(Chapter 2)

Peter finished with arresting the three men at the bistro, heading to his vehicle out front, cell phone to his ear.

"FBI Agent Peter Burke requesting details on tracker 9305 Alpha." Peter slipped into his vehicle, phone held between his ear and shoulder as he started up the vehicle. Jones tapped on the window, Peter unlocking the passenger door, the other agent slipping inside. Peter nodded.

"The warehouse district? Thanks." Peter turned to Jones.

"They find Caffrey? Allen and crew are out chasing the white van." Jones squeezed his boss' shoulder.

"El just called me from Neal's phone. He's in the van with her unconscious. Someone hit him over the head." Peter frowned, his eyes revealing how emotional this was for him while his face tried to remain reasonable. Jones strapped himself in.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Jones grinned at Peter who nodded as they headed towards the warehouse district.

()()()

Jared drove the car practically on two wheels as he turned the corner sharply, evading the cops and FBI chasing him. He had his orders and he was going to follow them. He heard the cell vibrate in his pocket and pulled it out.

"Jared... Yes... Yes... You're sure? Ok." He hung up the cell and swerved the car down another narrow alley trying to lose the authorities as he headed towards the warehouse district. He came out into traffic on the other side, cars narrowly missing him as he slid into traffic and kept going. He was heading towards the water.

()()()

Elizabeth was being tossed around, holding onto Neal as much as she could to keep him from moving too much. The other women were stifling screams as they were also bouncing around with the sudden movement of the van. El hugged Neal to her, whispering desperately.

"Neal, wake up! Please..." He slumped in her arms, his head lying on her shoulder loosely. She continued to hold him as she felt the van seemingly gain air then the sound of an enormous splash. A loud gurgling sound surrounded them, Elizabeth listening over the quiet whimpers of the other women. The van felt like it was sinking, rocking softly back and forth. She turned as one of the women screamed.

The back door was buckling slightly, water starting to drip into the car with increasing pressure. El gasped, looking down at Neal's limp form and shaking him.

"Neal... Wake up! Neal!" She pulled the phone out again and dialed Peter. It picked up immediately.

"El, what's wrong? We're almost there." His voice was surrounded by the sound of wind and car sounds. She saw more water coming in and gasped with a little squeak.

"Water... the van is taking on water! We're sinking!" She was starting to panic, shaking Neal again. He roused slightly, eye lids fluttering but he didn't wake up. There was a sound of metal creaking as she felt the pressure in the van increase and the doors bend in a bit more.

"There are people there. I'll radio ahead. Keep calm. How are the others? How is Neal?" He was trying to distract her. She spoke again, voice still cracking slightly.

"Everyone's afraid and Neal's still unconscious. I can't wake him up! Peter... Hurry!" She sounded frantic, her breath panting as she started to lose it. Peter looked at Jones, his brown eyes wide with terror.

"I'm coming, El. Just hold on."

()()()

Neal felt himself falling into the icy water. His body ached, chest burning from the bullet he had taken when he pushed Peter out of the way. He was floating slowly downwards into the murky depths, arms reaching upwards, bubbles of air sizzling around him quietly as he continued to sink further into the cold water. He stared blankly at the colorful blues and greens as they sparkled above him. Neal saw a shadowy form break the surface, bubbles forming around them as they dove towards him. He didn't move, his body continuing to float weightlessly into the darkness. A hand reached out for him, blurry and murky in the dimly lit water. He saw the glittering of a silver watch face around the wrist. Neal recognized the watch; Knew who it belonged to but his mind was too hazy to put two and two together. He continued to sink further into the cold water, the hand continuing to reach for him but missing.

"Neal!" He heard the voice gurgling through the water.

"Neal!" It sounded less distorted now.

"Neal!"

He opened his eyes and peered up at two shiny blue spheres peering down at him. The light was dim in the van interior as he watched the lights flicker and go out. Several women gave gasps or stifled screams of fear, huddling together. Neal felt something cool and wet beneath him and grasped the thinly carpeted floor with his hands as he started to feel more alert. The carpet squished beneath his fingers, a quiet splashing of water around him.

"Neal? Oh thank goodness you're awake!" Elizabeth Burke was holding him to her but his hands still touched the carpeting, icy cool water filling the vehicle as he started to realize what was going on.

"El? Where's Peter?" Neal's voice was stronger but he was still not full conscious. He wanted to close his eyes but his head was hurting. He could feel the pressure of the water on the van. He winced at the sound of the metal creaking and groaning under the weight of the water around it. El was holding him tightly and rocking back and forth.

"Peter's coming. I used your phone to call him." Her voice cracked and he moved his eyes to look into hers and smile.

"Then everything is ok. We'll be ok." He felt himself going again but fought the darkness knowing El needed him. He sat up with a groan and leaned against the side of the van with El's help. He looked at the other women, there were five of them, their faces filled with panic. Neal coughed and they looked over at him curiously, eyes wide with terror.

"Can everyone swim here?" The women didn't answer, gasping and screaming ever so slightly with each groan of the vehicle. Neal splashed some of the water on his face which helped a little and spoke a bit more tersely.

"I need to know if you can swim. It's important if we're going to get out of here." Neal saw El look at the other women who finally started to reply. Only one wasn't able to swim but she could tread water and hold her breath. Neal nodded.

"Ok... this is what we're going to do. Follow my lead. Start taking deep breaths and I'm going to pick the door once we're ready." He saw El do it and she started helping the other women. Neal was doing it too, digging in his pockets for his lock picking kit.

()()()

The FBI agents, police and other authorities were standing there on the sidelines near the docks at the end of a long line of warehouses. Peter parked and ran out to see what was going on. The man with the soft voice was sitting on the sidelines, cuffed and held. He smiled in a strange manner that brought a chill to Peter. The man turned the smile on him.

"I only did what I was told. Burke must suffer." The man's voice was like a litany, his tone almost a mantra of sorts as he spoke with a blank stare, eyes following Peter. Jones took a hold of the agent and pulled him away as they went to see the damage. A bubbling gurgling sound came from the water where the van was sinking. Men were gearing up into scuba tanks and wet suits. Peter felt a pain in his chest.

"El!" He wanted to dive in and get her out of there but Jones held him back.

"Peter! Calm down! They'll get them out."