Ok, guys, I'm trying to make up for the previous delay. So, another chapter, today.

Thank you all who have reviewed, you make me so happy and I am glad you like this story.

As usual I don't own anything. But I wish. ;-)

Grev

Chapter 13

December 17th Washington D.C.

There was no time to rationalise the fact, to question why she had feared the platform as if it was inhabited by ghosts.

Booth noticed the change in her but before he could ask her if it was all right, he saw her rushing to her office, stopping surprised at the sight of the young man who was waiting for her inside, and then throwing herself in his arms in an embracing hug.

Even before Booth could register what was going on, his heart had already gotten tight in pain.

It was the first time he saw her like that. Emotions constantly on the surface, heart in her hand, eager for physical contact. He had always hoped that one day, with his encouragement, she would let the ice around her heart melt and show the world the real, sweet and loving Temperance. He had seen who the actual woman that was beneath the rational doctor Brennan was, and as much as he had hoped that also the others could see the same, still the fact that she could let her emotions free only with him had prided him and made him feel very special and important.

Now, apparently, she had learned to express affection and care with others, other men specifically, and the fact as innocent as it was, still made him feel a sting of jealousy.

More men entered her office while he was still trying to decipher what was going on. And all of them just approached her with no fear and hugged her tight.

Brennan was not crying but her eyes were shining and she didn't say a word. She just smiled at all of them, revealing her happiness despite the tears growing in her eyes.

One very young guy got even a caress, on his head, while Brennan whispered him something that Booth could not quite understand. But he recognized the man from the photo he was still keeping in his wallet, he was apparently the guy who had helped her delivering a baby. The baby with his name.

His thoughts observing the extraordinary scene were interrupted when Petty Officer Scalia, whom he had met in Kabul at the hospital, stretched his hand to shake Booth's one.

"Nice to meet you again, Agent Booth. Glad the circumstance is definitely happier".

"Nice to see you too, Officer Scalia". Booth shook his hand with a smile.

The marine continued "All these kids were held captive with doctor Brennan. They are attached to her, they say she has been their lucky star and has kept them sane. They hadn't seen her anymore since the day of the rescue and were very worried about her when they heard she was seriously injured. Couldn't keep them from her even if I wanted once they knew she had been released from the hospital".

Booth had forgotten his jealousy, what he was feeling now was just a sense of pride for her. He knew what it meant to be imprisoned by enemies at war, and he knew how much you care for the buddies who had shared that ordeal with you.

He was so happy that somehow Brennan had found a way not to isolate herself and bond with those kids. She was not Zack, that was certain, but still had an awkward personality that could have easily clashed with the military daily life.

Without that bond everything would have been more difficult, and maybe thanks to those kids, she had better chances to overcome the dark cloud of pain that was still in her heart and was giving her nightmares every night.

Booth was still deep in his thoughts when he felt a warm hand taking his and he realized Brennan had stepped back closer to him and was by his side, even though still talking to the marines around her. He squeezed her hand back, feeling the happiest man on earth because that gesture told him her heart had chosen him among all those men enamored of her.

After inviting Brennan several time to come to their base and visit them, all these men finally left her office and the noise of their way out faded until it was silence again.

"Are you ok Bones?" Booth velvet voice brought her eyes back to his.

"Yes. They are all fine, you know. A few are still in Kabul in the hospital there, but they are going to get home pretty soon." She looked at him, with eyes silently requesting support and a hug, like when they had buried Ripley, the dog.

Booth would have never denied her anything in normal circumstances, but when she dared to show need for him, it was his undoing.

He enveloped her in a warm hug, holding her back with both hands while her arms went around his neck and kept her stable and afloat like a survivor from a wreck held on to a floating object.

She hid her face in his shoulder. "It was not all bad, what happened. They could be saved, the ten missing men, the reason why I decided to go on that mission, the reason why we all went. They are coming home, to their loved ones".

"I know Bones, and I'm so proud of you". As if he had said something wrong, she disentangled from his arms and let the clinical and rational mask cover her eyes again.

"Well, maybe you should get going. I don't want you to be late at work. Will I see you tonight at my place then?"

Booth was puzzled. He sort of guessed that she was somewhat struck by guilt for something that had happened the day she was rescued. But he could not really determine why. She had fought, it was not her first time. A dead woman was found beside her. Even if Brennan had killed her, still it was not her first kill. She had already shot two people, well shot more but killed two. And she did not have nightmares then, they had dealt with it and were able to move on.

Whatever it was, Booth knew he simply had to keep being patient and let her come to him when she was ready.

