Booth lowered himself slowly over the edge with Hodgins' help. The second man stayed on top, readying a place for them to spend the night.

Brennan was still leaning against the tree, but her head was slumped toward her chest when Booth got to her. "Hey, baby," he said when he was next to her. "Are you still with me?"

If she heard the baby comment, she didn't react. Slowly she raised her head and looked at Booth. She jumped a little when he touched her forehead. "I'm still here."

"Here," he said, handing her a bottle of water. She took it from him greedily, but drank from it slowly to keep from getting sick. It would take her body time to adjust to food and water again.

"When did you figure out I was missing?" she asked.

Booth sat down next to her. "When you fell off the cliff," he admitted.

She looked at him with confusion. "There's no way you could know when I fell off the cliff, Booth," she pointed out in the scientific voice he loved.

He ran his hand over his chin, realizing it had been quite some time since he shaved. "Could we talk about that later, Bones?"

She looked like she wanted to ask more questions, but nodded. After a moment, she leaned toward him and he caught her in his arms. He was warm and solid and she leaned into him wearily.

"Are you okay, Bones?" he asked. His voice was edging toward panic.

She nodded into his chest. "Tired," she mumbled finally. "I couldn't figure out how to get up that mountain by myself."

He pulled her tighter into his arms. Her head was tucked under his chin, right where he figured it belonged. "Just rest now, Bones. You don't have to figure everything out right now. For once, just let me take care of it for you."