Chapter 1

Jeffersonian Institute, Brennan's Office

Brennan was sitting at her desk finishing up some paperwork when she got the call. Yes that fateful phone call that would change her life forever.

She picked up the office phone and answered, "Dr. Brennan speaking"

"Dr. Brennan this is Deputy Director Cullen."

"Is Booth alright? Did something happen?"

"Dr. Brennan I need you to come down to my office straight away. I will explain everything when you get here"

"Of course I will be there in 20 minutes."

"See you soon Dr. Brennan." Cullen hung up and then realised that she was going to have to travel at least 25 miles per hour faster than the legal limit if she were to get there in 20 minutes. He shook his the thought out of his head and started on some backed up paperwork while he waited for the great Dr. Brennan to arrive.

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20 Minutes Later

I heard her before she even entered my office as I could hear her arguing with my secretary. I got up and opened the door, "It's fine Mary I forgot to tell you to let Dr. Brennan enter when she arrived. Please come on in Dr. Brennan. Thank you Mary." Mary just looked exasperated at having to deal with the incorrigible anthropologist once again.

Dr. Brennan brushed past me and I shut the door behind her. She looked pissed at me, oh boy I feel sorry for Agent Booth.

"I don't want to be rude but what is so important that you couldn't tell me over the phone?" she demanded.

"I can assure you that Agent Booth is quite alright in fact I have called you here as I need you to do something for me." I paused as I was very unsure of how she would react.

"Well?"

"Dr. Brennan, please have a seat, what I have to tell you is rather important."

She sat and so I continued, "Dr. Brennan I want you to go into the Witness Protection Programme …"

"What! No!" She interrupted me before I could continue.

"Dr. Brennan please compose yourself, it is for your own safety. Now I want you to go into protection and you can take Alyssa with you but Agent Booth will have to stay here so he can catch the perp who is after you."

"No" Again with the stubbornness, how on earth does Agent Booth put up with this all the time.

"Please Dr. Brennan, you need to understand the danger that you are in!"

"I have handled dangerous suspects before. So what is so different this time?"

I decided that I would have to be blunt, "Dr. Brennan the Grave Digger is back!"

I watched silently as the colour drained from her face and judging from the expressionless look she now wore I thanked the gods that she was sitting down already as she might have collapsed.

"What about Hodgins? Is he going to be protected?"

I should have expected this, however I was unprepared as to how quickly she had composed herself. As a result it took me a few moments to answer and she had started to get angry again.

"Cullen, is he going to be protected? You do recall that he was in the car with me?"

I decided to let the fact that she only addressed me by my surname slip by, after all she was stressed. "Dr. Hodgins will be protected but he will not be relocated, however there will be four Agents placed at his home around the clock. Please don't worry about Dr. Hodgins or his family, they will be safe."

She relented fairly quickly and her anger was replaced with a sadness I had never seen from her before. In that instant my heart broke for her, she had been through so much and I thought it was so unfair that she had to revisit something in the past that caused her so much pain.

"I don't think that I can do this without Booth?" she spoke so softly that I almost missed it.

"Dr. Brennan…"

"Sir, please call me Brennan, everyone else does and I have worked for you for a long time."

"With."

"Pardon?"

"You have worked with the F.B.I, not for us." I felt honoured that she was allowing me to address her as a companion rather than a minion. "And I would be glad to address you as Brennan, as long as you stop addressing me as Sir, only my Agents have to talk to me like that. Even Booth has to address me as Sir, I think that this will annoy him don't you?"

"Sir I …"

I gave her a look and let her continue.

"I don't really know how to do this without Booth being there to help me, I don't think that I will be able to survive on my own."

I suddenly had a thought, "Brennan, I'm sure that you will be ok, but I suppose that I could allow you to stay with Dr. Hodgins and his family, I will need to check with him first but here is my plan…"