And here we are, another chapter. I'm only seeing maybe three or four more, so we're almost to the end.
Nope, they aren't mine yet. ;)
Jimmy's – or Joshua's, depending on who you talked to – eyes opened wide for a second, before he regained his composure. "It's Josh, Joshua really, but I can see how you can get confused. They both start with 'j' after all, and Carly isn't always the easiest to understand."
Brennan's mind was blank with shock, and while she heard the man's explanation, she couldn't believe it. She knew that the man standing before her was her childhood friend, not whoever he was claiming to be now. She was also aware of Jimmy/Josh and Booth looking at her oddly, for she could feel their gazes on her face; but she couldn't meet either one of their eyes. She knew what Booth was thinking – that she was breaking, that the stress of her past and the case was finally getting to her.
"Why don't we go and talk in my office, Agent Booth. Carly said that you had some questions about an old cause of Julian's" The man whom Temperance was convinced was Jimmy led them through the building to an office at the back. Once they were seated, he spoke again. "Who exactly were you wondering about?"
"Well, we discovered the remains of Barry Finkel in Virginia a few weeks ago. The file was your office sent to the FBI was very sparse, and held no real information." Booth started. "We wanted to talk to Barry's original social worker to see if he had any additional information. Perhaps you can tell us more, Mr. Avery?"
Avery nodded thoughtfully. "I studied under Julian for a while when I first started working here – he really showed me the ropes. He talked of Barry sometimes. He always thought of Barry as the kid he couldn't help. He really connected to the kids under his care, especially Barry. He always felt bad for the kid, because his parents died when he was very young, and never had a true family. Julian felt horrible that they could never find Barry after he ran away, and that he never got the chane to have a real home."
"So that was it?" Booth asked skeptically. "He just felt sorry for him? He really liked him? If Julian liked him so much, why didn't he visit him more? I checked the file, and he only made notes about his visits about once a month – the mandatory number of visits. He never just checked in, to see if Barry was okay, at least not according to the file. What aren't you telling me?"
Avery sighed. "The truth is, Julian Kramer was a dick. I don't like talking bad about the dead, so I was just trying to be nice so that people don't remember him as the man that didn't give a shit. He just honestly didn't. Care, I mean, about the kids. He just came in every day, did his thing, and then left as soon as he could. But what I said about Barry is true. I think he's the only kid that Julian ever felt bad about, and ever gave a little bit of notice to."
Booth nodded. It really didn't surprise him; he didn't doubt that there were many social workers that had the same attitude as Kramer. This thought saddened him, and was just about to comment on it when his partner spoke for the first time.
"Did Kramer ever mention any problems Barry had with anyone at the foster home?" Temperance had finally convinced herself that she had just mistaken Avery for an older looking Jimmy, simply because the dreams she had been having about the boy were affecting her judgment. The man was obviously who he said. However, her newfound certainty was shaken a little when Avery paled at the question.
"T-there was one boy." He stuttered slightly before regaining his composure. "His name started with a J, if I recall correctly. He lived at the same foster house as Barry, right before Barry ran away. I know that his kid and Barry had some pretty big fights, but that's all I know."
Booth and Brennan stood up at the same time, both realizing that they weren't going to get anything else out of the man. "Thank you for your time, Mr. Avery." Booth said. "If you remember anything else, give me a call." He handed Avery his card, and then the partners walked out of the office together.
Later that night at their hotel, Booth and Brennan were going over what they knew. They were sitting on Booth's bed, files and pictures spread out between them. "So we know that Barry died in 1992, and was moved to the house most likely sometime in 1993." Booth started.
"And that whoever lived there while it was empty is most likely the killer, because they probably brought the body with them." Brennan continued.
"Barry 'ran away' after having a big fight with Jimmy, and shortly after Phil McPherson left his wife."
"But we don't know where Jimmy or Phil are, and Barry's original social worker is dead."
"We also know that Jimmy and Barry stopped fighting when Steven showed up, and the fights started again when Steven got adopted. This could have been because there was a buffer between them, like Mary said, or for another reason." Booth sighed, and ran his hand through his hair. "But we can't figure out why because Stevie died in a car crash with his new family. The secretary was right – that is pretty tragic."
Temperance sighed too. "We have nothing. We have more dead witnesses than live ones, suspects who have disappeared, and no one left to question."
Booth couldn't help himself, and chuckled a little. "Wonderful." They sat in quiet for a few moments before the FBI agent continued. "I'll call the tech guys later to see what they found on Phil McPherson, and have them see what they can dig up on Jimmy." He paused again, and then asked cautiously, "What happened today?"
Temperance didn't have to ask him to clarify. She wanted to avoid the issue, but knew that Booth would drag the answer out of her eventually. She mostly just didn't want to answer for fear of seeming weak, and not appearing to be at the top of her game. She didn't want her partner to think that she wasn't doing her job properly. Finally though, she decided that she should just tell him, and hope that he think any less of her. "When Avery walked in, I was sure that it was Jimmy. He looked so similar, even had a dimple in the same place Jimmy did. But it's probably just because I've been dreaming about him, and I'm sure I'm wrong."
"You never know." Booth said quietly. "It's possible you're right. I noticed that I few times when you were talking to him that he seemed quite nervous. I'll also have the techs look for something on Joe Avery. Until then, I guess the only thing we can do is wait."
Sorry that it's so short - I promise there will be more next time! Oh, and please don't forget to leave a review!
Charlotte