Disclaimer: White Collar belongs to USA Network and Jeff Eastin.
Chapter 5
Mozzie reluctantly agreed to stay with Neal overnight and promised to call Peter if there were any more episodes. He made sure he was safely out of harm's way, tucked up on the sofa where he could keep an eye on Neal. However, when he awoke, Neal was already up, showered and dressed, looking as though nothing out of the ordinary had gone down the previous night. "Sorry Moz Man, I got to dash. Peter's already downstairs. June says please join her on the roof terrace for breakfast."
Neal left the apartment and Mozzie quickly texted Peter before Neal arrived at the car. Everything back to normal, Suit. Peter deleted the message just as Neal opened the car door. The ride to the White Collar Crime Unit was exactly as every other day. Peter had to admire Neal's ability to act so coolly given his breakdown the evening before. As they continued on their way, it occurred to him that perhaps Neal wasn't acting at all but had disassociated from what had happened in the apartment.
"Everything okay this morning Bud?" he asked, trying to sound noncommittal.
"Everything's peachy!" Neal breezed back. Peter let the matter drop. He knew a dead horse when he saw one.
The day went on as per normal. Neal, Diana and Jones all had ongoing cases they needed to do research on and the morning passed uneventfully. Peter stayed in his office but kept a constant eye on his Criminal Consultant, ever wary of another meltdown. Jones had the Walker file on his desk and when he left with Diana for a coffee run mid-morning Peter saw Neal surreptitiously stroll over to his co-worker's desk and lift the file.
So that's how you're going to play it Caffrey. Act as though nothing happened and work behind our backs.
Peter made sure that Neal did not see him watching him as he disappeared to the copy room with the file. When he came back less than five minutes later he returned the file to Jones' desk stopping en route at his own to slip a paper into the bottom drawer. Moments later Jones and Diana returned with the coffee and Peter joined them in the bullpen to collect his latte. He picked up Neal's cappuccino and passed it to Neal making sure that he inadvertently spilt some on Neal's suit.
Two can play this game, Neal.
He suppressed a grin as Neal cursed and rushed to the bathroom to take care of his precious Devore. When he opened the drawer to find a copy of the eight by ten of the security photo he heaved a sigh and immediately regretted having found it. It was a hollow victory to con the conman.
Mid-afternoon things suddenly got exciting when Jones got a call from Drummonds Bank downtown. The mysterious woman had been spotted by a sharp-eyed security guard, who had seen her checking out the bank while sitting outside a coffee shop opposite. It had been a long shot when Jones had circulated her picture to the banks with a caveat that she might be around. Obviously this guard took his job more seriously than most and had studied the picture sufficiently well to recognize her while he was on front-door duty. Jones was impressed.
The news sent the unit scrambling to the parking garage and into the surveillance van to head down to Drummonds. Peter debated leaving Neal behind in the office but decided that it was probably best to have him where he could keep an eye on him. As soon as they were within a couple of blocks of the bank they slowed down to avoid drawing attention to the previously speeding van. Once parked Jones donned a white set of overalls and a clip board and sauntered over to the security guard for a signature and a clandestine update before going into the bank. Inside he let the manager know that the undercover operation was underway and that they should let it play out so as to arrest the women with the cash.
For her part, the woman still sat at the café, now seemingly engrossed in a book. According to the guard she had been there an hour in all. Jones came back to the van to give Peter and the other agents the update. Peter noticed that Neal hung back by the door and was fidgeting uncomfortably. It was no secret that Neal hated being cooped up in the van and as the minutes ticked on he became more and more agitated. Finally the woman rose from her seat and put the book into her oversized purse. They watched as she pulled on her gloves and started across the street to the bank. The manager kept them updated via their live feed as to her progress. She waited patiently in line until her turn before presenting a cashier's check for $8,000. It was surely no coincidence that she opted to join the line in front of the youngest looking teller. The manager had warned all three tellers what was happening and had given them strict instructions to act normally and cash out the check without incident. Despite her nervousness the teller remained calm and followed protocol exactly. Her heart was thumping as she handed over the envelope with the cash and gave the obligatory, "Have a nice day!"
"Okay everyone, standby." Peter warned as the woman started toward the door of the bank. As he glanced over his shoulder van Peter realized Neal was gone. No sooner had he said, "Damn it Neal!" than all hell broke out. The fire alarm went off in the bank and the sprinklers went on. People started screaming and running for the door, the guard drew his weapon and was frantically scanning the crowd. The agents burst out from the van and Peter ran toward the guard yelling, "Hold your fire, no shooting, put your weapon away!" There were far too many civilians in the way here and he didn't want to risk any innocent people getting hurt. He ran into the bank searching the lobby for the woman, but she was gone. Diana and Jones came in to join him.
"Nothing out there, Boss." Diana reported. "As far as I could tell she never left the bank."
Frustrated, they looked through the restrooms and every office before sitting down with the manager to watch the security footage taken from inside the bank. They saw the woman come in and wait in line, just as the manager reported. But as she moved forward to the desk revealing the person in line behind her, the agents let out a collective groan.
"What?" The surprised manager asked.
Together they intoned, "Mozzie."
TBC
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