Just to be clear, we are not lawyers or cops. We do the best we can with research. Also, this is fiction and meant to be entertaining (and a way for us writers to implement self care and cope with everything in our lives on top of this virus stuff). We try to be accurate as best as we can. Please be kind both to us and to those who review this story. We don't want this story to cause fights or issues among the readers. It's just a story after all :)
Things to remember: We are not doing any bashing of any characters. Our endgame is always Booth & Brennan (see our other stories if you need reassurance).
Happy reading!
Brennan couldn't stop thinking about Booth potentially being Parker's father. The way he and Parker interacted with each other was so natural. She also kept thinking about Christmas and how meaningful it had been spending it with Booth. She was at the diner and contemplating on what to do. She knew this would torment her forever if she did not find out for sure, even though she knew how well she was at identifying people based on their bone structure. She was positive Booth was the father after seeing them together so much. She had to stop denying it to herself.
She reached for her phone.
...
Booth did not find her at home. He was back in his SUV heading for the diner when he saw she had texted him.
I need to talk to you about something important, it said. Meet me at the diner. I'll be waiting.
He paused, feeling his emotions trying to take over. The shock and disbelief over Parker possibly being his son was overwhelming. The more he thought about it, the more he saw Rebecca's features in Parker's face.
"Breathe," he told himself. "Just breathe. Talk to her. Just talk."
He put the SUV in gear and drove to meet Brennan.
...
Brennan could tell something was wrong with Booth when he came inside the diner. He spotted her and made his way to where she was sitting and sat across from her.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
"What did you want to talk about?" he countered, his voice a little clipped.
Brennan surveyed him carefully. Something had obviously upset him. It made what she had to say even harder. She didn't want to upset him further.
"Maybe this isn't a good time," she noted.
"Bones, just spit it out," he said.
"Are you mad at me?"
"Depends on what you're going to tell me," he answered. Brennan nodded slowly.
"Okay," she said. "Okay. Booth, I want to test Parker to see if he's your son."
Booth sat stunned. He had not expected her to just blurt that out. Had she known he'd found her letter? Did she have eyes on him somehow?
"What?" he asked, playing along.
"I...I think he's your son," she went on. "I was going to tell you after I got buried alive. I even wrote a letter and everything saying it, but then you told me to adopt him because he loved me so much, and I didn't know how to tell you after that."
Booth felt that letter burning a hole in his pocket. He knew he shouldn't have taken it, and she would probably be upset to know he had. After all, she had bared her soul to him. He hadn't forgotten that part of the note. It just got buried under the whole "Parker might be your son" thing.
"Oh," he said.
"I know it's a big shock, and I'm so sorry I didn't tell you sooner," Brennan said. "I just...I really wanted to adopt him, Booth. I love that boy so much. But I also know that you're looking for your child, and Parker could be him."
"What if he is?" Booth asked. "Are you still going to adopt him?"
Brennan was quiet for a moment.
"I'd like to," she finally said.
"No way," Booth said quickly. "Bones, if he's my son, he should be with me."
"Booth, please," she pleaded. "Parker has been moved around so much. He needs stability. We can figure out something for visitation..."
"Visitation?" Booth interrupted. "Bones, he's my son."
"We don't know that for sure," she corrected. "I want to test his DNA against yours."
Booth rubbed his face hard, thinking.
"So let me get this straight. You want to find out if I'm his father, but you won't let me take him into my custody if he is?"
"I haven't worked everything out yet," she started.
"If he's my son, I have every right to be his father," Booth said. They both looked at each other intensely then.
"If you're his father, you'd want to do what is best for him, and right now that is stability."
Booth felt his temper flaring, so he stood up. He didn't want to make a scene in the diner.
"Booth," Brennan tried.
"I can't talk to you right now," he said flatly. He didn't want to yell at her. He didn't want to lose his cool. He left her sitting there looking desolate as he went back to his SUV and drove away.
...
Angela stared at Brennan after her story was finished.
"I don't believe it," she said. "Bren, what are you gonna do?"
"I don't know. He's mad, I can tell. I couldn't move forward with this adoption without telling him, but I think he's going to try to stop it."
"Can he?" Angela asked.
"I don't know. I'm not a lawyer," Brennan answered. "Legally, I'm his guardian."
"But Booth didn't know Parker was his son. Doesn't the legal right go to the biological parent if they're stable and of sound mind?"
"I'm really hoping that Booth sees how Parker needs stability," Brennan said, sighing. "He can spend as much time with Parker as he wants. I'm not denying him that. When Parker gets older, he can make the decision of who to live with. He's just so young and vulnerable right now. I just want what is best for Parker."
"Are you going to tell him Booth is his father?"
"If the DNA test says so, then yes, I will. He deserves to know that."
"And what if he wants to live with Booth now?" Angela asked. "I'm sorry, sweetie. I know I'm asking really tough questions, but I just want you to brace yourself for what could happen."
"If Parker wants to live with Booth now, then I won't stand in the way," Brennan said. She felt her heart break a little at this, but she didn't want to cause Parker any unnecessary pain. Angela gave her a hug then. Brennan wondered where Booth was and what he was doing.
...
"Caroline, tell me I can stop this thing," Booth said. Caroline was looking at him.
"Have you had the DNA test done yet?"
"No..."
"Do that then we'll talk."
"But hypothetically, if Parker is my son, can I stop the adoption?" Booth asked.
"Social workers usually look out for the best interest of the child," Caroline answered. "If you can give him what he needs and show you're stable and sane, you might get custody."
"Might?"
"They might decide Parker should stay with what is familiar."
Booth stood there thinking about Parker. He saw the boy's face and how it lit up whenever Brennan was in the room. He remembered how anxious he was for Brennan to be brought safely home.
