(Chapter 4)
Neal wasn't sure where Mozz had taken him. They were in a cab and then they were in a building he hadn't seen before. They entered what seemed to be an alley but turned into a passage that was old masonry like something from the days of prohibition before they ended up in what seemed to be a fairly normal apartment of sorts. He was in pain, the dislocated arm still aching as was the rest of his body where Peter had pushed him around. The agent had far more strength than Neal gave him credit for but Peter didn't normally go around hitting suspects much less his own partner. The con was too out of it with pain to think straight as he was led to what felt like a comfortable bed and crashed. Someone removed his shoes as he started to pass out, a warm blanket pulled over him and darkness descended.
His dreams were not what he expected, Neal finding himself laying on a bunk in a cell again as he had before. A dim light through the bars threw shadows across him and another figure as his eyes grew accustomed to the gloom. Neal was on his feet before he knew it, reaching up to cut down the limp form dangling from the ceiling. They wore an orange jump suit, arms bound behind them tightly with only a very slight movement indicating they were still living.
"Peter? No..."
Neal somehow found a knife in the cell and stood up on the bunk as he reached across and cut the figure down from the pipe above. A makeshift noose of sheets and clothing held the agent up around the neck, his feet just short of the floor below. Peter's limp form hit the cement with a resounding thud as Neal cut loose the agent's arms and tried to rouse him. He carefully removed the noose, checking for a pulse and breath. Peter was just barely alive, a shallow warm breath escaping grayish lips. He wasn't sure what was going on or why the agent had been hanging from the ceiling but Knox had to be behind this. Anger flowed from him as he cursed softly. The agent twitched slightly drawing his attention back to his friend.
"Peter? Hey..."
The agent's closed eyes fluttered in the darkness but didn't open right away. Neal pulled the pillow from the bunk and pushed it under his partner's head, grabbing a blanket to pull over him. The agent grasped his hand after a moment, the grip tight enough to make Neal wince despite knowing he was dreaming.
"Peter? Peter, wake up."
Neal waited for a response, Peter giving a quiet groan as Neal moved closer to try and hear what his friend was saying. It was too sudden for him to react as the words began to make sense.
"Hungry..."
He didn't understand what that meant until his eyes met those of Peter's. Neal tried to pull away but those hands were holding him tightly, blank dark eyes like a bottomless well gazing up at him instead of brown. This wasn't Peter Burke but something else, coldness seeping into him from those hands. Neal was frozen not from fear from the thing looking up at him as his gaze was swallowed by those dark eyes and cemented him to the spot. Knox must have planned this but how he was manipulating his dreams he didn't understand as he pulled away slightly but found he was too weak to escape the ghoul's hold. He was trapped for now, the creature drawing strength from him as he stared into those dark eyes. Neal was fading away, his body going numb as the thing he had thought was his friend continued to whisper with a rattling voice.
"Hungry..."
Neal could see himself turning clear in the dream, as the thing drew more of its strength from him but he was unable to fight it. His mind was becoming mush until he felt someone pull him away, a hiss coming from the creature just before he felt himself turned to look up at his rescuer.
"Neal? What are you doing here? Neal?"
He couldn't answer as everything turned to darkness and suddenly he found himself awake and staring up at a strange ceiling. Neal gave a groan and sat up, his eyes looking around the room before he noted the figure snoring softly in the corner on a chair. It was Mozzie. He looked down to examine his hurt arm, holding it to his side protectively as he removed his belt and used it as a makeshift sling before he rose quietly. He felt a little weak but mostly he was hungry and thirsty, glancing over at a clock radio to see that he'd slept for several hours already.
"Bout time you woke up. I have a sling if you need it."
Neal turned to see Mozzie watching him curiously as the little guy stretched and yawned, he stood up and followed him to a small kitchenette in the corner. He pulled out two glasses and a plate, filling one with water before he opened up a mini fridge and grabbed what looked to be left over Chinese take out.
"Sesame Chicken if you're up to it. Here's some pain meds for when you're done. I called Tiny and he hooked us up."
