The Man With The Bone

"The Man with the Bone" Episode 1x18 Written By: Craig Silverstein Directed by: Jesus Salvador Trevino Transcribed by: Sinkwriter

Disclaimer: The characters, plotlines, quotes, etc. included here are owned by Hart Hanson, all rights reserved. This transcript is not authorized or endorsed by Hart Hanson or Fox.

TEASER

(Interior - Hallway, F.B.I. building. Fade in on DR. TEMPERANCE BRENNAN and SPECIAL AGENT SEELEY BOOTH as they walk side-by-side down the clinically white, sterile-looking hallway.)

BOOTH: Welcome to the dungeon.

BRENNAN: (hands stuffed into her pockets as she walks) Why do the F.B.I. always stick their morgues in the most depressing basement they can find?

BOOTH: Don't be such a snob, Bones, okay? Not everyone gets to play in a multimillion-dollar lab, you know, with skylights.

BRENNAN: It's because as a society we feel the need to hide death away. (pause) The people who deal with the dead are ... viewed as freaks.

BOOTH: I don't know if it's the basement thing but this guy you're about to meet, Harry, he's a little twisted.

BRENNAN: You probably think I get some kind of rush when I work, that I'm somehow titillated.

BOOTH: (grimaces) Ah, choice of words, Bones. Choice of words.

(Cut to: Booth pushing open double doors as he and Brennan enter the F.B.I. morgue. Booth is whistling. A slender man sporting wire-rimmed glasses, a long white lab coat and a bow tie, is standing at a light board, examining several X-rays including one of a chest and ribcage and another of a skull and spine. He is the aforementioned 'twisted' medical examiner, HARRY TEPPER, M.D., and as Booth nods hello, Harry turns to greet him with a handshake.)

HARRY: Agent Booth.

BOOTH: Harry Tepper, meet Doctor Temperance Brennan from the Jeffersonian.

HARRY: I've read her. (Harry studies Brennan appraisingly)

BRENNAN: Hello.

HARRY: She's good. (Booth nods; Harry turns back to Brennan) Read your novel too. (pauses, as he considers his words) The heroine's very aggressive.

BOOTH: (expressionless) Harry. (brief pause) You wanna - (gestures with his head, so all three turn and walk toward the exam table, Harry leading the way) Okay, everybody, meet Ted Macy. Body was found in a national park. Local coroner wrote it off as some kind of an accidental drowning, but you see, we have to investigate every death on federal land.

HARRY: During my examination, I found he had a crushed larynx. (smiles dryly) That didn't seem accidental.

BRENNAN: This is a corpse. (Booth looks up at her) With skin.

HARRY: (sarcastically) She is good.

BRENNAN: Why am I here? You know I don't work with skin.

BOOTH: Relax, Bones, I didn't bring you here to examine the body. I want you to see what they found in his hand. (turns to Harry, who is studying the body, not paying attention to Booth; Booth's tone turns a touch impatient) Harry. (Tepper looks up) Bone?

(Harry walks over to a counter and retrieves a specimen jar, marked with red tape and filled with solution)

BRENNAN: (stunned) What is that?

HARRY: It's a phalanx. (pauses momentarily before explaining in a condescending tone) Finger bone. (to Booth) Figured she'd know that.

BRENNAN: (ticked off) Yeah, I'd figure any competent medical examiner would know not to compromise evidence. (takes the container from him and holds it up) Is this Lysol I.C.?

HARRY: (arms crossed over his chest) We use it to decontaminate remains.

BRENNAN: (livid now, quickly draining the jar of its solution in order to rescue the bone) Are you trying to break down the periosteal surface of the bone? Wreak havoc on the marrow? Did you even dilute this?

BOOTH: (trying to smooth things over) Bones!

BRENNAN: What? (dumping the phalanx out and tucking it into an evidence bag) You've removed particulates and trace elements that could potentially lead us to his killer. (gets in Harry's face) Is this your first day on the job?

HARRY: (eyes bugging, voice haughty and deliberate) Eighteen years next month.

(Brennan gives Booth a look and storms from the room with the evidence bag, slamming the door behind her)

BOOTH: Eighteen years.

HARRY: (grinning) She's intense.

(Booth wisely says nothing)

(Interior - Jeffersonian - Medico Legal Lab. Pan from a close-up of a gloved hand using a bulb syringe to extract evidence from the phalanx, to Brennan sitting at an exam table, ANGELA MONTENEGRO standing by her side. Also working in the room are Brennan's research assistant ZACK ADDY and DR. JACK HODGINS.)

ANGELA: Native American.

ZACK: (intently studying the contents of a box as he walks by) British Colonial.

HODGINS: (grinning as he climbs down from a ladder, carrying a tray of bones) American Revolutionary.

(Booth enters the room, gripping a file folder in both hands. He grins at the prospect of something fun actually going on in the lab.)

BOOTH: Hey, what are we playing?

ZACK: (not even looking up from his work) Doctor Brennan, the destroyer of evidence is here.

BOOTH: (smirk drops) Okay, I assume that's a joke so nobody gets hurt. (frowning as he heads over to Brennan's work station) Did Harry really mess up that bone?

(Angela joins Zack and Hodgins at the background table; she gives Hodgins a mild yet friendly smile and they chatter amongst themselves, working and talking, as Booth and Brennan discuss the case in the foreground)

BRENNAN: He dissolved any traces of ingrained particulates on the surface, but we are still able to save some valuable attributes.

BOOTH: Like what?

BRENNAN: Alternating sclerotic and porotic areas on subperiosteal surface - (Booth, already bored with her overly scientific explanation, picks up a magnifying tool and begins to play with it, checking out the close-up version of his own finger) - demonstrates - (she reaches over and snatches back the tool from Booth's hands) - that whoever this was suffered from tertiary syphilis.

BOOTH: Tertiary syphilis. Whoa... (sticks his hands in his pockets and rocks back on his heels, making a face) Wow, that's the worst.

HODGINS: (looking up from where he stands, holding a magnifying glass over a piece of bone) It was a common ailment in the seventeenth century.

BRENNAN: Which is where the bone dates from.

BOOTH: Say what?

(Brennan smiles slightly)

ZACK: We ran a radiocarbon dating test. (grabs a file from off his lab table and hands it to Booth) The finger's over three hundred years old.

BRENNAN: (sounding pleased) It's a unique find for the area.

ANGELA: (grinning) I'm gonna change to French trapper.

HODGINS: You can't change yours.

(Angela rolls her eyes at him)

BRENNAN: Booth, where did they find the victim?

BOOTH: (studying the folder of data) They shipped him over from some resort town next to a federal seaside preserve. (pauses as he reads) Assateague Island.

HODGINS: (eyes widening) That's where the money pit is.

BRENNAN: Money pit?

HODGINS: Legend is ... Assateague Island is where Blackbeard buried his treasure. (Booth immediately turns to Hodgins, his eyes lighting up with boyish interest) For three hundred years, people have been trying to find it. (Hodgins has them all in rapt attention now) They've dug it out to something like a hundred and fifty feet, but they've found nothing. Every time they come close, they trigger a baffle that floods the pit with seawater.

ZACK: (nodding knowledgeably) Booby traps.

ANGELA: Cool.

BRENNAN: (reading) The body was found at a dig site.

HODGINS: This is the first concrete evidence that the treasure is more than a legend. I'll bet this is from one of the men who buried the treasure.

BRENNAN: Pure conjecture!

HODGINS: (ignoring her) Pirate.

BOOTH: Pirate?

ZACK: (eyes wide) Pirate?

HODGINS: (breathless) It's a pirate.

ANGELA: (holding up a finger in objection) You can't change yours.

BOOTH: Wait. (getting excited now) So - so - the victim finds evidence that the treasure exists. Somebody else wants it all for themselves. That's certainly ... that's a good motive for murder.

HODGINS: We gotta get out to that dig site and see what else we can find. (eagerly) I'll be glad to help.

BOOTH: That's okay. I'll - I can handle it.

HODGINS: Come on, man, share the wealth!

BRENNAN: (admonishing tone) We are looking for answers, Jack, not treasure.

BOOTH: (also ignoring Brennan, grinning at Hodgins) Do you really think that treasure exists down there?

HODGINS: What do you think?

(Hodgins and Booth both start laughing; they exchange a look with Zack, who's also amused. Brennan gazes at them, a humoring yet mildly confused expression on her face.)

BRENNAN: Why are you guys smiling?

BOOTH, ZACK and HODGINS: (at the same time) Pirates!

BOOTH: Ha. Yeahhh.

ANGELA: It's a guy thing, sweetie.

(Brennan looks like she's not sure of the joke, still staring at the guys like they're insane)

(Cut to: Close-up of a massive pirate statue, complete with eye patch and a hat with a skull-and-crossbones emblem. Pan down to a marina where signs read "Welcome to Assateague" and "Assateague Island National Seashore." Booth and Brennan arrive, pulling into the area in his SUV.)

Location stamp on screen reads: Assateague Island U.S. National Seashore BOOTH: (clearly still thrilled at the prospect of pirates being involved in the case) Mm-hmm. Oh yeah.

(Brennan raises her eyebrows, close to an eye roll, and Booth drives on)

(Cut to: Wide aerial view of the excavation site - trucks, equipment, general dig area, as well as several large rectangular lights held on tall, ladder-like metal structures, and both workers and police officers milling about. Close-up of the front driver's side tire on Booth's vehicle as it rolls to a stop. Booth and Brennan immediately get out and travel on foot to the crime scene.)

BRENNAN: So the dead guy, Macy, ran the dig.

BOOTH: With his partner, Hardewicke, okay? He was hired by anyone with money to burn.

BRENNAN: Wha - people would do that? Sane people? Look for treasure?

BOOTH: (chuckling a little) Well, isn't that what archaeologists do?

BRENNAN: Archaeologists are scientists who use evidence on which to base their explorations ... not some pirate movie they saw when they were ten.

