The Party in the Pants

WOMAN: To the left. Great. Stop there, drop the boom!

Drop the boom. I don't know what I'm doing!

Great. A little higher on the boom.

I really shouldn't be doing this, Aunt Alice.

I... I don't have a driver's license.

If you're staying with me, you're gonna earn your keep.

Now use the lever on the right to lift your load, now.

Um...

That's not...

Dale! To the right!

DALE: I'm trying!

ALICE: That's it.

Pick it up, pick it up.

(squishing)

Oh, geez.

What the hell are you doing, Dale? Whoa.

I don't know.

ALICE: To the right!

Oh, my God. Okay, no, I can't...

I can't do this, I'm sorry.

I'm sorry! ALICE: Where are you going?

Dale!

(grunts)

You are in big trouble!

Get this thing off of me, Dale!

(groans)

Get this thing off of me now!

What the hell is it?

Oh, my God!

Geez!

MAN: Oh, my God!

BOOTH: Look, just seal off the construction site.

I'll be there in ten minutes.

I just got to go to the Jeffersonian, I got to pick up Bones.

Okay. Sorry, ma'am.

You must be in the wrong office.

Do we have an appointment or something?

Dr. Sweets told me to wait for you here.

Mom.

I wasn't sure you would remember me.

What's it been? 25 years?

Wow.

This is unbelievable.

I know.

And it's been 24 years, Mom, not 25.

(both chuckle)

You always looked on the bright side.

I... I...

I guess I should start by apologizing.

No.

You don't need to apologize.

I know what you went through.

I'm just happy to see you.

But I should have tried to get in touch with you.

It was just that so many years passed, and your grandfather was your parent, and I...

I just thought you probably hated me.

I didn't hate you, Mom.

I missed you.

(sighs): Oh, baby.

You know, I read about one of your arrests in the paper.

And I said I always knew that you would grow up to be somebody special.

You... hey, you are a grandmother, twice over.

I'm a grandmother? Mm-hmm.

I'm too young to be a grandmother.

(both laugh)

(phone ringing) Oh...

Ah, I'm sorry, Mom.

I... I got this case I got to get to.

Okay. Don't worry about it.

I'll, uh, give you the phone number of my hotel, and then...

No, no, no, no, no, Mom.

Mom, you're not staying at a hotel.

You're gonna stay at our house, okay?

Here is the address, all right?

I'm not gonna let you go this time.

Okay.

Mom.

(sighs)

I'll see you later, Mom.

(sirens wailing, people chattering)

BRENNAN: And you're really happy to see her?

BOOTH: Of course I'm happy to see her.

She's my mother. She abandoned you, Booth.

All right, now you sound like Sweets.

Oh! Okay, what rock did this guy crawl out from under?

That would be a lot funnier if this wasn't an actual human being.

The victim was dropped from an excavator, and the remaining load fell and crushed his skull.

BRENNAN: Booth is in a good mood because his mother finally returned after abandoning him 25 years ago.

24 years. And don't say it like that.

Well, that's got to be... complicated.

It's not. It's great, actually.

So keep your poking around to the remains there, huh?

BRENNAN: This section of the skull indicates male.

The parabolic dimensions of the dental arch indicate Caucasian.

HODGINS: Uniform is made of polybenzimidazole.

Think our victim was a firefighter.

Okay, now I'm mad.

Skull fragments show signs of heavy rodent predation.

SAROYAN: And based on flesh tone and ambient temperature, I'd say he's been dead about four days.

Which lines up when this building came down.

Could be a fire inspector going through a last walk-through.

I'll check with the local fire stations and make sure that no one's missing. Actually, I'm not so sure our victim was a firefighter after all.

You know what? I'm no squint, but I'm pretty sure the uniform's a giveaway here. Yeah, well, so's this.

Velcro pants and a thong.

BOOTH: Oh.

Either, uh, rats ate the rest of his underwear, or I'd say our victim was a stripper.

BOOTH: Bones, let's not tell my mom about this one, okay?

Why?

Really?

♪ Bones 8x22 ♪ The Party in the Pants Original Air Date on April 15 2013

♪ Main Title Theme ♪ The Crystal Method

♪

I'm gonna be pasting this guy together for days.

His skull didn't stand a chance against a block of concrete.

How bad is your luck to have the same building fall on you twice?