Neal gave a quiet nod of thanks, too tired to think as he took the food and pills towards a small dining table and sat down. Mozzie brought the glass for him as he dropped the sling beside him.
"How are you feeling? You were pretty out of it earlier."
He took a few bites of the take out before he popped the pills, downed the water and sighed as he pulled on the sling for his hurting arm and shoulder.
"Miserable. I'm on the run, Mozz and I don't think I have much time."
The little guy took a seat at the table and stared at him over his glasses.
"Time for what? You never really said what was going on but I get the impression it has to do with the Suit?"
Neal took another few bites as he nodded back and sighed again. To everyone it was going to look suspicious he ran when Peter accused him of stabbing him. Had El already found out? She must have. He was still trying to figure out Knox's game as he heard a cough and glanced back over at Mozz.
"I looked into that Knox fellow you mentioned. His MO changed after he gained a new partner. Before that he was pretty harmless."
Mozzie stood, taking Neal's glass as he went to the sink, refilled it and placed it back beside him. He then walked across the room to a small filing cabinet, opened up a shelf with a key from around his neck and pulled out a folder before he walked back and dropped it beside Neal. Neal stopped eating long enough to open up the folder with his good hand and sift through it.
"Rily Ko? Never heard of him. Anything on his past?"
Neal continued to read through the file but saw more on Knox who had been on the radar than Rily. Something was off with the name but his head was still swimming some from the pain and now the pills he'd taken. Mozzie shrugged.
"All I know is that he was into some interesting hobbies, one of which included collecting books on the occult. He also had some dealings with a now defunct university up north. Nobody will talk about the place, the area or the man when I tried to dig up more background. They seemed frightened. Something odd about this whole business if you ask me."
The little guy was pacing around as Neal finished what little he could still eat and stood. The room swayed a bit so he walked slowly back to the bed and sat on the edge until everything settled again. Mozzie watched him but kept up his pacing.
"Keep an eye on El. I think Knox will try something with her."
Mozzie stopped his pacing and looked at him oddly.
"I thought you said Knox was dead, Neal? Is there something I should know? I still have no idea why you were running if you're not going to make a dash for our island."
He sounded frustrated and Neal felt badly but would Mozzie believe him?
"It's a long story, Mozz. Knox got to Peter is all I can say for now. Let me rest some more and I'll tell you when I wake up. Promise."
The little guy nodded before he moved close enough to look at Neal directly.
"I need to go out for a few hours. Get some supplies but I will check on El and tail her for a bit if you're going to be ok?"
Neal nodded to his friend as Mozzie gave a dubious nod back.
"I'll be fine here. Just going to rest. Call me."
Mozzie nodded, dropping a burner beside him on the nightstand just before he left the place. It was quiet after his friend left but Neal needed to think and the pills weren't helping. His pain was less but his mind was slow and he needed to think things through. If he didn't... No that wasn't an option. He had to do something to help Peter and protect El. Others might be in danger but he wasn't sure. So far Knox had only tried and failed to kill Neal which meant Peter must be resisting him. Peter was strong willed or why would he have seen him in the dream? It puzzled Neal as he leaned back against the mattress and slowly drifted off again. He had tried lucid dreaming before, maybe he could use those talents for visualizing a heist to work for him against Knox. He was good at improvising. The con smiled to himself, drawing a deep breath and slowly easing back into the land of dreams.
()()()
Elizabeth was worried about her husband. It had been a week since Peter had accused Neal of trying to kill him but things were settling despite the still missing con. Jones and Diana were taking some flack from Hughes if not the higher ups for losing the young man while he was still in the hospital under their watch. Peter had talked to his boss about Neal's supposed innocence but everyone thought he was justifying something to protect the con. He told them about not remembering the incident or talking to the nurse. El had already heard the story from him before his testimony was taken but when he came home, Peter's look told her that things weren't good. Neal had run and cut his anklet and he was as good as back in prison if not for life from his run then for hurting a Federal agent. Peter cursed under his breath, pacing the apartment despite his injuries. He was on administrative leave by request not of Hughes but the higher ups and OPR. The were going to consider his case and figure out if he was suffering from Stockholm syndrome or something else. The impression she guessed was they thought her husband had somehow helped Neal escape out of some duty and the stabbing was a ploy. For now his badge and gun had been taken and by what she'd heard not happily by Hughes himself.
