Long Trail Home - continued 

By: Nantglyn 
nantglyn@yahoo.com 

Keywords: MSR, Angst, Historical AU 
Rating: R, to be safe 
Disclaimer: Characters are not mine. Just for fun, not 
for profit. 
Archive: I'll post to Gossamer. 
Note: Any errors are my own. This is not a WIP. 

Summary: A new life lay ahead for many who traveled the 
Oregon Trail. This is just one story. 

Chapter 10 

July 3, 1852 
Saturday 

Mulder rode up on his horse as the company was preparing to 
stop for the evening. Dana was walking with Danny when she 
heard him come up behind them. 

"Dana," Mulder called to her. She walked over to him and 
he smiled. "You look much better." 

"It feels fine," she said, rotating her ankle. "I walked 
on it all day today." 

He jumped down from his horse. "Good." He turned away from 
her as he said, "Because I invited Diana and her family to 
supper. Hey Jimmy," he called, trotting up to him. 

"William," Dana called. He paid no attention to her and 
talked to Jimmy instead, who looked uneasily at Dana. 
"William," she called again. 

"You just going to ignore her?" Jimmy asked. 

"No," he said, hanging his head. He stopped walking and 
waited for Dana to catch up to him. 

When she reached him, she asked, "You invited them?" 

He bit his lower lip and nodded. He released it and said, 
"Remember, we asked Diana a couple of days ago and you," he 
waved his hand in the air, "had your accident and we had to 
postpone it." 

She put her hands on her hips and said, "No, William, you 
invited Diana, not we. Now her sister and children are 
coming too?" 

"Yes. Please do this for me, Dana." She turned around and 
headed back for Danny. "Dana," he called. "Will you do 
it?" She nodded, not looking back. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Danny was taking care of the oxen that evening while Mulder 
walked over to Diana's camp. When he returned with Diana, 
her sister and her children, they found Dana cooking over 
the fire. Jimmy was helping her prepare the meal. 

"Hello," Mulder said to Jimmy. 

"Mulder," he said sharply. He looked up briefly at Mulder 
and then looked away. Jimmy dished up a plate for himself 
and Danny and then left, probably heading for his brother. 

Great, Mulder thought, my own cousin is mad at me too. 
"Smells great," he said. He noticed that Dana still hadn't 
looked his way. Instead, she busied herself with getting 
the meal. 

Diana walked up to her and asked, "Dana, could I help?" 

Dana looked up for a moment and then said, "No." She 
prepared three plates and walked away, cautiously carrying 
them to the children who were seated on a blanket. She sat 
down between Caleb and Samantha and began silently eating 
with the children. 

Mulder walked over to her, squatted down, and whispered, 
"Dana, we have company." 

She shook her head and looked at him in the eye. "You have 
company. I don't." 

"But you promised to have them over." 

"No, I promised to cook. I didn't say I would serve them 
or talk to them. They're your guests, you take care of 
them. Diana only wants your company anyway. I'm sure she 
would prefer it if the children and I weren't here." 

"Damn it Dana," Mulder hissed. 

"Please do not curse in front of the children," she said. 
She turned back to her meal and began to eat again. 

Mulder huffed and stood, walking back to Diana. "I'm sorry 
about this." 

"Don't worry Fox. I know she doesn't like me. She feels 
threatened by me." 

Mulder looked back over to Dana. "No, I don't think so." 

"She knows we're friends. I think she would prefer to have 
you to herself. We could leave if you would like." 

Mulder smiled. "No, let's eat. I promised you a meal." 

Dana looked over to see Mulder smiling. She watched them 
walk over to her food and dish some out. Mulder looked 
back at her when he handed a plate to Diana and Dana looked 
away. From under her eyelashes, she watched them sit by 
the other wagon, away from her, and noticed that Diana's 
sister was very quiet, the conversation being held mostly 
between Mulder and Diana. 

Dana sighed and looked down at the children. She pulled 
Caleb's bangs away from his forehead. "Finished?" she 
asked. Caleb nodded. 

"Me too," Samantha said, holding up her plate. Dana placed 
her plate, along with the children's together and stood. 

"Do you want to go to the river with me?" she asked them. 

"Yes," they yelled, drawing Mulder and Diana's attention. 

Dog followed them as they began walking away. "Where are 
you going?" Mulder shouted to them. 

Dana ignored him and led the children away with her. Dog 
followed closely behind. "Guess I'm in trouble," he told 
Diana. 

"I don't want to come between you and your wife Fox, but I 
would be dishonest if I didn't say that I don't want to 
lose your friendship either." 

"You're my friend," Mulder said. "She's just going to have 
to get used to the idea." 

Diana took his hand and said, "Thank you Fox. I do value 
our friendship. You know, I've tried to talk to her, but 
she doesn't seem interested." 

Mulder nodded. "I know you've tried." He looked in the 
direction Dana had left with the children. "I think I had 
better walk you back to your camp. I don't think you 
should be here when she comes back." 

"All right, if you think that's best." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Mulder had arrived back at their camp before Dana, so he 
headed towards the river. He stopped when he saw her 
seated and laughing. Samantha sat quietly next to her. 
Caleb laughed as Krycek threw him up and then caught him on 
the way down. 

Krycek was the first to see him. "Mulder, did you seen 
Diana and her family home?" 

Dana looked up at him, horrified that he had said anything. 
"Shh," she said to him. 

Mulder stopped in mid-stride, but recovered. "Yes, before 
I came here. What are you doing with my son?" Mulder drew 
Caleb out of Krycek's arms. 

"He enjoyed it Mulder," Krycek said. 

"It looked dangerous. If you had dropped him..." 

"Caleb was fine," Dana said. 

Mulder looked in her direction and put out his hand. "Come 
on." 

Dana shook her head and said, "I'm not finished talking to 
Mr. Krycek." 

Mulder bent down and grabbed her arm, pulling her up 
roughly. "Samantha, grab the plates. We're going back." 

"Hey Mulder," Alex said, grabbing the arm Mulder was 
holding Dana with. "Let her go. We were only talking." 

"Stay out of my business, Krycek...and stay away from my 
family. Go find your own." Krycek took a step back and 
Mulder swung Dana around. He pushed her in the direction 
of their camp. "Stay away from that man." 

She turned around and stopped. Mulder almost knocked her 
down, but she found her footing. "I can't have any friends 
but you can with that woman? That's not fair." 

"No, you can have friends...just not him." 

"Why not?" 

"Because I don't like him." 

"I don't like Diana, but you seem to be very friendly with 
her." 

"What's that supposed to mean?" 

"Nothing," she said and turned to walk again. 

"Dana, you're a woman," he said as he caught up to her. 

"I'm a woman, so it's not okay for me? Diana's a woman and 
you seem to think it's fine to flaunt your relationship 
with her in front of everyone. Do you know what people 
must be saying?" 

"I don't care what people say." 

"But I do," she said quietly as she grabbed Samantha's 
hand. 

They walked silently until they reached the camp. Mulder 
handed Caleb to her and said, "I'm on watch. I won't be 
back until morning." He turned away from her without 
another word. 

July 4, 1849 
Wednesday 

The company had decided to go only a short distance so that 
they would have time to celebrate Independence Day. In the 
afternoon, the women were busy preparing pies and food. 
The company had decided to have a big supper together and 
everyone was pitching in. 

The weather was cold and the clouds threatened snow, but it 
couldn't dampen the travelers' spirits. After Dana 
finished cooking, Jimmy and Danny helped Dana carry the 
food. Samantha walked with Caleb, making sure he stayed 
with them. Dana hadn't seen Mulder since their 
confrontation. 

When everyone gathered, Reverend Byers said a blessing and 
the families lined up to fill their plates with food. 
Everyone was looking forward to the feast, since the women 
put forth their best efforts to please everyone. 

Someone told Dana that Mulder was helping herd the cattle a 
short distance away since there was relatively good 
grazing. They would bring the cattle back before dark, 
into the corral the wagons created. 

Skinner came up to Dana, who sat with the children. "Dana, 
come eat with us. I know Sharon would enjoy the company." 

Dana smiled at him and said, "All right. Thank you. Could 
you carry Caleb's plate?" 

"Sure," he said, grabbing the plate. 

After gathering her blanket and throwing it over her arm, 
Dana turned to get Samantha's plate, but she held on. "I 
can do it," Samantha said. 

Shaking her head, Dana grabbed the plate from her. "But if 
you drop it, you won't have anything to eat. I better do 
it." Samantha crossed her arms and pouted. "Come on, I 
know you're hungry," Dana said as they followed Skinner. 

When they arrived at Skinner's wagon, Sharon was sitting in 
a chair. She smiled and said, "Dana, I'm so glad you 
came." 

Dana spread her blanket next to Sharon and sat down. "Me 
too." 

Louisa and Margaret came up to her and Margaret asked, "Can 
Caleb and Samantha eat over there with us?" 

Nodding, Dana handed her Samantha's plate. "Yes, that 
would be fine. You'll need to get Caleb's plate from your 
father." 

"Great," Louisa said. She turned to Caleb and Samantha, 
grabbing their hands. "Come on, you're eating with us." 

Dana watched the girls take her children with them and 
said, "You have such wonderful children." 

Sharon watched them for a moment. "Yes, Walter and I are 
lucky." 

Skinner sat on the other side of his wife and said, "It's 
all her doing. She's a great mother." 

Shaking her head, Sharon said, "Now Walter, you know you 
had something to do with it too." 

Skinner laughed and popped a piece of meat into his mouth, 
"I guess so." 

Dana was surprised to see Mulder walk up with a plate in 
his hand and sit down next to her. He nodded to her and 
began eating. 

"Everything all right out there Mulder?" Skinner asked. 

Mulder nodded and wiped his fingers on his pants. "It 
looks like it could snow though." 

Looking upwards, Skinner said, "I think you're right. It 
sure seems like it's cold enough for it. Who would have 
thought it would be this cold in July?" 

"At least we should see less sickness now that we're past 
Fort Laramie. They say that once you pass the fort, less 
die." 

"I hope that's true," Sharon said. 

"How are you doing Sharon? I'm sorry, I should have 
asked," Mulder said. 

"I'm fine. Hopefully, this baby will come soon." 

They ate silently for a while, watching the children. When 
the children finished, the girls and the Mulder children 
came running up to them. "Can we go play now?" Louisa 
asked. 

Sharon said, "All right, but don't go to far." 

Mulder stopped them. "Caleb, come here. You stay with us. 
Samantha, you can go." 

Caleb walked over to him and began crying, not wanting to 
be left behind. "Mr. Mulder, we'll take good care of him," 
Louisa said. 

"I'm sure you would, but not this time. Just keep a good 
eye on Samantha." 

"All right," she said. "Come on Samantha." 

Mulder watched them run off as he pulled Caleb into his 
lap, rubbing his back as Caleb sobbed. 

"William, they could have taken him," Dana said. 

Standing, Mulder lifted Caleb into his arms. "No, we're 
going to go for a ride. How does that sound Caleb? Do you 
want to ride on the horse?" Caleb hiccupped and nodded. 
"We'll see you in a little while." 

Dana stood and came over to him. "No, I don't want him on 
the horse." 

Turning his back on her, he walked back to their wagon, 
Dana following him the whole way. When they arrived at the 
wagon, Mulder put Caleb on his horse, but was stopped by a 
hand on his arm. 

"Why are you doing this? I don't want my son on a horse." 

Mulder put his hand on Caleb's leg to make sure he stayed 
in place. "I promised him a ride a while back and I 
thought this might be the perfect time." 

"No, you can't take my son." 

"No? You're telling me 'no?' Well he's my son now and he 
needs to get used to being on a horse. The sooner, the 
better." 

"Please, don't do this." 

"What is it with you and horses Dana? You don't want to 
ride on one. You don't want Caleb to ride on one. I would 
have thought you would have been raised with horses." 

"Papa, come on." 

Dana looked away and said, "Fine. Go," and stalked back 
towards the Skinner wagon. 

Mulder shook his head and looked back up at Caleb, who was 
grinning. "Ready to go buddy?" Caleb nodded his head and 
kicked his feet. "Okay, just let me get up there with you. 
Okay, here we go," he said as they trotted off. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

The livestock was grazing quietly as the sun began to fall 
on the horizon. Mulder rode up to Danny. Caleb sat quietly 
in front of him. 

"Who do you have there Mulder?" Danny asked. 

"Me," Caleb said. 

"I see that. You're a big boy now," Danny said, reaching 
to tickle him. Caleb giggled and moved back closer to 
Mulder. "I can't believe Dana let you bring him." 

"She didn't want me to." 

"She going to be mad at you then?" 

"Probably, but it isn't like she isn't already mad at me 
anyway." 

"Diana?" 

Mulder nodded. "So, I might as well have her mad at me all 
at one time. Are you all ready to head the cattle back to 
camp?" 

"We were just about to. We figure that everyone has eaten 
by now. You sure you want to help with him along?" 

"We'll be fine. We'll just stay in the back." 

"All right, see you in a little while." Danny kicked his 
horse and took off towards another rider. 

"You having fun Caleb?" Mulder asked. Caleb nodded and 
reached to pet Mulder's horse. "Good. You can help Papa 
round up the livestock." Mulder guided his horse to the 
back as the other men began rounding up the animals. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

When Caleb and Mulder arrived back at camp in the dark, the 
men were finishing with the animals. Jimmy had beat Mulder 
back to their wagon, so Mulder handed Caleb down to him. 

"Have fun Caleb?" Jimmy asked. 

"Yes," Caleb said, his eyes drooping. 

"Tired him out did you?" he asked Mulder. 

"Too much excitement," he said, taking Caleb from him and 
handing the reins of his horse to Jimmy. "Is she in the 
wagon?" Jimmy nodded. "Okay, take care of my horse." 
Mulder carried Caleb to their wagon and hoisted him up. 
When they entered the wagon, Caleb and Mulder found Dana 
with Samantha in her lap, brushing her hair. 

Samantha looked up and said, "Papa." She tried to go to 
Mulder, but Dana held her in place. 

"Oh no you don't. Not until I'm finished." 

"Dana, you can do that in a minute, let her go." 

"She's my daughter and I say that she needs to learn to be 
patient and wait until I'm finished." 

Mulder hesitated before saying, "Okay, I guess I deserved 
that." 

Caleb walked over to his mother and said, "I ride, Mama." 

Dana smiled at her son and said, "You had fun?" Caleb 
nodded. "I'm glad." She reached over and pulled him into 
a hug, kissing his head. "Go have Papa get you ready for 
bed." 

As Caleb was walking back to Mulder, he lost his footing 
when the wagon rocked from the wind that had been 
increasing. "Oops," Caleb said. 

Mulder walked over to help him up. "Oops is right. That 
wind is really beginning to pick up. Where are his 
clothes?" Dana pointed and he picked them up and began to 
change Caleb. "Still mad at me?" 

"No, not really," Dana said. "There," she said to 
Samantha. "Finished." Samantha got up and went to get her 
gown. "Need help?" Samantha nodded and Dana began to 
change her as Mulder was finishing with Caleb. 

"Climb in Caleb." Mulder covered him up as the wagon 
rocked again. "I think it's going to be like that all 
night. I doubt we'll get much sleep." Samantha came over 
to him and he helped cover her too. He bent down to kiss 
them both and said, "Okay, sleep now." They nodded and he 
turned back to Dana, "You ready to turn out the light?" 

"Yes, I'm ready," she said, gathering her gown. 

When they had both settled under the covers, Mulder asked 
her, "You sure you're not mad?" 

Dana rolled towards him. "I'm not. Sharon made me realize 
that I have to start letting you make decisions about Caleb 
too." 

"Still mad about Diana?" Dana didn't answer and he said, 
"You are." 

"I'm sorry, I just can't like her. I believe she would be 
happier if I wasn't here." 

"I don't know what I can say to make you believe that isn't 
true. She's happy for me. I don't know why you won't 
believe that." 

"Fine William," she said, rolling away from him. "Believe 
what you want." 

Mulder huffed and rolled on his side, away from her. The 
air in the wagon was chilly from more than just the cold 
temperatures outside that night. 

July 8, 1852 
Thursday 

"Where have you been?" Dana asked Jimmy when he returned to 
their camp that evening. 

"He's been seeing the young widow," Danny said before Jimmy 
could answer. 

"Who?" asked Dana. 

"You know, Catherine Tanner. The woman who lost her 
husband on the river about a month back." 

"Oh yes, I remember." Dana looked over to Jimmy and asked, 
"So you're seeing her?" 

"Yes," said Jimmy. 

"Are you two serious?" 

"No, not yet." 

"You need to bring her by. Maybe ask her to dinner one 
evening." 

Jimmy smiled at her. "Thank you, Dana, I'll do that." 
Danny got up and put a few more buffalo chips on the fire 
to keep the meal warm. "Where's Mulder? Has he eaten 
yet?" 

Dana shook her head. "He's on the first watch." 

"I'll take the food to Mulder if you want me to." 

"Thank you. I'm sure he would appreciate it." 

Mulder and Dana had finally begun to get back to normal 
after the Fourth. Dana had vowed to herself to ignore 
Diana and Mulder's friendship since he was determined to 
have it. She realized that there was no reasoning with 
him. 

July 9, 1852 
Friday 

When Dana woke up the next morning, she saw that Mulder 
still hadn't returned. She dressed the children and 
herself before finding him sitting by the fire. 