Our job is not to speculate on the level of this man's misfortune.

Our job is to determine his identity.

Which isn't gonna be easy, since it looks like he stepped on a land mine with his face.

Based on the epiphysial union of the sternal clavicle, the victim was in his mid-20s.

Which is consistent with his being an exotic dancer, as a high percentage of men go into the profession as a means to pay for college.

There's a fact I didn't expect from you.

I wrote an anthropology paper on stripping in grad school.

People who disrobe for the pleasure of others are fascinating.

Yeah, that's kind of the whole point.

While women have stripped for millennia, it wasn't until the 1970s that women felt empowered enough to publicly enjoy men stripping for them.

When did empowerment become stuffing dollar bills down a man's pants?

The 1970s.

I already said that.

You should pay closer attention.

Okay, but what was a stripper doing in a condemned building?

The lack of plaster and dust in the posterior pharynx suggests he was dead before the building came down.

Okay, so someone dragged our victim's dead body into a building, knowing that it was going to be demolished.

Nice way to get rid of a body.

BRAY: Look at this.

A calf implant.

Well, as a stripper, he would want his body to look its most appealing.

SAROYAN: Well, lucky for us, he cared about his work.

The serial number on this implant should give us our victim's I.D.

Well done, Mr. Bray.

SWEETS: Your mom seems really nice.

So there's no "but"?

No. I mean, look, it's got to be complicated, reestablishing a relationship after so long, but the fact that you're both open to it is impressive.

I'm happy for you.

(groans) Right.

Can you tell everyone else that?

What? Are you feeling defensive? You having second thoughts?

So are you here to tell me about the case, or are you just here to annoy me?

The case. Of course, the case.

So?

Uh, well, the killer's decision to use a building ready for demolition as a dump site exhibited... anticipatory...

I've got nothing; I just wanted to talk about your mom.

You got nothing, okay. Bye. (phone ringing)

You know, if you ever need to talk...

I won't.

Booth.

Yeah. (snaps fingers)

Whoa. Yeah.

Great.

That's great. Thank you.

Well, we got an I.D.

The victim's name is Jack Spindler.

He was reported missing yesterday by his boss at Duncore Investments.

The stripper was moonlighting as a stockbroker?

Wow.

That him?

Mm-hmm. What's up with this cash?

You taking me out?

No. I found it in the victim's clothing.

It's mostly singles.

About 100 bucks.

He was probably killed right after a gig.

Well, if I can figure out what service he worked for, they should be able to tell us where his last gig was.

Hence the naked men on your screen?

Trouble is, none of them use their real names, and doesn't seem like he worked for any of the agencies.

HODGINS: Well, he was probably trying to keep his other job a secret from his bosses at Duncore.

Yeah. I guess it's hard to make a living on 100 bucks in tips.

Wait a minute.

When people tip the strippers, they usually give them more than one bill, don't they?

Why? Are you thinking prints?

Because there could be hundreds of those on any one bill.

Yeah, but if we find the same print on multiple bills, it'll tell us who gave him the money the night that he died.

You know, if I had any non-crime-related cash on me right now, I would be stuffing it down those pants.

Oh, yeah?

You mean... these pants?

Oh... Uh-oh.

Uh-oh.

Uh-oh. Uh-oh.

Here it comes.

Oh, sweetheart...

Those boys ain't got nothing on your husband.

Oh, I am so into this!

(laughing)

MONTENEGRO (laughing): Yeah...

BOOTH: Where did you play?

I played around the country for about 20 years, you know... Yeah.

You know, I actually did a gig at the Carlyle Hotel.

Daily News loved me. Well, why wouldn't they, Mom?

You got a great voice.

You were always a little tone-deaf. (laughs)

So how'd you end up in Atlantic City?

Well, about four years ago, um...

Reggie, my piano player-- sweet guy, I think you'd like him-- decided to open up a club on-on the boardwalk, and asked me to join him.

Hmm.

Reggie.

Yeah, Reggie. I...

I have to tell you.

I just think your home is beautiful.

Well, it's your home now, too.

The door's always open.

Do you remember "The Continental"?

Uh, not as much as you do.

Here it goes. ♪ The Continental

♪ Something different, something new ♪ ♪ You are so subtle

♪ The Continental...

Remember when I would teach you to dance, your dad would get so mad?

And you'd just laugh.

