Chapter 6
Max smiled as he followed Parker and Sweets into the apartment after having fun at the aquarium. As they walked into the living room, they heard Brennan cry out. Max ran for the bedroom with Sweets following and Parker behind him. Max walked in finding Brennan sitting up catching her breath. He moved to her side quickly as she shifted to be more comfortable leaning against the headboard.
"Tempe."
"I'm fine. I just had a dream that's all." She said finally relaxing her head back. "I'm just going to go back to sleep." She said softly as Sweets could only watch, as the strong woman he knew again looked so frail and vulnerable. He turned seeing Parker at the doorway.
"You want to show me how to play that new game your dad got you?" He asked hoping the Max would be able to get her to talk. Parker nodded and took off into the living room with Sweets following, shutting the door behind him.
"Tempe, what's going on?" Max asked as Brennan shook her head as she continued to try to get the pillows into their places. "Here" He said taking the pillows from her. "Your mother was only able to be comfortable with a pillow under here.," he said putting a pillow under her swollen belly as she lay on her side. "And one between her knees. It was the only way she could sleep when she was pregnant with you and Rus." He explained as he helped Brennan get comfortable. "How's that?"
"Much better. Thank you."
"If these dreams are keeping you from getting the sleep you need you should talk to someone."
"I'm not talking to Sweets about it." She said defensively.
"No, sweetheart, I'm not talking about him. He's a kid and a psychologist; I wouldn't talk to him about anything." Max said making Brennan smile. "If you want to talk about it and not let anyone else know I'm always listening. But I think it would be a good idea to talk to Booth about it."
"Booth has enough to worry about."
"And he's going to worry even more if you keep things from him. You think he won't notice when he sees how you don't eat much, you're quiet and in your own little world? What about if you have a dream and he's here? You know Booth will be worried out of his mind if you shrug everything off."
"He knows I wouldn't hide things that were important."
"Booth loves you. He really loves you a lot, I can see it in how he has always looked at you and taken care of you. Believe me with that kind of love, everything is important. Just trust me on this one, talk to him about your dream. Even if you don't talk to anyone else about, tell him."
"Alright, I'll talk to him about it, but only because I believe you are right that he will become more worried if I didn't." Max grinned.
"Get some sleep." He kissed her forehead before leaving the room and shutting the door behind him, letting her rest as much as she could.
"She okay?" Parker asked looking concerned, ignoring that Sweets was now beating him in the game.
"She'll be okay, Parker." Max smiled. "So what game is this?"
"It's called Mortal Kombat. Dad got it for me last weekend." He said going back to playing. An hour later and after beating Sweets 15 times and only losing, 4 times the front door opened making Max walk to the hallway worried. He paused and smirked seeing who it was.
"Booth." He said happily before they heard Parker run through the house to hug his father. Booth wrapped his arm around his son with a bright smile as he dropped his bag and pulled Parker up over his shoulder making him laugh.
"Where's Bones?" Booth asked setting Parker on his feet once in the living room.
"She's lying down." Max said.
"Dad? Who's that?" Parker asked as he saw Jay standing by the hallway. Booth glanced over his shoulder at Jay who looked surprised to see Booth had a son.
"His name is Jay; he's a friend of mine from work." Parker looked from his father to Jay. "Jay, this is my son, Parker, and this is Bones' dad, Max." Booth messed with Parker's hair. "Go back to killing Sweets."
"I'm not doing too badly now that I know the buttons on the PlayStation." Sweets defended making Booth shake his head and look at Max.
"She okay?"
"She's fine, just tired. You should talk to her."
"Why?" Max paused looking back at Sweets. "Max." Booth warned as Jay walked closer.
"She looked really tired this morning so I told her to sleep while Sweets and I took Parker to the aquarium. Sweets was telling me about last night."
"About what happened?"
"Yeah, you know about the dream?"
"Parker called me last night when she woke up. He was really freaked out. What exactly happened?"
"She won't talk about it but it doesn't sound like it's good. She wakes up-"he was cut off hearing Brennan cry out from the bedroom making Booth move quickly to the bedroom as Sweets, Parker and Max looked worried with Jay standing confused.
"Bones." He said as he ran over to her as she turned in her sleep. "Bones." He said again as she gasped and her eyes flew open.
