"The Face with Two Skeletons"

By: Tropicwhale

Disclaimer: Not Mine I Promise NMIP

Author Talk: Hello my cashews….you're the cashew gallery and because I rearranged some of my chapters you get two updates for the price of one. By the way. Am writing yet another sex scene for the end of this story but that's before the party and epilogue. So, in total. 55 chapters this story will be. I know I'm updating slower but I've a life, as I'm sure all of you do and it picks up in the fall/winter months and I want to give you quality. I've a new puppy…My dad wants to name it Lucky Wag after our boat, my mother wants to name it Pouncer, I want to name it Bandit. My name is the right name for this dog of course. I've work, theatre productions, school and lines to memorize plus homework. Sleeping, eating. What are these things?

Chapter Twenty-Nine

After the symposium, Zack was working in a secondary lab on the partial decomposed corpse that Ms. Julian requested he investigate. The particulates expert was FBI as was the coroner and they had gleened all they could from the body before it had been sent to Zack. Of course, he had rather the corpse been sent directly to the Jeffersonian and the coroner and any other experts be brought to the lab or Zack been allowed to work at the federal labs. Moving the remains too often compromised them. Dr. Brennan taught Zack that. It was important that remains not be compromised. Compromise was unacceptable. Zack carefully laid down the hand magnifying glass and stepped away from the remains. He was incoherent. He was rarely incoherent and what was worst was he having issue focusing on work. Zack made a sound of frustration and backed into a wall. He had a headache. It then occurred to him that he had a headache because of the fact that he hit his head against the wall as he leaned against it. "Ow." he rubbed the bump on his head and Dr. Saroyan walked in.

"Zack? Are you okay?"

"Yes, Dr. Saroyan." Zack straightened. Cam looked around and spotted the remains.

"Is this the victim you're investigating?"

"Yes."

"Nervous working your own case?"

"No." Zack was confused. "Should I be?" Dr. Saroyan shook her head and pushed her lips out.

"I should have known better to ask."

"Why?"

"You're not a nervous person which is good…in our job."

"I guess." Zack turned back to the corpse. It blurred at the edges. He rubbed his eyes.

"Are you okay, Zack?"

"I'm….my eyes hurt. Agent Booth's couch isn't very comfortable."

"No. It isn't." Cam looked at Zack with something that Zack sort of identified as compassion. "Zack….are you okay?"

"Define 'okay'."

"Okay…okay means…"

"No. I know what okay means but what would it mean if I was okay?"

"Oh." Cam took a moment to think. "Are you feeling well? You're not sick or upset or anything? You seemed distracted." Zack looked over at Cam. "Zack? Do you want to talk about it?"

"No."

"Zack…these last few weeks have been very difficult for you. No one would expect you to be able to operate at-at maximum efficiency after being dumped, accused of a murder, and nearly blown up. I know I couldn't. You're only human." Zack looked at Cam. Here was an opportunity to tell her about Gormogon. Then Cam would tell Booth and Booth would arrest Gormogon and….yell at Zack for not telling him. Possibly shoot Zack for not telling him. Zack didn't want to be shot. Also, the Master said that he would kill Zack if he told anyone. Zack would rather not be shot or killed. Of course, if he helped the Master then Zack would eventually be the Master and help people by killing off individuals that would cause more harm to society and the world than good. If Cam knew she would be proud of Zack. But she wasn't very rational. She might not understand. Zack wasn't sure any of his friends would understand. They weren't very open to him with his relationship with Zerbrowski so why would any of them understand Zack being scouted out by the Master? "I'm not very good at offering comfort, Zack, throw me a bone here."

"I've had sex with Booth." Cam blinked, opened her mouth and blinked again.

"What?"

"Two weeks ago…when I had my casts still on and the first night he let me sleep over at his apartment. We…engaged in a physical-"

"You don't need to paint me a picture, Zack. I can fill in the blanks just fine. Is this what has had you all out of sorts lately?"

"Partly. I'd rather not explain everything."

"I…I understand. I wouldn't…" She looked really startled.

"There's more."

