The Child in the Lab

The Enigmatic Girl with the Puzzle

Dr. Brennan

I couldn’t do anything but watch the confusion as it sprawled out around me. Everyone, myself included, retreated from Jocelyn, like she was a carrier of Bubonic Plague. While everyone stared at Jocelyn suspiciously, she gazed at each person with a look I couldn’t quite understand. It was like this was a normalcy for her.

“Oh, don’t let little old me interrupt your fun.” She smiled, taking an over-deliberate step towards Booth. She turned to Cam, and approached her the same way.

“Well, I see you’ve heard of my father too-“Cam nodded, “Well, I’ll assure you I am nothing like him. Rich, yes, but that’s where the similarities falter.”

Ostensibly losing interest, she turned ambled towards me, adding her furtive comment to the formidable situation.

“And for you, I respect your work. I don’t necessarily respect you, but your work is in a league of its own. And I know that daddy discerns you the same.”  I knew I broke into a smile- if you could even call it that. More like the aversion in my eyes moderating for a fraction of a second.

However, Jocelyn articulated her point further. “You lead the field in Forensic Anthropology. I’d be lying if you weren’t the archetype for anyone else interested in pursuing that profession. But just remember that there will always be someone who can take that all away…Just take Miriam here…” she pointed toward the excavation site for emphasis.

 It jolted me how Jocelyn spoke in cryptic riddles, just daring us to try and figure it out. It was like she was a serial killer, becoming bolder as her conspiracy began restricting; like a desperate plea for attention.

Still with eye contact barred on me, she impertinently backed away, coming to a complete halt in front of Booth.

“Now that we’ve cleared things up, I’d appreciate it if you’d un-handcuff me. And I’m looking forward to when you can get proper documentation AND warrants to interrogate me. As you will find, I hold a lot of information crucial to this case.”

Again, she tried to intimidate us with enigmatic puzzles. The worst part was that I couldn’t tell whether she was succeeding. Nevertheless, Booth was the one with a gun, and she was the innocent girl who was manacled by iron cuffs.

He exposed his gun from its holster and used it to apply pressure along the lower interface of her left scapula. Instead of writhing in pain, she let out a manic cackled and pulled away. While this commotion became noticeable, Cam turned over, saw Booth’s gun, and her mouth dropped instantly.

“Seeley! Do you want all of us to lose our jobs?!” She barked at my partner.

He pulled the gun back in a tiny but noticeable increment. He still clutched it stringently against her body.