The Deal

Stretched out on his bunk and staring at the ceiling, Peter hated how the only color he could see was the distracting orange jumpsuit he was wearing. Everything else felt like shades of gray, much like the rest of his life had become.

It was one of those gray areas that had landed him in this mess.

They'd been investigating Senator Pratt while racing for the evidence box. Then James had murdered Pratt and he'd been left as the fall guy. For all he knew, James, the evidence, and his whole case against Pratt were in the wind.

Thanks to everything, his time in prison looked to be taking up his foreseeable future. Although he was generally safe in his cell, he'd noticed some potential complications to his time out.

First, there was a guard who tended to give him 'the stink eye' and who could be a little rough if he handled him alone.

Second, he'd heard whispers of speculation from other inmates as to who he might be and why he was in there. If they found out, he probably wouldn't live long after.

His thoughts were all disturbing, but he couldn't prevent them from revolving around in his mind. He knew too much about the prison system to believe anything other than the truth of his situation.

Startled, he heard a guard by his door announce his presence before entering.

Following directions, Peter was chained and taken out of his cell, but once they'd gone a little way into the hall system, he realized that the guard wasn't taking him to any of the usual places.

Suddenly realizing that they were heading towards some back cells for violent criminals, Peter worried that someone was indeed going to hurt him before he could be cleared and released. Nothing good could come from the options ahead of him.

Fortunately, another guard caught up to them with orders. "Burke is being released to the CIA for some reason."

"He hasn't signed any papers?" The guard who'd taken him out questioned the situation and the interruption of his intent.

"No, he doesn't have a choice. The orders come from Washington and he's to be released immediately." The guard held the initial order up. "The bosses are waiting and the agent is outside."

Redirecting their path, Peter was taken to the entrance to change back into his civilian suit and collect his things, and then they put an anklet on him.

"You're ready to go," he was released out the door to approach a black government SUV.

Opening the door, Peter froze as he saw who was in the driver's seat. "Neal?!"

"I'll explain once we get where we're going," Neal didn't answer as elaborately as he'd hoped. "The director is meeting us so we're on the clock."

Curious and hopeful for answers, Peter climbed in and buckled before Neal smoothly pulled out and drove them into the city.

Reaching for the dials, Peter wanted to listen to a game, not whatever style of music it was that Neal had the station tuned to.

Knocking his hand over gently but firmly, Neal readjusted the dial. "I believe the rule was that the agent who owned the car picked the station."

"Agent?" Peter wasn't going to pick apart the station issue if he could get answers on that.

"My boss will have you sign some forms before I can talk about that." Neal hinted, but he was still being cagey which made Peter uneasy. Noticing, Neal rolled his eyes, "You'll get the information straight from the director so you don't have to take my word for it."

Feeling a little bad, Peter knew that Neal tended to have his back, but after recent events, he wanted to be cautious.

It was a quiet drive the rest of the trip before they pulled into a government building.

Rolling down his window, Neal presented his ID and stated that he was Agent Larkin to see Director Beckman with Peter Burke.

Waiting while the guard verified the information, Peter mulled over the name that Neal had given. He wasn't familiar with Larkin, but then, he didn't know the CIA or this part of Neal.

Once they were cleared, Neal pulled in and parked amidst the other government vehicles.

Getting out, Peter followed Neal as he flashed his badge to enter the building and then had to do retinal and fingerprint scans to go to the requested floor when they entered the elevator.

Based on the amount of security, Peter understood that this was some kind of agency headquarters for the city and that Neal had a high clearance level to access these restricted offices with his own information.

The hallway was nondescript, like most government buildings, before they reached an office and Neal led the way in.

A general sat at the head of a desk while two chairs faced her with a pile of paperwork in between.

Gesturing for him to take a seat, Neal remained back and to the side where he could view and be viewed. But, he wasn't joining the conversation.

Looking to the general for answers, Peter waited for a beat while she sized him up.

When she got started, she landed into the information rapidly!

First, Neal was an undercover task force agent. He worked for the CIA and NSA in general but his Caffrey role also involved the Marshalls due to his Wit-Sec past and the FBI OPR searching for corruption related to Pratt. In his own field, Neal had some kind of command and sounded like a legend, but he wasn't cleared to know those details so Peter was mostly speculating about what fit in the blanks that he wasn't given.

Second, he'd been cleared of the Pratt murder due to Neal's planted cameras that caught the whole event with full video and audio recordings. Then James was arrested while trying to destroy some evidence in the box.

Finally, Peter hadn't been released on the Pratt murder as additional corruption was stalling the process while trying to go after him. It was believed that someone was either still after the box and he was their point of association, they were going after him personally, or they were targeting Neal through him. He'd been pulled to investigate that situation to see what input he could add and to protect him from any potential attacks while he was in prison.

