Chapter 12

The warehouse was suddenly flooded with FBI agents who wasted no time surrounding the four men who had just been caught in flagrante delicto. The two thugs, looking more like a couple of deer caught in the headlights of an oncoming Mack truck just put up their hands as they surrendered without incident; they might be muscle but they knew when they'd been overpowered. Jaylon Brown stood, paralyzed, by the printing press, his eyes wide as he took in the sight of the crew, guns drawn. Neal played along as de rigueur, letting himself be cuffed along with the other three men as he spotted Peter giving him a small wink.

'Jaylon Brown' Peter was saying as he personally cuffed JB 'You are under arrest for counterfeiting and intent to traffic counterfeit bonds'

Jaylon looked on, staring momentarily at Neal, boring into his eyes as he tried to figure out if Neal Caffrey had any role in the take-down. Neal just looked away playing his role to the end, looking downtrodden, ostensibly angry at being once again in custody. As always, he hoped his true role in the operation was never uncovered – he had enough enemies as it was.

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Sara was getting dinner underway as the threesome of June, Mozzie and Jones sat at the nearby kitchen table chatting. Mozzie's little manoeuvre had brought the card game to an abrupt and sudden end and everyone had reverted to safe and idle chatter as they waited for news from Peter and Neal.

Hope came up to Sara as she stood by the sink, rinsing lettuce and wrapped her arms around her mom's hips, an unusual occurrence for the usually independent little girl. Sara crouched down coming face to face with her daughter, noting a certain look of sadness in her eyes.

'What's the matter, honey? Why aren't you playing with Patricia?' Sara asked, wondering at what point in time she had finally accepted that her daughter had an imaginary friend

'She's gone' said Hope sadly

'Gone?' echoed Sara

'She went home' answered Hope

'Is she coming back for dinner?' asked Sara as she gently touched her daughter's curls

'No, I told her she could stay home. Mommy, can I go over to Olivia's?' asked the child, referring to her best friend Olivia Mason who lived three houses over

'We could call her and see if she wants to come over for a visit' said Sara as she grabbed for the phone

Hope nodded and her smile returned. It seemed that Patricia's services were no longer required.

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Neal and Peter made their way to the White Collar offices where the trio of crooks were being interviewed. The partners watched as Diana did the honors in the interrogation room, the felons unaware they were being observed by their counterfeit guy on the other side of the glass.

'Smooth take-down' said Neal, sounding somewhat relieved

'Case-book' answered Peter 'Good job out there, Neal!'

Neal just smiled as he took in the compliment.

'What took you so long to give the order?' Peter continued

'I just needed to get the bonds just right' answered Neal, as if it were a no-brainer

Peter just looked over, eyebrows raised. Neal would always be Neal and if this is what it took to keep his urges in check, he could live with that.

'You know those things are just going to be destroyed' said Peter looking over at his partner knowingly

Neal just shrugged 'I know...' he responded

'They are amazingly good, though' Peter added. He knew that was exactly what Neal needed to hear.

'Oh, yeah?' answered Neal, fishing for more

'Yeah, it's a real shame... Did you have fun?' asked Peter

Neal just smiled and gave his partner a familiar smirk which was a mixture of arrogance and self-satisfaction.

'I'm just going to let Sara know everything's okay' he said as he pulled out his phone

On the other end, Sara's phone vibrated on the kitchen counter and she pounced on it as she read the two reassuring words she'd been waiting all day to hear.

'Coming home'

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By six o'clock, Jones and Mozzie had left and Sara found herself alone in the Caffrey house with June. Hope had been invited over to her friend Olivia's house for dinner and Donna Mason had insisted she bring her pajamas and stay for a sleepover, a proposition that had been greeted with a shriek of joy on Hope's part.

Now that JB was in custody once again, June was safe and Jones had joined his cohorts at the White Collar offices to clean up the arrests and get everything squared away.

As June and Sara sat chatting, the front door could be heard opening and Neal suddenly appeared in the doorway to the kitchen, a big smile on his face, arms open wide as June stood to give him a hug.

'It's all good June. You can finally go home' he said as he held her against him

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see his wife looking on fondly, smile on her lips and relief in her eyes at the sight of him and he gave her a small wink, obviously just as relieved as she was to finally be home safe and sound.

