Title:
The Woman in the Chair
Author:
Shannon - shannyfish
Disclaimer:
I do not own "Bones" or its characters, Fox does. This is merely
for entertainment purposes only.
Rating:
PG-13
Summary:
With a serial killer who is taking three days to kill women on the
loose, Brennan and Booth race to try to catch him before he goes
after another victim.
Warning:
Spoilers up through the end of season three, since I'm not really
sure if I'll be using anything at the moment. Would take place
during season four.
Chapter 10 – "Waiting"
Author's Note: summer session is almost over!
……………………
Monday
It was late. But there was no information. No answers. There was silence, but there was noise everywhere. None of it mattered. None of the noise was saying what he needed to know. No words talked of Doctor Temperance Brennan's current condition. All the nurses had said was that she was in surgery. A hand fell on his shoulder, but he didn't move his face from his hands. It didn't matter who it was. It wasn't Brennan.
"She's going to be okay, Seeley," Cam said confidently.
He knew that all of the squints were there along with Russ and Max. He'd been there with Max. They'd both seen the blood…they'd both been there with her. "There was a lot of blood…" he whispered and found that his voice broke without his permission.
Her arm snaked around him trying to bring him comfort. "I talked to the doctor… She's stable… The reason they're taking so long is because of all the cuts…they're taking extra time, so that there's minimal scaring. Plus, they started a bit slowly after first assessing her to make sure that the electric torture she went through didn't damage anything."
"Why didn't the doctor come out here?" Booth asked as he pulled his head up. Tears streaming down his cheeks.
Cam gave him a gentle smile, "He's still in there. I managed to sneak myself into the operating room. I had to put on a gown and scrub up and everything… Part of the good things that come from being a doctor."
"They're sure she's stable?" Booth questioned.
She patted his far shoulder, "She's going to be fine. Right now, we just all have to wait it out."
"Brennan wouldn't want you to be so upset," Angela spoke up. "It's how she is… I had to make myself calm down in the car…I was hoping we'd have been allowed to see her when we got here."
"She was making me cry," Hodgins added. "We all care about her, but we have to remember that she's going to be fine. She's going to live."
"Do they know how much longer?" Russ asked happy with the news of his sister's stability.
"It's still going to be a few hours before they put her into a room and then even then they're not going to let us see her until tomorrow morning," Cam explained.
"I'm not going anywhere," Angela said quickly.
"I didn't think anyone was," Cam said with a smile. "How about I make a coffee run?"
"Might as well make it a coffee and dinner run," Hodgins added. "I'll come, too."
"Do you want anything in particular, Booth?" Cam asked as they got up to leave.
"Just do me a favor… Try and keep Sweets away," Booth requested. He didn't feel like being watched. He didn't want to hear the psych-babble. He knew what he felt, even what he felt that he didn't speak aloud. He was afraid that if Sweets was there, he might loose it. He already felt like he was out of control, he didn't need anyone else to add to that feeling.
"I think we can manage that," Cam said kindly. She understood Booth and she understood his need not to be bugged when he was already so upset. Booth wasn't a person who would cry in front of others… She'd do what she could to keep him from having to deal with something unnecessary if it was in her power. She was the one who wasn't as emotionally involved. It wasn't because she didn't care about Doctor Brennan's well being; she just hadn't really bonded with the woman. She still honestly didn't know if Doctor Brennan thought that she'd taken over or not. She had a feeling, though, that it would all be a mystery to her. She was okay with that, but she considered all of the squints and Booth friends and she cared about them. She'd watch over all of them and make sure she did what she could to make things easier for them.
…………………………
Tuesday
"She's being difficult," the doctor announced.
"Difficult how?" Angela questioned.
"She let us examine her to a point and now she's not letting us do anything else until she gets to see all of you," the doctor told them as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"She must be feeling better," Russ said with a smile. "Tempe was always stubborn." He could tell that the doctor wasn't happy, but that just meant that his sister was acting like her normal self.