"Honey... what's this?"
She looked at his wrist curiously, a strange mark there she hadn't noticed amongst the bruising he still had from his injuries. Peter glanced at the site but didn't seem to notice anything odd.
"Just bruises. It will go away soon the doctor said. I'm fine."
He started to pull his arm away as she reluctantly let go but knew she was seeing something there. It wasn't as clear as it could be but it looked something like half of a yin-yang symbol, the dark part she thought with a white dot in it. El sighed, uncertain of things as she tried to read her husband but felt a difference there she couldn't quite figure out. He was her same loving husband if not a bit more banged up but something was missing.
"I know but I worry. Neal is innocent and they won't believe you."
She watched him run a hand through his hair worriedly, his brown eyes staring thoughtfully out their front window before he turned and looked at her, his hands grabbing her arms in a gentle but firm hold.
"I'll find out who did this. I might not remember but... there has to be a clue. Someone else was there, El. Neal didn't do this!"
He hugged her tightly and she wrapped her arms around him. Whatever she thought she sensed disappeared as she comforted the man she loved. He was vulnerable right now and worried about Neal more than his own career. That's what she loved about Peter. He stood up for what he believed no matter what.
"I believe you, Peter. We'll figure this out and everything will be fixed. It's just a bad mistake."
She pushed him to arms length after a bit and saw what seemed to be unshed tears in his eyes. Peter rarely got emotional but after everything that had happened she couldn't blame him.
"Why don't you take a nap on the sofa, hon. I need to run a few errands but I'll be back soon. Did you want me to bring you back anything particular to eat?"
He shook his head, sitting down on the sofa as she leaned over and kissed him on the lips. They shared a moment before pulling apart as she headed for the door. That feeling remained that something was off but she wouldn't worry. Peter seemed to be his same old self. Maybe it was her that was off.
"I'll be back soon."
()()()
Peter watched his wife leave, leaning back against the sofa cushions and closing his eyes. He'd felt a hesitation with her. El was worried about him but she wasn't saying why. He'd been feeling less than himself but maybe it was the blackouts. They were few and far between but the doctor blamed them on his head injury. They'd done several tests when he was in the hospital but found nothing wrong with him. It didn't help that he couldn't say what had happened the day Neal had run. He knew they'd been chatting and then suddenly nothing. He sensed someone else had been there but who, he couldn't say. It was a total blank and his memories refused to cough up any information. He curled up on the sofa, taking El's advice as he slumped back against the cushions and slowly fell asleep.
The darkness pulled him in as his mind drifted to the land of dreams and beyond to some other place. Peter came to and found himself back in that cell from before. Neal... Neal had been here hadn't he? The young man had been kneeling on the floor looking at something with a blank expression until he had turned him around and then... Peter's mind was a blank even within his own dreams. He felt as if someone were deliberately holding back some memories as he made to get up and found himself still laying on the bunk in the cell unable to move. He stared up at the cold gray ceiling above, the hint of light and dark as the shadows of the bars played across his body. A larger shadow crossed the entrance where the bars held him trapped inside and he smelled something like cheap cigarettes and alcohol waft to his nose. He gave a weak cough, smoke escaping his lips as if he had just taken a drag. An eerie yet now familiar laugh, mirthless and cold echoed up to his ears.
"I'd forgotten how good it was to take a smoke. It's only been a week and I feel like I've been gone for years. It's always hard being in another place for the first time. Once we part ways, I should have all the time in the world with your friend."
Knox's voice grated on him. The man wasn't letting go despite being dead and whatever dark nightmare this was made Peter want to stand up and punch the man out. He heard another cold laugh and managed to move his head up slightly to see the criminal's silhouette on the other side of the barred door.
