Authors Note – M rating for this chapter for language only.
The song is really old. Duran Duran, Ordinary World.
This is a little different from my usual format. It jumps about quite a bit. Just thought I'd better mention that before you think I've completely lost the plot.
Thanks to Moonlight Gardenias who assured me this (mostly) makes sense and isn't a collection of obscure ramblings.. and everyone who is still reading and reviewing. You give me butterflies.
Disclaimer – If they were mine they would be taking regular sabbaticals to the UK, where I could go watch them film on location. Except I wouldn't need to because i would totally own them. Hmm, I think I see a flaw in my logic...
Enjoy
Came in from a rainy Thursday on the avenue,
Thought I heard you talking softly.
I turned on the lights, the TV and the radio
Still I can't escape the ghost of you.
Max Keenan threw himself down onto the couch, rubbing his hands across his face. Today had been hell. He'd thrown Jase a bone, only to find him ravage the whole skeleton. Had he underestimated him? Max knew better than most how the game should be played but his cards were already on the table. He had played his hand too soon. He had made a mistake.
With the exception of his family, Max had concern for no one. If people got hurt they had no one to blame but themselves. So why did he feel so bothered about Booth? He wasn't his family. The guy was responsible for putting him in prison, simply for protecting Temperance. Every father should look out for his children. Why shouldn't he do whatever it takes to keep his daughter safe? Alive.
The loss of Ruth had pushed him to the limit. And while he had gotten used to calling her Christine for over ten years, she was still the same girl he fell in love with, so many years ago. That was the name on her gravestone. It hurt that twice she had been buried in disguise. The first time when he had buried her alone in a nameless grave. The second time his daughter had chosen to lay her to rest by the only name she knew.
Temperance was the image of her now. Time had passed quickly, gaining only speed as he grew older.
o0o0o0o0o0o
"She's perfect. Absolutely perfect. Thank-you."
"Why are you thanking me Ruth? You did all the hard work"
Max Keenan gazed down at the beautiful brunette he had the honor to call his wife as she cradled their baby girl in her arms.
"Hey son, you wanna come meet your baby sister?" Kyle, just a boy, sat playing with a toy truck, reached out, waiting for his father to pick him up. Max scooped the child into his arms, hugging him close. He'd never been happier than now. Family was more important than anything else in the world.
"Have we thought of a name yet?" He quizzed.
"Joy," A tear slipped down her cheek. "She's pure Joy."
o0o0o0o0o0o
What is happening to it all?
Crazy some say-
Where is the life that I recognise?
Gone away.
He still remembered the moment she arrived in this world like yesterday. He remembered it all like yesterday. First steps, first day in school, first A grade. All he wanted was for her to be happy.
Booth made her happy. He had seen that on countless occasions. He hadn't recognized it at first, but seeing them together, as they inevitably always were, had reminded him of the love he had shared with his wife.
A gesture. A look. A smile.
o0o0o0o0o0o
"We need to leave, today. Choose new identities for all of us."
"Kyle is seven, he'll never accept it Max."
"He will. We don't have a choice. All that matters is that we are safe, that we protect our children. That we do whatever we need to do."
o0o0o0o0o0o
Jase sat in 'his' booth at O'Malley's bar waiting for the con he knew as Tony to arrive. Max was a breath of fresh air compared to the gang he dominated. Finally, someone who knew what he was doing. Smart, unlike the idiots who surrounded him. He smiled to himself as he considered the benefits – 'At least I'm never short of a fall guy.' Max had told him Tony was different. Clever, strong, unwavering. Max truly believed that he saw something of himself in him. "Tony could be trusted." Max had said. "Make him a key player." That should have been good enough for him but Jase liked to see things for himself. If Tony really was that good then he wouldn't mind playing a few games.
o0o0o0o0o0o
But I won't cry for yesterday.
There's an ordinary world somehow I have to find.
And as I try to make my way to the ordinary world
I will learn to survive.
As a parent you like to believe that you have separate identities. You can still be your own person. It's not true. They see everything. They had allowed their children to lose the innocence of childhood too soon. Innocence was not something you could replace. Russ and Temperance had suffered for it.
o0o0o0o0o0o
"Russ, Temperance, dinner's nearly ready. Come set the table for your mother."
"Daddy, will you read my story later?"
"Of course I will pumpkin. What's it about?"
"Pigs who take a vacation to Disneyland."
"You know, Tempe sweetheart, that pigs don't take vacations."
"Daddy! I'm not stupid. It's a story. It's not real."
o0o0o0o0o0o
"You're late."
"I know," Booth smiled. "So what do you need?
"Well we can all see who. got laid this morning" Jase laughed. There was something very unnerving about Jase finding amusement in anything. "The skinny brunette? She looked like she'd be a damned good fuck."
Booth cringed inside as he smiled back at Jase. He figured respect for women wasn't anywhere near the top of Jase's agenda. Glad that her father was nowhere to be seen he spoke up. "Damned right." he confirmed. "So what's this job?"
Max listened on from behind the basement door as Booth apparently bragged about sleeping with his little girl. Max Keenan was no fool. He knew about the line. He knew they were in love, that when he had left them after Christmas dinner there was a good chance they would make that final leap. But to stand here and brag about her like a conquest. The boy had crossed a different kind of line.