"Booth!" She half yelled as she pushed herself up and they wrapped their arms around each other as she shook.
"Are you okay?" He asked softly as he pulled back to look at her as a few tears fell. Taking a slow breath, she shook her head, shocking Booth that she would willingly admit it. "What's wrong?"
"I… I keep having this dream that someone breaks in and shoots you, and hurts Parker and then attacks me and the baby and… and…" Booth pulled her back to him, holding her tight.
"Shh, it's alright now. We have your apartment being taken care of, and there is no way anyone can get to Parker, you or the baby. Everything okay." He soothed as she left herself cry in his arms. "You'll be okay."
"Cullen is trying to track a number." She said as she took control of herself again. She looked up at his confused face. "Yesterday when I was picking up Parker someone called me. The man continued to repeat about killing those who put lives in danger. He said the whores must die. I told Cullen and his is working on finding the phone the call came from."
"Why didn't you tell me this last night?"
"Because it was being taken care of. There was no use worrying about it."
"You're obviously worried about it." He said softly as he gently ran his hand over her cheek.
"It's all taken care of, why would I be worried about something that is being watched?"
"Because you're afraid." He said softly. "You know it's okay to be afraid, Bones. Especially over something like this." He said leaning closer to her. "This case is scarring the hell out of me." He saw her look at him confused. "Someone is out there killing the girlfriends of agents, the ones who are pregnant. Someone broke into your place and destroyed the place, and called you… Bones, I want you to be careful with this case. I mean it." He saw her nod as she reached out grabbing his hand.
"I'll be careful with this case." She saw him smile as he pushed more hair back behind her ear before he maneuvered putting his feet up on the bed, moving the pillows she had situated and leaning against the headboard as she leaned against his chest. "I missed you Booth." She whispered making him smile as he pulled her closer with his arm wrapped around her shoulders.
"I missed you too Bones." He kissed the top of her head as she began to doze. After fifteen minutes, he gently laid her onto the pillows, covered her and left to go into the other room seeing Max and Jay huddled around Parker and Sweets as they started playing a football game. Max and Jay were trying to help Sweets beat Parker as the young boy laughed as he got another touchdown.
"I told you, you can't beat me!" Parker yelled happily before looking over and seeing Booth leaning against the corner to the hallway. "Dad, you want to play?"
"Nah, you keep playing bud, I have some work to do still." Booth said as he walked over to his bag he had left at the door coming back with a stack of files. "Sweets. Think you could give me a hand?" Sweets looked away from the screen for a second to look at Booth and Parker tackled one of his players making Booth smirk and shake his head. Jay turned and walked over with Sweets as Max took over and the three men walked into the kitchen to start going through the files.
"That son of yours is pretty bright." Jay smirked sitting down as Sweets sat across from him and Booth stood at the end of the high table.
"Yeah, comes from being around the squints."
"He was trying to talk his teacher into having them all visit the school this week and help with experiments." Sweets said making Booth pause and look at him.
"The teacher didn't say yes, did she?" Sweets shook his head. "Good. It's bad enough with Hodgins destroying the lab, he doesn't need to destroy the school." He scoffed and went back to sorting the files.
"Well the teacher really didn't have a chance to decide. She got a phone call-"he stopped himself and watched as Booth continued to separate the nine files into piles of where they came from.
"I know about the call Sweets. Bones told me everything." He said not looking up to meet the psychologists curious gaze. "There are nine victims, ten including the one we found. One from Virginia, 2 from Pennsylvania, 1 from Connecticut, 2 from North Carolina and 3 from Maryland. We need to find all the connections we can between the 10 victims, and Sweets I need you to try to put together a profile from what we have so far. We need to catch this bastard before he hits again." Jay took the Pennsylvania and Virginia piles, Sweets grabbed the Connecticut and North Carolina piles leaving Booth with the Maryland pile.
"You're afraid the killer is targeting Dr. Brennan now." Sweets said making Booth look at him hard as Jay looked up confused. "She fits the criteria; it's not out of the question. She is pregnant and the girlfriend of an agent, and she's in the middle of everything in this case."
"Sweets."
"It's a possible thought."