BOOTH: Yeah well, that, uh, 300-year-old bone that we just found sort of, uh - (as he lifts up the bright yellow crime scene tape so Brennan and he can duck under it, he adopts a 'piratey' tone) - changes things now, doesn't it there, matey? (dropping the joke, Booth approaches a waiting DEPUTY and pulls out his badge to identify himself before stuffing it back into the holder on his belt) What's goin' on over there? It's a crime scene.

DEPUTY: I tried to stop him, sir, but that's Branson Rose back there. The mayor told me to let him in.

BOOTH: Branson Rose is funding this dig? (huffs out a breath)

DEPUTY: Has been for two years, but I heard he was pullin' out.

BOOTH: All right, thanks. I'll take it from here.

DEPUTY: Sure.

(The deputy exits the area. Booth and Brennan continue up the path, talking.)

BRENNAN: Who's Branson Rose?

BOOTH: The billionaire adventurer. You know - (as two workers carrying a long length of pipe walk by, Booth takes Brennan by the shoulders and guides her out of their way) - he made his fortune making aircraft for the military. Owns about half the world. (still no reaction or recognition from Brennan) He's the guy who has that reality show that goes all over the world, and - (stops and stares at her, realizing) - still no TV. Why do I even bother? I - (shakes head, walking away)

(Cut to: Two men jogging up steep metal steps that lead to the dig site. GILES HARDEWICKE is chasing BRANSON ROSE, trying desperately to convince him as Rose keeps walking. Booth and Brennan are already at the top, waiting amidst the chaos of workers, equipment and lots of dirt.)

HARDEWICKE: You can't pull out right now, Mister Rose. We got a contract.

ROSE: So you can sue, but I don't think you have the resources to take me on.

HARDEWICKE: Mister Rose, we just broke two hundred feet now. If you pull out now -

(Booth clears his throat, but both men ignore him and keep arguing)

ROSE: I've been hearing that for two years, Hardewicke. (to his employees) Get off your asses and load my gear into the truck!

BOOTH: (tries again) Uh, excuse me.

HARDEWICKE: (agitated) Mister Rose, Macy - he knew it. He felt it. We're - this close!

(Booth and Brennan exchange a look)

BOOTH: Excuse me!

ROSE: (shaking his head at Hardewicke, both men still disregarding Booth) Two years. Two million dollars. There's nothing down there, Giles. Macy died for nothing.

BRENNAN: F.B.I.! You're all under arrest!

(Everyone within hearing distance of Brennan's exclamation stops what they're doing and turns to stare at her)

BOOTH: (yanks off his sunglasses, slightly annoyed) Come on, Bones, you don't get to say that. I'm the one with the badge.

HARDEWICKE: The F.B.I.'s involved now?

BOOTH: Oh yeah, you know, murder on federal land. We like to, uh, poke around a little.

ROSE: Murder?

BRENNAN: (steps up close behind Booth, staring down both Rose and Hardewicke from over Booth's left shoulder) Yeah. Murder.

ROSE: (to Hardewicke) You said it was an accident.

HARDEWICKE: (shrugs) That's what I thought.

ROSE: (considers this, realizing) Oh, my god. (he turns to peer down into the frothy water where the excavation dives take place and murmurs half to himself) He found something. (yells to his crew) Put my stuff back now! (he turns at last to Booth, who's been watching Rose carefully) What did Macy find that would be worth killing him for?

(With a slight smirk, Booth looks to Brennan)

ACT ONE

(Interior - Jeffersonian - Medico Legal Lab - Platform. Close-up of a computer monitor screen filled with dates and data. A header at the top of the page reads "Blackbeard's Money Pit." A box pops up with details for the year 1832. Zack sits at the terminal, reading aloud.)

ZACK: In 1832, a team of six men looking for the treasure were killed when a shaft they were digging collapsed.

(Hodgins is perched on a chair, looking down at Zack and the computer screen)

HODGINS: (grinning) Blackbeard's curse, man.

ZACK: A curse? (shakes his head) We're scientists.

HODGINS: (reaching over to scroll down the screen) Look at this. 1902. Two men disappeared while digging. Never found their bodies. (laughs) Ho-ohhh, that's very "curse-y"!

ZACK: (looking intently at Hodgins) So you believe in pirates.

HODGINS: (mildly irritated now, the grin dropping from his face) Pirates aren't Santa, Zack. They did exist, they did have treasures, and they did bury it.

ZACK: You know, I had an eye patch when I was six.

HODGINS: Who didn't, my friend? (grins again) Who didn't?

(Zack smiles gratefully)

(Pan down to the lower level, where Brennan has an iron grip around Harry Tepper's upper arm as she walks him through the lab. Booth shows his ID badge to a guard and swipes it through the sensor machine at the foot of the stairs, then all three head up to the platform area. Harry is carrying a metal case.)

HARRY: It's not necessary to lead me like a child.

BRENNAN: I'd rather not have any more evidence compromised.

HARRY: You're squeezing my arm very tightly.

BRENNAN: Sorry.

HARRY: (smiling, as he leans his head toward her) No, no. It's okay.

BRENNAN: (ignores him, pointing at Hodgins who steps forward) You can give it to Doctor Hodgins.

HODGINS: (putting on latex gloves) What is this?

BRENNAN: Soil and water collected from Ted Macy's throat and lungs. (Harry opens the case, presenting it so that Hodgins can see the samples inside; meanwhile, Booth looks like he feels out of place in the lab, surrounded by all this science talk) He was found floating in his dry suit at the top of the shaft.

(Hodgins takes the sample container from Harry's case and begins to walk away, but Booth stops him)

BOOTH: All right, you know what we need you to do? Your dirt thing. You know, match the slime to the crime. Heh. (Everyone looks at Booth like he's ridiculous) Make sure that's where he was killed.

BRENNAN: (turns to Harry) I'd like to look at X-rays of the victim's skeleton.

HARRY: (smirks) Bossy.

(Booth holds up a warning finger at Harry)BOOTH: Do NOT go there.

HODGINS: In the interests of being thorough, I need to determine if he died at the top, or died at the bottom and ... floated up. (brings the sample over to a magnifier to inspect) I need silt abstracts from both levels.

BOOTH: Fine. We'll get those for you.

HODGINS: No, no. (points out something he sees through the lamp) No, the soil looks like an odd mixture of clay, plagioclase feldspar, pyroxene. (shakes head) I really wouldn't trust anyone else to harvest the samples properly.

BRENNAN: (no fool, a tiny smile on her face) You just wanna look for treasure.

(Booth nods his assessment too, smirking)

HODGINS: Wha - ? (scoffs, playing up his most serious, wide-eyed, incredulous face) I am a serious scientist ... merely trying to do my job as well as possible.

BOOTH: (squinting at Hodgins) That shaft is over two hundred feet deep, you know. (looks Hodgins over, a hint of challenge in his voice) Requires an experienced diver.

HODGINS: I am a certified cave diver, which means I can go deeper than two hundred feet. I dove Mayan Blue, Dos Ojos, Tortuga ... (impressed, Booth raises his eyebrows, but Brennan's expression is immovable and serious)

BRENNAN: Ever dive Naharon?

HODGINS: Once.

BRENNAN: I named Naharon.

HODGINS: Well, then how can you say no to me?

BRENNAN: (considers this a moment) Okay. (nodding her assent) But just to collect soil samples.

HODGINS: (elated) Of course.

(He exits exuberantly, possibly to go get his diving gear)

BOOTH: (stuttering a little, like Brennan's revealed yet another talent he didn't know about) You dive too?

BRENNAN: Yeah. I have the time because I don't own a TV.

(Brennan and Booth head for the stairs again, passing Harry who has a look of fantasy on his face)

HARRY: (wide-eyed) You wear a rubber suit then.

BOOTH: Uh -

(Booth lifts another finger of warning at Harry, stopping that dangerous train of thought)

(Cut to: Hodgins in a scuba suit, carrying equipment and many lengths of tubing from Booth's vehicle. He saunters by jauntily, clearly excited to be out in the field, as Booth and Hardewicke walk and talk.)

HARDEWICKE: Accidents happen, you know? Macy and I were prepared for that. But murder! Murder. Wow. (turns to face Booth as they walk) Anything I can do to help.

BOOTH: Okay, right, we'll talk about that a little later. (points in the direction of the excavation site) Right now I wanna get Hodgins down that shaft.

HARDEWICKE: Dane McGinnis. He's - he's the best I know. Uh, he's worked for us for years.

A VOICE: (calling out from behind them) Agent Booth! Are you ... Agent Booth?

(Booth turns to find a grey-haired man hurrying toward him. The man is dressed from head to toe in pirate garb.)

BOOTH: (chuckling) Sorry. You're gonna have to stay behind the yellow tape.

PIRATE MAN: I'm Mayor Ney. Your men keep pushing our tourists further and further back.

BOOTH: Mayor? Wow. (with a straight face, as he pulls off his sunglasses) I - I hope you didn't look like that when they elected you.

HARDEWICKE: Blackbeard's treasure is what keeps the economy on this little island running. The mayor here gets that ... sometimes too intensely.

NEY: (shrugs good-naturedly) Hey, I'm not ashamed. I've increased tourism sixty-three per cent since I took office, and I can boost it a bit more if the tourists could get a closer look.

BOOTH: (serious now) It - it's a murder scene, not a show.

NEY: Blackbeard's curse. Macy would have wanted to give a little back to the town that he loved.

(An attractive, dark-haired woman walks up to Mayor Ney. She is also dressed in costume - a short-skirted, ruffly-sleeved barmaid outfit.)

KATIE NEY: Frank, the police are telling them no pictures. (Booth looks her over, then glances at Hardewicke in amusement)

BOOTH: Now, who is this, huh? The pirate queen?

NEY: (puts his arm around her protectively) That's right. My wife, Katie.

BOOTH: (tone light but firm) That's right. Great. Listen, you just tell the tourists that the bad view is part of the curse. (to an FBI agent) Will you please escort the pirate and his wench behind the yellow tape? Thank you.

(Agent Booth puts his sunglasses back on, turning away from the Mayor and his wife. He and Hardewicke head up the nearby stairs toward the dive site.)

