Let Your Heart Hold Fast

Chapter 26

Peter decided that this had been the best, yet the strangest Thanksgiving they had ever had. The food was wonderful, of course. Elizabeth always managed to cook an amazing meal. The fact that Robert and Tina were there wasn't unusual, but the fact that his father-in-law, a man with obscenely high standards, seemed to be enjoying his conversation with their newest house guest was.

Peter sat back in his chair and listened as Mozzie and Neal told the story of how they had met to Robert, Tina, and Elizabeth. He wondered if the short little man would be so free with his words if he knew that Robert was a shrink. Somehow he didn't think so.

Neal looked like he was having the time of his life. Peter didn't think he had ever seen the boy smile so much and he was actually worried that Neal's face would be sore later on. Could you actually strain your face from smiling too much?

Eventually, the "When Mozzie Met Neal" story was done and the conversation had moved on to some conspiracy theory Mozzie had about the moon landing. Where did he come up with this stuff? Not for the first time, Peter wondered about the man's sanity. He could tell that Mozzie was highly intelligent, but he also could tell that he was highly paranoid, especially when it came to anything to do with the government.

Once they were all done eating, Peter and Robert moved into the living room to relax, while Elizabeth, Tina, Mozzie and Neal cleaned up. Usually, Neal would complain about having to help clear the table, but after Mozzie insisted on helping, Neal didn't seem to mind helping, either. Peter could tell that the boy was hanging on every word Mozzie said and he suddenly wondered if he should be worried about that.

After everything was cleaned up, Elizabeth and Tina sat down at the table with their cups of coffee and Neal took Mozzie outside to meet Satchmo.

"Mozzie, this is Satchmo," Neal said with a big smile. "Satchmo, this is Mozzie. He's my best friend, too, just like you."

Mozzie knelt down and held out his hand, which Satchmo promptly licked, causing Neal to giggle. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Satchmo," Mozzie said.

Neal giggled again. "Mozzie, he's not a mister. He's a dog!"

Mozzie stood up and gave Neal a scandalous look. "I'll have you know, mon frère, that I've known many dogs that insist on being called Mister. Haven't you ever heard of Mr. Puddles or Mr. Bojangles?"

"You're making that up!" Neal laughed.

"I promise you, I'm not. Besides, I was just showing Satchmo the respect he deserved."

Neal looked at Mozzie thoughtfully, before changing the subject.

"Mozzie? I'm glad you got to come and share my special day. Will you come and see me again?"

"Of course, I will, Neal. If the Suit doesn't mind, that is."

"He won't mind, Mozzie. And if he does, I'll tell Lizbef. She'll make him say it's okay."

"Mrs. Suit is quite the lady, isn't she?" Mozzie said.

"Lizbef's the best, Mozzie, even if she does make me take a bath every day."

After they had all filled their stomachs with the wonderful array of desserts, Robert and Tina left for the night. Mozzie, Elizabeth and Neal sat at the table talking for almost another hour before Elizabeth finally declared it was time for Neal to get ready for bed.

"Aw, Lizbef….it's a special day, remember? I think I should be allowed to stay up late." Neal said, looking up at Elizabeth with his big eyes and pouty lips.

"Oh, you think so, huh? Well, I think you've already stayed up past your normal bedtime, sweetie. It's almost 9:00!"

"But, I'm not tired, Lizbef. And Mozzie is here and he wants to talk to me. Right, Mozzie?" This time Neal aimed his big eyes and pouty lips at Mozzie.

"Don't pull me into this, Neal," Mozzie answered with a smile. "I think I might have overstayed my welcome, as it is."

"Nonsense, Mozzie, you're always welcome here." Elizabeth gave Mozzie a smile and then rolled her eyes at the sound of the groan that came from the living room. "Ignore Peter, Mozzie. He doesn't know good company when he sees it. Anyway, why don't I get you a few things to take with you? We always have more leftovers than we can eat."

