(The Warrior in the Wuss)

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I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooooooo

Because Booth was feeling more stressful than usual, he planned to attend a couple of extra Gamblers Anonymous meetings during the week. Jared's battle with alcohol reminded him that addiction ran in his family and his father's death was weighing not only on Jared but on him too. He didn't want to fail because he had so much to lose. Concerned about what Brennan might think of him, Booth decided to be up front and honest with her. "Bones, I'm going to be home a little late tomorrow evening. I'm going to attend an extra GA meeting this week . . . maybe two."

Alarmed, Brennan stopped combing her hair and turned to face her mate. "Are you gambling again?"

"No, no." Booth wanted to get that straight. "I am not gambling again, but . . . I'm feeling a little itchy lately. I don't want to gamble, but . . . well the temptation is there and I need to fight a little harder. Do you understand?"

She thought she did, but the thought of Booth gambling disturbed her. "Is it because of Jared?" If Jared was causing her boyfriend problems then it might be worth it to put Booth's brother in a nursing home for a while.

"It's Jared and Dad's death and a lot of other stuff." There was no way he was going to tell Brennan that having a new baby in the house was also causing him some anxiety. He was sure she wouldn't understand. He worried that he might screw up and he wanted to be the best father he could be. "There's no cure for addiction. It's just a constant battle to not give in. I didn't think Dad's death bothered me, but honestly it does . . . I hated him. I hated him and I always will, but his addiction caused most of his troubles and I don't want to be my father. Jared is fighting his addiction too and he's terrified that he might be turning into Dad."

Interrupting him, Brennan stepped closer to her partner and clasped his hand. "Booth, you are not your father. Jared isn't his father either. Both of you realize that you have a problem with addiction and you're doing something about it. I see you fight it, Booth. I see your struggle sometimes, but you're strong. You want to live a normal life and not gamble. I think Jared wants that too. If you feel that you need to go to extra meetings then that is what you should do. And if you need to talk about it or anything else, you can talk to me. I'm here, Booth."

Grateful for her love and kindness, Booth pulled her slowly into his embrace and kissed her. "Thanks, Bones. I'll go to a few extra meetings during the week while Jared is here and I think that will help with the temptation." Pulling back, Booth moved a strand of hair from Brennan's face to behind her ear. "I'm not going to gamble . . . I'm reformed and I will fight to stay that way."

"I understand, Booth. Thank you for talking to me about this. I appreciate your honesty."

"Hey, thanks." Booth watched as Brennan returned to the dresser, picked up her comb and continued to run it through her hair. "I know I'm not the only one around here that's feeling the pressure. A lot has happened in the last year including Christine joining our little family and it's a little hectic around here, so if you need to take some time for yourself, you let me know. I can take care of Christine if you want to go out for a girls night out with Angela."

Curious, Brennan placed her comb down and faced Booth once more. "Did Angela call you?"

"Well sort of, she wants to spend an evening with her best friend and she thought you might be balking because of Christine and Jared." Booth sat down on the edge of the bed and removed his shoes and socks. "She wanted me to talk you into going out with her, but I told her it was your decision not mine . . .You can spend an evening with Angela, Bones if you want to. I can handle things for a few hours. You could probably use some time away from here, especially since Jared and Max are living with us right now."

She appreciated his offer, but Brennan shook her head. "I'm fine, Booth. Yes, it is a little chaotic sometimes, but we've managed to find solutions to that chaos. I don't need a girl's night out. I'm happy staying at home with you and Christine for now. When she's a little older I may like to join Angela for an evening of frivolity, but at the moment, I don't need it nor do I want it."

"Well, Angela is kind of worried about you, but if you don't want to do it, that's up to you." Booth removed his shirt and held it in his lap. "Is she pregnant?"

Surprised, Brennan stared at her husband in wonder. "How do you know she's pregnant."

Amused, Booth laughed. "I didn't really know until you just confirmed it, but when she was in my office talking about you and her going out, she didn't mention bars or clubs and she kept her hand pressed against her stomach then she grabbed my trash can and threw up into it. She said it's a stomach virus, but . . . it just seemed like a lot of odd behavior even for Angela . . . maybe she wants a girls night out for her. If she's pregnant then her life is about to change and maybe she wants to experience a little freedom before she has her baby."

Brennan considered what Booth said and sat on the bed next to him. "Perhaps you are right. I think she is happy about being pregnant at least she has told me that she is . . . Her life is about to change, but it shouldn't curtail her independence. I don't feel less independent than before I had Christine. True, I am responsible for my child's well being, but that hasn't changed who I am."

Aware that Brennan had made many changes in her life, Booth knew that though she had committed to him in a relationship and she'd had a baby, she was still the Brennan he had fallen in love with, strong, independent, brilliant, hard working, determined. "Well, everyone changes a little bit when they have a kid, believe me. I made some big adjustments when Parker was born, but I don't think it changed who I was just like you're the same Bones I fell in love with. If you decide to go out with Angela, let me know."

"Alright, I'll think about it." Brennan hooked her arm around her mate's arm. "If you decide you need a boys night out, you let me know. This can work both ways, Booth."