"I'll have breakfast for us soon," she said to him. "Did 
you sleep?" 

He shook his head. "No, I was called to the Baxter wagon 
to help." 

She came up to him and ran her hand through his hair. He 
leaned into her as he closed his eyes, enjoying the 
soothing feeling. "Why?" 

"There was an incident there." 

"An incident? What does that mean?" 

"Jacob Nelson is dead. You remember, the driver I hired. 
He was stabbed in his sleep last night. Mrs. Baxter and 
her young son are also missing. We've been out looking for 
them. I plan to go back and help as soon as I get 
something to eat." 

She went to their supply wagon to get food for them. As 
she prepared the bacon and bread, Mulder sat, silently 
watching her. 

"How old is her son?" Dana asked. 

"About Samantha's age." 

"Do they think someone took them after they killed Mr. 
Nelson?" 

"Diana said Sarah's become more emotional this week. She's 
still very upset about losing her husband. She said that 
last night; Sarah cried and then went very silent, rocking 
Randolph. That's the boy." 

"Are you saying that Sarah did this?" 

"Possibly." 

"When did Diana notice them missing?" 

"Around three this morning. She woke up and found Nelson 
dead. She couldn't find Sarah or the boy. If we don't 
find them today, I don't think they'll survive another 
night if it's as cold as it was last night. Diana said 
neither one of them has a coat with them." 

When Mulder had finished eating, he jumped on his horse and 
took off. Dana was surprised to find him back at camp two 
hours later. 

When she saw his expression, she asked, "What's wrong? 
Have they found them?" 

Mulder nodded and dropped down by the fire. "They're not 
alive." 

"Neither? What happened?" 

"I don't think it's something I want to describe to you." 

"Was it an accident?" 

"No." He looked up at her before looking back down. "She 
had a knife with her. It looks like she was the one who 
killed Nelson too." 

"Oh. When will they be burying them?" 

"Reverend Byers will hold a service around two. We're 
going to stay here until tomorrow. I don't think anyone is 
in the mood to go on today. I just came back here to clean 
up. I need to go back and help." 

"Can you at least see your children? They haven't seen you 
since early yesterday." 

Mulder looked up at her, remorseful. "I'm sorry, of 
course. Where are they?" 

"Sharon's girls came to get them this morning after you 
left." 

"I'll go over there then after I wash up." As an 
afterthought, he asked, "Do you need me for anything?" 

"No, I'll get you something to clean up with. Stay where 
you are and rest." 

After he had cleaned up, Mulder headed for the Skinner 
wagon, leaving Dana alone, yet again. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Most of the company joined Reverend Byers for the funeral 
service. Jimmy and Danny stood behind Dana, who held 
Caleb. Samantha stood next to her, holding onto Dana's 
skirts. Looking over to the family, Dana saw Mulder 
standing beside Diana, her nieces standing on her other 
side. As the Reverend read, Diana broke down, crying. 
Mulder put his arm around her and she leaned into him. He 
bent down and whispered something to her. Dana saw her nod 
and lean even more into him. 

Dana looked away and kissed her son, rocking him. She was 
thankful that he was tired. He had been fussy earlier, but 
seemed to sense the solemn occasion and was cooperating. 

Danny leaned into her and whispered, "Dana, do you want me 
to take him?" 

She shook her head. "He's fine." 

When the services were over, people began walking away 
quietly. Dana watched Mulder walk with Diana. He passed 
by her and didn't even acknowledge her or the children. 

A young woman walked up to them and smiled at Jimmy. To 
Dana, she said, "Mrs. Mulder, I'm Catherine Tanner. Please 
call me Katie though." 

"Oh, it's nice to meet you. Jimmy has told me a lot about 
you." 

Katie blushed and looked up at Jimmy. "Thank you. It's 
nice to meet you too." 

"Dana, do you think Katie could eat with us tonight?" Jimmy 
asked. 

Dana smiled at Katie. "Of course, we could use the 
company. Jimmy can come and get you when we're ready," she 
told Katie. "Did he tell you he could cook?" 

"Yes, he's very good too." 

"Yes he is. Well, good afternoon Mrs. Tanner. I'll see 
you this evening." 

Dana grabbed Samantha's hand and walked away, leaving Danny 
and Jimmy to talk with the young widow. 

Instead of going back to her own wagon, Dana decided to 
visit Sharon. As she walked in that direction, she passed 
the Baxter wagon. She saw Mulder sitting next to Diana, 
who was enfolded in his arms crying. The two girls sat by 
themselves quietly. Samantha saw her father and began to 
pull in that direction. "Papa," she cried. 

"Samantha shh, he's busy. You come with me." 

"No, I want to go to Papa." 

Mulder looked up when he heard her calling him. Samantha 
pulled free and Dana called to her, but it was too late. 
She was already heading for her father. Caleb struggled in 
Dana's arms to follow her and Dana had to put him down for 
fear of dropping him. He took off in the same direction. 

When Samantha reached him, she tried to crawl into his lap, 
but Diana was in her way. Dana was sure she would back 
away so that Samantha could go to him, but she didn't move. 
She just kept crying and holding on. Caleb had caught up 
and tried to join his sister, which made matters worse. 

"Diana," Mulder said as Dana reached him. "The children." 

"I'm sorry, they broke free when they saw you," Dana 
explained. 

"It's all right," Mulder said. 

Diana leaned back, allowing the children access to Mulder. 
She looked up and said, "Oh, Dana. Hello." 

"I'm sorry about your family. If you need anything, let me 
know." 

Diana nodded and moved to her nieces. Mulder bent down, 
kissed both children, and then asked, "How come you're not 
at our wagon." 

"I'm going to see Sharon. Her baby could come any day and 
I wanted to see if I could do anything to help." Dana 
reached down and grabbed both of the children's hands. 
"Come on, Papa is busy now," she said to the children. 
"Will you come back to our wagon later? Jimmy has asked 
his girl to supper." 

Mulder looked over to Diana and shook his head. "I don't 
think I can leave her in this condition." 

Dana nodded and pulled the children away. She glanced back 
and saw Diana return to his arms. 

When Dana reached the Skinner wagon, she found Walter 
outside. "Hello, Walter." 

"Dana," he said. He bent down and said to the children, 
"Come to Uncle Walter." The children ran into his arms and 
he picked them up. "Oh, you're both getting so big." They 
giggled and when he put them down, they went off in search 
of his daughters. 

"How are you Dana?" 

"I'm fine, and yourself?" 

"Good. Good." 

"I was coming to see if Sharon needed anything." 

"She's at the back of the wagon. I'm sure she'll be happy 
to see you." Skinner put his arm around her as they walked 
to the back. "How are you doing? Is everything going all 
right with you and Fox?" 

"As well as can be expected, I guess. He's with Diana 
right now." 

"Really. Still?" 

"She couldn't tear herself away from his arms." Dana 
looked up, ashamed. "I'm sorry, that's not fair. She's in 
a difficult situation. Now, she doesn't have a man with 
her wagon." 

"Diana's strong from what I've seen. I think she'll be 
fine." 

"Especially since she'll have my husband's full attention." 

"Who has his attention?" Sharon asked as they came around 
to the back of Skinner's wagon. 

Dana smiled. "Doesn't matter. I just wanted to see if I 
could do anything for you." 

Sharon rubbed her belly and said, "No, Walter is good to 
me. He takes care of everything for me." 

Dana nodded and said, "He's a good husband." 

"You have a good husband too," Sharon said. 

"When I see him." 

"Are things not going well with you?" 

"He's with Diana right now," Skinner said as he went 
looking for the children, who had wandered off. 

"Oh. Well I'm sure he's just being a good friend," Sharon 
reassured her. 

"I'm sure," Dana said. She shook her head and smiled. 
"How are your children?" 

Sharon nodded and patted the ground beside her for Dana to 
sit. "They're fine. Victor has been riding with his 
father and Matthew has been helping me. The girls of 
course love your children. And Francis, well Francis stays 
pretty close to me." 

"You have wonderful children Sharon. I just hope all of my 
children turn out as well." 

"They will. Dana, you do promise to be there when this one 
arrives, right?" 

"Of course, I wouldn't miss it. How is Walter handling 
it?" 

"The longer it goes, the more nervous he gets. How about 
you? Any chance you might have another one?" Dana smiled 
shyly and looked away. "What? Are you?" 

"I don't know. I can't be sure, it's too early." 

"But it's possible?" 

She smiled openly. "It's possible." 

"Have you said anything to Fox?" 

Dana looked down and shook her head. "I won't say anything 
until I'm sure." She looked up quickly. "Please don't say 
anything to anyone else, not even Walter." 

Sharon looked at her puzzled. "All right, I won't say 
anything if you don't want me to." 

Breathing a sigh of relief, she said, "Thank you. Are you 
sure I can't do anything for you?" 

"No, I'm fine. Just be there when I really need you." 

"I will." Dana stood. "I have to go get the children now. 
Jimmy is having company tonight." 

"Oh? Who?" 

"The Tanner widow." 

"Really? Do you think there's a future there?" 

"Maybe. He seems smitten." 

"That's good." 

Dana bent down and kissed Sharon lightly on the cheek. 
"Good-bye Sharon." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

"Thank you for the meal Mrs. Mulder," Katie Tanner said. 

"You're welcome. It's nice to have someone else eat with 
us," Dana said. "Are your parents back home?" 

"Yes. My husband and I lived in Ohio. He and his family 
decided to come west, so here I am." 

"Do you get along with your in-laws?" 

"Yes. They've been very good to me." 

"That's good," Dana said. 

"How about you?" 

"Me?" 

"Did you get along with your in-laws? I mean I heard 
stories about how hard it is for the wife sometimes, but I 
think I was fortunate." 

Dana shrugged her shoulders. "I've never met mine." 

"Really? Are they not living?" 

"No. There just wasn't time to meet them." 

"Are you ready to go back Katie?" Jimmy asked. 

"Yes," she said, standing and linking her arm with Jimmy. 
"Thank you again Mrs. Mulder." 

"You're welcome. Good-night." 

Dana walked around, picking up their plates. She rinsed 
them off along with their cups. "Danny, I'm going to bed. 
If William comes back, tell him so, will you?" 

"All right Dana." 

Dana climbed into the wagon, being careful to step over the 
children. She leaned down and kissed them both. 

After changing, she lay under her covers. She had almost 
fallen asleep when she heard Mulder climb in. She remained 
quiet and listened to him remove his boots and lie down. 
He lifted the covers and crawled in beside her. Leaning 
over, he kissed her on the cheek and pulled her against 
him. "Sorry I didn't come sooner. Diana was still having 
a rough time." He felt her nod. "You okay?" 

"Yes. I'm just tired." 

He settled his chin on the top of her head and stroked her 
hair. "Danny said the widow Tanner came over tonight. Was 
she nice?" 

"Yes, I think Jimmy likes her very much." 

"Good. Do you think they might marry?" 

"I don't know." 

"If they do, they should wait until we get to Oregon." 

"Why?" 

"You never know what will happen on the trail," Mulder 
explained. "Look what happened to Diana's family. She's 
lost her sister, brother-in-law, and nephew." 

"I still don't understand why Mrs. Baxter did that. I 
can't even begin to understand how she could kill her 
child." 

"I'm sure she wasn't thinking clearly. She couldn't have 
been sane." 

Dana nodded. She felt a need to change the subject. "Are 
we really leaving tomorrow?" 

"Yes." Mulder ran his hand down her back. "Dana, I told 
Diana I would help her with her wagon." He felt her 
stiffen, but continued, "She needs help with the team. She 
can't drive it herself. I feel responsible, she's my 
friend." 

"There isn't anyone else? Maybe one of the boys could help 
out and you could drive one of our teams." 

"No, Diana trusts me." 

Dana leaned over him, on an elbow. "So what, you're going 
to drive her team all the way to Oregon?" 

"Of course not," he said, pulling her back down. "I'll 
arrange something soon. It may just take some time." 

"Fine William," she said. "Go to her." Dana moved as far 
away from him as she could. "In fact, why don't you just 
go to her now? I'm sure that's what she wants." 

Mulder reached over and put his hand on her back, trying to 
placate her. "Don't talk silly." 

"Take your hand off of me." 

"What? Dana, I have every right to touch you." 

"Please, take your hand off of me." 

"All right. Fine," he said, pulling his boots back on. 
"I'll leave; it's obvious you don't want me here." 

Dana felt the tears begin to roll down her face. She tried 
to contain her sobs, but they escaped anyway. 

"Shit," Mulder said. "Dana, I'm sorry. Please, don't be 
angry with me. I'm doing the best I can. She's my 
friend." Mulder covered her body with his, wrapping his 
arms around her, and pulling her close to him. "I'm 
sorry," he whispered in her ear. "I didn't mean to make 
you cry." He nuzzled the back of her neck and then rolled 
her onto her back and wiped the tears from her face. 
"Please don't cry." 

"You're going to leave me, aren't you?" 

"What? Of course not." 

"You are," Dana asserted. "Diana wants you and you want 
her." 

"I don't. I want you, not her." 

"Then why do you keep leaving me?" 

"What do you mean?" 

"You only stay here at night half of the time." 

"That's because I have to be on watch," he explained. "You 
know that." 

"Not the whole night. Sometimes, I think you don't want to 
be around me." 

Mulder shook his head. "Nothing could be farther from the 
truth. I care about you." 

"Promise me something then." 

"What?" 

"You'll stay with me at night. Not with her." 

"Dana, you have nothing to worry about." 

"If you say so." 