"What? You know who Gormogon is?" When startled or upset Dr. Saroyan reacts with sarcasm, Zack knew this. "Sorry. Don't answer that. I don't think I could handle it right now if you did." She took a breath. "Alright. I can take it."

"I've had a crush on Booth for a very long time so….becoming physical with him just that once in a spur of a moment….it….he was suppose to be completely heterosexual."

"You didn't expect it." Cam smiled.

"I'm starting to think that there is a God." Dr. Cam Saroyan laughed out loud.

"Sorry." She giggled. "Just coming from you….It was funny."

"I have been known to be amusing." Zack deadpanned. "On occasion." Cam laughed.

"Alright, funny man. What's up with this guy?"

"Shot four times with three different weapons. This is the killing shot here." Zack pointed to the hole dead center in the chest. "However, he was shot with two separate weapons before he died…here and here." Zack pointed at the two wounds in the stomach. And shot once after he died here." A bullet wound through the cheek.

"Ouch. Why would anyone shoot a man so much?"

"I don't know. I don't do motive, just hard facts. I need to debridle the bones in order to reconstruct the skull and then ask Angela to do a reconstruct for me….if that's alright with you?"

"By all means, borrow Angela. No problem with me." Zack nodded. "Alright, I gotta be unprofessional and ask….isn't Seeley a good kisser?" Zack grinned.

"Yes. My knees melted."

"I know! Did he do that thing with his tongue? Because that-oh god, I miss having sex with Seeley Booth."

"I don't know what thing you're talking about."

"When he…oh, nevermind."

"What?" Cam flushed. "Cam?"

"When he goes down on a girl he does this thing with his tongue…but he wouldn't be able to do that with you…because you're a boy. Completely different skill set."

"Oh…" Zack looked at the body. "I think I'll use maggots."

"What? Oh. Right. The remains. Got it. Conversational left turn there, Zack-aroni." Zack looked at Cam and she looked at him and they both laughed. Zack recovered first because his burst of laughter was mostly relief and therefor short-lived. "This is soo inappropriate." Cam giggled. Zack nodded, snorted, and then forced his face into a blank calm look. He had to bite his lips to keep it but he did keep it. He focused on the remains. "Besides…" she looked at Zack. Zack looked up, with a blank but curious face. "You know, if you wanted to seduce Booth back into the sack I could coach you how to get under his skin." Zack's eyes widened in alarm.

"Dr. Saroyan, that is dishonest…besides, Agent Booth seems to be angrier and angrier by the day…it's clear that he regrets….I would not try to….I don't want to get shot." Cam smile a little.

"Oh Zack. He wouldn't shoot you."

"He shot that ice cream truck." Cam gave him a hug.

"Oh, Zack…" Zack blinked with his nose smushed against Cam's breasts.

"Dr. Saroyan? This is inappropriate."

"What? Oh!" she lets him up. "Sorry, Zack. You bring out my deeply buried maternal instinct for some reason."

"I think you would be a good mother." Cam smiled a little ruefully.

"Thanks, Zack, but I doubt it will ever happen."

"If I can have sex with Booth then you can become a mother." Cam laughed out loud.

"I guess that it is possible."

"Many things are possible….just improbable." Cam grinned.

"You know…the idea of you sleeping with Booth is actually growing on me." Zack took a step away from her.

"What?"

"I think I'm going to help you. I'm going to find out why he's so angry…not that he isn't always angry at something but still…I'm going to figure it out and then….I'm going to help you seduce him."

"That doesn't sound like a very good idea."

"Would you like a second chance with him? Forget, for a moment, that it's possible. Would you like to have sex with Booth again?"

"Yes" Zack's eyes had a faraway, hopeful look to them.

"Well, you'll need help to land that fish a second time, puppy."

"Huh?" Zack looked at Cam, confused.

"Sorry, metaphor and my great aunt just took over my body." Zack gave her weird look.

"She called everyone 'puppy'." Zack nodded.

"I see." Even though he didn't.

Author Talk: Zack has an accomplice. Zack has an accomplice. hehehehe. Poor Booth. He will fall.

Tropic