Chapter 14

Justice is a dish best served quickly

Authors Note: Sorry it's been a while since I've updated, life's been a bit stressful which has made it hard to slow myself down enough to write. Thank you for your continued support in this story.

"What's going on?" Sweets asked the question had been going around in his head as he'd watched Dr Brennan being carted off to the hospital.

"Bones wanted to be here when we told you, but I guess seeing as she's in the hospital at the moment she won't mind me telling you, but you need to keep this to yourself for the moment until we are ready to announce it officially" Booth warned, studying Sweets' face to see if he realised how serious he was about this.

"Bones is pregnant" Booth told Sweets' simply, not elaborating on anything just watching the psychologist for his reaction.

"Wow, congratulations man and of course I'll keep it to myself, can I ask how far along she is?" Sweets asked genuinely pleased for them both. He'd known more was going on than them being in a relationship and Dr Brennan's illness confirmed it. To be honest he was relieved, he'd been worried it was something much more serious than a pregnancy. As he thought on the pregnancy he began to laugh a little thinking about Dr Brennan and hormones.

"She's 8 weeks, now what are you laughing about?" Booth asked a bit annoyed with the psychologist. Although he liked the kid, he could find the strangest things funny, a lot like Bones sometimes. In fact those two had more in common than most realised.

"I was just thinking about how pregnancy hormones might affect Dr Brennan, especially with how territorial she is over her remains already, you are going to have your work cut out for you when it comes to crime scenes" Sweets said, laughing again but stopping quickly when he saw Booth's glowering face right in front of his, not knowing just how quickly the man had been able to get up from his desk and get into his personal space.

"Yes well you keep those kind of thoughts to yourself, because none of us know just how later pregnancy is going to affect Bones and she might just shock you, God knows she's already done that enough times in my lifetime" Booth admitted thinking back over the last few weeks and how many times Bones had already managed to shock him during this pregnancy and she was only barely 8 weeks along.

"Of course Booth, but we really need to talk about all of this, both you and Dr Brennan, this is a major development in your relationship and it is going to have a major affect on your partnership and how it is run, the FBI is going to want you both to come up with a plan on how long Dr Brennan will remain your partner during the pregnancy, and how you intend to keep her safe during her pregnancy, you two do run into your fare share of trouble" Sweets told Booth switching straight into FBI psychologist mode, from what little he knew of pregnancy, he knew they had about 6-8 weeks before Brennan was going to begin to show and then there would be no hiding the pregnancy. He believed the best course of action would be for Booth and Brennan to give as much notice as possible to the FBI of the pregnancy and not try and hide it from them.

"Fine, whatever Sweets, but for now until I talk to Bones about this can you please keep the pregnancy to yourself?" Booth asked, pretty much knowing the answer but needing to ask the question. He knew that he and Bones were going to have to have a serious conversation about the pregnancy soon, there was no more basking in the news and he knew they didn't have long before Bones would be showing and it would be impossible to keep it a secret.

"Of course Booth, and if there is anything I can help you with, just let me know" Sweets said as he went to leave Booth's office but was stopped by Booth.

"Actually, are you up for a couple of interrogations? I did promise Bones she could be there for them, but after this last development I don't know if she could handle them, this case has been hitting her hard and I can't figure out why" Booth asked, knowing his last comment was going to open the door for shrinking with Sweets, but maybe the kid would be able to figure it out.

"Of course, when do you need me?" Sweets asked, purposely ignoring the last part of Booth's words. He had a feeling he'd just been given permission to shrink Dr Brennan and he was not going to waste this opportunity. Booth wasn't the first person to come to him and express concern over how Dr Brennan was handling this case and he hoped he'd get an opportunity to talk to Dr Brennan about it. It wasn't often she was affected so emotionally by a case, and he supposed that the pregnancy was probably a part of it, but there seemed to be more here then that.

"Tomorrow, I'm going to look over these reports Bones sent me on the poison that was used on the victim and then I'm going to see if either the priest or the mother had access to it, with luck we'll have enough proof to hit both of them hard tomorrow" Booth said his thoughts already back to the case as he powered up his computer and opened up his email. He nodded to Sweets who knew that was a dismissal and promptly left his office and then got down to business.

