Notes: Why? This was only supposed to be a one-shot! But, then it just grew and grew and well, now it's multi-chaptered...
Anyway, I think you can guess which White Collar episode this one works off. There's a few familiar faces from Chuck too.
Hidden Past with Scorned Exs
Part 1
"He took my wife.
"Take me to the treasure."
El had been kidnapped, in part, because of him. That stung. Neal's mouth was dry and his head hurt. Even though Mozzie taught him to mediate, nothing helped to stop the jumble that was his thoughts.
Mozzie. Thinking of his other friend hurt just as much. Once again, he had given up a close friendship but, this time it had been for selfish reasons. Look at where that had gotten him.
El kidnapped, Peter enraged, the rest of the FBI pretending he didn't exist and no treasure.
No treasure.
Neal's head jolted back to the present at the sight of the large, grey and empty warehouse. The light was dim and the treasure was gone.
"Peter, it was here, I swear," he said, not even caring that his voice rang with his upset emotions. "He must have moved it."
"'He' being Mozzie?" Peter guessed. Neal's response was to nod and run his hands through his hair as he paced in a tight oval. He glanced up at the web-cam and wondered if Mozzie was watching them now.
Did he think that Neal had betrayed him by bringing the Suit here? Neal shook his head. There wasn't any other option, they had to save Elizabeth.
"What are you doing?" Peter asked as he raised his hand to the camera.
"Warning Moz," he explained as he used his hand to sign letters of the one-handed alphabet into the camera:
K-E-L-L-E-R H-A-S E-L-I-Z-A-B-E-T-H
Peter glanced up and spotted the camera, nodding to Neal as he signed.
"So, all it took was your wife in danger for you to pull your dog into heel," Keller commented to Peter as he walked through the door. Neal reached out an arm to stop Peter from surging forward.
"Keller," Neal greeted in a cold tone, "where's Elizabeth?"
"Straight to the point," Keller commented, "that's what I like about you, Caffrey. Or should I say, Larkin?"
With that single word, Neal's heart stopped.
"What?" Peter questioned.
"Oh, he didn't tell you?" Keller questioned with a smirk. "Bryce Larkin," he pronounced the name in a deliberate manner which caused Neal's heart to jolt. He didn't know how but, somehow, Keller knew. And he wasn't done yet. "It's his real name. Well, as real as someone who's used to changing identities in a flash could have."
Keller gave Neal a sidelong glance which brought a snap of anger through Neal.
"How do you know that?" he demanded to know, almost growling.
"It was quite simple, Bryce," Keller said, as if they were friends and as if he hadn't just revealed Neal's deepest secret, "and if you can't get the treasure, I'm sure we can make other... arrangements."
"What's that?" Peter asked, stepping in front of Neal. He didn't understand why Neal was having such a strong reaction to this name but he could sense that it wasn't good. Keller was holding something over Neal's head and Peter wasn't going to let him; not until he got Elizabeth back.
"I want to make a deal with Larkin's employers," Keller responded, "I have information they'd be interested in but, we'll get to that if you can't find the treasure. Tick, tock, Burkey, twelve hours left." Keller left and they had to let him go since he still had Elizabeth.
Neal watched as the FBI agents milled around quickly, trying to locate Elizabeth and Keller. He didn't know what to do. Keller knew who he was. Keller wanted to deal with the CIA. But, Neal didn't want anything to do with that. Keller knew his identity and he had kidnapped Elizabeth, Peter's wife and one of the few people who looked at Neal as saw more than a conman. Those were more than enough reasons for Neal to refuse his deal.
He looked back at the FBI agents and for a moment he felt like he should be out there, trying to find Peter's wife with the rest of the agents.
Agents. Realisation hit Neal and an idea came to mind. He pulled out his phone and took out the earpiece hidden inside the battery case and placed it in his ear. He held his phone to his ear, even though the sounds were being redirected to his earpiece. It rang twice before picking up.
"Carmichael Industries, you want it blasted, we blast it." That was not Chuck's voice and Neal assumed, correctly, that it was Morgan.
"What? Morgan! We don't answer the phone like that! No! No blasting!" There was fumbling on the other end as the phone changed hands. "Sorry about that," Chuck said in a formal tone, "Carmichael Industries, Charles Carmichael here."
