A/N I'd like to thank my wife for reading my stories and encouraging me to write.

Mozzie raised his fist to knock on Neal's door when the door swung open.

"Hey Moz."

"Hi Neal. Where you off to?" Mozzie asked, as Neal walked around him and bounced down June's stair case.

"Library"

"Oh, a good book."

"Nope."

"Wha..huh? What's at the library if not books?" Mozzie asked.

"Information."

Mozzie spun around and hurried down the stairs following Neal.

"What are we looking for?" Mozzie poked.

"So you're helping me?"

"Sure why not," Mozzie answered. Mozzie locked in with Neal's larger stride. "What's the hurry?"

Mozzie looked at Neal and asked, "I thought you weren't going back down this rabbit hole?"

Neal was looking at microfiche newspaper stories from thirty years ago. "What I know about my dad is a black hole."

Mozzie cocked his head and waited for Neal to continue.

"My mom told me he was a hero and dead, I found the paper she had in her treasures shoe box that said he was a dirty cop and died while selling guns from the evidence room."

Mozzie continue staring.

"As a kid I always felt like he was watching over me. Growing up there are times I would swear I saw him. There is good and bad in everyone, I see it in myself, so I need to tie all the loose ends together. I need to know who he was. Why he did what he did."

"The Suit could help you with this." Mozzie wasn't sold on Neal's reasoning.

Neal looked at Mozzie. "Peter doesn't need to know anything about this."

Mozzie handed Neal a sheet of paper. "Here's that request form you wanted."

Neal opened his door with a folder full of paper. All from the library.

Neal sat at the table and started filling out the Freedom of Information Act request form Mozzie had got him.

Neal started filling in the necessary details, the reason Peter hadn't known anything about Neal's father was he had a different last name.

Speaking to himself as he filled in the lines of information. "New York Police Department."

Neal looked up as he heard a knock, Pulling the newspaper over his folder. "Just a sec," He called out as he stood up.

Peter opened the door. "Hey, Neal. Need a ride to the office?"

"I won't refuse it."

Neal saw a concerned look on Peter's face. "What's going on, Peter?"

"OK, we're in the car, tell me," Neal said staring at Peter.

Peter was playing with the navigation system. Neal was sure he was just wasting time.

"Peter… I'm in the car, tell me."

Peter had keyed in the address and started moving.

"Alex has been shot and she's in the hospital. We're going there now."

Neal pulled out the police light as his window was going down. "Damn it! Go go GO GO. Step on it." Neal's voice cracked.

Peter was already moving quickly, but Neal's mind was racing and not at all focused on what Peter was doing.

Neal and Peter ran into the hospital waiting room and Jones stopped them. "She's in surgery." He said.

"What happened?" Neal asked.

"Don't really know yet," Jones said. "It was called in and we had a flag on her name, other than being shot, we don't know a lot."

"Shot where? Where was she shot?" Neal asked.

"The doctor said torso, two GSW's to the torso" Jones caught himself, "Gun Shot Wounds."

Neal slumped into a chair next to Peter. "Thank you, and you too, Peter, for getting me here."

Peter watched Neal shake his legs as if he was drumming and gripping the chair's arms, a lot of nervous energy. "That's not going to help."

Neal looked at his hands, releasing them and then flexing them. "I'm just worried. I still have a lot to say to her."

"The doctor will tell us more when they can," Jones said, "You know everything I do."

Peter stood, "Thanks Clinton, you don't need to stay. I know you have other stuff to do."

"Thanks, boss." Jones said and walked out the door.

Peter walked to the reception area and told the person there they were in the waiting room.

He flashed his badge just to ensure they were told as soon as the surgery was over.

Peter walked back in and saw Neal in the same chair but bend over in the position people have you get in if they're afraid you're going to faint, head between his knees.

"You OK?"

Neal sat up straight and looked at Peter, not saying a word.

"That position you were in had me worried," Peter said.

Neal put on a brave face and asked, "What case did you have for us today?"

"Mortgage fraud."

"Ugh."

Peter sat back, looked at the clock, and exhaled.

Neal rocked in his chair and his legs were still going.

Peter looked at Neal. "What is it you want to say to her, Neal?"

Neal stopped rocking and his legs slowed and then stopped. "There's so much… I still need to figure it out myself."

Mozzie walked into the waiting room. "How's she doing?"

"Don't know yet, she's still in surgery," Neal said.

"Where's the Suit?"

"Using his badge to get updates."

Mozzie thought about saying something about abusing the power of Peter's position, but didn't say anything.

Mozzie looked at Neal and could see his pain. "You really care about her, don't you?"

