Welcome back! It's time for a clash within the Booth/Brennan family...
Chapter 9
When Elena exited the school building and walked over to the bike shed to go to gymnastics practice, she suddenly noticed her father's car. Or at least, she thought it was her dad's. Curious, she walked up to it. And indeed, her father stepped out and met her halfway. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Hey, Dad," Elena greeted him with a smile as she wrapped her arm around her father's waist. "What are you doing here? Are you taking me to practice?"
"You're not going to practice today. I'm taking you home. Come on." Booth gently took her backpack from her shoulder and put it in the trunk of his SUV. "Get in the car, Elena."
Elena hesitated for a second, then got into the car. "No practice? What's going on, Dad? Is something wrong with Mom or Tommy?"
He shook his head. "No, your mother and Thomas are fine." Booth didn't offer up anything else as he drove them home. He didn't want to do this in his car and definitely not while he was driving.
"Well... am I in trouble or something?" Elena wasn't making sense of the situation, and her father obviously wasn't in a very good mood.
"That depends," he told her curtly. "We'll talk about it at home."
Elena felt angry and crossed her arms in front of her chest, not even wanting to talk to him before they got home. She'd done nothing wrong. She went over the past few days in her head and couldn't find anything. Obviously, her dad was overreacting about something and it would cost her gymnastics practice.
Booth parked the car in front of their house and got out. He could tell his daughter was angry, but that didn't change the fact that she owed him an explanation. They walked into the kitchen and Booth gestured towards one of the kitchen chairs. Booth sat down next to his daughter and reached into his pocket, producing the small, plastic bag with pills inside and slid it over to her, tapping his finger on it. "Do you know what this is?"
"No," Elena answered immediately, giving him a sharp look. She needed to go gymnastics.
"Do not lie to me, Elena," Booth told her sharply. "Last chance. Do you know what this is?"
"You tell me, Dad, it looks like pills in a plastic bag to me but other than that -" Suddenly, she fell silent. "Did you go through my room?"
"What makes you think that I did?" Booth asked her, curious to see if she was going to come clean and admit to him that she had them in her room.
"Because I believe these are the pills from my nightstand drawer. Dad?" She looked at him, expecting an answer. "Why did you go through my room?"
"How did you get these pills?" he asked her, ignoring her question.
Elena put her hands on the table, leaning towards him. "They're Alex's. I found them after he left. I was going to give him back the pills so I put them in my drawer but I forgot. Now answer my question," Elena demanded. "Why did you go through my room?"
"These pills are dangerous hard drugs. Did you take any of them?" Booth continued to ignore her questions, firing off his own.
"What?" Elena exclaimed. "Why on earth would I take pills that aren't mine? Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?"
"Yes, I do," Booth told her grimly. "You didn't answer my question. Did you or didn't you?"
"Come on, Dad, don't you trust me? Do you really think I've taken those pills? Do you really have to ask?" Elena was a little hurt.
"Why is it so hard to answer my question, Elena?" Booth reached for her hand. "Honey, if you're in trouble, you can talk to me."
Elena pulled back her hand immediately. "I'm not answering your question because it's stupid to ask a question you already know the answer to," she spat. "What's going on? What has Alex done? Is he a junkie?"
Realising that she wasn't going to answer his question directly, he changed course. "Yes. I believe he is. He refused a drug test, but I will get a court order." He took a deep breath. "Elena, I'm working on a case. Alexander's foster father has been murdered. We searched his house and found a lot of these," he tapped the bag again, "pills. I went to your school and talked to Alexander. He had a panic attack. I took him to the hospital. I was worried about you and I came home." He looked into her eyes and told her unapologetically, "Yes, I went into your room and I opened every drawer and closet. I looked under your bed and behind your nightstand. Every place I could think of, after I found this bag."
Elena swallowed. "At least you're being honest now," she said quietly and sat back in her chair. "I thought the pills were medication. I was going to give them back to him but I forgot. Do you still want to ask me if I took any of them?" she asked her father, looking into his eyes. She was scared he'd say yes.
Booth nodded. "I've been honest with you, like you said. Is it so strange to expect that same honesty from you, Elena?" Booth asked her softly, afraid that she would refuse to answer his question.
Elena rose from her chair and told him with tears in her eyes, "No. I didn't take any of those pills." With that, she ran upstairs and into her bedroom. Her own father! What had she ever done to betray his trust? Her mother would have never had to ask her that question.
Booth's eyes closed in relief, but shame and regret were close behind. With a lump in his throat, he grabbed his cell phone from his pocket and dialled the familiar number of his partner.
"Booth? Everything okay?" Brennan asked him. She knew the case had just become especially hard on him, with Elena's friend being involved.
"I need you to come home." He could hear the barely held back emotion in his voice and cleared his throat. "I need you to come home, because I made a mess that I can't fix on my own. I'll go to day-care to pick up Tommy. Please, just..." He took a deep breath. "Come home."
