Bones
"Paternal Instincts"
Summary: Bones' young new assistant has a secret…he is Booth's son.
Author's Note(s): Takes place after the whole "Widow's Son" storyline, so Zack is gone.
Warning: This story will contain spanking of a teenager.
Disclaimer: The only character I own is Seth. Booth, Bones, and the Squints I don't own.
Chapter 8: Head, Heart, and Instinct
Seth stared down at the skeleton on the table.
Hesitantly, he picked up the skull and held it in both hands.
He still couldn't believe this was his mother.
She had been so young—she would have been nineteen at the time of his birth.
Was that the reason she had abandoned him?
And was it because she was pregnant that she broke it off with his father?
There were still so many unanswered questions…
"I did that once," Dr. Brennan said, coming up beside him.
He jumped, not realizing she was there.
He quickly put his mother's skull down.
"I'm sorry," he apologized, in case he had committed some grievous error.
"For what?" she asked him, puzzled.
He smiled. "I'm not sure exactly," he told her. "You were saying?"
"When we discovered my mother's remains, I did what you were just doing," she told him. "I held her skull up to the light and pondered the things that confused me."
"Yeah, I was doing that," he said, grinning, "but I promise, Dr. Brennan, I won't let the fact that this is my mother interfere with my work."
"I know you won't," she told him. "After all, she was your mother in genetics only. You have no memory of her. Therefore, you have no emotional attachment to her."
"Um, right," he said, hesitantly. "At least, I know you're right up here (he tapped his head) but this (he put his hand over his heart) is telling me I should be feeling something for her, at least."
"The heart is a muscle and organ, nothing more," Brennan told him, confidently. "Emotions have no place in science, Seth."
"Curiosity is an emotion, isn't it?" he asked her. "And isn't it curiosity that fuels why we do what we do?"
"That's true," she told him, "but it's curiosity tempered by reason and logic. Without those, we would allow our emotions to get the better of us."
"Don't some cases get to you, though?" he asked her. "Like the one with your mother, for example?"
She nodded.
"Despite what many would think, Seth," she told him, "I am as human as you and Booth. I do feel emotions—I just don't let my emotions rule my actions and decisions. And yes, there are some cases I find harder to deal with than others, but even those I work through using logic and reasoning."
"And then," Booth said, "she and I discuss the deep found meaning of it all over beer."
He came up behind them and put his an arm around each of their shoulders
"That's correct," she said. "Though usually you're the one doing all the talking. I'm just listening."
"I'm a natural conversationalist, what can I say?" Booth smirked at Seth. "Hey there, kiddo. Miss me?"
"You've only just left an hour ago," Seth reminded him, grinning. "I haven't had time to miss you." Booth feigned hurt. "You could at least pretend," he told him, grinning.
"You're in a very good mood," Brennan said, raising an eyebrow. "Why?"
"That would be because, my dear Bones, I happen to have here an address for one Ralph Edmond," he told them, holding up a piece of paper.
"The obsessed maintenance man?" Seth asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yep," Booth said, smirking. He waggled his eyebrows at Brennan. "Care to come with?"
"Of course," she said, seriously. "Don't I always?"
"May I come, too?" Seth asked, hopefully.
"Uh, I don't know about that…" Booth said, hesitantly.
"I might notice something the two of you don't," Seth reasoned. "Please, Dad?"
Booth groaned inwardly. There was that look again!
"Fine," he said, but he held up a warning finger, "but you're staying in the car when we get there."
"I can live with that," Seth said, smiling.
His father nodded. "Let's roll," he said, and turned to head for the exit.
"Remember," Brennan told him, as they followed after him. "Logic and reason."
Seth nodded. "Using my head," he said, "not my heart."
"Exactly," Brennan told him, "but also rely on your instincts, too."
"Aren't instincts feelings?" he asked her, confused.
"Yes, but not emotions," she said. "Two completely different things."
"Okay," he said, hesitantly.
He wouldn't have thought so, but if Dr. Brennan said so…who was he to argue?
They headed out to Booth's SUV and headed out.
Ralph Edmond lived on a farm outside of the city.
The road, if one could call it that exactly, was nothing but dirt.
"I think you're going to need to wash your car," Seth commented from the backseat.
"Great," Booth said, smiling. "That'll give you, me, and Parker something to do this weekend."