"A guard was taking me to the violent crime ward when another guard caught up to him with my release papers," Peter noted for their record.

Neal paled and the general frowned at this, but it hadn't been unexpected.

After the paperwork was done and the meeting over, Peter had a general understanding of Neal's operation along with the intent behind his own release into Neal's custody.

With his head spinning, Peter followed Neal back through the building and out to the SUV.

"I'm not staying at June's since this isn't a part of my cover but I'll drop you at your place and pick you up in the morning," Neal commented as he navigated his way out of the parking garage.

"What does the team think you're doing, your character didn't run, did you?" Peter worried about what Neal might be doing to himself to help him.

Glancing at him, Neal shook his head. "I can get things done without running you know. The FBI thinks I'm being borrowed for a manhunt for James, that as his son, I'd be better able to predict his actions. They know you're consulting for something too and figure it's the same case."

Studying Neal, Peter didn't know if he was upset with him, or if the agent was just more serious when he wasn't playing a con.

Deciding to test the waters, Peter stated, "No, I don't know how Agent Larkin does things or what he's allowed to do. I've studied Neal Caffrey for years, and he's impetuous enough to do something boneheaded like running. So, you tell me how things are done, Bryce." However, as he spoke, Peter realized that he was the one coming off as angry, and maybe he was, but his mind was still spinning so he hadn't caught up yet.

Continuing with his serious demeanor, Neal answered, "Well, Agent Burke, Agent Larkin was put on assignment by Washington to pursue public corruption. His role is to be a criminal, but he gets to choose how criminal, and he likes the idea of a gentleman thief like those classic movies he saw growing up. Per his role, he picked up an FBI agent to pursue him and he was fortunate to get one who wouldn't put a bullet in his back. Working together, they became partners and friends, but there is always the distinction between fed and con. Then my dad and family history made a mess of things so our roles are temporarily reversed and you get to learn a bit about who I actually grew up to be."

Peter wasn't sure why he felt guilty, that had been a summary of the facts, and yet, he did. The conversation hadn't answered his question either, but maybe both were true. Neal might be a more serious agent who was upset about something.

Arriving home, Peter knew that his two-mile radius had less appeal than Neal's as far as surroundings went, but he had no intention of leaving home beyond walking Satchmo so it didn't matter.

"I'll be monitoring your tracking for disturbances, let me know if you need anything." Neal was kind enough not to throw in criminal references or teases, just a note that he'd be watching if anything happened.

Bidding him goodnight, Peter didn't feel right, but there was so much off in the situation that he couldn't pinpoint what was bothering him.

Walking up to his home, he met an excited Elizabeth at the door.

"You're clear?" She threw her arms around him and kissed him.

Returning her kiss, Peter hated to worry her, but she followed his glance down where he revealed the anklet. "Not quite. I'm ironically on a release to help finish the case. Someone is after me, and we're trying to find out who."

"We?" She questioned as they walked back into the house.

"Yeah, we; Neal, a whole taskforce of agencies that I didn't know was watching…" Peter wasn't supposed to share everything, but he needed to answer her as honestly as possible.

"That's a good thing, isn't it?" Elizabeth remained close as they moved to the couch to talk.

"Generally, it means that James is in prison for murder and the evidence clears me, but it also means my release is being stonewalled and that this isn't over." He held his wife as he enjoyed being with her on their couch again. It was a comfort he hadn't been sure he'd experience again that morning.

"Are you okay?" She sounded worried as she looked into his eyes.

Knowing that she'd seen his troubled expression, Peter sighed as he leaned into her seeking greater comfort from her embrace. "Yes and no. Nothing happened to me in prison, but things are weird with Neal while the whole situation is a mess."

"Why are things weird with Neal?" Elizabeth continued to question. She was worried and confused by the odd turn of events.

"I don't know. Is it because he's being so serious about everything, or what? I haven't figured it out yet." He would, he was determined but he didn't have enough to work with yet.

Since everything was distressing to him, Peter fell silent and buried himself in his wife. He wanted to be enveloped by her scent, her embrace, and her love.

Thank you, everyone, for reading, leaving kudos, and reviewing :D

First, I appear to have posted the wrong chapter the first time I endeavored to put this up. Second, although I have my profile set to receive emails, I can't find any indication that I've accidentally flagged this site as spam/junk, and I have the address set up as safe, I still keep getting notices that emails from this site have been rejected and I'm unable to receive contact until further notice. I check for PMs and reviews on this story so please message me if you've reviewed an older story and would like a response. Otherwise, I'm on archiveofourown by the same name where there doesn't seem to be any issues.