(Chapter 7)

Neal's face twitched in his sleep, voices whispering to him as he lay there.

"It's a lie. You'll never be safe."

The voice was dark and cold, chuckling at him in the darkness. Neal's lips quivered ever so slightly, his body shifting uncomfortably.

"They'll never take you back. You're corrupted."

Neal's brow furrowed in his sleep, a soft murmuring from his lips.

"No... you lie! I belong here." He was talking in his sleep, the voice chuckling at him in the darkness. His eyes moved beneath closed lids, face covered in a thin sheet of sweat.

"You don't have anywhere to go. All you can do is run and hide."

Neal continued to struggle in his sleep, the voice taunting him. He was trying his best to ignore it when someone touched his forehead. His hand flew up and grasped their wrist hard, a stifled scream from the person he grabbed. Neal's eyes opened, still bleary with sleep. The person struggled against his hold but he held on tightly, still partially in the dream.

"No one trusts you anymore..."

Neal shook his head, still holding the wrist in his hand securely. His eyes stared blankly ahead.

"Shut up!" He jumped out of the bed and pushed the figure against the wall, his eyes not seeing them as he shook his head again.

()()()

Elizabeth kissed Peter good-bye as he left. He had taken the day off to go get some things from June's for Neal. He hadn't told anyone Neal was back yet for safety's sake. Elizabeth understood and promised to keep Neal's return quiet. She stayed home, keeping an eye on Neal and checking up on him off and on. He was still asleep when she went in around noon. She noticed the sweat on his brow, his face pale, cheeks flushed and reached to feel his forehead. Suddenly his hand grasped hers and she stifled a scream as he held her wrist tightly. He was delirious, pushing her up against the wall, his blue eyes staring through her.

She was scared but knew he must be dreaming still, trying to calm herself and stop struggling.

"Neal, wake up. You're having a nightmare." She kept her voice calm but firm. He shook his head, his eyes still not seeing her. Elizabeth kept her cool, reaching with her other hand to touch his cheek.

"Neal... you're safe. Wake up, Neal. Please." She saw his blue eyes watering, tears flowing down them till they seemed to focus on her and he blinked. Neal looked around himself as if confused, looking down to see her wrist in his. He let go as if he had been burned and backed away. El rubbed her wrist before reaching out to touch his arm. He backed further away.

"Don't..." He said, turning as if trying to decide what to do. He looked skittish like he might run, El keeping herself by the door open but not blocking it. Finally she sat on the bed and motioned for him to sit. Neal continued to stare at the door as if contemplating running but finally he felt himself move closer to El and sat down some feet from her. He sat stiffly, only looking at her with side glances but never directly. Her wrist still hurt but she wasn't going to complain, rubbing it tenderly till he was suddenly standing beside her.

"Neal?" She looked up at him, trying not to scare him but he gently grasped her wrist and looked at the reddening skin. His face twitched, a tortured look mixed with guilt as he glanced back at her.

"I'm... sorry." His body started to shudder, his eyes dripping tears as he collapsed to his knees. El shushed him gently, reaching to hug him, her arms wrapping around his shoulders. He leaned against her leg and sobbed softly. She looked up as someone peered inside. It was Peter.

He started to say something but she held up a hand and he paused.

"Neal..." She spoke softly, the young man rousing as he looked up at her. She caressed his hair gently, helping him sit beside her.

"Feeling better?" She continued to caress his hair as he leaned against her like a child. Peter stood silently in the doorway watching as she calmed Neal down. He nodded without looking at her, eyes partially closed.

"Peter brought you some things from June's. Right, Peter?" She looked up at him and smiled, Peter nodding as Neal looked up at him. The young man looked skittish, blue eyes watching Peter cautiously.

"June sends her love." Peter walked into the room slowly, deliberately as he set the bag by the door and took a seat in a small chair by the bed. Neal continued to watch him, body tense. El kept talking to him, hugging him close to keep him calm. He started to slump against her, eyes closing. El eased the young man back onto the bed, Peter helping her to lay him back under the covers. Neal murmured in his sleep, eyes partially open.

"I'm sorry." He was looking at El but she just shushed him.

"Sleep, Neal. It's ok." She caressed his hair gently till he fell back to sleep, motioning quietly for Peter to follow her. They left the room, leaving the door partially open. Peter hugged her close, El wincing slightly when he accidentally hit her wrist. He glanced down at the bruising skin.