"That's not necessary, Mrs. Suit, but if you insist, I would love some more of that delicious pumpkin mousse you made."

"Coming right up, Mozzie. Neal? Say goodbye to Mozzie, okay?"

Neal pouted again, but jumped down from his chair and walked over to Mozzie. "Can you come back tomorrow, Mozzie?"

"Sorry, Neal, but I have some business to attend to out of town. I'll see you soon, though."

Neal threw himself at Mozzie, who looked a little unsure when he found himself being hugged so strongly. After a few seconds, though, he found himself wrapping his arms around the small body that was clinging to him.

"I'm gonna miss you, Mozzie."

"I'll miss you, too, mon frère."

Once Mozzie had left, his arms full of the leftovers that Elizabeth had packed for him, Peter took Neal upstairs for his bath. Neal was talking non-stop about everything that had happened that day, making Peter wonder again where the boy got all of his energy. As he listened to the continuous chatter, Peter let his mind wander to the apple pie that was sitting in the refrigerator. He had already had one piece, but was looking forward to another one as soon as Neal was in bed.

"Peter, are you listening to me? I'm saying important stuff, you know."

Peter blinked several times as Neal's words sank in.

"I'm listening, buddy. What kind of important stuff are you saying?"

Neal gave Peter a grumpy look. "I said that I think Mozzie should come and live with us."

Peter nearly fell off the edge of the tub at Neal's words. "What in the world gave you that idea?!"

"He's all alone, Peter. Just like I was until you and Lizbef brought me home. He needs a family and we're a family, right? He needs us!"

"Neal, Mozzie is a grown man. He already has a home."

"Yeah, but he doesn't have a family and that's way more important than a home, don't you think? He can share my room, Peter. I wouldn't mind."

"Neal, buddy….I know you like Mozzie, but he doesn't need to move in with us. He's okay right where he is, I promise."

Peter was surprised to see Neal's eyes fill with tears. "But what if he's lonely, Peter? Like I was before you and Lizbef."

"Well, then, we'll just have to make sure that we invite him over every once in a while, okay? Now, let's get you out of there."

Peter helped Neal out of the bathtub, making sure to dry him off completely. Neal didn't look totally satisfied with Peter's answer, but he didn't continue the conversation. Instead, he allowed himself to be dried off and then put his pajamas on. He brushed his teeth quietly and then followed Peter into his bedroom.

"What story do you want to hear tonight, kiddo?" Peter asked as Neal climbed into bed.

Neal yawned as he snuggled down into his comforter. "I don't want you to read me a story, Peter. Can we just talk?"

Peter was surprised at that, knowing how Neal always loved his story time. "Sure we can, little man. What do you want to talk about?"

"The moon landing," Neal answered immediately. "Mozzie said it was all a spiracy, but Grandpa Robert said it wasn't. I don't even know what a moon landing is, Peter!"

The weekend following Thanksgiving was a busy weekend for the Burkes. Elizabeth had a big wedding on Saturday that she had been working on for the past six months and Peter had a new case that required him to go into the office. The only problem was Neal. Elizabeth insisted that she couldn't take him to the wedding. The bride insisted that no children be allowed at the event. Peter knew that he would more than likely be spending some time in the van, staking out their suspect, so taking Neal with him was out of the question, too.

Elizabeth frantically called her mother, but they were out of town visiting a sick friend. Peter's family was too far away to be of any help in a hurry. Elizabeth called several of her friends, but they were all out of town, too, because of the holiday. She even called Mozzie, but he was still out of town. Finally, one of her friends suggested the daughter of one of their neighbors, who was a college student and happened to be home for Thanksgiving break. Elizabeth remembered the girl when she was younger, but hadn't talked to her in many years. Elizabeth's friend vouched for the young lady, building her up as very responsible and mature. With no other option, Elizabeth called her and arranged for her to babysit.

