(The Titan on the Tracks)

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I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

The call was unexpected and rather surprising. Booth was busy unloading the dishwasher when his phone rang. "Booth."

Seeley, how are you?

"Camille, hey it's good to hear from you." Booth leaned on the kitchen counter and stared at the dishes still in the dishwasher. "How're things in New York?"

That's just it, Booth. I'm not in New York. I have a new job here in Washington D.C. I start tomorrow. I thought we could get together tonight and reminisce about old times.

"Tonight?" Booth looked at Brennan who was sitting at the kitchen table going over their testimony for an upcoming trial. "I would Cam, but I have this thing I have to do. Maybe we can get together for lunch tomorrow."

Booth's conversation broke through Brennan's conversation. Who is this Cam person? He hasn't mentioned her to me.

Aware that his girlfriend was staring at him, Booth smiled at her and winked for good measure. "So what kind of job did you get? Coroner for the District?"

I'm the new coroner at the Jeffersonian Institute. From what I understand you work with Dr. Brennan as her partner, so small world.

Shocked, Booth shook his head. "Yeah, small world . . . congratulations, Cam. The Jeffersonian is like the apex when it comes to forensic labs. So you're going to be working for Dr. Goodman?"

Not really. He wants to work as an archeologist again, so he's handing over the reins to the Lab to me. I'm going to be in charge.

"Wow, congratulations." Booth felt like the world was shifting under his feet and he didn't like it one bit. "Hey, I'll call you sometime tomorrow morning and we can agree to meet somewhere for lunch then. I got to go, so hey, it's good to hear from you Cam. Welcome to the District."

Thanks. I'll talk to you tomorrow.

The call ended, Booth placed his phone on the counter and tried to finish unloading the dishwasher.

"Who is Cam?" Brennan shifted in her seat and faced Booth directly.

Unable to put off the conversation, Booth placed the stack of dishes on the counter, closed the dishwasher and walked over to the table where he sat down on the chair facing Brennan. "She's a friend of mine. I've known her since college. She . . . um, well, she says she's the new coroner for the Medico-Legal Lab at the Jeffersonian. Dr. Goodman hired her. She starts tomorrow." He knew she wasn't going to be happy, but he decided to just rip the Band-Aid right off. Why prolong bad news? "She's going to be your boss."

Shocked and perplexed, Brennan stared at her boyfriend and tried to figure out why Dr. Goodman hadn't hired her to be the head of the Lab. "I'm qualified to run the Lab. I wonder why I was overlooked."

He knew she was upset and there wasn't really anything he could do to soften the blow. "She's a coroner, Bones. You guys have never had a coroner working there, so maybe Goodman thought it might help you with your work to get one . . . to help you and take care of that personal bullshit you don't like. Hey you're a forensic anthropologist not a pencil pusher."

"I don't know what that is." Brennan didn't think hiring someone over her head was meant to ease her burdens. "What if this is the Jeffersonian's way of firing me?"

"Firing you?" Booth moved from his chair and stood next to her, his hand on her arm. "They're not going to get rid of you. That's crazy. You're the best forensic anthropologist in the country . . . hell the world. They can't replace you. Cam is just there to help you and to handle the day to day management of the place. You know you hate bureaucracy. You'd hate that job."

"But she will be my supervisor." Brennan didn't want a new supervisor. She was certain she could run the Lab and the coroner could work for her. "Why didn't Dr. Goodman tell me this was going to happen? It seems a little cowardly to hire someone to be my new supervisor and not tell me personally. He should have explained his reasoning to me."

"I agree." Booth knew he was walking on a tightrope without a net and it would be very hard and painful if he fell. "I totally agree he should have told you, but he didn't and he went on that sabbatical thingy, so now you can't talk to him. I mean what a fucking asshole. I like the guy, but he really should have talked to you before he left." Instead of leaving me in a pile of shit. Fuck!"I'm sure it will be alright. You're science all the way not an administrator. You hate that shit. Cam can do her thing and you can do yours. It'll work out, you'll see."

"I will expect an explanation when I confront Cam . . . Cam what is her last name?" Brennan was rapidly considering her options.

Booth could practically hear the wheels turning in her head and he decided quite correctly that it was time to bail out of the conversation. Every man for themselves and Seeley Booth was not going down in the SS Minnow. He was not going to ruin his relationship by being on the wrong side. "Camille Saroyan. I'm on your side, Bones. No matter what happens, we're in this together."

"Camille Saroyan." Brennan repeated the name. "I think I am more than qualified to run the Lab. They should have asked me."

Beating a hasty retreat, Booth moved over to the dishwasher, opened it and slowly finished unloading the machine. Fuck, fuck, fuck! The next few days are going to be bad, very very bad.