"I know that." Booth said looking back at the files. "Just drop it Sweets. This guy's not getting anywhere near Bones." He said as Sweets looked at him a minute then went back to reading. After three minutes, Brennan walked into the kitchen to stand between Booth and Sweets. Making all three look up at her. "You should be sleeping." Booth said looking at her worried.
"Hodgins called." She said looking more awake and ready to work than she had the last two days.
"What he want?"
"He said he got the evidence from the other victims. During his preliminary examination, he was able to discern that the other nine victims had been in the same place at time of death. He found the same fibers and concrete flakes on all of the victims clothing. He is working on the samples taken of the wounds and is running all the tests now."
"What is he doing at the lab on a Saturday night?" Sweets asked shocked that the scientist would be working on a weekend.
"Hodgins works on things in his own way. He said he had just gone in for a few hours to see if he could get something else for us after Angela told him how worried about me she was." Brennan explained. "Are these the other victims?"
"Yeah, these are the three from Maryland." Booth told her as he moved the files in front of him over so she could read also.
"You want to sit down?" Jay asked as Brennan shook her head.
"I'm fine, thank you." Brennan said not taking her eyes from the file as Booth opened another one.
"She's only here for the science talk." Booth smirked, making her look up at him. "We need a translator with some of this stuff. You should sit though." He said as she gave him a look that he knew well before he gave his charm smile.
"I am capable of standing." She said looking back at the papers.
"You're probably the only women I've ever seen deny his famous charm smile." Jay chuckled as Brennan looked up locking eyes with Booth as Sweets went back to reading, once again feeling like an outsider as the partners communicated just by a look.
"Nah, Bones doesn't get swayed by anything I do." He smirked as he pulled a chair from next to Jay around to sit as Brennan took the third file and placed it above the one she was reading. After several minutes, she furrowed her brows and shifted to show Booth.
"Booth, these two victims weren't just girlfriends of agents they were agents themselves. The note wasn't in the file because they had been placed in odd jobs within the FBI until they gave birth." Booth looked from the two files she had to his.
"These three…" Jay trailed off quickly flipping through the three files he had. "They all were agents and placed on desk work and odd jobs."
"Same here." Sweets agreed.
"So someone is killing pregnant agents who got together with their partners?" Jay asked not noticing how Brennan shifted closer to Booth. "So he's trying to enforce the rule that no one else has enforced in generations?"
"It appears so." Sweets said looking up from the file to notice how close Brennan had moved to Booth as they both continued to look at the files until Booth's phone rang.
"Booth… yeah, hi Rebecca… yeah, sure…. Yeah. I'll drop him off at school on Monday…. Yeah I will…" He hung up putting his phone back in his pocket. "Looks like we got Parker until Monday morning." Brennan smiled as she turned to look at Parker and Max still playing video games before her and Booth looked back at the files.
"Well at least you have nothing to worry about, Seeley." Jay smirked making Booth look at him. "It looks like this guy is only going after agents who screwed around with their partners."
"How does that affect anything?" Brennan asked confused.
"Well you work in a lab, you're not an agent, and you didn't go around screwing your partner, because you're not out in the field." Brennan looked at Booth who gave a small shake of the head as Sweets looked up from his files.
"Dr. Brennan worked in the field up until her fifth month of pregnancy." Sweets said not wanting to give too much information but wanting Jay to understand there was still reason to worry.
"You worked in the field? With the FBI? I can't believe they would let a scientist go out into the field. You have no jurisdiction or cop skills."
"No but I have Booth who does." She said looking at Booth as he pulled the three files over to look at simultaneously. Jay looked at Booth then at Brennan again not knowing what to think. "Booth would take me with him into the field after I was done my initial examination of the remains. I stopped going when I was five months along because a pregnant woman looks very out of place interrogating people.
"We weren't interrogating people Bones." Booth said not looking up. "We were just talk to them, we interrogate when we bring them into the office. Besides, I never really had a choice to not take you with me in the first place." He looked up at that as she gave a smile and looked away.
"You would have been a dead duck." Jay watched the two talk and smile at each other before Brennan looked back at the files as she flipped to the coroner's report. "Booth." She said making him look at her as she reached out taking one of the files and furrowing her brows. Brennan turned and walked out of the kitchen with the file as she went to the desk in the corner where her bag was and pulled out her notes.
"What did you find Bones?" The three men followed her over as her laid the file down and looked through her notes on the most recent victim.
