(Chapter 3)

Peter wasn't sure what he was thinking when he did it. Well that's not absolutely true. He was thinking of Elizabeth. He was thinking of the way she fluttered her lashes at him, her long dark hair, those blue eyes and the way they flashed at him when happy. He wanted to see her again and so he did what he thought he had to despite everything.

But Neal was Neal and then he wasn't. The con talked to him like he would have talked to Neal. He was sensible for once and he was selfless which surprised him. The young man was loyal to him to a fault and it scared him because at this point trust might not be what kept them safe. He had to end it here before he took the plunge, so he pushed his friend and partner out of the car and started off down the alley, fear pushing him to keep away from the one thing he thought about doing. The one thing that might save his wife.

Peter turned and saw the gun glinting on the seat beside him as he paused at the end of the long alley way. He only hesitated moving into traffic when he saw what sat next to the weapon: Neal's fedora. The young man hadn't had time to grab it as the agent pushed him out of the vehicle. That stupid hat! The thing that made him want to laugh every time he saw his partner come into the office. The thing that made Neal look like such a cartoon. He cursed as he placed the car in reverse then stopped immediately, parked and got out. He picked up the hat and took it with him as he started back down the alley on foot. He could see the young man still standing there, his back to the agent.

()()()

Neal stood up and watched the car take off. He wasn't sure if he was angry or not but under the circumstances he could understand Peter's reaction. He had been there not so long ago and still getting over it. He sighed seeing the car stop at the end of the alleyway wondering what Peter was thinking as he brushed dust off his suit and noticed the tear in his pant leg. Normally he would be upset but his concern for Peter made him shrug it off as he turned to walk away in the opposite direction.

He winced on his first step, his right ankle hurting him. He could still make it back to June's he thought. He had barely started up the alley when another car came barreling towards him from the entrance. Neal limped quickly to the side, hitting the wall of the alley and narrowly missing getting hit by the vehicle. It skidded to a loud stop and started to back up towards him as he tried to limp away. The car blocked his escape, the back window opening up to reveal a masked man and the glint of a gun barrel. Neal froze unsure what to do when he heard a loud report, ducking at the sound and heard glass breaking. The vehicle shuddered as he watched the person with the gun pause and turn away from him.

"Get the HELL away from him!" Peter was yelling as he walked up and shot at the black sedan another headlight shattering under his sharpshooting. He aimed high at the windshield and Neal saw the driver suddenly change gears and pull the car into reverse as Peter shot at the radiator. The car quickly slid back into traffic and vanished as Neal watched Peter follow the car with his gaze, gun still held at the ready. His breath was coming fast with fear as he remained pushed up against the wall and trying to calm down. He saw Peter continue to stand there gun at the ready. Neal limped over carefully and put a gentle hand on the agent's shoulder. Peter's head whipped around and looked at him with a scary glance.

"It's ok Peter... they're gone." Neal kept his tone neutral seeing Peter's body start to relax and finally sag as his arm dropped and the gun fell to his side. They stood there a moment before Neal felt something thrust towards him and he looked down at the object and blinked as he saw his Fedora in Peter's hand.

"I thought you might... want this." Peter's voice was quiet as he handed the hat to Neal, before falling to a crouch and breathing like he had just run a marathon. He was hyperventilating, Neal kneeling beside him.

"It's ok, Peter. We can figure this out." Neal put a hand on his friend's shoulder and patted him on the back gently. Peter looked at him with a guilty expression, something he had never seen on the agent's face till now. Peter was always the strong one but now Neal was the one who had to be strong.

"Neal... What if they..." His voice trailed off as he realized he had shot at the people holding his wife. His face paled and his breath sounded more ragged, Neal pulling his friend up to his feet.

"Come on, Peter. We'll walk back to June's." Neal stood up with him and winced, his ankle bothering him. Peter put an arm around him despite his protests.

"You hurt your ankle?" Neal nodded reluctantly, the last thing he wanted was to distract from the situation at hand but Peter insisted on helping him.

"I'm ok, Peter. It's just a sprain." He limped ahead but felt the arm around him again and finally just accepted it as they walked slowly but surely back toward June's. Peter had pushed the gun into his jacket pocket but his face spoke volumes as they walked along in silence. Neal wanted to talk to his friend but instead just took his help and hoped Peter would take his in return.