"I do say so, because it's the truth." Mulder leaned down, 
kissed her, and curled up against her back again. 

~~~ 

Chapter 11 

July 11, 1852 
Sunday 

Krycek rode up to the Mulder wagons around two that 
afternoon. He tied his horse to the back of their lead 
wagon. Dana observed Krycek talk to Jimmy as she walked 
alongside their second wagon with Danny. She saw Jimmy 
nod, hand the reins to Krycek, and run off. Krycek looked 
back at her and smiled, motioning for her to come up with 
him. 

She joined him as he walked with their first wagon. "What 
did you say to him?" she asked. 

"Just told him his sweetheart was asking for him." 

"So, you're willing to drive our team? That's generous." 

Krycek cocked his head and said, "No, I thought I would 
show you how to drive the team...from up there." 

"You're joking." She saw that he wasn't and shook her 
head. "No. My husband would never approve of it." 

"How do you know? Besides, he's not here, is he? He's 
helping his friend instead." 

"I don't think I should." 

"Well, look at it this way. If Diana had learned how to do 
this, she wouldn't have any need for your husband to help 
her, would she?" 

Dana stared at him for a moment and then said, "All right, 
stop them. I'll climb up." 

Krycek halted the team, helped her up, and then followed 
her. "Here, take the reins and the crop." 

Dana was driving the team in no time and she smiled at 
Krycek. "This is fun," she said. 

"Mama," Samantha said from behind her, "Wow." 

"Thanks," she said. 

"Told you that you could do it," Krycek said. 

"I feel like I have so much power." 

"Well, if you'll stop the team, I'll get back to my job and 
let you take over." 

Dana looked at him, worried. "No, I don't think I could do 
this by myself." 

"You'll be fine." 

Dana pulled up on the reins to stop the team and Krycek 
jumped down. He saluted her and headed off on his horse. 

The children leaned against the seat behind her and watched 
her drive the team. When they stopped later, Jimmy 
returned, surprised to find Dana controlling the team 
instead of Krycek. 

"Where did Krycek go?" 

Dana jumped down from the wagon. "He's been gone for some 
time." 

"How long have you been driving the team?" 

"For a while," she said. 

Danny came up then, saying, "You should have seen her. 
She's amazing." 

"Thank you," Dana said, smiling shyly at the compliment. 
"But maybe we shouldn't tell William." 

"Why not?" Danny asked. "I'm sure he'd be proud of you." 

"No, I don't think so. Just don't say anything, please." 

"All right Dana," Jimmy said. "I don't understand it, but 
I'll do it." 

"That goes for you two also. You're not to tell Papa. All 
right?" Dana asked Caleb and Samantha. They both nodded 
and Dana let out her breath. 

July 17, 1852 
Saturday 

They had traveled all day in the Bear Valley. There was 
good grass and in the summits there were many groves of 
fir, creating a beautiful view. They halted next to a 
stream with clear, cold water. While Jimmy and Danny were 
settling the team, Dana looked up to find Mulder driving 
Diana's wagon up to theirs. 

He stopped the team behind their wagons and helped Diana 
down. Diana walked with Mulder, her hand on his arm, to 
Dana. 

"Dana, I've decided to move Diana's wagon with ours." 

"Really," she said, looking pointedly at Diana's hand. 

Mulder looked down as though he had only just noticed Diana 
touching him and removed her hand. "She's willing to help 
cook and I thought it might be easier on you if you had 
extra help." 

"I don't need help." 

Mulder moved towards her and put his hand around her waist, 
leading her away. "Please, just do this for me." 

"I thought you were going to find someone to help her." 

"That's turned out to be harder than I thought it would be. 
Everyone has their own to worry about." 

"This is not fair." 

"I'm sorry. I know this will be hard on you. Please, do 
it for me." He ran the back of his finger along her jaw. 
"Besides, now I'll be closer to you all." 

Dana put her arms around him and he did likewise. "All 
right. Can we walk?" she asked, looking over her shoulder 
to see Diana watching them. 

"Sure, come on." 

As they walked, she said, "Tell me about the girls." 

"Eliza is seven and very quiet. Her sister is Fanny. 
She's a couple of years older and reminds me of Diana when 
she was younger." 

"How so?" 

Mulder smiled and said, "She's a little bossy. Have you 
talked to Skinner today?" 

"No. Why?" 

"He said Sharon will probably need you tonight." 

Dana stopped and headed back to camp. "I need to go to her 
now." 

Mulder ran after her and grabbed her. "Wait. Wait. He 
said tonight, not now." 

"But you don't understand, I promised I would be there." 

"And you will. Just relax, there's time. Besides, Skinner 
will come and get you if she needs you sooner." 

Dana looked back to the camp longingly, but nodded. "Are 
you hungry?" 

"Famished." 

"I'll fix dinner, but then I'm going to go to her wagon." 

Mulder chuckled. "All right. Diana can watch the children 
and we'll both go." Dana began to object but he said, 
"They'll be fine. Besides, Danny or Jimmy will be around 
until I get back." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

When Dana and Mulder arrived at the Skinner wagon, Walter 
was pacing outside. He looked up, surprised to see them. 
"I didn't think you were coming this soon." 

"Dana couldn't wait," Mulder explained. "How's she doing?" 

Skinner shook his head and said, "I've never seen her in 
this much pain. She says she's all right, but I don't 
think she is." 

"I'll go inside," Dana said. She climbed in, leaving the 
men behind. Sharon's daughter Louisa was wiping her 
mother's forehead with a rag. Sharon smiled when she saw 
Dana and reached a hand towards her. She moved to her and 
placed her hand in Sharon's. 

"Dana, thank you for coming." 

"I told you I would be here. How long do you think it will 
be?" 

"Not long. I think before the night is over. Dana, could 
you send for Mrs. Donovan? I think I need her now." 

Dana nodded. "I heard she's the best mid-wife. She'll see 
your baby into this world." She squeezed her hand 
reassuringly. "I'll be right back." 

Dana leaned out of the wagon and called to Mulder. He 
trotted over to her and asked, "What's wrong?" 

"Nothing. She's asking for Mrs. Donovan. Do you know 
where her wagon is?" 

"I think so. She wants her to come now?" 

"Yes, Sharon doesn't think it will be long." 

"All right, I'll go now." He turned and began running in 
search of her. 

"Dana," Walter called. 

"Yes?" 

"She is going to be fine, right?" 

"I'm sure she will be. She seems to be in good spirits. 
Have Mrs. Donovan come in as soon as she gets here," Dana 
said before disappearing back in the wagon. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Shortly before midnight, Mulder and Skinner heard a baby 
cry. They had been listening to Sharon cry out and Mulder 
had to restrain Skinner several times from rushing in. 

"Did you hear that?" Skinner asked. 

Mulder nodded. "Congratulations." 

Skinner began to climb into the wagon when Dana stopped 
him. "You can't go in yet." 

"What do you mean?" Skinner asked. 

"Mrs. Donovan is still cleaning her up." 

"But I want to see her." 

"In a moment." Dana turned to Mulder and handed him a 
bucket. "Can you throw this out and get me some of the 
water that's over the fire?" 

He took it, glad to have a task. He quickly returned and 
handed it back up to her, finding that Skinner had climbed 
back down. 

"Walter, I promise, you'll get to see her and your daughter 
soon," Dana said, taking the bucket from Mulder. 

"A girl?" he asked. 

"Yes and she's beautiful. I'll be back as soon as you can 
come in." Dana backed into the wagon. 

"Well, congratulations," Mulder said. "A girl. Does that 
make you happy?" 

Skinner smiled broadly. "I don't care, as long as Sharon 
and the baby are both all right." 

"Come and sit down while we wait," Mulder said as he sat 
near the fire. 

Skinner joined him and said, "I should have waited until 
the baby was born before I brought her. We could have 
waited another year." 

Mulder shook his head. "You can't second guess yourself. 
Besides, Dana said they were both fine." 

"You're lucky Dana won't have to worry about it on the 
trail." 

"No, but it's possible we won't have anyone to help us 
later. At least here, there are plenty of people who could 
help." 

"I hope we'll be close by." 

"Me too, but you never know." Mulder reached over and 
stirred the embers of the fire. He looked back to Skinner. 
"I've made Dana promise to let me be there though, no 
matter what." 

"Why would you...oh, because of Penny?" 

Mulder nodded. "I can't lose her too." 

"She's strong. She'll be fine." 

"She told me her first went well." 

"Well there you go, that's good news." 

"Walter," they heard Dana call. They both jumped to their 
feet and Skinner was at the wagon in seconds. "You can 
come in now." 

He climbed up before Dana could come down. He disappeared 
and Dana asked Mulder, "Help me down?" He reached up and 
lifted her down. "He's eager." 

Mulder laughed. "Thrilled." 

"Walk me back?" 

"What about Mrs. Donovan?" 

"Sharon said that Victor could walk her back." 

They walked quietly through the camp. Everyone had long 
settled down for the night and when they approached their 
wagon, the fire had died down. Dog came up to them and 
after satisfying his curiosity, lay back down. 

"I'm exhausted," Dana said as she reached up to get a grip 
on the wagon to lift herself. 

He placed his hands on her waist and helped her up. "I 
imagine you are." 

She climbed in ahead of him and crawled onto the blankets. 
She took off her shoes and next to her, Mulder did the 
same. 

"I'm just going to cover up and sleep." 

"Good idea," he agreed, as he settled next to her. 

July 19, 1852 
Monday 

It seemed as if they had entered another world. They 
passed some lava fields, containing cones and craters, 
which fascinated most parties in the company. Shortly 
before noon, they arrived near Soda Springs. 

They discovered that there were cold and hot springs. 
Mulder was awestruck by this country. When they rested at 
noon, he joined his family at the back of their lead wagon. 

"Can you believe the sights?" he asked Dana, who was 
handing out the food and cold coffee to everyone. 

"It's strange here. I've never seen anything like it," she 
said. 

He took the food and coffee from her and said, "I thought 
we'd go see some of the springs. They say you can add 
sugar to the water at Soda Springs and it tastes great. 
There's also one that's supposed to taste a little like 
beer." 

"I don't think we should go to that one," Dana protested. 

Mulder laughed and said, "Okay. There's also one called 
Steamboat Springs. It's supposed to sound like a steamboat 
whistle." 

"Oh, the children would love that." 

"Finish eating and we'll go soon. We're going to move on 
in several hours. I'm going to see if Skinner wants to go 
with his children." 

Dana smiled and said, "We'll be ready." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Mulder returned with the Skinner children. "Walter isn't 
coming?" Dana asked. 

"No, he wanted to spend time with Sharon and the baby. He 
thanked us for giving them this opportunity." 

"So are we ready to go?" 

"I just want to get Diana and the children." 

"Humph." 

Mulder threw out his arms. "Dana, I couldn't not ask 
them." 

"Fine, go get them." She bent to pick up Caleb. "We're 
going to go on. You catch up when you can. Come on 
Victor," she said, "please help me with the children." 

He nodded and began herding the children. "Come on, let's 
go," Victor said. 

"Dana," Mulder called. 

"Samantha, let's go," Dana said, grabbing her hand. 
"Louisa, would you carry this bag. We have a surprise for 
you." 

"Okay Mrs. Mulder," she said as they walked away. 

"We'll be right there," Mulder called. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Victor helped them cross the small stream that seemed to 
surround the hill that they would have to climb to get to 
one of the springs. There were other families who had the 
same idea as they did. The white mound looked to be about 
fifteen to twenty feet high and it took them little time to 
climb it. When they reached the top, Dana looked down and 
saw Mulder helping Diana and her nieces cross the same 
stream. Diana held on to Mulder's arm as they began to 
climb. 

Mulder waved to her but she turned away and said, "Louisa, 
hand me the bag." 

Samantha pulled on Dana's skirts. "Mama, what is it?" 

Dana reached into the bag and pulled out some cups. "In a 
minute," she said. "Victor and Louisa, go fill the cups 
with water. Matthew, you can help. Just be careful of 
your footing." There were other people filling their cups 
and the children went to join them. As the children took 
off, Mulder and Diana came up to them. Dana noticed that 
Diana was no longer clinging to his arm. 

"This is something," he said, "don't you think?" 

Diana answered before Dana could and said, "I agree." 

Dana turned away without answering and said to Samantha, 
who was still clinging to her, pulling on her skirts. "In 
a minute Samantha. You'll see. Be patient." 

The children came back, carefully bringing the cups. 
"Look," Victor said, "there are bubbles." 

Dana smiled at him. "Hold them still, I'm going to add 
some sugar." She poured some in each cup and stirred it. 
"Hand me one of the cups. Let it cool for a bit, then make 
sure all of the children, including Eliza and Fanny get 
some." Victor nodded and the children gathered around him. 

After their cup had cooled, Dana bent down and said, "All 
right Samantha, here you go, take a sip." Dana helped her 
hold the cup and when she took a sip, Samantha squealed. 
Dana laughed. 

"Papa, try it," Samantha said. 

Mulder moved over to her. "Maybe in a little bit. Do you 
like it?" 

Samantha nodded her head. "Can I have some more?" 

"Let Caleb have some first. Caleb," Mulder said. "Come 
here. Dana, hand me the cup." 

When Caleb took a sip, he giggled and stomped his feet. 
Mulder laughed and looked up to find Dana laughing too. 

"Here Mama," Mulder said to Dana, "Your turn." 

Dana shook her head and said, "You first." 

Victor ran up as Mulder was drinking and asked, "Can we get 
more?" 

"Sure," Dana said and the children took off again. 

"Papa, more," Caleb said. 

"Mama's turn first. It's good Dana. Try it," Mulder said. 

Dana took the cup from him and agreed, "Yes, it is good." 

"Diana," he said. "Do you want to try some?" She shook 
her head. "I'll go get some more water then." 

The children ran back to Dana and she again put sugar in 
the water. "This is the last time. Enjoy it." 

"You're so lucky, do you know that?" Diana asked when the 
children had moved away. 

"What?" 

"If I had known that he would have married again, I would 
have come back home. I thought he would never marry again 
after Penny." They both looked over at him as he knelt 
down to get more water. "If I had been there, you never 
would have stood a chance." 

Narrowing her eyes, Dana said, "And you don't stand one 
now." 

Turning away from her, Dana was stopped when Diana said, 
"Maybe." 

Dana turned back and was about to say more when Mulder 
walked up to them. "Here you go," he said smiling at her. 
"Put some more sugar in." She reached into her bag and 
sprinkled some in. 

"I don't want any more," she said as Diana moved over to 
her nieces. "You share it with the children." 

"You sure? It's good." 

"No thanks," she said, looking over at Diana. "Are we 
going to see the other spring too, the steamboat one?" 

He gave the cup to Samantha. "Share with Caleb, Samantha." 
She nodded and he watched them to make sure she did just 
that. "It's not supposed to be far from here. Finish up," 
he called to the children. "We're about ready to go." 

When the children were finished, they came back to Dana to 
give her the cups. "Did you enjoy that?" She asked them. 

"Yes," they yelled. 

"Okay, we're ready to move on," she said. 

Mulder bent down and lifted Caleb to his shoulders. 
"Papa," Samantha said. "I want up too." 

"Let's see if Victor will carry you. Would that be all 
right?" 

She nodded and he called Victor over to them. "Victor, 
could you carry Samantha?" 

"Sure," he said, bending down to tickle her, causing 
Samantha to squeal with delight. 

"Fox," Diana said. "I can carry her." 

"No," Samantha said, "I want Victor." 

"Sorry Mrs. Tipton. Matthew," Victor called, "lift 
Samantha onto my back." When she was settled, they took 
off down the hill. Dana moved to follow, but Mulder held 
her back, instead, letting all of the children and Diana 
move ahead of them. 

When they didn't follow, Diana turned and asked, "Are you 
coming?" 

Mulder nodded. "We'll be there in a minute." When she 
turned away, he said to Dana, "Are you mad at me?" 

"I'm not mad." 

"Could have fooled me," he said. 

"Move Papa," Caleb commanded. 

"Soon, Caleb," he said, swinging Caleb's feet, attempting 
to distract him. 

"I'm not mad," she said, smiling and reaching up to pat 
Caleb's leg. She looked back at Mulder. "It just seems 
that when we're not traveling, she's always there. We 
don't have any time alone." 

"I can't be rude to her." 

"I'm not asking you to, but we need time for our family." 

"Come on, let's head on down," he said, putting his hand on 
her shoulder. 

When they reached the bottom, the rest were waiting on the 
other side of the stream. "Here, hold on to my hand," he 
said as they crossed. When they reached the other side, he 
said, "Let's go." 

The children rushed ahead of the adults, but Diana chose to 
stay with Mulder and Dana, much to Dana's dismay. Dana 
walked on Mulder's right side and Diana moved to walk on 
his left. 

Diana reached up and rubbed Caleb's leg. 

"Don't," Caleb said, pushing her hand away and frowning. 

"Caleb, you're so tall," Diana said, trying to win him 
over. 

Caleb shook his head. "Papa's tall." 

"Well I guess you're right," she said, smiling at Mulder. 
"He is tall." 

"Humph," Mulder said. 

"Caleb, do you remember your real Papa?" 

"Papa," Caleb said, patting Mulder's head. 

Dana moved towards her, but Mulder stopped her. He said, 
"Diana, don't confuse him." 

"I was just wondering if he could remember his real 
father." 

"What does that matter?" Mulder asked. 

"Dana, you mean you don't care if he remembers his real 
father or not?" 

"I don't see that it's any business of yours," Dana said, 
holding her arms up towards her son. "William, hand me 
Caleb please." 

"No, he's fine. You're okay up there, aren't you buddy?" 

"Yeah," Caleb agreed. 

Dana lowered her arms and said, "Fine." 

They walked on in silence and Mulder put his hand on Dana's 
waist. They observed that the springs were of varying 
color, some white, some red and some even black. 

"We're here." Mulder lifted Caleb off of his shoulders, 
brought him down, and settled him on his hip. "Listen 
Caleb." 

Mulder moved toward the children and Caleb said, "What's 
that?" 

"Hear that sound?" Mulder asked. He pointed to the 
bubbling water where the sound was coming from. "That's 
what a steamboat whistle sounds like." 

"What's that?" he asked. 

"Remember when we rode the big boat on that big river?" 
Caleb nodded. "It sounds like those boats, remember?" 
Caleb shook his head and Mulder laughed. "That's okay. 
Just listen." After a moment, Mulder said, "You want to go 
with the other kids?" Caleb nodded and Mulder set him 
down. "Matthew," he called, "Watch Caleb." When Mulder 
was satisfied that he was in good hands, he turned back to 
the women. 

Dana looked at him angrily and then began to walk by him 
towards her children, but Mulder grabbed her arm. "Let me 
go," she said. 

"Wait." 

"No," Dana said. "That was cruel. I don't care if she is 
your friend." 

Diana stepped closer and said, "Dana, I'm sorry. I didn't 
mean anything. I'm sorry if I upset you or Caleb." 

"I've told you I think of him as my son," Mulder said, 
still holding on to Dana, holding her eyes with a steady 
look. 

"I just wondered if my nieces could ever begin thinking of 
me as their mother, since it seems I'm going to raise 
them," Diana explained. 

"He's just a little boy," Dana said to Diana. "He couldn't 
possibly understand that reasoning, not that I believe it." 
She looked back at Mulder and said, "Please let go of me." 

Mulder released her and she moved to the children. "I'm 
sorry Fox," Diana said. 

"You shouldn't have said anything Diana." 

"Thinking back, I see you're right." 

"You can't make friends with her like that." 

"I don't think there is even a possibility we will be 
friends." 

"Maybe," Mulder said. "I just wished..." 

Diana grabbed his hand, squeezing it. "I know." 

Mulder pulled his hand away and said, "I need to go to the 
children." 

"Fox, I rely on you. This won't affect our friendship will 
it?" 

He hesitated, but then said, "No, I'll still be there for 
you." 

Diana watched Mulder join his family and moved to follow, 
looking for her nieces. 

~~~ 

Chapter 12 

July 22, 1849 
Sunday 

"Where are you going?" Mulder asked, stretching and 
scratching his side as he came around the side of the wagon 
early that morning. 

Dana bent down to straighten Samantha's dress. "The 
Reverend is holding a service this morning down by the 
river. He thinks it's shameful that we haven't had a 
service for a couple of weeks. Caleb, stand still," she 
said as she made sure he was presentable. "And I agree 
with him. 

"So, you were just going to sneak away and not tell me?" 

"You were sleeping." 

"You weren't expecting me to come?" 

Dana looked up hopefully. "You'll come?" 

Mulder shook his head. "Nope." 

Dana shook her head. "All right then, if you're sure, I'm 
going to go on." She bent down, lifted Caleb into her 
arms, and then reached down for Samantha's hand. 

"Who else is going?" Mulder asked. 

"What do you mean?" 

"Did you ask Diana to go?" he asked as he pulled his 
suspenders over his shoulders. 

"Everyone is invited to attend." 

"Yes, but is she going?" 

"I have no idea." 

"Well, I think it would be nice if you go together." 

