Reverse WCBB - Big Brother - Elledeegee (Chapter 2)

Apr 12, 2014 01:05





Big Brother - Chapter 2

Neal was having a pretty bad week of it. Hagan was hounding him about meeting up but with Peter being buddy buddy suddenly, he had to pull back. It wasn’t hard keeping away from the Dutchman but if he wanted to keep his secret and Peter safe, he had to do what the man wanted.

“Mister Caffrey… I see you’re finally answering my calls.”

He had picked up without looking while at the coffee shop. He could only make calls outside of work, Jones watching him while Peter was busy with meetings and other ASAC type of things. They had barely chatted except in the daily briefings if there was one. Right now it was mostly mortgage fraud and cold cases, his mind numb from reading them. The coffee run was an excuse to get some sunshine if not play hookey a few minutes.

“I can’t talk right now. I have cases to get back to.”

He tried to sound as convincing as he could but even Hagan read him.

“Mortgage fraud and cold cases… sounds delightfully dull. I thought you had more finesse than to deal with such… trifles. I could just publish that video right…”

Hagan was playing with him but if he didn’t show up right away it wouldn’t be too much of a hassle. Jones and the rest of the crew were busy with their own cases. Who would notice him missing if just a little while. He had to shut the man up.

“What is it you want, Hagan.”

He sounded less than enthused the Brit chuckling humorlessly back.

“I have something for you to pick up. I’ll text you the address.”

()()()

Jones found nothing when he showed up at the coffee shop, asking when Neal had left as he asked the pretty barista who blushed at the mention of the CI. She remembered him and that he had been on his cell with someone he wasn’t happy to talk to. Jones took that into account before heading off towards Brooklyn. There was nothing to be found at the deli / coffee shop so he texted Peter when the signal went dead. Caffrey had apparently cut his anklet, the signal going offline near the carousel but that’s all he could guess as he hurried along the streets of New York. Whatever Neal was doing it wasn’t legal or his anklet would still be online. There wasn’t any reason the agent could see for the con to cut it but unlike his boss, Jones wasn’t as inclined to see the positive in what Neal did. Peter treated the con like family, in a way they all did, but right now he was just another criminal. He was keeping it quiet but the Marshals would be alerted soon and he was just waiting for that call to come in as he headed over the bridge towards the last known sighting of their would be consultant.

()()()

Peter called Jones soon as he was out of earshot of the hypocrites he called fellow department heads. They appreciated the work Caffrey did as with all the CIs but something about really thanking someone like Neal never occurred to them. Peter couldn’t say he was always nice to his friend but he tried. He made an effort to thank Neal for what he did or so he thought. He hoped Neal understood how he felt. To him he wasn’t just a tool in his belt or an asset but sometimes… he just wasn’t sure how to say what he meant.

“Jones, what did you find?”

He listened as the Special Agent in Charge replied, the sound of traffic evident in the background. He was going to miss a meeting to help look for Caffrey. It hadn’t been his intention but now he would have to to keep this as quiet as possible and make sure something bad didn’t happen. Neal had been fine when he spoke to him last but now this. Peter was trying to make sense of his friend’s current change in mood, the call from the Marshals office awkward but he had assured them he had it under control for now.

“Nothing so far. His signal went out near the Carousel under the bridge. I’m almost there but traffic’s hung up. You must have left Ruiz’s meeting early. You heading over?”

Jones seemed to be reading him pretty well, Peter almost certain he should just stay back and go to his next meeting but something told him he had to chase after Neal. There was definitely something hinky going on and his gut was pushing him to find out what.

“Yeah… I’m heading that way now. Call me if you find anything.”

The call ended, a slightly disappointed note in the other agent’s voice. Jones wanted to be in charge of things and technically Peter should be on the sidelines much as Hughes was but it was still too ingrained in him to be hands on. Even Jill had told him he couldn’t control every aspect and loose ends would always be an issue but Peter didn’t like to leave things open. Maybe that’s why he kept Neal close. The young man was a loose cannon but he also had good possibilities despite his actions. He was determined to get his friend to see them before he handed him off to some other agent much more let him loose into the world as a free man. Call it hubris but he felt he had to keep an eye on Caffrey and so far he’d been the only one to keep him in line. They had a connection.

