Neal was pretty sure he had the right chemicals to dissolve the little pyramid. If the treasure inside were of the expected material, it would definitely not be harmed.
"Let's see how this works," he said and lowered the pyramid in the chemicals, holding it with a pair of pliers. It started to bubble as expected.
The 'ancient spirits' made noises again. Raquel sighed.
"The A.C. isn't working. I'm gonna shut it off," she said and moved away. "Can you survive a little sweat?"
"It's the thrill of New York in the summer." The pyramid had dissolved entirely, and in the pliers was what was left. "Look at this," he said when she got back. He put the amulet on a tray. "You can see the hieroglyphics indented in the mold."
"It's a beautiful language."
"It's an art, really." He started to clean away the leftovers. "You ever heard of the Papyrus Seven Scrolls?"
"Of course," she replied. "It's a shame they were proven to be forgeries."
"Only after a dozen different Egyptologists weighed in." It was something he was proud of.
"I know. I was one of them. Those were a work of art." Raquel's praise warmed. He focused on the amulet in his hands. She got his silence correctly. "That was you? No…"
"There is that speculation."
"A forger, a restoration tech, an escape artist. Wow. The things we could do together."
"And there it is," he said, showing her the amulet.
"I've waited for this one my entire career." Full of awe, she dived in to study the little item. "Have you ever experienced the thrill of discovering a real treasure?"
Yeah, he thought, he had.
"I'm experiencing it now," he said. "You read the inscription?" he asked, giving Peter and the crew the signal to move in.
"'You have come forth to the beautiful place to which we run.'" Keller's voice. They both turned and there he was, in the very room. "It's remarkable, isn't it?"
"Who are you?" Raquel asked.
"Matthew Keller. I'm an old friend of Neal's."
"We were something, but we were never friends."
"Then think of me as the man who stole that amulet from the Egyptian Museum."
"You?"
"Impressive, huh?" Keller pulled a gun from the back of his pants. "Now I kind of want it back." Neal backed away, and so did Raquel. Peter would be there in any second now. "What are you worried about?" Keller asked as he took the amulet. "Don't worry about the boys in the van. The feds ain't coming."
"Feds?" Raquel frowned.
"Oh, let me guess," Keller said. "He didn't tell you? Yeah, he's a criminal consultant for the FBI. Right, buddy?"
She put two and two together.
"You're Neal Caffrey."
"Well, look at that," Keller said smugly. "You're famous."
"Raquel, this man is incredibly dangerous," Neal told her. "Don't believe anything he tells you." And what had Keller done to Peter to keep him away?
"You should listen to some things I tell you," Keller objected. Then Raquel pulled out a gun she had hidden under the tabletop. "Oh! Hey! This is spicy, huh?"
"I don't know what's going on between you two, but I'm not sticking around to find out." She walked across the room, aiming her gun at Keller, who in turn pointed his at her.
"That's a good idea, sweetheart. This is just guy talk."
"Boys will be boys."
"Raquel…" Neal started.
"I trusted you," she returned. He had nothing to say to that. His intention had always been to deliver her to the FBI.
Raquel backed out and slammed the door shut behind her.
"She seems nice," Keller chuckled. He lowered the gun.
"What do you want?"
"Come on, Neal. I want the treasure." And now the gun was pointing at him.
"You set this up. You stole the amulet and had Raquel's restorer arrested in Egypt, so she'd need someone new."
"Too bad you didn't put that together before now. Must be something pretty important in that warehouse. Turns out, Neal, you're sitting on one of the greatest treasures never discovered."
"I don't have a treasure."
"I know you don't. I do." He put the gun on the table to use the keyboard on the computer.
"Not so fast," they heard Raquel say. "My wand. To make sure we're alone."
"Of course," the kid answered, and then the signal died.
"Well, that was fast," Peter said.
"He'll come back online," Jones assured him.
"In fifty seconds, we move in." Peter checked his watch. He wanted this operation to be a success, but he was not going to take any more chances. It was bad enough to have Neal in this situation.
"This is what I want you to see," Raquel's voice returned.'
"He's back," Jones confirmed.
"In eight seconds, I was gonna move in. We can expect Keller to strike in a window that small."
They listened to small talk and discussions about solutions and chemicals. It took ages.
"The A.C. isn't working," Raquel said. "I'm gonna shut it off."
It seemed as if the work progressed as expected. They discussed hieroglyphs. And the forged scrolls, which Peter was damn sure was Neal's work.
"Come on, Neal," Peter mumbled. "Just uncover the damn amulet."
"And there it is," the kid said.
"I've waited for this one my entire career. Have you ever experienced the thrill of discovering a real treasure?"
"All right," Peter said. "Let's get ready to move in. Caffrey should give us the signal any minute."
"Let's suit up," Jones told the team over the radio.
Then, nothing more happened. Peter checked the signal. It was there. All the sounds that were supposed to be there were there. Except Neal and Raquel were no longer talking.
Peter and Jones stared at each other, perplexed.
"Check with the team if someone has entered or exited the building."
Jones talked on the radio. No one had been seen coming or going.
Peter listened.
"That's the air conditioner. Jones?"
"Yeah?"
"Didn't she say she turned off the A.C.?"
"Yeah, I thought so."
"Play back the audio."
"The A.C. isn't working. I'm gonna shut it off. Can you survive a little sweat?"
"The thrill of New York in the summer."
"She shut it off," Jones said, also putting pieces together.
"We're on an audio loop. All agents, I want a visual. Surround the building. We're moving in."
Peter stormed out of the van, followed by Jones and agents pouring out from cars and hiding places all over. He ran inside the building and up the stairs. Then he heard a shot fired.
"Shots fired!" He hurried to the door at the end of the corridor. "FBI!" he called, banging his fist on the door. "Open up! Neal!" The door was solid. Nothing they would force their way through easily. "Neal!" he called again.
"Peter, it's Neal!" the kid answered from inside. "I'm alone and unarmed, okay? I'm unlocking the door."
He did.
"What's going on?" Peter asked as he marched into the room.
"Keller was here. He's armed."
"What? Where'd he go?"
"That door," Neal pointed.