Dana shook her head, "I don't think so." 

Mulder tisked and said, "That's not being a good 
Christian." 

"You're one to talk. You take her if you're so interested 
in seeing her go." 

"Dana, I just meant that it would be..." 

"I have to go," she said, turning and stalking off. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Dana stood next to Walter Skinner and his family. Sharon 
was resting in their wagon, still recovering from the birth 
of their child. Walter had confided that they were worried 
because the baby seemed so weak. 

The service had already started when Dana noticed movement 
to her side. She was surprised to see Mulder, Diana, and 
her nieces join the service. She observed that others had 
noticed Mulder with Diana and they gave Dana curious looks. 
She felt her face flame with embarrassment. 

Near the close of the service, Dana noted that while others 
were singing, Mulder was not. He seemed to be very 
uncomfortable and when he looked up and caught her eye, she 
looked back down, smoothing Samantha's hair as she sang. 
Samantha looked up at her and Dana smiled. Samantha smiled 
back and leaned against the front of Dana's legs. 

When the service was over, Dana turned to Skinner, laying 
her hand on his arm. "Walter, I thought I could come to 
your camp and cook for your family and mine today. Since 
we have antelope meat from what the men killed yesterday, I 
thought we could have a good meal." 

Skinner patted her hand and said, "Thank you. We'd 
appreciate that." 

"I'll be over before noon." 

Dana looked over at Mulder, who was following Diana to the 
Reverend. Mulder bent down to say something to Diana, who 
looked in her direction. She nodded and Mulder moved 
towards Dana. 

She quickly picked Caleb up and grabbed Samantha's hand. 
"Come on Samantha." She pulled the little girl away from 
the people. "Excuse me," Dana said, trying desperately to 
go in the opposite direction of Mulder. 

"Dana," she heard him calling behind her, but she continued 
moving forward, ignoring him. "Dana stop." 

She ran into Mr. Zimmerman, an elderly gentleman who still 
had a slight German accent. "I'm sorry," she said after 
almost knocking him down. 

Mr. Zimmerman righted himself. "That's all right. In a 
hurry are you?" he asked, looking in Mulder's direction. 

"Yes," she said, "I'm sorry sir, but I need to go." 

Dana took off again, but Samantha pulled on her, saying 
"Papa." Dana let go of her hand and looked back, seeing 
her run to Mulder. Knowing that she was safe, she hurried 
her pace again. 

It wasn't long before Mulder caught up with her, Samantha 
in his arms. He put his hand on her shoulder. She 
shrugged it off and stopped to face him. "Don't touch me," 
she said. She raised her hand to stop him moving closer. 
"Just...don't. I can't talk to you right now. It's Sunday 
and I don't like the thoughts that are running through my 
head." 

"She talked me into going." 

"That's great. She talked you into going. Yet when I 
asked you, you refused to go. Do you have any idea how 
embarrassing that was for me?" 

"Why would it be?" 

"Didn't you notice how people were looking at us?" 

"Honestly no. Why would they be?" 

"Because, they asked me if you were coming and I told them 
no, my husband wouldn't come. Yet, you show up minutes 
later, at the side of an old flame. Or maybe she isn't so 
old." 

"What the hell does that mean?" 

"You know what? I don't want to talk to you anymore. I 
have to prepare a meal at the Skinner's camp. I told 
Walter I would help out." 

"All right, I'll watch the children until it's time to 
eat." 

She handed Caleb to him and said, "You do that. And if you 
decide not to come, please make sure the children at least 
get to the camp." 

"I'll be there," he said and Dana turned away. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Victor was sent to get Mulder, the children, and the boys 
when Dana had the meal prepared. She was helping Walter 
get Sharon out of the wagon and onto a chair when Mulder 
showed up with the children. She looked behind him and saw 
Diana and her nieces following, with Jimmy and Danny 
bringing up the rear. 

"Damn it," Dana said. 

"Dana, it's the Sabbath," Sharon said. 

She looked up, ashamed. "I'm sorry." Sighing, she said, 
"I knew he couldn't leave that woman behind." 

"Dana, what has happened?" 

"Nothing. Don't worry about it." Dana bent over to tuck 
the blanket around Sharon. "You need to focus on your 
health. I hope you like what I fixed," she said, rising. 

Sharon stopped her from moving away; watching Mulder help 
Diana spread the blanket before helping her sit down. 
Skinner was lifting Caleb up in the air, causing him to 
bubble with laughter. Samantha was saying, "My turn Uncle 
Walter, my turn." 

"Something has happened," Sharon said. 

"I don't want to talk about it." 

"Walter said that Fox had moved her wagon with yours." 
Dana looked down and nodded. "Fox," Sharon said, looking 
over Dana's shoulder, who startled. She didn't realize 
that he had come up behind her. 

"Sharon, how are you feeling?" Mulder asked. Dana began 
to move away when she felt his hand at her waist. 

"I'm doing better, thank you." 

Mulder felt Dana begin to move again and tightened his grip 
on her waist, stilling her. "How is the baby? Have you 
decided on a name?" 

"No, not yet. Walter wants to name her after his 
grandmother Priscilla." 

"That's a nice name." 

"I suppose," she said. "What do you think of it Dana?" 

"I like it. Excuse me," she said, pulling out of his arms, 
"I have to finish supper." 

Dana moved to the fire, removing the meat. "Dana," she 
heard from behind her. She straightened up and swung 
around, feeling her temper rise. "Could I help?" Diana 
asked sweetly, although Dana knew she wasn't sincere. 

"No thank you, I can manage." 

"Don't be silly," she said, making a move towards the food. 
"Let me help." 

Dana stepped in between Diana and the fire. "I don't need 
your help." 

Diana looked over to Mulder and shrugged, moving away. 
When she was lifting the bread off, she heard Mulder say 
from behind, "Why did you have to do that? She just wanted 
to help." 

"I don't need her help, nor do I want it." 

He put his hand on her arm and said, "Dana, you're being 
silly." 

She wretched her arm away from him and hissed, "I am not 
being silly and I don't need either one of you to say I 
am." 

"This is getting ridiculous. You're acting like a child." 

"Do you think you can insult me any more?" she said as 
tears began to form in her eyes. She turned to Skinner and 
said, "I'm sorry Walter." Skinner looked up at Mulder, 
accusingly when he saw the tears begin to fall from her 
face. "I'm not hungry anymore. Could you make sure 
everyone is fed?" 

Skinner nodded and Dana took off, away from the camp, 
letting the tears fall freely. When Mulder made a move to 
follow her, Skinner stepped in front of him, halting his 
steps. "Get out of my way," Mulder said. 

"No, I think you've done enough damage." 

"Get out of my way." 

"I'm not letting you go upset her further." 

"She's my wife." 

"Yes, but she's also my friend and I feel responsible for 
her." Skinner leaned in and said, "Give her a break. She 
needs some time." 

Mulder looked at Dana's retreating back and sighed. "Watch 
my children, I need to take a walk," he said, heading in 
the opposite direction of Dana. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Dana retreated to the river and sat along the shore. She 
threw rocks in, enjoying hearing the plunking sound. She 
didn't understand why Mulder kept hurting her. She 
couldn't think of anything she had done to deserve it. 

"Penny for your thoughts," she heard a familiar voice say. 

Dana smiled and looked up, squinting from the sun in her 
eyes. "Alex," she said, wiping the tears from her face. 

He immediately looked concerned. "What's wrong?" 

"Nothing." 

"It doesn't look like nothing." He sat down beside her. 
"You can talk to me, I'm a good listener." 

Dana shook her head. "I know you mean well, but I don't 
think I should. It's private." 

"Let me guess. This has something to do with your husband 
and Diana Tipton." 

"How did you know?" she asked. 

Alex looked away, throwing a rock in the river. "There has 
been some talk in the company." 

"What are people saying?" 

He shook his head. "You don't want to know." Alex looked 
into her eyes. "For what it's worth, I think your husband 
is a fool Dana." 

"He doesn't see that he's doing anything wrong." She 
pulled her legs up and rested her chin on her knees. "He 
says he's being her friend." 

"Do you think they're..." 

"No," she said quickly. "I don't, really I don't." 

Alex nodded, "Okay." 

"But..." 

"But?" 

"I think she wishes that she was his wife. He was her beau 
when they were young." 

"Hmm." Krycek threw another rock and then looked back 
towards her. "Can I ask a personal question?" 

"I don't know." 

"Do you love him?" 

Before answering, Dana paused. "You know, we married very 
quickly. I mean, really, it was more like an arranged 
marriage." 

"So, not a love match?" Dana shook her head. "I'm not so 
sure that's unusual these days." 

"I think I feel more for him than he feels for me." 

"I don't know. He seems to be jealous when he sees me 
around you." 

"I'm not sure that's jealousy. I think it's more that he's 
possessive." Dana stood and said, "Thank you for talking 
with me. I feel a little better, but I think I need some 
time to myself. Do you mind?" 

Krycek shook his head and stood as well. "Anytime you need 
to talk, just let me know." She turned from him and he 
grabbed her hand. "Really, I mean it. I want to be a 
friend to you." She nodded and he released her hand. He 
watched her walk along the river before turning away. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

When Dana returned to their wagon, it was late. She had 
stayed out, watching the sun set and finally watching the 
stars shine brightly in the sky until the moon rose in the 
sky. The company had settled down some time ago. She was 
thankful that Mulder hadn't pursued her, but she was uneasy 
about having to talk with him again. 

Dana never knew it, but Mulder sent Danny to look for and 
follow her until she returned. From the shadows, Danny saw 
her return safely to their camp and then turned back to go 
on watch. 

Bending down, Dana called Dog to her. He crawled out from 
under the wagon, wagging his tail. She petted him for a 
moment, then said, "Good boy." She began to climb into the 
wagon and Dog took his position of guard under the wagon 
again. 

The moonlight provided enough for her to see the children 
sleeping soundly. Mulder slept on his side, turned away 
from her. She quietly crawled to her space and pulled her 
gown out. She stripped quickly and donned it. Slipping 
under the covers, she held her breath. When Mulder didn't 
make a move to talk to her, she let out a sigh. 

She had almost fallen asleep when she heard him turn over. 
"Are you ready to talk yet?" he asked as he leaned on an 
elbow, towering over her. His face was in shadow, 
preventing her from seeing him. "I let you have some time 
like you wanted. I hope you appreciate how hard that was 
for me." She began to sob and he said, "Oh Dana, why do I 
seem to make you cry lately?" He ran his hand gently over 
her face, wiping the tears away. "What can I do to fix 
this?" 

"You know." 

"What? Tell me." 

Instead of answering him, she pulled him down for a kiss. 
He responded in kind and was relieved when he felt her 
passion increase. "Just don't leave me," she said. 

"What? Why would I do that?" 

Again, she didn't answer him but instead, pushed him on his 
back. She crawled onto him, not seeming to be able to get 
enough contact with him. She pulled his shirt open and 
kissed him on his neck. He threw his head back so that she 
could have more contact and threaded his hand in her hair. 
She ran her hands over his chest and kissed him as she 
moved down. She pulled his britches apart and down, 
freeing him. Lifting her gown up over her hips, she braced 
her legs on either side of him and felt him ready for her. 
She eased onto him and released her breath when she was 
settled over him. 

He reached up and pulled her down for a long kiss. When he 
released her, he tried to pull her gown over her head, but 
she stopped him, shaking her head, saying, "The children." 
Instead, he gripped her waist and she began to move in a 
steady pace. He felt his breath quicken and ran his hands 
under her gown, cupping her breasts. He squeezed them 
briefly, then ran his hands over her nipples, feeling them 
rise. 

It excited him to make love to Dana. Penny had never let 
him touch her as Dana did and they had never made love 
except with him above her. It was exciting doing new 
things with her. 

She quickened their pace, but stilled. She whispered, "I 
love you," before she bent down and kissed him again. She 
began the pace she set again and she soon felt him peak. 
She lay down on top of him until she felt him get his 
breath, not caring to feel the same as he did this time. 
She moved beside him and threw her leg over his. He 
reached down and ran his hand along her leg. He kissed her 
temple and pulled her closer. They soon fell into a deep 
sleep. 

July 29, 1852 
Thursday 

Dana woke in the morning, thankful that Mulder had already 
left. She rose, feeling her stomach turn and rushed 
outside the wagon, losing the little contents that were in 
her stomach. This was becoming a daily occurrence, 
although she had thrown up at other times of the day. So 
far, she had been able to hide it from Mulder, but she 
feared he might soon find out that she was expecting a 
baby. 

She didn't want him to know yet due to the uncertainty of 
the trail and of their marriage. Lately, they had only 
briefly spoken to each other since Mulder had to be 
concerned with making sure that Diana's wagon was prepared 
to leave each day. He left his own wagons to be tended by 
his cousins. 

Dana was disappointed that Mulder hadn't been able to find 
someone to drive Diana's team at Fort Hall. But then 
again, the fort had been a disappointment since it had been 
abandoned by the government and was now run by some 
traders. They quickly left it soon after arriving. Before 
long, they saw the Snake River for the first time. 

Climbing back into the wagon, she woke the children and 
dressed them and herself. She didn't feel like eating and 
Jimmy gave her a curious look when she again turned her 
nose up at his offering. 

"Dana, you need to eat." 

"No, I'm okay. Maybe I'll eat something later." 

Jimmy turned from her, shaking his head. She pulled Caleb 
into her lap as he ate and Samantha ate quietly at her 
side. Dog came up to her and tried to get closer to the 
food, but she pushed him away. "Go lie down Dog." 

Mulder came up behind her and dropped down. "Have you 
eaten?" 

"Yes," she said. Jimmy looked sharply at her, but remained 
silent. 

"Jimmy," he said, running his hand over Caleb's head, 
"please bring me some coffee and food." 

Jimmy handed it to him and then said, "I have to yoke up 
the oxen. I'm going to get Danny now. Do you need me for 
anything else?" 

Mulder shook his head, chewing the bread. "Go ahead. I 
already have Diana's wagon ready to go." 

"When do you think we'll reach the next fort?" Dana asked. 

"Less than a month, I expect." 

"I've written my sister a letter, could you send it when we 
get there?" 

Mulder smiled and said, "Of course. Do you want to send 
one to your brother as well?" 

Dana shook her head. "I don't know if it will do any good. 
Besides, I said everything I wanted to say in the other 
letter." 

Mulder put his hand out to her and she laid hers in his. 
He squeezed it and said, "I still think that over time, 
he'll realize you did the best thing for you. At least I 
hope it was?" 

Squeezing his hand back, she said, "It was the right 
decision...for me and for Caleb." 

"Good." He released her hand and went back to eating. 
They were enjoying the quiet when Skinner came into camp. 

"Dana, the children wanted me to come and ask if Samantha 
and Caleb could ride with us this morning." 

Samantha turned to her parents and said, "Please, I want to 
go." Caleb echoed her. 

"I don't know," she said. 

"Let them go. Caleb and Samantha love being with them." 
Mulder turned back to Skinner. "You're keeping them in the 
wagon right?" 

"Yes. We thought they might like the change." 

"Come on Dana, they'll be fine," Mulder said. 

"You promise they'll stay in the wagon?" Dana asked. 
Skinner nodded. "All right." 

"Can we go with Uncle Walter now?" Samantha asked. 

"Are you finished?" Dana asked. Both of the children 
nodded. "Okay, you can take them with you Walter. You 
mind them while you're riding," she told the children. 

"We will," Samantha answered for both her and Caleb. 

Skinner bent down and picked up Caleb and Samantha. He 
carried them like sacks of flour, causing them to giggle at 
being held so awkwardly. 

"They just ate," Dana said. "Don't let them get sick." 

"They'll be fine Dana," Skinner said over his shoulder and 
disappeared with them around a wagon. 

"The girls will make sure they stay in the wagon," Mulder 
assured her as he moved next to her. He turned to face 
her. 

"I hope you're right." 

"Since the children are going to be with the Skinners, what 
do you say we take a ride away from everyone?" 

"Why?" 

"Remember? When we were on my horse together?" Mulder 
looked around to make sure no one was looking before he ran 
his hand up her leg, under her dress. 

"Huh uh." Dana grabbed his hand through her dress to stop 
him. 

"Oh come on. This would be the perfect time." 

"No. Besides, you have to drive Diana's team, remember?" 

Mulder pulled his hand back and said, "Damn." He looked 
back to Diana's wagon, frowning. It gave Dana a little 
thrill that he was upset about having to drive Diana today. 
He sighed and said, "Maybe we can hire some man at Fort 
Boise to drive the team." 

Dana smiled behind him. "Do you think that's possible? 
You didn't have any luck at Fort Hall." 

"Maybe. At least there shouldn't be men heading for 
California. They should have already turned off by then." 
He turned back to her. "That would make you happy if I 
found someone, wouldn't it?" 

"That you wouldn't be spending so much time with her? Of 
course." 

Mulder grinned, "You have nothing to be jealous about." 

Dana stood up, hands on her hips. "I am not jealous." 

Mulder grinned even bigger. "Liar." 

She turned from him and said, "I still have a few things to 
get packed." 

"All right," he said, standing. "I'll drop it. I'm going 
to help the boys finish up. Kiss?" 

"Kiss what?" she asked coyly as she turned back to him. 

