A collection of oneshots I couldn't keep in my head, from the fingers of a veteran (if a little out of practice) fanfic writer. Each story will have the inspiration and timeline listed before it begins. If you're here because you follow me as an author, you'll know the drill, if you're new to my writing - Reviews are nice but not the whole reason I do this, I write what I would like to read and figure others might want to read them too. I'm in Scotland so any non-americanisms are accidental and not necessarily spelling mistakes.

The Truth in the Taking

A/N2: This little oneshot was inspired by an episode of Smallville and takes place around S5 E3

Temperance Brennan frowned as she looked at the topography of the West Virginian field she was standing in with her partner, Special Agent Seeley Booth of the FBI, and the multitude of other forensic and law enforcement figures. Local PD and Forensics uncovered and removed the first body, found by a very shocked new owner of the land as he was levelling the field with his backhoe. They found the next two bodies in the same grave by accident when one of the excavation team speared his shovel into another nearby mound to take a break and almost vomited when he was hit with the sharp smell of decay when he pulled it back out again smeared with dirt and bodily fluids. The locals, knowing they'd need more specialised help, called FBI forensics and FBI forensics called Dr Temperance Brennan and where Brennan went, Booth followed.

"Each of these mounds should be carefully excavated, every single raised area in the field could be another shallow grave."

Marcus Geier raised an eyebrow at Dr Brennan, knowing better than to complain or question her. "I'd better tell everyone we're in for an all nighter then."

"Yes, I believe it will take considerable time to ensure we've accounted for any other bodies that may have been buried here."

"You really think every bump in this field has a corpse in it, Bones?" Booth looked up from his notecards with a frown.

"Well, I know that if I bought land and a corpse was found by my trying to level the surface of that land, I'd like to ensure there would be no other corpses in the immediate area. While not every raised mound of grass and soil may have a body, close to the trees it could simply be raised roots but it's important to ensure they're just natural ground disturbances rather than shallow graves."

"Right … right." Booth nodded, mentally counting at least 20 different lumps and bumps in his field of vision. "All nighter it is."

#

The Jeffersonian and FBI teams worked from 8pm until 9am the next day, they took breaks under a hastily set up gazebo that had a couple of cots for naps and a table with paper cups, instant coffee, sugar and insulated urns of hot water - graciously supplied by Mr and Mrs Gordon, the new land owners, and Raleigh County Police Department.

Dr Temperance Brennan never visited the break area, instead having her caffeine fixes delivered by Booth, along with a couple of shoulder squeezes either side of her neck when he could see her struggling to turn her head when giving instructions. Since chickening out and telling her he loved her 'in an atta-girl type of way', he took any excuse possible to touch her and try to show his affection in a non-threatening manner.

"Got another pair!" Geier called out as he explored what used to be a large mound with a small fork and trowel. "Hands tied together like the others."

3 mounds had been uncovered to reveal single burials with no discernible cause of death, but 2 other excavations had been double, two corpses with their wrists bound together with fabric of some kind wrapped around their hands and their craniums severely damaged.

"So, assuming the same person killed all these people, couples were shot but loners were murdered some other way?" Booth scribbled on his notecards.

Brennan tilted her head to the side "While that's a fair conclusion, I wouldn't want to confirm a firearm was used until I can examine the damage in more detail … and better light but, yes, I can definitely see why you would assume that at first glance."

"Of course Bones!" Booth grinned despite his fatigue."I wouldn't have it any other way!"

By 11am the convoy of vans and cars were heading back to the Jeffersonian with 13 bodies for Angela Montenegro to help identify and enough soil samples to keep Dr Jack Hodgins busy for an extended period of time. Brennan had drafted in every intern on her roster to aid with the excavations and upcoming forensic work that would be required to determine who all these people were and who killed them.

#

While Brennan quickly freshened up in the shower room at the Jeffersonian before getting to work, Booth went home to clean up, shave, have a 30 minute catnap and change into a fresh suit before visiting the lab to see what progress had been made.

"What've you got Bones?" He called out as he bounced up the steps to the forensic platform where three bodies were laid out - two tied at the hands on one table and a single body on the other.

"Preliminary examinations have determined that there were 3 females and 2 males in the single graves and in the double graves there were 3 male and female couples and 1 with two males." Brennan spoke clearly but Booth could tell her energy was waning. "I've emailed the report to your office outlining approximate ages, peri and post mortem injuries, and times of death so you can cross reference with missing persons."

"Is there any way you could take a break? You've been awake for over 30 hours now, Bones." Booth's brow creased with concern.

She smiled tiredly at him "When Dr Edison returns from his break, it's my turn, boss goes last."

"Good, good" Booth nodded. "Any confirmation on cause of death?"

"On the pairs that were found, yes - gunpowder residue was found around the wounds on the back of one victim's cranium around the suture of the parietal and occipital bones. Also on multiple victims there was evidence of fingers being completely or partially severed." She gestured to the table with two bodies "You can see that the bullet entered through this male's cranium, exited through the frontal bone and into the frontal bone of the female he was buried with. Only a very powerful weapon could achieve the force needed to go through the osseous tissue in both skulls which is why only the entry wound is a clean hollow while the frontal bones are … well … missing as well as the large void in the female's parietal bone."

Booth nodded and inspected the entry and exit wounds. "Rifle probably, fairly close range … a shotgun would have obliterated both the skulls entirely. So what's with the hands tied together?"

Brennan removed her latex gloves, tossing them in a medical waste bin before rubbing at her eyes. "The working hypothesis, taken from the right hands being tied with fabric and then it being wound and knotted around both pairs of wrists is handfasting - where a couple would take part in a ritual where their hands were tied together to signify their union. There are arguments over its inception, some say it's only been around for 2,000 years, others are adamant it goes back further especially in the Celtic Traditions of Ireland and Scotland. In ancient texts it's documented to have been a year long contract between a man and a woman - if there were no progeny within that time they could then look for other partners. In modern contexts it's used as a replacement for marriage but has none of the legal backing so it's incorporated into a legal marriage ritual rather than being a ritual on its own."

"So this psycho marries them then kills them?" Booth looked up from his notecards.

"I didn't say that." She blinked at him owlishly before her attention was drawn to Dr Edison walking towards them on return from his break.

"Okay, he binds them for eternity, what's the deal with the missing fingers?"

