Scully took
hold of the back of the couch and moaned faintly. "Scully?" He was at her side immediately, holding her,
supporting her. "Is it the baby?"
She nodded,
"A contraction."
"You're
first?" He was helping her to the couch.
"Not
exactly." She looked up at him;
"I've been having them for a couple of days."
"And you
didn't think that was worth mentioning?" He
didn't look happy.
"I
thought I'd wait until I had two in a row. Mulder,
they've been six to eight hours apart, not exactly stopwatch timing. Don't be upset with me, there really hasn't been
anything to tell you."
He put his
arms around her; "You've been in pain, that's something to tell me." She smiled against his shoulder and relaxed again. "Do you want me to get Beth?"
"No,
there's no need yet. I may just go on to bed
after I get Katy down."
"I'll get Katy down, go on, lie down. And call me if you have another
contraction." He wasn't kidding and she
knew it. She nodded and kissed him. He lifted her to her feet and turned her toward
the bedroom.
She was
asleep when he got there. Katy had wanted two
stories tonight and he wasn't ever able to refuse her.
He slipped into the bed and molded himself around her, his hand resting on
her swollen belly.
She wasn't
there when he woke the next morning and he leapt from the bed with a muttered oath. He found her in the kitchen wiping Katy's mouth
following her breakfast. She looked up and
smiled at him, ignoring his anger with her. She
started to help the little girl down, but he moved swiftly toward them.
"Don't
lift her." He sounded a little harsher
than he meant to, but she could still cause him more aggravation than anyone in the world. He picked his daughter up and hugged her, then set
her down and watched her run over to her doll.
"I'm
sorry Mulder."
He turned
back to her, "Don't apologize. Scully,
damn it, you know you shouldn't be lifting her this late.
She's too heavy for you. You
should have stayed in bed and let me look after her."
"I had
to get up anyway, Mulder." She grinned,
"I'm fine, honest. No more contractions
yet."
"Well,
I'm going to stay here today and - "
"Oh no
you are not. If you don't go to work, I will." Before
he could respond to that, "Mulder, I do not need you hanging around waiting for some
scene from Alien. Forget it."
He winced at
that, besides he wasn't that bad. Well he wasn't! She
wasn't backing down on this and truthfully he was only steps away. Now Katy needed looking after ... Finally he
nodded. "I'll be home at lunch time, if
you need me for anything before that, hang a cloth from the flag pole. I'll check that."
She chuckled
and nodded. Better than she had expected and
she knew she would be needing him soon. The
cloth wasn't a bad idea. He picked up Katy to
kiss her goodbye. "Don't let your Mom
get too tired." He advised the child,
who nodded solemnly and hugged his neck. Then
he turned back to Scully and took her in his arms. "Don't
make me get after you, I want you to rest all day. You
hear that?" The last was addressed to
her stomach, which he caressed gently.
"We hear
you. Go!
I'll see you for lunch." She
pushed him lightly toward the door and he reluctantly left with one last glance back at
her.
He hadn't
been gone twenty minutes when she heard a tap on the door as it opened. "Anyone home?"
"Frohike? What are you - “ She had to laugh then. He had MJ tucked under one arm and Missy under the
other.
"We
wanted to know if Katy could come out and play."
He grinned at her.
"You
want to have all three of them?" She
wiped her hands on the dishcloth and moved slowly toward him, giving both babies a kiss on
the forehead. Katy had risen from her doll
and moved toward Frohike, eyes gleaming.
Scully looked
down at her daughter, now jumping up and down at the prospect of this outing. "Please!"
"Katy's
a good babysitter. She'll help me with the
two little ones, won't you Darling?"
"Yes!" She was already gathering up the essentials for
her duties.
"Mulder
sent you, didn't he?"
"He may
have mentioned that it would be a good time for Katy to have someplace else to be." She shook her head even as she fell just a little
more in love with this man who loved her so much. “When
you see him, tell him I'm fine."
"Will
do. Come on Katy, can you get the door for
me?" The four of them headed out and
Scully watched until they rounded the corner. She
chuckled softly to herself again. Who would
have ever thought that Melvin Frohike would be so wonderful with babies? Between he and Kevin, it was a wonder she ever saw
her own daughter. Of course, the upside of
that was Katy's confidence and self-assurance. No
child had ever been more loved, with a whole town of family to grow up in.
She had just
finished making up their bed when she heard the door open again. Katy must have forgotten something. She started for the door when it opened and Krycek
stepped into her bedroom.
