A big thank you once again to Amonraphoenix for beta reading this chapter and for lettting me use her for a sounding board for ideas and sounding back with very good ideas of her own. Also thank you for the medical knowledge info, very much appreciated!
Also a big thank you to my reviewers chibiwolf33, Kaaayyytteee, Icewcreampopstar, moopnie016 and Rocky181=)
A/N this chapter ended up being a little long...
Chapter 10
Raphael's head shot up as he heard the opening of a door. He shook his head as he tried to remember where he was and what had happened. Light streamed in brightly through large open windows. Memory flooded through him as he rolled to his feet. He was no longer wearing the oxygen mask, so Raphael had to assume that sometime during the night Donatello or Michelangelo had removed it.
Michelangelo, who looked to have been sleeping on a loveseat across from him, his brother leaping to his feet as well.
Raphael and his brother dove behind the couch. "Where's Leo and Donny?" Raphael whispered to Michelangelo.
"Upstairs. We put Leo in the first bedroom on the right." Michelangelo answered quietly as they peeked sround the sofa to see Barry close the door behind him and lean against it with his eyes closed. He looked exhausted and pulled.
Raphael stood up slowly, Michelangelo shadowing his movement.
Barry didn't notice them at first. He slowly walked into the living room, every line of his body screaming defeat. Raphael glanced up as he saw Donatello slowly and quietly make his way down the sweeping staircase.
"So?" Raphael growled in irritation. He knew that whatever news Barry had was not good, so he clung to his anger, because it was the only way he could still manage to function.
Barry turned and quickly drew a gun, pointing it levelly at Raphael. Barry blinked in surprise as he looked as if he was surprised that they were still there, or hadn't believed they were real.
"Jumpy much?" Raphael growled.
Barry put up his gun and slid it back into the inside of his jacket. "There was part of me that was wonderin' if this wasn't all a dream." He said as his voice slipped into a southern drawl.
"How is Katherine?" Michelangelo asked softly as his brother put a comforting hand on his shoulder.
Barry walked past them and went to a sideboard, throwing a newspaper down on the dark polished wood. He was silent as he poured himself a glass of brown liquor from a decanter. Rye? Whisky? Scotch? Raphael wasn't sure.
Barry took a swig and placed the glass down on the polished wooden surface beside him. "I wasn't able to see her after I dropped her off at the hospital. She was rushed into surgery and then to the ICU. Only family is allowed in, but I was able to talk to one of the doctors." Barry paused before he continued. "Katherine is in a severe coma. As far as they can tell there is no damage to the brain stem and I didn't understand the rest of the medical jargen." He began, his southern drawl gradually vanishing. "Basically she is not doing very well, but she is stable. Her right lung had collapsed, but the tear was minor. She has mild burns and smoke inhalation, but they are more concerned about the head injury and any brain damage that may accompany it."
"If Kitten's alive, she'll be fine. She's the strongest person I've ever met." Raphael said with determination. She would be fine. He told himself. He had to believe that she would be fine and would recover, because if she didn't, he didn't think he would ever be able to forgive himself.
Barry was silent for a few moments before he nodded. "Katherine is safe. No one knows who she really is, and I have a team of specialists monitoring her." Barry said to them. "If Katherine really is in danger, any connection to me might be seen as suspicious, since I was her 'date' last night. So I have Deon checking in on her periodically. He's a good guy, good doctor. Just came back with me from Bosnia so he was just hanging around waiting for something interesting to happen. I didn't tell him about you, because he wouldn't have believed me if I had, and he doesn't know who Katherine is, and even if he figures it out, he won't tell. He knows better." Barry rubbed his eyes in exhaustion. "And I know it's been a long night, but I would like an explanation as to what is going on." He said, a hint of irritation lacing his voice.
Raphael couldn't help the frustrated growl that rumbled low in his throat. He felt completely helpless. His brother was unconscious upstairs, and Katherine was who knew where getting medical treatment, which he appreciated and was thankful for, but he couldn't even see if she was okay.
He couldn't even hold her hand and tell her to be strong and fight to wake up. He couldn't tell her how much he loved her and needed her, and that he was sorry for every stupid idiotic thing that either came out of his mouth or did. He wanted to tell her he would share her with his brother for the rest of their lives if she never walked away from him ever again, because he needed her. He needed her like he needed to breathe. She was the only thing that made his life seem like it was worth living the way they had to, because she loved him. Katherine was the one who had made him truly realize that it didn't matter that the humans didn't know he and his brothers existed and protected the City of New York and the world more times than he could count, because Katherine knew. And she was more important than a billion humans knowing.
