Disclaimer: Bones belongs to Kathy Reichs, Hart Hanson, and Fox.
AN: It is not a true B&B tale without an element of danger. In the last chapter a new character was introduced. This chapter is dedicated to establishing his development because he will be showing up again. Also, what you need to know about this chapter…
Timeline: It is set a little bit before last chapter and runs until it overlaps and goes from there, and whenever (except for when he sees her outside of the YMCA)Temperance is mentioned in this chapter she is nothing more than a hallucination, part of his psychosis.
"Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before."
Edgar Allan Poe
Chapter 18
All That We See Or Seem Is But A Dream Within A Dream
She watched him as he walked through the door. Ten Bells was her usual haunt and she definitely hadn't seen him in here before. There was something very elemental about him. Like a jungle cat he conveyed a sense of barely leashed power.
She was immediately intrigued.
He made his way to the bar.
His fluid movements emphasized the play of his muscles beneath his fitted shirt.
He sat on a barstool.
As soon as he had a drink in his hand he spun around on his stool.
He began to survey the room with his eyes.
She smiled because she knew that look.
He was trolling.
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One hour later…
Their eyes locked again.
She got up from her table.
There was an exaggerated sway to her hips as she headed for the bar.
She sat on the empty stool beside him.
"This is the part where you buy me a drink."
He smiled at her.
"Is that a fact?"
She returned his smile.
"Absolutely! Judging from the way that you have been staring at me for the past hour, you owe me."
"Can't argue with that. What are you drinking?"
"Cranberry Vodka."
He motioned for the bartender and when he had his attention he ordered her drink.
"I'm Ginger by the way."
He nodded.
"And you are?"
"Since when are names necessary in your line of work?"
His tone wasn't condemning just genuinely curious. It occurred to her then that this guy was either a cop, or a regular John. Maybe both. In any event, finding out wasn't worth the jail time.
The bartender placed her drink in front of her.
"Thanks for the drink," she said as she picked it up and turned to leave.
He grabbed her wrist.
"How much?"
She glanced down at her wrist.
He didn't let her go.
So he was going to push it. She took a deep breath. If he could call her on her profession she would call him on his.
"100 dollars an hour, and that's the discounted rate for our boys in blue."
"I'm not a cop."
"But you are a regular?"
He let her wrist go.
"You could say that."
"Then you can still have the discount."
"Lets go."
He hopped off of the stool and was heading for the door before she could even respond.
She chugged her drink and slammed her glass down on the bar before she rushed after him.
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At the same time that he was leaving the bar a group of people were leaving the YMCA from across the street.
When he saw her, his eyes burned with rage and betrayal.
"Slut!"
He took a few steps backwards and bumped right into the hooker that he had acquired for the night.
"You ok baby," Ginger whispered in a very practiced sultry voice?
"I'm fine," he hissed as he roughly grabbed her upper arm and practically dragged her to his car.
It was like someone had flipped the switch. Gone was the charming man from the bar. Here be the beast!
The hold he had on her arm as he rushed her towards his vehicle was uncomfortable, easily bordering on painful.
She was aroused.
"You like it rough don't you," she purred as he pressed her into the side of his car?
He just looked at her.
"It's okay baby, I like it rough too."
He whipped the car door open and pushed her down onto the seat.
She smiled up at him as she swung her long legs into the car.
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They coasted through another green light.
"So where are we going," she asked as she looked out the window searching for street signs and familiar landmarks.
He didn't answer.
She glanced over at him.
His jaw was clenched and his grip on the wheel was tight.
"Relax baby," she whispered as she ran her hand over his thigh.
Slowly he turned his head towards her.
The look in his eyes caused her blood to run cold. In her line of work she had experienced a few occasions in which she had seen that look before, and that look only belonged to the most violent of criminals, unredeemable monsters that didn't possess any of the emotions associated with the human condition.
She forced a smile on her lips.
