White Collar: The Eye of Sita
Chapter Twenty-Seven
"Neal, no, absolutely not."
"Peter..."
"The answer is 'no'." Peter repeated. "It's not even my call, it's Walters'."
"Don't even pretend to hide behind Walters on this, Peter."
"Fine." Peter sighed. "It's my call, and I don't trust Daniel."
"I do."
"With your life?" Peter asked seriously over the small ear piece.
"Yes."
"What about when he's forced to weight your life against that of his son?"
"It won't come to that." Neal said firmly.
"And if it does?"
"It won't."
"Neal..."
"Peter, this is our only chance, for both the Hope and Liam."
"I don't give a damn about that overpriced rock, Neal, the instant you see that kid we're moving in."
"Fair enough."
"Are you going to wear Sara's necklace to keep in contact?" Peter asked doubtfully.
"No. I have a better idea." Neal smiled.
"Keep it close, and be careful."
"I will." Neal said seriously. "Is Sara with you?"
"She is, she's safe."
"Good. I'll contact you one last time before we leave."
"Watch you back, Neal." Peter warned again.
Neal pulled the ear piece out and tossed it onto the couch. He didn't like having Peter buzzing in his ear, it was way too much like having an active conscience. Daniel had been standing near by looking uncharacteristically nervous. Although he could only hear Neal's side of the conversation it wasn't hard to guess the other half. Daniel glanced at the necklace transceiver in Neal's hand before he looked up at Neal and smiled sadly.
"Peter doesn't trust me, does he?"
"You did kidnap and strangle him."
"Good point."
"Okay, I've got a lot of work to do." Neal stated as he looked over at the half finished sculpture.
"That's not necessary. Glass thinks you get to finish it here and just walk away from this, but I was told to bring the artist and the sculpture in tonight. They plan to force you into finishing it."
"Okay." Neal nodded. "Let me just add one finishing touch."
"Neal, stop being such a perfectionist. You've already got the job, let's just go."
"This is an important detail."
Neal stepped up to the statue and secured the necklace around her neck. He spent a few minutes carefully laying a thin layer of clay over the gold. When he was done the necklace looked like it had been sculpted onto the statue. Neal went over to the couch and picked up the ear piece to let Peter know that everything was set. The ear piece only buzzed static at him, Neal tapped on it, but it didn't help.
"Something wrong, Neal?" Daniel asked.
"Ear piece is broken."
"What?"
"Not really a surprise, these things are a lot more delicate than you'd think. Peter can still hear us through the necklace."
"How do you know?"
"He would have moved in on us by now if he couldn't. We're all set to go. The voice will cut out fairly quickly on the necklace it doesn't have much of a range, but the GPS will keep working."
"Neal..." Daniel hesitated.
"What's wrong?"
"Maybe you shouldn't do this."
"It's a little late for that now, isn't it?"
"No. You can still walk away, but once we are face to face with these men there will be no backing out."
"I'm not interested in backing out, Daniel." Neal said firmly. "Don't worry, it's going to work. I've got the best back up in the business."
Daniel still looked hesitant, but he nodded. Neal could see the stress in Daniel's usually confident eyes. The past twenty years had aged him far more than Neal. Turning to the problem at hand Neal was a bit curious as to how Daniel planned to move the half ton statue, but Daniel knew more about the room than he did. Hidden behind a set of oriental screens against the far wall as a service elevator just for removing art from the studio. They used a pallet jack that was in the elevator to move the whole dais that the statue had been built on.
Neal thought it was a little strange that Glass wasn't waiting for them down at the small loading area where the moving van was waiting. However, it didn't really change their plan in anyway. Getting the heavy statue up the ramp and into the back of the enclosed truck was not easy, but they managed. Daniel had the box of diamonds and put them in the front seat of the van. He walked around to the back of the trunk where Neal was putting the finishing touches on securing the still wet statue in the back corner.
"Drive carefully, Daniel, this is still wet and very delicate."
"Not to mention you'll be riding back here."
"That too." Neal smiled.
"Neal..." Daniel paused once again. "I can't thank you enough, you know that right?"
"You'd do the same for me."
