Author's notes:
Hi! I hope you're doing well. ❤ Thank you again for all your comments. It's so nice to see that someone appreciates what I write. I can't tell you how happy I am to read and respond to each and every one of you. Your words mean a lot. ❤ :)
MarJan53, I hope you'll like this chapter. :)
I'll try to post the next chapter in two weeks (13.06).
The illustration for this chapter you can either find on my DoodleAddicts account (…/vincentthecat) or on the story Rooftops of New York that I post on Archive Of Our Own (VincentTheCat).
Chapter 19 "Showdown"
"See, upon the palms of my hands I have engraved you;
your walls are ever before me."
Isaiah 49:16 (NABRE)
As Skinner passes him onto the guide, Neal can hardly believe his luck. He is too distracted to listen to their quick exchange of words. After a moment, Skinner leaves, and the door closes behind him. The adult has finally left.
Neal, focused on the door, does not realize that the guide has come close again until the adult waves his hand in front of Neal's face. Startled, Neal looks up.
"You okay?" the adult asks and Neal thinks his voice sounds sympathetic.
He nods a bit shakily.
"The boss wants you washed for the exchange. Come on."
The adult pushes him forward, but does not lay his hands on him. Neal is grateful. The guide leads him towards the bathroom.
"Good thing he's wearing black, eh," Neal hears someone snort. He turns his head and realizes he is not alone with the guide in the room. There are actually three other adults, all gathered around the round table. It seems his arrival has interrupted their game of cards.
Before Neal can think of anything to say or do, the adult pushes him into the bathroom and shuts the door, leaving Neal completely alone in the small, scruffy room. There is a mirror over the sink, and when Neal looks at the boy's face reflected in it, he can hardly recognize himself.
The loud thud on the door makes Neal jump. "If it takes longer than ten, I'll come in. So you'd better hurry up," says the guide's voice.
Neal works his mouth for a while before finally making an audible, though a bit hoarse reply. "Y-yes, sir!"
Then, looking away from the stranger's bloodstained face, he quickly turns on the water.
It tastes bitter. Neal does not care. The last time he had anything to drink was yesterday, at Satch's home.
He sticks his head under the stream and closes his eyes, letting the fresh, cold water just flow for a moment. Then he starts scraping the crusted blood first from his face and then from his forearms.
/\_/\
='x'=
After negotiating the place of exchange with Neumann, Peter wasted no more time. He had more or less let Neumann control the conditions of Neal's release. He was not planning to wait that long anyway. Thanks to the phone call, they knew the criminal's location. Unfortunately, it would take them three hours to get there, but since the exchange was not scheduled until after midnight, Peter assumed Neumann would stay where he was for now. At the moment, the plan was to get to the location, secure the best possible positions given the short time they had, and then wait for the criminals to make their move. Hopefully, in order to get Neal to the right location, they would leave around 10PM. Peter's team would intercept them on their way out, and then the SWAT team would get the go-ahead to enter the private property. If all went according to plan, they should have Neal safe, and both Keller and Neumann in cuffs by the end of the day. Of course, there was always the possibility that he was sending his team into some elaborate trap set by Neumann and Keller working together, with Neal being the bait but… No. It was not probable. And even if that was the case, his team, unlike Neumann's team, had the advantage of being mobile. They were the ones who engaged the criminals and could always withdraw.
Zooming in around the property, Peter nodded to himself, then turned to Jones sitting by his side. "I need the SWAT team to be alerted about the child's presence," he said.
Jones nodded and reached for the radio. Peter turned to glare at the map again. He could not imagine the stress Neal must have been going through right now.
/\_/\
='x'=
Looking in the mirror, Neal recognizes his face again. The boy staring back at him looks rather refreshed. Somehow, despite his hands still shaking, he has managed it in less than ten minutes. The adults won't have to get mad at him.
Turning from his reflection, he faces the door. For a moment he listens to the adults' laughter and voices. They seem to be quite relaxed. Neal takes a deep breath, puts a hand on the knob, and then pushes the door open.
The guide and the others look up. No one says a word though. Neal closes the door and inches towards the table. In addition to the cards, there are three pizza boxes. With two whole pieces inside. But Neal is smart and decides to comment on the game instead of pepperoni.
