Title: Deja Vu

Disclaimer: Language, violence

Chapter Three: Duck and Run

Bullets whizzed through the air, little metal projectiles intended to do harm to whatever unlucky soul they hit. Brennan hid behind the hulking mass of the FBI vehicle. Lucky for her it was an SUV and there was a lot of space to hide. She kept herself curled up near the back half of the huge vehicle, pressing her back against the metal body and the rubber tire, keeping her head low. Another bullet whizzed past, ricocheting off the ground just a few feet away. How had this all gone so wrong? She heard glass shatter as one of the many bullets hit the passenger side window. It flew through the car and out the driver's side window, showering the ground with glittering glass.

Chancing a look around she tried to spot Booth. He'd told her to stay in the car; that she had to leave everything up to him. She was supposed to be safe outside in the car. Safety was the last thing on her mind now. Even with all the bullets flying around she found herself more concerned with the whereabouts of a certain FBI agent. Another bullet hit the car, sliding along the length of the bumper. They knew she was hiding there. They knew she was unarmed, so why did they insist on firing at her? No one shot back in retaliation. None of it made sense to her scientist mind.

Where had Booth disappeared to? He'd gone inside the house, the home of the boyfriend to the body Brennan's team had been working on. They'd only figured out the identity of the body thanks to the technology of Angela's computer software and ability to give faces to those who no longer had them. Had Brennan known that the boyfriend hid out in a bunker with thugs equipped with guns she would have stayed at the lab, instead of insisting on accompanying Booth.

She only did it because she was concerned about him, like she was now. He'd only been in the house a minute before all hell broke loose. She'd been forced to evacuate the vehicle through the driver's side door and take cover. She could have sworn that she heard gunfire come from inside the house. But if Booth had taken out the boyfriend why wasn't he outside helping her? He knew that she was incapable of defending herself against gun welding maniacs. It was his fault, in fact. He wouldn't let her carry a gun. He claimed it had something to do with his own safety and the safety of innocent people.

In the distance the sound of sirens cried out to the city. They drew nearer in a fast pace, all heading in one direction. Someone had heard the shots and called the cops. At least someone in the deteriorating neighborhood had common sense. Shouts rang up as the shooters realized that the cops were headed in their direction. Panic broke out amongst them. She heard a few of them dropping guns and heard their sneakers pound on the pavement as they ran off.

What she had not expected was for one of them to come up to her. He rounded the front of the SUV with a semi-automatic pointed right at her. For a moment her heart stopped. She thought he was going to shoot her. This was going to be her end, and this wasn't the way she thought she'd die.

"Get up," the muscular man barked. She climbed unsteadily to her feet, wondering for the umpteenth time where Booth had gotten off to. "You'll be coming with me, lovely lady." The man smiled, showing her teeth in need of serious dental work.

"I-"

"You don't get to speak," he bellowed, grabbing her forcefully by the wrist. She couldn't but wonder if this man had been the boyfriend to the deceased woman. They had proof that the boyfriend killed her. Unfortunately, Booth had never shown her a picture of the killer. He didn't find it important at the time.

The man dragged her around the front of the car. She did her best to keep up with him and not to trip on the unevenly cracked pavement. The sirens drew ever closer as the first cop car turned onto the now desolate street. A waiting car looked to be Brennan's future. The cops wouldn't be fast enough to help her now. A shot rang out, shattering the silence that had fallen over the place. The big man lost his grip on Brennan as he fell to the ground in a crumpled heap. Blood pooled from a little hole in his head. She turned to the shooter.

Booth gave her a shaky smile. "Sorry about that. I thought you'd be safe in the car."

Blood seeped from a wound on his forehead. Some of the red liquid had actually run down over his left eye, giving him the appearance of an extra in a horror movie. "Are you okay?" she asked him. It was all she could think to say, all the anger having left her body.

"Damn guy pistol-whipped me," Booth explained. "He got away, went out the backdoor. My boss is going to be pissed."

Brennan gave him a shaky smile. "Why would he be mad? You didn't know that a shoot-out was going to be the result of our snooping. Though something tells me I should have known."

"It's not that. He'll be mad that I brought you along and nearly got you killed," grumbled Booth, holstering his gun.

An unmarked black car with a flashing red light on the dashboard joined them, two marked police cars behind them. A man in a business suit climbed out of the black car. He approached Booth, an air of importance hanging around him. Without asking Booth handed over his gun. The older man looked from Booth to Brennan.

"What the hell is she doing here?" he scowled. "The boss is going to love hearing about this. You just keep screwing up, don't you Seeley? You used to be a good agent. What went wrong?"

"I think I'm going to take Dr. Brennan back to her lab," Booth sidestepped the issue with ease.

"Bring your happy ass back here when you're done. I'm going to need a report from you," the other agent ordered.

Quickly ushering Brennan into the car Booth opened the driver's door. He brushed a few stray fragments of glass off the seat before climbing behind the wheel. Brennan did the same. She let Booth drive for a few minutes in peace with the hopes that his anger would disappear. However, as always, she had a need to say something, anything. She was a scientist and it was her job to ask questions. Something she proved to be good at.

"Why did you say that you used to be a good agent?"

He gave her a quick look before returning his eyes to the road. "Agent Stone seems to think that I've lost my edge. He believes that I spend too much time with you squints and it's affecting my job. Like the last case that I had, I should have gotten that kid to talk. Now this is going to make me look bad too."

Brennan frowned. "Hanging out with a scientist is a bad thing? Last time I checked we did more in solving a case than you guys. We get you answers to why someone died and how, what would you guys do without us? Take wild guesses?"

Booth pulled up in front of the lab and put the car in park. "Look, Bones, not every agent, or cop for that matter, is willing to believe that they need scientists to help them with their jobs. I understand this. Agent Stone is an ass and an old fossil. Don't expect him to change his mind any time soon."

She looked down at her hands, clasped firmly in her lap. "You're in trouble because of me. I pushed you to take me with you and look what happened. I put myself in the line of fire."

"True, but they won't hear it. I should have said no," Booth remarked.

"I'll talk with Dr. Goodman," stated Brennan, sounding like she was thinking out loud. "If that doesn't work then I'll talk with your boss. You aren't going to get in trouble because of me."

Booth smiled. "Actually, I will get in trouble unless you get back into that lab so I can return to the scene. Nothing is going to stop Agent Stone from telling my boss that I skipped out on him. He's a bit of a nark."

Brennan smiled back and bid Booth goodbye. She had been happy to see him at work earlier that morning. He had seemed so lost last night, until he called her Bones. As long as he called her that she knew that things were okay. Even if the nickname did get on her nerves. Sometimes familiarity is what a person needs. Stepping into the lab she breathed in the familiar smells and felt herself relax all over. The realization of how close she came to dying wouldn't hit until later.