"It's a shame your wife will think your partner killed you. She's smart but even a smart woman wouldn't want to lose her husband to a con. She'll turn on him and it will make things that much easier. At least he's on the lam. Takes so much of the work away."
He saw Knox take another drag of the cigarette and felt his lips pucker up in response, a cough coming deep from his lungs as smoke wafted up in small rings as he tried to draw breath.
"Bad habit but it relaxes me. Easier than smoking a pipe and less obvious when I do the change over. Have to learn so much with each new persona."
Peter heard a strange accent hidden in the man's voice that sounded almost antiquated but it was so slight he wasn't sure if he really was picking it up. The man didn't seem so much the criminal now but something else he wasn't sure he could pigeon hole. Knox moved closer and leaned over so he could see the man's green's eyes, smell the toxic scent of cigarettes off his breath and feel warmth if you could call it that as dry lips brushed his ear.
"It's nothing personal, Fed. I just need a new cover."
Peter blinked, their eyes meeting a moment before he found himself awake and staring up at the ceiling above the sofa. The dream had felt so real to him and he remembered nearly every part of it as he drew in a deep breath and realized the scent of cigarettes continued to linger in his mind's eye. He sat up and turned seeing something hazy, snaking up into the air. It appeared to be smoke as his eyes followed it back down to the source and found an FBI ash tray he'd won once at a function draw sitting on the coffee table filled with what looked like half a pack of smoked butts. The agent blinked uncertain why or how there had come to be cigarettes in his home when he saw something on his fingers and drew them to his face. There was a hint of brown where the filter had smeared onto his fingers as he covered his nose and mouse and smelled cigarettes on his breath.
"Crap!"
He stood up and took the ash tray with him, dropping the contents down the garbage disposal and running the water over it. Once it was gone he added some soap for the smell and then found some of the air freshener his wife liked and sprayed it around the house as he opened up windows and aired it out. Knox was responsible for this. That's what his mind told him which made no sense and yet it did. He fought with the idea of what was happening to him when he saw a brown paper bag on the counter and opened it up to find another box of cigarettes and a receipt from just an hour ago. He'd been asleep the past two hours so when did he go to the store? Peter stared at the items on the receipt moving to the fridge to glance inside. Beer cans were on the door but it wasn't his brand he noticed as he closed the door again and went back out towards the backdoor, dropping the bag with the cigarettes into the trash before going back inside. Something was hinky and he had to finger out what before he had no more control.
"Peter?"
He heard the door open, El's voice calling to him. He grabbed up a glass and filled it with water as he took a long sip, swished to get the scent and taste out of his mouth and quietly spit it into the sink, rinsing it out before he took the glass with him as he went to greet his wife. She smiled at him, several bags in her arms as he moved to help her. El reached up to kiss him, her nose crinkling in reaction to something.
"You smell like cigarettes honey. Did we have visitors?"
Her eyes moved to the ash tray he'd left on the counter and hadn't had time to wash out as he nodded.
"Yeah... Captain Shaddock. I tried to clean up as best I could so the smell wouldn't be obvious but I guess it stuck on me. Sorry hon."
She kissed him anyway, smiling at him curiously as if she was catching onto his lie.
"That's fine. Next time go out in the back but thank you for trying to air the room out."
She smiled sweetly at him as if everything were normal and he felt himself relax some. He hated to lie to his wife but at this point he had to till he had it all figured out.
"So what smells so good in these bags?"
Some of the items were groceries but one was obviously takeout as El pulled some cartons out and grinned.
"Chinese of course. Thought you'd like some dumplings and Orange Chicken."
()()()
Neal was deep into his visualizing when he sensed movement nearby. His eyes flashed open to find Mozzie looking down at him curiously. The little guy jumped back as if taken by surprise, a quiet yelp escaping his lips.
"Geesh! I was just going to wake you and you scared me."
Mozzie looked freaked but got over it in his own way as Neal sat up and smiled slightly. He was feeling better despite his arm, stretching gingerly as he stood up and followed his friend to a sofa in the corner.