"Texas Hold 'Em, huh?" he asks. "Care for the fifth player?"
"Oh look. He can talk," Kyler chuckles out loud.
The others, whose names Neal does not know, grin at that, but the guide just shakes his head. He points Neal to the nearby corner. "Take the box and sit there. Silently."
Neal bristles immediately. But then he realizes that by the box, the adult could not have possibly meant the music box, but… The wonderful pizza.
"Oh wow, really?" Neal asks, then suddenly afraid he will be rebuked for his stupid question, he quickly picks up the pizza box and runs to sit in the corner. "Thanks, man!" he says and when he looks up he sees that no one really gets up from their chairs to stop him. Instead, the adults look a little amused. The good kind of amused. Mil sort of amused.
Neal smiles brightly at the adults and opens the box. He is so, so, so hungry.
/\_/\
='x'=
After devouring the two pieces given to him very generously, Neal does not have anything more to do but observe the game. It is pretty amusing for a while, but Neal would do anything to join them. When he asks about it the third time, Kyler seems to have had enough.
"Damn it, kid, will you let it go," he exclaims, but it is hard for Neal to be afraid of him. Much can be said about an adult from how he takes loss, and Kyler has already lost three times in a row and still no one has got bruised.
"But I'm bored," Neal says with feeling. The adult just rolls his eyes.
"Fuck that," the adult, who previously instructed the Guide where to take Neal, chuckles. "I say, if the kid has the money, let him join in."
Neal looks at the adult in surprise. Till now, the only adults who spoke to him were the Guide and Kyler. But without knowing it, he might actually have acquired an ally.
"Which he doesn't," the Guide grins. "Come on, Fly, it's showdown."
Neal cranes his neck to get a better view of the table and that is when something brilliant comes to his mind. He picks up the empty pizza box, forgetting about the game for a moment, and focuses on the cardboard. Yes, he decides. It can work even without a knife.
After making the proper folds, Neal carefully tears the cardboard apart. The material is soft and follows Neal's pattern smoothly. This of course makes some noise and Neal can feel all four pairs of eyes on him, but then the moment passes, and when he looks up again, only Kyler is still paying attention to him. The origami is finished and it is time for the show.
"True, Fly. I don't have the money," Neal says clearly, then directs the pizza cardboard prop at Fly and adds. "But I do have a gun."
Everyone except Kyler looks at him in surprise, Harry going as far as to reach for his own real gun, only to pause in mid-movement. For a moment the silence could not have been more strained, but then Kyler laughs out loudly. He lousily gestures at Neal to give him 'the gun' and Neal immediately jumps to his feet.
With a huge smile on his face he gives the adult the toy. Kyler whistles.
"Looks like Five-seveN to me," he says with a chuckle, then laughs even more as he reads the insignia Neal has scratched over the grip panel. "Yep. Just like mine."
"Let me see this," Fly says, taking the 'gun' from Kyler. As Neal listens to the adult's jokes and comments, he thinks that in another life it might have been his crew. Adults are funny this way. One moment they point guns at you and say they will kill you, and the next…
"Hey George," Fly grins. "That's your in," he says, taking a hundy from his stack and throwing it on the table.
"How generous!" Kyler laughs while gesturing for Neal to sit down. Gladly, Neal takes a seat between him and Harry.
"He's going to lose though," the Guide says, and Neal snorts.
"No, I won't," he tells his four kidnappers before reaching out to take one of the cigs from Kyler's pack. The adults laugh and Kyler gives Neal the light.
"Okay, let's shuffle then," the adult says.
/\_/\
='x'=
Kyler's wristwatch says it is 8PM. This means two hours have passed ever since he snitched to the feds. Mister Neumann set the exchange to happen at midnight. This means that in about two hours they will have to leave for the meeting. It took the adults two and a half hours to get him from New York to this place. His head pulses as Neal rubs his temples. Is it possible that Mister Morris's team is already here? There is no doubt that the feds have managed to locate this place, but now the question is will they go with the exchange or will they try to arrest them sooner?
