I want to thank everyone for the kind review and the alerts. And I want to thank Ultracape for the information on kidney transplants.
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Neal woke with a creak in his neck, caused by sleeping sitting up. June and Sara were still asleep in the chairs beside him. He stood up and stretched, then looked at his watch. It was a little past seven in the morning, he'd only been asleep for about an hour.
Neal saw an orderly pushing a laundry cart with clean blankets on it and walked over to him, the waiting room was a little chilly.
"Good morning." Neal greeted. "Can I have one of them for my friends over there?"
"Of course." The man said, handing Neal two blankets.
"Thank you."
Neal took the blankets, then gently spread one across the sleeping women.
"You look terrible." A familiar voice said. Neal turned to see Peter standing there, holding two duffle bags in one hand and a cardboard tray with four cups of coffee in the other. "How about I buy you a cup of coffee?"
"Sounds good." Neal smiled, taking the tray. He laid two cups on the small table beside June, then grabbed the other two and handed one to Peter. Then the two men walked a short distance away so they could talk without disturbing the women.
"Any news?" Peter asked, taking a sip of his coffee.
"Not since I talked to you earlier. Thank you for going by June's for some clothes."
"Not a problem. I packed your usual attire, including that ridiculous hat. El packed the clothes for June and Sara, she said she got everything they would need."
"Be sure and thank her for us." June's voice said. They turned and saw that the two women were now awake. "Is that coffee for us?"
"Yes." Peter said, as him and Neal walked back over. "I figured it has to be better then hospital coffee."
"You figured right." Sara said, as she took one of the cups. "Thank you."
"I've got to go to work now." Peter said. "But if there is anything at all you need, don't hesitate to call."
"Thank you Peter." June said. She was about to say something else, but stopped when she saw Doctor Stevens walking towards them. He was smiling.
"Good news?" June asked hopefully, as her and Sara stood up.
"Good news." The man replied. "A kidney was found and is on its way here. Right now Samantha is in stable condition, and the kidney is a perfect match. We are very optimistic about this."
"Oh, thank you so much." June hugged him. Then she released him and her and Sara hugged.
"When will you do the procedure?" Sara asked, after her and her Grandmother released each other. Both had tears in their eyes and were smiling.
"The kidney should be here in about an hour."
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Forty-five minutes later; June, Neal, and Sara were in another waiting room.
"I hate this waiting." June said.
"Me too, Grandma." Sara said.
The door opened and Doctor Stevens walked in, but this time he wasn't smiling.
"What's wrong?" June asked.
"I'm sorry, but the kidney was stolen."
"Stolen?" Neal asked. "How?"
"The two paramedics who were supposed to deliver the kidney was found tied up and gagged in a supply closet. So no one knows who really picked up the kidney."
"Why would someone do that?" June asked, as her and Sara clung to each other.
"The police are doing everything they can." Stevens said.
"W…what if it's not found?" Sara asked.
"We can put Samantha on dialysis, but she is getting weaker and weaker by the minute. We're not sure if it will be enough. But right now, that's all we can do."
Neal swallowed, trying to get rid of the lump in his throat. There was no way he was letting Sammy die. He turned and started to leave, but June grabbed his arm and stopped him.
"Where are you going, Neal?" She asked, through her tears.
"To find Sammy's kidney."
"How?"
"I've got my ways."
"Neal, look at me." Neal turned and looked at her. "Samantha loves you like a big brother, maybe even like a Father. You are the main male in her life, she looks up to you. She would not want you to do something stupid."
"June I….."
"Listen to me, Neal." June cut him off. "Call Peter, work with him on this. Do not go off half cocked."
Neal smiled slightly and kissed her cheek. "Okay. I'll call Peter."
"Thank you."
"If the kidney stays at the right temperature, you only have eight hours before it's of no use." Stevens said. "If the temperature raises, then you have less time."
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Mozzie slowly stepped out of the elevator and stopped just outside of it. He stood staring at the FBI agents, sweat starting to form on his clammy skin.
"This is for Samantha." He whispered, willing himself to move forward. But he couldn't move, he was frozen to the spot. This was only the second time he had been inside the FBI building, and he hoped it would be the last.
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Peter and Neal were standing in Hughes office; they were trying to convince him to fix it so the case was theirs.
"I know we don't usually handle cases like this." Peter said. "But we are very good at finding stolen objects."
"Can you stay professional on this case?" Hughes asked Neal. Then he gave a wary smile and added, "Well, as professional as you can be."
"Yes." Neal said. "I know I have to keep a cool head and not rip the bastard's head off, no matter how tempting that is. I will refrain myself from beating this slimy son of a bitch to a bloody pulp."
