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Title: Lured and Held
Author: Pattie
Rated: PG-13
Category: MT, MA, SA, X-File.
Spoilers: Set in Season 7
Summary: Sarah may only have been a temporary worker
in Records, but she wanted Mulder to be a permanent
part of her life. Not that she really knew him!
Feedback: patfiler2016@outlook.com
Archive: Gossamer, Agents in Peril. All others please
ask.
Disclaimers: Mulder, Scully and The X-Files are owned
by Chris Carter, Ten Thirteen and Fox Studios. No profit
is gathered from my endeavour, and I intend no copyright
infringement.
2630 Hegal Place,
Alexandria, W. Virginia
8:00 p.m.
There had been a lull in the out-of-town cases, so this was
a rare night for Fox Mulder. Not that rare - it just seemed
that way after months of travelling, being home about two
days out of seven on average. The six-month long marathon
was hopefully over. Well, at least for a while.
Mulder knew that the whirlwind tour of the country hunting
down serial killers, cases of supposed "possession" and
eerie happenings, added on to the tips and dead-end leads
about aliens was wearing him down. He knew Scully deserved
the break, as well. She was a hard working, loyal partner.
On top of that, she was a patient soul.
Tonight, Mulder had a chance to see a triple bill sci-fi
special, and he wasn't going to miss it for the world. The
beer was open, tortilla chips at the ready, and he lazily
settled onto the couch to pamper himself in front of the TV.
As the opening credits to "Swamp Thing" scrolled down the
screen, Mulder's contentment was disrupted by his home phone.
He let it ring, hoping it would stop, because he had told
Scully to call his cell number if anything developed as to
work.
After the seventh ring, he went to answer the menace.
"Mulder."
Click.
"And thanks. Call again," he said under his breath.
Ten minutes later, it rang again. This time, he jumped for
the despicable device. "Frohike, if it's you, I really don't
want in on a poker game, and I am beat."
Click.
"Guess it wasn't the Gunmen."
The tired agent relaxed once more and absorbed himself in
the solace of his movie, tortilla chips and beer. Two hours
later, the sequel to "Swamp Thing" was well underway, and he
took the commercial break as an opportunity to call Scully.
His partner was in bed, fast asleep, and it was only 11:20.
She groggily reached for the phone. "Yeah... Scully." She
could barely force her eyes open, her head falling back
onto her pillow.
"Scully, it's me."
"Yeah, I know. Only you would be nice enough to wake me
out of a sound sleep for what I hope is no reason."
"Actually, something strange happened tonight..."
"The cable went out and now you're bored, right? Mulder, go
to bed."
"Scully, this is serious. I had two hang-up calls tonight."
"So? Mulder, I get those sometimes. Probably a wrong
number. Anyway, it wasn't me. I went to bed two hours ago."
"Well, I appreciate that, Scully. I have an unlisted
number, though, and it's just strange. Look, never mind.
I know you're tired. See you tomorrow. Good movies on
tonight."
"Yeah. G'night." Scully's receiver barely met the phone
when she was already asleep.
J. Edgar Hoover Building,
Washington, D.C.
The Following Day,
9:32 a.m.
The pace was slow in the office the past few days. Actually,
it was a welcome relief to be cleaning up old reports and
checking for up-dates on unsolved cases. Scully was
researching some recent autopsy findings, and Mulder had a
chance to read up on alien sightings on the West Coast.
Scully looked up from the file she was reading. "So, Mulder,
what time did you finally get to sleep?"
"You know me, Scully. I live on about five hours sleep.
Why?"
"Nothing. I just think you look tired, that's all. Are
you sure everything's all right?"
"Positive. Fell asleep right after the triple feature and
then went off to my room. Now I sort of miss the waterbed.
Guess I'm getting used to it."
"Yeah. I never thought I'd say this, but it's good to be
back in the office - for however short a time that may be."
"Well, we've racked up a lot of travel expenses anyway. I
can't really say I'm not happy to be down here." He grabbed
a perfectly sharpened pencil and aimed it at the ceiling.
"Already, Mulder?" Scully couldn't believe Mulder was
back to decorating the ceiling with the things again.
"Perfect shot. Already, Scully. Just a little break from
the books. I doubt anyone will be calling down here for
a while."
"Thank Heaven for small mercies," Scully said quietly.
"I'm just getting re-acquainted with my apartment." She
took the folders she had been reading and filed them.
