CHAPTER THREE

PART ONE

With Booth and Brennan watching, the ritual in the woods continues for some time with Daniel Harman at the centre of it all, the obvious leader of the Starlights. Brennan's hand does not move from Booth's arm as they continue to watch. After more chanting, three more robed people arrive dragging with them a deer. They take the deer to the centre of the circle and after even more chanting and some hand gesturing Daniel pulls out a very large knife. The circle closes in and neither Booth nor Brennan can see what Daniel actually does but they know the deer is being sacrificed. The muffled squeals from the animal let them know death is not slow. The chanting resumes then maybe half an hour later the group packs up. The three individuals who brought the deer drag it in the sheet out of the circle. The main group lift their torches out the ground and head back through the woods the same way they came. Booth and Brennan remain silent and do not move incase they are heard. Booth can hear Brennan's erratic breathing and he knows she must be feeling shocked over Daniel's involvement. When Booth is sure the Starlights have gone he turns to Brennan and gestures for her to follow him to the site.

Now standing in the area only minutes ago occupied by the cult, Booth and Brennan look for any evidence left behind.

"Are you okay Bones?" Booth asks.

"I'm fine." She replies quickly. What a lie.

"Given your history with Daniel it's alright to be upset." Booth says softly as he kicks about some dirt.

"I'm not upset." She replies angrily. "And that's exactly what Daniel is, he's history, in the past." She adds. Booth watches as she examines the ground in what they have worked out was the centre of the circle based on the holes in the ground from the torches. This must be horrible for her.

"No blood." She states. Daniel is leading the Starlights?

"Just like the Sheriff explained." Booth tells her. "They must dump the dead animals elsewhere to keep suspicion off them."

"The sheet must be to keep the blood from spilling into the ground here." Brennan decides. They've been here three years. We were together three years ago. Those women weren't just girlfriends, they were followers.

"That makes sense." Booth agrees.

"We should try to find the car and get back to town." Brennan says. I need space to think.

"It won't be easy Bones, we have no light." He reminds her.

"Fine, you stay here, I'll go find the car." She walks away from Booth with determination in every footstep. Booth sighs then jogs to catch up to her.

"Wait, I'm coming." He calls as he approaches.

Surprisingly, Brennan actually finds the SUV. To Booth it seems like spending the rest of the night out here just isn't an option for her. The ride back to town is an uncomfortable one as Brennan doesn't speak all the way back. She's too busy thinking about Daniel and the Starlights. How did he turn? She wonders. Booth is a little concerned about her silence but he figures she's got a lot to think about so he doesn't push her. Brennan does however manage to tell him 'Good night' as she enters her room. Booth walks next door to his room and flops down on the bed. His head is all over the place. This case is so strange and now that someone Brennan knows is involved it is only going to get stranger.

PART TWO

When Booth comes down to breakfast in the morning he finds Brennan at the table surrounded by papers, her laptop and her cell opened on the table. She looks tired and pale and she has dark circles under her eyes. Booth surmises that she didn't sleep at all.

"Morning Bones." He greets her cautiously.

"Hey Booth." She replies. "I was just talking with Angela. We have confirmation of the identities of the victims." She tells him. Booth raises his eyebrows and sits down opposite her. "Our male victim is Andrew Davidson aged nineteen and our female victim is Tina Rossi, aged seventeen. We checked the dental records of the people on the missing persons listsyou faxed over." Brennan explains as she turns the laptop around and shows Booth the photographs of the dead teens. Booth shakes his head. He hates when young people's lives are taken from them.

"I'll make some calls. We should be able to locate their parents." Booth lowers his head but snaps it back up when Annie coughs from the door to the kitchen.

"I didn't mean to interrupt but did you say Andrew Davidson?" she asks sadly.

"You knew him?" Brennan asks.

"I knew his parents." Annie tells them. "Andrew and his family left Jamesville about four years ago. Andrew was always getting himself into trouble and they felt a change would be good for him. They moved a couple of towns over. I still get a Christmas card from them." She explains.

