Chapter 3

Warren County Sheriff
Tuesday, Nov. 4th
8:10 am

Will Kessler came through the side entrance stomping snow from his shoes onto the polished hardwood floor. "Where the hell's the mat?"

Linda Mercer planted both hands on her hips and frowned darkly. "Jack has them in the basement drying in front of the furnace. He did, however, leave one outside the door you just came in."

"Yeah, I walked over it on my way in." She rolled her eyes as he took off his coat and hung it on one of the brass hooks next to the door. There were already four other jackets there, and two black trench coats. He tapped the nearer one, raising a questioning eyebrow.

"Agents Mulder and Scully have been here for an hour. They asked to see you as soon as you got in... whenever that might be." She nodded toward the conference room.

"Do I have time for a cup of coffee?"

Linda held out his mug, filled and ready. "I'm way ahead of you."

"You always are." Will accepted the mug and winked at her, angling for a smile.

He got another eye roll instead, and a small snort. "By the way, Jessie won't be in. He said he's on his way to the doctor, and he'll call you in awhile."

Jessie Kendall was the most relentlessly cheerful man Will had ever known, and he was never sick. "Did he say what was wrong?"

Linda shrugged. "He just said he needed to see the doctor. I didn't ask for details."

Will nodded and headed for the conference room.

"Oh, and Michael wants you to call her. She left a message on voice mail."

"She'll just have to wait 'til I find out what the FBI wants," he told her without slowing down.

He found them faced off, arms crossed, in front of the photograph array. "Morning, agents. Linda said you wanted to see me."

They looked mildly startled, especially Agent Scully. Will had the distinct impression that he'd interrupted something. "Should I come back later?"

"Not at all," she responded quickly. She sat down at the table and gestured for the sheriff to join her.

Will took the chair across from her, and Agent Mulder sat at her side.

"Sheriff, I found something in the autopsy tapes and wondered if the coroner had mentioned it to you. There's only one photograph," she slid a 5x7 across the desk, "but the same pattern appears on all of the victims."

Will turned the photo around, glancing up at Scully. "This is a close up?" He could see nothing but skin around the mark. It was impossible to tell what part of the body he was looking at.

"Yes, of the third victim's lower back."

"Third victim found," Mulder clarified. "We won't be certain until Scully does the autopsy, but we believe the woman you found last night was the first victim. Michael thought the time of death looked to be about a month ago."

That earned him a sideways glance from his partner. Will watched the by-play, wondering if the 'discussion' he'd interrupted had been entirely congenial.

"Of course, Scully will verify that," Mulder added.

Will turned to Scully. "I sort of expected you to hop on that first thing this morning."

She returned his gaze levelly. "The coroner won't be ready for me until 9am. I thought the time would be better spent here. Do you recognize the marking?"

He looked back down at the photograph. "Like you said, it looks like a spider web. Mac did mention it-- that's Ellis McKenzie, the coroner-- but he didn't know what it was, either." He stood up. "If that's all, I've got some phone messages to return."

Agent Scully checked at her watch and stood also. "Thank you for your time, Sheriff. If you happen to remember anything about the marking, I'd appreciate a call."

"Sure thing. Will you stop back here after you're finished with the autopsies?"

Scully nodded. "It won't be until mid- afternoon."

Will looked at Mulder. "Find anything interesting at the crime scene last night, Agent Mulder?"

"You mean, aside from the fact that the body was found by the prosecutor in his own front yard?"

That drew a look from Scully that told Will she was hearing this for the first time. "Yeah, Mark told me you two met. I gather you found him as annoying as we all do."

Mulder smiled slightly. "I imagine he's been run through the usual elimination process, despite his position?"

Will tamped down a flash of irritation. "He's been eliminated as a suspect."

"You've verified his whereabouts even for this last body? We don't yet know the date of her death," Mulder pointed out.

While Will was formulating a less hostile reply than the one that had jumped to mind, Agent Scully cut in. "I didn't see him mentioned in the case notes. Perhaps if you could let us see the transcript of his interview, it would help."

Will gripped the back of his chair with both hands and did a mental ten-count. "It wasn't a formal interview, Agents. I've known the man since he was in grade school, and he was only questioned about what he might have seen. You can't tell me that you seriously consider him a suspect."

The agents exchanged a glance. Mulder answered, "You said it yourself, Sheriff. The man is not likely to be a stranger and may well be someone in a position of trust. Everyone is a suspect at this point, including Mark Laskey."

It took effort, but Will Kessler nodded. "I'll have him stop by this afternoon."