Brennan palmed her forehead and blinked slowly. "There's damage to the fingers or completely missing fingers on 8 of the victims, some of them the phalanges were found separate from the bodies, others those bones are missing. In this couple you can see that the male has a partial severing at the metacarpophalangeal joint … the knuckle at the base of the phalanges in the first and and second phalange."

"Thumb and Index finger … right." Booth looked at his flagging partner and put an arm around her "Come on Bones, I'll drive you home for a nap." She nodded and allowed him to aid in the removal of her lab coat before collecting her belongings and feeling the familiar settle of his hand at the small of her back as he led her to his SUV.

#

Charlie was waiting for Booth, popping his head out of the bullpen as he approached from the elevator. "Hey boss, any news from the squints that could narrow down the parameters for this missing persons search? So far I'm searching for males and females between 24 and 35 years old, who have gone missing between 6 years and 6 months ago and I'm drowning in the results."

Booth stopped at his office door and tapped his hand against the frame "Focus on couples that have gone missing."

"Couples?"

"Yeah, y'know 'oh we'd thought they'd eloped but then they never came back to work' reports."

"Will do" Charlie tapped two fingers to his forehead in salute and went back to his search.

#

Brennan stretched and dragged herself up to sit on the edge of the mattress before turning off her alarm. It was day 8 of their investigation of the bodies found at the Gordon land and the statistics were unusual:

13 bodies, from all over the country.

3 different causes of death (8 killed by gunshots to the head, 2 killed by benzodiazepine overdose and 3 killed by gastric rupture).

With the exception of one victim, all the others had been reported missing as part of a romantic couple. The 3 killed by gastric rupture had no damage to the phalanges, the 2 killed by overdose had the most damage to the phalanges and the couples that were bound together only had damage to one or two phalanges.

There was not much uniformity, 10 were killed with a quick method and 3 with a slow, painful method, all were a mix of genders; but there had to be a method, a reasoning for the damage and cause of death.

As the victims were from a multitude of states, the local PD were more than happy to hand the investigation over to the FBI and wash their hands of it. This killer had a thought process and reasoning for killing the way they did. She could only hope that today Booth would have news from his questioning of the family and friends of the victims and the police where the missing persons reports had initially been filed, he had been gone for 4 days; travelling the country to give parents and friends the news of their loved ones deaths in person, and collect any evidence local PD had gathered … she had missed him intensely. His flight from his last interview in Montana was due to arrive in 3 hours, making her mind up, she called Charlie and insisted that she pick him up at the airport because that's just what partners do.

It was a partner thing, because she loved him in a professional 'atta-boy' kind of way. She certainly didn't love him the same way she loved her father or Russ, and it was different to the way she loved Angela or had even cared for Sully. She figured that the love from a deep friendship with undercurrents of sexual attraction that couldn't be acted upon defied many labels … 'atta-boy' was as accurate a descriptor as any other. It made sense to her at the time.

#

Booth slouched towards the arrivals lounge, he was tired, he was hungry, he'd spent the last 4 days telling people that someone they loved was dead … but his shoulders straightened and the smile spread revealing his dimples when he saw his Bones waiting for him. His Bones.

"Hey Bones!" He held himself back from scooping her up into both his arms and kissing her, instead, pulling her into a one armed guy hug. "You miss me?"

"Your absence was definitely noted" Brennan admitted with a lopsided smile "Did you pick up any leads?"

"You betcha, but we'll talk at the diner … I need pie, then I need sleep!"

The drive to the diner followed the usual format, Booth grumbling about Brennan's ecologically friendly car, Brennan defending her vehicle choices, catching up with the advancements in the case that the lab had made, the crappy motels that the FBI had put Booth up in. By the time they got to the Royal Diner it was as if he'd never been away. They sat at their usual table and after ordering, Booth pulled a brochure from his bag and slid it across the table towards her.

"I hope you're not proposing." Brennan quirked an eyebrow and grinned.

"What?" Booth paused, his coffee cup halfway to his mouth before he realised that pushing a wedding destination brochure on her had prompted the reaction. "Oh … no … I wouldn't dare, Bones! All the couples found were planning weddings and this venue was the one they all had in common."

"I see" She picked up the brochure and scoffed "Begin your happily ever after with us? Proposterous, there's no way to predict that any couple who gets married there will be happy or even together in the future. Romanticised notions perpetuated by fairytale movies that have no basis is reality!"

Booth poked the inside of his cheek with his tongue and wondered if he should bite "Well, you're not wrong … but you're not right either. No one gets married thinking it's going to end, so 'happily ever after' is a valid concept at your wedding but marriage takes work - respect, trust and compromise but so does any serious long term relationship so it's predictable if it's the right couple … look at us for example."

"You're comparing our partnership with marriage?"

"Sure" he held up a finger to prevent the interruption he knew would come. "We have a legal contract - like a marriage would, not with each other but with our employers but we choose to work together to the exclusion of others, like a marriage. We resolve our differences effectively and support each other when it's required - like a marriage. But a marriage and a wedding aren't the same thing, marriage is about choosing the other person every single day."

Brennan leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms over her chest, raising her brows to indicate that Booth should continue.

"A wedding doesn't ensure a healthy marriage, the two people involved do. I've seen marriages that had the most expensive, lavish weddings end in divorce before the 6 month mark, I've seen weddings in a courthouse with only 2 witnesses and no party lasting for decades until one of 'em dies … but the reverse is also, anecdotally, true, the wedding doesn't make the marriage."

"Are you sure you aren't proposing?" Brennan smiled as she sipped at her coffee.

"Trust me Bones, I know your stance on marriage!" Booth grinned as Connie placed a large slice of cherry pie in front of him and he dug in with abandon.

#

Angela rapped on the doorframe of Brennan's office just as she was shrugging her jacket on. "Hey Ange, any progress?"

"Yeah, finally got dentals back for the lone wolfess - Gillian Sorenson. Missing for 8 years with no progress so she'd already been declared dead."

"Did you track down next of kin?"

"None, only child, both parents died - her Mom 2 years after she went missing and her Dad two years after that. She's all alone, poor thing."

Brennan patted Angela's shoulder as she passed "Booth is picking me up, we're going to visit the wedding venue all the missing persons had indicated they would be viewing, send the picture of Ms Sorensen to my phone and we can enquire as to whether anyone remembers her."

"Sure thing sweetie. You know West Virginia is a no wait state, right? You can pick up your marriage licence at the courthouse and get married on the same day if you have a venue … just, y'know, if you and Booth get bored."