Brennan froze on the other end of the line. "Are the kids in danger?"
"No. No they are not. I ... I found drugs in Elena's room and I confronted her, but I..." It was hard to admit this to her, knowing that she would be very upset with him and with reason. He had to put his children's well-being ahead of his own though. "I think I was too hard on her. I just needed to hear her answer, Brenn."
"You didn't think the drugs were hers, did you? You asked her if she took drugs?" Brennan asked him disbelievingly as she shut down her computer and grabbed her coat.
"I didn't ask if they were hers, but I did ask if she took any and if she knew where they came from," Booth admitted.
"Oh, god, Booth, did you have to? Is she very upset?" Brennan was walking over to her boss's office to bring him up to date with what she was doing.
"Of course I had to, Bones! I found hard drugs in my daughter's bedroom! What kind of father would I be if I hadn't made sure?" He sighed miserably. "She ran upstairs and I can hear her cry in her bedroom. So yes, she's very upset. Can you come home?"
"I have to talk to my boss for a second and then I'll come home. Incidentally, check your e-mail, because I just sent you my analysis of the remains. I'm finished with them. See you in a bit." Brennan hung up and walked into her boss's office to request a half day off because of a family emergency. Five minutes later, she was on her way home.
Booth did as he was told and went upstairs into his office. Outside of his daughter's door, he placed his hand against the wood. He wanted to do something, talk to her, explain to her why he had been so hard on her, but his throat constricted and he continued to his office, where he turned on the computer, opened his mail and read through his partner's findings.
When Brennan arrived at their home, she immediately went to her daughter's room. She found Elena clutching Moby to her chest and sobbing on her bed. Brennan sat down next to her and stroked her curls. "I'm here, sweetheart. Dad told me what happened. I can understand that you're very upset."
Elena was relieved that her mother was here. She sat upright and wrapped her arms around her mother's waist, hiding her face into her mother's chest.
Brennan gently rubbed Elena's back and kissed her hair until her daughter calmed down a little. "He didn't mean to hurt you, Elena," Brennan told her softly. "You know that your dad has a dangerous job and that ever since we've had to move here, he's been extra worried about his family. Alex is your friend and your dad just found out he's doing drugs and is involved in a murder case. You know your dad, that kind of information will freak him out any day of the week. He crossed a line asking you if you took any drugs, because he knows as well as I do that you wouldn't do that. He trusts you, but sometimes his concern for your safety overrules the trust he has in you. I can assure you that he feels very guilty and sad that he upset you, Elena. It would mean a lot to him if you could forgive him when you're ready."
Elena had listened quietly to her mother. Her tears had stopped, and after a few moments, she nodded her head. She rose and went to the office, where she'd heard her father go. "Dad?"
Booth looked up and saw his daughter standing there. He gently patted the chair next to him, asking her wordlessly to enter his office.
Elena wiped a stray tear off her cheek and sat down on his lap, ignoring the chair he'd indicated. She wrapped her arms around his neck and rested her head against his chest.
Sighing softly, Booth wrapped his arms around her. "I'm sorry, baby girl," he whispered, "I didn't mean to hurt you."
That was all she needed to hear. Elena kissed her father's cheek. "I forgive you. I understand you were worried. Do you still trust me?"
"It was never about trust, Elena. You have to understand that I was very worried about you when I found out that Alexander is involved with drugs. And when I found the pills in your room... Sweetheart, drugs have the power to ruin someone's life and they make no exceptions." He caressed his daughter's curls and kissed her temple. "I don't want that to happen to you."
"It won't. I'll never take that crap. I - I don't know what to think about Alex. It's wrong that he does drugs, but I think there's something the matter. I mean, he has panic attacks, and strange marks on his wrists."
"I know, Elena. I witnessed one of his panic attacks and the doctors filled me in on his injuries." Booth slowly blew out his breath. "I need to talk to your mom. Would you mind picking up your brother from day-care?"
Elena shook her head. "Does my face look weird?" she asked him, worried that people, especially her brother, would be able to see that she'd been crying.
"Maybe it's a good idea to wash your face before you leave," he told her as he wiped away the last of her tears. "I love you, Elena."
"I know that. But I need you to know you can trust me. You and Mom raised me right, okay? I know what's right and wrong. And what's plain stupid, like drugs."
"I know you're smart and that you are responsible," Booth told her softly. "But I need to talk about this with your mother. Can you please go and pick up your brother?"
"Yes. I'll make sure he gets home safely." Elena hesitated before she got up from his lap. "So do you trust me or not?"
Booth pulled her back into his embrace. "Yes, Elena. I trust you."
"Good, because I trust you, too," she said and hugged him back. "I'll go wash my face and pick up Tommy." With that, Elena left for the bathroom.