"Alex,
what are you doing here? You know Mulder -
"
"We have
to get out of here. They've sent someone for
me. I recognize them from when I worked ...
They're here for me, but if they see you ... I know a place where we can stay out of sight
for a few hours. Please Dana, you do not want them to see you. They don't know about Katy and that's the best
thing that ever happened to this place. If
they were to find out that you can have children
- come on, I'll help you."
She stood
there frozen. How could she leave now? He was obviously frantic, yet he had taken the
time to come for her. It occurred to her
suddenly that this was his purpose, the reason she had known he should live here. She didn't hesitate any longer; Katy was with
Frohike, safe. She could hide for a few hours
until Mulder and Walter got rid of their guests.
Scully let
Krycek take her hand and they headed out the back door, down to the lake to move under
cover of trees. They were barely out of sight
of the house when she felt her abdomen tighten. She
slowed her steps but managed to keep walking, she didn’t want Alex to know. Besides the contractions had stopped every other
time.
Not now baby,
she silently begged. Momma's busy now, just
stay put a little while longer.
She quickly
realized that was one wish she was not going to be granted.
She did not want Krycek to realize what was happening and managed to keep
moving for a while.
Finally it
was too much and she pulled loose from him, and took hold of a tree. "I can't do this
Alex. I'm too pregnant to do this."
"Dana,
the place I'm talking about is less than a mile from here.
They won't find you there. I'll
make sure Mulder comes to get you. Dana, you
can't let them get their hands on you."
She pushed
herself away from the tree and took a deep breath. Deeper,
she realized, than she'd been about to take for some time.
The baby had dropped; she wasn't able to stand upright anymore. She accepted Krycek's arm around her again. Less than a mile, surely she could do that. Look at all the walking she and Mulder had done
before Katy had finally been born.
"Dana,
there, see it? No one from outside would know
about this place. Dana? Are you okay?"
"I need
to sit down." She managed to say.
"Yeah,
yeah okay." He hurried to open the door
as she steadied herself against the doorframe. He
helped her inside and she lifted her head to look around.
Dirt floor, bare wooden walls, completely empty. She'd seen this place before. Yes, in her vision - when she'd known there would
be another child for she and Mulder.
"Here,
sit down. I know it's not the best
accommodations." He lowered her to the
floor. "You'll be okay here. I'm going to make sure we weren't followed and if
we were, I'll lead them away. Just relax,
Mulder or I will be back to get you in a little while."
She nodded,
barely understanding the words. He looked at
her once more, then let himself out of the cabin. She
sank farther down, curling around the pain. The
pain took up her whole world now. She moaned
as she felt her water break. Jumbled memories
of Katy's birth joined the terror of Missy's birth.
She had to
get her act together. She was going to give
birth and soon. Alone or not, it was
inevitable. She dragged herself away from the
door before another contraction could take over.
The urge to
push was too strong now; she could no longer fight it.
Mulder, where are you? "Mulderrrrrrrr!"
*****
He burst into
the cabin; this had to be where the scream had come from.
His steps faltered from shock at the sight in front of him. "Oh my god, Scully!" He was on his knees beside her.
"Wrap
him, don't let him get cold." She
managed to get out. He nodded, stripping his
t-shirt off. "Do you ... do you have a
knife?"
"Don't
try to talk Scully." He stripped the
shoelaces from his shoes and tied off the cord, then cut it. He delivered the placenta and wrapped it up with
the baby. "Scully, Scully I'll get you
home. Just hold on."
He ignored
the tears running down his face. A son, she
had given him a son - all alone. Nothing
would keep him from killing Krycek this time.
She managed
to put her arms around the baby and he lifted her into his arms as gently as he could. She still moaned and part of him died that he was
causing her even more pain. "Please hold
on Scully." She pressed her cheek
against his chest and tightened her grip on the child as she closed her eyes.
He wasn't
sure when she actually lost consciousness, but she was out when he slipped into the back
door of the clinic. "Beth!"
"Mulder? Oh god!
In here." She led
him to the first room and threw a sheet over the examining table. "Get John, I think he's in the lab." He looked up at her as though she were crazy. Leave her side?
"We need to get the cord blood in storage. Mulder, she's not going anywhere. I promise."
He managed to
nod and kissed her forehead before leaving the room.
"Byers?"
"Hi. I heard we have visitors from outside. Everything okay?
Mulder, what's wrong?"
"Scully
had the baby. Beth wants you to store the
cord."
"Is she,
Mulder are Scully and the baby okay?"
