Built For Speed
"I can't believe I let you talk me into this," Leo said, studying the warehouse that was below them.
"Yeah, ya' must be slipping," Raph said with a grin.
Squatting on the very edge of the building they had chosen because of its advantageous view of the warehouse, Raph's grin grew wolfish when he saw a flash of light shine through a grimy set of upper windows.
"They're inside," Leo said, noticing the light as well.
"That means the cars are in there too," Raph said. "The light's coming from an arc welder."
"Pretty careless of them to be so visible," Leo said.
"Nah, they're just lazy," Raph said. "They probably figured the police wouldn't see those flashes through the top set of windows 'cause they're so high up. Ya' notice ya' can't see anything through the bottom ones? They painted those black."
"Speaking of the police, you said once we got here you'd explain why it is we don't just make a phone call and let them handle this," Leo said.
"Ya' mean other than the fact that wouldn't be any fun?" Raph asked flippantly.
Leo's glare sobered Raph quickly and he pointed at the warehouse. "What you're looking at down there is a mobile chop shop; everything they use they transport in and carry away with them after they clean out an area. They never stay any place for very long and always choose buildings that are vacant; meaning no landlord, no neighbors, and no utilities. They tap into the nearest pole and steal the electricity they need and by the time the electric company notices the spike in usage, these guys have already cleared out."
"I take it that their mobility makes it difficult for the police to locate them," Leo said. "Tell me how they get the cars."
"This particular operation only buys from a trusted seller and they always go out after the cars. There's just a handful of men down there; the guy who's running the show, some muscle, and the mechanics. The whole thing stays insulted; nobody comes near the shop itself except those men," Raph explained.
"Sting operation, GPS, tracking device attached to a decoy car," Leo said, running through a mental list of police tactics. "Why haven't they been tried?"
Raph shrugged. "They probably have. I'm telling ya' Leo, these guys are smart. They don't buy from anyone they don't know, their drivers are the best in the business, and they aren't just street hustlers out for a quick buck. These guys know how ta spot electronic devices and they know how ta disable the best of 'em."
"Quite a set up," Leo murmured. "I'm going to assume that someone who has invested so much energy and money into this type of enterprise isn't going to be very genial."
"If that's another way of saying we might get our asses shot off, then yeah," Raph said, his chuckle an indication that he didn't take that prospect very seriously.
"I'm starting to think you like being shot at," Leo said distractedly. "I still haven't heard why I shouldn't just call in an anonymous tip to the police, or why you're so invested in taking down this particular operation personally."
Raph rested his forearms on his knees and kept his eyes on the warehouse. "Ya' know Casey volunteers as a coach for that youth hockey league, right? Well one of his kids was hanging around down here near the docks one evening, looking for a good fishing spot. He heard a couple of cars pull into the parking lot and got curious 'cause nobody ever comes around here.
"Then he saw the warehouse doors were open and watched as the cars drove inside, figuring out what was going on from the activity. He told Casey about it and said he would've run off and called the cops himself, except that when one of the drivers got out of a stolen car and walked over ta close the warehouse door, the kid realized it was his cousin.
"Out of sheer surprise the kid got careless and his cousin spotted him. The guy said something ta his buddies about going out for a smoke and caught up ta the kid where no one could see them. He told the kid ta keep his mouth shut 'cause if the cops came, he'd tell the other thieves who it was that ratted and they'd go after the kid and his family."
"His cousin must be a real piece of work," Leo said.
"He and that kid sure ain't anything alike, 'cause Casey said the kid is real upset about letting those guys get away with stealing cars. He can't talk ta anyone in his family about it so he asked Casey what he should do. Casey told him he'd handle it without anyone knowing the kid was involved."
"So he handled it by handing it off to you?" Leo asked, looking down at Raph.
"What can I say, he's a bonehead and we're ninjas," Raph said in an offhand manner. "The odds are in our favor. Besides, if Casey shows up in his vigilante garb the word will get out and the kid will know that the mask wearing vigilante is his coach."
Leo frowned. "Eventually the police are going to have to be involved. Unless these men are incarcerated, they're just going to continue to steal cars."
"You're the master planner," Raph said glibly. "Figure out a way ta get them ta incriminate themselves."
Leo's silence told Raph he'd gotten to him. Raph could almost see the wheels turning in Leo's head as his older brother thought about the challenge.
Wearing a thoughtful expression, Leo asked, "What do thieves hate most?"
Puzzled, Raph said, "Ya' mean aside from getting caught? I guess they hate having someone steal from them."
Leo didn't say anything else; he just stood staring at Raph. After a minute, Raph slowly stood up, his gold eyes gleaming with understanding.
"Ya' wanna go boost a couple of cars with me bro'?" Raph asked, his mouth lifting in a cocky smile.
Leo's mischievous grin made Raph's heart pound. "We really haven't practiced that particular skill nearly enough. Try to keep up."
With that dare, Leo was off like a shot, flipping down from the rooftop with an ease that left Raph breathless. As he followed, Raph couldn't help but feel the thrill of hunting with his big brother, who always managed to surprise Raph with his quickness and his stealth.
