Disclaimer: See chapter one
(A/N) I'm in the middle of moving right now so updates might be really slow, Sorry. I think there will only be four or five more chapters to this story, depending on how I want to end it. I have four different endings, and some are a lot longer than others. Thank you all very, very much for all your reviews. Please forgive any mistakes ('cause I'm sure there are plenty of them. I wrote this up really fast. Fast as in I wrote it in two days instead of three or four or five or . . . well you get the picture.)
EDITED: 7/2019
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Chapter Ten
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5:38 P.M. Tuesday
FBI Headquarters
After Penning had gathered his team together, and everyone had been updated. Booth pulled Penning aside, then he and Agent Knight told him about their theory about the serial kidnapper and Brennan.
"Do you have any solid connection between the two cases?" Penning asked, after Booth and Kory were finished sharing their few leads.
"Well . . . " Kory was cut off by Hobbes who had been eavesdropping on them.
"Oh please, of course, they don't have any real connection. Look at who is talking here, a desperate Agent who is too close to this case, to begin with, and a Junior Agent. They're just grasping at straws and wasting valuable time."
Booth would like nothing more then to punch Hobbes. He could see that Penning did not like Hobbes' tone when he had said 'Junior Agent' when referring to his little sister. Kory seemed to have kept her cool, refusing to let Bill affect her. Isaac and Judy came over curious about what was going on.
"What's up?" Allee asked. Kory repeated what she had told her brother.
"As much as I hate to agree with Bill on anything. I have to say that I don't see where this serial kidnapper is in any way involved with Brennan's abduction," Judy said. Allee stayed quite and had a pensive look his face, then slowly a sly grin made its way on his dark face. He looked at Kory out of the corner of his eye, "You have something else, don't you? Something to make you think Brennan was kidnaped by this guy huh?"
Kory gave a playful smile, then looked at Bill in annoyance, "well of course I do. I was just about to show Brad when Hobbes here interrupted me."
She pulled out the pictures of the four victims of the kidnapper from one of the files in the file box, she had carried in. She put them side by side on a nearby table, just as she had done with Booth. When everyone had gotten a good look at the photos, she then she pulled out a picture of Brennan.
Booth could tell by the looks on the Agents' faces that they could see the resemblance between the five women. Even Hobbes could not deny the striking similarities in the five women's looks and stature. After Kory and Booth showed them the pictures and pointed out some of the other similarities between Brennan and the other women, a few of their fellow Agents seemed a little more inclined to put stock in Kory's theory.
"OK, I see where you two are coming from, but I'm not entirely convinced. But since we're at a standstill with this case, for the time being, I don't think it would hurt to look into this a little more closely," Penning said as he stepped closer to the table to get a better look at the photos.
Hobbes looked ready to explode, "I can't believe this! This is bull, the only reason you're even giving this...this feebleminded theory any consideration at all is because she's your little sister," Bill's voice had risen with each word till he was almost shouting.
Again Penning was visibly put on edge by Hobbes remarks about Kory. Isaac, Judy, and Booth were all annoyed with Bill but stayed quiet. While Kory, on the other hand, was gearing up to rip Hobbes a new one, she was mad. Hobbes had not only insulated Kory, but more or less questioned her brothers' ability to run this investigation, and his competency as an FBI Agent as well.
Just before Kory was about to launch into her tirade, a man walked into the bullpen, "Agent Penning?" The man asked while holding up a file. The tall blond Agent stepped forward.
"What can I do for you?"
The man could obviously feel the tension in the room, but did not comment on it, "I have a surveillance video here, it was forwarded to this office today. We think we have Identified the women in the footage as Dr. Brennan."
"Where is this surveillance video from, and when was it recorded?" Booth asked from behind Penning.
"The recording was taken from the parking lot of the Crafts Inc. Warehouse on Sunday morning."
"Why didn't we get this Sunday?" Booth demanded angrily, Isaac put a restraining hand on Booth's shoulder. As soon as Booth seemed to relax Allee pulled his hand away.
The man seemed to understand the aggravation of not getting the video sooner, so he did not fault Booth for being mad, "The warehouse is empty. Crafts Inc. just bought the facility two months ago and is currently remodeling. They only go over the surveillance footage every few days," The man held up a disc in his hand, "They just got around to looking at this yesterday."
"Where is Crafts Inc. Located?" Penning asked calmly.
"About five or six miles northeast of a small town called . . . " the man flipped over the file in his hand and looked at what was written on it, "Condon," He stated then handed the DVD and file and to Penning.