"Yes, of course I do. And I'd like to tell her about it."

"Which door is he coming through?"

"What?"

"The suit, which door?"

Neal pointed.

Mozzie moved so he could see the door.

Peter walked down the hallway and could see Mozzie through the glass door.

He could hear them talking, but the talking stopped as he opened the door.

"You have company," Peter said.

"Mozzie came as soon as he found out."

Peter looked to Neal and Mozzie wondering what was going on. "What did you find out?" Peter asked.

Mozzie looked to Neal. Neal nodded.

"Alex was found about three blocks from her home. She goes shopping each day for the food she plans to eat that day. Gets the freshest food that way. On the way home she was shot. She had a bag in her hands, so wasn't as quick as she would have been without the bag."

"Do you know who did this?" Peter asked.

Mozzie was perturbed at his story being cut short. "Yeah, a street punk did the shooting. Not sure if it was by request or not."

"By request?" Peter said, "Who is this punk? I'll have him yanked off the street so fast his untied shoes will be left behind."

"That's not really working for you, Peter, but thanks." Neal put his hand on Peter's shoulder.

Mozzie handed Peter a note with all the details.

Peter pulled out his phone and called Jones.

Peter closed his phone. "Jones and Diana are working to catch this punk."

Mozzie looked at Neal. "You're going into that dark place again, Neal."

Neal looked at Mozzie. "I've lost too much already. I can't do this again."

"Why don't you talk to the Suit about the Li.."

"Don't you have book club." Neal cut Mozzie off. Peter didn't need to know about the library.

Peter asked, "Tell me about what lie?" Peter raised his eyebrows and waited for Neal to answer.

Neal was quick though. "I told you I didn't care about what happened to the punk. But the truth is, I want him caught, I want five minutes alone with him."

Peter looked at Neal trying to decide if he believed him or not.

Mozzie stood up. "Maybe I should go."

"No, please don't." Neal was hurting and Mozzie could see it in his face.

The door opened and a doctor walked in.

Alex's eyelids started moving and then opened slowly. Everything was blurry. She heard Neal, she could smell Neal.

What did he say? "Neal"

"I'm here Alex." Neal held her hand.

Alex tried to get up on her elbows.

"No, no. Don't move, Alex, you were shot twice, just lay there and rest."

"I was there, I hurt, I know I was shot. Just wanted to look at you."

Mozzie sat uncomfortably with Peter in the waiting room.

Peter looked at Mozzie fidget. "So what are you guys up to lately?"

Mozzie jumped up, and almost yelled "Book club!", then at a regular tone he added "'Poetry is the opening and closing of a door, leaving those who look through to guess about what is seen during a moment.'" He took a breath and smiled and then added, " Carl Sandburg." Mozzie moved quickly to the door and was gone.

Peter walked down the hallway towards Alex's room. The white walls and familiar smell of hospital antiseptic gave the image of clean, but also made him wonder why anyone wanted to be in health care. Peter poked his head in the door. Neal's back was toward him, sitting on the edge of the bed.

The room was quiet except for the medical monitoring equipment. "She's still out?"

"She woke up and we spoke, but she's out again," Neal answered without turning around.

Neal finished folding a piece of paper and placed it in Alex's hand. Standing up and then walking toward Peter and the door, Neal said, "Let's go get this guy."

The conference room looked to be in use, he could see Diana and Jones there, but Neal followed Peter in.

"What do you have?" Peter asked.

"The info you got from Mozzie points to a real winner," Diana said.

Jones followed that immediately, "Joey Garmini, has been in and out of trouble his whole life. Juvie at nine, stolen car. Again at ten, robbed the store his mother worked at, then from twelve until he was eighteen, for running over a kid with another stolen car. Numerous fights while in detention." Jones flipped a page and continued, "Mozzie's note said this kid wants to be part of the Colnago crime family, we spoke with Alan over at Organized Crime Unit and he's confirmed Joey has been seen a number of times."

"Do we have an idea where he is now?" Peter asked.

"Still looking," Jones answered.

Peter looked to Neal. "Know anything about Colnago or if Alex knows them?"

"Hard not to know them. Italian crime family with some legitimate businesses. I'd guess for laundering. In the paper often, many crimes speculated to be run by them. I stay away from them, too many guns. I'd expect the same for Alex."

"Would they have any reason why they'd want Alex dead?

Neal stood there in silence. Peter waited.

Neal was looking out the window when he started speaking. "Vincent Adler was really upset with her for looking into him, she was trying to get info on the music box. Is there a chance this goes back to him?"

"It's as close to a reason as we have at this point," Peter said, unsure if it was a sound reason.

"How are we going to find out?" Diana asked.

