Bones FF: 525600 moments Chapter 14
Here it is, the next chapter. Please participate in my "survey" concerning page 187. You can find it on the Camd and Hodgins community and on kinkinthebones. Thanks!
Includes scenes from episode 5x13
Chapter 14: Engaged for god and annoyed by rhubarb
"Jack, have you seen my black shawl?" Cam asked Hodgins early Sunday morning when she came into his living-room, dressed in a grey pencil skirt and a black top.
"No. Maybe it's still at your place?" he replied as he tied his shoes while sitting on the couch.
"I know I brought it over. I stuck it into the black... no, it didn't fit. It must still be in Michelle's backpack," she suddenly remembered.
"Where is Michelle?" Hodgins asked and looked up.
"I'm here," the teen yelled from the hallway and slid into the room on her sock clad feet. "And here's your shawl," she said to Cam and handed it to her.
"Thank you," Cam replied and wrapped the cloth around her shoulders.
"It's so great being back again. Really, how decadent is it to go swimming in your indoor pool first thing in the morning?" Michelle gushed.
"Since when do you exercise before twelve?" Cam asked her.
"Usually I don't, but this morning the pool was calling my name," the girl grinned.
"And do you think the house is calling your name as well?" Cam wanted to know.
"Huh?" Michelle didn't understand what she was getting at.
"Jack suggested that we move in here and I want to know your opinion about it," Cam enlightened her. She hadn't had an opportunity to ask her before because something else had always come up.
"Are you serious?" Michelle asked, her eyes wide and sparkling excitedly.
"Who knows when the pool will be calling your name next time," Hodgins laughed from the couch.
"That would be... I mean... where would I live?" she asked them then.
"We could either renovate one of the apartments over the garages for you or you can have the loft if you want to stay in the house with us," Hodgins told her.
"She will stay in the house with us where I see when she's coming and going," Cam intervened before the two got carried away.
"With my own bathroom and walk in closet?" Michelle couldn't believe it. She knew about the loft in Jack's house because ever since she had found it she'd stayed there. Slowly she had moved her things from one of the guest rooms into the loft, but she had always been aware that she was just a guest in his house.
"Of course. We can renovate, but I'm not rebuilding whole parts of the house," Hodgins laughed.
"Oh my god! Oh my god!" Michelle bounced up and down clapping her hands before she ran over to Hodgins and hugged him.
"I think we can take that as a yes," Cam said dryly as she watched her daughter.
"You should take it as a YES!" Michelle said as she pulled back from Hodgins, pumped her fist in the air and did a happy dance over to Cam before she hugged her as well.
"I wasn't aware you hated my apartment that much," she grinned while she hugged her back.
"I don't, I love your apartment, but this house is just... you know," the teen shrugged.
"I get it," Cam said and gave her a squeeze.
"Ladies, sorry to interrupt but we have to leave if we want to be on time," Hodgins interrupted them and stood up. "You've got everything? Purse, shoes, jackets... whatever else it is you need," he went on as he ushered them out into the hallway.
"Yup," Michelle nodded as she put on her second shoe.
"You have some chewing gum?" Cam asked her.
"No," the teen shook her head.
"I do," Hodgins told her and handed her the package.
"You want me to keep it in my purse?" Cam asked him after she had taken one.
"Yes, before I lose it again," Hodgins nodded, locked the door behind him and followed them to the garage.
"I still have my aunt's clothes in my trunk, we should take my car," Cam said and handed him the key without asking him. He usually drove when they were out together and she didn't mind at all. That way she could talk to Michelle without having to worry about the traffic.
"Why do you have her clothes? I hope you didn't wear them," Michelle reacted as she got into the back of the car.
"She called me yesterday and asked me to get them for her from the dry cleaners," Cam explained and fastened her seatbelt.
"You realize that they're slowly sucking you back in? First New Years Eve, then the breakfast, now the clothes… what's next? They're gonna move in with us at Jack's place?" Michelle asked.
"I know. Today will be the last visit in a while. My dad alone is alright with me, but I can do without the crazy rest," Cam agreed with her.
"Me too. Especially because you turn into your sister once you've been around them for a while. Crazy," Hodgins said and wiggled his finger beside his sleeve and rolled his eyes in different directions, before he pulled out of his property and onto the street.
When they pulled up in front of the church they could already see Cam's family gathered in front of the building. There were even more people standing with them now than there had been around on Christmas.
"Don't tell me they're all related to you," Hodgins said when he saw them all.
"They are. Some of them however are so far away on the family tree that I couldn't even tell you how exactly we are related," she replied and took his hand in hers.
"Oh, Nyah is here as well," Michelle told them and pointed to a girl approximately her age, who was leaning against the church wall reading a book. "I'm going over."
"Ok, but please no suicidal tendencies afterwards this time," Cam warned her with a smile.
"Nah, I'll just think about the pool and the loft that will soon be mine," she pretended to laugh evilly and walked off.
"Nyah?" Hodgins raised his eyebrows when Michelle was gone and he and Cam slowed down their steps. They would reach the crazy relatives soon enough.
"My family is very creative when it comes to names," she nodded.
"Hit me with it," he requested.
"Ok, but just my nieces and nephews. I already have trouble remembering their names," Cam said and stopped him. "Going by parents and age we have Elizabeth and Andrew," she said and pointed to the two adults he knew were the kids of her half-brother.
"Met them at your dad's birthday, pretty normal names," he nodded.
"Mia's kids are Elodie, Zhane, and Aaron," she went on. "However, only Aaron is still giving in to the pressure of coming here every Sunday."
"That's the guy standing with your dad?" he asked.
"Yup. Brandon only has one son named Tony, but he's stationed in Iraq."
"Ouch," Hodgins replied.
"Yah, Brandon's wife Paula doesn't take it so well, which I can understand. I'd go crazy if Michelle did that," Cam admitted.
"We'll just lock her up in my basement if she ever gets an idea like that," he joked and made her laugh.
"Ok, I have to hurry, my dad is already waving us over. Next there are Tay, Tyron, Tanesha and Tallulah."
"Matt's kids. He sure likes Ts," Hodgins knew.
"And Phoenix, Nyah, Riley and the twins Devon and Diego are my cousin Caitlin's kids," she finished.
"You ever wanted as many kids?" he asked her when they slowly, very slowly started to walk over to her family.
"God no! My original dream was two kids, a golden retriever and a white picket fence," she laughed.
"When shall I get the construction workers to install a new fence?" he asked and made them both laugh.
"As long as you're not getting us a dog. We don't have time for one and Michelle is scared of dogs," Cam added when they reached her family. "Good morning," Cam greeted her family, still giggling.
"Good morning Cami," her father said as she pecked him on the cheek.
"What's so funny?" Felicia wanted to know after they had exchanged the fake kisses on the cheek.
"Nothing, just... us being crazy," Cam waved her off and greeted her great-aunt.
"Don't you think that skirt's a bit short?" Ann asked her after she had eyed her up.
"It's a knee length pencil skirt. I don't see anything wrong with that," Cam defended herself. "And Felicia's dress is so much shorter," she pointed out then.
"She still needs to attract a man," her great-aunt pointed out and made both Hodgins and Cam laugh while Felicia only huffed. "You however are an engaged woman now and you should dress accordingly," her aunt went on.
"Excuse me? I think you know something that I don't," Cam exclaimed and looked at Jack, who was standing beside her, one arm slung around her waist.
"Don't look at me, I didn't do anything," he defended himself.
"We're not engaged," Cam told them then, because by now nearly all of her relatives were staring at her.
"Yet," Michelle muttered from behind, but it was still loud enough. Cam only sighed and let her head drop on Hodgins' shoulder.
"Thanks," he said sarcastically to Michelle.
"Oh, did I say that out loud?" she asked innocently.
"You know, maybe I need the loft for something else. We could however put up a bed in the laundry room in the basement," he threatened her just as innocently.
"Haha," she only replied and then turned back around to her friend.
"I already told everyone you two are engaged. You can't enter church with a guy who's never gonna be your husband. How does that look for God?" her great-aunt went on.
"Don't you think that God already knows that we're not engaged and would probably be even angrier at me for lying?" Cam tried to reason with her, but her aunt just waved her hand, signaling her to shut up.
"We should go in, mass is going to start," Mr. Saroyan said when the bells began to ring.
"Saved by the bell, literally," Cam chuckled and looked at Jack.
"I thought you were Catholic?" Hodgins asked when they passed the entrance with the large Methodist sign.