"G?" Kyler prompts, and Neal, realizing it is his turn, decides to call.
Pushing fifty bucks forward, Neal hopes it will be the latter. He does not think Mister Keller has enough time left to wait for the exchange. Despite befriending the adults none of the men has agreed to let him see his mentor. Neal has been too afraid to ask about it more than twice.
Harry ends the Turn Round by folding. The Guide deals Three of Clubs face up. Now there are five cards on the table. Jack of Spades, Jack of Clubs, Nine of Hearts, Six of Spades and Three of Clubs. Only Neal, Kyler, and Fly remain in the game.
Fly pushes the hundy onto the table. One hundred bucks is exactly as much money as Neal has still left. If Kyler raises, he will have to check and all three hundred bucks he has managed to make will be wasted. He will be in the beginning again, with only the hundy he got from Fly to bet with. Then again, if Kyler calls and so does Neal… He can lose it all. Meaning no chance to play another game.
Kyler calls, there is a grin on his face. "Out of curtsey, kid," he says, and Neal, smiling pushes the hundy onto the table. According to Neal's count, there are about one thousand bucks in the pot right now.
Harry smirks as Kyler, Fly and Neal turn their cards over.
"Damn!" It is Kyler who curses. He and Neal have straight flushes, but Neal's King of Hearts beats Kyler's Queen of Clubs.
"You must be kidding me," Fly says. Neal, looking at the adult's cards, wonders why Fly has even stayed with such weak cards.
"Losers," Harry chuckles, then elbowing Kyler, he adds. "At your own request."
"Yeah, yeah," Kyler shrugs, pushing the winnings towards Neal. That is a nice sum of 1.3 K. Neal takes no time to split it in two and pushes back half of his winnings towards Fly.
"No, no, come on! It made sense the first time, but now…" Harry protests, and Fly grins.
"It's just fair. After all, I am the one who sponsored his game in the first place while you, guys―"
"For crying out loud! You gave him just the hundy!" Watching a friendly scuffle break out, Neal again falls into parallels between this crew and Mister Keller's. The thought of Mister Keller saddens him. Is seeing his mentor again really too much to ask for?
"No more cuts like this! You get me, kid? That bastard does not deserve it, it was the last time!" Kyler elbows him, and Neal flinches at the touch. Somehow does he manage to quickly regain his composure and smiles back at Kyler.
"Okay," he simply agrees.
"Oh, well…" Harry grins at Fly. "Time to start making your own money, pal!"
"Shut up," Fly grins, then frowns at Neal. "But seriously, kid. You always this lucky?"
"Lucky?" Neal suddenly cannot help but chuckle. He stares steadily into the adult's eyes. "Yeah, man! Of course! Take today as an example. Walking down the street I am thinking: damn, I need to skip this town. But where to go? And then… Suddenly! Poof, you guys appear," nodding at the adults surrounding him, Neal keeps his smile bright. "Problem solved!"
Kyler is the first one to chuckle. Then both Harry and the Guide join him, but Fly's expression… becomes perplexed. Neal begins to hope. Looking down at his bruised wrists, he dares to repeat his plea for Mister Keller's life. This time, however, it is a bit different.
"Can't you at least patch him up a bit, please?" he quietly asks the adults. "It is really not fun lying in…" his voice quivers. "In all of that," Neal finishes softly.
After those last words, there is just silence, and then finally, after what feels like eternity… "Just keep winning for me, okay, kid?" Fly asks, getting up from the table.
"No, come on, man! Sit down and play," Harry gets irritated, but Fly just laughs.
"G will play for me!"
"No, that's not… Push over!" Harry grits out yet again, but it is clearly too late. Fly's mind is set. With a lump in his throat, Neal gets up too, but before he can even make a step, Kyler grabs his arm.
"Yeah, no," the adult says, forcing Neal to return to his seat.
"But can't I―"
"You can't," the man says, then turning to gaze back at to the rest of the crew, asks, "Another round?"
"You bet," Harry smiles. "And that fucker's going to regret not being here," then, turning to Neal, "Your time to post a small blind, kid," he says.
"Yeah, I know," Forcing a smile back, Neal nods.
