Trust 7
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She stared out the kitchen window at the pasture beyond and gave a little sigh. Lara Evans stared back down at the dishes in her sink and finished washing the last of them before drying her hands and walking out into the living room and down the hallway. It had only been a couple of days but it had been nice having someone around again despite the circumstances. Neal Caffrey. Maybe she just missed her brother but he had made her feel like her brother was back with her again if only for a little while.

Lara sighed again and opened up the guest room he had been resting in during his visit. It had been just over a week since the ordeal with the masked men and her own near death experience but she had hoped she could see the young man again. Make sure he was truly ok. He had looked so pale on the stretcher as they took him away in the ambulance. His friend, Peter Burke had been kind to her as they drove to the hospital and sat up the whole night waiting to hear how Neal was. She had been relieved to hear he would live, a weight lifted off her shoulders. Peter had insisted his associate drive her back home and said he would call once Neal was well enough to receive more visitors. Lara had sent flowers a few days after visiting and wondered if Neal had seen them yet. She sighed again, opening the closet door and looking inside at her late brother's clothes. She saw something sitting on the shelf inside and picked it up. It was the note from the military telling her that her brother had died overseas. Lara didn't want to open it but she did and something slipped out of the letter. She reached down and picked it up to find a handwritten note in an unfamiliar script.

"Lara,
I found this note while looking for something to wear.
I lost someone very close to me recently so I know what you're going. If you ever want to talk. Let me know.

NC"

She peered at the note and reread it then folded them back together again and pushed it back into the closet, a slight smile on her lips. She closed the door and turned as she heard the wind whip at the curtains on the window. Lara moved towards the window to close it when she noticed something sitting on the bed. It stuck out against the green of the covers as she walked over and picked the item up. It was a manila folder with the words: Neal Caffrey written across the top. She sat on the edge of the bed and opened up the folder wondering where this had come from.

It took her a full thirty minutes to read it before she dropped the folder beside her and stared up with a frown. Neal was a criminal? An "international art thief" as he had joked to her but he had been telling the truth even if she hadn't believe him at the time. According to the file, he had been convicted and imprisoned for four years for bond forgery, escaped and now he worked with his "friend," Agent Peter Burke of the FBI. She rubbed at her eyes tiredly wondering about everything she believed and remembering the note in the closet. He seemed sincere, kind and gentle but he had been in prison for theft. Lara tried to make sense of it all when she heard a knock at the door and turned.

A tall young man with broad shoulders, a black windbreaker and dark brown hair stood there. He smiled at her and pointed down the hallway.

"I'm sorry to interrupt..." She shook her head, pushing the folder behind her out of sight.

"It's ok, did you need something?" Lara smiled at the young agent who had been assigned to watch her since the incident with the masked men. He shook his head and pointed again down the hallway.

"Your phone is ringing. I didn't know if it was important or not." She blinked and nodded, standing up and following the young man down the hallway. He nodded to her going back out into the back patio while Lara picked up the receiver and answered.

"Evans." The line was silent a moment and she thought maybe the person had hung up. She started to hang the phone up when she heard a low menacing voice.

"Did you read the folder, Miss Evans?" She stared at the phone, eyes wide as she realized she knew that voice. Her hand shook as she pushed the receiver back to her ear and spoke with a trembling voice.

"Who is this? What do you want?" The voice laughed at her making her shake with fear as the man continued to speak.

"I just thought you should know who it was you trusted to be in your home. Were you surprised by the contents?" Lara nodded at the phone trying to control her fear. She thought about the man who had held her and who had Neal Caffrey shot. Even if Neal was a criminal he had tried to help her. He had alerted the authorities to come and save them.

"I don't care about his past. Why are you calling me? Haven't you done enough?" She started to hang up the phone when she heard a clucking of the man's tongue in the background.

"I wouldn't hang up just yet, Miss Evans. I have a task for you if you wish to prevent more deaths." She blinked at the phone looking around to see how he knew what she was doing.

"I have simple instructions that if you follow them will prevent two families from losing a member. You wouldn't want Agent Luis and Parker to go home in body bags would you?" She stared out the back door through the window at the young man sitting on the porch. Agent Javier Luis couldn't be older than 25 at most and he had been nothing but helpful around the farm since being assigned to protect her. She shivered at the thought of him being hurt as the voice started to talk again.

