WCBB - Frozen - Elledeegee - Chapter 5

(Chapter 5)

Four days passed and Neal felt better than he had with the care that Saunders was giving him. He was already eating something slightly more solid than oatmeal and grits, the former physician bringing him cheese and turkey sandwiches with only a few extras like a leaf of lettuce and maybe a tomato along with a small salad when possible. He could drink something other than water now, apple and orange juice one of his choices but no coffee yet. He hadn’t been starved for too long a period but with the fever he’d developed from being in the damp, cold well and the minor infection from the manacle around his ankle. He was better now, the doctor chit chatting with him his favorite part of the day even if he was still a prisoner. Neal didn’t fully trust Saunders but compared to the others he’d met so far including Eckert, this man was more trustworthy than the rest. The doctor was no angel much like Neal but he didn’t come into the criminal business until late, finding himself caught up with Eckert’s schemes due to a debt he owed the man. He had the feeling that although the threat of being turned into the FBI (although he’d prefer the authorities over the business man any day) was still evident, nothing had been done to show he was going to be turned in. This meant Neal was still expected to do whatever it was Jack had in mind and at the moment the con man was just biding his time hoping to get well enough to escape before anything else came up.

“I brought you a few rice pudding cups. I’ll put them in the fridge over here. It took me quite a bit of convincing to make Jack let me put this in for you but he’s still convinced you’re going to help him…”

There was a hint of sarcasm in the doctor’s tone, Saunders giving a humorless laugh as if he’d been where Neal’s was once before. It gave the con little hope on getting Eckert to back off but he wasn’t about to give in yet. He still had his wits about him even if he didn’t have Peter or Mozzie to come help.

“I’m sure he’s not going to let me go just like that when I’m well. Could I ask you a favor, Mel?”

He had a plan already in progress but it depended on knowing who was outside guarding him. He’d come to know the guards pretty well, two men of shady but negotiable natures who liked to play cards when he was bored. It had been his way to find out more and deal with his ordeal but also to get a little trust between himself and the guards without Eckert around. Jack didn’t know his men were being friendly with his prisoner and so far nobody had said anything to him. He was doing the same with Saunders, the doctor nodding with a raised brow as if to ask if it was something he could get in trouble for but Neal shook his head.

“I just need to scratch my ankle and this thing is hampering my attempts to do it. Boggs was laughing at my attempts to push my fingers through the side to get at the itch.”

He didn’t put on anything other than sincere discomfort, puppy eyes not working with these men. Saunders nodded, pulling out a key from around his neck. It was secured well enough Neal wouldn’t be able to take it and he was trying not to do any of his usual tricks to gain some trust to get out of this place. The doctor unlocked the manacle, removing the metal clasp and letting Neal get up and walk around as a free man for a moment. The con took advantage of the situation, scratching the itch that was really there while also making sure he would be able to get out of the manacle at a later date of his choosing. He could see that Saunders was giving him a cautious benefit of the doubt, the door to the room latched on the outside. There was no way to get out even if he overtook the man and at this time he needed the doctor to trust him a bit too, getting much more out of their conversations than Saunders did. He took a quick run to the bathroom, Mel letting him wash up without the manacle but hissing for him to hurry back when they heard voices on the other side of the door. They had barely put the clasp in and locked it back up when Jack entered the room and glanced between them curiously. The doctor put on a pretense of taking his blood pressure before removing the velcro covering and shaking his head slightly.

“Still a little low but you’ll live. Few more days of re…”

He paused and looked over at Jack as if he hadn’t noticed him, his sentence obvious but incomplete as he packed up his things automatically and moved towards the door. The men talked briefly and whatever Saunders said in whispers made Eckert frown heavily, eyes looking over at Neal with an expression of annoyance one has when their pet misbehaves or someone over starched a shirt. Mel left without a glance back, leaving just Jack and Neal, the tension obvious as the con played with the chain that kept him tethered here. If not for that, he’d have found a way out of the building. The room was sealed up tight but there was always a way.

