I do not own TMNT themes or characters.
Chapter One: Oroku Saki; Role Model
Samantha Gelding was an acrobat.
Or at least, she was crazy enough to ride downhill, standing balanced on her bike's pedals without using her hands.
School was out for a three-day weekend. There was no homework, no DECA, no track, and no recitals. Sam couldn't remember the last time she had this much free time on her hands. Admittedly she would probably just end up babysitting Travis and reading a book all weekend, but that was better than nothing. Right now, Sam felt like she was on top of the world!
Until her front tire hit the curb funny.
A small shriek escaped her as Sam fell to the ground. Her bike rolled lazily out into an intersection before stopping tiredly and falling over. Some people stopped and helped Sam to her feet, asking her if she was unhurt. She was just about to answer in the affirmative when her bike was hit by the most expensive car Sam had ever seen.
She stared in horror and the small crowd that had gathered fell silent. "Holy… My bike!"
The driver's door opened and a stubby man in chauffeur uniform stepped out. He went to the front of the car and looked down at the wreckage. The man cringed at the sight. Standing straighter, the driver looked around at the crowd and somehow picked Samantha out as the owner of the bike. His selection might have had something to do with her open mouth and pale complexion. "You! What do you think you are doing leaving bicycle in middle of the street? Are you baka?"
The man had a thick accent and Sam was pretty sure he was Asian. She had no idea what a 'baka' was and couldn't deny or confirm his accusation. "I… I..." Sam abruptly regained the use of her mouth and brain, "You killed my bike!"
The man stormed over to Samantha. He was shorter than Sam's own unimpressive five-foot-five and he had to be a good five times wider than her, "You should not be so careless to leave bicycle in street!" He shook his chubby little finger in her face.
Sam brushed his hand to the side. "I admit I was being careless while riding it, but it went in to the street of its own volition." Sam retorted. She was angry and she always slipped into debate team mode when she was angry.
"Impossible! Bicycles do not have 'own volition'. You left it there!"
"Again, I did not put it out there. But I did see that it had landed on the crosswalk. In no way did you so much as slow down for that stop sign, if I had still been on my bike you could have killed me!"
The driver was about to respond when a well-groomed hand rested on his shoulder. A smooth, low voice spoke. "Quan, you were driving a little recklessly. Apologize to the young lady."
The driver, Quan's eyes widened before he clasped his hands in front of him and bowed. "My apologies miss; I was mistaken."
His sudden change of attitude completely threw Sam. "Apology… accepted?"
"Return to the car, Quan, and remove the bicycle from the front fender." The man behind Quan instructed. The driver hurried to do as he was told. Sam was confused by this new turn of events. She looked up at the man responsible for the driver's change in attitude and clapped her hands over her mouth in surprise and shock.
"Mr. Saki!" Sam gasped; her eyes had to be as large as dinner plates. Oroku Saki stood in front of her. Tall, even by American standards, handsome, dressed in a finely tailored, black business suit, and looking down at Sam with an expression of kind contemplation.
This was impossible. Oroku Saki's driver had demolished Sam's bike! Suddenly this turned from an annoying nightmare to an amazing dream. Oroku Saki! The Oroku Saki! Billionaire and the brains behind one of the most successful international corporations on the planet. He was the hero of nearly every business club student in either the US or Japan and he was standing right in front of Samantha!
Mr. Saki gave a soft smile, "It appears you know me. May I have the pleasure of your name?"
Deep breaths, Sam, deep breaths. She pulled her hands from her mouth and tried to remain calm, "Samantha Gelding, sir."
He nodded, "A pleasure, Miss Gelding. It appears that my driver has demolished your transportation. Is your home nearby, or may I offer you a ride?"
"My apartment building is about twenty minutes' walk from here, sir." Samantha felt proud of herself, she hadn't stuttered once. Now that she believed she could talk to the man she was able to think of other things, like how he was just as handsome in person as he was on television! The other girls, heck even the guys in DECA would be so jealous when they heard about this! The club's faculty advisers would be jealous!
"Then I feel I must insist, it would not be proper to leave a young lady such as yourself un-escorted in the city."
Samantha felt a flush rise to her cheeks. He was such a gentleman. And the chance to ride with him? Amazing! "Thank you."
Oroku Saki led Sam to his car. Quan hurried over and opened the door for them. Mr. Saki gestured for Sam to go first and she slid in, careful to keep the skirt of her school uniform modest. She put her backpack on the floor in front of her and looked around. The inside of the car was just like the limos in the movies with two plush seats facing each other. In the seat facing the back of the car sat a thin, pale man with sweaty face. Beside him sat a beautiful Japanese woman, Oroku Karai herself! She smiled and nodded to Samantha as Mr. Saki sat in the seat next to Sam. The door was closed behind him as Mr. Saki made the introductions. "May I introduce Miss Samantha Gelding. Miss Gelding, this is my associate Mr. Peters and this is my lovely daughter, Karai."
"I'm very pleased to meet you." Sam said. The younger Oroku nodded, she was pretty as her father was handsome. The other man just swallowed and slipped a finger behind his tie. In a limo with Oroku Saki and Oroku Karai! Everything was like a fantasy, except for that Mr. Peter's character; he looked like he was going to be ill. Mentally, Sam shrugged the thought off. Even associates of Mr. Saki's might get carsick.
After Sam told Quan where her apartment building was, the vehicle began to move. Mr. Saki addressed Sam, "Tell me; what school do you attend?" His tone was kind and interested.
Sam smoothed her skirt over her knees. "St. Mary's High School, sir."
