11. Catching Up

Booth caught up with Harkness and patted him on the shoulder. "Tom, thought I'd walk you to your car, see if there's anything you can tell me about your case that maybe isn't in the file. I'm just looking for anything you can think of that might help us out," Booth told him.

"Have you had a chance to read the whole file already?" Harkness asked incredulously.

"Nah, Bones read some while I drove. She gave me the highlights. I was going to start fresh in the morning while she finishes up here," Booth responded.

"I know what you're getting at Booth, but this was an 18 month investigation. Sinclair was a scumbag willing to roll. Julian cut the deal for WitSec. Read the file first. Then we'll talk about this, all right?" Harkness asked him. "Anything I have to tell you now won't make much sense until you're up to speed."

"Sure thing," Booth replied.

Harkness deftly turned the conversation back to Brennan. "But, there you go with that Bones thing again. How'd such a pretty li'l thing get saddled with a nickname like that?" Harkness asked him chuckling.

Booth smirked. "Don't let her catch you calling her a pretty li'l thing. She'd probably knock you on your tail," Booth chuckled.

"Can't take a compliment?" Harkness asked.

Booth shook his head. "No, that's not it. She would just think you're a chauvinistic pig who was talking down to her," Booth said.

"Hmph, women these days. Gotta watch whatcha say or they sue!" Harkness exclaimed.

"Nah, Bones isn't like that. Might break your wrist if you made a move she didn't like, but that's another story," Booth chuckled to himself. His face became animated as he discussed Brennan, and his voice, although tired, sounded just a touch more cheerful as he talked about her. Harkness noticed, but just raised an eyebrow and nodded to encourage Booth to continue talking.

"The name—that's her work, studying bones all day long." Booth said with a shrug. "I started calling her Bones years ago, before we were even partners. She used to hate it. Heck, I think that's why I kept it up in the beginning. Well, that, and she had enough people calling her 'doctor' all day long. Her ego didn't need me feeding it too." Booth said, smiling. "I think she likes it now. She even uses it herself once in a while."

"Reminds me of something I used to call Suze, but I'm not known for kissin' and telling," Harkness laughed.

Booth almost reflexively responded to Harkness' comment with his standard, 'we're just partners' line, but stopped himself. Instead, he said, "Bones is a class act."

"Anyone else call her that?" Harkness asked.

Booth thought about it for a moment before responding with a small shake of his head, "Just my son. He calls her Dr. Bones," Booth said with a smile. "Her family calls her Tempe, and everyone else calls her Brennan or Dr. Brennan."

"Whoa, hold the phone." Harkness told him animatedly, shoving Booth's shoulder lightly. "I think I just put something together. You arrested Max Kennan, er is it Brennan? Her father?" Harkness asked.

"It's Brennan now. And yea, I did," Booth admitted, raking his hand through his hair. "Max killed Deputy Director Kirby," Booth replied matter-of-factly. "Granted, the crooked S.O.B. was gunning for Bones and her brother Russ at the time," Booth explained, tucking his thumbs in his belt.

"First name basis with the guy? Sounds like a regular soap opera you're running down there at the Jeffersonian, Booth." Harkness said.

Booth chuckled, and made a quick decision to not mention that Max now worked at the Jeffersonian before continuing. "Bones tried to bring him in too, but Max pulled a fast one on her," Booth said, remembering the day Max managed to cuff her to a bench. He glanced at Harkness. "You know, Max was acquitted of the charges, right?" Booth asked him.

"Yea, I heard that. But you just said he killed him," Harkness retorted.

"He did," Booth said.

"I just can't believe you're still working together. That's some crazy stuff. Does any of it ever get in the way? I mean, you've gotta trust your partner, right?" Harkness asked.

"I took a bullet for the woman, Tom—after all the drama with Max," Booth said while absently rolling his right shoulder. "And, I trust her with my life. She killed the psycho who shot me. One shot—dead," Booth replied seriously. "Look, we're good at our job. I promise you, we'll get to the bottom of it," Booth said as Tom motioned towards his waiting car.

"Thanks for walkin' an old man down to his car in the dark. It was good to catch up. How long's it been?" Harkness asked him.

"Geez, must be 6 years. Parker was still a baby," Booth said.

"Oh, I meant to ask. How's a...," Harkness paused, searching his memory. "Rebecca?"

"She was fine last I saw her," Booth answered. "We're not together anymore. I get Parker on weekends. You know how it goes," Booth said. "But, how're Susan and the girls?"

"She's good. Told me once I retire, she's going to make me do volunteer work or something. She's not sure she can put up with me full time," Harkness said, smiling. "The kids are grown. Marie's teaching, married a podiatrist a couple years ago. And, Casey's working on her PharmD at Pitt."

"Tell Susan I said hello, will you?" Booth asked.

"Sure thing," Harkness said, scratching his chin. "You know . . . if this case ever makes it to trial, Suze and I'll be in DC for the duration. We should have dinner. Tell her yourself. Heck, bring that partner of yours. Suze likes her books."

"Yea, sure thing." Booth promised. "And, Bones and I will be in touch once we've reviewed the file," he added. Harkness climbed in his car. Booth waved as he drove off, then grabbed his cell before heading back up the trail to see if Brennan was ready to pack up for the night.