Title: Object of my Affection

Title: Object of my Affection
Author: Shannon - shannyfish
Disclaimer: I do not own "Bones" or its characters, Fox does. This is merely for entertainment purposes only.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Booth and Brennan must struggle with not only the Grad Students trying to take Zack's old position, but also help get through a tragic end.
Warning: Post Season Three - "Pain in the Heart". Would take place during Season Four, probably mid to late. Warning! Do not start reading this unless you plan on reading all…like…one hundred chapters (it might be that many…might not…). This will be an epic/saga-type fic and shall include all kinds of fun plot twists. The rating of this story will most likely fluctuate, FYI.

Chapter 29 – "False Alarms"

Author's Note: Okay, I'm going to assume that Russ is married, since I don't remember knowing 100% either way. Also! Remember that your reviews help me write, so you may get more than the 30th & 31st chapters if you review more before the end of October!

…………………..

Brennan's Office

It was ten o'clock and people were on edge. According to their calculations, Cedric Kelsey only had an hour or two left to live and they were no closer to locating him. Booth sighed and leaned his head against the palm of his hand as he looked over photos. He wasn't seeing any patterns to locations the Gravedigger had buried his previous victims except that they were in more rural places…off the beaten path…some were even abandoned.

Booth's phone rang and he sat straight up as he put the phone to his ear, "Booth."

((Booth, they've got Tempe!))

"Whoa! Russ! Calm down!" He could hear panic in Russ' voice.

Brennan's head shot up in interest at the phone call. "Is Russ okay?" she questioned.

((He's going to kill her if I don't send money to some account by tomorrow.))

"She's here, Russ," Booth said. "Your sister is across the table from me. She's safe, I promise."

((Tempe's okay?))

Booth could hear relief immediately rushing into Russ' voice as he realized what Booth had just told him. "Your sister is doing paperwork in front of me."

"I want to talk to Russ," Brennan said holding her hand out across the table for the phone.

"No, I'm talking to Russ right now," Booth said leaning back in his chair. "Can you hear her?" He could hear Russ' laugh on the other end.

((She's okay…same Tempe.))

"Look, I need you and the girls to come to the Jeffersonian. It'll be easier to protect everyone."

((I don't think so.))

"Look, I know you're afraid for your girls…but they'll be safer here. I have my son here, too. He's a little irritated, but Angela is keeping him occupied with various coloring activities."

((Booth, really, I appreciate that you've got the F.B.I. called all the way out to North Carolina, but I'm fine…really. Just take care of Tempe. Keep her safe.))

"Russ—"

((Bye.))

"I want to talk to him," Brennan told Booth again and this time grabbed the phone for herself. "Russ?" she asked once the phone was at her ear. She frowned at the phone and the fact that it was on the menu screen. "I think he hung up on me…"

Booth laughed, "No, he hung up on me. He's being stubborn. It's a common Brennan trait."

Brennan frowned and handed the phone back to Booth, "What did he say?"

"He wants me to watch you like a hawk," Booth summed up.

"Is that all?" Brennan asked.

"And he doesn't want us to relocate him and his family to the Jeffersonian," he said a bit quietly.

"But – he has to – you obviously didn't explain the danger of the situation clearly or effectively enough," Brennan accused pointing a finger across the table at him.

"I – but – I – and Russ…" Booth finally stopped and sighed giving up. He had tried. Hadn't she seen that?

Brennan frowned, "I need to go and get him," she explained. "That's the only he's going to stay safe."

"Bones, he doesn't want us to bring him to D.C. to keep him and his family safe."

She stood up and frowned at him, "Well, I don't care. If anyone else, I'm thinking of Hayley and Emma…those girls deserve to be protected…like Parker," she said before heading out of her office.

"Bones, wait," Booth called getting up and following after her. "It's not that I don't want to get your brother and his…wife? And the girls, it's just that he doesn't want me to."

"Look, I'm not just going to hide here while my brother could be the next victim of the Gravedigger," Brennan told him.

