Chapter 9 - The Parallels in the Thoughts
Director Cullen was seated at his desk working through a seemingly bottomless stack of paperwork when his private line rang. He raised an eyebrow, but knew right away who it was. Only a few people had this particular number and only one of those people was currently in a situation where it would be prudent to use it.
He picked up the phone and said, "Booth, this had better be damn good."
Booth chuckled and switched the prepaid cell he was using to his other hand so he could pick up the cup of coffee on the table in front of him. "Isn't it always, sir?" Booth replied, leaning back in the chair and winking at Brennan, who had turned to look at him from her position at the kitchen sink. She rolled her eyes at him and turned back to the breakfast dishes.
Cullen sighed. "You're lucky I don't have your ass in a sling right now, Agent Booth. And I might yet if you don't do some explaining pretty damn quick." He paused, his voice growing more serious. "Since this thing is probably about to blow up in our faces, I'm not even going to ask how you knew Dr. Brennan was still alive, let alone how you found her. Tell me why you think there's a mole."
Booth's face darkened as he sat up straighter in the kitchen chair. "Well, sir, it was actually Cam who pointed it out to me," he said, flinching a little when he heard the heavy sigh on the other end. He was sorry he had to drag Cam further into this, but it was going to come out one way or another. "She was suspicious when it kept coming up how close behind Lockton our guys were each time. She figured it couldn't be a coincidence that he was clearing out just as we closed in on him each time. When she showed me the file entries and timelines, it all made sense."
Cullen rubbed his eyes with one hand, thinking for a moment. "Yeah, Booth, it was all too much to be just a coincidence. The same thing had occurred to me as well, but I didn't have any real evidence." He hesitated a moment, then asked, "You or Cam have any ideas on who it might be?"
"Not specifically, no. But given that it appears Lockton doesn't know she's alive, it would have to be someone working the murder cases, which is a larger group," Booth replied. "But I do have an idea on how we can get them both out in the open."
Cullen listened as Booth outlined his plan for taking down Lockton and the insider at Brennan's funeral on Sunday. He listened silently for the most part, only occasionally asking a question or two. "Alright, Booth, I think that works. Call me back if anything changes," he said.
"Yes, sir. I'm meeting with Cam this afternoon to finalize everything. If we make any changes, I'll call you with the details," Booth said. "Thank you, sir."
"Humpf," grumped the director, "thank me when this all finally goes away." He sighed again, more deeply this time. "And Booth?"
"Sir?"
"Be careful. We might lock this down tighter than a submarine hatch, but that doesn't mean Lockton doesn't have all this figured out already. He's been one step ahead of us for months and he's damn clever. This could all go wrong in a hurry," Cullen answered. "Both you and Dr. Brennan are needed around here and I hate funerals."
Booth smiled grimly. "Oh, I know, sir. I hate funerals, too," he said and clicked the phone shut.
~~B&B~~
"Hey, Cam, how's it going?" Booth asked boisterously, his face filling the screen on her computer. They'd made arrangements earlier that morning to meet via web conference to cover the last details of Booth's plan to capture Lockton and the FBI mole.
She rolled her eyes, turning down the volume on the transmission. "Wow, do I wish I had real life volume control for that man..." she mumbled to herself, as she smiled at him. He looked so much better, she thought. The dark circles under his eyes had already started to fade and he didn't look nearly so hollow as he had in the days following Brennan's accident. In spite of the situation they were dealing with, he actually looked happy. "Everything's good here, Booth," she said, raising her voice slightly so he could hear her better. "Is our friend there with you?"
Cam watched as Booth scooted over to make room for his partner to be seen as well. "Hi, Dr. Brennan," Cam said, as the scientist settled herself next to Booth.
"Hello, Cam," Brennan replied, trying to push Booth over further. He responded by leaning harder against her, earning himself a frown and a smack on the arm from the scientist. "Booth," she hissed, "stop crowding me!" Booth simply snickered, moving himself only a millimeter further away, earning himself a heavy sigh this time.
Cam smiled as she watched them. God it was good to see them together again. Dr. Brennan's appearance looked improved as well, although not as much as Booth's. To Cam it appeared something was still weighing rather heavily on Brennan's mind, even though she was clearly happy to be back with Booth. Knowing the two of them, they probably hadn't really talked yet about the whole incident, preferring instead to focus on the search for the stalker. Cam just hoped they figured it out before they came back to work. She'd had about all the tension, grief, pain and negative emotions she could handle.
"Alright, children, stop pushing and let's get down to business, shall we?" Cam said with a smile. The partners settled down, Booth still just as close to Brennan as when they'd started.
"Is everything arranged on your end, Cam?" Brennan asked, slipping easily into a more business-like mode.