Oooooooooooooooo

Brennan breezed into Cam Saroyan's new office and stood just inside the doorway. "I am Dr. Temperance Brennan and I've been told that you are Dr. Camille Saroyan. Why were you hired to run the Lab? I am perfectly qualified. They didn't need to bring in an outsider to do the job."

Cam had been told that Brennan was blunt and now she knew that was true. Because she didn't want to give Dr. Brennan any advantages, Cam stood up and moved closer to the forensic anthropologist. "Dr. Goodman felt that the Lab could use a full time coroner. I was a coroner for the city of New York and a Federal Coroner. Your specialty is bones and mine is the fleshy part of the body. I will be able to officially declare someone dead, allowing our team to begin investigations immediately. Right now you aren't allowed to touch a body at a crime scene until a coroner has been to the scene first."

"But why not work for me?" Brennan didn't understand why she had been passed over and wanted an answer. "I think I am qualified for the position."

"As the coroner for New York, my department handled 12,000 bodies and performed 5,500 autopsies a year."

Impressed, Brennan nodded her head. "I see. We don't handle that many cases here at the Jeffersonian. What we do is critical though. We identify bodies from cold cases and help the FBI, the CIA and the Pentagon identify bodies when needed. Most of my work is with the FBI. I also identify the unknowns that are sent to the Jeffersonian because other law enforcement agencies around the country are unable to identify victims. The remains are kept in Bones Storage until I can identify them."

"Yes I know." Cam was impressed with the Jeffersonian and was eager to begin work, but she was not going to be intimidated by Dr. Brennan. "Still I am in charge now and I am your supervisor."

Brennan stared at the coroner for a few seconds, finally turned and left the office.

Not sure what had happened if anything, Cam stared at the retreating Dr. Brennan and sighed.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Since he had so much to lose, Booth decided to cover all of his bases when it came to Cam Saroyan. He needed to check and see how her meeting with his Bones had gone before he met Cam. Entering the Lab, he moved swiftly down the hallway and breezed into Brennan's office. "Hey Bones, I thought we could go for a cup of coffee."

Surprised to see Booth, Brennan looked up from her keyboard and smiled. "That sounds like a good idea."

Pleased, Booth waited for her to remove her lab coat and grab her purse. "How'd your meeting with Cam go?"

As she passed Booth, Brennan shifted the strap on her purse so that it was square on her shoulder. "I confronted her. She doesn't know why Dr. Goodman didn't name me as the head of the Lab, but she seems to be qualified for the position she was hired for. I will have to reserve judgement on her though. Only time will tell whether or not she's capable of doing what's needed."

Her words sounded conciliatory, but Booth knew that Brennan was studying the situation. "Do you think you'll quit your job?"

As they moved down the hallway, Brennan spied Cam move from her office out into the hallway. "I haven't decided yet."

Cam was surprised to see Booth and waited for both he and his partner to come closer. Admiring the way he filled out his suit, Cam smiled. "Booth, it's been a long time. You're looking good."

Even though she was a thorn in his side at the moment, Booth was still glad to see her. "Cam I'm glad to see you and thanks, I still work out . . . um, Bones and I are going for coffee. Would you like to join us? I won't be able to go to lunch with you today. I have a meeting at noon with the Deputy Director and it might last all afternoon."

With a glance at her watch, Cam shook her head. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm actually on the way to a meeting with the board of regents right now. It's good to see you Booth. Maybe we can do lunch later this week."

"Maybe, we can try any way." Booth smiled at his old friend. "Good luck in your meeting. Watch out for Doctor Bancroft. He runs a tight ship and he has a tendency to try to control everyone, at least that's what Dr. Goodman told me once. It's probably one of the reasons why he wanted to get out of administration."

"Thanks for the heads up." Cam glanced at her watch once more and started to walk away. "I really have to go."

Their conversation over, Booth turned and placed his hand on Brennan's back. "Let's go. Maybe I can get a sandwich to tide me over. I'm not sure if Cullen is going to order in food or not. His wife had him on a diet the last time we had a meeting during lunch and none of us ate."

"I remember." Brennan chuckled. "You were ravenous when you left work." Her smile faded as they walked to the entrance. "She flirted with you."

"Yeah, Cam and I dated for a while, but that's history Bones." Booth assured her. "I'm with you and only you. Okay? I am not interested in Cam or anyone else. You know that right?" Damn it. I just hope she really understands I love her and I'd never cheat. "I'd never cheat Bones, never. I'm on your side no matter what happens."

"Yes, I know that." Brennan hated to feel insecure, but Booth was very handsome man and Cam was beautiful. I do know that. Booth is not going to leave me. He loves me. I will deal with Cam and I will not worry about her past with Booth. This is between her and I.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.

A/N: The SS Minnow was the boat that was irrevocably damaged in the television show' Gilligan's Island'.