"Can we see her then?" Max asked after a moment of silence. They'd all camped out in their own section of the lobby the whole night after Hodgins and Cam had brought back coffee and fast food for them all. Most of them had taken turns sleeping for a couple hours at a time. He hadn't slept, but he'd been happy when Booth had finally fallen asleep. He'd held on, not wanting to sleep until he saw her, and Max had no heart in waking him. But now, it would be necessary. Booth had gotten a good hour in at the very least.
"If it's the only way to get her to cooperate, it seems I have no choice," the doctor said. "I'll show you the way."
"We'd appreciate that," Max spoke up and nudged Booth.
"What?" Booth muttered and sat straight up in his chair. "We get to see Bones?" he asked noticing everyone, but Max was standing up.
"Maybe you shouldn't all go in together," the doctor suggested. "I'm sure you don't want to overcrowd her…"
"No, of course not," Max said. "Russ, why don't we wait here with Booth and we'll go in in a few minutes…"
"You should go in first," Cam insisted.
"We've waited this long," Max told her. "We can wait five more minutes. You three go in and then we'll go in…"
Cam nodded and she, Hodgins, and Angela followed the doctor.
"Dad—" Russ started to argue as soon as the others were out of hearing range.
Max patted his son's shoulder, "We'll get our chance…and we won't have to rush it."
Booth sighed and slouched in the uncomfortable plastic chair. "At least she's awake," Booth mumbled sleepily as he ran his hand heavily down his face. He still couldn't believe that he'd fallen asleep. He had wanted to see Brennan before he slept, but he had a feeling that having no sleep for the last two days besides the drug induced kind was weighing a heavy toll on him.
"And she's being stubborn," Russ told him; since he knew Booth had been asleep at the time the doctor had been there to tell them everything.
"So, she's feeling pretty good," Booth concluded.
"Pretty much," Russ agreed.
"Probably the pain killers," Max added.
………………..
It wasn't more than ten minutes before Hodgins, Angela, and Cam gave up Doctor Brennan's hospital room for Max, Russ, and Booth to occupy. Max thanked them all for assisting in finding his daughter and for being such strong supports in her life. Booth had just watched it all like it was an episode of some drama on television. Nothing felt quite real. His hands were thrust in the pockets of his slacks. He was a bit cold, but he was dealing with it. He was still only in his undershirt, which was covered in Brennan's dried blood. He followed after Russ and Max towards the hospital room with his head down. He counted floor tiles, but was pulled to a stop right before he got to the door. "Wha—" he barely got out as his head shot up.
"This might go over better," Cam said offering teal colored scrubs. "They don't have a problem with you having it," she added.
"I only need the top," Booth said.
"Trust me," Cam told him. "You'll be more comfortable…plus, they'll allow someone to stay with her… They're not going to put someone else in the room with her unless there's some mass accident."
"Thanks Cam."
"For what?"
"Working your magic," Booth told her with a small smile as he accepted the scrubs.
Cam just smiled before she turned and left.
He knew where the closest bathroom was and decided that was the best option. He knew that her hospital room would have a bathroom, but he didn't want her to see him like that. Booth didn't want to scare her. He could feel the blood had matted his shirt against his chest and he was sure it had soaked through his pants in places. He'd clean up as best he could until he could get home and get a real shower.
Booth took a good long ten minutes to clean as much blood off of him as possible and to change into the teal scrubs. He'd crumpled his clothes up and headed for Brennan's room. He stopped at the nurses' station and kindly asked for a plastic bag, they gave him a patient property bag, which he was grateful for. It would keep his things together and he'd be able to transport them easily. He made a beeline for Brennan's room and found that Max and Russ were there along with the doctor and a nurse. He hung back and found a place to stow his bag of bloody clothes for the time being.
"Booth."
The voice was familiar and it had a pull, but he forced himself to stay in place. The hoarseness of her voice made it sound foreign, but he knew it was her. "I'm here…" he told her. He watched her hand search for him. "Let the doctor look you over, Bones."
"Booth."
"You might as well come and hold her hand," the doctor spoke up. "It might keep her still, so that I can finish examining her."
