Bones Episode 5.21 The Boy with the Answer

BRENNAN runs through the dark. HODGINS screams for help. She finds him, beaten and bloody, but something unseen pulls him away. There is nothing she can do. BOOTH calls for her. He is trapped behind a large metal door. Brennan tries to free him but the container fills with water. A gloved hand grabs Brennan and pulls her away. She awakes in a plexiglass coffin. HEATHER TAFFET stands over her, covering her with dirt.

Brennan wakes up from the worst nightmare she has ever had. Yet, she manages to dress and get ready. She watches the news report about the Gravedigger case. It begins today. Federal Prosecutor Heather Taffet is defending herself.

At the Courthouse, Brennan assures BOOTH she is fine. This is just another case. MAX KEENAN greets the pair. He wanted to be here to support his daughter. After all, he knows the legal system well.

Inside the Courtroom, the hearing begins. CAM testifies that a stun gun caused the burn marks on the victims, just like the stun gun discovered in Taffet's storage locker. Hodgins adds information about the steel-toed boots that were also in the locker. Heather Taffet is concerned that these items were obtained illegally. She gets the Judge to throw out all evidence in the storage locker. The Squints have a tough fight ahead of them. Taffet approaches Brennan. "Why couldn't you find something as simple as the number?" Brennan is determined to discover whatever evidence she missed.

ANGELA, SWEETS, Hodgins and Cam review numbers on the Angelatron. Brennan arrives. Booth will get them Taffet's arrest records and old case files to look through. Hodgins thinks Taffet is toying with them. He leaves to analyze soil samples...again. Angela tells everyone that Hodgins still has nightmares.

At the Diner, CAROLINE JULIAN brings a box of files to Booth. She wonders how his "girlfriend" is doing. Brennan is NOT his girlfriend. Caroline hopes Booth is more believable on the stand.

In Angela's Office, Angela attempts to unscramble the voice of the Gravedigger. Hodgins wonders why she moved on from the numbers and Angela explains she wasn't able to find anything. She is working on the ransom tapes until Brennan can provide more data. Hodgins confesses that the case is wearing on him. He still feels trapped, like Taffet has come between them. Angela assures him that no one can get between them.

Brennan reviews files in her office, forgoing food. Booth urges her to take a break. She is smarter than Taffet and will figure this out. Brennan isn't so sure. What if her relationships have clouded her judgment? Taffet is detached and that makes her dangerous. They keep working. Booth notices that Taffet called a number in Salt Lake City after her arrest. Booth dials the number. "Larry's Pizza. How may I help you?"

Brennan is convinced that this is the number Taffet was talking about. She has no connection to anyone at the pizza place and none of the employees have a criminal record. Angela works with the phone number until she determines it is a GPS location.

The FBI uncovers a filthy glass freezer in a cornfield in Virginia. Brennan slides open the glass and finds the body of a small boy. This is TERRANCE GILROY, one of the Gravedigger's first victims.

At the Lab, Brennan examines the remains. Caroline Julian arrives to stop her. Brennan cannot act as an expert witness in a crime where she is the victim. Taffet knew the Squints were the only people with the skills to solve the case but now their hands are tied. Brennan wants to drop her case. She wants Hodgins to drop his case too. This does not sit well with him. Brennan knows that all their evidence has been thrown out. They have one chance to put Taffet away and they can only do it with evidence from the body of Terrance Gilroy. Hodgins reluctantly agrees and storms off the Forensic Platform.

Booth appears at Brennan's apartment. Brennan is still working and apparently so is Booth. He found out that Terrance Gilroy was last seen at the Rockland Mall on June 23rd. He is checking Taffet's credit cards to see if she was in the area on that day. Booth tells her he has dropped his case too. They are in this together. Brennan lets herself break down. Booth holds her.

Brennan and Cam examine the remains on the Forensic Platform. It seems the boy was strangled. Taffet did not taser him with a stun gun. He must have struggled and she tried to subdue him. Perhaps Taffet knew the facts in this case wouldn't be consistent with her other crimes. It could cause reasonable doubt.

In the Courtroom, testimony begins. Booth asserts that credit card charges place Taffet at Rockland Mall the day Terrance Gilroy was abducted. He also tells the court that the phone number Taffet called led them to the boy's location. It was the same ransom tape and demands as the other kidnappings. Heather Taffet discredits Booth. There is no evidence that Terrance was taken from the mall. Hundreds of other people were there that day. As for the phone number, could it have been placed in her file accidently? The officer on duty when she was arrested was from Salt Lake City. Perhaps he made the call.

