Chapter 20

Raph P.O.V

It almost been eight months since Leo's kids were born. Mikey and Jessica had a healthy boy so they named him Damian. Erica and I are in our final weeks with our pregnancy. Erica has been great through the whole thing. The man problem we had was her morning sickness and how serve it was at times. Lucky we have experienced mothers in the family so they took care of Erica when I was stuck at work and couldn't get away. Everything has been going fine except for one thing.

Leo left home to go on a covert mission and has been gone for seven months. I don't know how Sarah does it but she said it was okay and she would take care of the twins herself. The twins are eight months now and Leo has missed a lot of their life. I hate to say it but I think Sarah might leave Leo. No one has been in contact with him since he left even went without Kaz his partner.

At times I believe he's dead because if something happened to him I rather have him dead than alive.

Donnie got married to Catherine finally and now their excepting their first child together. When I get to work that morning I see the Captain on his phone yelling at someone on the other end. Captain looked up at me and signaled for me to join him.

"Alright thanks and keep me in the loop."

Captain placed his phone down and looked at me.

"Raph I need to tell you something every important and I know you're going to blow up the moment I tell you." Captain said.

"What's wrong Cap? If it's something I need to know then just spill it." I said.

Captain explained why Leo disappeared seven months ago to me and what he's been doing.

"That idiot. Let me guess he's been injured and their sending him home now so I can kick his ass." I spat.

"No Raph. You brother has been missing for a month believed to be captured by the enemy. After a raid on a compound they found him barely alive but alive. He's being transferred as we speak in critical condition. Raph your brother may not make it so you need to be prepared. The Army is going to go talk to Sarah about this and I have a call into the rest." Captain explained.

I don't know what happened what happened after that everything was in a blur after the Captain said Leo may die. All I remember is running out of the room, seeing Erica, then driving to the VA in DC. Sarah was already there in tears with the twins and her mother and sister. Mikey was there since Jessica was in Japan with their son. Donnie and Catherine were coming from work with April, Casey, and Shadow.

Sitting in a chair between my wife and Sarah I patted Sarah's back as she cried into her hands.

We were sitting in the waiting room for six hours waiting to hear the news about Leo. Other families gather in the room telling us that their sons and daughters were with Leo when he was captured and they don't know if their alive or not.

A doctor came out calling for the Johnson family. There was a father, mother, and two young girls standing by the doctor waiting to here about their only son. I don't know what he told them but the mother started wailing and falling to the ground. The father barely holding himself together held the mother in his arms and pulled his two girls into his grasp. We knew then that their son was dead.

Another hour passed and another doctor came out calling now the Murphy family and the Goodman family the son from the Goodman family married the daughter of the Murphy family combining the two. A father stood for the Murphy family and a father, mother, and younger brother for the Goodman family. The doctor relayed the news to the family. The father from the Murphy family sat down on the couch, placed his head into his hands. We watched as his shoulders started shaking. The mother and father from the Goodman family pulled their young son to them pressing their foreheads together and cried. Neither the son nor daughter survived.

Leo was the last and from what we heard he was the worse out of all of them. We were prepared for the worse when the doctor came out two hours later.

"Mrs Hamato and family?" the doctor called.

"Yes? How is my husband?" Sarah asked.

"Ma'am your husband was hurt every badly to point we thought he wasn't going to make it" the doctor said.

"So you mean…." Sarah trailed off in her sentence.

"Yes he suffered broken ribs, shattered wrist in the right hand and broken femur. A rib bowed inward and punctured the lung that's what we have been working on this whole time. He heart stopped three times but he kept coming back and fighting for us. But yes he survived he's going to be intensive care for a while until his condition stabilizes so only one person at a time can see him." The doctor said.

Sarah cried tears of joy looking at her boys she smiled at them and remember how much she loves Leo. I don't know what I was feeling happiness my brother was alive, anger for what he did, I didn't feel anything. I went in first to see Leo since the twins needed Sarah.

Leo looked terrible.

