(Season 10)
I've had several requests for a sequel to chapter 214.
A/N: this story is rated T for language.
I don't own Bones.
Ooooooooooooooooo
Things seemed to going in the right direction for the time being. Booth was going to his Gamblers Anonymous Meetings, he was visiting Christine and Brennan in the evenings for a short while, trying to be the father he needed to be for his daughter and he hadn't made a bet of any kind for the last three weeks. He was struggling to get his life in order and he knew he only had this one chance to get it right. Brennan had kicked him out of their home because his gambling had led to his bookie coming to their house and making threats against Brennan. It was a wonder that she hadn't filed for divorce after that and Booth knew that if he didn't fix his problem she would drop him out of her life to protect herself and their children.
It mortified him to think that Jimmy had shown up at his house looking for money and he'd had a little talk with Jimmy after he had heard about it, but the damage was done. Brennan had paid the man off using Aubrey as her go between before he got home from Iran and Jimmy had been satisfied, but Booth wasn't. Catching Jimmy in an alley near his apartment, Booth had placed the end of the barrel of his gun next to the bookie's head and told him that if he ever came near him or his family again he'd kill him and he was really at good making bodies disappear when he had to. He'd worked for the CIA while he'd been a Ranger and killing evil men had been his specialty. Jimmy got the message and though he'd threatened Booth, they had both known the threats were empty. Jimmy swore he would pass the word around that taking bets from Booth was a risky business and that was fine with Booth.
In the meantime, the trust Brennan had in him was shaken and he knew that trust was everything when it came to his wife. Too many people had betrayed her in her life and she found it hard to trust anyone. The fact that he had shaken her trust in him told him just how low he had fallen. He knew he could beat his addiction, but it was going to take a lot of work and none of it was going to be easy.
Ooooooooooooooooo
Sitting in the Royal Diner, Booth was eating a hamburger with fries when Angela sat down at his table. Staring at Booth, Angela noticed the black smudges under Booth's eyes and he looked tired. "I'm not here to give you a hard time even though you deserve it." She held up her hand to stop Booth from commenting. "I said I'm not here to give you a hard time, Booth. I need you to listen to me . . . alright? I need to talk to you about something important and it has nothing to do with what you've been up to."
Annoyed, Booth wiped his mouth with a napkin and wondered what Angela was up to. "What do you want, Angela?"
"What I want is world peace, but that isn't the question you should be asking me." The waitress came by and Angela ordered a glass of iced tea with lemon. Once they were alone, Angela leaned forward and grabbed a French fry from Booth's plate. "Brennan had a visitor yesterday. I think you need to know about it."
Afraid that Jimmy had not taken his warning to heart, Booth moved his plate over near the window and stared at Angela. "Who?"
The server back with her tea, Angela waited for her to place the tea on the table and leave before she answered the question. "Michael Stires paid a visit to Brennan at the Lab . . . he heard that you're not living at home and that you're relationship with her is in trouble. According to Brennan, he tried to get her to renew their relationship. He told her that you're not good enough for her and that a guy with limited intellect like you shouldn't be married to her." Brennan had confided in her about the conversation and she'd seen how angry her friend had been about the insults towards Booth. Angela knew that Booth was a college graduate, quite intelligent and not someone that should be messed with. Booth was a dangerous adversary and Michael didn't seem to understand that.
"She's pregnant with my baby for God's sake." Disgusted, Booth folded his arms across his chest. "I knew he was bastard, but I didn't know just how much of one until now . . . It's been ten years since he humiliated Bones in court . . . what gives him the right to talk to her about anything let alone ask her to give up on her marriage to me?"
"He didn't seem to care if Brennan is pregnant, Booth. He wants her to dump you and come back to him." Angela could see Booth was angry and that was what she wanted. She wanted him to fight for Brennan. Her best friend wanted Booth back in her life and she was going to help if she could. That meant that Booth needed to know that other men were interested in Brennan. "Brennan kicked Stires out of her office so that didn't go anywhere, but I just think you need to know what Stires was up to. Brennan said he understands that she's not interested in him, but I don't know if that's true or not. He waited ten years to try to get back together so who knows what he's up to?"
His appetite gone, Booth drank some of his coffee and stared at the table top for a moment. "She kicked him out of her office?"
"Of course, she doesn't like Michael. Not since he tried to humiliate her in court. He was a jackass for doing that and Brennan's doesn't forgive stuff like that. Not really. You know that." Since Booth wasn't interested in his food, Angela moved his plate closer to her and started to eat his fries. She was pregnant and she always seemed to be hungry. "What are you going to do about Michael?"
