Thank yous must be said, especially to those who had taken the time to leave a review. bookwormlady, MstgSzy (lol! bag the sniper episode, yup that's the one I'm referring to in my AN), gatewatcher (everyone would love Booth snuggles), MoreBonesPlz (unfortunately he's in for abt more pain before he gets any help), topaz270, 554Laura, kareneb (things aren't really improving much yet), Poppyblue5 (ouch, glad you made a full recovery), jsboneslover. To the many who have followed and faved thank you too.
Some of you were quick to point out that it was an oversight of Brennan's (and mine) to allow Booth to fall asleep if she suspected that he was suffering from a concussion. I hope you'll pardon her, she had just been in an accident. This chapter does address this fact.
As to the baby thing, when I watched The New Tricks in the Old Dogs, I thought that if season 12 wasn't going to be the last, it would have been very possible for B&B to have another kid. Especially after their car conversation. So, I'd like to explore that possibility but in another fic.
A disclaimer before we get started on the next chapter, I'd like to state that my knowledge on the subject of surviving in the wild is limited so bear with me. This chapter might require you to suspend some degree of disbelief.
Thanks for reading my very long AN, let's get on with the story.
It was a cool night, the canopy of the forest preventing much moonlight from shinning down to where the couple lay. The small fire provided much needed warmth and light in the darkness. Booth was exhausted but his tired brain would not let him sleep, which was a good thing since he wanted to stay awake to keep watch on their little camp site. Every breath still hurt and the fogginess in his brain persisted, preventing the clarity of thought he knew he needed to get them out alive. To stay awake, he turned things over in his mind, formulating a plan. Given the fact that he knew he might not be thinking straight, he hoped the plan would work.
It was dawn when Brennan stirred. Their camp fire had burned itself out but the sun was beginning to rise, providing some light and warmth to the cold, misty morning. Her aching body immediately reminded her of their predicament and she suddenly remembered belatedly that she shouldn't have allowed Booth to fall asleep. She hurriedly turned her head to check on him. Her neck protested the action with a dull ache. She was shocked to find that he looked worse than the day before. His eyes were ashen and during the night the gash where he had hit his forehead had swelled up and begun to bleed again, leaving a trail of matted blood down his cheek. His eyes though open looked glazed over.
"Booth," her tongue, stuck to the roof of her mouth, felt like it was swollen and she was very thirsty.
He blinked slowly. "Bones." His speech seemed a little more slurred. The panic in her rose. She knew he needed medical attention soon.
"We need to get help."
"Yeah." Booth swallowed and this throat felt sore. His thoughts were muddled and he wasn't sure if there was a fog that had descended on them or that his vision was blurred.
Slowly, the couple got to their feet, with Booth taking some time to steady himself.
"We need to find water." Brennan stated. "We're both getting dehydrated. Although, I don't think we should drink the water from the river, it is full of fecal matter."
She paused. Normally talk on fecal matter would cause Booth to voice his disgust on the subject. This time he was strangely mute.
"We should keep going." Booth finally spoke.
"Yes but in which direction?"
"That way." Booth pointed away from the river.
"I thought we should stay close to the river?"
"I've been thinking, our best chance of help is to get the attention of a passing car. We could skirt the bottom of the mountain, hopefully we can find a slope gentle enough we can climb. Then all we gotta do is wait for a car to pass by."
Booth's reasoning was sound, it seemed logical to follow it. She knew he was struggling. She knew she had to take the lead this time. Taking his hand, she led the way, following Booth's instructions. She set a slow pace as they trekked along the bottom of the ridge. She stopped now and then to assess the incline, hoping they would find one they could climb soon. She was extremely thirsty and with each step she felt her energy deplete even further. She couldn't imagine how Booth had to be feeling.
After some time, she felt his hand slip from hers. She turned to find Booth staggering back, leaning against a tree.
"Booth?"
"I'm… I just need to catch my breath."
"You're not okay." Brennan stated, her voice shaky with worry.
"I just… I'm running out of steam here. It just hurts even to walk. I can't catch my breath and my head's killing me. The world's spinning and I can't see very well."
She hurried to his side, taking his arm, she helped him lower himself to the ground. "We'll rest here and when you feel better we can get going again."
"No Bones. I'm just gonna slow you down. We need to find water. You need to find water."
Brennan knew he was right. Given the state they were in and the fact that Booth was injured meant his body might not be able to handle dehydration as well as it should.
"You have a lighter, I could go back to the river. We could start a fire, boil the water and it'll be safe to drink."
