The Littlest Hostage by Susan Proto
Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998

Category: S, X-file (Golly, 2 in a row!), minor bit of MulderTorture, Angst,
UST

Disclaimer: The characters of the X-Files don't belong to me. They belong to
Chris Carter and 1013 Productions. Everyone else is mine, but I'm a generous
soul and don't mind sending my guys off to play as long as you're kind to
them. (I do enuf damage...'nuf said.)

Archive: Yes

Spoilers: Yep. A little bit of Duane Barry, a little bit of Pusher,...and
up and through the end of the fifth season and beyond, though it's a very
minor mention of the movie…

And of course, thanks Vickie.

The Littlest Hostage
by Susan Proto (STPteach@aol.com)

Part 1/3

"Mulder," he answered the phone.

"Hold on, Agent Mulder, for AD Skinner," Kim advised.

"Okay, Kim."

"Agent Mulder?" queried the deep voice of the Assistant Director.

"Yes, Sir."

"Mulder, I need you and Scully to get up here immediately," Skinner demanded.
"There's a situation."

"We'll both be right in, Sir," he replied and hung up the phone.

Mulder had to smile at the AD's use of the expression, "get up here" as if
their office was currently in the basement. Mulder and Scully were given
temporary digs on the same floor as their boss, until the renovations were
completed in their basement office. The fire didn't do quite as much damage
as they'd initially thought, but the powers that be (namely Skinner) felt as
long as the place needed to be fixed up, they might as well do a complete
overhaul.

Skinner had felt it was the least they could do for putting his pair of agents
through hell. Between the fire and initial closing of the division, then the
fiasco in Antarctica, and then the reopening of the X-Files Division, Skinner
felt they were on enough of a roller coaster ride that warranted a bit of an
even plateau. He said to consider the office redecorating as an apology.

When he'd asked Skinner who was apologizing, he recalled Skinner had smirked
and simply said, 'your government.' Mulder asked no more questions. His
department was reopened, Scully was all right, their partnership was doing
better than all right, and he was getting a nice new shiny office to boot.

Life was good in America.

Special Agent Fox Mulder looked over at the curious expression on his
partner's face. Though Special Agent Dana Scully, MD was eavesdropping on the
one sided conversation, her quizzical expression was also the result of her
curiosity about what was going on in her partner's mind. She was finally
able to do that again; know when something significant was going on his mind.

It had been a long time since she'd even wanted to know, much less be able to
pick up on the idea something was gnawing at him. Not that it was all her
fault. He'd taken to ignoring her needs and concerns as well. It had been a
long time since they'd acted, much less felt, like partners. But since they
got back from the cold wasteland of Antarctica, they were a team again.
Better than ever.

"Let's go partner. The big guy calls."

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Haven't a clue. All he said was 'there's a situation,'" he mimicked the AD's
grave tone of voice.

"God, as long as we don't have to travel too far. I haven't even unpacked my
suitcases from the last case we were on," Scully hoped.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As it turned out, Scully and Mulder weren't required to travel too far at all.

The two of them were ushered into the AD's office quickly. Seated in the
office were several other men and one rather distraught woman.

"Agents, thank you for coming up so quickly," Skinner acknowledged.

"What's going on, Sir?" Mulder asked quietly.

"I'll explain in one moment, Agent Mulder. First, I'd like to introduce you
to one another. Gentlemen, Ma'am, this is Special Agent Fox Mulder and
Special Agent Dana Scully. Agents, this is DC Police Public Liaison, Carl
Burke; James Thornwood, Attorney; Albert Rhodes, Publicity Director for
Buttersfield, Inc., and Mrs. Caitlin Buttersfield, the president and wife of
Elliot Buttersfield, the CEO of Buttersfield, Inc..

"Ma'am, gentlemen," both Mulder and Scully acknowledged. Both agents were
aware Buttersfield, Inc. was one of the largest and most powerful advertising
agencies in the DC area.

It was a young company and had only been in business for a relatively short
time, but it boasted several political heavyweights as clients. The fact the
company was also a boon to DC in terms of providing added tax revenue for the
city and a couple of hundred jobs for the local citizens was not lost on the
politicos either.

They earned a reputation as being a well respected organization and were
highly touted for locating their corporate headquarters in a city with a large
minority population.

Members of the Buttersfield Inc. Board proclaimed it was their mission to
provide equal opportunities for any and all employees of Buttersfield, Inc.
And the company had been as good as their word for the last two and a half
years.

Elliot Buttersfield was one of the youngest, successful CEOs to make it in the
Fortune 500. His wife of twelve years, Caitlin Buttersfield, was an equally
successful, as well as a powerful force, in her role as of President of the
company.

There have been, however, some rumblings for the last three months or so that
Elliot Buttersfield was having problems. The gossip around town was Mr.
Buttersfield was becoming unstable. Caitlin Buttersfield was making every
attempt to stave off possible scandal, but it had been proving harder and
harder.

There was, apparently, some proof to the rumors.

"Sir, would you bring us up to speed on the current situation?" Scully asked.

"Agents, we have a very delicate situation here," began Skinner. "We
apparently have a hostage situation."

"Hostage?" Mulder questioned. "Who is being held hostage?"

"The Buttersfield's daughter," Carl Burke, the DCPD liaison responded.

"Oh," gasped Scully, ever so slightly in sympathy for Caitlin Buttersfield.
"Do we know who is holding the child hostage?"

"My husband," interjected a monotone Caitlin Buttersfield.

"He claims the kid's an alien," mocked Burke.

"Oh, shit," muttered Mulder quietly under his breath.

"Look, the Chief of Police wants to put an end to this situation as quickly as
possible. We know the Bureau doesn't normally get involved in situations
involving a domestic situation, but given the fact the guy is the CEO of a
major DC ad firm which boasts several of our most well-known political leaders
as clients, he felt it imperative we douse this flame as quick as possible.

"Plus," Burke continued, "given the nature of the guy's beliefs, well we're
all aware of the specialized unit 'Spooky' Mulder runs, so we figured it would
be best to put it in your hands. But the Chief said we'll have a SWAT team
ready and rearing to go on an as needed basis."

Scully and Skinner were the only people in the room to notice the slight
flinch Mulder made upon being referred to as 'Spooky.' Neither was sure which
one wanted to take the guy out more. Scully clenched and then unclenched her
fist over and over again in an effort to regain control over her anger.