You'd laugh. I don't want to talk about Dad.

All right. 'Cause it's done.

It's done. Look at what you've accomplished.

Come on.

Look at me.

We won, baby.

Yeah.

You're right, we did.

♪ Two bodies dancing

♪ The Continental... Wow, okay.

(chuckles) Someone wanted to say good night.

Oh, look at this little noodle.

Yeah.

Well, I thought Booth was your little noodle.

Well, he was, and so was his brother, but you can't have too many noodles.

I'm too old to be a noodle, you know. She can be the doctor noodle. It's true. All right.

You can be grandma noodle.

(laughs) Oh, nice. All right.

Must have been so hard for you to run away from your children.

Bones, come on, we're having a good time here.

Well, it's clear that she had to.

I imagine the injury to your left greater trochanter and femoral head was caused by a beating.

It must have been severe to cause you to limp after all these years.

If you're talking about my hip, yes, I was thrown down a flight of stairs.

And it will never happen to me again.

But I knew I had to leave.

I blamed myself all these years.

But seeing what he has here, and what you've given him--

I knew that he was strong.

And I was right.

You are.

He's the strongest man I know.

You remember that song?

That I used to sing to you before you'd go to bed?

Oh, not the monkey song.

Yes, the monkey song.

♪ Five little monkeys

♪ Jumping on a bed Mom...

♪ One fell off and hurt his head ♪ ♪ Mama called the doctor, and the doctor said ♪ ♪ No more monkeys jumping on the bed ♪ ♪ Four little monkeys

♪ Jumping on the bed

♪ One fell off and bumped his head ♪ ♪ Mama called the doctor, and the doctor said ♪ ♪ No more monkeys jumping on the bed ♪

BOOTH: ♪ Three little monkeys jumping... ♪

So, you reported

Jack missing two days ago, am I correct, Mr. Harrison?

Yeah, I reported him. Spindler never missed work, so when I couldn't get him on the phone, I knew something was wrong.

Was he a good employee?

He was the hardest working son of a bitch I had.

Guy brought in $5 million in new accounts while he was still in the trainee program.

Sounds like he was responsible for a lot of clients.

I'm sure they wouldn't be too happy if he lost a chunk of all that cash.

We don't lose our clients' money.

Mm. But with market conditions being what they are, certain fluctuations can cause a downturn...

That's great. You know, I'm gonna need his work computer and a list of all his clients.

Sure. I'll have my assistant shoot it over to you.

Great. You're aware that he was a stripper, right? (clears throat)

Spindler?

(chuckles)

You got to be wrong.

The guy was making serious bank at the firm; he wouldn't need to... strip.

No, it's true, he was a stripper.

And, as his boss, I'm surprised you didn't know that.

The only thing I cared about was how much money he brought in.

I wonder how your boss would react if he found out that you hired a stripper.

I don't like where this is going.

I can't imagine you do.

But, you know what, we're done for now.

Sure.

Hey, I have a little expertise in government pensions.

I could increase your annual return if you just let me invest a small portion... We're done, for now.

Leave the badge on the table.

Fine. (clears throat)

I don't get it. I've been down to my last five bucks, but even then, I wouldn't take my clothes off for money.

You know, based on your robust frame, muscular build and symmetrical features, you can make a good income as an exotic dancer.

Then I wasted a lot of money on grad school.

The victim was educated and had a successful profession.

Are you trying to get me to strip, Dr. B?

I'm just saying that I understand the impulse.

It's a way to project power and fertility.

Hmm.

It seems the calf implants were not the only surgical procedures performed on the victim.

The proximal end of the tibia has been cut and realigned.

This is evidence of a tibial osteotomy.

Based on the extensive remodeling, he had this surgery done years ago.

He must have suffered from Blount's disease.

It's very common in severely overweight children.

Then I imagine he didn't start stripping as a kid.

Not professionally, at least.

Well, this guy was clearly in love with himself.

Think someone else was, too.

Looks like he had a girlfriend.

So the vaginal fluid Hodgins found in his underwear will probably come to nothing.

So, uh, how's it going with your mom?

It's great.

Her and Bones are getting along.

It's great.

Oh, that's great.

And Christine, too. They love each other.

Nice. One question.

Since it seems to be going so well.

You're in the FBI.

Could've tracked her down at any point.

