It was midnight before they stopped and even later before Booth fell asleep. Even at the beginning of the assignment, being put into Witness Protection had felt like overkill. They'd been in danger before and managed just fine without it, and sure, the kids were in danger of being kidnapped while the grandparents were around, but it still seemed a bit much. Now, though, knowing that Graft had been stalking not only the kids, but Booth and Bones as well, he felt extremely thankful that the FBI and WPP had gone to all of the trouble that they had.

As Max had started his tale, Booth had initially felt uneasy. The killer might not have caught up with them yet, but he hadn't been too far off before they'd all gone into hiding. It also made him uneasy that they guy had been able to single out Special Agent Booth and Dr. Brennan as the primary investigators and switch his focus from the kids to them so quickly.

The unease had morphed into anger, and the anger into determination. Zane Graft had picked the wrong guy to mess with, and just before he fell asleep, Booth decided that it was time to nail the guy's carcass to the wall.

In the morning, Booth awoke, glad that it wasn't a weekday so he wouldn't have to cart the kids to school or come up with an excuse to stay home from the office. Bones had been nearly catatonic the night before after Max dropped his bombshell and Booth wanted to keep an eye on her today and make sure she was okay. Plus, they had a lot of planning to get done and while the office was private, this was something that he and Bones needed to hash out as a team- not from opposite ends of a video conference.

" 'Morning," he greeted his wife as her eyes fluttered open.

"Apparently."

"How ya doing?"

She rolled over toward him, her face thoughtful, though at least her eyes weren't vacant any more.

"Better than last night," she said finally.

"That's good," he smoothed her hair out and back from her eyes, "You seemed to take it pretty hard."

"I was stunned, Seeley," she began playing with his hand idly, "It is one thing to be told that you might possibly be in danger, it is another thing entirely to find out that you are in danger, and that you have had at least one very narrow escape. Not only that, but I still find my father's criminal past disturbing and to find that it is a former co-worker of his behind all of this makes me very ill at ease."

"We'll get him," Booth promised her, letting his eyes penetrate hers, "We know where he is and we know how to contact him, so it's only a matter of time."

"We should get up," she said suddenly, dropping his hand and moving out from under the covers, "My father and the children are no doubt awake by now and will be very hungry."

"Okay, Bones," he nodded, throwing on a t-shirt and sweatpants, "Let's go feed the troops."

He could tell that what she really wanted to do was get started on a plan for reeling Graft in, but if she didn't want to voice that right now, he wouldn't bring it up. Instead, he teased her about making herself presentable for breakfast. She shot back that she was not the only person to employ hair care products, therefore he had no place to speak. This made him wonder what his hair looked like first thing in the morning, but he strongly resisted looking in the mirror to find out.

When they got downstairs, they found that Max and the kids were up already and had started on breakfast. Max was merrily flipping pancakes and frying up sausage in a separate pan while the kids were consuming the pancakes as they came out. Joey was a sticky mess of syrup while Sadie had reduced her pancake to crumbs that were scattered all over the tray of her highchair, not to mention the floor. Maddie and Parker were sitting patiently, waiting for the next round to be done.

"'Morning," Max greeted the couple with a smile, "You two prefer blueberries or chocolate chips in your pancakes?"

"Blueberries," Bones said at the same time Booth said, "Chocolate chips."

"Some of each, coming up," Max grinned, amused.

Booth watched as his father-in-law expertly maneuvered the cooked pancakes onto a waiting plate, scooped the sausages onto the same plate, and then handed the whole thing to Parker. Max then turned back to his pans, put on more sausages, and ladled out more batter. True to his word, he put chocolate chips in half and blueberries in the other half.

"Help yourselves to the coffee," Max said, "But be warned I brew a strong cup."

Booth smirked, somehow he wouldn't have expected anything less of the man. Booth and Bones got their coffee- which woke Booth up just at the smell- and sat down at the table.

"I didn't know you knew how to cook pancakes so well," Bones admitted when they were all sitting around the table.

Max smiled, "Who do you think taught your mother?"

Bones arched an eyebrow as if she didn't believe him.

"Sweetie, when I met your mother she could cook about three things and that was it," the look on Max's face was nostalgic, "She nearly killed me the first year we were married, though by the time you kids came around she'd figured things out. I wasn't much better, but I could make a mean pancake, so I taught her how to too."

"Do you remember the 'b' pancakes?" Bones asked, as if desperate to contribute her own memory.

"Oh yeah," he nodded, "That was completely her idea though, and you guys loved it."

"They were good," Bones murmured.

"Yeah," Max said softly, "They were."

"Grandpa Max makes good pancakes too," Parker chimed in.

"Yes, he does," Bones agreed, "So what do you suppose we should tell him for preparing this delicious meal for us?"

A chorus of, "Thank you," went around the table, making the old man blush slightly.

The kids started suggesting a long list of things that they could all do after breakfast was over.

"Hold on a second guys," Booth held up his hand before they got too carried away, "Grandpa Max, Bones, and I have a lot to get done today. We can play for a little bit but once nap time comes around I expect you older ones to entertain yourselves too."

They decided it was still a little early in the morning to play outside so they went upstairs to Joey's room and set up the huge train set. The kids loved that all three adults got down on the floor to play with them, and they listened raptly as Max told them all about the transcontinental railroad while they played.

Everyone was so full from breakfast that lunch was light and took no time at all to get through. A half an hour later the little ones were yawning and nap time was announced. Filing up the stairs, dragging their feet the entire time, the four children trudged up to their rooms. Once the younger two were tucked in and the older two given stern warnings about coming out before they were called, Booth and Bones headed downstairs and once again met Max in the media room.

