I've been sticking to canon events and then of course working the au around it, but changed the events around a bit for this chapter. Sorry!
Chapter Twelve - The Knees
It had been nearly a year since she had seen her brother Russ, a year since he drove off with her father and went into hiding, therefore it came to a surprise to Brennan when his girlfriend showed up at the lab. Not a day went by since she was fifteen that she didn't think of her brother in one way or another, but now she was worried for not only him but a little girl whom she had never met. Sighing, she hoped her dad would help find Russ but also only knew of the trouble that would cause if he did return to DC.
Leaving the lab she went to Booth's to pick up paperwork she had left and collected his mail on the way up. Sifting through it mindlessly she tossed it on the table before heading to the bedroom. There was a sense of comfort that she felt while she was at Booth's apartment, surrounded by his things and some of hers she found herself preferring his place over hers a lot of the time. It helped that their relationship didn't feel as estranged as of late, of course no one knew they were together but she didn't find that she minded all the time as she did before.
Once she had her things she made her way towards the door when the stack of mail stopped her in her tracks. "What?" She whispered to herself as she carefully picked up a bleeding envelope addressed to her at his address. Getting the proper handling tools from her bag she carefully unwrapped it. "The knees."
"You know I figured you would be more concerned by body parts being sent to you." Booth whispered to her as she entered the lab having called him from the apartment. Glaring at him she stepped into her office away from others.
"Of course I'm concerned but I'm more concerned that they were sent to me at your apartment meaning whoever sent them knows where I spend my time." She pointed out watching as her words clicked and he hummed. "What do we do?" Brennan asked, holding up the items in the plastic bag.
Thankfully he had a plan formulated within seconds and had her put the envelope in a separate bag for prints before she put the kneecaps on the platform for examination. "Look, Bones, you are going to stay with a friend. Check into a hotel, right?" He asked, playing along that the package went to her apartment instead of his. The others couldn't figure it out if the envelope wasn't there, at least not right away. Praying she caught on and her acting wasn't nearly as bad as it usually was.
"Cam, who are you more afraid of, me or her?" He thanked God that no one batted an eye to the exchange but cursed as Sweets showed up. All he needed was for the kid to notice the address and ruin it for them. He was not ready to have that conversation and also was willing to threaten the young doctor if he really needed to.
Finding out their latest victim was related to Gormogon didn't make for his day to get any better. Not only did that mean that the person eating serial killer knew where he lived, it also meant that they somehow knew about his and Bones' relationship and that didn't sit well with him. "I'm sorry you have to deal with all of this, Bones." He whispered as they stood by the platform talking. "She had no reason to come to you for help with your brother, but look, we need to talk about this package. Have you noticed anything strange around the place? In the parking lot, elevator, even the hallway?" He asked, it was an old apartment so security was entirely nonexistent.
She shook her head as Zach came by to ask questions about Gormogon, dismissing him she rolled her eyes as Booth smirked at her. "Don't get me wrong, I liked it." He said as he followed her into her office. Closing the door she then leaned against her desk as he plopped on the couch.
"I haven't noticed anything suspicious, I have no idea how they would have known where I'd be to send me mail. I don't get any mail at your place." It was definitely unnerving and she hoped if she went to her own place she wouldn't find more body parts waiting for her. Shivering at the thought she moved to sit by him. "What do we do?"
His hand moved to her knee and she smiled and placed her hand on his. "We work the case, see if we can catch this sick son of a bitch. If someone asks about the address we figure it out then, if not, we do our jobs." Booth said softly and she nodded before leaning back into the couch with him, thankful for a moment of closeness with him if only for a minute.
Dealing with her father during a murder investigation only furthered her frustration she was having with the week. She knew that he could get to Russ though and no matter how angry it made her when he showed up to the FBI almost immediately after she talked to him, it also made her feel better knowing that both her father and brother were now safe.
"Thank you, Booth." She whispered as she kissed his cheek. It was probably crossing a line to do so, but he was truly helping her brother and it meant more to her than anything. Later that night she crawled into his bed and kissed him soundly. "Thank you for arresting my brother." She whispered. "Just.. thank you."
Knowing that Gormogon had been watching them constantly from the vault made him question everything he had said to her while they were down there. Had they talked about their relationship down there? He didn't think so but he also knew that no matter how much they drew a line between work and their personal lives it always seemed to get crossed one way or another.
When he ran away from her after getting blown up to go after Gormogon he knew that they were going to have to figure something out, because leaving her hurt was the hardest thing he had ever done.
It was hours later when he unlocked his door and crept inside figuring she was still asleep. She had sent him a text that she had got stitches and was otherwise fine, which made him feel better that the bastard didn't hurt her more than he could have. Finding her on the couch curled up under the blanket he smiled sadly at how fragile she looked bruised and cut up. "Hey, why are you awake?"
She shot up and was in his arms in seconds and he held her tightly. "Shh, I'm okay, I'm okay." He whispered as he kissed her head. Lowering them back down to the couch he held her closely. "We're both okay." Mapping her face with his hand he frowned at her injuries just as she was doing with his own. "How's your arm?"
"Hurts." She shrugged and he chuckled knowing that only Dr. Temperance Brennan would minimize the pain that came from having human teeth penetrating her skin from a bomb. "I'm just glad you're okay. Booth you shouldn't go after murderers like that, especially not one like Gormogon. I was… I was scared." They had both been targeted by this person more than once now in the investigation and if he were honest he was scared to.
"I was scared too." He admitted. "But we'll get through this, just like we have before." Booth promised. "Together." Kissing her softly he was surprised when she suddenly pulled back. "Bones?" He questioned.
"I… I think… I love you." She finally said, making his heart leap out of his chest at the declaration.
"I think I love you too." He smiled.
