Booth was getting anxious. He played his part last night, first signing off on allowing this whole scenario to play out, taking the risk of his bedroom getting blown and all, and then playing his part in the hotel room for the fake feed.

It had been almost easy to take the risk of angering Pelant when he only considered his life on the line, but it didn't take long before he realized that he had no way of knowing where that anger was going to be directed - him, the FBI, the Jeffersonian, or Bones. He had to believe that Max would keep his word and keep Christine and Bones safe.

Besides Bones, though, there was the FBI, and the Jeffersonian team as targets. He'd already warned the Hodgins to play it close to the vest, and get some security measures going, especially since Pelant addressed Hodgins directly in one of his interviews. He'd called Cam and asked her to be careful, as well, until he could resolve this or get protective details for them. She'd already agreed to let Hodgins put a private security detail in place for her. This really was a first, but it seemed warranted.

Once Flynn's plan played out, they were more or less back where they began. Not only did they not identify where the feed came from, they walked away from the whole thing with a crispy bedroom, and for all they knew, one of their own team sent the signal.

Booth wasn't sure that having Flynn on his side was a good thing, at this point. The techs were humiliated; they had been out-maneuvered. They were fairly certain the bomber had recognized what they were doing, but blew the place anyway, and left them reeling trying to trace how he did it and from where. Now they've tipped their hand, and Pelant knows that the FBI is investigating other leads besides Bones, and Booth is now a victim in their eyes. Who knows where he'll go with that?

With last night still on his mind, Booth arrived at the diner almost 30 minutes ahead of his appointment with Sweets. After an hour in the hotel gym, he'd gone for a one hour early morning run to burn off some of the nervous energy he still had, and besides, it helped him think. He hadn't eaten since Bones and Christine left, but he found it necessary to fuel up now, considering both the extra workout, and the energy he would need to endure this. He was just finishing breakfast when he saw Sweets walk in.

"So what did you find out, Sweets?"

"...good morning, Agent Booth."

He sounded a bit apologetic, but still insistent, as he replied. "Look, I don't have time for pleasantries, Sweets. My family is gone, and this guy is winning. I gotta fix that. So what do we know?"

Sweets gratefully took the coffee he had ordered when he first walked by the counter. "Perhaps we can discuss this on the way to our next destination?"

Booth was clearly distracted, struggling to focus on what Sweets said, and so he just agreed and followed him. They got into Sweets little car, and began to drive, as Sweets began to talk.

"So you asked what we have. We have been visiting Zach Addy in the institution for several years now, about once a quarter. He has further withdrawn from societal interaction since his incarceration, almost exclusively interacting with myself and a librarian at the center who is willing to feed his voracious appetite for reading material, primarily published papers in mathematics. He has all but abandoned his interest in anthropology, attributing his inability to comprehend human dynamics fully as the source of his logical mis-steps, and…"

"Yeah, Yeah, Sweets, I'm not asking for a profile. I know Zach. I'm asking if I can get in to see him, and if he'd help solve this triangle on the wall thingy"

"Right. Well, actually, Hodgins and Angela gave me the file, but Zach has had almost no contact outside the facility beside myself and his immediate family since he's been there..."

"Great. Let's get going."

Clearly, Booth wasn't listening to a word he said. "...ummm, Agent Booth, I think perhaps you should focus on dealing with your own issues, you are on suspension pending a review of…"

"Right, I gotcha, Sweets. You wanna shrink me on the way over to see Zach. Fine, let's get this over with."

They continued to drive while Sweets led Booth to discuss the underlying issues that could be causing Booth to act impulsively regarding Pelant. Booth regaled him with the most recent occurrences, and although Sweets was clearly paying close attention, he was not about to let go of his primary goal.

"You know, all this is interesting, and presents some challenging prospects as to what Pelant's current end game is, but before we spend too much time on that, I'd really like to finish talking about the confrontation between you and Pelant yesterday…"

At first Booth had been distracted, then patiently humoring him, but at this point, he'd had enough.

"Look, Sweets, I get that you are trying to help. But I know I screwed up, ok. I own that. But, I can't get him back where he belongs by wallowing in that. I have to focus on getting Bones back, and to do that, I gotta focus on getting Pelant. I know I gotta play the long game now, I just lost sight of that when I thought he had her..."

"I'm glad to hear that you have thought through all this and have been working out…"

"Yeah, that's great, kid. So does this mean you can help me to get in to this guy's head, and get Bones back where she belongs?"

Booth had just noticed that they had pretty much driven in a huge circle, and they were pulling into the parking garage of the Jeffersonian. Sweets got out of the vehicle and began to walk toward the garden area. Booth huffed and jogged to catch up, as Sweets finally answered him.

"Well, you know, Agent Booth, that officially we have both been removed from working this case and it would be unethical…"

"Sweets, you know she didn't do this…"

"Right. That is why I'm off this case, Agent Booth."

"Look, I already explained that Flynn is ready to consider some alternative explanations, and at least explore who was behind tryin' to blow me up. Maybe you can profile my bomber for him?"

"I'll be glad to help in any way I can, Agent Booth, but I maintain that we need to be prepared to play the long game, as you said. That means first you need to focus on getting reinstated. I recommend requesting an appointment to be evaluated for tomorrow morning. You should do that immediately. You should be scheduled with one of two guys I know, and they will do the right thing, I'm sure of it. Just be sure to speak with them as you did with me earlier. They have to see that you are taking responsibility for your actions, and know that you won't make the same mistake again."

Sweets took in Booth's appearance, and hoped that he actually processed everything he just said. He couldn't tell whether his face was impassive because he was thinking, or just tuning him out entirely, since he was still not totally recovered from Bones' departure. He decided to just press on.

"Second, I'll talk to Flynn about working up a profile for the bomber. It will be complex, but I'll have to re-work my profile of Pelant separately, based on the bombing and what we've learned since I last profiled him. Finally, let me take this to Zach alone. You and the rest of the team need to stay away from Zach, and I will only take this to him at my regularly scheduled appointment. Don't worry though, it was just like, wickedly perfect that it will be this Monday."

Booth grimaced, reminded once again that the baby duck was still just a baby. Still, he had to ask. "That would explain why we're not at the institution, but why didn't you just say that and save all that gas?"

"I dunno. I figured you'd talk more if we were in a captured environment, plus, if we break up the venue enough, it's harder to track us or record what we say."

Booth sighed, and chuckled a little. "You been talkin' to the bug man too much."

"Booth, we're all in this, even Cam. You have to know that. I may sound paranoid like Hodgins, but this guy is wicked smart, and he's using technology in new ways we haven't even heard of before - he's makin' some of this stuff up. I think bringing Zach in is exactly the right thing to do, and it could help in his treatment as well."

"Yeah, but what do I do in the mean time?"

"Try to take it easy. I have to refine my profile on the guy, and you need to focus on something else. Check in with the Hodgins, keep an eye on Cam, and see what can be done to help Carolyn. We all need to pull together."

"Yeah, sometimes I forget that for a kid you're pretty smart. Thanks, Sweets."

"Anytime, Agent Booth, anytime." As Sweets left with a big grin on his face, Booth sighed and contemplated his next step.