Let Your Heart Hold Fast

Chapter 22

By the end of the week, things were returning to normal for Peter, Elizabeth and Neal. Peter was anxious to get back to work, if only to be able to relax a little behind his desk. He had no idea what it was like to take care of a typical sick five year old, but he was fully aware that taking care of a sick, five year old Neal Caffrey was exhausting.

For one thing, he had no idea that such a tiny body could produce so much mucus or that blowing your nose could be so dramatic. Neal, who always had an over-abundance of energy, didn't do well with sitting still. either; therefore, his lack of energy, added to his inability to sit still for any period, was a punishing combination. Added to all of that was the fact that trying to convince Neal to take his medicine was more difficult than trying to convince a man dying of thirst to eat crackers. It simply didn't work. Peter found himself trying to sneak the medicine into Neal's food, begging the child to take it and finally bribing him to take the medicine. When none of these tactics worked, he resorted to threatening the boy that he would tell Elizabeth if he didn't take it. It seemed that Neal didn't want Elizabeth to know that he wasn't taking his medicine. Peter would have to remember that for the future.

Peter woke up Monday morning in a great mood. It was an unusually sunny day for mid-November, and he felt happy to have things back to normal. He took an extra-long shower, picked out his favorite shirt and tie, and whistled the whole time he was getting ready. Walking downstairs, he was surprised to see Elizabeth and Neal both looking decidedly unhappy.

"Good morning, you two!" When neither of them answered, Peter continued. "What's wrong, El? Why are the two of you looking so unhappy? Didn't you notice what a beautiful day it was outside?"

Elizabeth frowned at her husband. "Because of everything that's happened recently, we forgot that today was the day of Neal's field trip to the train station. He was supposed to be at school early and you were supposed to chaperone, remember?"

At these words, Neal looked up sadly from his bowl of oatmeal. "It's not fair, Lizbef. I really, really wanted to go to see the trains. They're my favorite thing in the whole world!"

Peter laughed at that. "Wait a minute…just last week you said that dinosaurs were your favorite thing in the whole world. When did trains beat out the dinosaurs?"

"This morning, Peter. When Lizbef remembered about the trip!"

"Well, I'm sorry, buddy. The bus was supposed to leave an hour ago, so I guess you missed the trip."

"I want to go, Peter," Neal whined. "Mr. Parker said we all got to take turns being the conductor. I was gonna be the best one ever!"

"It's too late, Neal. Besides, I have to go into the office to take care of a few things and there is no way you're going on a field trip without me." Turning to his wife, Peter asked, "So, what's the plan then?"

Elizabeth sent a quick look at the still pouting Neal, before answering. "I spoke with Mrs. Corbin and she thought that Neal could just spend the day with one of the other kindergarten classes."

"I don't wanna do that, Lizbef! That's stupid!" Neal yelled.

"That's enough, Neal!" Peter walked over and sat down next to the obviously frustrated little boy. "I understand that you're upset, little man, but that's no way to talk to Elizabeth. Do you understand me?"

Neal nodded, sadly. "Sorry, Lizbef."

Elizabeth kissed Neal on the top of his head. "I'm sorry that you missed your trip, sweetie. I know you were looking forward to it. But, maybe you'll make some new friends today."

Neal didn't look convinced that that could happen. "I don't like making new friends, Lizbef. It's too hard. Can't I just stay home with Charlie and Satchmo? I'll be good, I promise."

Peter laughed at the hopeful look on Neal's face. "Not going to happen, little man. You're going to have to cowboy up and go to school."

Neal rolled his eyes at that. "Okay, but just so you know, Peter…..I really don't like cowboys."

Neal's return to school went better than expected. He was happy to see that Elizabeth packed extra cookies for him and he eagerly shared them with a few of the new kids he had met. He liked the teacher of the class he was spending the day with, especially when she let him be line leader at lunch and recess. All in all, Neal had a pretty good day.

Elizabeth's day went well, too, although she constantly thought of Neal and how his day was going. She wondered if she would ever feel safe with him out of her sight again, finally determining that the answer to that was no. Until they figured out who was behind the kidnapping, she wouldn't feel safe. She did feel better knowing that Peter had arranged for a policeman to be stationed at Neal's school for now.

Peter got caught up on everything he had missed at the office and also spent some time researching everyone from Neal's past. He desperately wanted to find out more about Neal's family, but so far he had come up with nothing. He had a gut feeling that the person behind the kidnapping was definitely someone from Neal's father's past.

That evening they decided to go out to dinner, before heading to a craft store to pick up some supplies for a project Elizabeth was working on. Peter wanted to find a nice little burger joint, but Elizabeth and Neal out-voted him and decided to eat Italian. After a nice dinner, where Neal only spilled his water once, they made their way to the craft store.

Neal had never been in such a store and he was completely awed by the overwhelming selections of canvases, sketchbooks, paints, brushes and pencils. Peter, who had been left in charge of Neal while Elizabeth shopped, became quickly frustrated with Neal's desire to look at everything. He kept reminding Neal to stay with him, but it was truly inevitable that the boy was going to wander off. When it happened, Peter felt his heart nearly stop in panic, as he imagined that Neal had been kidnapped again. Turning around, he realized that Neal was still there, he was merely hidden behind a small shelf, as he looked adoringly at the colored pencils.

"Neal! What did I tell you about walking away from me?! You're supposed to stay right next to me, remember?"

"I am right next to you, Peter," Neal answered. "I only took two steps!"

"Well, that's too far," Peter exclaimed. "I need to be able to see you at all times."

"I was just looking at the pencils," Neal said. "Can I get some, Peter?"

"You already have some at home, kiddo. You don't need more."