"Me," he said, bending down. He took hold of her face and 
brought her lips closer to his. "Kiss?" he asked again. 
She smiled and leaned up to him, closing the distance. 
When they broke free, he left her to finish her tasks. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Mulder led them with Diana's wagon and Jimmy followed next 
with Danny right behind him. Dana, walking with Danny, was 
able to observe Mulder as he walked the team. Diana walked 
closely to Mulder, leaning in to say something every now 
and then. At around ten that morning, Dana was interrupted 
in her thoughts. 

"Mrs. Mulder," Jacob Walker called, running towards her. 
"Mrs. Mulder." Dana turned around, walking back towards 
him. He halted when he reached her and said, "My mother 
sent me to tell you. There was word that a child fell out 
of the Skinner wagon and was run over by it. My mother 
thought she saw Mr. Skinner putting your children--" 

She grabbed him to stop him from continuing and said, "Go 
tell my husband." She then took off running in the 
direction Jacob had come from. She passed wagons, checking 
each to see if it was Skinner's. She finally began 
noticing wagons had stopped and people were milling behind 
one. "Let me through," she said, pushing. "Please." 

When she broke through, she saw Sharon on the ground 
clutching Francis, her youngest boy, to her. She was 
wailing and rocking him. Blood ran down his face and his 
neck was at an odd angle. Victor stood behind them crying. 
She saw Louisa, standing with Matthew. Dana went up to 
her. "Louisa, where are Samantha and Caleb?" Louisa stood 
there, unable to answer. "Louisa," she said, grabbing and 
shaking her. "Where are my children?" 

"With Margaret in the wagon," she said at last. 

Dana pushed back through the crowd, trying to reach the 
Skinner wagon. When she finally broke free, she saw 
Margaret, Samantha, and Caleb looking out the back. She 
felt Mulder come up behind her. "Oh, thank God," he said. 
"Who is hurt?" He pulled Caleb out and handed him to her. 
"Come here Samantha." 

"Francis," she said, kissing Caleb and then Samantha, who 
was now in Mulder's arms. "It isn't good." 

"Is he alive?" he asked, rocking Samantha. 

Dana shook her head. "I don't think so. Has someone gone 
to get Skinner?" 

Thomas Watkins answered. "I sent my boy to get him. He's 
up front, but he should be getting here..." 

"Oh God," they heard Skinner cry. 

Dana handed Caleb to Mulder. "I'm going to them. Take the 
children to the boys and then come back. I think we should 
both be here for them." 

"All right," he said. 

Dana pushed back through the gathering of people. Some of 
the men began dispersing the crowd, making it easier to 
reach the Skinner family. 

Skinner was on the ground now with Sharon, holding her as 
she held their lifeless son. "Walter," Dana said. 

He looked up, his eyes filled. "Dana. My boy." 

Nodding, she bent down. "Is he breathing?" Skinner shook 
his head. "I think we should get him to your wagon then. 
You can send the children to ours." 

"I'm sorry," Victor said. 

Skinner looked up at his eldest son. "It wasn't your 
fault. It was an accident." 

"No. I was in charge. You said so. It was my 
responsibility to make sure everyone was safe." 

Skinner stood up, going to his son. "Listen to me son. 
It's not your fault." He pulled Victor to him as he began 
to cry. He looked over and saw Margaret, Matthew and 
Louisa, crying. He opened his arms and the other children 
ran to him, Skinner engulfing them all. 

"Sharon," Dana said. "Let's take Francis to your wagon, 
all right?" Sharon shook her head and clutched him 
tighter. With the noise dying down, they were able to hear 
a child begin to cry. "Sharon, we have to get Francis to 
your wagon and you need to take care of Priscilla. Do you 
hear her crying?" 

"What?" she asked, confused. 

"Priscilla needs you too. Walter will take care of 
Francis. You go to Priscilla." 

"I can't leave my boy, Dana." 

"I know, but Priscilla needs you now." 

Sharon looked down and kissed Francis on his forehead. 
"All right. You promise you'll make sure Walter brings him 
to me?" 

"I promise." 

Sharon nodded and laid Francis down gently. As she headed 
for the wagon, Mulder returned. He bent down by Dana. "Is 
he dead?" 

Dana nodded. "I think we need to take their children back 
to our wagon." 

"You go. I'll help Walter. He's going to need it." 

"All right, I'll take them back." Dana walked over to 
Skinner and his children. 

"Walter," Dana said. Skinner looked up. "William will 
help you. I sent Sharon back to your wagon to take care of 
Priscilla. I think the children should come back with me 
to our wagon. Would that be all right?" 

"I'm staying," Victor said. 

Skinner stared at him for a moment and then said, "You can 
stay. Children, go back with Dana. I'll come for you in a 
little while." They began to protest, but he said, 
"Please, just go. I'll come for you, I promise." 

Dana reached up and gripped his hand. "Walter, I'm sorry." 

Skinner nodded. "Just take care of my children." 

"I will. Come on, let's go," Dana said, gathering the 
Skinner children and heading them in the direction of her 
wagon. Before leaving, Dana looked back to see Skinner and 
Mulder slowly approaching Francis's body. 

~~~ 

Chapter 13 

July 30, 1852 
Friday 

They had buried Francis at the head of wagons in the 
afternoon on Thursday. In the morning, the wagons slowly 
rolled over the grave and compacted the ground, hopefully 
preventing animals from destroying the grave. 

Sharon was still distraught, but Priscilla required her 
attention and Sharon's maternal instinct forced her to turn 
to her youngest child for comfort. The Skinner children 
were now back with their parents and Skinner stayed close 
to his wagons. 

The company stopped for the night at a cold, clear river. 
Dana decided to walk down to it before she had to cook. 
Mulder hadn't returned, so she left the children with Jimmy 
and Catherine Tanner, who Jimmy had invited for supper. 

When she reached the river, she realized why Mulder hadn't 
returned. He was with several other men who were fishing 
in the river. It seemed that they were doing well, but 
Dana didn't want to be noticed, so she walked further down 
the river. The water ran swiftly over the boulders, 
causing a loud roar. She soon lost track of time, enjoying 
the scenery. As she walked back, she found that the men 
had already left and she quickly walked back to camp. When 
she arrived, she found Jimmy cooking over the fire and 
Catherine playing with Caleb and Samantha. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was so late," Dana said. 
Jimmy looked up and smiled. "Did William bring any fish to 
you?" 

"Yes," Jimmy said, "but he said he was going to eat with 
Diana. I'm sorry Dana." 

She shook her head and inhaled deeply. "The food smells 
great." 

Catherine walked up to them, Samantha and Caleb in tow. "I 
love your children, Mrs. Mulder." 

"Thank you. I think we should go ahead and eat, what do 
you say?" 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Mulder was sitting alone with Diana, her nieces already in 
bed, when he heard from behind, "Dana says that if you 
don't come back now, then she would like you to stay with 
us tonight." 

Mulder whipped around to find Danny standing behind him. 

"I'll come in a little bit." 

"She said to tell you that she doesn't want you waking the 
children, so if you don't come now, you have to stay with 
us." 

"Go back and tell her that I will come back when I'm 
finished here." 

Danny leaned in and whispered to him, "I don't think you 
really want me to tell her that. She's angry right now." 

Mulder exhaled and said, "All right, I'll come." Danny 
hurried back in the direction he had come. "Diana, I think 
I better go now." 

"Thanks for being with me tonight. I appreciate the 
company." Mulder moved to go, but Diana grabbed his hand, 
stopping him. "I really mean that Fox. If it wasn't for 
you, I think I would go crazy." She began to cry. "I 
don't want to be like my sister." 

"You won't. You're strong." Mulder lifted his hands to 
cup her face, forcing her to look at him. "But, if you 
ever feel that way, even a little, I want you to come to 
me. I am still your friend. I will always be there for 
you." 

"Thank you Fox." 

"I better go," he said. Diana nodded and he waited until 
she had climbed into her tent before turning to go. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

When Mulder returned to his wagon, Danny and Jimmy had 
already retired to their tent. He was about to climb into 
the wagon when he heard someone being sick on the other 
side of the wagon. When he looked, he saw Dana on her 
knees, throwing up into a bucket. He came up and bent down 
next to her, putting his hand on her back. "You're sick?" 

Dana looked up momentarily. "What do you think?" she asked 
before she leaned into the bucket again. 

She had already retired for bed and had taken her hair 
down, so Mulder pulled it back to keep it out of her way. 
"When did you start feeling sick?" he asked. She shook her 
head, not answering him. When she leaned back, he asked, 
"Finished?" She nodded and he took the bucket from her, 
heading off to rinse it out. 

When he returned, she had disappeared. He looked in the 
wagon and found her lying down. He climbed in, being 
careful not to disturb the children. Before coming in, he 
had soaked a rag and now brought it to her forehead. She 
pushed his hand away, "I don't need it." 

He placed the rag back on her forehead, "This will make you 
feel better. When did you start feeling sick?" When she 
didn't say anything, he said, "Answer me. When did you 
begin to feel sick?" 

"I feel better, really." 

"Are you sure?" he asked. 

"Yes, I just want to go to sleep." 

"Danny said you were mad." 

She glanced over at him before looking away. "He did?" 

"Yes. Is it because I couldn't find anyone for Diana's 
wagon or because I was eating with her? I'm sorry if it 
was because of that, but I didn't feel like I could refuse 
her. She was really lonely tonight and needed someone to 
talk to." 

"I'm all right now." 

Mulder looked at her, doubt clearly written on his face. 
"You sure?" 

She shrugged. "Did you look for someone again?" 

"I did, but I couldn't find anyone suitable. I need to 
find someone who I can trust." 

"Can't you teach her how to drive her own team?" 

"She's a woman." 

"So? I know..." she stopped herself. "You wouldn't teach 
me?" 

"No." 

"Why not?" 

"Because my wife is not going to do a man's job. Now let's 
go to sleep." 

"But..." 

"Sleep." Dana turned on her side, facing away from Mulder. 
She had almost told him that she could drive the team. She 
wondered what he would say if she volunteered to drive 
Diana's team. Of course, that was the last thing she 
wanted or would do. 

August 5, 1852 
Thursday 

The company was laying over for the day and Mulder was gone 
with a hunting party. They weren't expected to return 
until late in the day or early the next day, so Dana 
decided to take advantage of the situation and find Krycek. 
She didn't think Mulder would have gone if Krycek was in 
the party. 

Earlier, she dropped off the children with the Skinners. 
When they asked where she was going, she lied and said that 
she just wanted a little time alone. 

She found Krycek sitting on a hill, looking down at the 
camp. "Mr. Krycek, I've been looking for you." 

"You've found me," he said, looking up at her. "What can I 
do for you Dana? And remember, it's Alex." 

She nodded and sat down beside him. "I was wondering if 
you could teach me to ride a horse." 

"Really?" he asked. "I thought you didn't like them." 

"I don't, but I think I should learn how to ride anyway." 

"And you want me to teach you? Why not your husband?" 

"I want to surprise him. I would have asked Walter, but I 
didn't want him to have to be away from Sharon." 

He stood and brushed off his pants. "All right, when do 
you want to do it?" 

"Now." 

"Now?" he asked, surprised. 

Dana nodded. "My husband is away on the hunting party and 
we might not get another chance." 

"I'll have to get another horse. Can you wait here?" 

"Yes." 

"All right, but I don't think we should ride where there 
are other people. It might start some talk." 

"Where should we meet?" 

"How about down by the creek? We'll find someplace then." 

"All right, I'll see you there," she said. She watched him 
as he trotted down the hill and wondered if she was really 
doing the right thing. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Krycek approached her, riding one horse and holding the 
reins of another. Dana could feel her heart rate increase 
as he got closer. Maybe she was being too hasty, she 
thought. Maybe she really didn't need to learn how to ride 
a horse. 

"You ready?" Krycek asked, jumping down and tying both 
horses to the branches of a bush. 

"I suppose." 

"Well then, come over here. I'll lift you up," he said, 
bending down and cupping his hands. She put her foot in 
them and he lifted her. When she settled with both legs 
over one side, he said, "You can't ride like that. You'll 
have to swing your other leg over or you'll fall off." 

Dana looked at him horrified. "I can't do that. It isn't 
decent." 

"Well, which do you think is worse, falling off or letting 
a little of your leg show?" 

"Turn around," she ordered him. Krycek laughed, but did as 
she said. When she had her leg over, she tried to pull her 
dress down over her legs as much as possible, but her dress 
still rode up a little. "Okay, I'm ready." 

Krycek looked back up at her. "This is Bessie. She's a 
gentle horse, so all you pretty much have to do is hold on 
and she'll take care of the rest. Here, take the reins." 

She gripped the reins and held onto the saddle as Krycek 
climbed onto his horse. "Which way?" he asked. 

Dana looked both ways. "How about further down the creek, 
away from everyone?" 

"Okay, I'll lead. Just hold on." 

After they had been riding for a few minutes, Dana felt 
herself become more confident. "How am I doing?" 

"You're doing fine," he said, riding next to her just in 
case she would need his help. "Okay, now for some lessons. 
When you want to stop, just pull back on the reins, but not 
too hard. She'll know what you want. Want to try it?" 

Dana shook her head. "I'm doing just fine." 

"You'll have to stop sometime. Come on, try it." 

Dana shrugged her shoulders and pulled back on the reins, 
making Bessie stop. The horse shuffled her feet a little, 
causing Dana to get nervous. 

"That was good. She's just ready to go again. Now, how 
you turn her is to pull on the right rein if you want her 
to go right and on the left rein if you want her to go 
left. Think you have that?" Dana nodded. "Okay. Let's 
head toward that meadow. You lead." 

"Easy for you to say," she said, but did as he asked. Dana 
found Bessie easily obeying her as they worked their way to 
the meadow. 

"We'll just walk up and down here for a bit, until you feel 
comfortable." 

After about twenty minutes of riding, they stopped and 
Krycek said, "How about going a little faster." 

"No, we're doing okay like this." 

"Come on, that's part of riding too. Remember, just hold 
on and when you want to stop, pull back on the reins." 

Dana looked nervously to Krycek. "I don't think I can." 

"Dana, I have every confidence that you can. Just give her 
a little kick with your feet." 

"Okay, just let me get my courage first." Dana closed her 
eyes and said a little prayer. When she opened her eyes, 
she kicked her feet and Bessie stood still. She looked 
over to Krycek, confused. 

"A little harder, you barely touched her." 

"Oh," she said and kicked her a little harder. Bessie took 
off and Dana reached for the saddle to hold on. She heard 
Krycek behind her, but once she started, she found that she 
was paying more attention to enjoying the ride. She pulled 
back on Bessie and they stopped. 

"Having fun?" Krycek asked. She nodded. "Why haven't you 
learned to ride before?" 

"I've always been afraid of horses." 

"Why?" 

"Doesn't matter. I think we should be going back now. Is 
that all right?" 

"Of course. Lead the way." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

When they arrived back, just outside of camp, Krycek 
grabbed the reins of Dana's horse. "We better stop here." 
He jumped down and walked over to Dana, lifting his hands 
up to her. 

"Turn around again," she ordered. He laughed and turned. 
"All right," she said after her leg was thrown over. He 
turned back and smiled up at her, again raising his hands 
to her. 

She placed her hands on his shoulders and slid off as he 
held her waist. When she was on the ground, Krycek didn't 
step away, but slid a hand up to her face and leaned down, 
kissing her. Dana was too stunned to move as he moved his 
lips over hers. 

"What the hell are you doing?" 

Krycek stepped back from her and turned. Dana looked 
behind him and was horrified to see an angry Walter Skinner 
standing about twenty feet away from them. 

"Walter. I-- I--" she stuttered. 

"It was my fault," Krycek said. "Not Dana's." 

Skinner moved towards them and grabbed Dana by the arm, 
pulling her. "You just stay the hell away from her 
Krycek." As they were walking away, Skinner said, "Just be 
thankful it was me and not Mulder who saw you. What were 
you thinking Dana?" 

"I didn't know he was going to kiss me." 

"What are you doing out here with him alone?" 

"I don't want to say." 

He stopped and spun her around to face him, grabbing both 
of her arms. "What games are you playing Dana? I can't 
believe you were out here alone with him. Is it because of 
Mulder and Diana?" 

"What does that mean?" 

"They're only friends you know. Nothing more, no matter 
what others say." 

"So he says." 

"Dana," he scolded. 

She sighed and said, "I believe him. It's just that I 
don't trust Diana." 

He turned her to walk again. "You're really lucky. Mulder 
would have killed him if he had seen what I did." 

"Walter, you're joking. He would have been angry, yes, but 
he wouldn't have killed him." 

"I wouldn't be so sure about that Dana. You've never 
really seen Mulder's temper. If I were you, I'd make sure 
that I was never near Krycek again, for both of your 
sakes." 

"Walter, I really didn't know that he was going to kiss 
me." 

"So you said, but you didn't stop him either." 

"I was shocked. I couldn't move," she protested. 

"Just don't let it happen again." 

She nodded as they continued walking back to her camp. 

August 13, 1852 
Friday 

When the sun rose over the wagon, Mulder awoke. The air 
was chilled, so he snuggled closer to Dana in an attempt to 
warm up. "Mmm," he said into her neck. 

"What?" she asked. 

"Do you know what day it is?" 

"Friday?" 

"No, I mean what today is?" She shook her head. "It's my 
birthday." 

She turned in his arms and smiled. "Really?" 

"Yes." 

"You know, I don't think you've ever told me how old you 
are. I can't believe I've never asked." 

"I'm twenty-six." 

"Really, I didn't know you were so old." 

Mulder laughed. "I'm not an old man yet." 

"No, I just mean I thought you were younger." Dana stroked 
his arm and asked, "What do you want for your birthday?" 

Mulder smiled and said, "I think you can think of 
something." 

Dana looked behind her at the sleeping children. "Not 
now." 

"Tonight?" 

"Yes. I just..." 

"What?" he asked, concerned when he saw the expression on 
her face. 

She put her hands on his arms and pushed them away. "Let 
me up." 

"Why?" 

"I'm going to be sick." 

Mulder jumped up and reached outside the wagon for a 
hanging bucket. He dumped most of the water out and rushed 
it to Dana just as she threw up. 

"What's wrong?" Samantha asked, rubbing her eyes. 

Mulder moved to her and said, "Lie back down Samantha. 
Mama's sick." 

"Okay," she said, settling back down. 

Mulder kissed Samantha's forehead before turning back to 
Dana, who was sitting back on her heels, wiping her mouth. 
"Finished?" he asked her. She nodded and he placed the 
bucket outside the wagon. Dana curled back under the 
covers and Mulder joined her. "You've been getting sick a 
lot lately." Dana nodded. "You haven't said anything, 
but..." 

"What?" 

"Are you going to have a child?" 

"I think I have another present for you." 

"So you are?" 

Dana nodded, biting her lower lip. "Are you happy?" 

Mulder hesitated before answering. "You know I want more 
children. Now that I know it's a reality, I guess I'm just 
worried." 

"What are you worried about?" 

Mulder ignored the question and instead asked, "When do you 
expect the baby?" 

"I think in January, maybe February." 

"It'll be cold." 

"I was born in January." 

"Really. I would prefer a warmer time of the year. What 
if I can't get help?" 

"We'll be fine." 

"Maybe we should have Diana come to live with us, at least 
until the baby is born. It would help to have another 
woman." 

"You can't be serious." 

"She won't know anyone. I'm the only one she has, so 
she'll need someone to stay with for a while." 

"I can't believe you," she said, pushing away from him. 

"What? I thought that was a perfect solution for you and 
the baby. And if it helps Diana, so much the better." 
Dana sat up, grabbing her clothes. "Where are you going?" 

"I have cooking to do." 

He tried to pull her back down, "Stay. You don't have to 
do that now." She pushed against him, out of his grip. 

"Yes, I do." 

Mulder sighed and said, "I didn't mean to upset you." 

"Just stop talking William." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Mulder found Diana cooking breakfast, her nieces sitting 
near her, quietly watching. "Diana," he called. 

She smiled as she turned around. "Fox, good morning. I 
didn't expect you this early." 

"I need to talk to you." 

"Oh?" 

"Yes. I've decided to have Danny take care of your team 
from now on." 

"Your cousin?" 

He nodded. "He'll do a good job." 

"Why Fox? You promised to help me." 

"I am helping. Danny is very capable." 

"Dana told you to do this," she said as she crossed her 
arms in front of her, searching his wagons with her eyes, 
but not finding the other woman in sight. 

"No, this is my decision." 

"You don't have to lie to me. I know how she feels about 
me. She can't stand when you spend any time with me." 

"That's not fair." 

"You're abandoning me, just like before." 

"What?" he asked incredulously. 

"You left me for Penny. Now you're leaving me again." 

"Dana is my wife." 

"So, she did ask you." 

"No, that's not what I mean," he said, shaking his head. 
"Look, I know you're upset, but it's going to be this way 
now. You're just going to have to trust me that Danny will 
do a good job." He turned to go. 

"Fox, wait. I'm sorry," Diana said. "You're my friend 
still, right?" 

He came back to her. "Yes, you know I am. Diana, it's not 
like we won't talk. You're still riding with us. I won't 
abandon you, I promise." 

Diana realized that he was going to do as he pleased. 
There was no sense in arguing with him. "All right. 
Danny's driving my wagon." 

"Thank you for understanding. I have to get back to Dana 
now." She watched him for a moment and saw him climb into 
his wagon. Shaking her head, she turned back to her fire 
to finish preparing breakfast. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Dana had the wagon packed and the children ready. She 
watched Jimmy take his position next to the first wagon and 
waited patiently for Danny to come to take care of the 
second wagon, where she stood with the children. When 
Mulder walked up instead, she looked at him confused. 

"What are you doing?" she asked. 

"Danny is going to take care of Diana's wagon now." 

"Really?" 

Mulder nodded and put the children in the first wagon where 
they could keep an eye on them. He started the team moving 
and looked over his shoulder saying, "Come on." 

Dana shook herself and walked quickly up to him. She put 
her hand in his and he looked down. "Thank you," she said. 

"You come first. Never doubt that Dana." She placed her 
head on his arm and smiled. "But, I can't just leave Diana 
to herself. She didn't count on being on her own, raising 
two children who aren't hers. I can't just abandon her, I 
hope you understand that." When she didn't say anything, 
he decided to change the subject. "I'm pleased about the 
baby." 

"Is that why you did this?" 

"Maybe. I don't want you to be upset. I want you and the 
baby to be healthy." 

"We're fine." 

"That's good. You will tell me if you aren't, won't you." 

"Yes." They walked quietly, content. Dana looked over and 
saw a wagon sitting abandoned. "Whose wagon is that?" 

"It's Taylor's. He said he was losing some valuable 
items." 

"We won't have to leave anything behind will we?" 

"I hope not. I think we'll be fine." 

"That's so sad. I heard of others having to lighten their 
wagon." 

"We can always move some of the things from the other wagon 
into this one if necessary. We shouldn't have to lose 
anything." 

"Good," she said. 

"Mama?" Caleb called, peeking over the back and trying to 
get closer. 

"Caleb, get back," Mulder yelled. Caleb immediately ducked 
back into the wagon. "Sorry," he said to her. "I didn't 
mean to yell. I just thought of Francis when he was that 
close. 

"No, you're right." 

He called for Jimmy to stop the wagon and stopped his as 
well. Mulder said, "Caleb, come here." He popped back up 
and moved towards Mulder. 

"Papa, I want to come out too," Samantha said from behind 
Caleb. 

"You want to walk with us?" Samantha nodded and he helped 
her climb out. He handed her to Dana who set her on the 
ground and grabbed her hand. He then reached for Caleb and 
lifted him onto his shoulders. 

"Okay Jimmy, go ahead." 

As they were walking, Samantha said, "This is fun." 

Mulder glanced at Dana, looking guilty. "I guess I haven't 
been spending enough time with them if she thinks this is 
fun." 

"She missed you." She shook her head. "We missed you." 

"I know." 

August 21, 1852 
Saturday 

The men had to drive their cattle down to the river and 
haul back some water for the company when they stopped late 
in the evening. Mulder was on first watch that night, so 
Dana fed the boys and children. As it began to rain, Dana 
moved the children into the wagon, entertaining them until 
they fell asleep. She loved listening to the rain beat 
down on the canvas, but sometimes, it got to her when it 
continued on and on. 

When Mulder returned to their wagon, he tried to shake the 
water off, but ended up bringing it into the wagon. "When 
did they fall asleep?" he whispered. 

"Just a little while ago." 

"I'm bushed," he said as he pulled off his boots. "This 
weather makes me tired." 

"Do you think we'll move on tomorrow?" 

"If the rain stops sometime tonight, I think so." 

In the dark, Dana helped him strip and rubbed him down, 
trying to warm him as he shivered. "Get under the covers." 

"Like this?" he asked, indicating his exposed body. 

Dana nodded. "I'll help you warm up." As Mulder crawled 
in, she quickly stripped down as well and followed him. 

"Mmm," Mulder said, pulling her close. "You feel warm." 

"And you're freezing. Maybe you should wear more clothing 
when you have to be on watch." 

"No, it's just because of the rain." 

Dana ran her hand over his chest. "You know, I never gave 
you your birthday present." 

Mulder exhaled and said, "That's all right. Just knowing 
about the baby was enough." 

"You don't want to?" 

"Not now." 

"When then?" 

"Not until after the baby comes." 

"What?" Dana asked, sitting up. "Why not?" 

Mulder laughed quietly. "That's nice." 

"What is?" 

"That you enjoy it...when you're with me." 

"I do. So, why can't we?" 

Mulder pulled her back down against him. "When Penny and I 
first knew we were going to have a child, I was so happy. 
My mother and her mother said I should leave her alone. 
That it would be better for her and the baby. So, I did 
and Penny seemed fine with that." 

"But I don't mind." 

"No, I don't want to take any chances." 

"All right, if you really feel that way." 

Mulder kissed her forehead. "I'm feeling better." 

"Good." 

They listened to the rain beat down, enjoying just being 
close. Mulder finally broke the silence when he asked, 
"How is it going with Jimmy and the widow?" 

"You haven't asked him yourself?" 

"No." 

"I think they're getting serious. It would be a good 
match." 

"Don't encourage him to marry yet." 

"I don't understand that William. Why shouldn't they get 
married?" she asked, clearly confused. 

"I think things are too uncertain." 

"But I think they're in love. We got married and we didn't 
even have that." 

"We got married because it was best for both of us. Caleb 
needed a father and Samantha needed a mother." 

Dana began to draw patterns on his chest with her finger. 
"Well, would it make any difference if I told you that she 
needed a father for her child?" 

"She's going to have a baby?" 

"I'm asking you, would it make a difference?" 

"Yes," he said, enclosing her hand that now rested on his 
chest. "If there was a child, then I would give my 
blessing." 

"They don't need your blessing to get married." 

When Dana didn't say anything further, he asked "So is 
she?" 

"Is she what?" 

Mulder exhaled, groaning. "Is she going to have a child?" 

"I wouldn't know, but I don't think so." 

"Dana, if you don't know, why did you even mention it?" 

"I was just supposing." 

"God, you can drive me crazy sometimes. Go to sleep." 

He thought she had when she spoke again. "Fort Boise was a 
disappointment." 

"Yes." 

"Are you going to have Danny drive Diana's wagon all the 
way?" 

"Yes. He's offered." 

"And you're still planning on having Diana and her nieces 
live with us." 

"If I can't make any other arrangements, yes." He lifted 
her hand and brought it up to his lips. "I know that's not 
what you want to hear." 

"You're right, it isn't. But, I'll do as you ask William. 
You're my husband. I'll try to make do." 

Mulder kissed her on the forehead. "Thank you." 

"Are you sure you don't want your other birthday present?" 
she asked, looking up at him expectantly. 

Mulder laughed and shook his head. He whispered, "Go to 
sleep." 

