The Ensuing (Chapter 6)

Bones swung with all her might and knew from the sickening thud that she had made contact with something fleshy. The only problem was, this flesh was not Andrew Rigby, it was another man that resembled him. It didn't take more than a cursory glance for Bones to surmise that this was Andrew's brother. It also didn't take long for this man to recover. Apparently, her strength was not back to full capacity. For while she did make contact, it was only enough to leave a small laceration. The man gasped and gripped the side of his head. He snapped his head back at her when he discovered the trail of blood coming from the wound. Bones knew that look and braced herself as his fist came straight for her face. Bones expected the hit, she expected to not have the ability to block the shot, but she didn't expect Booth's field training to kick in. Feigning unconsciousness was the best option for her in the moment. She felt herself being lifted by both brothers and deposited into the empty hot tub on the patio. She didn't have the strength to get up and defend herself, but she was fully aware of what was happening. Whenever she had the opportunity, she peeked out of the non- swollen eye.

Booth had his sniper scope trained on Bones. He looked for any sign of life, anything from her breathing to twitches or spasms. Nothing… just what looked like a black eye. Of course, she fought. Bones may have been the smartest woman he knew, but she certainly wasn't lacking in the courage department. Wait a second. Was Booth seeing things? He rubbed his eyes and looked again. There it was! Bones was peering out of her good eye each time the brothers had their backs turned. She was faking it. He turned his scope and slipped off the anti- refectory piece. He then tipped his scope back and forth to emit a distinct light source whenever Bones opened her eyes. It wasn't long before it caught her attention.

"Oh good, you're up." Andrew Rigby's voice chillingly registered to Bones. He stepped closer and looked her up and down. I hope your partner doesn't keep up waiting too much longer or we'll have to start without him. He took out a pack that was laying beside the rocking chair.

"Was it you in the rocking chair last night?" Brennan croaked out. Andrew gave a throaty laugh as he reached into his pack and pulled out a set of knives.

Booth had no intention of letting these two leave this cabin alive. These two didn't deserve to breathe the same air as decent human beings. He just had to wait for the opportune moment when sniper fire would have been a justifiable action. It took nearly all of Booth's willpower to wait for the opportune moment to fire. As soon as Andrew reached for his pack, Booth went on high alert. The minute he unrolled the pack to retrieve a meat cleaver, Booth released the first shot. A clean through and through that left a splatter of brain matter on the patio screen. Booth could hear Henry screaming as his brother dropped to the floor. Booth could see Bones taking the opportunity to get up. Henry's attention was instantly drawn to her, the hurt and anger evident on his face. He grabbed her shoulders and shoved her back down, hard. He could see that Bones was fighting against his weight. Booth couldn't get a clear shot. Just then Bones kicked the younger Rigby in the ribs. He buckled over in pain and Bones double fisted her hands and dropped them down on the nape of his neck. Booth could hear the sound of Henry's head hitting the edge of the tub ricocheting though the woods. Booth saw blood pool out of Henry's head and he was pretty sure he wouldn't be waking up. Bones stepped out of the tub and staggered to the patio door, exiting the cabin. She headed towards him, and he began to climb down the tree.

"Booth? Booth, where are you?"

"Right here, Bones, "he said as he stepped down from the last branch. It was over. This whole nightmare was over. Her head felt heavy, and she rested it on Booth's broad chest. "Bones, I'm taking you to see a doctor." Booth began dialing local PD and his team at the FBI.

"I'm fine Booth, please…no more doctors." Booth shifted his arm around her shoulders and they walked towards his car. After backup showed up and Bones retrieved her possessions from the cabin, they returned to the Jeffersonian. Angela, who was waiting with Parker and Hodgins ran up to Bones.

"Brennan, on my goodness. How are you, sweetie?"

"I'm okay, Angela"

They headed to Wong Foos and were greeted with an array of plates. Parker dug into the Chicken Lo Mein, a saucy smile on his face. Angela lifted her glass, " I want to make a toast to Agent Seeley Booth. Booth, Andrew Rigby was right about one thing, you are incredibly brave. Thank you for bringing our girl back. I don't know what I would have done without her."

"From what Booth told me, Ang, without you, I wouldn't have been located." Bones glanced around the room with gratitude in her eyes. "Thank you both for all of your help finding me. I was never really scared because I knew that the best were looking for me."

They all joined glasses and chatted the night away.