Chapter 4

Zach decided the best thing to do was act like last night's scene never happened. It turned out that was easier said than done. He swiped his card and climbed the stairs, grateful she wasn't on the platform yet this morning. Hodgins and Angela were absent as well, which was something else to be thankful for. He didn't think he was ready to face them yet, wasn't quite ready to pretend his heart wasn't broken. Pulling on a pair of latex gloves, he got started on the remains the lab assistant had laid out on the exam table. As he worked, he gradually regained his equilibrium.

Forty minutes later Dr. Brennan came up the platform stairs with Angela and all the progress he'd made went up in smoke. "Morning, Zach," Angela said.

He darted a look up at her. She was looking at him with a smile and no apparent sign of sympathy, so it seemed Dr. Brennan had followed his wishes. "Hi, Angela. I'll have the skull ready for you by noon." His gaze slid to Dr. Brennan. "Good morning, Dr. Brennan," he said in a remarkably steady voice.

She smiled at him without a hint of what had passed between them the night before. "Good morning, Zach. Are you done with the preliminary on our John Doe?"

"No, this one is going to take at least a few more hours. There is no obvious sign of trauma," he said as he resumed his examination. He felt her come up beside him and tensed, painfully aware of her scent. She bent to look closely at the particulates he was examining and he glanced at her from the corner of his eye. She was frowning.

"What do you think that is?" she asked.

"Some kind of fine dust, possibly drywall. I'm sure Hodgins will be able to tell us," Zach said, sealing the vial with the dust in it and moving away from her quickly.

Hodgins came up on the platform just then. "Did I hear my name?"

Zach handed him the vial. "I need a full spectrum analysis on this dust that I found on the victim's clothes," he told him. Hodgins took the vial and went to his station and Zach resumed his examination of the remains. He tensed up when Dr. Brennan came up beside him. Zach gave her another look from the corner of his eye. She was bent over the chest cavity of the victim as she pulled on gloves, frowning. He should have found it easier to assume a professional detachment in the face of her apparent relaxed manner, but he was intensely aware of her proximity.

"Hodgins, have you been able to come up with the time since death?" she asked as she picked up a pair of forceps. Zach leaned forward to try to see what had caught her attention and his shoulder brushed against hers. Jerking back, he knocked into the tray of instruments and only just managed to stop it from crashing to the floor. Blushing, he looked up to find Angela watching him with an odd look. Brennan glanced at him and went back to her examination. "Be careful, Zach," she said quietly. Her calm did nothing to alleviate his embarrassment.

"Sorry, Dr. Brennan," he muttered, moving around to the opposite side of the table. He could feel Angela's stare boring into his back. He bent over to look at the bit of fabric Dr. Brennan was holding up. "What is it?" he asked, distracted in spite of himself.

"It looks like it might be cotton, possibly a piece of a shirt. It was imbedded in one of the cuts," she said.

"It doesn't match any of the victim's clothing. Do you think it might be from the killer's shirt?" he wondered aloud.

Brennan frowned up at him. "It's too soon to say. You know I don't like speculation," she said, irritated. She put the bit of cloth in an evidence envelope and handed it to Zach. "Have Hodgins analyze it. Give him samples of the victim's clothes to compare it to. It isn't a visual match, but I'd like him to confirm."

Zach nodded jerkily and turned to take the envelope over to Hodgins, smarting a bit from her reproof. Angela was still watching him, but he avoided her eyes, returning to the table. "I n-need to finish applying the tissue markers to the skull," he stammered. Maybe if he gave Angela something to do, she'd quit staring at him like she was figuring things out.

Dr. Brennan didn't even look at him. "That's fine," she said absently, completely absorbed. Zach went over to his station and sat down with his back to everyone. His nerves were shot. He wished he'd never gotten up the nerve to ask her, wished he could somehow take it back. Sighing, he picked up the skull and started working, the only thing he knew for certain he could handle.

BBBBBB

Angela rolled her chair over to Zach's station and sat watching him attaching the tissue markers. He almost dropped the skull when she spoke to him so softly that the others couldn't overhear.

"What's up, Zach?" she asked.

Zach darted a glance at her, then focused on the skull again. "I don't know what you mean," he said evasively.

She cocked her head at him, watching his profile. "C'mon, Z-man, I can tell something's got you jumpy. Maybe if you tell me what it is, I can help you deal with it," she coaxed.

"I'm fine," he said, setting the skull down and reaching for another marker.

Angela rolled her chair a little closer. "No, you're not. I've never seen you this nervous before," she persisted.

"I'd rather not discuss it right now," he said softly, wishing she'd go back to her station. He was almost done doing the markers.

"So there is something," she said triumphantly, a smile teasing at her lips.

Zach shook his head, amazed at her tenacity. "I didn't say that. I'm busy right now and I don't want to discuss your delusion that something is bothering me. Give me five minutes and you can have the skull."

She watched as he applied another marker. "You know, I'm gonna find out, so you might as well tell me," she warned, glancing over to make sure Hodgins wasn't paying attention. A glance over her shoulder assured her that Brennan seemed oblivious as well.

Zach sighed, frustrated. "There's nothing to tell, therefore nothing for you to find out, so you might as well drop it." He forced himself to meet her gaze calmly and stoically endured her probing stare.

After a long, tense moment, she sighed. "Fine. Have it your way, Z-man," she said, rolling her chair back to her station and folding her arms, leaning back and staring at him.

Moments later he applied the last marker and took the skull to her. She thanked him with a smile which he returned with relief.

"I'm going to take a break," he announced to nobody in particular. Pulling off his gloves, he forced himself to walk off the platform, when he really wanted to run. He headed for the break room, hoping to get a moment to regain his composure. His encounter with Angela had really unnerved him.