"I saw El today. Boring stuff. She was buying groceries and then went to get Chinese take out. Didn't see The Suit but I heard her on the cell with a friend talking about him recuperating so I guess he's still resting up like you. So, how does the arm feel? I see you've finally stopped using the sling."
Neal couldn't believe it'd been a week since the whole mess but time passed quickly and he had been trying to plan what to do and how to help his friend. He thought he might almost be ready for a plan he had set up but it would still take some time.
"Better. I should talk to Elizabeth. Any news about my whereabouts?"
He was leaning back against the sofa, staring up at the ceiling before he heard a cough and turned his attention back to Mozzie.
"They think you left the country and of course Peter is off the case. They put him on suspension. They think he helped you by feigning getting stabbed on purpose. I guess Knox is going for the full spectrum of ruin if he did that to him. Has he visited you lately?"
Neal had finally explained to his friend about his dreams and what he suspected happened with Knox and Peter. The tattoo imprint on his wrist seemed to be getting darker as time passed but remained faded enough to look like an old bruise under the skin. So far nothing had happened and Peter seemed to be himself and not Knox according to Mozzie's intel so that was something to be glad about. Knox himself had been elusive despite Neal's attempts to draw him out and confront him in his dreams. Maybe he had gone? He didn't know much about possessions but time would only tell.
"I can't find him and don't sense him at all. Either he's gone or in hiding if that's possible. I've never been one for the esoteric or metaphysical."
The two men fell into a kind of quiet contemplation, Neal returning his attention to the ceiling as he thought back to what he had been visualizing. He'd gone back to the cell but managed to rearrange a few things he thought might be useful and wouldn't be too obvious to Knox if he could just draw him in. They'd both been reading about controlling dreams, possessions and other things the two cons wouldn't have normally thought to cross their minds. It was definitely a trip into a new territory but Neal treated it like any other con only he was trying to help his partner and friend. He turned when he sensed Mozzie stand up and walk away.
"Mozz?"
The little guy didn't respond at first, moving to a bag Neal had failed to see and walking back with it. It was a fairly large bag with what appeared to be a book inside. Mozzie pushed it towards him.
"This is a copy but I've been told this was what Knox may have been reading or using before his untimely jump into the Suit."
Neal raised an eyebrow at his friend but Mozzie just shrugged as he pulled the item out of the bag and saw it looked like nothing more than a dusty old book. It was old and ragged from much use with a strange texture to the cover that didn't quite fit leather as he knew it. He watched the little guy looked more uncomfortable as Neal continued to get a feel for the book and thought he sensed maybe a hint of electricity from the actual item.
"Definitely a collectors' item. What's this writing inside?"
He had opened up the book to find some strange symbols in the inside lining along with notes in English in a very hard to read scrawl along the side. He flipped through to see the same throughout along with several sketches that made his skin crawl. Mozzie was quiet a while before he finally spoke.
"I've been told it's ancient Sumerian but some of it doesn't match up to any language known to man. The person copied the original book and made some translations where they could. It's a spell book of sorts if you want to call it that but... my friend wouldn't say much more other than to be very careful with what you read and to not think to hard about it unless you mean to."
The coy way that Mozzie was pussyfooting around the topic made him curious all the more about this tome. It was obviously something special and the feeling it gave off made him cold to the core.
"Odd title... Necromonicon? Book of the dead? It's definitely not like the Egyptian version but I'm guessing this is a bit more on the user end than ceremonial?"
Mozzie nodded with a hint of uncertainty.
"Far as I know. My friend seemed to know more than he was saying but he was a bit nervous about it all. Not the kind of I think this is a hot item nervous but Don't mess with this kind of shit nervous. There might be another way than this book. It gives me a bad vibe."
Mozzie stood and moved away, eyes flitting back to the young man and the book as if watching Neal playing with a poisonous snake. It was true this copy gave off a bit of energy but maybe it was just the oddness of it all. It wasn't their typical fare of reading or study.
"I'll be careful how I read it, Mozz. Just see what you can find about Peter and El. I'll investigate this side of things if it makes you uncomfortable."
Mozzie nodded but then shrugged slightly.