“Saunders says you’re still not up to any capers at the moment. I should be happy with that knowing what I know about you but my mind is still on the fence about whether to let you loose to the Authorities or convince you that working for me is your salvation…”

The man’s words trailed off eerily, Neal uncertain he wanted to ask about the third unspoken option. He didn’t know enough about Eckert but he was certain disappointment wasn’t taken lightly after his kidnapping, near murder in the well not to mention the blow to his head with the night stick he’d gotten when he’d gone home to pack just 2 weeks ago. The silence between them was palpable until Jack coughed and smiled tightly, walking back towards the door then pausing before walking back again.

“Weigh your options carefully, Mr. Caffrey. I’ll let you rest but I need an answer and soon. The wanted poster didn’t indicate I had to return you alive.”

Eckert smiled coldly back before tapping the door to exit. Neal stared after the now absent millionaire unhappily. He stood and removed the manacle since he could. The doctor didn’t realize what he had done to make this so as he moved easily beside the bed, pulling something from out of the mattress. It was a cell phone, one he had palmed off Boggs during their last card game. The man didn’t seem to notice right away, complaining about his phone being gone but not suspecting him as he listened through the wall. His partner told him to stop whining and just get another one as they grew silent and Neal smiled realizing he now had a means to call out. At least that’s what he had hoped until he tried the cell and found no bars evident from this room. Maybe it was something Jack had cooked up knowing his past. He could use the walkie talkie function but that would do him no good as he fumed, realizing he’d been too quick to think his usual tactics would work here. Eckert was several steps ahead or maybe it was just the building in general. He’d never seen any of the guards calling except on walkie talkie function. Perhaps the signals in here were all shut off for some paranoid reason only their boss knew.

Neal still had a few tricks up his sleeve as he placed a text, cryptic as it might be and set it to not only send at a later date when the signal came on but come up as a blank text nobody could read but the person you sent it to. It was a trick Mozzie had showed him and tonight at the usual card game, Boggs was going to find out he had his old cell again before he left the building and hopefully sent the text tonight after his shift when he had a signal. It was still a few couple of days before Christmas or so he thought, time in this place standing still as he was forced to comply with rules stricter than any tracking anklet.

()()()

Peter headed back to Elizabeth and his in-laws. Patrick promised to keep in touch, no news yet on Eckert’s whereabouts or Neal’s. They were investigating the possibility of a cabin nearby in the wilderness that Eckert was known to winter at. Maybe Neal was a prisoner there? The agent wanted to go search but had no jurisdiction here much more he was on vacation and as much as El had given him leeway to look for Neal, he knew she wasn’t happy with his absence. It was Christmas tomorrow. He needed to be with his family, his wife. Neal wasn’t on the backburner, just…

“Burke…”

He was surprised when Mozzie answered, the little guy having been silent for the past week the agent hadn’t been sure they were on speaking terms anymore. The con sounded excited.

“I got a text, Suit! Neal needs our help and I know more or less where he is.”

The little guy had more certainty in his tone than was conveyed by his words, Peter blinking a moment as he pulled over and left the car in park.

“Wait… you know where he is? What exactly was in this text, Mozzie?”

His interest was piqued as he sat in the car on the side of the road and waited for what he hoped was a sure lead to their friend. There was silence for a moment making him think he’d lost the connection when Mozzie finally answered.

“Not a sure location. I did a GPS data search on the text meta data and I am 99.999999% sure he’s really close to where you are right now. It looks like a cabin just outside of town sits on that location. There’s no information on who it belongs to but I’m still working on hac...on legally finding the information on that abode for you Suit. I’m texting you a satellite view of where the cabin is.”

Peter heard a beep, seeing he had a new text. He told Mozzie he would call him back, opening the message to see a photo of the area he was in and one circled in the forest outside of town. It was only a few miles outside of town, the area a rough one with what appeared to be dirt roads at best to get up there. Seemed Eckert liked his privacy. He took a moment to memorize the route before putting the car back into gear and taking off down the road. Peter made a quick call.