Skinner, on the other hand, turned to Burke and said in a very firm, even
voice that was reminiscent of molten lava, "Officer Burke. Special Agent
Mulder has been getting solve results for the bureau the DCPD can only dream
about. I dare say that warrants some respect, don't you? Therefore, you will
refer to the section head of the X-Files Department as Special Agent Mulder.
Do I make myself clear?"

Burke quickly averted his eyes and mumbled, "Yes Sir. No disrespect intended,
Sir." Skinner simply nodded at that.

"If I may explain the situation?" asked Albert Rhodes, the company's publicity
director. Without waiting for a response, Rhodes began.

"Three months ago, the Buttersfields adopted a child. A daughter. Jenny is
five years old. Caitlin and Elliot decided to adopt an older child as both
parents were very invested in their business and felt they would be better
suited to care for an older child. They also realized the time line would be
much faster if they chose to adopt an older child.

"When Mr. Thornwood called," Rhodes said nodding towards the Buttersfield's
personal attorney, "and stated he had a child they might possibly want to
adopt, Elliot and Caitlin practically knocked each other over in getting to
his office."

Mulder and Scully watched Caitlin Buttersfield smile slightly as she was
reminded of the first time her husband and she learned about their daughter.
They also watched a tear slide quietly down her cheek.

"When Elliot and Caitlin met Jenny," Rhodes continued, "it was love at first
sight. The couple decided immediately to adopt Jenny, and they had Thornwood
draw up the papers. It was a wonderful moment in the lives of the
Buttersfield family."

Mulder's head jerked slightly at hearing Rhode's last sentence. It had
sounded to him like a line from a press release, and it didn't sit well with
him. He tried to glean any fakery on the part of Caitlin Buttersfield, but
she seemed sincere to him. The Rhodes character was, in Mulder's mind,
another story.

"So what happened?" Mulder asked gently, looking directly at Caitlin
Buttersfield.

When Rhodes was about to continue, Mulder walked directly to the distraught
woman, knelt in front of her and said, gently but firmly, "I would like to
hear what happened from Mrs. Buttersfield, please."

"Look, _I_ can tell you exactly __," Rhodes began.

"__No. It's important for me to hear what really happened. Not the press
release version. It would really be helpful for me to hear exactly what
happened from you, Mrs. Buttersfield," Mulder said as gently as possible.

Caitlin Buttersfield looked directly into Mulder's eyes and knew immediately
she could trust him. She didn't know why she felt that way; only that she
felt it strongly enough to override the objections of her company's publicity
director and describe, in her own words, what had transpired over the last
three months.

"When we first brought Jenny home, we were all so happy," Caitlin whispered.
Mulder had drawn a chair over so he could sit directly in front of Mrs.
Buttersfield and continue to make eye contact to encourage her to continue.

"Elliot doted all over her. Anything she wanted, Elliot would see she got it.
I kept telling him he needed to slow down; he was going to spoil her rotten.
But neither of us really believed that was possible."

"Why was that, Mrs. Buttersfield?" he probed.

"Oh. Well, apparently Jenny was a very neglected child. She had no clothes
other than the ones she wore on her back. She had no toys, no hair ribbons,
nothing. The dear child lived in some kind of home for abandoned and
neglected children." She turned to her attorney and asked, "James? What was
the name of the institution she came from?"

"Hathaway House," he replied succinctly.

"Oh, yes, that was it. Hathaway House. Well, when we picked her up we had to
go directly to a clothing store, because, as I'd said, the poor baby had
absolutely nothing else to wear."

"So after you'd gone shopping for clothes and bought her a few things__,"
Mulder began.

"__Barbie. That was the only thing she'd asked for, a Barbie doll," Mrs.
Buttersfield added.

"Okay," Mulder affirmed gently, "so after you'd bought her clothes and a
Barbie doll__,"

"__Barbie_s_. Elliot insisted on buying the child a half a dozen Barbies, as
well as a few Ken's and Skippers. There's another little girl doll, which for
the life of me, I can't remember the name. I wonder why I can't remember its
name?" she murmured.

"Mrs. Buttersfield?" Mulder called out softly to bring her back to the
present. "How did Jenny like living with you?"

"She seemed to like it. I can't say if she loved it or not. She was__, is,"
she corrected herself determinedly, "She _is_ so quiet. Jenny hasn't spoken
much, but she hasn't seemed unhappy. She's been adjusting, I suppose. It was
a big change from the home she was in."

Mulder looked over at Scully for a moment, and through their unique silent
communication, Scully knew to write down the name of the home little Jenny
Buttersfield had been living in before her adoption. Hathaway House warranted
some investigation.

"Mrs. Buttersfield? When did___," he began.

"__Caitlin. Please, call me Caitlin."

"Caitlin, when did your husband start to believe Jenny was __, was different?"
Mulder asked diplomatically.

Caitlin sighed deeply and paused to collect herself. This was obviously going
to be difficult for her to talk about, so Mulder had no qualms about giving
her the extra time to calm herself down.

"Caitlin, you don't need to subject yourself to this, Dear," James Thornwood
intervened and told his client.

"Oh, but I do. If there's anyway for these people to help both Jenny and
Elliot, then I have to tell them what's been going on," she answered. She
then turned back to Mulder and began to speak once more.

"Now that I've had time to carefully consider it, I realize Elliot's attitude
changed much sooner than I'd initially thought. I believe he began to act
oddly only about a week, maybe two weeks after we'd brought Jenny home," she
said.

"How so? How did he act that made you think he was behaving oddly?" Mulder
gently probed.

"He would stop talking when Jenny came into the room. Elliot and I would be
having a conversation; a nice normal conversation, but as soon as Jenny walked
into the room, he'd stop speaking. When I'd asked him if he was all right,
he'd say, "Fine." And that would be the extent of our conversation while
Jenny was in the room with us."

"But Mrs. Buttersfield," Scully interjected.

"__Caitlin. Please, call me Caitlin. It doesn't seem quite as scary if you
call me Caitlin."

"Of course. Caitlin, did Elliot ever speak directly to Jenny?" Scully asked.

"Well, that's the strange thing. In the beginning, when all of this craziness
began, he did continue to speak directly to her. He just wouldn't speak to
_me_ in front of Jenny. I didn't understand that. But eventually, he stopped
speaking to Jenny too. Of course, in the last week he stopped speaking to me
altogether as well," Caitlin explained dejectedly.

Mulder observed Mrs. Buttersfield and the small group assembled in the room.
The DCPD liaison appeared very skeptical about the whole matter. Thornwood,
the lawyer, looked grave as he listened to Caitlin Buttersfield's words. The
publicity director of Buttersfield, Inc. looked patently nervous. As Rhodes
paced back and forth in the room, it reminded Mulder of days past, (before
Lamaze and natural childbirth) when expectant fathers wore a hole in the
carpet while waiting for the birth of their children.