"If I intervene, will it make Parker hate me?" Booth asked Caroline after a moment. She looked at him sympathetically.
"What do you think?"
"I don't know anymore. I'm so confused," Booth admitted.
"Go get the DNA test first, cherie. Then worry about what to do after that," Caroline encouraged.
"Okay," Booth nodded. He could do that.
...
Brennan looked up when Booth entered her office. She felt apprehension and braced herself for some possible yelling.
"Here," he said, holding out his swab sample. He had Cam do it for him.
"I'm sorry," Brennan said again.
"Let's just find out if I'm his father and go from there," Booth said, echoing Caroline. Brennan took the sample and nodded. She already had one from Parker. She had given a different reason for swabbing his cheek, though. Parker thought they were doing some sort of medical check up. She'd tell him the truth if Booth was his father.
Booth didn't say anything further as he walked out of her office.
...
Brennan watched Parker eat his dinner that night. She had submitted the samples, and now all she could do was wait. She had called Tiffany and asked for the adoption process to be put on hold. She made that decision in hopes that Booth would see she wasn't trying to hurt him. She also wanted to know more before figuring out if that was still the plan or not.
"Is Booth coming over?" Parker asked hopefully.
"Not tonight," she answered.
"Why not?"
"He just has some things to do," Brennan explained. Parker took this information with a nod. He didn't question it. Brennan prepared herself for the worst. She loved Parker, but she wanted him to be happy. If living with Booth made him happy, then she'd deal with it. She was used to losing people she cared about. She hoped that if Booth got custody, he'd still let her see Parker.
...
Booth mulled over that letter for hours. She was telling him she had feelings for him. He had all kinds of emotions around this. He knew he would be ending things with Cam soon. He knew he had some kind of feeling for Brennan. He didn't want to lose that amidst this whole thing. He also felt frustrated that she didn't feel safe enough to just tell him her suspicions from the beginning. Then he had to give her credit for telling him even though she knew he would potentially fight for Parker. He knew he had to eventually tell her he had her letter. He had no idea what her reaction to that would be.
His brain honestly wanted to just explode.
Days Later
Brennan was looking into Parker's file. She decided she was going to dig deeper into the Wallace family. If Rebecca was Parker's mother, then how come they were listed as his biological parents? She knew she needed help, so she went to call Booth. She hesitated, wondering how receptive he'd be of her. She decided to risk it.
"What's up? Did the results come in?" Booth asked, answering.
"Not yet. I'm looking into Parker's file. Can you look up his supposed biological parents for me?" she questioned.
"I can. Names?"
"Jeanine and Alan Wallace."
"Thanks. I'll call with news."
"Okay."
They hung up, and Brennan sat there waiting for him to call back.
...
Booth found out where the Wallace family had lived and decided to go talk to their neighbor, Grace Parkins. She looked surprised when she saw him standing there at her door, like she never got visitors or something.
"Hi," Booth said. "I'm looking into the crash that killed Jeanine and Alan Wallace. I just wondered what you could tell me about them?"
"Do you think they were murdered?" Grace asked after seeing Booth's badge. "That's usually why FBI gets involved."
"I just wanted to ask about how they were as neighbors."
"Oh. Well...they were quiet. I spoke with Jeanine maybe three times? They kept to themselves a lot."
"And their child?" Booth prompted. There was a pause, and something flickered in Grace's eyes that made Booth realize she knew something.
"The child? I didn't know they had one," Grace said. Booth looked at her carefully.
"You're lying. You know something," he pointed out.
"I don't. I swear."
"Grace, they're dead. Whatever it is you know about their child, now is the time to tell me."
Grace hesitated, but she didn't want to go to jail either.
"They straight up claimed him as their own," Grace explained. "They said they had found an abandoned child in a stroller in the park and just decided to make him theirs."
"That is so wrong on so many levels," Booth commented, feeling sick. "And you were just okay with their story?"
"I know," Grace said, hanging her head. "I'm ashamed of myself. I just knew the system would take the boy, and he seemed happy with them. Why make him suffer if he was happy?"
"Why didn't you tell authorities?" Booth demanded. Her words were hitting too close to home, and he shifted uncomfortably.
"Because. No one came forward about a missing baby. If they had, I would have made them turn him in. They seemed like good parents. I saw them all together once outside. Jeanine was so happy. They only had him three months before they died."
"You should have said something," Booth said, feeling angry again. "They still stole him, Grace. Good parents or not, that was wrong."
"I'm sorry. Am I in trouble?"
"You were an accessory to a kidnapping."
"So that's a yes."
"I'm afraid so."
"Okay," Grace sighed, holding out her arms. "Cuff me."
Booth did so gladly. Then he took her in to get dealt with. He didn't particularly care what happened to her. It just felt good to be doing something to avenge Parker's kidnapping. He hoped he would never have to see her again.
...
Brennan answered the phone eagerly upon seeing Booth's name.
"Well?" she asked.
"They stole him from the park," Booth answered. "They gave him fake papers. They claimed him as their own. Their neighbor knew it and did nothing. She claimed she thought Parker was better off with the Wallace couple than the foster system since no one reported a missing baby."
"He ended up there anyway," Brennan noted.
"So that tells me that Rebecca was kidnapped from a park, leaving Parker behind."
"His dream," Brennan said suddenly.
"What?"
"Parker has a recurring dream of reaching for a woman who is being pulled away from him."
"Aw man," Booth said.
Brennan fiddled with the papers in front of her. She waited for a break in their conversation before bringing it up.
"The results are here," she said. There was a pause.
"Why didn't you lead with that?" he asked.
"I wanted to hear about the Wallace couple."
"What does it say, Bones?" Booth asked. She cleared her throat, looking at the paper.
"Booth, you're Parker's biological father."