It wasn't long before they showed up at June's and Neal pulled out his key and opened up the door. They had barely closed the door behind them and locked it when June walked up and stared curiously at both men. She saw Peter's tired exhausted features and seemed to be noting Neal's dirty torn suit as well as his limp. She quickly walked over to help by taking Neal's other side to his chagrin. They sat him on the sofa near the stairs, June rushing to the kitchen for some ice and a medical kit. Peter remained standing, his eyes looking back at the door. Neal watched his friend who seemed like another person entirely, reaching up and grasping his friend's arm.

"Sit down, Peter. Please?" He tugged gently on the man's sleeve and as if he had to think about it Peter finally nodded and moved to sit beside him, head falling back against the cushions tiredly. The agent closed his eyes, breathing somewhat ragged as he seemed to relax some, his head nodding off to one side as a soft snore escaped his lips. Neal smiled holding up a hand as June came back. She walked quietly towards them, handing the ice to Neal and looking over at Peter curiously.

"How is he? What happened to you?" She was whispering as she moved to sit beside her young boarder. Neal shrugged unsure how much to tell her.

"Long story but for now, I need to get him upstairs so he can rest. Give him a moment." He watched her nod at his words and rise but not before handing him a roll of gauze for his ankle. He thanked her quietly before leaning back against the sofa and resting his own eyes. His ankle throbbed but he ignored it as he lay back and tried to rest. Neal only woke up when he felt his shoe being removed, then the anklet and his sock. He opened his eyes to see Peter pulling the gauze from his hand as he lifted up Neal's ankle to wrap it. Neal started to protest but Peter just gave him a look that stopped any words from leaving his lips as the agent gently wrapped his ankle securely. Once he was done, Peter stood up and stretched looking at the door again.

"I should go. I..." A buzzing came from his pocket suddenly as both men paused. Peter pulled a new phone out of his pocket, his eyes turning dark a moment as he stared at it. Neal recognized it as a disposable phone, possibly from El's kidnapper's he thought. He watched as his friend lifted the phone to his ear and spoke.

"Burke..." His voice was hollow as he spoke, obviously listening to something or someone. Neal watched as the agent's face turned pale and the phone fell from his hand to the carpeted floor. Peter's eyes were wet looking, streaks of tears flowing down his pale cheeks as he collapsed to the floor and sat there. Neal was at his side shaking him gently.

"Peter... What did they say to you? Peter!" He was shaking the agent till the man suddenly pinned him down on the floor and held him firmly in place. Peter had the gun back in his hand and pushed it against Neal's temple.

"I'm sorry, Neal. Please forgive me..." Peter's voice was shaking as he closed his eyes and his finger pulled the trigger.

()()()

June was crying when the ambulance came. A figure covered with a white sheet was carried out of her palacious house on a gurney, the sheet wet with something red. Diana and Jones were cuffing Peter and leading him away with Hughes nearby looking angrier than usual or maybe he was saddened. It was hard to tell. The medics pulled the gurney up into an ambulance and closed the door as Peter turned to look over at the vehicle, his brown eyes two watery pools devoid of any emotion but sadness. He hung his head low, shuffling as Diana and Jones pulled him away to a black sedan, pushed him into the back and drove off. Hughes remained with June, several agents rushing around the area which had been marked off with yellow crime tape.

Someone was watching from across the street, observing everything from afar and trying to figure out what was going on. He saw the dark car with tinted windows off to the left hidden behind a half wall and the men watching from there. They didn't see him but he could tell they were taking an interest in the scene at June's house. He could just see them through his binoculars as they spoke and gestured to one another, cold smiles on their faces. He thought he recognized one of them, pulling something from his pocket and talking into it quietly before pushing it back into his jacket.

(A few minutes earlier...)

"Hello Agent Burke. My men didn't appreciate being shot at earlier. I guess you care for that con more than your wife... It's a shame. She's such a pretty thing. Killing her will be crime but you can stop it if you kill your friend now. Your loving wife will be home moments after I know you've killed Mr. Caffrey otherwise your wife will be dead in less than 2 hours. What do you say? Is his life really worth that of your wife?"