Raphael had never believed a woman would ever be able to look at him with anything but repulsion, but Katherine looked at him with eyes that understood him down to the very deepest, blackest depths of his soul, and loved him anyway. He knew she was too good for him. He knew it with every fibre of his being, but he wanted to be good enough for her. She made him a better version of himself. Without her he was just a boat drifting on a sea of anger, bitterness and hate.
He clutched his hands together in frustration and winced in pain as his burns screamed in blazing fury."My brother's life is hanging by a thread and my girlfriend, who I can't even visit, is in a coma." He stated angrily. "You think I feel like playin' 20 questions right now?" He growled.
"Raph." Donatello said sharply.
Raphael let out an angry breath, crossing his arms over his chest. "Donny, go get some rest." He said to his brother. "I'll look after Leo for a bit. Mikey can play 20 questions." He said as he turned his attention back to Barry. "We made ourselves at home. Leo's in one of the bedrooms upstairs. We'll be leavin' soon, so don't worry." He said as he left the living room and slowly made his way upstairs to where Donatello was still standing on the stairs. Donatello walked ahead of him as his younger brother led him to Leonardo.
Each step he took towards Leonardo's room felt like he was dragging lead weights instead of his feet. He didn't want to see Leonardo lying in bed, unconscious and helpless.
He stopped at the door and forced himself to look inside. His eyes took in the rich gold and red decor, and the king sized, dark wood bed that dominated the room. But his entire focus was upon the broken figure that lay pale against the white sheets in front of him.
"Why isn't he awake yet Donny?" He asked in the barest choked whisper.
Donatello was silent a moment before speaking. "He's doing better Raph." Donatello replied gently.
"How bad is Leo really Donny?" Raphael asked in a pained voice.
Donatello sighed and rubbed his eyes. He entered the room and flopped down in a chair that had been dragged beside the bed. "He's stable for now. All we can do now is wait." He answered.
"I ain't good at waitin' Donny." Raphael growled.
Donatello nodded. "I know Raph. Truthfully though, Leo's lucky to be alive. His body has suffered extensive damage. Broken arm, ribs, burns and his artery being nicked." Donatello shook his head. "If there are no complications it is possible that he could be unconscious for a week, possibly two. If you want to get technical, Leo's in a coma right now. His body will heal, but he won't be able to move for a month, and after that he will need extensive physiotherapy to strengthen his muscles. Leo is alive, but his recovery is going to be long and painful." Donatello said softly as he stood.
Raphael looked at Leonardo's slack, pale face. His mouth was partially opened with the tube shoved down his throat, the machine breathing for him. The steady beep of the heat monitor was comforting and terrifying at the same time. At least the damn thing would beep if there was anything wrong, which was oddly comforting. The fact that his brother needed the machine was terrifying.
Only once before had his brother been close to as bad as he was at this moment, and that was when he had been badly beaten by the foot clan. They had watched over their brother and talked to him, trying to bring him back, and it had worked. This time, Leonardo was so, so much worse. His brother had died. For a brief moment in time his brother had been dead, and that terrified him on levels he hadn't even known existed.
Leonardo was the strong one, the perfect one, the invincible one. Leonardo was the brother who never made a mistake, who could get out of any situation. He was their leader, their older brother, and as much as he hated to admit it, especially to himself, he looked up to Leonardo. He had always wanted to be Leonardo, but he knew he could never measure up to Leonardo or his exacting standards.
But he knew deep down that his brother wasn't perfect, nobody is. Leonardo made mistakes and Leonardo never tried to hold them to the exacting standards that he held himself to. Raphael had always believed Leonardo thought he was better than the rest of them. But Raphael now knew differently. Leonardo didn't believe he was better, he just wanted to make himself better, because Leonardo needed to be the best. Not because he wanted to be better than everyone, but because he felt too much responsibility for all of them. If Leonardo failed it wasn't because he wasn't good enough, it was because something else had happened.
And in this case, Leonardo had failed because his arm had given out on him. His own body had failed him, and Raphael knew this knowledge would crush him.