"Sorry," she whispered as she yanked her hand away.
When his focus was back on the road she forced air in and out of her lungs. She was trying not to panic, but she never ignored her instincts, and right now they were screaming at her to run away.
Mercifully they caught a red light.
She reached for the door handle.
She was fast but he was faster.
His fist connected with her cheek with enough force to cause her head to slam into the passenger side window.
She lost consciousness.
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He took her to a heavily wooded area.
There were only two other cars in the motel's parking lot. One belonged to the extremely hard of hearing owner and the other belonged to a barely functioning alcoholic.
He had picked this place for its isolation and privacy.
She regained consciousness as he hauled her from the car by her hair.
She started screaming for help.
Frantically she clawed at his hand and kicked her legs, but she couldn't break away, he was too strong.
He shoved her into his room.
Tears were streaming down her face.
Her throat was raw from screaming.
"How long did you wait before going to him?"
"I… I have no idea what you're talking about," she sobbed!
He spun away from her and slammed the door shut.
"Doesn't matter," he whispered.
Slowly he turned around.
His gaze settled on the small table and empty chair that were just to the left of where she was standing.
She scanned the room for a weapon.
"Temperance didn't you know that I was coming back for you?"
Temperance just shrugged her shoulders in response.
"Better pay attention," Temperance warned.
But Temperance's warning came to late.
He turned right into the lamp that was being swung at his head.
He crumpled to the floor.
She ran for the door, but before she could open it, his hand locked around her ankle like a vice.
She screamed.
He jerked her down to the floor.
Before she could move he was on her, yanking her up by her hair.
As soon as he had her on her feet he shoved her into the very door that she had tried to escape through.
"Say you're sorry!"
When she didn't respond right away he flipped her around so she was facing him.
He slammed her head back against the door.
"Say you're sorry."
"Fuck you," she hissed!
She spat in his face.
He dislocated her thumb.
The pain from her thumb radiated all the way up her arm.
"Say you're sorry."
"No," she managed to choke out!
He dislocated her index finger.
When she refused again he popped her thumb back into its joint.
She screamed.
"Say…"
"Sssorry!"
He set her index finger.
She nearly blacked out.
He grabbed her by her triceps and spun her away from the door.
He moved her towards the middle of the room, continuing to back her up until her legs bumped against the mattress.
"Now tell me that you love me."
"Please…"
"Say it!"
Unwilling to face further torture she quickly complied.
"I love you," she said in a broken whisper.
He pushed her down on the mattress.
"I promise, I won't tell a soul! Just please, please let me go!"
"Never," he whispered fiercely before he placed a possessive kiss on her forehead!
"Why are you doing this," she cried?
He didn't answer her.
Before another word could cross her lips, his hands wrapped around her slender throat and he squeezed.
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At first she fought against him with everything she had.
She clawed at him and bucked wildly beneath him in an effort to throw him off.
Soon she was coughing and gasping.
Her arm stretched out for the phone on the nightstand, but she couldn't reach it.
Her strength was fading.
She began to feel cold.
He watched as the life slowly drained from her eyes.
For a moment, he saw her as his beloved Temperance, dying beneath his hands.
His grip tightened.
When she was finally still, he rolled out of the bed.
He stared down at the floor as he whispered, "You know why I had to do that right?"
Temperance got up from the chair and moved across the room until she was standing behind him. Close but not touching.
"For the same reason that you killed all of the others, because I needed to be punished, and I still do."
They booth looked at the dead hooker.
"I'm carrying his child."
He closed his eyes, pained by her words.
"If I have the baby I'll never be yours."
He opened his eyes.
"You still want me don't you?"
He could hear the pout in her voice.
"Of course I do!"
Her lips were mere inches from his ear as she whispered, "Then what are you going to do about it?"
A/N: Ok that granted that was dark, but I think this twist makes the story far more interesting. If you agree and want to know what he will be doing about it, let me know.