“Hey hun. How is everything? My parents were asking where you were and I told them you were out doing some last minute shopping. Tell me you found what you were looking for?”

He knew she meant Neal but for now he had to be cool, calmly coming up with something to keep her hopes high.

“Maybe, hun. I just talked to Mozz so I’m going to check out a lead but I’m headed your way. Miss you.”

They exchanged a kiss over the phone before he hung up and he concentrated on the road, the snow in higher drifts and the roads less safe as he moved from the city to the country. Peter kept going, chains on the tires making it safe for him to drive but the snow was packed in large drifts around the road and sloping onto his path before he found the road leading up to Eckert’s cabin. This was the moment of truth, the Beamer turning smoothly onto the rough icy road which made him bounce about the inside of the car as he fought for control on the rocky path. Peter kept going, not letting a little thing like a rough road keep him from finding Neal. The road was narrow, trees forming a thick wall along with the snow on either side as he led the car through the winding path and finally found himself going over a steep incline he wasn’t ready for. The brakes squealed, wet from the snow and possibly frozen as he fought for control but soon realized the car was going of its own accord towards a large tree. Peter braced himself…

()()()

Neal woke up in a panic, something told him he should worry about still being in Eckert’s compound but so far nobody had stormed in for or come to his rescue. He was pretty sure it was Christmas day, only 48 hours since he’d slipped Bogg’s phone back into his pocket at their clandestine poker game, and yet he was still here. It was still early in the morning from the clock on the wall but he knew he had little time before he’d be anything but a nuisance to his captors.

Had his message gotten through and had Mozzie and Peter figured out where he was? Either they had and couldn’t get in or they hadn’t which was the most likely scenario. He wasn’t even sure he knew, sitting up and dangling his feet over the side of the hospital bed with a despondent sigh. The IV’s and monitors were gone for the past day or two once the doctor had determined him healthy enough for whatever Eckert had in mind. Suddenly he felt very thirsty, slipping down to the floor and walking over to the small fridge the doctor had left him. He grabbed a mini rum from the back, something he’d been given as a kind of gift from Saunders without Eckert knowing, the doctor definitely not his friend but not cold enough to keep him from some creature comforts. Neal took a long sip from the tiny bottle draining it dry. It was just enough liquor to get him buzzed, calming him as he tried to think how much longer he could hold out here until Eckert finally killed him. It was the next logical step to his refusal. Dead or alive the man would still get a reward from his body if he turned it into the right authorities. He shivered at the thought, digging around for more and finding a small scotch behind a bottled water. He downed this one in two gulps before he sat down on the sofa and leaned back tiredly.

Someone was whispering outside the door and not very well as Neal got up and went to listen, sitting on the floor with his ear pressed to the wall. He was certain it was Boggs, the man was terrible at spreading gossip but he heard little to nothing, their voices low enough he couldn’t pick up exactly what was said.

There was silence after that, footsteps walking away and the creak of a chair being sat in. Neal wanted to know what they said. Maybe Eckert had other irons on the fire, he didn’t doubt it but right now he was the only prisoner according to what the doctor mentioned when they spoke. What if they’d found someone else to do their con. Neal was considering cooperating just to get more intel when he heard voices again and stood up, moving over to the bed and quickly laying down under the covers to hide being up. He felt a little too buzzed to be sure what he was doing as he closed his eyes and heard the door open up. There was silence and then the door shut again.

Sleeping?

Eckert’s voice was clear, footsteps nearing and then a hand nudging him unceremoniously awake. Neal played the tired prisoner, opening his eyes with a false expression of surprise he hoped fooled the man as he sat up wiping at his eyes sleepily. Jack looked like he was trying to be friendly again if only in trying to smile with his own fake smile.

“It’s Christmas, Caffrey. I think you deserve some time away from your little space here. Get dressed… Boggs will bring you.”