"I'd like to think so." Daniel nodded. "Are we ready?"
"All set. Do you know where the meeting place is?"
"No." Daniel pulled out a cell phone. "They are going to call once I reach the gas station on the corner."
"They play it safe, don't they?"
"We're dealing with professionals, professionals with money."
"Always a dangerous combination."
Daniel took a breath to say something more, but then just turned away. Neal understood Daniel's hesitation, there was just as much chance that this would go wrong as right. With the FBI now involved the men holding his son could easily spook and cut their losses. Neal reminded himself that Liam wasn't going to see his father again if extreme measures weren't taken. As Daniel started the truck Neal pulled down the rolling door.
Sitting in the dark of the back of the van Neal tried to guess where they were going by the turns Daniel made. He was confident if he was in New York that he could do it, but here in DC he didn't know the street layout well enough. Neal looked sightlessly at where the statue was, he still didn't fully comprehend the motivation behind all of this trouble. Daniel didn't seem to have any good theories either.
After about an hour of weaving around the city the van finally can to a stop. Neal figured that they had been sending Daniel to different check points to make sure he wasn't being followed. That would have forced Peter and Walters to hang back further and further. At this point there was little chance that the transmitter was still doing audio.
"Just in case you can hear me, Peter, I want you to know that I will have no regrets about how this turns out as long as Liam is safe. If it does come down to me or him, save Daniel's son."
Neal tensed and got to his feet at the door to the back of the van rolled up. A quick glance outside showed that they were in the middle of pretty much no where. Neal had been expecting several men to be waiting at the open door. However it was only Daniel who crawled up into the back with Neal. He had a small black case in his hand that looked like an old fashioned doctor's bag.
"Daniel, what's going on?"
"Do you think Peter can hear us? We've been driving the last ten minutes without seeing anyone."
"No, the range is very short."
"Okay, well, they should be here any minute now." Daniel announced. "I should probably tie your hands."
"Good idea."
Neal turned around and held his hands behind his back. Daniel walked up, put the bag down and opened it. Retrieving a small length of white cloth he wrapped it around Neal's wrists and tied it off. Neal tugged on them, experimenting with getting free.
"Too tight?" Daniel asked.
"No. I could probably get out in an emergency, but it's still tight enough to look like you meant to keep me secured."
"Good. Hold still for a second."
Neal didn't question Daniel's intentions and did as he was told. When he felt a sharp jab pierce through his pants and down into his muscle at his hip he jerked away. Turning around Neal stared in horror at the now empty syringe in Daniel's hand.
"Hey!" Neal protested. "What was that?"
"Just a little Ketamine to numb the area."
"Ketamine? Wha..." Neal trailed off as the powerful anesthetic started to take effect.
"I couldn't talk to you about this while Peter still listening. He would never go for it, I'm not even sure you will. However, I'm out of options, I can't have the FBI storming in and starting a fire fight."
"Dani..." Neal tried to finished but the floor seemed to slip out from underneath him.
"Woah!" Daniel exclaimed as he reached out and caught Neal. "What is wrong with you?"
"Yo...you drugged me..." Neal accused.
"No, no, it's not supposed to be strong enough to knock you out."
"I disagree..." Neal muttered.
"Neal?"
Unable to stand on his own Neal started to slide to the floor of the moving truck. Daniel tried to keep him on his feet, but it quickly became a losing battle. Easing Neal down on the floor Daniel smacked his cheek a few times as though trying to sober him up. Wanting nothing more than to curl up and go to sleep Neal closed his eyes. Confused Daniel reached into the black case and pulled out the drug vial for a closer look.
"Oh shit, I grabbed the wrong stuff...this one is for 'Equine Use Only'." Daniel read the print on the side of the bottle. "Neal? Neal, you still with me?"
Neal could hear Daniel, but he couldn't respond. Daniel checked his pulse and peeled back one of his eyelids. Trying to talk to tell him to go away Neal just ended up growling at Daniel. Sighing heavily Daniel picked up a large syringe that came in a plastic package and ripped it open with his teeth. He was saying something, but Neal couldn't understand any of it.