Then Mulder looked over at Walter Skinner, who, in turn, had been observing
Mulder and Scully. When Mulder made actual eye contact with Skinner, he
sensed an understanding between them. Both men seemed to agree (as did
Scully) that Caitlin Buttersfield was an innocent victim here.

The question which needed answering was whether Elliot Buttersfield an
innocent victim too. The second question in Mulder's mind was whether Jenny
Buttersfield really was an alien.

Skinner knew that particular question was on Mulder's mind. However, it was a
question he didn't particularly want answered at this time. All Skinner
desired was for Mulder and Scully to take care of the hostage situation.

"Caitlin, how do you know your husband thinks Caitlin is an__, is an alien?"
Mulder finally asked tentatively.

"He said so. He just came out and said, "The child is not of this world,
Caitlin. And when I asked him what he was talking about, he said, "The child
is an alien."

"And did he ever say he wanted to harm her?" questioned Scully now. She
wanted to determine if the child was in any immediate danger.

"No, he never said he wanted to harm her. He said he wanted to return her,"
answered Caitlin.

"To Hathaway House," Scully asked rhetorically.

So it surprised her when she immediately replied, "No. Not to that place."

"Where?"

Caitlin responded tentatively. "I don't know. I don't know! Is he crazy?
I don't understand why he's doing this. She's a sweet, quiet, little girl.
Why is he doing this?"

The calm demeanor finally gave way to tears. She moved forward and laid her
head on Mulder's shoulder for support. Mulder embraced her gently and allowed
her to release the tension she'd obviously been feeling for the last couple of
hours.

As Mulder provided some much needed moral support, Scully addressed Skinner
and asked him if there'd been any contact with Mr. Buttersfield.

"We have the number, and he's answered once. He hasn't made any demands yet.
We don't know what he wants," said Skinner.

Scully turned to Mulder, and looked at him as if to silently question him.
Those in the room might have sworn the two partners were send messages
telepathically, since the next thing out of Mulder's mouth was, "Caitlin, what
does he want?"

She picked her head up from his shoulder, and looked tearfully at him. "I
don't __," she began, but Mulder cut her off.

"Caitlin, we need to know what he wants. You do know, don't you," he said
more as a statement than a question.

"He wants to return her home," she said quietly.

"But," Skinner began, thoroughly confused at this point, "you just said he
doesn't want to bring her back to the Hathaway House."

"And he doesn't, does he?" asked Mulder gently. Caitlin shook her head
slowly. "He wants her to go back from where she really came from," Mulder
confirmed softly.

"Yes." Caitlin blinked back more tears. "You have to understand. He doesn't
want to hurt her. He does love her, but he has it in his head that she's not
supposed to be here. She's supposed to go some where, but he doesn't know
where. And it's been making him act crazy lately, and I'm afraid of what he
might do now, because _he_ simply doesn't know what he's supposed to do."

"What he's supposed to do?" Scully echoed.

"Yes, he says he keeps waiting for someone to tell him what to do," Caitlin
lamented.

"But he doesn't know who's supposed to contact him," Skinner confirmed.

"No. He never indicated he knew who would contact him," Caitlin responded.

"Okay, you've been a tremendous help." He paused suddenly for a moment, and
then asked, "Caitlin, had Elliot ever been missing? I mean, has he ever been
gone for an unexplained period of time?"

"No, no I don't think so. Oh, wait__." Caitlin hesitated as she tried to
regain some forgotten memories. "Right before we were married. He'd gone out
with his drinking buddies for one last fling. He never got back that night to
the apartment we were sharing.

"His buddies swore up and down they dropped him off in front of the building,
but he didn't show up until day and a half later on the other side of town on
the Georgetown University football field, buck naked.

"I let him sweat it out for three days before I accepted his apology. Poor
guy, he didn't have a clue as to what the hell happened to him. Not a clue,''
she related.

"Thank you , Caitlin. Believe it or not, that might have helped us. I need
to talk with my partner and AD Skinner for a few minutes. Would you excuse
us, please?" Mulder asked considerately.

Skinner took Mulder's lead and led him and Scully out to the back entrance to
a small conference room.

"Well, what do you think?" Skinner asked.

"Mulder, do you think this guy was abducted?" Scully asked.

"I think we need to find out exactly what's going on in this guy's head,"
Mulder deflected for the time being.

"Yes, but if he doesn't pick up the phone, that makes it pretty difficult to
tell what his demands are," Scully offered.

"I don't think the poor shmuck even knows what his demands are, Scully,"
Mulder began. "I think Elliot Buttersfield is still waiting for some
direction for what to do next."

"You serious?" chided Skinner. "Direction from whom?"

"More likely, from what," Mulder replied.

"Mulder, don't tell me you think this guy is right in thinking his five year
old daughter is an alien!" Skinner asked exasperated.

"I don't know if he's right, Sir. I do know _he_ believes his adopted
daughter is alien, and at the moment that's the mind set we have to be
concerned with, because that's the vantage point from which Elliot
Buttersfield will be acting from," Mulder explained.

"Okay, so we assume Buttersfield really believes his daughter is an alien and
he's waiting for directions from some little grey men to tell him what to do
next," Scully said.

Mulder smiled at Scully's use of the adjective 'grey' to describe the possible
alien being that was to direct Elliot Buttersfield. She may not totally
believe, but she did listen.

"So assuming that," she continued, "we have to decide what our next logical
step is."

"I agree," said Mulder immediately, "Which is why I'm going to call Elliot
Buttersfield and tell him I'm coming over for a chat."

"Oh really?" said Scully incredulously. "And what makes you think that's the
best course of action?"

"I don't want to have to ascertain the man's state of mind from over the
telephone. It would be much easier to get in there and actually see what's
going on. Besides, I think I can talk this guy into giving it up," Mulder
stated firmly.

"Like you talked Duane Barry into giving it up, Mulder?" she retorted without
thinking.

Mulder visibly shuddered when he head Scully practically spit that name out at
him. Scully, immediately regretted her words, but Mulder shut her out before
she could apologize. Mulder turned directly to Skinner.

"Sir, if we are to end this without anyone getting hurt, I need to gain access
to Elliot Buttersfield. I need to get inside the house."

"Mulder, wouldn't it make more sense to negotiate with him on the phone?"
Skinner asked.

"No. I need to see how he's behaving, and I need to see if the little girl is
okay. I have to make absolutely sure he doesn't hurt the little girl. That
in and of itself could ultimately kill him," Mulder stated emphatically and
caught Scully's eye.