"Who said anything about being Catholic?" Cam replied confused.
"Your dad when he grilled me the first time I met him. He asked if I was Catholic. Which I kind of am..."
"Oh that," Cam laughed quietly. "My dad just kind of believes that all Catholic guys are abstinent until they get married. That's why he asked."
"Guess we proved him wrong with the pregnancy thing," he replied quietly as they slid into the bench row behind her father and most of her family.
"He can concentrate on protecting Felicia's innocence now," Cam replied and they both tried not to laugh too loudly as the service started.
"Reverend Green," Cam greeted the old man after the mass.
"Camille, it's been a while," he smiled at her.
"Yes, I'm really busy," she excused herself.
"And this is Mr. Hodgins, I assume," he went on and Cam glanced disapprovingly at her father.
"You assume right," Hodgins nodded and shook his hand.
"I'm glad you joined us today and I hope you will join us regularly from now on," the old man pressured. Hodgins felt Cam tense beside him and knew that this was another ploy by her family to manipulate her into doing what they wanted. Cam and her father might have gotten closer, but that didn't mean that he had changed.
"I'm sorry, Reverend, but I doubt that. I liked the music here better than what I remember from mass in my church, but I am still a scientist first and foremost and no priest or reverend can convince me of anything. I only believe what I can see or prove," Hodgins reacted, knowing that he would lose points with Cam's dad again, but at least he would think twice next time before forcing them into something like this.
"God loves and is every human being," he replied.
"It's kind of hard to believe that when you have murder victims to analyze day in and day out, that were tortured and killed in ways you can't even imagine," Hodgins went in for the kill.
"I understand," the reverend replied, knowing that it was pointless arguing with Hodgins.
"And you agree with that?" her Aunt Sally asked Cam.
"I can't say I disagree entirely," Cam nodded.
"It would break your mother's heart to hear you talking like that," her aunt said and pressed her tissue to her mouth as if to suppress her sobs.
"Speaking of my mother," Cam ignored her aunt's comment and turned to Hodgins. "Do you mind if we stop by the cemetery before we leave?" she asked him.
"No, of course not," he shook his head. "But maybe we should get going then, if I'm not mistaken Michelle has an 'appointment' at two," he said after checking his watch, referring to her date with Perry.
"Alright, then let's roll," she nodded and waved Michelle over to them.
"We're leaving?" the teen asked.
"Yes, I want to stop by my mother's grave before we go," Cam nodded. They all said their goodbyes and then walked the short distance over to the cemetery.
"That comment concerning your mom... wow," Hodgins said when they were out of hearing distance.
"My mom and her sister didn't get along that well," Cam informed him. "And welcome to the Saroyan family," she grinned then and slung her arm tighter around his middle.
"They're gone again?" Hodgins asked that evening when he came back from the kitchen into the living room. Michelle and Perry had stopped by for dinner and then had left again.
"Yes, they finally left to go bowling," Cam nodded and turned her head away from the fireplace which she had been staring into.
"You look pensive," he observed, sat down beside her and pulled her into his arms.
"Mmmh," she only replied, resting her cheek against his shoulder. He enveloped her even tighter in his arms and placed a kiss on her hair. Her eyes wandered back to the flames while he buried his nose in her hair. He loved the scent of vanilla in her hair and pressed another kiss on it. "Have you talked to Angela again?" she asked him.
"About?" he wondered.
"How she's dealing now that she's not pregnant," Cam clarified.
"To me she seemed relieved. I mean, when she found out, she wasn't sure if she should keep it or not, so I think she's perfect now that she's not tied down or anything," he shrugged.
"Didn't you tell me that Angela always wanted kids?" she asked.
"She did, but she was talking about the wrong time and the wrong guy. I don't know... sometimes I don't understand her," he admitted with a smile.
"Maybe she only wanted kids with you?" Cam asked him and he wrinkled his forehead.
"She walked away from me back then. She was the one who pulled out the stop sign when I told her that we could try for kids right away and she was also the one who told me in no uncertain terms, that while she could fall in love with men, she didn't love me," he disagreed.
"Angela loved you, I'm sure of that," Cam shook her head.
"I can only tell you what she told me once she got together with Roxie."
"Wasn't it weird for you that she was with a woman after breaking up with you?" she wanted to know.
"It was. I still had hope that we would get together again and then she's with a woman? You can compete with your own gender, but with the opposite sex?" he said and she nodded. They both fell silent again and watched the flames dance in the fireplace.
"I have another Ob/gyn appointment tomorrow," she finally said after a while of silence.
"To find out about the ectopic pregnancy still or about birth control?" he asked her and pulled back so he could look at her.
"I don't think there's anything left to find out to be honest. Best guess is still the contraceptive coil and its misplacement a while ago. That seems to have left scars," she shrugged.
"So no way of knowing if it could happen again or not," he concluded.
"It could always happen again, but we don't know how likely it is," she corrected him.
"Ok," he replied and decided not to interrupt her again because obviously he had brought her off track with his questions and she was once again silent. Just when he thought the topic had died, she spoke again.
"I wanted to discuss with you if I should even bother going back on birth control," she broke the silence again.
"You know that I'm ok with whatever you decide," he said.
"I do, but I'm not sure you realize what an immense pressure that puts on me. I feel like I have to make the decision alone," she complained and he couldn't keep himself from smiling as he realized how openly they were suddenly talking.
"Ok, then tell me what's going through your head and I will tell you what I think," he nodded.
"I'm wondering... I could go on the pill again because honestly I think it's a bit early to try for a baby, and fumbling with condoms every time is not really romantic if we're honest. Also, I know it sounds weird, but for me it's more... personal and intimate if we're together without anything in between," she started and he only looked at her and nodded from time to time, but didn't say anything. "However once we decide to have a baby it could take months to have the chemicals out of my system. I'm 39 now. Let's say I'm 40 once we decide to try and then it might not happen, first because of the pill, then because of my age. It could take a while to get pregnant, we shouldn't forget about that," she rambled.
"So let's say we... stop being careful and nothing happens for a year, you're ok with that?" he asked her.
"I guess. It's not like we would desperately try to get pregnant with the right timing and temperature and whatnot. And once we really think the time is right we could seek help," she said and turned the one button of his flannel shirt back and forth between her index finger and thumb.
"But what if you get pregnant right away? Would you be ok with that? After all you were on the pill and you still got pregnant," he pointed out.
"I think by having unprotected sex we would both be aware that something could happen, me as well as you. So it wouldn't be a total shock this time, merely impractical and stressful," she thought out loud.
"Ok, let me rephrase: Would you rather have a baby right now than not at all?" he asked. "Because those are the two extremes it could come down to," he summed it up. Cam thought for a while, still twisting and turning the button while he stroked over her shoulder and patiently waited.
"I'd rather have a baby right now than not at all," she admitted once she had come to a conclusion.
"You're sure?" he asked her and looked straight into her eyes. "Once you're pregnant there's no going back."
"I'm sure, Jack. I'm so sick of letting my own fears and insecurities get in my way. And soon we'll be moving in together. I think we're crazy for doing this after being together for only ten months, but ever since we found out about the pregnancy and then lost the baby... it's like we jumped ten years of time," she replied.
"At first it brought us further apart and in the end a lot closer together. I don't think I've ever felt this close to anyone," he said.
"Me either," she smiled and kissed him softly. "So from now on, whenever inconvenient no raincoat in the storm?" she asked then, her smile widening as she raised her eyebrows.
"When is it ever convenient?" he laughed, pulled her against him and slowly lay down, bringing her down on the couch with him.
"I doubt it is right now," she laughed when he placed kisses on her throat.
"Absolutely. Too bad," he grinned back and sealed her mouth with his. His kiss was playful and tender at first, but soon his hands wandered under her shirt and down into her pants.
"But if you want me to I'd go upstairs and get one," he added for good measure, knowing that if she got pregnant and hormonal she would use the fact that he didn't ask against him.
"Shush... we have no time. Michelle's curfew is nine tonight," she reminded him and pulled his shirt over his head.
Two days later Cam was examining the human remains Booth and Brennan had brought in earlier that day. She held a flashlight in her hand and tried to see something that could be relevant while the victim was still encrusted in clay.
"Whoa!" Cam exclaimed and jumped back when suddenly hundreds of spiders came out of a crack in the clay.
"What... what happened?" Brennan asked but didn't move away from the body.
"Spiders. I don't like spiders, and...," Cam stuttered while pointing at the crack where they were emerging from.