Everyone looked at her, not understanding her question.

Diana looked at everyone and then re-phrased her question. "We cannot go to the Colnago's and ask if Adler had a hit put out on Alex. Unless we can find him and make Joey talk, how will we find out about the reasons for what happened?"

Neal pulled out his phone and dialed a number, everyone else just looked at him. "Mozzie, I think we need your expertise."

Peter didn't like the way that sounded. "I don't know th…"

Neal held up his hand. "That's right, OK… Let me know when you have something." Neal hung up.

Peter looked at Neal. "You don't get to stop me, you don't get to shush me either."

"Peter, I have to stroke his ego to get him to work sometimes and this time it'll get him going faster."

Peter wasn't happy but knew Mozzie had the best chance of getting information quickly.

"Is that from your boyfriend?" the nurse asked.

Alex was waking up when her vitals were being recorded.

"Boyfriend?" Alex asked.

The cute guy that was at your bedside all morning, until his cop friend pulled him out.

Alex smiled and tried to stretch and felt something in her hand. A paper flower.

Peter looked at his watch. "How long will this take?"

Everyone else looked to Neal. "This kind of information isn't on the internet, Peter, and it won't travel over phone lines. There are real conversations that need to take place ….squeaky palms that need to be greased." Neal held up his hand and rubbed his thumb and fingers together, "Only the right people might know something and they need to feel good about giving that information away."

Peter looked to Diana and Jones. "Let's get out on the street and find Joey."

Mozzie walked up to a man in a white suit. "Hale."

"Moz"

"Have you heard about our silver friend?" Mozzie asked referring to Alex's Spanish silver.

"No, why? How has she been?"

"We're trying to find out why she was shot."

Hale jumped. "Shot!.. How bad is it? Is she OK? Where is she? Do you know who did it?"

"Bad, yes, at the hospital near her place and yes, we know who. Trying to find him and why he did it.

Mozzie called Neal at five forty five. "I got Hale involved. We have everyone we know looking for Garmini and looking into why.

Neal looked to Peter. "No news yet, but our team just became huge."

"Our team? What do you mean?"

Alex sat up in bed reading the note that had once been a flower. She smiled and started to fold it back into the shape Neal had left it in.

"My boyfriend."

The nurse was checking fluids. "Sorry?"

"Oh, I said, my boyfriend."

The nurse smiled. "It was a nice note?"

"Yes, it was."

"Hale just called." Mozzie started. "Joey Garmini is staying at a motel, one with a dog. The dog won't let him out of his room, he's making a lot of noise."

"No." Neal couldn't believe it. "Has he said who hired him as a shooter?"

"He says he doesn't have a name, but it was a thin faced Timothy Hutton look-a-like.

"Wow, thanks, Moz."

Neal turned to Peter. "Garmini is at your motel, motel with an 'M', as in 'what's with the dog' motel. And Adler hired him."

Jones was out the door before Peter said a thing. Diana looked at Peter and said, "We'll bring him in."

Neal sighed. There was a lot of weight on his shoulders.

Peter closed the folders in front of him and was about to tell Neal to go when Neal asked, "Peter, I'd like to go check on Alex, if you don't mind."

"Go ahead. Let her know we're all thinking about her, and working to catch this creep."

Neal smiled at Peter. "Thanks."

Alex was asleep when Neal stepped into her hospital room. Her flower was still folded in her hand. Neal bend over and kissed Alex's forehead and then sat down in the 'visitor chair'

Neal watched Alex sleep. Neal whispered to Alex, "We caught him, the guy that shot you. Adler hired him. Trying to figure out why still."

Alex continued to breathe slow deep breaths. Neal watched until he fell asleep too.

Alex opened her note and re-read it.

Alex,

I heard a song on the way over here, I can't remember it all, but it went something like this

"When I wake up, I want to be happy.

I feel my heart ticking away and I'm out of my head.

It's time to leave it all behind, to take a risk."

That song spoke to me in ways I can't put a finger on.

This morning I woke up and saw you, and I was happy.

Happier than I remember.

It took you being in danger for me to realize, our time is slipping away.

I'm sorry it took until now for me to see it.

I would be crazy not to tell you, at the risk of embarrassment and rebuke, please let me show you what you mean to me.

Love,

Neal

The nurse came back into the room.

"So your boyfriend stayed with you all night again." She was writing on Alex's chart.

"Where is he?" Alex asked.

"His cop friend came and got him again."

Alex was disappointed she missed Neal again. "So how am I doing?" Alex asked.

"Not bad at all for someone that was shot twice and for losing as much blood as you did."

"How soon before I'm up and moving around like normal?"