "God, I'm sorry." He rolled off to land down beside Victor on the mattress. His hands dropped flat on the rough bedspread. "I'm sorry. Don't leave. Please, don't leave." "Just take it easy." Victor shifted up onto one elbow and leaned over his lover. "Relax. We're gonna do this, you and me. Victor Mansfield. Remember me." He smiled briefly then bent to take a kiss, pleased when Mulder accepted the brief contact without grabbing and trying to hold him down despite the trembling he saw in the older man's hands. "It's okay to touch me." Victor allowed. Mulder's hand came up cautiously, resting against Victor's neck to keep him from pulling too far away. The delicate touch at his neck held him over Mulder, forcing their eyes to meet. "Please Victor." "I've got you." The younger man squirmed down just a bit and he lowered his mouth to the curve of Mulder's shoulder. His parted lips brushed over the skin provoking shivers of anticipation. First Victor painted his lover's throat with damp kisses then his mouth moved to tease across hard nipples. When his teeth threatened playfully Mulder's breath caught and held. "I'm not going to hurt you." Vic murmured into the other's chest. "Whatever you want." Mulder offered with a moan. "No pain." Victor insisted. His fingers skimmed the older man's chest, soothing. "That's not us." He sucked at a nipple making Mulder's breath hitch with pleasure. Victor looked up through his lashes to enjoy the sight of his lover's flushed face. He pulled off with a faint chuckle of amusement. "You like?" "Oh yeah." "Pay attention. It gets better." Victor wiggled even lower, dragging his mouth along skin as he went. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ They were waiting for Victor when he let himself in the front door. He hadn't even closed the outside entrance when Mac's door opened at the top of the stairs. "Victor, c'mon up here." Li Ann called down. "Let me just get cleaned up and changed." "No." Another head poked out. "You'll just have to shower again when we're done with you anyway." Anastasia, Alex's foster sister, argued. "Come." She commanded imperiously before disappearing. An urge to ignore the order had to be fought down. Stacey was obnoxious but her presence indicated serious business. Alex's adopted family wasn't much for hollow social visits. Victor wasn't prepared for the view when Li Ann finally caught his hand and drew him into Mac's living room. Alex sat, bare to the waist, backward on a metal kitchen chair. Two identical teenage girls hovered over him. The first of the petite, dark-haired beauties was just stepping away from Victor's brother to lay aside a buzzing razor. She flicked it off and dropped it into Mac's outstretched hand. "I hate it." Mac criticised immediately, his attention locked on Alex's newly shorn, newly midnight black hair. Alexei looked up at the complaint, his brow furrowed with dismay. "It'll grow out soon enough." The slender girl shrugged, negligently petting Alexei's slightly damp hair. He leaned blindly into the caress. "It's easier than trying to match an existing..." The explanation faded out as she noticed the new arrival. A smile broke across her lips like dawn. "You must be Viktor." Bottomless, dark framed eyes devoured him. She crossed the room with the slinkiest prowl Victor had ever seen a female use. He could practically see Alex's training in the girl's every move. "I'm Riene. We've talked." She sidled right up to his chest, bringing her face close enough to smell the sweat and sex on him. Victor took a step back, bumping into Li Ann. The four Catherines were the second tier of the Romanov family hierarchy. He'd seen a picture of one of them about a year ago. That image didn't do credit to the living girl standing in front of him. This tiny beauty absolutely burned his eyes despite having just come from Mulder's bed. She was also, Victor reminded himself, still a teenager. "Riene." He extended a hand. "I'm pleased to finally meet you." Inky, green-black eyes glanced down then dismissed the offered gesture in favour of pushing snug and hooking her wrists behind his neck. She used the grip to lift herself and meld her mouth to his. The girl's tongue darted between Victor's surprised lips. With a yelp of distress Victor shoved, knocking the teenager away. Disbelief brought his brows together and he wiped at his mouth with the back of his hand. "Yum." Riene whispered. "You taste like Lexi too. That's what took you so long, right? Who were you fucking around with, Viktor?" "Shh." His hands gestured. Li Ann looked from the young girl to her ex-lover with a frown of annoyance. She had been close enough to hear the question. "Sukin syn, Kiska!" Alexei snapped, breaking into the suggestive situation. "That hurts." Victor looked over, pushing past Riene to get a better sight of what the other Catherine was doing to his twin brother. "Big baby." The girl accused, scolding, as she stepped back. The light glinted off the brand new jewellery that hooped through Alex's ear. "Oh shit." Victor cursed, suddenly realising what was occurring. An empty chair was placed right at Alex's side waiting for Victor. "It's important." Li Ann caught hold of his arm and urged him into the centre of all the activity. "They wouldn't insist if it wasn't so important. I appreciate what it means to you that there be some differences between you." Any of the others he would have evaded but Victor allowed his former fiancee to ease off his jacket and settle him down into the chair beside his twin brother. "No. No way." Victor protested as he saw Riene pick up a bottle of black liquid from the nearby coffee table. "Lives are in the balance." Li Ann bent down and with a brief pinch removed the diamond stud from Victor's ear. "Thousands of lives." "We need two identical teams." Anastasia cut into the conversation. Her long pointed fingernails flicked from Riene to the other Catherine. "You and Kiska. Alexei and Riene." She said. "We need you to be Aleksandr Nicolavich and we need the pair of you to be 'absolutely' identical." She repeated. "What are you going to do? Cut off my arm?" Victor snipped then instantly regretted the flippant remark when he noticed Alex's pained flinch. "No, but we will need to brace and wrap it so it moves and feels more like Lexi's, through your shirt at least." Stacey said calmly. "And leather gloves will be the order of the day." Alex was seldom seen without a pair of black gloves in public to minimise the chance of his handicap from being noticed. Riene flicked a large towel once, then moved to wrap it around Victor's shoulders. "The dye will wash out in about a month." She leaned closer than she needed to tuck the fabric into his collar. ''Should we pierce his nipple so he sets off the metal detectors properly?" The girl teased, holding him down when the joke threatened to raise him out of the chair. "Hah. Hah." Victor tried to sound unaffected. Fingers slipped through his hair reminding him so much of what Mulder had done to him not two hours ago that he had to shiver in reaction. "Not so much to cut off this time." Riene observed. "What's going on? What's the mission?" Victor asked Alex. His twin was more likely to know all and tell the most. Anastasia hated giving up information. Mac and Li Ann wouldn't likely have as many details. "Aleksandr Nicolavich..." Alex began, referring to one of his many aliases. "...received an invitation to bid on a set of computer discs." He noticed Stacey's annoyed moue of disapproval but continued on regardless. "I'm Aleksandr Nicolavich in old guard European circles. 'Nicola's protégé' to her old time associates." He explained. "A contact has offered me the chance to buy the complete personnel files of the British secret service and Interpol. The American DEA, CIA and FBI are also up for grabs as well as a few other organisations." "Personnel files? As in names and addresses of all their employees?" Victor hissed half in reaction to the news and half because cold liquid had just been poured over his scalp. "As well as service records, clearance levels and personal information like next of kin and health reports." "He's yanking your chain." Victor protested. "I'd believe if it was only one organisation, but..." "This man." Alexei let out a calming breath. "He isn't the type to promise things he can't deliver. He's been in the business since Nicki's time in the trenches. He's a cold war graduate." The Russian scratched at his nose, brushing away bits of hair clippings. "We can't afford not to take him seriously." "And what are Nicki's intentions?" Victor wiggled as gloved fingers rubbed through his hair. "Are we trying to buy the discs?" The Catherine, Kiska, who stood off to one side, let out a bark of amusement. "We can't afford to buy them all. Nicolavich has been invited with the expectation that he will want the Interpol files." "We're going to steal them." Alexei said softly. "All of them. It's just going to take a colourful mix of deception and confusion to accomplish the task while maintaining Aleksandr Nicolavich's impeccable reputation within that community." Victor looked around the room. Li Ann had settled on the couch, her hands clasp in front of her. She nodded her encouragement, sensing what his next question was. "To what end purpose, Alex?" Victor looked right into his twin's eyes as he voiced the question. When the other threatened to look away Victor narrowed his own eyes in warning. "What are we going to do with the files once we have them, brother of mine?" "Lexi!" Stacey warned from somewhere off to one side. Victor didn't dare release Alexei's gaze even to blink. "Sell them?" The ex-cop prompted as the other squirmed in discomfort. "I don't know." Alex finally admitted. "You've got to find out, Lexi." Victor said softly, using the nickname on purpose. "Or maybe we should just tell Mulder. He'll be on one of those lists." Vic reminded. A thin, venomous stream of Russian profanity nibbled at the edges of the connection Victor had pulled his twin into. It sounded as if Anastasia was nearly spitting with anger. "Alex." The ex-cop whispered to hold the other's attention. "We can't do this for profit, to sell the information on the open market. Think about it, Alex." He repeated. "Victor's right." Li Ann joined the effort now that the topic she had been impatiently waiting to breach was opened. "We need more information about Nicola's intentions, Lexi, my love." She coaxed sweetly. Much to Stacey's frustration, Alex looked decidedly confused. His eyes darted back and forth between the two factions and his eyebrows had drawn together until they almost met. "It's not really our place." Sharp teeth bit into his bottom lip. "These people and their families would be exposed. It isn't right. I can see stealing them to secure them, but if Nicola is planning on something else?" Li Ann persisted. By herself she hadn't dared to call the head of the their family's motives into question but between her and Victor, Li Ann was certain they could ground Alex. "We need to know her intentions." "Nicki doesn't need to explain herself." Anastasia snapped. "She knows what's best." "It can't hurt to ask?" Mac joined the cause. His own loose sense of morality kicked in now that his partners had pointed out the problem. "I mean, Alex and Victor are taking the risk. The least she could do is give them a rough idea of what her big picture is." Stacey flipped into Russian, needing to take the argument out of the control of Alexei's playmates. Kiska seconded her mentor, Anastasia. Alexei countered in a less than convincing tone. He fidgeted under Kiska and Stacey's intense scrutiny. The idea of disagreeing with his sister was an almost physically painful situation. Anastasia was such a commanding figure in psyche. He shifted uncomfortably. Stacey crossed her arms, glaring at Li Ann and Victor. Mac wasn't a problem. Challenging Mac's sense of fun and adventure invariably shorted out any ethical doubts the young man was troubled with. It also helped that Mac was slavishly devoted to Alexei's sexuality. But Anastasia was learning to actively dislike Victor's twin and the oriental woman. They were a dangerous influence on him. "Alex." Victor ran a calming stroke down his twin's arm, attempting to pull the disagreement back into his realm of understanding. "In English, please." "Victor's my real brother." He switched languages, complying without thought