Hi folks! Welcome back. Thanks for your sweet reviews and your support! I promise I'll be working on my spelling. And I hope you like this next chapter! Oh, by the way: I wasn't sure about the names of Booth's parents – did they ever mention those on the series? I think in one of the other fics it said Laura and Michael, so that's what I stuck with – but please, correct me if I'm mistaken!
Brennan woke up startled from the sound of a closing door. She looked around, not quite realizing where she was. When she saw Booth, lying in his bed, still sleeping and still looking so pale and fragile, it all came back to her – and she felt her chest tightening.
"Hey, sweetie. How are you guys holding up?"
Brennan turned around when she heard that familiar voice. It was Angela, who had just entered the room.
"Ange. I...I must have fallen asleep...I.."
"Shhh...it's OK. Don't worry. Believe me, I'd have put you to sleep with my bare hands had I found you here still awake." She smiled.
Brennan stretched her arms, trying to bring her numb body back to life. She looked back to Booth again. Angela stood beside her, putting her hand on Brennan's shoulder.
"I spoke to the doctor before coming in here."
Brennan shot her an anxious glance. "What did he say? He still looks so...weak."
Angela nodded. "Yeah, he does. The doctor is pretty content though. Booth was stable throughout the night. He checked on him a couple of times, but didn't want to wake you." She pulled the second chair over and took a seat. "He said that, apart from the gunshot wound, he suffered a couple of broken ribs, a dislocated shoulder and a partially fractured hip. Also, his knee is in a pretty bad shape, at least from what I understood from all this medical mumbo-jumbo. Doesn't sound too good, but you're more of an expert on that, I guess."
Brennan sighed. "I don't know, Ange. I don't think I know anything right now. I feel so empty inside."
Angela put an arm around her. "You need to go home, Bren. Take a shower. Eat. "
"I can't."
"You have to. I'll make you. I'm not gonna let you ruin your own health. Please. You'll be back in no time, and you know the doctor said that Booth is not gonna wake up for a while."
"But he'll be all alone."
"There are lots of people taking care of him here. Come on, I'll drive. Quick shower, some lunch. Two hours and you're back here, I promise."
"All right. Two hours."
They both got up. Brennan stroke Booth's hand once more, then she followed Angela out of the room.
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Jack and Zach sat their desk at the lab, staring at the file.
"So..." Zach mumbled.
"So what?" Jack mumbled back.
They both were tired, worn out, just totally exhausted.
Despite this condition, Zach still managed to think clearly enough to state some facts.
"Well, we do have the file. And we do know where to look for the guy who shot Booth, and for this Isabel-woman."
"Yep."
"But we're...you know...well..." He paused.
Jack grew impatient. "We're what, Zach. Speak up, before my head hits the table."
"We're squints. We don't have guns. And, anthropologically speaking, I don't think our stature and muscle tonus alone would enable us to impress some criminal, even if we do find him."
Jack sighed. "We'd end up right next to Booth, wouldn't we. If not worse."
Zach nodded.
They both stared in the air. Suddenly, Zach jumped up, scaring Jack so much he almost fell from his chair. "Oh, for Christ sake, don't move so fast!"
Zach ignored him. "I know someone who has a gun. And he is someone who would probably help us, as he is a great admirer of Dr. Brennans work."
Jack thought for a second. Then he got it.
"You mean..."
Zach nodded. "Agent Sullivan."
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Brennan was still in the shower, while Angela dug in her fridge to fix something to eat for her. Suddenly, her cell phone rang – and listening to the "La cucaracha"-ring tone, she immediately knew who it was.
"Hi Jack...yes, we're at her apartment. ... Well, Booth is not awake yet, but his condition is not life-threatening anymore. ... Bren? No, she is not listening, she is in the shower. ... What? WHAT? You must be joking. ... Ok, so you're not joking, I get it. ... Jack, please. I admit, he probably is the right guy to help us, but they just split up a couple of weeks ago – I just don't know if we should really ask him. ... Oh, so you saying "we" actually was more of an "you", as in "you, Angela". ... Hmmh? Yeah, of course I still have his cell phone number."
She sighed heavily.
