Let Your Heart Hold Fast
Chapter 3
Over the next few weeks, Peter and Elizabeth thought often of young Neal. Elizabeth was hoping that Peter would use his FBI resources to look into William and Jenna Miller, but he was reluctant to do so without good reason. He had finally worked up to Special Agent in Charge of the White Collar unit and didn't want to do anything to jeopardize his position.
Eventually, though, Elizabeth wore him down and he agreed to ask one of his agents to vet both of the Millers. What he found out was disconcerting, to say the least. Without digging too deep, William appeared to be an honest business man who had taken over the family business at a young age, after his father and grandfather were killed in an accident. He had managed to bring the business out of a fairly significant downfall and steer it into a contemporary, successful business.
Digging deeper, though, it all fell apart, legally. William had misappropriated millions of dollars' worth of funds through false business accounts and fraud. His charity organization was a front for laundering money and tax evasion on a grand scheme. In Peter's quest to figure out what was going on with Neal, he had opened up a rather large can of worms that his colleagues were all eager to take care of.
It wasn't until Peter checked out Jenna Miller that he was able to figure out their relationship with Neal. Jenna was actually the older sister of Neal's mother and had gained custody of Neal when his mother died the year before. Neal's father was out of the picture and there was no other family that Peter could find.
Peter shared this news at dinner that night with Elizabeth. She was sad to hear that Neal had lost his mother at such a young age, especially since that meant that he was now with people that didn't seem to care for him. She questioned her husband relentlessly about what it would mean for Neal once they were able to take William Miller down for his various crimes. She wasn't happy to hear that they still had nothing on Jenna, which meant that Neal would still have to stay with an aunt that didn't seem to want him.
Peter promised her that he would do what he could to make sure that Jenna was on the up and up, ensuring that Neal wasn't in any danger.
It took almost another month for Peter and his crew to be able to gather the evidence they needed to arrest William Miller. Unfortunately, they had tipped him off early on in the investigation, making it that much harder to find the evidence they needed.
On the day Peter finally authorized the arrest, his team showed up at Miller Technologies and Manufacturing with the arrest warrant to find William holed up in his office with a gun. Peter wasn't sure how he found out that they were on the way, but it definitely made things more difficult for them. Peter was horrified to find out that there were reports of a young boy in the office, as well. He knew that more than likely it was Neal and suddenly they were all faced with a hostage situation.
NYPD and the SWAT team arrived fairly quickly, forcing Peter and his crew to step back. They watched from a safe distance as the hostage negotiator talked with William for several hours. They were trying to get some food sent up to the office, but William wasn't letting them.
Eventually, the sun set, leaving them to wait impatiently in the dark for a breakthrough of some kind. Peter had called Elizabeth to tell her that he was going to be late, but didn't tell her what was really going on, knowing that she would be beside herself with worry. Instead, he was worrying enough for both of them.
By three in the morning, Peter had had enough of waiting around. It was obvious that the hostage negotiator was having very little luck in dealing with William and Peter thought that it was time to take matters into his own hands.
After discussing a few things with the lead officer and the negotiator, Peter was able to convince them to let him talk to William. He wasn't sure how receptive the man would be to him, either, but he had to give it a try for Neal's sake.
Once he had initiated contact, he was surprised to find that William was willing to talk to him. He was even more surprised to find out that apparently Jenna had left William earlier that day when she found out that the FBI was closing in on him. That obviously meant that she had left Neal behind, as well, which probably made William even angrier.
Peter tried to talk the man into letting Neal go, appealing to his sensibility without any luck. He did, however, get the man to agree to let him come up to the office to talk face to face. The SWAT commander wasn't too happy with this idea, but Peter wasn't going to back down.
Leaving his gun downstairs, Peter walked up to the fifth floor of the building and after identifying himself, he walked into William's office. Quickly taking in the scene around him, Peter found William sitting behind his desk. Looking around, he finally found a sleeping Neal who was leaning against the wall by the window.
"Mr. Burke, I don't know what you think you're going to accomplish by coming up here. I don't have anything else to say to you."
Peter noticed the gun that was laying on the desk, inches away from William's hands. He felt naked without his own gun, but was at least glad that he had a two-way earpiece in that would allow SWAT to know what was going on.
"Mr. Miller, I'm just here to see if we can work things out without anyone getting hurt." Peter stole another quick glance at Neal, who appeared to still be sleeping. "I'm sorry to hear about Jenna leaving you. I'm sure that was a big shock."
William laughed at that. "Not a shock at all, Burke. I'm not fool enough to believe that she married me for any other reason than the fact that I'm rich. Now that I'm faced with losing millions, why would I expect her to stay around? I have to admit, though, that I didn't expect to get saddled with a five year old."
"Listen, Mr. Miller…..how about if I get Neal out of here so you and I can talk?"
"I don't think so, Burke. I figure that he's the only insurance policy I have against the FBI swarming the building."
"Come on," Peter answered. "He's just a kid, William, and I'm sure he's hungry, tired and scared. I give you my word that the FBI will stay back and let us figure things out, if you let me get him out of here."
"No way. The kid stays. You, on the other hand, should leave, Agent Burke. We have nothing to talk about."
"I'm not leaving without Neal, so it seems to me that you and I do have something to talk about."
