2.
Sweets is volunteering at a youth outreach program where he meets 13 year old Barry Jones. It's somewhat of a last chance for these kids who are teetering on a life of crime. Sweets is excited to help Barry who is on the fence about where his life is about to head. Booth is trying to be supportive of Sweets' efforts to help the kids but he doesn't have a good feeling about it.
"What have you been up to lately, keeping out of trouble?" Sweets asked and Barry shrugged.
"Yeah, I guess. I got enrolled in that class you told me about."
"How's that going?"
"Pretty good I guess, the teacher says if I work more on technique and less on tagging box cars I could be something."
"She might have something there." Sweets said with a smile and Barry grinned back.
"So Barry, can you tell me how you got involved in your first crimes?" Sweets asked. It had been the fourth time now that the kid had come back in two weeks.
Sweets was feeling good, he was meeting with his FBI patients and making headway with them, doing profiles for agents and getting lots of slaps on the backs from bosses, he and Booth arrested a guy, Dr. Brennan didn't argue with his assessment of Hodgins addiction to bugs based on psychological backing and he found a twenty dollar bill in the jeans he put on today. All in all, it had been a great two weeks since he had started here and he was feeling pretty good about it. Now if he could only meet a girl who wasn't a carbon copy of Daisy then life would be even better as he put the foray with Jessica Warren out of his mind as his attention returned to Barry.
"Couple of kids from school, they said I should come and help them." Barry said bordering between ashamed and proud to be asked.
"Do you help them often?"
Barry didn't want to answer.
"This is just between us Barry, I'm just trying to get an idea of what they try and pull you into. You don't have to go you know." He paused a moment then continued. "Was that your first robbery?"
"No, they had some guy, owed them money."
Sweets tried not to react too strongly. This wasn't on the kid's rap sheet, this was a retaliation crime.
"Did you get involved?"
"No, I just stood back and watched. When they go after them, I just watch, for now, look out."
"How did you feel about being there?" Sweets knew that Barry witnessing a gang taking retaliation on an individual was going to be a good indicator of how Barry assessed what was right and wrong.
"I don't know how I felt." Barry answered with a response that concerned Sweets.
"How is going Sweets? Why the long face?" Booth asked stopping in Sweets office with a folder.
"Oh, fine." Sweets said still troubled by the kid.
"You wanna tell me about it? Isn't that what you always tell people, get their feelings out there?" Booth offered a smile because he wanted to encourage Sweets to tell him. He hadn't seen the psychologist this pensive in a while.
"The kid, Barry, he was involved in some crimes that weren't on his sheet, retaliation. When I asked him how he felt about being involved he wasn't sure if it was wrong or not."
"That means something right?" Booth asked trying to follow along.
"At that age he will take on the ability to judge what's right or wrong and understand fully that what he's doing is for malicious reasons. It's one reason I wanted to become involved in the program, get them going the other way before it was too late."
"And you're concerned it's too late." Booth said understanding. "Well, how about we take a breather and grab some lunch eh? On you." Booth joked about Sweets picking up the tab but Sweets only nodded. Not a good sign Booth said to himself, he's better bring Brennan along.
"So Sweets, Booth tells me you're having some trouble with the kid you are working with." Brennan said while eating her salad.
Sweets gave Booth a bit of grin that read need back up did you? To which Booth just looked away from.
"Yeah, but I've been thinking about it. I think I might have some ideas on how to get to the kid." Sweets said now a little more upbeat than before.
"Oh yeah?" Booth said.
"Yeah, I mean, he did say he felt good about the incident, he just said he didn't know. If I can show him the effects of remorse and regret then maybe…"
"There you go Sweets!" Booth said happy. "Now you're over that perhaps we can look at this case."
Sweets nodded, he suspected there was an ulterior motive to Booth trying to cheer him up with lunch, oh wait, who was paying for lunch again?
"Yes, we could use some help Sweets, this man was found at the bottom of a sewer." Brennan said as Booth handed him photos. He would never get over looking at crime scene photos at lunch and pushed the half eaten plate of food away. Booth noticed but was somewhat glad that part of Sweets wasn't able to completely stomach death, it left him sort of naïve and Booth liked working with someone so youthful and unjaded.
"The victim was weighed down so that even dead he would be forced to look down into the water." Brennan explained.
"Well it could suggest that the murderer showed remorse and didn't want to see the victim. Placing him in the sewer would suggest he saw him as garbage however."
"As always your soft science sounds inconclusive." Brennan announced.
"Well I don't have a whole lot to go on here Dr. Brennan." Sweets said with a roll of his eyes. "I'm a profiler not a magician."
"Hey, hey, hey!" Big D shouted to the other eight as they walked along. "Isn't that the dude who arrested Slim J?"
"Yeah Slim J got him in the shoulder but he still got him. Damn." DJ-D announced.
"Hey, I know that guy." D-Dog announced.
"Yeah, we know he's a Fed…"
"No, the other guy, he works at the center man." D-dog specified. "I thought he was some sort of doctor or some crap like that. Hey where's BJ-Bird?"
"Stop calling me that it sounds stupid." Barry said stepping forward.
"You got to earn a better name little man." D-dog explained. "Now why don't you tell me why your friend there is talking with a Fed in his suit and all!?"
Barry's head felt like it was on fire with anger and betrayal.
"Man I bet his was playing little man here for information!" DJ-D announced.
"No, it ain't like that, he was…" Barry said.
"Yeah, what was he doing, asking questions about what you been up to?" They all laughed after D-Dog said knowing it was the case, only under different terms.
The precarious and threatening group continued down the sidewalks doing their best to intimidate those they passed. Barry took his phone out of his pocket and dialed the number given to him.
"Hang on a second Booth." Sweets said taking his cell from his pocket. "Hello, Dr. Lance Sweets. Hey Barry. No I'm just having lunch with some friends. Yeah, we still have an appointment later." Sweets was confused why he asked that but Barry hung up.
Booth was staring at Sweets.
"What?" Sweets asked.
"You gave the kid your cell phone number?"
"Yeah, I felt like I was making headway and I felt like if the kid was in trouble, maybe he'd call. Look, anything to keep him out of trouble." Sweets said wondering if the rest of his lunch might settle now that the corpse photos were put away.
Booth wasn't sure what to say that wouldn't come out as condescending so he ate the last of his cold fries while he thought.
"Well, I want you to come and question this guy's wife with me." Booth said and Sweets readily agreed. He wanted to keep an eye on Sweets for a while for a reason based on his gut's suggestion. He knew Sweets would say yes, and it reminded Booth of this Barry kid, so eager for the approval of the gang, just as Sweets was so eager of the approval of his team. Booth didn't like the similarities but he was pretty sure that he and the Jeffersonian didn't have malice on their minds when they got together.
Booth made a call from the other side of the SUV while Brennan and Sweets battled out either psychology or who was going to ride shotgun.
"Shaw, yeah can you do something for me?" Booth asked. "Run associates of Barry Jones, he's 13, kid Sweets has been working with. I want to know what gang he runs with. Yeah and Shaw, don't mention it to Sweets."
The argument settled, Sweets rolled his eyes as he jumped in the back seat while Brennan smiled as she got in the front passenger seat. Booth knew Sweets ran a background on the kid but he was more alarmed with the kid's "mentors". Sweets' naïve nature could be endearing at times but concerning at others, especially if he couldn't win a battle for shotgun.