Raphael sat down in the seat by the bed as Donatello curled up into a fancy high backed couch of some sort that was set up by the window. Donatello glanced at Leonardo's IV and sat back up. "He needs more blood. I'll get Mikey to go to the lair and pick some up." Donatello mumbled as he left the room for a moment.
Raphael glanced outside and thought that it was incredibly wrong for it to be so damn bright and sunny when he felt so heartwrenchingly miserable, and he wanted the sky and weather outside to reflect this feeling.
Donatello flopped back down on the couch and curled up, his head resting on his arm as he fought to stay awake. "Just go to sleep genius, I'll wake you up if anything changes." Raphael growled.
"M'kay Raph." Donatello mumbled as his body began to relax and his brother's eyes finally drifted closed. He wastched his little brother for a few moments as his breathing became deeper and more even. The worry lines that had been etched into his brother's face relaxed as he slept.
Raphael turned his attention from the window and looked at his brother's lifeless form. Leonardo barely clinging to life made him realize that his brother wasn't invincible. He could be hurt...even be killed. He hated seeing his brother vulnerable. There was never anything vulnerable about his sharp tongued, stubborn, condescending, stuffy, big brother.
He reached out and gently took his brother's good left hand in his. He looked at the IV in the back of his hand and in the crook of his elbow.
"I don't know if you can hear me, but you're scaring the hell out of me big bro." Raphael said shakily. "I almost lost you, and Kitten..." His said in a choked voice as he reached out and touched the white bandage that lay starkly across his brother's cheek. He pulled his hand back as he swallowed the in his throat before he was bale to continue. "Kitten's not doin' so good." He paused as he lay his head down beside his brother's cold, limp hand. He closed his eyes for a moment before he continued, opening his eyes and looking up at his brother's battered and bruised face. "You ever tell anyone what I am about to say, and I'll deny it." He said roughly as he hastily wiped away a tear that had somehow managed to escape. "I'm scared Leo.I am so scared. We almost lost you and Kiten back there." He said with a hitch in his voice. "Leo, I ain't a leader. How am I supposed to keep everyone safe?" He asked his brother. "I have no idea what's going on or who managed to grab you an' Kittten..." Raphael shook his head. "I need you to get better so you can make everything right." He brushed away more tears in frustration as he picked his head up off the bed.
He clasped his brother's hand more tightly in his own. "You're gonna be fine, you hear me Leo?" He told his brother vehemently. "And so is Kitten. I need to believe that you two are gonna pull through, cause the thought that one or both of you isn't gonna make it ..." Raphael couldn't continue this dark thought as he bit back a sob that escaped his lips. "You can't...die." He told his brother. "Even when your heart stopped, you fought to come back and Kitten fought too. She fought to live because we need her, just like we need you. So all you have to do right now, is focus on getting better, so we can fight over Kitten again. Okay?" He said to his silent brother, the beep of the heart monitor and the exhalation noise of the ventilator were his only answer. He buried his face in the bedsheet and gave into his tears, because sometimes, it was so hard to hang onto hope.
Michelangelo watched Raphael's retreating back as he slowly walked up the stairs to the room where they had put Leonardo.
Michelangelo turned his attention back to their reluctant host. "Sorry about that." He apologized for his brother. "Raph's just worried, and when Raph gets worried, or scared or tired or...well almost any emotion, Raph reacts with anger. He doesn't mean it though." He said to Barry with a shrug.
Barry nodded and walked a few steps away from the sideboard.
"So what do you want to know?" Michelangelo asked as he sat down on the couch Raphael had vacated.
Barry grabbed the newspaper and sat down across from him. He placed the newspaper beside him and ran a hand through his longish, dark blonde hair, messing it up.
"I don't know, how about we start with what you are and how you know Katherine, and work our way up to why someone blew up a building with Katherine inside."
"You'd better get comfy, this could take a while." Michelangelo told him.
"I'm comfy." He said rubbing his bloodshot blue eyes with his thumb and index finger.
"Hey Mikey." Donatello called down from the upper floor. "Leo needs more blood. Can you run back to the lair and grab some?" Donatello asked.
Michelangelo groaned. He wasn't fit to drive. He looked at Barry. Barry wasn't fit to drive either. "Sure Donny." He answered wearily.
"But don't take the truck. Just in case. We don't want to attract any attention." Donatello put in.
