Chapter 14

Sweets and Wendell tried to talk about the case but soon gave up when they could barely elicit a response from either Booth or Brennan. They would have exchanged looks but Booth kept checking the rearview mirror and they were too afraid. Brennan was looking through a file on her lap. Booth kept trying to glance into the file, every time he would try Brennan would lift the left side of the file to block his view. Finally he was driven to speak.

"Bones."

"Booth."

"I think we should talk about..."

"No." Brennan said quietly but definitively.

"The case, Bones, I want to talk about the case."

"There is nothing to discuss, I know what I need to see and need to ask."

"Yes, but Wendell and Sweets may not. Don't you think you should tell them?"

"They can't be objective if I tell them my hypothesis."

"Is there something we should maybe talk about?" Sweets asked.

"No!" came the unanimous answer. Wendell did not want to know what was going on, he just wanted to be back at the lab.

"There seems to be some unresolved tension that you two need to deal with."

"Sweets, if you ask me again I will shoot you." Booth said.

"Dr. Brennan, you seem upset about something. Is there anything you'd like to say."

"No, Dr. Sweets. I would like to look over the evidence."

"I thought you said you knew what you needed. It is interesting that you two aren't discussing the case, or arguing about the motive. Especially you, Dr. Brennan, you are usually more talkative." Booth pulled the SUV over. He turned in his seat to look at Sweets.

"Sweets, leave her alone!" he roared. "Bones, out!"

"No."

"Now."

"Fine!" They climbed out of the car. Booth glared at Sweets, communicating clearly that he should sit back and wait for them. Booth and Brennan met in front of the SUV. Sweets looked at Wendell.

"I'm going to roll down the window a little bit."

"Don't you dare!" Wendell said. "Booth was a sniper, he'll hear that seal break. Brennan is the best forensic anthropologist in the world. Booth will kill us and no one will ever find the bodies! Just sit there and stare at your knees." They looked down not daring to look up.

"Look Bones, I get that you don't want to talk about this right now. Fine, I respect that. I need you to look at me though."

"Booth, I need to focus." Booth glanced into the SUV and saw the two men trying not to look up. He gently grabbed Brennan's arm and ushered her to the back corner. He leaned with his right side against the window, shielding Brennan from view.

"Listen, we are going to search a lab where a psychopath may have melted a guy and poured him into a sand pit. I need you to look at me so I can communicate with you if the situation turns on us."

"Booth, I can take care of myself." Brennan met his gaze, her eyes were dark and angry. "I want to know who those bone fragments belong to , I want to catch whoever did this. That's all." She walked around him and got back into the SUV. Booth joined them without a word and began driving.

"So..." Sweets started.

"Tch!" Wendell barked. Turning to Wendell, Sweets raised his eyebrows.

"But..."

"Hup!"

"Wendell, I have more than one doctorate..."

"You don't have the gun. I know Booth does and I'm highly suspicious that Brennan has a rather large one hidden somewhere. Just shut up!" Neither Booth nor Brennan could stifle a small smile at them. They spent the rest of the drive in a tense silence.

They met a team of four FBI agents at the medical lab. Before Booth had the SUV in park, Brennan was out approaching the other agents. By the time Booth, Wendell and Sweets joined her, she was briefing the agents.

"We are going to retrieve all of the research notes from Dr. James Sullivan. We are also looking for chemicals that are out of place for his research. If you find any bottles, jars, or packages that are marked with any chemical symbols, please don't touch it. Notify me or Mr. Bray. This warrant allows us access to his lab and his office and any storage closet used by him, no other labs or rooms. Let's go." Brennan walked to Wendell and picked up a hard black plastic box that looked like a giant tackle box and walked into the medical lab building. Booth tried to catch up with her. Wendell and Sweets waited for everyone else before they entered. By the time they reached Dr. Sullivan's lab, Booth had caught up with Brennan and was matching her stride for stride. As they reached the door there was a silent scuffle and Booth and Brennan each tried to enter the room first. Booth entered the lab first.

A young man was buttoning his shirt while Dr. Sullivan wiped gel from his forehead. Dr. Sullivan looked up as they entered furrowing his brow for an instant. He turned to the young man, smiled politely and nodded. Dr. Sullivan walked to Booth and Brennan.

"Dr. Sullivan, we have a..." Booth started.

"Dr. Sullivan, could we speak with you for a moment please?" Brennan interrupted.

"Sure, of course, please step into my office." They followed him into his office and declined to sit.

"Dr. Sullivan, we would like to look at your research notes. We are hoping to find some connection that could help us find Robert Newton."

"I wish I could help you but as this research is medical in nature my research is protected by doctor/patient privilege."

"We did anticipate that and in order to allow you to help us legally, we obtained a warrant."

"Oh, well, that was thoughtful, I guess." Dr. Sullivan took the warrant and read it. "This warrant says you are looking for chemicals including hydrochloric acid and any chemicals that can be used to create hydrochloric acid."

"Well, I find that its best to find all potential evidence and then formulate a theory. If someone wanted to do him harm, volunteering to be a subject in your research could potentially give that person access to him, his personal information and your lab."

"Bones." Booth whispered.

"Well, I guess that makes sense." Dr. Sullivan grabbed a set of keys from his desk and unlocked a bank of file cabinets along the wall. Booth nodded to the lab and Brennan followed him.

"Guys, file cabinet in here." Booth called. "Bones," he whispered, "first, I can't believe you are lying that well, good for you, second, you are giving that guy his defense if he's the killer."

"That's why we are getting all the files. The only way he could even try to mount that defense is to find a connection in those files. If we have them, he can't, but we can. We have the advantage. Why didn't you tell me being a cop is like a chess game?"

"I'm impressed Bones, I don't think it was him, but I'm impressed."

"Dr. Brennan, I have Newton's file."

"Thanks Wendell." Brennan took the file and started reading. Booth wandered through the lab poking at things with his pen, looking in drawers and cabinets. The agents started boxing up files and loading them into their SUV. Brennan opened her laptop and connected a small scanner and started scanning Newton's file. After she had sent it to Cam, she joined Wendell, Sweets and Booth standing over a recliner.

"...talk to the ex-wife. Hey Dr. Brennan." Sweets was saying. "We were just discussing going to talk to the ex-wife while the agents finish packing this stuff up."

"I'd like to stay here to make sure they get everything."

"I can do that Dr. Brennan." Wendell said. "Dr. Sweets wants to see if everything is a great as it seems." Dr. Brennan shifted in place, looking around the lab. It was obvious she wanted to stay.

"This is going to take them another hour or two. We can go over and talk to her and be back before they finish the file cabinet." Booth said. Sweets noticed that while he smiled and wiggled his eyebrows, his tone was flat. Brennan bit her lip and looked around again.

"Okay." She relented. Booth clapped Wendell on the shoulder and they headed to Booth's SUV.