(The Prince in the Plastic)

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I don't own Bones.

Ooooooooooooooooo

Once his grandson, Seeley had returned to the hospital, Max had driven Hank back to his hotel room near the VA Hospital. He managed to sleep until eight and as rested as he was going to be, Hank returned to his son's hospital room to check on him. "I'm back, Edwin."

Drowsy from the pain medication, Edwin wiped his hand across his mouth and tried to smile. "Hi, Dad . . . I hope you slept some."

"I did, thank you." Tired, Hank moved the chair closer to the bed and sat down. "Did you eat breakfast?"

"No . . . I'm not hungry, Dad." Edwin wiped his mouth again and shifted his head on his pillow. "Um, did you ask Seeley and Jared if they'd come and say good-bye to me?" He had hoped his sons would come, but he was certain that wasn't going to happen.

Realistically he had known that his grandsons would refuse, but he still felt disappointed that they had refused to come and now that Jared was hurt there was no hope at all. "I'm sorry, Son. They're not going to come . . . I guess we knew that they wouldn't."

"I never really thanked you for saving my sons from me, Dad . . . That day you came over and saw me beating Seeley . . . If you hadn't come, I think my boy would have ended up dead. I was going to kill him. I was out of control over some stupid shit that he had done and I was going to kill him." Exhausted, Edwin lay still while a wave of pain washed through him.

"You don't know that, Son."

Weakly waving his hand, Edwin didn't want his father to sugar coat anything. "No, I do know that . . . I was . . . what I did was wrong and I am so sorry . . . Marianne, Seeley, Jared . . . I didn't want to be the way I was . . . But I was and I am so sorry." Tears slipped down his cheeks unchecked while he begged for his father to understand. "I am so sorry Dad."

"I know you are." Hank stood up and kissed his son's cheek. "You're my son, Edwin. I love you, don't you forget that. Even when I was angry with you about the boys, I still loved you. You've been messed up since you came back from Vietnam and it just got the best of you."

"I love you, Dad . . . I love you." Edwin closed his eyes as another wave of pain coursed through his body. "I'm going to miss you the most." He closed his eyes and decided he needed to rest. He'd talk to his father again when he was stronger.

Watching his son's shallow breaths, Hank knew that Edwin was leaving this world and it was probably for the best. He was in pain and once he passed from this world to the next the pain would be gone. Sitting back down, he watched his son's chest rise and fall and after a few minutes it stopped. The sudden jarring noises coming from the alarms attached to his son let the world know that Edwin Booth was no longer in this world. "I love you Son. I'll see you on the other side."

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Jared felt like hell. Opening his eyes, he found his brother sitting next to him. "Where's Pops?"

"He went to check on Dad." Booth rubbed his eyelids, he was so tired. "Dad is dying."

"Yeah, I know." His hatred for his father hadn't diminished over the years. "Pops said I have a broken leg."

Shifting in his chair, Booth felt his lower back twinge. "Yeah, some cracked ribs, bruises, contusions . . . you hit a parked car . . . Bones looked at the x-rays and she said that with therapy you'll recover . . . You're not going to be able to work for awhile and your car is totaled."

"Shit!" He had hoped his car was fixable. "No health insurance, no car, no job . . . I'm screwed."

Sympathetic towards his brother's plight, Booth stood up and rubbed his lower back. "You can stay at our house until you're back on your feet . . . you can use the room that Pop's uses when he comes to visit. The bathroom has rails on the walls and the bathtub is the kind that you can walk in and sit down. It's for handicapped people . . . The bed is lower too, so it's easier to get in and out of."

Wary of the offer his brother was making, Jared cleared his throat. "Did you clear this with Tempe? She and I don't really get along . . . it's worse than with you."

"Yes, he talked to me about it." Brennan, resting on the couch, interrupted Jared. "Hank is in a retirement home, Padme has not been by to see you, so we assume she is angry with you, so that leaves Booth and me. We are set up at home to care for someone in your condition. The only other option would be to put you in a nursing home to recover. It is your decision of course."

Jared hadn't been aware that Brennan was in the room. "I can't afford therapy or a nursing home and I'm not sure how I'm going to pay for the hospital bill . . . I've been sleeping in my car for the last week . . . I guess, I need to stay somewhere, so thanks for the offer of the room. I'd better take the offer. Once I'm able to walk, I'll get out of your hair."

Shrugging her shoulders, Brennan glanced at her husband then back at his brother. "Booth has some workout equipment in the garage. It includes a stationary bike and a treadmill. We'll hire a therapist and you can do your therapy in the garage. It will be cheaper and won't require you to travel."

Booth nodded his head. "Sounds like a plan. I'm not sure how long you'll be in here, but we'll move you to our house once you're released. We'll work it all out, Jared."

Disgusted with himself, Jared sighed. "I shouldn't have driven my car when I did . . . I was drinking."

"Yeah, I know. You're going to have to deal with the courts, but not right now." Booth sat back down. "Now that you're awake, Bones and I are going to go home. I'll be back once a day for a visit, but it'll have to be in the evening since I have to go to work . . . Don't count on Pops visiting you for a while. He's worried about Dad, so I'm sure he'll stay at the VA hospital until . . . until Dad dies." He was starting to feel guilty that he hadn't bothered to visit his father, but it would be too hard to be in the same room with the man. The last time he'd seen his father, the man had tried to kill him. He didn't see where he owed Edwin Booth anything. "If you need me, you have my phone number. Call me." Standing once more, Booth checked his pants pockets for his truck keys.

"Thanks, I will." Jared turned his head and stared at Brennan. "Thanks Tempe."

"You're welcome." Brennan walked over to the other side of the bed and placed her hand on Booth's arm. "I think we should go now, Booth."

Placing his hand over her hand, Booth nodded his head. "Yeah, you need some rest in your own bed."

Once they were out in the hallway, Booth took Brennan's hand in his hand. "Jared is in a hell of a fix . . . I'll see if I can get him a used car to replace his old one. He needs a car if he wants to get a job. I don't think Padme is going to bail him out."

"Alright." Brennan hated that Booth was going to spend some of his hard earned money on his brother, but he was right. If they didn't get him a car then they might be stuck with him for a while. "I'll start looking at the car ads in the newspaper and at what the dealerships are offering."

Walking down the hallway, Booth felt a sense of relief that his brother hadn't been killed, but the man was in a lot of trouble both financially and legally. He had tried to warn his brother about his drinking, but he wouldn't listen. He just didn't know what was going to happen to Jared if he didn't quit drinking.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooo

Once he was alone in his room, Jared began to cry. He knew he had messed up and this wasn't something that his brother could bribe the State police to ignore. He loved drinking and he never considered it to be a problem no matter what his brother had said, but hitting a parked car while driving drunk was proof that he had been kidding himself.

His father was dying from liver failure because he couldn't give up drinking and wasn't he a better man than his father? Wasn't he stronger? He had always thought he was, but now he was afraid. What if he was his father? What if he was a major screwup and his life was never going to get better? He was afraid. He was very afraid.

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