Author's Note: I am the Flash! *zooms*

.

.


Chapter Fifty: House of Cards Revisited


"...still mad, you know."

"I – I know, Aggie. I'm sorry about that. If we find a place along the way, with an airport nearby, heck, maybe you can catch a flight, spend a few days with us."

A female voice chuckled. "Find me a beach, and I'm in."

"I'll be sure to keep an eye out. Talk to you again soon."

"I'm holding you to that! I love you. Tell April I love her!"

"I will. I love you too, big sis."

As the recording ended, a skinny young man with wiry blond hair, bad posture, and too much cologne leaned back, putting his hands behind his head triumphantly. He worked as a cellular technician, and had been given his very own private office last month, even if it was a little cramped.

The printer nearby started up.

He nodded toward it. "I've got your GPS location for Miss Agatha O'Neil right here. Your friend is going to be so surprised!" He grinned up at the young woman by his side, and his heart did a little skip as she leaned closer to him. But she only smiled, and tapped his nose playfully.

"You are a genius, Mr. Frederickson."

He loved how she said his last name. Fred-er-ik-son. It sounded so exotic! He had never met anyone like her before. He laughed nervously, because she did make him nervous, but in a good way.

"You know, this is really illegal. I'm breaking like, two or three laws, at least..." He hoped she thought it sounded dangerous.

She raised a coy eyebrow. "Is it?"

He lowered his arms and leaned forward a little, disappointed she wasn't more impressed. "Um...yeah. I'm serious. Don't tell your friend how you found her." He softened, and leaned back again. "I'm breaking the rules for you here, sweetheart." He grinned up at her, trying to get up the nerve to ask her out.

Her smile hardened, just a little. "Well you won't have to, ever again..." She leaned in, getting closer this time...

The technician doubled up, white hot pain radiating from his groin. She had kneed him between the legs...! As he crumpled, her hand lashed out, yanking his head back by the hair, and suddenly something was being stuffed down his throat. He fought against it, gagging, panicked, but now she had him from behind in some kind of arm lock with a cloth over his face, and he couldn't…he couldn't breathe...!

A moment later, Mr. Frederickson's heart gave a few last, frantic beats, then stopped, as the drug did its job. A scentless wipe was brought out, brushed over his face, his hands and forearms, and then he was left, slumped over his workstation.

Harada Jan grabbed the print-out on her way out.

.


.

Karai silently let herself into the lab, closing the door behind her, and then paused to brush her hands down her sides. She took a relaxing breath as she made her way toward her little brother, who sat with his back to her, engrossed in something on the computer screen.

It was mid-morning, and everyone had split apart to do their own thing after training, as usual, but…she and Leo had dared to linger in the dojo for a few minutes, sneaking a kiss or two. And she was still smiling a little too much.

Karai schooled her face as she closed the distance. They had both agreed it was too soon to share their relationship with the rest of the family, so here she was instead, for cool-down time and sibling bonding with Donatello.

Which was perfect, as it so happened, because Karai loved spending time with him, so long as the Foot wasn't a topic of conversation. A spontaneous sense of affection rose, surprising her, and she fixed a smirk firmly in place, mostly to hide the soppy smile trying to surface. She raised an amused eyebrow, as she drew near. Donatello had almost certainly noticed her arrival by now, even if he hadn't acknowledged her yet.

Her curiosity grew. He was really focused on that computer scr...

Oh...God.

Karai stumbled, her body lurching slightly off balance as she came to a graceless halt.

He was watching...

Himself. Donatello's image was on the screen, in miniature, bloodied, wounds open, ex...

Exposed.

A tiny noise, something between a sigh and a wheeze, escaped Karai's throat, as thought deserted her.

Donatello's hand moved as if by instinct, tapping a button on the keyboard, and the image disappeared. He turned toward her in a clumsy motion.

Oh...God!

Karai shook her head back and forth slowly, her feet moving her backward one step, two steps, as her face twisted more and more, and Donatello stared at her with half open eyes, full of pain, dazed with it.

His voice was a weak croak, hardly there at all. "You..."

It was enough. Karai's hand went to her mouth, as all her barriers deserted her, and she was suddenly crying, sobbing, her shoulders shuddering with the emotion assaulting her.

