Booth
His leg was jiggling nervously under the table. Cam's message was stuck in his head. He looked over at Nora, who was looking out the window. He knew she would freak out. He also knew he had to tell her. She had the right to know. Or did she? Maybe he should talk to Sweets about it. It was worth suffering the psycho babble if only to get something out of it on what to do.
"Dad!" Parker's voice called. Booth looked up to see his son with Dominic in tow. Rebecca was hanging back. He gave her a small nod, which she returned. Parker threw his arms around him as soon as he got there.
"How are ya, buddy?" Booth asked as Parker squeezed tightly.
"I'm good."
"You got plans with your Mom?"
"Yea. We're going home to eat and watch a movie."
"Sounds fun."
"Not as fun as it is with you guys," Parker sighed.
"Parker, let's go," Rebecca called.
"Bye Dad," Parker said reluctantly.
"See you in a few days," Booth said as he walked back to Rebecca. His heart ached. He wanted his son more than just a day or two every couple of weeks. When this was over, he was going to have a chat with Caroline about his rights.
"Here we are," the waitress said, lowering the tray of pizza down on the table.
"Thanks," Booth smiled. "Dig in, guys."
Dominic helped himself, but Nora just sat there.
"Not hungry?" Booth asked her, noticing. She shook her head.
"But you love pizza," Dominic pointed out.
"Not tonight," she answered. The look on her face suggested that she was struggling with something. Booth was debating how to ask her about it when he spotted a figure standing in the window.
"You gotta be shitting me," he breathed. The kids didn't hear him, and he wondered how he was going to do this without making them ask questions later. When the figure went to come inside, Booth stood up so fast he knocked his knee into the table. Grunting in pain, he moved down the aisle towards the door. He grabbed the man by the arm and collar and hauled him back outside and away from the windows.
"Ow! That's assault," Max said, rubbing his arm.
"What are you doing here?" Booth asked angrily.
"I came to see my grandchildren," he said, jutting his chin out. Booth had a strange feeling that his daughter would make the same gesture if confronted. It was a strange thought, and it passed quickly.
"You can't," Booth hissed. "Do you understand what that would do to them?!"
"They'd be glad to meet me," Max argued.
"No! They wouldn't, and I won't let you."
"You gonna guard their schools all day? You gonna be with them 24/7?"
"Is that a threat?"
"It's an observation," Max shrugged.
"You go near them, I throw your ass in jail."
"It's not a crime to talk to family, Agent," Max said.
"Get out of here before I call it in," Booth said aggressively. Max held up his hands and backed away.
"You won this round," he said. "You can't win them all." Then he disappeared around the corner. Booth felt himself shaking. He had no idea what to say to the kids to explain what just happened. He readjusted his jacket roughly and went back inside.
"What just happened?" Nora asked. She had barely made it back to her seat in time, but she had seen Booth angrily talking to the older man outside from the window.
"Who was that?" Dominic asked.
"No one," Booth answered.
"It didn't look like no one," Nora pointed out.
"He's an informant, okay? He doesn't know boundaries and when not to talk to me," Booth lied. Nora studied him, knowing that he was lying. She shrugged, letting him believe she bought it. She went for a slice of pizza then, her appetite suddenly back.
Elsewhere
"What do you mean, she escaped?" the man asked, his voice cold and hard. The other voice on the line stammered something back.
"No, you find her and bring her to me," the man said in response. "I will not engage in a treasure hunt." He slammed the phone down, cursing. So Dr. Brennan had escaped. Shocking. He knew she was resourceful, so she'd probably gotten off the island by now. He'd have to lie in wait in D.C., where she was obviously going. She could not live, not while he was still alive.
A Week Later
Nora was nowhere near close to figuring out how to approach Booth with what she knew. He worked late. She saw his light on hours after they'd gone to bed. She crept out to peek one night, and he was sitting in front of a board with words and names on them. He was trying to connect something, but he wasn't having luck. She knew she had to tell him about Jamie because seeing "Dominic's Father" with a question mark beside it was killing her.
"What are you doing up?" Booth asked, suddenly seeing her.
"I...I couldn't sleep," she answered. It wasn't a total lie. Booth looked at his board and then sighed. There was no use hiding it now.
"I'm doing my best to find her," he said, seeing that Nora was looking at it.