"Me? Nothing." Booth stared at Angela for a moment then gave her a malevolent look. The sly smile on his face was all that she was going to get from him, but he knew she understood. Placing some money on the table, Booth stood up. "Order some pie for the baby." Once he was outside the diner, Booth placed his sun glasses on and considered his options. He couldn't go after Michael Stires like he had done to his bookie. Chances are Stires had friends in high places and Booth valued his job. He thought about it for a moment then realized that he had an ace up his sleeve. Okay, a gambling metaphor might not be good, but it's true.
Oooooooooooooooo
Michael Stires had enjoyed a quiet dinner at the Fiola Mare restaurant and it had been delicious as usual. The steak had been cooked to perfection and the wilted spinach had been a great accompaniment. His mind still on the excellent wine he'd had with the meal, he parked in the driveway of his home and closed the door of the car after he exited it. His eyes on the car that had just pulled up in front of his house, he knew he didn't recognize the car. Curious, he walked over towards the car and stood on the sidewalk under the streetlight while the driver of the car left his vehicle and walked around the car. "Can I help you?"
"Maybe." The visitor stared at the man in front of him and wondered what made Stires think he was so special. He was slim built, hair graying, about 50 years of age, a few lines in his face, but all in all nothing special. "Are you Michael Stires?" He knew who he was talking to, but he wanted to make sure he hadn't got it wrong.
"I am. And you are?" The stranger was an older gentleman and not someone that Michael felt he should fear. The blond hair was graying, the man was overweight though not by much and he didn't seem to be threatening.
"I'm Max Keenan." Max waited for the professor to recognize the name and when he didn't see any signs of enlightenment, he added some information. "I'm Temperance Brennan's father."
Not sure what was going on, Stires, crossed his arms against his chest. "Any why are you here?"
"You paid a visit to my pregnant daughter . . . you want to get back with her. That's not going to happen. She and her husband have a little issue they're working on, but he'll be back in the house in a week or two." Max's face was now hard, his eyes flinty blue, his hands were fists by his side.
Amused, Stires laughed. "I will talk to whom I please. Tempe made a mistake marrying that policeman. I knew it when it happened. It's just a matter of time, before she divorces him. I have time." He had thought after meeting her that he was done with her, but then he'd realized that Temperance was pregnant and her hormones were ruling her at the moment. Once the baby was born, she would be her logical self again and he might pay her another visit.
"Maybe you don't know who I am." Max removed a folded piece of newspaper from his jacket pocket and offered it to Stires.
"Did Booth send you to fight his battle?" Chuckling, Stires took the paper and opened it. "The plod can't touch me so he sent in the D team?"
Waiting for Stires to read the paper, Max gave the man a predatory look. As Stires read the newspaper article, he could see the amused look flee the man's face and a look of worry replace it.
"You got away with killing the Deputy Director of the FBI." Stires remembered this case. It had made him question the effectiveness of the DOJ and the stupidity of family loyalty shown by Temperance. "Is this supposed to scare me?" It actually did, but he wasn't going to let Keenan know. "If this is a threat, I know people that will take care of you."
Amused, Max took the paper back and placed it back into his pocket. "I know people that would scare the fuck out of you the minute you met them . . . stay away from my daughter, stay away from Booth and stay away from the Lab. This is your only warning . . . fuck with me and your time on this earth might be shorter than you're counting on."
"I'm going to call the police and report this conversation."
"Go ahead . . . it will be your word against mine." Max laughed. "Ask Deputy Director Kirby what I do when someone threatens me or people I like . . . Oh right, you can't unless you use a Ouija board." Max turned and walked over to his car. Before he walked around to the driver's side, he paused and looked back. "My daughter is pregnant with another man's baby. What kind of douche asks a pregnant woman to leave her husband for them? I wonder what your powerful friends would think about that if they heard about it. The wife of a Federal Agent? Head of Major Crimes? You're playing fucking games with your life." That said, Max walked around to his car, got in and drove away.
Once Max was out of sight, Stires started to tremble. He hadn't been afraid when talking to the old man because his adrenaline was pumping, but now it was crashing and he knew that he was going to take Max Keenan very seriously. He may have wanted Temperance, but she had too much baggage and he wanted nothing to do with her father or that oaf of a husband of hers. "Fuck her. I don't need this and I don't need her."
Oooooooooooooo
Let me know what you think of my story. Thank you.