"Oh," Mr. Vincent Nigel Murray just said but didn't seem more impressed than Brennan.
"...there are thousands of little spiders coming out of...," Cam tried to finish a sentence but wasn't really able to.
"I'll go get Hodgins," the intern said and ran off the platform. Cam couldn't even understand that he was saving her, because her eyes were fixed on the spiders.
"Uh... I really don't like spiders," she shuddered
"I don't mind them, actually." Brennan was a lot less helpful and continued her examination as Cam pressed herself against the banister of the platform and eyed the insects warily, making sure they wouldn't get too close to her.
"I hear a damsel in distress needs a knight in shining lab coat to save her," Hodgins chuckled when he came to the platform a few moments later, the intern in tow.
"Don't tease me right now Hodgins," Cam grumbled and shuddered when she saw a spider nearing her foot. Quickly she stepped to the side while Hodgins plugged in the vacuum machine he had brought.
"I'm gonna save you now and tease you later," he grinned and pecked her lips before he turned on the device.
"I'll be in my office while you clean the remains. Call me when you're done," Brennan excused herself, knowing she couldn't work while Hodgins was getting rid of the spiders.
"Ok, Dr. Brennan," Vincent nodded obediently.
"The spider eggs were on the body before it was encased in the clay. The heat in the lab caused the eggs to hatch, and when you shone your flashlight, they headed for the light," Hodgins explained to them while working.
"Based on mandibular dentition, the victim is late-20s, early-30s," Vincent kept working as well.
"Dr. Hodgins, I can...uh...still see one in his mouth," Cam pointed out and was so scared that she actually addressed him formally again, although they had stopped doing that at the lab a while ago.
"Yup," he nodded and vacuumed the victim's mouth. "These bad boys are Frontinella communis; they're non-poisonous," he tried to put Cam more at ease.
"Yeah, still with those gross spider faces and legs, though..." she disagreed.
"This spider's not found in the area where the body was discovered," he tried another strategy: Distracting her with case related facts. Cam listened but started scratching herself.
"Indicating that the victim was probably offed elsewhere," the intern concluded.
"Any idea how to...uh...remove the body from the sediment?" Cam wanted to know and kept scratching her arm, then her shoulder.
"Well, I mean, if we remove the moisture from the clay, then it should just fall away without affecting the bones, at all. I just need four dehumidifiers," Hodgins instructed. He looked up and found that Cam had stuck her hand down the front of her dress, scratching herself again. "You okay, there, Dr. Saroyan?" he grinned at her, using the formal addressing to tease her.
"Yeah, I'm just... itchy all over. I'm gonna go burn all of these clothes, and maybe my hair," she told him, which made him laugh, and then exited the platform and hurried to her office.
"Some male spiders are known to actually... to pluck their webs like a guitar, to attract the females," Vincent Nigel Murray started telling facts again.
"Someone should tell them it's drummers that get the girls," Hodgins joked and shut him up with that.
"I think our intern of the week is losing it," Cam told Hodgins as they sat in the diner for lunch.
"Was there a time he actually had the complete six-pack? For me he's always been short one beer," he replied and stole a fry off her plate.
"He asked me today how he can get praise from Brennan," she said and took one of his curly fries to get even with him.
"Praise from Brennan?" Hodgins snorted. "Not gonna happen," he concluded.
"He cleaned the victim's teeth as a sign of respect for the dentist, ignored the sternum, and wants praise. I told him to go for mild approval instead," she reported.
"Good advice," he nodded. "You think he'll take it?"
"I don't know. I'll see and talk to Brennan if necessary," she shrugged and slapped his hand lightly when he wanted to steal off her plate again.
"Hey," he complained and stole the fry anyway.
"You're complaining? You're stealing my food," she laughed.
"My reward for saving you from the evil little spiders today," he grinned.
"Spiders... urgh... ok, you can have it all," she replied with a shudder and pushed the plate over to him.
"Oh come on! They're not that bad," he laughed about her this time.
"They're disgusting," she said and started scratching her arm again.
"Stop scratching," Hodgins told her and placed a hand over hers. "Eat something instead," he advised.
"I'm really not hungry anymore now that you mentioned them," Cam shook her head.
"You want me to feed you?" he grinned and held some fries up in front of her mouth. She looked at the fries and then at him and made the mistake of looking into his amused blue eyes. She rolled her eyes at herself for being such a wimp and opened her mouth. She just couldn't resist those eyes.
"You already know what you want to eat tonight? We have to go grocery shopping if we're gonna stay at my place again," he changed the topic again.
"I think it was a mistake to tell Michelle about the loft. She'll never leave the room again," Cam replied. "As for the food... didn't you mention something recently about chicken soup?"
"Yeah, I said it's good if you're sick. None of us have a cold," he pointed out.
"Isn't it good anyway?" she shrugged unimpressed.
"I could teach you, so the next time Michelle or I am sick you can make it," he grinned.
"You think you'll be so sick you'll be willing to die?" she laughed.
"It's not that hard, I'll show you," he laughed with her.
"Alright... and we should get back," she said after checking her watch.
"Back to the itsy bitsy spiders," he teased her again as he pulled out his wallet to pay.
"I will hurt you if you don't stop," she threatened, but kissed him back when he leaned over the table and pressed his lips to hers.
"The damage to the sternum is not the cause of death," Mr. Nigel Murray informed Cam in the evening of the same Tuesday.
"So, the ex-boyfriend's off the hook," she said.
"At a velocity of 82 meters-per-second, a-a hunting arrow would not only pierce the sternum and the heart, but would sever the spinal column. I will point out, uh, however, that the angry ex-boyfriend might still have killed the victim, but either he didn't use a hunting bow or he-he made an amazing shot from the-the absolute, the limit of the bow's range, which-which would be...is...is very far. I sounded very much like Dr. Brennan then, did I not?" he asked her while she followed his ramblings with a wrinkled forehead and crossed arms.
"Up until the 'very far', yes," she said and leaned forward. "What did strike our victim in the chest?" she asked him then, pointing at the victim.
"It could easily have been postmortem. Probably as a result of being tipped into a creek..." he admitted.
"So, we don't have cause of death," she said disappointedly, because it would mean more research and work the next day.
"Rhubarb!" Vincent suddenly exclaimed, clapping his hands together.
"Uh...rhubarb...yeah...uh, the victim was killed by rhubarb...?" Cam tried to follow what he was talking about, but didn't stand a chance.
"Approximately ten kilos," he went on excitedly.
"All right, I'm usually pretty good with following your jumpy little brain, but you've totally left me in the dust on this one," she admitted defeat.
"If you can acquire for me the rhubarb, I can deliver unto you a skeleton free of clay. Rhubarb!" he said as if he was a cheerleader.
"Rhubarb, it is," she accepted it without knowing why he needed rhubarb. She hurried away, knowing she had only a few minutes left to order rhubarb to the Jeffersonian for the next day.
"The guy at the market wanted a confirmation faxed that the Jeffersonian Institute really needs ten kilos of rhubarb," Cam recounted when they sat at dinner that night. "I finally told him that we're all visiting a baking class together and we need it to make pie."
"Rhubarb isn't in season," Hodgins randomly said.
"I know, that's what he told me and offered me other fruits," she nodded.
"And then you told him what we need it for?" he asked.
"No, I told him that I just want to order ten kilos of rhubarb and not get a lesson in botany," she said, admitting that she had lost patience. "And I don't really understand why we need it so how could I explain?" she asked him.
"Silicates cause clay to adhere and rhubarb is full of oxalic acid which counteracts it ," Hodgins informed her.
"Ok... and how did he get there from a hunting arrow?" she asked but then shook her head. "Sorry, even if you do know, don't answer my question. His brain is such a muss of loose bedlam, that I don't want a glimpse into it," Cam admitted and made the other two laugh.
"I got my chemistry paper back today," Michelle saw her opportunity come to speak up before they would start going into disgusting details of the case again.
"And?" Hodgins asked and suddenly felt really nervous.
"I got a B+. The + is because I corrected that one thing you rambled about," she grinned.
"He messed it up again on the paper?" he asked her wide eyed.
"Yup," she nodded.
"Where did he get his degree as a chemistry teacher? Won it in the lottery? Everybody knows that the acid of..." he started his rant, but Cam interrupted him.
"Jack, please! Write the guy a letter or something, but don't tell us now. Michelle doesn't understand a word and Mr. Facts is enough to make my brain hurt already," she said.