"She wasn't afraid of Jamie," Nora blurted out.
"Who?" Booth asked.
"Dominic's Dad. She wasn't afraid of him. Jamie was...was like a father to me. Then he died."
"And you miss him," Booth finished, finally getting it.
"Yea," she whispered. She tightened her fists.
"Why did they break up?" Booth asked.
"I don't know if they did. He died."
"I see."
"I'm sorry I wasn't honest before."
"It's all right. Who am I really?" he said, waving his hands. "I don't blame you for being skeptical of me." She smiled weakly at him then.
"You're trying," she said. He gave a small chuckle.
"You're a tough one," he gestured. "Just like your mom I'll bet."
"You betcha," she nodded. She felt sad then. Booth set down his papers he was holding and went to stand in front of her.
"I'm one of the best agents at the FBI," he started. "I don't usually brag about myself, but I'm really damn good. Most of my missing people are found alive. I know that's not a solid guarantee that I'll bring your mom home, but it's pretty high odds."
"You're not supposed to make promises you can't keep," Nora pointed out.
"I usually don't, but from reading about your mom and knowing you two, my gut tells me that she's fighting her way back to you with everything she has."
Nora had no response. She was looking at him then and wondering what it would be like to have him as a father. She watched him with Parker, and he was very caring and also fun. Would he be the same with her? If he'd been there since day one, would any of this happened? It hurt to think about that. It also bothered her to feel a semi warm spot towards him. She didn't usually let anyone in. Ever.
"You should get some sleep," he said after a moment. "Want me to check for monsters?"
"What? No, I'm too old for that nonsense," she scoffed, but she still smiled.
"All right then," he chuckled again. "Good night."
"Good night."
Nora tucked herself back in and started thinking about her mom. If she knew Booth, would something happen between them? She knew the style of men her mother liked. Booth could be super annoying, but he also had some qualities her mother would appreciate. He wasn't hard on the eyes either. Nora closed her eyes, imagining what a meeting between her mother and Booth would look like.
Dominic
It was after school, and Dominic was hanging out at the library again. Cole was working, but he would stop and chat every so often. Dominic helped him put books away sometimes too. Cole talked all about the different places he'd traveled, and Dominic very much wanted to go to these places one day too. Dominic really liked Cole. He understood Dominic in a way not many others did.
"Have you always worked here?" Dominic asked one day.
"Oh yea. I usually was in the back, though. I got promoted," Cole joked.
"That's cool."
"Yea. I'm a huge bookworm. You should see my living room. I don't have enough shelves to hold all the books I own."
"Why not just use the library?"
"It's just not the same as owning a book," Cole sighed. "But you're probably right. I should start."
They worked quietly for a while. Dominic didn't want to leave, but Nora came for him like she always did. He waved goodbye reluctantly as they walked out together.
"Who is that?" Nora asked.
"He saved me and Parker from getting beaten up," Dominic answered. "He's Cole."
"Ah yes, the savior Cole," Nora nodded, remembering.
"He's nice."
"Of course," Nora agreed. She didn't really like Cole, but that could be because she didn't trust anyone alone with her brother. Hopefully this was just a phase, and Dominic would stop idolizing the man. She knew he was suffering for a father figure too, just like her, but she dismissed it. She stopped suddenly on the street when a man approached them. They were only a few feet from where Cam was supposed to meet them, and Nora felt a little scared.
"Back off! I know karate!" she shouted, raising her fists. Dominic shakily held out one of his canes as a weapon too. To her surprise, the man started to laugh, hard.
"Just like your mother," he said between his laughs. "Wow."
"How do you know our mother?" Nora asked, suspicious. The man stopped laughing then and grew serious.
"Because. I'm your grandfather."
FBI Office
Sweets was walking into his office holding a file when the stench hit him full force. Choking, he stumbled backwards into the doorframe, covering his nose.
"Oh my God," he groaned, eyes watering. He coughed. Where was it coming from? He saw a shape lying on his couch, so he made his way carefully around it to have a look. It was a woman. She was sleeping. Sweets stared. Who the hell just came into his office to use his couch as a bed?! And was she dangerous? He wanted to poke her with something, but he had nothing to use. Before he could do anything else, she opened her eyes and sat up hastily. It took him two seconds once he saw her eyes to figure out just who was sitting in front of him.
"Daisy!"