The tension in the room eased, and Mulder started to gather up the files they'd spread over the table. "We'll stop back after the autopsies." He met Will's direct gaze. "I know this is difficult for you, Sheriff. We appreciate your cooperation."

"Since I'm probably on your interview list, too, you might as well call me 'Will'." He turned and headed for the door. "Just let me know when you want to talk with my deputies. I've got one out sick today, but the rest can be here whenever you want," he called over his shoulder, and received an acknowledging nod from Agent Mulder.

Linda held up a pink message slip when he passed her desk on his way to his office. He snagged it without comment.

"It's from Michael. She's very anxious to talk to you, from the sound of it," she volunteered.

"I'll call her after I talk to Mark Laskey. Get him on the phone for me, please." He had a pretty damn good idea what Michael wanted, and he didn't have time to indulge her right now. Besides, she wasn't going to like the answer.

Will sank into his chair and closed his eyes.

* * *

Warren Community Hospital
Autopsy Room #2
10:30 am

Seeing his partner with Jane Doe's body gave a whole new meaning to the words 'up to your elbows in work'. It was, quite literally, where Scully was at the moment, creating squishy wet sounds that drove his attention back to the case notes in self-defense.

This latest victim brought the toll to eight over a period of five weeks and had earned Warren top billing on the network news this morning. It was a hell of a way to get the town on the map. Along with the spotlight would come a whole lot of heat to get this guy before he killed again. It was anybody's guess just how much time he was going to give them to do it.

The graduating class of 1990 had consisted of 118 students, a little more than half of them female. Mulder's growing list of intended interviews included every woman from that class who still lived in the area. It was the most obvious link among the victims, and following it would consume time they couldn't spare.

"Did you doze off over there?" Scully's raised voice snapped his head up from the file. She was peering at him over the top of her mask.

Mulder put down the folder. "Sorry, I was thinking."

"So I gathered. I asked if you knew how Michael Hobart managed to guess the time of death so accurately."

He stood up and came over to the table. "She was right?" The surprise in his voice was genuine. He'd mentioned the woman's comment to Scully, but never considered it seriously. It was too great a reach for the perfunctory exam they'd been able to do in the field in the dark.

"Close enough to be impressive. Before the ambient temperature dropped low enough to kill them, there were insects developing in the body. About two weeks worth of activity, as a matter of fact." She pulled the body cavity flaps back and pointed with gloved fingers. "I checked on the weather when I was working through the autopsy tapes, and it's been sub- freezing here for twelve days."

Mulder looked long enough to see what she was talking about, one hand over his mouth and nose, then stepped back. "Lucky guess?"

An eyebrow rose into the surgical cap above it. "A lucky guess that made no sense given the known facts at the time?"

He shrugged. "I thought she was just showing off."

"For your benefit." Quiet disapproval, clearly expressed.

"For my benefit."

Pause. "Then, I think you need to find out how she did it."

It took him a moment to pick up on her implication. "You're not suggesting that she had some inside information."

Scully regarded him levelly. "I think you need to ask her."

He was half-listening, half replaying the rest of last night's conversation in his head. Michael had said something else--

"Earth to Mulder."

"Wolves."

"Excuse me?"

"Wolves. She said that before she switched to psych, she'd majored in forestry. She worked in the park. She could have based her guess on the amount of damage done by the wolves, not the insects." He felt oddly relieved by this conclusion.

Scully, apparently, was not. "There are too many variables, Mulder, an unknown number of predators being the most obvious. You need to ask her now, before we include her in any more case discussions."

He suppressed a weary sigh. "I'll get her phone number from the sheriff." He dug his cell from his pocket as he headed for the door.

"You don't have it?"

The emphatically casual tone turned him around to find Scully focused intently on the body before her. When he didn't respond, she looked up, and he met her gaze solidly. "No. I don't."

She studied his face a moment longer, then nodded. "I'll be another few hours finishing up here. Go work."

A heaviness he hadn't realized was there seemed to lift as she turned back to her task.

"On my way." He gave her a little salute on his way out the door and saw her eyes crinkle in a smile.

* * *

Miller's Restaurant
Tionesta, PA
10:15 am

Ellis McKenzie took a bite of bacon and chewed thoughtfully for a moment. "For the profiler, sure. Not being familiar with our little inbred circle might put him at a disadvantage. But the pathologist? I don't see it."

Michael put down her coffee. "Would she have been able to correlate the level of predation on the body to an elapsed time the way I did? I doubt you'd find an applicable study in any text or journal. You have to know the area for that."