"There were the same number of stabs to the mother's skeleton but the child showed different amounts of stab injuries on each victim." She looked up there were a total of five injuries to Natalie. Two went through the child piercing her spin and the other three affected only the child. Linda King had nine; two striking the spinal column the others affected the child."
"Why the difference?" Jay asked confused.
"There has to be a reason he's targeting specific people, so the amount of times he stabbed the victim should have a meaning." Sweets told him.
"Can you get their personnel files from the FBI?" Brennan asked Booth.
"What are you thinking?" He asked trying to figure out where he brain was leaping.
"The files you have are only their death reports; there might be something in their personnel files that might be able to give us a lead to follow."
"An investigation was opened on each one when they disappeared and were found. If there was anything-" Jay started still confused.
"The original agents could have missed something. We've seen it before, there could be some minute detail that the original agent does not see a connection with. There's obviously meanings in these killings, they were all agents who started to date their partners, became pregnant and were left in the office after they could no longer preformed their duties in the field." Brennan said cutting him off before looking at Booth.
"They were all pulled and placed on desk duty after starting a relationship with their partner, there should be something in their files about their work and what was done as their punishment. I'll call Cullen and get the files pulled." He agreed. "You really are a genius." He before walking into the other room to call Cullen as Brennan looked back at her notes and the file she had brought out with her.
"Bones!" Parker called. "You have to show grandpa how you kill dad." He gave a grin that looked identical to his father's. Jay's head snapped between the two. Had he heard right? Did Booth's son just call Brennan's father his grandfather?
"I need to help your father with work a little longer and then we'll play." Brennan said as she walked back into the kitchen putting the file and her notes down and then walking back into the living room as Booth came back out.
"He's getting the files pulled and we'll have them on Monday." He explained. "You see anything else that could give us anything?"
"No, everything else on the coroner report was all a match for what we've found on Natalie. I don't think we'll be able to find any more connections until we look at their files. Everything I've seen only matches what we have, there's nothing else new to learn from the coroner reports."
"Hey Booth, come kick your sons ass, would you." Max called over his shoulder making Parker laugh as they all looked at the game that Parker was obviously dominating at. Booth walked over behind the couch, leaning over he took the controller from Max and pushed a few buttons killing Parker instantly.
"That's cheating!" Parker called as Booth smirked but soon lost his smile when he saw Parker grin and move over letting Brennan sit next to him as she took the controller.
"Now who's cheating?" Booth said making Parker giggle as Brennan smirked at him.
"Your just afraid to lose to Bones again." Parker laughed as Booth grinned at her.
"You're on now little man." He said as Max couldn't help but laugh at the way the three were acting. Jay and Sweets walked over to watch, noticing the game was back to Mortal Kombat. Booth climbed over the back of the couch and sat between Max and Parker as he and Brennan picked their characters.
"Parker said Dr. Brennan is very good at this game." Sweets said.
"It makes no sense to have people fight for no reason. Besides they can pull the spinal column out and still function, what does this teach children?"
"Then why do you play?"
"Because she can kick dad's butt!" Parker informed them as the match started. They watched the two battle back and forth pulling all kinds of moves. Brennan pressed a plethora of buttons killing Booth in a matter of seconds making Parker laugh at his father as Brennan smiled.
"Parker you shouldn't laugh at your father for losing a meaningless game." Brennan said making him look at her.
"Best out of three?" Booth asked with a small smirk. The two locked eyes, completely forgetting that they had Sweets and Jay watching their antics and just forgetting about everything they had been dealing with that day.
"You're on." She grinned before they turned back to the TV.
"am I going to have to take the kid for the night?" Max asked with a chuckle making Booth and Brennan look at him not amused.
"No, the loser makes dinner." Brennan smiled.
"well that looks like it's going to be Booth. You're already winning." Brennan smiled as Booth gave him a hard look before they got back to their game. Booth shifted and whispered something in Parker's ear making him move to sit in his father's lap. The two began to battle and Booth was losing quickly before Parker grabbed the controller and started playing as Booth started tickling Brennan.
"Booth!" She tried to scold. "That's cheating!" She yelled as she tried to keep playing Booth shifted closer and covered her eyes blocking her view, he tried everything but she just kept pushing buttons and before Parker and he knew it they were dead. "That was just mean."
