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    When Mulder walked into his office, Scully was already there, looking at slides from a previous case.  She’s so dutiful. For once I’d like her to be just staring at the ceiling, bored, when I walk in. He gave a small smile. Like I usually am when she comes in. He looked at the file in his hand, then at her. “Hey, Scully.”
    “Hi, Mulder. Whatcha got there?”
    “More from the wonderful world of the paranormal.” Where the hell did I get that one? he wondered.
    Despite the poor excuse of an attempt at humor, Scully smiled. “Go on,” she said.
    He handed her the file. “About 6 months ago, a female police officer in Verdugo, Nebraska disappeared without a trace. The only evidence that she had been kidnapped was on her desk. On it were typed the words ‘Falsehoods kill the innocent.’ Two months later, the same thing happened to a female police detective from the same town and then another two months later to a female deputy.”
    “Okay, so what’s it got to do with us?”
    Mulder smiled for a moment then continued. “The first woman was found 3 weeks ago on the police station’s doorstep. Her hands and feet were bound together, her eyes blindfolded, and her mouth was covered with duct tape.  She had a number of wounds and was dehydrated, sleep-deprived, and half-starved. When she finally came to at the hospital, she was near hysterics, babbling about what had happened. She described that she had been floating places instead of being carried. She said that though she was often kept in dark places, she remembers a man lifting his hand and directing where she would float.”
    “And you would be suggesting…” Scully prompted.
    “I’m suggesting that this man was using telekinesis to handle his victims.”
    “Telekinesis?”
    “Yeah. You know, lifting things with the power of the mind?”
    If he didn’t know any better, he would have thought Scully rolled her eyes. “Yes, Mulder, I know what telekinesis is, but the whole concept of it is… well, absurd. Obviously, this woman was hallucinating due to near starvation and lack of sleep. Not to mention the traumatic experience she endured.”
    Mulder felt like sighing. How did he know she was going to say something like that? “Scully, she was tested by psychiatrists after she calmed down and they all said that she was in good mental health, besides customary fear and trauma.”
    “You can have mild hallucinations while maintaining a semblance of mental health… Oh, come on, Mulder. You can’t really believe that a man goes around carrying female victims with his mind.”
    “But, Scully, it would explain why there are no fingerprints on her body or any evidence of a suspect anywhere.”
    “Still sounds pretty flaky to me…” she murmured. She paused then sighed. “Fine, Mulder. But if this is a waste of our time, you owe me dinner. And not at McDonalds like last time.”
    “Jack-in-the-Box then?”
    She raised an eyebrow at him, but he could tell she was at least remotely amused.
    He grinned. “Deal.”

     The police captain met them at the airport. “Welcome to Verdugo, Agents. We’ve got everything arranged for your stay.”
    “Thank you, Captain,” Scully said politely.
    “I’ve heard so many good things about you from the Bureau.”
    “You sure they were talking about us?” Mulder asked.
    The captain chuckled. “If you’ll follow me, I’ll show you to where you can rent a car. Then just follow me to the station.” He walked ahead of them to lead the way.
    “He seems nice,” Scully whispered to Mulder.
    “If you like the butt-kissing type, yeah,” Mulder answered. She gave him a strange, amused look.
    They arrived at the police station at 11:21am. Inside, the captain filled them in.
    “She’s dead now,” he said about the first victim. “Died 3 nights ago. We had a memorial service for her yesterday. Don’t be surprised if a few of my officers are uncooperative. They’re just sad and angry that she’s dead and no one was able to find the other two. Those three were well liked.”
    “We understand,” Scully said.
    A deputy came up to talk to the captain. The young man whispered softly for a moment, then the captain nodded. “Excuse me.” The two left Mulder and Scully to look at the files.
    “So, Scully?”
    “It looks to me as if we’ve reached a dead end.”
    “Why do you say that?”
    “Our prime witness is dead, Mulder. And, like you said, there’s no evidence.”
    “What about the slip of paper?”
    She looked puzzled. “What about it?”
    “How many people do you suppose have access to a computer in a small town like Verdugo?” Mulder smiled. Okay, so it’s not the best idea, but at least I made it look smart.

    They had interrogated various people all day, going absolutely nowhere. At least that computer thing narrowed things down. Mulder had had Scully do an autopsy on the victim’s body. He could definitely say that she wasn’t happy about it. Neither were the police. Exhuming the body for an autopsy managed to offend the whole stinkin’ force.
    “Hey, you sure you’ll be alright?” Mulder asked Scully at the morgue.
    “Yeah, Mulder. I’ll have the results for you tomorrow morning. Just go back to the motel.”
    “Alright… Goodnight, Scully.”
    “G’night, Mulder.”
    Mulder drove back, exhausted. Well, not really. He just felt guilty for leaving Scully to work all night while he went to his motel room and slept. And being exhausted was a good excuse to leave her there. He opened his motel room door, went in, and got changed. Why should I feel guilty? She’s done this before. He sat down on his bed. He didn’t feel much like sleeping, so he stayed awake, reading… a magazine.
    He wasn’t sure how long he sat there, but just as he was looking at the centerfold picture of… the rice patties of China, he heard a car pull up and someone fumbling with keys. Hmm… Scully’s back. Maybe I’ll take a look at the autopsy report. He looked at his watch. 1:43. Nah, it can wait till morning. I’ve given her enough trouble for the night. He went back to reading… National Geographic.
    He kept reading until, suddenly, he heard a thump from the next room. Scully’s room. Then he heard her yelling. He grabbed his gun and bolted for the next room. “Scully!”
    “Mulder! Help! He’s here!”
    “Scully! Unh!” he yelled as the door swung open and hit him in the face.
    “Mulder!… Oh, my God, YOU! You’re the one?” he heard Scully shout.
    Mulder opened his eyes and saw Scully floating away. A man held his hand up as if guiding Scully where he wanted her to go.  His face was hidden by shadows. All that could be seen were his alligator skin boots. Mulder shot at the man once, then twice. Mulder got to his feet and ran after Scully’s captor. “Scully!”
    Suddenly the man turned around; his arm swung out and pointed towards Mulder. Mulder felt his feet go out from under him and was propelled back to the motel. He hit the wall with a thunk and slid to the ground. “Scully… I’m sorry…” he whispered as he blacked out.