"OK, I'm in. I'll call him. But I have to do it quickly, before Brennan comes in here. I'll get her back to the hospital and we meet at the lab after that, all right? Good. ... Sorry? ...Yes, I do. I do still like you, Jack. ... Yes, I also like Zach, but more in a platonic way. You guys definitely need to sleep. Right now. Bye Jack." She put down the phone, only to sigh once more. Then she poked her head in direction of the bathroom. She heard the hair-dryer – good thing, Brennan was still busy. She quickly checked for Sully's number in her phone's address book and established a connection.
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About an hour later, Brennan was back at Booth's bedside. Under normal circumstances she probably would have wondered why Angela had left for the lab so quickly, but she was still so worried about Booth that it didn't even occur to her.
She felt a little better after showering and had even eaten a little bit – thanks to Angela, who wouldn't let her go with an empty stomach.
So she was back in that same uncomfortable hospital chair, holding Booth's hand without even really noticing it. Dr. Fulton was in the room with her, checking the IV's and monitors.
Brennan nervously watched every move he made. "So, how is he doing, Doctor?"
Dr. Fulton checked Booth's heart rate. "Actually, he is doing quite well, considering his injuries. He's a fighter. Other people with that severe trauma to their bodies wouldn't have made it."
He looked at Booth's medical chart. "Recovery will take its time. We will have to see how he is doing when he's awake. I think we might be able to reduce the amount of sedatives we are giving him, so he might wake up later this afternoon." He smiled at her reassuringly before he left the room again.
Brennan felt relieved, yet still scared, knowing that the hard part was still to come. Her mind started wandering off, and she didn't know how much time had passed when she heard a knock on the door.
She looked up, and her eyes met those of an elder woman entering the room, followed by a man about the same age.
Brennan got up, knowing that the couple probably was Booth's parents.
"You must be Mr. and Mrs. Booth – hi, my name is Temperance Brennan. I am your son's...partner." She offered her hand, but the woman had already pulled her into a warm embrace.
"Hi, sweetie," she said, sounding a lot like Angela. "I'm Laura Booth. We couldn't make it any sooner. We are so glad you took care of him – it's so sad we have to meet under these circumstances." Brennan nodded. The woman moved over to Booth's and gently stroke his face. Booth's father shook Brennan's hand.
"Michael Booth. Seeley told us a lot about you. We were so shocked to hear what happened." He joined his wife and put his arm around her. Laura had tears running down her cheeks.
"Oh Michael, look at him. My poor boy." She sobbed quietly. Michael held her tight, allowing her to cry on his shoulder.
Temperance Brennan immediately liked Booth's parents. Such sweet, warm people. No wonder Booth grew up to be a good guy.
She cleared her throat. "Do you want to be alone with him? I mean, I could leave if you like..."
Laura shook her head in a determined manner. "Oh darling, of course not. I bet Seeley would want you to be here. Michael, would you ask the nurse for a third chair?"
He nodded and left the room, and after a short while returned with another chair. They all sat down at Booth's bedside.
Laura held Booth's hand. She looked gently at Brennan.
"We spoke to the doctor outside. He said that Seeley might be waking up pretty soon."
Brennan nodded. "Yes. I was very relieved to hear that."
"So...you were there when...when it happened?"
Brennan nodded again. She hesitated. "I was, but...I wasn't close enough to pull him back... I... I just couldn't..." Her eyes filled with tears. "I was his partner, and I let him down. I'm so sorry."
Mrs. Booth took her hand. "Darling, don't blame yourself. It's not your fault at all. I know Seeley, he probably told you to get out of the way, so you wouldn't get hurt. Nobody could do anything. Let's be happy that he is still with us."
Michael Booth nodded at her words.
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Back at the lab, Angela was in an active discussion with Jack, while Zach was sleeping like a baby with his head on his desk.
"Jack, I'm still not so sure about this. The FBI is doing all they can to catch that bastard who shot Booth. They are not giving us any information – Cullen said it's to personal and we would be too involved. If they find out that we asked Sully..."
