Author's Note: I'd love for there to be fluff. All nice and pretty and smiles, but that isn't what this chapter came out to be. It's not straight up angst either, but somewhere awkwardly in between.
Oh, and can someone explain to me why we never see more of Russ on the show? Because really, I love him.
The morning meeting finished shortly after he stepped back in the room and before long Booth found himself speeding to the lab. His plan was to confer with the squints before heading out and checking on the victim's family, seeing if he could find the correct item Zack had been discussing. His hands clenched around the wheel as he paused at a light. While he knew the case was important and he had to focus, a part of him wished he could turn the SUV around and head for the highway. The phone call with Brennan hadn't been exactly what he expected, and as short as it ended up, he realized why it couldn't have been much better.
"Why couldn't you have just told me, Booth? Do you find me so juvenile that you think I wouldn't understand?" Brennan cried, her tone full of frustration as she spoke.
"Bones, alright, I know you're angry. Just-" Booth sighed and turned to pace down the hall, running his hands through his hair in quick motions. "I don't think this is a conversation we should be having over the phone."
"I'm staying at Russ' for the duration of my trip. I don't see why we can't handle this properly over the phone." Brennan replied as she crossed her arms. "I want to know, Booth."
Booth's phone buzzed again, signaling he had another call. "I know you do, believe me. Look, Angela's calling me, which means we've caught a break in the case. As soon as this is all over, you and me need to talk. Just promise me you won't shut me out, okay?"
The phone line was silent for a moment, save for the sound of her breathing. "Good luck with the case."
Booth sighed as he pulled into his usual parking spot at the Jeffersonian and headed to the Medico-Legal Lab. The walk was one he'd done hundreds of times, was something of a habit that he could probably do with his eyes closed. It was something normal, something that made sense, which was what he needed to feel in the midst of everything. "What've we got?" He asked once he reached the platform.
Zack went on to explain the cut he found in the bone and explained why it was difficult to find before. "As you can understand, we would have been able to notice this sooner had it not been for the severe rate of decomposition."
"I ran a couple of scenarios through the computer; I know there's margin of error, but matching it with our victim's approximate height, the killer would have to be between 5'11 and 6'2. The weapon would've been long enough to slice through, effectively piercing the carotid artery before hitting the vertebrae Zack found the marks on. The blood loss from the carotid artery would've been what killed him, but the markings on the bone suggest it happened not once but twice."
"So it wasn't an accident?" Cam asked. "What would've caused the markings?"
"I'm trying to determine that at the moment." Zack replied before returning to his work. He studied the bone for a moment before something occurred to him. "I'll let you know when I find the results."
Booth sighed and turned his back before pacing to the other end of the platform. He was trying to keep his cool, wanted to at least keep everything together until the case was closed, but with Zack wanting to move things along slow and with precise movements like always he was finding it difficult.
"Everything okay, Seeley?"
Cam's voice from behind him caused Booth to jump, and he feigned checking his phone for any messages. "Yeah, why would you ask?"
"Because of the way you suddenly sulked away?" Cam asked as she raised an eyebrow. "You could just tell me, or I could make sure Zack goes with you when you visit the family again later."
"He won't leave unless he's identified the weapon, and judging from the pile there, he's got a while to go." Booth laughed as he pointed in Zack's direction. He turned back to see that Cam wasn't smiling. "I got a call from Bones this morning." He confessed.
"And?" Cam urged. She could already tell from the looks on his face the news wasn't completely good.
Booth rubbed the back of his neck with one hand while pocketing his phone with the other. "She found the ring in her belongings from the hospital. She knows, and as much as I wanna just drive to Russ' right now and explain everything, to just talk to her, we've got this case. I can't leave, but if he keeps going at the rate he is, it could be Wednesday before we even narrow down the list of suspects."
Cam offered a grim smile and nodded. In the years she knew him, she understood what a normally calm and understanding person Booth was, always wanting what was best for others. It sometimes meant he let himself fall to the wayside. "I'll go see if I can speed him along." She offered before walking away.
Russ returned home shortly before one to grab a bite for lunch. It wasn't something he did on a normal basis, but with Brennan in town, he had the break and figured he'd take it. When he walked into the kitchen to find her sitting at the table with a cup of coffee, her shoulders hunched over, he could already tell something was wrong. "Tempe?" He called from the door.
Brennan lifted her head in surprise. "What are you doing home?"
"I'm on my lunch break; figured I'd come by and check on you. Is everything okay?" He replied before walking to the fridge and pulling out a bottled water. "Where's Dad? He didn't leave yet, did he?"
"No, he's still here. I suppose he'll be leaving soon though." Brennan replied before turning back to the table and taking a healthy sip from her coffee mug. Her eyes honed in on the hot liquid, focusing on the color, but had to shake the thought from her head.
"Anything you wanna talk about?" Russ asked as he pulled out a chair across from her. He watched as she gripped the coffee mug with both hands, so tight as if holding it could somehow keep her grounded where she was. Bringing the water bottle to his lips, he took a sip before setting it down on the table. "You know if you don't tell me, I'll just get Dad in here, and we'll both find a way to get it out of you."
"He's already aware of the circumstances, as are you." Brennan replied before lifting her cup for another sip. "I myself am perfectly fine, but I still find it difficult to make sense of it all."
It wasn't until then that Russ spotted the object sitting on the table in front of her, the one that was previously hidden by the coffee cup. "Where was that?" He asked.