"I've left you a little something for the two agents. You'll find a pot of coffee on your kitchen counter. Make two cups and give each agent one. Once they are incapacitated, go out to your truck and await further instructions. Do you understand?" She nodded into the phone and whispered hoarsely:

"I understand." She heard a click and then a dial tone as the man hung up. It took her a moment to react but she finally hung up the phone and walked slowly into the kitchen. On the counter she saw her coffee maker with a fresh pot she didn't remember starting. Lara walked over to the counter and took a quick whiff of the coffee. Something was off about it, not enough to make anyone suspicious but she smelled something there that she couldn't quite place. Reluctantly, she took two paper cups from the dispenser over the sink and poured two cups as the man had requested. Her hands shook so she had to be careful not to burn herself as she took the first cup and walked slowly and deliberately towards the back door. She opened it up and felt the cool wind whip at her hair as she turned to see the young agent look up at her.

"Miss Evans, did you need something?" He stood up but she held up a hand and tried to smile despite herself.

"I'm fine, I... I just thought... well I made some coffee." She held the cup out as if it was going to bite her but the agent didn't seem to notice, a broad grin across his face as he took the cup from her.

"Thanks. I was just going to come in for a cup. I noticed you had it brewing. Thanks." She nodded somewhat woodenly she thought but the young man again didn't seem to notice, taking the cup with him back to the seat as she walked back inside. Lara closed the door and leaned against it for support as she slid to the floor. What was she doing? She stood back up after a moment and looked out the window and saw Agent Luis sipping at the coffee. Lara thought she was going to be sick but she held back and went back into the kitchen to take the second cup and walked towards the front door. She opened the door after getting over the feeling she was about to faint and peered out at a thirtyish woman in a tailored brown jacket, dark blond hair and olive tone skin who smiled up from a swing on the porch. The agent stood and stretched walking over to Lara and looking at the cup.

"Coffee? Thanks!" Claire Parker took the cup with a smile and started to take a sip when Lara interjected.

"Agent Parker, if you're hungry, I could make some food. It's nearly lunch time." She saw the woman shake her head with a thankful expression.

"I'm still full from your country breakfast, Miss Evans. You don't find that kind of buffet in the city." She laughed patting her stomach which made Lara feel that much more nauseated as the agent sipped at the coffee.

"I'm glad you liked it. Let me know if you want anything." The agent smiled as Lara moved back into the house and closed the door.

She stood there in the hallway feeling strangely dizzy, her vision tunneling as if she was going to faint. After a moment she ran to the bathroom and lifted the seat and threw up. She vomited until nothing but clear liquid came out. She was out of breath as she closed the lid and flushed the toilet. Lara ran the water in the sink and washed her hands, face and rinsed out her mouth.

How... how could he make her do this? She could refuse but he threatened to kill them. Was it all a ruse? She grabbed a small hand towel and wet it with cool water, wrung it out and placed it on the back of her neck. Her head hurt as she walked out of the bathroom and made her way into the guest room. The folder still sat there on the bed. She stared at it, going back to the edge of the bed and picking it up.

"Criminal... He doesn't seem..." She heard the phone ring again and felt a sense of dread. Lara moved over to the nightstand and dropped the folder into a drawer before leaving the room again and walking slowly down the hallway. The phone rang in an incessant manner that just made the situation that much more nerve wracking to her. She finally reached the device and picked up the receiver, pushing it to her ear with a despondent expression on her face.

"Evans." Her voice sounded hollow to her as she waited to hear what the man wanted her to do next.

"Miss Evans? It's Peter Burke. Neal's friend." She blinked waking up from her depression long enough to figure out what was going on.

"Miss Evans?" She heard the agent's voice sound worried when she didn't answer.

"Sorry, yes. I remember you. How are you?" She tried to sound normal but didn't think she was doing a good job when she heard Peter speak.

"I apologize if I caught you at a bad time. I just wanted to let you know Neal's awake. If you wanted to come see him, we'll leave a pass at the front nurses station for you." She nodded at the phone trying not to cry.

"Thank you and no I just woke up from a nap. Thank you for calling. I'm glad he's doing better." She heard the man moving around on the other side and voices in the background. It sounded like he was a the hospital or somewhere public.

"Neal wanted me to let you know he liked the bouquet you sent and to thank you for everything. I wanted to thank you aswell. I was worrying about him. Don't think I've spent a day away from the hospital since he came in." Lara could hear the man's sincere concern for Neal in his voice and smiled, her eyes feeling warm with tears.