Booth took the invitation and noticed that neither Russ nor Max had a problem with it. He only hoped that they'd had their time was Brennan before he'd returned. He found a chair at her bedside waiting for him and took a seat. He let out a low moan. His body hurt all over from not sleeping, from sleeping in the lobby, and his head still hurt from his head injury. Booth gently took his hand in his. He immediately noticed that the IV was not placed there, but up near her shoulder. He'd been in a hospital enough to know they'd put in a central line, he could only guess it was because of all of her injuries. "Hey," he whispered as calmly and soothingly as he could as he ran his thumb softly over the top of her hand. He could tell that it was the wrist that had been cut open because of how expertly wrapped it was.
"Hi," she whispered.
Her eyes opened and closed and she stirred a bit as the doctor tried to examine her injuries. He tried to keep an eye on where he was paying most attention to. He'd seen the large gauze patches taped down in several places on her abdomen and desperately wanted to know how badly he'd hurt her… "You're safe now," Booth tried to convince her. She was tired… Maybe it was the pain medication? Maybe she was in pain? He doubted the doctors would let her suffer, especially after everything she'd been through.
"I know," Brennan choked out.
"How about some water," the nurse suggested and went to retrieve a pink plastic hospital pitcher with a matching cup. She filled the cup up with a bit of water before holding it out.
"No."
Booth reached and took the cup from the nurse. He watched as the nurse used the bed controls to adjust the bed, so that Brennan's head and back were elevated a bit more. He held it to her lips, "Come on, Bones. You can be difficult later…you need to eat and drink now… It'll make your throat feel better." He had a feeling that if her voice sounded like that, her throat felt like sandpaper. He tilted the cup just a bit, so that the water would trickle into her parched mouth. He waited and let her drink some before taking the cup away.
"You need sleep," she told him, her throat feeling better and her voice sounding a bit better as well.
"I slept," Booth countered.
"At home," Brennan corrected. "In your bed."
Russ chuckled, "Trying to kick us out already, Tempe?"
"Not like any of you listen," she said letting her eyes slide shut.
"We'll be back in a few hours to check the bandages again," the doctor said. "Everything looks like it's coming along just fine," he said before exiting with the nurse.
"You should sleep," Max told his daughter.
"You all need sleep, too," Brennan said with her eyes still shut.
Booth moved his hand from Brennan's hand and let it wander up to her face and gently stroked her cheek. "We will…but you need to get better."
"I'll heal."
"Well, we know your personality hasn't been affected," Booth teased.
"We're going to leave," Max said gesturing to Russ as well. "The doctor said that you get to stay and keep Temperance company," Max brought up, looking to Booth to make sure that that's what was really going on.
"Cam told me," Booth confirmed.
"Call us if anything changes," Max said and smiled when Booth nodded.
"I am in the room," Brennan spoke up. "The doctor said I'm going to recover."
Russ sighed and walked over to the other side of his sister's bed. He kissed her forehead, "We just love you, Tempe. Call us if you need anything. Love you."
"Love you," Brennan mumbled.
He moved out of the way and headed to the door, so that their father could say goodbye as well. The room was large for a hospital room, but not huge with the two beds in the space and all the equipment keeping tabs on his sister's condition.
Max kissed his daughter's cheek, "Love you, Sweetheart," he whispered and then kissed her forehead as well. He smiled when she opened her blue eyes. He looked to Booth, "Get some sleep."
"I will…I even have a bed," Booth promised as he gestured to the bed behind him.
"I told you," Max reminded with a bright smile as he joined Russ at the door.
"What?" Booth asked confused.
"We'd find her… I knew you wouldn't give up," Max said, to Booth and his daughter. He smiled at them before leading Russ out the door. They needed time alone, he knew that. They needed to talk, and Booth just needed to be with his daughter. He loved her…in his own 'special' way. That was all he really needed to know. Life would take care of the rest.
"I knew you wouldn't give up," Booth repeated to Brennan as he took her hand again and then tried to get her to drink more water. He waited until she was done with the second long sip before setting it on a bedside nearby.
"I knew you wouldn't give up," Brennan whispered and covered his hand with her other hand. She'd let her eyes close again, but she knew that he didn't need her looking at him for him to know that she really meant it.
"Sleep, Temperance," Booth whispered.
…………………..
TBC…