There were just a few more to go through, so she took
them out of the pile on the desk and was just opening
a folder when the phone rang.
"Mulder. " He cupped his hand over the receiver and
mouthed "Skinner."
Scully rolled her eyes.
"Yes Sir. No, we were just itching to get back in the
field, Sir. Okay. Yeah, you too." When the call was
finished, he folded his hands on the desk.
"Well?"
"Pack a bag, Scully. Young woman kidnapped from her
home in West Virginia being held in an old farmhouse
in Pennsylvania. We have a three o'clock flight."
"Dammit. All right, let's get going. I'll have some
time, I'm sure, to catch up on these things." She stood,
grabbed her coat and followed her partner out of the
office.
Easy Night Inn,
Elizabeth, Pennsylvania.
7:00 p.m.
The two agents checked into their respective motel rooms
and then met in Mulder's Room. Mulder picked up the phone
and said to Scully, "I'm going to check in with the local
P.D. Did you familiarize yourself with the file?"
"Well, judging by the little information we have, this guy's
holding her for ransom. The farmhouse hasn't been lived in
for decades." She went over the folder and opened her laptop
to go over the case.
"Yeah, hi. It's Special Agent Fox Mulder, F.B.I. My partner
and I were called out on the kidnap case. A girl from Oregon.
I see, all right. We can be there in a few minutes. Fine.
Thanks."
"New developments, Mulder?"
"Yeah, Scully. I'll tell you on the way to the station.
This guy's armed and dangerous." He opened the door quickly.
"His demand isn't being met soon enough."
The Elizabeth police station was crawling with reporters and
some of the locals. Mulder and Scully made their way to the
Police Chief's desk. "Fox Mulder, Dana Scully. F.B.I."
"Phil Simmons. I've got a lot of men out on this one, mostly
around that house. It doesn't look like he's the talking type.
His name's Peter Gauss and he's holding a lady by the name of
Sarah Bellamy, age 25, blonde hair, 5'4", about 120 pounds.
Wants ten thousand dollars from her family now, and fifteen
thousand when he's about to release her."
"I gather her family doesn't have that kind of money," Scully
remarked, to a head shaking Police Chief.
"No. He wants the first installment by midnight tonight, or
he says he'll blow her head off."
Mulder was more eager to get this over and done with, "Well,
lead the way. We've got to get her out of there before he
keeps his promise."
In the over-grown areas surrounding the house, there were
policemen with rifles and flack jackets ready for action..
Mulder and Scully were equipped with the jackets as well,
and were at the farmhouse within fifteen minutes.
The seasoned chief shouted through the bull-horn, "Gauss!
There's no way out of this! Just let the girl go and nobody
gets hurt."
"No deals!" The captor shouted. "You ain't gettin' the girl
till I get the money! And don't try nothin' stupid!"
The chief motioned for a few of his men to go around all
sides of the house. "Agents. if there's a way in, we'll
find it."
"Let's move." Mulder and Scully stalked the house and looked
for any signs from the policemen that there was a way into
the place."
Simmons happened to get a glimpse of Mulder though a slat
in the kitchen blinds. "That's a big one. Not local.
Hmm... likely an F.B.I. agent." The blue-eyed, dark-haired,
clean shaven young man had a lurid smile. He winked at the
girl, who was sitting at the kitchen table free as a bird.
His hostage nodded and smiled. "Reel him in, Pete. I
owe you one."
"Anything for my little sister." He shouted through the
front of the house. "Now here's what I want! I'll take the
F.B.I. fella and release the girl, in exchange for safe
passage outta here. Got it?"
"I'll go," Mulder whispered.
Scully's jaw dropped about a foot. "Are you crazy?"
"We came here to get the girl out, Scully. We can't let
her get killed by some lunatic."
"I want the guy now!" Gauss bellowed.
"Send the girl out!" the chief shouted back.
"After I get the Agent!"
Mulder kicked in the kitchen door, hands in the air. "All
right. I'm here. Now, let the girl go."
"Oh, you're so mistaken", the woman softly gushed. "Thanks,
Pete. Just leave the gun. They won't shoot you without it."
"Anything for my sister, darlin'. Happy trails." The man was
out of the house and immediately handcuffed. "Looks like I
forgot the Agent. Well, you've got me. I surrender."
He smiled sarcastically, to a bewildered young policeman.
"Yeah, you're a regular pussy cat. Get going." He hustled the
man to a cruiser.