Yeah, I could've. But, you know, I figured she would find me when the time was right for her.

And the time was right, and she found me.

Yeah. Yeah.

Right.

Dr. Brennan said the victim was overweight as a child.

She's saying that's why he was killed?

Well, I'm saying that his past could explain why he has all these mirrors.

Whoa, all right. Look.

Spindler had painful body image issues.

By stripping, he's finally able to gain the acceptance and attention that he needed.

It's a voice mail.

Don't you need a password for that?

It's voice mail; doesn't everybody just use one- two-three-four?

Well, I do, but now I'm gonna change that.

AUTOMATED VOICE: You have one message.

WOMAN: Hey, Jack, where the hell are you?

I'm not gonna put up with this anymore, you b*st*rd.

I swear, if I find out you're cheating on me again, you're finished.

Sounds like he was getting attention from someone.

She doesn't sound happy.

No.

SWEETS: Okay, so it says here your father is Andrew Mineta?

The founder of Atlantis Airlines?

So?

So, what's a girl like you doing dating a stripper?

You're not a very good shrink, are you?

Excuse me?

It's pretty simple, according to mine.

It's a passive-aggressive attempt to get my father's attention.

Okay, so you're in therapy.

For the past eight years. You know, we heard the message that you left Jack the night he died.

That message was nothing; we were always fighting.

You're saying it's just a coincidence then that you threatened him and now he's dead?

Come on, there are no coincidences.

I'm sure your shrink told you that, too.

I wasn't gonna kill Jack; just his career.

If Duncore found out he was stripping, Jack would kill himself.

Do you feel that that's what your father would've wanted?

When Jack was trying to get promoted, he convinced my family to invest $1 million to set him over the $5 million mark.

Okay, well, then your father's disapproval was warranted.

That must have been very difficult emotionally.

Duh, Sigmund.

I was warned that Jack was nothing but a self-absorbed user.

But he was so charming.

And he had those abs.

So was it your father that warned you?

No, one of Jack's friends.

Storm.

Storm? Storm what?

Just Storm. Like Cher.

He helped Jack get into stripping when Jack was broke.

Jack repaid him by stealing his clients.

So did Storm ever confront Jack about this?

They got into an epic fight at the gym a couple of weeks ago.

But Jack said they were okay now.

And you believed him? Yeah.

But then again, for months, I also believed he wasn't cheating on me.

Are we done?

I have a shrink appointment at 2:00.

Um...

Y-Yeah.

So, why'd you want to meet here?

Well, as a kid, you used to love coming here.

It would make you happy.

Yeah, I remember.

MARIANNE: You used to love that chess board.

You used to love to be the knight.

Yeah, I remember you telling me that I had to protect the king and the queen from bad guys.

That's right. And now you're doing it in the FBI for real.

So, what is this, just a trip down memory lane?

No. I have some news.

And I thought this would be a good place to tell you.

Good news, I hope.

Very good news. All right.

Do you remember the guy I was telling you about last night?

Reggie, the piano player.

We're getting married.

And you're going to have a sister and another brother, too.

What?

Yeah, Reggie's kids. They're great.

You're gonna love them.

And I... I want you to give me away, Seeley.

I'm sorry, so you've been a mom to... his kids?

Yeah, well, we've been together for quite some time, and they were at an age where they could still use a mother.

Right.

(clears throat)

Like Jared and I were.

Come on.

It's not like that, Seeley.

I thought you couldn't handle a family, Mom.

But I guess that was just our family.

No, I-- That's not how it was. I forgave you.

I gave you a pass all of these years, right?

But you know what, hey, I guess I was just making it okay for myself.

You know what, I thought about you every day!

What were you thinking, Mom?

Were you blaming us for the beatings?

Is that why you couldn't come back and see us anymore?

You are being ridiculous. Ridiculous, really?

You come back here to get my stamp of approval on your new life so you don't feel guilty.

Well, get this, it's been 24 years; feel guilty.

This was a mistake.

Yeah. A big one.

I'll get my things, and I'll move back to the hotel.

That's the best decision you've made in a long time.

The DNA from the vaginal fluid was inconclusive.

I couldn't find a match, because the victim's DNA contaminated it. You found something?

Uh, I photographed and scanned the bills that Hodgins found, and I'm searching them for prints.

The same print on multiple bills should point to whomever placed the bills in the victim's pants.

