Disclaimer: I do NOT own Bones or its characters. All credit goes to their rightful owners
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Chapter Two
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Never again would she use drinking as a way to numb emotions. Brennan found it nearly impossible to focus on the bones in front of her. Her head pounded, she was queasy, and her mind kept lingering on the fact that Booth was getting married. Married. That made him even more out of her reach than before.
It would change things. There's no way it wouldn't. He would spend more nights going home to Hannah instead of staying out with her. Their celebrations of closed cases will include Hannah more, and it would only be the beginning. No doubt they would have children, taking away even more of Booth's free time until the only time she will have with him is when they are at work. And of course, their conversations will often include his wife and children and how incredibly happy they are.
She would become a background character in his story. Someone who used to be important to him. It would happen gradually, and chances are, he wouldn't realize it was happening until she was nothing but a memory.
Brennan tried to shake away this train of thought, but she couldn't. Hannah had talked about going back overseas. She wanted to follow bigger stories. Have more adventures than DC offered. Would he go? Would he leave her behind completely?
He wouldn't leave Parker, she knew that, but Rebecca was considering moving to London for work, and she would be taking Parker with her. That meant nothing kept Booth from leaving if that's what Hannah truly wanted.
"Dr. Brennan?" Wendell pulled her from her thoughts, giving her an expression that told her he'd been trying to get her attention.
"Yes, Mr. Bray?"
"I was letting you know I found striations on the right Ulna and Radius."
"Very good, Mr. Bray."
"Are you okay, Dr. Brennan?"
"I'm fine. What do you think caused these striations?"
Before he could answer, Dr. Saroyan stuck her head into the bone room. "Incoming. Two were found dead in an abandoned factory. Their remains are being transferred." She left as quickly as she came.
Brennan instructed Wendell to put these remains back into limbo before going to her office where she took a few minutes to compose herself and convince her queasy stomach to keep itself together. Her throat already burned from throwing up during the early morning hours, and she didn't want to make it an encore.
"Bones!" Booth's voice boomed as he followed her onto the platform. "Oh man," he grimaced that the remains. "What have we got?"
"I don't know, I haven't started the exam yet." She'd tried to sound as normal as possible, though she wasn't sure if she had.
"This one is female. Blunt force trauma to the frontal, maxilla, and mandible. All on the left side."
"Crime of passion maybe," Booth said, giving her that cocky smile.
"I don't speculate." He knew this. They all did. But she always felt the need to remind them.
"Given insect activity, and the growth of these larvae, I put death at about a week to a week and a half ago." Hodgins put in.
"I concur." She did another pass on the body. "No immediate apparent cause of death."
"Blunt force trauma can certainly cause death," Angela said as she looked down at the skull. "This won't be easy to reconstruct."
"This one should be easier." Dr. Saroyan said, drawing attention to the other victim.
"They were both found inside a factory?" Angela asked. "Why is this one all meaty?"
"Agh. Don't say that," Booth said, scrunching up his face.
"Same insect activity on this body as the other. Same time of death."
"According to the report, she was found just outside the door. Carrion birds got to her. He was leaned up against the wall by the door."
"I hate when we can't investigate the crime scene," Brennan muttered.
"He looked like he was stabbed in the heart." All eyes went back to Dr. Saroyan. "Stab wound to the left ventricle." He was also beaten pretty badly, but no facial bones seem to be broken. So if we can get an id on his face, we might be able to figure out who she is."
"Will do."
After finishing her exam, she surrendered the remains to Cam and Bray and went to her office. It was difficult to see Booth. To see that he didn't seem at all affected by this. Though why would he? He was getting what he wanted. And that was no longer her. She needed to accept that. It was irrational to feel this way. Everyone left. She knew that.
"Bones, you want to grab lunch while we wait on Angela to do her thing?" He fiddled with his sobriety chip as he spoke.
"I'm not hungry." She sat, pulling up the report on the bodies.
"Come on, Bones." He's leaned a hip onto her desk. "We can go to that Thai restaurant you like."
"I'm really not hungry. I have work to do." Her words were cold.
"Bones."