"Ya know," Booth said, sitting down on the couch and stretching his legs to their full length, "After last night, if somebody offered me a nap right now, I'd take it in a heartbeat."

"If you'd like, you may go rest while my father and I work through the preliminary details," Bones offered kindly.

"Nah," Booth shook his head, pushing himself up, "I'll just go grab a cup of Max's liquid energy. You guys want anything?"

"Water please," Bones requested.

"Nothing for me," Max waved Booth off.

Booth left the room and came back with water, coffee, and a package of Oreos. Father and daughter arched identical left eyebrows at him.

"Hey," he shrugged, tossing out a charm smile, "It's comfort food."

"I thought macaroni and cheese was your comfort food?" Bones questioned.

"Well sure," he plopped back down on the couch beside her, handing her the water and putting the cookies between them, "But Oreos- you can't go wrong there, Bones."

"How does an artificially flavored cookie with an equally artificial center bring you comfort?" she wanted to know.

"It's chocolate, Bones," he grinned, "I thought you loved chocolate?"

"I enjoy chocolates that are made with actual cacao beans rather than a manufactured taste developed in a lab, yes," she was talking as if the world depended on her opinion being right and he couldn't help but goad her a little further.

"Jut try one, Bones," he picked a cookie up and waggled it underneath her nose, "Just one little Oreo and I swear you'll see what I mean."

"No," she pursed her lips and set her jaw.

"Come on," he teased, "You know you want to."

"Seeley," she was fighting back and smile and he could see she was close to cracking, "If you had any direct knowledge of what I knew, than you would know that I do not want that cookie!"

"Ah, but you only think that you don't want it," he tapped her forehead playfully, "Where I know that once you take and itty bitty bite, you'll be hooked."

"Why?" she shook her head, "Is there some hidden fishing lure in it?"

"Hooked, Bones," he threw his hands up in the air in mock disbelief, "It's a figure of speech. Just try it, you'll see what I mean."

"I don't want to try it."

"We've been over this before," he dragged the last word out and again dangled the cookie in front of her.

"Fine," she snatched it from his hand, "But only to prove to you that you are incorrect and to shut you up."

"Nothin' like keepin' it honest there, Dear," he muttered, grinning all the while as she first took one bite, then another, then finished the cookie off entirely.

"It's much better than I had anticipated," she said, "Though I would hardly call it comfort food."

She reached for another one.

"Hah! You do like 'em," he crowed loudly, "I knew you would. Now, admit that I was right."

"Booth," she shot him an exasperated look, though just the fact that she'd switched to his surname told him he was wearing her down.

"Come on, Bones," he said, whisking the cookies out of her reach, "Just four little words and you can have all the Oreos your heart desires."

"Booth."

"Well, that's one of them," he grinned, "Or Seeley, I'm not picky."

"Give me the cookies," she demanded, standing up and reaching for the package.

"Temper, temper, Temperance," he chided, standing up too so that he towered over her, "And those were not the four words."

She had just opened up her mouth and he was fairly sure she was going to tell him he had been right, when a fit of laughter erupted from the couch. The couple turned, cookies forgotten, to their guest, who was laughing so hard he was starting to gasp for air.

"Great, Seeley," she socked him hard in the solar plexus, causing him to nearly drop the cookies, "If my father dies as a result of this, it's your fault!"

"You two," Max wheezed, slowly catching his breath, "Are better than watching television."

They looked at Max, then at each other and shrugged, unsure of what he was talking about.

"Anyway," Max continued, "If we've settled the great Oreo debate, do you think we can get some plans down now?"

Both Booths reddened at that remark and sat down, cookies between them, like kids who had been called out on the carpet.

Booth could've sworn he heard Max mumble something about seeing why they'd switched beds, but what he said out loud was, "Actually, your little- whatever- did get me thinking about a way we could pull this off."

"You think the killer enjoys Oreo cookies?" Bones' brow furrowed and it both he and Max shared an amused look.

"No, Tempe," her dad said gently, "Lures. We've got to find a good enough lure to draw Zane out and reel him in."

"What are you thinking, Max?" Booth asked.

It took the rest of the afternoon, and several hours that night after the kids were back in bed to come up with a plan that they could all agree on.

"I'm still not certain this is the correct course of action," Bones told him later that night as they lay in bed.

"We don't have much choice," he told her, "And this way there is no risk to you or the kids."

"I'm not worried about myself or the children, Seeley," she turned to face him and he could see the hint of fear in her eyes, even in the dark, "We have a 24-hour guard around the house, not to mention the security fence that would alert us of any unauthorized presence long before it reached the house. You are the one willfully putting yourself in a dangerous situation."

"There are some risks you have to take," he said, framing her face with his fingers, "It comes with the whole Special Agent territory."

"I wish it didn't," she said softly.

"I'll be fine," he promised.

"You'd better be," her emotions were running high, and the lack of sleep from the night before was catching up to her, "I swear, Seeley Booth, if I have to hear another doctor tell me you're de-"

"Shh," he soothed, before she could finish and get herself even more worked up, "Shh. Come here, Bones."

He gathered her into his arms and held her, letting his solid presence and his soft nonsense words ease away her fears.

"I love you," he told her, resting his forehead up against hers, "You know that, right?"

She nodded wordlessly.

"If we don't do this, Bones," he said quietly, "If we don't take the necessary, calculated risks to catch this guy, then he wins, and we live on edge and unsure of our safety for the rest of our lives. We also run the risk of him cutting down everyone in his way that he thinks will lead him to us, including your dad if he ever makes the connection. We can't let that happen, Temperance, we can't."

"I know," she sighed wearily, moving her head to lay on his chest, "I simply don't like it."

"Me neither," he held her tightly to him, rubbing her back as he spoke, "Me neither."

It would be another hour before either of them got to sleep.