(Star Gazer in a Puddle)

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I don't own Bones.

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Brennan was showing Booth an x-ray of the victim when Brennan's father walked into her office. Moving quickly, Booth pulled his gun from his holster, told Max that he was under arrest and started reading the con man his rights.

In shock, Brennan tried to comprehend the sight of her father giving up so easily and that her boyfriend was holding a loaded gun on her father. "Booth, please." She didn't even know what she was asking Booth to do and when Booth asked her to get his handcuffs out of his back pocket she refused. "What do you mean no? Bones . . ."

"I don't want to help you handcuff my own father." Brennan crossed her arms against her breasts and refused to give in to Booth's demands for help. The whole thing seemed macabre. "Booth, he helped me find you when Gallagher kidnapped you. He saved your life."

Booth was furious that Max was putting him in this God awful position with Brennan, but what choice did he have? Max was wanted for the murder of Deputy Director Kirby and as an agent for the FBI it was his duty to arrest Max Keenan. To not do so could cause him to lose his job and worse, probably be arrested himself. The fact that Max was also responsible for the misery Brennan had suffered in Foster Care helped him to harden his heart towards the older man. Brennan might be confused, but he wasn't. Max was a murderer and he belonged in jail.

Calmly, Max tried to make his arrest by Booth easier for the younger man. He did what he was told and turned to face the wall, while Booth handcuffed him. "I heard you were getting married, Tempe." He actually knew that it was the bug guy and the artist that were getting married, but he'd needed an excuse to surrender to the authorities and this 'misunderstanding' was as good of an excuse as any. He had also made sure that it was Booth that arrested him. The last thing he needed was to be gunned down by the police because of the seriousness of his crime and the fact that he was considered armed and dangerous. Max knew that Booth was honorable and that he would take good care to make sure nothing happened to him.

Bewildered and anxious, Brennan wasn't sure if she was acting properly towards her boyfriend, but Max was her father. Max had walked into her office because he thought she was getting married. "No Dad, Hodgins and Angela are getting married. Not Booth and I."

Max heard the pain in his daughter's voice and he knew that she was upset that he was being arrested. Hopeful that that meant that she actually loved him, he turned his head so that he could look her firmly in the eyes. "Oh the bug guy." He had abandoned his daughter when she'd turned fifteen and when it was too late to do anything about it, he'd found out that Russ had forgone his responsibilities to his little sister and abandoned her too. His daughter had suffered in Foster care and had almost died from mistreatment. Sick that that had happened to his baby girl, Max worried that his daughter hated him and his wife.

After he had pretended to be a priest while he plotted and then killed the murderer Kirby to protect his family, he had abandoned his daughter once more, this time taking her brother with him. He knew he had a lot to answer for and that his daughter had suffered because of his actions. Time was starting to catch up with him and he knew that he needed to do something for his daughter and himself. If he had any hope of reconnecting with Tempe, he had to start soon and this was the time he had chosen.

Feeling like he was destroying his relationship with Brennan and with no way to stop it, Booth tried to reason with his girlfriend. "Bones . . . Bones, I'm sorry, but he killed the Deputy Director of the FBI. I'm just doing my job, can't you see that?" He wanted to throw up he was so nauseous, but he grimly continued to do his job anyway. He knew that he'd have to talk to Brennan as soon as he could. He just hoped he still had a girlfriend at the end of the day.

Max hadn't meant to cause a rift between Booth and his daughter and if he'd had a better choice he'd have used it. He needed Booth to be the one to arrest him to make sure he arrived safely at the Hoover. "It's okay. He's right. He's just doing his job, Honey."

Though he wanted to make sure that Brennan was alright, Booth knew that he had to get Max to the Hoover as soon as possible. This was one of those times where Brennan needed him and he couldn't stay to help her. He just hoped she'd be alright while he was gone and he vowed to get back to her as soon as he could.

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Much to the chagrin of Booth, Caroline had ordered the Agent to release Max for the time being. So far there was no evidence to prove that Max was indeed Max Keenan. They had watched him drink from a glass and intended to use the fingerprints on the glass to make their case, but oddly Max hadn't seemed concerned in the slightest that they were going to try to use his fingerprints against him. Caroline was suspicious, but suspicions didn't mean they could keep Max locked up.

Filled with anger, once Caroline was out of the room, Booth placed his fists on the table and leaned on them. "What you did to Bones was unforgiveable . . . she's special and you just abandoned her when she was fifteen. She almost died because of you and your wife. She didn't have anyone to protect her . . . no one and then you come back into her life, kill two men and run off with her brother. What kind of a man are you?"

"A frail one?" Max calmly looked at her daughter's boyfriend and the words he heard from Booth were sincere and filled with rage. "Christine and I left our kids behind to save their lives. We had a murderer after us and in the end Christine died. My wife didn't want our kids to be in danger . . . but yeah, Tempe is special and I should have arranged for one of her mother's sisters to come and get her. I thought Russ could handle it, but I was wrong and by the time I found out what had happened to my little girl it was too late, she had aged out of the system."

"Bones has some aunts?" His anger slowly ebbing, Booth heard Max's words and he knew that the man regretted his past actions. Still, Brennan had almost died because of Max's thoughtlessness. "Bones doesn't really need you back in her life, Max. She has me now. I'm her family and I'll never abandon her like you did."