"Can you give us the address?" Booth asks. "We need to talk to them." Annie nods and walks across the room and next door to the reception room. She returns a minute later with an address scribbled on a piece of paper.

"I'll get packed up." Brennan says.

PART THREE

Booth knocks on the door of 1080 Willow Avenue and waits for an answer. A minute later a cheerful looking older blonde answers.

"Can I help you?" she asks.

"Mrs Davidson?" he asks.

"Yes, can I ask who you are and what I can do for you?" she asks politely.

"I'm Agent Booth with the FBI, this is my associate Dr Temperance Brennan." At the mention of the FBI Mrs Davison's face falls.

"This is about my Andrew isn't it?" she asks.

"Uh, may we come in?" Booth asks. Mrs Davidson nods and steps back to let them in.

"I'll get my husband." She tells them. "Please, have a seat in the den." She gestures towards the opening to their left. Booth leads the way and Brennan follows them in.

A few minutes later Mr and Mrs Davidson appear, both looking pale and sad.

"Tell me, is he… is my boy dead?" Mr Davidson asks.

"We're very sorry." Booth says. "We've positively identified Andrew's remains." Booth explains. Mrs Davidson begins to cry and she falls into her husbands arms. They fold into the couch opposite Booth and Brennan.

"I realise this is a shock but we need to ask you some questions about your son." Booth says. "How long has he been missing?" he asks.

"Andrew left home about eighteen months ago." Mr Davidson explains. "He'd always been troubled and we thought moving would help but things only got worse." He stops to comfort his wife who is now crying hysterically.

"The remains we found suggest he died approximately two months ago." Brennan tells them. "Do you have any idea where he might have been since he left?" Mrs Davidson sobs louder as Mr Davidson tries to comfort her.

"Our son sent us a letter about a year ago. He said he was living with people who understood him and this would be the last time we would hear from him." Mr Davidson tells Brennan.

"Do you still have the letter? I need to see it, along with other samples of his handwriting." She states. Booth looks over at her. As usual, Brennan isn't the most tactful.

"I don't know." Mr Davidson says. "What good would it do anyway?" he hugs his crying wife close to him.

"It might help us better understand what happened to Andrew." Booth says softly. "If you have kept it, we would appreciate if you could lend it to us. Of course we'll make sure it's returned." He adds.

"Give it to them Mark." Mrs Davidson sobs. Mr Davidson rises from the couch and walks into the next room. He rummages around and brings back several pieces of paper. He hands the papers to Booth who slips them into his pocket.

"If you think of anything else that might help, please call us." He hands Mr Davidson a card with his cell number on it. "We're doing everything we can to find out what happened and who is responsible." Booth tells them.

"Mr Davidson." Brennan says suddenly. "Did Andrew ever mention a girl by the name of Tina Rossi?"

"No." he shakes his head. "Who is she?" he asks.

"We believe she was killed at the same time as Andrew." Booth explains.

"Oh." Mr Davidson sighs.

"Thank you for your time." Booth adds as he guides Brennan to the front door. "Again, we're very sorry for your loss."

PART FOUR

Brennan stands on the porch looking out into the yard. The sun has set and the moon is rising higher in the sky. A cool breeze kicks up and sends shivers down Brennan's arms. She's thinking about the interview with the murdered boy's parents. It didn't go well. They were so devastated at their son's death that they couldn't be of much help, particularly Mrs Davidson. And of course her usual tactless approach wasn't ideal. I just can't be like Booth when it comes to people.

"I've been looking for you." Booth appears behind her.

"Well here I am." Brennan replies.

"You thinking about the Davidson's?" he asks. Brennan tuns around to face Booth and nods.

"It didn't go very well." She states. Booth steps towards her.

"You're cold." He states. Brennan's eyes widen. And I thought I was tactless!

"I've been told that before Booth, do you have to make me feel worse." She sighs.