KATIE: Frank-

NEY: (protesting to the agent escorting them away) I'm the mayor!

BOOTH: (to Hardewicke) So Dane - he's a - experienced guy?

HARDEWICKE: I've worked with hundreds. He's the best.

BOOTH: All right.

(As they reach the platform, DANE MCGINNIS is standing at the top, waiting for them)

DANE: I hope this guy knows what he's doin'. It's tight down there.

HODGINS: (coming up the stairs, his eyes bright with excitement) Avast, ye lubbers!

(He whoops it up, laughing, as he unloads his armfuls of gear. Dane regards Hodgins wearily and remains quiet.)

HARDEWICKE: Dane, let's get him ready.

(Hodgins can't stop grinning)

(Cut to: Yard-view of the Jeffersonian building, with an expanse of green grass and hundreds of bushes of bright rosy-red flowers. Cut again to the inside of the building, back at the lab, from a monitor's close-up of the phalanx to Angela's inquisitive face as she walks by. She stops and leans against the railing, watching Brennan study the bone under a microscope.)

ANGELA: You think it's a pirate?

BRENNAN: (head bent over, eyes peering through the lenses of the scope) It's a 300-year-old finger from the left hand of a male. That's all I'm sure of so far.

ANGELA: Worth killing for?

BRENNAN: (gets up and heads over to another computer) I worked a case once where a woman was killed, dismembered and burned because her friend thought she'd taken her favorite pair of slippers.

(Angela takes a breath, her expression wincing yet slightly amused by Brennan's colorful candor)

ANGELA: Cheery.

BRENNAN: (still studying the computer's data) Maybe they're right. Maybe this man died burying the treasure. (pauses) Ironic. Stealing all that and never enjoying the spoils.

ANGELA: (slight smirk) So you believe there's treasure?

BRENNAN: (ponders a moment) I believe there's greed. That's the real curse.

(Angela folds her arms across her chest, considering this, as Brennan walks away)

(Pan down from a gorgeous aerial view of the multitude of bright green trees and grasses surrounding the field area of the dig site, to the platform where Dane is helping Hodgins get dressed in his diving gear. Booth paces the platform as Hardewicke looks on.)

DANE: All right. Safety line, air hose. Either one breaks ... (he looks at Hodgins seriously) ... you ain't comin' back up.

HODGINS: (amusement in his voice) You gotta work on your bedside manner, dude.

(He reaches down for the piece that goes around his neck and begins to put it on)

DANE: You know what, I don't want to be responsible for some weekender ... (glances at Hardewicke, then gets in Hodgins' face a little, to make his point) ... who buys it down there because he thinks he's better than he is.

HODGINS: (smirks a little, unafraid) You wanna go down, don't you?

DANE: It's my shaft, okay? (prepping Hodgins' suit as he talks) I've been working it ten years. The feds, they say it's a crime scene. So I can't help. (he looks Hodgins in the eye, assessing his level of commitment)

HODGINS: (sincerely) You're helping me.

BOOTH: Why does he need the air line? Why can't he just use the tank?

DANE: Because a hundred foot down, that shaft ... gets a little cozy. (looks at Hodgins warily again) You ain't afraid of a tight squeeze, are you, Doc?

HODGINS: (unflinching) Gloves.

HARDEWICKE: (solemnly) Just take it slow, okay? Lot of stuff to catch your hose on, on the way down.

HODGINS: Yeah. I saw the pictures Rose took.

DANE: (half-laughs as he hands Hodgins the gloves) Rose. He never went as far as you're going. (there's a grave, pointed edge to his voice now) No one has.

(Booth puts his hands on his hips. This is Brennan's squint, under Booth's care, about to take a dangerous dive.)

BOOTH: Maybe he shouldn't try, you know? (glances at Hodgins before meeting Dane's eyes) People have died down there. Not just Macy.

DANE: I know. (looks up) My brother was one of 'em.

(Hodgins pauses for a moment, in the midst of pulling on the gloves. He's not laughing now. He glances at Booth and changes the subject.)

HODGINS: I'm going all the way down. What's at two hundred feet?

DANE: We just hit two hundred last week. You're gonna have to tell me.

HODGINS: (looks Dane in the eye, mildly defiant) Well, I'm ready.

DANE: (smiling just a little at his bravado) Okay!

(Dane picks up the dive helmet and places it over Hodgins' head. Booth is antsy, fidgeting, scratching his chin, watching as Dane makes his way around Hodgins, clicking the helmet into place. Hardewicke sits, watching quietly. At last Dane finishes and comes back around so Hodgins can see him through the glass mask. He makes an okay sign with his hand, and Hodgins returns the signal, to show everything seems good to go. As Hodgins turns to go down the shaft, Booth puts his hand on Hodgins' arm, stopping him a moment. He wordlessly looks at him over the top of his sunglasses, as if to say, "Are you sure you want to go through with this? Are you sure you can handle it? Okay then..." Hodgins gives him a slight nod and steps away, turning around so he can climb down the ladder while facing the other three men. He gives them a goofy grin, like he's living a childhood dream. As Booth assists him with one hand, he makes his way down the ladder and into the water.)

DANE: (lowering the length of air hose into the water as Hodgins fully submerges) Your friend better be as good as he says he is.

BOOTH: You just take care of him, all right?

(Hodgins is gone, hidden beneath the depths of the water as it bubbles up from his breathing. Dane finishes threading the air line and steps over to the radio to adjust the frequency.)

DANE: Hodgins, you read me?

HODGINS: (voice heard through the speakers) I hear you loud and clear.

(Close-up of Hodgins in his dive suit, focused, moving down quickly, his face lit up by the bright blue luminescence from his helmet lamp. The water is green and hazy, and tiny bubbles rush up from behind his head. He can hear Dane's directions through his earpiece.)

DANE: There's some jagged edges. Keep clear of them.

BOOTH: (still watching the water where Hodgins disappeared, whispering as he reluctantly steps away from the edge and over to the radio) Whoa, whoa, whoa, Hodgins. (louder, trying to reach him on the radio) Hodgins.

HODGINS: (voice over the loudspeaker) It's warm.

(Close-up on one of the computer monitors, which shows a map of the entire shaft, scored throughout with measurement markers. Hardewicke points to a detailed view of the section Hodgins is currently passing through - he can be seen as a blinking red dot on the screen.)

HARDEWICKE: Passing the first flood trap. We lost our first man there.

(Back to Hodgins in the shaft, studying the surrounding walls as he makes his way down.)

HODGINS: There's wood here ... below the limestone.

BOOTH: (eyes glued to the computer screen) Does he make any sense to you?

DANE: (looks up as he feeds Hodgins more air line) Yeah. He's passing the site of the first pit collapse.

(Back to Hodgins in the shaft, as he takes his time, then to the computer monitor which shows how the area narrows abruptly.)

HODGINS: It's tight down here. There's a lot of debris. (back to a close-up of Hodgins, as he turns and maneuvers himself) I'm not sure if I can squeeze through.

DANE: (finally impressed, as he watches the monitor and threads more air hose) Hey, this guy swims like a squid!

BOOTH: (frowning, tense) He swims like a squint.

DANE: What?

BOOTH: Never mind. (he keeps watching the monitor)

(Pan down from Hodgins' legs as he gets past the narrow section and into an area with a bit more breathing room)

HODGINS: Okay. I'm clear now.

(Another monitor shows a clear picture of Hodgins' head, and his hand touching the cave wall)

DANE: Good picture, too. (glances at Hardewicke) We can't get resolution like that.

BOOTH: (tersely) Yeah well, he's a geek who works for the government. (quickly changes the subject) You ever find anything down here?

DANE: (still guiding lengths of air hose down into the water) Not yet.

BOOTH: Ten years of finding nothing, and you keep trying.

DANE: (eyes watching the monitor with a bit more excitement now, easing up as he gains confidence in Hodgins' abilities) It's all about the search, man.

HARDEWICKE: He's at a hundred and seventy feet. (cuts back and forth between shots of Hodgins breathing heavily and gliding down deep into the cavern, and Hardewicke counting off the points as Hodgins passes them) One-eighty. (Booth crosses his arms in front of him) ... Ninety... (Dane watches intently from his position) No one's ever been this deep. (pause) He's at two hundred.

(Pan down as Hodgins' feet hit ground - Booth, Hardewicke and Dane are watching the monitors closely now)

HODGINS: Touchdown. I am on the bottom. Visibility is ... surprisingly good. (close-up of his gloved hand brushing aside rock and debris) Wait a minute - there's - there's something here. (frowning, as he realizes what he's found) Holy-

HARDEWICKE: What is that?

HODGINS: (breathless) Oh, my-

DANE: Is that -

(Hodgins' hands lift a skull from the loose soil)

HARDEWICKE: Oh, my goodness - it's there!

(Dane hoots and high-fives Hardewicke; both men laugh and cheer as Booth stares at the screen, fascinated)

DANE: Whoo! Can you believe that?

(The hazy blue glow is eerie on Hodgins' wide-eyed face as he holds up the skull to take a closer look)

(Cut to: Jeffersonian - Medico Legal Lab. Pan up from the edge of the lab table to the length of it where a skeleton is slowly being assembled)

BRENNAN: I'm amazed you found a complete skeleton.

ZACK: C-14 dating matches at three hundred years.

BRENNAN: (standing at the head of the table, studying the skeleton) Subject is male, early twenties, approximately five feet ... (makes her way around, carefully setting a "ring finger" bone in its proper place) ... six inches.

ZACK: (facing her, holding a file folder) Legs are bowed, result of visible calcium and phosphate deficiency.

(Hodgins and Booth stand at a computer monitor in the background and exchange a look of delight)

BRENNAN: He had rickets as a child, but his upper body is extraordinarily well developed.

(She looks to Booth and Hodgins as they join her at the table)

ZACK: Epiphyseal separation in the long bones. Sunken sternum forms scorbutic rosary ... (Booth's eyes follow Zack's hand as he points out the region) ... at costochondral margin.

