A big giant thank you to everyone who reviewed and gave their input. It was very much appreciated!=) So big thank yous to Amonraphoenix,moonie016,D'Fuentes, Mela, Jadedolphin,Outasync, Lost blonde,Chibiwolf33 and Cynical Fluffy V!

A/N this is a rather short chapter, just to kinda tide everyone over and to throw in a little twist.;) (well maybe not a twist...hitch...I don't know)

Just please read and enjoy!

Chapter 25

Michelangelo sifted through today's paper. It had been just over a week since they had abruptly left Katherine's, and the weather outside matched his mood exactly. It was cold, miserable and raining. It was like the sky had decided that it couldn't contain it's wretchedness either.

He had ventured out after dark. He was tired of dealing with the oppressive misery that had invaded the lair. He had managed to scrounge up a paper and eventually decided that he had to eventually head back.

He sat at the kitchen table and began taking apart all of the newspaper sections. He really just wanted to read the comics, maybe the entertainment. He took out the sports section for Raphael, the business section for Donatello, and the Local and International news for Leonardo. He grabbed the Arts section to toss when the cover story caught his eye. All of his brothers walked into the kitchen as he took a sip of his orange juice. He spit out his orange juice in shock. He reread the article from the beginning.

"You okay Mikey?" Donatello asked as he began digging around for something to snack on.

He didn't answer as he read the article a third time.

"Those must be some pretty intense comics Mikey." Raphael said as he grabbed a glass of water. Michelangelo spared a glance at his brothers as his mind thought furiously. He vaguely realized that this was the first time in a over week that they had all been in the same room together.

"You know Mikey, this not talkin' to me thing is really startin' to piss me off." Raphael growled.

Michelangelo cleared his throat and began to read. "Eccentric billionaire Carin Wraith is bringing a little bit of human evolution to the Museum of Natural history this Fall with opening of the Modern Human and Neanderthal exhibit. Blah blah blah. His family is rumoured to have made it's money bootlegging in the early 30's, his grandfather turned their illegal wealth legitimate with a vastly successful shipping trade. Blah blah, blah. Carin Wraith is a leading archaeologist in his field of Human Evolution, guest speaker at Harvard, blah blah, blah..."

"Mikey what the hell are you reading?" Raphael asked in irritation.

"His niece and heir Katherine Brooks, daughter of model turned actress and fashion designer Sheila Wraith, was commissioned to paint the exhibit's main portraits. An early release of the exhibit's advertizing logo has created buzz in both the art as well the Archaeological and Anthropological communities. An aspiring mortuary archaeologist in her own right, many believe that she will make great strides in either field. I has been rumoured that the original paintings which will be put up for auction, could go for well over 1 million each, with the advertizing portrait to go for somewhere around 5 and 7 million."

He looked at his brothers, stunned silence prevailing in the room.

Everyone began talking at once trying to snach the paper from him. He pulled it away and studied the photo that had cought his attention. The photo was of one of the paintings they had seen Katherine painting. It had been awe inspiring. A Neanderthal and human woman were looking at each other. There was pain, love, knowledge, and the acceptance that though they had been with each other, they could not remain together because their worlds were too different. It didn't matter that they were not so different on the outside, but that it went deeper than a mere difference in species, it was a separation of worlds, of culture, religion, and values.

The first time Michelangelo had seen the finished painting he had nearly cried for the two people. It was like Romeo and Juliet, but somehow more real. He supposed it had struck a chord with him.

"You've got to be shittin' me." Raphael said as he was able to snatch the paper away and looked at the article. "So you're sayin Kitten is some rich heiress, and what, she was just slummin' it?" He asked angrily, as if somehow Katherine had left him rather than the other way around.

"Raph," Leonardo began.

"She lied to us Leo." He said angrily. "She's just some rich chick out on a nice little vacation, and we were a nice little distraction while she was here. She's probably sitting at home laughing her ass off right now that we thought, for even one moment, that we stood a chance with her. She's out of most guy's league let alone ours. We are so far out of her league she might as well have come from a different planet!"

"I should have googled her." Donatello mumbled while he rose, grabbing his laptop from the kitchen counter. "Wraith, Wraith, why does that name sound so familiar?" Donatello mumbled to himself. As he began furiously typing on the computer.

"She never lied to us Raph." Michelangelo said angrily as he grabbed the newspaper away from his brother's hands.

"Yes she did." Raphael replied angrily.

"What was she supposed to say Raph? 'Hi my name is Katherine Brooks artist, anthropologist, oh and by the way, I just happen to be an heiress?'"

"I remember this." Donatello said softly. "Sheila Wraith."

"Wasn't she, that model, actress chick from when we were kids?" Michelangelo asked. He knew the article said who Katherine's mother was, but it was just beginning to click for him now.

"Yes." Donatello said with a nod.

"Didn't Leo and Raph fight about some old magazine they found with a picture of her. And they had to hide it from Master Splinter?" Michelangelo asked with a sly grin.

Leonardo and Raphael blushed.