The man smiled coldly back before exiting the room and leaving Neal alone again. The con wasn’t sure what to think as he felt a simultaneous sense of relief and dread. He was going out which was good but at the same time there was a catch he would find out about. Jack’s words were enigmatic at best as he dragged himself over to the bathroom and showered quickly. Death or not, he might as well go well groomed. Nobody could say Neal Caffrey didn’t care about his looks as he dressed and fixed his hair just perfect. If only he could be home with his friends at June’s…

It was a few minutes later Boggs came in, a key in his hand as he released the con from his manacle and lead him at gunpoint towards the door. He had been in this room for just over a week, ready to see the rest of the compound but uncertain today was anything more than them fattening the sacrificial lamb before its death. When he didn’t move he felt a poke in his back by cold metal, the gun cocked for emphasis.

“Get moving. I don’t care about shooting you except I’ll lose my best poker buddy.”

Boggs was playing nice while still being himself, Neal nodding as he was herded along down several gray corridors and then up a flight of stairs and through a panel in what appeared to be a wooden floor to a cabin. The place was rustic with a look like you saw in most stylish architectural magazines. They appeared to be in the den of the cabin, a roaring fire in a nearby hearth making Neal smile slightly as a rich hickory scent met his nose. The place was something he wasn’t particularly fond of with over stuffed seats and hunting related items strewn about but it made him think of Peter. The agent would love this cabin.

“Mr. Caffrey… sit. Boggs, you can leave us alone now.”

Jack showed up from an open door in the far corner of the room he could only guess led to bedrooms or maybe a bathroom and kitchen. The thug nodded, leaving them be as he exited back down the panel in the floor closing it behind him. Jack made a motion for him to sit near the fire in one of two over stuffed armchairs as the industrialist offered him some scotch.

“No amount of coaxing seems to bring you around to my side of the road and I respect you for that. Sticking to your guns is something I believe in and find honorable.”

Neal sensed there was more to this friendly conversation as they sat and stared into the fire. He had immediately started to casually case the room, looking for a way out now that they were alone. A humorless laugh came from his captor out of the blue.

“The windows are barred and the door is made of steel with a wooden exterior and hidden lock that is beyond your skillset. Feel free to try if you want though. I could use a good laugh.”

Jack was mocking him, Neal doing his best not to get caught up in hopelessness or anger at being played. Even at his worse, Peter never teased him this much but then the agent never kept him prisoner.

“I figured you didn’t send Boggs away because he was boorish. This is a good scotch. 1970?”

He was changing the subject to lessen the heavy atmosphere, Jack shrugging with a slight shake of his head.

“65 but close enough to know you have a healthy respect for expensive things. Whatever became of that Franklin bottle you were involved in? Sounds like an interesting story.”

The story came up casually but Neal wasn’t prepared for the man to know that much about him. What kind of file had he been given or stolen to know he had been at that particular auction? He shrugged as he tried to control his feelings and the situation but it was hard under the circumstances.

“If I hadn’t been on the run, I’d have kept it. Besides, I had bigger fish to fry. So… What is it you have that’s so important for me to get for you? I’m guessing it’s not easy to acquire.”

Neal decided to play nice, act as if the scotch had softened him up but he had barely had 2 sips although he’d managed to drain half of the glass to make it look like he had. Eckert smiled genuinely back at him.

“Just something a partner refused to hand over when he left this world. His partners have it in a particularly hard to break into safe at a securities firm. I’ve read enough of your exploits with the FBI to know you’re the man I want to do this job. I had a feeling you were right for it before but this file proved my theory correct…”

He tossed over a large manilla folder, Neal surprised as he caught it and saw his name on the outside. It was a copy of his official background from the FBI including all of his work with them and Peter as he read further into the file. He glanced up briefly to find Jack smiling at him with an “Ah-Ha” kind of look that made his eyes sparkle in the firelight like a jaguar. The man rose, putting down his glass and motioning for Neal to do the same.

“Come with me… I have someone I want you to meet.”

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