Neal looked up at Peter with his big blue eyes and pouty lips. Peter felt himself wanting to give in, but he held his ground. "Please, Peter? These are better ones and I need them!"

"I said no, Neal. And don't think you're going to get a different answer from Elizabeth, either."

A few minutes later, Elizabeth showed up to find a restless Peter and a pouting Neal. "I'm almost done, boys," she said with a smile. "I just need a few more minutes, okay?"

Peter started to answer, but his phone interrupted him. After answering it, he motioned to Elizabeth that he needed to take the call outside. Elizabeth nodded her head and grabbed Neal's hand. "It looks like you're stuck coming with me, sweetie."

Neal followed Elizabeth down the aisle, but kept looking longingly back at the colored pencils. Elizabeth's 'few more minutes' turned into a lot more minutes, as she compared all the different styles of ribbon. She was so engrossed in the effort of finding the exact shade of green she wanted that she didn't notice when Neal walked away from her. A few minutes later, though, she looked down and realized he was gone. "Neal? NEAL!"

Elizabeth frantically ran to the end of the aisle, calling out for Neal. Other customers turned to look at her, obviously concerned by the panic in her voice. Turning the corner, she nearly ran into Neal, who looked up at her guiltily. Picking Neal up, she clutched him to her chest. "Neal! How many times do we have to tell you not to wander off like that?! Do you have any idea how scared I was when I looked down and you were gone? When we get home, you're spending some time in the time-out chair, young man!"

"I'm sorry, Lizbef! I just wanted to look at something. I was coming right back, I promise." Neal gave Elizabeth the best "sorry" look he could manage. "Lizbef? Do you have to tell Peter that I left you alone?"

"Of course, I have to tell Peter. We'll talk about this at home, young man!"

Elizabeth quickly finished her shopping, making sure to hold Neal's hand the entire time.

Peter was extremely displeased to hear that Neal had wandered off again, especially after he had just scolded the boy for doing the same exact thing. After making sure the boy was buckled into his booster seat, Peter drove home, his frustration building with each passing mile. He knew that he couldn't really expect Neal to understand the dangers of wandering away from them. He also knew that the boy could be extraordinarily impulsive at times, a habit that he would have to work on squelching in the future.

Once they were home, Neal tried to head straight up to his bedroom, but Peter caught him by the hood of his jacket. "Hold up there, little man. Where do you think you're going? You have a time-out to serve, remember? And then, we're going to have a nice long talk."

Peter led Neal over to the chair that Elizabeth had already placed in the corner. Reaching for the zipper on Neal's jacket, he tried to unzip it, but Neal pulled away from him reach. "I'm cold, Peter," Neal said. "I want to keep my coat on."

Peter started to argue, but decided not to, figuring the kid could take off his own jacket when he warmed up. Neal climbed into the chair, and other than the pout on his face, he didn't seem too upset that he was sitting in his least favorite chair. Instead, he seemed more subdued than normal, which raised red flags for Peter.

Elizabeth went upstairs to put away the things she had bought and Peter grabbed a beer and sat down in the living room, turning the television on. Fifteen minutes later, Elizabeth was sitting next to Peter when he called Neal into the living room.

Neal quietly walked into the room, still wearing his jacket, and both Peter and Elizabeth could tell that he was hot and sweaty. "Sweetie, why don't you take your coat off? You're all sweaty." She stood up and reached to take Neal's coat, but he quickly moved away again.

"I'm still cold, Lizbef," Neal said quickly, hugging his jacket to himself.

By this time, Peter's curiosity was well and truly piqued. "Take your coat off, Neal, before you overheat."

"I don't want to," Neal said.

"Listen, little man….I'm not going to tell you again to take your coat off." When Neal still didn't move to take off the jacket, Peter stood up and towered over the boy. "Now, Neal!"

Neal flinched at Peter's command and quickly moved to take off his jacket. Peter noticed that the boy seemed to be trying to hold onto something inside his jacket and before Neal even knew what was happening, Peter grabbed the jacket and pulled it off him. Once it was off, something fell to the floor with a small thud and silence suddenly settled over the room, as they all focused on the package of colored pencils laying there.

"Neal?" Elizabeth asked. "Where did you get those? And why were you hiding them in your coat?"

Instead of answering, Neal turned and ran up the stairs as fast as he could. Both Peter and Elizabeth called after him without effect. The boy was remarkably fast for a five year old.

Neal didn't really know why he took the pencils. Peter was right…..He already had a set of his own in his room. But, the fact was that he just really wanted them and when he found himself in the aisle all alone, he just picked them up and stuffed them in his coat.

Once they had arrived at home, he tried to run upstairs to put them away, but instead he found himself sitting in the time-out chair, with his coat still on and sweating like crazy. When Peter called him into the living room, he continued to clutch the pencils to his chest, panic starting to rise in his chest. He suddenly wished more than anything that he hadn't taken the pencils.

When Peter demanded that he take his coat off, Neal's panic fully set in and he did the only thing he could think of to do. He ran…

Author's note: Well, I obviously didn't get a chapter posted before I went on vacation. Sorry about that! I just got back from spending a week in St. Maarten, which was absolutely beautiful, but I really missed writing. I'm sorry this is such a short chapter. My internal time clock is a little messed up and I've had a hard time staying awake to write, lol.

Anyway, it seems our poor little Neal just can't seem to stay out of trouble. I feel a little sorry for Peter, as it seems he may have his hands full with the mischievous little guy. Of course, we wouldn't have it any other way, right?

I hope you enjoyed the chapter, somewhat. I'll hopefully have the next one up by Friday or Saturday. Until then, I hope to hear your thoughts and ideas. Thanks for reading and reviewing.