Michelangelo Laughed. "You had a crush on Kitten's mom!" Michelangelo lost his smile and frowned. "Wait, didn't she have some sort of meltdown or something? She kinda disappeared."

"She's a fashion designer now. She lives, for the most part, quietly in Canada now, but yes." Donatello said with a frown. They looked at Donatello who turned the screen around so they could all see. It was a newspaper article from 17 years ago. "We were 9, but I remember watching the news with Master Splinter. It was in the news for weeks." The Title read: Tragedy strikes Beloved Actress Sheila Wraith: Husband, Brother And Son Die In Horrifying Crash, 4 Year Old Daughter Only Survivor.' They were silent a few moments. "It was a media frenzy. Her mother had a breakdown and was in and out of the hospital. Katherine went to live with an uncle for a while. Though it looks like technically Carin Wraith is her great uncle. Her mother remarried, he's a cabinet maker, and Katherine has two step brothers."

"I don't get it, how is she an Heiress?" Raphael asked confused.

"Sheila Wraith and Katherine are Carin Wraiths only living blood relatives. When he dies all of his wealth goes to Katherine. It would go to Sheila, but she rumour has it that Carin Wraith changed his will so that Katherine gets everything. They say he became very fond of her and treated her like she was his own. She lived with him on and off for about 5 years."

Donatello brought up more and more tabloid and newspaper articles. "Katherine's managed to stay out of the press for the most part. Living in Canada helped, having a different last name helped as well."

One article read: The Ugly Duckling, Will She Become A Swan?

Raphael looked at the article and growled. "Bunch of bastards."

Leonardo frowned. "She always said she hated being judged, especially because of her looks. I don't think I really understood it until now." He said softly.

"Well Katherine was pretty quiet. Boring doesn't sell papers, but she made the press quite a bit when she was younger." Donatello said softly as he pulled up more articles. "She's been on numerous archaeological digs, sometimes not in the most friendly of countries. She was nearly kidnapped in Africa when she was on a dig with her uncle when she was 14. Her interpreter was killed, and they still aren't sure how she managed to escape. That was the last dig her uncle ever took her on. She probably had to fight to go on the digs she did in University."

"Sound like her life has been a cushy piece of cake Raph." Michelangelo said angrily.

Raphael's eyes widened in shock. He turned his head to the side as sadness welled up in his eyes. "I never thought that she knew." Raphael whispered. "She doesn't remember the crash." He said softly. "She told me that she wasn't going to tell me that everything was going to be fine because she didn't know if it would be. That she didn't know if or when my memories would come back. She doesn't remember her brother, her father, or her uncle. She told me that I shouldn't feel guilty about not mourning Master Splinter because I didn't remember him. And she told me she would never leave me alone and abandon me, because her mother had left and abandoned her." Raphael's voice wavered and cracked. "I know why she didn't want to go to the hospital after the car crash. She didn't want her mother to have to get a call telling her that she had been in a car accident."

"Do you regret leaving her Raph?" Michelangelo questioned softly.

"It was the right decision Mikey. Even more so now." He said in answer. Raphael's cell phone began to ring.

"Well then maybe you should grow a pair and tell her why you left her Raph." Michelangelo said angrily.

"She already knows Mikey." Raphael replied softly.

"I don't care. You owe it to her."

Raphael looked at his cell phone and pressed the talk button. He turned away from his brothers. He was going to have this conversation in private.

"Hello?" He said wretchedly. Pain leaking into his voice as he was about to stand.

Raphael felt himself pale as the voice crackled over the phone.

"Hun?" Raphael whispered in dread.

Raphael switched his phone to speaker. "What the Hell have you done to Katherine!" He yelled.

Hun's voice chuckled over the phone. "The better question would be: What haven't I done to her? It's a shorter list."

"Hun if you have hurt her in any way..." Raphael threatened.

"Listen to me you turtle freak, my patience is running very thin. You're little girlfriend here, has been reluctant to give up your whereabouts! I find this surprising since you left her completely unprotected. She is in a very secluded spot, very convenient for me, but I am tired of waiting. So I shall leave you with this thought. You would have saved her so much pain and suffering if you had have just picked up the phone seven days ago." Hun's voice said with malicious pleasure, as if he was very aware of how much his words would and did wound him.

"You lie! You don't have her!" Raphael yelled into the phone.

"Oh, she's here. She was so easy to find. We have photographs of her bike following your truck through the streets. We thought at first it was that other woman April O'Neil, but we figured out that she was someone new. Her bike was very easy to track. It was a custom job, only one ever made with a red leather seat. A little computer hacking and we got an address and a completely defenceless hostage. Come to your death turtle, and bring your brothers with you." The line went dead.

Raphael couldn't breathe. Too many emotions were roaring through him, but he was consumed by so much terror, he couldn't even think straight. He hadn't even been this terrified when he fell to what he had thought was going to be his death.

"Let's go, Donny!" Leonardo ordered. His voice coming from far away as if his broher was standing at the other end of a long tunnel.

I was his fault.

"On it Leo." Donatello said grimly.