Neal couldn't help a small laugh escaping, despite the dire circumstances.
"It's been a long time," he said, the device in his ear picking up his voice and sending it down the line.
"Bryce?" The surprise in Chuck's voice was evident.
As nice as it was to hear his friend's voice, Neal got right down to business.
"A friend of mine has been kidnapped," he explained, "her name is Elizabeth Burke and the kidnapper is Matthew Keller."
There was a pause on the other end before Chuck spoke.
"Keller's bad news," he commented, having flashed on the name, "what'd you do to end up on his radar?"
"I may have acquired, through a friend, a large collection of art and antiquities, worth a lot of money. Keller needs it to pay off a debt to the Russian mob."
"The same Russian mob who...?" Chuck didn't need to finish, they both knew what he was referring too. Bryce had managed to end up on the wrong side of the mob when he infiltrated them to extract an exposed CIA asset.
"That'd be the one."
"Geez, Bryce, you don't do things by half, do you? Have you thought about what'll happen if Keller sells them your identity?"
"It's crossed my mind." And the mob would probably let Keller out of his debt for it. But, Keller was playing a bigger game. "And, right now, I don't care. Elizabeth Burke needs to be found. The FBI is out in full force trying to find her but, we can help."
"'We'?"
"You're the best hacker I know," he praised, "the best spy I know and you're my best friend. Please. I need your help to find El."
"El? You're close?"
"She's a friend. Also," and he dropped his voice for this part as one could never be too careful, "do you know if anyone's in New York?"
"Let me just make this clear, are you asking for help?"
"Something like that. My movements are limited right now." And not only because of the anklet, he wouldn't put it past Keller to place a watch on him in case he went anywhere. "I need a team."
He could hear typing on the other end as Chuck checked.
"You're in luck. Zondra and Carina are in the city. I'll see if they're willing to lend their services."
"Thanks," Neal said, placing his phone back into his pocket. Chuck would make sure the link remained and bring Zondra and Carina in if they were willing.
"Is that Mozzie?" Peter asked, catching him at the end of the phone call.
"No," Neal sighed, "none of my calls are getting through and the emails I send keep bouncing." He was torn between hoping Mozzie saw the feed and hoping that Mozzie would stay away and safe.
"We can't tell the Bureau about Keller's demands," Peter said, "after last time, they won't deal with him." 'Last time' when Keller kidnapped Peter, an FBI agent.
Neal nodded in agreement.
"Tell me about Bryce Larkin," Peter said. It was the question Neal had been waiting for and the question he didn't want to answer. "And who are these 'employers' Keller wants to deal with?"
There was tense silence as Neal considered the best way to answer the question. There was never a good way to tell someone about being part of the CIA.
Peter took his silence as reluctance to answer the question.
"Keller has El, Neal! Whatever Keller has on you, it'd be better for you to tell me now! What's so special about Bryce Larkin?"
"He's-" Neal's voice trailed off as he turned to glance at the entrance and spotted the improbable.
Mozzie was walking in. His stance was stiff and his hands clenched around the straps of his messenger bag as if it was a lifeline. It was most certainly his bald and bespectacled buddy walking into the 'lions' den'.
"For once, words fail me. They can't possibly convey how sorry I am," Mozzie said to Peter.
"Do you have the treasure?" Peter asked, letting the 'Bryce Larkin' matter drop now they had access to the requested ransom.
"Yes," Mozzie said unhesitatingly however, he hesitated and added, "but, we can't give it Keller! Once he has it, he'll have no reason to keep her alive. Keller won't lose any sleep over killing a Fed's wife."
Peter casts a worried glance outside the conference room, where agents were moving quickly and with purpose in their attempts to find his wife.
"The only guarantee we'll have that my wife is safe is if the FBI finds her," he realised sadly, "but, there might not be enough time. Keller wants the ransom in a few hours."
Chuck explained the situation to Zondra and Carina and they were both for helping.
"Kidnapping a fed's wife, that's cocky," Carina commented in a smooth voice, "it's even more interesting that you care, Bryce. Sounds like an interesting game you've got going."