"True, but an FBI pathologist is going to know a lot more than I do about everything else. And for the local wildlife, I've got you. That's why I asked you to join us this morning." He waved at their surroundings. "But instead, we're having breakfast in the next town."

Michael leaned forward, resting her arms alongside her untouched plate. "I had dinner with them last night, Mac. My impression is that she doesn't like me. I doubt she'd be very happy to see me in your autopsy bay."

He quirked an eyebrow at that. "Since when has anyone's opinion stopped you from doing what you wanted?"

She leaned back and picked up her fork, probing gingerly at a mound of scrambled eggs. "I have a confession."

"I'm all ears."

She looked up at him. "There's a personal side that I don't quite know how to handle. Agent Mulder and I went for drinks after we left the crime scene."

Both eyebrows went up. "I don't think I have to tell you how ill-advised this sounds."

"I know, Mac. I know. But he's a nice guy and he needed someone to talk to. I just don't want it to affect the case, and I think that means I need to avoid his partner."

He raised both hands in mock horror. "Please! No details. The last thing I need when I meet them for the first time is this soap opera running through my head." He looked at his watch. "In fact, I need to get moving if I want to attend the second autopsy." He stood and pulled on his jacket. "You're still welcome to come with me, but it's your call."

Michael smiled and shook her head. "Let me know how it goes, Mac."

"Sure thing."

She watched him go to the register and pay the bill. He said something to the cashier that made her laugh. Michael looked at her watch and sat back in the booth to finish her breakfast.

* * *

Warren County Sheriff
10:30 am

Mulder's call to the sheriff went unanswered.

"I haven't seen him since you left," Linda Mercer told him. "He's been in his office on the phone the whole time."

"Just tell him I'm on my way to see him."

Kessler was still on the phone when Mulder got there. From the booming tone of his voice, someone named Kendall was getting his or her ass chewed royally.

The door was jerked open a moment after the yelling stopped, and Kessler poked his head out. He nodded curtly to Mulder, then turned to Linda. "Send somebody over to talk to Jessie in person. He won't tell me what the hell's up, and I want to know. See if Lenny has time." Back to Mulder. "We're having a strange morning here, Agent. What brings you back so soon?" He stepped into his office, motioning for Mulder to follow.

Mulder took a seat in front of Kessler's desk without removing his coat. "I need to get in touch with Michael Hobart."

The sheriff stopped halfway into his chair and gave Mulder a decidedly odd look. "Well, that's an interesting coincidence. She's on her way here to see me." He settled into his chair and folded his hands on his belly. "What's on your mind?"

"Several things. I want to start interviewing this morning, and I'd like to start with the surviving members of the victims' graduating class who live in the area. Can you help me arrange that?"

"Sure. The list is already compiled. I can have Linda start calling them right away. Do you want them to come in or...?"

"I'd prefer to see them in their homes, if possible."

He picked up the phone and relayed Mulder's request to his assistant. "What else?"

"While the interviews are being set up, I'd like to see your deputies." Knowing this was a sensitive subject, Mulder kept his voice even and as non-threatening as possible.

Kessler nodded. "Already got them alerted. They'll come back whenever you say the word."

Mulder smiled his appreciation. "Now, if you don't mind. I'll need about fifteen minutes with each one."

"I can arrange that. You want to use my office?" The sheriff's expression remained cordial, but there might have been just a hint of sarcasm at the end.

"The conference room will be fine."

Kessler picked up the phone and paused with the receiver to his ear. Mulder took the cue and stood up. "I'll be in the conference room."

Kessler nodded and punched in a number. "Please close the door behind you."

Linda gave Mulder a sympathetic smile when he walked out of the sheriff's office. "He's had a lot of inquiries from the national media this morning, among other things. Will doesn't like the spotlight."

Mulder returned her smile. "That makes two of us."

"Do you want me to just start sending the guys in to see you? It shouldn't take long to round them up."

"That would be great, thanks."

Forty minutes later, Mulder looked up from the notes of his fourth interview to find a familiar face in the doorway.

"Thought you might need a caffeine break."

"You mean that cup's really for me this time?"

Michael Hobart smiled. "I'm not interrupting?"

"Not at all. A break sounds good." He waved her in and accepted the cup she offered.

She took the seat next to him. "Will said you wanted to talk to me?"

Mulder sipped carefully from the steaming mug. "I wasn't ready for you quite yet, but sure. I'll make the time if you can do it now."

Michael watched him over the rim of her cup, her eyes twinkling with some unshared joke. "No place I'd rather be."

* * *

Continued in chapter 4