A/N: Sorry, reposting to include thank you to Ravenshell for being my beta and Lydjachan for her constant encouragement and insight. Please charge my forgetfulness to my head and not my heart, because I truly do appreciate you ladies! :)


Chapter 26

6am.

That's what time it is according to my glow-in-the-dark Chocokat alarm clock. It's only been an hour since I was able to coax April into going to sleep. I look down at her sleeping form beside me. Even with only the lamp from my nightstand on, I can still see the worry lines creasing her forehead. I'm really worried about her. I've never seen her so upset. Her hysterical face is permanently etched into my memory….

"April! God, you scared me!" I didn't hear her slip through my cracked window and only turned around because of the obnoxious thunder crackling across the night sky. "You're soaking wet! What took you so long? You weren't answering your phone… I was about to go look for you!" I wave a bat in my hand to emphasize my point. "I thought that creep had—"

I stop my breathless ranting and take in the appearance of my best friend. She's shivering, but I think it's from more than just the rain because her face is gothic pale and her blue eyes are animated with fear. Dropping my bat to the floor, I grab her by the shoulders. "April? ...April, what's wrong?" She doesn't answer me, just blinks at me with eyes that are too big, too afraid, and my heart races a mile a minute as I assume the worst possible thing that could happen to a girl meeting a guy in the middle of the night. My skin feels slimy and covered in worms at the very thought.

"April, did he hurt you?" My voice wavers to a raspy whisper as I push down my own demons, hoping I'm prepared to shoulder April's trauma if I have to. She stifles a hiccupped sob as she cups her hand over her mouth.

"I should have stopped him," she whispers.

"It's not your fault. That scumbag had no right to take you like that. No, means, no." There's a sudden clarity in her eyes as she finally look at me.

"No! ...No, that's not what I mean! God, Simone, I'm sorry, that's not what I mean." She shakes out of my hold and walks past me. Another deep roll of thunder reminds me to close the window before my carpet is thoroughly soaked from the slanted downpour of rain outside. Turning back to face my friend, I find her pacing my bedroom floor. "We met at the animal clinic and had a fight… sort of…. and then he said he was sorry, kissed me, and just left."

"Okay…." She's going to have to do a better job of explaining to me why exactly she's so upset, because an apology and a kiss is usually a good thing the last time I checked.

"He stole…. some drugs from the clinic. His brothers are looking for him, but I'm afraid he might be… might be…."

"Oh, April." I waste no time squeezing her tiny frame in one of my bear hugs. Loved ones who are also addicts, sounds like a chapter out of my screwed up life. I get it now. Her boyfriend's on drugs and it's got to the 'intervention' phase. I totally get it. Pulling gently away from the embrace, I rub the sides of her arms up and down offering an empathic look. Quickly tugging open my dresser drawer I pull out an extra set of PJs and push them against her chest. "Here, why don't you dry off in the bathroom and put some fresh clothes on. I'll make some hot cocoa, okay?"

She sniffs as she nods hastily, "Yeah, okay."

I feel better knowing she wasn't raped, but equally as bad knowing her boyfriend maybe in serious trouble. After I settled her down a bit, she managed to clarify a few things. For one her BF, Donnie, isn't a drug addict but was feeling crappy enough to contemplate suicide by stealing pentobarbital from an animal clinic. She said she called his brothers so they would be on the lookout for him. That was over five hours ago. April's been calling his brothers every hour on the hour, leaving messages, worried sick about him.

"Donnie…." she mutters pitifully in her sleep as she curls into a ball and hugs my stuffed elephant, Mr. Toots, a little tighter. She must really love this guy. Regretfully, I bite my lip. He called April, reaching out for help, and the first thing I do is take her phone and lash out at him. How was I supposed to know the guy was a loose cannon?

I jerk with a small shriek as her oddly shaped phone plays its little jingle. The screen's light glows from beneath our mess of blankets littering my bedroom floor. I try to reach and answer it so it doesn't wake her, but I'm not fast enough. She's awake in seconds, fumbling with the talk button before slapping the phone frantically to her face.

"Leo! Did you find him? ...Is he okay?..." I perk my attention, curious to know if April's guy is okay. "….Oh, thank goodness, I was so worried….no, no….I understand, Leo. Just keep me posted… let me know when he wakes up, I'll come over. Okay, I will…. you too." She sighs deeply as she ends the call.