"It takes three people to wash your car?" Brennan said, raising an eyebrow.
"Not usually," Booth said, "but I figure if Seth takes the top and Parker the bottom…they'll have it done in no time."
"Me and Parker?" Seth asked, grinning. "And what exactly will you be doing?"
"Handling the hose," Booth said, grinning, "and pointing out spots you both missed."
"So, your sons are a source of free labor?" Brennan asked, curiously.
"No, of course not," Booth said, "but my old man made me wash his car…"
"So you're going to make me and Parker wash yours?" Seth asked. "When you could easily take it to a car wash?"
"Well, car washes cost money," Booth said, hesitantly.
Brennan and Seth glanced at each other.
"Free labor," they both said at the same time.
"All right, fine," Booth gruffed, "I'll wash the car and you two can help."
"Or," Seth said, smiling, "you and I could split the minute cost of the car wash and take Parker to the park to play."
Booth smiled at that. "Now there's a plan I like," he said. "Care to come along, Bones?"
"I'd love to," Brennan said, "as long as I don't have to chip into the car wash thing, too."
Booth smiled. "What? It's only fair…?" he smirked when she hit his arm. "Ouch."
Seth chuckled. "We can invite Sweets, too," he said, grinning.
"Now, wait a minute," Booth said, "let's not get carried away…"
"What?" Seth asked. "Lance would love to be invited…"
"Yeah, and he'd spend the entire time dissecting everything we did or said," Booth grumbled. "He'd turn a perfectly nice picnic into a therapy session."
"You don't know that," Seth argued. "I'm sure he doesn't act like a shrink all the time."
"We can discuss it later," Booth said, as they came upon the farm where Edmond was said to live.
Seth smirked. "Uh huh," he said, chuckling.
Booth stopped the SUV and unbuckled his seat belt. He and Brennan got out.
"Remember," he told Seth. "Stay put, no matter what. If you see anything interesting, dial my phone."
Seth nodded. "Go on already," he told him. "I'll be fine."
Booth nodded and then turned to head to the front porch of the house with Brennan beside him.
They knocked once, twice, and then a third time.
When they still didn't receive an answer, Booth drew his gun and then kicked the door in.
No sooner had they entered the house, but Seth saw a man-shaped blur dash from behind the house headed for the barn and the woods just beyond.
Forgetting that he was supposed to stay put, as well as call his father, he took Dr. Brennan's advice and followed his instinct.
He jumped out of the car and went after whoever it was fleeing.
Whoever it was definitely was fast, but Seth had both youth and stamina on his side and easily overtook him.
Leaping, he tackled him—for it was definitely a man—to the ground.
A struggling match ensued and Seth suddenly found he no longer had the advantage.
The man in question was taller and outweighed him by a hundred pounds.
He found himself pulled off the ground, his arm twisted behind his back, and the barrel of a gun pointed at his head.
He went very still at that point.
"FBI, drop the gun!" Booth's voice rang out, and Seth found himself jerked around to face his father and Dr. Brennan.
"W-What d-do y-you want?" the man holding him demanded, shakily.
It was clear from the tone of his voice he was frightened.
"First of all I want you to put the gun down and secondly let the boy go," Booth told him.
The man shook his head. "Y-You're gonna shoot me if I do," he stuttered. "W-What do you want?"
"Are you Ralph Edmond?" Dr. Brennan asked, perfectly calm.
Booth gave her a look of exasperation.
The man had a gun pointed at his kid's head and she wanted to play introductions?
"Yeah," the man said, tightening his grip on Seth's arm.
"Ouch," Seth grumbled, wincing. "Dude, point that thing at your own head, will ya?"
"Shut up," Ralph growled, tightening his grip on the gun.
"Seth," Booth said, speaking slowly, "just do as the man says."
It was clear he was worried that the man might do something.
"Mr. Edmond, did you know a young woman about fifteen years ago by the name of Sarah Jane Sanderson?" Dr. Brennan asked the man next.
"I-I, uh, I," Ralph stuttered.
"You killed her, didn't you?" Seth growled, twisting slightly so he could look at him.
"I said shut up!" Ralph growled, slapping him hard across the face.
"Hey!" Booth yelled. "Leave the boy alone!"
"Tell him to watch his mouth," Ralph growled. "No respect. K-Kids today have no respect."
"Let me go, you bastard," Seth grumbled, tasting blood in his mouth, "and I'll show you how respectful I can be."