He nodded as though this were very acceptable to him. "A good school. Do you participate in any activities there?" Sam told him about her various school activities.
For some reason Mr. Peters swallowed nervously. His eyes moved from Mr. Saki, to Miss Karai, and back. More than once his eyes rested on Samantha's backpack. The top was sloppily unzipped.
They dropped the girl off shortly. She thanked Oroku Saki for his generosity, then hooked her backpack over her shoulders and hurried up the steps to the front door of her apartment building. One last glance over her shoulder at the limo and she disappeared within. As the car pulled away from the curb, Mr. Saki turned to his 'associate'. "Charming young girl, don't you think so?" He asked.
Mr. Peters wiped a handkerchief across his forehead, "Yes, quite charming." He agreed stiffly.
"And a student at St. Mary's. Correct me if I'm wrong, Mr. Peters, but doesn't your own lovely young daughter attend that school?" Mr. Saki's tone was conversational, but the threat obvious. "But, back to business. I will ask you one more time. Where is the disk you procured from my business?"
Mr. Peters swallowed hard. "I must have lost it." He gasped.
Saki didn't bat an eye. "That is most unfortunate, Mr. Peters. Don't you agree Karai?"
"Yes, most unfortunate indeed." Karai agreed. There was a look in her eyes that when Peters glanced at her he almost believed that she spoke honestly about her regret. But the impression was lost as her gaze iced over once again.
The car pulled up to another curb. "You have twenty hours Peters." Mr. Saki said, his voice still calm, "If I do not get that disk, then I may offer your lovely daughter a ride as well." He handed Mr. Peters a card before the door opened.
Peters crawled out of the car as fast as he could, then watched in misery as the squat driver returned to his place behind the wheel of the car and drove off. Once the car was out of sight Peters looked at the card. It was a photograph. In the picture, several girls in matching St. Mary's High uniforms crossed the courtyard of their school, smiling and laughing, oblivious to the camera trained on them. The center focus of the image was one girl with blond hair and blue eyes that matched Mr. Peters'.
A long sigh shook the man's frame. His family had twenty hours to get as far away from New York as possible. Time enough.
He just prayed that the girl, Samantha Gelding, would forgive him.
"Who was that?"
"Nobody, go do your homework."
"Didn't Mom say you're not supposed to accept rides from strangers?"
"Didn't I just tell you to go do your homework?"
"Don't have any."
Sam looked down at her little brother, Travis. She could smell a lie from this kid from miles away. "Doesn't Sister Anne Margret teach your class?"
Travis thought about the question, looking for a trap. "Uh, yeah." He still didn't see one but from his sister's expression he knew had just fallen into the trap.
"Sister Anne Margret always assigns extra homework on three day weekends. She's more devout about that than she is Saturday Mass. Go do your homework." Travis whined and started up the stairs towards their apartment. Samantha hitched up her backpack and started up after him. Behind her little brother's back she allowed a smile to show. The Oroku Saki had given her a ride home from school! So cool!
There was a note on the front door of their apartment. Travis grabbed it first but Samantha pulled it out of his grasp, loving the fact that he hadn't hit his growth spurts yet. "Hey!"
"Hay is for horses." Sam replied.
In the note, their mother explained that she would be out the rest of the night and their father was working late as well. Sam smirked, the last time that had happened they had both brought home leftovers from their favorite restaurant and her mother had brought home a rose to be put in water. It was kind of sweet that her parents still snuck out on dates and all, Sam just wished they'd find somebody else to watch their darling little boy from time to time.
The rest of the note included instructions for dinner and a promise that both parents would be home for the rest of the three-day weekend. Well, babysitting for just one evening wasn't so bad if everyone would be home for the rest of the weekend.
"What'sitsay? What'sitsay?" Travis was jumping up and down, trying to grab the paper. Sam was holding it over her head as she read it.
"It says that Mom and Dad are going to be out all night."
"Alright!" Travis continued jumping up and down but no longer for the note. Mom and Dad gone meant pizza.
"It also says you have to go to bed early." Sam grinned as her brother started jumping for the paper again.
"Nuh-uh, no it doesn't! Give it!" She continued to hold the paper over her head as she unlocked the door and let the two of them inside the apartment.
"You're not gonna get it!" Sam teased once they were inside. She stuck her tongue out at him and wrinkled her nose. It was childish, but that was why she had waited until she was inside to do it. "You're not gonna get it!"
Travis stopped jumping up and down. He stuck his tongue out right back at her, and then had a brilliant idea. His face turned from that of an angel to an evil smirk. He reached up, but didn't jump, "Tickle-tickle." Sam shrieked, pulling her arm down and trying to back away from the nine-year old.
"No fair!" She objected. She couldn't fight that attack any more than she could the laughter. She hated tickling so much he didn't even have to touch her, and they both knew it.
"Tickle-tickle." Travis smiled and wiggled his fingers at her menacingly. In the end Travis won the note and was pleased to see that he got to pick that night's pizza toppings.
Samantha was still chuckling to herself as she walked into her room and dropped her book bag onto her bed. She reached into the bag and started pulling out books, papers, notebooks, and binders. Sam always emptied out her bag at the end of the day, this way she never forgot about any homework or library books. Not that she needed to worry this weekend, but good habits should be maintained.
Finally, Sam pulled out her school planner. She tore out the page for that week and crunched it up in one hand before dropping it in her waste basket; her official recognition that the school week was over. Let the weekend begin! "Okay Travis! What do you want on your pizza?" Sam called. She turned toward the door, tossing her planner carelessly on the desk behind her as she left the room. The planner landed on the desk and slid an inch or so.
Sam never saw the disk that slipped out from between the pages.