Meanwhile, as the police were still circling the house, and
Scully aimed her gun at the kitchen door, Mulder motioned for
her to back away. He turned and said reassuringly. "Go. I'll
be okay."
Scully slipped away reluctantly, as the woman took Mulder's
gun, still aiming her brother's gun at Mulder. "It's been
a long time, but it's been well worth it. Sit."
Mulder did as he was told. "I don't follow you, Miss...?"
"Bellamy. Sarah Bellamy. Well, getting re-acquainted can
wait. Get outta here all of you!" she shouted. "I mean it!
You'll hear from me when I want you to! Go now! Or he dies!"
Scully was back with the Police Chief by this time. "What
the hell's going on?" she demanded.
The Police Chief shrugged. "Obviously something more than
that guy holding her. We don't have a thing on the girl
as far as crimes go."
"Yeah. Well I'd check further into any records, including
psychiatric institutions. Do you think she has any demands?"
"I don't know, Agent Scully. All I know is that she's
holding the weapon. Even though your partner could easily
take her out, I think for now it's best we keep a few men in
the area and go back to headquarters to find out more about
not only her kidnapper, but her. Sarah Bellamy and Peter
Gauss."
"Research time," Scully muttered. "I don't want anything
happening to him", she cautioned the policemen. "The
sooner we find out who we're dealing with, the better," she
told the chief. For one long moment, which wasn't long enough
for her, she looked back warily at the old farmhouse. "This
isn't quite what I expected. There is an odd sort of... "
"Spookiness?" the chief asked, as he, too, cast a glance at the
house. "This whole thing gives me the creeps."
"Yeah," Scully whispered. "Let's go."
"So, Agent Mulder. It's time to get reacquainted. I've
been waiting a long time... "
Mulder wanted to assess the situation and felt that going
straight into profiler mode would be a big mistake. "I'm
sorry the face is familiar, but I can't quite place it. Do
we know each other?"
The woman grabbed some rope and began to wrap it around his
shoulders, then knotted it around his wrists. He was pretty
sure she wouldn't hurt him; he was equally sure she wouldn't
allow him out of that house.
"Now, no yelling, because I like to hear your voice and if I
have to put duct tape on it, well, then you couldn't talk to
me. Besides, I love looking at those lips!" Her voice had a
quirky perkiness about it, and that he could not see as
appealing as Scully's or even his mother's, for that matter.
"Okay, no yelling. Do I know you from somewhere?"
"Fox, you devil, I know you have a photographic memory.
Don't you remember the Christmas Party last year? The one
they had at the Bureau? You danced with me. It was just
one dance, and I knew you were too shy to look into my
eyes like I hoped you would. I was the temp. who replaced
Shelley. Remember?"
"Shelly Adstrom. She's back at work. So, we danced? I do
remember. But then, I had a lot of things on my mind back
then. You wore the red velvet dress?"
Her face wasn't as gleeful as it had been. She took an angry
posture. "THAT little number was Agent Scully. My God, I
don't know how you put up with her scientific garbage."
"Well, that's Scully for you. Scientific." Mulder wanted to
be careful not to push any buttons. He had to find out what
this whole thing was about. "She is good at that science
stuff. She's helped me solve so many... "
"Enough!" she screamed. "Don't go on about HER!" Then her
voice softened. She bent down, put her hand on her knees
and seductively whispered. "You have me to think of. You can
have everything you can't have with your... anyway, I'm just
so glad to have you here."
"Why? What does tying me up accomplish?"
"Well, I think you just need to stay in one place for a little
while until you calm down. Then maybe I can set you loose.
But I still have the gun."
Police Headquarters,
Elizabeth, Pennsylvania.
10:30 p.m.
Scully was searching for any and all records of Sarah
Bellamy and Peter Gauss, while the police were discussing
strategies to free Agent Mulder and apprehend his captor.
The Police Chief brought her a fresh mug of coffee. "Any
leads? Priors?"
"Well, there are no criminal records for either Sarah
Bellamy or Peter Gause. However, I did find out that
they are brother and sister. Apparently, their parents
are deceased. Mother died of cervical cancer and father
had a fatal heart attack. There are no records for either
Gauss or Bellamy at any psychiatric facilities. Sarah has
apparently worked at the F.B.I. as a temporary Records
employee replacing someone on maternity leave. She's a
secretary, and has been employed as a temp. before landing
a job near home in Oregon. She worked for the public
school system for five years until she was laid off due
to funding cutbacks. Peter Gauss drives truck, usually
produce for Florida's citrus industry almost everwhere here
and in Canada. He's still single. His sister was apparently
involved in a stormy relationship, was extremely possessive,
and had a very unhealthy attachment to her husband, one
Arthur Bellamy. Other than that, nothing."