(Hodgins waits, eagerly anticipating their final results)

BRENNAN: He suffered from scurvy as well as tertiary syphilis.

BOOTH: (shakes his head) What's with the "tertiary"? Isn't plain old syphilis bad enough? (Brennan gives him a look)

ZACK: Scurvy, syphilis ... (shakes his head, unable to contain himself any longer) ... pirate.

HODGINS: There is anthropological evidence which supports the claim that Blackbeard executed his burial crews after they were done digging.

(The whole time Hodgins says this, Booth is nodding enthusiastically and pointing at him in agreement)

BRENNAN: (her eyes bright and amused, giving in to the others' zeal) Okay. Let's ... say it's a pirate.

(Zack nods his approval)

HODGINS: Yes!

BRENNAN: (getting into the spirit of things, with a grand smile) This would be an extraordinary find.

(Booth rubs his hands together, excited, as Hodgins grins widely)

BOOTH: (tapping two fingers together animatedly as he emphasizes each word) And ... would open up the reality ... (unfolds both hands dramatically) ... of the treasure!

BRENNAN: It would be stupid to dismiss anything at this point. But we need to discover why the ossein isn't fully decomposed from being waterlogged for so long.

(Booth looks like he's ready to get right on that, but stops ... if only he were a scientist. Hodgins readily jumps in, walking over to the computer where he points at a mapped section of the shaft.)

HODGINS: About fifty feet down the shaft is a layer of blue putty consisting of silicone and clay. It could be used to form a watertight seal.

BRENNAN: That would explain the condition of the bones.

(Booth looks to Hodgins excitedly, adjusting his belt and grinning like a kid)

HODGINS: I took samples of the same blue clay between 200 and 207 feet. Something is buried down there.

BRENNAN: And these bones were lying on top of it.

BOOTH: Macy was killed because of something that he found.

HODGINS: The silt in his throat and lungs confirms he was killed at the top of the shaft.

ZACK: (getting in on the fun of conjecture) After he swam back up with the treasure.

(DR. DANIEL GOODMAN, administrator of the Jeffersonian, enters the room)

DR. GOODMAN: Special Agent Booth. (everyone turns to look at Goodman, who is clearly not up for pirate silliness at this moment) I hate to interrupt your investigation, Agent Booth, but there's an angry billionaire in my office, and ... he won't go away.

(Booth exchanges an inquisitive look with Brennan)

(Cut to: Goodman's office. Billionaire Branson Rose paces, confronting Dr. Goodman, Booth, and Brennan about the discovery.)

ROSE: It's simple. You have something that belongs to me, and I'm not leaving here without it.

BOOTH: (leaning against Goodman's desk, unimpressed with Rose's blustering) A day ago, you couldn't wait to leave, pull out of the island, cut your losses. You remember that?

ROSE: A lot can change in a day.

BOOTH: (acerbically) Yeah. For Ted Macy, a lot changed.

ROSE: Look, I'm sorry about Ted. But I'll be damned if the federal government swoops in here at the eleventh hour and steals what I've been trying to find for two years.

GOODMAN: (calmly, from his seated place behind his desk) I fail to see what this has to do with the Jeffersonian.

ROSE: (firmly) Those bones belong to me. They were uncovered at my site. I was granted a permit to dig there and keep what was found. (Goodman takes a measured breath but says nothing) My attorneys assure me you have no claim to those bones.

BOOTH: (laughter in his voice) Oh sure, man, your attorney wants to go to court for the next twenty years and buy himself a nice vacation home in Tuscany. (turning serious) But the fact is when Ted Macy was murdered, your property became our evidence.

BRENNAN: And it's going to stay that way until we find the killer.

ROSE: (chuckles sardonically) I was hoping to settle this amicably. (he turns to leave)

BOOTH: (sarcastic) Really. Because, you know, we haven't seen that yet.

ROSE: (gives Booth a dismissive look) Bah.

(Rose exits, slamming the door)

(Booth stands upright, adjusting his belt and rubbing the back of his head in frustration)

GOODMAN: This is going to be a headache. He has some very important friends.

BRENNAN: You know, I don't understand why he's so upset. It's not like he needs the money.

BOOTH: (snaps his fingers) But he has partners that do. Macy and Hardewicke were gonna split what they found.

BRENNAN: But Macy is dead.

BOOTH: Exactly. Leaving Hardewicke with a bigger piece of the pie.

(Brennan shakes her head, marveling at this train of thought - seems the 'curse' of greed may have a hand in the case after all)

(Cut to: 4x6 photograph of Hardewicke and Macy. He holds it out for Booth to see, as they walk along the edge of the entire dig site, past all the equipment and trucks and boats.)

HARDEWICKE: This is from our very first dig together. Ah, we found this - this chest buried under a flood drain up in, uh, Smith's Cove in New England. (Booth takes the photo, looking at it, reveling in the story of the treasure) There was no treasure, but you know, just to unearth something that's that old, had that much history - we were hooked. Never looked back.

BOOTH: Yeah, I glanced through your company history. I mean, business was pretty slow since you didn't find any treasure out here. (hands back the photo) You were getting fewer and fewer clients.

HARDEWICKE: (looks down) Yeah ... it's been difficult.

BOOTH: Branson Rose was almost your last chance.

HARDEWICKE: There's always somebody who wants to look for treasure.

BOOTH: (voice light) Really.

HARDEWICKE: Yeah.

BOOTH: (tone measured, testing) 'Cause, you know, if Branson Rose, he pulls out, you'd get a lot of publicity. You can end up - (whistles) - sinking your business.

HARDEWICKE: Yeah, but Macy found something finally. And we're gonna share the find with Rose - fifty per cent for him, fifty for us.

BOOTH: Exactly.

HARDEWICKE: (looks at Booth for a moment) Oh, I see. More for me if Macy's out of the picture, right? (stops walking and steps right in front of Booth) You're forgettin' one thing. Macy was like family to me.

BOOTH: Really.

HARDEWICKE: Look at this. (lifts up his shirt to reveal a long, curved white scar along his ribcage) See that? I got that pullin' Macy out of a sinkhole back in '93. (Booth lifts his sunglasses for a moment, to get a better look) And he's got plenty of scars on him because of me, too. (drops the hem of his shirt back down)

BOOTH: Hmm. (lifts Hardewicke's shirt back up) How'd you get all those bruises around your scar there, huh?

(Hardewicke pulls his shirt back down, and pauses before responding)

HARDEWICKE: The mayor.

BOOTH: How's the mayor figure into all this?

HARDEWICKE: His wife. You saw her, right? Well, Macy was a bit of a hound, if you know what I mean.

BOOTH: (raises both his eyebrows) Sleeping with the pirate queen?

HARDEWICKE: The mayor got suspicious. He came around last week. And I ended up taking the heat for Macy, because Macy's like my brother. And I'll tell you, that scrawny little pirate, he can kick too. I'm lucky he didn't have time to load that flintlock. (metallic clattering is heard) Charlie! (looks away, toward his crew in the distance) Put - No! Put that down! Leave it there! What are you doing?

(Hardewicke dashes off as Booth stands there, thinking)

(Cut to: Brennan entering the bones room, as she pulls on a fresh pair of gloves. The exam table is empty.)

BRENNAN: Zack? (he doesn't respond immediately, so she comes back out of the room, agitated) Zack! The bones. What did you do with the bones?

(Zack heeds her call and walks past her into the room, baffled)

ZACK: Nothing, Doctor Brennan. I left them on the table just like you asked ... (he stops short when he sees the empty table)

(The skeleton is gone. Brennan storms out of the room again, shouting for anyone to hear.)

BRENNAN: Where the HELL are my bones!?

END OF ACT ONE

ACT TWO

(Cut to: Exterior shot of the courtyard in front of the Jeffersonian building, with bright green lawn, lots of bushes with brightly colored flowers, and a big fountain shooting curves of water. Return to interior, back at the Jeffersonian - Medico Legal Lab - Platform. Brennan is standing in front of Dr. Goodman, stretching to her full height, angrily getting in his face.)

BRENNAN: Bones don't just disappear. I thought this was a secure facility. YOU assured me this was a secure facility. I could be working at Stanford, you know. (starts to storm off, with Goodman following her) This never would've happened at Stanford!

GOODMAN: We spend three-quarters of a million dollars annually on security.

BRENNAN: (turns back to face him again) Obviously that's not enough. I want my bones! (Booth is at the bottom of the stairs, swiping his ID badge and jogging up the steps to the platform; Brennan turns to get in his face now) Did you find my bones?

BOOTH: (hands up in a defensive position) Oooh, maybe you just wanna, you know, chill a little?

BRENNAN: Chill??

BOOTH: Yeah, you know, take a pill?

BRENNAN: (still angry, mocking Booth's blasé tone) Listen, duuude ... my lab was violated, my bones are stolen, so I think I'll remain warm for a little while longer.

(Angela joins the other three)

ANGELA: Honey, maybe you should focus on your breathing.

BOOTH: (shrugs in casual agreement, trying to help calm Brennan down) Breathing.

ANGELA: Count to ten.

BOOTH: Ten.

ANGELA: Have a shot of Jack.

BOOTH: Shot of Jack. (Brennan rolls her eyes at him) Look, we're doing everything that we can, okay? I promise you, we're gonna find your bones, but you have to allow us to do our job.

BRENNAN: (taking a breath) I guess I wasn't ... helping all that much, was I? I'm - I'm-

ANGELA: (prompts her) "Sorry." (she smiles) It's cool.

BOOTH: Hey ... (claps his hands together) ... look on the bright side. I mean, this whole theft thing could be good for us, right? I mean, whoever took the bones obviously had something to do with the murder. We're gettin' closer.

GOODMAN: I've ordered all on-duty security personnel to give a minute-by-minute account of their rounds.

BOOTH: I want account of all off-duty personnel as well.

(Zack's voice precedes him as he joins the group)

ZACK: They didn't get everything.

(Everyone turns to look at him)

BOOTH: I thought all the bones were on the table.