"No...D-Donatello, I..." Her shaking voice died in her throat. She raised her other hand plaintively, her head still shaking back and forth. "I..." She gasped violently, unable to vocalize or even think, as Donatello's eyes grew wider and wider.

"You...!" His mouth opened into a silent wail of horror, and the betrayal she saw forced Karai's head down.

She whispered, her mouth pulled into a rictus of guilt, as she fought against her constricted throat. "I'm so s-sorry..."

A vocalized gasp, like a reverse scream, tore apart the space between them. It was the most horrible sound she'd ever heard.

Donatello gasped again, choking in air. "Out...!" He sounded like a drowning person. "Out...!"

"Donatello, I swear to y..."

"GET OUT!" He rose suddenly, and Karai stumbled further back. Her mind was whiting out, terrified desperation consuming everything.

"I promise I w-won't..."

"OO-U-T!" Donatello wailed it like an animal in pain, but it was so much worse, because it was the sound of betrayal, of the deepest humiliation. It was the sound of everything between them breaking. He twisted around, movements jerky, and tore something small out of the back of the computer. Karai ducked just in time as it was hurtled toward her head.

Her phone.

It shattered somewhere behind her.

"Pleas..."

"RAAAHHH!" Donatello's eyes were wild. He levered one of his crutches, throwing it like a javelin.

Karai leaped to the side, and desperately forced out the overriding thought that had lived in her mind, churning there like a mantra for weeks.

"She will pay! I s-swear it, Donatello. I swear it!"

Then she ran, her body still shaking with grief and shame and guilt, driven by the sound of Donatello's screams.

.


.

Karai's fist slammed into the concrete. A second later, she repeated the motion, as if welcoming the pain. Then she pressed against the sewer wall, resting her forehead against the rough surface.

Raphael kept a discrete distance, as he watched. Karai was a skilled kunoichi, and he wasn't sure he wanted her to know he had followed yet.

He still wasn't sure why he had.

By some stroke of fate, or luck...bad luck...Raphael had been the only one in the pit to hear Donatello screaming at her as she bolted from the lab. The sound still rang in his ears, the shock tearing into him in a way even Master Splinter throwing him across the dojo hadn't. When Karai had sprinted past, leaping the turnstiles, heading to who knew where, and Donnie's door slammed a moment later, Raphael had acted on instinct, his heart thumping in his chest, palms sweating, as he followed.

That scream...it had left him feeling like nothing was stable or safe, even in their own home.

Karai was sobbing, now. Raphael clenched his hands slightly, chin dipping lower. It was a quiet sound, not enough to cause an echo in a tunnel that could bounce a whispered conversation back and forth for what seemed like miles, sometimes.

Raphael shifted uncomfortably, and silently crossed his arms, finally looking down at his feet. Karai didn't show any signs of letting up, and didn't seem to be going anywhere either. His own emotions roiled, bitterness churning in his gut over whatever it was Donnie hid about his time with the Foot, but also over...

Over Karai's own crummy past. Yeah, he did feel bad for her, but Raphael still wondered if it was justified. What had happened between her and Don...?

"You want revenge, right?"

Raphael jolted, glancing up. Karai had turned to stare into the dark space where he stood, with narrowed, tearful eyes. Her voice was guttural, with unsuppressed hurt and fury.

Even distraught, she must have noticed him out of her peripheral vision earlier, as she fled the lair.

Raphael stepped forward slightly, and Karai's head lowered a fraction in acknowledgement, as a muscle in her jaw jumped repeatedly. She still had one hand pressed against the wall, leaning into it slightly, as she continued.

"...for Donatello." Her voice weakened on his name, and she bit back another sob. Her mouth pulled into an anguished grimace, her teeth showing in the low light, and for a moment she looked like a wounded animal baring its teeth. Her shoulders rose and fell with each breath as she waited for his answer.

Raphael came closer, dropping his hands to his sides, and stared at her. He wasn't always the best at reading people, but right here and now, he knew he could trust what he saw. His long standing fury rose, but it felt stable, usable, as if his body knew things were finally about to shift.

"Yeah, Karai. Yeah, I do."

Karai straightened. Her breathing was still harsh with emotion, but it had turned the tide, now a mirror of his own fury, even though tears were still glittering on her face.

"Good."


.

.

AN: Couldn't resist a cliffhanger.