Note: Sorry it took me so long to post again, my trip was awesome but incredibly exhausting! I have another convention coming up in 8 days, so I'll try to finish posting this by then! Your lovely reviews kept me quite content while I was away, so thank you:)

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Chapter 9

"I'm sorry, guys but my program came up with no relevant matches," Angela announced when they entered her office.

"Any irrelevant matches?" Booth asked, trying not to feel defeated.

"Seven names were present in more than one file: four FBI agents, two sheriff deputies and one private investigator."

"So the answer is no," Booth added, this time not resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose.

Bones had her hands on her waist and he could see she was growing as frustrated as he was. He followed Bones to her office, and she went straight to her desk, undoubtedly seeking the reassurance of her own domain.

He sat down across from her, putting his feet up on her desk and ignoring the disapproving glance she threw his way. "Ok, Bones, we still have our unidentified victim to follow as a lead."

"Doesn't that bother you, Booth? That our only lead out of 12 victims is the one we haven't identified yet?"

He nodded. "It bothers me, but I'm surprised it's bothering you," he pointed out.

The defensive walls went up. "Booth--"

"Sorry, I'm not accusing you of having actual emotions about this case, Bones," he said trying to keep his tone light and when her phone rang he felt relieved.

"Brennan," she answered professionally. "Yes, this is her," her features quickly changed and Booth felt his hands sweating. It couldn't be good news – he hadn't ever seen his partner look as pale as she did now. "What?-- Where?-- Georgetown University Hospital?"

Please let this be regarding this case, his mind repeated over and over even though he had never seen Bones like this.

"We'll be on our way," she replied curtly to the caller before hanging up. When her eyes met his, he knew there was no chance this was regarding their case. "It's Hannah. She's at the hospital."

††††

"I'm here for Hannah Booth," Brennan announced breathlessly to the admittance desk clerk who just looked at her blankly.

"Hannah Booth," Booth repeated.

"Please have a seat, I will—"

Brennan didn't have to reach across the desk to hurt the clerk because Booth pulled out his FBI badge, loudly announcing his employment status as a government agent. A short Asian woman wearing a stethoscope around her neck showed up, undoubtedly due to the small scene Booth was causing. "Mr. Booth, Mrs. Booth, I am Dr. Shi. Hannah is ok, you can see her if you follow me."

"It's Dr. Brennan," Brennan explained, really not in a passive mood. "And what happened?" she asked as they followed the Doctor.

"I apologize, Dr. Brennan," the doctor replied politely. "Hannah was brought in by one of the daycare workers with a fracture to her left arm."

"How the hell did she break her arm?" Booth asked, apparently as mad as she felt."I'm sorry, I am not sure," the doctor answered sympathetically.

"Greenstick or compound?" Brennan asked.

"Greenstick," the doctor replied, obviously impressed by Brennan's knowledge. "It'll have healed in a week tops," the doctor explained as they finally arrived at the bed where Hannah was being kept. "I'll process her release papers," she informed them and turning to Brennan she added softly, "you can hold her if you want, she's on some mild painkillers and I'll write a prescription for some of the same drops. But she'll be fine."

Brennan hardly heard a word as she looked at Hannah, an oversized bright purple cast adorning her left arm and softly dozing. Booth's arm covered her shoulder in reassurance, even though his breathing pattern was as altered as hers. She reached for Hannah, carefully lifting her up and carefully examining the cast.

It took Brennan a few minutes to calm down. This was all too new, and her brain kept repeating that it had just been a greenstick fracture, but the rest of her just felt an irrational guilt for not having been there for Hannah when it had first happened.

Someone cleared his throat behind them. "Hi, I'm John, I was Hannah's nurse assistant, just need to clean up a little," he explained as he entered the small area and started to pick up discarded items from the floor. "She was a real sweetheart, wouldn't stop crying at first but she calmed down and let them put the cast on without a fight," he explained with a smile.

"Thank you," Booth replied politely and sincerely.

Brennan nodded, trying not to let the tears fall as the young man finished working. As he left, it was like something in her brain went off. "Booth!"

He frowned. "What?"

She walked away towards a less busy area of the Emergency Room. "There is one thing linking those twelve children: they were sick. Sick children go to hospitals," she explained, trying to reach for her cellphone without disturbing her sleeping daughter.

"We checked that angle, remember? Angela's search program?" Booth said, taking Hannah so she could find her phone more easily.

"No, we checked for interviewed personnel at the hospital," she clarified. "Look at this place, Booth!" she pointed towards the main desk hub. "It's filled with people. Volunteers, janitors, those clown people – all of them who have access to patients. Their names would never make it onto charts, and police probably never interviewed anyone except those who worked very closely to the patients – or those under enough suspicion."

"So we should check with the hospitals and see if they keep logs of visitors, volunteers, cleaning crew," he said as his hand held Hannah in place on his shoulder. "It's worth a shot," he added with a tired smile.

She dialed Angela on the phone, hoping her friend wouldn't mind a late-night at the lab too much.