Brennan picked up the ring from the table and waved it at him. "I assume you're referring to my ring? I found it in my belongings from the hospital. At first I thought it was a mistake, that someone at the hospital made an error while putting personal items away." She held up the ring so it shone in the light and swallowed as she again read the inscription. "I now realize it wasn't a mistake; this is my ring, and I have no memory of ever wearing it." Brennan sighed and palmed the ring, her eyes not leaving it as she spoke. "I'm not entirely certain as to what I should be more upset about; that I was ever married in the first place, that Booth of all people kept it hidden from me, or that of all the events I possibly could've forgotten my own wedding was one of them."
"Tempe, you can't blame yourself." Russ replied. He reached an hand across the table and placed it over hers. "You're trying, that's all anyone can ask."
She offered a half smile as her eyes watered, and she placed the ring quietly back on the table. "That's exactly what Booth said, but he was lying." She said before offering a laugh. Her fingers gave is a squeeze. "You're not."
"You don't think what Booth did by keeping it from you was to help you?" Russ asked. He didn't want to make it seem like he was taking sides, because if he was forced he already knew he'd choose his sister, but he had to at least try and make her see the point.
Brennan shrugged before dragging the coffee mug in front of her again. She was keeping it as a barrier of sorts, but it was also something to hold onto. "I'm not certain of anything in regards to Booth anymore. Twenty-four hours ago, he was a friend I was telling good bye to before driving with Dad to come and see you. Now I apparently have several years of history with him, which I have no knowledge of. How am I supposed to react?"
"I don't know, Tempe. I know that I'd feel confused maybe, and probably a little sad. I might even feel angry, but that doesn't mean I wouldn't try and think about the situation." Russ offered. He watched as her eyes focused on his, and for once she remained still. He was reminded of when they were both younger, of the way he could always tell she was truly trying to listen. "Look, I'm not gonna make any decisions for you. That's your job. I can't ask you to do anything any more than Booth or anyone else can. Just know that all of us...and yeah, Tempe, that does include him, love you no matter what you do. Just try and believe that."
Brennan nodded as she slowly mulled the idea over in her mind. She wanted so badly to believe him, to think things would be perfectly normal once she returned home, but she no longer saw how. "It wasn't just Booth, it was everyone, Russ. Everyone who came to visit me, who promised me I'd get everything back, they stood there and they knew. They knew what I was missing but refused to tell me."
"Wasn't that for your own good? If you were to regain everything at once, their fears were that the results, depending upon where you were or if you were by yourself, could prove to be traumatic." Russ was only trying to help, but as he finished speaking, he saw that she appeared even more agitated. "Can I ask you something?"
"I suppose you can." Brennan offered with a shrug. She folded her hands protectively around the coffee cup again and lifted it to her lips before noticing it was empty. Setting it down in disappointment, she watched as her older brother tried to put on a look of patience.
"What is it that you're most upset about?" He asked even though she'd just confessed only moments before she wasn't entirely sure. If he was lucky, he could get her to focus, and maybe it would help.
She considered his question before quietly standing and pouring herself another cup. After offering him one, which he quickly thanked her for but politely turned down, she sat back down at the table. The sky outside the kitchen window was a light gray, a signal that rain was probably on the way for later in the afternoon. She remembered what it was like in D.C. in the rain, remembered running from her car up to her front door, hurriedly unlocking the door before going inside. The ring sat innocently by itself on the table, nothing more at the moment than a stark reminder of a life that had been put on hold. "I can't remember. I didn't-well, I suppose the correct way to say it would be that I didn't before-believe in marriage. It was an archaic constitution; Booth knew I believed that, but something obviously happened to change my mind."
Russ wasn't quite sure whether or not she'd actually answered his question, but her mood had lightened considerably. Taking it as a good thing, he simply offered a nod. "People change, as an Anthropologist you advocate that, don't you?"
"Since when have you ever used Anthropology or anything scientific as a defense?" Brennan replied in surprise.
"I'm not." He said. "I'm just trying to help." Russ offered a smile before seeing Max walk into the room. "Hey, I heard you were still here."
Brennan turned and watched her father enter the room, unsure of whether or not she was supposed to address him as well. The way things had ended after the call with Booth had led them to sitting in different rooms, participating in tasks that were quiet enough to not bother the other. She opted for a smile and watched as he pulled up a chair.
Russ glanced back at Brennan and tried to read her. He knew they'd probably end up talking about the situation again before the day was done, and if not before she left, but with Max there he felt it was safer to just talk about something else. "You all packed up?"
"Yeah, I believe so." Max replied. "I was kind of hoping to speak with you."
When Brennan realized he was speaking to her, she wasn't quite sure what to say until it registered what he wanted. "Dad, I'm not going back with you."
"So you're helping the situation by avoiding it?" Max asked. "You've been taking your medication, and I know you've spoken with that Sweets guy. Maybe now that you know about you and Booth, you two can get this whole thing straightened out."
"You say 'you two' as if gaining my memory back is something he is supposed to share in. If he truly wanted to, wouldn't he have said something?" Brennan asked back, more anger in her tone than she truly felt. If she were being honest, it wasn't Booth she was mad at so much as the situation altogether, but she couldn't get past the idea that he'd kept the truth from her.
Max opened his mouth to reply, but it was Russ who spoke instead. "Why don't I walk you out, Dad? I should be heading back to work soon anyway."
"Are you sure you'd like to stay here?" Max asked again as he stood near the front door.
Brennan nodded confidently. She hoped that the time with Russ and his family would do some good. "Yes, I plan on staying here for as long as I had originally planned. I'll return to D.C. at the end of the week." She replied before watching her father and Russ head out the door. From the window she watched as Max set his bags in the trunk and opened the driver's door. He and Russ stood talking for a moment, about what she wasn't quite sure. In her hand she held the ring, the one she wore when she married Booth, and wished more than anything she could start feeling as sure about things as the two people standing outside in the driveway.