Peter headed downstairs, the elevator taking forever before the doors opened at the lobby and he dashed off as the doors opened up to his car. He slipped into his BMW and took off from the FBI lot. He wasn’t exactly speeding but if someone pulled him over he had his badge and an excuse. He was technically chasing a runaway convict even if he wasn’t sure Neal had actually “run away.” He glanced at the dash as a call came in. It was Elizabeth.

“Hey hun.”

He was distracted, eyes on the road and traffic. It was just after 2 PM now and he was about to hit the school and early home bound traffic.

“Is Neal with you? I received a strange text today and no it’s not from Mozzie. I checked.”

El sounded worried, his mind wandering for a moment as he waited for the traffic to clear.

“Actually no, he’s not. What did it say?”

Now he was worried. Neal had texted his wife and not him? That didn’t sound right and yet his wife had asked as if she were uncertain.

“I don’t know that it’s from Neal but I’ll send it to you…”

He waited, hearing her adjust something in the background and then a beep as he received the message and read it. Elizabeth was waiting for a reply but traffic was moving and he had to get to the carousel and hopefully find Neal.

“Thank you hun. I’ll call you.”

He heard her say goodbye, promising to let her know what happened as they hung up and he pulled off towards the small touristy area underneath the bridge. He found a parking spot near another Federal sedan, Jones just walking over as he got out of his car.

“No signs of him, Peter. A few people recall a man in a suit walking around but that’s about it. They really didn’t pay attention to where he went but he did go inside the Carousel briefly before coming out again. That’s all I know. I’ve got Blakely pulling footage from the cameras. We’ll find him.”

Jones sounded concerned but mainly angry. Peter had also been angry with the con off and on lately, blaming him in some ways for what had happened with his incarceration but knowing it wasn’t Caffrey’s fault. Much like his wife’s kidnapping, he felt like things were getting too close so he had pulled away but the con had helped him as he always tried to. Maybe not in the traditional sense but James much to his surprise had offered up a confession, the only proof he had been innocent of Pratt’s murder. When things had seemed so very dark, Neal had come through for him. It made him wonder about his absence in the con man’s life of late. That would explain a few things but right now he had to find Neal and figure out what was going on.

“We will… You said he went in and out of the carousel? Let me know when Blakely has the footage and we’ll view it on my laptop. I’m going to nose around a bit.”

They separated, Jones on the phone while he wandered over to the carousel area. He went inside, past groups of parents and children waiting a turn on the ride. The horses were colorful and bright, posed in ways that indicated they were prancing around the ring. An old Wurlitzer played a tune in the middle, Peter watching the people until he saw something that made him walk over and sit beside a little boy and his mother on one of the benches.

“Hi… I’m sorry to bother you but I was looking for a friend of mine that said he would meet me here for lunch. He was wearing a nice suit, about 6 foot, thin…”

The lady was smiling at him, her son playing on the floor beside her with what looked like the same kind of origami gondola Neal had created at work earlier in the week. Was it a sign? What were the chances?

“Yes… very nice man. I guess you missed him? He was here about 30 minutes ago. He made that boat for my boy.”

Peter kept looking at the boat, smiling at her and nodding as they chit chatted noticing the boy looking at him.

“The nice man gave me a boat! Said to hold it for his friend.”

The reply made him blink, looking down at the child and smiling as he tried to figure out what he was saying. Suddenly the mother stood, excusing herself as the carousel came to a halt.

“Mark, it’s your turn on the carousel. Say goodbye to the nice man. I hope you find your friend.”

She smiled at him as they moved to leave, but not before the little boy smiled and gave him the boat before catching up with his mother. Peter smiled back, glancing at the delicate structure. It was made of a wrapper, something Neal must have been snacking on. The agent very carefully pulled the boat apart as he walked out of the carousel structure. Once the paper was back to a rough square he saw a very fine handwriting, light but legible and definitely Neal’s.

Unyielding in the pride of his defiance,

Afloat with none to serve or to command,

Lord of himself at last, and all by Science,

He seeks the Vanished Land.

Peter blinked, uncertain what to think of the comment but knowing it had to be a clue. It fit with the text Elizabeth had received but still made little sense. It was a line from a famous poem, one dealing with a case he was all too familiar with. What was Neal trying to tell him? Why was he acting more like Mozzie than himself with all the quotes. His cell buzzed.

“Burke… they did? Thanks, Jones. Be right there.”

Chapter List: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7
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