A/N : Yeah I know, I posted a lot today I just took time to finish and post the stories/chapters I had begun. This one will be a multichapter. For the case this story is about, I was inspired by an episode of The Inside. I don't think this show is very famous (I loved it though), but if you saw it, don't worry, it won't help you solve the case. I only kept most of the killer's M.O. I hope you'll enjoy reading!

Chapter 1 : Hot bath

The pounding of her heart in her chest was hurting her. "I should calm down", she thought. "I have to. Think. Think, think, think." A sob got caught in her throat. "Why? There's nothing I can do." Useless, powerless, was all she was feeling right now, as she couldn't prevent life from flowing out of her. Ironically, she began to realise how precious life was. "Useless, powerless… Maybe this is how I've been felling all my life, even if I wouldn't admit it…" She had been through this before, several times. But this time was different: she had not been able to fight.

Plop.

Usually, she appreciated living in peace and quiet. But right now, the silence oppressed her and the sound of her tears breaking the water surface frightened her. Or was it the blood dripping on the floor?

Plop

Plop

Her wrists were hurting like hell. She would have screamed if she had been able to. But she couldn't.

Her eyes were burning. "Oh, how I wish I could close them for good..." Instead, she was forced to watch the water becoming a darker shade of red. "It's too late now, he won't come."

Temperance Brennan closed her eyes and let out a moan. After two hours spent practising martial arts, the hot water was relaxing all the muscles in her body, like soft warm hands caressing every fragment of her skin. A smile of satisfaction spread across her delicate features as she was letting herself falling half-asleep. At first, she didn't hear the phone ringing. Or she didn't want to. She had no intention of leaving the warmness of the bath for the fresher air and cool tiled floor, so she decided to ignore it. But when it rang again, insistently, she reluctantly sat up in the bathtub and grabbed for a towel, grimacing when her feet met the cold tiles. As she was wrapping herself in the fluffy cotton, the phone stopped ringing. Sighing, she walked towards the coffee table and pushed the button of her answering machine.

"Hey Bones", Booth's voice said, "Look, I know it's Saturday but we've got a case. I know you might be busy and everything but we have a flight leaving in forty-five minutes." Brennan let out an annoyed sigh. "I'm on my way to your place, please don't kick my ass when I'll knock at your door." Booth's voice added teasingly. She couldn't help a smile from breaking through her sulky expression as she imagined Booth's sly grin. "Okay… Whatever you want, you damned charm smile", she whispered to herself.

She was in the bathroom trying to do her hair when she heard the knock on the door. Dammit, he's already here… Forgetting she had nothing but a towel wrapped around her bare body she rushed to open the door. "Hey Booth, I wasn't expecting you to be here so..." She frowned as Booth cleared his throat. "What?" And then, blushing under his glare, she realised she was almost naked. Avoiding meeting his glare, she invited him to step in and quickly disappeared into the bathroom.

Booth made himself comfortable on the couch, a smile playing on his lips. It had been worth coming over. He rarely had the occasion of seeing Bones blush. Well, he rarely had the occasion to see her almost naked, as well. He shook his head, silently scolding himself. Come on, Booth, this NOT something that should come to mind when you're thinking about your partner! He sighed, tilting his head back. The line, Booth. The damned line.

Soon, he heard the door of the bathroom open. "I'm ready, Booth. Let's go." He could see she hadn't even finished drying her hair. "Hey, won't you even offer me a coffee?" he asked teasingly. She looked at him, puzzled. "Are you kidding? You told me we had a flight, if we don't hurry up, we'll miss it!" She ran her hand through her hair, an angry look on her face. "And look, because of you I've got to go out with my hair wet, do you know how cold it…" She stopped when she saw he was laughing, which made her far angrier. "What, Booth?" He walked up to her, a mischievous smile playing on his lips. She was so damn cute when she was angry, he would sometimes provoke her on purpose. "I lied. We're going to Philadelphia. By car. Can I make myself a cup of coffee if I let you dry your hair?"

Sometimes, he was so annoying it was hard not to just slap him. She opened her mouth to let him know how pissed she was, but Booth's charm smile prevented her from telling her mind. Instead, she just sighed, rolling her eyes. "Make yourself at home, Booth…"

Booth quickly glanced at his partner. She had remained silent since they had reached the freeway. "Hey Bones, are you sleeping?"

She let out a sigh and turned her face to look at him. "Not really. I was just trying to relax."

"Oh… Are you angry? You haven't said a word since we left. If you're mad at me, I can understand, but I'd rather talk about it."

"I'm not angry. I'm just annoyed to be forced to spend the rest of the day in Philadelphia instead of the in warm, relaxing bath I was taking when you called me."

"Look, I can understand that. But uh… remember the night you called me when you were with this boring guy? Remember how cold it was outside, and how this jerk punched my nose? After putting me through that, you could be a little more understanding."

"Okay then…" she said, a satisfied smile stretching across her lips. "We're even."

"Uh? What? No! Hey Bones, that's not fair. This is a case, this is WORK. It's not the same."

She shrugged, a chuckle escaping from her mouth as she was turning her eyes back to the window.

She was so beautiful. So quiet, so serene. Her half-opened mouth letting him catch a glimpse of her white teeth, her dark blond hair glued to her skull by water. He moved his hand towards her face, but did not touch her. Once they were in the water, and once the blood was flowing, he never touched them. He wanted to but didn't allow himself to. If it was safe, he just stayed there, watching, until their breath would die, as he had done for her, the first one. Except now, he was no longer frightened or sad.

A/N : So, what did you think? I enjoy a lot writing this story, I hope you'll have fun reading it. I also hope I'm improving compared to my first multichapter that could have been better. I'm trying to write more descriptions, to detail the characters' feelings better than I did in the other one. Please review, and tell me what you thought about this first chapter!