A/N: Thanks everyone for all the reviews! I appreciate the feedback. We are almost at the end of our story but we are not quite there yet. Please enjoy and let me know what you think!

Chapter 10

April 25, 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:09 am EST

After figuring out that there was additional tapping coming from the microphone, the judge ordered the courtroom cleared of all non-essential personnel. Angela could feel her heart beating out of her chest. She knew that the tapping had to be from one of them, she just knew it! She was currently chewing on her fingernails and walking back and forth in front of the bench where the judge and the bailiff were listening to the Morse code still coming from the bottom and writing it down on a piece of paper. She couldn't believe that she was the only one who looked nervous. How on earth did the rest of them seem so calm? Angela was convinced that if this continued any longer that she would not have any fingernails left. The words that Sanders said kept reverberating in her head, about how her friends did not have much oxygen left. She wondered if it was true. They left him sitting in the FBI interrogation room, with Agent Perotta there in case they had to transport hi to the airport at the last minute. Angela wasn't ready to give up on them finding her friends though. Looking over at Ms. Taffet, still sitting behind the defense table, Angela couldn't help but want to hit her and wipe that smug smile off of her face. She couldn't help but think that the guards that were standing behind the table were more for Ms. Taffet's protection from the people currently gathered around the prosecution table or if they were making sure that she wasn't going to try anything.

"Hey David, please listen to the rest of the message while I go talk to these people about what is going on," Angela heard Judge Brewster tell the bailiff as he walked down from the bench and toward the prosecution table where her, Caroline, Cam, and Sweets were sitting. Taffet and her defense attorney were at their table, with the guards standing behind her to make sure that she didn't try anything during this recess. Angela looked up toward the bench and saw David writing down more words. What was he transcribing, War and Peace? They didn't have that much more time.

"Ok, so here is what is going to happen," Judge Brewster said as he stood in the middle of the two tables. "Someone is going to tell me right now why the hell there is a distress signal currently being transmitted through the bottom of my microphone and they are going to tell me right now."

Silence followed the judge's statement as everyone avoided looking at each other, trying to figure out what to say. Angela tried to catch Cam's eye, looking for any signal as to what she was going to do. After another moment, Angela decided to talk herself.

"It is probably coming from the three key witnesses that are missing, Your Honor," Angela told him. "Do you remember yesterday when my cell phone rang in the gallery during the beginning part of the trial?" The glare from Judge Brewster confirmed to her that indeed he remembered when her cell phone rang in court. "Well, anyway, that call was from the Grave Digger, informing me that Dr. Brennan, Dr. Hodgins, and Agent Booth had been buried alive."

"Do you still have that message?" Judge Brewster asked her.

"Your Honor," the defense attorney said, standing up and stepping closer to the judge. "I object to the listening of this message. It has not been verified and it could unfairly be used against my client."

"Shut up, Bill," Caroline said, finally speaking up. "This is so not about your client any more."

"She's right, Bill. Anything said here will not be used in the trial. This is about finding out what happened to those three witnesses, regardless if Ms. Taffet had anything to do with it," Judge Brewster said. Angela threw a glare in Taffet's direction, trying to get a one up on her at every opportunity.

After listening to the message and how her, Cam, and Caroline spent the last 24 hours, the courtroom became quiet again. Judge Brewster seemed to be thinking over what had just transpired. Angela didn't blame him. If she had just heard that story, she is not sure if she would have believed it. It definitely sounded like a pretty tall tale when she heard it said together in sequence like that.

"Um, Judge Brewster," David said. They all turned to look at the bailiff, who was still sitting at the bench but had put down the microphone. "I got some of the message. According to what I was able to transcribe from the Morse code message, they are located somewhere underneath this building."

"Underneath the building?" Angela asked. Could it be possible that they were in a hole dug somewhere underneath the courthouse.

"They are probably in one of the basements. This building was built back when the city was originally constructed and there are some basements down there that haven't been used in years. I used to work as a maintenance guy here and could lead you down there if you like," David finished.

"Why did you just get some of the message?" Cam asked, narrowing her gaze and suing the same tone she used when Hodgins was trying to convince her to let him do one of his experiments.

"Because the tapping just stopped, in the middle of a word." Angela gasped, her hand rising to her mouth as the silence in the room now matched the silence coming from the end of the microphone.

April 25, 2010

Location Unknown

10:18 am EST

"Booth, are you okay?" Brennan asked him. He had just stopped tapping out the message with the quarter but Brennan wasn't sure if it was because the message was finished or if it was because of the thinning air. If she believed in G-d, she would be praying that it was the first of those two options. But her rational mind quickly dismissed that thought as she saw the signs of hypoxia, or lack of oxygen to the rest of the body. She saw the shaking in his hands, the blue tint to his lips, the increased respiratory rate, and all of these signs indicated to her that the love of her life was dying. She slowly rubbed her hand across his back, waiting for him to come back to her. His eyes were closed and Brennan saw him leaning over slightly to facilitate better breathing. Brennan looked over at Hodgins to see him breathing hard as well but Booth was definitely feeling it the most of out the three of them, most likely because he was bigger than the two of them. Booth hadn't answered her yet and she patiently waited and continued to rub his back with her hand.