They crossed the open space between buildings by blending into the shadows, carefully avoiding anyplace touched by moonlight. Neither was sure that the car thieves had surveillance cameras, but it was a pretty safe bet.
Once they were next to the warehouse, both hugged the side of the building and waited. Other than the normal sounds of that type of operation coming from inside, there was nothing to indicate they'd been seen.
Raph glanced at Leo who pointed up towards an open window near the top of the warehouse. When Raph nodded, Leo showed him a palm to keep him from moving, and then aimed a finger at a camera that was mounted on the corner of the roof.
Silently acknowledging his awareness of the camera's placement, Raph waited as Leo crawled expertly up the side of the warehouse, finding finger and toeholds the average human wouldn't even notice in broad daylight. After Leo slithered through the window, Raph followed, hopping the sill without a hint of sound.
Side-by-side, the brothers crouched on the ceiling's metal cross-beams as they surveyed the operation below them. With practiced ease, they picked out the armed guards who were situated in various positions on different sides of the main floor.
To one side of the warehouse entrance was a set of stairs that led up to a small office. A dim light illuminated the interior and they could see two men inside; one who paced back and forth as he talked on his phone, and the other who stood with his back to a wall and his hand not far from a gun tucked in his waistband.
"Boss and bodyguard?" Raph whispered.
"Yep," Leo answered, his focus on the placement of the men below them.
"What do ya' think?" Raph asked, keeping his voice low.
Leo's eyes darted to his and back down. "I think it's pretty dark in here."
Raph chuckled lowly. "I guess it could be darker."
"Dark is good," Leo said with a hint of humor etching his voice. "The handle on that office door is just begging for someone to shove a metal pipe through it."
"Papa Bear is gonna get mad when someone starts stealing his porridge and he can't get out ta do anything about it," Raph remarked and then added with a grin, "Maybe he'll call the cops."
"I doubt it," Leo said. "I count three armed guards down there, but there is no way to know how many of the others are carrying weapons. We could probably knock them all out, but we need them to chase us for this plan to work."
"Then we should take out the guards quietly and leave the rest ta chance," Raph said. "Ya' can manage quiet, can't ya'?"
Leo's sideways look wasn't flattering. "Quiet isn't the problem, it's the chance part I don't care for."
"Ya' can't control everything bro', much as you'd like ta try," Raph told him.
"I'm aware of that fact," Leo replied. "That's what backup plans are meant for. We need to get those doors open before we can drive out of here and it would be nice to know ahead of time which of those cars is still operational."
"Shit Leo, don't ya' know anything about stolen cars?" Raph asked. "The freshly painted ones are ready ta go. Ya' don't paint something you're still pulling apart."
"I've never felt the need to steal a car before, so no, I wouldn't know that," Leo shot back. "Let's go lower."
He sprang down to the next set of metal braces and began lightly running across them after Raph joined him. Together they found a spot where they could better see a group of a half dozen cars all parked in a row.
"Fuck me!" Raph yelped under his breath. "That's a damn '68 GTO in mint condition." Excited, he clutched at Leo's arm, pointing with the other hand. "Ya' see that red one? That's a '69 Chevy SS!"
"Shh!" Leo hissed. "Try to stay focused, Raph. We're not car shopping here."
"The hell we're not," Raph said. "You grab the blue GTO, the SS is mine."
"Fine," Leo said, shaking Raph's hand off his arm. "After we take care of the boss man, the guards, and the door. Give me fifteen seconds to wedge something into the office door handle and then toss your smoke pellets. I'll take out the guard near the door and get it open, you take care of the other two guards. We'll meet at the cars. It should take under ninety seconds, so try not to drag your feet."
"How about ya' try not ta . . . ." Raph didn't get to finish his outburst because Leo was gone.
Counting off fifteen seconds, Raph reached into his belt for a handful of smoke pellets and then his muscles tensed. As soon as the last second hit, Raph threw the pellets down and then followed them to the ground.
When his feet hit the floor he saw another cloud of smoke billowing up from the opposite side of the warehouse and knew Leo was already on the door guard. With a fast lunge, Raph jumped on the first of his two armed men, taking him down with a hard punch to the temple.
Squatting swiftly, Raph pressed his palm to the floor and felt the vibration of someone's approach. Bracing himself, he waited until the other guard was nearly on him before leaping for the man's throat and throttling him into unconsciousness.
Men were shouting all around him now and Raph could hear heavy pounding as the boss and his guard tried to get out of the office. The smoke suddenly started to roll away from him and Raph knew that Leo had pushed open the warehouse double doors.
Spinning quickly, Raph ran towards the row of parked cars, slamming his shoulder into a man who tried to jump into his path. Raph's momentum shoved the man to the floor and a hard left uppercut knocked him out when the man tried to rise.
Grabbing a handful of the man's shirt, Raph dragged him over to the cars and saw that Leo was already there, his own unconscious victim slumped in the passenger seat of the GTO.
