Chapter 3
„Squint-work"

Hodgins had worked like a manic, but he had found out nothing really helpful. He hated being without any clue. The lab was crowded with FBI people and other scientists. The Jeffersonian cooperated with the FBI laboratory to speed up the investigation but both teams were not able to report anything new.

Zach too had given his best, Cam tried to coordinate everything, but still they knew nothing. NOTHING. Hodgins decided to go through it all once again, it would do no harm, he thought. Again he looked at the few pieces of evidence. The ugly glass pyramide. The note. The parcel. The note had been written with an average ballpoint pen – no hidden information there. Average paper, no big suprise. He wondered about that glass pyramide... they had not found out, where it came from. They googled on glass pyramides and they had found some pictures, but there was nothing as tawdry and ugly. He did not know, where that awful thing could have been bought. The pyramide had very sharp edges, it was not really some piece of art... and it had been covered with that virus. When Dr. Brennan had cut her hand the virus had made it's way through her blood.

Then suddenly it struck him. 'Pyramides. Of course!' he thought. What if that pyramide has not been bought in the US but had been some kind of souvenir from Egypt?
He could not believe, that he had wasted hours until he had come to that simple conclusion. 'What a scientist' he thought. He looked at the pyramide once again.
A souvenir, yeah, that would be something cheap and ugly. He had never been to Egypt, but he knew, whom he could contact. His fellow student and friend Richard had moved to Egypt to help investigate old pharao graves. Hodgins had to grin, as he recalled, that Richard had always been fascinated about Egypt. That's why they had called him „scarab".

He knew Richard had published something in the last scientist's magazine he had read and after a short while he found the article. „The scarab, a stunning creature" read the headline. Underneath he found a picture and the contact data of Richard. 'Okay, scarab' he thought 'Let's see, if you can help me'.

Zach did not really know what to think. Dr. Brennan was in danger and he really wanted to help, but what should he do? There were no bones to examine and all the other things were not really his special field. But could he really proceed to usual work and deal with that 800 year old bones that were waiting for him? No not exactly for him, actually Dr. Brennan should have examined them, because she was the famous anthropologist everybody wanted to work on „his bones".

That was an idea... he suddenly recognized that he remembered Dr. Brennan meeting with a male collegue of hers, who had insulted her.
„Greedy" „publishing private details for money" „full of egotism" he recalled.

„What?" the female FBI agent that had been working next to him stared at him.
„Uhm, did I say that loud?" Zach shrugged „Never mind".
He rushed over to the computer... he had to search for information on that collegue.
It was not really a trace, more a feeling, although Zach would never admit that, but it was better than doing nothing.