Brennan read the surprise and disappointment in his eyes, and felt sorry for that. She reached up and kissed him sweetly on the lips. He responded, she knew how to make up for when her walls were hurting him.

"Promise you'll go home after lunch. And rest. I'll be home in time to make you a great dinner… you need to build some fat there" He smiled and tickled her hip.

She laughed but pushed him out of her office "Go, I don't need a baby sitter".

He left her waving, and saying I love you with his lips. She lit up like a bulb, and stood there to watch him walking away and waving back just before he exited the sliding doors.

Brennan spent a few hours in her office, reading emails and getting updates from Angela, Hodgins, Clark and Fisher about the last cases they had worked on.

Oh, how she missed her life and how much she realized she loved it. She felt impatient to be already fully recovered and be able to get back in the field with Booth, working with him and solving cases with her science and his investigative skills.

She was not really listening when she caught on one of the last sentence Clark was saying "…all the boring weeks we didn't work on cases when Booth was in Texas undercover…" "And he never actually told us what he did with Perotta there and the mob he had cracked open" Hodgins added with his usual conspiratorial tone.

"Did Booth work in Texas with Agent Perotta while I was away?"

Jack started giving her the details of what he knew, not much actually, and was even hoping that Brennan knew more and could tell some nice stories about it.

Her posture had changed and she had become very uneasy. Only Angela noticed the change, and trying to cut the discussion short she interrupted "Bren, we should go get some decent lunch and then I'll take you home".

Surprisingly Brennan nodded and after greeting her squints and passing by Cam's office, she left the lab in silence with her best friend.

"Sweetie, are you sure?" Angela asked dubious. They had eaten at the diner and had spent a quiet moment among girlfriends. They had talked a lot about everything and nothing and Angela sensed that Brennan was holding back on her emotions. There were just too many taboo subjects, Afghanistan, the relationship with Booth, the disappointment of learning about Perotta to make a proper conversation.

Brennan had seemed distant for the most part and as soon as they had arrived at her place, she had asked Angela to go back to the lab and let her rest, at least that was the excuse.

"Yes, I'm sure. I'm really tired now and I feel like going to bed. And I don't want you to lose the whole day for me". She attempted to smile, to make Angela feel better. But her friend did not buy the trick.

"If you need to rest, I'm going sweetie. But if you need anything, anything… you know where to find me."

With a hug she thanked her sweet Angela "I know I'm not easy to be around since I'm back. It's just.. it's so difficult sometimes to come back and see that many things have changed… and I'm changed too so it is even harder to find my points of reference and I… it's like I'm here now, but this reality is sort of stranger to me, I'm a stranger to myself and… and another part of me it's still there and I can't find a way to get back." Tears were now streaming her face, and Angela was joining in the cry.

"I know it must be difficult now Bren. But don't give up. You never did, and you will not start now. We are here, and we love you. You'll find your way home and until then, you can lean on us as much as you need".

There was not much more to say, and when Angela left after helping Brennan to lay down and rest, she was still crying.

Brennan slept for a couple of hours and then the usual nightmare woke her up. It was almost 5 p.m. She felt horrible being alone, when Booth was holding her it was so easy to get back to reality fast and immediately feel better. But now, after 10 minutes she could still not slow her breath down and felt dizzy for the hyperventilation.

She grabbed the phone and dialed Booth. Her name appeared on Booth's phone display.

"Doctor Brennan, this is Agent Perotta. You were looking for Agent Booth, right?"

"Yes, why otherwise would I call his cell? And why did you pick it up?" The tone was unjustifiably harsh and disdainful.

And Perotta resented it "Didn't you know that Agent Booth is busy in meetings the whole afternoon? As you know we have been partners since you left and I was finishing some paperwork of our case in his office. Do you want to leave him a message?"

Brennan felt suddenly cold, and finished her conversation with a "No, thanks, I'll call him later" closing the communication without any formal greeting to Perotta just in time to rush to the bathroom and throw up what was left of her lunch.

She was just so much in pain and the sobs escaped her mouth loudly, lying on the cold tiles of her bathroom floor, her body shaking. And she was there again, lying on the cold dirty floor of her cell, somewhere in Pakistan. But there she had held on to the memory of him, she had felt him so close, hearing his voice and his encouraging words.

Now she knew it was another betrayal. She was not his girlfriend, she was not his wife, but until now she has been his partner, that was a certainty in a sea full of unrecognizable shadows. And he had lied. Why had he not mentioned the fact that as soon as she had left, he had replaced her? Did it mean they were not partners anymore?

Brennan was not one to give up, but she needed a compass to find the line of her reality and her life again.