Raph pulled the SS's passenger door open and shoved his man inside, looking up in time to see Leo leap onto and slide across the hood of the GTO as he moved over to the driver's seat. Throwing his head back, Raph roared out his laughter before following suit, hearing Leo's engine kick to life in the remaining echo of Raph's mirth.
Sliding behind the wheel, Raph turned the ignition key and gunned the engine, watching men scatter in front of him as he yanked the gear shift into drive. Leo's tires left behind a wall of black smoke as they bit into the concrete and pushed his car out through the open door.
Raph's smile was wide as he gave chase, the heavy car thrumming with power beneath his hands. Ahead of him, Leo skid out onto the street and Raph swiftly changed gears, his foot slamming onto the accelerator in order to catch his brother.
Dark buildings flashed past Raph's eyes as he concentrated on pulling even with Leo. A quick glance in his rear view mirror showed him that several cars were pursuing them and his grin grew even wider.
Finally Raph managed to come up on Leo's side and he turned his head to look at his older brother. Leo was smiling like a mad man as he met Raph's eyes, his own shining brightly in the darkness.
Removing one hand from the wheel, Leo lifted his shell cell to his ear and talked briefly before putting it away. Within minutes Raph heard the sirens that indicated Leo's anonymous call to the police was bringing them in on the action.
Leo jerked his head to the right, giving Raph his only warning before Leo turned onto another street, his car's back end sliding sideways before yielding to Leo's control. Raph skid past the turn and pumped the brakes quickly, spinning the car around so he could follow his brother.
Ahead of them Raph could see a dead end, the street giving way to a wide vacant lot between two buildings. The cars that had been chasing them disappeared one by one, cut off by police cruisers, until only Raph and Leo remained.
Only seconds ahead of the cops, Leo barreled straight forward, his car bouncing over the chipped curb as he drove onto the vacant lot. Raph's car was practically hugging the bumper of the one ahead of him as he shot into the lot as well.
Both cars came to a skidding halt, gravel flying beneath their tires. Almost before the cars had completely stopped, the brothers were out of them.
The sirens that heralded law enforcement's approach grew louder and Raph ducked back inside to drag the unconscious car thief into the driver's seat. As he stood back up, he saw Leo had done the same to the thief in his car.
As Leo turned to look at Raph, the red banded turtle was pleasantly surprised to see an excited grin still painted his brother's face.
"Ya' wanna wait for 'em or what?" Raph asked with a smirk.
"You have a driver's license?" Leo quipped back.
Rather than waiting for an answer, he spun on his heel and darted off, his mask leaving behind a streak of blue in the moonlight.
A flash of heady elation coursed through Raph's veins as he gave chase. His older brother was already scaling a nearby building and Raph put on a burst of speed as he tried to catch up to him.
Bunching his powerful leg muscles, Raph leaped upwards to within a few feet of Leo, who shot up and over the roof's edge just as Raph landed. By the time Raph cleared the edge himself, he saw that Leo was already jumping through space to reach the next building.
Head down, Raph sprinted after him, running all out in an attempt to catch his faster brother. Forgotten were the car thieves and the last adventure; that was old news, this challenge was fresh and much more exciting.
When Leo leaped yet another building, Raph saw his brother's tail lift and wriggle, a sure sign that Leo was teasing him. With a feral growl, Raph plunged forward, moving with a renewed purpose.
They raced on foot for several minutes before Leo suddenly jogged towards a rooftop storage shed, the sideways move giving Raph the second he needed to draw within striking distance. With a mighty leap, he sprang on Leo's shell and drove his brother to the ground.
Leo instantly shot out from under him but Raph grabbed his brother's ankle to keep him from getting away. Flipping over, Leo tried to kick Raph loose, but Raph was quick to scramble on top of Leo and pin him down.
Breathing hard, the pair stared at one another and then Raph plunged his mouth onto Leo's, his kiss passionate and brutal. They were both jacked up on adrenaline and Leo managed to pull his arms out of his brother's grip so that he could grab the back of Raph's head and further crush their mouths together.
Panting harshly into each other's open mouth, the two squirmed and rubbed their bodies together, growing more aroused with each passing second. Finally Raph lifted his lips from Leo's and grinned down at his brother.
Leo's eyes were hooded and needy, a look that made Raph painfully hard beneath his shell.
"Adrenaline high," Raph growled, his skin hot against Leo's.
"Stop talking," Leo said, yanking Raph's mouth down against his again.
Rocking his hips desperately, Leo encouraged Raph to move his knees between Leo's legs, which spread widely in invitation. With their groins pressed together, Raph could feel the thick bulge in Leo's plastron.
Extricating himself from Leo's greedy lips once more, Raph shifted slightly, moving his lower body into a more advantageous position.
"Hurry, Raph, I'm about to burst," Leo moaned, his hands scrabbling over Raph's heavily muscled arms.
"Oh shit, Leo," Raph gasped. "I don't wanna go too fast."
"Ra~ph," Leo churred in response. "You should know by now I'm just like those cars, I was built for speed. Right now I need fast and hard."
With a wild laugh, Raph quickly obliged his brother.
