Chapter Forty-five

Opening his eyes Peter tried to determine if he had actually slept or not. In the end it didn't really matter Peter just hated how he'd lost his sense of the passage of time. Even though the exact date eluded him he knew they must have been trapped down in the Labyrinth for over a month, and if that math was correct it meant his and Elizabeth's wedding anniversary was quickly approaching. Peter's heart ached over the fact that it was going to be impossible for him to tell when the actual day came and went. He knew their anniversary was going to be a particularly difficult day for Elizabeth among a string of already stressful days, but for him there was going to be no way mark the day as special.

With thoughts of Elizabeth causing him a heart racing anxiety Peter focused on Neal who was sleeping soundly against his chest. Despite his calm now Neal hadn't been easy to settle down after they had cleaned up Jake. Tearing open Jake's shirt had not only revealed the gruesome brand but numerous other scars and bruises including several marks from the tazer that mimicked the ones that Neal still wore from his painful encounters with Jake. It was only at that moment that Peter had noticed that York had taken away both the tazer and the night stick from Jake. Along with the rebranding it was a dangerous sign that Jake was quickly losing favor with their captor. Neal had traced around one the tell tale starburst electrical burns on Jake's skin, staring at them in a near trance like state.

"Neal," Peter had said to get his attention "I know what you're thinking, but just because you've been through similar experiences doesn't mean you're going to react the same."

Neal had nodded but he didn't look very convinced as he reached up and absent mindedly rubbed at his sore jaw. Peter wished he hadn't gotten distracted by Jake when Neal had been in the ring with Slattery. The fight was affecting him more than even the gruesome battle with Marcus. Had he been paying attention he would have been able to stop Neal from thinking that he had attack Slattery again. Throughout his entire criminal life the one hallmark that had always remained unbroken was his commitment to non violence to the point where he instantly severed ties with any accomplice that broke that rule in any way. Now that value was being pushed to the extreme and Peter could see that Neal felt that he was failing to uphold himself to his own standards. Even though Peter knew that Neal fundamentally understood the difference between what he was doing and being willfully aggressive towards innocent victims it didn't seem to be helping him cope with his actions.

After patching Jake up as best he could Peter had moved him into the front room and laid him down on the blanket. Spiking a dangerous fever Jake was locked in an unnatural sleep. Worried that Jake might be succumbing to shock but not knowing what to do about it Peter had returned to the bathroom and found Neal still sitting on the floor staring at the blood on his hands with a horrified blank expression. Fearful that Neal was close to psychotic break Peter reached down and took Neal's bloodied hands and helped him to his feet. Guiding Neal over to the sink Peter turned the warm water on and washed the blood off both their hands.

Hoping that exhaustion was at least part of Neal's problem Peter lead him out to where Jake was resting. Peter had hoped that Neal would quickly fall asleep once they were situated in the corner but he kept twitching and jolting as his mental agitation translated into frustrated motion. Nearly delirious with fatigue himself Peter fought to stay awake so as not to leave Neal alone with his thoughts.

"Neal, you didn't do anything wrong with Slattery."

"I can still feel his bones shifting in my hand, he tried to pull away and I instantly tightened my grip." Neal whispered in misery. "I could have just hit him, I didn't have to cause him pain like that to keep the fight going."

"You're adrenaline was high at the time, you weren't thinking clearly." Peter pointed out. "The fact that it still upsets you is the important part."

Neal nodded again but remained restless. Peter stayed silent for a few minutes giving Neal some time to process his thoughts. It didn't take long for Neal's already labored breathing to become increasingly ragged as his anxiety continued to spiral out of control. Hearing the wet raspiness of Neal's breath gave Peter a new terrifying thought as to why Neal's stress levels were skyrocketing. If Neal's lungs were continuing to congest with sickness the oxygen levels in his blood would be dropping which would be accompanied by panic. Unable to do anything for Neal medically Peter tried a new tactic to help him through.

"I think it's time for you to start thinking about all of this as just another long con, a persona you have to wear to get a job done." Peter suggested.

"That's a thought." Neal agreed quietly.

"I can call you 'Ryan' if it helps."

"Wha…you know about Ryan?"

"I do." Peter nodded.

"I have to say Peter, I'm really impressed." Neal managed a rueful chuckle. "Ryan was a very deep cover alias of mine."

"I know. You used Ryan on jobs you weren't proud of, crimes you deemed less 'victimless' than your usual con. I couldn't prove it obviously, but I knew it was you."

"How?"

"'Ryan' had your same style but none of your usual enthusiasm."

"I always hated Ryan."

"I could tell, but he's not who you are and neither is this."

Finally finding some relief from his obsession over Slattery Neal sought out Peter's hand and squeezed it gratefully. With Neal calming Peter was able to relax the knot that had been firmly tied in his stomach. When Neal didn't still fall asleep right away Peter encouraged him to roll over on his side so that Neal ended up with his ear over Peter's heart. Peter reached up and gently put his hand over Neal's other ear so that he could concentrate on the soothing heartbeat sound. The trick had worked and Neal had finally fallen asleep.

Peter guessed that he hadn't been far behind as far as falling asleep. What he didn't know was how long he'd been out. Not about to move and disturb Neal now Peter just stared at the far wall trying not to let thoughts of Elizabeth upset him too much. Thinking about her was always a catch 22, remembering that she was waiting for him help keep him fighting, but it was painful to think of what she must be going through; particularly as time passed with no answers. Closing his eyes again Peter let a few tears slip down his cheeks unchecked.

When Peter heard a light whimper he snapped out of feeling sorry for himself and pressed his hand against Neal's lower back to try and calm him. However a repeat of the noise informed him that it wasn't Neal that was struggling with a nightmare. Peter looked down at Jake who had moved closer during the course of the night so that his back was up against Peter's leg. Peter had become so used to sleeping with Neal's weight against him that he hadn't even noticed the extra contact from Jake.

Jerking like a dog chasing a rabbit in his sleep Jake cried out quietly again. Peter reached down and pushed gently on Jake's shoulder to wake him. Jake arched back in response to being touched but he didn't wake. His skin still burned with fever as his body railed against its recent abuses. Rather than try harder to rouse him Peter carded his hand into Jake's hair a few times to try and settle him down. It took a moment but Jake eventually calmed, however, as soon as Peter took his hand away he started to shiver and mewl once more. Sighing heavily Peter rested his hand on Jake's shoulder to keep him comfortable.

With both Neal and Jake clearly needing a few more hours of rest Peter tried to convince his body that he should do the same. Peter had almost succeeded in drifting off when an out of place sound prickled his skin with a wash of adrenaline. Opening his eyes again it took him a moment to realize that what he was hearing was footsteps out in the hall. With Jake here and the door locked there shouldn't be anyone who could disturb them but that didn't keep him from holding his breath while he waited for the intruders to pass by.

The grinding sound of a key in the lock shot a jolt right down Peter's spine. He tried to wake Neal as he struggled to sit up a little straighter under his dead weight. Completely lax Neal revealed that he wasn't just sleeping, he was fully unresponsive. Unable to get to his feet in time Peter wrapped his arms protective around Neal as the door opened. With Neal and Jake both out cold all three of them were going to be easy prey. Peter's panicked mind had expected to see Sawyer step through the door so when three strangers followed by a well dressed older man entered instead he just stared at them blankly in shock. It wasn't until the leader of the group spoke that Peter was able to identify the man having instantly recognized the voice.

"Hello, Agent."

"York…"