"No, I mean, you look cold." He shrugs off his jacket and steps up close. "Here, and don't go all feminist on me okay." He adds. The last time he offered her his coat she rejected him and pointed out that if she wanted his coat she would ask him for it. To Booth's surprise, Brennan allows him to drape his jacket around her shoulders. He remains in front of her and rubs some warmth into her arms.

"It wasn't that bad." He tells her.

"No?" Brennan replies. "She wouldn't stop crying." She reminds him.

"They were upset. People react differently. Some cry, some shout, some don't say a word." Booth tells her.

"Maybe but I'm sure I didn't help any." She lowers her head, feeling guilty for not being able to say or do anything to make them feel better. Booth reaches out and lifts her chin.

"Hey Bones." He says softly. "No one is perfect. Your abilities lie in other areas." He says. "Me, I'm the people person." He smiles.

"I know, you keep reminding me of that fact." She breaks a little smile.

"We'll figure all this out Bones." Booth says with confidence. "You and me, we're a good team."

"Yeah, a good team." Brennan echoes his words.

"And it stands to reason that maybe that winning combination would work in other areas?" He suggests.

"Booth, I get what you're saying, I do." For once I understand. "But I'm…" she breaks off, unable to finish her sentence. Instead she groans and rests her head against Booth's chest. He wraps his arms around her and kisses the top of her head.

"I know Bones. I know." He whispers. It's a big step to take. I'm scared too.

PART FIVE

Brennan barely sleeps again. Thoughts about and images of the case, Daniel and Booth flood her mind and she just can't switch off. The case troubles her. The Starlights obviously have no trouble killing animals but would they kill humans? Was Andrew a member of the Starlights? Just who is Tina Rossi and why were they killed? Brennan's stomach flip flops as shethinks abpout what she realised that night in the woods. She and Daniel split up two years ago. The Starlights have been in Jamesville for at least three years which confirms he was involved in this while they were together. But how did he get to that stage? Sure he was deeply involved in the psychological analysis of cults but how did he go from studying them to leading them? And Booth. She always goes back to Booth. He's made it very clear what he wants and a huge part of her wants that too. But there's still that bit inside of her that's scared. I've been hurt in the past. What if it doesn't work? What if we end up hating each other? Would we still be able to work together if it all ended? She tosses and turns and eventually she just gets up.

In his room Booth wakes when he hears movement through the wall. The clock tells him it's three in the morning. When he left Brennan she looked emotionally exhausted so he's surprised she's awake. He thought she would sleep through just being so tired. Obviously not. He lies on his back and listens to her moving around. The he hears the door and a moment later a quiet knock on his door. Did I imagine that? He wonders. But then he hears it again.

Brennan stands outside Booth's door. She doesn't really know why she's here, she just knows that when she's with him she feels everything will be okay. She knocks on the door again, a little louder this time, and waits to see if he'll answer. He does a moment later.

"Bones?" he looks tired and a little confused as he scratches his stomach through the fabric of a black wife-beater.

"Did I wake you?" she asks. Booth just cocks his head to the side and raises his eyebrows expressing his thoughts of 'of course you did, it's the middle of the night'.

"You okay?" he asks as she stands nervously at his door in black sweats and a white vest.

"I can't sleep." She tells him. Booth smiles and steps back from the door, inviting her in. She hesitates a moment then steps inside, her arms wrapped around her chest. Booth closes the door and pads over to the bed. Brennan doesn't quite know what to do. She wants to just climb into bed with him and lie in his arms letting him comfort her. But will he let her and what will happen if she does? I don't think I'm ready for that yet.

Booth gets back into bed and clasps his arms behind his head.

"What's on your mind?" he asks. Brennan is busying herself looking at the ornaments on the mantle. "Bones?" he pushes her for an answer.

"Everything." She says quietly. Her back is turned to him.

