A/N: Sorry for the delay in getting this to you. To make up for it, this chapter's extra long. I should point out that this is set before last week's episode (The Witch In The Woods) so Brennan doesn't know about Booth and Cam yet. Anyway, please let me know what you think cos I'm feeling a little disconnected from the characters at the moment so I'm worried it's all gone a bit wrong. I'll get the next chapter to you as soon as I can. Oh, and in case some of you don't know, the first couple of chapters (one mostly) have been reworked for extra BB goodness. Thanks for reading.
Booth strolled through the automatic doors leading in to the Jeffersonian labs, his cell phone pressed against his ear as he gritted his teeth at the irritating hold music. Pausing as his eyes roamed for his partner, the line finally connected.
"Deputy Director Cullen."
Booth unconsciously straightened up even though he knew his boss couldn't see him.
"Good morning sir, it's Agent Booth. I received a message that you needed to speak to me."
There was a pause at the other end of the line as papers rustled before his boss responded.
"Yes, Agent Booth. It's about the cases you've been working on recently."
Booth frowned, concerned as to why the Deputy Director was suddenly interested in a progress report.
He only does this when there's a problem. What the hell's going on?
"Are you talking about the bodies in the park, sir?"
"In a manner of speaking."
"I don't follow, sir."
Cullen cleared his throat and Booth felt the nerves claw at his stomach.
He sounds so uncomfortable. Am I in trouble here or something? I feel like I've just been called in to the Principal's office.
Cullen sighed heavily and Booth prepared himself for the worst.
"What's going on, sir?"
"I think I'm the one who should be asking you that question, Booth. Look, what you do on your own time is your business and your business only. Just as long as it doesn't interfere with your work, of course."
He paused and Booth's mind began to race.
I don't understand. What the hell is he talking about?
"Look, Booth, I'll get straight to the point. We may need to reassign you."
Seeley felt like his heart had just stopped beating.
"I'm sorry, sir, reassignment? Why?"
"As you're aware, your last case - the one with the wife murdered in her kitchen by the jealous toy boy - is about to go to court. According to the prosecution, every single piece of evidence is now being picked apart by the defence attorneys. They're going to put you on the stand and analyse your personal life."
"My personal life? What's that got to do with any of it? It's not relevant."
"I'm afraid that in the light of certain revelations, it is. They're using your supposed relationship with Doctor Saroyan to attack the credibility of all the investigators. If they can sway the jury on the fact that the two of you may have had your own agenda, then reasonable doubt is pretty much guaranteed."
Booth leant against the wall as he ran a frustrated hand through his hair, his knees weak and almost unable to support him.
This isn't happening. This just isn't happening. How the hell did Cullen and the defence attorneys find out about me and Cam? For God's sake, not even Bones knows! What the hell do I do?
Cullen's voice pulled Booth back to the lab.
"Booth, I'm sorry to have to ask you this but are you currently in a relationship with Doctor Saroyan?"
Gritting his teeth, he was tempted not to answer. After all, it was his personal life and had nothing to do with his work. Of course, that wouldn't be the picture the defence attorneys would paint.
"Yes, I am."
"Then I hope you can see the problems that causes for us."
Booth felt his anger beginning to surge as he clenched his fist by his side.
"Sir, you don't honestly think that Cam and I would conspire to manipulate the evidence to put innocent guys behind bars, do you?"
"Of course I don't. But I'm not on the jury, am I? Look, you and Doctor Brennan are probably the best investigative team the FBI has ever seen and I certainly would never do anything to meddle with that, even if that woman does exasperate me beyond belief at times. However, even I have to answer to someone, Booth, and right now my boss is nervous. And when he's nervous…"
"Then heads will roll, I know."
Sighing in resignation, Booth closed his eyes as he waited for the bad news.
"So, what exactly is going to happen?"
"To be honest, Booth, I'm not sure. Your reputation as an investigator is outstanding and even though your partner does tend to rub a lot of people up the wrong way, no one can deny the fact that she is extraordinarily talented. I mean, everything she did with my little girl…"
Cullen tailed offand Booth couldn't help but remember that horrific case, watching the hell his boss was going through as his daughter fought the cancer that invaded her body, the cancer some money-hungry idiots had put there. She was close to losing her battle and right now, so was Booth.
