***DISCLAIMER: I do not own White Collar or The Mentalist***
Sorry about the short chapters, it's just how I roll. Please comment, I am totally cool with criticism.
Neal Caffrey stared at the photo he held in his hand and bit his lip to keep from screaming with frustration. After weeks of searching, he was sure he had finally identified the man who had taken his wife from him—FBI Special Agent Robert Lawrence. And now there was nothing he could do about it.
There was no way he could go to his handler, Peter Burke. Peter seemed to trust him now, after almost six months of working together, but Kate was still completely off-limits. Peter had made it explicitly clear that Neal was not even supposed to be trying to find her, but what choice did he have? He was drowning in a sea of despair without her, each day more difficult than the last.
Neal's eyes scanned the photo desperately, as if it might hold some clue as to Lawrence's whereabouts, some way to rescue Kate, but to no avail. He crumpled the page and flung it across the room before burying his face in his hands.
Suddenly, the phone rang, startling him out of his reverie. He answered it reluctantly.
"Mozzie?"
Mozzie answered, "Neal, that agent you asked me to check out—"
"Robert Lawrence," Neal interrupted.
"Him. I did some digging, and it turns out that Mr. Lawrence was stationed here in the Big Apple until a month ago. Then he was transferred to the… Sacramento field office."
"You could find a way to remove my ankle," Neal pleaded.
"Neal, you know I haven't found a way. I'm sorry, but Kate's gone."
"Thanks, Mozzie. I know you tried," Neal said tightly before hanging up and sinking into a chair.
Neal hated the feeling of helplessness. It was horrible in prison, having his life controlled, but unbelievably, he had found a way to feel even more confined.