The chief looked at the monitor, then at Scully. "So, uh,
you would have seen her at the F.B.I.?"
"Well, the picture here does seem familiar, yes. We're
often out in the field, but everyone's had occasion to go
up to Records. Even with computers, there are some cases
that are not on computer until we're sure they're complete.
And there is the odd one that gets special attention. Some
things we don't always have direct access to. Why?"
"Well, did Agent Mulder ever... ever date her?"
"Uh, no. He hasn't been da--- he's very consumed in his
work, and we're often out of town. Frankly, we're hardly
ever at our own homes, these past few years. Why?"
"The unhealthy attachment thing. Maybe it's nothing. After
all, she was married to the man she had problems with."
Still, Scully became worried. Now she knew that the chill
she felt looking at the house was almost a warning. She was
on alert. This case was giving her a bad feeling. "Maybe
she somehow, I don't know, became attracted to Mulder? Is
that what you mean?"
"Anything's possible, Look, I've got to get some sleep.
You should do the same. My men will call you the minute
there's any news."
"I guess you're right. Mulder's pretty strong. Still I
think I'll do some more digging in my room. Maybe we've
missed something important. Good night, Chief Simmons."
"Good night, Agent Scully. Get some rest."
Scully stood and grabbed a few printed documents. "I doubt
I'll get much sleep."
Abandoned Farmhouse.
12:30 a.m.
Mulder's captor had apparently planned well ahead for this
occasion. She poured Mulder some coffee, untied his right
hand, and left the other one tied to the leg of the chair.
She had made a full meal for herself and Mulder, but Mulder
hadn't eaten. His eyes and ears were wide open, trying to
put a profile together. "Look, I don't know exactly why
I'm here. What I DO know is that you weren't kidnapped
by Peter, so what is this all about?"
Sarah Bellamy stood from her chair and wrapped her arms
around Mulder's shoulders. She kissed him, but he fought
it. "It's all about you and me, honey. I saw that look in
you're eyes when we were dancing, and I just knew you felt
the same way."
"Felt the same way?" He raised his voice. "Look, I don't
know what you've been thinking, but there wasn't anything on
the dance floor or in that 'kiss' that would give me any
ideas. At least not the same ideas as you have! Just let
me get out of here, and we will get you some help."
"You must be tired after such a long day," she decided
calmly. Why don't you just go sleep in the living room, and
I'll sit up awhile and keep watch." She tied Mulder's hands
together again. "Come on, you know you're sleepy."
Mulder didn't want to agitate the armed woman, so he agreed
to lie on the couch. For an hour, he feigned sleep, hoping
this delusional woman would nod off as well. She had no
intention of falling asleep. She had a book of crosswords to
help keep her awake.
Scully was searching databases for more information about
Mulder's captor. Her laptop was still in his room, so there
she was at midnight, not even tired. She lightly ran her
hand over his travel bag. "Just what does she want?" she
wondered aloud. That chill crept down her spine again.
This wasn't going to go on much longer, Scully decided.
She was out of the room like a shot and started her car,
pulled out of the motel parking lot to head for that house.
"You may as well just go to sleep, Fox. I know you're not
asleep."
Mulder could see the frown on Sarah's face. "Well, I never
sleep with my hands tied. I can't relax that way."
"Try," she said, without looking up from her puzzles. "I
think you'll see just how wonderful I intend to be after
you've had a good night's rest. I have a lot planned for us.
You'll need that sleep."
"I see. Well, just what would happen if I didn't go
along with you?"
"You will. I know how you are. I even know how you've
charmed your partner. Well, we'll get you another partner.
In more ways than one."
Mulder supposed her could kick her, and try to escape.
But she had his gun as well as her own. He supposed Scully
was working with the local P.D. and researching this sick
woman and the man who was working with her when he got into
this mess. However, he was not going to go to sleep as long
as he was her prisoner.
Scully parked her car on the side road and conferred with
the officers who had been watching the house.
"She hasn't said a word to us since she took him into the
house," a young officer said. "It looks like she's letting
him sleep, from what we've seen."
