He felt better, Peter hated to admit it… had argued fervently when Dr. Sanders ordered him to go home last night… informing him he would not be allowed back in the ICU for at least 9 hours, but a decent night's sleep in his own bed with his beautiful wife had done wonders. He hadn't realized how much eight days of sleeping in a chair had taken out of him. For two and a half days they had waited for Neal to resurface… but he seemed to have drifted back to the deepest level of unconsciousness… Dr. Sanders said the relapse was likely at least partially psychological
"To wake up to such a horrific level of pain was extremely traumatic. Anyone would want to run away from that…and that is exactly what he's doing. He'll most likely come back when he feels safe to try again." Peter had nodded… the words were meant to be reassuring, the problem was Sanders had no idea how good at running away Neal actually was… and it would be so easy for him to disappear for good this time. He shook his head trying to shake the worry out with it… it wasn't just Neal… his whole team was fractured by this… with Jones out on medical leave and Diana laying low with Nathen … D*** Peter hated this situation. He couldn't even afford to take any more personal days… so the last 3 days he brought case files with him… because he was not going to let his friend wake up alone… not after the last time… he did not trust the staff to take care of him without a watch dog. Even worse the team that was supposed to be finding the monster who caused this was more interested in blaming Neal for their recent tragic loss than finding the man who actually shot the young agent…
The voice floating from Neal's room froze his blood… Adriana Valdez. She wasn't supposed to have access to Neal until Peter cleared it, but she was in there. She was alone with Neal
"Caffrey I'm not buying this… you better talk to me!" He heard her shout, he was running then. Her phone rang. "Hello? I'm with Caffrey now, Williams… tell me you have something I can use." The woman looked up startled as Peter burst into the room. "I'll have to call you back." She leveled her angry brown eyes at him then pointed to the bed "he's playing something on me… refusing to answer…" Peter stared at her in disbelief… was the woman really that unstable?
"He's unconscious, Valdez."
"He was talking to me a few minutes ago" she glared at Peter "then he just…" he pushed passed her ignoring the rest of her words. Neal's eyes were open… unfocused… filled with absolute panic and he wasn't breathing!
His chest moved frantically trying to gasp but he wasn't getting any air… behind the mask Peter could see the purple tinge creeping into his lips.
"Neal!" Peter carefully pried the younger man's clenched fingers from the blanket… he held the slim hand gently as it clutched him with a white knuckled grip "Neal… look at me… breathe… come on relax…" the terror filled eyes flicked his direction but gazed straight though him… "You have to breathe…" a tiny wheeze of air hissed into his lungs "That's it…keep going… look at me, focus" behind him he heard Valdez make a low frustrated noise in her throat. He ignored her… keeping his voice soft as his friend slowly drew another breath… then another until he was wheezing in something resembling a rhythm. Sluggishly the blue eyes focused on his face.
"Drown-ing" pale lips formed the word soundlessly
"No, Neal, no you're not." Finally the young man seemed to recognize him.
"Pet-er?"
"Yeah I'm here…"
"Can't… feel…bat…"
"Neal no one is hitting you now… it's over… he's gone…" absently he brushed at a tear that escaped the kid's eye… "It's over"
"Nate?"
"Still with Diana…he's fine." The sigh trembled through the frail frame.
"Coddling him isn't doing to get me answers about Meagan Richards." Valdez broke in. Neal cringed back from her voice. Glaring at her Peter squeezed his hand carefully.
"She isn't going to hurt you… just rest. You're safe now." He waited until his friend's eyes closed and the panicked grip relaxed. Then he spun back to Valdez gripping her arm as he escorted her quickly from the room.
"I want to know what happened to that little girl!"
"WHY!"
"Why? Because she was an innocent child… and whatever that man did to her got my friend killed!"
"You can't be serious." he stared at her in disbelief "Johnny Richards killed Lenny! Are you even looking for him?!"
"Of course I am… I also want justice for that child. Everyone deserves justice."
"Everyone except Neal? Whatever you did in there could have killed him!"
"He's a criminal … probably a murderer."
"He's not a murderer! Nothing he has ever done deserves this… Valdez, he wasn't breathing and you just stood there yelling at him!" he took a deep breath trying to stop shaking with fury… fear… if he hadn't come right then…"Do you even have a cause of death for this Meagan Richards?"
"Agent Williams just called me… she has it but you interrupted the call."
"So you don't even know she was murdered?"
"All I have to do is make a call." His cold glare didn't waver
"Make the call."
"What?"
"Make the call…on speaker" with a smug grin she dialed
"Williams? I need that COD"
"Yes Ma'am… but it doesn't make sense" Jennifer's voice floated from the phone
"What doesn't make sense?"
"The COD wasn't murder… or even an accident"
"It wasn't?"
"No ma'am, Meagan Richards died of lung cancer."