"What happened, El?" He was looking at her wrist with concern but she shook her head, her expression calm.

"Nothing. I was checking on Neal and reached to check his forehead for a fever when he grabbed my wrist. He didn't know what he was doing." She shrugged it off but Peter caught her in a hug and held her. His brown eyes looked down at her with concern as he continued to hug her close.

"He didn't mean to do it, Peter. He was scared." She pushed her face into his shoulder and nestled, both of them walking towards their room. Peter continued to hold her, kissing her on the forehead.

"He almost shot me... almost hurt you. What did they do to him that caused this? Neal was never like this before. I..." He continued to hold his wife in his arms as his voice trailed off. He looked frustrated but worried. If Neal kept up like this, they'd have to send him back to prison. Elizabeth knew that better than anyone that Peter didn't want that for the young man.

"It will be ok, Peter. It's only one day. He'll get better." She sounded hopeful.

()()()

Neal cried silently to himself once El and Peter had left. He was not in control of himself anymore. It scared him to think he could have hurt Elizabeth but he almost did. He had almost shot Peter. What was wrong with him? He tried to fight down the fear that coursed through him and calm himself down but it was hard to do. He had been in a terrible place for nearly two months without relief and now... now he was still afraid. Trapped in a prison of his own making. What bothered him most was his fear of Peter. He knew Peter was his friend but something made him breakdown when in the agent's presence. Gordon had done this!

He cursed silently, wishing he could wring the man's neck. Neal lay there in the guest room feeling less than himself, his eyes looking at the bag Peter had dropped by the partially open door. He slowly pulled himself from bed and padded over to the bag, sitting on the floor beside it. He pulled out a bag full of his toiletries, found his favorite pajamas and some other sleep pants along with another case hanging on the door with some of his suits. His hat sat up on the dresser. He smiled ever so slightly, pulling out a pair of jeans and black tee as he stood and walked out of the room and into the bathroom at the end of the hall. He paused briefly as he heard Peter and El speaking.

"What happened, El?" Peter's voice sounded concerned, Neal wondering what it was he was asking about.

"Nothing. I was checking on Neal and reached to check his forehead for a fever when he grabbed my wrist. He didn't know what he was doing." Elizabeth's voice calm with only a hint of uncertainty in it.

"He didn't mean to do it, Peter. He was scared." She was defending him even after what he did. Neal winced silently to himself, his guilty feelings coming back.

"He almost shot me... almost hurt you. What did they do to him that caused this? Neal was never like this before. I..." Peter sounded concerned but it made Neal feel guiltier at causing them so much pain. He didn't want to hurt anyone, especially Peter and El.

Neal quietly entered the bathroom and closed the door. He stripped out of the clothes he'd borrowed from Jared and got into the shower. He let the water slowly ease him into a semblance of calm. He was safe. Neal repeated that to himself in his mind, trying to make himself believe it. Soon though, he found himself curled up on the shower floor shaking. He felt helpless, his thoughts scattering as he tried to control his fear. After a moment he stood back up and turned the water off. He dried off and pulled on his clothes. Neal thought about it again. These were his clothes. They weren't the ones that June had given him but things he had bought with the little bit of money he got consulting. The thought made him calm down a bit but the idea of June helped. He could hear her voice in his head worrying over him as she fixed is lapels or dusted off a bit of lint from his jacket.

He padded quietly out of the bathroom, taking his clothes, the towel wrapped around his shoulders as he dried his hair. He no longer heard the soft voices of Peter or El but instead heard their movements downstairs, the sound of a game on the TV. It felt familiar but his mind was still fighting the panic that overwhelmed him. He closed the door to the guest room and went back to the bag, pulling it over to the bed as he sat down on the edge of the mattress. He pulled out a pair of black socks and put them on, then pushed his feet into a pair of dark brown loafers before he stood again. He pulled out a dark blue corduroy button up shirt and put that on over the tee. Neal sighed, putting Jared's clothes into the small waste basket before he stood and looked over at the door. He was safe, he thought. Nobody's out there but friends. This isn't a dream. I'm really here and I'm safe. He heard the buzz of a phone and looked around till he saw it was coming from the waste basket. He dug around in the pockets till he found the small black cell phone.

He answered the cell even though it wasn't his and heard silence. Soon he realized he could hear the slight breath of someone on the other end. He listened closer, not making a sound till a voice replied.