Paler than usual, with cuts and bruises covering his face and arms, his chest was covered in bandages and his left leg was in a cast on top of a pillow. Breathing through a breathing tube down his throat I look at the heart monitor near his bed. I may not know anything about medicine but his heart rate was dangerously low.

He went through all of this for us. Leo was always like that when we were kids and he would always take the blame of something we did so we didn't get punished by our father. Looking at how broken he is today I can already picture him getting out of the hospital and being the father he wants to be then leaving once again to protect us.

"Sorry bro but time for you to stand down and let us save you for once." I whispered.

Leaving the room Sarah ran over to me panting and out of breath.

"Raph, Erica went into labor but there was a problem when her water broke." Sarah said.

"What wrong with her?" I demanded.

"Erica's water broke but blood came out at the same time. She's being brought into emergency surgery to stop the bleeding. The doctor wants to know if he has to he might have to save only one." Sarah explained.

I ran from the room to my wife who was getting prep for surgery.

"Babe I'm here" I yelled grasping her hand.

Erica was panting with sweat rolling down her face.

"How's the baby Raph?" Erica asked.

"Worry about yourself first sweetheart there is only one of you we can always have another baby." I said.

Erica gripped my hand tightly and let out a moan. The doctor and nurses brought Erica into surgery while other nurses got me dressed in a gown so I could be with my wife. I kneeled down beside Erica's head with a sheet separating us from Erica's stomach.

The doctors worked on stopping the bleeding and saving both the baby and Erica. I already told the doctor that if he has to, to save my wife rather than the baby.

I prayed for my wife and my baby along with Leo.

"Please let them live." I whispered.

I looked up when I heard someone start crying loudly.

"Here he is" the doctor yelled out.

"Come on mom lets help fix you now."

The surgery on Erica was a success the baby was born healthy but was going to remain in the ICU with Erica under observation. We named him in honor of my fallen partner Jacob.

Sarah told us Leo condition was the same but he seemed to be stabilizing. The twins were happy to see their father after all this time though they didn't understand what was happening.

A month later Leo woke up barely understanding what was happening he thought he was still over there and had to be sedated. A little over a week Leo was better and started to understand he was in a hospital surrounded by family. Leo was happy to see his wife and kids the most and that's what gave him the push to overcome everything and recover.

Leo may have missed part of his kids life but he was there for everything else. Missing Donnie getting married was one thing but he made sure even though he was walking with a cane again was there for the birth of his daughter taking the name Mikey was going to use if Jessica was pregnant with a girl, Quarry.

It's been almost a year since Leo returned home. The twins are almost two now and Sarah was pregnant again with twins, a daughter and son. Erica and I are working hard with our son Jacob and even brought him to the person we named him after to show him off. Erica gave me the news that she was pregnant again. Mikey and Jessica moved back to New York permanently with their son and are now in the process of starting up their down game design and develop company. Donnie and Catherine are having sleepless nights from Quarry and work but the two of them are working hard together for their daughter.

Casey and April announced that their once again pregnant with a boy they were going to name James.

The family was growing day by day. Leo along with Kaz and Dai retired from the army, Leo was now working on getting into NCIS in DC and the dogs were going to be house pets for the kids. My Captain was retiring and was asking if I wanted to take his place once he left I would have to take the Captains exam and pass everything but with my Captain backing me up and trusting me I could do anything.

I got the news from Leo that the army found Kari and her headquarters sending a drone to take her out he out the news there were no survivors. I was happy for him after everything he went through his tormentor was finally dead.

"When the twins are born are you naming them?" I asked.

"Akari meaning light and Hiroshi meaning generous." Leo said. "What about you?"

I shrugged my shoulder, "Too soon but if it's a boy we're going to name his Eric after Erica's brother."

"That's a nice name Raph." Leo said.

"I knew you especially would like it." I smiled.

Our lives have changed and even through the trials and errors we had over the years we're still together and that's fine by me.

A.N:

The guys and Erica are 27, Sarah and Jessica are 25, and Catherine is 28. Casey and April are 31 and Shadow is almost 2.