~~~ 

Chapter 14 

August 27, 1852 
Friday 

Quite a few members in the company were suffering from a 
sickness. Members started feeling sick the day before, but 
others were soon falling to the same illness. The most 
common ailment was diarrhea and running a fever. Mulder 
was the only one in his family who was sick, but Skinner's 
family was hit hard with Sharon, Victor, Margaret, and 
Priscilla becoming sick. They were especially worried 
about Priscilla. It seemed like every other family was hit 
with the illness, but they were determined to keep 
traveling. 

That morning, when Mulder woke up, he felt especially weak, 
but tried to hide it. He climbed out of the wagon and 
almost fell. Dana was awake before him and was cooking 
breakfast so she didn't notice him. 

The children were waiting patiently for their breakfast and 
watched Mulder walk towards them. He stumbled towards Dana 
and almost fell. She turned just as he righted himself. 
"Good morning," Mulder said. 

She smiled and said, "Good morning. Are you feeling 
better?" 

Mulder lied. "Yes." 

"Well go ahead and sit down. I'm almost finished with 
breakfast." She turned back away from him and began 
dishing out the food. Mulder came over and sat away from 
the children. "Here you go. Make sure you eat all of 
that." 

"I'm not really all that hungry," Mulder said. 

She put her hands on her hips. "You have to eat. You need 
to keep us your strength." 

Mulder made a disgusted look, but said, "All right, if you 
insist." 

"Morning Mulder," Jimmy said. "How are you feeling?" 

"Better." 

"You sure? You don't look like it." 

"I'm fine, Jimmy," Mulder said, "just fine." Mulder 
glanced Dana's way, warning him not to say anything else. 

After they ate their food, Dana gathered the plates and 
began cleaning them. "I'll be ready soon," she said. 

Mulder said quietly to Danny and Jimmy, "I need you to yoke 
the oxen on my wagon for me. I don't think I can do it." 

"Mulder, if you can't do that, you shouldn't be driving." 

"I'll be fine if you just do that for me." 

Danny shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea." 

"I agree," Jimmy said. "You don't look very good." 

"Well who do you think is going to do it if I don't? I 
don't want us to be left behind." Jimmy and Danny both 
looked at each other. "What?" Mulder asked. 

"Well, there is someone else who can drive," Danny said. 

"Who?" Mulder asked. 

Danny hesitated. "Go on," Jimmy said. "You brought it up. 
Tell him." 

"Just tell me." Mulder said testily. 

"Dana can do it." 

Mulder stared at him for a moment before recovering. 
"That's not funny." 

"It's true. She can do it," Jimmy said. 

"Dana!" Mulder yelled. 

She looked up surprised at his tone, but walked over to 
him. "Yes?" 

"When the hell did you learn to drive a team?" 

Dana looked stunned. She turned her gaze to Jimmy and 
Danny. "You told him?" 

"Answer me. When did you learn?" 

"About three weeks ago." 

"Did you teach her?" Mulder asked Jimmy. 

"No, but it's a good thing she learned how to do it. 
You're in no shape to drive," he said. 

Mulder ignored his last comment. "So you taught her?" he 
asked Danny. 

"No." 

"Dana, who taught you?" 

"I don't think you'll like my answer," she said. 

"I want to know, who taught you?" 

"Mr. Krycek." 

"What?!" he yelled, getting to his feet. Just as he rose, 
he fell back and Jimmy caught him before he hit the ground. 
"Oh god, I feel dizzy." 

Diana came from around the wagon, alerted by Mulder's 
shouting. "What's wrong?" 

"Nothing," Dana said. 

"It didn't sound like nothing. Fox," Diana said after she 
noticed him holding his head. "You're worse, aren't you?" 
Mulder shook his head. "Yes, you are, I can tell. Dana, 
what can I do to help?" 

"I can take care of him," she said. 

"Dana, you're going to need to drive the team today," Jimmy 
said. 

"No! I will not have my wife doing a man's job." 

"You don't have any choice Mulder," Danny said. 

Diana turned to Mulder, surprised. "Dana knows how to 
drive?" 

"Wasn't my idea," Mulder mumbled. 

"Dana, did you know he's running a fever?" Jimmy asked, his 
hand on Mulder's forehead. 

"No," she said, putting her hand to Mulder's forehead. He 
pushed it away. "That means you're worse. Why didn't you 
tell me?" 

"I'm fine. I can take care of myself." 

"Fox, someone will need to keep a cool rag on your 
forehead. Dana, let me do that for him." 

"I'll be fine," Mulder asserted. 

Dana looked at him, concerned. Although it was the last 
thing she wanted to happen, she realized that she wouldn't 
be able to take care of him while she was driving. She 
swallowed her pride and said, "All right." 

"I'll take care of yoking up the oxen Dana. You drive the 
wagon I've been driving." Jimmy turned to Mulder and said, 
"That way, you can keep an eye on her. Come on, I'll help 
you get back in the wagon. 

Mulder realized he was defeated and nodded. As he was 
passing Dana, he said, "We're not finished talking about 
this. I can see I'm outnumbered, so you can drive. But, 
you let me know the minute you feel like you can't do it. 
Agreed?" Dana nodded and he let Jimmy help him into the 
wagon. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Throughout the day, the scenery became more mountainous. 
Dana gripped the reins tighter whenever the road narrowed, 
which forced the wagons to follow in a single line. She 
kept her eyes on the wagon ahead of her. Jimmy and Danny 
had placed her wagon in between them, with Jimmy leading. 
He had explained that if she followed exactly the same path 
as him, she would be fine. She tried to keep her focus on 
his wagon, but her attention shifted to the voices inside 
the wagon whenever she heard them. 

Inside, Diana tended to Mulder while Caleb and Samantha 
played quietly. 

"Fox, are you feeling any better?" Diana took the rag and 
rung it out and placed it tenderly back on his forehead. 

"Not much," he said weakly. His eyes drifted closed again. 

"Papa?" Samantha said, inching closer. 

"Don't come closer, Samantha," Diana said. 

"Why?" she asked, pouting. 

"Remember? I told you. You might get what your Papa has 
and then you would feel just as bad as he did." 

"Papa," Samantha said as she began inching towards him. 

"Samantha, go sit down," Diana said, her voice rising. 

"What's going on in there?" Dana asked from outside. 

Mulder woke up when he heard their voices. "What is it?" 

"Nothing," Diana said, patting his arm. "Go back to 
sleep." He nodded and soon fell asleep, too exhausted to 
keep his eyes open. She glanced over at the children and 
saw that Caleb was sleeping, but Samantha was trying to 
creep closer again. "Stop Samantha," Diana said more 
quietly. To Dana, she said, "Samantha wants to sit by Fox. 
I told her she shouldn't because it isn't safe." 

