Dearest Readers,
I am thoroughly regretful and…embarrassed by my neglect to update this fanfic. No excuse that I give will make up for my failure to do so. I have decided to continue on with "Journey" because of the guilt I've felt, reading so many of your reviews. I'd like to say a special thanks to Cassiopeia823 kicking my butt into gear. Sorry, again, to all my subscribers and readers. I've written this extra long chapter just for you.
Disclaimer: I do not own Bones. If I did, we'd see a heck of a lot more Zach.
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Angela studied the computer screen for a moment more, before disgustedly throwing the computer mouse in her hand into the garbage can on the side of her desk.
"Couldn't find anything?" Temperance Brennan guessed, stepping into the office of her best female companion.
"Sweetie, his symptoms could range from food poisoning to snake venom. Way too big a gap to trace any leads."
"Of course," the forensic anthropologist said, placing a hand on her temples, "I should have realized that. I'm just so…"
"Stressed?" the other woman guessed as her friend just nodded sadly, "We all are. I hate to say 'don't worry' because I know that's pretty much impossible, but try not to stress too much. It's not good for the brain, if you know what I mean. Under pressure, people tend to make mistakes," she offered a small smile to her colleague.
"I know, Ange. I know. I just feel so…responsible for this, somehow."
"Honey, if you blame anyone, it should be me," the artist stood up from her chair and made her way to the door.
"Angela…" Dr. Brennan started, before being interrupted by Agent Seeley Booth.
"Come on ladies. I'll take you both home," he motioned to them to follow him.
"Home? Home? Are you kidding me, Booth?"
"See Bren. This is what I meant about getting too stressed," the artist patted the infuriated woman's arm, gently.
Temperance ignored Angela's warnings and went on, "Booth, I need to be here! I need to continue investigation. Anything! Going home is like giving up!"
"No," her partner dodged the verbal attack, "Going home is taking a break. Zach wouldn't want you to work yourself to death."
Angela whispered in Booth's ear, "I'm going to go check up on Jack," and made her escape.
That left Booth standing in front of his partner while tears started to well up in her eyes.
"No. You're wrong," she spluttered, "Zach would have stayed with me, investigating, if any of you had been taken captive. He would have never left my side."
"Hey," Booth coaxed placing an arm on her shoulder, "Bones…Temperance, if that's what you really want then I'll be by your side as you examine things as long as you want. Even if I have to sleep on the couch in your office, I'll be there for you. It won't be the same as Zach, I know that, but I'll try to help you as much as you want. I promise you that."
When she didn't answer, Booth tilted his head sideways to peer at her face that was draped with her long brown locks. Tears were now flowing freely down her porcelain cheeks. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sniffled into his shoulder. Booth smiled, but after looking at the clock, his smile faded. 10:45. This was going to be a long night.
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Angela was behind Hodgins, trying to surprise him by sneaking up behind him and giving him a kiss.
"Angela. I know you're behind me."
"God Jack!" the woman put a hand to her heart, "You scared me there."
"You think I wouldn't know if my own fiancée snuck up on me?" he turned around in his chair to look at her, making her smile gently, "Are you ready to go home?"
"Home?" she raised an eyebrow.
"To your apartment. Or mine, if you'd like. Ladies choice," he smirked at her.
She snickered, "Actually, Booth already offered me a ride, but I declined."
"Oh really?" he questioned, "And why is that?"
"Well…" she started, "I kinda wanted to stay here with Brennan. She's real torn up about the kidnapping. She refuses to go home. And you know, if Bren wants to stay, then it's a given that Booth will be staying here with her."
Hodgins smiled, "Yeah. Those two really have it bad," he then proceeded to stand up and walk to the doorway.
"Wait," the female turned to him with confusion on her rather attractive face, "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to tell Cam that she doesn't have to lock up when she goes home. It looks like we have a long and dull night ahead of us."
