(The Shot in the Dark)

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I don't own Bones.

Oooooooooooooooo

Everything was going so well. His gambling urge was under control, Jared was still working at the Fairfax Sheriff's office and his children were healthy and happy. Brennan seemed to be happy with their partnership and their love making had seemed to have intensified since Jared had moved out of the house. Booth was happy and he wanted to show Brennan just how much he appreciated her.

They were home and after a delicious meal, Booth brought up going on vacation in the woods. His friend was offering the same cabin that they had used on previous vacations. He thought they could go fishing, go for nature walks and just enjoy the outdoors.

Brennan didn't see the point. She didn't want to go fishing and since Christine was a baby, she was sure the child would be more comfortable at home than a cabin in the woods. "There has been copious research done by pediatricians and cognitive specialists to prove it."

He wasn't sure why Brennan was trying to stop the vacation, but he really wanted them to go on one. "It's a family thing, alright? All of us will be together."

Frustrated that Booth wasn't listening to her, Brennan tried once more. "It's impractical."

"Sometimes it's good not to be practical. Sometimes it's good just to have fun, right? Create memories." Booth had loved camping with his grandfather when he was a boy and he wanted his daughter to have the same fond memories.

Clearly Booth wasn't listening to her. "Christine wouldn't retain conscious access to a memory made at 18 months."

Angry that Brennan couldn't see how important this vacation was to him, Booth blew up. "What is it with you? For once I'd like us to do something without you having to ask some scientist if it's okay. Why are you so afraid to be spontaneous? You want Christine to grow up like that?"

He had stepped over a line and Brennan lost her temper. "So now, I'm a bad mother."

Appalled, Booth raised up his hands to stop the conversation. "No! I'm not saying that at all."

Not willing to be appeased, Brennan grabbed her purse and walked towards the door. "Then why don't you put her to bed and I will go back to the Lab and finish my work."

Not sure how the conversation had taken such a wrong turn, Booth stepped forward. "Wait a second. You're really misunderstanding me here."

She didn't know if she was misunderstanding him or not, but he had accused her of not being spontaneous and she was certain that made her seem terrible. "You've been quite clear, Booth. Being rational makes me no fun and a bad mother." Filled with anger, she left the house slamming the door behind her. "Spontaneous is not always fun no matter what Booth says. Christine is a baby. Babies like to be comfortable." Grumbling she got into her car and left leaving a confused mate behind.

Standing in the living room, Booth exhaled deeply. "What the hell happened? I just wanted to go on a vacation." He loved Brennan, but sometimes he just didn't understand what made her tick. He wanted to be spontaneous and she didn't want to be. He understood that, but why did they have to plan their vacations months in advance? What was wrong with spontaneity? What did that have to do with being a good mother or not? He would never accuse her of being a bad mother. He considered her a wonderful mother. "I don't get it. I just wanted to go to the cabin, swim and fish and relax, we deserve it."

Oooooooooooooooooo

It was getting late and Booth was starting to think that Brennan was really angry with him since she was still at the Lab. Since she wasn't going to come home then it was up to him to go and get her. He'd apologize even if he didn't do anything wrong and talk to her about the vacation when she was in a better frame of mind. Maybe if they put some planning into it, she'd go along with it. They'd been on vacations to the cabin before, so the only thing he could see that was different was the fact that they had a baby and that probably made Brennan nervous.

To his horror he found her in one of the examination rooms, shot in the stomach. She was unconscious and there was too much blood on the floor beneath her. He called for help, pressed his hands on her stomach and tried to stop the bleeding while he waited for help to arrive.

Sitting in her baby stroller, Christine was frightened. She could hear her father calling for help, leaning over her mother and pleading with her to stay and she didn't understand what was going on. Her father was oozing fear and she could tell that something was wrong, but just didn't know what it was she was seeing. Crying, she wanted her father or her mother to pick her up and assure her that everything was okay, but they didn't come and she cried harder.

Soon help arrived and the EMTs took over. Booth released the wound after the paramedics knelt next to Brennan. Standing back, his hands full of blood, he watched as they tried to accomplish what he had barely achieved. His daughter's cries penetrated his fog and he walked over to the stroller and picked up his baby. He didn't have anything to wipe the blood away from his hands, so his child soon had her mother's blood on her clothes. Booth rocked Christine in his arms while he continued to watch the paramedics try to save his partner's life. "God, please God, don't take her from me. Please God, don't do that. Please don't take her."

Ooooooooooooooooooo

Max had arrived along with Angela and Hodgins and their baby, Michael Vincent at the hospital and once he saw his granddaughter exhausted and sleeping in her father's arms, he knew what he had to do. "Booth, I'm going to take Christine home. I have diapers and stuff at my apartment. I have some of her clothes too, so I can give her a bath. Let me take her home, Booth. You need to concentrate on Tempe. Let me take Christine."

It took Max quite a few moments to get Booth's attention and when he did, Booth nodded his head, kissed Christine on the cheek and handed her to her grandfather. "Bones . . . I don't know what's going on. No one will tell me what's going on."

"I understand." Horrified that his daughter had been shot, Max knew that he had to remain calm for Booth and his granddaughter. "I'm going to take Christine home to my place. You stay here and wait until they come talk to you." He glanced at Angela. "Angela can call me about Tempe when you guys hear something. Don't worry about Christine. You can trust me Booth. I'll take good care of her."

"I know I can." Booth leaned over and kissed his daughter once more. "She has blood on her clothes."