"Yes, Dr. Brennan, everything is ready here. I didn't have any trouble setting things up as you'd requested," Cam replied. "Do you really think this will work?"
Booth and Brennan looked at each other briefly and Booth shrugged. "I sure as hell hope so, Cam. If it doesn't, our cover will be blown and we'll back where we started."
Cam sighed. "Great, and we'll have been through all this for nothing." She shook her head and gave them a smile. "Well, we'll just have to hope for the best then. Is there anything else you two need right now?"
Brennan shook her head, as Booth answered, "No, Cam, I think we're all set. We'll see you tomorrow then." He smiled and waved.
She returned his smile. "Good luck to you both," she said seriously, smile fading. She clicked off the web cam and closed the window. She closed her eyes for a moment, imagining all the ways this could go wrong. It was risky, but they were running out of time and options.
~~B&B~~
After clicking off the web conference with Cam, the partners sat on the sofa quietly, each lost in their own thoughts, and a little unsure where to go next. Everything was ready to spring the trap at the funeral the next day, so they didn't have any more work related items to discuss. The tension between them, which had eased as they planned for Lockton's capture, rose again as both found themselves thinking about the past week.
Booth knew Brennan was waiting, he could feel it. Based on her words on the porch the previous night, he figured she thought he'd help catch the stalker and the mole and then, when it was all over and the adrenaline had passed, he'd realize he hated her for putting him through so much agony. He'd tried to subtly reassure her during their time together. He'd tried to make everything as normal as he could, teasing her, bickering over the details of the plan, the jostling over the view on the web cam. But he was pretty sure it wasn't getting through. With Bones, it was best to be direct, but he didn't really want to start any big emotional confrontations right before the big takedown. He couldn't afford to be distracted; this was too important.
Brennan, for her part, was still attempting to sort through the sea of unfamiliar emotions she'd been feeling since this whole thing had begun. She knew she should get up, find something else to do, anything to get away, but the thought of moving away from Booth caused an almost physical pain in her chest. She knew this wasn't going to last, so she wanted to savor the contact with him while she could get it. He'd been very kind to her since they'd been reunited, but she knew it wouldn't stay that way for long. Once they captured Lockton and the mole and everything was done, he'd remember what she'd done and it would all come apart. She found she was dreading the next day and the potential end to the case. But she didn't really know what to say to him and she didn't want to distract everyone from the case with some emotional scene.
She sighed lightly and decided to take a chance, given she wouldn't have much more time to do so. She leaned her head on Booth's shoulder, closing her eyes and taking in a deep breath. He smelled amazing. Warm and clean and...Boothy. She felt him stiffen beneath her cheek and she blushed, starting to pull away. Before she could move, however, Booth shifted, putting his arm around her shoulder and pulling her closer. She could feel his breath in her hair and hear his heartbeat beneath her cheek. Tears filled her eyes suddenly and she willed them not to fall. She relaxed a little, settling into his embrace. She swallowed hard and it occurred to her how typical this was for them. Now that she had started to realize how much this relationship meant to her and how much she needed to be with him, he would be realizing her betrayal. Now that she realized how much a part of his life she was and how much he cared for her, he would be realizing just how dangerous she was and how impossible she was to love. She surreptitiously wiped at her eyes, deciding to try to enjoy the time she had, so she would have something to remember when it was all over.
Booth was momentarily surprised when she leaned her head against his shoulder, but he recovered quickly and wrapped his arm around her. He pulled her as close as he dared, burying his nose in her hair, inhaling the scent. She smelled amazing. He desperately wanted to drag her onto his lap and kiss her until she surrendered. It killed him to watch her struggle with her feelings, he wanted to help her, but he knew she would only shut down on him again. Nothing had really changed since he'd ask her to take a chance with him. He couldn't afford to push her again, for both their sakes. He just didn't think he'd be able to take it if she told him no again and he knew she'd feel so guilty, she'd probably run off, just like she did after he woke from his coma. He sighed lightly. How typical of them. Even as close as they were, as attuned to each other as they were, they were always just out of sync. Looking down, he watched her swipe tears from her eyes, trying to hide it. He pressed a kiss on her hair, so lightly she probably wouldn't even feel it and tightened his arm around her. He figured he might as well enjoy the feel of her in his arms while he could since it likely wouldn't last nearly as long as he'd like.
And so they sat, each consumed with their own thoughts, neither conceiving how similar those thoughts might be. Neither understanding that this time they're both ready. Neither knowing the other can't let go. Neither imagining they're finally about to collide, to become one.
And neither will be the same again.
A/N: Sorry about the delay in posting...work intrudes on play yet again. I'm working on the next chapter today as well and should have it up by Wednesday. Thanks for your patience and I hope you continue to enjoy! :) Please review either way, I love to hear from you!