'Will you take me?' June asked, impatient to get going

'Are you sure you don't want to stay for dinner, June?' Sara asked as she made her way to them and placed a reassuring hand on the woman's back

'Thank you, darling but I'm really looking forward to getting back home' June said as she hugged Sara

She wasn't quite sure when exactly her feelings for Sara had changed but the metamorphosis was complete and she had nothing but love and admiration for Sara Ellis, the woman who had been such an enigma in the beginning and who was now Neal's life partner and the mother of her granddaughter.

June was ready to go within minutes and Sara waved them off, urging Neal to return as soon as possible. She had something special in mind and she thought she could pull it off in the time it took Neal to make a return trip to Manhattan.

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The SUV arrived in front of the mansion on Riverside Drive just after seven o'clock and June stepped out into the sunshine, visibly relieved that this ordeal was finally behind her. Neal held the front door open for her as they both stepped in and made their way to the main living room. Although he was anxious to get back home to Sara and to his life, Neal wanted to sit with June, make sure she was alright and share the discovery he'd made earlier on in the day. He excused himself for a moment as he ran up the three flights of stairs to his old place in order to retrieve the record album and its precious content, the real treasure – the one Byron had left for his wife all those years ago. He was slightly embarrassed that he'd read the note before June had but that couldn't be helped so he grabbed the album and ran down the stairs to find June sitting in an armchair, her eyes closed.

'You alright?' he asked as he took the seat next to her

'Yes, darling. I'm just tired. It's been a busy few days' June said, her eyes sad

Neal nodded in agreement and June looked down, noticing what he was holding in his hands. She smiled weakly – the album represented so much: wonderful memories of Byron which were strangely bittersweet now that he was no longer here to share them with her.

'June, there was something for you hidden inside the record album' Neal finally said as he pulled out the note and handed it over to her

She looked at him questioningly as she took the note and immediately recognizing her late husband's handwriting, she let out a gasp.

Neal stood and crouched in front of her, holding her hand as she began to read the love letter Byron had left for her all those years ago. Her eyes widened and began to glisten as she took in the contents of the note, finally letting out a sob as Neal's eyes remained on her, his hand firmly clutching hers.

'I can't believe this has been in the house all these years' she began, sobbing '... and I never knew'

'He loved you very much' said Neal quietly as he watched June try to collect herself

June was a proud woman and she didn't like to show her emotions; she had been through much in her long life, some joy but much pain and loneliness and Neal suddenly wished he could make all the hurt go away. She looked longingly at the album cover and Neal could guess that she was reliving all those times she and Byron had listened to their song.

'Would you like me to put on the album?' Neal asked, unsure if that would make things better or worse

She nodded as she wiped her eyes. Neal stood and made his way to the old record player which June kept in the living room to listen to all her favorites; she was old fashioned in that way, preferring 33s to CDs and Neal had long ago learned that about his landlady.

The song began; Frank Sinatra's velvety voice embracing the words and a sad smile came to June's lips as Neal looked on. He suddenly put out his hand and June looked up at him.

'I know it's not the same... but can I have this dance?' Neal asked, rather sheepishly

A large smile erupted on June's tear stained face and she took his hand, rising rather unsteadily as Neal gently put out his arms to welcome her into his embrace.

June tucked her body into Neal's, closing her eyes and suddenly she was transported to a time where she'd swayed in this very spot in Byron's arms, safe and loved. He had been a faithful and loving husband and she had nothing but fond memories of their time together as she realized just how hard he'd struggled to stay true to the promise he'd made to her.

Neal held her close, feeling her so small and fragile against him and he wished he'd met this wonderful man that brought out all those loving feelings in June; he somehow knew they would have been good friends, both of them sharing a love and a respect for this strong and loyal woman he was holding in his arms.

The song ended and June looked up at Neal, her eyes still glistening but her smile shining through the tears.

'Thank you, Neal' she said simply '... for everything'

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Neal smiled all the way back to White Plains. He'd done right by June and this made him feel great. She was like a mother to him and he felt so protective of her, wanting to keep her safe and happy at all costs. His smile broadened even more as he thought of the other amazing woman in his life who was waiting for him at home – home, what a concept, he thought.

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Sara put the finishing touches on the table in the dining room; she was by no means 'Martha Stewart' but she had terrific taste and she certainly knew how to set a beautiful table. She lovingly placed Neal's wedding band on his dinner plate for him to find; she looked forward to seeing it back on his finger where it belonged.