ZACK: All the new ones. I was still examining the original finger bone we found for scurvy, so it was in my room. (he holds out the phalanx in the palm of his hand, and Brennan carefully takes it from him, examining it closer)

BRENNAN: There is something they don't want us to find on this bone.

(She holds the bone up for Booth to see)

(Cut to: Assateague Island. Katie Ney and Booth talk and walk along the edge of the marina.)

KATIE: Everyone knew Macy. Helped Frank get elected.

BOOTH: So you would categorize your relationship as just friends?

KATIE: Yeah. (looks away from Booth, smiling cheerfully) Friends. It's a small town. We're all friends.BOOTH: Well, whoever killed Macy wasn't too friendly.

KATIE: He wouldn't hurt a soul. Macy. (slightly wistful expression on her face) He was a sweet guy.

BOOTH: The way you're talkin' about him, it seems like you were more than just friends.

(Katie stops walking, turns to face the water. She places a hand on the railing, her amiable expression shifting to one of sadness and disgust.)

KATIE: Hardewicke told you, right? Like he's such a saint.

BOOTH: How involved were the two of you?

KATIE: It was just ... one of those things, you know? I wasn't gonna leave Frank or anything. I guess I wanted to see what it was like to be with a real adventurer, rather than a guy who dresses up like one.

BOOTH: Frank went after Hardewicke when he thought it was him.

KATIE: (faces Booth again) You think Frank killed him? You saw Frank.

BOOTH: Well, yeah, you know, he's a little, ah ... (careful tone) ... a little unstable. And he finds out somebody ... made a fool of him twice, I-

KATIE: It's Hardewicke and the rich guy you should be looking at. Macy said they were all fighting over the money they were spending. Said Hardewicke didn't appreciate all the work he did, wanted to break up the company.

BOOTH: Well, we're - we're looking at everyone. Thanks. (turns to walk away)

KATIE: Sure. But - (she stops him; appears to be contrite and concerned) - all this coming up again ... (long pause) ... just try not to ruin my marriage, okay? I made a mistake. (near tears now) But I love that stupid pirate, and I don't want to lose him.

BOOTH: (nodding, keeping his tone light) Well, thanks for talking to me. I'll - I'll be in touch.

(Booth walks away, shaking his head to himself over the insanity of this entire case, as Katie looks out over the water again)

(Cut to: Monitor close-up of Hodgins' gloved hands as he carefully places the sole remaining bone fragment under a microscope.)

HODGINS: The periosteal surface on the phalanx doesn't have any ingrained particulates that I can recover.

(Brennan joins him, taking a pair of gloves from the table)

BRENNAN: The solution that the M.E. used probably dissolved anything that was lodged in any ... surface irregularities.

ZACK: (tosses a file folder onto the exam table behind him) Who would clean a bone before extracting all available information from it?

(Hodgins looks thoughtful)

BRENNAN: Not everyone is as thorough as we are, Zack.

ZACK: (puts his hands on his hips) So true. So true.

(Hodgins is lost in fantasizing, perhaps still on a high from his adventure in the field)

HODGINS: I wonder if there was gold dust on it.

(Brennan gives Hodgins a reproachful look)

BRENNAN: Perhaps you should start working with a parrot on your shoulder.

HODGINS: (still smiling) You're not curious?

BRENNAN: Yes. About the facts. (amused, Hodgins says nothing; he walks away as Brennan studies the bone up close) There's a small hole along the distal articular facet of the finger. Could be a foramen, but it could be something else, man-made.

ZACK: A ... weapon?

BRENNAN: Maybe. (tosses the bone back into the Petri dish) See if you can find any possible matches. (she starts to leave the room)

ZACK: (expression of concentration) I wonder if there are any other similar marks on Macy.

(Brennan turns back, pulling off her gloves)

BRENNAN: I'll find out. And ... (she holds up a warning finger, ordering him sternly) ... don't let that bone out of your sight.

(She exits the room; Zack looks a little worried to have that kind of responsibility in his hands)

(Cut to: Spinal X-ray being slapped up onto a light board. Pull back to see Booth standing next to Harry, as they both look at the film, in the F.B.I. morgue.)

BOOTH: Doctor Brennan thought you might have overlooked a weapon of some kind.

(Pull back further to see Brennan is actually in the room. Booth seems to be mediating so Harry and Brennan don't fight again.)

HARRY: (scoffs) He wasn't killed by any weapon. He was strangled. (looks to Brennan, pointing on the X-ray) The larynx is crushed. (tilts his head toward Booth) It's plain.

BRENNAN: (pointing out a discovery of her own on the same X-ray) And C-2 through C-4 are fractured. That wouldn't have occurred if he were merely strangled.

HARRY: (pauses briefly) If the victim was shaken while being strangled...

BRENNAN: The fractures are all left to right, approximately forty-five degree angles on each bone. (Harry purses his lips, holding his tongue for the moment; Booth shrugs at him and looks like he agrees with Brennan this time) That means the head was jerked to the left and up, making sure that the spinal cord would tear. The larynx was crushed when his neck was broken.

HARRY: (mildly snide) I'm always open to being corrected. Why do you think there might have been a weapon?

BRENNAN: I saw a small perforation in the finger bone which you decided to put in the solvent. Did you damage the bone? (Booth looks to Harry, curious) Poke it? Stick it ... in some way?

HARRY: (irritated and defiant now) Still angry. Okay. No, I handled it according to protocol - rubber gloves, right into the solvent.

BRENNAN: Something damaged that bone, and it didn't happen three hundred years - (she stops talking, realizing something ... which she does not share with Booth or Harry) - Wait a minute.

(Without another word, Brennan exits the morgue, leaving Booth looking confused and Harry smirking like he thinks he won that argument)

(Cut to: Jeffersonian - Medico Legal Lab. Zack holds a tray of implements in front of Booth. Brennan stands nearby.)

ZACK: I have alternatives that could've caused the hole. This ... (holds up a short, thin, metal implement) ... is a disposable acupuncture needle. (he places it back on the tray)

BOOTH: Oh, come on. (he looks to Brennan, almost rolling his eyes) He was healed to death?

ZACK: This ... (holds up a curled-up piece of wire) ... is a filament used for an angioplasty. (he returns the wire to the tray and reaches for the next object)

BRENNAN: Hand me the wire.

(Zacks gives it to her; Brennan picks up the bone fragment, connects the wire to the hole in the bone and carries it to a desk where she places the bone and wire in a Petri dish and holds a blue light to it - a light, circular mark appears on the bone)

BOOTH: What are you doing?

BRENNAN: Diminished fluorescence. That only happens if the bones have been cleaned and treated. These bones didn't start out in the shaft. They were placed there. (Zack nods)

BOOTH: (confused, arms crossed over his chest as he looks to both Brennan and Zack) What? Who's got 300-year-old bones?

(Cut to: Luxuriously crafted, wood-and-glass display case containing a skull and other bones. The case has been brought into the lab at the Jeffersonian. A well-dressed older man with gold wire-rimmed glasses stands with stiff, proper posture, at the head of the case. He is HARLEY FRANKEL, the curator of the Jeffersonian's museum.)

FRANKEL: I assure you, everything here is authentic, Doctor Brennan. I curated this exhibit for the Jeffersonian myself. (he joins Booth and Brennan at the other end of the case, near the locked latch)

BRENNAN: (unmoved) Could you please open the case?

FRANKEL: This is a beautiful specimen ... (he reaches over and opens the case for her) ... found in Jamaica. We believe he sailed with Henry Morgan.

(Brennan reaches into the container and removes one of the bones - she examines it closely)

BRENNAN: He's never been on a boat in his life.

FRANKEL: That's absurd. (Brennan snaps the bone in half) Oh, my God.

BRENNAN: These bones are artificial. It's acrylic, not bone. (she shows him the inside of the "bone") You can see on the real bone the hole where the wire was threaded when the bones were assembled for display.

FRANKEL: (horrified, looking sick to his stomach) Then where is the rest of my sailor?

BOOTH: He was planted in a shaft at Assateague Island to make the whole ... treasure business seem real. But somebody found out.

FRANKEL: Who?

BRENNAN: A murderer.

END OF ACT TWO

ACT THREE

(Close up of an African art mask in Dr. Goodman's office. FBI Deputy Director SAM CULLEN is pacing in one direction; Goodman in another, hands clasped behind his back. Booth leans against a chair as Brennan stands, watching carefully.)

CULLEN: Okay, let me see if I get this straight. The pirate bones you recovered came from the Jeffersonian to start with.

BRENNAN: Correct.

(Goodman stands still, posture perfect, in order to respond properly to Cullen)

GOODMAN: 300-year-old bones stolen from our own pirate exhibit.

CULLEN: And then recovered by one of your own people?

BOOTH: Doctor Hodgins.

CULLEN: (stops pacing) - who brought them back to the Jeffersonian ... where they were stolen again?

BOOTH: Re-stolen ... sir.

CULLEN: You got a security problem, Doctor Goodman.

GOODMAN: (mildly defensive tone) And when I find out who did this, you may have a murder problem.

BOOTH: (looks to Goodman) But I - I'm - on top of it, okay? (to his boss, Cullen) You didn't have to come down here, sir.

CULLEN: That's what I thought until I got a call from someone on the Department of Defense.

BOOTH: Defense? How do they figure into a murder investigation?

CULLEN: (arms crossed) Branson Rose. He has friends in high places and they don't like it when the guy who builds their bombers is unhappy.

BRENNAN: Are they afraid he'll bomb them?

(Booth gives Brennan a quick look, as if to say "Bones, what are you doing? Don't tick off my boss.")

CULLEN: (glares at Brennan) What? What is that? (levels his gaze at Booth next) Squint humor? Because I'm not laughing. (Booth stays silent, head down, his jaw tightening) Defense doesn't need a reason to go to war, and I'm not about to be their next target.

BRENNAN: We haven't ruled Rose out as a suspect.

CULLEN: Well, of course not. You're too busy looking for your bones.

GOODMAN: (steps in) Let's not make this personal.