"Is it possible that you're always kind of grumpy when he's around?" Jack laughed.
"I can deal with Fisher's weirdness, Arastoo's beliefs, and Wendell, but Daisy and Vincent are driving me nuts. One is always telling you stuff you never wanted to know and the other is just annoying," she confirmed his suspicion.
"Speaking of annoying: Felicia called today when I was over at our old place," Michelle said.
"It's still our current place, honey," Cam corrected her teasingly.
"Not my point. She kept babbling about something and I let it slip that we are over at Hodgins' place most of the time now," she admitted.
"Did you tell her that we're moving in?" Cam asked panicked.
"No, I didn't but she reacted really strange and said 'That's good to know'," Michelle replied.
"She doesn't have the address so we're not in danger," Cam said without worry.
"She kind of has it," Hodgins admitted hesitatingly.
"Kind of?" Cam raised her eyebrows.
"I talked to your dad when they came over for breakfast and I told him where I live. If they put two and two together or ask Ann they do know," he told her and looked like he was in pain.
"You know that this means they'll come over, don't you?" she asked him challengingly.
"Now that you point it out," he replied meekly.
"Can't leave you alone for a second," she sighed.
"You're so busted," Michelle giggled.
"You're one to talk, Miss Chatty," Cam shut her up and shook her head at the two innocent souls who still had so much to learn about her family.
"How did you work this up without me?" Hodgins asked Vincent Nigel Murray the next day, as he helped him put the remains into the water tank. He had been wondering ever since Cam had told him what the intern had come up with.
"When I told Dr. Saroyan that the sternum wound was not caused by a hunting arrow, my brain jumped to different types of arrows, which led me to the image of a giant wasp, which was silly, but which then led me to stinging nettles, which are covered in thousands of tiny little arrows, and on the tip of each tiny little arrow is a drop of oxalic acid, which not only stings, but works very well at dissolving silicates," he reported as they placed the skeleton in the water.
"Silicate causes clay to adhere..." Hodgins started.
"...and rhubarb is full of oxalic acid," the intern finished.
"Okay. Next time someone says your brain is a jumble of disconnected chaos, you just send them to me," Hodgins laughed, remembering Cam's words, but changing them slightly so they wouldn't be as offensive.
"I wi-..." the intern chuckled, but then stopped. "People say that?" he asked when he realized what Hodgins had just said.
"You need me to stir?" he tried to distract him and searched for something to stir with.
"Don't you have lots of spiders to trace?" Vincent asked him.
"Well, there's over 30 separate breeding grounds within a 200-mile radius of the body site. I'm analyzing the egg sacks to see if I can narrow it down further, but... I've got some time. And this is so cool," Hodgins gushed when he held a large spoon and stirred the rhubarb- skeleton-clay sauce.
"You really should talk to Brennan," Hodgins told Cam when he sought her out in her office late in the afternoon, to give her the newest updated report.
"About?" she asked him.
"About some praise for our poor intern. The guy is taking blame for stuff he has nothing to do with," he went on and sat down on the edge of her desk.
"Something that could never happen to you," she grinned knowingly.
"Nah, I told him to toss culpability onto you and then showed him how it's done by blaming his rhubarb stew for washing away my particulates," he grinned back.
"Oh really? What did I miss?" she wanted to know.
"That the injury on the medial malleolus means that whatever caused it, cut the posterior tibial artery," Hodgins repeated what Brennan had said earlier.
"Oh shit, he bled to death?" Cam cursed, annoyed that she had missed it.
"He did. Something wrong? Usually you're really thorough and concentrated when it comes to stuff like that," he wondered.
"Every time I see those remains I see spiders coming out of them. So I might not have got close enough..." she admitted and made him laugh.
"I'll remind you of this the next time you say I'm crazy," he said and quickly kissed her.
"You think it's wise to tell Brennan to give him some praise? He might get a big head once he gets what he wants," she wondered.
"One more crackpot in here more or less..." he laughed.
"You're the one always pointing out he's king of the lab," Cam pulled his leg and they both laughed.
"God, I missed you while we were on our 'break'," he admitted, staring at her in wonder while she still smiled at him.
"I missed you, too," she replied and stroked her hand over his stubbly cheek. "And now I'll go over to Brennan to get my lecture," she went on and kissed him softly before she got up.
"Good luck with that," he laughed and followed her out of her office.
"You can't blame Mr. Nigel-Murray; the nick was on the bone, but I should've realized the implications for the flesh, and I didn't," Cam told Brennan when she marched into her office and found her sitting at her desk.
"I agree," she said unfazed as usual.
"Then why are you letting him worry that he's disappointing you?" Cam asked her.
"Mr. Nigel-Murray should be aware by now that I don't hold others to my level of expertise. Otherwise I'd have no one to help me," Brennan shrugged.
"How would he know that if you don't tell him?" the pathologist wanted to know.
"Tungsten carbide, which is a compound used to coat various types of tools," Hodgins interrupted them and marched in with the intern following him. He had found the test results when he had come back to his lab and had decided to show them immediately.
"Including dental tools," Vincent added. Brennan looked at Cam questioningly, who nodded encouragingly in her direction.
"I distinctly remember saying to you once, 'Good job, Mr. Nigel-Murray.' I'm saying it again now," she told him then.
"Cheers. Brilliant, that…" Mr. Nigel Murray grinned overjoyed and Cam and Hodgins exchanged an amused look at his obvious joy.
"One of the suspects was Dan's dental hygienist...," Brennan ignored it though.
"Grace Bryson," Cam provided.
"Mm-hmm," Brennan agreed.
"Hey, where does she live?" Hodgins wanted to know.
"Fairfax, Virginia," the anthropologist let him know.
"Okay, the pollen I found in the sheet weaver spider's egg sack came from hickory pine trees. They don't grow where the body was found, but you can find them all over that part of Virginia," he let them know.
"Motive, theoretical weapon, spiders... That should be enough for an arrest," Cam nodded and couldn't help bringing up the spiders again. Lucky for her neither Brennan nor Hodgins realized that though, both too caught up in their own science.
Late in the evening Cam had analyzed the blood Booth and Brennan had found on the stones. She was just about to call the anthropologist when Brennan entered her lab.
"The bottom of the paving stones are covered in blood. All the samples I've taken are a match for the victim," Cam let her know.
"He bled out on the ground, then it was paved over," Brennan summed it up.
"Behold, Lucas Pickford's grout scraper. He used it for installing the paving stones," Vincent said as he came in followed by Hodgins. Hodgins looked at Cam and smiled when he saw that the button on her blouse he had opened earlier when he had caught her alone on the mezzanine was still unbuttoned.
"Coated in tungsten carbide," he didn't miss his call for information though.
"Please tell me it's a match," Cam begged, because all she wanted to do was go home.
"I-It is, in fact, a perfect match for the injury to the victim's ankle," the intern said and Hodgins looked at Cam in an 'Oh boy' kind of way while Brennan only listened. "Yeah? Cheers. Brilliant," the British guy then said.
"Hmm? No, she didn't say anything," Hodgins pointed out, knowing that Brennan hadn't praised him again.
"I-I discerned a lovely...a little glint of approbation in her eye," the intern insisted and then left. Cam wrinkled her forehead and exchanged a look with Hodgins that didn't need any words added, then he left as well.
"Cam, we've got a problem here," Hodgins said slightly panicked when Cam picked up her cell phone .
"What's going on, Jack?" she asked, wondering what he wanted. She'd gone to pick up some things from her apartment and then buy some groceries, while Jack was at home starting dinner. They had said goodbye maybe an hour ago and she was on her way to the supermarket.
"Your brother Matt is here with his 'nice' wife and his 'darling' little kids. They're still outside the main gate and waiting for me to open it," he reported.
"Don't let him in!" she said immediately. "Why does he know where you live?" Cam wanted to know.
"He said that Felicia had mentioned something, but because he's clever he found us. He says he wants to visit his little sister and when I told him you're not here he said he'd wait for you," Hodgins sounded even more agitated.
"Don't let him in! I'm on my way back," she instructed. "Or maybe I won't be back, cause I might go and kill Felicia."
"Wait for me, I'll help you kill her!" Cam heard Michelle's voice and realized she must be standing next to Hodgins while they had the phone on speaker.
"What? I can't just let him stand out there," he shrieked though.
"Don't let him in," she emphasized again.
"But... Cam!" he exclaimed panicked.
"I'll be right there, ten minutes tops," she replied and then hung up, hoping he would take her advice and let them stay outside. Knowing Hodgins however, she'd already guessed that he would let them in and open the door to hell.