"Sure, it can." Booth didn't need a night out with guys when he had all he wanted at home. Maybe he could invite a few friends over for barbecue, but not while Jared was in the house. It would just add too much commotion and none of them needed that.

Ooooooooooooooooo

Brennan had contacted her old friend, Ethan Sawyer and had brought to his attention a problem that he might be interested in solving. She talked about Christopher Pelant, about his ankle monitor and how he was responsible for the deaths of two people, but they couldn't prove it because they couldn't prove he had left his house.

Ethan was locked up in a secure facility for his own protection because he was a paranoid schizophrenic, but he had many lucid moments. Before his mental illness laid him low, he had worked on artificial intelligence and he'd modeled human behavior mathematically. Brennan knew that her friend was smarter than Christopher Pelant and she was hoping that he would be able to prove how Pelant had killed two people. Since Ethan didn't have access to computers, he did most of his work in his head and transferred the final results to paper with a pen. Crude, but Ethan didn't really care and neither did Brennan.

"Is he watching us?" Ethan felt that someone as brilliant as Pelant was could probably watch anyone anywhere. Since he knew that the world was filled with computers that didn't appear to be computers, a man adept at working with computers would be able to use anything to do what he wanted. After all, he had the same capability. Least anyone forget, hadn't he escaped from his prison the previous year using a smart phone? People are so ignorant, it was just shocking and yet it wasn't.

Puzzled, Brennan shook her head. "He doesn't have access to computer equipment, so I don't think so." Was her friend having an episode? Was his lucid moment fading away?

Disappointed in Brennan's lack of foresight, Ethan sighed. "Of course . . . Be careful, Temperance. If Pelant can overcome the restrictions of an ankle monitor and commit two murders he is a deadly enemy and bears watching. He appears to be able to come and go at will and that means he had access to equipment to help him do it. He doesn't need a computer . . . I don't need a computer. Do you understand?"

She was trying, but Brennan wasn't sure her friend was talking rationally. "Yes, Ethan. I think I understand." She needed to think about what he had said and perhaps talk to Angela. Her friend knew more about computers than most people she knew. Maybe not as much as Ethan or Pelant, but Angela was a genius when it came to computers and she wouldn't doubt her skills.

"Good . . . he may be watching us and preparing for his next move. He's very dangerous, Temperance and I'm the one that will stop him. Just remember he can see us if he wants to."

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Max was enjoying his stay with his daughter. Jared wasn't that hard to take care of. He mostly made sure the man was fed breakfast and lunch, gave him his medicine when he needed it, let the housekeeper and the therapist into the house when they came and helped Jared take a bath. In exchange, he got to see his daughter and granddaughter every day. Christine was such a joy to be around and he knew that this was his opportunity to show just how trustworthy he was. He was being responsible and his daughter had to notice.

When he had come back into her life, he had known that he would have to work hard to get Brennan to trust him and accept him as her father. She had resisted and it had broken his heart, but he had persevered. Leaving his daughter behind when he and his wife and run had been the biggest mistake of his life. He knew that now, but he couldn't undo the past. He had to live the life he was given, bad choices and all.

Grateful that she had found someone to share her life with, Max would always appreciate that Booth was the one she had chosen. The man was someone she could depend upon and that was so important to him. If he couldn't be with her all the time, he knew that Booth would make sure she was alright and that he would protect Brennan and Christine with his life. He had studied Booth and he knew that the agent wasn't someone to mess around with. Booth was a dangerous man under certain circumstances and Max appreciated that fact. He admired strength and Booth's values. While he himself was not an honorable man, he could admire that feature in others.

Oooooooooooooo

Sitting on a chair against the wall near the entrance, Booth watched his brother get up to face the circle of his peers, balance on his crutches and talk about his drinking problem and his accident.

"I was mad, angry . . . my brother could see that I had a drinking problem, but I didn't believe him. I didn't want to believe him . . . Our father was a drunk, an abusive drunk. He used to beat up his kids and his wife after a few drinks and . . . and my brother tried to protect me as must as he could, but he was just a little kid and our father was a very angry adult. When my old man was on a tear, my brother would hide me or get in between me and my father and take the beatings for me . . . When we grew up, we went our own ways, but I came back to the District and . . . I made a mistake, I hit a light pole while I was driving drunk and my brother protected me. He lost a lot of credit for a big job he was working on to protect me . . . He doesn't know I know that, but I do . . . Then he got into some trouble and I helped save him and I thought we were square, but I started drinking heavier and he saw it and he tried to get me to stop and I didn't and now . . . now I've lost my car and my home. I'm hurt and other stuff is happening, but my brother is helping me. He's helping me and I appreciate it more than he knows. He was right. I was drinking too much and I was going to turn into my Dad if I didn't stop . . . Well, I've stopped. I hope I can make it, but with my brother on my side at least I have a chance." He sat down, looked over to where his brother was sitting and smiled a rather sad smile. He owed his brother a lot and it was time he let him know it. I'm going to straighten this out. I don't know how, but the old me has got to go. If Seeley can give up gambling then I can give up drinking. He's made it and I can too. I am not Edwin Booth. I'm Jared Booth. I am Jared Booth.

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