Thank you for your continued interest in my story. The last chapter was rough.

I don't own Bones, not even a little bit.

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Entering the house, Booth placed his bag on the floor near the door and silently entered the living room. The quiet of the house a comfort to him, he walked into the kitchen and removed a bottle of beer from the fridge. Carrying it over to the kitchen island, he sat down, opened the bottle and took a long drink.

His hand shaking, Booth placed the bottle on the table before him, folded his arms and placed them on the island top and rested his forehead on them. A feeling of dread overshadowed the relief he should be feeling now that Pelant was no longer a threat and he was caught in a dilemma.

The sight of Max digging the grave for the man he'd just murdered played over and over in his head. "He shouldn't have done it. He should have let me . . ."

"He should have let you do what, Booth?" Stepping into the kitchen, Brennan turned on the overhead light bathing the room in bright light. "What's going on? Why are you sitting in the dark drinking beer? It's late. Has something happened?"

Straightening, Booth replied while staring at the window above the sink, "I had to turn you down, Bones. I never meant to hurt you and I'm sorry."

Walking rapidly across the room, Brennan placed her hand on Booth's arm, "Booth, I trust you. Yes, I was upset when you turned me down but I know you and I trust you. It's alright."

Turning, Booth slid off the stool and placed his arms around his partner, "Bones, I don't know why everything seems to never go easy for us, but, I swear to you that I love you."

Slowly rubbing his back, Brennan assured him, "It's fine, Booth. What we have is not damaged. I love you."

His trembling finally subsiding, Booth sighed, "Sometimes we're forced to do things we don't want to do. Sometimes we're forced to do terrible things. I hope you'll forgive me someday . . . I hope . . ."

Interrupting him, Brennan pulled back and stared into his troubled eyes, "Booth, I've already forgiven you."

Kissing her, Booth replied, "I hope to God you never regret being with me, Bones. The things I've done, the things I've been forced to do . . ."

Her mouth crashing onto his, Brennan kissed him deeply. Once their lips parted, Brennan shook her head, "I'll never regret taking a chance with you, Booth. I know who you are."

Sadly, Booth commented, "I hope you do."

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Meeting Booth in the Park, Max waited patiently, sipping a cup of coffee. Booth, walking down the path, spotted his partner's father sitting on a bench, relaxed and appearing to be staring at a cat lying on a bench across the path from him.

Sitting down next to the older man, Booth asked, "Did you take care of things?"

His coffee cup now empty, Max turned and tossed it in a trash receptacle next to the bench, "Sure, I spent the day yesterday taking care of everything. No one is ever going to find his stuff. It's all junk now and . . . well, it's okay, don't worry about where the stuff is. No one can use any of it, ever. I also did some heavy duty cleaning."

Relieved, Booth replied, "Thanks." Studying the cat now sitting on the bench watching them, Booth sighed, "Because of how we handled it, I have a little problem. How can I tell Bones not to worry anymore? How do I tell her it's over? As far as she and everyone knows he's still out there and well, I'm screwed. We can't say anything. How do I get around this? If I tell her then she becomes an accessory and I can't let that happen. If our package is ever found and they trace it back to us I can't jeopardize her freedom. Someone has to take care of Christine."

Rubbing his chin, Max scowled at the agent, "What the hell, Booth. You didn't do anything. I did it. Me, not you."

Exasperated, Booth shook his head, "I helped you cover it up. I didn't arrest you for it that's for damn sure. How could I since I planned on doing the same thing. I'm part of this and I can't let Bones be involved in anyway."

Folding his hands on his lap, Max remarked, "I talked to Roy. I told the kid that I checked out the Power plant and didn't find anything. I told him that it looked like someone had been there but they weren't there anymore. Roy feels bad that he failed but I told him to keep looking. After a few weeks, I'm going to tell him to stop. I'll tell him that maybe that lunatic moved out of the area in which case I don't care where he went. He's a good kid, Booth. He's loyal just like his old man. I hate lying to him, but if anyone comes around asking him questions, I want him to be able to answer truthfully."

Nodding his head, Booth leaned back against the bench. "I think in a month I'll just tell her that we're going to ignore the lunatic's threat and we're going to get married. I might tell her I think he's been traced overseas or something. I want to get married, Max. I want to make Bones happy. She took a big risk asking me to marry her and when I turned her down, she . . . it wasn't fair to her. None of this was fair to her. That guy was obsessed with her. My gut is telling me that sooner or later he was going to kill me or her or both of us. "

Patting Booth's leg, Max reasoned, "Booth, it's over. You need to relax and stop worrying about it. If our package is ever found I'll take full responsibility. I'm old and I've had an interesting life. I won't let you go down with me. My Tempe needs you."

Snorting, Booth fretted, "I was going to do it. I was scouting out a good location to hide the package after I'd destroyed it. I . . ."

Interrupting the agent, Max offered, "I knew what you were going to do, Booth. I told you I couldn't let you do it. I did it for you. It's over if you want it to be. Just let it go. For all of our sakes including Tempe's and your daughter's. Don't ruin your life because I did something and you helped me. It doesn't matter if you planned on doing it. You didn't. I did. Me not you. For once, give yourself a damn break. Just forget about it. My Tempe needs you, Booth. You and the baby are all she has that she can really count on. Don't mess up her life because you think you did something wrong. Do you understand what I'm saying? I did this for you and Tempe. I've been a horrible father and this . . . this is my gift to you and my baby girl. You're free of that lunatic. Your hands are clean and so are hers."

Swallowing, Booth assured him, "You aren't a horrible father, Max. I know what a horrible father is and you don't come close."

Patting his leg again, Max smiled, "Thanks. That means a lot to me. Now stop worrying, you didn't do anything wrong. Get that through your head. It was all me and that's final."

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So what do you think of my story so far?