Penning held out his hand to the man, "Thanks for getting this to us Agent . . . ?"
The man smiled and shook Brad's hand, "Tim, Tim Sears. I'm not an Agent though, just a computer tech," Tim walked away, leaving the Agents to watch the video and study it for clues.
All the irritation over Hobbes earlier comments were put on hold so that they could focus on the case. Penning placed the disc into a computer and began playing the video.
Though the image was in black and white the picture was very clear and not grainy like most security videos. The screen was split into four different camera angles. Booth and Kory both came to attention when they saw the dark-colored Oldsmobile drive into the first frame, they looked at each other, this had confirmed yet another link to the serial kidnapper. The car stopped and a man, he then got out walked around to the trunk. The man never turned toward the camera so they could not get a clear view of his face. The man opened the trunk, he had barely had time to unlock the trunk before the door shot up and a woman bolted out of it, she hit the man with her bag and knocked him down, but he jumped up and grabbed her. The woman fought the man then ran away.
The woman looked up and you could clearly see her face. Booth's heart skipped a beat as he saw the fear and panic on his friend and partners face because the woman they were looking at on the screen was indeed Dr. Temperance Brennan. Booth's heart froze in terror when he saw the man pull out a gun and fire it. In an anther frame from a different angle, they saw Bones stumble forward as she got shot. Booth jerked back slightly as if it had been him who had gotten shot. Kory must have seen Booth jerk because she discreetly put her hand on his forearm and gave it a gentle squeeze then let go.
Booth was so angry that his fisted hands began to shake in rage. He wanted nothing more than to kill that man. He watched helplessly as that sick monster toyed with the woman Booth cared so much for. When the man started to strangle Bones, Booth could hardly stand still, he wished with all his being that he could climb through the computer screen and protect his partner. Booth gave a little half-smile as he watched Bones whacked the SOB over the head with a rock, but the little smile was gone a moment later and replaced with worry when he saw Bones just sand there swaying. She looked, scared, tired, and like she was in shock. She was holding her left arm close to her body as she picked her bag and bolted for the woods. A few moments later the man slowly got up and chased after her.
Booth hated this, the last time she had been kidnaped he had been there to save her from the dirty Agent. But here he could only watch something that had already happened, helpless to do anything to protect her.
Judy grabbed hit a button on the keyboard and fast-forwarded until the man walked back out of the woods he looked frustrated and angry. Those were the exact emotions all the agents were feeling just then, not once did the man give them a clear view of his face.
"I think she got away. If he had gotten her, he wouldn't have been that agitated and angry. If he had killed her he likely would have been upset but also calmer, in control," Judy stated, she was their profiler.
Five minutes later Kory and Hobbes were arguing. Kory had told them about the man's car fit the description of the serial kidnapper's vehicle. Booth was now convinced without a doubt in his mind that this man and the serial kidnapper, were one and the same.
Penning pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head, "That is enough, both of you shut up now!"
Hobbes opened his mouth to argue with Brad when Judy's cell phone rang, "Wilton . . . are you sure?... ok . . . thank you." Judy hung up the phone, she had a dumbfounded smile on her face, "That was the lab. Kory, you were right. They matched the blood found on Brennan's car, to the blood collected at one of the serial Kidnappers crime scenes."
Kory gave Hobbes this look daring him to dispute the evidence, Hobbes refused to look at her. Penning smiled proudly at his sister. Today Agent Knight had gained the respect of every agent in the room, save one, Hobbes.
It had taken close to an hour to get everything in order and the serail case transferred over to Penning. Agent Lynns was pissed that the case he had been working on for the last few months was just handed to someone else. Though he and his team will go with Penning and his team to Condon, it still ticked him off.
It had taken another three hours to get to Condon. Booth had wanted to go straight to the warehouse and start looking for Bones, but it was already dark out.
Penning, Booth, Allee, Lynns, Knight, and Rodgers all checked into a local hotel, Wilton and Hobbes had stayed behind in DC along with the rest of Lynns Team to help from that end.
Booth acted like a caged animal he would not stay still finally Penning ordered Booth to go to his room and get some rest. Booth grudgingly complied and left. He got into bad, but he couldn't sleep all he could think about was Bones, 'Was she cold out there? Was she scared? lonely? Had she found someplace to hide? Was she even alive?' Finally, Booth gave into exhaustion and fell into a fitful sleep.
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I know this chapter was a little long, but I hope you like it.
Please tell me what you think.