Brennan rolled her eyes at Angela's grin. "I doubt I would ever be so lacking in activities that I'd go through such a ritual on a whim! You know there's a line that can't be crossed by colleagues that are in dangerous situations like the ones Booth and I get involved in."

"Are you saying an imaginary line is the only thing stopping you from tapping that?"

"No, of course not, we're just partners!" Brennan huffed and stalked away towards the exit of the lab.

#

Booth pulled into the parking area of 'Wedded Bliss' and tapped Brennan's knee before pointing to a sign at the side of the entrance that read: Beaver Creek Bindings - add a touch of Celtic Heritage to your ceremony.

"Well, that's certainly interesting." Brennan intoned quietly, sharing a look with her partner before getting out of the SUV and taking in the large log structure. "It definitely looked better in the brochure."

"Don't they always?" Booth grinned and tipped an imaginary hat to a man in overalls who was on his knees digging in a flowerbed to the side of the entrance. He opened the door, ushering her through with his hand in its usual place. There was a young woman at the reception desk, Brennan placed her age between 21 and 25, who smiled broadly as they approached.

"Hi there! Do you have an appointment?" Her smile was bright and genuine and her name tag read 'Jess'.

"Sorry, we don't have an appointment, Jess." Booth showed his badge and smiled winningly at her, Jess' eyelids fluttered and a blush rose on her cheeks. "I was hoping to speak to Marion Bright, I understand she's the manager here."

"Oh! Yes, of course! I'll call her through right away!" Jess picked up the phone and tapped 3 buttons, asking Ms Bright to come to reception to speak to the FBI without taking her gaze away from Booth once. "Please have a seat, Ms Bright will be through shortly."

Brennan turned to see a baby pink leather loveseat with red love heart throw cushions and fought the urge to comment on it. Booth laughed gently as he noted the expression on his partner's face. "C'mon Bones, it won't bite!"

"It's a sofa, of course it won't bite, Booth! It's inanimate." She huffed and settled primly on the edge of a cushion, placing her briefcase between her feet while Booth plonked himself down and settled comfortably until Brennan grabbed his knee and pointed across the room. "Look, Booth, handfasting ties."

She hurried over to the display and began inspecting the different colours and textures of the bindings before beckoning to Jess and asking if it would be possible to have samples of them to take away with her. "I don't need the whole ribbon or rope - just a small piece to compare fibres."

"Bones!" Booth warned from the sofa, his knee bobbing up and down. Jess was likely too young to be involved, given the length of time some of the corpses had been buried, but everyone was a suspect.

"My, uh, friend would be very interested in the range of textiles used as she's planning her wedding. She'll probably be surprised at the amount of choice available!"

"Okay, would an inch be enough?" Jess pulled a pair of scissors from a drawer in her desk.

"Yes, that would be sufficient to see, for her to see all the colours and materials Beaver Creek Bindings stock."

Brennan darted her eyes to Booth who nodded once in approval of her quick thinking before turning his head towards the sound of clicking heels along tiles. Marion Bright was a short woman with a willowy figure and penchant for rings - at least one ring adorned each of her clasped fingers.

Booth stood and stretched out his hand. "Ms Bright, I'm Special Agent Seeley Booth, FBI and this is my partner Dr. Temperance Brennan."

Brennan quietly told Jess she would pick up the samples upon leaving and went to stand by Booth's side, extending her own hand to the Venue Owner.

"Agent Booth, Dr Brennan, please follow me to my office." Ms Bright did not smile in greeting, her handshake was perfunctory, her tone cold and her posture stiff and defensive. She walked in front of them with her arms at her side, her fists clenched and her steps slow and deliberate.

Ms Bright led them down a short corridor, opened a door and walked into her office before rounding a large red toned wooden desk and settling into a red velvet wing-back chair and indicating another baby pink loveseat for Booth and Brennan to occupy. Everything on the journey so far had been in red or pink tones and Brennan was starting to get a little bored with the theme.

"I assume you're here about another couple that has gone missing. As with all the others over the years, they came, they saw, they vanished but they left our facility very much alive and in love." Ms Bright's elbows rested on the desk and her fingers steepled at her chin. "It seems every year or so a young couple visits to view the venue and goes missing soon after."

"Doesn't that worry you?" Booth tapped his notecards against his left hand. "That this was the place so many were last seen before being reported missing?"

Ms Bright shrugged "The hills claim a lot of hikers, outdoorsy types, many people go missing. West Virginia has over a hundred active missing persons cases at any given time - that maybe 8 or 10 of them visited here before they disappeared …"

"12" Brennan interrupted "12 missing persons had this location as their last sighting."

"12 then" Ms Bright smiled tightly.

"Would you be interested in knowing that all of those 12 people have been discovered in shallow graves near Beaver Creek?" Booth's jaw was tense and Brennan could see the movement as his molars ground against each other. "As well as one more that we just identified." Brennan pulled out her phone and showed the picture of Gillian Sorensen to Ms Bright.

Ms Bright frowned and twisted her mouth. "She does look familiar, is she local?"

"No, she was from Montana. Her name was Gillian Sorensen, reported missing 8 years ago."

The victim's surname was mumbled repeatedly from Ms Bright's lips as she stood and went to a filing cabinet next to the desk, Booth and Brennan watched as she flicked through the files quickly.

"We keep all files for ten years, if there was any kind of official booking we'd still have … ah! Here we are!" She sat back down and opened the file. "Franklin and Sorensen, paid a deposit for a service to be held 16th June 2001 but the service was cancelled by the prospective Groom, Keith Franklin, in November 2000."

Booth grinned at Brennan, now they might be getting somewhere. "Is there any indication about the reason for cancelling?" Marion pursed her lips and turned the file around so he could read it. "Oh … his letter was really … detailed."

"What is it, Booth?" She craned her neck to read the paper that he was holding. "Infidelity, yes, that would be an excellent reason to call off a wedding."

As their eyes met, it was unspoken that it was also an excellent reason for murder.

#

After Marion Bright had photocopied the contents of the Franklin/Sorenson file for them and Brennan had picked up the fabric samples from Jess, they left the venue in good spirits with the new lead they had picked up.

"I think that went very well!" Brennan smiled "Do you want to find somewhere to get lunch to discuss all this new information or head back to DC?"

Booth smiled back "Let's get something to eat first, I saw what looked like a nice little Mom and Pop restaurant on the way here, we might get some new info that needs us to stay here longer."

