White Collar: The Nightingale
Chapter Two
As per instruction from his wife Peter stood in Neal's apartment trying his hardest to give the missing forger the benefit of the doubt. However the longer he and his team combed over the scene the more difficult it was becoming to come to any conclusion other than Caffrey packed up his toys and left.
It had been a long night of trying to track down any trace of him. There were no hits on any of the airports, train stations, or even the toll booths that guarded the city highways. The broken anklet had been found discarded on the street. The device had been smashed to the point where they weren't even able to lift any usable prints from it. Peter had a hard time imagining Neal brutally destroying the anklet with a hammer, it didn't fit in with his style. However the anklet would have been making a horrendous noise once cut.
Peter had sent a team to the apartment to secure the area, but it wasn't until seven am that he arrived himself. The team found no signs of forced entrance. June hadn't heard anything. There was no evidence of a struggle of any kind. It was obvious that some of his wardrobe was taken, and part of his suitcase set was also missing. About the only thing that Peter found odd about the scene was the fact that Neal's bed was unmade, clearly he had gone to bed last night. It gave him hope that Neal had left in haste in the middle of the night rather than with careful planing.
Taking to the lam at the last minute would make him easier to find since it would open Neal up to making a mistake. Statically math was on Peter's side. As a lawman he could afford to make mistakes and still catch the bad guy, as the one on the other side of that equation it only took one mistake to end up caught.
"No one is perfect, Caffrey," Peter muttered to himself "not even you."
Feeling a headache coming on Peter reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose. He'd been at Neal's apartment for over an hour. He knew there wasn't really anything more he was going to find here that was going to help catch Neal, but on the other hand he was not looking forward to going into the office for the verbal lashing he was going to receive from his boss.
Peter was just about to give in and go face his boss when the door to Neal's apartment opened. Mozzie let himself in looking like he was just about to say something. When he spotted Peter and the other Agents taking up space in his friend's apartment he stopped short. Mozzie's eyes darted around the room before he brought his suspicious glare back to Peter.
"Hello, Suit." Mozzie greeted warily. "Where's Neal?"
"I was hoping you could tell me."
"Me? I'm not the one who keeps him on a leash."
"Neal is gone."
"Gone?" Mozzie repeated in alarm. "Wh...who took him?"
"It doesn't look like a kidnapping."
"Things are rarely as simple as they look."
"You are certainly a shining example of that." Peter said dryly. "Mozzie, where would Neal go?"
"He wouldn't just 'go' anywhere." Mozzie said defensively.
"I would love it if you could find me some evidence to the contrary."
Mozzie glanced around and then made a noise of triumph. Peter watched as Mozzie rushed over to the dinning room table. He picked up a quarter that had been sitting on the table and brought it back over. Peter gave Mozzie a doubtful look, not understanding the connection.
"It's a quarter."
"It's your proof." Mozzie said proudly as he held up the quarter.
"A quarter?"
"Neal would never leave money behind if he went on the run."
"It's a quarter." Peter repeated.
"It's a message." Mozzie insisted.
"Is this something that you and Neal set up as a message before now?"
"No."
"Is it a special or unique quarter?"
"Um...no."
"Does it hold some sentimental value between you and Neal?"
"No, but..."
"Is it a forgery?" Peter asked calmly.
"Why would anyone forge a quarter?"
"So it is in fact just an ordinary, run of the mill piece of pocket change."
"To the casual observer 'yes'. But..."
"Mozzie, what would be a more likely sign?" Peter interrupted. "Name something that Neal would never be without, something that a kidnapper wouldn't think to take."
Mozzie paused and looked around the apartment without leaving where he was standing. Peter waited patiently. Despite having had a sarcastic tone when he asked he was hoping that Mozzie would have an answer that might make Neal look a little more innocent.
"Well...his hat's gone. That's not a good sign." Mozzie continued to scan the apartment. "What about his paint brushes?"
"Gone."
"Lock pick set?"
"If it's here we haven't been able to find it." Peter said.
"He keeps it in that black Armani jacket that he likes so much."
"Well the jacket is gone so that means the lock picks went with it."
"What about those shoes?" Mozzie pointed to a pair of Italian shoes near the door.
"Neal has more shoes than my wife. He couldn't have taken them all, one tends to pack light when on the run."
"I know, but those ones are his favorite."
"I need something better than that."
"Toothbrush?" Mozzie asked hopefully.
"Now you're grasping at straws, but the toothbrush is missing."
"That's not good." Mozzie admitted.
"No, it's not."
"Oh!" Mozzie exclaimed as he remembered something. "He keeps some money behind his favorite painting."
"I know, also gone."
"Peter," Mozzie sighed miserably "Neal wouldn't just leave. He wouldn't do that to you."
"What makes you so sure?"
"Because I've spent the past two years trying to convince him to run, and he never even considers it."
"Never?"
"Well, almost never."
"Mozzie, I want to believe that Neal wouldn't run, I really do." Peter said honestly. "But look around, if Neal was kidnapped he made no attempt to fight back. I'll admit that someone may have forced him out at gun point, but Neal is crafty don't you think he would have left a sign more obvious than a quarter and a pair of shoes?"
"Yeah." Mozzie muttered. "Can I look around?"
"Absolutely not. Even if he wasn't kidnapped this is still an active crime scene. If you know of something that Neal has hidden that he wouldn't leave behind you just tell me where to find it."
Mozzie visibly hesitated. Peter stared him down, hoping that he would crack and reveal some stolen piece of art or forgery that Neal held dear to his heart. Mozzie shifted his weight uncomfortably. Peter felt that Mozzie was about to say something when Jones stepped up to them. Jones had just hung up his cell phone and looked like he had bad news.
"Peter," Jones said "do you remember the Sapphire Waterfall?"
"It's a necklace at the Met, right?"
"A work of art in its own right, not to mention a very pricy one." Mozzie added. "Neal always admired that piece."
"It's been stolen." Jones informed.
"Did I say 'admired'? I meant...uh... You know as Neal's lawyer perhaps I should stop talking."
"I think that would be wise." Peter agreed.