"She was
alone. She was at the cabin, that shack to
the west of town." Byers had hold of his
arm now; Mulder obviously needed the support. "I
need to get back to her."
Byers nodded,
he didn’t know what to say. He followed
Mulder back to the examining room. Beth
looked up as they entered. "Over there,
John. Mulder, he weighs six pounds eight
ounces. He's doing great."
"Scully?" He was beside her again.
"She's
going to be fine Mulder. Honest. She didn't even need stitches."
"Why did
she pass out?"
"Mulder? She'd been through ... it's okay. She's just asleep now. Why don't you sit with her and I'll finish
cleaning him up. Mulder, believe me, she is
okay."
He sank down
into the chair beside her and laid his head on the bed beside her. Byers and Beth exchanged glances, and he followed
her out. "Is she really okay?"
"Yes
John. I'm not going to say giving birth alone
was any picnic, but thank god she was strong enough to handle it."
*****
She stirred
beside him and he was on his feet. Her hand
caressed her stomach and her eyes flew open. "Mulder!"
"Here. I'm right here.
The baby's fine, Beth has him." She
relaxed back against the pillow. "Scully,
I'm sorry, I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you."
She took hold
of his hand then, "You were. I knew you
were with me. The people that were here for
Alex...?”
"Gone,
we trailed them out of town. And we're
watching."
"I need
to see the baby. He's probably hungry by
now."
"Are you
sure you're up to nursing him?"
"Yes. Remember when Missy was born? It's good for both of us. Please, get him." He kissed her forehead and reluctantly let go of
her hand, then left to get their son.
She reached
for the baby immediately. "Oh Mulder,
he's beautiful. Help me sit up." He gently got her settled and watched as she
placed him to her breast. She looked up at
Mulder to see him devouring them both with his eyes.
She smiled at him, then her hand went to his temple.
"Mulder,
what...your hair's turned white. Right here,
what - "
He ran his
hand through his hair, what was she talking about? She
pointed to the mirror. He squeezed her hand
and moved over to see what she meant. Well,
she was right.
He returned
to her side, "Something else to blame Krycek for, I guess." She looked up from the infant at her breast
confused. "When I realized he had you,
and you were so close to giving birth...” he shrugged.
"It's
very distinguished." She tugged him down
to her level to kiss him again.
"Are you
really okay Scully?"
Her eyes
teared at the love in his voice. "I am. I wish you had been there in the flesh, but I am
okay. Mulder, would you ... would you be very
upset if I though that our family is complete now?"
He took a
shuddery breath. "No, I would not be upset.
Remember, I told you I was going to take over birth control when he was
born."
She closed
her eyes and leaned against him as he sat beside her in the bed. "We need to name him."
"I'm
okay with Walter."
"Walter
Fox." He winced at that. "Actually, I want to name him Walter Fox
Alexander Mulder."
"Alexander? Scully - "
"Alex
helped me get away, so that they wouldn't see me, see that I was pregnant."
"And
took you away so that you had to give birth alone."
"Mulder,
this is the reason he came to live here. I
told you there was a reason; I just couldn't see it because it involved me. Mulder, I think he's dead. I think they killed him, but I know he killed them as well." She stopped, a
memory surfacing. "I saw it. I...I was busy at the time." She smiled ruefully then, "but he found them,
they were near the cabin, near where he'd left me. He
got the man before they knew he was there. Through
the back of the neck." Mulder nodded. "But he didn't let it stop him. He couldn't breathe, but he fought her. Mulder, he gave everything for us." She shuddered, seeing the faces melt again in her
mind. "I don't plan to call the baby
Alex, don't think that, but I want it to be part of his name. He is partly responsible for the baby being
here."
"You're
serious." He watched her eyes.
"I am. Mulder, he didn't have to come warn me. He could have gotten away. He certainly could have moved faster without me in
tow through the woods. He didn't get Kelly;
he didn't try to save the child she's carrying, his child. Think
about it Mulder." He watched her move
their son to her other breast, then pulled her closer to him.
She might
have a point, a lousy one, but a point nevertheless.
If they didn't call the boy Alex ... He mentally shook his head, just when
did he think he wasn't going to do as she wanted?
He had two
children. Two beautiful, healthy children
with this woman. He was terrified of this
much happiness, but he still had her and she seemed to be okay with that. He nuzzled her hair and took a deep breath.
"We're
okay Mulder." She might have been
talking about herself and the boy, but he knew better.
She meant everything, the vaccine, their home, and yes, their love for each
other.
"I know
Scully. I know."
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