Chapter 2: The offer
In this world there exist animal-shifters. People who can change into an animal. Something in their DNA allows them to transform into one specific animal. Most people get tested around the age of 10. Some children discover it earlier, but most develop this ability in their teenager years. Everyone who is a shifter has it written on his or her ID. Together with the kind of animal they can change into it. Only a few never transform and have no idea what they are.
Neal is one of them, an animal shifter but no one ever found out what animal he is. Not Peter, not Moz, not even Kate. And every threat that is spoken at him gets ignored. Peter only asked once and regretted it the second he had let out the question.
The raw pain that appears in Neal´s eyes was enough to make him pull back the question and never ask again. He also made sure no one in their unite would ever ask again. This pain, this was real, no mask could ever produce something like that.
This case was different. The White Collar unit rarely deals with anything that is related to animal-shifters. It should have been something an easy case. Art, related to shifter had been stolen. That included paintings that show shifting people. Neal wasn't happy to work that case, but it was his contact that got them into the warehouse for the next auction. It turned out that the paintings show of the product and the buyers would purchase the animal shifter themselves. For whatever reason.
Suddenly they are trapped between people that see human trafficking as a good way to earn their many and who don't seem to mind killing law enforcement officer or their CI´s. That's how they ended, bleeding, shoot and ruffed up in the cell under the warehouse with no way of escape and death waiting for them.
The silence in the cell is deafening. "El will be angry with me." Peter mumbles and looks up at the dark ceiling. "I promised to fix the kitchen sink this weekend." Neal feels the regret and the pain in these words. It wasn't his fault that they were here but he didn't press his contact for more information. If they had known about the potential danger, they would have brought back up but they came alone. Without a way to contact the FBI.
"Sorry, it´s my fault." Neal isn't sure why he says it but it doesn't make him feel better. Peter has a wife he wants to return to. Neal has no one like that. Yes, Mozzie and June will be sad but they will grieve him and move one. El will … she will be alone and she will hate Neal for it. For her dead husband and the broken promises, the unfixed sink, the empty house and the tears she will cry at the funeral.
Neal sighs and looks up at the window. His other form could fit through it but there is no way he would get up there without Peter´s help. That means he has to make him look, let him see. The nausea reaches Neal faster than he had thought and nearly vomit all over himself.
Swallowing down the fear and the pain Neal turns to Peter. "I want you to promise me something." Peter looked at him. Waiting. "I can get us out, but I need your help and you have to promise to never tell anyone." The confusion is clearly visible on the agents face and the concussion isn't helping it. "Promise."
Peter nods.