"Sir, what do I do?"
He was surprised to hear the helplessness in his own voice and hoped his boss hadn't noticed it too.
"For now, just try not to worry about it. I just wanted to make you aware of the situation. The prosecution lawyers are talking to the judge as we speak. We're hoping that he'll rule your relationship to be inadmissible. After all, there's no evidence that either one of you has done anything wrong. You know what lawyers are like. They're trying to make you out to be some kind of liability to the FBI."
"So, what about the prospect of reassignment?"
"That answer lies with the guys upstairs, Booth. All I can tell you is that things aren't looking too good. I mean if they're doing this now, on what is essentially a low-profile case, what would the bastards be like on a big one? I think you're going to have to talk to both Doctor Saroyan and Doctor Brennan about this. Just in case, you know?"
Booth didn't know what to say.
Everything was going so well. When I woke up this morning, I had a job that I loved, a partner who I trusted with my life and a great girlfriend. And now it looks like all of that's about to be taken away from me, I don't know what to do.
"I'll definitely talk to them as soon as I can, sir. And if you hear anything else about any of this, please let me know as soon as possible."
"Of course, Booth. Of course. For now though, I suggest you get back to working your current case and just carry on like normal. I'll see you in the office later."
The line went dead but Booth didn't move the phone from his ear. He just stood there, staring straight ahead but looking at nothing. Slowly, he lowered his arm and slid the cell phone in to the pocket of his suit trousers.
Leaning his head back against the wall, Seeley closed his eyes and sighed heavily.
So where does this leave me? Break up with Cam and keep my job though it'll probably do nothing to stop what the lawyers are doing, or stay with her and lose Bones and maybe end up getting transferred to the middle of nowhere. I'd hardly call that a fair choice…
The touch of a gentle hand on his arm nearly made Booth jump right out of his skin. His eyes flinging open, he spun on his heel to face the intruder on his thoughts.
Brennan's concerned eyes stared back at him as she tentatively removed her hand from his arm.
"Booth? What's wrong?"
He blinked rapidly as his mind raced.
How do I tell her that I think I've ruined everything? How do I tell her that I'm probably going to be forced to leave because I'm dating her boss, that I've jeopardised our work, the one thing that would truly hurt her?
He heard himself speak without realising he was actually doing it.
"Nothing, Bones. I'm fine. Just a little tired, that's all."
Liar…Tell her the damn truth. She's your partner, she'll understand. She's Bones, for God's sake.
She was giving him that look, her eyes questioning him.
"Really, Bones. Quit looking at me like that! I'm fine. What's going on with the bodies from the park?"
He flashed her his biggest charm smile, even though he was mentally berating himself.
Idiot… You've got to tell her. You can't just not turn up one day, pretending like you forgot to tell her that you were being reassigned because you'd become a damned liability. And all because you started screwing her boss. Again…
She was still staring at him, obviously weighing up whether it was better to probe his personal life or just focus on their work. After a few more seconds, she had obviously made up her mind.
Pulling a file from under her arm, Brennan marched off in the direction of the examination platform and Booth dutifully followed with a sigh of relief. He knew he would have to tell his partner eventually, but not yet. Just not yet.
Following the anthropologist towards the steps up to the stage where Hodgins and Zach were waiting, Booth realised his partner was talking to him. He shook his head slightly, trying to regain his focus.
"Sorry Bones, say that again?"
She sighed but immediately repeated the little information she had garnered.
"The bodies got here about half an hour ago. Zach's been conducting the preliminary examination and Hodgins has been looking at the clothing for insect activity and soil samples. Apparently he's found some kind of sludge, possibly decomposing organic material which he might be able to use to determine where the pair came from, maybe even where they were killed."
Booth nodded slowly.
"And he actually likes his job? Well, whatever strokes his Buddha…"
Brennan just sighed but didn't even break her stride, marching past the security guard at the bottom of the stairs. Booth paused, glancing at the guard with a slight shrug.
"Well, I thought that was funny…"
He jogged up the stairs after her and dropped himself down on one of the stools with a flourish, flicking his poker chip in the air as he grinned at the squint squad.