CULLEN: Rose wants to keep playing in the mud, and his big-shot friends are going to see that that happens unless we come up with some answers fast.

BOOTH: At this point, it appears as if the stolen 300-year-old bones are being used to, you know, salt the shaft.

BRENNAN: "Salt the shaft"?

(Booth stands up to face her and explain)

BOOTH: Yeah. You know, an investor spends a million bucks. He gets antsy when nothin' happens, and then - voila - (he throws up his hands momentarily) - you know, pirate bones appear and, uh, the golden goose keeps, you know ... [sputters and squats to "demonstrate"] ... laying those eggs.

BRENNAN: (staring at him, disturbed) Okay, that is a ... convoluted metaphor, Booth.

GOODMAN: (helping her out) It's a hoax, Doctor Brennan. Like Piltdown man.

BRENNAN: Oh, got it. (back to Booth) Why can't you be clear like that?

(Booth shakes his head at her; he looks like he has no idea what Dr. Goodman is referring to, and is relieved when Cullen interrupts)

CULLEN: Assume the bones were stolen-

BRENNAN: Re-stolen.

CULLEN: - Re-stolen so you wouldn't find out they were bogus. How did you?

BRENNAN: How did I what?

GOODMAN: From the finger. They didn't get the entire skeleton. Would you like Doctor Brennan to take you through the process?

CULLEN: (groans) I really, really wouldn't. (turns to Booth) So who do you like?

BOOTH: (confident this time) I like the partner.

BRENNAN: Giles Hardewicke.

BOOTH: Access, motive, ability.

CULLEN: Doctor Goodman, the F.B.I. will provide whatever help you need to solve your breach of security at the Jeffersonian. (to Booth) You work the, uh, partner angle. (he walks out of Goodman's office)

(Booth looks a little stressed)

(Cut to: Excavation site. Night. Small floodlights illuminate the area where both Hodgins and Dane are sitting in folding chairs. There are beer bottles in a box on a tray next to them. Hodgins knocks back the last of his bottle and returns it to the tray.)

DANE: Well, my father worked the fishing boat. His dad before that. Heck, me and my brother, we never knew anything but the sea. Huntin' for treasure just sorta grew outta that, I guess.

HODGINS: Any regrets?

DANE: Sure. My brother.

HODGINS: (sobering at the thought, he nods) Yeah.

DANE: (half-laughs) Heh. That and the fact that they might shut us down.

(Hodgins grins, wagging a finger at Dane)

HODGINS: Hey, not if we find something, huh?

DANE: (smiles) You know, I thought you were gonna turn out to be just another desk jockey. You read a few books and was lookin' for somethin' to brighten up his boring-ass life.

HODGINS: (sits up straighter in his chair) Tell you what, I'd be down in that shaft right now if Big Brother didn't have the minimum time requirement between dives.

DANE: (laughing) Whoa-ho-ho-ho! You ... (he reaches over and grabs another beer, pops the cap, hands it Hodgins) ... deserve to be here. You really do.

HODGINS: (sincerely appreciative) Thanks for that. (careful pause) I guess it's all right to tell you ... the bones were planted. (a few expressions cross Dane's face as he absorbs this information - weariness, sorrow, and resigned humor - he looks away momentarily, shakes his head and returns his gaze to Hodgins) You don't seem surprised.

(Hodgins takes a sip of his beer and watches Dane curiously)

DANE: (looks over at the shaft for a moment) Man, nothin' surprises me outta that gosh dang pit anymore. Nahhh. (long pause as Dane's face falls and a morose mood sets in) I mean, you dig down far enough, you'll come out in Hell. (Hodgins nods, understanding) So, uh, if you don't find anything, you gonna shut us down?

HODGINS: (chuckles) Hey, I'm not F.B.I. I'm just a scientist. (he takes another drink)

DANE: (still serious) It's a crime scene. I'm surprised they let you down there.

HODGINS: Hey, I'm an expert in silt, plants and insects. (laughing) That's right. I got three doctorates.

DANE: (laughs, holding up his hands in defeat) Whoa!

HODGINS: (leans forward in his chair) When you got three doctorates and you tell the F.B.I. you need more samples, who's gonna argue? One doctorate ... (he lifts his bottle, shrugging in amusement) ... yeah, maybe they argue, but ... three? (he grins, snickering as he swigs some more of his beer)

DANE: (eyes lighting up) You wanna go back down again, don't you?

(Hodgins gets serious for a moment, leaning forward in his chair again, elbows on his knees. He looks away for a moment, then takes a deep breath and exhales, nodding at Dane.)

HODGINS: I could use your help, man.

DANE: (lets out a laugh, pointing a finger at him) You got the bug, man!

HODGINS: (grinning) Hey, like I said, I AM the bug man.

DANE and HODGINS: (clinking beer bottles) Grrr-arrrgh!

(Cut to: The marina. Day. Hardewicke, Booth and Brennan walk together, talking.)

HARDEWICKE: (carrying a toolbox, he looks to Booth) If you lost the bones, how do you know they're fake?

BOOTH: They - they didn't get everything. (he exchanges a look with Brennan)

HARDEWICKE: Ah. A stroke of luck for the good guys.

BRENNAN: We will find out how those bones were stolen from the Jeffersonian.

HARDEWICKE: (looks at Brennan briefly) You still think I did it, don't you?

BRENNAN: Why were you going to break up the company?

(The trio comes to a standstill, as Hardewicke sets down his toolbox and turns to face Brennan and Booth)

HARDEWICKE: (laughing heartily) Let me guess, Katie Ney told you that.

BOOTH: (smiling slightly) What makes you think it was Katie?

HARDEWICKE: That was a stock part of Macy's seduction technique, and it was very effective. "I risk my life down in that hole while my partner stays safe topside." (Brennan's expression doesn't change, but Booth half-laughs, nodding, amused at Macy's "cleverness" with trying to impress women) That's how he positioned himself as the heroic explorer. (pause) Which he was, by the way, when it came to the ladies.

BOOTH: Your partnership was intact?

HARDEWICKE: (immediately serious) Till death did us part. (no hesitation) I'll tell you what. I'm gonna give you guys full access to the books. You don't even need a search warrant. (unwavering now) There's not a single way in which my life is better off without Macy ... Like I said, I miss the man.

(Brennan considers this, watching quietly as Hardewicke picks up his toolbox and walks away)

(Cut to: Jeffersonian - Medico Legal Lab - at Angela's computer. Angela stands, hunched over her keyboard, as Dr. Goodman looks on.)

ANGELA: The bones were stolen twice. The first time from the pirate exhibit. The second time from the bone room here in the Medico-Legal Lab.

GOODMAN: And the security in the lab is tighter so the camera is continuous, but the camera in the rotunda is stop-action, every three seconds.

ANGELA: (fast-forwarding through the security tape, the activity of which moves at rapid speed on her monitor) I started with the lab theft because we know the bones were stolen between nine p.m. and six a.m. Okay, watch ... here.

(The monitor shows the bone room with the lab table in question - in one second the bones are still assembled, resting on the table; the next moment, they disappear)

GOODMAN: The bones are gone.

ANGELA: Notice the time code.

GOODMAN: What's that?

ANGELA: The camera was turned off.

GOODMAN: (studies the screen) The camera was turned off for one minute and ... forty-six seconds.

ANGELA: (nodding) It would take a lot less time than that to enter the room and gather up the bones and ... escape.

(Dr. Goodman looks at her, thinking)

(Cut to: Dr. Goodman and Angela exiting the room, walking slowly, Angela holding a stopwatch.)

GOODMAN: Now.

(Angela clicks the start button on the stopwatch)

ANGELA: Doctor Goodman?

(Goodman is walking slowly through the hallway, studying the area, as Angela follows him)

GOODMAN: Yes?

ANGELA: Can I ask, why are we doing this investigation instead of security?

(He's not really listening to her - he frowns, concentrating. He's calculating something in his head.)

GOODMAN: We shouldn't walk too quickly. It would arouse suspicion. Neither would our thief.

ANGELA: I'm happy to help, but we do have actual security professionals...

GOODMAN: Is there any way to tell if those tapes have been doctored?

ANGELA: (responds slowly as she tries to understand what he's up to) Yeah. Since they're physical magnetic tapes, not stored digitally.

GOODMAN: I always did like analog better. Now I know why.

ANGELA: (still confused at Goodman's train of thought here) My point is, is that I'm only an amateur at this, and I'm sure the security department is better equipped and trained-

GOODMAN: (looking past Angela, lifting his chin, all official and stately as he walks and talks) Afternoon, Paul. Best to Susan and Laura. I hope Johnny feels better.

PAUL: (off-screen) Thank you, Doctor Goodman.

ANGELA: (mildly sarcastic) Okay, you don't want to talk about it. I get it. (Goodman stops walking) Sir?

GOODMAN: Hit your stopwatch, please, Miss Montenegro. (she does what he asks)

ANGELA: (looking at the stopwatch screen) Thirty-five point six seconds.

GOODMAN: Double that for a round trip. That's one minute, ten seconds, leaving approximately thirty seconds to bag the bones and get back.

ANGELA: Get back where? (Goodman glances over - they've stopped directly in front of the security guards' office) Ohhhh. (she realizes now and smiles at Goodman, impressed) Huh. (she stops smiling) Wow, you must think I'm an idiot.GOODMAN: (takes her by the elbow and moves her away from the security station) I was grandstanding. I can be like that.

ANGELA: So we find out what guards were on duty during the two thefts and ... we might have our thief.

(Goodman nods)

(Cut to: Interrogation of uniformed security guard ERIC HUGHES, who is sitting at a desk. He's sweating a bit. Booth stands on one side of him, Goodman on the other. Brennan is standing next to Booth.)

HUGHES: (looking up at Goodman) I didn't see the harm.

BRENNAN: (coming up from behind) In stealing human remains?

HUGHES: After three hundred years, it's not like he's got a family grieving for him out there.

(Goodman's hands are on his hips - he's angry)

GOODMAN: Think of me as a grieving parent.