"So what's the deal? Is he okay?" Sitting on my knees, I lean forward ready to support my friend in any way that I can.

"Yeah… yeah, he's okay. His family was able to intervene before he…." She blows out a shaky breath. "He's resting now, so I guess that's a good thing, right?"

"Trust me, resting is always better than the alternative." I relax my back against the side of the bed as April leans against my shoulder.

"I know. I'm just worried, Simone." She tugs at the pajama top I gave her to wear, which is two sizes too big, wrapping herself more snuggly in it.

"At least he has his family to support him… and he has you." I give her arm a nudge and she sighs deeply like she always does when she carries everyone's problem on her shoulders. Come to think of it she's been doing a lot of sighing since she's been hanging out with this Donnie guy. I don't know how she does it but I just don't have the patience for boy drama. I keep guys around for two reasons: To party hard and to fool around. When a guy sticks around for more than those two reasons, that's when things start getting complicated and complicated is so not my thing. But April's not like me. She wears her heart on her sleeve….. I keep mine handcuffed to my fist. I don't know what to think about April hanging out with a guy like Donnie. He seems to have a lot of issues...not that I'm the poster child of perfection...I'm just sayin'. But when I look at the sparkle of emotion dancing in April's eyes I know to her, he's worth it.

"I have this feeling…." she whispers, shaking her head as if to erase whatever bad vibes are racing through her head. She told me once that she sometimes gets these freaky supernatural vibes. Her spooksville sixth sense is usually pretty on-point, like that time she had a feeling and then giant 12-foot rats invaded the city. I'm not sure what her crazy vibe means for her friend Donnie, but I'll be here for her no matter what happens. My usual knack for starting witty conversations abandons me, so I pull the blankets up to our chins as we sit in silence. Rays of daybreak tiptoe into my room as tiredness outweighs our brooding and we eventually fall back asleep.


"He's home now…. resting. We've all had a pretty rough 24 hours." I know if I hadn't mentioned Donnie was resting, April would demand to see him. I don't blame her. Donatello gave us all a scare this morning.

"No, no…. I understand, Leo. Just keep me posted, let me know when he wakes up, I'll come over."

"…Sure." I don't mean to hesitate, but I'm not sure if Donnie will even be in the right frame of mind for company when he wakes up. "You should get some rest, April." Beneath the anxiousness, there's a slur of exhaustion in her voice.

"Okay, I will…. you too." Tapping the end button, I slide my T-cell into my belt. I peek into Mikey's room to find him still sound asleep. Good. He's been so brave through all of this. I watched my baby brother mature in so many different ways in just a matter of hours.

Raphael's door is still shut. I don't know what happened while he was trapped in that black box with Donnie, but whatever happened spooked him pretty bad. Master Splinter is still in the lab keeping watch over Donatello. Grabbing my katanas, I stealth my way past the turnstiles and into the sewers.

Tunnel 49. It's the number of the tunnel in Donnie memories. It's the same tunnel that Donatello—

I shake my head at the hideous thought as my feet splash against the waterlogged passageway. My brother isn't a murderer. That… that thing that possessed him is the true monster, manipulating my brother, forever tarnishing his gentle nature. I swallow hard as the stench of blood and raw meat fill my nostrils before I even reach the tunnel. As I look up at the archway, the number 49 stares back at me. The walkway of the tunnel is completely flooded from the storm earlier. I would count it a blessing if the downpour managed to wash away the evidence of my brother's casualty. Unfortunately, I'm not that lucky.

The blood drains from my face when I step on something spongy as bubbles pop to the surface the murky water. Feeling the gelatinous substance between my toes, I stumble backwards. I misstep on something round and fall on my rear splashing into the sewage beneath me. Pressing my hands firmly against my mouth, I stifle a shriek as a half-eaten head bobbles between my legs. Splashing madly, I backpedal away from the floating head, crawling out of the flooded area. Tears burn my eyes as I gag on the bile in my throat.