Candles glowed on the table as well as in the living room, all other lighting having been turned off in order to set the mood she was creating now that the sun had gone down. She didn't remember ever eating alone with Neal in their dining room. As a family, they always ate at the kitchen table unless they were having company and Sara smiled in satisfaction as she looked around the room, everything in place for Neal's return.

She made a few last minute adjustments in the mirror in the powder room and checked the sound system one last time as she heard the front door open and spotted Neal standing there, still decked out in his undercover garb – jeans and a t-shirt, looking much younger than his years.

'Hi' he said hesitantly as he re-opened the door and looked out at the address on the outside of the house – 4788 – and Sara looked at him puzzled 'Just checking. I thought I had the wrong house'

He made his way slowly to his wife, staring unblinkingly at her as he walked. 'You look beautiful... what's going on?'

Sara shrugged in response. She had changed into a beautiful green dress Neal particularly loved – a dress she'd worn to June's a few years back – a dress she'd only worn on two other very special occasions. It made her eyes sparkle and the soft candlelight danced on the shimmery material accentuating every one of her movements.

'Thanks. I was only going for nice' she responded as he finally stood in front of her, arms at his side, taken in by the beautiful woman in front of him

'Is this for us?' he asked as he spied the meal on the beautifully set table

'Who else?' she responded as she finally closed the small distance between them, gently touching his smiling face

Neal glanced at the table, noticing something shiny as the candlelight hit it and he took two steps to retrieve the item, slipping it onto his finger with a sigh of relief.

'I hate it when I have to take this thing off' he said, looking down at his hand with satisfaction

'Where's Hope?' he asked still trying to get his bearings; this was a very different welcome than the one he'd been anticipating, not that he was disappointed in any way.

'It seems Patricia has moved out so she went over to Olivia's' she said as Neal snaked his arms around her waist '... for a sleepover' she added, making Neal's eyes sparkle even more.

'Can you give me five minutes – I'd really like to do this justice and change my clothes' he said, placing a suggestive kiss on his wife's lips

'Do you need help?' she asked naughtily

'Why don't we save that for later when I have to get out of my clothes' Neal responded, not missing a beat

He returned within the promised five minutes, quite a feat for Neal who usually took much longer to get dressed. He had changed into a pair of dress pants and a green shirt he knew to be one of his wife's favorites and made his way down the stairs towards the dining room as he spied Sara placing the last of the food on the table. She looked amazing and suddenly all the worries and tension from the past week dissolved at the sight of her, welcoming him home in such an unexpected and enjoyable way. He hoped the food would keep because he had the feeling there might be more pressing business to attend to.

'So, what do I owe all this to?' he asked finally reaching Sara and taking her in his arms

'Well, indirectly, you can thank your daughter' she answered, looking up into his dark, intense eyes

He looked on, puzzled.

'Hope asked if we had a song, our own special song and I realized that we've never actually had one and... I thought it was time we did' she said slowly as she ran her hands dreamily through Neal's hair

He smiled in response. Well, well, who knew that Sara Ellis-Caffrey would ever feel the need to have a 'special song'; he would never have pegged his wife as the soppy one in the family.

'And you say I'm the romantic in this couple?' Neal said, enjoying this soft sentimental side of his wife

'What can I say, I guess you've finally rubbed off on me after all this time' she responded as she pulled away and made her way to the sound system, setting it in motion.

Neal let out a small laugh as he immediately recognized the song. That wonderful song they had danced to under the stars at June's on the night of their wedding: 'Let's stay together'. It was perfect. It had been perfect that night as they'd begun their life together but now a few years later, it had even more significance and he opened his arms to welcome Sara back as they began to sway, Neal singing in her ear along with Al Green. God, he loved this woman and he marvelled at the fact that she could still surprise him even though he thought he knew her oh so well.

'You never cease to amaze me' he whispered into her ear as he held her close

'I hope I never do' she responded, running her hands up and down his back

Neal pulled away momentarily to look into her eyes 'That's not going to be a problem' he said, his voice deep and hoarse as he began kissing her deeply.

'I hope dinner will keep' he added, temporarily coming up for air

Sara nodded, her eyes naughty. 'Two rooms in one week – I think that's a record'

La fin