Angela's face turned up into a wide grin, "No wonder I decided to marry you."
"Well, I couldn't just leave you here," he explained, "Or well, I guess I could have, but that wouldn't have been very gentlemanly of me," his face brightened, masking some of the obvious stress and pain that he had been through in the past few months, "Shall we?" his hand extended towards hers.
She gratefully took his hand and the two lovers silently walked to their boss's office.
Ten minutes later, the couple found themselves cowering by their superior's desk, while she looked at them in utter disgust.
"You what?"
"We wanted to tell you that there would be no need for you to lock up the lab tonight because Angela, Dr. B, Booth, and I were going to be staying a little late," Jack repeated, slightly annoyed, but a little fearful.
"Why?" Cam asked skeptically.
"Because Bren is unhealthily obsessed with her investigation of the crime scene, and we wanted to stay to help," the other woman said, fidgeting nervously, "And for moral support," she added.
"No, no," Dr. Saroyan closed her eyes and sighed, "Why did you assume that I was going to leave, tonight?"
Both were taken aback by this question.
"Really, you think that I don't care as much about Zach as the rest of you? I might have been in denial before," she eyed Angela, "But now I know that I can't be so closed off. I can't stay away from the crime scene any more than Dr. Brennan. You could call it obsession or you could call it determination. But whatever you call it, I am most certainly NOT leaving."
The artist beamed warmly at the other woman, "Okay," she said, "Let's go help Brennan, then."
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"Booth? Booth, wake up," a voice whispered through the fog crowding the FBI agent's mind.
Booth's eyes slowly sought their way through the mist, and he saw the face of his curious partner staring intently at him. Her face was only a few inches away from his, and he jumped back in surprise.
"Geez, Bones! You scared me," he stifled a yawn.
"I just woke you up, don't have a myocardial infarction," the woman rolled her eyes.
"Don't have a what now?"
"A heart attack, Booth. A myocardial infarctio-"
"Never mind, never mind," Seeley exasperatedly ran a hand through his hair, "What time is it anyways?"
"9:30," his partner replied, briskly.
"9…9:30? As in 9:30 a.m.? I've been here all night?!?"
"Well…actually all night and all morning. You've been asleep since 1:30 a.m. But look on the brilliant side. You don't have to get up and drive to work, since you're already here."
It was Booth's turn to roll his eyes, "It's bright side, Bones. And anyways, is everyone else here?"
"We're all here," Angela's voice sounded from the doorway, "Hodgins, Cam, and I."
Booth turned to Angela, "So did we find anything?"
Angela rubbed her eyes and shrugged, "As far as I can see…no. But I haven't really been amazingly helpful these past few hours. I could really use some coffee. I'll have to go down to the cafeteria and make myself a cup."
"You can use this one," Brennan gestured to the coffee machine sitting on her desk, hooked up the outlet on the wall.
The artist's eyes widened, "You got a coffee machine in your office?"
"Actually," Temperance smirked, "I kind of stole it from the cafeteria. I don't think they'll mind. And it was just for last night. I've already had four cups."
"Four cups of coffee, Bones?" Booth's eyes boggled, "That can't be healthy."
"I beg to differ. It's much better for you than those energy drinks you've tried to get me to buy in the past."
"It's just ginseng and guarana. That's natural, right?" the special agent questioned his partner.
"While those are natural stimulants, energy drinks increase your heart rate and are loaded with sugar. Plus, caffeine levels in most energy drinks are higher than the FDA limit," the anthropologist retorted.
"Where do you get this stuff?" Seeley asked, furrowing his eyebrows.
"The Boston Globe published an article about energy drinks that I found most interesting," she stated, simply.
"Leave it to you to remember everything you've ever read," Booth rolled his eyes and yawned again.
Angela bit back a giggle. It was amusing watching their every day banter. Even about such insignificant things like energy drinks. It gave her a small joy in this time full of angst and worry. "Oh Zach," she thought biting her lip, "Where the hell are you?"