"Oh, God…." I spit the bitterness from my mouth. "Donatello…" His name sounds like a sad song on my lips. The sad song of a disheartened brother alone with his inner demons, who didn't feel worthy of being saved. Not just any brother…. my brother. I let my pride and arrogance keep me from being the big brother I should've been. I received a much needed wakeup call at the sake of my brother's health and, possibly, sanity. I turn back to the tunnel and notice other body parts floating eerily in the sewage. Knowing how much my brother has suffered gives me the strength to push through my own sickness and do what needs to be done. I wade through the corpse-ridden water to the pipe wheel on the opposite side of the flooded tunnel. Grunting, I turn the pipe wheel, slowly opening the sealed door at the end of the tunnel. There's a drain on the other side of this door. I just need to open it enough for the body to flush to the other side and—

I'm not prepared for the suction caused by the lifted door as my feet slide from beneath me. Tangling my arms in the holes of the pipe wheel, I hang on for dear life. As the water recedes from my waist to my knees, I loosen my grip on the wheel. My eyes sweep the tunnel floor, searching for any 'pieces' that didn't get flushed away. The remaining ankle-deep water is clear of any incriminating evidence that could lead back to my brother and our family. A small thump against my foot makes my whole body jitter. I look down expecting the worst. Instead of finding a gnawed off hand there's a blue wallet bumping my foot, trying to follow the flow of water to the drain. Picking up the water-logged wallet, I gingerly open it.

Frank Vass is the name printed on the driver's license inside the plastic window of the wallet. When I shift my thumb over the picture ID, the wallet extends itself revealing credit cards and pictures. A wife and child….a little girl, probably no older than six. I remember Frank from Donnie's memories. He just doing his job, earning money for his family. I wonder how much Donnie remembers from his encounter.

I did something horrible... there was so much blood... so much... it was my fault...

A hard lump forms in my throat as Donatello's earlier babbling echoes in my mind. He remembers enough….too much.

Opening the wallet further reveals soggy dollar bills… four hundred dollars to be exact. Closing the wallet, I sigh deeply as my chest tightens with sorrow for my brother and this family that will be without a husband and father…. and so close to the holidays. My brain starts to strategize as I stuff the wallet into my belt pocket. With a small huff, I turn the pipe wheel the opposite direction, lowering the door back to its dead-end state again. Donatello comes first. I'll figure out the Vass family situation later.

I return to the lair, quietly sliding my bedroom door open.

"Leonardo."

Apparently not quietly enough. My arms clench at my sides as I face Master Splinter. "Hai, Sensei."

"Why are you not in bed?"

I open and close my mouth a few times, certain I will have to do backflips tomorrow no matter what I say. "I… I was just…." Sighing, I decide being evasive isn't the best tactic. If I'm going to be leader of our team, then I need to take responsibility for my actions and stand behind my reasoning for them. "I went to tunnel 49." I don't have to say anything more as the shocked expression on Sensei's face is enough for me to know that he understands what I was doing. He stares at me for a moment before placing his hands behind his back and giving me a small nod.

"I did not mean for you to…. you should not have gone there. I did not wish for you to view such an ill-fated outcome."

"Donatello is my brother; he's my responsibility."

"And you, my son, are my responsibility. What if you were met by humans searching for this poor soul? Did you not think your brothers and I would grow concerned at your absence? It is enough that your brother is unwell, did you wish to bring further worry to your father?"

I hold my head down, feeling less like a leader and more like an careless child. I should have told Sensei what I was doing, but would he have let me if I did? ...Probably not. I wasn't there when Donnie needed me, so I wanted to protect him now and maybe redeem myself in the process. At the warmth of his hand on my shoulder my eyes meet his, ready for further rebuke.

"Although you should have told me your intentions, your actions showed the mind of a quick thinker and a heart of a protective leader."

I do my best to hide my gladness with a formal bow. "Thank you, Sensei."

"Now, please go to bed, Leonardo."

"H-hai, Sensei." I stumble into my room, relieved Master Splinter let me off the hook with a mere slap on the wrist. At least I can rest a little better knowing nothing in the sewers will trace Frank's disappearance back to my brother. Donatello is home; he's safe. We can help him through the rest.

TBC


This was a short chapter but the next one will be longer :) Thank you guys again for your feedback and lovely reviews. They really make me smile and feed my muse! I don't have much in the form of 'spoiler quotes' for the next chapter, but I will tell you that next chapter will be predominantly Donnie and Leo's POV ;)

As always thanks for reading and please leave a review! I always look forward to them!

See you next chapter,

Poetique