Watching his partner talking to the other members of the brain trust, Booth felt a strange pang in his chest. He was the first to admit that the entire team had been through a lot together, but all it had served to do was strengthen the bond between them all.
Closing his eyes briefly, he couldn't drive the image of Brennan bound and beaten out of his mind. It had happened too many times. When she was tied up by Agent Kenton, the way she looked when the group rescued her and Hodgins from the Grave Robber, not to mention the way she held him when he saved her from the hands of Katie Harwood in the supposed safe haven of Quantico.
He'd come so close to losing her so many times and now it was likely he was going to lose her in a different way, it was eating him alive. Not that he could show her that.
I'm the cop in all of this, she's the squint. I've got to stay normal. I can't let her know what's going on. I can't let her know that I'm her biggest liability right now. I can't let her know that. She'd probably never forgive me.
Turning back to the group, he caught his partner's eye. She was staring at him, that look of concern still obvious on her face. He flashed her his biggest, brightest charm smile and prayed it was convincing.
"So, what've we got?"
Brennan was leaning over the examination table, her eyes narrowed as her gaze patrolled the bones of the first victim. Hodgins glanced up from a Petri dish, a look of strange contentment in his eyes.
"Actually, this is really very fascinating. The crossover of organic particles from different areas is incredibly revealing of where these people were before they were buried. Not to mention the density gradient of this decomposing material… I'm going to examine the fractural imagery and possibly run it through the GCMS to test the types of organic material contained in it. I mean dude, this is what I live for!"
Booth blinked slowly before clearing his throat.
"Ok, enough of the geek speak Hodgins. Bones, what's the deal with the bodies? Do you think that you'll actually be able to figure out who they are?"
Brennan straightened up, hands placed firmly on hips as she cocked an eyebrow.
"It's the second victim that we've got a problem with. The bone markers and use of extensive cosmetic surgery could make identification incredibly difficult, even if we do retrieve DNA."
She gave the body a quick glance full of exasperation. Booth understood her frustration all too well.
The whole reason she does this job is to put a face to these poor people, to give them back their dignity and their lives. It kills her when she can't do that.
Brennan turned back to the remains in front of her.
"This first victim should be simple to identify. Angela can run a simple reconstruction on the skull once we've cleaned the bones and I've placed the tissue depth markers. There are also numerous childhood injuries we can run against medical records, not to mention that there's still enough skin and decomposing organs for Cam to run the DNA."
Booth couldn't help but wrinkle his nose in disgust as Brennan's gloved hands delved in to the large wound in the victim's abdomen, his lower ribs poking through the gaps.
"That's, uh, nice Bones. Any idea of cause of death?"
She nodded, removing her hand and pointing down at the wound.
"The ragged edges imply that this is the exit wound of a shotgun blast, probably from behind. Zach, can you hand me those tweezers?"
"Certainly, Doctor Brennan."
He appeared at her side, handing over the implement and watching intently as she carefully removed the remnants of shotgun pellets. Dropping them into a Petri dish, she placed it on the tray next to her.
Her gaze trailing up the body, she slowly focused in on the neck. Nodding at Zach, he moved in closer.
"There appears to be a cervical fracture of the third vertebrae."
Booth narrowed his eyes at the young scientist.
"So, the guy had his neck broken?"
Zach sighed.
"I believe I just said that, Agent Booth. However, it was a post mortem injury."
Brennan nodded with an approving smile.
"And how did you reach that conclusion?"
He pointed at an area of the neck that Booth couldn't see so he instead focused on the look of pride in his partner's eyes as she listened to her grad student explain.
"The remaining surrounding tissue obviously suffered damage when the fracture occurred but there is no evidence of blood rushing to the area as it would if there was still circulation, ergo his heart was no longer beating."
Booth had to admit, the young guy was incredibly smart. Scarily so most of the time. He was glad to have the kid on his team. Not that he'd ever admit that to him though. After all, he still occasionally got the urge to shoot him.
"Ok great, so the guy's neck was broken after he was dead. Was the gunshot what killed him though?"
Brennan didn't even look up as she answered him.
"Booth, I'm trying not to jump to conclusions here."
She glanced up at Hodgins who was happily examining the soil samples he had collected from the victims.