Just then Hodgins came around the corner. He stopped at the entrance to Dr. Brennan's office and planted a small kiss on his fiancé's temple.
"We've got something," Hodgins announced looking at the bickering partners.
Dr. Brennan turned from the argument, "What? What did you find?"
"Well…" Hodgins began, "I tested the scrap of paper that I found for finger prints, and got nothing. So then, Cam suggested we run some chemical tests on it."
"Chemical tests?" Booth squinted, questioningly, "On a scrap of paper?"
"We were running out of leads. It was the only thing that she or I could think of. You should see her over there. She's working like a madwoman. She's really concerned about Zach. Those two must have been closer than I thought."
"Dr. Hodgins," Temperance interrupted, impatiently, "You said that you found something?"
"Oh right," Hodgins embarrassedly glanced sideways, "Sorry Dr. B. Anyways, we ran the tests. I found traces of ethoxylated nonylphenol surfactant, ammonia, and methyl acetate on the paper."
Booth grunted, "And that means?
Hodgins cleared his throat, "Those chemicals are used in a lot of different items, but together they have one thing in common," he looked at his eager audience and continued, "Combined, they're used in stainless steel cleaners."
"Stainless steel cleaners?" Angela raised her eyebrow.
"But the paper wasn't just splattered with stainless steel cleaner or touched by someone who had the cleaner on their hands. It was soaked in the stuff. Absolutely drenched. It even smells like ammonia. And have you ever been to the store to buy stainless steel cleaner?"
"Can't say I have," Booth scoffed in annoyance.
Hodgins sent a pointed glare towards the FBI agent, "I have a stainless steel grill on my patio. First of all, the bottle of cleaner that I bought for it was only about three inches tall. Secondly, you're only supposed to use a tiny dab of the cleaner on a wash cloth to polish the stainless steel."
"So what you're saying…" Brennan spoke, deep in thought, "Is that the second apprentice would need to have a sufficient amount of this cleaner to soak that little scrap of paper?"
"Exactly," Hodgins said, "And I noticed something else."
"Wait, hold on a minute. What if the cleaner just fell and spilled all over the paper?" Booth asked, suspiciously.
"I thought of that," Hodgins smiled sheepishly, "It's a possibility, I won't deny that fact."
"But you said you noticed something else," Angela prompted.
"Yeah," Hodgins nodded, "It's not just any old paper. It's the kind of paper that you might print business cards out on or informational cards."
Temperance frowned, "Business cards and stainless steel cleaners. It's not very much, but it's more than we had. It's something start on. Nice work, Hodgins," she commended.
"Don't thank me, Dr. B," Hodgins gave her a half smile, "Thank Cam. She did most of the work. I just helped."
"Speaking of Cam," Booth broke in, "Where is she."
Dr. Hodgins let out a short chuckle, "Probably still on the platform."
Angela sighed, "She's looks like a mess. I slept for a few hours and so did Jack. But she stayed up working the whole time."
"I stayed up the whole night," Bones pointed out to all of them.
"Yeah," Booth replied, "But you don't run like a normal human should. You have some kind of everlasting batteries that don't need recharged."
His partner grinned and swatted him on the arm, "That's ridiculous, Booth. Everyone needs to sleep."
Angela and her soon-to-be husband shared a knowing glance. While their bickering was amusing, sometimes Jack wished that they'd just sleep together and get it over with.
Angela coughed loudly and brought everyone back to attention, "Should we head up and check on Cam?"
Seeley nodded and all of them proceeded down the hallway to the platform. They were met by the sight of a sleep deprived Camille Saroyan, leaning against the examination table and struggling to keep her eyes open.
"Cam," Booth called to her and freed her from her trance-like state.
"Hmm?" Cam blinked and straightened up immediately, "Oh hello, Seeley. Discover anything on your end?"
