Chapter 8

We could have stood there for 4 days, or 4 hours. Just staring at each other. I stared back at her after calling her out on her short fuse. She was on the verge of tears. Her eyes told of her immediate guilt. The voice that emerged was small, low, and similar to that of the one that Jared used after I took his beatings.

"Booth, I don't know. I am ready to spend the rest of my life with you, but I am not ready to give you up to a desert that could just as easily take your life away from me."

I knew that I was not made at her, and my guilt was slowly consuming me. I took the couple of steps away from her and sunk down onto the bed. I could just see it, they way she was standing over me, touching my face. It reminded me of something so long ago.

Jared was standing next to me, tending to my beating wounds. He sealed up the cut on my eyebrow with some butterfly stitches. He wrapped my ribs so I could heal before the next round.

"Seels, I am osrry. I shouldn't have ticked Dad off. I just wish he wouldn't beat on you so bad. I wish you would let me take some of it for you."

"Jar-head, I cant let you do that. You are 10, not 30. I am 14. I can handle a few beatings here and there. Thanks for patching me up."

"I love you Seels. No homo."

"I love you too Jar. No homo."

"Bones, I'm osrry. I guilted you by questioning your intentions. That wasn't fair of me. Forgive me?"

She looked at me earnestly, and smiled.

"Always Booth. Always. Always."

I pulled off my fatigues and put my pressed dress uniform on. Bones stood in front of me, and let me atone for all my sins.

"Booth, you are not the same man you were 12 years ago. You are gentler, kinder, not angry at the world. You are a father, a life saver, and husband. You aren't a gambler or a drinker, you use your words to fight, not your fists. You have saved so many lives. You literally died and rose from the dead just for me. To me, that allows you to atone for all your sins. So cheer up handsome."

"Thanks Bones. I just don't want to slip into the same old Seeley I was 12 years ago. I can't do that to Parker again. I can't do that to you."

She held my tie in her hands and straightened it out while reassuring me, "You won't be that person. You never will, never again."

I leaned into her, pressing a kiss to her hair. I pulled away from her and lifted a dress bag off of the back of the bedroom door.

"In here is a dress, shoes, jewelry, a bag, and everything else courtesy of Angela. There is a ball tonight, and I want to show off my woman. Leave your hair just as it is. Tousled. That is sexy. You have one hour to get ready."

She smiled at me, took the bag from me, and went into the bathroom. I heard her unzip the bag and gasp. In all honesty, I hadn't even looked at the dress. I walked into the bathroom to see her holding a floor length midnight blue ball gown. It was one shouldered and was covered in Swavoroski crystals.

"Wow, Angela really outdid herself this time."

"Not really Booth. We had gone to the mall and she begged me to try this on and it fit beautifully. She bought it because it fit us both. She said it was something like the Sisterhood of the Traveling Trousers."

I chuckled to myself. Bones were her thing. Not pop culture references.

"Pants Bones. Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants."

I left the bathroom and let her do her thing. I opened the box on the dresser and pulled out a silver star. I was given it after being tortured overseas. I affixed it to me jacket and shrugged. I heated the memories, and right now, I was getting flooded.

The sandstorm was really killing my visibility. I was laying out in camouflague for the past 2 days. My target never seemed to show. With my eye in my scope, I tried to catch a few winks of sleep. I was very well hidden. I wouldn't even be able to find me.

I woke up what felt like an eternity later with a blinding headache and a searing pain in my feet. I tried to roll over, to reach for my rifle instinctively, but soon found out I was tied down. I heard a few short bursts of an AK-47 and knew I was fucked. I had been captured. I heard a quick rambling in Arabic and was able to pick up a few words. Feet, paddle, and awake. I tried to feign sleep, but failed miserably. I felt the stabbing pain in my feet again as someone paddled them. The burning pain was horrible. The sound of the bones cracking made me sick. Whoever was holding me captive thought it was hilarious. He spoke perfect English.

"So how about it Sargent Booth? Who were you out there for? Muhammad Abdul Malakawi? I almost didn't find you. It was your feet that stuck out. Want to tell me where your counterparts are?"

I knew from my training that my guys, who were out there with me, were back at headquarters planning a rescue mission. I tried to cover my ass and theirs.

"I went out there alone believe it or not. I told them I was perfectly capable, and they let me. And yet, here I am. With an American terrorist. Isn't that supposed to be an oxymoron?"

I should have kept my mouth shut cause I knew I had it coming. I felt the paddle against my feet and the hours seemed to drag on. I was able to keep track of the days. I was dehydrated and hungry. But 2 days had passed and I was starting to lose my faith. I heard the familiar rap of M-16s. The same American man came rushing in, harried, sliced open the bottoms of my feet and rubbed palmfuls of sand into the wounds. His efforts were futile though. My rescue team broke down the door and shot the man on the spot. I immediately wiggled my toes to make sure they were still there.

"Honey, I said, what do you think?"

I snapped out of my stupor and turned towards Bones who was standing in the doorway of the bathroom. She was dripping in diamonds and breath taking.

"I think I have just died again and gone to heaven. You look stunning baby."

She did a quick 360 then grabbed her purse and shoes from the bathroom. She took a few steps towards me, and leaned down. She laid her hands on my feet and started tying my shoes. I winced, not knowing that psychologically, I was not in pain. But Bones noticed immediately.

"What's wrong Booth?"

She immediately removed her hands.

"Nothing, my feet just hurt."

She stared at me curiously, straightened up, and laid her hands on my chest.

"Anthropologically speaking Booth, I know I have said that objects have no intrinsic value, but that Silver Star is evidence of your faith, your bravery, your dedication to protecting your men."

I looked at her, shocked that she knew what I was thinking.

"How did you know?"

"I may not be able to read other people, but I can read you. I know when you get stuck with reliving old memories. And as soon as I touched your feet, I knew that you were thinking about your torture."

I leaned forwards, tucking her into my chest. I let my heart beat even out equal to hers and my ragged breathing slowed.

"Let's go to this shindig. You are going to knock the socks off of these guys. You are breathtaking."

We left the apartment, got into the truck, and drove over to the Hilton in downtown DC. We walked into the hotel, and I saluted my superiors, and went to mingle.

"Seeley, who is this beautiful lady?"

"Captain, this is Temperance."

He looked at both of us incredulously.

"Wait, Temperance, as in Dr. Temperance Brennan? Of the Jeffersonian? Your partner?"

Bones took the man's hand and smiled.

"Yes to all of those questions, Captain Summers. Seeley is my husband."