She knew exactly what he meant. Scully realized Skinner interpreted Mulder's
words as if Buttersfield hurt his little girl, it would emotionally destroy
him. Mulder, on the other hand, was concerned if the child really was alien,
and the father broke the child's skin, the gaseous substance that was emitted
upon contact with the atmosphere would definitely cause Buttersfield physical
harm. Possibly death.

Scully looked at Mulder. Her eyes pleaded with him for forgiveness. He
returned her look with acceptance.

Scully sighed, slightly in relief, but more in anticipation of what was to
come next. Scully knew Mulder was right. He had to get inside. But she
hoped to amend Mulder's plan with one slight change.

"Sir, I think I should accompany Mulder into the house. I'm a medical doctor,
and I could be an asset in case there is any kind of medical emergency," she
proposed. Scully was waiting for both men to strenuously object to the
proposal, especially Mulder. However, much to her surprise, he did not. In
fact, he agreed with her, with one small hitch.

"I do think you will need to have access, Scully, just not immediately. I'd
like to establish contact with Elliot Buttersfield first and ascertain the
situation. I want to talk with him for a bit first, then convince him of the
need to call for a medical doctor to make sure his little girl is okay and
holding up under the strain.

"I think it's important for me to establish a line of trust first, Scully.
Then I'll call you in for backup. I promise."

"Mulder, you have to really promise me you'll get me in there with you as soon
as possible," Scully said firmly.

"I will, Scully. I really do promise," he replied sincerely.

The two agents looked at their boss and AD Skinner said, "Very well, Agents.
Let's make contact."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
End of Part 1/3

Disclaimers in Part 1

Part 2/3

Before they'd made the actual phone contact, Mulder had asked Caitlin
Buttersfield if she had a picture of her daughter and husband handy. She
sighed with regret, and explained she'd not even been able to grab her purse,
much less pictures of her husband and child, when Elliot had his last outburst
and literally scared her straight out of the house.

"I could go and get some of the press release photos if you'd like," Rhodes
offered.

"Thank you, but that's probably not necessary at this point, but we'll keep it
in mind," Mulder said.

Assistant Director Skinner asked Mrs. Buttersfield to once again explain to
the group Elliot Buttersfield's actions so Agent Mulder would have a better
idea as to what he'd be walking into.

"Of course, it's just so hard," she sobbed softly.

Mulder kneeled down in front of the woman again to offer his moral support.
"I know how hard it must be to think about this, but it could help both Elliot
and Jenny," he reassured.

She nodded. "May I have some water, please?" she asked.

The AD picked up his phone and asked Kim to bring in a pitcher of ice water.
A few minutes later, Skinner's secretary walked in with both a pitcher of ice
water and several glasses. Skinner nodded his thanks, and Kim retreated back
to the reception area.

Skinner poured a glass of water for Mrs. Buttersfield and handed it to her.
She accepted it gratefully and took several small sips. When she finally felt
back in control, she related the traumatic events of the morning.

"I woke up earlier than usual. I'm not sure why, though I would guess it had
something to do with the fact Elliot wasn't in bed with me. I usually wake up
before Elliot. He's such a sound sleeper normally, so when I didn't feel him
next to me in bed this morning, it must have disturbed my sleep." She paused
for a moment to take a sip of water and continued.

"I got out of bed, took a few minutes in the bathroom, and then went to look
for Elliot. I wandered over to Jenny's room, as it was only a couple of doors
down from our bedroom, and saw her door was slightly ajar.

"When I opened it, I saw Elliot pacing back and forth in the bedroom. Jenny
was awake but still in bed. She looked petrified," Caitlin gasped in anxiety.
She really did have to catch her breath before she continued. She retreated
behind the glass of ice water for several moments.

Scully sat in the chair near the kneeling Mulder. She placed her hand on
Caitlin's shoulder in an attempt to both make physical contact and offer some
comfort. "What happened next?" Scully asked gently.

Caitlin Buttersfield looked at Scully. She asked her, "Are you a mother?"

Scully hesitated for only a moment before she said, "Yes. I mean, I was."

Caitlin looked at her again, with a new respect. "Then you know the
helplessness I felt when I saw the fear in my daughter's eyes. Then you know
frightened I felt as I watched my husband pace back and forth, over and over
again, all the while muttering loudly and then whispering and then practically
shouting total nonsense! And I'm sure you can understand the terror I felt
when I saw the gun in my husband's hands."

Scully reached around Caitlin's shoulders and whispered so only she and Mulder
could possibly hear, "I know the terror you speak of, Caitlin." And then
looking cautiously at Mulder, she added, "We both do."

Some time passed before Caitlin was able to continue her description of what
had happened earlier. When she'd finally collected herself again she said,
"When he saw me he screamed at me to get out. He was shouting at the top of
his lungs that I had to get the hell out of the house.

"I told him I would leave, but I had to take Jenny with me. That's when he
seemed to go insane. He started ranting and raving how Jenny needed to go
back home, and _they_ wouldn't be happy until she returned to them. He
screamed at me to leave, to just get out, or he couldn't be responsible for
what would happen.

"I begged him to let me take her, but he held the gun up and started waving it
around," she recalled with a violent shudder.

"Caitlin," Mulder interrupted, "Did he actually point the gun at Jenny?"

She didn't answer right away, but after she thought carefully, Caitlin
replied, "No. No, he never pointed the gun directly at her. That's good,
isn't it? That means he really doesn't plan on hurting her, doesn't it?"

"It's a good sign," Mulder reassured. "If he really had intentions of harming
her, he would have showed more aggression towards her while you were there.
So, what happened next?"

Caitlin's eyes glazed over as she recalled what had happened next. "Ohmigod,"
she murmured. "He pointed the gun at himself."

Both Mulder and Scully looked at one another in understanding the horror
Caitlin Buttersfield must have felt. They each recalled a similar experience
when Pusher, momentarily, had control of their lives. There was no more
helpless a feeling as seeing someone you love put a gun to their head.

"He knew he could get you to do anything he wanted when he did that, didn't
he," Mulder stated rather than asked.

"God, yes. But how would you__?" she began.

"__I know," he whispered. "Just believe me; I know."

Caitlin Buttersfield returned Mulder's gaze with an equal intensity. She then
turned her attention to Agent Scully, and received the confirmation in her
eyes. Both of these agents knew exactly how she felt and would do anything in
their power to make sure both her daughter __and__ her husband were unharmed.