"Yeah, well you still beat us, so Parker and I get to make dinner." He smirked standing Parker up before he stood. "You two staying?" He asked Sweets and Jay.
"Depends on what you're making. As long as it's not your grandfather's special soup, I'm in." Booth shook his head.
"No, I'm thinking Mac and cheese." He said looking at Parker as he cheered and ran into the kitchen to help. Booth took Brennan's hand and helped her to her feet from the low sitting couch. "Care to join me?" He asked Brennan who smiled and started for the kitchen.
"I never thought you two had this side of you." Sweets said as he followed Booth with Jay beside him and Max straightened the living room back up.
"What are you talking about Sweets?" Booth asked as he walked into the kitchen to see Brennan already helping Parker get what they needed from the fridge.
"You two are always so proper and professional whenever I see you. You were acting like little kids playing that game."
"Proper and professional?" Booth laughed. "You really think Bones is proper and professional even in those little meetings?" Brennan turned to look at him as Parker went to help Max. "How many times have you told me that if I don't eat healthy, my penis is going to shrink?"
"Whenever you are arguing with me about food."
"You see, you really think that's professional and proper?"
"You're the one who has issues talking about things." Brennan said turning to face him as he looked at her. "You're a prude when the conversation goes to sex. You never want to talk about sex even when it pertains to the case."
"No, I don't want to talk about having sex in the middle of interrogating a suspect in a murder case." He said clarifying as she shook her head.
"You talk about that in the interrogation room?" Jay asked making both turn to him.
"No." They said at the same time.
"Booth is over exadurating. Besides Sweets was the one arguing with Parker at school yesterday." Brennan said making everyone look at Sweets as he opened his mouth and then shut it giving a look to Brennan.
"Seriously? You had to bring that up?" He looked at Booth who was waiting to hear about this story. "Parker told his teacher that I was his baby sitter, I told him I wasn't."
"But you are." Parker said walking back in pushing a chair over to the counter to help Brennan cook.
"I am not."
"Are too."
"I am not your baby sitter."
"Ya huh."
"No.
"Yup." Booth looked at Brennan who was smiling as she started putting the things out on the counter. Max and Jay watched in amusement as the two continued.
"Sweets, I know you're still a minor and all but can you at least act like a big boy?" Booth said making Sweets look at him not amused.
"You shouldn't make fun of Sweets, Parker." Brennan spoke softly as Booth started talking to the men about the football season. "He has done a lot for your father and I you shouldn't make fun of him all the time."
"But you and dad do." He said back looking up at her confused.
"We do it occasionally, but he is our friend and trust him. There are different parameters between your father and I playing with Sweets and you playing with Sweets. There's a difference in experiences. He has helped us through a lot and although we act like he has the mental capacity of a child but in reality, Sweets is really smart."
"Really?"
"Really. Why do you think your father and I talk to him all the time and ask him for help?"
"I don't know."
"Because he is very smart, and we trust him, that's why we have him look after you when we cannot. Just think of him as an uncle. Your uncle Jared can act just like Sweets sometimes but he is smart. Your father is too, he just pretends to be less intelligent than he really is."
"Why does he do that."
"Because it gives me something to feel good about. He has done it since we first met. He is really smart and so is Sweets, even if they act like little children sometimes." She smiled as he grinned at her then looked over his shoulder at the four men talking about sports.
"Do you think my teacher can bring everyone to the lab? The girls will be so freaked out when they see the ookie room." He laughed as Brennan smiled.
"We will see. I gave her my number so if she would like to she just needs to call me. But until then you can tell them all the stories about how Hodgins and Wendell keep destroying the lab, usually by blowing things up."
"You think I can help one day?"
"We'll see. With their experiments, I don't want you anywhere near them. You know Hodgins dropped a frozen turkey once from the upper lounge, it bounced and his Angela in the face?"
"Really? That had to hurt.
"Luckily it was only a glancing blow so there was no lasting damage but I imagine it still hurt." She smiled as Parker listened enthralled with the stories of the lab.
"Hodgins was working on a corpse with our friend Vincent and they lit a body on fire."
"Whoa, cool! Did it blow up?"
"No it didn't but the bones were turning to foam. When they went to look at it under a light, they clicked the light on and the spark that makes it work made the body catch fire. Cam and I asked how it started and they both pointed at the remains." Parker laughed as Booth walked over.