Neal, of course, heard her on the phone and was immediately insulted to hear the term babysit. When Elizabeth finally hung up, he stood in front of her with a very serious look on his face. "Lizbef, I'm not a baby! I don't need a babysitter!"

"I know you're not a baby, sweetie. It's just a common term, okay? And you know you can't stay here by yourself."

"Why not? I'll just watch TV and draw, Lizbef. I'll even make sure I take a bath. And Satchmo will be here, too."

Neal noticed that Elizabeth was looking frustrated, but he didn't stop. "I can take care of myself, Lizbef. I did it when I was with Jenna and William."

"Neal, we've talked about this before, remember? You're too young to stay here by yourself. Jenna and William were wrong to make you take care of yourself. You're only five years old." Before Neal could reply, she continued. "Now, Rachel is going to be here in a few minutes and I expect you to behave, okay? Show her what a sweet little man you are."

Fifteen minutes later, the doorbell rang and Elizabeth answered it. After a few minutes of catching up with the young lady, Elizabeth called for Neal, who had gone up to his room. Neal came down the stairs, followed by Peter.

"Neal, Peter….this is Rachel Woodward. Peter, do you remember Rachel? She's Dan and Jackie's youngest daughter."

Peter looked at the young lady standing in front of him. "Wow, the last time I saw you, you were riding your bike up and down the sidewalk. You've grown!"

Elizabeth looked down at Neal. "Rachel, this is Neal."

"Hi, Neal…..it's nice to meet you."

"Hi, Rachel," Neal said shyly. "I'm five and I'm not a baby."

"Of course, you're not a baby," Rachel answered with a smile.

"Rachel, why don't we show you around a little bit, okay? Peter can explain the security system to you and I'll show you where everything is." Elizabeth and Peter led the young lady through the house, while Neal followed closely behind. Once they had explained everything to her and made sure she had their numbers in case she needed them, Elizabeth and Peter went upstairs to finish getting ready.

Twenty minutes later, they went back downstairs to find Rachel and Neal playing a card game, both of them laughing and smiling. Once Neal realized that they were standing there, he got up and ran to Elizabeth.

"Lizbef, guess what? Rachel showed me how to play a game and I'm really good at it. I already beat her three times."

"That's great, sweetie! Sounds like you're having fun."

"I am, Lizbef. Rachel said we could draw later on and she's gonna make me some cookies. And you know what, Peter? Rachel likes my fedora. I showed it to her while you were getting ready and she said she has one just like it. I bet it looks good on her, too, but don't worry, Peter. When I told her that you looked funny wearing my hat, she said that not everyone can look as good as me in a fedora."

Peter rolled his eyes, causing Elizabeth and Rachel to laugh. "Okay, okay….I get it. I don't look good in a fedora."

Elizabeth bent down and pulled Neal into a hug. "Okay, sweetie…..Peter and I have to go to work, so Rachel's in charge, okay? We'll be back late tonight, so you'll probably be asleep. I'll come in and give you a kiss when we get home and I'll call you later on tonight to check on you."

Neal gave Elizabeth a big kiss on the cheek. "Okay, Lizbef. I'll see you tomorrow."

Elizabeth couldn't help but feel a little sad that Neal so easily dismissed her.

Rachel and Neal were having a great time together. Neal had already decided that he was going to marry her someday. Apparently, he had already forgotten about Leah. Rachel decided that Neal was absolutely the cutest thing she had ever seen. She knew he was going to be a heartbreaker one day, with his big blue eyes and curly dark hair, not to mention the fact that he was so smart for a five year old.

They spent the afternoon painting with Neal's watercolors and drawing on his chalkboard wall. Rachel couldn't believe what a talented artist Neal was. Neal, on the other hand, just kept giggling at Rachel's attempts to draw anything. She was definitely not an artist.

Once they were done drawing and painting, Neal took a quick bath and then they baked cookies and ate them right out of the oven. Neal tried to tell Rachel that Elizabeth usually let him have ten cookies, but she wasn't buying it. He wasn't too happy that she only let him have two.