By 12pm he had enough proof that the mother was the one in possession of the poison and he'd also taken a look at Angela's digital representation of the murder and everything seemed to fit. The only thing left to do was to gain a confession. He sighed deeply as he thought of what could drive a mother to kill her own son. He knew that religion was the motive and it almost made him feel ashamed to be a catholic because he knew his own religion condemned homosexuality and although he didn't believe anyone had the right to tell someone who they should love, it had taken a lot of soul searching to rise above the things his church preached about homosexuality. Having an Aunt that was a lesbian certainly made things easier, he couldn't have imagined ever telling his Aunt that the way she lived her life was wrong and definitely couldn't imagine killing her for it.

He was broken from his thoughts with a text message from Bones and he smiled as he read it. It was another change he'd not expected from her, just little texts every now and then to let him know how she was, especially if she'd had a particularly difficult day or sensed that he had. She was getting too good at reading him and he silently cursed her steep learning curve, he'd known that letting her in would mean she would eventually know everything about him, but he hadn't anticipated just how quickly she'd been able to pick up on his cues.

He quickly replied to Bones' text message and then went to pick them both something up for lunch, before picking her up from the hospital. When he got there the doctor had assured him she'd slept the majority of the time and that she'd not been ill the entire time that he'd been gone. Once the doctor had removed the cannula that they'd been pushing the fluid through, she signed Bones' release papers and they were allowed to leave the hospital. Booth took her hand gently and ushered her out of the door. He was surprised by how much better she looked just from the few hours sleep she'd gotten and the fluid they'd given her. He hoped this anti-nausea medication worked better than the last one they'd prescribed, because he could see that she really needed a break from the nausea.

They took a quick walk outside the hospital grounds and found a place to sit so they could eat the lunch Booth had brought them. Once he saw she'd consumed more than half her meal he decided he could broach the subject of the pregnancy and FBI with her.

"Um Bones, I had to tell Sweets about the baby today, he was concerned after your trip to the hospital and wanted to know what was going on" Booth told her, watching her face for a reaction.

"I had a feeling you would have to, he's very astute" Bones said looking into Booth's eyes and seeing the worry in them.

"What is it Booth?" Brennan asked, her thoughts instantly going to whether the pregnancy would mean their partnership would be in jeopardy.

"Sweets mentioned it might be a good idea to tell the FBI sooner rather than later about the baby, and that we might have to come up with a plan for how we are going to deal with the pregnancy and our partnership, I have to admit I hadn't thought a whole lot about that, with you being sick and the case it's not been something I had considered" Booth told her, wanting to be as honest as he could. They were going to have to make some decisions, and they'd also need some advice on the FBI's rules in regards to pregnant partners.

"I think he's right, I don't think it would be a good idea to hide this from the FBI, besides in a few weeks I'm going to be showing and we won't be able to hide it" Bones told Booth smiling as she remembered her thought about her lab coat earlier that morning. She knew she had 6, maybe 8 weeks before she'd be unable to hide her pregnancy as easily as she could now.

"I'm glad we agree on that, but Bones we also need to talk about how this pregnancy is going to affect our partnership, I don't want you to think I'm being over protective, but I don't know if I will be able to handle you being with me out in the field when you are further along, I know you can take care of yourself, but from what you've told me, your centre of gravity is going to shift as the weight from the baby increases, and I think that is going to throw off your martial arts" Booth said, wincing slightly as he waited for the fall out from that sentence.

"You are right, as I move into the second trimester of the pregnancy my centre of gravity will begin to shift and I maybe more off balance than normal, but I do believe I should be able to be out in the field with you until at least my sixth month of pregnancy, and once we pass that stage I could reduce my participation in cases to crime scene evidence collection and being in the lab, what do you think?" Brennan asked, willing to compromise a little more on that if pushed, but she thought it was a reasonable proposal.

"Are you kidding Bones? You completely amaze me, I would never have thought I'd be able to get you to agree to those conditions much less you suggest them yourself, it sounds like a great plan to me, but we'll have to get the FBI's okay first, I have no idea what their rules are when it comes to pregnant partners" Booth said taking her hand and stroking it gently, still completely in awe of this woman. He'd been ready to listen to her tell him about pregnant mothers in fields having babies and how she'd be able to be out in the field up until she delivered the baby.