The tone of his voice had her looking at him. He looked at her with worry. She hated that. How caring he was. How he seemed to read her like an open book. This was the problem with getting close to people. They start to know you too well.
"I'm fine, Booth. Really." She went back to pretending to read the report and couldn't take a real breath until he walked away.
She wasn't fine. Booth knew that. She did this thing where she turned inward when upset. Like she flipped a switch and became cool and uncaring. I'm fine, should be the name of her theme song.
She looked pale, and her eyes looked tired. Had she gone home and cried? The idea made didn't sit well with him. Hurting her wasn't something he wanted to do. It was the last thing he wanted to do.
He knew better than to push the issue so he went to the one person who might know the truth.
"You bastard," Angela said the moment he walked into her office. "Don't you think you should have broken the news to her in privet?"
Yep. Claws out. "I didn't plan on Hannah doing it last night. I wanted to tell her alone. But what was I supposed to do?" Angela gave him an Mmhmm expression. "Is she okay?"
"No, she's not okay. She loves you and you're breaking her heart." She sounded angry, her words clip and sharp, cutting into him.
"I wanted to give us a shot, Angela. She turned me down!" He took a deep breath, calming himself. "I didn't mean to hurt her."
Angela let out a breath too, putting down her tablet. " I know. I want to be mad at you. But I know she turned you down. I can't be angry for you moving on. I'm just sad that it hurts my best friend."
Booth let out a slow breath. "I don't want to hurt her." Yep. Broken record.
"Are you sure? Of Hannah, I mean."
Booth looked her in the eyes. "Yes. I love Hannah."
"Then what can you do? Give her time. She will compartmentalize and be back to herself."
She didn't sound like she believed her words, and Booth wasn't sure he believed them either.
A beep from the computer brought both their heads around. "Okay, the male victim is Jenson Alberta. Thirty-Five years old. He's a Doctor. Owns his private practice in Virginia. He was reported missing by his fiancé Natalie Brace two days ago."
"Okay. I'll grab Bones."
"Booth?"
He turned."Yeah?"
"You're a good guy. She will be okay. She's strong."
"Yeah. Thanks."
The ride to the Victims residence was an awkward one. Brennan looked at Booth, only to look away. Booth looked at Bones, knowing she'd been looking at him. Both wanted to say anything to make the situation better, but neither had any idea what could be said. So they rode in silence.
"Natalie Brace?"
"Yes?" A pretty blonde replied, leaning against the open door, her brow cocked in question. She was dressed to impress in her white pantsuit over a frilly pink blouse.
"I'm special agent Seeley Booth, and this is my Partner, Dr. temperance Brennan."
"Did you find Jensen?" She asked, opening the door wider and motioning them in. "Is he okay? Can I see him? I've been so worried." She stepped back, her pink heels clinking on the marble flooring.
"I'm sorry, Ms. Brace. But your fiancé was found in an abandoned factory. Murdered." Booth paused as she absorbed the news. She'd let out a gasp as she sat on a white modern chair.
"Ar…are you sure? I mean, could it be someone who just looks like him?"
"No. I'm sorry. We got DNA verification." Brennan said. "We're sorry for your loss," she added on.
"Oh god. I can't believe it. I. What about Jenny?" Her blue eyes looked big with worry. "She's been missing too."
"Jenny?"
"Yes. She is his partner. They own the practice together. My fiancé is a doctor. Was a doctor. When I couldn't find him, I tried to call her, but she went missing too…did you find her?"
"We did find a second set of remains but that victim has yet to be identified." Brennan looked at Booth who gave her that look that told her she was being insensitive. "Do you happen to know how tall she was? How much she weighed?"
"Um." Natalie sniffed, wiping at her cheeks. "Maybe five-five, one hundred and thirty or so pounds. She'd not much shorter than me. And about the same in dress size. She's borrowed clothes from me."
"Are you all close?" Booth asked, taking a seat in the chair across from her.
