(Season 10)
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It had been weeks since Booth had been released from prison and Brennan could still see the wariness in her husband. He was having a hard time forgiving the FBI for doing what they had done to him. Before he had died, Sweets had found an agent that he hoped Booth could work with and though Agent Aubrey had done everything asked of him by Booth, he was still not trusted and that worried Brennan.
Booth was restless, irritable, more impatient than usual and Brennan wasn't sure what to do about it. When she tried to talk to him about his stay in prison, he cut her off and told her that he didn't want to talk about it. He insisted that there was nothing wrong, but she knew there was. She might not understand other people, but she did know Booth and she knew he felt betrayed. Maybe it was time to talk to him about his grandfather.
She found him in the backyard sitting on one of the lawn chairs drinking from a bottle of beer. "Booth, I'd like to talk to you."
He heard the hesitation in her voice and he knew she probably wanted to talk about something that he didn't want to talk about. "Bones . . .I'm fine. We don't need to talk about anything."
"Really?" She shook her head and sat on a chair near him. "When I first met your grandfather Hank, we had a private conversation and he asked me to do him a favor once he was dead."
Feeling a cold ghost like hand touch his back, Booth leaned back against his chair and shook his head. "Bones, Pops is dead. I was in prison when it happened but I accept that. What choice do I have? I don't . . ."
"That may be, but I made a promise to him and I feel obligated to carry out his request." Pausing, Brennan shifted her chair so she could look directly at her husband. "First, he wanted you to know that he loved you and he was very proud of you." She saw Booth shut his eyes and swallow. Talking to Booth about his grandfather was not going to be easy, she could see that.
"I told him I was certain that you felt the same way about him because you had no one else to turn to when your father walked out. I told him that I thought you were lucky to have him."
His hand over his eyes, Booth wanted Brennan to stop. "Bones that's enough. I get it, he loved me."
"No, it isn't enough. Hank wanted me to convey a message to you and I will. Either now or later." Staring at her partner, she lifted her chin in defiance. "I will keep my promise."
As stubborn as Brennan was, Booth knew he might as well let her have her say. "Fine, just tell me then."
Clearing her throat, Brennan leaned forward on her chair. "He wanted you to know it was his fault."
"His fault, what was his fault?" Confused, Booth stared at his wife.
"When he saw his son, your father beating you, he grabbed Edwin and pulled him into the living room . . . Hank said that he told his son to get out. That Edwin didn't deserve to be a father. Hank blamed himself for Edwin never coming back and leaving you alone . . . He knew he had to take both you and Jared in . . . he couldn't continue to let Edwin abuse you . . . He said he never had the nerve to tell you that and that was why you never saw your father again. He wanted you to know, but he decided to let me be the judge of when it would be the right moment to tell you . . . I'm telling you now."
As he sat quietly staring at Brennan, Booth knew that this had been hard for her to do. "I knew . . . I knew why Dad left and never came back. Pops may have thought he was talking quietly to his son, but he wasn't. He was yelling at Dad and I could hear every word he said that morning. Jared and I know what happened in that living room that day . . . He hit him. Pops hit Dad and he told him that he was ashamed of Dad and he never wanted to see him again . . . We never saw Dad after that, but it was okay. Pops did what he had to do."
Surprised, Brennan reached out and touched Booth's knew. "Why didn't you tell Hank that you knew?"
"I didn't think it was important." Booth reached down and clasped Brennan's hand. "Pops did what he did to protect me and Jared. My so called father was trying to kill me when Pops walked into the house. Do you think I blamed Pops for making my father leave? I was grateful. He saved my life and probably Jared's too . . . Pops was my hero. He's always been my hero. I wish I had known that he blamed himself for Dad leaving and not coming back . . . I'd have told him it was nonsense. Dad was out of control. Pops did what he had to do. It's not like he could count on my mother to show up and protect us." He laughed. It was a bitter laugh and held no humor. "She didn't give a shit about me or Jared. She ran away and created a life without us . . . We were better off with out Edwin or Marianne Booth. Pops was our father. Pops took care of us when we needed it."
"I see." Not sure if there was anything else to say, Brennan looked down at their clasped hands. "You were almost killed, but you trusted your grandfather to take care of you. You trusted him."
Uncertain what point she was trying to make, Booth licked his bottom lip and stared into Brennan's deep blue eyes. Eyes that he could lose himself in if he let himself do it. "Yeah, I trusted him."
Slowly nodding her head, Brennan smiled. Not a bright sunny smile, but a sad little smile. "Trust is earned, not easily given. I know that as well as you do."
"Yeah."
"You were almost killed when those assassins invaded our house and attacked you." Brennan felt her husband's hand become tense on her hand, but she continued. "The FBI misused you because they were misled . . . I got you out of prison and with the help of Sweets, with Hodgins and Angela and with Aubrey we proved that Durant had betrayed our country. We proved Durant was responsible for the invasion of our home and that those men were not FBI agents. He tried to have you killed to continue his nefarious plans . . . You trusted us to help you like you trusted your grandfather and your grandmother even though you had little reason to do so."
Shaking his head, Booth interrupted her. "No, I had a reason to trust them. My grandparents loved me and they never did anything to cause me to not trust them. They saved me. They took care of me. Me and Jared. And you and Cam and the others . . . you all trusted me and trusted that I hadn't done anything wrong and because of that I trust you and them. You have never betrayed me Bones. You have always been on my side. You and my grandparents . . . I knew you and they would always have my back."
"Yes, they never gave you a reason to not trust them." Brennan hoped she wasn't being too vague. "When you were betrayed, you were betrayed by Durant. The FBI was tricked into thinking you were a murderer and a traitor. Most of the agents you work with were not involved in Durant's plot . . . yes there were a handful of agents at the FBI who were traitors, but none of them worked with you or for you and they've been arrested. Those involved will be prosecuted for their crimes . . . You didn't trust Stark, but it turns out he wasn't involved either. He gave you your gun and badge back. He wanted to trust you when he had no reason to do so, and he gave you back your job. Because he trusted you, you helped bring down Durant . . . He trusted you Booth and so did Aubrey. Aubrey gave you a chance to prove that you were the man Sweets told him you were and he helped you. He has worked with you and he has helped you solve some cases. He wants to continue to work with you. When you allowed him into the interrogation room today, it was a start, but only a start. Trust him, Booth. Trust him like you trusted Hank. You have to trust other people, not just me and Cam and Hodgins . . . Do you understand what I am telling you? He's earned your trust because he has trusted you when he probably shouldn't have. He didn't know you, but he was told you were a good man and he gave you a chance." She knew she was being repetitive, but she was trying to get her husband to focus on the important things. She hadn't practiced what she was going to say and it was all extemporaneous.
He let what Brennan told him sink in and he knew that she was right. She always seemed to be right when it counted most. "Thank you for giving me Pops' message. I wish I had known he blamed himself for Dad never coming back, but hell, he did the right thing. Edwin was an abusive drunk and as far as I was concerned, I never wanted to see or hear from him again. That shouldn't have been a burden . . . As for Aubrey, I know he's done a good job and I guess I can count on him when I need to . . . I'll give him a chance, like you did for me." He stood up and pulled Brennan into his arms, holding her against his body. "I wish I could have talked to Pops before he died. I had a lot to say to him, but now . . . I loved him. I loved him very much."
"I know." She had kept Hanks' promise and he had been right, it all goes by so fast.
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