to the physical persuasion. "And he does have a valid point." Alexei pushed up off the chair and groped after a cell phone. "Riene, finish up Victor. I'm just going to make a quick call." He confirmed the phone was his own and set to pushing the unfamiliar code to reach the recently occupied family compound. "Fine." Stacey threw up her hands. "Piss Nicki off. It's your pretty hide, Lexi-baby. But if you can't trust Nicki, who can you trust?" "But I just want to know what we're going to do with the information once we have it." Alex hesitated with his finger on the last digit, looking miserable. "It's a righteous question." Victor supported. "Nicki's not stupid." Anastasia turned all her attention on Victor. "Some of it may get sold. It's what we do. But you can be sure her buyers will be carefully chosen. That's more than you can expect from the old bastard who's running the auction." "So you're saying that we're the lessor of two evils. That's not good enough." Victor complained. "We could always turn the discs over to the authorities. I could call Mulder and Scully." He trailed off at the sight of the snarl those names brought to Anastasia's face. "I'm getting so sick of hearing about that damned man." She began, but the tirade cut off when she noticed the look of dismay on her foster brother's face. He took it personally when Stacey dumped on his favourite Federal agent. "Besides your pet drones would have to pass the lists up the food chain." Came the reminder. Her tone dripped bitterness. "Of course, we all know that officials would never take advantage of each other's lists, or that leaks don't exist. Garbage. We don't have time for this." Stacey persisted. "Call Nicki, Alex." Li Ann urged delicately, crossing the room to wrap her arms about the confused Russian's shoulders. It was a cheat, she knew, but now wasn't the time to waffle over the ethics of using the flaws that his harsh upbringing, had created. It was Nicki's own fault that Alexei was so receptive to this kind of persuasion. The physical contact soothed him immediately. "Just explain to her that we'd like to have some input on the distribution of the information. That's not much to ask. We'll earn as much with our share of the work on this project." Alexei practically burrowed into the contact. Not daring to meet Stacey's frigid stare, Alex completed the call. "Eh-ta Alexei." Li Ann squeezed his good arm to bolster his confidence and smiled. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Mulder and Scully were crushed into a spot near the rear of a crowded surveillance van. The hum of electronics all about them was almost as annoying as the trails of sweat that ran down their foreheads and inside their clothes. Mulder couldn't help but wish he had waited to put on the kevlar and F.B.I. windbreaker that had been thrust at him but AD Skinner's authoritative frown had suggested otherwise. He didn't dare make any cracks about the situation either. Skinner had greeted his last remark about the air-conditioning with a curt 'save it Agent Mulder' and a glare. "Movement." The agents huddled over the video equipment all shifted awkwardly, making room for the Assistant Director to see the specified monitor. "Another limo." One of them said aloud for the benefit of everyone who couldn't see what was happening. "How original." Scully murmured in a voice too soft to reach anyone but her partner after making sure her microphone was pushed well back. Mulder smiled. She had been tossed off pace far worse than him but she recovered twice as quickly. AD Skinner had sent for them just as they were leaving for the day. They barely recognised anyone on the task force that they had been drafted into. Far too many of the other FBI agents looked as green as new grass. Mulder suspected it was a matter of trust. "One arrival." The default announcer supplied, into his mike as well as to the occupants of the lead van. "He's approaching the entrance. Caucasian. Late fifties." "Aren't they all?" Mulder tried to duplicate the tone of voice Scully had gotten away with. He failed. Skinner's laser beam glasses flashed his way in the subdued light. Mulder kept from flinching, barely. He really was trying to behave, wanting to remind everyone that he was good for more than jockeying a telephone and poking about fertiliser stockpiles. If Skinner would just take them back from AD Kersh's control permanently, Mulder was certain their situation inside the Bureau would improve. At least it couldn't get any worse. "He's pissed about the hand scanner, no surprise there." Every one of the attendees had balked upon sighting the fingerprint equipment. "He's waving his invitation in the guard's face." The tech said. "This is an absolute dream come true." He commented on the system. Discovering the location and purpose of the gathering had been a gold mine. That so many organisations were willing to pool their resources and share the bust-in-the-making was extraordinary. When Interpol's hackers managed to worm their way into the mainframe of the building's security system most of the people involved decide that there was a god and he was smiling down on this joint venture. "These guards are amazing. They haven't lost their cool once." The comment came. "Guard one isn't budging. The perp is settling." The perfection of Roderick Stalward's security system was now the most powerful tool the combined task force had ever laid hands on. Stalward's paranoia would assure that every criminal attending the auction would be identified and accounted for by the united forces waiting to swoop down on them. "And there's the hand-print. Gotcha." Necks strained waiting for the delicate series of up-links and connections to relay the identity of the man their attention focused on. "The CIA is calling on this one, Sir." The young woman sitting nearest Skinner's left hand covered the mouthpiece of her equipment. "We've got an open file. His name is Quentin Page. But we've nothing solid we can pin on the man." "They can have him." The Assistant Director allowed after a brief glance at the information on the database screen. "What are we up to...in number of claims?" He asked aloud. "Seven for sure. Two in dispute." Scully provided promptly. Mulder mouthed 'suck-up' but he was privately proud of his partner's quick response. Skinner nodded. They still had a few agents to spare but, then again, participants were still arriving. "He's strapped." Someone provided. "Christ that equipment is sensitive. It's picking up a heart murmur on the guy." The man marvelled. Each of the attendees was given a sealed on bracelet that monitored their heartbeat and location in side Stalward's building. "He's the CIA's problem." Skinner reminded. "We don't need to monitor him. Clear that device for the next arrival. Who's still free?" He looked about, checking to see which agents weren't glued to the screen of a hand held tracer. "Diaz and O'Conner in van two." Came the response over everyone's earpiece. Dana flicked her mike forward and made sure it was on. "Mulder and Scully. Van one." She announced to everyone including her temporary supervisor. "Hackett and Pinkerton. Van two." Another female voice crackled in their ears. Skinner looked down the list of felons that they had laid claim to. If no one else that they wanted showed up he intended to shift one of the newer teams to back up another and hand Isaak Colton off to Mulder and Scully. That slippery son of a bitch might be a bit too much for an inexperienced team. Skinner regretted having to use so many rookies on this job but he couldn't risk a move of this magnitude on anyone he didn't trust implicitly. All in all the lot of them were steady enough considering how the assignment had ambushed and pulled them from all over the Bureau. "No way." A whisper of disbelief came from one of the monitor jockeys. "What?" Skinner demanded, bending. "It's got to be just passing by." The agent began. "Nope. It's a motorcycle and it's heading for the door. Two riders." "DEA." Someone muttered over the radio. "No chatter." Skinner warned. He peered at the screen that showed the outside steps. "Two riders dismounting." Agent Caspian took up the play by play yet again. "One male. One female. Both are Caucasian, dark-haired and dressed in leather. The male is maybe early-thirties. The girl is young. A teenager, I'd say." Puzzled looks came from all about the stuffy van. "At the doors. Inside." Caspian moved his attention to a different monitor. "The guards are not impressed. Ah...we have an invitation. Guard one is calling for verification. Guard two is leering at the girl." "I don't blame him." Another viewer peering intently down at the screen mumbled, earning a hard look from Skinner. "Guard one is off the phone." Caspian swallowed a smile without a hiccup. "I think motorcycle man just figured out the palm scanner. He's going ballistic. Christ." The tech squinted hard. "I think the perp is carrying. That's a first." Every other attendee had come unarmed according to the barrage of metal detectors that they had been required to pass through. "Definitely DEA." The mutter was repeated in another voice. "I think he's getting the 'take a hike if you don't like the rules' speech." Agent Caspian continued. "The perp is handing over a gun. Guard two's got out the wand." He paused. "We have strip search." Caspian chuckled before recalling who stood beside him. "No, I was wrong there. Just the shirt is getting pulled open." He corrected. "Ouch. The perp just clocked guard two on the chin. Two's shaking it off." He frowned. "The girl is palm printing." A few tense breaths of silence filled the van. "Nothing." The female agent informed them. Her head cocked to one side. "Nobody wants her, Sir." The radio in her ear was silent. Skinner nodded, watching the reception room. Something about the way the suspect stood seemed familiar but the clarity of the picture left much to be desired. "Motorcycle man is still trying to avoid the print ID. Guard one is back on the phone. No clemency. One is pointing. It's give the print or use the door time. Come on, butch, do it. Uh...sorry Sir. He's pulling his glove off. We have contact." The database monitor lit up like a Christmas tree three seconds later. "SIR?" Skinner whirled, seeing the name in his head almost before he read it off the screen. "Jesus Christ. Call it Agent!" The Assistant Director roared. She tried to obey, shouting into they system that connected all the different agencies. "Interpol, DEA, CIA, British secret service, even the rep from the RCMP is screaming Mr Skinner. What do I do, Sir?" Skinner straightened up. "Mulder, Scully, Diaz, O'Conner. Your target is Alex Krycek. Get him for us if you have to mow through everyone to reach him. Lock your locators in as soon as they bracelet him. Hackett and Pinkerton. Tune into that girl Krycek brought in with him. The rest of you defer to Mulder and Scully's experience with this man." "We have a heartbeat, Sir. It's racing." Scully accepted the tiny computer they passed to the back of the van. Mulder looked down at the small graph with blips running across it. "He'll ditch the bracelet." Mulder said with his fingers covering his mic. "Krycek won't let them track him like this." His nerves were more than matching their target's level of excitement. "He's in there unarmed. If he does ditch it it's open season and there's guards all over." She responded in the same fashion. "They'll have his last location and something tells me his tag will be monitored closely after that scene he just pulled." "Diaz." Mulder went back on air, braving Skinner's glower of warning. "Hackett. Join agent Scully on channel six." He took one half of each partnership private. Scully inclined his head in approval and switched over her own radio. "Check in." She requested of them. "Hackett here." A young woman's voice offered. "Diaz." Came a man's. "You need to know what we're up against." Scully began. "Alex Krycek is a completely amoral killer who will do anything to anyone to preserve his own skin." She warned. Her eyes flicked over her own partner as she listened to them relaying words. Mulder was all but vibrating with contained energy. She knew how he felt. If Krycek was here, so close to Atlantic City, then there was a better than average chance that Li Ann was ghosting about somewhere behind the scenes. They had parted on less than amicable terms the other