They were all victims here. And Caitlin Buttersfield now knew Agents Mulder
and Scully understood that implicitly.

"I left them," she said guiltily. "I told him I would leave if he put the gun
down. He didn't actually put it down anywhere, but he lowered it, so I backed
out of the room. I begged him not to hurt Jenny. I begged him not to hurt
himself. I __, I told Jenny I loved her, and then I __, I__. Oh God, how
could I have just left her in there? Ohmigod, how could I?" she cried out in
anguish.

This time it was Scully who leaned over to offer some physical comfort to Mrs.
Buttersfield, while Mulder stood and walked over to Skinner.

"I've got to get in there now. Who knows how long he's going to keep it all
together?" Mulder posed.

"Then let's try to connect with him again." Skinner pressed the redial key on
the phone and listened for a connection. Skinner was tempted to put it on the
speaker, but realized if Elliot Buttersfield did anything foolish, it would be
unfair for his wife to have to listen to it. When the phone began ringing, he
handed it over to Mulder.

Mulder not only held the phone to his ear, but he held his breath as well. He
was nervous. He hated the idea of some lunatic holding a helpless little girl
hostage. But, he'd also seen way too much in his life to totally discount the
man's story. He willed Elliot Buttersfield to answer the damn phone, but when
Mulder actually heard someone say, 'hello,' he practically jumped in surprise.

"Hello, Mr. Buttersfield?" Mulder responded in as calm and even voice as
possible. "My name is Fox Mulder. I'm sitting here with your wife, Caitlin,
and she asked that I talk with you."

"Caitlin?" echoed the voice nervously. "Caitlin's there?"

"Yes, Mr. Buttersfield. Caitlin is here. She'd really like me to speak with
you. I'm going to drive over to your home now. I should be there within the
next fifteen minutes, okay? Caitlin really wants me to have the chance to
talk things over with you. Look, I'm on my way. I'll be there soon. Very
soon." And Mulder handed the phone over to Skinner with his hand over the
mouthpiece.

"Just do your best to keep him talking. Hopefully, he'll be so damned
confused he won't have time to figure out who the hell I am. Get someone to
have a wire ready for me to put on so you guys can be aware as to what the
hell's going on in there even if he hangs up the phone. I want Scully nearby,
so make sure she gets into a surveillance van as soon as possible." Mulder
let go of the phone, and motioned his partner over to him by the door.

"Scully, be prepared to join me within the hour. If for some reason I haven't
been able to get him to relinquish the child before that, then it'll be time
to call in for a medic," he said. "I asked Skinner to get a surveillance van
over to the condo. I want you in there monitoring the situation, okay? I need
you to know what's going on inside. You know me better than anyone. "

"Be careful, Mulder. Please. I'll be right outside the building, and I'll
see you within the hour," Scully replied confidently.

Mulder nodded, squeezed her hand in response, and left.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mulder made it over to the Buttersfield condominium in just over ten minutes.
He needed another five minutes to tape the wire in place on his chest, and he
then entered the building. He walked in as unobtrusively as possible, as the
last thing Mulder wanted to do was to attract attention and cause a media
frenzy in the middle of Washington, DC.

The surveillance van had set up shop across the street from the development.
It was disguised as a cable company repair van. Not exactly unique, but it
was effective. Both Scully and Skinner were dropped off about five minutes
after Mulder left for the Buttersfield's apartment.

Just prior to his leaving, Skinner made Mulder all too aware as to why the
publicity director of Buttersfield, Inc. was in Skinner's office with the DCPD
liaison. The ad agency was a huge feather in the cap of the District of
Columbia. It provided the area with respectability and kept the Madison
Avenue boys on their toes.

But any bad publicity could cause skittish politicians and their advisors to
go running back to Madison Avenue immediately, so the presence of Publicity
Director Albert Rhodes was no surprise.
Mulder realized there was a good deal of political concern riding on this
negotiation, but his primary considerations were the little girl and her
father.

Mulder arrived at the door to the Buttersfield's door, and he knocked firmly.
While he waited, Mulder shifted his weight from one leg to the other, until he
finally heard footsteps come closer. He then forced himself to remain
absolutely still after taking one last cleansing breath as he worked to calm
himself before the door opened.

"Who's there?" called out the anxious voice.

"Fox Mulder, Mr. Buttersfield. I spoke with you on the phone, remember?
Caitlin sent me," Mulder said calmly.

The agent stood quietly, and forced himself to keep his expression neutral, as
he was sure Buttersfield was observing him through the door's peephole.

"Who are you?" Buttersfield asked.

"I told you, my name is Fox Mulder, and your wife asked me to speak with you.
Please, Mr. Buttersfield, may I come in?" he asked. Mulder made sure his
demeanor remained calm and unthreatening. He didn't make any demands upon the
man for fear Buttersfield might withdraw.

"Yeah, but who are you?" he asked again.

"I'm a friend, Mr. Buttersfield. A friend who wants to talk and listen."
Mulder stood still and, upon hearing the door lock unbolted, let out a breath
he hadn't even realized he was holding.

Buttersfield opened the door just enough to allow Mulder to enter, and then
Buttersfield slammed the door shut and locked it immediately.

"I'm by myself, Mr. Buttersfield. There was no one else out there," Mulder
assured.

"Can't take a chance. Okay, so Caitlin sent you?" Mulder nodded. "She's
okay, isn't she?"

"She's frightened for you. And for Jenny," Mulder replied. At the mention of
his daughter's name, Buttersfield jerked.

"Don't you talk about Jenny!" Buttersfield shouted.

"Why? Isn't she okay?"

"They want her back. Oh God, they want her back, but I don't know what to do…
My little girl… My little girl," he moaned.

"Where is she, Mr. Buttersfield? Mr. Buttersfield? Elliot? Where is Jenny?"
Mulder asked gently.

"Jenny, come in sweetheart. Come in here now," Elliot called out.

Mulder was relieved he could hear the soft padding of a child's footsteps.
As he waited for the child to appear in what apparently was the living room,
Mulder observed Elliot Buttersfield. His hair was in complete disarray and his
clothes were disheveled. His pallor was pasty and he looked exhausted. Yet
when he looked up and saw his daughter walk in the door, Buttersfield's face
lit up. He greeted his daughter with a beautiful, loving smile.

Mulder looked over towards the little girl. When he saw the face that caused
her adopted father to light up with happiness, Mulder gasped and uttered,
"Holy God."

He saw a familiar face.

He saw Emily.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mulder couldn't help but stare at the small child's face. Jenny was slightly
taller and perhaps a bit heavier, but her face was Emily's. Mulder felt his
mouth gape open and then heard his name called.