Michelangelo stood. "I don't suppose you have another vehicle?" Michelangelo asked Barry. Barry looked at him in confusion. "You want to know what's going on, you come with me. I'm too tired to drive by myself. I need someone to keep me awake."
Barry stood. "Deon met me at the hospital and drove me back to my car. The fire department was still trying to put the fire out." Barry said as he shoved the paper into Michelangelo's chest. "Two more explosions ripped through the building after it fell." He said as he made his way to the door that led to the front door. Michelangelo grabbed his coat slipping his hat and glasses on as he followed at Barry's heels.
"The little girl made it home safe though." Barry said as he walked out the front door into the sunshine. His black Bugatti Sang Noir sat in the frosted driveway.
Michelangelo felt himself drool. He wasn't a 'car' person. That was more Raphael's thing, but he was male and could appreciate a sweet ride. That, and the thought of telling Raph that he rode in a Bugatti filled him up to the brim with malicious glee.
He whistled his appreciation.
Barry tossed him the keys. "I'll assume you can drive. Just don't get pulled over?" Barry said as he walked around to the passenger side.
"You want me to drive?" Michelangelo asked, looking at the keys in shock.
"I don't want to roll my car. I figure that you can drive better than I can since you probably piloted some weird spaceship to get here."
"Not an alien." Michelangelo said as he opened the door exposing the bright orange interior. He grinned. He liked this car even better. He slid into the driver's seat as Barry opened the passenger side door and stumbled ungracefully inside.
"Dude, you'd better stay awake...Wait, what girl?" Michelangelo asked in confusion as he started up the car.
He listened to the engine purr for a moment before he concentrated on Barry's words.
"The little girl who was in the building with the guy I shot at." Barry answered wearily.
"Wait, what? You mean you shot the dude who was holding Kitten and Leo?" Michelangelo asked in shock as he put the car in gear.
"I shot at him. I think I hit his hand. He let the girl go and he ran. The little girl told me that 'the bad man made the pretty lady shoot the turtle man.' That sentence makes so much more sense now." Barry mumbled almost to himself.
Michelangelo's eyes widened in shock as he drove slowly out of the wrought iron gate that surrounded Barry's property.
Michelangelo had been too busy being worried about Leonardo's major injuries to pay attention to the minor ones that had covered his brother's body. But he remembered the gash across Leonardo's neck. It hadn't been a result of the explosion. It had been given to Leonardo before the explosion, by Katherine. His mind tried to connect the pieces of why there was a little girl and why Katherine had shot and nearly killed Leonardo the same way she had killed Hun. He also wondered who had taken Leonardo and Katherine in the first place and why? He sighed to himself. There were too many questions and not enough answers. "You didn't happen to get a look at this guy?" Michelangelo asked.
Barry shook his head. "It was dark." He answered in frustration. "Do you know who he was and why he had Katherine and your..." Barry paused.
"Brother." Michelangelo said finishing his sentence for him. "I probably know, but I'm too tired to think right now." Michelangelo said as he concentrated on actually staying within the speed limit while driving the powerful car. They did not need to be pulled over for speeding. "We're mutant turtles." Michelangelo said into the silence of the car. "Started life as baby turtles, mutated by an alien mutagen."
"I knew there had to be aliens involved somehow." Barry said, his voice slipping into a Southern drawl.
Michelangelo laughed. "Let me guess, it's because we're green." Michelangelo asked.
"Somethin' like that." Barry answered, no longer concentrating on keeping the Southern out of his voice anymore. "So you know Katherine how...?" Barry asked. "And please tell me she isn't an alien."
Michelangelo laughed. "She's not an alien. Though you wouldn't know the Utroms weren't human. They have these suits because they kinda look like slugs..." Michelangelo looked at Barry who was looking at him with eyes the size of saucers. "Never mind. Anyway, Kitten saved Raph's life. He did a dumpster dive from the top of a 4 story building after he had the crap beat out of him by a bunch of low life Purple Dragon scum." Michelangelo said darkly, bitterness replacing his good humour.
Barry frowned. "I recognize that gang name. Wasn't their leader found killed in a dumpster a couple months back?"
"Yeah." Michelangelo said softly.
"So you...?" Barry let the sentence hang.
"Wish I did. I only performed the body dump." Michelangelo said with a shrug.