"What are you laughing at?" He asked as he took some cheese from the bowel making Brennan slap his hand.
"I was telling Parker about some of Hodgins' experiments."
"About how Hodgins likes to blow up the lab and set all the alarms off?" He asked with a small smile as Brennan and he locked eyes again. "Go get the others to play a game while we cook." He said as Parker climbed from the chair and ran into the other room to talk with the three men. Booth moved closer as he put his hand on Brennan's lower back making her look up from the ingredients to smile at him.
"Yes, Booth?" She asked as she let her walls fall knowing it was only the two of them in the room.
"We'll figure this case out. We always do."
"I know. I just do not like being pregnant while this is happening. I've been targeted before during cases, but I knew I was always able to protect myself, at least until you got to me. But now…. I can't fight back or do anything. What if.." She trialed off as Booth only pulled her to him and hugged her.
"Nothing's going to happen. Remember me and you are the best. There's no one out there who can solve the cases we do, they can't discover what we do. me and you together means trouble for the murderers out there." He said as he pulled back to look down at her.
"I'm just glad you're home." She whispered as they pulled apart. Locking their eyes together as Booth pushed a strand of hair back behind her ear. "The baby would not rest while you were gone. Especially at night." She said rubbing her belly as he placed his hands on either side and smiled down at her swollen stomach.
"Well you and the little princess can relax now." He smiled leaning down and giving her a sweet, loving kiss.
"Go sit and watch your handball game." She said softly making him smirk
"You do that on purpose don't you?"
"As much on purpose as when you kept calling the Maluku islands by anything but their proper name." She said with a smiled before turning back to cooking. She felt his arms wrap around her from behind before he placed a kiss on her cheek and he was gone. Parker was talking to Jay and Max making them laugh before he dragged them into his bedroom to show them something as Booth walked over to Sweets looking at the files from the victims.
"What are you looking for?" Booth asked making Sweets look up from the files.
"I don't know. I just thought maybe if I took another look over the files I would be able to come up with a better profile."
"There's not much to go on until we can connect them with something other than the murders. You really think this guy could go after Bones?"
"Yes." He said putting the files down to talk to Booth. "The similarities are too close to ignore. The only difference we've found so far is that she is a scientist and not an Agent. I doubt he will think differently because of that little flaw."
"What do you think should be done?" Booth asked as Sweets thought for a minute.
"Well she is staying away from her apartment, which he obviously knows where it is, Cullen is taking care of the phone call and there are still agents assigned to stay outside. I suggest she stay as far away from the case as possible. The closer she is to discovering anything by examining the remains makes this guy want to push harder to get to her."
"Yeah, Bones isn't going to go for that. Give me something I can work with here."
"The only other thing that you could do is just keep a very close eye on everything. Make sure she has someone with her at all times, and try to get her to keep her head down. When the details start getting out and the closer you get to this guy the more he's going to push. He knows the way to stop you is to stop her, to kill her." Booth nodded and glanced at the doorway to the kitchen.
"You think he'll attack even if she stopped involving herself in the case?"
"Absolutely. Like I said he knows about the two of you obviously, so he's going to stop at nothing to stop you from getting him. You know as well as I do that if she were killed there's no way you would be able to continue the investigation." He said softly as Booth paused and nodded. "I'll keep looking; maybe I can find something else that can help until we get the other files."
"Sweets, nothing's going to happen to her. She has the entire FBI watching out for her and staying with her constantly. This guy's not getting anywhere near her. None of us will let him." Booth said seeing the worry on his face.
"He may not physically get to her, but the dreams she has…"
"I know. I'm working on it. Just let her have some space with it. When she's ready she'll talk. It's like finding out anything about her, give her room and time and she'll tell you everything eventually." Sweets smirked and nodded as he and Booth looked down at the files Sweets had laid on the desk.
"Booth!" They heard from the kitchen making Booth stand up straight.
"Is there any connection with placement or dump site?" He asked as he turned to walk away.
"Booth!" He heard again making him furrow his brows before moving quickly to the kitchen with Sweets behind him. They walked in to see Brennan holding her belly with one hand, the other holding her weight on the counter as she held her eyes closed and tried to breathe slowly.