The masked man spoke coldly into the phone, turning to see a figure tied to a chair and struggling weakly as their muffled voice tried to cry out. The man smiled at the cell phone hearing the phone fall from Peter's hands. There was a sound of voices and then a gunshot. The bound figure slumped and began to cry in earnest. The man just smiled as he hung up the cell. Moments later, another call came in and he lifted the cell to his ear and listened nodding. He hung up, making a motion to the figure in the chair.

"Untie her and send her home. I think we've already caused enough mayhem for one weekend." He was smiling as if at something humorous, the figure of Elizabeth Burke dragged off out of the small basement room and taken up a rickety set of stairs. Once she was out of range, the figure took off his mask. Matthew Keller sat there smirking, the phone he was talking to dropped to the floor and smashed under his foot as he left the room.

()()()

Peter slumped in the back of the FBI cruiser, his face pale in the darkness as the lights of the city flashed by the window. In the front seat sat Jones and Diana, the former driving while Diana made the occasional look back at Peter with a pitiful glance. A ring was heard and she lifted her cell to her ear and listened, nodding before she smiled in a relieved manner.

"It's done. Hughes says to take him to holding for now. He'll be waiting for us there." Diana's voice was quiet, Jones nodding to her as he glanced at their boss in the rear-view mirror and sighed.

The drive after that was quiet until they reached FBI headquarters and Peter was taken in from the parking garage and up the elevator in cuffs. They weren't taking any chances so they had used the back entrance. When the elevator hit the 21st floor, they pushed Peter out ahead of them, his head still sunken down tired and emotionally drained from the looks of it. His eyes were looking down at the floor when he saw two bare feet approach. He blinked and looked up at the figure slowly taking in their whole form before gasping in surprise.

"Peter..." Elizabeth's voice was quiet, a blanket wrapped around her still pajama-clad form. She was wearing a blue knit top with sleeves and matching knit pants, now dirty from the past 48 hours of captivity. Her dark hair looked disheveled and flung around her face messily but she was alive, blue eyes watery with relief. He noticed the bruises on her arms and wrists as he stood there cuffed and felt a fury rise inside of him.

"Diana... Jones... Why is he cuffed? Peter what happened? I heard a gun shot. Where's Neal?" She obviously had no idea what had been expected from their captors or what had happened. He averted his eyes from her face only relaxing when he felt the cuffs removed from his wrists by Jones.

"Hug your wife, Peter. I think you both need it." Jones was watching as his boss looked up again at El and took her in his arms tightly, hugging her close. She reciprocated, both of them crying as they stood there and hugged. The offices were quiet with only a few agents who had been working on the case. Nobody stared at the couple for long, giving them their privacy as Diana quietly herded them into the conference room and closed the blinds. Jones made a motion that he was right outside.

Once they were alone, Elizabeth looked confused at the display, gently grasping Peter's chin in her hand and making him look at her.

"Peter... some thing's happened. Tell me. Why did they have you cuffed?" She was anxious now despite her ordeal, kissing her husband as he just held her tightly and tried to keep her as close as he could. She wanted them to be like this forever but she had to know why she had been released. What was that sound she heard on her captor's phone...

"Honey... tell me what's going on. Please..." She saw him hesitate before he finally nodded and spoke in a barely audible whisper.

"Just let me hold you a while longer... that's all I want." Peter's voice was breathless as he spoke, El nodding. Finally after a bit he looked up into her eyes directly, his arms wrapped around her securely.

"They told me to choose. You or Neal." His voice trailed off and she suddenly paled, her blue eyes widening in terror.

"Peter no... you didn't. Please... tell me you didn't!" Her face had fallen, her blue eyes flashing with emotion as tears rolled down her cheeks. Then something else like anger crossed those same eyes as she pulled away from her husband and looked at him. His face was flushed as he tried to avoid her gaze.

"It was the only way... to get you back. I..." Peter's eyes were staring at her, hoping for understanding when the door to the conference room quietly opened and they both turned to look at the figure standing there.

"It's ok El. Peter had good intentions. He's not to blame for what happened. Trust me when I say that no jury will convict him for what he did."