"Seth!" Booth hissed, angrily. "Do as the crazy man says and shut up."
"I ain't crazy!" Ralph shouted. "I ain't a-and I didn't mean to kill her! S-She ran out in front of me."
"And you hit her?" Dr. Brennan guessed.
"Why didn't you go to the police?" Booth asked, swallowing.
He still had his gun out, but had lowered it.
No sense threatening a man as long as he didn't try anything, right?
"S-She was g-goin' somewhere with the b-baby," Ralph said, speaking as if he were remembering. "S-She l-left it on the steps of this church. Poor little thing. I-I was gonna get it."
"The baby?" Dr. Brennan asked. "Sarah's baby? Why?"
"Because it was hers," Ralph said. "Should have been mine, but it wasn't?"
"You loved her?" Dr. Brennan asked, hesitantly.
She was still speaking in the same calm tone of voice, as if she understood him.
"She, uh, she was so pretty," Ralph said, sniffling, "a-a-and smart—not like me. I ain't smart. But she was too young to be havin' a baby, so she was gonna give it away. Least that's what she said…"
"So, you followed her," Booth guessed, "and was gonna take the baby and raise it yourself?"
Ralph nodded. "Least I could do for her," he said, "but then…"
"But then you ran over her and killed her," Dr. Brennan guessed. "And buried her out of respect."
Ralph nodded.
"Why didn't you go to the police?" Booth asked again.
This time, he answered.
"They wouldn't have believed me," Ralph said, "they'd have thought I did it on purpose."
"Ralph," Dr. Brennan asked, "do you know what happened to Sarah's baby?"
Ralph shook his head. "No," he said, quietly. "Knew when you found her, you'd come after me. Knew you wouldn't believe me."
"We do believe you, Ralph," Booth said, "but you gotta let the boy go now, okay?"
"Why?" Ralph asked. "He attacked me."
"And he's very sorry about that," Booth told him, "aren't you, Seth?" He gave the boy a pointed look.
"Uh, sure," Seth said, "I'm sorry."
Ralph nodded, but didn't let go.
"Ralph, Seth is Sarah Jane's baby," Dr. Brennan told him. "You're holding Sarah Jane's baby right now."
"That true?" Ralph asked Seth. "You really hers?"
"Yes," Seth told him.
Ralph suddenly let him go and took the gun from his head.
"Didn't mean to do it," Ralph said, "never meant to…" He broke down then, sobbing.
Booth grabbed Seth and pulled him over to him. He nodded at Brennan, who nodded back.
She crossed over to the sobbing man. "Can I have the gun now, Ralph?" she asked him, gently.
He nodded and handed it over.
"Thank you," she said, smiling. "Sarah Jane would have been proud of you."
That just seemed to make the poor man cry harder.
It seemed Dr. Brennan was acting on instinct now, as she wrapped her arms around the man and just let him cry.
Booth turned to Seth and grabbed his chin to get a better look on the cut on his lip.
"You okay?" he asked him, curiously.
"I think so," Seth told him. "It just hurt, that's all."
Booth nodded, and then his eyes turned from concern to anger.
"I thought I told you to stay in the car," he growled at him. "I know I told you to call me if you saw something."
"There wasn't any time," Seth reasoned. "He was getting away."
"He was on foot, Seth, and clearly not stable," Booth growled again. "He wouldn't have gotten far. He could have killed you!"
"But he didn't," Seth said. "I'm fine."
"Because you got lucky," Booth said, angrily. "From now on, you're staying in the lab."
"That's not fair," Seth said. "I can help."
Booth looked like he was about to say something, but then sighed.
"All I know is that I just had to watch a less than stable person put a gun to my son's temple," he said, "and that scared the shit out of me."
Seth bit his lip. "I'm sorry," he said, quietly. "I guess I did mess up."
"You better believe it," Booth told him, "but we'll talk about it later at home. Okay?"
"Okay," Seth said, but he didn't think he liked the sound of that very much.
Booth nodded, and then got his cell phone out and called in some back up.
Ralph may not have meant to kill Sarah Jane, but he did conceal her death—and it was clear he needed a few sessions with Sweets.
Seth sighed.
He was beginning to wonder which was more important.
Head, Heart, or Instincts?
Or was it all three?
The world of adults certainly was a very confusing place.
TBC…