TBC
Includes scenes from episode 5x13
Chapter 14: Engaged for god and annoyed by rhubarb
"Jack, have you seen my black shawl?" Cam asked Hodgins early Sunday morning when she came into his living-room, dressed in a grey pencil skirt and a black top.
"No. Maybe it's still at your place?" he replied as he tied his shoes while sitting on the couch.
"I know I brought it over. I stuck it into the black... no, it didn't fit. It must still be in Michelle's backpack," she suddenly remembered.
"Where is Michelle?" Hodgins asked and looked up.
"I'm here," the teen yelled from the hallway and slid into the room on her sock clad feet. "And here's your shawl," she said to Cam and handed it to her.
"Thank you," Cam replied and wrapped the cloth around her shoulders.
"It's so great being back again. Really, how decadent is it to go swimming in your indoor pool first thing in the morning?" Michelle gushed.
"Since when do you exercise before twelve?" Cam asked her.
"Usually I don't, but this morning the pool was calling my name," the girl grinned.
"And do you think the house is calling your name as well?" Cam wanted to know.
"Huh?" Michelle didn't understand what she was getting at.
"Jack suggested that we move in here and I want to know your opinion about it," Cam enlightened her. She hadn't had an opportunity to ask her before because something else had always come up.
"Are you serious?" Michelle asked, her eyes wide and sparkling excitedly.
"Who knows when the pool will be calling your name next time," Hodgins laughed from the couch.
"That would be... I mean... where would I live?" she asked them then.
"We could either renovate one of the apartments over the garages for you or you can have the loft if you want to stay in the house with us," Hodgins told her.
"She will stay in the house with us where I see when she's coming and going," Cam intervened before the two got carried away.
"With my own bathroom and walk in closet?" Michelle couldn't believe it. She knew about the loft in Jack's house because ever since she had found it she'd stayed there. Slowly she had moved her things from one of the guest rooms into the loft, but she had always been aware that she was just a guest in his house.
"Of course. We can renovate, but I'm not rebuilding whole parts of the house," Hodgins laughed.
"Oh my god! Oh my god!" Michelle bounced up and down clapping her hands before she ran over to Hodgins and hugged him.
"I think we can take that as a yes," Cam said dryly as she watched her daughter.
"You should take it as a YES!" Michelle said as she pulled back from Hodgins, pumped her fist in the air and did a happy dance over to Cam before she hugged her as well.
"I wasn't aware you hated my apartment that much," she grinned while she hugged her back.
"I don't, I love your apartment, but this house is just... you know," the teen shrugged.
"I get it," Cam said and gave her a squeeze.
"Ladies, sorry to interrupt but we have to leave if we want to be on time," Hodgins interrupted them and stood up. "You've got everything? Purse, shoes, jackets... whatever else it is you need," he went on as he ushered them out into the hallway.
"Yup," Michelle nodded as she put on her second shoe.
"You have some chewing gum?" Cam asked her.
"No," the teen shook her head.
"I do," Hodgins told her and handed her the package.
"You want me to keep it in my purse?" Cam asked him after she had taken one.
"Yes, before I lose it again," Hodgins nodded, locked the door behind him and followed them to the garage.
"I still have my aunt's clothes in my trunk, we should take my car," Cam said and handed him the key without asking him. He usually drove when they were out together and she didn't mind at all. That way she could talk to Michelle without having to worry about the traffic.
"Why do you have her clothes? I hope you didn't wear them," Michelle reacted as she got into the back of the car.
"She called me yesterday and asked me to get them for her from the dry cleaners," Cam explained and fastened her seatbelt.
"You realize that they're slowly sucking you back in? First New Years Eve, then the breakfast, now the clothes… what's next? They're gonna move in with us at Jack's place?" Michelle asked.
"I know. Today will be the last visit in a while. My dad alone is alright with me, but I can do without the crazy rest," Cam agreed with her.
"Me too. Especially because you turn into your sister once you've been around them for a while. Crazy," Hodgins said and wiggled his finger beside his sleeve and rolled his eyes in different directions, before he pulled out of his property and onto the street.
When they pulled up in front of the church they could already see Cam's family gathered in front of the building. There were even more people standing with them now than there had been around on Christmas.
"Don't tell me they're all related to you," Hodgins said when he saw them all.
"They are. Some of them however are so far away on the family tree that I couldn't even tell you how exactly we are related," she replied and took his hand in hers.
"Oh, Nyah is here as well," Michelle told them and pointed to a girl approximately her age, who was leaning against the church wall reading a book. "I'm going over."
"Ok, but please no suicidal tendencies afterwards this time," Cam warned her with a smile.
"Nah, I'll just think about the pool and the loft that will soon be mine," she pretended to laugh evilly and walked off.
"Nyah?" Hodgins raised his eyebrows when Michelle was gone and he and Cam slowed down their steps. They would reach the crazy relatives soon enough.
"My family is very creative when it comes to names," she nodded.
"Hit me with it," he requested.
"Ok, but just my nieces and nephews. I already have trouble remembering their names," Cam said and stopped him. "Going by parents and age we have Elizabeth and Andrew," she said and pointed to the two adults he knew were the kids of her half-brother.
"Met them at your dad's birthday, pretty normal names," he nodded.
"Mia's kids are Elodie, Zhane, and Aaron," she went on. "However, only Aaron is still giving in to the pressure of coming here every Sunday."
"That's the guy standing with your dad?" he asked.
"Yup. Brandon only has one son named Tony, but he's stationed in Iraq."
"Ouch," Hodgins replied.
"Yah, Brandon's wife Paula doesn't take it so well, which I can understand. I'd go crazy if Michelle did that," Cam admitted.
"We'll just lock her up in my basement if she ever gets an idea like that," he joked and made her laugh.
"Ok, I have to hurry, my dad is already waving us over. Next there are Tay, Tyron, Tanesha and Tallulah."
"Matt's kids. He sure likes Ts," Hodgins knew.
"And Phoenix, Nyah, Riley and the twins Devon and Diego are my cousin Caitlin's kids," she finished.
"You ever wanted as many kids?" he asked her when they slowly, very slowly started to walk over to her family.
"God no! My original dream was two kids, a golden retriever and a white picket fence," she laughed.
"When shall I get the construction workers to install a new fence?" he asked and made them both laugh.
"As long as you're not getting us a dog. We don't have time for one and Michelle is scared of dogs," Cam added when they reached her family. "Good morning," Cam greeted her family, still giggling.
"Good morning Cami," her father said as she pecked him on the cheek.
"What's so funny?" Felicia wanted to know after they had exchanged the fake kisses on the cheek.
"Nothing, just... us being crazy," Cam waved her off and greeted her great-aunt.
"Don't you think that skirt's a bit short?" Ann asked her after she had eyed her up.
"It's a knee length pencil skirt. I don't see anything wrong with that," Cam defended herself. "And Felicia's dress is so much shorter," she pointed out then.
"She still needs to attract a man," her great-aunt pointed out and made both Hodgins and Cam laugh while Felicia only huffed. "You however are an engaged woman now and you should dress accordingly," her aunt went on.
"Excuse me? I think you know something that I don't," Cam exclaimed and looked at Jack, who was standing beside her, one arm slung around her waist.
"Don't look at me, I didn't do anything," he defended himself.
"We're not engaged," Cam told them then, because by now nearly all of her relatives were staring at her.
"Yet," Michelle muttered from behind, but it was still loud enough. Cam only sighed and let her head drop on Hodgins' shoulder.
"Thanks," he said sarcastically to Michelle.
"Oh, did I say that out loud?" she asked innocently.
"You know, maybe I need the loft for something else. We could however put up a bed in the laundry room in the basement," he threatened her just as innocently.
"Haha," she only replied and then turned back around to her friend.
"I already told everyone you two are engaged. You can't enter church with a guy who's never gonna be your husband. How does that look for God?" her great-aunt went on.
"Don't you think that God already knows that we're not engaged and would probably be even angrier at me for lying?" Cam tried to reason with her, but her aunt just waved her hand, signaling her to shut up.
"We should go in, mass is going to start," Mr. Saroyan said when the bells began to ring.
"Saved by the bell, literally," Cam chuckled and looked at Jack.
"I thought you were Catholic?" Hodgins asked when they passed the entrance with the large Methodist sign.
"Who said anything about being Catholic?" Cam replied confused.