"Hodgins, could you ask Angela to come out here and make a start on putting faces to our bodies?"
Booth couldn't help but notice that the smile on the scientist's face grew to epic proportions at the idea of going to see his favourite artist. His face literally lit up as he hopped off the stool and marched off.
"With pleasure."
He disappeared from the platform and Booth turned his attention back to his partner. Brennan straightened up and moved a camera over an area of the skull, sending an enlarged image of the injuries to the flatscreen in front of Booth. He leaned forward, not getting what he was supposed to be looking at. Brennan moved round, pointing at the image.
"This fracture here indicates that this man was hit over the head with some sort of heavy object, probably a wrench or a crowbar. We'll have to take an impression of the fracture after the remaining skin's been removed to get a better idea but this man's skull is covered in injuries. Some are years old, some have only just started to heal. All in all, I'd say this man suffered a lot of abuse over the years."
Booth leaned back, folding his arms across his chest as he thought the information through.
"But the injury from the crowbar or whatever, that happened around the time of death?"
"Yes, without doubt."
"But it didn't kill him?"
"No. It most likely knocked him unconscious and would certainly have caused his brain to bleed inside his skull. If it wasn't for the gunshot wound to the abdomen, the blow to his head would have got him within a few hours."
Booth nodded, images of potential scenarios running through his mind's eye.
"So maybe this guy got in to some kind of fight. The amount of abuse that he suffered would mean that he'd have at least learnt how to defend himself over the years. But someone clunks him round the head, he gets knocked out and falls to the ground. But maybe he's still struggling, maybe that's not enough for the attacker. As long as he's lying on his front, that could explain why he got the gunshot wound to the back, right?"
Brennan just stared at him for a moment before she sighed.
"It still amazes me how you manage to come up with a whole series of events before all the evidence has even been found."
Booth shrugged as he grinned at her.
"What can I say? I'm a gifted investigator."
She almost snorted with laughter as Hodgins reappeared on the platform, his face pale and his eyes wide. Booth sat up straight, concerned by the look in the scientist's eyes.
"Hodgins, what's wrong?"
He blinked rapidly, staring at the FBI agent.
"Angela, she… I went to her office but… I don't know who…"
Booth jumped to his feet, crossing the distance between them in a heartbeat as he clapped a hand on the man's shoulder, attempting to reassure him.
"It's ok, Jack, it's ok. Take it slow, alright? What's happened with Angela?"
Hodgins couldn't look him in the eye as he spoke, fear evident in his croaky voice.
"I went to find her for Doctor Brennan but as soon as I got in the office, I knew something was wrong. Her things were everywhere, just thrown about. And her art, her latest painting, it was sliced to shreds. I shouted her name, I looked for her but she wasn't there. But these were."
He raised his hands and Booth noticed the things he was carrying for the first time.
Giving his partner a worried glance as she reached his side, Booth took the piece of paper out of Hodgins's shaking hands. Realising he didn't recognise the writing, he knew Angela hadn't written it. He read it slowly, his heart in his mouth.
"He that is without sin amongst you, let him cast the first stone." - John 8:7
You're hardly without sin, are you sweet Angela? You've entered the world where Angelas fear to tread. Time to run little painter, run away.
You know what's coming. Or did you already forget me? Don't worry, you'll be joining your little Kirk soon enough.
Big kisses baby girl.
I'll see you soon.
He turned to Brennan, about to show her the note when he saw the look on her pale face. Frowning, he took a tentative step towards her. Looking up at him, he saw the fear in the tears that were threatening to spill over.
She looked away and he followed her gaze down to the white shirt hanging across her hands. Swallowing hard, Hodgins' voice beside him sounded like it was miles away.
"Angela was… She was wearing that this morning."
Booth barely heard him. All he could focus on was the pattern across the shirt, its colour far too vibrant against the stark white of the fabric.
It was the colour of death. It was blood.
A/N: Dun dun derrrrrrr... Wow, I'm being so dramatic today! Blame it on tiredness. Oh, and for those that haven't read The Man In The Lecture Hall, that's where the reference to Katie Harwood comes from. Just so you know. Now review this punk and make my day. Seriously, it really would make my day!