Booth got up and walked into the hallway. "Bones?"
Brennan emerged from Elena's room. She'd made her daughter's bed while Elena talked with her dad. "Did you two make up?" Brennan asked him.
"Yes." He put his hand on the small of her back and guided her to their bedroom. "I need to talk to you," he told her softly as he closed the door behind them.
"What's going on, Booth? This case is becoming extremely unnerving."
"I don't want her to see Alexander anymore until I've figured out how involved he is in this case and whether or not he is a junkie," Booth cut to the chase.
"I don't know if she'll accept that," Brennan warned him. "She thinks of him as a friend."
"Brenn, I know she won't agree with this. That's why I need your help. We need to be a team. I know she thinks of him as a friend. And I know that she'll think this is the ultimate proof that we don't trust her, but it's not her that I don't trust. I don't want her to be put in a dangerous situation. We have to protect her."
Brennan nodded and took his hand in hers. "All right. I can see that. But let's try not to directly forbid her anything, it will only make things worse. If she has plans to meet him, go with her, or just give her the information she wants about how he's doing," Brennan advised Booth, who could sometimes forget that his daughter was more stubborn than the two of them combined.
"I don't want her to see him again, Bones. God, don't you understand? I've seen countless teenagers in the short time that I was a cop in the narcotics department. I will not let my daughter get into that situation."
"I know that, but right now, you only have parts of the story. Until you have proof against the boy, Elena won't let you keep her away from him unless you do it subtly."
"And what if I only have the best parts of the story? What if everything else that we still need to learn, is worse than what we already know? I can take her anger Bones, but not her demise."
"Look, let's just try to distract her from Alexander until you have definitive evidence against him. Ask about school and gymnastics, don't mention the case when she's around. Perhaps we should ask her to find a vacation destination so she'll be occupied," Brennan suggested.
"Okay," Booth agreed reluctantly, "but she's not meeting that boy without my supervision. And if she does, she's grounded."
"I don't like those types of punishment - or punishments at all, but okay," Brennan reluctantly agreed, knowing that for Booth, too, this was a big deal.
"I don't like punishing her either, she's a good kid, but I'm not trying to be cruel here, Bones. I'm trying to protect her the only way I know how."
"I know that your intentions are good. Consult me before getting into any kind of punishment, though, because Elena's very sensitive right now and I don't want her to get hurt."
Booth nodded. "I will. Do you think it would be okay with her if I ask her to not meet him on her own?" He sat down on their bed and looked up at his wife.
"Yes, that should be acceptable to her." Brennan walked up to him and leaned in to give him a kiss. "I know this case is hard on you. I'm here if you need me," she told him.
"Oh, I need you," he reassured her and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Lay down with me for a moment?" he asked her softly.
They heard the front door close downstairs, signalling that Elena had left to pick up her brother. Brennan took off her shoes and lay down next to him. "Are you going to go back to work today?"
"Yes, I am. I need to talk to the ER doctor, so he can give me a list of Alexander's injuries. Then, I will contact our ME and have her compare Alexander's injuries to those you discovered. She's an old friend. I wish I could stay home, though," he snuggled closer to her. "After all, I promised you a date night."
"We can postpone our date night. I won't hold it against you, I promise," Brennan smiled at him and ran her fingers through his short hair. "And if your ME can't give you conclusive results, I can re-do the comparison for you."
Booth nodded. "I'd still rather go out on a date with you, darling."
"Of course you would," she chuckled. "But it can wait. This case has been eating on both of us; finishing it has priority."
"Yes. Especially now that somehow our daughter got involved." Booth sighed and sat up again. "I really have to get going, Brenn. I'll try to be home as soon as possible."
"Don't worry about us; I'll make sure the kids are safe and taken care of." Brennan got off the bed and pulled him up until he was standing against her. She gave him a long, heart-felt kiss before taking a step back. "I know you can solve this case, Booth."
He nodded. "I will." He kissed her back tenderly. "Will you talk to Elena? About not meeting Alexander on her own anymore? At least not for the time being?"
"I will. It's better if I tell her, anyway." Brennan took his hand and they walked downstairs together. She quickly put the left-over salad from the previous night into his bag, along with a bottle that she filled with green smoothie. "This should help you keep going for a while," she told him as she handed him his bag. "Take your time. I'll wait for you."
"I love you, you know that?" Booth said as he smiled softly. "If she's too upset about it, please call me and then I'll come home. My family is my number one priority." When Brennan nodded, he quickly kissed her lips. "I'm sorry about this. I'll make it up to you." He gave her a hug and then left with the food she'd given him, already forward to returning home.
So, are you more in Booth's or Brennan's camp on the is-Elena-taking-drugs issue? We promise a fast update and we really hope more of you are inspired to post a review, your words make our day and are a big motivation and reward for our writing!