Only a few fives and tens.

I wonder what he had to do to earn those.

Actually, that probably had more to do with the tipper than the stripper.

Your research again?

Yes. I discovered that I tend to be a more generous tipper while I was ovulating.

Okay. So for one's economic well-being, only bring singles when ovulating.

Got it.

Did you find any usable prints?

Well, unfortunately, most of the bills were slathered in the same coconut oil that he was slathered in.

That seems to be a no.

But I might have found something even better than a print. Notice anything telling?

Looks like it was recently rolled up.

Cocaine? You got it.

If this bill was up somebody's nose, the epithelial cells could give us the user's uncontaminated DNA.

I'm sorry, Booth. Well, you know what?

It's my own fault; everyone warned me it was too good to be true.

Perhaps she didn't explain herself well.

You know, Bones, you're a good person-- the best-- but, you know, I don't need anyone to put a... a good face on this, all right?

I'm not. I just think...

Just move on, all right?

I'm fine.

I was fine before, I'll be fine now.

Let's just talk about the case.

Sure.

All right. Appreciate that.

Have you had any luck tracking down Storm?

Guy lives in an RV. I put out an APB on the thing this morning.

You think that he'd be willing to kill because the victim stole some of his clients?

Sweets says it's probably not about the wallet, and more about his ego.

You know, he's getting older, he's not looking so good.

I'm sure Sweets said that if Storm didn't know what else to do with himself, he would lash out at the person he viewed as a threat.

In this case, our victim.

That is exactly what he said.

Which proves that a person doesn't need any special training to spout psychobabble.

I got a hit. Storm's RV is parked outside a house in Arlington.

Did you ever consider stripping?

Really? No.

Well, you have an alluring personality and a wonderful physique.

Well, so do you, but you wouldn't strip.

I did. What?

For my paper.

I wouldn't be much of a scientist if I hadn't.

You were a stripper?

Well, it was only once.

I got too much going on right now.

I don't need to hear this, Bones.

I used fans, large fans.

You would have enjoyed it.

Let's just crash the party, okay?

It was... Enough with the fans.

...a burlesque tease. Okay, that's great.

It was a tease.

(music playing, women cheering)

Uh-huh. Oh, no.

Oh...

Whoa. Hey. Oh.

(women laughing, cheering)

(laughs)

Yeah.

(growls playfully) Whoa.

Okay, all right, everybody, everybody quiet up!

All right, Magic Mike, put the clothes back on.

FBI. Let's go.

Sweet! Another stripper!

(women cheering)

Oh! I am not another stripper! I'm FBI!

Sure you are. That's why you have a "cocky" belt buckle. I told you you were alluring.

Come on, man! Who the hell sent you here?! This is my gig!

Your friend Jack Spindler was found murdered, pal.

His skull was crushed beyond recognition.

Oh, my God.

Wow, these strippers really have elaborate backstories.

Oh, wow. Really?

(women cheering)

BOOTH: "Officer Storm. Metro Police."

I can arrest you for impersonating a peace officer.

You gonna start hauling kids in on Halloween, too?

I wouldn't be a smart-ass if I were you, okay?

Not when you're a murder suspect.

Jack was my friend. Why would I kill him?

We know that you got into a fight with him two weeks ago.

Jack stole some clients from me, so I called him out.

There's evidence of a fracture to the neck of the distal end of his fourth metacarpal on Jack's right hand.

(chuckles): What the hell is she saying?

No idea. But we have proof that you did more than just call him out.

I gave him a couple of gut checks, so he knew not to poach clients again.

What about last weekend?

Saturday nights are the most profitable for strippers.

Didn't see him.

It's not like there was any bad blood between us.

Yeah, because what's a few broken distal fourth things amongst friends? That doesn't make sense, Booth.

He gets the idea.

We made up.

Jack knew I needed the money, so he even set me up with some gigs that he couldn't handle 'cause of his finance thing.

Call the place you found me.

The birthday girl will tell you Jack referred me.

We have forensic evidence that Jack had intercourse the night he died.

To him, it was a perk.

I warned him that it was bad business, dangerous even, if the wrong boyfriend or husband found out.

We officially have cause of death: a sudden sharp blow to the posterior C3 vertebra.

A V-shaped cut at almost a perfect 90-degree angle.

Impact caused a severe contusion to the spinal cord.