"I'm glad." Max had been thrilled when he had heard that his daughter was in relationship with the man standing before him. He considered himself a good judge of character and he knew that Booth was just the man Temperance Brennan needed in her life. "I only want her to be happy. I came back to try to fix things between Tempe and me. I just hope it isn't too late."

Certain that Max had created a great deal of trouble for him while trying to get out of trouble himself, Booth abruptly turned and walked towards the door. Before he left the room he paused and stared at the doorknob in his hand. He had to find out if the fingerprints on the glass could prove that Max was indeed Max. In the meantime, "You can go for now."

Max watched Booth leave the room and slowly stood up. So far, things were working out as he had planned. Only time would tell if it had all been worth it.

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Much to Caroline's ire, the fingerprints on the glass didn't help in the least. There was no record on file that contained the fingerprints of Max Keenan. The fact was, Deputy Director Kirby had probably been the one to delete the fingerprints from the system and ironically that meant that Max might get away with the murder of the Deputy Director.

While he had waited in his office for the fingerprint search, Booth had received a text message from Brennan telling him that she was going to her apartment after she was done for the day. The message had contained nothing else and that made Booth worry even more. He had sent a message back telling her he might be late coming home, but she had not replied which almost seemed to seal his fate. It was possible that he had lost the woman he loved and he wasn't sure if he could accept it.

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Once he was in front of Brennan's apartment, Booth leaned his head against the door and closed his eyes. The next few minutes were probably going to determine if Brennan was still in his life and he felt on the verge of panic. He hated that feeling, it made him feel like a loser, but he might be on the verge of losing everything he wanted in life. Bracing himself, he prepared for the worse, determined not to make the situation worse than it already was. If Brennan kicked him out, he hoped he had the courage to fight to make things better down the road for both of them and that he could eventually win her back.

Entering the apartment, Booth heard voices in the kitchen. Cautiously, he walked across the living room and stood in the kitchen doorway. Not really surprised, Booth sighed. "What's he doing here?"

Her eyes drawn to Booth, Brennan shrugged her shoulders, but answered him. "Max wanted to talk to me about Russ and to give me this." Brennan held up a ring and then clutched it in her hand. "Apparently it belonged to my mother and before that my mother's mother. Also there's a message from my mother on videotape, but he doesn't know what it is."

Calmly, Booth nodded his head and left the room. Moving across the living room, he entered their bedroom and sat down on the bed. Obviously Brennan had things to say to her father and he didn't need to be there. The fact that she was talking to him was a good sign and he hoped it meant that he was still in her life.

Once Booth was out of the room, Brennan turned to face her father. "Booth will prove you are who you are Max and he will arrest you for murder again."

Not really concerned about that, Max smiled. "I expect he will. In the meantime, I hope we can visit with each other . . . Tempe, I'm sorry about what happened, your mother and I leaving you and Russ, Foster Care . . . we never meant for any of that to happen . . ."

"And yet it did." Brennan stood up and placed the ring down on the table. "I'd like you to leave Dad. I need to talk to Booth."

"Of course Sweetheart." Max leaned over to kiss his daughter, but she sidestepped him, not allowing him to touch her. "Bye Dad."

Once her father was gone, Brennan made her way to the bedroom to talk to her boyfriend. She found Booth sitting on the bed facing the door and from the look on his face, she knew he was upset or sad or maybe both. She had a difficult time interpreting emotions on other people's faces and it was possible that Booth was both sad and upset. "Booth, I know you were doing your job. Max is wanted for murder . . . I'm confused. One minute I'm angry with my father and then the next minute I find myself concerned about his welfare. No matter what he did in the past, he is my father. My mother is dead and besides Russ . . . I'm not sure how I'm supposed to feel about what is going on. Max murdered at least two men, two that we know of . . . but he's my father. There is something wrong with me . . . he needs to be punished, but I don't want him to die for what he did . . . I don't know what I'm supposed to feel."

The look on her face made Booth feel so sad for her. She had a hard enough time dealing with day to day things and now Max was just making her miserable and she needed someone to help her. Well that someone was him. "Bones." Booth stood up and held his arms open wide hoping she'd accept his support. "Come here, Bones."

Grateful that Booth was home, Brennan moved swiftly into his embrace. "I don't know what I'm supposed to feel, Booth. Something is very wrong with me."

His arms wrapped around her, Booth held her against his body and felt her start to tremble. "There is nothing wrong with you, Bones. This whole thing is so complicated and you have a right to be confused. Max murdered Deputy Director Kirby as well as Garret Delaney and he probably had McVicker killed as well. He abandoned you when you were a kid and Foster Care was hell for you. It's a lot to take in, but he came back Bones. He wants to be part of your life again and he's willing to risk being arrested and tried for murder. He probably will be arrested pretty soon. We just need to prove that Max is Max. In the meantime, maybe you should talk to him, get his side of stuff. Once you hear him out, maybe you can figure out what to do next."

Logically, Booth made sense and yet Brennan was still confused. She hated Max for what he had done to her and yet she still loved him too. "Hold me Booth. You're the only one I trust right now. Just hold me."

Those words were all he needed to hear from her. Brennan was still his and he was hers. He was going to help her through this mess and hopefully she'd be alright in the end. "I'm here Bones. I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere."

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