A few minutes ago Michelangelo had felt ready to drop, now, dark thoughts and memories crowded into his head filling him with too many emotions to feel tired anymore. "Long story short," He began as he pushed the dark thoughts and emotions away, his natural good humour reasserting itself. "Kitten dragged Raph back to her place, nursed him back to health. He couldn't remember who he was, but we managed to find him after a month of believing he was dead. Anyway, you can imagine that Raph fell for Kitten, hard." Michelangelo paused as he reflected upon this fact.
Barry made a snorting sound.
Michelangelo smiled. "Kitten's pretty hard to resist. You only spent a few hours with her and you are already more than just interested." He said as he slid his eyes from the road to look at Barry, a half smile on his face.
Barry coughed and almost blushed.
Michelangelo chuckled.
"So do they have a King Kong, Fay Rae type relationship?" Barry asked him.
Michelangelo laughed at the image in his head of an overlarge Raphael climbing a New York skyscraper with Katherine clutched in his fist as he angrily warded off fighter planes. "Raph would totally do that." He said with a grin, but lost it when he thought about his brother's relationship with Katherine.
"They aren't really...?" Barry asked.
This annoyed Michelangelo. "You don't think that Kitten could fall for a mutant turtle?" He asked softly.
Barry opened his mouth changed his mind and closed it, seeming to think about the question. "Katherine is unlike any woman I've ever met. I like her because she is different."
"That's because Kitten strips away all of the lies, even the ones you tell yourself. It's her superpower." Michelangelo said with a smile that vanished as quickly as it appeared as he remembered that Katherine was laying in a hospital bed somewhere in a coma.
"Yes." Barry said softly.
Michelangelo looked at Barry in confusion.
"Yes I believe that she could fall in love with a mutant turtle...maybe just not that mutant turtle." Barry said with a shrug.
Michelangelo smiled. "Don't let Raph's crusty exterior fool you, he's got a very tiny gooey center. You really have to search for it, but it's there." Michelangelo said with a grin but turned serious. "They broke up over 2 weeks ago." Michelangelo put it. "Or I suppose they took a break. I don't know. It's complicated. Of course then Raph and Leo lied to her and she flat out hasn't talked to any of us for two weeks."
"So your brother is one of those guys that can't take 'no' for an answer?" Barry asked.
"It's not that. I told you, it's complicated." Michelangelo defended lamely.
"I'm not Facebook." Barry pointed out. "I don't recognize 'It's complicated' as a real relationship status.
Michelangelo sighed dramatically under his breath. "They had a fight so Kitten broke up with Raph. He really shouldn't have pushed her, but Raph is too stubborn and he can be an idiot sometimes."
Barry frowned. "I didn't think Katherine was the type to just, break up with someone because she didn't get her way. Did she break up with him often?" Barry with curiosity.
"Uh...no." Michelangelo said as he thought about it. Not that he had blamed Katherine for breaking up with Raphael and Leonardo after what Raphael had said about her having had enough time to recover after Hun tortured her, but breaking up with them was a little out of character for her. Even if she did want to see if she could sleep and be on her own, she didn't have to break up with them, she could have just asked them to leave and give her a little space. He shook his head. But then Leo and Raph had lied about the reason they needed to go back to the lair, and Katherine had to go and save them. She had been so pissed.
"Do you know what they fought about?" Barry asked.
"Why? You want to make sure you don't make the same stupid mistake?" Michelangelo asked slyly raising an eyeridge in question.
Barry began to stammer out a denial.
"Do you have a brother?" Michelangelo asked him.
Barry halted his thought process. "No." He said in confusion.
"Then you're good." Michelangelo said as he took the winter hat from his head and tossed it to Barry. "Put it on. This is where you don't get to learn the location to the secret Bat Cave, or in this case, Turtle Lair."
Barry looked at him. "Seriously?" He asked.
"Yup." Michelangelo said with a grin.
Barry looked at the wool hat and placed to over his head and down over his eyes. "This is ridiculous." Barry said, his voice straying back along his more familiar west coast accent.
"P.S. you are talking to a giant mutant turtle, ridiculous went out the window a long time ago." Michelangelo pointed out.
"Touché" Barry replied, west coast accent firmly in place.
"Why do you change your accent?" Michelangelo asked suddenly as he negotiated the tunnel that led into the lair.
"Because people think that if you are a man and talk with a twang, you are an idiot hillbilly." Barry said a little bitterly.