"Of course, if the FBI has stricter rules, I will have to concede to them, but just know unless there are complications, I plan to work up until I am due to give birth, I want to be able to have the extra time to be able to spend with the baby after it's born" Bones told him in a tone that brokered no arguments. She was willing to make concessions for this pregnancy and for him but she knew she would struggle if forced to stay home for the last few weeks of her pregnancy.

"I understand Bones, believe me I don't want to have to contend with a bored you and Angela worked up until she went into labour with Mikey and it didn't seem to do her any harm" Booth teased gently and then kissed her gently, before taking her hand and leading her back to the SUV.

"Before I take you home there is one more thing I want to confess to, I, er I asked Sweets to do the interrogations with me" Booth told her not explaining just yet why. He knew she'd know why, but he wanted to see what her reaction was.

"What? Why?" Brennan asked, a little hurt that he'd decided that without consulting her. Although she could guess at his reasoning, she'd hoped that he would have at least talked to her before making the decision.

"Well Bones, you were hospitalised today, and I know you're exhausted, and you just aren't dealing well with this case, I don't know why and I hope you know you can talk to me about it, but with all of those things considered I think the interrogations will be too stressful for you" Booth told her, seeing the flash of hurt in her eyes and hung his head a little knowing he should have discussed this with her before making the decision, his desire to protect her had overcome his senses on this occasion.

"I accept your reasons Booth, but I wish you'd spoken to me about it first before making the decision, I am your partner and I believe I have the right to say whether I think I can handle an interrogation or not, I know you are trying to protect me, and I know I haven't been able to compartmentalise this case like I normally can, but I don't need you making decisions for me Booth" Bones told him, wanting him to know that she was hurt, and disappointed that despite all the changes she'd made lately in trying to do the right thing for the baby, he still didn't trust her to make the right choice when it came to things like this.

"I know I'm sorry Bones, it's a hard habit to break, protecting you and I don't think I'll ever be able to stop, but I should have talked to you and we should have made the decision together, do you want me to call Sweets and tell him you'll be doing the interrogation with me?" Booth asked, knowing he needed to get this right, cursing his over-protective nature.

"No Booth, it was the right decision, it just should have been made by the both of us, rather than be a unilateral decision by you" Brennan said taking his hand in hers, letting him know that although she was hurt, she was by no means angry with him. She loved him as he was, and she knew that she was going to have to contend with situations like this with him every now and then and she had to admit, that she probably wouldn't be of much use to him in an interrogation room at the moment.

"Let's go home, I think I need another nap" Brennan told him, kissing him to let him know that everything was okay.

"Okay, but Bones I really think we need to talk later about why this case is affecting you so much" Booth told her hoping that she would agree.

"Again you are right Booth, but right now I am too exhausted for that kind of conversation" Bones said smiling up at him as he started the engine. By the time they arrived home she'd already fallen asleep in the car and he was loathe to wake her, so he gently lifted her from the car, smiling as she didn't even stir. He took the elevator up to her apartment and almost had to wake her when he had trouble getting the key in the door. He blew out a breath of relief when the door finally opened and then carried her to her bedroom depositing her gently on the bed. He took a quick look at what she was wearing and decided it was loose enough and probably comfortable enough for her to sleep in. He covered her with the quilt and smiled when she immediately pushed it off and stirred a little before falling back asleep.

He couldn't decide whether to go back to work or not, he'd wanted to ask her if she wanted him to stay and had meant to in the car, but she'd fallen asleep so quickly he was loathe to wake her to ask. A phone call saved him the decision.

"Cam, what is it?" Booth asked wondering what Cam would be calling about.

"Booth, Anthony's mother has given herself up to the FBI and convinced the priest to as well, they both want to make a confession, you better get down to the bureau pronto" Cam told him, knowing that he'd be with Dr Brennan due to her trip to the hospital, but figured he'd want to get this case closed as soon as possible. It wasn't very often that their cases ended with the guilty parties confessing without interrogation.