"Your dad when he grilled me the first time I met him. He asked if I was Catholic. Which I kind of am..."
"Oh that," Cam laughed quietly. "My dad just kind of believes that all Catholic guys are abstinent until they get married. That's why he asked."
"Guess we proved him wrong with the pregnancy thing," he replied quietly as they slid into the bench row behind her father and most of her family.
"He can concentrate on protecting Felicia's innocence now," Cam replied and they both tried not to laugh too loudly as the service started.
"Reverend Green," Cam greeted the old man after the mass.
"Camille, it's been a while," he smiled at her.
"Yes, I'm really busy," she excused herself.
"And this is Mr. Hodgins, I assume," he went on and Cam glanced disapprovingly at her father.
"You assume right," Hodgins nodded and shook his hand.
"I'm glad you joined us today and I hope you will join us regularly from now on," the old man pressured. Hodgins felt Cam tense beside him and knew that this was another ploy by her family to manipulate her into doing what they wanted. Cam and her father might have gotten closer, but that didn't mean that he had changed.
"I'm sorry, Reverend, but I doubt that. I liked the music here better than what I remember from mass in my church, but I am still a scientist first and foremost and no priest or reverend can convince me of anything. I only believe what I can see or prove," Hodgins reacted, knowing that he would lose points with Cam's dad again, but at least he would think twice next time before forcing them into something like this.
"God loves and is every human being," he replied.
"It's kind of hard to believe that when you have murder victims to analyze day in and day out, that were tortured and killed in ways you can't even imagine," Hodgins went in for the kill.
"I understand," the reverend replied, knowing that it was pointless arguing with Hodgins.
"And you agree with that?" her Aunt Sally asked Cam.
"I can't say I disagree entirely," Cam nodded.
"It would break your mother's heart to hear you talking like that," her aunt said and pressed her tissue to her mouth as if to suppress her sobs.
"Speaking of my mother," Cam ignored her aunt's comment and turned to Hodgins. "Do you mind if we stop by the cemetery before we leave?" she asked him.
"No, of course not," he shook his head. "But maybe we should get going then, if I'm not mistaken Michelle has an 'appointment' at two," he said after checking his watch, referring to her date with Perry.
"Alright, then let's roll," she nodded and waved Michelle over to them.
"We're leaving?" the teen asked.
"Yes, I want to stop by my mother's grave before we go," Cam nodded. They all said their goodbyes and then walked the short distance over to the cemetery.
"That comment concerning your mom... wow," Hodgins said when they were out of hearing distance.
"My mom and her sister didn't get along that well," Cam informed him. "And welcome to the Saroyan family," she grinned then and slung her arm tighter around his middle.
"They're gone again?" Hodgins asked that evening when he came back from the kitchen into the living room. Michelle and Perry had stopped by for dinner and then had left again.
"Yes, they finally left to go bowling," Cam nodded and turned her head away from the fireplace which she had been staring into.
"You look pensive," he observed, sat down beside her and pulled her into his arms.
"Mmmh," she only replied, resting her cheek against his shoulder. He enveloped her even tighter in his arms and placed a kiss on her hair. Her eyes wandered back to the flames while he buried his nose in her hair. He loved the scent of vanilla in her hair and pressed another kiss on it. "Have you talked to Angela again?" she asked him.
"About?" he wondered.
"How she's dealing now that she's not pregnant," Cam clarified.
"To me she seemed relieved. I mean, when she found out, she wasn't sure if she should keep it or not, so I think she's perfect now that she's not tied down or anything," he shrugged.
"Didn't you tell me that Angela always wanted kids?" she asked.
"She did, but she was talking about the wrong time and the wrong guy. I don't know... sometimes I don't understand her," he admitted with a smile.
"Maybe she only wanted kids with you?" Cam asked him and he wrinkled his forehead.
"She walked away from me back then. She was the one who pulled out the stop sign when I told her that we could try for kids right away and she was also the one who told me in no uncertain terms, that while she could fall in love with men, she didn't love me," he disagreed.
"Angela loved you, I'm sure of that," Cam shook her head.
"I can only tell you what she told me once she got together with Roxie."
"Wasn't it weird for you that she was with a woman after breaking up with you?" she wanted to know.
"It was. I still had hope that we would get together again and then she's with a woman? You can compete with your own gender, but with the opposite sex?" he said and she nodded. They both fell silent again and watched the flames dance in the fireplace.
"I have another Ob/gyn appointment tomorrow," she finally said after a while of silence.
"To find out about the ectopic pregnancy still or about birth control?" he asked her and pulled back so he could look at her.
"I don't think there's anything left to find out to be honest. Best guess is still the contraceptive coil and its misplacement a while ago. That seems to have left scars," she shrugged.
"So no way of knowing if it could happen again or not," he concluded.
"It could always happen again, but we don't know how likely it is," she corrected him.
"Ok," he replied and decided not to interrupt her again because obviously he had brought her off track with his questions and she was once again silent. Just when he thought the topic had died, she spoke again.
"I wanted to discuss with you if I should even bother going back on birth control," she broke the silence again.
"You know that I'm ok with whatever you decide," he said.
"I do, but I'm not sure you realize what an immense pressure that puts on me. I feel like I have to make the decision alone," she complained and he couldn't keep himself from smiling as he realized how openly they were suddenly talking.
"Ok, then tell me what's going through your head and I will tell you what I think," he nodded.
"I'm wondering... I could go on the pill again because honestly I think it's a bit early to try for a baby, and fumbling with condoms every time is not really romantic if we're honest. Also, I know it sounds weird, but for me it's more... personal and intimate if we're together without anything in between," she started and he only looked at her and nodded from time to time, but didn't say anything. "However once we decide to have a baby it could take months to have the chemicals out of my system. I'm 39 now. Let's say I'm 40 once we decide to try and then it might not happen, first because of the pill, then because of my age. It could take a while to get pregnant, we shouldn't forget about that," she rambled.
"So let's say we... stop being careful and nothing happens for a year, you're ok with that?" he asked her.
"I guess. It's not like we would desperately try to get pregnant with the right timing and temperature and whatnot. And once we really think the time is right we could seek help," she said and turned the one button of his flannel shirt back and forth between her index finger and thumb.
"But what if you get pregnant right away? Would you be ok with that? After all you were on the pill and you still got pregnant," he pointed out.
"I think by having unprotected sex we would both be aware that something could happen, me as well as you. So it wouldn't be a total shock this time, merely impractical and stressful," she thought out loud.
"Ok, let me rephrase: Would you rather have a baby right now than not at all?" he asked. "Because those are the two extremes it could come down to," he summed it up. Cam thought for a while, still twisting and turning the button while he stroked over her shoulder and patiently waited.
"I'd rather have a baby right now than not at all," she admitted once she had come to a conclusion.
"You're sure?" he asked her and looked straight into her eyes. "Once you're pregnant there's no going back."
"I'm sure, Jack. I'm so sick of letting my own fears and insecurities get in my way. And soon we'll be moving in together. I think we're crazy for doing this after being together for only ten months, but ever since we found out about the pregnancy and then lost the baby... it's like we jumped ten years of time," she replied.
"At first it brought us further apart and in the end a lot closer together. I don't think I've ever felt this close to anyone," he said.
"Me either," she smiled and kissed him softly. "So from now on, whenever inconvenient no raincoat in the storm?" she asked then, her smile widening as she raised her eyebrows.
"When is it ever convenient?" he laughed, pulled her against him and slowly lay down, bringing her down on the couch with him.
"I doubt it is right now," she laughed when he placed kisses on her throat.
"Absolutely. Too bad," he grinned back and sealed her mouth with his. His kiss was playful and tender at first, but soon his hands wandered under her shirt and down into her pants.
"But if you want me to I'd go upstairs and get one," he added for good measure, knowing that if she got pregnant and hormonal she would use the fact that he didn't ask against him.
"Shush... we have no time. Michelle's curfew is nine tonight," she reminded him and pulled his shirt over his head.
Two days later Cam was examining the human remains Booth and Brennan had brought in earlier that day. She held a flashlight in her hand and tried to see something that could be relevant while the victim was still encrusted in clay.
"Whoa!" Cam exclaimed and jumped back when suddenly hundreds of spiders came out of a crack in the clay.
"What... what happened?" Brennan asked but didn't move away from the body.
"Spiders. I don't like spiders, and...," Cam stuttered while pointing at the crack where they were emerging from.
"Oh," Mr. Vincent Nigel Murray just said but didn't seem more impressed than Brennan.