"Where's Caleb?" Dana asked. 

"Asleep by Samantha." 

Dana looked forward to make sure it would be safe to turn 
around and when it seemed fine, she turned and said, 
"Samantha, you can't get by Papa. Would you like to come 
up with me?" 

She didn't see her response, but soon felt a hand on her 
waist. Looking down, Dana saw Samantha standing behind 
her, a sad look on her face. "Diana, could you help her up 
on the seat?" Dana asked. 

"All right." She lifted Samantha over the seat and then 
disappeared back inside. 

Samantha moved closer to Dana and she put her arm around 
her, hugging her. "You going to help Mama drive?" 
Samantha smiled and nodded. "Well, you keep your eyes on 
Jimmy's wagon and tell me when to turn, all right?" 

Samantha nodded. "Why can't I be by Papa?" 

"You might get what Papa has. We just want to make sure 
you're safe and don't get sick too. I'm sure Papa will be 
better soon. We just have to be quiet and let him rest, 
all right?" 

"All right, Mama," she said and leaned against Dana. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Inside the wagon, Diana squeezed the rag out and laid it on 
Mulder's head. "What?" Mulder asked, rising up. 

Diana pushed him back down and Mulder relaxed. Diana 
looked to make sure Dana wasn't looking back. Fearing that 
she might not get another opportunity and not caring about 
the consequences, she leaned down and kissed Mulder on the 
lips. She was surprised to find Mulder responding. Mulder 
pulled her down and laid gentle kisses along her jaw, 
detouring down her neck. 

"Mmm," Diana moaned quietly, leaning back to give him more 
access, but he broke off. 

"Dana? In the day?" he asked, grinning. 

When she looked down into his glazed eyes, she realized 
that he didn't know who he was kissing. She decided it was 
best to take advantage of his haze. "Go back to sleep," 
she said, smiling sadly. 

He nodded and began to drift off again. She glanced 
towards Dana and was relieved to see Dana still turned 
away, but was shocked to see Samantha watching her. 
Samantha glared at her before turning around. Diana was 
thankful that the little girl remained quiet. 

August 28, 1852 
Saturday 

Dana and Mulder were lying quietly in the wagon. Friday 
was a fog to Mulder, but he began feeling better in the 
morning and by midday, he thanked Diana for helping, but 
suggested that she return to her own wagon. Samantha and 
Caleb kept him company while Dana drove. At night, the 
children were sleeping while they talked quietly. 

"You did a good job," Mulder admitted. 

"How do you know? You slept through most of it." 

He nodded and said quietly, "You know, I would have taught 
you." 

"Would you have?" 

"Yes, if you had asked." 

"I don't think so. I think your words were 'No way will my 
wife do a man's job' or something like that. I don't 
believe you would have taught me." 

Mulder turned on his side. "I thought I had told you I 
didn't want you to have anything to do with that man." 

"I'm sorry, but he was right. It was a good thing for me 
to learn. Besides, Danny was watching him the whole time. 
I was safe." 

"I bet the weasel is hoping I die. Maybe take over for 
me." 

She sat up abruptly. "William, I can't believe you said 
that." 

"It's true. I think he has a thing for you." 

She lay back down and said, "I just had a thought. Maybe 
we should get Mr. Krycek and Diana together." 

"There's a thought," Mulder said, laughing. 

"So, you forgive me?" 

Mulder pulled her towards him. "Of course. But Dana, I 
mean it. Stay away from that man." She nodded. "I think 
you're going to have to drive tomorrow too. I still feel 
weak." 

"Have you heard about Priscilla?" 

"How is she?" 

"They don't think she will live through tomorrow. She's 
getting weaker. It doesn't help that she's so young." 

"Oh god, I didn't know it was that bad. Sharon and Walter 
must be going through hell. First Francis, now Priscilla. 
How are the rest of them doing?" 

"About like you." 

"I am feeling better you know. Just weak." 

"Good. I think we should sleep now. Good-night," she 
said, snuggling closer to him. 

August 29, 1852 
Sunday 

"Sharon," Dana said. "I am so sorry." 

"Dana," Sharon said, reaching for her hand as Dana sat down 
beside her. "I can't believe it. I've lost another child. 
How much more can God punish me? I don't think I can take 
any more loss." 

"I know, but you're getting better, Sharon. Victor and 
Margaret seem to be recovering too. Your family will be 
fine." 

"How can we know?" Sharon asked, tears beginning to fall. 
"I thought Francis would be fine. I thought my baby girl 
would be fine. Nothing is certain in this horrible 
country." 

"You'll survive," Dana said, trying to comfort her somehow. 
"How is Walter doing?" 

"He won't talk about it." 

"Would you like me to see if he'll talk to me? Or maybe to 
William?" 

Sharon shook her head. "I don't think he would talk to you 
either." 

"Well, maybe he just needs time." 

"Maybe." 

She stood and said, "I better get back to William." 

"How is he doing?" 

"He's doing much better. I believe he is almost completely 
over it." 

"That's good news." 

"If you need to talk Sharon, let me know. I'm here for 
you." 

"Thank you Dana." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

When Dana returned to her camp, she found Mulder stretched 
out on a blanket, the children playing quietly by him. 
Dana smiled when she saw Dog's head lying across Mulder's 
lap as Mulder slowly stroked the dog's fur. Dog lifted his 
head when she approached. 

"Well aren't you all a sight?" she said. 

Mulder looked up and smiled. "We're just relaxing." She 
moved to sit next to Mulder and he asked, "How is Sharon?" 
Dana shook her head, tears beginning to fall. Mulder 
opened his arms and she fell into them. 

"I feel so bad for her." 

Mulder kissed her head. "I know. So do I." 

"It just isn't fair. She had five children when we left 
and one on the way and in less than one month, she loses 
two of them." 

"I know how that feels." 

She looked up at him. "I'm sorry. You do. I wasn't 
thinking." 

"It's all right. I suppose it's a little different. My 
boys didn't live a day. I didn't get a chance to hold them 
and love them like Walter and Sharon did with their 
children." 

"I hope you never have to experience that again." 

Mulder smiled sadly. "Me too." 

"Have you talked to Walter?" 

Mulder shook his head. "I'll go soon, but I think they'll 
probably still need time to grieve together." 

Dana leaned away from him so that she could see him better. 
"Do you think I shouldn't have gone so soon?" 

"No. I think they think of you like a daughter. I'm sure 
you are a comfort to them." 

She leaned back down into him. "I hope so." 

August 30, 1852 
Monday 

In the morning, frost lay on the ground. Ice formed in the 
buckets and had to be broken to reach the water. The days 
were now like this, cold in the morning and gradually 
warming during the day. 

The cold set the mood for the company, having lost twenty- 
one people to the sickness. Three children were left 
orphans when both of their parents and their youngest 
sister died during the night. Some of the men had gathered 
to discuss what to do with them. 

"Someone will need to take them. We can't leave them on 
their own," Skinner said. 

"How old are they?" asked a man. 

"Sidney is seven, Dulcena is five, and Henry is three," 
Skinner said. 

"Too young to be of any help," the man said, shaking his 
head as he walked away. A few others turned away with him. 

"Do they have any family who will be able to meet them?" 
Mulder asked. 

"No," Krycek said. "They're on their own." 

"Well someone will need to take them," Skinner repeated. 
"Who wants to do it?" 

"Maybe we could split them up between families," Krycek 
suggested. "That way, they wouldn't be a burden to one 
family." 

"You can't do that to them Krycek," Mulder said. "They 
just lost their parents and a sister. Now you want them to 
lose each other?" 

"What? They could still see each other." 

"You can't do that to children that young. They need each 
other." 

"So are you going to take them?" Krycek asked. 

Mulder was about to answer when they heard from behind, "I 
will." 

"Who said that?" Skinner asked. 

John Byers stepped up. "My wife and I have talked about 
it. We haven't been blessed with any children. The 
children need a good Christian upbringing." 

"Are you sure Reverend?" Mulder asked. 

Byers nodded. "We've always wanted children. The children 
need parents." 

"Then I think it's only fair that you receive whatever you 
want from their wagon. Does everyone agree?" Skinner 
asked. 

The men nodded. "All right Reverend, they're your 
responsibility now." 

Byers smiled and shook Skinner's hand. "Thank you. Where 
are they?" 

"They're at the Patterson wagon. You can go get them now. 
Thank you for doing this Reverend. I would have taken 
them, but I don't think my wife is up to it." 

"No thanks are needed," Byers said. "Thank you gentleman." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Dana was playing with the children while she waited for 
Mulder to return. Caleb was throwing a stick for Dog and 
Dana noted that he was able to throw it farther than when 
they first started out. 

"Mama, how come Mrs. Tipton kissed Papa?" 

Dana looked down at Samantha, shocked. "What do you mean?" 

"She kissed Papa." 

"When?" Dana asked. 

"When Papa was sick." 

Dana bent down to her, grabbing her arms. "Samantha, are 
you sure?" 

Samantha nodded. "I'm not lying Mama." 

Dana smiled and cupped her cheek. "I didn't say you were. 
I just wanted you to be sure of what you saw. And you are, 
aren't you?" 

"Mmm hmm." 

"How about you go get Caleb and Dog to come on back? Could 
you do that for me?" 

"Okay Mama." 

Dana watched her run off to get Dog and Caleb and looked 
towards Diana's wagon. Diana and her nieces were packing 
their wagon. Dana glared in her direction and when Diana 
turned, she immediately looked away from Dana when she saw 
Dana's expression and Dana knew...she was guilty. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Mulder walked next to Dana as their wagon moved along. 
"Really? The Reverend and his wife took all three 
children?" Dana asked. 

"Yes." 

"Do you think they could use any help?" 

"Are you offering?" 

"Well, Mrs. Byers has never had any children. I know when 
I first became a mother, it took some getting used to." 

"But the children aren't babies. It's a little different." 

"I disagree. She still has never raised a child. Now, she 
instantly has three. I doubt either she or Reverend Byers 
realize what a large task they have taken upon themselves." 

"Maybe you're right." 

She reached over and took his hand. "I'm glad you're on 
your feet again." 

"Me too. It was hard to stay cooped up in that wagon." 

"I guess now we owe Diana for helping you." 

"I imagine that was hard for you...allowing her to help 
out." 

"Only because I couldn't do it myself. You know I would 
have taken care of you if I could have." 

"You did. You kept us moving by taking care of the team." 

"It wasn't the same as what Diana did for you. She seemed 
to enjoy taking advantage of the situation." 

"What do you mean?" 

"I think you know." 

He shook his head. "Honestly, I don't know what you're 
talking about." 

"Samantha told..." 

"Fox," they heard from behind. They both turned to find 
Diana walking up to them. Mulder halted the team. 

"What is it Diana?" Mulder asked. 

"I need to speak with you." 

"What about?" 

She looked at Dana and then said, "It's a private matter. 
Please, I need to speak alone to you." 

Mulder hesitated before saying, "Excuse me Dana." 

"But..." 

"I'll be back. I know you can handle the team." He handed 
the reins and crop to her, bent down and gave her a quick 
kiss on the forehead and turned to walk back with Diana. 
Dana frowned as she watched them leave. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

"What is it Diana?" 

"I need to talk to you about when you were sick." 

Mulder looked over to see wagons pass as he and Diana stood 
to the side to talk. "When I was sick?" 

"Yes. I wanted to talk about what happened." 

"When?" 

"In the wagon, when I was taking care of you." 

"What happened?" Diana looked away. Mulder could see that 
she was embarrassed. "You know you can tell me." 

Diana shook her head. "It was what you did. Oh god, this 
is so hard to say." 

"Just tell me." 

"Remember? It was when Caleb was sleeping. Samantha 
wanted to get closer to you but Dana made her move up with 
her." Diana hesitated and looked down. 

"What?" 

"I can't believe you're acting like you don't remember." 

"I have no idea what you're talking about." 

She looked back up into his eyes. "When you kissed me." 

Mulder shook his head. "What do you mean I kissed you? I 
don't remember that." 

"You said 'Diana' and pulled me down for a kiss. It wasn't 
just a simple kiss. I just wanted you to know that I do 
too." 

"You what?" 

"You told me that you loved me still. I want you to know 
that I still love you too." 

"What?! I wouldn't tell you that." 

Tears began to pool in Diana's eyes. "I can't believe you 
don't remember. You were so serious." 

"Diana, I'm sorry. If I said that when I was sick, I 
didn't mean it." 

"So, you were just lying to me?" 

"Diana, I don't even remember kissing you." 

"Fine. Take it back. I thought I could believe you, but 
I guess I was wrong." Diana turned and headed back to her 
wagon, leaving Mulder to stand with his mouth wide open. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

The company had stopped a little after noon for a break. 
The weather was cold and Dana had dressed the children in 
heavier clothing to keep them warm. She placed a blanket 
over one of the wheels and sat behind it to get out of the 
wind. 

"Where have you been?" Dana asked. 

"I was checking on Skinner and Sharon," Mulder said, as he 
plopped down next to her. 

"Really? Why didn't you come back to let me know?" 

Mulder shrugged his shoulders. "I knew you would be fine." 

"Jimmy, please get William something to eat," Dana said. 

Jimmy nodded and began preparing him a plate. Dana called 
Caleb over to her and pulled him into her lap. 

"How are they?" Dana asked. 

"As well as can be expected." 

"I'll go see them tonight." She kissed Caleb and looked 
over towards Samantha, who was petting Dog. 

"Samantha told me something." 

"What?" 

"Something that happened between you and Diana," Dana said 
quietly. 

Jimmy brought Mulder his food. "Thank you," Mulder said. 

"I'm going to see Catherine if you don't need me for 
anything else," Jimmy said. 

Mulder stood, "No, go ahead." He watched Jimmy leave and 
asked Dana, "What did she say?" 

"She said that she saw Diana kiss you." 

"Diana kissed me? When?" 

"Samantha was riding next to me and Diana was in the back 
with you. I didn't see it, but Samantha said Diana kissed 
you." 

"Samantha is mistaken. I didn't kiss her." 

Dana cocked her head. "I said Diana kissed you, not that 
you kissed Diana. I'm beginning to think maybe Samantha 
saw it wrong. You kissed her didn't you?" 

"Honestly, I don't remember kissing her." 

"I don't think I want to talk to you anymore William." 
Standing, she carried Caleb over to Samantha. 

"Damn it Dana, don't walk away from me," he said as he rose 
to his feet. 

"I don't have anything else to say to you," she said over 
her shoulder. Mulder shivered, swearing that the air 
suddenly became even colder. "And don't come to the wagon 
tonight." 

"It's my damn wagon. I will if I want to." 