He had left her alone and unprotected. He had been so focused on getting away from her to keep her safe, that he had never thougth about it already being too late.

Raphael realized that his brothers were moving and planning, but all he could do was sit there in a guilt ridden, terror filled lump, not even able to move.

He was hit hard across the face, knocking him off his chair.

He shook his head to clear it as Leonardo helped him up off the floor. "You need to focus Raph!" Leonardo yelled at him."Where the Hell is all that rage! Hun has the woman you love and you are just sitting there! Now snap the hell out of it!"

Raphael stared in shock at his brother's terror and guilt striken face. Leonardo was in love with Katherine as well, and he wasn't sitting around doing nothing. Leonardo clapped him on the back. "Let's go get Hun, save Katherine."

"She'll never forgive me Leo." Raphael said to his brother.

His brother remained silent a moment. "Or me." He agreed softly.

They shared a moment of understanding before they ran to the garage.

"Hurry up you two!" Donatello yelled form the cockpit of the Helicopter.

The knot in his shoulders lessened as he realized he wasn't going to have to drive for two hours. Because even the minutes it would take them to get there were still minitues too long.

He leapt in as his brother started the engine. He sat down and looked at his phone. He should have answered it. He should have answered her call when her name first popped up on the display. Regret and guilt ragged war within him.

"Don't give up Kitten, we're coming." He pleaded.

Leonardo was silent, every nerve of his body tense and ready for action. He looked over at Raphael who sat staring at his phone as if it had betrayed him somehow.

Leonardo had never seen his brother freeze like he had. Usually he was charging forward without even thinking. This time Raphael did stop and think, and Leonardo believed, it had almost broken him.

Raphael's cell began to ring. Raphael paused and with a shaky finger, answered.

"Hello freak." Huns voice said happily. "I'm sending you a little incentive." Hun's face appeared on the screen. "I just want you to be aware of what sort of situation you are dealing with." The screen shifted to video footage. Katherine was bound and gagged. She was kneeling on the floor of the garage, the junkler car having been moved. She was covered in dust, dirt and blood. Her clothing a was tattered mass of rags.

A large tub of water sat in front of her. "Tell us where them freaks hides out." A lanky blonde man ordered, his hand buried in Katherine's hair.

Katherine didn't answer.

"Maybe we should take the gag out." The man who was obviously holding the camera said to the man holding Katherine.

The lanky Dragon laughed. "But what's the fun in that?" He said as he rammed Katherine's head underwater. She struggled against him, but she could not get her head out of the tub.

The blonde Dragon laughed as he pulled her out after what felt like forever. She tried to take a breath but she was dunked into the tub again. The Dragon chuckled gleefully as Katherine struggled. He pulled her out. Katherine looked glassy eyed at the camera. She closed her eyes as he shoved her under again. This time she didn't struggle. The Dragon frowned. He finally pulled her back out as she slumped to the ground like a wet, broken, wax doll.

"Awwh, I think I broke her." The blonde Dragon chuckled.

"Get her breathing again you dumbass." The cameraman growled.

"Tch." He looked at her and kicked her had sending her onto her back. Katherine never moved, never flinched. He didn't check her pulse just looked down at her. "She's a gonner."

"Boss is going to be pissed. You weren't supposed to kill 'er." The cameraman said.

"You see." Hun's deadly voice purred over the phone. "It is so hard to get good help these days. We marked her grave with a nice cross and I will be kind enough to bury you four next to her when you are dead." The line went dead.

Leonardo had felt the blood drain from his face and the bile in his throat bubbled up thick and heavy. He couldn't get the image of her out of his head. She had looked at the camera and known that she was going to die.

Leonardo's soul and heart shattered into tiny pieces as he went numb.

They had killed her.

Because of them, the Purple Dragons had killed her.

I was his fault.

She had suffered and died because he had left her alone and unprotected, because his code of honour had told him he couldn't stay.

"It could be fake." Donatello said shakily as he hastily wiped the tears from his cheeks. "Don't you dare puke in here Mikey!" Donatello yelled, his voice breaking. "There was a time stamp. It said it was from a few hours ago, before they even got a hold of Raph. Plenty of time to have doctored the footage." Donatello paused and Leonardo heard his brother's voice from a distance. "She isn't dead until we see that she is actually dead!"

A black wave of guilt assaulted him. Leonardo felt as if he were standing on the brink of sanity and he knew that if she was dead, he would fall over that edge.

Leonardo pulled together his shattered soul, and mind. The need for revenge sparked to life and burned brightly within him. He had not wanted revenge for his brother's death, because he knew it would not bring his brother back. He also knew that his brother had been in the wrong place at the wrong time, and that the Dragons had taken advantage of their brother being alone and went for the chance to eliminate him. Katherine's death had been planned and deliberate. Hun wanted them broken and reckless.

He and Raphael shared a look of total understanding. If they had killed her, they would burn. Every single one of them. There would be no survivors. If she was still alive, they might let them live, but he doubted it.

Cliffhanger! I apologize for leaving it at such a suspensful place! (evil, evil author)

So thoughts? opinions?