In the hallway, Max Keenan tells Booth that Taffet is playing them. They only have the boy because Taffet allowed it. Booth is confident they will get her. Max takes off.

Max kneels behind the shrubs, waiting. He readies his gun as police officers help Taffet out of a van. He almost takes the shot but Booth intervenes. He followed Max and leaps on top of him, saving Taffet. Booth won't let him compromise the case.

Brennan can't believe her father tried to murder Taffet. She apologizes for his actions. Her cell phone rings. It's Max. He wants Brennan to bail him out of jail. Brennan refuses. He is staying in jail until the trial is over. Booth turns talk to Terrance Gilroy. Brennan explains he put up a good fight. Booth isn't surprised. Parker would be the same way. He'd bite. This gives Brennan an idea.

At the Lab, Brennan and Hodgins turn their focus to the victim's teeth. They have to look for particulates between the teeth or under the gum line. Anything else would have been destroyed by saliva.

Angela continues to work with the ransom tapes on the Angelatron. After applying software that decrypts each of the separate segments, a voice becomes clear. It's Taffet.

Angela is on the stand. Things are going well until Taffet questions Angela's credentials. Angela doesn't have a degree in sound engineering. Taffet submits her own evidence. She plays a recording in which the Gravedigger's voice morphs into that of Angela. Only this recording was made by Special Agent Graham Steele, who has a PhD in Forensic Auditory Analysis. Angela tries to explain that she didn't simply manipulate the recording to sound like Taffet but the damage is done.

Brennan collects her things for court. Booth reminds her to ease up on the science when she is on the stand. Brennan only wants to talk about the facts but Booth believes the presentation of the facts is just as important. The jury needs to know what that little boy went through.

Brennan is on the stand, speaking scientifically. Booth gives her a look. Brennan takes the hint. She explains that the victim's bones were broken when someone kneeled on top of him as they forced him into the freezer. There were breaks on the chest from the assailant's knees and breaks on the kneecaps from steel-toed boots. This gives the height of the assailant, which matches that of Heather Taffet. The jury believes Brennan. Taffet begins her questioning. She forces Brennan to admit she is seeing an FBI psychologist. Now the jury doubts Brennan's judgment and emotional stability.

At the Lab, Hodgins shows Sweets and Cam a dust mite from the boy's teeth. Dust mites eat dead human skin cells and this one has a full stomach. If the boy bit Taffet, the skin cells are probably hers. There is only a small sample of DNA but it should be enough.

Hodgins is on the stand. He explains to the jury that the dust mite was found in the teeth of the victim. It was transferred when the boy bit his attacker. Cam explains further. The dust mite contains human female epithelial cells. They were a match for Heather Taffet. Taffet objects because she was not allowed to test the sample. Cam explains that the small sample was destroyed by their tests. Taffet wants the evidence dismissed but the Judge denies her motion.

At the Founding Fathers, Booth has a celebratory drink. They did well today. Caroline will deliver a fantastic closing and Taffet will go to jail. Brennan is tired. She doesn't want to deal with murder and pain and sadness. She used to be a researcher, an anthropologist. Booth insists they are making the world a better place. It's what they do. Brennan believes it is what Booth does. She was only caught up in it.

The team waits in the hallway for the verdict. Booth states that Caroline nailed her closing argument but Hodgins believes Taffet was also rather convincing. Booth wonders if Hodgins ever sees the bright side. Hodgins tells him what the bright side is: he and Angela are married. Everyone is surprised but elated. Caroline approaches. The jury is back.

In the Courtroom, the Judge reads the verdict: guilty on all counts. Everyone hugs and applauds though Heather Taffet is in disbelief. She tells Brennan this isn't over.

At the Founding Fathers, everyone celebrates, drinking and tearing up little pieces of paper. Brennan wishes Angela and Hodgins "best wishes for a successful blending of affinal obligations as well as monetary and property consolidation." How sweet.

Outside, the Squints throw handmade confetti as Angela and Hodgins run down the street. Max apologizes to Brennan for his behavior. He never meant to doubt her. Max goes home and Brennan is left with Booth. She has the sense that everything is changing. Booth tries to reassure her but Brennan thinks she may need time off. Booth wants Brennan to have one more drink and stop thinking about the future. Brennan just wants to go home. She hails a cab and Booth watches as she drives away.