After they had cleaned up the cookie mess, Neal led Rachel into the living room. She sat on the couch as Neal picked out a movie to watch. She expected to have to spend the next two hours watching a cartoon, so she was surprised when Neal chose It's A Wonderful Life, which happened to be one of her favorite movies. Yep, she definitely loved this little boy.

By the time the movie was over, both Rachel and Neal had fallen asleep on the sofa, curled up against each other. Sometime later, she woke up to the sound of Satchmo growling at the back door. Before she could wrap her mind around the fact that something was wrong, the dog started barking frantically. Rachel stood up just as the back door crashed open and watched in horror as Satchmo attacked the man coming through the door. She had just barely moved when she heard the unmistakable sound of a gun going off, followed by the sound of Satchmo's yelp as his body hit the floor.

Peter was sitting in the surveillance van again, thinking of how much he hated the van. At least, this time he was in the van with Agent Jones and Diana. They, at least, made it bearable.

They had been sitting outside of a well- known senator's house, waiting for his assistant to make an appearance. The case they were working on was a very sensitive matter, so Peter made sure that his team was doing everything by the book. The senator himself wasn't a suspect, but his assistant was, and Peter hoped that they would be able to close the case fairly quickly.

As he sat in the van, his mind wandered to Neal, wondering how things were going with Rachel. The young girl seemed extremely capable and responsible, but Peter couldn't help but worry about leaving Neal at home. He had explained everything to Rachel, making sure she understood the real danger that Neal was in. She knew not to leave the house and he had instructed her to call him if anything at all seemed out of the ordinary. So far, he hadn't heard a word from her.

Just as he thought he might call to check on things, his phone rang. Not recognizing the number, he slowly answered it, figuring that it was probably a wrong number.

"This is Burke."

"Mr. Burke, this is Adam with Addison Home Security. We have an alarm going off at your home, but no one is answering our call on the home phone."

Peter's heart stopped at these words and he dropped his phone. Diana and Jones immediately knew that something was wrong.

Picking his phone up, Peter quickly asked the young man on the phone what alarm it was.

"Sir, it seems to be the alarm to your back door. Is there any way it could just be an accident?"

Peter doubted that Rachel would forget his instructions to stay inside. He also knew that Neal couldn't open the door anymore, since he had placed the child locks up at the top. His gut was telling him that something was wrong, and he suddenly felt like throwing up.

"I'd like you to send someone out to check the house," he said in a shaky voice.

"I already did, sir. NYPD should be sending a car out, as we speak."

"Thank you," Peter answered. "I'll let you know when I find out anything."

Once he was off the phone, Peter stood up to gather his things.

"Boss? What's going on?" Diana had only seen her boss look the way he did one other time… the last time Neal was taken.

"I don't know, Diana. That was someone from the home security company telling me that an alarm has been triggered. There's a unit on the way to check it out, but I have to get there. Something's happened."

Diana was surprised to see Peter's hands shaking so badly. There was no way he should be driving himself anywhere. "Wait, Boss. I'll drive you home. I think Jones can handle this stakeout on his own."

Peter started to argue, but his phone rang again, interrupting him.

"Mr. Burke? They took him! I'm so sorry! I tried to stop them, but I couldn't. Oh my God….they took Neal!"

Author's note: I can only say one thing in my defense… I warned you all, right? I told you that the angst was coming and I try to always stay true to my word. Things are going to be a little crazy for a while, but maybe we'll finally get some answers. Does anyone have any idea at all as to who is behind all of this? Because if you do, I really need to know, lol.

I hope you all enjoyed the little bit of Mozzie we got in this chapter. And I hope you don't mind yet another original character. It's hard to write a story without adding a few characters here and there.

I have to work the next few days, but I promise that I'll get to writing as soon as I can. If you're like me, you don't mind a few cliffhangers, as long as you're not left waiting for too long. I hope you enjoy the chapter and, as always, thanks for reading and reviewing.