Dana walked back towards him. "Fine William. The children 
and I will stay with the Skinners." She turned back 
around, grabbed Samantha's hand, and walked with both 
children towards Skinner's wagons. 

~~~ 

Chapter 15 

August 30, 1852 
Monday 

After Dana had left for the Skinners, Mulder stalked over 
to Diana's wagon and saw her eating with her two nieces. 
Seeing the angry expression on his face, she visibly 
cringed. 

"Diana, I want to talk to you." 

She looked at her nieces and then said, "I don't want to 
talk to you." Diana was beginning to doubt the wisdom of 
her plan. It didn't seem to be going the way she planned. 

"Well, that's too bad. We're going to talk," he said, 
grabbing her arm and pulling her up. "Come on." Mulder 
dragged her along with him until he found a quiet place to 
talk. He was careful to make sure that they were close 
enough to be seen by others, but far enough away to not be 
heard. 

"You are ruining my marriage." 

"How am I ruining your marriage?" 

"Dana knows." 

"About us?" 

"There is no us. No, she knows about the kiss. Samantha 
told her. She saw us." 

"She did? I didn't know that," Diana lied. 

"The interesting thing is that Samantha said that you 
kissed me. You led me to believe that I kissed you." 

"You did." 

"I believe my daughter. She said you kissed me. But now, 
Dana is angry with me because she thinks that I kissed you. 
If you hadn't said anything to me, I wouldn't have messed 
things up with her." 

"Fox," Diana said as reached to touch his face, but Mulder 
jerked away from her. 

"Don't touch me. I don't want to be around you anymore 
Diana. I have to think of Dana's happiness." 

"It's because she hates me. That's it, isn't it?" 

"No, it's because I love her." 

Diana gasped. She became desperate and said, "So, you've 
forgotten Penny." 

"Why would you say that? I haven't forgotten Penny. I'll 
never forget her, but Dana is who I want to be with. I 
loved Penny, yes, but Dana makes my life interesting. She 
makes me feel complete. I'm still your friend, but I need 
to put some distance between us. I want to make my 
marriage work. I do." Mulder backed further away from her 
and said, "Danny will still help you, but I think I'm going 
to have him put your wagon as far away from mine as 
possible. I have to think of Dana's happiness," he 
repeated. Mulder turned and stalked away from a stunned 
Diana. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Sharon and Dana were walking beside one of the Skinner 
wagons. Victor was carrying Caleb ahead of them and Dana 
walked with Samantha. The Skinner girls and Matthew 
trailed behind. Dana noticed that the Skinner children 
were all staying much closer to their mother since the loss 
of Priscilla. 

"I can't trust him anymore Sharon." 

"Are you sure? Dana, I know that he loves you." 

Dana shook her head. "I don't think so. He's never said 
so even though I have." 

"He does. I know it." Sharon bent down to take Samantha's 
other hand. "Dana, it was a kiss. It isn't as if it was 
more." 

"Why are you defending him?" 

"Mama," Samantha said. 

Dana looked down, forgetting the child for a moment. 
"Yes?" 

"I'm tired," she said. Dana bent down and picked her up. 
Samantha rested her head on Dana's shoulder. 

"The children seem to have adapted well. No one would ever 
guess that they didn't both come from the both of you." 

Dana nodded. "I love her as if she was my own." 

"And Fox loves Caleb too. I can tell." 

"Yes." 

Skinner rode up and jumped off of his horse, tying her to 
the back of one of his wagons. "Dana, I didn't know you 
were here. Why aren't you with Mulder?" 

"She's just visiting," Sharon said. 

"Well," he said, kissing the top of Sharon's head, "you're 
always welcome." 

"Really?" 

Skinner looked surprised. "Of course." 

"Then do you think the children and I could stay with you? 
At least Caleb and I. I don't know if William would want 
Samantha to stay." 

Skinner looked concerned. "What's happened?" 

"I can't talk about it right now. Maybe later." She 
looked up hopefully. "Can I stay?" 

"Of course. But Dana, Mulder's your husband. I would 
guess that he wouldn't allow you to stay with us." 

"I wouldn't be too sure." 

"Dana, what's happened?" She looked away. "Sharon, do you 
know?" 

"Yes, but it's up to Dana to tell you if she wants you to 
know," Sharon said. 

"Well, I'm going to find Mulder." 

"No," Dana said as she grabbed his arm. "Please don't 
Walter." 

"Does he know you want to stay with us?" 

"I told him that I was, but I don't think he believed me." 

"Well, I think he should know for sure. I'll go tell him 
after we stop for the night." 

"All right. Thank you Walter." Sharon and Dana watched 
him mount his horse again and take off. 

XXXXXXXXXX 

"Mulder," Skinner called. 

Mulder looked up to find Skinner towering over him on his 
horse. He dismounted and walked his horse over to Mulder, 
who was taking the yokes off of the oxen. 

"I'm here to talk to you about Dana." 

Mulder threw down the yokes and asked, "Is she with 
Sharon?" 

"Yes." 

Mulder nodded. "She said that's where she was going. I'm 
just giving her time to calm down. I expect her to come 
back before dark." 

"I don't think she's going to do that." 

Mulder looked back towards Skinner, surprised. "Why do you 
say that?" 

"She's asked to stay with us. What the hell has happened 
between the two of you? I thought everything was going 
well." 

Mulder placed his hand on one of the oxen and said, "I'm 
sorry you and Sharon are in the middle of this. I'll go 
get her and bring her back. Jimmy," Mulder shouted, "come 
finish taking care of the oxen." 

"Mulder," Skinner said, grabbing his arm as he began to 
walk away. "Maybe you should let her have some more time." 

"She's my wife. She should be here with me." Mulder 
looked down at the hand that was still on his arm and 
Skinner dropped it. "You can't stop me Walter. Where is 
she?" 

"I'll walk with you." 

XXXXXXXXXX 

Sharon sat with Caleb on her lap, bouncing him. Dana 
smiled. It seemed that Caleb was helping lift Sharon's 
spirits. Sharon looked up to find Dana watching them. 

"Thank you for cooking Dana." 

"I'm glad to do it. We're almost ready to eat." 

"What are you doing Dana?" Mulder asked. 

Dana stood up and spun around. She looked over to Walter 
who was looking down. "I'm helping Sharon." 

"You should be at our camp, taking care of me and the 
children." 

Dana crossed her arms in front of her. "I thought Diana 
would be filling that role." 

Walter looked up, confused. When he looked at his wife, 
she shook her head, asking him silently to stay out of it. 

"That's not even slightly funny," Mulder said. 

"It wasn't meant to be." 

"Mulder," Skinner said. "Why don't you join us? You can 
get the boys to come too." 

"They're on watch." 

"Well, at least stay for dinner," Skinner said, watching as 
Dana turned back to the food. 

Mulder eyed Dana's back for a moment. "Thank you, I will." 

Dana began putting the food on the plates as Margaret 
handed them to her. Louisa then handed them to each 
person. 

Mulder sat down by Caleb and Samantha. "Thank you," he 
said to Louisa as she brought their plates to them. He 
watched as Dana handed Louisa and Margaret their plates and 
then finally fixed one for herself. When she looked up, 
seeing Mulder sitting with the children, she changed 
directions and sat down by herself. He saw Skinner and 
Sharon look at each other uncomfortably. 

Mulder left her alone while everyone ate quietly. When 
they had finished, Mulder stood and picked up Caleb. "Come 
on Samantha, we're going back to our camp. Thank you for 
dinner," he said to Skinner and Sharon. "Come on Dana." 

"Leave the children with me," she said. 

Mulder moved closer as Caleb rested his head on his 
shoulder. "I'm not leaving them and I'm not leaving you. 
Come on, get up." 

Dana looked into his eyes and then back down. "I'm not 
going. You know I don't want to be anywhere near that 
woman." 

Mulder sighed. "She's on the other side of camp." Dana 
looked up surprised. Mulder nodded. "I told Danny to put 
her wagon on the other side. Now, will you come back?" He 
held his hand out to her, wiggling his fingers. 

"If I come back, I want you to know I haven't forgiven 
you." 

Mulder gazed at her for a moment before nodding. "I just 
want my family all together. Please come." 

She took his hand and he pulled her up. "Thank you," she 
said to Sharon and Skinner. Sharon nodded her 
encouragement. 

"Thank you again," Mulder said as he walked, pulling Dana 
by her hand. "Let's go Samantha." 

When they had left, Skinner asked Sharon, "What was that 
all about?" 

"I think that's for them to tell. I think they'll be fine 
though, once they talk." 

"I hope so," Skinner said. 

September 1, 1852 
Wednesday 

Jimmy was looking in the back of Mulder's supply wagon when 
Mulder approached him. Mulder had been on watch and was 
getting Jimmy to relieve him. 

"Where's Dana?" Mulder asked Jimmy. 

"Visiting Mrs. Skinner. She took the children with her." 

"Thanks. You can go ahead and take off. Your young widow 
was looking for you. Why don't you go see her first?" 

Jimmy smiled shyly. "I will. Thank you." 

Mulder watched him leave before heading to the Skinner 
wagon. When he reached it, he found his children sitting 
at Dana's feet. Samantha saw him first. 

"Papa," she cried, getting up and running towards him. 

He lifted her into his arms before he noticed Caleb heading 
in his direction. When Caleb reached him, he lifted him up 
too. Walking with them both, he headed towards Dana who 
had stood up. 

Mulder shook his head. "Stay as long as you like. I'm 
just going to go ahead and take the children back and get 
them ready for bed." Dana sat back down. "Hello Sharon. 
How are you doing?" 

"I'm doing better, thank you. And you?" 

"I'm fine. I'm going to let you two get back to whatever 
you were talking about. Goodnight Sharon. Dana, I'll see 
you when you return." 

He turned around and headed back for his wagon. When he 
reached it, he set Samantha down first. "Up you go," he 
said to Caleb, putting him in first. He lifted Samantha up 
next and then climbed up after her. 

After he dressed Caleb for bed, he turned his attentions to 
Samantha. As he was dressing her, he said, "Samantha, Papa 
needs to talk to you, okay?" 

She nodded her head. "Okay." 

"Do you remember when Papa was sick?" 

"Uh huh. You rode in the wagon." 

"That's right. And do you remember when Mama drove the 
wagon and Mrs. Tipton rode in the back with Papa?" 

She nodded her head. Mulder finished dressing her and 
lifted the covers for the children to climb in. Caleb 
climbed in first and Samantha followed him. 

"And then you rode up front with Mama. Do you remember 
that?" Samantha nodded. "While you were up front, did you 
look in the back and see something? Something that 
happened with me and Mrs. Tipton?" Again, she nodded. 
"Samantha, can you tell me what you saw?" She looked away. 
"It's okay. I won't be mad if you tell me. Please, I need 
to know what you saw. Tell Papa." 

Samantha looked back at him. "Mrs. Tipton kissed you." 

"She kissed me." 

"Yes. And then you said Mama's name. Dana." 

"Not Diana. Are you sure I said Dana?" 

Samantha nodded her head. "Uh huh. Papa, I'm tired," she 
said, rubbing her eyes. "Can I go to sleep now?" 

Mulder smiled. "Yes. Thank you for telling me Samantha." 
He bent to kiss her forehead and leaned over to kiss the 
already sleeping Caleb. 

Mulder sat back, unsure of how he wanted to tell Dana. He 
decided that he better give himself a day before he talked 
to her. 

September 2, 1852 
Thursday 

Although they hadn't talked about Diana anymore since Dana 
returned to their camp with Mulder, Dana still felt her 
presence. At night, Mulder slept on his side of the wagon 
and Dana slept on hers, with a very cold space in between. 

Dana was relieved that Diana had not made any attempts to 
talk to Mulder, at least as far as she knew. Mulder always 
made Dana aware of where he was. 

They were camped at the bottom of a mountain, resting their 
animals before the climb up the steep hill. The mountains 
reached high above them from all around. After supper, 
Mulder made sure that Dana knew that he was only going to 
see Danny and would be right back. As the sun was setting, 
Mulder arrived back at their camp just as she finished 
cleaning the dishes. 

"I thought we could go for a walk," he said. 

Dana stood up and asked, "Now?" 

"Yes. That can wait." 

"All right. I'll get the children." 

Mulder shook his head. "Jimmy already said that he would 
watch them. I wanted us to go by ourselves. Just let me 
get some blankets," he said. "I thought we could sit by 
the river." Reaching into their wagon, he pulled a couple 
of blankets out. He then held out his hand for her. She 
hesitated before reluctantly putting her hand in his. 

When they reached the river, they walked along it to find 
privacy. Mulder stopped them around a bend and laid the 
blanket down. He helped Dana sit down and then rested 
beside her. He lay back and said to her, "Come on. Lie 
down. The stars are amazing." 

Dana looked up at the sky through the trees, but didn't lie 
back. "Yes. They're pretty." 

Mulder reached out and laid a hand on her back. He felt 
her stiffen before she finally relaxed. "Lie down. We 
need to talk." 

She looked at him over her shoulder before lying back. 
"What do you want to talk to me about?" 

"I want to talk about what happened in the wagon when you 
were driving." She began to get up when he grabbed her and 
pulled her back down. He hugged her to him and said, 
"Please, I need to tell you something." He felt her 
continue to struggle until he said, "I talked to Samantha 
too." 

She relaxed back into his arms. "What did she say?" 

"She said Diana kissed me, just like she told you. But she 
also said that it was your name that I said. Dana, I 
thought I was kissing you. I still don't remember it, but 
I believe Samantha." 

Dana turned in his arms. "I believe her too. Are you sure 
she said it was Dana and not Diana?" 

"Yes." 

"Then why did you say you kissed her?" 

"Diana led me to believe that I initiated it. How could I 
dispute her when I couldn't even remember doing it?" 

She shivered and said, "I'm cold." 

Mulder reached down and pulled the other blanket over them. 
"I'm sorry that you were so upset," he said as he placed 
his hand on her stomach. "This has changed. Not a lot, 
but I can tell." 

"It's the baby." 

"I know," he said, kissing her temple. "How are you doing? 
Are you feeling well?" 

"I'm not sick anymore." 

"That's good," he said, rubbing her stomach gently. Mulder 
leaned over her. "Dana, you know I care about you don't 
you?" 

"Yes." 

He lay back down. "You know..." 

"What?" 

"I was thinking now would be a good time to get my other 
birthday present." 

"Here?" 

"No one is around." 

"I thought you didn't want to because of the baby." 

"I've really missed being with you. Do you still want to?" 

She smiled. "It wasn't me who didn't want to." 

He pulled her into a kiss. As they deepened their kiss, 
Mulder pulled her onto him. "I love being with you. I 
don't think I can wait until after the baby is born 
anymore." He ran his hands down her back and then along 
her hips. He began bunching her dress up and ran his hands 
along her naked flesh. He smiled and said, "Still not 
wearing anything?" 

"Not always." Reaching under, she undid his pants and 
reached in. "I see you aren't either." 

"You knew that." She moved to slide off of him, but he 
stopped her. "No. You stay up there this time. Lift up." 
Dana rose on her knees and Mulder guided her so that he 
came to rest inside of her. "You okay?" he asked. 

"Yes." 

"Okay, move whenever you're ready." 

Dana braced her hands on his shoulders as she began to 
move. It didn't take either of them long before they both 
reached their peak and Dana cried out. 

Mulder began to laugh. "I forgot about that. Hope no one 
heard you from the camp or they'll know what we're doing 
out here." 

Dana lay back down and buried her face in his neck. "Oh my 
gosh. You don't think they really heard me do you?" 

"Not unless someone's out here with the same idea as us. I 
think you're safe," he said as he ran his hand along her 
back. 

Dana slid off of him and snuggled closer to him. 

They lay there for quite some time when Dana asked, "We're 
not staying here all night are we?" 

"No, I guess we should head on back." 

"Jimmy is probably wondering where we are," she said, 
rising. 

Mulder stood too and they folded the blankets. He put both 
under an arm and then put his other arm around her 
shoulder, drawing her close. She threw an arm around his 
waist and felt happier than she had in a long time. She 
was just afraid that something else would disturb the peace 
that had seemed to settle over them both. 

As they were walking back, Mulder asked, "Do you want a boy 
or girl?" 

"Honestly, I don't really care. I just want it to be 
healthy. But, I know you want a son, so for your sake, I 
hope that's what we have." 

"That's true. I do want a son. But, I'll still be happy 
if we have a girl. I never regretted that I had a daughter 
survive instead of a son." 

"What were your son's names?" 

"Why?" 

"Well, if we're going to think of names, I just wanted to 
know what was already used." 

"We named my first son Hiram William Mulder after both of 
our fathers. Our next son was James Franklin Mulder after 
both of her grandfathers. We had both of their names 
picked out before the babies were born, so with the last 
one, Penny thought if we waited until after the baby was 
born, we might have more luck." Mulder helped her up a 
small incline before continuing. "So, when she died before 
we had a chance to talk about a name, I had to do it 
myself." 

"What did you name him?" she asked. 

"Jesse." 

"Just Jesse?" He nodded. "Why Jesse?" 

"I don't know. I guess I just liked the sound of it." 

"So, what would you like to name this one?" she asked, 
placing her hand over her stomach. 

"I don't know. Why don't you think of names?" 

Dana stopped, causing Mulder to follow suit. She frowned. 
"I think we should both think of names." 

Mulder pulled her again and said, "All right. We'll both 
think of names. Why did you choose Caleb's name?" 

"I had a younger brother who died when he was two. I 
thought it would be a nice way to honor him." 

"It's a good name. It's a strong name." 

"I think so." 

They had arrived at their camp to find Jimmy talking with 
Catherine Tanner, who was rocking a sleeping Caleb. 
Samantha was sleeping soundly in Jimmy's arms. "Hello 
Catherine," Dana said. "I didn't know you would be here." 

"I came by for a visit. I hope you don't mind," she said. 

"No. We wish you would come by more often. Let me take 
him from you," Dana said, lifting Caleb from her lap. 
"Shh," she said when he began to stir. 

"She came by for more than just a visit," Jimmy said. "We 
wanted to talk to you." 

Mulder took Samantha from him and said, "It sounds 
serious." He glanced at Dana before looking back at Jimmy. 

"It is," Jimmy said. "We're going to get married." 

"When?" Mulder asked. 

"We're going to talk to the Reverend. We hope to marry by 
Saturday," Jimmy said. He reached for Catherine's hand. 

"In two days!?" Mulder shouted, waking both children. 

"William," Dana scolded. 

Mulder turned to her. "They barely know each other." 

"Better than you two did," Jimmy mumbled. 

Turning back to Jimmy, Mulder asked, "What was that?" 

"You didn't even know Dana when you asked her to marry you. 
At least Catherine and I have known each other for almost 
two months," Jimmy reasoned. 

"He has you there William," Dana said. 

He turned to her with an irritated look. "You're not 
helping," Mulder said. 

"We want you two to stand up with us." 

"Where do you plan on sleeping?" Mulder asked. 

"With her family." 

"Who's going to drive my other wagon?" Mulder asked. 

"I could do it," Dana said smiling. 

"No, I'll do it," Jimmy said. "I plan to keep my end of 
the bargain. However, I plan on staying with her family 
when we get settled." 

"I was counting on you to help." 

"Danny said he would help." 

"Jimmy," Dana said. "You have to do what is right for 
you." Dana reached for Catherine's hand and said, 
"Congratulations. I'm sure you'll both be happy." 

"Thank you Mrs. Mulder." 

"Dana, please." She looked over to Mulder and said, 
"William." 

He turned to her and asked, "What?" 

"Aren't you happy for them?" 

"I'm sorry. Of course. Congratulations." 

"Thank you Mulder," Jimmy said. 

"Well, we have to get the children to bed. Excuse us," 
Mulder said. 

Mulder nudged Dana towards the wagon when Jimmy called, 
"Will you be there for us?" 

Mulder looked back over his shoulder. "Of course. Just 
let us know when." 

"Thank you." 

End Chapter 15 

Continued in Chapter 16