"You folks look happy! I can recommend Marcie's Cafe, if that's where you're heading - best peach cobbler in the state!" The man in overalls stood and regarded them with a knowing grin.

"Good visit, good company, peach cobbler, life is sweet." Booth nudged Brennan with his elbow, making her chuckle, before guiding her back to the SUV in his usual way.

#

Brennan called Hodgins about the fabric samples while they drove along the roads winding through the woods towards Marcie's Cafe, Booth called Charlie and told him to pull everything he could find on Keith Franklin and email it to him, if he found it quick enough they'd be able to check it on her laptop at the cafe.

Ten minutes later they arrived at the slightly run down cabin with 'Marcie's' painted on the siding and a pick up that had seen better days in the parking area, they were served by a ruddy cheeked woman whose smile didn't reach her eyes, they were the only customers in the place. "Hey there, I'm Marcie, would you like some coffee before you pick what you're eating?"

"That'd be great Marcie." Booth grinned and picked up his menu.

"Oh Booth! I'm sorry, the peach cobbler isn't on this menu." Brennan frowned "It says her mixed berry pie has won blue ribbons though!"

"Damn! I was looking forward to that." Booth looked up as Marcie approached with a pot of coffee and two empty cups.

"Lookin' forward to what?" She placed a cup in front of each of them and poured their drinks.

"Peach cobbler" Booth noted that she stopped pouring when his cup was half full, just for a couple of seconds before resuming. "We were just up at Wedded Bliss and the groundskeeper said yours was the best in the state!"

As though it was some kind of incantation, the very same groundskeeper came into the cafe and took a seat at the counter.

"Sorry, no peach cobbler today" Marcie looked directly at the groundskeeper as she said it. He frowned and huffed and went behind the counter to the kitchen area.

"Course you got cobbler, Marcie, you always keep some in the freezer!" He reappeared with a dish half full and covered in frost. "Here we are!"

Booth could have sworn he heard Marcie swear under her breath before plastering a fake smile on her face "Why, thank you, Frank. Would you like some cobbler too, miss?"

"No, thank you, I'll just have a cream cheese bagel with side salad." Brennan spoke slowly, wondering what exactly was going on between Marcie and Frank.

"Uh … okay then, do you need any milk?"

Booth and Brennan shook their heads and smiled at Marcie before Booth reached for the sugar and poured it liberally into his cup, whistling as he did so.

"I've never seen you so happy to get peach cobbler before." Brennan smiled over the edge of her coffee cup, her eyes dancing with amusement.

"What can I say, Bones, I'm easy to please! Gimme a good lead and some good cobbler and my day is made!"

Brennan shook her head and took her laptop out, opening it and clicking a few times. "We may need to wait until we get to a more populated area before we can advance on what we've found - no internet connection."

Booth took out his phone and frowned "No cell service here either. Okay, we'll finish up here and head back to DC - no point hanging around for information that won't reach us."

Marcie returned with Booth's beloved cobbler and Brennan's bagel, neither looked as if they'd been prepared with love, but they dug in. Before long their plates and cups were empty, except for Brennan's side salad which was drowned in ranch dressing that she wasn't particularly fond of. Booth seemed quiet, subdued, and was struggling to get his wallet out of his pocket.

"I got it Booth." Brennan frowned and tossed more than enough money on the table. "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not okay at all … we need to get out of here."

Booth dragged himself up from the table and shook his head as if trying to clear it. "Booth, I'm driving, where are the keys?"

He fished the keys from his pocket and lethargically dropped them into Brennan's hand, pulling her closer and murmuring in her ear "I think I've been drugged."

Brennan nodded and put her arm around his waist to support him as they left. They were almost out of the door when Frank shouted "Miss, oh Miss? You didn't eat your salad?"

"Sorry, I'm not overly fond of ranch dressing and there was too much of it for me to handle eating, if you'll excuse us we really must get going my partner is unwell."

Booth lolled against the doorframe trying to stay conscious but the last thing he heard was a gun being cocked and Frank's voice telling his Bones that she wasn't going anywhere.

Three things happened at once, even a genius the level of Temperance Brennan could only prioritise in a situation as such. One - Frank was pointing a gun right at her chest, ready to fire. Two - Booth lost consciousness and slid down into the doorway. Three - Marcie came right up behind her. Brennan's first instinct was to protect Booth as he fell to prevent a head injury, this led to her taking her eyes off Frank and momentarily forgetting there was someone else in the room. It wasn't until she felt the needle in her neck and a whispered "I'm so sorry" that she thought that the strange behaviour of Frank and Marcie should have drawn her attention more.

#

Booth's mind was foggy, his thoughts disjointed and disconnected from his body, but his ears picked up muffled voices that roused him further and he remembered that he'd been drugged. He experimented with movement, an attempted twist of the wrist, a jerk of an ankle, a turn of his head but found them all to be held in place. Knowing he was restrained, and a brief thought that someday he'd go a whole year without being tied up in some way by psychopaths, he slowly opened his eyes a sliver to get his bearings as surreptitiously as possible.

About six feet in front of him, Bones was attached to a padded, high backed, chair; he assumed he was restrained in the same way. Straps across her forehead, shoulders, upper and lower arms, waist, thighs and ankles and loops of wire that would be used in a garrotte across both sets of fingers. He also noted that her shirt was open exposing her chest and the plain, black bra she was wearing; a quick investigation into his senses made him realise his shirt was also open and his undershirt had been cut allowing the cool air to make the skin prickle there. She also had a cap of sorts on her head with wires coming out at all angles, a blood pressure cuff and wires attached to her chest. Once again he realised that he could feel the same accessories adorning his own body and wondered what the hell they'd gotten themselves into now!

Noting that the voices sounded muffled because they were in another room he started harshly whispering Brennan's nickname to wake her up. "Bones? Bones!"

"She'll be out for a bit longer" The voice from behind him chuckled. He recognised it as the caretaker from the wedding chapel but it was clearer, less gruff and country … What was it Marcie had called him?

"Frank, why are you doing this?" Booth's eyes searched as far as they could but without being able to turn his head it was fruitless.

"You'll find out soon enough." The man walked out from behind Booth and smacked Brennan's face lightly as if to try and wake her up sooner.

"Don't touch her!" Booth shouted louder than he intended, Brennan grumbled lightly and Frank laughed before turning to face Booth with a pleasant smile.