Hughes nodded, not used to seeing this side of Neal. He knew that Neal was not a violent person. "Okay, I will fix it so the case is yours."
There was a knock on the door.
"Come in." Hughes said.
The door opened and Jones stuck his head in. "Sorry to interrupt Sir." Then he looked at Neal. "Your little friend is here."
"Mozzie?" Neal asked in confusion.
"Yeah, and I think he comatose."
Neal rushed from the room and saw his friend standing there, staring straight ahead and not moving.
"Mozzie!" He yelled out. The other man slowly looked up and locked eyes with him. "Up here."
Mozzie quickly went up the stairs and into Peter's empty office, shutting the door behind him.
"What's he doing here?" Peter asked. "And why is he in my office?'
"No idea." Neal said, as him and Peter went into Peter's office.
"What's up Moz?" Neal asked.
"First off." He said, looking at Peter. "I want immunity."
"Is it about a way to find the stolen kidney?' Peter asked.
"Yes."
"You have immunity."
"In writing."
"Moz." Neal said. "Just tell us what you have."
"About a week ago, when Samantha started getting sicker." Mozzie said, handing Neal a file folder. "I started this."
"What is it?" Peter asked.
"Apparently Nick Holden has an eight-year-old daughter." Neal said, reading the files. "Amber Holden, I always liked the name Amber."
"I'm assuming Amber and Samantha are a perfect match." Peter said.
"Yes." Mozzie replied. "I have not shared this with anyone yet."
"We could put the word out that Nick Holden will pay big bucks, if delivered in a few hours." Neal said.
Before the other men could reply, Neal's phone rung. "It's Sara." He said, as he answered it. "Sara, calm down." He said. "What happened? Okay, we're on our way." He hung up the phone. "June just received a recorded message from the bastard."
The three men rushed from the building and to the hospital.
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"Sara." Neal said, once they saw the young woman. She was standing alone, and looked extremely nervous.
"Neal." She said. "Grandma June received a demand for a million dollars for the kidney."
"Where's the recording?" Peter asked.
She nodded towards a small cassette play on the table. Peter pressed the play button, using his pen.
"Hello June." An altered voice said. "Your husband and I played a friendly game of poker twenty years ago and I lost. After I lost my money, I lost my wife and child. Then my freedom. He's not around to pay me back, but you are. I want one million dollars to be left in the garbage can beside the fifth bench from the north in Central Park. You are to be the one to deliver the money in a plain brown bag. If I see any cops, then your little granddaughter will not get her kidney. You will deliver the money in three hours. After I get it, I will tell you where the kidney is."
"Grandma told me not to call you." Sara said. "She's planning on delivering the money."
'It could be a set up." Peter said. "A way to get money and a little extra revenge."
"You can't let her do it." Sara said.
"Where is she now?" Neal asked.
"Right here."
They turned and saw June standing there.
"June." Peter started, but she held up her hand to stop him.
"I have to do this Peter." She said. "I know who sent that message, he is serious. About wanting revenge. If I don't do this, he will dispose of the kidney and my baby will die."
"June." Neal said. "You told me to talk to Peter and do this his way, now I'm telling you the same thing."
"I have to do this." She repeated, her voice full of determination.
"What's to stop him from killing you and disposing of the kidney?" Neal asked. "That would be taking Byron's wife and grandchild, payback."
"I don't know what else to do." June said, tears filling her eyes.
"I have a plan." Neal said. "Mozzie constructed a medical file for a little girl who needs a kidney, matches Sammy's. I figure this guy will be willing to sell me the kidney for the right price."
"I almost have a million dollars gathered now." June said. "I will gather the rest while you set it up."
"I will put the word out." Mozzie said, walking away.
"Who is this guy?" Peter asked.
"Jerry Mitchell." June answered. "Twenty years ago, he challenged Byron to a game of poker. He lost over ten thousand dollars, turned out to be his family's life savings he used. When Byron found that out, he offered him the money back, but Mitchell refused. Said he didn't take charity from a cheat, but that he would play more cards with him. Byron played, and lost on purpose. Mitchell figured out that Byron was losing on purpose and stormed out. His wife left him, took their daughter with her. Mitchell was broke and robbed a liquor store, killing the clerk when he did. He went to prison, but apparently he's out."
"We will get the kidney back." Peter assured her. "And send Mitchell back to prison."
"Mitchell and the money are secondary thoughts." June said. "The main thing is the kidney."
"Of course." Peter assured her.
"Thank you."
Sara stepped towards her Grandmother. "Are you mad at me?" She asked.
"Of course now, Honey." June said, hugging her. "You did right, I was being foolish."
"You were being a terrific Grandmother." Neal said.
"She's always being a terrific Grandmother." Sara said.
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Hope you like it, let me know what you think. I will have the rest posted soon.