"Oh yes. Jenny and Jensen have been partners for years. They opened the practice in their late twenties. I met Jensen two years ago. He was so kind. Hard not to fall for. He introduced me to Jenny. We became quick friends. They were best friends and it was great that I just kind of fit, you know? Jensen and I… are getting married next month. What…what am I supposed to do? How am I supposed to move on? What if Jenny is gone? Oh god. What if I've lost both my best friends?"
"I'm sorry, but I have to ask, is it possible that Jenny and Jensen ran away together?"
"What? No. Of course not."
"So there's no way that they were having an affair?"
Natalie stood, strolling to the kitchen counter closest to them. She took a breath and faced them. "They once had feelings for each other. I know that. But they both knew they wouldn't work. It was like fitting a square inside a circle and neither of them wanted to hurt their friendship. Their partnership. I know he loved her and she him. But no, agent Booth. Theirs no way they were having an affair. He wouldn't do that to me. He wouldn't do that to her."
Brennan's eyes flicked to Booth, her stomach flopping when she realized he was already looking at her. They'd both caught the resemblance to their own situation.
"What is Jenny's last name?"
"Sanders. Jenny Sanders."
"This is Jenny Sanders," Angela confirmed a few hours later. "She was pretty. Very pretty."
"Yeah, and someone really didn't like her," Cam said, shaking her head. "Dr. Brennan said she was killed by swelling in the brain. Someone beat her to death."
"And she was pregnant. I estimate about eight weeks." Brennan said as she walked into the room.
"Pregnant?" Angela echoed, placing her hand on her belly. She couldn't imagine something happing to her baby because something happened to her.
"So someone beat a pregnant woman."
"And stabbed her best friend."
"I think the fiancé did it." They looked at Angela. "Think about it? Jensen and Jenny have been working together, avoiding the feelings they've both been feeling. Maybe a bad day in the office leads to drinks and a night of reckless abandon. Jenny gets pregnant, and that puts Jensen in a very sticky situation. He tells Natalie everything, ending with a breakup because no way would he leave Jenny to raise his baby on her own. Natalie gets pissed. Beats Jenny over the head until she's unconscious, bleeding internally, and then stabs Jensen in the heart. Just like he did to her."
Brennan scoffed. "That's completely anecdotal."
"I know. Sweetie." Angela smiles. "I was just putting forth a scenario."
"That's Booth's job. I found nicks on ribs three and four. If I had to guess, I'd say he was stabbed with the average kitchen knife."
"I agree. I was going to have Angela run a simulation." Cam said with a nod.
"Alright. Let's see if that fits."
"I need the key I gave you," Brennan told Booth as she joined him at the diner. She had wanted to decline, but he insisted, and she relented.
"Okay." He pulled out his keys, taking off her spare house key. "Why?" He asked as he handed it over.
"I lost my key last night. I went to Founding Fathers, but no one turned in a key and I can't be sure that's where I lost it."
"You should change your locks."
"I'll be fine." She waved his concern away. "How's Parker?"
"Good. I think Rebecca is taking that job." He looked how he sounded. Pissed. And like his heart was broken.
"Are you going to fight her on it?"
"I don't have rights to Parker. I'd have to take her to court."
"Isn't Parker with the fight?"
"Yeah, of course, he is. But she's promised me vacation time with him and he wants to go. I can't take him away from his mom either."
"Doesn't seem fair."
Booth said nothing.
"Soo…have you guys come up with a date?" Yep, that made her heart twinge. She hated this, but she wanted to be supportive. She didn't want to be the reason she ended up not having Booth in her life at all, and if he had to choose, he'd choose Hannah.
"No." He chucked. "We just got engaged. We haven't discussed the wedding at all. But I know there's one thing I want."
"What's that?"
"I want you to be my best man."
Brennan blinked at him, her heart kicking up. "But that's meant to be given to a man. Hence best man."
"I know. But it's usually given to a best friend. That's you, Bones."
"I'm." Heartbroken and don't want to watch you get married. "Hannah asked me to be her maid of honor at lunch."
"Oh." He laughed. "Look at that. We both want you to be a part of the wedding. Did you say yes?"
"Yeah, of course." Because I'm an idiot, she thought. She had sat there in shock, not wanting to say yes, but needing to. How do you decline something like that?