"You want to talk about it?" he asks. She turns around to face him and shrugs her shoulders. He stares at her trying to read what she's thinking. Brennan lowers her head, unable to look at him. "Okay, so mind if I ask why you knocked then?" Booth asks.

"I uh, I guess I didn't feel like being alone." She admits. Booth pats the bed beside him, inviting her to join him. Brennan stares at the spot on the bed, making her decision. She wants to go to him so badly but part of her wants to hold back, afraid to take a step forward. It takes a moment but she finally forces her feet to walk over to him. She slides into the bed but keeps a good two feet between her and Booth.

"Good night Bones." Booth smiles and settles himself down.

"Night Booth." Brennan slides down in the bed and pulls the sheet up around her.

PART SIX

Booth wakes with a weight on his chest that feels both familiar and new. When he opens his eyes and looks down he sees his arm is wrapped around Brennan and her head rests on his chest, her arm slung casually across his stomach. She wasn't in this position when I went to sleep. He smiles as he sees the content look on her face. This is probably the best sleep she's had in the last few days. The clock tells him it's just after six am. For only getting a few hours sleep Booth feels surprisingly refreshed. Perhaps that has something to do with the woman asleep in his arms. He knows he's going to have to wake her up soon but for now he's happy to just watch her and hold her. She'll probably freak out when she wakes so I might as well make the most of it. I don't often get this close to her.

In Brennan's dreams she hears a rhythmic noise. Boom Boom, boom boom, boom boom, over and over again. As her body wakes her and she blinks her eyes open she realises what that noise is. Booth's heartbeat. She wakes with a start and sits up, pulling herself off him and out of his arms.

"Morning." He grins cheerfully. Brennan looks mortified. "Sleep okay?" he asks.

"Fine, thanks." She replies as she hugs the sheet close to her as a barrier. "I'm sorry about…I didn't mean to…" she trails off.

"Don't worry about it Bones. I know I make a great pillow." He jokes. "I was thinking about Daniel." He says, changing the subject because he knows it will make her more comfortable. "He doesn't know that we know who he is."

"He doesn't does he?" They have only met him once, up at the site two days ago.

"We should arrange to speak to him." Booth suggests. "I know you two have history but…"

"It's fine Booth." Brennan pulls her knees up to her chest. "We need to find out what's going on." She slips out of bed and walks over to the door. "Uh Booth." she says as she pulls the door open.

"Yeah Bones?" he asks.

"Thanks for last night." she lets a little smile tug at her lips before she walks next door. I don;t think I've had a better night's sleep.

Brennan spends the next hour getting showered, dressed andwondering how she's going to contact Daniel. Since the Sheriff knows what the Starlights leader looks like Daniel wouldn't come into town to meet her and Brennan can hardly go up to the Starlight complex and ask for him. She picks up her cell and calls his old number. She doesn't really expect an answersince it's been two years but to her surprise she hears his voice at the other end of the phone.

"Hello?" he repeats when no one answers.

"It's Temperance." She states.

"Tempe, you are the last person I expected to call." He tells her.

"I was hoping we could meet up. Booth and I have some questions about the Starlights and since you've been studying them I thought you might be able to help." She asks. She hopes her voice doesn't betray her knowledge of his activities.

"You remembered my number." He smiles.

"Some things you don't forget." She sighs. "So can we meet?" she asks.

"Sure, as long as it's just you and me." Daniel tells her.

"Booth's the investigator here Daniel." She tells him. "He needs to be there."

"I don't like him." Daniel says. "I speak to you alone or not at all."

"Why?" Brennan presses. She isn't comfortable with the idea of meeting Daniel alone.

"I don't trust the FBI." Daniel explains. "Come on Tempe, it would give us a chance to talk about us as well." Brennan thinks about it. They have to speak to Daniel and not agreeing to this might scare him off.

"Fine." She sighs.

"Meet me at the truck stop just outside of town, in an hour."

Brennan goes to Booth's room to tell him about the meeting.