"I thought about that last night but we don't have anything to boil the water in. I figure we probably can go another day without anything to drink but it'll be risky. You need to keep moving, get help before both of us are too weak to do that."
"You want me to go on without you?"
"Yeah."
"No! I'm not leaving you Booth."
"Bones if we both stay here, we'll probably have to spend another night out here. I'm not a big fan of sleeping out here in the forest and I don't think you are too. If we don't find water soon, we might pass out. Look, I wanna get out of here as much as you do, and right now our best bet is for you to go ahead without me. If you get help, you can come back for me."
Brennan knew Booth made perfect sense but her heart refused to obey her brain.
"I can't leave you Booth. What if I can't get help in time? What if I leave you and something happens to you? I couldn't live with myself knowing I left you and something happened…"
"I'll hang on. It'll be okay." He tried to offer her a reassuring smile. "I wanna go home to Hank and Christine as much as you do and right now the only way for us to do that is for you to go on without me."
"Booth…"
"Come here." Booth pulled her into his embrace, ignoring the pain in his chest, he held her tightly to him. He just needed her to be okay. He needed to know that he had did his best to make sure she got rescued. Brennan buried her face in the crook of his neck, pushing aside the thought that this could possibly be the last time she saw him alive. Booth straightened with much difficulty. He handed her his gun.
"Just in case you run into a bear or something. You know how to use it."
"What about you?"
"I'll be fine. Just stick to the plan. Skirt the edge of the slopes, find some place not too steep, climb up. Make sure you check for loose rocks. When you climb don't look down just keep going till you reach the top okay? If you can't find a good way up by evening, find some place to wait out the night." He hoped it wouldn't come to that but he didn't say it out loud. He knew if she didn't find help by night, chances were they'd never be found.
An internal conflict raged inside of her. She wavered between not wanting to leave him and going to get help. She was frustrated to the point of tears at their impossible situation. Booth continued giving her instructions.
"Take my watch. When you get help, you go with the rescuers. Don't come back with them for me. Note the time now and the time when they find you. Then all you gotta do is point them in the direction you came from and tell them how long it took for you to get there. They'll find me. Promise you'll do as I say." It was something she didn't do very often, and this time he needed more than anything for her to do as he wanted her to.
Brennan nodded. "Booth I – "
He pressed a shaky finger to her dry, chapped lips. "I know. I love you too. Now go and don't look back. Promise me."
"I promise."
"I'll see you soon Bones." Booth wanted to believe that she would get help. He wanted to believe that he would see her and their children again. But he knew there was a possibility he wouldn't. He knew his head injury was probably bad and he found comfort in the fact that Brennan would be rescued and that if anything happened to him, his children would at least still have their mother.
Brennan dug deep, knowing that it was up to her now to save her husband. She reluctantly extracted herself from his arms, pressing a quick kiss to his lips.
She fisted his jacket. "Don't you die." She knew it was impossible, but she wanted to will him to survive.
"I won't."
And with those parting words, Brennan turned and hurried along the bottom of the slope, just as he had instructed. If she had turned back she would have seen Booth slumping back against the tree, his eyes closing.
Brennan hiked for about an hour before she found an incline that looked manageable. She remembered Booth's words. Tucking Booth's gun in to the waistband of her jeans she tugged at the protruding rocks, pulling at them to test if they came loose. They held. She made it a few feet up before making up her mind that she couldn't waste any more time. It was now or never. Her husband's life could depend on what she did next.
Inch by inch she painstakingly pulled herself up the slope, pulling with her arms and pushing with her legs. About halfway up, one of the rocks she was pulling on came loose and for a terrifying moment she thought she would fall. Instinctively she clawed at the nearby rocks, her hand finding purchase on another sturdier handhold. She hugged the slope, catching her breath, her heart racing. She took only a moment to compose herself before she was climbing upwards again, the thought of Booth propelling her on.
Step by step she pushed herself physically and mentally, until she finally reached the top. She pulled herself onto the dirt track, collapsing on the tiny road, panting. After catching her breath, she stood up on shaky legs, checking Booth's watch. She had left him almost two hours ago. She was hopeful a car would pass by soon and she was right. Before long she saw a truck approaching. She waved her tired arms, hoping the driver would see her and stop.
Her heart leapt as the truck slowed to pull up beside her. She had did it, she had got help. She just hoped it wasn't too late for Booth.
Booth is usually the hero, in my fics. This time I wanted to have Brennan be the heroine and save the day. One more chapter to go.
One more chapter to this story. RL is going to get busy in the coming week, I hope I'll be able to post the last chapter some time next week.