Can't live without a spinal cord.

Yeah.

There's trace wedged in the wound.

The reason I'm here.

Okay, there's a lot in here, man.

These metallic flakes-- they look like aluminum.

This fiber looks like some kind of synthetic polymer.

And... bingo.

This is the antenna and front vestigial wing of a Cimex Hemipterus. It's a bedbug.

One trapped in a V-shaped cut.

Yeah, yeah. So, all right, we already know that the victim was in a fight, right?

What if he gets punched, he falls back, yes, his neck collides hard with the corner of the bed frame.

The fiber's from the sheet.

Which was crawling with bedbugs.

Maybe the victim really did get caught sleeping with another guy's girl.

Seeley?

I'm busy.

This won't take long, and then I'll be gone.

I can understand how you feel.

I'd probably feel the same way.

But kids make their parents into gods, so we can't do anything but disappoint you.

I really don't need to hear this.

Yes, you do.

I am no god, Seeley.

I am just a person, like everybody else.

I make mistakes, clearly, big ones.

I should've handled this differently coming here.

And there's nothing I can say to make you forgive me.

But I sure as hell am gonna forgive myself, because I have a little time left.

And I am entitled to try and be happy, even if it's just for a little bit.

Reggie is a good man.

He'd never lift a finger to me.

And it took a lot of courage to share him with you.

(voice breaks): 'Cause I... I wanted you to taste a little bit of the happiness that I had, because it seems like all I've ever done is give you misery.

That's what I couldn't face.

Just all the things I did to you.

Do I wish I could do it differently?

Oh, yes.

But I can't turn back the clock.

And apparently, neither can you.

So these last two days...

...I'm gonna take them with me.

You can't have them back.

Good-bye, Seeley.

I've been looking through Jack's computer.

Any evidence of disgruntled customers?

Nope. All gruntled.

All very, very gruntled.

So I've been focusing on the investments that Jack made for his Duncore clients over the past six months.

His boss said he's very good at his job.

Yeah, it seems so now.

Although, there's a ton of stuff to go through.

There are a ton of e-mails from his boss pressuring him to do better.

Very stressful.

Perhaps stripping was a way for him to relax.

Speaking of stress, how is Booth?

I thought it was gonna be fine.

He seemed so happy to see her again and for Christine to meet her grandmother.

So, not so good.

No.

I liked her.

But I don't think I can say that, not-not now.

Maybe that's exactly what you should say.

SAROYAN: I got a hit.

Can you bring up my station?

The DNA from the epithelial cells on the bill belong to a Cynthia White, 24.

Police broke up a fight between her and her fiancé on the night of her bachelorette party.

Uh-oh.

Yeah. And her epithelial cells are a match for the partial DNA from the vaginal fluid.

That is her fiancé who was booked and released for battery.

So her fiancé must have found out that she slept with Jack Spindler.

So you like beating up your fiancée, huh?

It's a misunderstanding. I just pushed her.

Tell me what the fight was about.

Just pre-wedding jitters, you know?

Pre-wedding jitters.

Sure it wasn't about your fiancée having her bachelorette party?

What happened between Cynthia and me is none of your business.

She didn't press charges.

Oh, it is my business, Jason.

Because if it was just about Cynthia sleeping with the stripper, you wouldn't be here right now.

How did you know about that?

I know a lot of things-- more than you think.

So why don't you do yourself a favor and tell me what happened.

Okay.

I got mad.

Sometimes Cynthia gets a little wild when she drinks.

Snorts a little cocaine?

Damn, was there a hidden camera?

Maybe.

You got jealous, right?

Because you knew there was gonna be a stripper there.

I just wanted to check in on things, you know?

Because you didn't trust her.

And I was right. She admitted it.

"One last fling," she said.

I flipped out a little.

Right, and you killed the stripper.

No.

He was long gone, I swear.

This was between me and Cynthia.

So the fiancé has an alibi for the night of the murder.

And Hodgins searched the hotel where Cynthia had her bachelorette party.

He found no bedbugs or matching particulate evidence.

Great. We got a killer out there laughing at us.

This has been a banner of a day.

Booth, I know you don't want to talk about your mother.

(sighs) She came to see me.

You know, tried explain herself.

That's good, isn't it?

I didn't say a word.

I just stared at her.

I let her go without saying anything.

You could call.

No.