"What?!" Peter couldn't quite hide the smile. "That doesn't make sense."
"I told you Neal wasn't violent" Peter told her softly
"He must have posed as a surgeon or something" she snapped as she hung up
"You are awfully determined for Neal to be guilty. Why?"
"Because he's-."
"He's what? What is he Valdez?!"
"They are all the same."
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Jennifer stood outside the door… she raised her hand to knock. She might get in trouble for this but she needed to know for sure. Valdez would not back down from her assumptions about the case but Jennifer had her doubts. She agreed it was important to know why Johnny Richards blamed Caffrey for his daughter's death but it looked to her, the farther she investigated, that the blame was…irrational. Which changed his profile considerably, if was true… While Valdez had had painted him as an angry father out to settle a score… it was important for the team to know if the man was also unhinged from reality. It completely changed the way they needed to approach him… and Jennifer was not going to bury another friend over this case. She swallowed hard as the memories tried to swamp her again… Lenny's eyes, half closed staring through her… the deep sigh rattling though his sagging body… Paramedics…blood… Jennifer gulped again, shaking her head as the door opened. Samantha Richards was a petite delicate looking woman. Her black hair and ivory skin created a dramatic contrast with bright green eyes that bore a depth of grief and a core of steal beneath their smile.
"Good afternoon Mrs. Richards," Jennifer forced her face to smile "I'm agent Williams … we spoke on the phone earlier. I need to ask you some questions about your husband"
"Yes of course." As she stepped back to allow Jennifer into her home the young agent noticed the thin streaks of silver in the woman's dark hair… the small lines of wear around her striking eyes. Mrs. Richards let her to a cozy living room and gestured to a well-used couch. Once they were seated Jennifer began.
"Mrs. Richards when was the last time you saw your husband?"
"Please it's Samantha and I haven't seen Johnny in 2 and ½ years… I tried to file for divorce… but he has completely disappeared."
"And you have no idea where he might be?"
"None whatsoever. My son hears from him occasionally… post cards with no return address untraceable e-mails… random phone calls…"
"But you don't believe your son knows where to find him?"
"I don't believe my son is interested in finding him, agent Williams…"
"Why is that?"
"Our daughter died 7 years ago… cancer. She was fifteen… It was… difficult…" tears shimmered in Samantha's eyes "for all of us."
"I can't imagine losing a child." Vacant green eyes…Medics cutting into his ribs… limbs folding too loosely around his body…his head falling back over her arm like it was connected by a string… she closed her eyes, pushing the pictures aside.
"I blamed Johnny pretty spectacularly in the beginning."
"Why is that?"
"When Meagan first started…"she drew a breath "first started coughing I didn't take her to the doctor… because… because Johnny had recently lost his job… and the insurance that came with it. So we tried to wait it out…"
"How long did you wait?"
"About a month… maybe six weeks."
"Samantha… do you know why your husband lost his job."
"He was a stock broker… he was fired for investing twenty thousand dollars of his client's money… in a bogus company… we were ok… living on his 'savings' but no insurance "
"I see."
"I was furious with him when … our little girl… passed." She shook her head. "He decided to prove to me it wasn't his fault… started looking for someone else to blame… then trying to find the man he blamed… trying to make the police find and arrest the man for Meagan's death… it became an obsession…that why I took Mike and left… he was starting to scare me. When I did he disappeared. I haven't heard from him since…"
"But your son has?"
"Yes… Agent Williams, what has Johnny done?"
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Peter gritted his teeth… he didn't want to do this, but Neal insisted he could handle it… had even requested a reduction of pain meds so his mind would be clearer… but it was too soon… he was still so weak… but Neal had been determined.
"I don't like this Neal… I'm not sure you remember the last interview with Agent Valdez…"
"Not really…no…it's … pretty…fuzzy" he gestured vaguely before pushing the oxygen mask aside to smile at Peter… "But you… insisted… on a… different agent… right?"
"Keep that on Neal." he moved the mask back in place "It will still be someone from her team. Which means Lenny Thompson was their friend… and Valdez is still their boss."
"I can't… talk with it… on" he held the mask in his hand now.
"And your lips turn blue with it off"
"Won't keep… it off …long" he smiled wearily sliding it back in place for several breaths before "is Jones… alright?"
"Yeah… arm hurts like ... but he's ok"
"'s good… don't know… why he's… doing …this…" Neal's voice was slipping into the softest of whispers… "Was… nice guy… Peter… big… smile…"
"Who?"
"John-ny…" the mask slipped from his hand as he dropped off to sleep. His friend had gently secured it back in place, and stepped into the hallway to make the call.
"Hughes."
"Sir, Neal says he's ready to give a statement."
"You don't agree?"
"He fell asleep in the middle of telling me… he's still extremely weak but he insists."
"Ok I'll sent someone over."
"Not Valdez…"