Chapter 6: Find the Lady

When Neal arrived at Alex's hotel room, she opened the door immediately. "Did you get it?" she demanded.

"Of course," he said calmly.

She scanned him, noting he'd come empty-handed. "What's your secret?"

He shrugged. "It's February in New York. I wouldn't go outside without an overcoat." He slipped it off. "This is one of Mozzie's custom tailoring jobs with a concealed pocket in the back."

Alex smiled appreciatively. "A neat trick. Does Mozzie take commissions from others?"

"I'm sure he would for you."

She retrieved her briefcase from the closet and placed it on the bed. "We'll give the feds quite a show. They'll think the jewelry's inside the briefcase. You're sure they don't suspect anything?"

"Positive." They don't suspect. They already know. "When the agents storm the van, I'll conceal the painting so they won't discover it. Once I fence it, I'll send you a cut." He handed her the canvas.

Alex frowned as she placed it in the briefcase. "You should let me fence it. I have better contacts than you."

"The painting stays with me," Neal insisted. "I shouldered the responsibility of stealing it. Don't you trust me?"

"You know I do."

Neal didn't challenge her statement. He was glad she didn't ask the same of him. "In any case, you need to stay around to be a witness against Wilkes. It will be much easier for me to keep it safe."

"All right, we'll do it your way." The fact she gave in so easily was telling.

Alex glanced at her watch. "It will probably be an hour before Wilkes calls." She nodded toward the bed. "I know of a way to ease the stress."

"Forget it," Neal said bluntly.

She shrugged. "Can't blame a girl for trying. You're really serious about Sara, aren't you?"

He hesitated for only a second. "Yeah, I am. She doesn't deserve to suffer from my mistakes." He dropped into a side chair, relieved that for once he could speak the truth.

Alex stood behind him and massaged the taut muscles in his neck. "You just can't help yourself, can you?" she murmured into his ear. "I can see exactly how it played out. Steinar ordered you to get close to her. How long did it take for you to become smitten? I hear she's gorgeous."

Neal didn't answer. He was fine with her imagining whatever fantasy made sense to her. And she did give an excellent neck massage.

"You said she knows about your past, and yet she still wants to date you." Alex snorted softly. "Are you sure she's not playing you?"

Neal jerked his neck away. "Yes, I'm sure," he said angrily.

"Hey, don't get mad at me. I like you, Caffrey. I don't want you to get hurt."

Her cell phone buzzed. She retrieved it from her Greek woven tote and listened for a moment. Looking up, she said, "We're to meet Wilkes at 11th Avenue and West 54th Street."

Neal had already pulled out his phone. He texted Peter the location. The clock was now reset. The blackout in East Harlem should happen within a few minutes. "Time to get you wired," he told Alex.

She smiled flirtatiously. "As long as I have to be subjected to it, let's make it more interesting." She stripped off her sweater to reveal a skimpy black lace bra. "Have your way with me," she added in a sultry voice.

Neal chuckled despite himself.

"That's better," she said smugly. "I knew I could loosen you up. Don't you need to place some of the bugs lower down?" Her hand reached for the zipper of her low-cut corduroy jeans.

"That won't be necessary."

"You're missing out. I thought you were better at multitasking."

#

When they arrived at the location, Neal saw the same van Wilkes had used on Saturday night. That was a mistake. Neal bet the tech boys had already placed tracking devices on it. It was a frigid night with bitter temperatures in the teens. It would be easy to believe a cable had snapped, precipitating the blackout.

Had Sara already managed to secure her freedom? Was she injured? Peter had promised to send him a signal to his watch. Travis had customized it with a tiny LED on the dial face. A green light would indicate she was safe.

Also in the van were the two henchmen who'd been with Wilkes yesterday as well as Pavel Statnik. Neal was familiar with the authenticator's work. Pavel had a discerning eye, but Neal was confident his canvas would pass muster.

"You got the painting?" Wilkes demanded.

Alex patted her briefcase. "Of course."

Neal grabbed the briefcase from her before Wilkes could snatch it away. "I need proof your hostage is still alive before the exchange."

Wilkes grimaced. "No can do, Caffrey. The power went out several minutes ago. But by the time the painting's been authenticated, I'm sure I'll be able to show you Ms. Ellis. In the meantime, I'll even let you inspect the jewelry." His lips twisted into what he no doubt thought was a congenial smile but which soured Neal's stomach even more. "After this probationary period, we'll all be on the same team. You treat me square, I'll do the same by you."

"No more kidnappings?" Neal asked, as if he were gullible enough to believe anything Wilkes said.

"It won't be necessary," Wilkes said with a shrug. "You're a smart man. I'm sure you won't provoke another incident." He flicked his fingers and one of the thugs brought out a leather case.

Neal, in turn, removed the painting and handed it to Pavel.

Alex took possession of the jewels, whipping out her jeweler's loupe. She scrutinized each one as if she believed it had been replaced by a fake.