Then, with a sigh, he slides his old cards back to the pile.
/\_/\
='x'=
"I've never killed a kid. Women, kids. No way," Harry announces, and Neal observes the rest of the men chuckle. Biting his lip, he looks at his cards, then back at the adults. Fly has been gone almost for an hour now and yet they still would not let him see his mentor.
The sound of the door opening makes Neal turn. Fly has come back. Neal opens his mouth to ask a question, then stops noting the fresh mud on the man's boots.
"Hey! You're showing your cards, stupid!" Kyler says, and closes his hand on Neal's wrist. Neal flinches and the cards slip from his fingers. He stares at the newcomer.
Fly smiles at him, then raises his thumb. "Relax, kid. Your old man's doing okay," he says. "He even seems to be a little worried about you. Asked me how you were doing."
"I'm doing fine," Neal replies, bewildered. So Mister Keller is not mad anymore?
Kyler snorts. "Fly, you sneaky liar," Neal hears him mumble under his breath. But when Neal glances sidelong at the adult, the man is not looking at him.
Fly takes the place he left behind an hour ago, then frowns.
"That's all I get for my kindness?" he asks, pointing at his pile of winnings, not much different from the one he had when he left, and Neal immediately passes the grand in his hand to the man, only to… Have the Guide stop him.
"Relax, kid. We still want you to play," the adult says, and when Neal locks his eyes with Fly, he sees the adult nodding and waving his hand.
"…Yeah," placing the money back in front of himself, Neal realizes his hands are shivering. Hiding them under the table, he takes a deep breath. He wants to ask Fly how bad it is. He wants the adult to tell him that his mentor is going to be alright, that Mister Neumann got what he wanted from him and will let him go free now but… Instead of voicing any of his hopes aloud, Neal, biting his tongue, just keeps silent. Fisting his hands, he watches impassively as the adults continue their game. His gaze stops at Harry's wristwatch. Thirty minutes.
/\_/\
='x'=
"This is Falcon leader. All teams report readiness, sir. Over." Hearing the report over the radio, Peter nodded to himself. The time window his teams had to find and secure the best positions was narrow. He bet that Johnson, who was in command of the SWAT team, was as unhappy about it as he was, but considering the time they had… There just was no other way.
"Copy that Falcon leader. Stand by, over," Peter said over the radio, then glanced at Diana sitting next to him. She, noticing his questioning gaze, just shook her head.
"Still no sign of any movement from the mansion, boss" she said tensely, and he nodded, then glanced at his wristwatch. It was 10:30PM. If Neumann did not want to be late, he should start preparing to leave right about now.
/\_/\
='x'=
The door opens and Neal immediately looks up. He freezes.
"Let's move," Skinner says, his grim gaze focused on Neal.
Someone claps his back and he flinches. Kyler's expression is friendly.
"Well, that piece of cardboard would be handy now, wouldn't it?" the adult jokes while Fly takes a step and blocks Neal from seeing Skinner.
"Don't forget your winnings, little man," Fly says and Neal, in bewilderment, takes the bills from the adult. Fly ruffles his hair.
"Hands," the Guide says, and Neal grimaces, seeing the zip ties. But then, realizing how much the adults have already done for him, he decides to accept this special hospitality in good spirit.
He gives his hands to the Guide.
"Hood," the voice does not belong to his protectors but to Skinner and Neal shivers.
"Hey, I don't think it's necessary, the kid's practically harmless and―" Kyler pauses, then shakes his head. "Sure thing," he says, then picks up the hood that Neal has hoped never to see from up close again. "Sorry about that, pal," he hears the quietly spoken words before his sight gets taken away from him.
The Guide's familiar hands then pick him up and throw him over the shoulder. Focusing on breathing deeply, Neal closes his eyes and grits his teeth. He wants this nightmare to be over.
When they leave the mansion, Neal is put on the ground again, but unfortunately the damned bag remains over his head. He hears new voices. More adults must have joined them. Then, the Guide's hand rests on his shoulder again and the man starts to lead him forward to where they have probably parked the van. Neal stumbles a few times, but thankfully, other than that, he does not embarrass himself further.