"...there are thousands of little spiders coming out of...," Cam tried to finish a sentence but wasn't really able to.
"I'll go get Hodgins," the intern said and ran off the platform. Cam couldn't even understand that he was saving her, because her eyes were fixed on the spiders.
"Uh... I really don't like spiders," she shuddered
"I don't mind them, actually." Brennan was a lot less helpful and continued her examination as Cam pressed herself against the banister of the platform and eyed the insects warily, making sure they wouldn't get too close to her.
"I hear a damsel in distress needs a knight in shining lab coat to save her," Hodgins chuckled when he came to the platform a few moments later, the intern in tow.
"Don't tease me right now Hodgins," Cam grumbled and shuddered when she saw a spider nearing her foot. Quickly she stepped to the side while Hodgins plugged in the vacuum machine he had brought.
"I'm gonna save you now and tease you later," he grinned and pecked her lips before he turned on the device.
"I'll be in my office while you clean the remains. Call me when you're done," Brennan excused herself, knowing she couldn't work while Hodgins was getting rid of the spiders.
"Ok, Dr. Brennan," Vincent nodded obediently.
"The spider eggs were on the body before it was encased in the clay. The heat in the lab caused the eggs to hatch, and when you shone your flashlight, they headed for the light," Hodgins explained to them while working.
"Based on mandibular dentition, the victim is late-20s, early-30s," Vincent kept working as well.
"Dr. Hodgins, I can...uh...still see one in his mouth," Cam pointed out and was so scared that she actually addressed him formally again, although they had stopped doing that at the lab a while ago.
"Yup," he nodded and vacuumed the victim's mouth. "These bad boys are Frontinella communis; they're non-poisonous," he tried to put Cam more at ease.
"Yeah, still with those gross spider faces and legs, though..." she disagreed.
"This spider's not found in the area where the body was discovered," he tried another strategy: Distracting her with case related facts. Cam listened but started scratching herself.
"Indicating that the victim was probably offed elsewhere," the intern concluded.
"Any idea how to...uh...remove the body from the sediment?" Cam wanted to know and kept scratching her arm, then her shoulder.
"Well, I mean, if we remove the moisture from the clay, then it should just fall away without affecting the bones, at all. I just need four dehumidifiers," Hodgins instructed. He looked up and found that Cam had stuck her hand down the front of her dress, scratching herself again. "You okay, there, Dr. Saroyan?" he grinned at her, using the formal addressing to tease her.
"Yeah, I'm just... itchy all over. I'm gonna go burn all of these clothes, and maybe my hair," she told him, which made him laugh, and then exited the platform and hurried to her office.
"Some male spiders are known to actually... to pluck their webs like a guitar, to attract the females," Vincent Nigel Murray started telling facts again.
"Someone should tell them it's drummers that get the girls," Hodgins joked and shut him up with that.
"I think our intern of the week is losing it," Cam told Hodgins as they sat in the diner for lunch.
"Was there a time he actually had the complete six-pack? For me he's always been short one beer," he replied and stole a fry off her plate.
"He asked me today how he can get praise from Brennan," she said and took one of his curly fries to get even with him.
"Praise from Brennan?" Hodgins snorted. "Not gonna happen," he concluded.
"He cleaned the victim's teeth as a sign of respect for the dentist, ignored the sternum, and wants praise. I told him to go for mild approval instead," she reported.
"Good advice," he nodded. "You think he'll take it?"
"I don't know. I'll see and talk to Brennan if necessary," she shrugged and slapped his hand lightly when he wanted to steal off her plate again.
"Hey," he complained and stole the fry anyway.
"You're complaining? You're stealing my food," she laughed.
"My reward for saving you from the evil little spiders today," he grinned.
"Spiders... urgh... ok, you can have it all," she replied with a shudder and pushed the plate over to him.
"Oh come on! They're not that bad," he laughed about her this time.
"They're disgusting," she said and started scratching her arm again.
"Stop scratching," Hodgins told her and placed a hand over hers. "Eat something instead," he advised.
"I'm really not hungry anymore now that you mentioned them," Cam shook her head.
"You want me to feed you?" he grinned and held some fries up in front of her mouth. She looked at the fries and then at him and made the mistake of looking into his amused blue eyes. She rolled her eyes at herself for being such a wimp and opened her mouth. She just couldn't resist those eyes.
"You already know what you want to eat tonight? We have to go grocery shopping if we're gonna stay at my place again," he changed the topic again.
"I think it was a mistake to tell Michelle about the loft. She'll never leave the room again," Cam replied. "As for the food... didn't you mention something recently about chicken soup?"
"Yeah, I said it's good if you're sick. None of us have a cold," he pointed out.
"Isn't it good anyway?" she shrugged unimpressed.
"I could teach you, so the next time Michelle or I am sick you can make it," he grinned.
"You think you'll be so sick you'll be willing to die?" she laughed.
"It's not that hard, I'll show you," he laughed with her.
"Alright... and we should get back," she said after checking her watch.
"Back to the itsy bitsy spiders," he teased her again as he pulled out his wallet to pay.
"I will hurt you if you don't stop," she threatened, but kissed him back when he leaned over the table and pressed his lips to hers.
"The damage to the sternum is not the cause of death," Mr. Nigel Murray informed Cam in the evening of the same Tuesday.
"So, the ex-boyfriend's off the hook," she said.
"At a velocity of 82 meters-per-second, a-a hunting arrow would not only pierce the sternum and the heart, but would sever the spinal column. I will point out, uh, however, that the angry ex-boyfriend might still have killed the victim, but either he didn't use a hunting bow or he-he made an amazing shot from the-the absolute, the limit of the bow's range, which-which would be...is...is very far. I sounded very much like Dr. Brennan then, did I not?" he asked her while she followed his ramblings with a wrinkled forehead and crossed arms.
"Up until the 'very far', yes," she said and leaned forward. "What did strike our victim in the chest?" she asked him then, pointing at the victim.
"It could easily have been postmortem. Probably as a result of being tipped into a creek..." he admitted.
"So, we don't have cause of death," she said disappointedly, because it would mean more research and work the next day.
"Rhubarb!" Vincent suddenly exclaimed, clapping his hands together.
"Uh...rhubarb...yeah...uh, the victim was killed by rhubarb...?" Cam tried to follow what he was talking about, but didn't stand a chance.
"Approximately ten kilos," he went on excitedly.
"All right, I'm usually pretty good with following your jumpy little brain, but you've totally left me in the dust on this one," she admitted defeat.
"If you can acquire for me the rhubarb, I can deliver unto you a skeleton free of clay. Rhubarb!" he said as if he was a cheerleader.
"Rhubarb, it is," she accepted it without knowing why he needed rhubarb. She hurried away, knowing she had only a few minutes left to order rhubarb to the Jeffersonian for the next day.
"The guy at the market wanted a confirmation faxed that the Jeffersonian Institute really needs ten kilos of rhubarb," Cam recounted when they sat at dinner that night. "I finally told him that we're all visiting a baking class together and we need it to make pie."
"Rhubarb isn't in season," Hodgins randomly said.
"I know, that's what he told me and offered me other fruits," she nodded.
"And then you told him what we need it for?" he asked.
"No, I told him that I just want to order ten kilos of rhubarb and not get a lesson in botany," she said, admitting that she had lost patience. "And I don't really understand why we need it so how could I explain?" she asked him.
"Silicates cause clay to adhere and rhubarb is full of oxalic acid which counteracts it ," Hodgins informed her.
"Ok... and how did he get there from a hunting arrow?" she asked but then shook her head. "Sorry, even if you do know, don't answer my question. His brain is such a muss of loose bedlam, that I don't want a glimpse into it," Cam admitted and made the other two laugh.
"I got my chemistry paper back today," Michelle saw her opportunity come to speak up before they would start going into disgusting details of the case again.
"And?" Hodgins asked and suddenly felt really nervous.
"I got a B+. The + is because I corrected that one thing you rambled about," she grinned.
"He messed it up again on the paper?" he asked her wide eyed.
"Yup," she nodded.
"Where did he get his degree as a chemistry teacher? Won it in the lottery? Everybody knows that the acid of..." he started his rant, but Cam interrupted him.
"Jack, please! Write the guy a letter or something, but don't tell us now. Michelle doesn't understand a word and Mr. Facts is enough to make my brain hurt already," she said.
"Is it possible that you're always kind of grumpy when he's around?" Jack laughed.