"Oh I won't be assaulting either of you, sexually or otherwise." Marcie bustled into the room then and looked sadly at Booth before handing something to Frank and going out of his field of vision in the other direction. "Thank you Marcie."

Booth watched as Frank pressed a towel to Brennan's face and chest, causing her to mumble and attempt to move. Her eyes blinked open and she gasped for breath, Booth could see goosebumps appearing on her skin.

"Cold, damp towel works every time! I'll let you get your bearings then we'll get started." Frank nodded and walked off in the same direction Marcie had.

"Bones! Are you in any pain?" She blinked at him and must have tried to shake her head.

"My neck stings where the needle … oh Booth! I'm sorry, I should have been paying more attention …"

"Don't do that Bones, don't blame yourself, these people obviously have plenty of experience with this - you're trussed up just the same as me." He watched as her eyes scanned as far as they could and she, once again, tried to wriggle in her bindings.

Marcie came back into his line of vision, stood directly in front of him and held each eye open before dropping liquid into them then holding them closed with her fingers.

"What did you just give him? What is that?" Booth could hear the panic in his Bones voice.

"Scopolamine, it loosens them up." Frank intoned smugly from somewhere in the room.

Booth blinked as his eyelids were released and he watched as Marcie did the same thing to Brennan while whispering in her ear and listening to Brennan's answer. Brennan's eyes widened and she licked her lips before clearing her throat.

"Scopolamine is an anaesthetic … commonly used to induce the twilight sleep that so many women suffered during childbirth until the 1960s." Brennan reverted to information mode, as was her habit when she was at a loss for other speech.

"That is true, but it was also used during interrogations for a time to induce candour." Frank came into view as Marcie bustled away.

"Why would you need to interrogate us?" Booth snapped, his jaw tense and his neck corded.

"To see if you're compatible, of course!" Frank turned to smile at Booth before disappearing again.

"Compat …. Wait! Wait! We're not getting married, we're just partners, we work together!" Booth stammered.

"That is 100% true at this point" Brennan agreed while Booth focused on the fact she said at this point "We were at the wedding chapel to investigate the bodies that we found … which I assume were your handiwork?"

"That's slightly disappointing." Frank said gently from outside their viewing range. "I was definitely getting a vibe from you two, we know who you are now of course. Everyone carries a driving licence and Google is just so helpful … Dr Temperance Brennan, world renowned forensic anthropologist, author of two best selling novels with another on the way and Special Agent Seeley Joseph Booth, former Army Ranger and top solver of cold cases for the Head office of the FBI.

In addition to that basic information, there is some evidence that you are a couple - it's all over the internet in every picture, plus Dr Brennan's books do absolutely nothing to hide your relationship."

Booth stared at Brennan as Frank laughed cruelly. He started to feel that fuzzy disconnect from his brain again but didn't feel sleepy just … very relaxed. "So what's with all the wires?"

"I'm so glad you asked!" Frank's voice was filled with excitement. "As a scientist, I'm sure Dr Brennan will be interested in my set up."

"With the blood pressure cuff and heart monitors, I'm fairly sure it's some form of polygraph lie detection although the validity of this method is open to much debate as the results are rarely conclusive or accurate." Brennan's voice was soft, almost dreamy, not the crisp tones Booth was used to hearing as she explained things. "Also the EEG caps to monitor brain activity have issues as well but are generally accepted to be a more reliable form of detecting guilt than the polygraph in multiple studies."

"Well, I'm using a combination of all three - EEG monitoring the p300 waves, blood pressure and heart rate monitor and a little dose of truth serum make my experiment the most accurate lie detector ever made." Booth could hear the excitement in Frank's voice. "Oh and if either of you are caught in a lie …"

Booth bit the inside of his mouth as the wire over his fingers tightened, feeling it begin to cut into the skin. Brennan gasped as she felt the same sensation before the pressure lightened, when she opened her eyes Booth was breathing heavily and she could feel the anger radiating from him, his eyes wild and dangerous.

#

Max Keenan frowned as his cell rang with an unknown number. Answering cautiously and not without suspicion.

"Keenan."

"Are you the father of Dr Temperance Brennan?"

"Yes" Max sat up straight "How do you know her and how did you get this number?"

"She's being held by a madman, I can't do it anymore, I can't help him. I asked for her passcode to get your number from her cell phone, there's no cell service here so I'm using his landline."

"Where is she?"

Max jotted down the address Marcie gave him and cursed the fact he was in Colorado.

#

"Dr Brennan, we'll start with you. I'll ask some questions to get a baseline response and then we'll go … deeper. Answer with a yes or no, you may expand if you wish but 'yes' or 'no' must be included, later I may ask questions which don't have a direct negative or positive answer."

Brennan stoically pursed her lips, determined not to give in to this sick game, when 'Is your name Temperance Brennan?' was uttered, she said nothing. Booth grunted and stiffened in front of her, his eyes closed tightly and she could see the blood appear on his thumb.

"Bones, I'd like to keep my fingers!"

"Stop! Stop … Yes, YES my name is Temperance Brennan."

"Good girl." Frank praised her patronisingly before he asked her to confirm her place of employment and the address from her driving licence. She blinked as Frank spoke animatedly about how clear her results were.

"Have you ever been unfaithful to Seeley Booth?"

"What? I was asked to work cases with other agents because Booth was unavailable but I didn't choose that, it was out of my control!"

"Sexually, have you had sex with anyone else during your relationship with Seeley Booth?"

"We are not in a romantic relationship - yes, I have had sex with other men in the time I have known Booth. Yes."

Frank looked at Booth, noting his captive's calmness, even amusement. "I see."

"Not for a very long time though." Brennan huffed and continued. "My last sexual liaison was with Mark well over a year ago. Your name isn't Frank, is it? You are Keith Franklin and you killed your fiance Gillian because she cheated on you."

"Correct" The voice they now knew belonged to Keith Franklin was heard softly in the tiny space. "I knew you were smart. Is there a reason you haven't had a sexual relationship in over a year, a lack of libido perhaps?"

"Not really, no" Brennan smiled lazily at Booth "I have no … desire to seek out a sexual partner and my friendship with Booth fills all of my social and companionship needs."

"You still have a sexual appetite?"

"Yes. Very much so."

"I see, this is quite confusing. You still desire sexual release but are denying yourself for some reason, is this celibacy self imposed?"

