Caffrey Flashback

Chapter 9: Therapy - The Facts

New York City. Friday night. February 20, 2004.

After dinner, Neal and his aunt Noelle took a cab back to her hotel. They arranged to meet the following morning, and then Neal decided to walk the rest of the way home. It was a cold night but dry, and Neal wanted the solitude of a long walk.

His cell phone buzzed, and he saw it was Peter. He should have called, he realized, to let Peter know Byron had died. And now he stared at the phone, undecided about whether to answer, until the call went to voice mail. He resumed walking.

About fifteen minutes later the phone buzzed again. This time it was Henry. Neal still didn't feel like talking, but he supposed he should answer or people would keep calling. "Yeah?" he said by way of greeting. "Did Peter call you?"

"He did," confirmed Neal's cousin. "I reminded him that Mom was arriving tonight and you were probably busy. Then I called her and she filled me in. I'm sorry about Byron. He was a great guy."

"He was." Neal continued walking.

"You okay?"

Neal sighed. "I had weeks, you know? Plenty of time to tell him how much I appreciated everything he'd done: all of his advice, letting me have the apartment for a song, the way he cared about whether I succeeded. But I put it off. Instead I distracted him with songs or stories about things I'd done, or listening to his stories. I waited to the very last minute, and I have no idea if he heard me. Hell, I don't even know if I was coherent."

"He wanted that distraction. He needed it."

"But just once I could have –"

"Don't go there," warned Henry. "You'll never escape from the trap of could haves. He didn't ask for more, did he?"

"No, but..." Neal ran his free hand through his hair as he stopped at a light. "I really don't want to think about this. Can we talk about something else?"

Henry paused, and Neal half expected to be told avoidance wouldn't help. But instead his cousin said, "Pops' weekend commitment turned out to be only Saturday. We'll head up starting Sunday, and probably get to New York Tuesday afternoon. If Peter's available we'd like to meet with both of you for dinner to catch up on the case."

"You can sail up here that fast?"

The answer to that was lengthy, involving an explanation that the boat was actually docked in Delaware, and a review of possible routes and stops on the way to New York. Neal didn't have the sailing experience to follow it all, but imagining the trip with the ocean air and the rocking of the waves was a welcome distraction. He let Henry's words wash over him until he reached the mansion and had to say goodbye. Henry said he'd call Peter, and Neal supposed he should offer to do it himself, but was glad to let Henry break the news of Byron's death.

As soon as he opened the front door he heard the crying. The youngest of Byron's daughters was in tears in the front room. Fortunately her husband was comforting her, and a moment later her older sister entered the room to offer an apology for something she'd said. Neal slipped upstairs without being noticed.

He changed out of his suit into something more casual and started to paint.

###

Peter had sent Jones and Tricia home before he tried calling Neal Friday night. It had been a hectic day and evening, as they hit the deadline Hughes had imposed for gathering enough information to tie Vincent Adler to their Highbury case. Following Neal's suggestion, Jones had contacted Seamus Bickerton about the Enscombe estate and asked for the owner's contact information. Jones had explained their suspicion that Highbury was conducting illegal activities on the property, and Bickerton had taken the bait. He wouldn't provide contact info, but promised to get in touch with the owner. The attorney said he'd have a response for the FBI on Monday, and indicated he would recommend that Perdue Incorporated authorize the search. He also sent a copy of the lease to Jones.