Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding GWTW

Author's Notes: Thank you for all the reviews and feedback.

Chapter Thirteen

The next evening just after five o'clock Scarlett walked into the Jeffersonian with the file. She passed Miguel as he was leaving. She smiled and said, "You must have a hot date because you certainly look hot."

"Of course, I do."

"Have fun."

"I will."

Scarlett saw Emily and Hodgins having beetle races and smiled. She saw two other people chatting and she suspected they would be leaving together to go get drinks. Rhett was sitting behind his computer. Scarlett smiled and said, "What are you doing this weekend?"

"I have a partial skull from France, that I have been waiting for three months to get here, that I am going to examine. What do you need? Do you have a case where you need my expertise."

Scarlett smiled. Any other man would have thought she was inviting him to have some fun, but that thought never entered Dr. Butler's head. He was all about the work.

Scarlett said, "Sort of. I have a friend who works for the Innocence Project. He has a client that will be executed in a week. He would like us to re-examine the evidence."

"Translate that to I re-examine the evidence."

"Here is the case. Five years ago, a seventeen-year-old girl was beat to death in a Federal Park. It was my first case as an FBI agent which is why I want to be sure I didn't make any mistakes."

"Of course, you didn't." Rhett's statement made Scarlett feel wonderful until he added, "It went to trial and has passed at least two appeals. If you had made any mistakes someone would have found them."

Scarlett smiled at him. He really didn't realize how insulting he was being. She said, "Not everyone is as meticulous as you are. If there is anything hinky you will find it."

"Hinky? What does that mean?"

"Anything abnormal."

"I will do it as a personal favor to you. Not to your friend and not to the man on death row. You."

"Thank you, Dr. Butler."

"What anomalies are there?"

"A pubic hair that was unaccounted for."

"Pubic hair? Any crime lab can work that up, even the FBI."

"It is an off the books project, but never mind I know your skull is waiting for you."

"It can wait a little longer. Let me have the file. Any remains withheld from burial?"

"Not after the last appeal."

"I'd need x-rays from the M.E. and the coroner. Originals! The copies are useless. Bone scrapings, lab results, tox screens."

"All the evidence is in the back of my truck."

"How long has it been back there?"

"Less than twenty-four hours. I don't know how long Ashley had them in his trunk."

"Ashley? Your boyfriend?"

"SSH! Just either refer to him as my friend or as Ashley."

With a grin, Rhett said, "Yes, ma'am. I'll ask the others to help, but I won't order them to. They might have plans."

"It's Friday night and they're racing beetles."

Rhett looked at Scarlett. He shrugged his shoulders and said, "A very valid point. How much time do we have?"

"We have until next Thursday at six in the evening, but everyone's job starts again at eight o'clock Monday morning."

"Very well. Let's get started. Ms. Addy, Dr. Hodgins, do you want to give up your weekend in the pursuit of the truth."

Jack said, "I'm always willing to give of my time in pursuit of the truth."

Emily who was more interested in spending time with Jack said, "Yes."

"All right. Go help Agent O'Hara bring in the evidence."

After looking over the evidence, Rhett said, "Except for the pubic hair so far we haven't found anything to stay the execution."

Rhett picked up the x-ray of the victim's hands and stared at the image, he said, "What are these shadows?"

Emily said, "The M.E. concluded that they were bone fragments dislodged by the tire iron."

Rhett said, "No, these radiographic shadows are too opaque for bone."

Scarlett said, "What does that mean?"

Rhett grinned and said, "Something hinky."

Emily said to Scarlett, "The prosecution theory of the crime does not include foreign matter in the bone."

Rhett said, "It is a question mark? We need to know if these shadows are bone fragments, which I doubt, or something else?"

Scarlett said, "Like what?"

Rhett smiled at Scarlett and said, "I don't know. I don't have enough data to draw any conclusions."

Scarlett's cell phone rang, and she walked off to answer it.

Rhett said, "Emily, go over to Greenbelt Park. I want you to take pictures of the area. The area where the body was found, ground covering, and paved areas."

"Of course, Dr. Butler, but it is not going to look the same as it did five years ago."

"A valid point, Ms. Addy, but I want the pictures anyway."

"Right away, Dr. Butler. Let me go get the camera."

"Take the file and get photos of the surrounding area. Dr. Hodgins, drive her over there. I don't think she is in any danger, but it never hurts to have a male presence around."

"Yes, Dr. Butler."

Scarlett hung up her cell phone. She said, "Keep working on the project. I have to go talk with the family."

Rhett said to Scarlett, "Hey on your way back get us all sandwiches from Subway. Make it simple ham and cheese on white bread with mayo. Chips for everyone. And four Cokes."

As Emily was walking out, she said, "I don't want a Coke. I want a Diet Dr. Pepper."

Jack said, "I don't want a Coke either. I want a Pepsi."

Scarlett smiled at Rhett, and he smiled back. They were sharing a secret joke. All soda in the South was called Coke. It was a common phrase to hear in the South – What kind of Coke do you want? – The answer could be anything from Pepsi, Dr. Pepper or even Coke itself. She said, "I need some money."

"Of course." Rhett took out his wallet and gave her two twenties.

Scarlett said, "Thanks. I should be back within the hour."

"Take your time. I'm the only one here."