"I can deal with Fisher's weirdness, Arastoo's beliefs, and Wendell, but Daisy and Vincent are driving me nuts. One is always telling you stuff you never wanted to know and the other is just annoying," she confirmed his suspicion.
"Speaking of annoying: Felicia called today when I was over at our old place," Michelle said.
"It's still our current place, honey," Cam corrected her teasingly.
"Not my point. She kept babbling about something and I let it slip that we are over at Hodgins' place most of the time now," she admitted.
"Did you tell her that we're moving in?" Cam asked panicked.
"No, I didn't but she reacted really strange and said 'That's good to know'," Michelle replied.
"She doesn't have the address so we're not in danger," Cam said without worry.
"She kind of has it," Hodgins admitted hesitatingly.
"Kind of?" Cam raised her eyebrows.
"I talked to your dad when they came over for breakfast and I told him where I live. If they put two and two together or ask Ann they do know," he told her and looked like he was in pain.
"You know that this means they'll come over, don't you?" she asked him challengingly.
"Now that you point it out," he replied meekly.
"Can't leave you alone for a second," she sighed.
"You're so busted," Michelle giggled.
"You're one to talk, Miss Chatty," Cam shut her up and shook her head at the two innocent souls who still had so much to learn about her family.
"How did you work this up without me?" Hodgins asked Vincent Nigel Murray the next day, as he helped him put the remains into the water tank. He had been wondering ever since Cam had told him what the intern had come up with.
"When I told Dr. Saroyan that the sternum wound was not caused by a hunting arrow, my brain jumped to different types of arrows, which led me to the image of a giant wasp, which was silly, but which then led me to stinging nettles, which are covered in thousands of tiny little arrows, and on the tip of each tiny little arrow is a drop of oxalic acid, which not only stings, but works very well at dissolving silicates," he reported as they placed the skeleton in the water.
"Silicate causes clay to adhere..." Hodgins started.
"...and rhubarb is full of oxalic acid," the intern finished.
"Okay. Next time someone says your brain is a jumble of disconnected chaos, you just send them to me," Hodgins laughed, remembering Cam's words, but changing them slightly so they wouldn't be as offensive.
"I wi-..." the intern chuckled, but then stopped. "People say that?" he asked when he realized what Hodgins had just said.
"You need me to stir?" he tried to distract him and searched for something to stir with.
"Don't you have lots of spiders to trace?" Vincent asked him.
"Well, there's over 30 separate breeding grounds within a 200-mile radius of the body site. I'm analyzing the egg sacks to see if I can narrow it down further, but... I've got some time. And this is so cool," Hodgins gushed when he held a large spoon and stirred the rhubarb- skeleton-clay sauce.
"You really should talk to Brennan," Hodgins told Cam when he sought her out in her office late in the afternoon, to give her the newest updated report.
"About?" she asked him.
"About some praise for our poor intern. The guy is taking blame for stuff he has nothing to do with," he went on and sat down on the edge of her desk.
"Something that could never happen to you," she grinned knowingly.
"Nah, I told him to toss culpability onto you and then showed him how it's done by blaming his rhubarb stew for washing away my particulates," he grinned back.
"Oh really? What did I miss?" she wanted to know.
"That the injury on the medial malleolus means that whatever caused it, cut the posterior tibial artery," Hodgins repeated what Brennan had said earlier.
"Oh shit, he bled to death?" Cam cursed, annoyed that she had missed it.
"He did. Something wrong? Usually you're really thorough and concentrated when it comes to stuff like that," he wondered.
"Every time I see those remains I see spiders coming out of them. So I might not have got close enough..." she admitted and made him laugh.
"I'll remind you of this the next time you say I'm crazy," he said and quickly kissed her.
"You think it's wise to tell Brennan to give him some praise? He might get a big head once he gets what he wants," she wondered.
"One more crackpot in here more or less..." he laughed.
"You're the one always pointing out he's king of the lab," Cam pulled his leg and they both laughed.
"God, I missed you while we were on our 'break'," he admitted, staring at her in wonder while she still smiled at him.
"I missed you, too," she replied and stroked her hand over his stubbly cheek. "And now I'll go over to Brennan to get my lecture," she went on and kissed him softly before she got up.
"Good luck with that," he laughed and followed her out of her office.
"You can't blame Mr. Nigel-Murray; the nick was on the bone, but I should've realized the implications for the flesh, and I didn't," Cam told Brennan when she marched into her office and found her sitting at her desk.
"I agree," she said unfazed as usual.
"Then why are you letting him worry that he's disappointing you?" Cam asked her.
"Mr. Nigel-Murray should be aware by now that I don't hold others to my level of expertise. Otherwise I'd have no one to help me," Brennan shrugged.
"How would he know that if you don't tell him?" the pathologist wanted to know.
"Tungsten carbide, which is a compound used to coat various types of tools," Hodgins interrupted them and marched in with the intern following him. He had found the test results when he had come back to his lab and had decided to show them immediately.
"Including dental tools," Vincent added. Brennan looked at Cam questioningly, who nodded encouragingly in her direction.
"I distinctly remember saying to you once, 'Good job, Mr. Nigel-Murray.' I'm saying it again now," she told him then.
"Cheers. Brilliant, that…" Mr. Nigel Murray grinned overjoyed and Cam and Hodgins exchanged an amused look at his obvious joy.
"One of the suspects was Dan's dental hygienist...," Brennan ignored it though.
"Grace Bryson," Cam provided.
"Mm-hmm," Brennan agreed.
"Hey, where does she live?" Hodgins wanted to know.
"Fairfax, Virginia," the anthropologist let him know.
"Okay, the pollen I found in the sheet weaver spider's egg sack came from hickory pine trees. They don't grow where the body was found, but you can find them all over that part of Virginia," he let them know.
"Motive, theoretical weapon, spiders... That should be enough for an arrest," Cam nodded and couldn't help bringing up the spiders again. Lucky for her neither Brennan nor Hodgins realized that though, both too caught up in their own science.
Late in the evening Cam had analyzed the blood Booth and Brennan had found on the stones. She was just about to call the anthropologist when Brennan entered her lab.
"The bottom of the paving stones are covered in blood. All the samples I've taken are a match for the victim," Cam let her know.
"He bled out on the ground, then it was paved over," Brennan summed it up.
"Behold, Lucas Pickford's grout scraper. He used it for installing the paving stones," Vincent said as he came in followed by Hodgins. Hodgins looked at Cam and smiled when he saw that the button on her blouse he had opened earlier when he had caught her alone on the mezzanine was still unbuttoned.
"Coated in tungsten carbide," he didn't miss his call for information though.
"Please tell me it's a match," Cam begged, because all she wanted to do was go home.
"I-It is, in fact, a perfect match for the injury to the victim's ankle," the intern said and Hodgins looked at Cam in an 'Oh boy' kind of way while Brennan only listened. "Yeah? Cheers. Brilliant," the British guy then said.
"Hmm? No, she didn't say anything," Hodgins pointed out, knowing that Brennan hadn't praised him again.
"I-I discerned a lovely...a little glint of approbation in her eye," the intern insisted and then left. Cam wrinkled her forehead and exchanged a look with Hodgins that didn't need any words added, then he left as well.
"Cam, we've got a problem here," Hodgins said slightly panicked when Cam picked up her cell phone .
"What's going on, Jack?" she asked, wondering what he wanted. She'd gone to pick up some things from her apartment and then buy some groceries, while Jack was at home starting dinner. They had said goodbye maybe an hour ago and she was on her way to the supermarket.
"Your brother Matt is here with his 'nice' wife and his 'darling' little kids. They're still outside the main gate and waiting for me to open it," he reported.
"Don't let him in!" she said immediately. "Why does he know where you live?" Cam wanted to know.
"He said that Felicia had mentioned something, but because he's clever he found us. He says he wants to visit his little sister and when I told him you're not here he said he'd wait for you," Hodgins sounded even more agitated.
"Don't let him in! I'm on my way back," she instructed. "Or maybe I won't be back, cause I might go and kill Felicia."
"Wait for me, I'll help you kill her!" Cam heard Michelle's voice and realized she must be standing next to Hodgins while they had the phone on speaker.
"What? I can't just let him stand out there," he shrieked though.
"Don't let him in," she emphasized again.
"But... Cam!" he exclaimed panicked.
"I'll be right there, ten minutes tops," she replied and then hung up, hoping he would take her advice and let them stay outside. Knowing Hodgins however, she'd already guessed that he would let them in and open the door to hell.
TBC