"Mr. Mulder? Mr. Mulder, are you okay?" asked Elliot Buttersfield.

"What? Oh. I'm sorry."

"Is something wrong, Mr. Mulder?"

"No, nothing is wrong. Your daughter just reminded me of someone, that's
all," he replied softly. Mulder wasn't sure if Scully was hearing all of the
interplay between him and Buttersfield, but he hoped she was. When the time
came for her to enter the home, he needed her to be prepared for seeing her
daughter's image again.

Meanwhile, outside the Buttersfield's condominium development, a television
news crew was setting up equipment. The TV news director received an
anonymous tip of a possible hostage situation in the home of the very wealthy,
well-known, and respected CEO of Buttersfield, Inc.

The DCPD were informed of the news crew setting up by the condominium's
Security Director. There was now, what basically amounted to, a tug of war
between the news crew and the District of Columbia local police.

Neither were apparently willing to back down, and finally Assistant Director
Skinner came out of the surveillance van he, Scully, and surveillance experts
Agents Jantzen and Morris were occupying. Scully remained in the van, and
continued to listen to the audio that played back into the van.

She was very much aware of Mulder's reaction to the child, and though she
never actually heard him say it, she knew immediately who Jenny Buttersfield
reminded him of. She could feel his sorrow, anxiety, and horror all rolled up
in one inside her own heart.

*Hang in there, Mulder,* she thought to herself. *I'll be fine.* She knew
Mulder would be concerned about _her_ reactions to young Jenny; so of course
Scully took it upon herself to be worried about Mulder's reactions as well.

At one time, in another lifetime, Scully mused, she was too wrapped up in her
own sorrow, her own grief, to notice anyone else's response to Emily's death.
But as time passed, and she was better able to distance herself from the
horror of the circumstances behind Emily's birth and subsequent death, Scully
realized the child's existence had deeply affected her partner's psyche as
well.

She knew he felt responsible for this chapter in her life as well, and
therefore had no compunction about taking on the feelings of guilt too.
During the beginning of her grieving process over Emily's death, Scully did
nothing to stave off Mulder's guilt. In fact, she'd come to realize, she'd
done much to fan the flames of his self- flagellation. It wasn't until
after their office had gone up in flames at the hands of the smoking man, and
they had time to recuperate from the Antarctica debacle, the two of them had
a chance to clear the air.

Scully realized she could no more blame Mulder for the horrors of Emily's life
and death than she could blame herself. It took a while to convince Mulder he
needed to realize the same, but eventually, he allowed himself to let go of
that piece of baggage.

Scully hoped it didn't find him again during this hostage crisis with little
Jenny Buttersfield.

She hoped it didn't find her either.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hi, Jenny. My name is Mulder, and I'm a friend of your mom's."

The little girl looked up at Mulder with doe-like blue eyes and stood mutely.

"She doesn't like to talk to strangers. I'm sorry," Buttersfield said
apologetically.

"No problem. How about you just nod your head yes," and Mulder nodded his
head in a clown-like exaggerated fashion, "or shake your head no," and did a
similar over the top motion for the desired negative response.

Jenny smiled a bit at the antics of the very tall stranger and nodded her head
ever so slightly. Mulder, however, was watching closely and noticed the
imperceptible movement of the child's head and exclaimed happily, "That's my
girl!"

"Now," he continued, "just one real quick question for you Jenny, my girl.
You okay?"

She allowed herself to make a slightly bigger motion and Mulder was quite sure
she nodded in the affirmative.

"Good. Glad to hear it. Now I'm going to chat with your dad a bit, okay?" he
asked in a calm, matter of fact manner. He didn't want to do anything that
might cause the child more stress or anxiety.

"Go back to your room for now, Jenny," Buttersfield directed, but not in an
unkind way.

Mulder was quite certain the man did not mean to inflict harm on his daughter,
and he felt more and more confident he would be able to deflect this guys
concerns and get both him and the child out safely. Mulder figured the hour
timeline was a good one. He'd have some time to establish a link of trust,
and then his beautiful red haired ace in the hole would be available to work
her magic if Buttersfield wasn't quite ready to give it up.

"Mr. Mulder, how do you know Caitlin?"

"Just Mulder, okay? No need for the 'mister'. Mind if I call you Elliot?
Mr. Buttersfield is quite a mouthful."

"No, don't mind. So, _Mulder_ how do you know Caitlin?" Elliot asked
suspiciously.

'She came by my office this morning. I'm a psychologist, Elliot."

Scully held her breath on that admission. She supposed, however, it was
better than admitting he was an FBI agent.

"A psychologist? She thinks I'm crazy, doesn't she?"

"Let's say she's concerned. She's visited my office in an effort to try to
figure out how she can cope in dealing with your concerns about Jenny."

"Jeeze. I'm not crazy. I'm not going over the edge because of fatherhood. I
love being a father, Mulder. I adore that child. I love her with all my
heart__," he began.

"Elliot, forgive me, but you have a funny way of showing it. Caitlin called
me this morning because said you had a loaded gun," Mulder said.

"I didn't know what else to do. I__, I had to get her out of the house. They
only want me and the child. I didn't want them to take Caitlin too," he
admitted.

"Who's they?"

"To be honest, and I know this is going to sound crazy__, I'm not sure," he
confessed.

"Elliot? Tell me about the time you were missing," Mulder instructed.

"Missing?"

"Right before you were married? The Georgetown University football field?
Stark naked?" Mulder reminded.

"Oh, that time," Elliot acknowledged.

"Yeah, that time."

"Apparently, you know about as much about it as I do," Elliot stated. "I
remember being dropped off in the front of my building, thinking 'Cate' was
going to kill me but good for getting as drunk as I did. I was never much of
a drinker and neither was she. I think her father drank, so she never had too
much tolerance for it.

"Funny thing was, my dad was an alcoholic, so I'd pretty much sworn off the
stuff myself. But this was an impromptu bachelor's party. 'Cate' and I had
been living together for a couple of years already when she became pregnant.
So we decided to get married for the baby's sake."

At Mulder's questioning look, Elliot explained, "Caitlin had a miscarriage a
couple of weeks later. It didn't stop us from getting married, but apparently
it did have some effect on her ability to conceive. We hadn't been able to
since that one time. By the time we decided to adopt, we were so heavily
involved in the business, we figured it made more sense for us to adopt an
older child."

Mulder nodded his understanding. He wondered if Scully heard this latest
revelation and, perhaps, felt an even greater kinship with Caitlin
Buttersfield.