Jack sat in the car while Emily took the pictures. As she was walking back to the car, she dropped the lens cap to the camera. As she looked down, she saw it. The numbers two, two, one. Where had she seen them before? In the evidence box. O'Hara had said they were a telephone number, but Emily suddenly knew they weren't a telephone number. She looked for the other numbers. She found them all. She knew what those numbers were. A location.

Emily and Jack returned. She said, "Where is Agent O'Hara?"

"She had to go talk to the family. What have you got?"

"Where is that paper with the numbers on it." Emily found it. She looked at it. 12402510220. She said, "I was right."

"What?"

"That number on the paper. It isn't a telephone number, but a location. Let me show you."

Emily wrote the numbers on a piece of paper but spaced them – 1240 25 10 221. She said, "Parking spot 221, picnic area 10, go through gate 25. The 1240 is the time she was going to meet someone."

Jack said, "The pubic hair donor. This fits with the timeline."

A few minutes later, Scarlett returned with the food. The group went to the lounge and updated each other on what was going on. Scarlett said, "Someone let the family know that Epps may receive a reprieve. They naturally are upset that the man they think killed their daughter is going to get a stay of execution. I calmed them down."

Emily said, "We found out what the numbers on the paper mean."

"Really. That is a breakthrough."

After Emily explained, Scarlett said, "So she wasn't there accidentally. She was meeting someone." She paused then she added the pubic hair donor."

Jack smiled and said, "My thoughts exactly."

Jack and Scarlett looked at each other and laughed. Rhett didn't like it one bit. To get Scarlett's attention back on him, he said, "We found a bone chip on her dress. I can't believe any crime lab missed that."

Scarlett said, "What does it mean?"

"I think it means she was moved, but I need more evidence."

Jack heard his instrument beeping. He said, "Let me find out what that is." When he returned, he said, "The victim was not killed where she was found." He turned to Scarlett and said, "We found aggregate gravel on her clothing."

Rhett stood up and said, "We have proof she was moved. We have to exhume the body."

Scarlett said, "Let me give Ashley a call. He can get the paperwork together. You two can go see the judge."

"You aren't going to go."

"Disturb a judge on a Friday night. I don't think so. I want nothing to do with that. The judge can be hostile towards you and Ashley."

Scarlett got up and grabbed her sandwich. She turned before leaving the lounge. She said, "I want my chips."

Rhett just smiled. Scarlett was back in five minutes. She said, "Sometimes, he is so prissy. Ashley will meet you out front in twenty minutes. I'm sure he will be happy to take your car."

Twenty minutes later, Ashley pulled up in a six-year-old Ford Taurus. There was a tall man standing on the sidewalk in front of the entrance. He parked in front of him.

Rhett walked around to the driver's side and said, "Mr. ..I don't know your last name. Ashley?"

"Yes, my last name is Wilkes."

"Park over there. We will take my car."

"Sure. Which one is it?"

"The blue BMW X-5."

After Ashely had gotten into the SUV, he said, "Is it new?"

"I just bought it about a month ago. Now that I am working out in the field, I needed a larger vehicle to haul all my equipment around."

"So, you just bought a new vehicle?"

Unaware of Ashley's incredulity, Rhett simply said, "Yes, it seemed the simplest solution."

"It is very nice. Thank you. Do you have the address?"

"Yes."

"What is it? I will punch it in to my navigation system."

"Of course."

On the twenty-minute drive to the judge's home, Rhett was studying Ashley. He certainly wasn't what Rhett thought would be Scarlett's type. He seemed kind of wimpy to Rhett. Oh well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. He didn't want to get involved with anyone again. He didn't want to risk his heart again. The fact she was involved with someone else made it easy for him to not pursue her. Not that he would even if she was not involved with someone else. Nonetheless, he knew he was annoyed that she was involved with anyone.

Ashley also had spent the drive studying Rhett and the SUV. His car was the one his father had given him when he graduated from law school. He certainly hadn't expected to still be driving it six years later. His vehicle needed maintenance and the tires were bald. It was all he could do to get the oil changed regularly. He had graduated at the top of his class. He had gotten some very lucrative offers, but he had turned them all down to go to work for the public defenders' office. He didn't regret his decision, but he wished the Innocence Project paid better.

Ashley was happy doing good for his fellow man. He just wished it paid more. He knew Melly was getting tired of pinching pennies. To get his mind off Melly, he looked at Scarlett's friend. No, Scarlett's colleague. Where they just friends? He knew that Scarlett felt nothing for him. In fact, it surprised him when she came on to him, but he had always wanted her, so he said yes. If she met someone she wanted to form a relationship with, he knew he would be out the door like yesterday's trash.

After the two men arrived at Judge Morton's home, they had to wake him up. It was only eleven in the evening, but it seems the judge liked to retire early. He walked into his living room in his underwear. Neither man said anything. They knew they were on thin ice already.

Judge Morton said, "So you found of piece of bone."

Rhett said, "Yes, it is a shard from her left triquetral with gravel embedded in it."

"So what?"

"These shadows were believed to be bone shattered during the attack, but the density doesn't match up. The density of…"

"Stop. I'm not going to understand. I will sign the exhumation order, but if you are wrong Dr. Butler, you better pray you are never a witness in my courtroom."

"Thank you, Sir."

"For threatening you?"

"No, for signing the exhumation order."