The Lady in the Lake
By 18lzytwner
Chapter 1
The Jeffersonian Medico-Legal Lab, Wednesday at 9:00 am
Three and a half weeks after "The Man in the Chimney"
Sitting at her desk pounding away on the keyboard, Dr. Temperance Brennan was finishing her latest report. She was upset and the poor keyboard was taking her wrath as she continued to hit the keys as hard as she could. For the past three and a half weeks she'd been dealing with Agent Eli Bett and she hadn't liked it. He had just joined the FBI a few months ago and wasn't exactly the caliber of agent she was used to working with. Bett had thrown up at the crime scene, which needless to say didn't make the scene anymore pleasant. Then he'd waited around the Lab as if she and the team could get the answers faster by him standing over their shoulders. He'd tried hitting on Angela, to which Hodgins told him if he didn't back off he'd make sure that he'd have him busted so low he'd be sweeping floors at the Hoover building instead of being an agent. Brennan rolled her eyes after remembering that one because there was no way Hodgins had that kind of power but apparently Bett didn't know that. Getting back to her report she didn't notice the person standing at the door until she heard a knock on its frame.
"What now?" She asked without looking up from her work.
"I missed you too Bones," an all too familiar voice rang out. Upon hearing it Brennan jumped up from her seat and wrapped her arms around her original partner.
"I'm so glad you're back," she breathed as she squeezed him.
"Me too. I've never had someone squeeze me like that before," Booth smirked as she let go of him.
"That agent that Cullen sent to replace you was a joke. I hope I never have to go through that again," the forensic anthropologist said.
"Well we need to discuss that but before we can we have another case," her partner flashed the file folder in his right hand.
"A body was found floating in Lake McDonald up in Glacier National Park. You'd better grab your suitcase and make sure you have your warm woolies," he continued.
"Warm woolies?" Brennan questioned.
"Yeah, Bones, warm clothes and winter gear, especially boots. The normal temperature in that area of Montana in March is forty-five and it gets down to about twenty-five at night according to the National Park Service," Booth explained.
"Does that mean I'll need my winter pajamas as well?" That question made her partner smirk.
"It couldn't hurt, I love your fuzzy fleece," he told her.
"Then lets go," Brennan smiled. Quickly, she grabbed her laptop and case before heading out the door. They partners made their way to Booth's SUV and then to Brennan's apartment to get her suitcase packed.
En route to Kalispell, Montana via connecting flight in St. Louis, Wednesday at 12:00 pm
Brennan flipped through the case file trying to prepare herself for the body she was being sent out to look at. Her brow furrowed and Booth leaned over to see what was going on.
"What is it Bones?" He asked.
"Did you read this?" She wondered.
"Not completely. Cullen called me into his office for a talk and then handed the file over. I skimmed it while I was in the elevator," Booth answered.
"According to the local police what they believe is a woman's body was found floating in Lake McDonald. The body was duct taped to a lawn chair. They are trying to find what kept the chair weighed down by dredging the lake," Brennan informed him.
"That is a weird way of getting rid of a body," the FBI agent nodded.
"Yes, but hopefully the cold water will help preserve the evidence. I guess the bigger question is, who kills someone, duct tapes their body to a lawn chair and then dumps it out in the middle of a lake in a national park?" She wondered.
"Someone who had help. No way only one person is involved in this," Booth assured her. Closing the file, the forensic anthropologist looked over at him.
"What did we need to discuss? What did Cullen tell you?" She asked.
"He said that as far as the shooting, he believes that you were justified but he also says that while Sam's apartment was being searched they found notes he made about us," he swallowed hard.
"What kind of notes?" Brennan was starting to get nervous.
"Notes about us being romantically involved. Cullen said that they found no proof to substantiate the claims so it's being dismissed as a way of trying to discredit me and break up the relationship between the Jeffersonian and the FBI," Booth explained.
"Proof to substantiate? What does that mean?" His partner wondered.
"Like pictures of us sleeping together," he told her. Brennan's eyes went wide.
"Anyway, with just a hitman's word for it they aren't going to follow up. However Cullen said that if there were any truth to it, we would be in trouble. All of our cases would be thrown into question and we'd be split up," the G-man told her.
"So what do we do?" She asked.
"I don't know but we should focus on the case at hand and then I know we can sort this out together," he took her hand in his and gave it a squeeze. The last thing either one wanted to jeopardize their careers or the cases they'd worked but neither did they want to be apart. Left with this to think about silence fell between the two as they're plane got closer to their destination.
To Be Continued…