Caffrey Flashback

Chapter 5: Playing Along

New York City taxi. Tuesday evening. February 17, 2004.

A good con artist doesn't reveal his emotions unless those emotions help sell the con, Neal reminded himself, displeased that he'd let Jones see how upset he'd been after talking to Kate.

Peter would probably argue that "good" and "con artist" were mutually exclusive, and say that as a consultant for the FBI Neal shouldn't think of himself as a con man anymore. But part of the reason the FBI wanted him in their ranks was for that very skill set. Therefore keeping in practice was important.

The challenge tonight had been the sheer number of distractions. Even before Kate's bombshells, there had been Peter's comment that Neal could be in serious trouble, even arrested, for cracking Sinclair's safe on New Year's Eve. Add on to that yesterday's mandate that Neal must seek therapy regarding the abuse he'd suffered as a child, and who wouldn't be flustered? The biggest, longest con of his life had been convincing everyone, including himself, that he was fine during and after that abuse. Reliving those memories was absolutely the last thing Neal wanted to do, even if it would make the flashbacks stop.

The implication that Kate had been Adler's mistress had been too much to handle on top of everything else. It would take time to process exactly what Kate had said tonight compared to what Neal remembered of their romance. The fact is, he'd taught Kate how to run a con and she'd been a natural. That raised the question: why had she been so obviously rattled at the café? Had she really been thrown off her stride to that extent? Or had she been pretending, conning Neal into suspecting something that would make him react emotionally rather than intellectually? And why hadn't she mentioned that the club leasing Adler's estate was Highbury Professional Connections?

The taxi stopped in front of a bar, and Neal paid the driver. Rather than walking into the bar, he entered the music shop next door. They had one of the best selections of reasonably priced instruments in the city, and some creative marketing techniques. For instance, on Tuesday and Thursday evenings they ran a promo with the neighboring bar, featuring live music. Throughout the week, musicians visited the shop and auditioned, and the owner selected a set of artists to perform.

While in St. Louis in December, Neal had met a retired legend of alternate rock, Michael Darling. The keyboardist and composer for the group Local Devastation, Michael had been an idol of rock fans like Neal in the late 1990s. Michael had recently agreed to write songs for Ty Merchant, the lead singer of Local Devastation who was now embarking on a solo career. Michael would be in New York soon to go over some new songs with Ty, and out of appreciation for Neal's help, he had extended an invitation to join them. He'd also insisted that Neal stay in practice.

The Ellingtons' mansion had a music room with a piano, and Neal had a guitar, but practicing boisterous rock songs didn't feel right as Byron's health faded. Seeking other venues, Neal learned about the music store and had struck up a friendship with the owner. Randy Weston had hopes of eventually selling Neal a gorgeous high-end guitar, and Neal had hopes of being able to afford it someday.

It was 8:28 when Neal entered the store, mere minutes before Randy took the night's performers back to his office to finalize the set list. "Had me worried there," Randy said. "Come on back."

As usual, there would be two simultaneous performances from nine to midnight. In the dark, moody bar, patrons would hear louder, more angst-driven rock songs. Meanwhile, waitresses would serve drinks in the bright shop, which would feature a selection of lighter, pop songs. While the bar had a cover charge, the store's doors would be wide open to entice wannabe musicians to believe that they could learn to play like the performers, if only they came inside and purchased the right instruments.

The bar fit Neal's mood tonight, and he volunteered to be part of that group. He selected two songs he wanted to perform covers of, and would back up other members of the group on their selections.