"Absolutely not. No way." He states.

"Booth." She sighs.

"You are not meeting him alone." Booth says firmly.

"He won't meet if you're there and besides, he isn't going to hurt me. He doesn't know we're onto him and we have history."

"No Bones. It's too dangerous." Booth insists. Brennan is a little angry that Booth doesn't think she can handle this.

"Fine, I won't go." She resigns.

"Good. We'll find another way to talk to him." He smiles. Brennan folds her arms across her chest and watches him walk through to the bathroom. "We missed breakfast. Do you want to go grab something in town?" he calls. There is silence from the main room and Booth steps out of the bathroom. Brennan is gone. His heart sinks when he looks on the dresser where his car keys were. They're gone too.

"Bones." Hegasps. He runs to his window and looks out. Brennan is behind the wheel of the SUV, backing out of the parking lot. Booth picks up his cell and calls her. She doesn't answer and he has no idea where she is meeting Daniel and no other transport to follow her.

"Damn it Bones." He shakes his head. All he can do now is wait for her to come back.

PART SEVEN

Brennan pulls the SUV into the parking lot of the truck stop Daniel directed her to. She turns off the engine and for a moment feels a little guilty and scared. I ditched Booth. She knows he won't be happy with her for doing this but right now this seems like the only way to get more information. I hope nothing goes wrong.

Taking a deep breath Brennan steps out the SUV and walks into the cafe at the truck stop. She sees Daniel is already there waiting for her.

"Daniel." she greets him as cooly as she did two days ago.

"I'm glad you came, and alone too." he had his people spy on her and they confirmed she came alone.

"I need to know what you know about the Starlights." she says. "A lot of people believe they're responsible for the murder of two teenagers." Brennan says.

"Human sacrifice is a very rare thing in cults Tempe." Daniel tells her. "Animal sacrifices are even becoming rare. Most cults don;t involve themselves in those kinds of activities these days."

"So you're saying from what you've observed, the Starlights have done neither?" Brennan looks for confirmation.

"I didn't say that." Daniel smiles.

"Which is it Daniel, human or animal?" Brennan presses.

"I've witnessed animal sacrifices." Daniel says. No harm in telling her that. "So are you seeing anyone?" he asks.

"Yes, no, well kind of." Brennan replies. "But I didn't come here to talk about that, I need to know more about the Starlights." she rushes to get away from the subject of relationships. The last thing I want to do is talk to Daniel about Booth.

"How long have you been researching them?" Brennan asks. I wonder what lie he'll spin.

"Six months off and on."

"Have you ever seen either of these two kids?" she places the photographs of Andrew and Tina on the table and watches Daniel intently.

"No, I haven't." He lies but Brennan saw the flash of recognition in his eyes when she showed himthe photos. He knew these kids. They were Starlights.

"Is there any chance the Starlights would talk to us?" Brennan asks.

"I doubt it, they like to keep to themselves." Daniel tells her.

"Have you ever spoken to them?" Brennan presses.

"I've had some interaction with them." he smiles. It sickens Brennan that he can sit here and lie like this to her. This is what he did for the eight months they were together. Lie. "Maybe I could talk to my contacts, get you a meeting." he says.

"That would help." Brennan says. "Agent Booth and I really need to find out what happened to those kids. For their families." she tells him. "They've lost their children, they deserve to know why." I wonder if he feels guilty. Brennan has already decided that Daniel knows a lot more about the murders of Andrew and Tina than he's letting on. She leans forward in the seat and moves closer to Daniel. "They deserve the truth." she states.

Daniel snakes his hand across the table and tries to take Brennan's hand but she pulls it back.

"No Daniel." she shakes her head and stands up. "I have to go, Booth is waiting for me." she tells him. "I'll be in touch about that meeting." she says.

"Sure thing Tempe." Daniel smiles. I'll get you that meeting he laughs to himself. "Drive safe." he adds as Brennan makes her way to the door. She glances at her watch as she goes and sees she has been away for nearly two hours already. Booth is probably really pissed at her.

