TITLE: Undoing
CHAPTER THREE: Snooping


Angela entered the ladies' room just in time to see her best friend emerging from one of the stalls. Her eyes widened at the sight. "Sweetie, are you okay?"

In her typical 'Brennan' way, Temperance made a dismissive face. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just had a bit too much water. Why?"

Angela raised an eyebrow while she watched her friend wash up, not missing the fact that she splashed water on her face. "Because your face is white as a sheet. Are you sick?"

To her surprise, instead of the usual denial, she got a nod in response. "I just might be."

"Well... maybe you should go home. I'll go let Booth know, and--"

"No!"

Angela turned at the frenzy in her friend's voice, and winced at the pain currently emanating from where fingernails had dug into her arm. "Ooookay... why can't I tell Booth?" She managed to pry her arm free and began to rub the sore spots.

"Because you know how Booth gets," was the explanation received. "He's way too overprotective even when I'm healthy, so imagine how much he'll hover if he finds out I'm sick. I'll be fine."

"Did you puke? Is it contagious?"

"Yes, and I don't know. I'd advise you not to get too close, though, just in case." Temperance patted her face dry after splashing it for a second time, then tossed the paper towel in the garbage before heading out.

"Well, do you want to lie down? You should really see a doctor."

She couldn't help but roll her eyes as she made her way to her office. "Angela, I promise you that I'll be fine. If I need to lie down, I will." She grabbed the case file off her desk and turned to face her friend, holding the file to her chest and crossing her arms over it. "Okay?"

Angela held her hands up in resignation. "Sure. But keep in mind that I'm not cleaning puke off the evidence table later."

Temperance smiled, just slightly. "Alright." She strode out of the office, not concerned with whether or not her best friend was on her heels, so Angela decided to hang back.

She looked around the office slowly, her eyes taking everything in. She was inexperienced where detective work was concerned, but snooping? Snooping was something she was excellent at. And she knew Brennan wouldn't get too mad at her for doing it, either.

The desk blotter gave nothing away, which was no surprise. Though it boasted a calendar, its biggest purpose was to be a catch-all for files, photos, and anything pertaining to Brennan's cases. The next thing she checked was the computer. She moved the mouse quickly across the pad, hoping it was in standby mode, only to find out it was shut down. She moved on to something else. Though she was well-versed in snooping, Angela knew too well that to boot up Brennan's computer and snoop would be crossing the line. If it had been on, it would have been fair game.

She turned her attention to the small desk calendar beside the monitor next. The page on top was blank, but something on a following page, written in red Sharpie, could be seen through the opaque paper. Angela flipped the page and furrowed her brow, reading the information aloud. "Anderwood on K Street, three o'clock." She then repeated this information a few times in her head, encoding it into her memory for later retrieval.

The garbage can was her next point of interest. She lifted it up and grimaced as she moved a chunk of discarded sandwich out of the way with her free hand, followed by an empty Starbucks cup... and she gasped.

She dropped the garbage can, and closed her eyes as a shocked whisper escaped her lips. "Brenn..."


TBC