"Not really," he answered and swiped his card as he mounted the stairs to reach her, "You look awful."
Cam glared at him, "That's just what every woman wants to hear early in the morning."
The FBI agent rolled his eyes, "You know what I meant Camille. You need to get some rest."
"I'll get some rest. I'll go to sleep, when I get home."
"And when'll that be?" her long term friend remarked, staring into her drowsy eyes, "Later tonight, early morning tomorrow? I don't think so. We'll all be heading home soon."
"No," his defiant partner's voice came from behind him, "I'm not leaving."
Seeley Booth ran a hand down his faces and let out a groan, "Come on, Bones. I'll give you an hour, but then I'm taking you home. Everyone'll come back for a fresh start tomorrow."
Angela bobbed her head in agreement, "It'll be easier to get some work done, when you're well rested," she placed her hand on Temperance's shoulder, "It's the best for you and for this investigation."
Brennan looked up at her companions in defeat, "Fine. One hour. But we're not leaving any sooner."
Just then, a certain young psychologist came striding through the doors of the Jeffersonian. He jogged his way to the platform and scanned his own card to be permitted in. "Were you guys here all night?" he questioned in astonishment, seeing their worn out faces.
All five heads went up and down in unison. Sweets scratched his head, "Did you make any progress with finding the bad guy?"
Booth frowned at the young man's choice of words, "If you're asking if we discovered who the bad guy was, then the answer is no. But we found traces stainless steel cleaner on the scrap of paper found at the crime scene."
Hodgins rolled his eyes, "Cam, Angela, and I found the traces. You just fell asleep on Dr. B's sofa."
Booth folded his arms across his chest and grumbled. Sweets let out a small laugh before becoming silent, when the intimidating FBI agent glowered at him.
"Let's get to work, then," Dr. Brennan commanded to her colleagues and they continued to look for the one thing they feared might not even be there.
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A silver convertible approached the Jeffersonian parking lot and came to a halt. The young man resting in the back seat felt a fist strike him in the shoulder. He opened his weary eyes and saw his captor holding a box in his hands.
"This is your stop, twit. Get out of the car."
Dr. Addy peered up at the face of his master and nodded, "Will you return the car?"
"What?"
"Will you return this car to its rightful owner?"
"Of course not, stupid. I'll get rid of it and destroy the evidence. But you already knew that."
Zach nodded his head. He did know; he was just hoping the apprentice would forget.
The man grabbed him by his shirt collar, "Listen here, you sad excuse for a human being. If anything goes wrong…if you screw anything up, your friends will pay the price for your mistake."
Again, Zach nodded in obedience, "Yes."
"Yes what?"
"Yes, master."
"Very good," the apprentice said gruffly, "Now get out there!"
The young forensic anthropologist hurried out of the car, with the box of remains in one gloved hand and the lethal capsule in the other. Each step he took brought him closer and closer to his doom. But he was glad for it. He was glad that, while he would be gone, his only friends would live on. And lead better lives than he would have ever lead his.
He tapped on the door to his home, gently. And then, he waited. He waited for the end of his life to begin.
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"Did you hear anything?"
Hodgins turned to face his fiancée, "What?"
"I…never mind," Angela's eyes swept over his concerned expression and flew down to the ground, "I thought I heard something. I think the sleep deprivation is finally getting to me."
"Actually, Angela, I doubt that you'd be suffering from hallucinations. You've only been up for a mere 24 to 26 hours, I'm guessing," Sweets commented, walking by.
Angela shook her head and ignored his remark. She looked up at Hodgins and mumbled under her breath, "I haven't gotten much sleep, lately."
Though the words were garbled, Hodgins understood. He brushed his thumb over her smooth cheek. "Neither have I," he admitted, sheepishly, "Not even with your company. As much as it comforts me to have you with me, at night…"
"It's not enough," the woman finished for him, "I know. I can't imagine how it would be, without you constantly at my side. I guess, sometimes, it's the tragedies that pull those who struggle…closer."