Too angry.

I'm just angry, that's all.

And it's... I just feel like him.

Who?

My dad. I feel like my dad.

You know? He-he would blame her for everything.

My mom would apologize, and he would just stare at her.

You are not your father.

Really? Really?

Because, you know, I grew up in a household of violence and hatred.

And look at me now. I look for that every day.

What, murder, cruelty.

Every day, you try to stop it.

Every day, you prove what a good man you are.

Then why didn't I stop her?

Why didn't I stop my own mom?

Because it's difficult.

Isn't that what you said about my dad?

How long did it take me to forgive him?

You think I still don't get angry?

Maybe it's just simpler this way, Bones.

Is that what your religion says?

Really? Religion? You gonna bring that into this conversation now?

The Jesus myth is all about forgiveness, isn't it?

It's not a myth.

Absolution, our ability to transform ourselves.

So you grew up suffering.

In the myth, Jesus suffered, and he forgave those.

It's not a myth.

Please, Booth.

Water to wine, raising the dead, walking on water-- these defy the basic laws of physics.

But forgiveness, that's its value.

That's why the myth has endured.

So, I finished going through the victim's work computer.

These are all the clients listed, as you can see.

That's a whole lot of people who've saved more money than I have.

Yeah, but... the total assets for all these clients is only $2.4 million.

His boss said that Jack's clients had over $5 million in assets.

Yeah, that's the thing.

Why didn't his boss give us access to all of them?

Jack's girlfriend, Kristy Mineta, isn't even listed.

Why hide only certain clients?

Well,, that wasn't te only thing hidden.

There's evidence of e-mails that his boss, Seth, scrubbed after Jack was killed.

Can you reconstruct them?

Seriously? You have to ask?

So the e-mails outline his boss's strategy for buying large amounts of a cheap, risky stock called Venture Command.

I've got a bad feeling about this.

Yeah, and you should.

The plan was to buy the stock cheap, artificially inflate the value, and sell it to unsuspecting clients before it crashes.

And that's legal?

No, it's not.

It's a felony practice known as a "pump and dump."

Does no one on Wall Street have a conscience?

Well, Jack Spindler might have had one.

Take a look at this e-mail that Jack sent back to his boss.

"Seth, I don't know if I can do this.

We need to talk."

Jack sent that three days before he was killed.

I am not incriminating myself. I am not stupid.

I am a graduate of the Wharton School of Business.

You have to understand something here, Seth.

This is a homicide investigation, okay?

Financial crimes? They're not my concern.

I don't care.

Just explain to me what happened, that's all.

Fine.

The full client list wasn't on Jack's computer because it's Duncore policy that a senior agent-- me-- oversee trainee accounts.

So you took credit for Jack's clients?

It's corporate hazing, part of a trainee paying his dues.

You want a list of the clients we shared, no problem.

That'd be great, yeah.

Also, maybe you can tell me about this "pump and dump" scam involving Venture Command stock.

Seth, Seth, look at me.

Financial crimes, not my concern.

I may even, you know, take you up on that advice on my pension.

Venture Command was a small company.

I supervised the purchase of a few million shares.

We promoted the stock in chat rooms, through e-mail blasts.

We told our clients the stock was a sure thing.

I would never do that with your pension.

Of course not. Not you.

But Jack, he didn't want any of it.

Not true; he was my best trainee.

Then how do you explain this e-mail?

Here's what I think happened: he threatened to expose you.

You know, you didn't want to spend any time in federal prison, so to keep him quiet, you killed him.

No, no, I wasn't even in town the night Jack was killed.

I was in Vegas! I have receipts!

I can probably find you the hooker I was with.

Just explain the e-mail to me.

Jack wasn't questioning the legality of what we were doing.

"I don't know if I can do this"?

He-he wanted to know how to get the client to bite.

So you're saying he was selling worthless stock to his girlfriend?

The guy would screw anyone, so long as he came out on top.

He was a real find; I'm gonna miss him.

How much did his girlfriend lose?

200 grand, easy. What?!

Yeah, she's the one who would want him dead.

I think I got everything that I need, really.

Thank you so much for your cooperation.

You see, these two agents are from the Treasury Department.

And they're gonna make sure that you find a nice cell.

'Cause they heard everything that you said.

What the hell? You said you had no interest in financial crimes!

Uh, I don't.