"Mr. Burke, thank you for calling. Tell Neal I'll see him soon." She wanted to scream into the phone what was happening but didn't.

"I'll tell him to expect you soon. Have a good day." She heard the phone click and then the dial tone.

Lara hung up the phone and leaned against the wall breathing hard. Reluctantly she walked over to the back door and opened it up. Outside the breeze was soft and smelled of freshly mown grass. Lara stepped out onto the balcony when she heard a faint gasping sound. She turned to the right to find Agent Luis lying on the wooden porch in a heap. A dark stain covered the porch and she thought about when Neal was shot then realized it was the coffee she had given the agent. She crouched down and touched his neck and sighed in relief as she felt a pulse. His eyes were partially open and they rolled up to glance at her, a soft gurgling sound coming from his lips.

"I'm sorry... he said he would kill you if I didn't..." She thought she saw him nod slightly as he grasped her arm weakly then let go and pulled his jacket aside. She saw his gun there and realized what he was trying to say.

"He'll know I have it... I can't..." She saw him move his eyes as if saying to take it so she did and stuffed it inside her jacket looking around to see if the man could see her. She didn't know if he could. The agent smiled slightly before his eyes rolled back and he passed out. She felt his neck again and found he still had a pulse and was breathing. She pulled a blanket off the chair he was on and threw it over him.

"I'm sorry." She whispered before she walked back into the house and closed the door locking it. Lara leaned on the door a moment dreading going to the front to see Agent Parker. Finally she stood up and made the longest walk across her home to the front door and peered out. She opened up the door and saw Agent Parker slumped back in the swing apparently asleep. She saw the mostly full coffee cup beside the agent and wondered if the woman had fallen asleep or had been drugged. Lara walked quietly over to the agent and nudged her gently. Agent Parker fell limply forward to the porch with a thud.

"Claire?" Lara turned the young woman onto her back and checked for a pulse and breath. The woman felt cold to the touch, a weak pulse just barely registering under her fingertips. Lara paled taking off her jacket and placing it under the agent's head as she started CPR. She pushed back Agent Parker's head to clear the airway and started to breath deeply into the woman's mouth. She felt something blocking the air flow and realized what had happened. Lara ran back into the house quickly and into the bathroom again. She reached under the sink and opened up the cabinet grabbing up a large tackle box and taking it back with her. She pulled out something that looked like a pen, took off the cap and crouched beside the unconscious agent.

"I hope this works..." She jabbed the pen into the woman's chest and pulled it out again. She checked the woman's vitals and then tried to do CPR again. After a few moments she felt the blockage ease up and the agent started to breath finally. Lara sat there exhausted and scared. What if Claire Parker had died? Even if she had just done what the man told her to do to prevent the woman from being shot, she was still responsible for someone dying if she had performed the action. She started to cry, rocking back and forth, arms hugging her knees tightly. Lara must have sat there for a few minutes doing that before she heard the familiar sound of the phone. She turned her head slowly but didn't get up right away. The phone kept ringing and she finally, reluctantly stood up stiffly and shuffled into her home. Lara walked as if in a haze barely aware of what she was doing as she picked up the receiver and held it to her ears.

"I'm waiting for you, Miss Evans. Are you ready to visit your friend, Mr. Caffrey?" She just nodded woodenly into the phone too much in shock to think straight.

"Now, grab your things and go to your truck. I'll have further instructions there." The phone clicked to a dial tone and she hung up the phone after a moment. Lara shuffled despondently to her bedroom, grabbed her purse, keys and another jacket before she stepped outside past the unconscious Agent on her front porch and walked like a robot to her pickup truck. She fumbled at the keys before she found the right one and opened up the front door and pulled herself inside. The sound of the door slamming did nothing to bring her back to reality as she pushed the key into the ignition and peered up into the rear-view mirror. She gasped when a pair of deep green eyes peered back at her. It was him!

"Don't do anything hasty, Miss Evans. Here are your instructions: We are going to drive to the city and see Mr. Caffrey at the hospital. You will take the pass they give you and walk to his room and tell me which one it is with this." He passed her something that looked like a hearing aid.