"You're not hiding…you're being protected…at the Jeffersonian…and working, you love working," Booth told her, but he could tell that she didn't look convinced.

…………………..

Jeffersonian

"You're sure?" Booth asked.

"For about the one thousandth time, Booth," Cam said and stopped and turned to look directly at him as she spoke. "The security has been doubled with private security, plus there's the extra F.B.I. protection detail put on the Jeffersonian. Go, do what you need to do… We'll keep looking from our end."

Booth frowned; he was worried about the kid, too. They had little time.

"We can only do what we can do, Booth," Cam told him gently and reached out and put her hand on his arm. It was meant to be reassuring. "You're not really helping us here…and neither is Brennan."

"She's staying here…" Booth argued, but knew that Brennan would most likely find a way around it, so that she had to go anyway.

"Angela and Hodgins have already agreed to watch Parker while you're both gone," Cam told him. "Don't worry; you know we'll all take good care of him until you both return."

But he did worry. He worried a lot about Parker. What was the back up plan? The only other family Parker had were his grandparents, Lydia and Murray Stinson, and Booth wasn't too excited about them raising his son…they just wouldn't provide the same care as he would…different experiences, different views on the world…different…everything. "If we don't come back—"

"Seeley," Cam said and squeezed his arm lightly. "We'll take care of Parker," she assured. "The best care…and you both will come back."

"Thanks Camille," he said softly and gave her a smile. He'd already told Parker that he needed to leave, but that he'd be back and that he needed to stay with the squints. Now, he needed to get out and try to do it without Brennan, though he didn't think that was really possible. He was just sadly hopeful.

He picked up his jacket and pulled it on. It was going to be a quick trip down to North Carolina; he'd already booked two tickets down and six tickets back. They wouldn't be gone for more than five hours. He'd decided to bring his overnight bag that he had there just in case. He heard quick footfalls and knew who it was.

"Booth! Wait for me!" Brennan called as she hurried through the lab with her purse and bag in hand. She stopped beside him ready to fight to go. "I know you don't want me to go, but Booth, it's the only way to get them back here."

"Fine."

"But Booth," she started to argue and then stopped. "Wait, you're not going to argue?" she asked surprised.

"There's really no use," Booth told her. "Come on," he urged and started again towards the exit of the Jeffersonian. "We're going to be late for our flight if we don't hurry."

"Can't we use the lights and siren?"

Booth laughed, "I'm not sure our escort will allow you that."

…………………..

Brennan Residence

North Carolina

Booth and Brennan sat outside in the vehicle that had picked them up at the airport. "You know the Gravedigger was probably just trying to prove that he could get to Russ if he wanted to…"

"Like taunting me?" Brennan asked.

"Yeah," Booth told her. "Just to show you the power he has."

"Can we go in now?"

"Sure," Booth said. He knew that the home was under heavy surveillance and that the short walk to the door would be safe and easy enough.

Brennan got out of the vehicle and walked around to Booth's side where he waited for her. "Kelsey could be dead."

"He could still be alive, Bones," Booth told her and put an arm around her and started to guide her towards the house. The bags were left in the vehicle for now.

"I didn't do anything to save him," Brennan said.

"They're still working back at the lab," Booth tried.

Brennan frowned, "I'm being selfish."

"We're all selfish, isn't that part of being human?"

"It doesn't make it right."

The door was open before they could even step up onto the porch. The F.B.I. agents could be seen inside and Russ Brennan met them at the door. "Tempe, couldn't you and Booth just trust me? We're fine."

"Does that mean we have to stand out here in the cold?" Booth asked.

Russ sighed and motioned for them to enter and then shut and locked the door behind them. "The girls and Amy are upstairs sleeping," Russ told them.

"Wake them up and get packed," Booth said.

"We're not leaving," Russ argued.

"Russ," Brennan tried to plead. "You don't understand how dangerous the Gravedigger is…"

"He's called the Gravedigger for a reason," Booth added. "He digs your grave for you…and buries you inside…and lets you suffer for a good twelve to twenty-four hours."