"Of course, let me just let Bones know where I'm going and I'll be right there, can you get Sweets to meet me there?" Booth said grimacing as he realised he'd need to wake Bones up to tell her. He didn't really want to leave her at the moment, but being able to close this case today would be a godsend for them.

"No problem Seeley, I hope Dr Brennan is feeling better, Angela told me she'd been released from the hospital?" Cam asked not wanting to keep him on the phone much longer, but needing to know Brennan was okay.

"Yeah, she's asleep right now, they gave her some fluids and a new anti-nausea medication to counteract the nausea, she seems better, less pale" Booth told Cam, smiling at the concern he heard in his friend's voice. It was an unlikely friendship that had struck up between Bones and Cam, after their rocky start but he knew just how much his friend cared about Bones and he knew he could trust her to do whatever was in Bones best interest, even when Bones wasn't in agreeance.

"That's good Seeley, well I'll let you go so you can get to the bureau" Cam said before hanging up leaving him watching Bones as she slept, unaware of the events that had just taken place. He just hoped this wasn't a stall tactic from the mother and the priest and that by this time tomorrow the case would be wrapped up.

"Bones" Booth said gently shaking Bones to wake her enough that he could tell her he had to leave.

"Mmm" Bones said sleepily opening one eye to look at the man she loved.

"I have to go, Anthony's mother and the priest are at the FBI wanting to give a confession, with luck we'll have the case closed by the end of the day" Booth said, stroking her face gently, still not wanting to leave her but knowing he had to.

"What do think made them decide to do that?" Brennan asked groggily, still not completely awake but awake enough to have taken in what Booth had told her.

"Guilt I am guessing, you can only live with it so long before it has to come out" Booth said, continuing to stroke her face, in the hopes that it would keep her relaxed enough to fall asleep again after he left.

"I'll bring you home your favourite pizza for dinner okay, and we'll veg out in front of the television to celebrate" Booth said smiling as she lost her battle with keeping her eyes open.

"Sounds nice" She told him sleepily trying to stay awake, but slowly loosing the battle to do so.

"Sleep baby, I'll be back soon" Booth told her gently kissing her before getting off the bed to get ready to leave.

"Booth, I love you" Bones murmured sleepily before drifting completely off to sleep, not seeing the smile on her partner's face and not hearing his returned I love you.

He watched her sleep for another few moments before finally being able to drag himself away from her. She looked so vulnerable when she was sleeping it was almost impossible to be away from her when she slept. He'd learnt that early on in their partnership, well before they'd acted on their feelings for each other. The few times they'd slept in the same bed he'd found himself watching her if she'd fallen asleep before him and marvelling at just how young she looked when she was asleep. It had been part of why he'd fallen in love with her, that vulnerability that people rarely got to see was one of the things he loved the most about her.

As he drove to the FBI, he turned his thoughts to the case and the victim's mother. He was going to finally learn the real reason she'd participated in the death of her son, and he wasn't looking forward to learning just how cruel a mother could be to her child. As much as he believed in God and his church, he could not believe God would ever condone killing another human being for the way they lived their life.

As he walked into the interrogation room he looked at Anthony's mother, saw her tears and bloodshot eyes, and was unable to feel anything but contempt for her. He'd do his best to try and understand her reasoning, but in the end she'd taken a life, something she could never undo and all the I'm sorry's in the world would never make up for it.

"Mrs Feldman, I'm Special Agent Seeley Booth and this is my colleague Dr Sweets, I believe you have a confession you'd like to make" Booth said simply and waited for the story to unfold.

Okay leaving it there because I really want to think about what would drive a woman to murder her own child simply for the way they live their life. I know I meant to bring Parker into this chapter, but this one just developed on it's own. I am basing the way Brennan is handling the pregnancy on the things I observed during Season 7 of Bones. She was constantly home before Booth at the end of the day, and seemed quite determined to ensure she was eating enough etc to ensure the baby's health. I won't be doing any major time jumps during this story as the whole theory behind this, is to give insight into what I think we could have missed during the months between season 6 & 7. Maybe a couple of weeks every now and then to advance things enough to keep the story interesting. Until next time :)