Heavily sedated Neal made no protests when Daniel sunk the second needle deep into the flesh just below the crest of his hip. The Ketamine made what would have been a excruciating procedure little more than a dull ache. Daniel pulled out the thick gauged needle and pressed his palm against the injection site for a minute to slow the bleeding. Sensing something was wrong Neal forced his eyes open again.
"Please forgive me if this doesn't work." Daniel said softly. "You stand half a chance against these men, my son is defenseless."
Neal agreed with the statement, but he still didn't understand what was going on. He looked up at Daniel, but couldn't say anything. He furrowed his brow when he saw the blood on Daniel's hand. Throwing the oversized needle and the packaging it had come in back in the small case Daniel pulled out another piece of cloth.
Feeling completely disconnected from his own body and unable to control it Neal peacefully allowed Daniel to work a gag between his teeth. With his hands already tied behind his back Neal looked up at Daniel once more. Daniel leaned in and kissed Neal's forehead gently before getting to his feet and leaving the back of the truck. Closing his eyes Neal marveled at how comfortable the cold metal floor was.
It was only a few minutes before Neal could hear more car approaching. Their tires made a grumbling sound as they rolled across the loose asphalt of the abandoned parking lot. Daniel was standing just a few feet from the back of the truck, his broad shouldered silhouette was highlighted as the headlights came to rest on him. Neal listened as the men got out of their cars to claim their prize.
"Caffrey," a strong male voice barked "you better have what I want."
"You'd better have what I want."
"Your boy's here."
Daniel stood his ground as several strong men pushed past him and crawled up into the back of the moving truck. Neal groaned uselessly as they tried to force him to his feet. Still unable to stand the men simply dragged him over to the edge of the truck's loading deck. Dropped back to the floor Neal quickly found his head being pulled back as the man who had threatened Daniel yanked on his hair to get a look at his face. Neal stared back at him with unfocused eyes.
"Neal Caffrey." He purred as he smiled at his captive. "The FBI's favorite pet."
"You can't blame me for this." Daniel said quickly. "Glass put out an call for the best forger, here he is. You told me to go get the artist, and I did exactly that. You want your statue or not?"
"Easy, Daniel, calm down. I didn't say I wasn't happy or even that I wasn't expecting him."
"Wait...what?" Daniel asked in shock.
"Let's go," the man demanded of his minions "we don't have much time before the FBI shows up. They keep a close eye on this one."
"I made sure I wasn't followed and he doesn't have his tracking anklet." Daniel said. "I have just as much reason to keep away from the FBI as you do."
"I believe that."
"I have done everything you've asked." Daniel growled. "Now give me my son."
The leader of the group nodded and one of the other men opened the back door of one of the four SUVs that had arrived. The man outside the door had to reach in and force Liam to leave the relative safety of the car. It wasn't until he caught sight of his father that he cooperated.
"Daddy!" Liam cried desperately.
"Liam!"
Daniel got down on one knee and held out his arms to encourage Liam to run to him. Liam pulled away from the man who had been holding him and ran to his father. He had his broken wrist in a makeshift splint that he held close to his chest. When Liam reached him Daniel scooped him up in his powerful arms and lifted him up as he got back to his feet. Whimpering in fear Liam pressed himself against his father's chest in hopes that he wouldn't be torn away from him again.
"Let's go, Caffrey." The leader ordered.
"What?"
"You didn't think we were just going to set you free, did you?" He chuckled darkly.
"Wait, the necklace on the statue, it's an FBI tracking device. Give it to my son, leave him here, and I will come with you peacefully."
Two of the men were already inspecting the statue and having heard Daniel they quickly came out with the clay coated necklace. The leader made a gesture to his men and they tossed the necklace to him. Stepping up to Daniel he stuffed the necklace in Liam's back pocket. Daniel put his son down on the hard asphalt gently. Liam cried out and wrapped his arms around Daniel's leg.
"Daddy loves you, but I have to go." Daniel said softly as he untangled himself from Liam's embrace. "Be good, stay here."
"No!"
"It's okay, Liam, Uncle Peter will be here soon to get you."
"Daddy..."
"You can trust him."