"No!" Brennan snorted "But I do get release! Daily, sometimes more." She sighed sadly. "It's not the same though, it's release but not relief."

Keith frowned "Someone is forcing you to be celibate?"

"No … yes! Him and his silly little line!" She could see Booth clearly, a combination of shock and sadness painted his features.

"Bones … I" He stopped as Brennan yelped and her eyes flicked down towards her right hand.

"Be quiet Agent Booth, you'll get your turn to speak."

"Do you love Agent Booth, Dr Brennan?"

"Yes." She whispered before clearing her throat and speaking clearly "Yes."

Booth was just staring at her. "What? You know this, Booth, we … we've even told each other … in an 'atta-boy/atta-girl' way and there's no direct way to say that you love someone deeply as a friend and companion but want to have a sexual relationship with them even though you aren't allowed to have a sexual relationship because they drew a line and you don't know … ah!"

Brennen stopped as the wire pulled harder on her finger. "That's enough Dr Brennan. I think it's time to move on."

He asked Booth the same three baseline questions he had asked Brennan, Brennan steeled herself for Booth's answers, cursing the Scopolamine for making her babble so much.

"Agent Booth, have you had sexual relations with other women in the time you've known Dr Brennan?"

"Yes." Booth was trying to keep his cards close to his chest, even though Bones had just spread hers out on the table, he just wanted this over and for Bones to keep all of her fingers.

"In the last 12 months?"

"No."

"In the last two years?"

"No."

Brennan furrowed her brow as she met his gaze. "Why?"

"Because I wasn't in the mood." He winced as Bones hissed as the wire was cutting deeper into her flesh "Stop I'm waiting okay? Waiting for someone special, I want my next relationship to be my last relationship."

"You're waiting for Dr Brennan?"

Booth closed his eyes "Yes."

There it was, his cards pulled out of his hand and put on the table right next to Bones'. When he opened his eyes she was biting her lip and a tear ran down each cheek.

"It's easy to see why you fell in love with her, she's a very beautiful woman." Keith's voice floated around them.

Booth sighed heavily "I didn't fall in love with her because she's beautiful, I wanted to fuck her because she's beautiful - I fell in love with her because of her mind, her soul, her kindness, her honesty. I never should have drawn that line, Bones."

"But you still want to fuck her?"

"Oh God yes!" Booth licked his lips and let his loose mind wander a little through his mouth. "I want to see what she looks like when she comes, I bet she's even more beautiful."

"I'm sure she would be." Keith sounded amused. "You want Dr Brennan to be your last relationship?"

"Yes, I wanna marry you Bones, I know you don't believe in it but I want to spend my life with you and give you the baby you wanted the old fashioned way."

More tears from Brennan and Booth struggled to contain his own emotions. Marcie appeared and wiped Brennan's face, muttering about saline affecting the equipment but she could have been invisible as the just partners never broke eye contact.

#

Hodgins poked his head into Camille Saroyan's office and cleared his throat "Uh … Dr Saroyan?"

"Yes, Dr Hodgins?"

"Have you heard from Dr B or Booth? She was supposed to be bringing me samples of fabrics she'd found at the wedding chapel but that was hours ago and neither of them are picking up their cells … should we be worried?"

"They do have a habit of running into trouble … let me call Charlie and I'll check with him. He might have heard from them."

Charlie Burns was about to try calling his boss … again when his phone rang. "Agent Burns."

"Charlie it's Camille Saroyan - have you heard from Agent Booth recently?"

"No, I've been trying to call him, I know some parts out there the cell reception is spotty but I sent him information and haven't had a read receipt yet - it's been 4 hours but he said he needed the info ASAP."

"So another 2 hours before you can actually class him as being in possible danger?"

"Yeah, I checked the GPS on his car, it last pinged about 5 miles south of where the wedding chapel is, I'm guessing that's where the cell blackout starts but it hasn't pinged anywhere else … there's a cafe listed on the road they were travelling on but I can't see them spending 4 hours drinking coffee when there's work to be done."

"Leave it with me, Charlie, we'll try …" She was interrupted by Angela running into her office.

"They've been kidnapped!" She panted "The accomplice called Max, apparently she's sick of helping this psycho, and gave him the address!"

Cam checked to make sure Charlie had overheard and gave him a note of the address before hanging up the phone, then walked out of her office, followed by Dr Hodgins and Angela, swiping her card at the bottom of the steps and walking onto the platform where Daisy, Wendell, Aristoo and Dr Edison were waiting impatiently for news of the whereabouts of their instructor.

"We have a situation" Cam intoned in her usual clipped manner

Within 20 minutes a rescue team was mobilised and on their way to meet with Raleigh PD at the home of one Frank Keevins A.K.A Keith Franklin.

#

"So, just to clarify, you are hopelessly in love with Dr Brennan but you aren't in a romantic relationship because of a line that you drew, Agent Booth?" They heard the click of a door and Keith hissing at Marcie for interrupting.

"Yes, I was just so scared … of what the FBI would do, how it could make you a target … my own feelings. Sweets thinks it's the coma dream but I know, I've loved you for a long time Bones, since well before my tumour, before we were in the circus … before I got shot."

"We've seen couples who genuinely love each other and are getting married for the right reasons." Keith spoke gently.

"The ones you handfasted." Brennan closed her eyes and held her breath, tensing in anticipation of the pain she was sure would come.

"Yes." Keith answered brightly, the pain didn't come and Brennan was relieved but didn't want to assume their interrogation was over just yet. "But this is a first - you genuinely love each other but haven't even gotten as far as admitting it let alone getting married! We obviously made a mistake in taking you but this has worked out better than I thought it ever could!"

"What about the others? The bodies that were buried alone?" Booth slurred slightly. "They didn't get through the interrogation?"

"They were cheaters, gold diggers, con men … they didn't respect the ideals of marriage and they certainly didn't respect the people they were getting married to!"

"Why the stomach for some and an overdose for others?" Brennan blinked sluggishly and tried to get her brain on track to no avail.

"The wrongdoers got stabbed in the stomach so they would die slowly and painfully, watching as their partners died in their sleep to give them the peace their marriage wouldn't."

"Wow … that's fucked up!" Booth snorted then tensed as the wire cut further into his thumb.

"You're really not in any position to criticise my methods Agent Booth."

"Gillian was first." Brennan tried to nod "Where do you fit in Marcie?"