"Elliot," he began, tell me what else you remember from that time when you
were missing."

"Well, that's the strange part. I don't remember anything, really. I woke up
in the middle of the God damned football field in my birthday suit. Thank God
it was like five o'clock in the morning, so there wasn't anyone out. I'd have
died of embarrassment for sure. Of course, the prospect of going home to
Caitlin at that point made dying of embarrassment sound almost like a good
thing."

"She gave you a lot of grief, huh?" Mulder asked lightly.

"Well, that's putting it mildly. Yeah, she gave me a lot of grief. She
threatened to call of the wedding, but she didn't. She just made me promise
up and down to never pull a stunt like that again, or she'd have me drawn and
quartered and hanging naked from the Georgetown University flagpole," Elliot
said with a small chuckle of the memory.

"Believe me, I can relate," Mulder laughed in reply.

Scully laughed as well as she heard the conversation, and looked at Skinner.
"We need to keep that in mind, don't we, Sir?"

Skinner laughed in response, and nodded in agreement. "It seems to be going
okay in there, doesn't it?"

"Yes. You can say a lot about Fox Mulder, Sir, but one thing you have to
include is he is good at what he does," Scully declared.

Skinner nodded in the affirmative and then continued to listen to the
conversation in the building.

"Elliot? You don't by any chance have a small scar on the back of your neck,
do you?" Mulder asked.

"Scar?" He raised his hand to the back of his neck, and said, "Well, ya know,
now that you mention it, I do. Caitlin noticed it way back when I'd returned
from the land of the lost. It didn't hurt or anything, so I just assumed it
was a cut or something I'd acquired while I was too drunk to know what the
hell was going on. I simply forgot about it.

"Why? And how the hell did you know I'd have a scar on the back of my neck?
Just who the hell are you, anyway?" Elliot asked more suspiciously.

"Listen to me, Elliot. Listen very carefully, okay?" Mulder began seriously.

Elliot Buttersfield noted the change in Mulder's persona. He calmed down and
decided to listen.

"I believe you really are sensing messages about Jenny. I think you're
sensing these messages through a microchip that was implanted in your neck
when you were abducted," Mulder began to explain.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
End of Part 2/3

Disclaimers in Part 1

Part 3/3

KNOCK!! KNOCK!! KNOCK!!

"What the hell?" exclaimed a startled Walter Skinner.

He leaned over and opened the back door of the van. He saw a man in full SWAT
gear. "Sir," the acknowledged when Skinner had opened the door.

"What can I do for you?" Skinner asked.

"I'm looking for Assistant Director Skinner, Sir."

"I'm AD Skinner. Who are you?"

"Thompson, Sir. Special Officer Michael Thompson, Sir. I've been asked by my
CO to get you, Sir. Apparently there's some concern about where this
operation is leading, Sir."

"I'll be right there," Skinner said and he closed the door. He turned to
Scully and advised her to continue monitoring Mulder's actions. "I'll go see
what this turkey wants. You know, they ask for our help, we give it to them,
and then they won't let us do our job. Why the hell do they ask us for our
help in the first place?" he vented.

Scully smiled slightly in appreciation of her boss's frustration, particularly
when it came to operations involving her and Mulder. She knew Walter Skinner
was never totally comfortable with Mulder's ideas of extreme possibilities,
but their solve rate was the highest in the bureau. And given the nature of
the cases they were assigned, the throwaways, the unsolvable cases no one else
could be either bothered with or trusted with, their rate of success was an X-
File in and of itself.

So as the years rolled by, Skinner had no qualms about trusting Scully and
Mulder's judgment in how to handle a case. He knew Mulder might go to the
extreme, but Scully always knew when to reign him in. He was counting on that
to occur this time as well. Scully had told him Mulder gave her an hour
before she was to be called in as the cavalry. It had only been about forty
minutes though. He needed more time.

Skinner was led to the commanding officer of the SWAT team. He offered his
hand to the CO and introduced himself. "Skinner."

The CO took the proffered hand and replied, "Filch."

"What can I do for you, Filch?"

"I want to know what your boy thinks he's doing in there?" Filch asked.

"What do you mean?" Skinner asked confused.

"Skinner, we're hooked into the wiretap, and I can hear everything going on in
there."

"What? Shit, Filch, what the hell are you doing that for? If your men are
picking up on the signals, don't you think you're leaving us wide open for the
media boys to pick up on _your_ signals?" Skinner asked agitated. "And that
puts my __AGENT__ at risk."

"Look, all I know is the Chief wants this thing ended quickly. There are too
many heads that could roll if this Buttersfield guy harms his kid. Too many
high powered politicians who would be caught in the middle if this guy were to
go off the deep end. We just want to end it with as little fuss as possible,"
Filch retorted.

"I don't give a damn whose heads may roll, and I don't play politics when my
Agent is in a tenuous situation. I will not see this operation bungled
because someone has an itchy trigger finger. The child, as you obviously can
well hear, is in no immediate danger. The child isn't even in the same room
as the father and Agent Mulder__."

"__Exactly my point, Skinner. The child is nowhere near the perp, so let's
get him taken down now before he can harm the child."

"If he's not posing a threat to either himself, my agent or the child, I see
no reason for the SWAT team to intervene at this time. Look, I know you want
to do your job. But the Chief of Police had turned the case over to the FBI,
so now it is my jurisdiction and my call," Skinner said firmly.

"I'll keep the Chief informed," Filch said deceptively.

Skinner nodded, and walked back to the van.

Filch called the Chief of Police and filled him in on his conversation with
AD Skinner. Upon its conclusion, Filch replied, "Absolutely, Chief. We are
ready to go a moment's notice."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"You believe me?" Elliot asked incredulously.

"I believe you. I think you're receiving messages through a microchip that
was imbedded in your neck years ago."

"This is unbelievable. I mean, I didn't even know if _I_ believed it, and now
you're telling me you believe it's all true. So that means Jenny really
is__," Elliot stopped and gasped. "__an alien?"

"More likely she's a hybrid, Elliot. She was conceived with human ova and
alien DNA," Mulder replied cautiously. "Elliot, have you been able to figure
out why they want her back?"

"They say she'll__." Elliot found saying the word impossible.

"__ Die?" Mulder filled in the blank. Elliot nodded numbly.

"It may very well be true, Elliot," Mulder confirmed forlornly.

"How do you know?" he asked in despair. When Mulder simply looked at
Buttersfield with sadness in his eyes, Elliot was able to guess the truth.
"You've seen this before, haven't you?"