That statement was so matter of fact that it made Max shiver. "Yes, I see that. I'm going to give her a bath when I get home. You need to go to the restroom and try to wash off the blood on your hands . . . I'll call Angela and check in when I get home."

Shifting her sleeping baby in her arms, Angela nodded her head. "You can call me or Hodgins. We're not leaving until we know that Brennan is alright."

Slowly nodding his head, Booth noticed Cam enter the room and felt a small sense of relief. He might not know what was going on, but he could count on Cam to find out. She was one of the best coroners in the District and she would understand what was happening in the other room. "Cam, I need to know what's going on. They took Bones in the back and no one will tell me what's happening."

"I'll check, Booth. You wait here." Worried, Cam walked into the emergency room and found a nurse who could explain what was happening. Once she got the full picture, she walked back out to talk to her friend. "They're prepping her for surgery."

"Cam, I need you to be in there and watch what they're doing." Booth placed his hands on Cam's lower arms and stared at her intently. "When I had my brain surgery, Bones was in the operating room making sure they didn't screw up. I need you to do that for her."

Not sure if that would be possible, Cam knew that she would have to try for Booth's sake. "I'll talk to Dr. MacGregor and see what he says. All I can do is ask."

Confident Cam could make it happen Booth gave her a sad smile. "She'd do it for you."

"Yes, she would."

Ooooooooooooooooooooo

For the next two days, it seemed like Brennan's life was on the line too many times for Booth's comfort and sanity. She coded in the operating room, she coded in her room when she was given the wrong blood type and she coded when Dr. McGregor opened her up again to retrieve some antigens that would prove that Dr. Batuhan had used a blood bullet containing his blood to shoot Brennan. They needed the antigens or Dr. Batuhan might walk away from what he had done and Brennan could not allow that to happen.

Once she was back in her hospital room, Booth waited for her to wake up. He prayed a few times and once Max joined them, he stood by his partner's bed, held her hand and tried to will her to open her eyes.

Groggy, Brennan's eyes fluttered open and to everyone's relief, she was awake. Silently thanking God, Booth stared intently at Brennan while she shook off her last dream. "Easy, don't move, Bones."

"What happened?" Her mind suddenly clear, she needed to know if the risk she had taken had been worth it.

"Blood matched." Booth smiled at his partner. "Batuhan was arrested for murder and attempted murder."

Max could see that the couple needed to be alone. "I think I'll go and tell them that you're okay. They're all here, you know."

The last dream clearly still in her thoughts, Brennan stopped her father. "Wait. Mom knew that the first gift you ever gave her . . . she always knew that you stole it."

A shiver ran down his spine as Max realized that it was possible that his daughter had somehow communicated with his dead wife while she was unconscious. "Nobody knew that except me. Nobody." Not sure what he thought about it, he left the room pondering if there really was life after death. Will I get to see Christine again? Will I be with her someday?

"I saw her." It was confusing. There is no life after death as far as Brennan was concerned, no heaven and hell, but she had talked to her mother. Or did she?

"She talked to you?" Booth did believe in the afterlife and he thought it was great that Brennan's mother had made an effort to contact her daughter.

Puzzled, Brennan nodded her head. "It's crazy to think that it's true." It couldn't be true though. Her mother was dead. It had obviously been a dream.

He could see that she wanted to believe, but her scientific brain wouldn't allow her to. "Well, you know what, Bones? It's okay to be a little crazy." He raised her bed while he sat on the edge of the mattress. He wanted to kiss her, but as the head of the bed rose, Brennan made noises as if she was in pain. Concerned he stopped the bed from rising. "Oh, are you okay? Sorry."

Her smile broad, her white teeth gleaming in the semi dark room, Brennan leaned forward. "I was joking."

Relieved, Booth shook his head, shifted his body and kissed her. She responded and Booth knew that she was going to be alright. "Bones, you know I didn't call you a bad mother, don't you? I would never do that. You're a fantastic Mom and Christine is a very lucky little girl to have you as her mother."

"I know." Brennan wasn't sure why she became so angry. Perhaps she did lack the ability to be spontaneous, but that didn't mean she couldn't try at least once in a while to do something unplanned. She might try in the future. "Spontaneity makes me uncomfortable and Christine is just a baby. Babies really don't like to be uncomfortable, Booth. They need food when they're hungry, fresh diapers when they relieve themselves, clean clothes, a clean bed. Trips can upset their routine and a trip into the woods would deprive Christine of her needed routines . . . I should have made myself clearer instead of taking umbrage and leaving."

"I wanted to do something special for you and you seemed to like the trips we'd made to the cabin in the past." Booth kissed her once more. "I guess we'll need to wait until Christine is older before we go back to the cabin and that's okay. I love you Bones and I love Christine. If we go somewhere it needs to be a group decision."

Amused, Brennan laughed. "I don't think Christine should get a vote at this time since she can't really communicate with us . . . maybe when she's mastered more of the English language. In the meantime, I will be her proxy vote."

"You will huh?" Booth knew that Brennan was protecting their daughter and he appreciated what an independent woman she was. "When you're better, we'll talk about a vacation, but right now, you need to get better. I need you to get better . . . When I found you, God I was so scared that I would lose you. I kept telling you to fight, to stay here and you did it. Thanks Bones. Thanks for fighting so hard."

She raised her hand and placed it on the side of his face. "I will always fight, Booth. I don't want to leave you anymore than you want to leave me and we both must stay for Christine."

Filled with emotion, his voice tight, Booth leaned over and kissed her once more. "I love you, Bones. I'll always love you."

"I love you too, Booth."

Oooooooooooooooooooo

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