There was a squeak of surprise from Marcie, she'd never been asked that before. Keith indicated that she should go ahead and explain. "Keith took me and my Fiance, Jamie … when I found out he'd been cheating I was so angry!"

"Jamie and Marcie were the first couple I took after … ending things with Gilly. I could feel Marcie's rage … so I let her use it."

"Jamie is buried behind the cafe." Marcie stuttered out. "Keith and I have been together ever since."

"Well, you know what they say - never go lookin' for love, it'll find you when yer ready." Booth chuckled. "Why are you telling us all this? You know we've found the other bodies!"

"We're telling you, Dr Brennan, because we know it won't go any further." Marcie appeared and started unhooking all the electrical wires from both Brennan and Booth with shaking hands. After the wires were disconnected, Keith came back with needles, Booth and Brennan shared one last panicked look with each other before blacking out.

#

Brennan roused from unconsciousness first this time, she was lying on her right side, her legs had free movement but her arms did not. She blinked her eyes open and pulled her hands towards her face to rub them. They were attached to something but she was still able to pull her fingers close enough to her face with a little effort. It was mostly dark, as she turned her head she spotted the moonlight streaming through a gap in the curtains that covered the window. Once her eyes had acclimatised, she realised that Booth was, once again, in front of her … closer this time, with his wrists bound to hers. Well at least we'll die together she thought bitterly as she tried to shake Booth awake.

"Booth! BOOTH wake up!" She squeezed at his hands and shook her arms. He pulled his hands, and by extension Brennan, closer to him and murmured softly as he came round.

"Stay with me, Bones."

"I am with you, Booth!" Her nose was only a few inches away from his when he opened his eyes and tried to focus.

"Hey! We're not dead!" He smiled tiredly.

"He hasn't handfasted us yet." Brennan blinked away tears. "Marcie asked me for the passcode for my phone so she could access my contacts but I have no idea if she managed to tell anyone we're here."

"Right … right, I remember everything now." Booth sounded hesitant.

"Everything?"

"Yeah … um that was pretty intense, right?"

"Oh? You mean me professing my love and desire for you? Yes … intense could be a good word to describe that."

"Well, I professed my love and desire for you too!" He moved their hands so he could stroke his index finger down her cheek, wiping away a tear. "I really do want to spend the rest of my life with you."

Brennan sighed "I can't make you happy Booth, I don't know how to be in a relationship, I'll ruin everything!"

"You make me happy, you're already in a relationship with me and you haven't ruined it yet!"

"No, romantic relationships are different, I can't change to be what you need."

"I don't need you to change, I want you, I love you, just the way you are right now … well maybe not right now because there's a high chance we're gonna get shot soon … but, yeah, you know what I mean."

"Everything would change, I don't know if we could survive that." She whispered and sniffed softly.

"What would change? We spend pretty much all our spare time together … sure we'd make love … a lot … but other than that it would pretty much stay the same unless we decided together that we wanted to change something."

"It's not that simple, Booth!"

"It can be, if you want it enough."

She did want it, wanted it so badly but they were tied together in a strange place waiting to die. So she lowered their hands and leaned in, brushing her lips against his softly. He kissed her with as much vigour as their bound hands allowed, tangling his legs with hers and getting as close as he could with their arms keeping their bodies from touching fully. Brennan broke the kiss to inhale deeply and rested her forehead against Booth's chin.

"I want it Booth, I want it enough to try and make it out of here alive so we can be together … in every way."

"I like the sound of that!" Booth grinned.

With some back and forth bickering, they made it onto their knees and were able to get a better look at their prison. It was just an empty room, with one window and one door. Brennan walked backwards and Booth followed until the got to the window - it had boards nailed to the outside, but even if it hadn't Brennan calculated that there was no way they would be able to gain the momentum or angle needed to run and break the glass to escape, not with drugs still running through their systems and no furniture to launch themselves from.

"Okay, here's the plan." Booth whispered close to her ear. "We wait behind the door, hopefully only one of 'em will come and get us, we surprise them, choke 'em out with our bound wrists and make a run for it!"

"We don't have to worry about Marcie … I don't think she wants to do this but if Keith forces her to come in here with him …." Brennan whispered back harshly.

"We fight, we fight both of 'em. We've still got legs and, maybe if one has a knife or something we can get ourselves out of this rope - we can take 'em Bones!"

They waited behind the door, Brennan measured the time in her head, counting the seconds. 5 minutes turned to 10, 10 minutes turned to 30. She huffed frustratedly.

"I don't think either of them are coming Booth, there hasn't been a sound for half an hour!"

"Maybe they're letting us have some alone time before, y'know." He put his two index fingers together to mimic a gun and pointed them at her.

"Alone time? To do what? I'm pretty sure we said all we needed to say while trying to save each other's phalanges!"

"Well, a lot of other … couples in this situation might take the opportunity to make love one last time."

"That would be very difficult given how tightly bound our wrists are."

"Where there's a will, there's a way." He shrugged and she looked at him with interest "Not for us though! We're getting out of here and I want both hands free the first time I make love to you."

"That's very romantic, Booth." She smiled and he returned it but their eyes widened as footsteps could be heard coming closer to the room they were in.

"Here we go, Bones!" He murmured and quickly kissed her.

The footsteps paused and the door opened slowly, Booth and Brennan tensed ready to attack but the door was pushed back quickly pressing them both between it and the wall. There was a weight behind it, Booth knew they'd been caught out with their plan.

The two almost lovers pushed with all their might against the door, hoping to unbalance their visitor but the door just slammed closed with the pressure behind it leaving Keith standing in the middle of the room with Booth's Glock tucked into his waistband and a book under his arm. They rushed their captor but he dodged and recovered, the book falling to the floor and Keith's hand on the gun. Before he could pull the gun on them, Brennan kicked out, and upwards to the side catching Keith's jaw with her foot and spinning him where Booth kicked at his upper thighs knocking him onto the floor with the dual assault.

With Keith on the ground, Brennan quickly straddled his chest, her shins pinning down his upper arms while Booth grabbed his Glock and sat on Keith's legs. It was a struggle to maintain any semblance of balance, especially with their attacker writhing beneath them and snarling.

"Marcie!" He yelled "Marcie you dumb bitch, you didn't do their legs!"

With the banging and panting of them trying to keep Keith on the floor, they didn't hear Marcie's running approach until the door burst open and she stood in front of them with a rifle. Trying to point a gun when your hands are tied to someone else who is badly balanced and ready to topple at any given moment wasn't possible at all, Booth grunted and tried to get a good aim but it was useless.