"Rather bittersweet, isn't it?" Hodgins smirked, "It's incredible what people take for granted."
Angela nodded in agreement, "It is."
Meanwhile, Angela was not the only who seemed to hear this mysterious tapping noise. Cam focused on the faint knocking noise, trying to place where it was sounding from.
"You got something?" Booth asked her, quietly.
"Hmm?" Cam blinked several times, trying to make sense of his words, "Got something? No. I just thought I heard something knocking."
Booth's face became curious, "Knocking?"
"You don't think someone could be at the door…"
"During a squint squad investigation power hour?" Booth snickered at his own joke, "Not a chance. No one would dare interrupt Bones' concentration. Not if they wanted to live anyways."
Dr. Saroyan smiled, sadly, "I'm worried, Seeley. I'm worried that…I'll never be able to tell Zach…how sorry I am. Sorry for pretending that I didn't care about him," she bit her lip, trying to hold back her tears that threatened to pour over.
"Hey, hey," Booth wrapped one arm around her, "We'll find him, Camille," he tried to convince her and himself.
"Does anyone else seem to hear…?" Brennan paused a moment, "…some sort of tapping noise?"
"Alright," the FBI agent grunted, pulling his arm away from Cam, "I guess it's time to go investigate."
Everyone started to make their way toward the Jeffersonian entrance. Sweets hesitated behind. "Are you sure, guys?" he wavered, "It could be some sort of trap."
"Well," Booth called over his shoulder, "You don't have to come, if you don't want to."
Sweets sighed, resentfully and followed them.
Booth was first out the door, "Hello?" When no one answered, he put one hand on his gun and took out his badge. "FBI! Show yourself!"
A slouching figure emerged from behind a parked car.
"Zach," Angela cried, breathlessly. She moved towards him.
"Stay back," Zach warned, and then winced at his own tone. Angela took a step back, and Booth motioned her over. "Go call the police," he commanded, silently. Angela obeyed, running into the lab. She was followed by the antsy entomologist.
"I've come," began Dr. Addy, "To deliver something…for you, Dr. Brennan."
Bones stepped forward, but Booth kept a tight grasp on her arm. "I'm afraid Bones can't accept that package you've got, Zach."
"Booth," Temperance glared at him, "I can take care of myself." She walked over to her former intern. "Hand the package to me, Zach," she held out her hand, with wide eyes.
The boy gave her the cardboard box containing the present from his master. Clutching the tiny capsule in his bandaged hand, he raised it to his open lips.
Booth reacted quickly and slammed Zach's head to the pavement, before the young man could tell what hit him. The pill clattered to the ground.
"Agent Booth!" Sweets cautioned, in shock, "You can't hurt him. He hasn't done anything wrong. The other apprentice was just using him to deliver a message."
"It's not that," Booth climbed off Zach, who was grasping his head in pain, "Look at this," he held up the capsule as evidence, while keeping the younger anthropologist pinned to the ground, with one hand.
Brennan stepped forward and stared at the poison resting in her partner's hand, "Zach."
"I didn't…" Dr. Addy tried to speak clearly, but his voice was mangled with hysteria, "I couldn't! I had to! You don't know what you've done!" his words were panicked, uncharacteristically, "I was trying to save you!"
"Save us?" Camille asked, her voice rising an octave.
Everyone turned to see Hodgins fling open the door. "Guys," he shook his head, disbelievingly, fear evident in his tone, "I can't find her."
Booth's brow furrowed, "What do you mean? Can't find who?"
"Angela," Jack spoke in a low voice, "She's gone."
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I hope the energy drink argument wasn't too much a tangent. I had actually been researching different energy stimulants and their effects in my Health class, when I had written that portion of the chapter.
I hope you enjoyed Chapter 9 of "Journey."
Please review! Concrit is welcomed.