"Place this in your ear once we get there. It's a two-way receiver. You will tell me which room he is in and then once you are inside, lock the door to the room and open up the adjoining door to the next room. I will be in the next room waiting. Do you understand?" Lara nodded with a slight shake of her head. He smiled broadly at her in the mirror.

"Good, now... shall we go?" She turned her eyes from the mirror and started up the vehicle and took off. Her mind kept wandering to the two agents unconscious on her porch and especially Claire Parker on her front stoop. The woman had almost died because Lara had given her that coffee. She looked up into the mirror after a moment and tried to stare into those menacing eyes with as much fury as she could.

"You told me if I drugged them, they'd be ok. Claire nearly died because of you!" Her words were venomous but he just laughed.

"You trusted that what I told you was true. If you remember, this is just a game." She glared at him but continued to drive, feeling like trashing the car with her in it if it meant this man would die too. He must have read her mind because she heard the cocking of a gun right behind her ear.

"I would keep my eyes on the road if you wish to stay alive." She nodded with wide eyes, hands white knuckled as they gripped the steering wheel in terror.

(Visiting Hours)

Neal stared around the hospital room thinking he would love to be anywhere but here if he could.

It had been three days since he'd waken up. Peter and he had had a kind of heart to heart about things and he'd found out what had happened from the agent's point of view. Neal worried about his friend, seeing him slumped there in the chair had made him think something was wrong and it was. El said Peter wasn't sleeping due to nightmares. Neal couldn't say he hadn't been dreaming about some strange things but atleast he'd found a safe place in June's terrace that seemed to resolved many of the issues he'd been dealing with. Kate showed up occasionally to chat him up so he wasn't alone. Still, it wasn't healthy if he was going to resolve what had happened to keep dreaming about her as if she were alive. Nobody could find leads to who had blown the plane up but so far he had managed to keep himself from reliving that nightmare in his mind as he concentrated on getting to know Kate as she was in his memory.

"You're awfully quiet today." Neal turned to find Peter striding in with a small brown paper bag. It crinkled softly in his hands as he walked with a slight limp towards him. The young man smiled and shook his head.

"Just thinking about things. I see they let you take the sling off. Guess your shoulder is better?" Peter nodded slightly.

"They didn't want it to get frozen so I'm in a bit of "rehab" getting the muscles back into shape and my arm back into gear. Feels good not to be so fettered." He gave a little tired stretch, the bags under his eyes evident he was still having problems sleeping but he seemed calmer, happier. Peter moved over to the chair by the bed and sat down handing the brown paper bag to Neal. The con looked at it curiously and opened it up.

"What's this?" He peered inside and pulled out a small wrapped triangle half of a sandwich. He sniffed at it and smiled.

"El made me chicken salad? Wow! Tell her thank you for me?" Neal smiled broadly, unwrapping the half and taking a big bite out of it. He looked really happy all of a sudden, closing his eyes and just smiling.

"This is just... well I'd pay $100 bucks a pop for one of her sandwiches." Peter smirked and nodded as he leaned back in the chair.

"I'll tell her to send you a bill." Neal paused mid-bite, finished swallowing and stuck out his tongue.

"You would try that wouldn't you?" Both men chuckled, chit chatting as Neal finished his sandwich and started the second half. It was around this time they heard a knock on the door and the guard peered in.

"There's a Miss Evans here?" Peter stood up and nodded with a wave. The guard nodded back and Lara Evans walked into the room slowly. She stood there in the entrance a moment leaning back on the door as it clicked quietly shut behind her. She looked a bit pensive but finally made her way forward and nodded to the two men. She stopped a moment by the bathroom door and started to open the lock beside it when Neal said:

"It's the next one. That's the adjoining door lock." She blushed or tried to act like she was and pretended to lock it back despite her better sense before she entered the bathroom and stared into the mirror. With the door shut she could hide her fear a bit but once she went out, she didn't know if she could continue to contain it. She washed her face, dried it and then walked back outside.

"Please, Miss Evans, sit." Peter motioned for her to sit in the chair by the bed and she complied, her body language wooden. Neal watched her as he chewed the sandwich wondering what was wrong that she would be so guarded.

"Lara, are you ok? You look a little pale?" She nodded.

"I'm fine. It's a long drive from the farm to here if you know what I mean." Neal nodded. Right about then, Peter excused himself a moment and made his way to the bathroom. Lara looked up at Neal, her eyes barely meeting his.