BOOTH: (casually leaning against a bookcase) Grand theft, buddy. You're lookin' at eight years.

GOODMAN: If I don't kill you.HUGHES: (getting upset) Come on! What's a bunch of old bones like that worth? Nothing.

BOOTH: How much you get for 'em?HUGHES: Couple a hundred bucks.

(Goodman sticks his hands in his pockets, an expression of annoyance crossing his face at this news. He glares, looming over the guard.)BOOTH: Yeah. So this, uh ... (clears throat, and sets a piece of paper in front of Hughes) ... wire transfer into your bank for ten grand ... was that - (pats his shoulder) - inheritance?

(Hughes looks concerned now - he's in big trouble)

BRENNAN: Who did you steal them for?HUGHES: (mutters) We didn't really do the name exchange thing.

BOOTH: Somebody approached you?

HUGHES: Yeah.

(Booth lays down three photos for Hughes to examine - Macy, Hardewicke and Rose)

BOOTH: Let's see. Okay, which one was it?

HUGHES: (looking at the photos) Well, which time?

(Brennan's eyes widen - she glances at Goodman, who rolls his eyes)

BOOTH: (getting irritated) The first time.

HUGHES: Him. (points to a close-up photo of Macy's corpse on Harry's morgue table) But ... (scrutinizes the photo) ... he looked better.

GOODMAN: And the second time?

HUGHES: Um ... him. (points to a photo of Hardewicke) Oh, look, guys - (glances up to Goodman nervously) - I'm cooperating. All right, I will give back the money. I will quit my job. (Goodman looks like he can't decide if he wants to simply fire him or let Booth arrest him) All right, how's about we just call it even?

BOOTH: (sarcastically) How's about we call the D.A.? (points at Goodman) You know, you need a better screening process down at the museum.

GOODMAN: (sardonically levels his gaze at Booth) Ironic, given we contract that out to the F.B.I.

(Booth nods, seeing the ridiculousness of the whole situation)

(Cut to: Booth and Brennan making their way through piles of dirt and digging equipment at the excavation site. They head toward the dive shaft.)

BRENNAN: You think he's dangerous?

BOOTH: Grand theft, murder. Yeah.

(Bagpipe music can be heard playing in the distance - Brennan notices)

BRENNAN: The music. Shh. (she listens and then points away from the steps; it's not coming from the dive area) It's down there.BOOTH: That's not music. That's bagpipes. (sees something in the distance) Whoa. (he pulls his gun from its holster underneath his suit coat) Mister Hardewicke?

(The back of Hardewicke's head can be seen - he's sitting in a lawn chair, a bottle of liquor and one glass on a table nearby. He does not respond to Booth's call. The music continues to play. Booth approaches cautiously, gun at the ready. Brennan's right behind him.)

BOOTH: (circling around slowly to face the man) Mister Hard - Oh.

(Booth lowers his gun. Hardewicke is leaning back in the chair, his eyes closed and mouth gaping, blood running from his nose, distinctive bruises around his throat. He's dead.)

(Brennan turns to Booth, as he looks around for evidence of what the hell happened)

BRENNAN: Maybe we're looking for someone else.

END OF ACT THREE

ACT FOUR

(Back at the F.B.I. morgue. Pan up from Hardewicke's dead body on the table to Harry the medical examiner, who stands before Booth and Brennan, his hands folded in front of him.)

HARRY: The larynx was crushed.

BRENNAN: (frowning) Is that going to be your cause of death ruling?

HARRY: (grins, getting excited) We gonna have another fight about this?

(Brennan steps forward like she might punch the guy, so Booth steps between them and authoritatively pokes Harry in the chest)

BOOTH: You know, I'm a pretty open guy, Harry, but if you keep pushing like that, it's gonna be me who smacks you around.

HARRY: (smirks) How do you know that won't work for me just as well?

(Booth looks unsettled by this twist - he makes a wide-eyed face, stepping back and away from Harry as quickly as possible. Brennan steps up to face Harry again.)

BRENNAN: You ruled that Macy died from a crushed larynx.

HARRY: (his tone condescending, as if it's obvious) A crushed larynx is fatal. Ergo, it results in death.

BRENNAN: You were wrong then, and you're wrong now.

(Harry smiles widely)

BOOTH: (agitated, pointing at Harry) See? He likes it!

(Brennan ignores both of them and their antics)

BRENNAN: I need to see both sets of X-rays. His and Macy's.

(Harry's eyes twinkle as he reaches down and retrieves the X-rays from their folder)

HARRY: It's not always about being right or wrong. It's about the dialogue. (he brings the films over to the light board and puts one in place, smiling at Brennan) An intense conversation can be the most wonderful kind of intercourse.

BOOTH: (grossed out now, looking to Brennan) You know what? This guy is a pervert.

BRENNAN: (comparing the spinal injury films for both Hardewicke and Macy) Damage between C-2 and C-4, forty-five degree angle, exact same pattern of injury as Macy. His head was ... (Brennan reaches over and grabs Harry by the head, demonstrating the hold the murderer used; Harry looks like he enjoys her being so rough with him) ... wrenched around, probably while the other hand crushed the larynx.

(Brennan pushes against his chin, twisting him slightly, as she holds the back of his head)

HARRY: (grinning) That must really frustrate you that I missed that.

BOOTH: (thoughtful now) You know, that's a special forces move - take the sentry down, crush the larynx so he can't scream.

BRENNAN: (stunned) You've done that to people?

(Booth glances down a moment, thinking - he doesn't exactly answer her question when he replies)

BOOTH: No, our murderer is special forces.

(Booth looks troubled)

(Cut to: Booth's office at the F.B.I. Branson Rose is standing at the window, looking out. Booth sits at his desk. A lawyer, ANTHONY KENDALL, is present, as is Brennan.)

BOOTH: Your Internet bio says you spent time in Special Air Services.

KENDALL: (smiling) Mr. Rose has led a diverse and full life.

BRENNAN: (leaning against a table, observing Rose) How did you feel when you found out the dig site had been ... (looks to Booth for the right word) ... salted?

ROSE: (still observing at the window) I was disappointed, certainly.

BOOTH: (carefully) Just ... disappointed?

(Rose finally turns from the window)

ROSE: I wasn't irked enough to kill Ted Macy. Now, can we get to the point, please?

BRENNAN: What is Special Air Services?

ROSE: The S.A.S. is widely regarded as one of the finest and best-trained special forces units in the world.

BOOTH: (casually) See any active service?

KENDALL: Mister Rose is not comfortable discussing specifics.

ROSE: (glowering at Booth) I don't like to exploit my role in operations which cost good men their lives. Now, if all you're interested in is my history, there's a bio on my Web site. (starts to leave)

BOOTH: Great. We just wanna know if your reputation is for real, sir. (Rose stops in the doorway) Hey, we'll just ... contact the S.A.S. They'll tell us.

ROSE: Look-

KENDALL: (standing up to butt in before they all get into a dangerous legal area) Fine.

(He takes Rose by the arm with the intention of leading him out of the office)

ROSE: (sarcastic, to Booth) Don't expect a speedy response.

(Brennan steps up and slaps Rose across the face, hard. He grunts, stunned.)

BOOTH: Whoa. Bones!

KENDALL: That's assault!

(Rose rubs his cheek as Brennan looks to Booth)

BRENNAN: Would a special forces guy have been able to stop that?

BOOTH: (getting the game now) I don't know. You kinda got the jump on him there.

BRENNAN: (nods, considering this) Well, this one won't be a surprise. (turns to Rose again) You ready?

ROSE: (clueless) What?

(Brennan slaps him again)KENDALL: This is common assault. Charges will be laid!

(Brennan shrugs at Booth, as if to say, "Well?")

BOOTH: (shaking his head) No way he's special ops. That's just a bunch of P.R. crap. (he smiles benignly at Rose)

BRENNAN: All right. No more questions. (she sits down, satisfied, as Rose studies Booth quietly)

KENDALL: I demand she be arrested for assault!

ROSE: Shut up, Kendall! (he smiles ironically at Booth and starts to leave, whispering to his attorney as they go) You think I want it all over the newspapers that I'm taking a woman to court for slapping me?

(Booth rests his chin in his hand - now who's the murderer?)

(Cut to: Excavation site. Pan down from a metal structure to Dane and Hodgins standing on the platform. Dane is prepping Hodgins for a dive.)

DANE: (apprehensive) You won't get in trouble for this.

HODGINS: (unconcerned) Three degrees. Just doing some research. (Dane chortles) I am telling you, salted or not, there is something at the bottom of that shaft.

DANE: (sighs heavily) Never got to go all the way down.

HODGINS: The bones were lying on wood. I want to see what's underneath.

DANE: (shakes his head, smiling ruefully) Always thought it'd be me who'd find it.

HODGINS: Hey. (gives Dane a brotherly slap on the arm) All for one and one for all, right?

DANE: (amused) That was the Three Musketeers.

HODGINS: Yeah, they were always "piratey" to me.

(Dane grins at him, and Hodgins mirrors it back)

DANE: Let's do this.

HODGINS: (smiling widely now) Let's do it.

(Dane helps Hodgins place the dive helmet over his head. As Dane walks around him, locking the helmet into place, Hodgins focuses forward, his face turning serious. Once it's properly set, Dane steps in front of Hodgins, giving him an "okay" signal. Hodgins heads down the ladder and descends into the dark water.)

(Cut to: Booth in his vehicle. He's driving with one hand and making a radio call with the other. Brennan sits passenger-side.)

BOOTH: Dispatch, 22705. Last name McGinnis, first name Dane, middle initial P. I need to know which branch of the military he served in.

DISPATCHER: Affirmative, 22705. Stand by.

BRENNAN: (glances at Booth) Why Dane?

BOOTH: He said Hodgins swam like a squid.

BRENNAN: (shakes her head, confused) Squint. He must've said squint.

BOOTH: No, I said squint, 'kay? Dane said squid, which is military slang for a sailor.

BRENNAN: Wait, is this what they call a "Hail Mary" pass?