"You might want to check out page 35. I gave it a quick scan but had to stop when I started to feel like someone or something was watching me."
Neal blinked back in curiosity but made a nod back as he opened up the book and his friend left again. He was alone in the building his friend called home, leaning back and reading through the book casually. He had admit if this wasn't a book you found in a horror movie, it was pretty close. Made him think of something he'd read as a kid in a short story collection. The main character discovered something hidden in a subway tunnel and all hell broke loose. He sighed, shifting through the yellowed musty smelling pages and making mental notes about the translations. There were notes on how to pronounce each symbol of the ancient language and other comments about results as well as how and what. Everything was very specific and there were warnings that made no sense but then again, what did he know about the esoteric and metaphysical? He was just a con.
He must have nodded off, the book open in his lap as he leaned back and drifted off into the ether of sleep and dreams. Neal was only somewhat conscious of the fact he held the book in his hands as his eyes opened but not for real.
URITH WERYG OP'EHTHL
The words rung through his mind like a bell in a tower, a strange vibration coming over him as he tried to make sense of the phrasings. He felt rooted to the spot, aware that he was standing in some kind of a tunnel or cavern in near darkness. In the near distance echoed the sound of dripping water and another more insidious noise that made him think of dark things in the night. He was dreaming so nothing could hurt him... right?
URITH WERYG OP'EHTHL BZ'LUTV
The words continued to ring through the depths of his mind as if he were speaking those words for real only it wasn't his voice talking. Neal felt coldness wash over him and then a cold wet hand touched his shoulder but he couldn't move or open his mouth to scream. He wanted to desperately get away but the hand reached up to his cheek and he felt a cool sliminess that made him think of fish and dead things as a strange aroma filled his nostrils with a salty tinge. He closed his eyes despite dreaming and tried to will himself back to waking.
Y'PTHL OP'NY XZA
Neal felt the slimy scaly hand reaching for his mouth and nose when he started to panic some before hearing an unGodly scream. The hand pulled itself from his face and slowly he was able to feel movement return as he gave a gasping breath and turned to see what had made that sound. Only a hint of movement caught his eye and then it was gone into the Stygian gloom that lay just beyond his current position. Light surrounded him and it dawned on him there shouldn't be anything but darkness. He looked at his hands and saw they were aglow with a kind of inner luminance as was his whole body. That must have been what scared the creature away as he gazed down at his hands noticing a single point that didn't glow as brightly. It was the spot with the weird half of the yin yang image. He held his wrist up for a closer view when suddenly he found himself awake and sitting up on the sofa. There was a bang as he stood up, the book falling from his lap with a loud thud to the floor beside him. Neal's pulse was racing as he paced a bit trying to get his bearings. He'd been asleep, right? He had been dreaming. There had been no cavern, no creature poking at him in the dark or the dripping of water in the distance.
Drip... drip... drip... drip...
He turned towards the kitchenette and realized the sink was making noise. Neal sighed in relief, walking over to stop the dripping sound before he turned back to look at the sofa. The book lay on the floor crumpled and overturned with the pages splayed like so many arms. He laughed suddenly, a deep relaxed feeling coming over him as he did so. It had been a nightmare and Knox had not been there. It was nothing more than his mind going back to his conversation with Mozzie about the oddness of the volume. He sighed, walking back towards the couch and book. Neal reached down to pick the item up when something caught his eye. His eyes moved towards the far wall and then back again. Neal placed the book on the sofa before he walked over to the wall and noted what was beside it. He saw wet foot prints coming from a blank solid wall back towards the sofa then turned back and disappearing into the same wall. His hand reached down to touch the oddly shaped print when he cringed. The moisture felt cold, slimy and stunk of fish.
oOoOoOo
Author's Note: Not sure why but this is turning into a Cthullu story. LOL Hopefully those of you who understand that concept will like and those who don't will also like. Consider it an early Halloween gift. ;O) Also apologize for the delay. I have PC issues still but my net at least is working better. Plus work was busy as heck so now it's quieting down a bit I might be able to finish things up faster.