Michelangelo shrugged and realized that Barry couldn't see the movement. "Who cares what people think?" Michelangelo asked, but didn't give Barry the chance to reply as he announced that they were here.
Barry opened his door and slid from the car as he took in the garage. "You have a helicopter." He said in an incredulous voice.
"Yeah, yeah, helicopter, and I think there is a submarine around here somewhere too." Michelangelo said as he waved his hand. "You want a tour?" He asked over his shoulder.
"It smells a little…" Barry said as he frowned and looked around.
"Yes well, it isn't like we can rent a posh Manhattan penthouse you know." Michelangelo pointed out. "Your house may be fancy, but our place is awesome." Michelangelo said with a smile as he walked from the garage into the main room with its circular pool of water and Donatello's giant computer.
Barry looked around the lair with awe. "Bet my PVR can record more shows than your PVR." Michelangelo said with a laugh at Barry's stunned expression. "Training area is over there, kitchen, living room, with all my games, bathroom, and bedrooms." Michelangelo said pointing at each in turn. "You play video games?' Michelangelo asked as he headed to his favourite spot on the couch in the living room.
"I don't really have the time." Barry mumbled. "Plus I'm 28 years old."
Michelangelo shrugged. "I'm 26 doesn't mean I can't read comics or play video games. Kitten plays video games with me if I ask."
"She's only 21." Barry replied as he studied a few of Donatello's inventions.
"I wouldn't touch that. With Donny's inventions you never know if it is something that pops better popcorn, or will pop you into another dimension…or pop you into little pieces the size of popcorn."Michelangelo finished thoughtfully.
Barry pulled his hand away from the chunk of metal as if it was going to attack him.
"Donny's a genius, as in an actual genius. Anyway, I need to think for a minute and the best way to do that is to play some War Machine 5." He said as he threw a game controller at Barry.
Michelangelo flopped down on his favourite spot on the couch. "We'll play for twenty minutes then head back." Michelangelo said as he began following the game prompts and choosing his character.
Barry slumped down beside him. "Why do you need to think?" He asked. "And can we play something else that isn't a combat shooter game? I've seen enough of the real thing without wanting to play it for fun." He said softly.
Michelangelo flicked a glance at Barry and back at the screen. "You want to know why Kitten had a building dropped on her?" He asked as he began playing the game, Barry's character holding up Michelangelo's.
"Yes." Barry said.
"Then play the game. I told you, I need to think, and besides, I need to know if we can trust you. You seem like a nice guy, and Kitten seemed to like you..."
"Really?" Barry asked.
"So I have to know if you've got our backs. Besides knowing us is...dangerous." Michelangelo finished quietly as Barry's character finally began walking behind his.
"So if knowing you is so dangerous, why is Kit...Katherine..."
Michelangelo paused the game and looked at Barry seriously. Barry's words halted. Michelangelo tapped his finger on the controller as his mind began assembling pieces of the puzzle in his head. Because he was the laid back goofball of the group, his brothers never really gave him enough credit when it came to thinking, and that was fine. He liked surprising them every now and then. But since Leo was out of commission and Donny was too busy looking after Leo, and Raph (not that he was a big thinker) was too busy being angry and filled with too much guilt to be helpful, Michelangelo knew he had to pick up the slack.
"There was a little girl who told you that Kitten shot Leo." Michelangelo muttered thoughtfully. Michelangelo un-paused the game and turned his attention back to the screen.
"To your right." Barry said suddenly. "There are two gunmen hiding behind the bluff and two soldiers with dogs to the left.
Michelangelo was impressed. Video games and real life were completely different.
"Was the little girl with the guy?" Michelangelo asked as he shot at the soldiers on the right.
"She was being held hostage." Barry replied as he took out the soldiers and the dogs on the right.
"Kitten shot Leo and she could have killed him, but why? And who would...?" Michelangelo's eyes widened as he dropped his controller to the floor. "We have to go." He said as he leapt up from the couch.
"Kitten is in a lot of danger. Whoever took her knows she killed Hun and wants revenge."
Barry stood suddenly. "Wait, what?" He asked in confusion as his cell phone rang. He answered it automatically. "Hello?" He asked. "Mrs. Wraith!" He said in surprise.
Michelangelo blinked in shock.