Peter took off his jacket and bent down to cover Neal. He was glad that the kid didn't wake up, thinking that the less he was awake for the better. Turning back to face William, he was shocked to see that the man had picked up his gun.
"Mr. Miller...William, please put the gun down. I'm unarmed and there's no need for that." Peter tried to talk as calmly as he could, but it didn't seem to be working. William continued to hold the gun, passing it from hand to hand.
When Miller stood up and started walking around the room, Peter made sure to place his body between the man and the sleeping child. Miller's movements were becoming more and more agitated as the seconds went by, and Peter had a bad feeling that something was about to go down.
"Agent Burke, I've been trying to figure out how the FBI caught on to what was going on here and the only theory I have is that somehow in the process of planning the benefit gala through your wife's business, you must have found something that triggered your interest." Miller looked at Neal, who was showing signs of stirring because of the increased activity in the room. "Or, maybe it was something that the boy said to you while you and your wife were coddling him in the back room that night."
"Mr. Miller, listen….I'm exhausted and I can tell that you are, too. Let's end this, okay? There's no way you're getting out of this, but if you cooperate with me right now, maybe I can work out some kind of deal for you."
"Some kind of deal? Like what, Agent Burke? You'll make sure I get a cell that faces the sunrise? Or make sure I get a good roommate? That's not going to work for me. I'm not going to prison, Burke. So, either you find a way to get me out of here, or I'll make my own way." With this, Miller pointed his gun towards Neal, who by this time was wide awake.
Peter didn't know the boy was awake until he heard a sharp intake of breath behind him. Not taking his eyes off of the man in front of him, Peter spoke to the scared boy. "Neal, remember me? I'm Elizabeth's husband, Peter. Just stay right there, okay? Don't move and just listen to what I say. Do you think you can do that?"
"Yes, sir," Neal answered in a small, tired voice.
Peter and William continued to talk, with Peter doing his best not to escalate the situation. He knew he wasn't getting through to the man, and he knew that something had to give pretty soon. SWAT wouldn't let this drag on for too much longer.
Things finally came to a head when Peter heard Neal quietly crying behind him. "Neal, are you okay?" he asked, without turning around.
"I have to go to the bathroom, Peter." Neal's voice was shaky. "And I'm thirsty."
Keeping his eye on Miller, Peter answered. "Okay, bud, let's see what we can do about that." Before he could say anything to William, the man answered Neal himself.
"That's the problem, isn't it, boy? You're always needing something. Every time I turn around, I'm faced with giving you something or taking you somewhere. You're not even my kid and I'm tired of being stuck with you!"
"William, come on, man….the kid just needs to use the bathroom. That's all. It's no big deal."
William was swinging the gun around even more frantically, making Peter tremendously nervous. "How do I know this isn't something the two of you cooked up, Burke? Is this part of your plan to get the boy out of here? Then what? You're going to take me down? I don't think so, Burke. Neal, get over here!"
Peter's heart sank at these words. "No, Neal. Stay where you are!"
William's face was growing redder by the second. "Neal, if you don't get over here right now, I'll shoot your friend and then I'll shoot you."
Peter heard Neal getting to his feet and tried to grab the boy as he ran past him. "Neal! No!"
He was too late and seconds later, William was holding Neal in front of him, his gun pointed at his head. All Peter could do at the moment was stare at the big blue eyes that were begging him for help and ask himself how he had lost control of the situation so quickly.
The events of the next several minutes were forever imbedded in Peter's memory. Everything happened rather quickly, but it seemed to play out in slow motion before him. He watched in horror as Miller continued to jab the gun into Neal's head, but before he could think to do anything, Neal bent his neck down and bit hard on the arm that was still wrapped around his chest. At the same time, he twisted his body around, taking advantage of William's shock at being bitten. Just as Neal darted off to the side, Peter jumped into action, bringing his leg around in a roundhouse kick, knocking the gun out of William's hand.
Without wasting any time, he jumped on the man, bringing him down to the floor in a tangled heap and before anything else could happen, the office door flew open and they were surrounded by the SWAT team.
Once William Miller was handcuffed, Peter turned to look for Neal, finding him standing over in the corner. Peter couldn't believe that the boy had done what he did. He couldn't help the slight bit of anger he felt at the recklessness of Neal's actions, but at the same time, he was glad to have the situation over.
Rushing over to the boy, he knelt down in front of him and looked him over from head to toe. "Are you okay, Neal? Are you hurt?"
He was surprised when Neal threw himself into his chest, throwing his little arms around Peter's neck. He could feel the small body trembling, and he pulled him in tighter. "It's okay, little man. It's all over, okay? You're safe now. I've got you."
They stayed like that for several minutes before Neal finally pulled away. Looking up at Peter with his impossibly blue eyes, Neal finally spoke. "Peter, I really, really have to use the bathroom!"
Author's note: Whew! That William is a piece of work, isn't he? I'm glad he's out of the picture. I hope those of you who have read my other story don't mind that Peter is using the 'little man' endearment again. It just seems to be so perfect for Neal and definitely seems like something Peter would say.
I would love to hear your thoughts on the chapter. I'm not the best action writer, so I hope that everything flowed easily enough and wasn't too hard to follow in the last part of the chapter. Thank you all for the love I'm already feeling for this story. You guys are amazing!
