The X-Files: From the Depths

Chapter Six: The stockbrokers

The stockbroker offices were clean, and the fixtures and fittings expensive yet subtle in their extravagance. The foyer was presented in dark mahogany wood, with monitors displaying the changing of shares every 15 seconds, creating a digital number wall along one side. At the far end, the perfectly presented receptionist greeted Mulder, Scully and Barnes with a bemused smile, unsure what to make of her afternoon's visitors.

Barnes looked around and whistled his appreciation. "Damn, look at this place. I chose the wrong job."

"What?" Mulder asked. "You never had to carry out a treatment for cockroaches here before?"

Barnes laughed. "No, I don't think so."

Mulder approached the receptionist and noted her name tag pinned to her pastel-blue blouse. "Hi, Rebecca. We're looking for Charles. Is he around?"

"Mr Lee? Do you have an appointment?" Rebecca replied, her tone suspicious.

"Not exactly," Mulder said, "but I'm sure he'll make time for us. It concerns the incident at the café."

Rebecca went to the rear and made a short telephone call. She came back. "He will join you in a moment. Let me show you to a quiet room."

They were led through a security-access door and into a small meeting room. A few minutes later, Charles Lee entered the room. He looked surprised by who greeted him.

"Sorry," Charles said, "I don't believe we've met?"

"I'm Agent Mulder. These are my two partners. We're here to ask some questions about the murder at the Sunshine café."

"Agents? Agents of what? Look, as I told your colleague at the time, we didn't see or hear anything."

"But you found the body," Mulder said, "isn't that correct?"

Charles didn't answer. He was staring at Barnes. "Wait a minute, I recognise you. You were there with the police. You're that pest control guy. Why on earth are you here?"

"He's helping us with our enquiries," Mulder said. "If you could just answer a few questions."

"I've answered all your questions. Why am I having to waste my time telling you again? I'm a busy man, and I've got work to do. Don't you people talk to each other? I've already told you what I saw. And Agent, what was your name? I've never heard of a police rank called Agent before. Can I see your ID?"

Scully sighed and stepped forward. "Mr Lee, you have every right to be cautious." Scully flipped open her badge, and Charles looked at it intently. "We're not from the police. We are from the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the USA."

"FBI?" Charles snorted. "What are you doing here? You're in the wrong country, love. I should have twigged with the accents. Of course, you're American."

"The police," Mulder continued, "need our help in solving the murders—"

"Murders?" Charles said. "Plural? There was only one where I was. Just the millennial barista on his gap year from Europe. Jose, I think they said his name was."

"There's been multiple deaths, each in a different location," Scully said. "We believe they may have all been caused by the same animal—"

"An animal? Christ, so I did see it then..."

"You saw it?" Mulder said.

Charles paused. "Yeah, I saw it. I told the copper at the time, but he said it was probably just a scavenger taking in a late-night snack." He snorted. "I told him it was some freak thing I'd never seen before, but he said it was irrelevant. What, so now they think it was the animal after all then. Christ, I was right there. It could have gone for me too."

"Can you tell us what happened?" Mulder said. "Don't leave out any details. It might be important."

Charles sat down at one of the chairs around the table and gestured for them to join him. The other three followed suit and took a chair as well. "There isn't much to say, really. The kid had gone out back to get some more milk for the coffee. When he didn't come back, I went out to find him. I was going to give him an earful, half-expected he was smoking a cigarette or something. When I got out there, the first thing I saw was this thing bent over and drinking off the floor. It looked at me, giant white eyes. Then it bolted. Went right under the shed. Then I noticed the body hanging half out of the shed. He was clearly dead, poor kid. There was blood literally flowing over the yard. Pretty disgusting, actually."

"It was the blood the animal was drinking?" Scully asked.

"No," Charles said, shaking his head. "That's probably the weirdest part. I don't think it was drinking the blood. It was drinking spilt milk."