A/N: First, please accept my apologies for how late this is. I'm about to swear off multi-chapter fics for a bit - I know I'm not being fair to you readers.

Hopefully this chapter will make everyone feel better. One more after this!

Disclaimer: I own Bones! Oh, wait, these are just the Season 4 DVDs I got yesterday...never mind...

Touched By an Angel:

Booth blinked.

Okay. This didn't make any sense.

He was standing in what appeared to be a storage area. A huge silver chest freezer stood open, its motor humming.

And Hodgins and Bones were on the floor in front of it, performing CPR on…him.

He looked down on himself – the him that was standing there. He was wearing white slacks and a white button down shirt open at the neck. Frowning, he flexed his hand. No cut. He felt no pain, not even the typical aches and pains that were a part of his day…

But his…body…on the floor looked bad. Bruised, with a long scratch down one cheek and blood covering his right hand. And still. And pale.

As Booth watched, Hodgins placed two fingers onto his body's neck. "Still no pulse," he muttered. "Dr. B., is he breathing?"

Bones lifted her head up, and Booth could see her eyes were red and swollen. "No," she said, her voice choked. "Where is that backup? We need them!"

Their voices sounded distorted, as if he were hearing them on a badly tuned radio. He knelt down and tried to put a hand on Bones' shoulder, but he couldn't feel it. "Bones. Bones, I'm here. Do you hear me? I'm here."

He saw Bones' mouth over his as she breathed for him and he touched his own lips. The memory of the one time he'd kissed her – under the mistletoe, thanks to Caroline Julian – and wished he could feel her lips on his again.

"Hello, Booth."

The male voice caused Booth to twist to his feet. He found someone else was in the room.

The slender man was dressed in a white suit. His blond hair framed a kind face, and there seemed to be a glow about him.

Booth frowned. There was something familiar about the man's face…but it nibbled on the edge of his memory. "I – I'm sorry, do I know you?"

The man stepped closer. "My name is Andrew, Booth. And yes, you've seen me before. Though it's not something you would remember while you were alive…"

"What are you talking about?" Booth asked.

Andrew's smile grew sad. He placed a hand on Booth's shoulder.

Suddenly it was as if a door in Booth's head swung open, and memories poured out, memories of this man –

Andrew, wearing the uniform of one of Redjac's guards, visible just behind the general through Booth's rifle scope as he pulled the trigger…

Staring up from below Bones' balcony, his face stern as Howard Epps fell…

In a Ranger uniform, kneeling next to Booth's friend Roger, who he'd tried to shield but couldn't keep from dying…

In the small, horribly cramped hole Booth had been tossed in, gripping his hand as Booth felt his life slipping away inch by inch…

"You…" Booth had to swallow as the memories receded and he found Andrew's face blurring in front of him, "You're the Angel of Death?"

"Yes," Andrew nodded. "I am. God has sent me to you, Booth. I have a message for you."

Booth sank to his knees. He looked back at Bones and Hodgins, who were still performing CPR. The wail of sirens was in the distance.

Booth couldn't look up at Andrew, who looked so white, so pure…not when he knew…

"I'm sorry," he whispered, closing his eyes as tears tracked his cheeks. "I know I've failed…as a man, as a Catholic…I know where you're taking me."

He felt a hand on his chin. Booth opened his eyes to see Andrew kneeling in front of him, his expression a mixture a love and frustration.

"Don't you think you're presuming just a little, Booth? Perhaps you should hear what I have to say to you before you jump to conclusions."

"O-of course," Booth said. He felt his hands tighten into fists as he braced himself for the message God had sent to him.

"Here's the thing, Booth," Andrew said. "You are correct that you're a sinner, and there are some things God would like you to quit doing."

Andrew touched his shoulder again and Booth found himself remembering times he'd lost his temper, had taken God's name in vain, and other sins – including a couple of sexual fantasies that had him blushing.

The angel nodded, a glint of humor in his eyes. "Well, at least you can still be embarrassed, Booth. That's good. And God does want you to walk a bit closer in His ways."

Now both of the angel's hands were gripping Booth's shoulders. The agent couldn't tear his gaze from Andrew's face.

"One thing God does not want you to do is to continue to bear guilt that is not yours. The lives you've taken – God does not hold you accountable for their blood."

The statement stunned Booth. "But – but I killed them! I killed them in cold blood!"

"You took their lives," Andrew agreed. "But there are those whose hearts are so hardened by their sin they are beyond hope, beyond the grace of God because they have chosen to embrace evil. These men and women prey on the innocent without regard to God's wrath. In times like that, God needs a sword to deliver His judgment."

"Not all…" Booth thought about the man he'd killed that one Halloween, the sheriff who'd shot Bones…

"Many," Andrew said firmly. "And others – those lives you took in defense of an innocent one. God does not see the defense of the innocent as a sin. You shouldn't either."

Booth tried to process what the angel had said. God didn't see him as beyond saving? Despite what he'd done, God still –

"Yes, Booth," Andrew smiled. "God loves you. Very much. And He isn't the only one."

Booth followed the angel's gaze to his body. Medical personnel had taken Bones and Hodgins' places and were trying to resuscitate him. Hodgins had an arm around Bones, who was crying and trembling as she watched their efforts.

"What –" he looked at his best friend, and he thought of Parker, with a pang – "What happens now? Purgatory?"

"No," Andrew said, pulling Booth to his feet. "God still has work for you to do, Booth. He just used this situation to bring us together. You're going back."

A feeling of relief swept over Booth. He immediately felt chagrined. "It – it's not that I'm not looking forward to Heaven, I hope God understands…"

Andrew laughed. After a moment Booth found himself joining in with the angel.

"He does understand, Booth, and he loves you," Andrew said, chuckling. "Now, are you ready?"

Booth nodded, trying not to flinch as the angel reached for him again. Before Andrew touched him Booth realized he had one more question. "Will I remember this?"

Andrew gave him a kind look as he rested his palm on Booth's chest, over his heart. "Just what you need to remember, Booth. Just what you need."

With that, the angel pushed Booth in the chest, hard.

All at once it was dark, and Booth had the sensation of falling. His senses became flooded with information – the cold hard floor under his body, the pain in his chest, and the smell of electricity. A metallic taste soured his mouth, and he gasped as voices overlapped around him –

"He's breathing!"

"I've got a pulse. Let's get him stabilized and outta here!"

"Booth!"

He heard Bones call his name, but he couldn't answer. Darkness pulled at him, and he was too weak to fight it.

But it was okay. Somehow he knew that even as he slipped into unconsciousness now, it wouldn't be forever.

He'd wake up. He'd be okay.

God would make sure if it.

A/N2: I LOVE the show "Touched By an Angel." I've toyed with a crossover between it and Bones but could never quite come up with a story. This will have to do for now...