"Yes, I did have a very good time." Barry paused for a moment. "But...No, I would never doubt you, I just don't trust my mother when it comes to these sort of things." Barry paused again as he listened to Katherine's mom. "Mrs. Wraith I...No I haven't talked to her this morning..." Barry said awkwardly because Katherine was in a coma and not talking. "Mrs. Wraith, I have some bad news." Barry said softly. "No, no I would love to see her again, but..."
"Barry give me the phone." Michelangelo said to him.
Barry glanced at him and turned slightly. "Mrs. Wraith Katherine is..." Barry never got to finish his sentence as Michelangelo snatched the phone away from Barry's grasp.
"Hey!" Barry protested.
Michelangelo glared at him. "Sheila." Michelangelo said into the phone.
"Who is this?" Katherine's mom said in confusion. "Wait, I recognize this voice."
"Yeah it's me Mikey." He said into the phone.
"Mikey...Mikey...the orange one?" Her mother questioned. "And what are you doing with Barry and his phone?"
"Yes the orange one." Michelangelo said with suppressed irritation. One thing he had learned about Katherine's mom while she had overstayed her welcome at thanksgiving, was that the woman only acted stupid and she played her part well. However Katherine's mom was, in reality, incredibly astute, observant and intelligent. After meeting Sheila Michelangelo knew where Katherine got it from, but unlike Katherine's mom, Katherine had taken it up a notch to scary astute, incredibly observant and very intelligent.
"Sheila, just pay attention, this is really important." He said into the phone.
"I'm listening." Her mother said, her voice changing from fluffy to steel in a second.
Michelangelo put the phone on speaker. "Kitten's in trouble, deep, deep trouble. I'm not going to lie, Kitten was hurt pretty bad last night. She's in the hospital being well taken care of, but here is the important part," Michelangelo said continuing before Sheila decided to talk. "No one can know that she's in the hospital. That means that you can't go visit her, and neither can Barry. These people want her dead." He said bluntly.
The phone was silent for a few moments. "Leo and Raph said they would protect my daughter. They also said that she was not longer in any danger." Came the biting reply to his blunt statement.
"She wasn't supposed to be. Danger was averted, but whoever 'they' are, have specifically targeted Kitten. And we all tried to keep her safe, but they managed to get her right after the auction. We found her though and Barry took her to the hospital, but no one at the hospital knows who she is and it is better that way. It's better if whoever wants her dead thinks that they succeeded. So I need you to be the strong, incredibly intelligent woman I know you to be, and pretend that you haven't heard from Kitten, but don't become concerned."
"I have already lost one child Michelangelo, I will not lose another." She said in a low, threatening tone.
"I know." Michelangelo said softly.
"Where are Leonardo and Raphael?" Katherine's mother asked. "I would assume that even though she broke up with both of them that they are still hanging around somewhere if you are with Barry.
"Raph's with Leo, Leo..." His voice hitched slightly. "Leo's in bad shape. He almost died, still could die." He said in a choked voice. "These people mean buisness, and are not above hurting or killing anyone who get's in their way."
Katherine's mother was silent. "What does Barry think?" She asked.
Barry looked at Michelangelo, taking the phone from his grasp, but leaving it on speaker. "It's not a bad idea." Barry said into the phone. "It would give us time to figure out who is trying to kill her. But we won't announce to the public that she is dead of course. Katherine leads a rather secluded life so I do not think it would be unusual for her to not be around or for no one to be in contact with her." Barry said.
"I could just find her and take her home." Katherine's mother threatened.
"You could." Michelangelo agreed. "But do you think Kitten would ever stay away?" He asked.
The phone was silent for a moment. "I will expect updates." Sheila's steely voice ordered and then in a voice that was a soft purr she put in. "And Barry dear, tell your mother that she should call me. We need to get together and have tea. Now I have to get back to my shoot, bye!" She said airily.
Barry stared at his phone for a few moments.
"Kitten's mom is a handful, trust me, Thanksgiving was...interesting." Michelangelo said clapping him on the back. "Now let's go." He said as he ran to Donatello's lab to grab blood from the fridge, quickly throwing it in a cooler for transportation. He gave the cooler to Barry as he made his way back to the garage, opening the door of the car and sliding in.
"Are you going to tell me what is going on?" Barry asked as he placed the cooler on his lap.
Michelangelo started up the car and peeled out. "Hat." Michelangelo said to him.
"Really?" Barry asked as he put the hat back on his head and over his eyes.
Michelangelo began to talk. "Kitten shot Leo, and there is no way Kitten would shoot Leo."