Brennan walked towards Russ; she wanted him to be worried too. Her eyes watered as she thought about the experience when she and Hodgins had been buried. "You know what I do can be really—"

"Disgusting?" Russ supplied.

"I deal with death everyday," Brennan said. "You know Booth always is there when we go to crime scenes. He makes sure that I'm protected…but he doesn't protect me after hours," she said.

"Unless we're eating at the diner," Booth told her.

It brought a small smile to her face, "I was assaulted and drugged two years ago in the parking structure on my way to karate class," she explained. "The Gravedigger was in the process of abducting me when one of my co-workers tried to come to my rescue. The Gravedigger ran him down with his car and then buried both of us alive in a car." Tears fell down her face as she remembered Hodgins' injuries and how she had to perform dangerous surgery on him in order to save him. "Hodgins almost died because of the shock and the injuries he incurred from the vehicle hitting him. We were only given twelve hours of air." She noticed that Russ was starting to look worried…and she could hear Booth behind her and could see him off to the side behind her. He was remembering too, he was uncomfortable. He was most likely reliving it as well. "The only reason we survived was because we were scientists. Hodgins and I managed to pop one of the tires to lengthen our air supply, Hodgins made a scrubber to extend the oxygen; we were able to rig a cell phone to send a short text message—"

"It wasn't short, it was cryptic," Booth told her.

"Zack figured it out."

"But you survived," Russ said.

"We found the location where they were buried," Booth told him. "In a quarry…a huge quarry."

"I managed to access the explosives—"

"How did you get explosives?" Russ asked getting confused. He was starting to think that his sister was making it all up.

"They're in all cars with air bags," Brennan explained matter of factly. "They're part of the air bag delivery system."

"Right," Russ said and then looked at Booth, "Only my sister would think to blow her way out of a car."

"Booth found us though," Brennan said. "But I don't want you to go through that, Russ… Not every case resulted in the victims being found alive, Russ… We found a pair of twin boys that were buried alive…years later… He doesn't care who he hurts, Russ. Going after Emma and Hayley wouldn't be any different to him…"

"What?" the quiet female voice shrieked.

Russ looked up towards the stairway and saw Amy standing there. She'd overheard at least the end of the conversation. "Amy, its okay…the girls are safe."

"What do you mean that someone could go after Emma and Hayley?" Amy asked. She wasn't addressing Russ, but Brennan.

Brennan hadn't meant to upset Amy, but she wanted them to go back to the Jeffersonian, so that they would all be safe. Sure, it might sound crazy, but it was all that she could do for now. "There is a serial killer who has taken one of my grad students…and we believe that you and the girls may be in danger… I wanted you, Russ, and the girls to come back to D.C. with us."

"We've pretty much locked everyone who may be a target down at the Jeffersonian," Booth told her.

"The Gravedigger has already called Russ," Brennan said. "He told him that I was his victim, but Booth thinks it was only to prove that he knows where you are and he can get to you."

"How will the protection be any different in D.C.?" Russ asked.

Booth stepped forward, so that he was standing right next to Brennan. "The Jeffersonian's security was doubled before we left and we'd already upped it. There is also F.B.I. security detail that has been added onto that."

"He left his son there," Brennan spoke up. "He's obviously confidant in the security or else he would have brought Parker along with us."

"How old is your son, Agent Booth?" Amy asked.

"He's six," Booth reported.

Amy nodded, "And you trust him to be safe while you're here?"

"Yes," he simply replied.

Amy turned to Russ, "I think it's for the best…"

Russ nodded, "I just…I didn't want to scare you or the girls…"

She smiled, "I think the girls will think it's more of an adventure. Plus, they'll get to see where their aunt works."

"See…that spells fun right there for kids," Booth told them.

"So, we can leave in the morning?" Russ asked.

"Nope," Booth responded and pulled back his sleeve and looked at his watch. "We need to be leaving in fifteen minutes, so that we can catch the next plane back to D.C.. I already have tickets for all of you," he informed them.

………………….

TBC…