"Thank you, Bones. That probably meant a lot to her."
Brennan smiled as she sipped her drink. "So, did you get in contact with the family?"
They shifted the conversation to the case. Jenny had no one. Just a mother who was constantly in and out of prison. Currently, she was in. Jensen has a brother and father, who both had been distressed at the news and had no idea why he would be at an abandoned factory.
After they ate, Booth drove her home and they fell into the easy routine of bickering. After last night and today, it felt good to bicker with him. For a moment, it felt like things were going to be okay.
"Bones." He'd called as she opened the door. She looked at him, his reassuring brown eyes drawing her in. "I'm here."
She narrowed her eyes. "So am I?" She said slowly.
"No, I mean emotionally, I'm here. I'll always be here."
Brennan took a deep breath. "I know." She just didn't believe it.
"Hey," he said, grabbing her hand before she could get out. "Bones I mean it. Just because I'm marrying Hannah doesn't mean you aren't important to me. We're still us."
She blinked at him as his words confused her. Not because she didn't understand them. She did. But how can they still be them when everything was changing?
"I'm sorry. I just don't know what that means." She pulled her hand free and hurried inside her building.
She just needed time. Time to be okay with all the change. Time to adjust to the idea that she and Booth will only ever be partners. Even though she ached for more.
Once inside, she showered, changed, and started to clean up. Not that there was much to clean. More like put books away, and straighten the papers on her table.
She went to the counter where she'd left the book she'd been reading the night before last, except it wasn't there. She looked around, spotting it on her coffee table, which was confusing because she was sure she'd left it on the counter.
Maybe she didn't. It felt like it had been days since she'd been home. She was just tired.
She put the book on the shelf, then finished straitening up before heading to bed where she lay awake for hours.
"And at lunch, Temperance and I talked about the wedding. She agreed to be my maid of honor. I'm so happy she agreed." Hannah sat on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. "She's the best."
Booth laughed. "She is." He kissed her, moaning into it.
"I think we should have an outside wedding." She pulled away, and he studied her face. "What?"
"Nothing. I just really love you. And I'm so happy you said yes."
"Soo, outside wedding?" She drawled.
"I was kinda hoping we could do it in a church?"
"But that's soooo traditional. I'm just not sure I'd be comfortable having it in the church." She gave him a concerned look. "Is that a deal-breaker?"
Booth kissed her. He wasn't thrilled about not getting married in a church, but he was willing to compromise. "If we get married outside can we have a priest?"
Hannah smiled. "Deal! She nuzzled against him, making him smile. "I love you, Seeley."
"I love you too."
She stayed like that for a moment before moving so she could see him. He took her in, her kind face. Kissable lips. Caring eyes. This woman who had agreed to marry him. She was everything.
"I'm sorry about Parker." Her tone was sincere.
"It sucks. I wish she'd care about how I feel in all of this. How can I be a good father when she takes him thousands of miles away?"
"You're a great father. Parker knows that."
Yeah. He knows. But it was still hard. He wanted to be in Parker's life. Everyday. He wanted to go to bed with his kid under his roof. Wake up the same. Take him to school. Be there for all the ups and downs. Be the father every child deserves.
"I just want to be an active part of his life. I want him and all my future children to know that I'm a good father. That I care. That I will do anything for them."
"You want more children?"
He smiled. "Of course I do. Don't you?"
She sucked in her lower lip, chewing on it thoughtfully for a moment before releasing it. "I've always wanted to adopt."
He was surprised by her answer. It wasn't that he wouldn't want to adopt. He'd love any child regardless of biology, but he'd always thought he'd have more of his own. Hoped even.
"Is that to say you don't want biological children?"
"I don't know. Maybe. But I've never really considered the possibility. I'd like to give an existing child a home. Someone who needs us. Hey," she placed a kiss on his lips. "We have plenty of time to discuss how to have a family."
He gave in to her kisses, allowing her to seduce him. She was right. They had time to figure those things out. Right now, it was him and her and nothing else mattered.
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I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. Reviews and comments are greatly appreciated. Thanks :D