He hears the sound of a car being unlocked and a door opening. The Guide pushes him inside, and then, after everyone else scrambles inside the vehicle, the hood gets taken off. Neal can see the world again. All his four poker companions are here, but Skinner is not.
"You alright?" Kyler asks, and Neal cracks a smile.
"Never been better, man. Thanks." He sweeps the adults with his gaze. "Someone brought the cards?"
He watches as the adults exchange glances with each other. He can sense that both Fly and Harry are with him about killing time with a game of poker, but sadly, before they can say anything…
"Now's not the time," the Guide shakes his head. He smiles at Neal. "Think of it this way, G. Two more hours and you'll be back safely with your uncle and all this… will just be a memory for you."
These words surprise Neal. "My uncle? Does it mean Mister Keller's also―" as the Guide shakes his head, Neal pauses. "Oh, you mean the other one," Neal mumbles, looking away. He sighs. "But I don't even know him that well. I'd be better off with Mister Keller."
Honestly, if it were not for Skinner, he would be better off with them too. He likes them. They are good, decent people, and Mister Morris… That bastard is going to arrest them all. Neal clenches his fists. That traitor.
On the other hand, it seems like most adults are this way. Even Mister Keller is like that. Caring about nothing but the promise of a treasure hidden somewhere for him to find. The music box. The cursed music box.
Neal grinds his teeth. All of this for the music box. The blood… His mentor has almost died for that cursed thing. Neal has almost died for it. If the feds' plan fails, they could both die for it.
Then, suddenly he is struck by the thought. Somehow he has never considered it before but… But what if Mister Morris's plan is not to arrest them, but to… To kill them? He has heard the stories. And anyway, would it not be more convenient for Mister Morris to just blow up the whole van and be done with them? Neal opens his mouth to voice his fears aloud when he realizes once again…
Neither Kyler, nor Fly, nor the Guide, nor Harry… know Mister Morris is not who he says he is. Neither of them is aware that Neal is leading them into a trap. And if some day they do realize it… They will kill him. Because snitches get stitches and end up in ditches.
"Come on, kid. Doing all of this just to save your ass? Trust me, your uncle can't be that bad." It is Fly, a reassuring smile appears on the adult's face. "Anyway, you'll be better off with him than with Keller."
Looking down on his wrists, Neal does not answer. It is not true. If Mister Morris does not turn out to be a killer, he will still stay a fed. And that means that by the end of the day… Neal, along with his four companions will be arrested and caged. Neal has never been in jail, but from what he has heard from Mil, being in there is not a nice play.
Feeling a shiver run through him, Neal closes his eyes. It is too late to back out now.
/\_/\
='x'=
"I have my eyes on the target," the report made Peter instantly look up from the map he had been studying. Clenching his hand on the gun, he waited for the next words. "Two black vans, heading south. They will reach the yellow zone in the next two minutes, over."
"Copy that, Sparrow." Peter confirmed and switched the frequencies. "Falcon leader, you have a go. I repeat, you have a go."
/\_/\
='x'=
The van comes to an abrupt stop. The force of this carries Neal almost out of his seat.
"A flat? What―" Kyler's voice gets drowned in horrendous wailing.
"Police, you have been surrounded! Abandon the vehicle calmly and no one will be hurt. Resist and we will open fire!" Hearing the orders barked through the megaphone, Neal swallows.
The adults around him look shocked. Then everything turns to chaos.
The adults start cursing, but it is Harry who scares Neal the most. His wide-open eyes are fixed on Neal. He says nothing, but slowly, very slowly, he reaches for his gun.
Kyler sees the movement in time and knocks the gun out of his hand. "What the hell," he spats.
"Little son of a bitch… He knows something! Just look at him!"
The Guide grabs Neal by the arm. "You fucking… You knew about this?"
On the edge of tears, Neal shakes his head, his eyes pleadingly lock with those of the adult.
"The cops― no, not me," the rest of his words get lost in the next booming command from the feds.
"Come out at once or we will open fire. You have been surrounded…"
"Fuck!" releasing Neal's arm, the Guide curses. "Fuck, f―"
Then the gunshots can be heard.
Next(13.06): Takedown