Choirboy Caffrey

Chapter 4 - A Case of Cold Feet

St. Louis hotel room. Friday night. Early December, 2003.

Neal was still on the phone when Peter returned with two cups of coffee. This time he made plenty of noise as he entered the room.

"I swear I had it in my hands," Neal told the person on the phone. "A brand new, original Michael Darling song... Yes, I'm sure it was his. It was his style, and even better, he was standing right there and told me it was his... No way am I singing it for you. It's bad enough he walked in on me playing it." Neal took the cup Peter handed him. "You're sure about the concert? I'm with the Feds now. You lie to me and there could be consequences."

"No!" Peter stage whispered. "We don't threaten people." When Neal raised a brow in a sign of disbelief, Peter said, "You don't threaten people. Not without authorization."

"Thanks, Shawn... No, I don't owe you one. After what you did in Vegas, you owe me a lot more than a little information."

"What happened in Vegas?" Peter asked when Neal hung up.

"I think that needs to stay in Vegas."

"Even after I brought you coffee?"

"When I have immunity, ask me about the first time I was arrested."

"Arrested? We don't have any record of your being arrested."

Neal gave his most mischievous smile. "Enjoy the mystery. The important thing is, I know why the band members went to New York. They've agreed to a one-time reunion concert next summer. It's part of a benefit, with the proceeds going to a drug rehab program. It also coincides with the release of Ty Merchant's first solo album. The publicity from their concert should be great for its sales. As long as Michael goes through with the concert, Ty should be happy with him."

"Do you think he's threatening to pull out of it?"

Neal shook his head. "It's unlikely. Michael's few public statements since leaving Local Devastation have all been strongly in favor of rehab programs. He should be the band member most in support of the concert."

"Did you learn anything else from your contacts?"

"I don't see much of a motive for Theo. He's in debt because he's starting his own recording studio. One of the people I called says he has a solid business plan and she expects him to do well. She also said he loved recording songs, but he hated performing in concerts. If someone tried to bring the band back together again for a tour, he wouldn't join them. There doesn't seem to be anything he would want from Michael."

"That leaves Trevor. And do you know if anyone was injured in the accident that sent Michael to rehab?"

"That's an interesting angle. We should check out Professor Evan Bell, too. Michael mentioned filling in for him while he 'gets back on his feet.' What if someone hurt Bell to intimidate Michael?"

"What if Bell feels threatened by Michael, and wants to scare him away rather than be replaced by him?" Peter asked.

"Another interesting angle. Let's see what we can find."

This time Peter let Neal run the searches, talking him through how the FBI systems worked. They didn't find much of interest about Trevor, other than the fact he got divorced after the band split up. He might blame Michael for that. Oddly, they couldn't find any record of Professor Bell being in an accident or suffering a major injury. Peter was going to mention how suspicious he found that when he noticed Neal rubbing his eyes. "You okay?"

"Getting a little blurry. Maybe I need to get my eyes checked."

"Well, it's midnight anyway. That was your deadline. Get some sleep."