From: xfstories@yahoo.com   
      
   Murder In The Capital Part Four   
   By Katie Phillips   
      
      
      
   Skinner's Office   
   4 PM   
      
   Skinner wasted no time calling the meeting to order."Okay, what do we   
   have?"   
      
   "Edgars and I have picked up a stack of tapes from the hospital and   
   have begun reviewing all activity around the kitchen area and Ms.   
   Jacob's floor, between 4:30 and 6:30 AM."   
      
   Skinner nodded and looked at Peters.  "I interviewed Angela   
   Langsley's coworkers.  Dependable, lived alone, friendly but didn't   
   associate much with the other hospital workers. She was nothing out   
   of the ordinary.   
      
   "Our killer likes ordinary people.  They're less likely to draw   
   attention to themselves."  Mulder muttered under his breath.   
      
   Peters rolled his eyes at Mulder's comment and continued.  "I also   
   spoke to several witnesses to her accident.  From all accounts, she   
   strolled calmly out of the hospital, and walked several blocks down   
   the street. At one of the more crowded bus stops, she waited for a   
   bus that wasn't scheduled to stop, and walked directly in its path.   
      
   "Any theories?"  Skinner got up and poured himself a cup of coffee.   
   He had gotten little sleep over the past few days.   
      
   "The connection between the three original victims all ties in with   
   their research surrounding the varying uses of plants and other   
   organic substances found the in Central American rainforest.  It's my   
   theory that our killer is using some sort of mind-altering material   
   found in one of these plants."   
      
   "Are you kidding me?"  Peters cut in.  "You're suggesting that some   
   sort of hippie, tree-hugging freak is drugging everyone and then   
   telling them to shoot their bosses?  Come on Mulder, stop trying to   
   make this into an X-file."   
      
   Skinner turned his attention to Mulder.  "Do you have any proof to   
   back up your theory Mulder?"   
      
   "Scully has been running tox screens…."   
      
   "Where is your little partner Mulder?  Too high and mighty now to   
   join us?"  Peters leered at Mulder, unable to resist the chance to   
   taunt him about how Scully's career had blossomed since leaving DC.   
      
   "His little partner was busy cutting up bodies and scraping   
   intestinal walls."  A cool voice spoke from the door of Skinner's   
   office.  All eyes turned and looked as Scully gave Peters a long,   
   cold look. Even Skinner had to fight the urge to smirk, as Peters   
   squirmed under the intensity of her stare.  "Perhaps you would like   
   to examine the pictures yourself Agent Peters, to make sure I didn't   
   miss anything."  Scully walked over slowly, and placed a folder in   
   front of Peters.   
      
   "I'm sure your examination was most thorough, Agent Scully," Peters   
   stammered.  Scully raised an eyebrow at him and turned her attention   
   to Skinner.  "Sir, as Agent Mulder may have told you, we suspected   
   that a mind-altering drug may have been administered to the victims.   
   I've run tox screens where I could, and have found trace amounts of a   
   lysergic acid diethylamide type substance."   
      
   "LSD?"  Mulder asked, eyes showing that his mind was already   
   working.  "There have been countless experiments using LSD as a mind   
   controlling mechanism."   
      
   Peters was about to protest again but Skinner silenced him with a   
   hand.  "Alright, let's suppose that our killer is using this LSD-like   
   substance to plant suggestions in the minds of the people pulling the   
   trigger, that still doesn't tell us why he picked these particular   
   people as his victims."   
      
   "I guess it's back to the video tapes," Edgars said, packing up his   
   papers and preparing to leave the room.   
      
   "Wait."  Mulder sat upright in his chair.  "Sir, do you have a copy   
   of the Washington Post?  Perhaps Mr. Leslie's obituary will give us a   
   clue."   
      
   Skinner nodded, and walked over to his briefcase and took out the   
   newspaper.  He handed it to Mulder, who quickly thumbed through   
   it.  "Wait a minute, I may have found something." Mulder stopped and   
   stared at the paper before folding it back to show Skinner. He folded   
   back the paper and showed it to Skinner.   
      
   Skinner's eyes grew huge when he read the half page ad.  "BLAKE IS   
   NEXT."   
      
   "Our killer is starting to getting bored.  He wants to scare his   
   victims now too."   
      
   Within the hour, Congressman Blake and his wife had been sent off to   
   an undisclosed location for their protection.  Edgars and Rogers were   
   reviewing more surveillance videos, and Mulder and Scully were headed   
   over to The Washington Post to see if they could find out who placed   
   the ad.   
      
   "You don't think our guy was stupid enough to leave a paper trail, do   
   you?"  Scully asked as they walked towards the building.   
      
   "Normally I would say no, but I'm not quite sure yet what this guy is   
   looking for."  He led the way over to the counter, where a young girl   
   smiled, but didn't look overly impressed by the flashing of his badge.   
      
   "I'm sorry Sir, but I'm not at liberty to disclose that particular   
   information."   
      
   Mulder and Scully exchanged looks and Scully tried her luck.  "Look,   
   Miss Parsons, I appreciate your position, but you have to understand   
   we're on a murder investigation.  You really don't want us to have to   
   bring you downtown to question you, do you?"   
      
   Mulder raised his eyebrows, surprised at Scully's bluff. "No, I guess   
   not," the girl sighed.   
      
   Scully gave Mulder a smile of great self-satisfaction before   
   continuing.  She held up the ad.  "Any way you could tell me who   
   placed this particular ad?"   
      
   Miss Parsons scribbled down the page and column number and   
   disappeared for a few minutes.   
      
   "Don't tell me it's going to be this easy," Mulder said as he looked   
   around the non-descript room.  "I wonder if they have any security   
   cameras in here."   
      
   Scully snorted.  "Edgars and Rogers would shoot you if you walked in   
   with another armful of tapes.  Wait, here she is."   
      
   "Here's the form he gave me.  I think he paid in cash."  She checked   
   the form.  "Yeah, he did. Could you sign this receipt please, so my   
   boss doesn't kill me?"   
      
   "Sure," Mulder said, scribbling his name on the paper she handed   
   him.  He gingerly took hold of the ad request by the corner and   
   dropped it into an evidence bag.  "Thanks."   
      
   Mulder glanced briefly at the bag, before folding it and sticking it   
   in his pocket.  "We can drop this off and see if they can pick up any   
   prints from it."   
      
   "I take it the name is no good."   
      
   "Percy Fawcett?  No, he was an Amazon explorer."   
      
   Mulder couldn't help but notice how tired Scully was when they   
   returned to the Bureau to drop off the form, and swung by Skinner's   
   office to see if there were any other updates.   
      
   "Blake and his wife are safe and sound.  Hopefully we've been able to   
   buy ourselves some time."  Skinner looked up from his desk and   
   frowned at Scully.  "Dana, you look horrible.  How much sleep did you   
   get last night?"   
      
   "I don't know, three maybe four hours."  Skinner shot Mulder a   
   look.  "Take her back to her hotel Mulder and get some rest   
   yourself.  I'll see you both back in here at 7 AM sharp."   
      
   "Sir, I still need to summarize the tox screens and the autopsy   
   reports."   
      
   "Dana, you may be seem 'high and mighty' to Peters but I still out   
   rank you.  Get some sleep."   
      
      
   [continued in next message]   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)