night and this definitely wasn't the stage Dana would have chosen for their next, crucial interaction. "Agent Mulder will take point when the time comes to approach the target." Krycek might cut her down without blinking, but if Li Ann was to be believed Mulder was safe from harm. He looked away, wiping absently at a trickle of sweat to cover some of his discomfort with Scully's weighing gaze. "That would be safest." He admitted, concentrating on the monitor she held. His mind continued to howl Krycek's name, but he managed to keep evidence of his disturbance off his face. Oh fuck, Victor went out for a big job. Alex came home for the same job. His lover couldn't be too far away. Li Ann and Mac too if they kept to pattern. Oh please don't let Victor be mixed up in this, Mulder wished desperately. Concentrate, damn it. Krycek's heartrate had slowed down but it still wasn't normal and he was moving. It was Alex in there, not Victor. They had proof positive, fingerprints. It was Alex. "Hackett. Diaz." Scully pursed her lips. "Get next to each other. Let us know if the girl separates from Krycek." She covered her mic. "Why would Krycek bring a bimbo to something like this? As a human shield?" "That's a bit harsh, Scully." He had forgotten to muffle the reply. "No chatter on the air." Skinner grouched. With a sheepish look Mulder flicked off his microphone. "I don't think so. She must serve a purpose. He's a lot of things, but he's not a stupid man." Scully nodded, bound to agree. "One of his sisters?" "She's too young. I got the impression the women he worked with were all older than him, besides, I suspect any member of Krycek's extended family would set off alarms, with Interpol, if nowhere else." "Agent Scully." Diaz' voice interrupted. "O'Conner says you're a doctor." "Pathologist." She amended. "Krycek's heartrate, it's higher than the girl's and it's not settling down to the same level." Diaz questioned vaguely. "Nerves?" Hackett suggested. "Could be." Scully examined the information that the palm-sized tracer was providing. Their target was now in the centre of the building. A glance across at another screen showed roughly their man in a similar position. A blueprint was tossed their way. "Everyone is gathering in some kind of convention room and staying there." One of the other Agents explained. "Not our target." Scully countered a few minutes later. "Krycek's moving. "So is the girl." Hackett offered. "With him." "Does anyone else have movement?" Mulder asked, earning nothing but denials. "He's up to something Scully." She fumbled with the blueprint. "I can't place him exactly...he's not far down..." Her finger trailed over the detailed plans. She circled a bit of the hallway absently. "A closet of some kind maybe." She guessed, fighting the urge to shake the tracer in an attempt to get more information. "Pulse rate jump." Diaz mentioned. "On the girl too." "Maybe the guards are hassling them." Mulder suggested. They waited for the blips to either end suddenly or slow down but neither occurred. Instead the moving lights showed an inevitable rise. "If they were fighting with someone?" He asked. "It's too gradual. Too..." Scully's cheeks suddenly flooded with colour. "Hackett, is the girl's pulse-rate even with Krycek's yet?" It couldn't be. "It's not as fast, but it is up there." "Scully?" Mulder questioned when the silence stretched on too long. Krycek's heart was continuing to speed up. "What do you think?" Her tone was a whisper. "I think they're having sex." Scully finally admitted with a certain amount of distaste. Jesus, the man had all the restraint of an alley cat. A couple of snorts came from the other teams. Hackett spoke first. "The girl is up, but not as far. If that's what's happening he's not very good." She criticised. "Is a blow job from a juvenile statutory rape?" Mulder wondered aloud causing a few agents to stare in their direction. "Krycek's skirting a cardiac arrest." Scully marvelled. "The girl must..." She couldn't finish the sentence. Christ, where was her mind these days. Li Ann must have set some kind of contamination in place. It was rotting her brain from the inside out. "Mulder." She frowned at the rapidly moving blips. "He's going to stroke out." Her announcement had even Skinner looking their way now. Scully's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Flatline!" Mulder almost screamed, shaking his head in disbelief. "NO. No." Scully grabbed at one crumbled sleeve, steadying her partner. "He's back. What the hell was that?" the red-haired agent lifted her eyes to discover the two of them were the centre of attention. "Sorry sir." "Is your target all right?" Skinner asked calmly. "Yes Sir." She wondered if it was possible to melt into the metal of the back door that they sat against. The Assistant Director's chin shifted abruptly as if he was loosening a crick in his neck then he returned his attention to the overpowering flood of information laid out before him. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Alexei took one look at the palm scanner beside the reception desk and considered walking out. There was a chance that Victor and Kiska could still pull off the job if he and Riene blew it off. "It's Mr Stalward's orders." The uniformed goon stared across, implacable as a brick wall." "I'm not giving you my prints." Alex decided, thrusting his chin forward and glaring the other man down. His good hand cut the air violently. "No fucking way. If Stalward wants my money then you'd best stand aside." His upper lip curled. "Aleksandr." Riene said softly, her eyes taking in the unfavourable odds. "Boot't'ih ah-stah-rohzh-nuh." "Nyet! Yah doo-muh-yoo, shtuh-nyet." He shook his head, lifting his voice. "If you morons think I'm going to hand over my fucking fingerprints for you to do Christ-knows-what with you're even stupider than you look. Now get out of my way or I'll turn the lot of you into cold meat." Alexei's threat ended in a full-voiced shout. His gun was out of his holster and in his hand in an eye-blink. "Stand aside, Frankenstein." Alex aimed right between the guard's eyes. "As to your prints, Mr Stalward collected them some time ago. They are already entered into our database. This is just confirmation that you are who you say you are." The target reasoned. "And killing me won't open the door." "No? But it'll make me feel better." The second gatekeeper interrupted. "You were told to come unarmed, Sir." The cool behaviour of these men on infuriated Alexei more. "We will return your weapon when you leave." The guard Alex was pointing his gun at calmly extended his hand. "If you don't wish to comply with guidelines that Mr Stalward laid out you're welcome to leave, Sir." His head inclined to the outer doors. "But you will not get passed this point armed and unidentified." Alex let out an annoyed huff of air. He thumbed the safety on and let the pistol curl forward on his finger. If that bastard of a guard even attempted to look smug he was going to loose a tooth. Goon one took Alexei's weapon while the other came over to swing a metal detector over Alex. Of course the thing went nuts. "You're still carrying." The guard swept the Russian's chest and left arm to illustrate his point. The equipment whined annoyingly. Alex reached across his chest and tore open the domes on his shirt. "Metal buttons." He shoved the material back of his shoulders and down, exposing both his nipple ring and the joint of his artificial arm to the guard's view. "Some things I just can't throw in the dish with my keys." He snapped. "All I had was the gun." A smirk blossomed on goon two's face. "I guess you are unarmed." Alex's swung without thinking, sick to death of that joke. His right fist connected with a satisfying rush of pain. "We don't want any trouble." Riene spoke up, trying to draw some attention away before this got even nastier. She paced over and dropped her hand onto the glass screen. Still rubbing his jaw, the second guard walked over to look at the computer screen. "She wasn't invited." He announced gravely, as if that was some kind of surprise. "Well DAH!" Alexei straightened out his clothes. "You get Stalward down here. He'll fix this misunderstanding. I'm Aleksandr Nicolavich, damn it. I don't need to do this." He gestured to the scanner. "And if I feel like bringing a toy along, it's allowed." "Mr Stalward will greet you inside. Your 'property'" Riene drew lecherous scrutiny from both the men. "will remain here until you leave. We'll take good care of it." Goon two looked about ready to start licking his chops. "Get him on the phone then, you imbecile. Let me talk to him and I'll fix it." Alex didn't completely understand his own hesitation at offering up his fingerprints. It's not like his prints weren't scattered over the world and catalogued in dozens of places but this whole set-up struck him as hinky. "Mr Stalward permits you to bring your lady friend inside." The guard sat down the telephone after only a brief interchange. "But there are no exceptions on the security procedures. Bracelet the 'lady', Calvert." The second guard approached Riene, his sore chin forgotten in order to admire the way the leather pants she wore wrinkled and strained over her narrow hips. "What's this?" Riene asked softly as her wrist was lifted and encircled by tight flexible plastic. "Just something to keep track of your movements while you're visiting us." The uniformed man's fingers lingered, stroking up the inside of her wrist as he tightened the flexible band until it almost but didn't quite dig into her skin. "Ooo! Look Alek." Riene held up the device. "I saw something like this on a nature show. They want to monitor if we migrate." "Fuck." Alex stood before the scanner, even more hesitant about getting inside through the front door. He and the trio should have tried a straight up 'break and enter'. "You can always leave." Goon one reminded him. "I hate this." Alex pulled off his right glove with his teeth and slapped his hand down. "Remind me to rip Stalward a new hole when this is over, Bodkin." "Don't mind Alek. He's just a bit tense." Riene flirted to downplay Alexei's foul behaviour. Alex watched through slitted eyes as the first guard nodded at the identification that followed, then took the device that attached the locator cuff from his partner. "If you take this off while you're still in the building it will set off alarms and our people will be instructed to shoot to kill. We're monitoring your heartrate, Sir. We will know within seconds of the bracelet's removal." He warned. Alexei's sneer grew more vicious but he refrained from snapping. Kiska and Victor should be waiting inside. The mission and how to elude this tracking system now took their places in the forefront of his thoughts. "Come on Bodkin." Alex opened his arm absently and felt Riene slip up against him. They made their way into the interior, security doors slamming shut behind them. While Alexei guided their path Riene fussed and examined the strap around her wrist. The girl concluded in Russian. The place was crawling with security guards, all holding tracers and radio connected to each other by the looks of it. Alex grumbled, continuing on in the same language. Green eyes took on a bit more focus. Riene rose up to her tiptoes to nibble at Alexei's ear. Her hand slid down his stomach to cup his crotch. "That's my girl." He praised, pulling her through the thin crowd to where Stalward stood near a buffet table. "It's young Nicolavich." The gaunt old man offered up a smile so sharp that it cut the air. "I'm so glad you could join us this afternoon. How is you enchanting mentor, Nicola, son?" He asked. His gaze flicked down Alex and up Riene with a faintly sour expression creeping onto his face. "Resting in the southern warmth." Alexei lied. "Retirement agrees with her. She's never been so comfortable. She sends her compliments on your 'impressive' choice of merchandise. When will the bidding begin?" Stalward turned to the old man beside him. "You see the impatience of today's youth. Thirty years ago I would have been criticised for not turning this in to a weekend affair. We'd be gathering a casino in Monte Carlo, chatting over cocktails and squiring beautiful ladies about the blackjack tables." He sighed. "Nicola in a floor-length sapphire gown was a sight to make a grown man weep. She sets us a good example. I grow weary of the game, don't you