"Yes," Mulder whispered in confirmation. "Yes, I've seen the likes of Jenny
before."

"We've got to help her," Elliot suddenly cried out. "We've got to help her
then."

"How, Elliot? What do they want you to do? Do they want you to take her
anywhere? Have they given you any specific directions on what to do so they
can save her?" Mulder implored.

"NO! DAMN IT, NO!" he shouted in frustration.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"That's it!" Filch ordered through his radio. "We've got the order to take
back command of this operation. This guy is way to unstable and we can't
afford to have this guy go berserk on us in the middle of DC.

"Unit 1, are you in place?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Unit 2, are you in place?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Unit 3, are you in place?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Unit 3, what is your visual?" Filch asked.

"Sir, I have a shot, but it's not a clean one. The perp is in constant
motion. The FBI agent has, so far, remained stationary."

"What about the child?"

"Have not seen her for the last twenty minutes or so," the sharpshooter on the
adjacent roof reported.

"When you get a clear shot, go for him," Filch said.

"Sir," the sharpshooter called out, "the child has returned."

"Patience. Wait for your shot, but I don't want that child harmed," Filch
commanded.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey Jenny," Mulder greeted. "What's up?"

Jenny Buttersfield had walked back into the room with fearful eyes. She
looked at Mulder, then at her father, and then returned her gaze to Mulder.

"Mommy? Where's my mommy?" she asked in a soft, tremulous voice.

"She's waiting in my office, Jenny." Her eyes still held fear, but then,
almost as an afterthought Mulder added, "She's waiting where it's safe,
Jenny."

Jenny sighed in relief. Her eyes relaxed and she looked at her father.
"Daddy? Is it time yet?"

Elliot looked at his daughter with confusion. "Time? Time for what, Jenny?"

"Time for me to go? For me to go back home?" she replied calmly.

"Jenny, where is back home?" Mulder asked.

"Home is where the Others live," she replied calmly.

"Jenny, you knew you were going to go where the Others lived?" Mulder asked
with surprise.

"Yes. It's almost time, isn't it, Daddy?" she asked with a calm beyond her
five years.

"Yes, Baby, I think it is," Elliot answered, with his head lowered into his
hands and a tremor in his voice.

"Thank you, Daddy. Thank you for keeping me safe till I could go home," she
said as she moved slowly towards him to offer him a comforting hug. "Tell
Mommy I love her too, okay?"

"I will, sweetie. I promise," Elliot whispered.

Suddenly, Mulder felt a presence in the room. He couldn't quite determine
exactly what it was he felt, but he quickly looked all around the room in an
effort to find what was giving him pause to worry. He spotted it. A small
pin sized red light secreted itself inside the room. First on little Jenny's
back, and then it moved higher up to Elliot Buttersfield's chest and head.

"Oh shit! NO! Down! Get. Down. NOW!" Mulder screamed. "It's going to
shit!"

Mulder dove toward the father and daughter as the shots rang out. Mulder felt
the sting in his right shoulder and for some inane reason couldn't help
thinking it was about time that shoulder took the brunt of the pain for a
change.

As he rolled over he looked at his two charges and asked if anyone was hurt.
Both sat up silently and shook their heads no. Jenny, however, looked at
Mulder and voiced her concern.

"You got shotted, Mr. Mulder. Does it hurt a lot?"

"No, Jenny," he lied, "it doesn't hurt at all. I'll be fine. Really."

She nodded and then, in an amazingly full, clear, and confident voice for a
five year old, she said, "I'm ready to go home now."

As Jenny had uttered the last syllable, a strong beam of light was emitted
through the living room window. The child looked extremely relaxed and said
aloud for the last time, "I love you, Daddy. Tell Mommy I love her too."

And as if the child was placed on a conveyer belt suspended in air, Jenny
slowly, but steadily, floated up and out toward the window.
Both men watched in awe as the child seemingly passed directly through the
panes of glass in the window.

As Mulder watched, he felt his heart beat faster, and his throat constrict
slightly. The image before him was a replica of his own past and it caused
his breathing to become more difficult. Of course, that could also have been
a result of the gun shot wound to his right shoulder, which caused some heavy
bleeding and a great deal of pain.

"She's going, Scully. Like Samantha. Just like Sam," he rasped for the sake
of his audio audience.

Moments after Jenny disappeared in the light, the front and back doors were
broken down and the SWAT team Units 1 and 2 entered the Buttersfield's Condo.

Elliot Buttersfield was observed on the floor of the living room in a state of
physical and emotional shock. Special Agent Fox Mulder was lying on the
floor, bleeding heavily from a gun shot wound to the right shoulder, and an
ambulance was duly called for.

Walter Skinner and Dana Scully followed immediately. Dana moved immediately
to Mulder's side.

"Hey partner, that sounded like some pretty fancy footwork you did up here.
How ya doing?" Scully asked gently, all the while she prodded around to check
for other injuries.

"Jenny__," Mulder began hoarsely. "Emily," he whispered.

"I know, Mulder. I realized who she was. Thank you for that," Scully
whispered back.

"Pretty. So pretty," he said in a hushed tone. "Like her mommy."

"Oh Mulder," Scully sighed. She reached around to hug him and provide some
comfort as well as pressure to the wound until the ambulance arrived.

The SWAT team units made a sweep around the condominium, both upstairs and
downstairs.

Jenny Buttersfield was no where to be found.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There was no way to prove or disprove Buttersfield's version of the events
which occurred in his home that afternoon. It was, however, totally
corroborated by Fox Mulder, once he regained consciousness after having
undergone surgery for the gunshot wound.

The telling of the events were virtually identical from each man. As much as
the police wanted to arrest _someone_ to justify the use of all the police
manpower, there was no evidence to suggest Elliot Buttersfield or Fox Mulder
were involved in any kind of foul play. The child was missing, but when it
was time to find further evidence to build a case, no records could be found
for Jenny Buttersfield.

Research showed there was no Hathaway House at the address given. An old,
abandoned warehouse stood at the site.

There was no birth certificate to be found for a baby girl Jenny born five
years ago.

There was no public record on file Jenny's adoption, and since it had only
been three months, the Buttersfields hadn't received their copies as yet
either, nor did they expect to at this point.

James Thornwood, the Buttersfield's attorney, had disappeared. He could no
longer be reached at his law office as the phone was disconnected, and there
was no forwarding number.

As a result, Elliot Buttersfield was released, based on lack of evidence, or
any evidence for that matter, that their daughter ever even existed.

Elliot and Caitlin Buttersfield went home.

As did their daughter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
End of Part3/3

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