Keith doubled his efforts to throw their weight off of him but only succeeded in toppling Brennan to the side making Booth fall forward - the gun, now supported by Keith's ribcage, pointed straight at the right side of his face, Booth grinned, squeezed the trigger and rolled to his back, pulling Brennan towards his side, before re-aiming for Marcie and grinning as she threw the rifle to the side and put her hands up before sliding to the floor and sobbing.

"He'll live if we can get help here quickly." He panted.

They made it to their feet and Brennan looked at Keith, bleeding heavily through the hand he had pressed to his neck, just under his ear. Booth looked at Marcie, face red with tears and slumped on the floor at the doorway.

"We should get ourselves out of this rope and see if they have a landline to call for an ambulance." Brennan stepped over Marcie's legs and Booth followed but stopped as Marcie reached out to grab his ankle.

"There's a full kitchen at the end of the hallway, phone is on the wall. I helped you, I didn't tie your legs so you could beat him and I called for help. I won't hurt anyone ever again - please let me go!"

"Not a chance, lady!" Booth snorted and trained his weapon on her. "Get up and walk slowly in front of us, one jerky move and I won't hesitate to put a bullet in your leg!"

#

Charlie drove slowly along the road, it was pitch black but they'd passed the sign pointing to Marcie's cafe ten minutes ago and he knew the driveway for the house they were looking for wasn't too far ahead. He stopped the car and turned to Cam in the passenger seat then Jack and Angela who were holding hands in the back seat.

"We should go on foot the rest of the way, flashlights pointed at the ground unless you see something you want to blind." Jack and Ange nodded and followed Charlie and Cam's lead along the treeline at the side of the road.

"We're here" Ange whispered "This is the driveway to that house."

With great care not to attract the attention of the possible kidnapper and murderer that might live there, they turned off their flashlights and used the moonlight to guide their way.

"Hey, that's Booth's SUV!" Jack hissed and pointed to a large group of cars parked under the trees.

Cam nodded and continued to walk cautiously ahead, using the tree branches as cover when she could, until she saw the building.

"It looks abandoned, boards on the windows, weeds everywhere at the front here." Ange crouched in some tall grass and narrowed her eyes.

Sirens in the distance made Cam turn to look back from where they came but she pressed forward, her gun drawn. Jack and Ange had been surprised when she revealed it, but everyone always forgot she used to be a cop.

Letting Charlie take point, Cam, Jack and Ange swallowed their fear and kept close to him. They ducked down into the weeds when they heard laughter and watched through the leaves as the front door opened and Booth and Brennan stepped onto the porch.

"Man, that was wild!" Booth shook his head and rubbed at his head with a hand that had rope dangling from his wrist.

"Oh I can hear our back up!" Brennan smiled at him and stepped forward into his open arms.

"Yeah that's pretty quick, maybe Max tipped 'em off? I'm gonna sleep for a week when we get back home!" Booth spoke into her hair.

"But I thought you wanted to fuck me?" Brennan pulled her head back and looked at him with confusion.

"Noooooo I wanna make love to you, maybe a week is too long, we'll make it a day or so."

"4 hours"

"8 hours"

"6"

"Okay, deal." Booth gathered her into his arms and slanted his mouth over hers.

Four people stood up from the weeds and Booth released Brennan and pointed his gun at them.

"What the hell happened in there?" Ange screeched. "We thought you were taken by a psychopath and killed!"

"Well, we were." Brennan started. "Except the killing part."

"But we won!" Booth squeezed his Bones tightly as the sirens wailed and tires skidded to a stop in front of the house.

Jack shook his head from side to side "Unbelievable!"

"This kind of crap can only happen to those two." Cam sighed and headed towards them to help the paramedics.

#

Booth opened his eyes as his body was being shaken.

"Booth, wake up!"

"What's wrong, Bones?" He sat up in bed and looked around him.

"It's been 6 hours."

"We're still in the hospital, Bones. They're keeping us in for observation, remember? And why are you out of your room? You should be resting! They pumped you full of drugs too!"

"But you've been asleep for 6 hours and you promised!"

"Yeah, that was kinda dependent on me getting to sleep in my own bed and having some … y'know … privacy!"

"Fine!" Brennan huffed and slumped on the chair next to his bed.

"Bones, go back to your room, try to sleep. I promise we'll make love when we get home!"

"Whose home?"

"I … I dunno." He shrugged "Mine's, yours doesn't really matter … can I get back to sleeping off those drugs now?"

Brennan sighed and stood up, leaning forward to kiss Booth softly. "Okay, wait for me if you get discharged first?"

"You know it!" He smiled a sleepy charm smile and kept his eyes open until she closed the door to his room.

#

They left the hospital and drove back towards DC and Brennan's apartment, Jack had driven the SUV to the hospital in Raleigh with Booth complaining about it the entire way. Now drug free and back behind the wheel wearing the clothes from their emergency overnight bags they kept in the trunk of his car, Booth was happy as a clam … of course the promise he'd made to his Bones also buoyed his mood, and his manhood.

"In the interests of making the transition to inter … making love, quicker, I should tell you that I have a contraceptive implant and have undergone two clear health checks since the last time I was intimate." Brennan stated matter-of-factly and the car swerved a little.

Booth cleared his throat "That's … that's good to know, Bones."

"As you've been celibate longer than I have, I assume your health checks are also up to date and clear?"

"Yes" Booth's hands tightened on the wheel and he shifted in his seat. The thought of being inside Bones was something he pondered often enough for it to be classed as a legitimate distraction, the thought of being inside Bones bare was more than a distraction. He shook his head to try and clear his thoughts and squeezed her hand across the console.

"Not that I don't think this kind of chit chat is important but I kinda need the imagination train to stay in the depot for a while, okay Bones?" He took his eyes off the road for a moment to glance at her, she was adorably confused, her lips parted ready to tell him that she didn't know what that meant. "I can't drive and think about … y'know … us, safely."

"Oh, I see, yes you need to concentrate on the road. I'll save my questions and opinions on oral sex, breast play and flavoured lubricants until we're safely parked!"

She patted his knee and he groaned, the car veering towards the shoulder of the road before Booth's attention was brought back to reality and he straightened up the vehicle. "I love ya, Bones, but you're gonna be the death of me someday!"

"Le Petit Morte?" Brennan smirked at him.

"Bones!"