Kruegar?" "I resent having to come to this filthy city. New York is a toilet." His portly companion complained. "You should have done this in Switzerland." Alexei, sensing a dismissal, drew Riene away. He guided her confidently enough although he made a show of peering about curiously as if unfamiliar with the building. The teenager set herself to providing entertainment for the guards watching them. Her fingers wandered and Riene clung, squirming against his legs and hips. Her escort made sure that the nearest sentry was concentrating on them before sliding a fingertip over her brightly painted lips, pressing. Riene obligingly sucked the digit in with a dramatic moan of pleasure. "Impressive Bodkin." Alex murmured, stepping closer to his destination. "You want impressive? Let me crawl in with you and Mac one of these evenings and I'll show you what I'm capable of." She offered in a low seductive tone. Teeth snapped at his cheek. "Oh Baby." Riene said loudly, grinding against him. "You know what soaks my panties." The observing guard laughed as Alex grabbed after the doorknob that was now digging into his back. "Knock if they start the auction, will you Sport?" The Russian requested casually, dragging Riene into the closest. "Turn on the light, Alek. I want to see you." Her palm scraped the wall to the left of the door as they shoved the portal closed. "Tight quarters." Riene's voice dropped down to a more normal level. "Rattle the door a little, Bodkin." Alex suggested, easing her against it. He then picked up a mop and popped up a ceiling tile a couple of times. On the third lift eager fingers caught the edge and pulled it aside. Kiska dropped down out of the darkness a few breaths later. Victor followed close behind her, landing awkwardly, his balance thrown off by his strapped arm. "Shh." Alex warned, motioning Victor to join Riene in creaking the door. "Take a look at this." He presented his encircled wrist for Kiska's inspection. "Location and heartrate they claim." His lips were right at the girl's ears. "Can you and Victor do the work while Riene and I run interference down here?" "Victor's good, Lexi, but..." She fiddled with the locking mechanism on the cuff. "At last contact Stacey and your thieves told us that there are altogether too many unmarked vans about for such a deserted neighbourhood. If one of you has to be tied to a surveillance device I'd rather it was Victor. Besides..." Her voice dropped even lower. She hid the declaration in Russian, worried about the ex-cop having an attack of conscience. "So what do we do?" Alex shook his wrist. "Your heartrate huh?" Kiska smiled and pushed, shoving Alex up just to the left of Victor. "Riene." She whispered. "Give our Lexi a blow job. Victor, give me your right hand, please." Victor's mouth opened to protest but nothing emerged. He simple watched, wide-eyed, as the teenage girl dropped obediently to her knees and began tugging at Alex's black jeans. "This needs to be shattering Lexi-honey." Kiska elaborated. Her face was the only thing that separated the twins. "Let that perverted mind of yours run wild." She instructed. Her left hand trailed down Alex's good arm, catching and lifting his hand then she looked to Victor. "This is important, cousin." Kiska stroked her right hand up the black leather of Victor's jacket. "Turn a little, Vicka darling." She requested, catching at his right hand. Very carefully, wary of Victor protesting, Kiska brought their palms together. "What the hell?" The ex-cop's expression was confused. "Hush." Kiska warned. "They're listening outside the door." Came the gentle reminder. "THIS needs to go..." She presented Alex's bracelet to his twin. "Here." Kiska kissed Victor's wrist as she pulled off his right glove. "Fuck!" The curse hissed out of Victor. This was not something he was comfortable participating in. He would have pulled his hand away but Alex's grip tightened. "Give it up, Lexi-honey." Kiska encouraged, manipulating Alex and Victor's joined hands so the knuckles didn't stand out so prominently. She wiggled the bracelet's lock about until it was easily visible then pulled out a delicate lockpick. Riene's harsh breathing stalled out for a moment and Alex let out a low groan. His lips spilled urgent, unintelligible speech. "Tell me when you're close, Lexi." Kiska requested, poking at the tiny lock. "Victor." Alex gasped out, demanding the other's attention. "Look at me." "Jeez Alex." His brother complained. "I can't." Victor stared up at the pitted ceiling. Bad enough to stand here holding hands while far- too-young Riene performed the erotic service...He had to look away. "Vicka please." Alex pleaded, tugging at the hand he gripped The movement caused Kiska to hiss that he 'be still'. She needed just the right moment before interrupting the heart monitor's signal. "Make some noise for the audience, Lexi-darling." No doubt the guards on the other side of the door had reported the situation and were watching their tracers as well as eavesdropping. Riene yanked his jeans down further so she could get a hand on his ass. His head thumped impatiently against the door. "S'not enough." Alexei croaked out. "Not enough to explain a flatline." He realised what Kiska had in mind. "What do you need, Darling?" Kiska purred, shifting so Victor was forced even closer. "Tell me what you want." Even as she voiced the question she suspected the answer and jostled Victor against Alex yet again. "Bodkin." Alexei prompted, then shuddered in response as fingers shoved roughly inside him. "Sukin syn! Nearly." A dangerous gleam escaped his slitted eyes. Kiska, watching for it, felt a cold chill run down her back. She saw Alexei's artificial arm lift and reach. Victor's ear was caught in the pinch of those fingers hard enough to make him squawk in pain. Alex levered his twin over and into a kiss before Victor even registered what exactly was happening. "Twisted fuck." Kiska muttered without heat, flipping the now unlocked catch. As soon as Alexei hit the peak of the convulsions that began when he pressed mouths with Victor she slipped the cuff loose from one wrist and onto the other. With luck only a few heartbeats were lost before Victor was properly adjusted to take up the rhythm. As soon as Kiska released him Victor used both his hands to break loose and shove Alex away. "That's not what's between us." Victor hissed at his twin. "Don't do that again." Alexei didn't respond. He lay against the closet door, breathing deeply. A quaver shook him as Riene tucked him away and did up his pants. She climbed to her feet, wiping the back of her hand over her mouth and chin. "You okay, lover?" Riene cuddled up to Alex's heaving chest. "Can the afterglow, kids. We've got work to do." Kiska interrupted the embrace. "Victor, Riene try to stay in here another half hour if they let you." She whispered. "Fifteen minutes after that see if you can draw some attention and a few guards, but don't actually cause any trouble. Aleksandr Nicolavich is one of the most invaluable covers any of us possess. Under no circumstances should you tarnish it with those men out there. He's arrogant, impatient, and deadly but he is one of them. They trust him as much as is reasonable considering everyone's profession. This theft is going to fuck with that situation enough as it stands. Don't let them know we've made this switch or our whole organisation will suffer. Nicolavich has to be right there, with a solid alibi as the centre of everyone's attention when the job goes down so the blame for this doesn't come snapping back at Alex when contrary reports surface from the folks upstairs. Do you understand?" She glared. "Lexi, come on. Time is wasting." "Da." Shaking himself into order Alex looked up into the ceiling space. Without being asked Victor made a stirrup of his joined hands to boost his twin. First Alexei, then Kiska disappeared up into the darkness. "You know," Riene lounged against the door. "This would be a lot more convincing if we could speed our heartrates up again." She offered up an imp's smile. "Trust me, Kid." Victor rubbed his palms, one still gloved and one bare, across his face. "My pulse is racing quite nicely as it is." "Yeah. He's a good kisser." "That's not what I mean." The ex-cop crossed. "Ooo!" Riene cooed. "S'that a tender spot, Vicka darling?" Her eyes glittered, the brown taking on a definite shimmer of emerald in the harsh light of one hanging bulb. "You must know that Lexi-lover would drop and spread for you faster than you could un-zip, if you asked. You're the only one in the whole damned family that he hasn't played with. Christ, you're probably the only person he's met who hasn't sized him up for sex since he was fifteen." "Knock it off, Riene." Victor warned. "That's not even true." Anger was only a short breath away. "You are so naïve, Vicka darling. It's delectable." She teased. "But Lexi can tell with a glance when someone is considering him. That's part of his training." Riene continued. "And you're the first one to show a complete lack of interest since Lexi's precious G-man ignored him back in '95. He said it himself. Even your little sister played kiss and flirt when she first met our Lexi." Victor had the teenage girl shoved hard to the door before she got another word out. "I don't like hitting women. Don't tempt me, Riene. My sister, Alex's sister..." He fumbled after words. "Alice would never consider doing anything with our brother. That's just plain wrong." "None of our lives are exactly private, Vicka. We gossip horribly among ourselves. He told Marie." The girl persisted. "Marie mentioned it to me." She shrugged. "Alexei had his tongue down your Alice's throat and her hand was inside his pants when they got interrupted. They just never got back to it again." "You lie." Victor jarred her backwards causing her to let out of squeak of distress. Riene's breath was shallow and hot against his neck. The teenager's body arched against his, squirming slightly. "It happened in India a day after he popped round to introduce himself." Her hiss was venomous. "If a couple of kids hadn't come looking for your Alice to help with an emergency Lexi would have fucked her against the wall of the shack she was staying in just 'cause that's what he thinks is expected of him." "You lying little, brat." Victor had to back away or he was going to strangle the girl. Riene let out a throaty chuckle. "Now that's a heartrate to justify us staying in here, Vicka sweet. How about you thump me against the door a few more times to add to the illusion? I enjoyed that part." "Bitch!" It came out louder than he had intended but no doubt the listening guards would dismiss the gritty roar as an endearment. "You made that all up just to get me going." Victor accused, more quietly. Narrow shoulders shrugged. "Maybe." Riene looked at her watch. "Maybe not. You can ask them yourself. Little sister might fib to cover it up but Alexei will tell you the truth, if you want to hear it." She turned a bit more thoughtful. A smile tipped her lips. "I was thinking that I could flirt with Raymond Dulang." Her thumb hitched. "He's hot-headed enough that the two of you could bluff and bluster. That'll get some attention. He's a squinty-eyed man with a big, hooked nose. I'll point him out." Victor gulped in air, trying to find the business-like attitude that Riene had flipped into so easily. "Yeah, fine. You do that." ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Mulder and Scully went in right on the heels of the heavily armoured first strike force. They would have been in the leading edge but Krycek was their primary target not the defending security guards. According to the wrist tracers everyone had gathered in the massive conference hall, so that's where all the agents were converging. The unassigned portion of the task force would see to clearing the staff from the hallways and the rest of the building. Fox Mulder pinpointed his quarry as soon as he stepped into the cavernous room despite the changes in Krycek's appearance. Let everyone else fuss and bother with tracers and demands of producing identification. Mulder was certain that he was feeling a magnetic pull. Set apart by his black leather amid the crowd of expensive suits Mulder's target stood near the back wall with his bimbo cowering behind him. A butter knife from the buffet table was already digging hard at the cuff that identified him. The Federal agent tore across the carpet while most of the other law-enforcement officers were still catching their bearings and pointing guns. He trusted Scully to mind his back since his own vision had narrowed to a tunnel. "Krycek!" Mulder collided with the younger man, catching at the glossy black of his jacket and heaving him to the wall. The knife skittered away across the floor with a metallic rattle. "You son of a bitch. You're trying to buy peoples lives." "Mulder!" Victor forced himself to hold onto the role that had been set for him. He scrambled after Alex's usual air of playfulness. "What a nice surprise. I wasn't expecting to see you here." "Leave him alone." Riene launched herself at Mulder's back, nails digging in, only to be shrugged off like a pesky fly. The petite teenager hissed and hit Mulder between the shoulder blades rather ineffectively. "FBI." Scully arrived, gun drawn. "You're both under arrest. Don't move." "It's just me and you, Krycek." Mulder closed the distance between them until their faces almost touched. "No tame thieves to watch your back here. One wrong move..." The elder warned, digging his gun barrel into the other's still left arm. "...and we'll find out what kind of warrantee your spare parts carry." "Behave yourself." Victor cautioned. "I'm not carrying and we've got an audience." He pointed out. As more agents filled the hall a small crowd began to angle their way. Scully handed Riene off to a thin blonde woman and her partner then moved to shield Mulder and his captive from the growing group of men flashing their various badges and demanding that they surrender custody of the fugitive. "Actually." Victor pointed out. "If it's all the same to you, Mulder, I'd rather go with Interpol. The accommodations are always so much nicer." "Shut up Krycek." The Federal agent thumped him against the wall again to make his point. "Ease off." The temptation was strong to find out some things about Alex and Mulder's relationship while safely in disguise. "Victor isn't going to like it if you cave in my skull for no reason." "Anything I do to you right now is my word against yours, you little whore. Who do you think he's going to believe? Now shut up and stop squirming." Mulder rattled him harder, but not before grinding his groin into the younger man's body. "Slut." The Agent accused as if he was the target of the action rather than the one pressing his stiff erection forward. Victor, shocked by the Mulder's blatant sexual arousal, let himself be manhandled without saying a word. He had hoped that his lover had progressed beyond this kind of warped behaviour with Alexei because of their growing relationship. Handcuffs were extracted. "Turn around." Steel locked on with a satisfying clink. "Now that's the only way to play safe with you isn't it?" The sentence was hissed right into Victor's ear, lips brushing sensitive skin. "Somebody testing out their dog-clippers on your head again, Krycek?" Mulder said more loudly, turning him roughly forward again. "And the earring is pretty lame." Victor wanted to pull back from the violence and wild arousal he saw smouldering in his lover's eyes, especially knowing that it wasn't meant for him, but he also desired to punish the betrayal that Mulder's behaviour suggested. Mostly he needed to hold onto the impersonation that had been thrust upon him for as long as possible. "I know what you like, Fox." That was a classic Alex line. Unfortunately, too classic. Victor could see Mulder's control crumble away. The blow made his jaw creak and his head ring. "MULDER!" Scully left Diaz and O'Conner to arguing their claim on Krycek and stepped into the conflict between her partner and the prisoner. "Get a grip, Mulder. Everyone is watching." Her voice lowered. "You're practically rutting against him, for gods sake." Mulder glared. "He..." The defence faltered under her cold glare. "I'm sorry. He just does something to me, Scully." The excuse was barely loud enough to reach her ears. "You're crazy." Victor shouted, wanting away from Mulder and this whole messy situation. "Son of a bitch." The ex-cop licked his lips, tasting blood. How the hell did Alex put up with this crap, let alone enjoy it? The Agent's behaviour was all the more distressing considering Victor and Mulder had only just taken their relationship to the next physical level. "Get away from me. I'll talk to Interpol. I'll ONLY talk to Interpol." He repeated loudly. That drew a shout of triumph from the surrounding crowd. A tall, black man shoved his way into the small clearing. He presented his credentials to Scully. "LaSalle, Interpol. I'll take over with this one." "No way." Mulder snapped. "We've got him. We're keeping him." "I can present you with a case file, Agents, quite severe enough to justify extradition. Our organisation was promised consideration for participating in this effort." "Take your consideration out on someone else." Mulder caught the chain between his captive's cuffs in a proprietoral grip. Riene, who had been standing docile between the pair of agents assigned to her chose that moment to eel loose and throw herself across at Victor. "Alek!" Her arms whipped around his neck. "His first name is Urbain. You've known him for years." She whispered urgently. "Offer him info on the ESCAR project." Scully and Hackett both stepped in to drag the writhing teenager off. "Let me go!" Riene protested in a high-pitched whine. "Alek, do something." Victor pulled in a deep breath and tried for his twin's most seductive tone of voice, gravely and low. "Urbain, do you want to hear about ESCAR?" Mulder frowned. LaSalle's posture went board stiff. A grin spread over his face. "We'll pass on every other suspect here if that's what it takes." The black man offered. "We need Nicolavich." "Nobody but LaSalle gets anything from me." Victor stated for the record. "We've got your girlfriend, Krycek." Scully attempted, testing the loyalty that Li Ann swore the man possessed. "You've got nothing, Scully. She's clean." Victor shot back. LaSalle backed off to whisper urgently into the headset he wore in privacy. Most of the other agencies had withdrawn to pursue other possible arrests. LaSalle looked up. "Give me something Aleksandr. I need to convince my people you're worth fighting for." Victor sifted through what he'd been told of Alex's Nicolavich alias. "You know better than that. Not here. If it gets back to Nicola that I'm talking to you she'll clean me before you can get me out of this country." He improvised. "What have you got on ESCAR?" LaSalle demanded. Victor forced out an amused laugh. It tore at his throat. All he wanted to do right now was shout out his distress to his lover and demand an explanation...but this game had to be played out. His voice quavered but Victor managed to sound professional. "Everything, of course. I know you wouldn't take anything less, Urbain. Come on, don't tell me you're scared of the FBI's spook squad?" Dark eyes judged Mulder and Scully's determination. "Who's in charge of your contingent?" Urbain LaSalle demanded. "That would be Assistant Director Skinner." Scully provided, confident it would do the man no good to try going over their heads. "I'll be right back. Stay here." The tall man ordered before stomping away in the direction of the main door. Victor shifted his shoulders restlessly against the pull of the handcuffs unconsciously trying to gain a fraction of distance from the man holding him. "Don't move." Mulder whacked the restrained man across the back of the head. Patience strained to breaking. "Christ! Enough with the hitting already, Mulder." Victor snapped in annoyance. "You're pissing me off." Mulder froze, hazel eyes gone hard. "Krycek?" Doubt coloured his voice. One hand reached out to squeeze the younger man's left arm, testing its solidity. Victor swallowed panic, trusting the wraps Kiska had secured his arm with. "Hey, if you're gonna play nice, Foxy, I can think of spots I'd prefer you to put your hand." Too many of Alex's contacts were still in the room. He couldn't blow the cover story yet. The sneer returned to Mulder's face. "I'll do anything I bloody well please to you. I know you enjoy it, slut." He seethed. "Agents." Assistant Director Skinner strode towards with LaSalle in tow. "It seems as if we're having a small jurisdictional scuffle here." He observed blandly. "New York is outside of Agent LaSalle's usual sphere of influence, Sir." Diaz dared. "I think we should retain custody." "But this task force was assembled on the premise of co-operation." LaSalle countered. "In the interests of possible future joint endeavours I must insist that you surrender Nicolavich to Interpol's custody." "Nicolavich?" Skinner questioned. Scully clarified. "Krycek." "A name for every day of the week, Krycek?" Mulder grumbled. "YOU can call me whatever turns you on, Foxy." Victor quipped coldly. "How about prisoner number 1013, cell block B?" The elder suggested. "Kinky, Mulder. Prison role playing, not my favourite game but hey, I can deal that if it's what you need to get off." Victor returned the jab. "Been there, done that." Came the honest admission. Lord, but falling into this game of snarl and bait with Mulder was more than a little sexy even as it made him angry. Victor shook his head, squashing that thought ruthlessly. This wasn't the kind of relationship he wanted with anyone, especially Mulder. It could twist from an occasional game into something much more dangerous, far too easily. Mulder, Alex and Mac's disturbing interactions were proof of that. Skinner started to speak but he halted mid-syllable, pressing his earpiece tighter. "Retrieval team, repeat that." He ordered. His mouth hardened into a thin line. "What do you mean 'gone'? Where are they?" The AD's grim expression was frightening to behold. "Don't tell me that." He warned someone. Victor exchanged a quick look with Riene, who smirked. Alex and Kiska had pulled off the heist. "Mulder, take Agent LaSalle along as you process Krycek. We'll work this out later. I've got bigger problems right now." He growled. "What's wrong, Sir." Scully asked. "The material that's up on the auction block has been..." He hesitated. "Misplaced." The AD explained obliquely. Mulder and Scully were among the few people present aware of what Stalward had been attempting to sell today. Skinner stilled again, listening. "I'm coming up." He announced to the people on the second floor. "Diaz, O'Conner." Scully addressed the junior agents. "Can you clear a path out of here? Hackett, get on the radio and find us some transportation." She took charge. "We should think about a safehouse, Mulder. I'm afraid Krycek won't last fifteen minutes in lock-up considering his fluctuating loyalties and the information he has." Victor shuffled impatiently. "Either way, could you get me out of here?" Too many of the attendees of the auction were giving him curious looks over how much attention he rated from the authorities. Besides, the sooner he was out of their scrutiny the sooner he could blow off his Alex impersonation and demand some answers from Mulder about his bizarre behaviour. "YOU are not in charge here, Krycek." Mulder shoved him sideways to make a point. "Agent!" LaSalle glared. "That kind of treatment is un-called for. Don't hit the prisoner again." He warned the other man. Scully noticed that Mulder's hand twitched at the satisfied expression their captive assumed upon hearing the reprimand and she reached out to casually touch his arm. "Maybe I should take custody of Krycek for a while." Dana suggested. Mulder stepped reluctantly away. Scully wrapped her small hand around the warm, damp handcuff chain. "Behave yourself Krycek and you may wind up in the safety of solitary confinement." She said softly. "Cause trouble and I'll put a bullet in your brain myself." "We both know that I'm not going into lockup, Scully, one way or another." Victor countered calmly, feeling decidedly safer with the woman than his lover. "If you had one piece of solid evidence that you could use in a court of law I'd be behind bars already. You've got nothing but a web of suspicions and circumstantial fluff." "I'll stand as a witness." She threatened. "To what, Scully?" He asked in a level tone. "Breaking and entering? Trespassing? Every charge you have against me starts with 'suspicion of' or 'wanted for questioning in regard to'. I've seen the file. Actual, physical evidence just doesn't seem to be something your labs can keep proper track of. Where did the bodies disappear to, Scully?" The cache of tangible evidence against Alex was slim to absent, no doubt due to interference. Li Ann had broken into the FBI database almost a year ago and discovered the surprising lack of substantiated facts. "At least Interpol has a rock solid theft charge. Maybe you should give me to LaSalle." Victor wanted away from Mulder and Scully. "Be quiet, Krycek." Scully said wearily. "Nothing you say is going to do you any good." Fairly quickly, Hackett announced there was a prisoner transport van at the front doors for them and the group began pushing their way out of the room. Diaz, with his broad shoulders and foreboding manner, took point. "I feel like royalty." Victor mumbled as they held him back at the outside doors to check the area. "O'Conner." Mulder instructed. "Take over for the driver." They didn't need a stranger involved in the transport. "Where to Agent Mulder?" "I think we should take him up to Quantico. THEY won't expect that. We'll keep him with us until we've got a secure place to stash him. What do you think, Scully?" He asked his partner. "Sounds good. Let's go." ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ "It looks like there's seven of them." Li Ann relayed over the cell phone. "Two of them are climbing in the front. Five in the back with our people. I can't be sure but it looks like some kind of security van. Odds are there's a bulkhead of some kind separating the driver from the transport area." She provided. "Mac." Li Ann paused to get his full attention. "It looks like Mulder and Scully are in on the bust. You better make sure Stacey goes easy on them. You hurt Dana and I'll hurt you." She threatened. "I hear you, Doll." Mac assured her. "Nothing more than bumps and bruises. Trust me. Have you got a direction yet?" He quizzed. "Li Ann peered intently through her binoculars. "They're at the street. Left, southbound." She amended. "We could just let them start processing him. They don't have anything to hold Victor on." She reminded her ex-boyfriend. "That's plan 'c', but let's try and keep Victor squeaky clean by freeing him before he blows his cover or before Mulder starts breaking bones." Mac's voice on the last part was virulent. "We've acquired the target." He announced as Anastasia pulled out onto the nearly deserted road. The clunky grey van wasn't going to escape with Stacey behind the wheel of the pursuit car. Mac had got a heady sample of her driving skills earlier. "You sit tight until it's time to extract Alex and Kiska. We'll take care of this." He glanced over at Anastasia, who grinned as he disconnected from Li Ann. "Agent Mulder is in the van?" Stacey questioned, flicking her eyes back to the street before them and the not-too-distant smudge of grey. "And Scully too. Kid gloves, Stacey. I mean it." He cautioned. "Li Ann has grown rather attached to her redhead and you know how it is with Mulder." Mac almost grumbled. He tugged briefly on his seat belt, tightening up the slack. "It's Vic, Riene and seven suits. You got a plan in mind, gorgeous, or are we winging it?" "I could force them off the road and hope for the best." The refined blonde suggested in a carefully bland voice. Mac frowned at the Russian woman. "I know you're joking." He said emphatically, earning a dismissive shrug from her. "Seriously, have you got any ideas?" "If we had some equipment..." Stacey pursed her carefully painted lips. "There's a few gas grenades in the trunk. Maybe running them off the road isn't such a bad idea." She supposed. "I could beep a warning. Riene should understand. She might be able to clue Victor in. She must know we're close behind them." "Victor is going to kill us." Mac groaned in complaint. "Can you get ahead of them before they reach the Interstate? It would be a lot messier at highway speeds." "Piece of cake." Anastasia assured him. "The grenades are on the right side, just against the outer wall. I've got a gun under my seat that will punch a hole through the windshield but let's hope they haven't locked themselves inside. As soon as we stop I'll pop the trunk. Grab at least three grenades. As soon as you see an opening I want you to gas the guys in the front. Stay out of sight, Mac. They know you too well." All the while Stacey spoke the distance between them and van narrowed. "What if they won't open the back door?" "I'll persuade them." Anastasia bared her perfect teeth. "You got a problem with blowing out kneecaps?" Mac winced but he didn't object aloud. After coming up on the grey van's bumper Stacey let out three blasts on the car's horn, each one a little longer than the one before it. "Ready Pet?" Anastasia bent forward and extracted a massive handgun from under her seat. The car surged forward, throwing a frowning Mac back into the leather cushions. Using her knee to steady the wheel Stacey rolled down her window as they drew up beside the other vehicle. The passenger looked across, noted the weapon and ducked in mid- shout. The van swerved as expected. Stacey fired and it halted as she gassed her own car and cut them off. "Mac. Grenades." Came the curt order. While he scrambled to obey, Anastasia got out and sent two rounds into the windshields, knocking open a hole up near the roofline. It was tight aiming but Mac lobbed an already hissing missile through the opening a few breaths later. "Nice work Pet." Stacey shot him a tight grin. "You want to 'Pet' me." Mac's nerves were thrumming. "Get our people out and you can call me anything you want." Anastasia headed down the driver's side of the van, reaching up to crack open the man's door as she passed. "Amateurs." The woman said scornfully to the bent over, swooning man. "Get the other one out, Pet. Disarm him and make sure he's going to be out for a while." Mindful of the streams of knockout gas, Stacey pulled the door the rest of the way open and dragged out the woozy driver. A search turned up only one gun which she sent sailing. The van was rocking between Mac's activity and some restless movement in the back. "Oh Agent Mulder..." Anastasia sang out sweetly, rapping on the back panel with her gun butt. "You all need to sit quietly in there so both these boys will stay alive." She shouted. "Now we're a trifle pressed for time." Stacey continued as all movement halted inside. Voices were whispering frantically however. "Pay attention pretty Fox." Anastasia called. Her hostage wailed as she shot into his foot. "That was something less than vital. His hip goes next, boys and girls." She warned. "What do you want?" A deep voice demanded from inside the van. "I don't want to hurt you, lovely Fox, but I will if you make me." Anastasia warned. "Open the back door and let your prisoners go. Very calmly. No fuss. I'm not alone out here. NOW!" She rapped the side of the van again, then moved to a different position in case they decided to take a pot shot. Mac ghosted down the passenger side of the vehicle and waited for the door to crack open. His attention moved constantly, aware that help could arrive at any moment. "We're coming out." Riene's voice warned. The back door pushed open slowly. Mac dropped to his stomach and crawled, preparing to heave the gas grenade into the back. Riene stepped away, taking passing notice of Mac just under the bumper, who motioned with his hand that she would need to step aside. Victor was only halfway out when the girl exploded into action. She caught at his jacket, heaving them both sideways and down. Mac pulled the pin and tossed the gas inside from below then clawed at the door near the hinge to try and close it. Curses and gunfire erupted as the door started to swing closed. Stacey shot past, knocking the portal shut tight. "Riene! Get the car over here." She ordered. Mac, still flat on his back on the road shoulder, kicked at the back door as it started to open again. "Breathe it in you bastards." He hissed, more to himself than anyone else. Three more bullets pierced the metal before things grew quiet inside the van. Riene pulled around with the doors to Stacey's car wide open. She and Victor crawled immediately into the back seats. "Come on Pet." Stacey dived for the driver's seat leaving Mac to scramble after the other side. The van and its occupants remained quiescent as they tore away. "What the hell was that about?" Victor found his voice finally. "You shot a Federal agent." "So he loses a toe...big deal." Stacey popped the sunroof and headed for the highway. "How angry was Lexi's luscious G-man?" She quizzed. Riene started to respond but Victor's dire expression convinced her to keep silent. "Was that necessary?" Victor demanded. "Mulder and Scully know where we live, damn it." Anastasia rolled her blue eyes. "Did you blow cover, Victor? Or did we just bust Alexei free?" She questioned. "They still thought I was Alex." The ex-cop admitted. "I was trying to figure out the best way to tell them." Actually, he had been rather preoccupied, brooding about his lover playing him false and how to deal with the situation. "Then what's the problem?" Stacey laughed, laying her head back. "They already know Lexi is a very bad boy. They didn't see Mac. Deny everything, Gorgeous. For all they know you, Mac and Li Ann were doing phone-taps in Pisshole, Nebraska for Nicki while this went down." She met his glare in the rear-view mirror and broke into a trilling laugh. "Besides, it's not like you're going to be seeing Pretty-boy or the marble saint anytime soon. The four of us are airport bound." "What?" Both Mac and Victor roared almost simultaneously, frowning at each other when they realised the co-incidence. Mac raised his flattened hand, stilling the man in the back seat. "What's going on, Stacey?" "Don't worry. Victor's little sister has packed up everything the lot of you will need for a few weeks." Anastasia glanced at her wristwatch. "Marie should have swung by and collected dear Allegra and the baggage about three hours ago." "Alice." Came the reflexive correction from Victor. Stacey ignored it. "By now they should be checking your luggage and themselves in. Your house is locked up tight and the staff at Roman security has been told that you're all going to be out of state for a while. They run the office without Mac and Li Ann actually in town all the time while on business trips. Covering for Victor too shouldn't be that much of a stretch, especially with everything shutting down for the holidays." She rambled. "Stacey!" Victor lost patience and thumped the back of her seat. "Get to the point. Where the hell are we supposed to be going?" She sighed. "Why 'home', my darlings. After all that's happened, especially over the last day and a half. It's about time the lot of you actually met Nicki and the rest of the family. Don't you think? Why, simply everyone is gathering at the new compound. This hasn't happened in over ten years and it's all because of you and Li Ann, Victor dear. Doesn't that make you feel special?" Something about Anastasia's tone filled Victor with a subtle, bone- deep chill. "And where is the new compound?" Victor asked. "Alex just said it wasn't in Russia anymore. He never told us where exactly Nicki has moved to." "Alaska, Darling." Anastasia laughed, a brittle sarcastic sound. "And it's so lovely this time of year. We're all just thrilled to pieces that Nicki thought to collect us together. Thank you, Victor." Mac slumped down in his seat with a whispered string of curses. "But..." Victor began. "But what, Vicka?" Riene asked softly. "If Nicki asks everyone is to come home for a debriefing, we go. If we don't, we're not family." She advised. "We'll let you walk. We'll stop this car and let you out right now." Stacey offered. "But make sure that's what you really want because Nicola has issued this command with every bit of authority she holds. The FAMILY is going to Alaska." "What about Alex?" Victor's question was ambiguous. "Pick your side, Vicka. It's loyalty test time." Riene's whisper was husky. "Alexei is going. Allegra is already en-route." She shifted her focus abruptly. "What about you Mac? Are you in or out?" The lanky thief let out a shivery breath. "I go with Alex." He declared finally. "You all know that. I have to." Anastasia laughed at some internal jest. "Of course you do, Poppet. You're addicted." Mac scowled, but didn't bother to voice a retort. "Where's Li Ann?" Victor asked. "She'll be heading north with Kiska and Alexei as soon as the pair of them squirm their way out of Stalward's place." Anastasia surmised. "I'd like to know for sure." He leaned forward. "Give me your cell phone, Mac." Mac dug it out of the cubby it had fallen into but before he could pass it back Stacey snatched the device away and sent it sailing out the sunroof. "Shit or get off the pot, Mansfield." Her voice carved like a razor. "Make a decision for yourself. Are you fucking in or out?" Riene cowered into a corner of the cramped seat. Mac covered his eyes with one hand and pushed to his own door. Sheltered in Atlantic City, Victor hadn't had much contact with any of Alex's foster family. Mac, however, had worked with Stacey on a few less than legal jobs. He had seen the beautiful blonde garrotte a man on a balcony rather than shoot him so she wouldn't muss her ball gown with blood then immediately return to the party and trade quips with the unknowing widow. Poor Victor had no idea what the icy bitch was capable of. "Alaska." Victor considered, green eyes boring a hole in the back of the carefully coifed head. Mac almost laughed. Then again, Stacey had only ever seen Victor in his boy-scout mode. Maybe she didn't realise what she was up against either. The ex-cop was absolutely fearless when it came to protecting his own and Nicki was all but taking Vic's pregnant baby sister and twin brother hostage. "I can do Alaska." Victor decided with a too casual shrug of his shoulders. It was going to be one hell of a Christmas, Mac decided, with a muffled curse that everyone in the car chose to ignore. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ By the end of their voyage Li Ann had gone from admiring Kiska's surprisingly stubborn maturity to actively disliking the teenage girl. For someone so young she had handled Li Ann and Alex like a pro. It seemed sensible enough that Li Ann and Alex should take the controls of the two waiting motorcycles. After leaving Stalward's Kiska had hopped onto the seat of the larger of the two bikes and slid back...of course Alexei had chosen to drive that one. The stop for food was perfectly logical too. Kiska had been hiding out in Stalward's venting since late the night before with minimal supplies and Alex was desperate for an after the job chocolate rush. Looking back on it Li Ann now recognised the hushed conversation that the pair of Russians had while waiting in the restaurant line as something important. Lacking incessant moral support from Li Ann or Victor, Alex had, of course, fallen easily into his well-established 'just following orders' mindset over the course of the mission. That left Kiska free to turn her full attention on Li Ann when Alexei took what appeared to be a bathroom run and never came back. Once separated from Alex and the discs Li Ann became a much easier target. Kiska had waited long enough to be sure that Alexei was beyond recall before informing the older woman of Nicki's demand that everyone report in. Calling Mac's cell phone had been a dead end and calling Alex's was a waste. Kiska had extracted the chirping phone from her own pocket wit an insincere 'oops, he must have forgot it'. Victor's cell was home on his dresser and there was no answer at Allegra's apartment. The teenager had thwarted Li Ann's attempts to leave a paper trail with equal skill, sticking to the older woman like a determined tick. First class tickets were already waiting at the airport. Cash was produced whenever Li Ann expressed a need for anything from coffee to a paperback. Toward the end of the lengthy trip Kiska had even trashed her helpful façade and actually threatened retribution when Li Ann had attempted to call the office. Their disappearance was so clean it squeaked. The best Li Ann was able to manage was to leave her private investigators badge and one of Scully's business cards with the word 'help' written on it in the bathroom of a coffee shop in Anchorage. It would take a wild stroke of luck for that clue to reap results. The mascara writing wasn't the best and the chance of it being thrown away was high. Needless to say, Li Ann's mood was as pitch black as the sky by the time a chauffeured four-wheel drive delivered her and the annoying teenager to a massive, snow-covered lodge in the middle-of-nowhere Alaska. The drone driving was no help either. He made it clear right from the start that he didn't understand English, only responding to Kiska's smooth Russian. "Are the others here?" The oriental woman glared at Kiska, repeating the question she had asked at least a dozen times already. "Pavel says most everyone is home." The teenager finally admitted, pushing open the van door. "Alexei isn't but he was taking a different route, with more connections. He's the one with discs after all and he has the highest profile. We had to be certain that Lexi wasn't followed. Kiska fixed Li Ann with a flat, dark green stare. She forced a smile. "So, what do you think of it?" Her hand lifted, sweeping across to indicate the artificially illuminated lodge as she climbed out of the vehicle. Li Ann raised her eyes. The place was magnificent, a classic hunting retreat with a sprawling timber lodge and dozens of small outbuildings, surrounded by an impenetrable forest of shadowy pines. It was every inch a medieval Prince's summer home except for the set of satellite dishes mounted on the highest point of the roof. "It's...impressive." Li Ann pulled her coat tight against the frigid air. Her breath plumed. "But isn't it a bit too ostentatious for a covert base?" The numerous gold-tinted floodlights had to pinpoint this place from miles around. "Hide in plain sight." Kiska crunched through the crusty snow heading for the wide entrance stairs. "All these lights aren't usually on. They're only lit up for our sake. Besides, it's not like we could hide completely, what with the generators and the communication system, not to mention having to buy supplies and all. This place used to be a place for company teamwork retreats and overpriced hunting vacations but the owners met with some unexpected reversals of fortune." Her chuckle was heavy with smug satisfaction. "It suits most of our needs rather well." Li Ann followed in the girl's footsteps, cursing her lightweight footwear and inadequate clothing. There was little chance that she would be wandering around outside unless she turned up something else to wear. "They know we're here. The van set off motion detectors about two miles back. We've got a short-range radio system set up, although it isn't as secure as we'd like, so word will have been passed about the compound of our arrival." Kiska caught hold the door handle and tugged, pulling one side of the huge double portal open. Behind her Li Ann heard the van that had brought them here rumble away. Ahead of her a wash of invitingly warm air broke over her face. She followed Kiska into the heat eagerly. A woman bearing a passing resemblance to the driver stepped up to push the heavy door closed. She bubbled out what sounded like a greeting and set about helping the teenager out of her coat. "This is Bela. I'm sorry Li Ann but she doesn't speak English either. None of the domestic staff do." Kiska specified. "One of the techs and Dr Vladovna are fairly bilingual...and of course all the family are." She explained. Bela gestured, requesting Li Ann's outerwear. "Find out where everyone is." The oriental woman demanded. "I want to see Victor, Mac and Allegra. Now." "Don't worry. We'll turn them up shortly." Kiska assured the elder before turning to the servant. They lapsed into Russian although every sentence or two a recognisable names crossed one or the other's lips. "Kiska." Li Ann's voice raised and she glared daggers at the teen. "Either tell me what I want to know or I'll go exploring without you." She threatened. "I'm just finding out what you need." The young girl placated. "Just a few moments." Finally she dismissed Bela, sending their coats off with the servant. "It seems that Allegra has placed all your things in the guest suite nearest the back of the house." Kiska crossed the expansive entranceway, heading for yet another curving staircase. "We'll just get you settled in and cleaned up." Her speech was interrupted by the arrival of a tall, handsome woman with rich brown hair. The statuesque woman came striding out of the archway to the left. A long burgundy skirt of heavy wool fluttered about her long legs. "Kiska." She greeted loudly. "It's good to see you. We were just starting to worry about the pair of you. Pavel was gone so long." The elegant woman came to a halt in front of Li Ann with a toothy smile. "Miss Tsei, I doubt you recall it but we've met before. I'm Tatiana Romanov. Lexi was fucking you against an alley wall in Hong Kong several years ago when I interrupted." She prompted. Li Ann's colour drained away, more from anger than embarrassment at the inaccurate reminder. They hadn't been that far along in the act and besides it was just crude to refer to the meeting that way. "I knew that Lexi-baby had taken a fancy to you then. He was frightfully later than acceptable meeting me the next day and he was absolute drained." The towering brunette continued. "But I never foresaw the day when he would bring you home to Mummy." She teased with a hint of malice. "Welcome to the our home, Cousin." Li Ann's answering expression was tight with annoyance. "Where are Mac, Victor and Allegra?" She persisted in her quest, choosing to ignore all the false pleasantries. A corner of Tatiana's mouth hooked into a smile. "Allegra is downstairs in the medical bay. Olga is running a few tests on the fetus that she's carrying. I believe Victor is with her. Mac is upstairs with Cathers and Riene in one of the bedrooms listening to some electronic excuse for music loudly enough to wake the dead." Her shiver was purely theatrical, too expansive to reflect any honest emotion. "He's a handsome enough creature but hardly the kind of company I'm accustomed to." "Where's Stacey, Tati?" Kiska interrupted the glaring contest that the other two had going. Wide-set blue eyes turned on the teen. "Debriefing with Nicola and Kate last time I checked but that was hours ago." Tatiana considered. "I suppose that's everyone important. Oh, except for Peter and Marie. He's chained to a computer in one of the outbuildings I suppose." Her chuckle was resonant. "And she left to collect Lexi. Baby brother is supposed to be coming in the back way." Tatiana turned in place, her arm extended to indicate the stairs. "I'm to show our cousin where she's going to be staying while you get your tail to Nicki's office, little sister." Li Ann valiantly attempted to sort out and assign all the names that Tatiana had tossed out so casually but what stuck in her mind was that someone was mucking about with Allegra's pregnancy, yet again. The poor kid had gone through enough poking and prodding back home. "Forget my room. I'll find it later." Li Ann announced. "Take me to the medical bay right now." She demanded. Tatiana's carefully plucked brows lifted slightly. "Whatever you want, Cousin. Come this way." ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Alex slumped down into the passenger seat and dug around in the box beside him for a blanket to pull over him. The heater in the cab wasn't nearly up to the task of keeping the chill completely away, especially considering how he was dressed. A few odds and ends of supplies tumbled loose as he extracted the grey material. "You're the last one in." Marie's usual soft tones wouldn't work in the noisy cabin. She had to almost shout to make herself heard even with Alexei right next to her. "Nicki's been rather impatiently waiting on those discs." "She's the one that sent me the long way around." He reminded. "How are our new cousins taking to the situation?" "I've only met the one so far." Marie smiled. The oddly coloured dash lights didn't do her pretty face justice. Her lit-from-below expression looked more evil than reassuring. "Allegra's a sweet thing...so bright and enthusiastic. She's still at the stage where this is all a grand adventure." Her heavy fall of dark brown hair shook. "Olga's taken the pregnancy on as her new project. She's trying to figure out the baby's DNA and what exactly those consortium butchers were trying to prove." Alexei shot his foster sister a dark look. "I don't want her hurt. She's a good kid." "Don't worry, Dearest." The elder soothed. "Nicki likes Allegra best of all the strays you've adopted. She's the most impressionable." She paused. "You must realise that you're in for a rather extensive debriefing. You've been misbehaving, even more than usual." "I've done my job." Alex argued quickly, pulling the cover up around his chin. "More than my job. I got a line into the Pacific Agency...something we haven't had since that quick stint I did in the late eighties. I salvaged all of the Englishman's papers and connections. I even picked up a contact with the rebels. Do you know how hard that was?" Marie seemed unimpressed. Her large, brown eyes blinked twice. "I don't envy your job, Dearest. It's nasty. I'm content handling drug- lords, banana republics and gunrunners, thank you very much. Those I understand. That stuff you muck around in is surreal." Alexei spidered his fingers over the frosty glass of the window. They looked even paler than usual against the gloomy darkness outside. "I'm sorry everyone got dragged home on my account." He began. "But I am glad to see you, Angel. It's been too long." He shifted his neck, attempting to loosen up his muscles. "Has Nicki told you how long we're going to stay up here?" "A few weeks, I think." Marie didn't have to concentrate too hard on the road. No other vehicles should be within miles and she'd driven this route a couple of times now. "Until after the new year begins for certain. That should be interesting." She laughed. "Then I suspect that Nicki's going to send the Catherines back out with us. None of us are getting any younger and they're ready for practical training." All the tutors had been left behind when Nicki had pulled out of St Petersburg; a sure sign that further in-house training wasn't likely. Marie noticed his frown. "Which bothers you more? Spending New Year's here or taking on a full-time apprentice?" "Riene's no trouble." Alexei answered obliquely. "Anything would be better than taking that BOY out." "Peter." She corrected. "Not that he's ready for the field, but when the time comes, I thought I might get him as a replacement for CC although he's a bit bookish for my kind of work. I suppose information is the future rather than hardware." Marie mused, pausing often to consider her words. "For now Olga is sending her Kate out with me to give the kid some life lessons." The Catherine that had been marked as Marie's understudy had been unexpectedly retired the year before. Nicola had replaced the faulty Catherine by recruiting a teenage boy, but breaking and training him took time. "Olga isn't going to have the energy to spare, what with taking over Nicki's out of country workload, which she hates, and helping Nicki to program Peter." "I know. Olga would be happy to stay in at headquarters and delegate for the rest of her life. I suspect if it weren't a matter of tradition the family leadership would skip over Olga and go straight to Kate if Nicki lived long enough." Alexei didn't want to get into a discussion about the new kid. For a reason he couldn't quite pin down the idea that Nicki had taken in another male, after all these years, infuriated him. "Still, with the network we've been setting up Olga won't need to do nearly as much jetting about as Nicki did. That should make her happy." "I don't understand your distaste for Peter, Dearest. Didn't you once have a thing for another English blonde?" Marie dragged him back to the hated topic. "Rick or Dick or some-such name, wasn't it?" "Ebat'-kopat." Alexei shuddered violently. "Pazhaluysta! Nyet." He pleaded. "Please, don't ever mention HIM, Marie. Not ever." Alex warned as a pre-programmed headache threatened him. Marie studied his reaction for a moment then nodded as a stray memory clicked back into place. Alex had been put through some rather strenuous avoidance conditioning on the topic of that Englishman after the mess in Switzerland. That was likely a potent factor in his adverse reaction to young Peter. "Nicki wants you to play nice with Peter while you're home, Dearest." She swerved back to her point. "There are a few things that only you can teach him. No, not just that either." She laughed. "You're the best we've got with knives and his hand to hand isn't nearly up to the quality we require. Then there's that silletto-ice pick thing you brought home. We all need lessons with that." Alexei wasn't listening with his whole attention. His brows were tight together and he was pinching the bridge of his nose. "He's too old." Came the complaint finally. "Nicki said I was almost too old when she got me and I was twelve. He's what? Sixteen? He'll never completely absorb the programming, not like the Catherines did. Not like we did." "There isn't time to start with a child this time." Marie countered, amused at his unconscious jealousy of Peter. "He'll take it, what with Nicki's complete concentration on him, and Olga's too. They're done with the Catherines. He'll be the centre of their attention." She shook her head. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Alexei's scowl of irritation at her choice of words. "They'll have him completely assimilated by this time next year. He's already so far along it's scary." "Are they trying to chemically enhance him?" Alexei had his suspicions, but Marie had seen more of what was going on where Peter was concerned. Alex tended to avoid the boy on the occasions he was home unless Nicki insisted he interact with the kid. "After puberty and without Vasili to supervise. They might want to, but it isn't likely that Olga would dare. You're a one and only in that regard, Dearest." His nod was curt. "I didn't think so, either. Not even the Catherines have been tampered with much. Olga can't seem to grasp the intricacies of Vasili's research. She's hard pressed enough to maintain the work he did on me. She's heavy handed. My blood chemistry is so screwed up I can't even take a regular transfusion without going into shock. I found that out a few years ago." He shifted in his seat. "Vasili was a genius." "The man was a lunatic." She shouted out her disgust with the man. "If Nicki hadn't held him back he would have turned to into a complete psychopath. He screwed you up pretty badly as it was." Marie snapped, sensing that her foster brother was on the edge of rather melancholy mood. "He was some unholy combination of the Marquis de Sade and Dr Frankenstein reborn with the scientific morals of a Nazi doctor. You did the world a service when you killed him." Vasili had possessed the ability to give Marie the creeps just by looking her way. It was if the man was trying to see right into her soul when he fastened his disturbingly intense attention on her. "The monster always turns on his creator eventually, Angel. Mac's got me watching old horror movies. It's a reoccurring theme that Nicki should keep in mind." His tone was more brittle than the air outside. "Don't." His companion warned. "We're not monsters and we would never..." Her eyes judged him. "You must know, that's the kind of nonsense talk that worried Nicki enough to call us all in from the field. She brought your little coven inside the family to make you happy, Dearest. Nicki spoils you shamefully. She always has. Now you're making her regret her generosity." "This isn't about them." He pouted. "It's been building for years." "I know. I've been watching." She acknowledged. "More carefully than Nicki sometimes. We've always been the closest, Dearest. I saw the cracks start years ago, after your stint with the FBI. Now the others have finally realised. Anastasia blew the whistle loud enough to break eardrums. You should have been more discreet." The look they exchanged was sombre. Alexei swallowed heavily. "I should be scared." He finally said aloud. "But part of me..." His head fell back. "It's gotten so complicated that I'm almost looking forward to Nicki knocking things back into perspective. Just, if they retire me, Marie, can you..." "They're not going to retire you." She interrupted with sharp sincerity. "You're too valuable." "I said if." "They won't." "Try and get my thieves out, Angel. Suggesting tossing them to the wind over killing them, for me." "Damn you, Lexi. That's just the kind of shit that's at the root of the problem." Her curses were vivid. "I saw it coming. It's the fault of your fucking G-man." "Leave Mulder out of it." Marie hadn't ever met the Agent, but she had seen surveillance video and photos. The first thing she had noticed about Mulder was that he had eyes just like Vasili's, so melancholy and yet unreasonably demanding at the same time. Poor Alexei never had a chance. Vasili had seen to it that Alex was designed to try and please the man at all costs. Nicki should have known better and yanked him out as soon as the assignment with Mulder came to her attention. Alexei's post in the consortium hadn't paid off well enough to justify the damage the young man sustained by simply being in Mulder's company. "People like us should never stand that close to pure integrity. It makes us see our flaws too clearly. I should have spoke up back then." "You don't understand." Alex argued petulantly. "I understand better than any of us, Dearest. Remember I told you about Isabel." Marie prompted, mentioning a rebel leader from a long ago failed coup. "If she had lived I might be the reason for this call in rather than you, Dearest." She stared straight ahead as she admitted her own weakness. "Nicki never found out, but I armed Isabel's company for free." Alexei winced. "You shouldn't tell me that. Nicki might pull it out of me during one of my debriefings." "I should have told you that four years ago, Dearest. I wanted to tell someone but..." The quilted shoulders of her jacket shrugged. "New Years is going to be a kick." She forcibly changed the subject, noticing how tensed up he had become. Alexei's laugh was strangled. "A wealth of choices. Maybe this year I'll actually see if it's possible to satisfy myself after my booster." "You won't find a closed door anywhere." She teased. Again his mood crashed into darkness. "You're wrong, Angel. One door will be barricaded." Alex picked absently at the tab of his coat zipper. "What's wrong?" "I hit on Victor." He admitted. "Frenched him on the last mission. He wasn't impressed. In fact he's more than a little annoyed with me." "I don't know what Nicki hoped to accomplish by that particular subroutine? Nothing makes you want someone more than disinterest." She sighed. "I remember you on your knees begging Anastasia to just look your way. You were falling all over yourself and jumping through hoops to get her attention." Stacey's hesitation had been an act, of course. It was just another part of the conditioning that Nicki had put him through. First she made him completely frantic over gaining her affection, then Anastasia's and Olga's. Dark-haired Marie and Tatiana were under instructions to be much more obliging. Marie had developed into more of a pal than a lover right from the beginning. "It's an implanted personality flaw." He said negligently. "Nicki needed a sure method to reduce me to crawling on the floor begging for her to notice me, and even though I know what's happening, I can't help myself." Alex sighed. "Thanks to my pheromone tampering no one should be able to refuse me without taking the block Vasili developed and Nicki has never shared that formula with anyone but Olga. Nicola should have the market cornered on refusing me. I don't know the hell Mulder did it for so long and Victor mystifies me." "Damned if I know." The elder giggled softly. "You make me crazy and I don't go for guys outside the job. Sometimes I think you ruined me for other men." "I turned you into a lesbian. I like that." Alexei threw his head back and let loose a laugh that filled the cab. "Luckily women can fake it so much easier than men or Nicki would have kicked both our butts for letting such a calamity devalue you, Angel." That was especially true considering the other mistake they had made together around that same time. "Pig." She accused, without malice. "My business does not pivot on my sexual liaisons. Some of us actually do things like work hard and deal harder." "How incredibly dull that must be." His voice was an honest mixture of regret and disbelief. It was simply beyond his ability to grasp the concept that his sisters' methods didn't involve sex.