"Angela. We are supposed to keep our hands away from that case, you know it and I know it, too. But I also know that nobody here will be able to just watch those inquiries from the outside. Dr. Brennan won't be able to help us, as I don't think we can pull her away from the hospital, but we owe it to her and Booth to do what they would also do for us. Please."
Angela bit her lip. She knew he was right. Had it been her or Zach or Jack who had gotten hurt – Booth and Brennan would have done all they could to solve the case.
Before she could answer, she heard the lab door opening. When she looked up, she saw Agent Tim Sullivan coming in. He gave them a shy smile.
"Hi guys. You called me."
Angela nodded. "Thanks for coming."
"Hey, no big deal. Just don't let Cullen know that I'm here." He patted Zach on the back, causing him to wake up with a small scream. "Oh, I'm sorry, Zach."
He looked back at Angela. "I'm sorry about what happened to Booth. I hope he's gonna be ok. I would check on him myself, but I guess... she is with him, right? I don't think she wants to see me right now." He looked sad.
Jack scratched his head. "Dr. Brennan is having a very hard time. Booth is pretty badly injured, and she won't leave his side. I don't think she is mad at you, but it's probably not a good idea to confront her with the fact that we are asking you for help."
Sully decided to change the subject. "So what can I do for you?"
Angela pointed at a pile of papers. "You know about the case. We think the key to it all is this woman called Isabel. She might know our victim, and she probably knows where the guy who shot Booth is. We just have to find her."
Sully picked up a piece of paper from the top of the pile. "Well, we are looking for Isabel. And for this guy who works with that trading company. But no luck so far. The family who lives in the house which Brennan and Booth searched won't say a word. Even if we find Isabel, who knows if she will spill the beans?"
Angela smiled at him. "She might. We could fix you a little something that might make up her mind." She looked over to the lab table, on which the remains of the body from the airport where still lying. "Zach cleaned the bones, and now we will put on some tissue markers. And then it's time for a little facial reconstruction – let's see if Isabel knows who the poor lad from South America was!"
She walked over to Sully. "I'll call you when I have a face. Or news about Booth's condition. Or... about Brennan." She squeezed his hand. He looked at her thankfully and nodded, before he turned around and left the lab.
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It had been almost three hours since Mr. and Mrs. Booth had arrived at the hospital. They were still sitting in Booth's room together with Bones. They had took turns to go to the hospital's cafeteria to have some coffee and a bite to eat, but none of them had the patience to be gone for more than a couple of minutes.
Booth still wasn't awake. They had spoken to him, thinking it might help him to come around, but so far he had not shown any reaction.
Laura Booth stroke the back of his hand, carefully avoiding the IV.
"You know, he looks so peaceful. A mother always wants to protect her child. I wish I could take his pain away." She sighed. "I wish he had a nice job in an office somewhere, where he's not in danger all the time."
Michael smiled, though it was a sad smile. "Come on Laura, you know that's not him. You knew it when he was in the army, and you know it now. He always wanted to make things right and protect innocent people. It's in his nature."
He looked over to Brennan. "When he was in the Middle East, he came back in a wheelchair because they had tortured him until both his feet were broken. Still, he was convinced he did the right thing, and after a couple of weeks he went back to business. Didn't go back to the army, but joined the FBI instead."
Brennan thought of the time when she had looked at Booth's x-rays after he had been blown up in her apartment. Indications of fractures on the feet from beating the soles with pipes or hoses. A common method of torture. They had never spoken about that afterwards.
She watched Booth, while she listened to the beeping sound of the heart monitor.
Suddenly she held her breath. Did his eyelids just twitch?
Brennan got up to get a closer look. Yes, there was obviously some movement in his face.
"Mr. and Mrs. Booth? Look, I think he is waking up. Booth? Can you hear me? It's me, Bones."
"Seeley? It's Mom and Dad. Please, Seeley. Open your eyes, will you?"
There we go – he's coming around. And cliffie-alarm again. Ain't I mean.
So, as you can see, in my version of events Sully never left for the Caribbean, but is still working with the FBI. I had this all planned, and I didn't want to change the plot after last episode, so I'm keeping him for now and maybe send him of with his little boat later!
Now it's your turn. Please, make my day worthwhile and review this chapter! Thanks a lot!