After a minute, in which he still couldn't catch his breath, he turned to her and gave her a strained version of his charm smile, obviously trying to reassure her but it didn't work. She could feel her throat close up and her eyes start to water as she looked at her best friend struggling to take a breath. She knew that he didn't have a lot of time before he passed out and then took his last breath. She met Hodgins' eyes over Booth's hunched form and he nodded to her after flicking his eyes down to Booth. She nodded back and put her hand on Booth's shoulder, slightly squeezing it to get Booth's attention.

"Let's go, Booth," she whispered to him. The fact that he just nodded and followed her back to their spot against the wall really worried her. As they made it back to the wall, even that little bit of exertion had worn him out and he was breathing even harder. Brennan sat back against the wall and stretched her legs out in front of her. She took Booth by the shoulders and gently pushed him down until he was lying down with his head on her lap. Her breathing was labored by this point as well and she had trouble catching her breath. Hodgins was leaning against the wall as well, and Brennan could see him starting to have trouble as well. There would be no carbon dioxide scrubber this time, no using the airbags to blow them through the roof to freedom, and no Jared to get her on a helicopter to save them either.

She started slowly running her fingers through Booth's hair, memorizing the feeling of being with him. She gazed down into his soulful brown eyes. He was trying to keep his eyes open, fighting a losing battle with his body to stay conscious. She knew that once he fell asleep, unless they miraculously got some more oxygen, he would never wake up again. He gave her a weak smile and Brennan could see him struggle to stay awake. She gave him a watery smile in return and leaned down to softly kiss his forehead.

"It's okay, Booth," she whispered to him, continuing to run her fingers through his hair. "Just fall asleep."

He gave her a slight nod, which she felt against her thighs more than saw, and watched him close his eyes, his respiratory rate slowing even further. Brennan felt a solitary tear run down her cheek and fall onto his shirt, right over his heart. She looked over at Hodgins' who was leaning heavily against the wall, gave her a strained smile, and closed his eyes as well. Brennan took one last look at the man peacefully lying in her lap, before closing her eyes herself and drifting off to sleep.

April 25, 2010

Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:35 am EST

There was only 25 minutes left. Heather Taffet knew that by now, the lack of oxygen in the room would have made them lose consciousness and it would be only a matter of time before they took their last breath. And it would only be 20 minutes until, in their desperation; the prosecution came to her and begged her for the location of Booth, Brennan, and Hodgins. She looked back at the guards that would soon be escorting her to a plane with Sanders. Heather sat back in her seat and smiled. It would only be a matter of time, after all.

April 25, 2010

Underneath the Superior Court of the District of Columbia

10:37 am EST

Cam, Angela, and David had been running throughout the basement of the courthouse, throwing open all the doors, hoping to find Booth, Brennan, and Hodgins. They had been to five doors so far and all of them were unlocked. Cam was beginning to think that David had translated the message wrong. Caroline had stayed upstairs with the other radio, ready to call paramedics if they were needed, and Cam thought that at this point they were definitely going to be needed. With only 23 minutes left to the deadline, Cam knew that their condition would not be good. Angela went ahead of her, running down to a door on the left hand side that was almost directly below the courtroom the trial was being held in.

"Cam! David! This one is locked!" Angela yelled. Cam's breath left her lungs, as she had to remember to breath. As she approached the door, Cam could tell that it was different than the other doors and not just because it was locked. There was a lining around the door that looked like insulation that Cam could tell was meant to make sure that no other air could enter the room. There was also a large padlock on the door that would have guaranteed that the occupants of the room would be forced to stay inside.

"Angela, help me peel back this insulation. David, do you think you could shot the lock and then radio for the paramedics?" Cam directed, her mind immediately going into boss mode to help her cope.

"Sure," David said with hesitation. Cam was uncertain if he had ever even used the gun before but was willing to trust him in this instance. She and Angela made quick work of the tape and stood back; ready to let David shoot the lock. Cam held her breath and covered her ears, watching out of the corner of her eye as Angela did the same. She saw David pull his gun out and take aim. The sound the of gunshot reverberated in the basement, making her ears ring but the final result was effective; the lock unhinged and fell off the door.

David was the first to the door; hesitantly taking the lock out and starting to pry open the door. Cam and Angela quickly joined him and together, they were able to get the door open and were surprised to see that it was light inside. But the sight that greeted them, however, was one none of them wanted to see.

Cam ran into the room, very worried that all three people in the room were not conscious. She ran up to Booth and Brennan, both of them slumped against each other while Angela ran over to Hodgins, both of them checking pulses. Alarmed, Cam turned to David.

"Get those paramedics here now!"

A/N 2: We are so close to the end! Let me know what you think, please. : )