Neal shed his overcoat while pressing a button on the side of his watch. The signal would alert Travis that the jewelry was present.

He'd never met Pavel, but the authenticator undoubtedly knew his reputation and would take extra care when he examined the painting. Neal's forgery expertise had skyrocketed in the past two years, but that was a closely guarded secret known only to White Collar and a few others. None of his forgeries had been exposed on the dark web, giving him an extra margin of comfort.

Wilkes talked about future jobs he was targeting for them as if he expected they'd be excited. He claimed he was feeling magnanimous and wouldn't force Neal to travel so that he could continue to work at the Bureau. Did he honestly have the gall to believe Neal would be intimidated by him? The old Neal would have shed his identity and bolted to another part of the world rather than join his crew. This new, improved version wasn't running.

When the green light appeared on his watch, Neal's legs turned weak. Sara was okay. He took a second to let it sink in, not letting his mask change by a fraction. Catching Alex's eye, he blinked his eyes twice. It was an old signal they'd used in the past—a signal to get ready.

A minute later, someone pounded on the van door.

"Can you see who's there?" Wilkes asked the driver.

"No police cars. Maybe a drunk who saw the lights?"

Wilkes jerked his head to his thugs. "Get rid of them."

Before they could exit, voices yelled, "FBI! Open up!" and the back door was flung open, no doubt thanks to Travis's team. They had master keys for unlocking any model of vehicle. In the confusion of the first seconds, Neal saw Alex grab the jewelry while he stashed the painting in his overcoat. Wilkes wouldn't rat on them. He didn't want to be caught with any stolen merchandise.

Peter, Jones, and Diana were among the agents who swarmed inside. They made it look authentic, treating Alex and Neal the same way as the others. Diana took charge of the jewels, but the agents weren't supposed to know about the painting so left his coat alone. All Neal could think about was Sara.

"How is she?" he demanded of Peter as soon as he was able to.

"A little banged up, but she's okay. She told me to tell you that she's in much better shape than her captor, and the Way of the Orchid came through."

Neal sagged with relief. "Those martial arts classes came in handy."

Peter clasped his shoulder. "I'm going to encourage El to enroll in them as well. Sara was able to get outside the building. NYPD agents picked her up. They took her to New York-Presbyterian Hospital to be checked out."

Jones approached them, a worried look on his face. "Have you seen Alex?"

"She was with NYPD agents last I saw her," Peter said. "Why? Something wrong?"

He scowled. "Yeah. She's disappeared."

Peter stared at him, outraged. "The jewels too?"

"No, we'd already secured them."

#

Peter left Jones in charge of the mop-up so he could drive Neal to the hospital. By the time they arrived, Sara was being x-rayed, and they were forced to cool their heels in the waiting room. It was a sign of Neal's emotional state that he glugged down the vending machine coffee with nary a complaint. Her injuries were minor. A possible sprained wrist and rib injuries were being checked out, but until Neal got to see her, he didn't believe the reassuring words.

Neal had warned them Alex was slippery. Peter rubbed his chin as he slouched in the uncomfortable plastic chair in the emergency waiting room. A small consolation was that she'd been guarded by NYPD detectives at the time. He shook thoughts of Alex out of his head and focused on the man sitting next to him.

Coupled to Neal's concern was undoubtedly a truckload of remorse that it was somehow his fault. There was nothing Peter could do for Sara, but Neal's issue was something Peter could help with. "You're not to blame," he repeated, hoping this time it would finally sink in. "You didn't kidnap her. Wilkes is the only person responsible."

Neal nodded absently, his elbows propped up on the arms of the chair, his hands clenched in front of his chin. "Remember when I asked you to talk me down when I freaked out about keeping Sara safe? This is one of those times."

"Does it help to know that I seriously considered locking you up in prison to keep you out of harm's way?"

Neal looked at him with dismay. "You didn't!"

"I did. It was after you'd been working for only a couple of weeks at the Bureau and you let yourself be abducted."

Neal winced. "Now I remember."

"When I calmed down, I realized extreme measures would be ineffective. So let my example help banish all the nonsensical ideas that are probably going through your head right now."

He gave a dry chuckle. "I hadn't considered locking myself up, but that might solve both Sara and your problems."

Peter gave him a light punch in the arm. "Don't tempt me!" He continued in a quieter voice. "Wilkes was a ticking time bomb. You'd warned us about him during your initial confession. There's no one else in your past like him, is there?"

He shook his head. "The only one who comes close is Keller and he's behind bars."

"So my advice is to relax. Sara's job has probably resulted in her having enemies too. Consider how you'd want her to handle it if the situation were reversed."

He nodded. "Good advice. I'll work on it." He sat up straighter and took a breath. "And on the positive side, Sara's kidnapping, in addition to the stolen jewels, will keep Wilkes in prison for a long time to come."

"There's no way he can squirm out this time," Peter agreed. "As it turns out, we won't need Alex's testimony."

