Survivor's guilt. That's what they called it. A mental condition that occurs when a person perceives himself to have done wrong by surviving a traumatic event. Or at least that's how she would probably define it. He just knew it as the all consuming grief he felt eating away at him as he sat by his partner's prone body, trying to stop the life from leaking out of her. He pleaded for her to hang in there, pressed the torn remnants of his tuxedo to her torso, watched as she gaped like a fish with each ragged breath. Yet at the back of his mind, the survivor's guilt persisted. If he had been that much quicker, been one step closer, it could be him instead. And he was angry as hell.

He bellowed to the others to get help, find a first aid kit, a satellite phone, anything. They all stood watching in a pale, shocked stupor. Finally the nameless security guard blinked out of his suspended state, running out of the room to try to be of use.

He gripped her hand tightly, her own hold weak in turn. Her eyes stayed locked on his while he tried to stem the steady flow from her abdomen. Welby had deliberately turned the knife on her and Booth felt anger wash over him, though his terror remained prominent. He felt Samuel press another dress jacket into his hand, replacing Booth's jacket on Bones' stomach. When they lifted the first jacket, sodden with blood, Booth's stomach churned at the ragged hole in her side.

The security guard returned, saying something about finding an override and calling the authorities. Minutes of agony ate away at Booth as he watched his partner, the woman he loved, struggle to remain conscious. The blood loss was quickly catching up and he felt helpless to stop it.

The paramedics finally rushed in, lead by another guest and made quick work of Brennan's injuries. Taking a helicopter to and from the remote estate, they hastily moved her to a stretcher, attaching oxygen and pads to stop the hemorrhaging.

Bones stayed on the verge of unconsciousness throughout the whole ordeal, whispering bone names to herself as Booth held on to her and the paramedics worked to save her. She knew, rather than felt, them move her to the stretcher and the ballroom became just twinkling lights as darkness ebbed into her vision. She concentrated on Booth, his hand around hers, his mouth forming words that she couldn't comprehend any more. Tipping into the abyss seemed so easy and she stopped fighting the shadows as hard as she had been. She felt strangely heated as the time passed, though the cool night air stung her skin as the paramedics rushed her to the waiting helicopter. Booth's face came into her vision, his eyes showing unadulterated panic. His mouth told her to "stay with me Bones" but her vision swam and the enveloping darkness just felt so nice.

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They let him ride in the helicopter with them, radioing ahead for an O.R. and transfusions. She was unconscious now but Booth couldn't let go of her hand. As one medic described her injuries for the radioman, his guilt battled with his dread. He held onto her limp form until she disappeared behind theswinging doors. It was then his soul buckled under the weight of his guilt.

The others came after a while, Angela in tears, the others barely restraining similar emotions. He simply sat in the hard plastic chair with his head in his hands. A nurse had taken pity on him and given the tattered man a set of scrubs to change into, though he felt like he'd never be able to wash away the burning trails where her blood had been. Sometime later, for time seemed to stretch on infinitely, Cam brought him coffee but he couldn't touch it. He could do nothing but be swallowed by his own immeasurable grief.

The doctor came out and Angela jumped up to receive the news. His heart constricted painfully at the potential outcome. He watched Angela nod along with the doctor before letting out a strangled sound of joy and hugging Hogins tightly with relief. Booth locked eyes with the surgeon and with one simple nod from the other man, felt the burden on his heart slowly start to ease away.

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Not quite a cliffhanger like last time, but don't worry, the story is far from over! Since this chapter is so short, I'm posting chapter 10 with it at the same time, so let me know how you feel about them!