PART EIGHT

Brennan speeds down the highway back into Jamesville. It hasn't escaped her attention that a van has been following her for the last twnety miles. What is worrying her now though is it is getting a lot closer. As she accelerates the van matches her speed. She keeps a close eye on it in the rear view mirror but she isn't prepared for when the van runs into the back of her. the SUV wobbles as Brennan tries to keep control. The van pulls back for a little then rams the SUV again. Brennan is shunted forward with each hit and she is scard that the van is going to run her off the road.

Brennan passes the 'Welcome to Jamesville' sign and the van seems to slam on the breaks like the driver doesn't want to be seen in town. If they were trying to run her off the road they didn't but if they were trying to scare her they suceeded. Brennan heads for the Sunshine Lodge, her hands gripping the steering wheel to stop them shaking.

Booth is pacing the porch anxiously when Brennan pulls the SUV into the parking lot. Including driving time Brennan has been gone for just over two hours and Booth has been going spare worrying about her. He pounces as soon as she steps out of the car.

"What the hell were you doing!" he yells at her. "You put yourself in danger Bones!" he shouts. "Anything could have happened to you, did you even think about that?" he demands. His anger is not really directed at her, it's more him venting the worry and concern that has been building for hours.

"I apologise Booth." Brennan states. She walks from the car up the porch steps and brushes past Booth to take a seat on the swing seat in the corner. Both places his hands on his waist and hangs his head.

"Are you alright?" he asks, glancing sideways at her. "What happened with Daniel?"

"I'm fine." she replies. "But we might lose the deposit on the car. There's a little damage back there." she tells him. "I can't be positive but I think Daniel knows we're onto the Starlights." As she talks Booth walks down the steps to the car and around the back to see the damage. The SUV is scratched and dented.

"Did someone hit you?" Booth calls to Brennan.

"A van tried to run me off the road." she sighs as she stands up. "You want to go get some lunch?" she asks. Booth looks dumbfounded at how lightly she appears to be taking this.

"Bones, this is serious." he states as he walks over to meet her at the top of the steps.

"I know Booth." she sighs. "You don't have to go all macho protective guyon me okay." she sighs.

"Good, then maybe next time you'll listen to me." Booth says almsot under his breath.

"If I'd listened to you we never would have had it confirmed that the Starlights perform animal sacrificings." Brennan tells him. "It isn't a huge step to go from animal to human you know." she walks down the steps. "And Daniel mentioned getting us a meeting with the Starlights. He claims to have contacts who might be willing to meet." she raises her eyebrows.

"Let's talk about this over lunch." Booth suggests.

PART NINE

Booth and Brennan arrive back at the Sunshine Lodge after a long lazy lunch discussing the case.

"We should go talk to Tina Rossi's parents." Booth says. "Sheriff Underwood tracked them down for us."

"I'll just go change. I'll meet you here in five." she tells him.

Fifteen minutes later Booth is still waiting for Brennan to appear. He decides to go up and see what the hold up is.

Brennan jumps when she hears a knock at the door. She drops a piece of paper and hurries over. Booth is standing in the doorway looking a little ticked off.

"What's taking so long?" he asks.

"Sorry, I..." she turns and walks back into the room. "Uh I got distracted."

"By what?" Booth asks as he follows her into the room.

"By this." Brennan holds out the piece of paper. Booth reads the words and his face tells a story.

"Stop investigating or you will die." he reads aloud. "Bones, this is a direct threat."

"I know." she sits down on the bed. "Someone left it here while we were out. My guess is Daniel is trying to stop us digging any deeper because we'll find out the truth."

"Do you think he would hurt you?" Booth ask with a seriousness in his voice that Brennan doesn't hear often.

"The Daniel I used to know would never. But he's not the same guy anymore. He's different. He's dangerous."

"And you're in the danger zone." Booth adds.