"We getting paid for this?" Zondra asked as the cocking of a gun sounded.
"We'll arrange something," Chuck responded.
"Meeting a woman who can resist Bryce's charms would be interesting too," Carina continued.
"She's married," Chuck pointed out, having brought up Elizabeth's file from the FBI.
"So?" Carina purred.
"Remember the mission, would you?" Neal grumbled into his phone, glancing over at Peter and Mozzie who were standing a short distance away. "We might not be able to stall long." He glanced over again and spotted Keller walking towards them. "Here he comes." He placed his phone in his pocket and walked over to stand by Peter and Mozzie. "You picturing yourself shooting Keller right now?" he asked Peter.
"No, I don't want to shoot him. I want to smash in his face repeatedly," Peter responded and Neal gave a whispered nod in agreement.
"I'm currently sticking bamboo under his fingernails," Mozzie added his two cents and Neal was impressed with his creativity.
"You guys talking about me? 'Cause my ears are burning," Keller quipped as he walked up. Peter looked like he was about to enact his fantasy but, Mozzie placed a hand on his arm to restrain him. Keller smirked at the sight and turned to Neal. "So, Larkin, what's it going to be? Treasure or deal?"
"What?" Mozzie questioned, apparently he had missed the information relating to Larkin and the other deal.
"Can't you tell? You can have the treasure but I'm not going to deal with you. Find someone else," Neal responded, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Hmm, that's nice," Keller commented in a sarcastic manner, "don't you have to check with your bosses first? They say 'jump', you say 'how high', that kind of thing. You're only the middleman, Bryce, and have you forgotten about my insurance?" Keller held up his phone and Neal wondered if he would ever forget about him taking El. "If I don't make a call every half hour, the lovely Mrs. Burke is dead."
"Ugh, this guy is a sleaze," Carina commented through the earpiece, having heard some of the conversation through Neal's phone.
"Don't worry, Bryce," Chuck said, "I've talked to the General and she says that the CIA's not willing to deal with Keller. He's in such hot water with the FBI that any attempt to bargain on our side will destroy any goodwill the FBI has left for us. Keller's not worth that."
Neal thought that was a double-sided blade. Sure, they wouldn't deal which was good because he didn't want to but, if Keller insisted on it and he couldn't then El might be put in more danger.
He hoped they found her soon; FBI, CIA, anyone. As long as she was safe.
"Here's the treasure," Mozzie said, handing Keller a device. On the screen was an image of another warehouse, different to the first one, with the treasure displayed. This was a gamble. A gamble on how much Keller wanted the treasure and whether he would be willing to overlook some delays.
"Mozzie, Mozzie, Mozzie," Keller scolded in his infuriatingly calm tone, "I've already seen a video feed of the treasure, now I want the real thing."
"We'll take you there," Peter said, "just give me my wife."
"That's not how this works," Keller said a bit of anger finding its way into his voice, "I get the treasure and then you get your wife."
"Fine," Neal said quickly, before anyone else could. "We'll take you there. But, then you need to free El."
"I thought you'd see things my way, Larkin."
Neal grit his teeth and imagined all the different ways he could hurt Keller. He wasn't normally a violent man, outside what his job required, but Keller just pushed all the wrong buttons.
They took Keller to where Mozzie had hidden the treasure. Mozzie, Peter and Neal had spent as long as they could unloading the boxes and making so it would be time consuming to box it all up and place it on the truck.
"Not very mobile, is it?" Keller questioned as he took a quick look around. Then he turned to Mozzie. "This isn't like you, Mozzie. I thought you liked it all clean and catalogued."
"It's worth the work," Mozzie responded in a huff.
"And here I thought we were working together," Keller said in a faux-hurt manner, "I mean, you can trust me more than your beagle friend." Keller motioned in Neal's direction as he said the archaic slang for a spy. "Woof, eh Bryce?"
Neal turned away, as if his feelings were hurt but he really was taking a moment to hiss in his phone for Zondra and Carina to hurry up before he did something he would regret.
"You have less than an hour to pack this all up for me," Keller said in a low tone, "and remember, I'll be watching." He waved the device in their faces, the screen showing them standing in the room surrounded by the treasure.