But these two, they do.

It's their job. Have fun.

Seth Harrison's alibi checks out.

One of his receipts shows that he spent $8,000 at a club.

Yeah, his entire identity was based on wealth.

You know, opulence, throwing money around was the only way that he could feel powerful.

It's very similar to Jack removing his clothes to display his man-- yeah. Okay, okay, I got it.

I got it, okay, all right?

The girlfriend lost over $200,000.

Sounds like a good motive to me.

Have you talked to her? I can't, you know.

Her father hired a bunch of high-powered lawyers to get between us. So she's off limits unless the squints find some evidence against her.

Yup, looks that way.

It looks like he was killed in a bedroom during makeup s*x that didn't work out.

How about you? How you doing?

Sweets...

I'm asking as a friend, not a shrink.

I'm not doing too good.

(sighs)

BRAY: These are the depression fractures I found.

They don't seem to be the injuries of a random beating.

You're right.

I've seen this injury profile before.

Please check the victim's ossicular chain for damage, Mr. Bray.

You think the ears were damaged during the beating?

They were-- displaced fractures to the incus and stapes.

BRENNAN: The depressed fractures and the displaced ossicular chain are consistent with the victim being pistol-whipped with the butt of a gun.

I agree, but according to Hodgins, there was no trace that would indicate a gun.

But these injuries are clearly consistent with that kind of assault.

I identified the mystery particulate that was found in the bedbug wound.

It's residue from oxidized malachite, which is from a smelting plant near the Kingford Hotel.

Now, the city has a string of complaints against the Kingford for bedbugs.

That's where the murder must have taken place.

But you found no trace that would indicate the injuries were caused by a gun?

None.

Because the gun wasn't actually a gun.

What am I missing?

What is die-cast metal made of, Dr. Hodgins?

It's an alloy comprised of zinc, aluminum and copper.

Why? All three of which are present in the wounds.

The victim was beaten with a toy pistol.

BOOTH: Found that gun in your RV.

So, it's a toy.

It's part of my cop costume.

Doesn't even fire blanks. I know.

I don't think you killed him with it.

So what's this all about then?

I think you beat him with it.

The Kingford Hotel said that you rented a room the night Jack was killed.

I was stripping there that night.

Used the room to change.

Jack met you there after his gig.

You're on his client list.

For $5,000.

You needed that money.

Your body's not getting any younger.

Pretty soon, women are going to ask you to put your clothes on.

Jack lost all your money because the stock was worthless.

Oh, there's blood, Booth.

Jack was pistol-whipped with this gun.

That's all we need, Storm.

That $5,000 was every cent I had.

Jack promised me a sure thing.

I just wanted my money back, I...

(clears throat)

I didn't want to kill him.

Just wanted to give him a beating, you know?

But now, who cares?

I'm glad he's dead.

BOOTH: Okay, thanks.

And you'll make sure they're delivered on time this afternoon?

Great, thanks.

What did you order?

Uh, I found out, uh, where they were getting married, and I sent some flowers.

That's really kind. Yeah, you know.

One step at a time.

Yeah.

Where'd that come from?

Your mother left it.

Christine won't put it down.

It's mine.

I know.

She said that you were never without it when you were little.

You like it, huh, Christine?

BOOTH: Oh, there she is.

BRENNAN: That must be Reggie she's hugging.

Go.

Mom.

MARIANNE: Oh, my.

Hey. (laughs)

You made it. Oh, thank you, baby.

(whispers): That's for you.

(laughs): Oh, they're beautiful.

Reggie, come meet my son.

Yes. Come on.

REGGIE: Seeley? Yeah.

Reggie. Nice to meet you, Reggie.

Very nice to meet you. And these are my kids.

♪ It takes a lot of time

♪ There's so much

♪ You've got to leave behind

♪ And hold it like a treasure

♪ If you can find

♪ Something good in this world

♪ Something good in this world

♪ Da-da-da, da-da-da

♪ Da-da-da, da

♪ Da-da-da-da, da

♪ Da-da-da, da-da-da

♪ Da-da-da, da

(cheering)

♪ There's so much hard earth

♪ To dig

♪ In these days of curse

♪ That we live

♪ I'm absolutely sure

♪ That in the midst

♪ There's something good in this world ♪

Over here! Over here!

♪ Something good in this world... ♪

What's that mean?