"Get up Temperance, get up and move on. Put everything in a box, a throw it away. You can survive this".

She got up and dressed again and called a taxi. It was already 6:30 p.m.

When she entered the lab, Brennan noticed that Angela and Cam had already left. Only Hodgins, Clark and Fisher were on the platform. Obviously not working but having fun with some of the stuff displayed on the tables. They stopped laughing the moment they saw her.

"Doctor Brennan, you are back already…" Hodgins asked following her with his eyes.

"Yes, problems? I have been injured but now I'm fine. Why is everybody surprised that I'm back and willing to do my job?" She was looking terrible. Eyes red, ruffled hair, she had not even noticed that her shirt had mismatched buttons. All the three men noticed how bad she was looking but didn't dare to say anything because her tone was menacing and had a tinge of insanity into it.

As soon as she had put her blue coat on, she jumped the stairs of the platform letting the alarm ring. She jumped evidently shaken and momentarily frightened by the sudden noise, but in a second Brennan recomposed herself and shout "Clark, what are you waiting for? Give me your badge". She stole it from his hand the moment he handed it to her and finally the lab was still again. The guard that was already approaching the platform to control what was going on gave a look at Hodgins who nodded in reply confirming that everything was under control".

"So what are you working on?" Brennan asked still with the same weird tone and with the urgency of a professor expecting an immediate answer from her students.

"Nothing in particular, we were comparing two limbo skeletons, both from WW II, where you can see the trace on the bones of the old military weapons of the time. You see here.." While Fisher was explaining to her, he handed her the femur with an obvious mark.

And Brennan took it.

Fisher continued to explain expecting Brennan to notice what he was indicating. But she was not even listening, nor looking at the marks he was showing her.

She was not hearing, she was not seeing. She was only feeling, the smooth long bone in her hand. It had felt the same, same weight, same grip.

Same desperation and fury. Same disgust for herself. Those emotions that had taken possession of her soul and they were not letting it go.

Fisher made a move, to get the bone back, but even before he could touch it, Brennan dropped it on the floor, as if it was incandescent iron. It hit the floor and broke in 3 pieces. She remained shocked and in trance, watching the broken bone, her hand still shaking.

Her eyes were full of terror, like a rabbit caught in the light of an approaching car.

"Doctor Brennan, are you all right?" Fisher asked and came in front of her, and as soon as he got too close, Brennan jumped and run over the poor grad student who ended up against the table.

They fell down together, all the bones and materials hitting the floor with a clattering noise.

Brennan disentangled herself from Fisher and crawled away until she could get up and rushed down the stairs, setting the alarm on again and disappeared running like a hunted animal beyond the sliding doors.

The guard came fast and saw the mess. Hodgins yelled at him to run and follow Brennan and the man turned on his heels and hurried towards the exit.

And then he picked up his cell.

"Booth, it's Hodgins".

"This is Agent Perotta. Agent Booth is still in a meeting".

"Go and tell him to come immediately at the lab".

"I can't interrupt a meeting with the general director.."

"I don't care if he's in a meeting with President Obama or the Pope. You tell him NOW to come here, it's an emergency".

In a minute Booth called Hodgins back "What happened? Is Bones ok?"

"Definitely not, and you better hurry".

When Booth arrived also Cam, Sweets and Angela were just back to the lab.

"What happened here?" he asked seeing the mess on the platform and starting to dread the answer.

Hodgins explained to all of them what exactly had happened.

"I don't know what took her. She was a fury."

Booth was not worried now, he was extremely worried.

"Where is she now?"

"I tried to run after her but man, I lost her two blocks from here" Said the guard.

"We have to find her, Booth. And fast. It's freezing outside, they forecasted snow for tonight and Brennan is out without a coat and in only a shirt. She might also be in some state of mental confusion".

Booth made a call to the FBI and police to alert and have officers start the search.

"I'm going and search for her. I can't stay here knowing that she is out there, alone and cold" Booth said.

"We are coming too" Joined the others. They went out of the Jeffersonian and agreed to split and look for her in different areas.

And once Booth remained alone, he felt even more desperate.

"Where are you Bones? I lost you once, I won't let it happen again. I will look for you forever. I love you Bones. Do you hear me? Wherever you are, whatever you think you have done, whoever you think you are, I love you with all my self.

I'll never give up on you".

And with his heart swollen and aching he let the night and the dark streets of the city swallow him.

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Sooo.. we are almost there. Push the button and let me know if you liked it. Or not.

Yeah, I originally planned to have Brennan hit Fisher. ;-) But I hate violence...

Almost weekend, enjoy!

Ciao

Greveling