"So the pet con is back with its master. How sweet. Don't think you're going to be free of me so easily, Caffrey." Neal listened to the voice, his pulse racing as he threw the phone on floor and watched it break apart. His breath came fast, footsteps heard outside and a knock on the door.

"Neal? Neal, are you ok?" It was Peter's voice but Neal didn't react, looking down at the phone in fear as he stared down at the device. The door knob started to turn quietly.

"Neal, it's Peter. I'm coming in." The door opened.

()()()

Peter and El heard Neal walk past their door and go into the bathroom. He took a long shower but they didn't mind if it meant he was feeling better. El went downstairs to put ice on her bruised wrist, Peter joining her as he sat down to watch the game in the living room. They tried to act as normal as possible and keep out of Neal's way so he could come to them. Peter looked up when he heard the loud sound of something falling on the wooden floor boards upstairs. He dashed up the stairs and knocked on the guest room door. Neal didn't answer.

"Neal?" Peter peered inside the room as he slowly opened up the door and looked around. Neal stood by the bed, his gaze looking down at the floor where a cell phone lay in pieces. The young man looked terrified of something.

"Neal? Tell me what's wrong." Peter saw the young man look up at him a moment, blue eyes flickering with fear then back at the phone.

"I have to go." Neal zipped the bag up on the bed and started to push past Peter but the agent held him.

"Hey, hold on, Neal. Tell me what's wrong." Peter had a good hold on the young man but Neal twisted round and pushed him aside hard, Peter falling to the floor. Neal paused, looking at his friend guiltily, his manner uncertain as he looked between the stairs and Peter. Peter sat up, pulling himself back to his feet.

"Neal, tell me what's going on! Let me help you." Peter kept his voice calm but firm. Neal continued to stand there, his manner uncertain. Elizabeth called up, her voice ringing clearly.

"There are sandwiches if you're hungry!" Neal's manner seemed to change as he heard Elizabeth speak, the bag dropping from his shoulder to the floor. Peter walked over slowly, putting an arm around the younger man.

"Neal, come on." Peter left the bag on the floor, leading the young man to the stairs. They walked down slowly, El looking at them curiously when they came to sit at the table. Neal looked dazed, Peter worried but neither said a word as she set sandwiches out on the table. She just went along with it, Peter keeping his eyes on Neal who continued to look a bit out of it.

"I made your favorite, Neal: Chicken Salad." She put the tray in front of him, Neal barely nodding as he took a sandwich and placed it on his own plate. Peter took a deviled ham sandwich from the tray, his eyes still watching the younger man. Neal just stared at the sandwich a moment before he took a bite. He chewed slowly, his face relaxing as he finished, taking another bite. When he was done, he took a sip of the lemonade in the glass beside him. Peter started to relax a bit, eating his food as he stopped watching Neal so closely.

"How was June, Peter?" Elizabeth said suddenly as she passed another sandwich to Neal. He looked at it curiously before nodding at her and taking a bite of it. Peter finished eating a bit of his own sandwich, took a sip of lemonade and smiled.

"Well. She asked about Neal but I told her we had to keep it quiet even from Mozzie till the time was right." He took another bite of sandwich as El nodded back at him.

"It's too late."

They both turned to look at Neal who had finally spoken, his blue eyes staring down at his sandwich as he took another bite. Peter looked at his partner curiously as did El.

"The cell. Gordon knows." Neal's voice was barely audible but they heard. Peter stood up, walking over to Neal and placing a protective hand on his shoulder. El looked confused.

"Gordon? Neal, that's who called on the phone? Dammit!" Peter felt the young man twitch under his hand, shoulders stiffening in response. El looked at both of them clearing her throat.

"Someone tell me what's going on."

(Earlier…)

Gordon smiled, hearing the sound of the phone hitting the floor before hanging up his cell. He had found Caffrey alive and well. From the GPS on the phone he found out that he was with Agent Burke at his home. Maybe he should pay a visit to the Burkes and see how hospitable Mrs. Burke was.

()()()

Peter called Jones while packing up his stuff and letting El in on what happened. She paled but packed a bag too, helping Neal as she found his bag in the hallway. The young man remained quieter than normal, petting Satchmo in the guest room as Peter and El finished packing.

"Right, just meet me at that place. Don't tell anyone. I'll call Hughes myself." Peter nodded into the phone and hung up. He picked up his bag and helped El with hers.

"We need to leave before Gordon comes. He has a head start if that phone has GPS."