(Cut to: Close-up of the radio at the dive site. Hodgins' voice can be heard over the speaker.)

HODGINS: You receiving?

DANE: Aw, loud and clear. (he threads more length of air hose down to Hodgins)

HODGINS: Man, it's muddy today.

DANE: Yeah. Usually clears up past the first flood channel, twelve meters.

(Close-up on Hodgins, singing with a piratey accent, as he floats downward)

HODGINS: Yo ho ho, and a bottle of rum ... DANE: Hey, don't conjure up any ghosts, Doc. There's too many down there already waiting to claim your ass.

HODGINS: (murmuring) Ghosts. Right.

(He continues his descent, solemn now)

(Back to Booth's vehicle. The dispatcher is calling back with information.)

DISPATCHER: 22705, Dispatch. McGinnis, Dane. Served in the navy. Rating: chief petty officer, naval special warfare.

BOOTH: Oh yeah. Had to be. (he frowns)BRENNAN: What?

(Cut to: Booth's SUV coming to a stop in the excavation field - Dane can be seen at a distance, up on the platform, feeding more air hose into the shaft. Booth and Brennan exit the vehicle.)

BOOTH: (walking slowly around the truck, eyes glued to the platform) Guy was a navy SEAL.

BRENNAN: So? You were a guide.

BOOTH: (stops to correct her) A ranger. I was a ranger, Bones, okay? I was not a guide. Guides, they show you waterfalls, they sell you cookies. I was a ranger.

BRENNAN: (looks up to the platform) What's he doing at the shaft? (she starts forward, but Booth grabs her arm) Are rangers afraid of SEALs?

BOOTH: What? Come on, Bones. No. (gives her a look) Wha - rangers aren't afraid of anybody. All right? (pause, conceding) SEALs are ... pretty good though.

(Cut to a close-up of the water bubbling, from Hodgins breathing through the air hose. Pan up from the water to where Dane sits on a crate, turning back and forth between threading more of the air line and watching the monitor for Hodgins' progress. Booth and Brennan reach the top of the platform.)

BOOTH: (casually) Hey, Dane.

DANE: (just as casually) Oh hey ... what's up?

BRENNAN: We know it was you.

(Dane's expression shifts, the smile leaving his face)

BOOTH: Bones, please.

BRENNAN: Why? You have a gun. What's he got?

BOOTH: (eyes on Dane) He's got somebody in the shaft.

(Close-up on Hodgins, still making his way down, slowly but surely)

HODGINS: How far down am I?

(Cut back to Brennan, realizing when she hears his voice over the speaker)

BRENNAN: Is that Hodgins?

(Her eyes widen and she steps forward - Dane immediately grabs a section of the air hose and holds a knife to it)

HODGINS: (over the speaker) Hey, Dane? (Booth pulls his gun, holding it on Dane who sits poised with the knife, unmoving) I can't read my depth display.

(Close-up on Hodgins - he's traveling down but glancing upwards, waiting for a response)

HODGINS: (voice heard over the speaker) Hey, is somethin' goin' on? (Brennan is frozen in place, looking to the speaker in fear) Is there annny-body up there? Why don't you answer me?

BOOTH: (controlled voice) C.P.O. McGinnis, step away from the air hose.

(He's got his gun on Dane, but Dane's eyes aren't leaving Booth's and his knife is still pressed to the air hose)

DANE: Yeah? Well, I need you to toss that gun into the shaft. And toss me your keys. And handcuff yourselves to that crane. I take your truck. (shakes his head, resolute) Otherwise, I am gonna cut this hose, and your buddy's gonna die.

BRENNAN: (nervously pats Booth in the ribs with the back of her hand, her eyes on Dane's knife) Yeah. Do that.

(She wants Booth to follow Dane's instructions)

BOOTH: (grits his teeth and glances at her for a millisecond - she's interrupting his stand-off) Bones. (back to Dane, gun still trained) Not gonna happen.

HODGINS: (voice on the speaker again) If you can hear me, tug on the air hose. I feel a blast of cold water. (Pan down from the perilous air hose to the bubbling black water, to Hodgins in the shaft, studying his surroundings) It's either a spring or some kind of conduit from the ocean. It's clear, clean water, so visibility is better.

(Back up top - Dane's waiting for Booth to make his move)

BOOTH: (gun steady) You killed two men. I can't just let you drive away.

DANE: Oh, those guys. (sneers bitterly) Puttin' fake bones in there, makin' the whole thing into a con job. (his eyes don't leave Booth's) My brother died down there looking for that treasure. A lot of good men did. (Booth blinks but otherwise doesn't move) This was their life. Those men dishonored them.

(Back to Hodgins in the water. He's looking up, trying to figure out what's going on and why Dane isn't responding.)

HODGINS: Dane, can you hear me, man? I am on the bottom.

(The monitor up on the platform reveals Hodgins' location, his red dot blinking innocently at 200 feet.)

DANE: (squinting) You good enough to take that shot before I cut this air hose, ranger?

BOOTH: (smirks) Pretty good.

BRENNAN: (scared) What? Just pretty good?

BOOTH: (whispers impatiently) Please. I'm working. (his eyes graze Brennan for a split second before they focus back on Dane)

(Cuts from Brennan's wide-eyed, concerned face, to Dane in position with his knife and Booth with his gun. Hodgins' voice crackles in again.)

HODGINS: I'm gonna need some more slack in the line, Dane. What's goin' on? (his hands can be seen on the monitor, brushing through the soil at the bottom) I'll get a sample. I can see where the shaft wall has collapsed before. (Hodgins pauses, notices something in the dirt, runs his gloved hand through it again, searching) Oh, my God.

(Back to Booth, waiting, holding his gun as steadily as possible with both hands. Then to Brennan, whose eyes follow anxiously back and forth between Booth and Dane.)

HODGINS: (over the speaker) Holy sh- Damn! (Dane's jaw tightens but he will not check the monitor and give Booth an opening) Can you see this, Dane?

(Brennan leans to view the monitor, where Hodgins' hand is holding up a shiny gold coin)

DANE: What is it?

BOOTH: Why don't you take a look?

DANE: Yeah. (wry expression on his face) I do and you'll shoot me.

(Back to Hodgins down below. He's cackling with delight as he holds up the coin to the lamp on his helmet for a better view.)

HODGINS: (thoroughly excited) Dane! Can you see this, man?

BRENNAN: (eyes on the monitor) It's a gold coin.

DANE: (disbelieving) Yeah. (getting upset) It's, uh, probably something else they stole from the museum and threw in there.

HODGINS: This is real! It's a big -

(Booth fires twice, blasting out the computer monitor and all sound connection to Hodgins. He immediately retrains his weapon on Dane. There are two holes in the monitor with spider web-like cracks across the screen - white smoke wafts from the machine.)

BRENNAN: (firmly, to Dane) You want to see it, you're going to have to bring Hodgins up. (softens) Please. He's down there because he believes. (Dane's brow furrows but he doesn't move, so she tries again) He's no different than you, no different than your brother.

BOOTH: (voice intense, his gun hand ready for anything) Bring him up.

BRENNAN: (gently) Do it for your brother.

(Dane considers this for a long moment, an expression of struggle on his face. Booth is waiting, gun aimed. At last, Dane makes a choice and yanks the knife away from the hose. Frustrated, he pushes the hose down into the water, and holds the knife aloft, glaring at Booth. Brennan is still frozen in place, her hands outstretched in a defensive position, waiting to see what Dane will do next. Booth does not lower his gun. Agonized, Dane takes his knife and thrusts it downward, violently stabbing it into the grid next to his foot. It's over.)

(Cut to: Jeffersonian - Medico Legal Lab - Platform. Hodgins holds up the treasured coin for all to see.)

HODGINS: An original Breen-984 half doubloon, designed by Ephraim Brasher, engraved by Ephraim Brasher. (he turns it in his hand, happily studying the back and front of it) And - hold your breath, gentlemen and ladies - two hundred and four grains.

ZACK: (marveling) A real gold pirate coin.

BOOTH: (excited, hands clasped together like a kid) How many more are down there?

GOODMAN: Branson Rose has agreed to have the museum do the authentication of the entire treasure when they bring it up.

(The Jeffersonian team is crowded around the skeleton's display case, as Hodgins looks down at the coin in his hand)

HODGINS: There won't be any more.

ANGELA: What makes you say that?

HODGINS: I was down there. (smiles) It's not gonna give it up that easily.

GOODMAN: But the treasure's been located.

BOOTH: (nods) And I'm sure it's been located before.

(Hodgins can't take his eyes off the coin)

GOODMAN: (reaching for it) I'll take that.

(Hodgins looks up at Goodman, then down at the coin, as Goodman tries to take it from him. It takes several seconds of back-and-forth pulling before Hodgins reluctantly lets go.)

BRENNAN: (looking down at the authenticated pirate skeleton) You think he's happy to be back home?

ANGELA: (smiling) Well, he looks that way to me.

(She holds up a sketch she's just finished - it's a headshot that looks like Hodgins dressed as a pirate, complete with three-corner hat, skull and crossbones. Goodman chuckles, as do Zack and Angela. Hodgins laughs as he checks out his likeness on the page.)

BOOTH: (grins, looking back and forth between the sketch and Hodgins) Ha.

(Hodgins shakes his head, turning slightly melancholy)

HODGINS: He's not happy.

ZACK: What do you mean?

BOOTH: (nods, understanding) Hodgins is right. He'd be a lot happier at the bottom of that shaft.

BRENNAN: (smiles at Booth, getting it now) With the other pirates.

(Hodgins takes a deep breath and sighs. His boyhood dream has come to an end. He looks a little disappointed.)

(Booth gets a goofy grin on his face, looking to Hodgins and Zack.)

ZACK and BOOTH: Arrgh!

(Hodgins looks up, grinning again.)

HODGINS: Arrrgh, matey!

(Angela and Brennan exchange a look, barely able to contain their laughter, as the guys keep up their piratey noises. The dream will never totally die, not for these "boys.")

(Fade to Black)

END OF SHOW.