"Maybe they threatened her." Barry pointed out. "Careful!" He exclaimed as Michelangelo took a turn too sharply. Barry took off the hat and glared at Michelangelo.
"Sorry." Michelangelo apologized. "And no, Kitten wouldn't shoot Leo, even to save her own life." Michelangelo said softly.
"People do things because people threaten them." Barry said softly.
Michelangelo shook his head as he rummaged around in his pocket.
"Hands on the wheel, and watch where you're going!" Barry said as Michelangelo swerved past a turning taxi.
He threw Barry his phone. "When Raph remembered who he was he realized that because of who and what we are, and because of our enemies, that he couldn't be with Kitten. He didn't want her to be hurt because of him. So Raph walked away, ran actually. Leo left because he had no choice. But we didn't know that Hun had already found her. He wanted her to tell them where we were. Kitten refused. There is only one video on this thing. Have a look, and maybe you'll know the kind of woman you are dealing with." Michelangelo said, unable to keep the sorrow, bitterness and fear from his voice.
Barry frowning, finally managed to find the video of Katherine being tortured by Hun's men. Michelangelo knew the video off by heart. He had sent it to himself so he could remember what she not only went through to protect them, but also to remind himself what danger a woman could face if he dared to love her.
Barry was pale and shaking by the time he finished with his phone.
"Raph and Leo promised themselves they would never leave her again, unless she wanted them gone. That is why Kitten is in our lives." Michelangelo said softly.
"You said that she killed Hun. Was he the guy that did this to her?" Barry asked quietly.
"No, that guy is out there somewhere, livin his life. Hun was their boss, and the only reason that he ended up dead was because he wouldn't take the hint and leave. Instead he tried to kill Leo, so she killed him."
Barry stared blankly at the phone.
"Kitten doesn't do revenge. She would have let all of them go, and she did, all but Hun made it out alive. Later she made all of us promise that we wouldn't get revenge on any of the Purple Dragons. We agreed."
"So the gang wants revenge?" Barry asked.
Michelangelo shook his head. "The Purple Dragons are involved in gang war squabbling right now, if they even still exist. The thing is, whoever did this, tried to get Kitten to kill Leo the same way she killed Hun."
"So they gave her a gun and told her to shoot him?" Barry asked.
"See that's the thing, Kitten didn't use a gun to kill Hun, she used a bow and arrows. The lacerations were only warning shots, trying to get Hun to leave. Her last shot took out Hun's jugular. So whoever orchestrated this, knew what weapon to use, and knew Kitten wouldn't shoot Leo, even if they threatened to killed her. So how do you get someone to kill someone else if they know the person has absolutely no sense of self preservation?"
"Threaten to kill someone else." Barry said as he came to the same conclusion he already had.
"Exactly, kill Leo or I kill this kid. Kitten shoots Leo, but manages not to kill him somehow, and the building goes boom, several times, erasing all evidence of bodies, or of anything happening in there." Michelangelo said with disgust. "And it bothered Raph that they specifically targeted Leo, and not any of us. I guess we now know why." Michelangelo said bitterly.
"Because he was the reason Hun was killed." Barry said with a nod.
Michelangelo shook his head. "No. Because whoever was pulling the strings thought that Leo was the one who Kitten loved, and knew it would hurt her even more to kill the man she loved."
"So they grabbed the wrong brother." Barry put in.
Michelangelo shook his head again. "Not exactly."
Barry frowned. "Katherine broke up with your brother to date...your other brother?" Barry asked in confusion.
"Uh...no." Michelangelo said shaking his head.
"Wait, Katherine's mom said that Katherine..." Barry didn't finish the sentence.
"I told you it was complicated." Michelangelo pointed out.
"She was dating them both? At the same time!" Barry said incredulous.
"Not important."Michelangelo said waving his hand in dismissal. "The important part is that no one knew that Katherine was dating either of them, but a certain person suspected that Leo and Kitten had something, but they couldn't confirm it."
"I'm getting confused." Barry said pushing a hand through his already dishevelled locks.
"Well this is the good news part, because now we know that either this person is a traitor who sold Kitten out, or there is a traitor in her ranks. Because the conversation where that bit of info was suspected, was supposed to be private. But it's possible that someone else was listening in." Michelangelo said darkly.
Thoughts and opinions are always welcomed and encouraged!=)