He wasn't about to let Booth get away with it.
o0o0o0o0o0o
Passion or coincidence once prompted you to say-
Pride will tear us both apart.
Well now pride's gone out the window, cross the rooftops, runaway.
Left me in the vacuum of my heart.
"I know. I am too stubborn for my own good, Ruth." Max spoke out loud to the air around him. "And what I did today was wrong. I always seem to get it wrong, don't I?" He chuckled sadly. "Booth didn't deserve today. He's a good man. Worthy of our daughter."
Max stood up, switching off the TV, lights, locking the door. He paused as he reached the door of the bedroom. "I'm sorry, Ruth. For everything."
o0o0o0o0o0o
"You're asking me to abandon our children?"
"Abandon is a very strong word. This isn't forever. It will be easier if it's just the two of us. You can't expect them to leave their whole lives behind. It's better this way Christine."
"I never got used to you calling me that"
o0o0o0o0o0o
Max sat down in front of Jase. "This job you've sent Tony on. What's the deal?"
"Simple pick up." he explained. "Ex sniper, right? Knows his weapons. I need him to examine the merchandise and bring it back."
"And the catch?"
"Supplier don't know we're comin'. And I don't plan of handing over any cash either."
"So... Tony might end up a little sore?"
"And I get to see what kinda man he really is."
Max considered his options. "From what I've seen I don't think Tony will come back with a mark on him. You might want to make things a little tougher."
Jase looked at him with intrigue. "What would you suggest Max?"
Max's eyes glinted in the dim light. "What if they knew he was coming?"
o0o0o0o0o0o
What is happening to me?
Crazy some say.
Where is my friend when I need you most?
Gone away.
Lying companionless in bed, Max felt cold and alone. He would never get used to the solitude of sleep. He wonders if Temperance has heard from Booth before exhaustion takes hold.
The distant ring of a telephone wakes him from the darkness.
o0o0o0o0o0o
Max shovels the last of the earth over the body of his wife. He has worked all night to bury her with the dignity she deserved after finding this spot on the edge of the graveyard, sheltered by an old oak tree.
"Goodbye my love. I will remember you with all my heart."
The wind whistling through the branches seem to whisper his name. Even in death she has remained at his side.
o0o0o00o0oo
"You set me up." Booth hissed, stalking towards Jase. He was obviously in pain, holding his left arm to his chest, his face decorated with cuts and bruises, an indication of the damage hidden across the rest of his body.
"I prefer the expression; seeing exactly what your made of. And I have to say my suspicions were right. Good stuff you got there. So.. I suggest you take a few days, rest up, have that hot bitch you're fucking show you a little TLC over New Years. And I'll call you when I need you."
He flinched when Bones was drawn into the conversation, but knew better than to challenge anything Jase said. He simply nodded and turned to leave.
"The merchandise is where it's supposed to be I assume? And Tony..."
Booth turned back to meet Jase's smirk.
"...I will need you. Soon. So don't think about goin' anywhere in a hurry."
Booth needed to get out right now, before his temper got the better of him and he turned on Jase. The idea of giving him a taste of his own medicine was too tempting right now. Before he reached the door Booth stopped suddenly, pulling his slumped aching body up into an assertive stance.
"I know you're there, Max."
Max stepped out from the shadows, fixing an intense stare on Booth. "Don't allow her to see you like this," Max instructed solemnly. "Call her, tell her you have to go somewhere with Jase, just don't make her suffer any more than she needs to."
"Got news for you, Max. You - " Booth pointed his finger into the older mans chest. "- are not in control here. I'd be careful to remember that if I were you."
o0o0o0o0o0o
Papers in the roadside tell of suffering and greed,
Feared today; forgot tomorrow.
Here beside the news of holy war and holy need,
Ours is just a little sorrowed talk-
Blown away.
"She's perfect. Absolutely perfect. Thank-you."
"Why are you thanking me, Bones? You did all the hard work."
Seeley Booth gazed down at the beautiful brunette he had the honor to call his wife as she cradled their baby girl in her arms.
"Hey son, you wanna come meet your baby sister?"Parker, just a boy sat playing with a toy truck, reached out, waiting for his father to pick him up. Booth scooped the child into his arms , hugging him close. He'd never been happier than now. Family was more important than anything else in the world.
"Have we thought of a name yet?" He quizzed.
"Eve." A tear slipped down her cheek. "She's a new beginning."
o0o0o0o0o0o
Any world is my world
Temperance blinked back to reality as consciousness prevailed. She carefully sat and lent over the man sleeping beside her, willing her heart to stop racing. Despite the pain he was sleeping relatively soundly. She slipped out of the room closing the door behind her. Picking up her phone she punched in a number written on a card from her purse. Her finger hovered over the dial button, before canceling the call. There was someone else she needed to speak to first.
o0o0o0o0o0o0o
Every world is my world
"Hello?" Max picked up the phone tentatively. Anyone calling at this hour meant trouble. He'd had enough to last him a lifetime.
"Daddy?" she wept.
"Oh, pumpkin."
Authors Note – I hope that didn't confuse anybody. Hopefully it has answered your questions about what happened to Booth and why he and Max behaved the way they did. Reviews will make my grey rainy day.