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I don't own Bones.

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Standing next to the hospital bed, Brennan reached down and brushed her partner's hair back from his forehead. "You need a haircut. I've never seen your hair this long before. We've been so busy with the Gravedigger case, but really . . . you should have had your hair cut. I know it bothers you when it gets floppy." Watching him sleep, she bit the inside of her mouth. "You promised to never leave me, Booth. Just so you know, I'm insisting that you keep that promise."

He knew Brennan didn't know he was there, so Deputy Director Cullen cleared his throat as he entered the room. "Dr. Brennan, my people are still over at Booth's apartment. Dr. Hodgins joined them an hour ago and I can assure you that everyone is doing everything they can to find something to point to who ever did this."

Appreciative, Brennan sighed and turned her gaze back towards Booth. "He hasn't worked any cases for weeks. He's been very busy helping Caroline getting ready for the trial. I've only worked one small case for the FBI in all of that time. It seems odd to me that this has happened now."

Stepping over to the other side of the bed, Cullen stared at Booth's pale face. "You and Booth have put a lot of people away, Dr. Brennan. I have agents checking into that possibility . . . Can you tell me about this morning? Do you know if Booth went anywhere or was he at his apartment the whole time?"

Grateful that she was of use at the moment, Brennan turned her gaze towards Cullen. "He runs every morning when he can. When he does, he always jogs at the park near his apartment. He gets up fairly early if he's not working on a case and goes for his run then. Afterward, he goes to a gym two blocks from his apartment for about thirty minutes and then returns to his apartment to get ready for work. He's very diligent."

Glad for the information, Cullen nodded his head. "Alright, good . . . Has he mentioned seeing anyone suspicious lately on his runs or at the gym? Has he mentioned running into someone he knows? Did he ever mention anything odd at all?"

Thinking about it carefully, Brennan finally nodded her head. "He did mention that someone followed him from the park to his apartment three days ago. He told me he planned to confront the man, but when he got to his apartment building the man passed him and kept walking down the sidewalk. Booth said the man walked down to the next corner and then took a right and he never saw him again. Booth laughed when he told me about it. He said that maybe he was getting paranoid because the Gravedigger trial was getting closer. He told me he hoped the defense attorney didn't hear about it because then he might have him excused from the trial for mental instability . . . Of course he was joking."

Quickly jotting down the information into a small notebook, the Deputy Director glanced at Booth and then at Brennan. "Have you seen anyone hanging around your apartment that you've never seen before? Has anyone been following you around either on the street or perhaps in stores?"

"Not that I'm aware of and I'm very observant."

Pursing his lips, Cullen nodded his head. "For the time being, I'd like to assign an agent to watch over you. I know you probably think it's unnecessary, but let's err on the side of caution, shall we? . . . We don't know what's going on. It's possible that your life is also in danger. Booth will have a major coronary if I don't make sure that you're protected until we find out who did this to him."

Annoyed, Brennan shook her head and protested, "I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I don't need or want a body guard."

Shaking his head, Cullen frowned at the anthropologist. "Whether you like it or not, you're going to get one. I have an agent on the door of this room right now. I plan to have someone watching over Booth until we find out what's going on." Holding up his hand, palm towards Brennan, the older man smiled at her. "It won't matter how much you protest, Dr. Brennan, we are doing this my way."

Her irritation growing, Brennan scathingly replied, "If you have so little for your agents to do, that you can assign one of them to be my body guard, then do as you wish. It's an incredible waste of man hours and budget dollars though."

Amused at her mulishness, Cullen laughed softly. "It's my budget to burn through, Dr. Brennan."

Her gaze back on Booth, Brennan sighed. "He's been working so hard on the trial. He is going to be very annoyed when he finds out that he won't be able to attend the trial. He's going to be even more annoyed when he finds out that he is going to be unable to go to work for several weeks."

Grimacing, Cullen stared at his agent and knew that Booth was going to be a pain in the ass. "God don't I know it. I'll probably have to let him come back part time as soon as possible just to get him off of my back."

Returning her gaze back towards Booth's boss's boss, Brennan nodded her head in agreement. "Yes, he has a very strong work ethic. He also wanted to see Heather Taffet convicted for her crimes. He really hates her for the terrible things she did."

Worried about the trial and his Agent, Cullen sighed. "If I have to, I can always let him come back to work and let him do his supervisory part of the job. He has a pile of reports on his desk that need to be taken care of. That trial has been eating up his time and he's been trying to do the minimum when it comes to paperwork." After he looked at his watch, he cleared his throat. "I have some things I need to take care of . . . I'll be back tomorrow morning to check on him."

After the Deputy Director left the room, Brennan walked over to the door and made sure it was closed. Walking back over to the bed where Booth lay, she leaned over and kissed Booth on his cheek. "You see . . . you're needed, Booth. I need you and the FBI needs you. You can't die. Just so you know that. I can't allow that to happen. You have too many responsibilities, so you cannot leave."

His eyelids fluttering a little, Brennan leaned closer to him and whispered into his ear. "I love you Booth. You can't leave me. I love you."

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Exiting the room, Cullen found Special Agent Morris Harris standing next to the agent that had been assigned to protect Booth. "He's on a ventilator and he's still unconscious. Dr. Brennan says that Booth was followed home from the park to his apartment after he went for a run three days ago."

Harris frowned and assured the Deputy Director, "I'll have some agents check all of the buildings and traffic cameras along the route for that day and see if we can pick up the stalker. I sure as hell wish I knew what this was about."

Glaring at the far wall, Cullen ground his teeth together. Trying to relax, he finally responded, "Yeah, me too."

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