"She helped herself to my forgery," Neal said. "When you arrived on the scene, I placed it in a hidden pocket of my overcoat and left it lying on the table. By the time I was able to check, this is what I found." He pulled out a creased yellow square of paper. "It had been folded into a tulip. The message says: Sorry, Neal. This is compensation for the jewels. Later."

"She must have written the note and prepared the origami in advance. Painting the second forgery was a smart move."

"Mozzie predicted Alex would attempt to escape with the painting."

Peter smiled. "He keeps finding ways to make me very happy he's on our side. Wilkes doesn't know Alex stole the painting he saw. We'll be able to use your second forgery as leverage and hopefully get him to reveal who his buyer is."

"An alias or a dark web handle may be the best we could achieve," Neal warned.

"That's a good start," Peter reminded him. "That handle will be tied to something else. If Rolf was the one who commissioned the theft, the net will close a little tighter around him. You'd mentioned you were adding a special touch to the painting for Alex. What was it?"

"I drew a large origami cheetah on the woman's gown in invisible ink. It was covered with a thin veneer to escape detection by the authenticator, but in twenty-four hours the cheetah will blaze forth in luminescent splendor. There's also a microchip embedded in the canvas so it can be tracked."

Peter smiled at him. "Alex won't be happy."

"No, she won't. In a way, I'm glad she took it. I didn't feel right about tricking a friend even though I tried to ease my conscience by saying this was for her own good. What helped was the realization that Alex would probably try to take advantage of me, and I was simply beating her at her own game."

"I know it still doesn't sit well. For what it's worth, you gave her much more of a chance than she did you. This is one of the times when it's just not possible to fix everything."

Neal nodded. "But there is something I can fix. Go home, Peter. You've been up all night. Your sweetheart's waiting for you. Give her an early Valentine. Sara and I both will be fine."

#

Sara was released from the hospital on Monday afternoon after being diagnosed with a sprained wrist and a cracked rib. Neal had been in her situation enough times to know what the recovery was like—painful and annoying but not debilitating. He also remembered full well how much he disliked being fussed over. Sara appeared to be the same way. So they both made light of the harrowing ordeal.

They'd gone directly to his loft from the hospital. She fell asleep in his arms and eventually he drifted off as well.

The next day, Peter let him work from home so he could stay with her. So far, Wilkes was refusing to disclose the name of the buyer, but Neal was putting everything connected with the crook on the back burner. It was Valentine's Day. They had shrimp scampi with June, courtesy of Chef Emil. Neal had already stocked up on Mascleta Fireworks chocolates, and they all drank pomegranate sparkling water since Sara's anti-inflammatory drugs couldn't be mixed with alcohol.

Maggie Feng surprised them with a magnificent living orchid arrangement for the dining room table. Sara gave her a detailed description of how some of Maggie's martial arts techniques had come to her aid. A demonstration would have to wait for later but Maggie already had plans to design a class around Sara's escape.

After dinner, he and Sara returned upstairs where Neal slipped once more into artist mode.

She held out her left arm and gazed at the design admiringly. A giraffe now graced her wrapped forearm. "I wish you could come to London when it needs to be rewrapped," she said.

"So do I." Neal waved his felt-tip marker enticingly. "Would you like me to embellish the tape around your ribs?"

She grinned. "Yes, please."

"For that, you'll need to disrobe and stretch out on the bed."

She batted her eyelashes at him. "I thought you'd never ask." She slipped off her silk kimono and draped herself on the bed next to the vase of scarlet roses Neal had supplied. "What design does my artist lover recommend?"

"I'm yours to command."

"Then I'd like a cheetah. Better yet, a cheetah chasing a mockingbird." She glanced down. "I'm glad the bandages are low enough I'll be able to see it."

"I'll try my best, but I warn you it won't be my best work. I'll be too distracted."

"I wish I'd gotten you something for Valentine's Day," Sara lamented. "I'd planned to go shopping on Saturday."

"You already gave me your gift. Having you here with me is all I want."

"I do have another request to make though," she said.

"What's that?"

"I'd like you to paint Girl Interrupted at Her Music one last time. Not as it looks like now but as you imagine Vermeer would have initially painted it. It will be a remembrance of our first Valentine's Day together."

His heart leaped at the thought. "And the promise of many more to come."

Notes: Did Rolf commission Wilkes to steal the painting? As is typical for FBI cases, the answer won't be known for a while. But for Neal, the pressure is off. Wilkes is behind bars, and Sara is safe. When a chance to attend Mardi Gras falls into his lap, how can he resist? My next story is called Voodoo Remoulade. With a title like that, you may suspect the Winchesters are involved, and you'd be right. The next Caffrey Conversation story is Attack of the Kraken.

Penna Nomen's story By the Book contains the scene where Peter considers protecting Neal by locking him up in prison. Neal asked Peter to help keep him from being overly protective in my story, A Witch in Venice.