Chapter 36

Vade mecum - Go with me

'Maybe we should have asked Angela to take Toby.'

'No, its gone midnight, she'll be asleep, besides we don't have time.'

Temperance just gave a short sigh and climbed out of the SUV to take the baby in question from Booth as they made their way up the path towards Rebecca's house. When Temperance had arrived home earlier that evening she had wanted nothing more than to climb into bed and forget the rest of the world existed. However, the minute Booth had phoned to tell her of Rebecca's disappearance she had known that sleep was definitely not an option. Five minutes later Booth had turned up at her door insisting they start the investigation immediately and that was how an irritable FBI agent, a tired forensic anthropologist and a sleeping baby came to be standing on the sidewalk of the leafy suburban street in central DC at twenty past twelve at night.

Booth knocked loudly at the door, the hollow side echoing down the empty road before disappearing into the cool night air. The door opened quickly, a shaky looking Drew urging them into the main room. Once there he turned to Booth.

'Thanks for coming.'

'We got here as quick as we could.'

'I just didn't know who else to call.'

Drew's panic was evident as he paced the room gesturing for Booth and Brennan to sit. The pair complied, Temperance willing her urge to just fall asleep on the comfy couch as she watched Toby enviously as he dozed on in her arms.

'Have you called the police?'

Drew made a noise in the back of his throat.

'Yeah for all the good it did me. They won't do anything until she's been missing for more than 48 hours. It's just…it's not good enough, I know she hasn't left me, we're happy, we're having a baby together for crying out loud. I know she hasn't left me; someone's taken here, something's happened. We're happy.'

There was a pause.

'Besides, she wouldn't just leave Parker.'

Booth nodded in agreement and wondered for the first time where his son was. Brennan voiced the silent question.

'Where is Parker?'

'With my parents, they don't live far from here. They're good with Parker and Becca and Booth's parents live too far away, Rosa's away for the week so there wasn't anyone else. I thought…I thought it best for him to not be here for a while, especially if the police do come.'

Booth nodded again apparently pleased with Drew's care of Parker.

'Drew I need you to tell me exactly what happened in the run up to you realizing she was missing.'

'Yesterday…she went out with Parker; they had ice-cream, bought a few bits for the baby. I was working all day. I came home at five and the house was quiet. When I shouted for them Parker came down from upstairs, he'd been playing in his room. I looked for Becca but she wasn't in the house. They'd only been home half an hour…Parker…Rebecca had been taken and Parker hadn't even heard anyone come in.'

Booth sighed.

'What did you tell him?'

'That him mom had gone out for a while and that he was going to nanny Grace and grandpa Ted's house for a little while.'

Booth didn't seem to know what questions to ask next so Brennan deftly passed Toby over to him and took over.

'Was there anything out of the ordinary about the past few days, I mean for example do they normally go shopping on Sundays?'

'It depends.'

'On what?'

Booth answered.

'On whether or not he stays with me'

'Which depends on?'

'If you stay with me and if Rebecca lets me have him. He didn't stay this Saturday night because of the turn up of the fibers on Phoebe Conner's clothing.'

Temperance remembered now, Booth had been forced to alter his plans with Parker in order to make the trip to Phoebe's lab.

'Was there any sign of a struggle?'

'No, none, like I said Parker didn't even know anything had happened and he was only upstairs, dinner was cooking in the kitchen, the radio was on, she just…she was just gone and we need to find her, we need to find her now before anything…before anything…'

Drew seemed to break down at this and Booth and Brennan took this as their cue to leave.

'We'll do our best, I promise. We'll find her.'

Drew looked up, his eyes tired and withdrawn.

'I know you will, I know.'

Brennan's living room felt miniscule as Booth paced it.

'Right, we need to come up with a plan, I'll get onto the local PD see if they cant prioritize Rebecca's case…'

'Booth…'

'Then we need to see if there are any updates on the case…'

'Booth…'

'We should probably call the hospital too, check on Cam, oh and we'll have to find someone to take Toby because…'

'BOOTH!'

He stopped pacing and turned to her. Toby's cries filled the room and Brennan moved to sooth him.

'We can't do anything tonight and you know it. We're both too tired to be of use to anyone, let alone Rebecca. First thing tomorrow we'll work on what we've got. The case isn't going anywhere, we don't have any leads, and you know that. I'm still waiting for the iconographer from Yale to get back to me on the numbers but that probably won't be until Wednesday at the earliest and even then it might not help. As for Cam, its one in the morning, she'll be asleep…like we should be. Now go home, sleep.'

'I could just stay here.'

'You could but I can't see this being a bad night with Toby and you need your sleep more than I do now go.'

'Kicking me out?'

She smiled and kissed him swiftly on the cheek.

'Yes, now go, sleep. Pick me up in the morning, 8, ok?'

Booth nodded reluctantly before kissing her and slowly slipping from the apartment. Brennan held Toby close as he fell asleep once more snuggled again her. She tugged her hair from the ponytail it was in with her free hand and brushed her fingers through her hair. She walked down the hall entering the spare room to settle Toby in his cot. The infant immediately snuggled into the blankets, his thumb drifting between his dusky pink lips. Brennan smiled in admiration at how the baby was still able to find such peace in an otherwise chaotic and distressing day. She backed slowly from the room, conscious on the sound of her footfall on the odd creaky floorboard. She turned the baby monitor on and positioned it on the bedside table before exiting the room and closing the door with a soft click.

She traveled further down the hall, flicking the lights out as she went. She rolled her shoulders slowly as she entered her bedroom, determined to make the most of the few hours' sleep she could get. She couldn't even be bothered to get changed and reached for the coverlet on the bed in anticipation on the comfort her cozy mattress would offer. Toeing off her shoes she ran a brush quickly through her hair and turned back towards the bed only to stop frozen to the spot as she caught a flash of an unexpected image in the mirror of her dressing table. She turned slowly to investigate only to be met simultaneously by a blinding light, a sharp pain and then…everything went dark and there was nothing.

Coming up: Whats happened to Brennan? Where is Rebecca? and Booth finally has a break-through on the case