"I doubt he's sleeping," Scully replied. "This woman is
very unstable, as I was just telling you. Is there another
way for me or one of you to get around the house, someone
creates a distraction, and we can get them out of there
safely?"
"There is a storm cellar," the officer replied.
"And there must be a basement and a way up to the main floor.
So let's do it!"
"Look, I don't think we should endanger your partner. If
anything goes wrong, I think he's dead."
"Look, I don't care if you have to shake a few bushes and
make bear growling noises. From what I've read, we have to
get my partner out of there now!"
"Yes, Ma'am." The officer radioed one of the men behind the
house, then two more on either side, then two more in the
front. They were creating a distraction, and Scully would be
part of it.
Sarah heard noises outside and thought she would investigate.
She knew the police hadn't left, and she needed to make sure
they weren't setting up a rescue plan. "You just rest,
sweetie. I want to see to it that nothing comes between us.
I'm so very protective of my lovers."
"Lovers? Sheesh... " he muttered inaudibly. *I hope they
aren't doing something stupid,* he thought. *This one is insane.
No telling what might set her off.* "Sarah, I don't want to
upset you. We were never lovers, and you must know somewhere
inside we could never possibly be lovers. You don't even know
me."
The blonde ignored that for a moment. She was busy looking
between the curtains, trying to find out what the noises were
from. "Well, I guess we have raccoons or some other wild
animals out there." She drew the curtains shut. "And as for
knowing you, I worked in records."
"That doesn't tell you who I really am inside, so get off
your high horse. You can't force someone to love you.
Sarah, look at me."
"Yes, honey. I'm looking. And I sure admire what I see."
Mulder sat up. "Yes, Sarah. But what you see is the outside
of me. You may even know where I was born, my birthday, even
my address. But you don't know me," he whispered. "That sort
of relationship that you want can only develop after knowing
the person inside the body, beyond filing systems and
Christmas parties." He could see that her eyes were welling
up with tears. "You'd want the man to know you the very same
way, and I don't. Everyone needs to choose for themselves,
Sarah. What you've chosen is a fantasy. You know I would
have the right to choose who to be involved with." This shook
Sarah.
"No!" she screamed. "We both want each other! I knew from
the second I met you! You can't say those things to me!"
"It would be a sham to go on like you plan, Sarah. A game
of pretend. You can't bring the unwilling into your world."
"I don't believe you!" she shouted, crying. Her hand held
the gun and she was shaking. "Just you stop it!"
"Freeze!" Scully was behind her. "I am armed and I will
shoot if you don't put that gun on the floor. Now!"
"No!" the fragile young woman screamed. "It's not supposed
to happen. This... this is not happening." She held the gun
to her head. "Why are you so stubborn? You can have me!"
"No, Sarah. And I am not yours," Mulder calmly stated. "Put
the gun down and give it up. We can get you all the help
you--"
Sarah released the safety on the gun and was about to shoot
herself when Scully shot the gun out of her hand.
"It doesn't happen this way," she sobbed.
Scully untied Mulder. "I take it she didn't harm you."
"No. Scully, this woman has hurt herself. For some reason,
she was obsessed with me, and was planning a whole existence
around me. She's very ill. I suspect borderline personality
disorder. I'll tell the Cavalry to take her to hospital.
Let's get her some help and get out of here."
"Yeah, you could use the sleep, Mulder. By the way, had she
been in contact with you in the past few days?"
"I don't think so. I did have a couple of hang up calls."
"It was her. I did some checking with your phone company.
You had two phone calls from her from a phone in the middle
of Elizabeth."
"So, I was being stalked. She just sort of quickened the
pace by having her brother get us out here." He opened the
front door of the house and he and Scully walked toward the
policemen. "We need an ambulance for Sarah, and as soon as
we write up the report, we're outta here."
"Yeah, I'd say so. In future, I'll fend off anyone who
dares to become obsessed with you."
"How possessive, Scully!" He managed a grin. "Isn't that a
bit abnormal? I mean, I can take care of myself."
"Then why didn't you just disarm her and get out of there?"
"I wanted to find out what she was all about, to get at least
an understanding of her problem. Okay, guys. We'll be at the
station in the morning. Then we are history."
Scully closed the driver's side door as Mulder took the
passenger side. "If there's another case like this, you
just might be history, Mulder. Don't do this to me
ever again."
"Yes, Ma'am."
END
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