WC BIG BANG: False Pretenses - Chapter 7
(Chapter 7)
Neal was shocked to find Peter staring back at him when the door opened. He had hoped Mozzie was right but now he knew it for certain. His excitement was short lived when they realized they were being chased and Peter didn’t know who they were. Still, something made the agent trust them, a young woman (a doctor according to Mozzie) with him as they ran for the taxi and just narrowly escaped. Now Peter lay unconscious in the backseat, the doctor keeping his head elevated on her lap as she spoke quietly.
“Magwitch... why did you come looking for Nick? You said you knew him?”
She was looking at Neal now, her eyes staring back with curiosity despite the obvious fear she felt. He ran a hand through his hair, then he spoke, a soft smile on his face. She seemed to relax.
“His name isn’t Nick. It’s Peter. He’s my... partner and friend. We work for the FBI.”
He watched as she blinked back at him. He could see the thoughts behind those eyes trying to make sense of it all.
“FBI? Nick... I mean Peter’s a Federal Agent? You’re both agents?”
Now was the gray area that Neal always knew would get him in trouble in Peter’s opinion. Mozzie was about to speak up for him but he held up a hand and shook his head.
“I’m not an agent like Peter. I’m... a consultant with the Bureau. We were working on a case when he was... hurt.”
The memory of what happened flashed before his eyes as he remembered leaving the agent behind when Martin shot at him. He suddenly realized she was leaning towards him, her hand on his shoulder.
“You saw it... what happened to him.”
He wasn’t sure how to react to her words, her manner expectant as she continued, no blame in her tone.
“Was it the man tonight? The one chasing us?”
She was smart, Neal nodding slowly in reply as she breathed a little sigh, turning to look at Peter and then back at him.
“Don’t feel guilty. If you hadn’t run, you would both have died. Jake told me something similar happened to him overseas. I understand now...”
She was close to tears, Neal not understanding exactly what was wrong. He didn’t know exactly what happened at the clinic as he tried to comfort her and himself, his eyes turning to Peter. Mozzie coughed after a moment breaking the silence, all eyes on him. He leaned in and whispered to Neal.
“Should we call Elizabeth? That was the plan at some point wasn’t it?”
They had forgotten about El asking for help. They couldn’t risk their safety or Peter’s by letting anyone know what was going on. Jones and Diana were still out there working on the case hopefully to get them all back home. Did they know they’d found Peter?
“Text Diana and let her know about Peter. I don’t understand how they found out he was in your clinic. Nobody knew.”
Neal was trying to figure out what had given Peter’s location away when he had been lost to everyone for the last couple of days. A few minutes went by in the cab as he tried to sort it out when he heard Amy gasp.
“The posters... I completely forgot. We put up posters yesterday evening. The precinct hadn’t gotten back to us so we took things into our own hands and placed posters close to where Ni... Peter was found. Maybe that man saw them and that’s how he knew where your friend was!”
Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment or shame. He felt very much the same but held her hand gently, looking into her eyes.
“You couldn’t have known. We just have to make sure we can get him back to where he needs to be in one piece. They won’t make it easy but you're safe with us.”
She seemed to relax with his words, Mozzie turning into a side street and parking the cab there.
“We’ll have to hoof it from here or risk Evil Suit finding us. Bad enough I have to give up this cab now.”
Mozzie sounded annoyed but it was laced with concern for their safety if not Peter’s. Neal helped Amy move the near unconscious Peter, the group easing through the narrow street to a busier avenue where Mozzie led them to an eclectic Asian shop. Neal realized he’d been here before as they went inside and the little guy nodded at the shopkeeper.
“Seiten no heki-reki...(Like a thunderclap from a clear sky...) I see you have guests, Dante-san.”
Mozzie nodded, smiling stiffly up at the younger man. He was even younger than Neal, the con thinking he must be the grandson of the man who had owned this store before. It still hurt to think he may have caused the death of Mozzie’s friend as he nodded at the man, bowing his head politely.
“Hai! Shiranu ga hotoke. (Not knowing is Buddha.) And we’re in a hurry or I wouldn’t have come, Aki-san.”
Mozzie left the conversation open, the younger man looking at them all before finally nodding his head as if in surrender and pointing to a back door.
“Douzo. Anything specific I should remember? ”
There was a hint of bemusement in the man’s voice, his brown eyes bright with some slight humor at the situation. Mozzie shrugged.
“We weren’t here... Arigato.”
()()()
They settled Peter below on a futon that Mozzie pulled out like he had been there before. Neal let his friend set things up for them, the space about the size of a large walk in closet. It was neat and clean for a small cellar and looked like it had been used as a storage room in the past.
“He’ll be alright, Amy. Get some rest.”
Neal was trying to comfort her as Mozzie headed for the stairs to his surprise. He moved over and spoke quietly to him.
“Mozz?”
His friend glanced back, eyes on Amy and then back on him.
“Someone has to keep eyes and ears out. Aki-san will watch from above but I need to go talk to the Junior and Lady Suits.”
His tone on the last part wasn’t happy but without worry as he made a slight face to Neal before heading out. He locked the door on the inside as instructed, going down the stairs to check on Amy and Peter. Amy was next to the agent on her own futon, eyes shut as she breathed softly in and out. Neal grabbed a throw from nearby and gently lay it over her before taking a seat on a cushion on the opposite side next to where his friend slept. The agent’s expression seemed far more relaxed than the man he knew. Perhaps ignorance was bliss. He rubbed at the wound on his arm where he’d been winged by Martin just a few days before. It was a reminder that he had lived and Peter... but now the agent was here so they were both safe for the moment. He sat staring at his friend, grasping one hand in his own and making a silent prayer everything would turn out in their favor.
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