After Sir left the room, Neal began to struggle with his zip ties. He didn't have much luck with them as they were cinched so tightly he was beginning to lose feeling in his hands. He took a deep breath to try to calm himself.
"Okay Neal, you've been in worse situations before," he thought to himself. Oh boy who was he kidding, he had never been in a situation like this before! The first step was to figure out who he was dealing with. Second, he would need to find a weakness to exploit. Neal could talk his way out of almost anything and he was hoping this time was no different. His life literally depended on it!
Satisfied at least for now that he had some sort of action plan, Neal felt himself calm down a little. There was nothing he could do at this moment so he let his thoughts drift.
Who would have thought that when he woke up this morning things would turn out so completely messed up! Neal didn't want to admit it to himself but he actually felt hopeful that he would get his anklet off. He had a knack for solving difficult cases and he got a great sense of satisfaction out of helping people.
Like it or not, working with Peter had changed him. It felt good when Peter would look at him with pride in his eyes. Deep down he wanted to be a good man, to be more than a con. Peter saw that in him and always encouraged him to become that person. Peter's opinion mattered to Neal a great deal more than he would care to admit.
Now that Neal's adrenaline had worn off, he felt exhaustion slowly creep in. He was also really hungry. He hadn't eaten anything except for toast and coffee since this morning as he had been too nervous for the hearing.
He tried to wiggle his hands again but the zip ties wouldn't budge. He was so tired. "I'm just gonna rest my eyes a bit," Neal thought to himself. Before long Neal had slumped forward and fell into a restless sleep.
Neal awoke with a start. It took a minute to get his bearings but all too soon reality slammed into him. He had been abducted by a madman and was now held captive God knows where. Neal knew he wasn't asleep for long because his shirt was still damp from his initial "warm welcome."
Neal heard the door unlock and pretended to be asleep. Sir came in and walked over to Neal. "I know you're awake, Caffrey. There's no use pretending." Sir yanked Neal's head back. Neal threw a hateful glare at Sir. Neal glanced down and saw the tazer Sir held in his hand.
"It's punishment time Neal. You've been a naughty boy. Time for the tank."
"The tank?" Neal thought. "What the hell is the tank?"
Sir began to cut the zip ties from Neal's hands. Now was his chance to escape! Sir had left the door open when he came in. He just had to make sure he could overpower Sir and then he could run.
"Don't try anything stupid Neal. You won't get very far." Sir finished cutting the zip ties on Neal's hands and feet. He backed away and said, "Get up slowly and don't be a hero."
"I'm not going anywhere with you." Neal said defiantly.
"I'm not playing games with you. Now get up and walk!"
Neal stayed put. He glared at Sir. He wasn't going to make it easy for his captor. Sir came towards Neal and punched him squarely in the face. Neal's head snapped back and he saw stars.
"What happened to 'I abhor violence'" Neal mocked.
"Don't get me wrong Mr. Caffrey. Violence is not my preferred method of….persuasion but I'm not above using it to get what I what. And believe me you don't want to test me. Now get up!"
Neal knew he was pushing it but he refused to give in. "I'm not going anywhere with you until you tell me who you are and what you want."
Sir's frustration level was growing and he came menacingly towards Neal with the tazer. "Either you come with me willingly or we can do this the hard way. It's up to you Neal." Sir turned the tazer on and electricity cackled with a sickening sound.
Neal got up slowly and started backing away but he had nowhere to go. He was in a windowless room with no means of escape except for the one door that seemed like a million miles away. "C'mon, you don't want to do this." He held his hands up in a futile attempt to protect himself. Neal knew it was now or never. He ran towards Sir with as much force as he could. At the last second he tried to swerve around him to get to the door. Neal almost made it but Sir was quick and managed to grab Neal's arm. Sir flung Neal with such force that he slammed into the wall and crumpled to the ground.
Sir stalked over to Neal and pressed the tazer against him. Electricity coursed through Neal's body and he arched off the ground in agony before finally losing consciousness. Sir looked down at Neal's prone body and pressed the tazer against him again and again, watching in fascination as Neal's body convulsed with the electric current.
Sir knelt down next to Neal and whispered into his ear. "I guess we're doing this the hard way."