Notes: This is set directly after 5.21 "The Boy with the Answer" but it may ( depending on the rest of the season ) veer wildly off into AU-land. I'm going to try and keep it pretty tight to the actual show, though. I'm new at writing BONES, I've only made one attempt before this and it was a short story ( very short ). Anyway, I'm going to take some liberties with jurisdiction here, mostly because I don't know much about it as it relates to territorial waters and the FBI. I hope you can forgive me the indulgence and enjoy anyway. Please let me know what you think. This is a very short chapter but it was really only meant to whet the appetite so...dig in!
The Treasure in the Hunt
Prologue
"I'm only gonna ask you this one more time." Seeley Booth's eyes blazed at the man in front of him. "Where is my wife?"
The man smiled. It was a tight smile, hard and unconvinced, and he didn't bother to hit Booth again, although he could have, easily; Booth's arms and legs were bound and he was helpless to defend his head and body from the frequent blows that this man and his friends had inflicted. The man, Roman, only stared back at Booth with that little smile, and Booth swore to himself that he'd make this guy regret it -- in this life or, worst case scenario, in the next.
"Now, Mr Booth," Roman said gently, and Booth flinched -- he and his partner had been under deep cover, how had Roman known--? "Let's be frank with one another, shall we? You have no wife. You were traveling with Dr Temperance Brennan and you yourself are a federal agent. How do I know this?" he asked, noticing Booth's surprise. "Why, your partner has fans, even here. And, of course, we have our little luxuries. Like the internet."
"Where is she?" Booth growled, struggling against his bonds again. Roman smiled at the futility of this. He shrugged his shoulders and flicked a hand at one of his companions. The man held up his cell phone, which displayed a picture of a battered but otherwise very alive Temperance Brennan. Fury warred with relief inside Booth, although fury was winning. The picture gave him no clue as to her whereabouts, although it appeared as though she was onboard some sort of boat. And he had a bad feeling it wasn't this boat.
"She's alive, Agent Booth," Roman said.
"Son of a bitch--"
The butt end of a pistol caught him in the jaw, effectively clipping off any further protests. Booth spit blood, his ears ringing. But the pain in his head didn't ease the ache he felt for Brennan -- or the guilt he felt for dragging her into this.
"Where is she, you asshole?"
Roman stopped the his friend before he could swing out at Booth again, that faint smile still on his lips as he considered the handcuffed man before him.
"She's not here, Agent Booth, but she's not so very far away. No harm will come to her, so long as we get our money."
Realization dawned on Booth, cold realization. He spit blood again and said, "You're a pirate."
Roman laughed, both unsurprised and unperturbed by Booth's revelation. "Very good, Agent Booth, very good. Yes, we're pirates."
"So how come I'm not dead?"
"It's simple," Roman said, turning away from Booth and striding toward the door. "I'm not willing to kill a federal agent straight-out, not when we need Dr Brennan alive in order to get her ransom."
"This is a federal crime," Booth snapped, all the muscles in his body straining for freedom, for a chance to hit this man.
"Is it? We crossed into international waters some time ago. And you have no juristiction out here. Your badge won't help you this time, and we have your gun already." He stood in the doorway and glanced back. "Make yourself comfortable, secret agent man. You may be with us for a while."
