Chapter Three

Brennan left Booth comfortably reclined on the sofa playing a video game when she left their apartment to head for the Jeffersonian. She stopped at the coffee shop on the corner and picked up a large chai tea and some fresh ginger snaps, and then made her way to the lab.

Once inside the sterile but comforting environs of her workplace, Brennan made a beeline for her office, eager to begin working on her Samurai warrior. She loved this feeling…right before she began to examine a new set of remains. The thrill of unraveling the mystery of who the bones on her table belonged to, what they had done with their life, how they had managed to end up in her lab…all questions she looked forward to finding the answers to each and every time, without fail. It was the most satisfying part of her job.

Moving quickly, Brennan removed her jacket and grabbed her lab coat, preparing to head to the platform, where Dr. Edison had been kind enough to lay the bones out earlier that morning. With a quick glance, she could see her former intern, now colleague, having a lively conversation with Hodgins to the left of the platform, but no sign of any other team members. Just as she finished her tea and began to head out the door, her office phone rang.

"Brennan." She answered impatiently.

There was a beat of silence, and then an official-sounding voice responded. "Dr. Brennan? This is Charlie Burns."

"Charlie? Is something wrong?" She sat down at her desk with a whoosh, knowing exactly why Booth's former protégé was calling.

"Dr. Brennan…uh, we have a situation here. Do you remember a man named Dale McInerney?"

Sighing, Brennan nodded to herself. "Yes, I remember Dale. What can I help you with?"

"If you could come down to the Hoover, Dr. Brennan…this would be better discussed in person." Charlie sounded apologetic, and Brennan felt bad for letting him believe she didn't know what was going on.

Looking wistfully up at the remains on the platform, Brennan acquiesced. "Sure, that isn't a problem. Would it be alright if I brought Booth with me?"

More silence on the other end, and then Charlie said the one thing Brennan never expected. "Booth is already down here, Dr. Brennan. He is being interrogated as we speak."

"What? Why?" Brennan was shocked and incredibly confused.

"Just…please come down here, Dr. Brennan. As soon as you can."

B&B

After letting Cam know that she was leaving, Brennan headed out immediately, arriving at the J. Edgar Hoover Building in less than ten minutes. She signed into the reception area and practically ran for the elevators, so distracted she didn't notice the looks she was being given by the agents in the car with her. Once she reached the correct floor, she exited quickly and began looking for Charlie Burns in a near panic. Finally seeing the senior agent standing outside one of the interrogation rooms, she rushed over to him, not caring about how frantic she looked.

"Charlie! What the hell is going on?" She took a deep breath and tried to control her shaking hands. "Why is Booth being interrogated?"

Charlie nodded to the agent standing next to him, and quietly led Brennan to a second interview room, escorting her in and closing the door behind him. "Please, Dr. Brennan…have a seat."

Realization finally dawned, and Brennan sank down into the hard metal chair, boneless. "Divide and conquer. Oh, my God."

Charlie quirked an eyebrow at her before taking the seat directly across the table. "I promise you, Dr. Brennan, this is a simple fact-finding interview. You are not under suspicion for anything."

"Are you going to tell me about Dale?" She was feeling more herself now, once she realized that Charlie was lying to her about his intentions. She had attended enough of them to know an interrogation when she was right on the middle of one.

Charlie opened the questioning without preamble. "Two days ago, Dale McInerney was found shot to death in Belle Isle State Park. He was hog tied in the trunk of his car. Where were you five days ago, Wednesday the 11th?"

Brennan affected a shocked look, but her stammered answer was genuine. "I…I, uh…I was at work most of the day. Was there a specific time you were inquiring about?"

Charlie checked his notes, and then locked eyes with Brennan. "What did you do after work that day?"

"If I remember correctly, I went home."

"Were you alone?"

"No, I-" Suddenly, the reason that Booth was in the other interview room came into sharp focus. "Actually, yes. Booth had a late meeting, and he didn't get home until after I…" She trailed off, a sick feeling settling in the pit of her stomach.

"After you what, Dr. Brennan?" Charlie urged gently.

Closing her eyes, Brennan shook her head. "He didn't do this, Charlie. You know that."

"Right now, I don't know anything." Charlie leaned forward, and then made a slashing motion across his throat in the direction of the observation window. Once he was satisfied that the recording devices were off, he continued. "There is forensic evidence that puts Booth at the crime scene, Dr. Brennan. Solid, indisputable evidence that we had triple checked by a third party lab this morning. So it's bad, and if you want me to even begin to sort this all out, I need you to tell me when Booth came home last Wednesday night."

"Charlie…" She covered her mouth with one hand, while the other curled into a fist in her lap. Her heart was screaming at her to keep her mouth shut, but her head, in a voice that sounded infuriatingly like Booth's, was telling her to speak the truth. "I…don't know. I was asleep." Her voice was almost a whisper, but Agent Burns heard every word.

"Thank you, Dr. Brennan." He stood, collecting his papers quietly. "I will have another agent escort you out." He turned and started to open the door, stopping briefly. He looked at Brennan, who was staring at the wall with a shell-shocked expression on her face. "Dr. Brennan? For what it's worth, I don't believe that Booth did this. But I have to follow the evidence. More than anyone, I hope that you can appreciate that." He waited for a moment, and when it was clear Brennan wasn't going to respond, he gave her one parting piece of advice.

"Call a lawyer, Dr. Brennan. As soon as you can." And then he was gone, leaving Brennan alone in the room with her dark thoughts.