"I'm glad to see you're doing better. They must be missing you on Wall Street." He noticed she made a small emphasis on the last word and felt a pang of regret for lying to her but at the time it had been he thought for the best. Far as he knew, she didn't know about his past or Peter's. They had maintained their cover. Her voice was quiet, deliberate as she grasped his hand in hers and he felt something pushed into it.

"I know a bit more than I should about a few things now. I just wanted to be sure you were doing well before we part ways." He glanced at her curiously before reading the note she had passed him.

"He's here. The masked man."

Neal looked at her with wide eyes. She nodded back with a terrified look on her face. Peter exited the bathroom right around then and saw their expressions. He looked around for the source trying to figure out what was going on.

"Did I miss something?" Neal was about to reply to Peter's words when the adjoining door flew open knocking the agent down to the floor. Before Peter could do anything, a figure was over him with a taser on his neck. The agent thrashed as the taser hit him several times before he collapsed to the floor twitching slightly. The man that stood there smiled with bright white teeth and sparkling green eyes. He looked slightly European but his accent was American. On one hand he wore what could only be called a small goldish colored ring with the FBI logo on it. Neal gasped recognizing the ring and sitting up like he was going to stand but Lara held him back. The man laughed pulling out a gun and holding it pressed against the back of Peter's skull.

"Don't tempt me, Mr. Caffrey. You know what I'm capable of. Now... throw these on and follow me. Miss Evans if you will join me over here?" Lara turned and looked back at Neal who was looking down at a small sack of clothes the man had tossed near the foot of the bed. He squeezed her hand as he looked up at her, nodding as she stood and moved towards their captor.

"Miss Evans, turn your face so Mr. Caffrey won't feel embarrassed dressing. Tie Agent Burke up with this while you're waiting." She nodded woodenly as he handed her Peter's handcuffs and some duct tape.

Neal moved stiffly off the bed to the right and started to pull off the sweats and tee he had on, pulling on a pair of jeans, black tee and button up white shirt that were in the bag. He sat at the sofa and pulled on a pair of white tube socks and some sneakers also in the bag. He stood up with a bit of a sway, his body having moved little in the week or so he'd been in bed. Neal glared at the man as he waved the gun at them. He saw Lara bound Peter's wrists and push a piece of duct tape over the agent's mouth at the command of their captor.

"Miss Evans, there's a wheel chair in the next room if you will bring it over. Be quick!" She nodded with wide eyes and disappeared into the adjoining hallway before coming back with the chair.

"Now place Agent Burke in the chair and throw a blanket around him so nobody can see he'd bound." She nodded woodenly at him, eyes lowered and did as she was told. Neal stood by the sofa still, blue eyes flashing angrily.

"Leave her here, You have us." He saw the man smile and shake his head.

"Oh no, we need a third player. Makes things so much more interesting if you add players. Shall we?" He made a motion with the gun to the small adjoining doorway ushering Lara through as she pushed Peter in the wheelchair followed by Neal. The man locked the doors behind them and waited a few moments listening to the main door of the new room a moment before ushering them out with harsh whispers.

"Don't make one false move or Agent Burke here gets it." He took one end of the chair his hand hidden behind it with the gun at Peter's back. Neal moved ahead of the group while Lara was pushing the other end of the chair reluctantly. The man whispered just for their ears.

"Now, we're going to the basement parking garage where I have a vehicle waiting. Shall we?" He motioned them towards an elevator and they all shuffled in. The doors closed as they descended to the basement level. At one point the doors opened at the main lobby and a man started forward. Their captor stopped him with a hand wave.

"I'm sorry, this elevator is full." Neal looked up to see Agent Jones standing there staring at him as the doors began to close. Their captor seemed to realize what was up and pulled out the gun. Jones took a defensive leap to the side as the doors shut. Neal turned and saw Lara pale and shaking beside him. He took her hand in his and she shuddered a second before accepting it and squeezing back.

"I have a new place to play our game. I think you'll like the new location." He chuckled menacingly, Neal feeling his ire grow as he held Lara's hand and looked back at the man with a glare. He felt Lara squeeze his hand and her eyes went down towards her jacket. He shrugged slightly, arching a brow in question before she very gently pushed her jacket open enough for him to see the gun Agent Luis had given her. His eyes widened a bit before he made his expression bland again. The elevator dinged at the basement level and opened up.

"We're here, everyone off."