Inspired by TsarinaTorment and prompted by a line by The Dry Swan. With thanks as always to Sineater and MariaShadow for all their help.
Chapter 1
Dr Temperance Brennen sat at the table and regarded her partner. Booth was cooking breakfast, a task he loved doing (thankfully, because she might be the genius of the two but she still couldn't cook pancakes without them either being burnt or raw inside).
He was talking about the game he'd been watching last night but she'd switched off, a sudden need to anatomically analyse his three gluteal muscles and how they worked together to shore up his back…the Angela in her head laughed at her as she spoke: 'sure, honey. Most people would just say Booth has a nice butt – and I would be one of them'.
The ringing of her phone broke through her thoughts, followed by Booth's a couple of seconds later.
They hung up and looked at each other and spoke in unison.
'They've found a body.'
'We've got a body.'
…
Canaan Valley Resort was a popular place for skiing, especially for families with children as it was a haven for all levels of snow sports. It had been popular for generations of skiers because of the varying skill levels it provided, and while they still were prone to avalanches as any mountain was, their safety record was very good compared with other slopes in the USA.
That didn't mean that there were no casualties, though.
Every year the thaw began earlier and earlier. Some of the hottest weather in years had been blamed on the only times the resort had been closed months before usual. While balance was being restored to the environment, there were still much work to be done.
This year a heatwave had led to the discovery of several bodies. Six in total had been rescued from two places on the mountain. Five bodies from one place and one alone.
Booth watched as Bones, Cam, Hodgins and current intern Wendell Bray scouted the two sites, accompanied by a plethora of FBI agents and other squints. He smiled as Tempe ordered people around, pointing out what she wanted shipped back to the Jeffersonian, including some debris that had probably been chalets at some point. There was a going to be a lot! He didn't envy the techs whose responsibility that was.
Eventually the team called it a day, and everyone went home.
The local news the next morning mentioned the finding of six bodies from Canaan Valley. In the grand scheme of things it went unnoticed by seven men and two women who were just finishing up breakfast before the world called on them.
…
The bodies were laid out for examination, three on the main work platform and three in a side room. The platform contained the singular victim and two from the group, and as Cam looked over the remains she couldn't help but feel the stirring of something familiar about the body. A distant memory perhaps.
The ice had preserved the woman remarkably well. There were obvious injuries – broken bones in the main – but before she could examine the body in any great detail she needed to wait for thawing to be completed and for Hodgins and Mr Bray to remove the clothing.
Speaking of those two…she should really check up on how they were progressing. As she walked to the raised platform Dr Brennen joined her.
Hodgins and Wendell stood there with the biggest grins. Cam and Brennen looked faintly worried and with a widening of her eyes Cam left them to it.
'Okay then! Dr Brennen, I – er – good luck!'
Brennen gave her a stare as Cam all but fled before turning to the two grinning scientists before her.
The two men, dressed in their white lab coats, had completed their outfits with safety goggles. Hodgins passed a pair to her and suggested she stand back.
Before them lay just the one body, the others had joined their partners. It lay on a wire mesh over a large clear box. In front of it stood a burn furnace.
Brennen sighed. She should have known. This wasn't the first time they had used the furnace with varying degrees of success. The last time they had set the lab on fire…and the two large funnels pointing to the body didn't exactly fill her with confidence.
Something on her face must have shown what she was thinking as Hodgins moderated his grin.
'Don't worry, Dr B. We've planned this well.'
'Yeah. To defrost the body at room temperature would take all day. Using the furnace will take less than a minute.'
'And you won't damage the body?'
'I guarantee it. The water and particulates will be collected in the basin beneath.'
'Very well, Dr Hodgins. You may proceed.'
She'd never tell them but standing back and watching the ice melt in mere seconds had been fascinating. She had stood behind Hodgins and Mr Bray and Brennen was so pleased that she had. The heat from the furnace did more than melt the ice. It gave both men red faces, and she pretended to be indifferent when Mr Bray reached across and put out a tiny flame in Hodgins' hair. She couldn't quite suppress the small smile as she spoke before leaving.
'Well done, Dr Hodgins. I believe this makes you King of the Lab. Mr Bray, please clean the bones.'
The feeling of 'knowing' something nagged at Cam, and resolutely she ignored the experiment behind her and went to talk to Angela. Maybe, if the woman had been reported missing, they could get a head start on identifying her from what they could extrapolate already.
Angela was online talking to Booth and Cam told them of her feelings and described the woman and what she was wearing as best as she could.
'Red hair, youngish – late 30's maybe, cream and green ski jacket.'
'Well, there can't be too many missing people from the resort, can there? Can you look that up, Angela?'
'Of course, Sweetie.'
But it was Booth that claimed their attention as Brennen entered the room.
'Wait a second. You said redhead?'
'Yes.'
'Booth? You know something?'
'I can't believe it!'
'What is it, Booth?'
'Mid-thirties, redhead. It's gotta be.'
Brennen sighed in exasperation.
'Who is it, Booth?'
'Lucille Tracy. Wife of the Great Jeff Tracy.'
'How do you know that?'
'Killed in an avalanche 13 years ago. Body was never found. I can't believe you guys don't remember! There was a great big fuss because NASA refused to bring Tracy back from the moon!'
