So I know this chapter took longer to come out, and I left the last one off at a horrible cliff hanger... But I blame midterms! But here's an update so enjoy! :)
A triumphant smirk ran across Peter's face. His hunch had been right and now he and a team of FBI agents had the Bishop's van surrounded. With no way for the villains to escape, he approached the back doors with his gun ready to shoot anyone that tried something mischievous. As he neared throwing open the curtains, he could only pray that he wouldn't find Neal as a hostage at gun pint. Things would be much trickier if his cover had been blown and they decided to use him as a bartering tool. But as he and Diana revealed what was behind those doors, Neal was nowhere to be found. The FBI pulled out the criminals and detained everyone in cuffs; Peter approached the Bishop, "Where is the other kid that was with you, Seth?" he demanded.
River cracked a devious grin, "You mean the guy pretending to be someone named Seth? He was one of your operatives wasn't he? I saw how you wouldn't let him drink on the job so that made me suspicious. I did away with him," he said proudly despite his wrists being twisted behind his back.
Peter mentally faced palmed. It was his fault that Neal was compromised, and now the kid could be dead in a ditch somewhere. How could he ever forgive himself? He clenched his teeth and took River by the collar, "Where is he?" Peter threatened with a low growl.
Nothing the feds did could wipe that expression of the Bishop's face, "The kid had real talent, it's unfortunate that he is probably bleeding out on the street now." Peter wanted to punch him, smack that taunting look right off of his face, but Jones, who had now arrived at the scene, placed a hand on his Boss' shoulder and shook his head. Diana took River out of Peter's reach and slammed him into the Bureau's car before throwing him inside and locking the door.
Agent Burke seethed with rage as he barked orders around in attempt of tracking Neal down. Of course he didn't have his anklet on. Peter's mind swam with worry over the boy he and El had practically adopted into their family. He hoped with all his heart that Neal was alright, but if he wasn't… Peter couldn't even fathom what his life would be like without the mischievous con-boy.
Suddenly, Peter's ring tone interrupted his train wreck of thoughts. He grabbed for his phone in his pocket and even fumbled a little due to panic, but when he brought the phone to his ear, his breath stopped short. "Peter?" Neal rasped in a small weak voice. "Corner of South Street," he managed before the line went dead.
Peter left in a frantic hurry as he just barely had time to shout to his agents where he was going. They knew without him telling them to bring an ambulance. The short drive over was a blur and the usually straight laced agent had no idea how many traffic laws he broke. When he arrived at the block, it wasn't hard to locate Neal surrounded by a crowd of people. Pushing through the crowd was a more difficult feat, but when he finally broke through, he saw his CI with his chest covered in blood. The man who had been next to the kid began speaking to Peter, something about letting the boy use his cellphone to call his friend. Peter wrapped an arm around the unconscious Neal and held him against his chest. He could hear the siren of the ambulance approaching. "Please Neal, stay with me, you're gonna be okay," he whispered. He didn't know whether or not the young man could hear him, but it was more to reassure himself. "It's gonna be okay buddy. The Bishop's been arrested, and the ambulance is here. You'll be fine, no way is a bullet gonna bring you down." Peter's voice was broken just like his heart at the site of the still figure in his arms. But without warning his heart skipped a beat, Neal's eyes cracked open and stared blankly at Peter. Peter could've imagined it, but he swore that Neal's mouth tugged into a tiny smirk, and then a small wink before Neal's eyes shut. He was sure the kid just winked at him. Peter held the boy close; he was going to be alright.
The doctor entered Caffrey's hospital room to find that Agent Burke was still sitting at his bed side. "Agent Burke," the doctor began, "you seem to be quite close to your consultant." The young male doctor in his thirties gave a warm friendly smile. "That's good; he will need someone to support him while he recovers. He's so young, and you said he lives alone?"
Peter nodded to the Doctor's question before he asked one of his own, "So how is he? What will his recovery look like?" There was a trace of anxiety in his voice. It had been an hour since Neal had arrived at the hospital and had the bullet removed, yet he still hadn't woken up.
Sensing the fatherly figure's concern the doctor answered carefully, "He will make a full recovery, in a couple weeks it'll be like it never happened. The kid was really lucky though… it missed his heart by a few centimeters; he was so lucky, it didn't even hit any arteries or his lung. For the first week it'll be painful and make doing things for himself more difficult, but after he'll be okay by himself." The doctor finished his diagnosis and instruction and then added, "After he wakes up, we will do a few more tests and then he will be good to return home. It's best that he doesn't work or do any strenuous activity for the next two weeks." With that last comment the doctor turned to leave the room.
Peter stole a look at Neal's sleeping face; he felt that Neal would be embarrassed to have the older man watch him sleep, but the boy's unconscious face was so innocent and young. How could he ever pass for twenty-three year old Seth Greenwood? Hesitantly at first, Peter ran his hand through Neal's wavy dark hair. He felt a surge of protective instinct well up inside him. Early when he had called his wonderful wife, they had decided that Neal would stay at their house for the next week and a half so they could watch over him. It didn't put it past Neal to get in trouble in his impaired state. The poor kid needed someone to take care of him whether he liked it or not; at least for now he did. The hard part would be convincing Neal to stay with them. He knew the selfless boy would refuse saying that he would just be a nuisance for the Burke's, but at the same time El was adamant about Neal staying with them and was already in Mama Bear mode. The only reason she wasn't at the hospital was because she was already getting the guest bedroom ready for Neal. The thought of the amazing woman he married brought a slight smile to Peter's face. Then his smile grew even larger as he noticed Neal's eyes flutter open.
Yay so Neal is okay, I hope you knew I wasn't actually going to kill him ;) But this is perfect, now he gets to go live with Peter and Elizabeth! The next chapter is going to be adorable so the Peter/Neal father/son fans should be excited, but at the same time both characters will stay as true to the personalities portrayed in the show as possible.