Brennan poked her head in Emily's room and smiled as she saw the girls embracing their mother happily. She caught Emily's eye and motioned upstairs. Emily nodded and waved before turning her attention back to her girls.

Brennan took the elevator up a few floors and looked around for Elliot when she got off. One of the nurses pointed her towards the chapel, where she found him kneeling. She slipped into the pew behind him, and sat silently for a few minutes before he got up off he knees and slid in beside her.

"Are you Catholic?" She asked him.

Elliot nodded. "Yeah, you?"

Brennan shook her head. "Booth's the religious one. He's Catholic too; says I have a God complex. It's just that after all I've been through, it's kind of hard to believe that there's a big man up there who's looking out for me," she explained.

Elliot nodded. "I know. Sometimes it feels that way for me too. But then I look at my kids, and I think about Olivia, and I know that he's the reason I have them in my life. Having faith gives you something to hold onto late at night, especially after a really terrible case, knowing that God can comfort you and everyone else who is hurting," he replied.

"I guess I could understand that. Booth says the same thing. You two are a lot alike you know. You said you have kids too?" She asked.

"Yeah, four. Maureen's 21, Kathleen's 18, and then Dickie and Lizzie are 12. They stay with my ex most of the time, which is hard on me. But they love Olivia. She's like a second mother to them – always has been. So they love coming over," he told her.

"If you don't mind me asking, why'd you get divorced?" Brennan asked.

"No, not at all. Kathy and I got married 22 years ago after we found out she was pregnant. We were only 18 at the time, and well, it was the good Catholic thing to do. I was in the Marines, and then I joined the force. With my line of work, I wasn't really home much. The last five years of our marriage were extremely tough. She thought I was cheating on her, I wasn't, she wouldn't believe me, wanted me home more often…same old story. We realized that we just weren't really in love with each other. We didn't get married out of love, and then we just stayed together for the kids. Two years ago we decided to separate. The kids were older, and they took it rather hard at the beginning, but they began to understand as time went by," he explained.

"And Olivia?" Brennan asked.

"We've been partners for about nine years. We always had a special bond, and if I wasn't married we would have been together from day one. Of course it was all unspoken. But I could never stop thinking about her. Once I got divorced, the thought crossed my mind many times to just jump her every second of the day. But I couldn't. I was in love with her, and I had it so bad. So I asked her out. I'm sure she thought it was just a friendly dinner, but we had an amazing time. She made the next move, and we started 'going steady.' Then we had a child abuse case, and our victim died. We just sort of…well anyways we took it to the next level. And it stayed that way. It's hard, I won't lie to you. But if it's right, if you're right for each other, well there's nowhere else you'd rather be, and no one else you'd rather spend your life with," he told her.

Brennan smiled widely. "Now you really sound like Booth," she said with a laugh. "Thank you for sharing that with me. I'm sure you know about Booth and me. It's all happening so quickly, and it's so new. It's nice to hear your story. I hope we'll be as happy as you guys are…I know we will be," she told him.

Just then a doctor came into the chapel and beckoned them out. They followed him into the waiting room, where they sat down.

"Mr. Clark is out of surgery, and the nurses are wheeling him back to his room as we speak. The surgery was a success, but the next 24 hours will be critical to his recovery," the doctor told them.

"What do you mean exactly?" Elliot asked him. "We were told he'd pull through."

"Of course, I didn't mean to imply that he wouldn't make it. I only meant that how he does in the next 24 hours will likely set the pace for the rest of his recovery," the doctor replied.

"I understand," Brennan jumped in. "Can he have a few visitors? His wife and children would like to see him as soon as possible. And we'll need to ask him a few questions tomorrow," she told him.

The doctor nodded. "It would probably be best if the questions waited until tomorrow. H wife and children may come to visit him for 30 minutes, but I'm afraid that's all I can allow for tonight. He really needs his rest."

Brennan quickly excused herself and got up to Emily's room as fast as she could. She knocked softly on the door before entering.

Emily looked up, and smiled when she say Brennan.

"I just talked to your husband's doctor. He said you can see him now, but only for 30 minutes," she told her.

Emily looked surprised. "Wow, that was quick. Yes, of course I want to see him. The girls are sleeping, and I really don't want to wake them up. Will you come up with me?" She asked.

"Sure," Brennan replied.

She helped Emily out of bed and into a wheelchair. Emily kissed both of her children gently before allowing Brennan to wheel her out of the room. They were silent in the elevator on the way up.

"Are you ready?" Brennan asked as the elevator opened.

Emily smiled up at her. "You have no idea. I've been waiting two years for this," she replied.