DENIM

Drumming her hands on her daughter's steering wheel, Denim began to question why she'd never bought a car. Although, she knew it was mostly because she saw them as an unnecessary expense. She didn't mind walking, or the subway. Alli had only bought a Mini Cooper because it was small and fast. Fast enough that it got Denim to Marco's before everyone else.

Glancing in the backseat, she found one of Alli's dresses and a new plan formed. Minutes later, she was walking through the front door, armed and ready to destroy whoever had her girls.

"Well hellloooo, Beautiful." A pig mutant in a business suit intercepted her on her way to the bar.

Denim's skin crawled and she wondered how Karai, Zoe, April and Sappho did this undercover shit. Forcing a smile, she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. Could she even remember how to flirt? She'd never been good at it. "Can I help you? I was just going for a drink."

The pig waved a fork-fingered hand at the bartender. "I've got your drink." He blatantly eyed Denim's curves. "And maybe a job if you're interested."

A sharp red brow lifted as Denim glanced at the women strutting around in their underwear on stage. She let out a short laugh. "I'm too old to be up there, unless you have a thing for middle-aged redheads." Internally she scolded herself, she sucked at flirting.

"I love me some redheads and you look like you've still got it." The pig smiled a greasy smile and Denim's stomach turned. Then the fool reached for her ass.

ZOE

Waiting was part of the long game. She was used to it. You did what you had to when the time was right. Waiting on recon. Waiting on intel. Waiting for the right moment to attack. Waiting for Leo to say it was time to make a move.

But she wasn't feeling good, her gut telling her something wasn't right. Which made sense because Scout had been abducted, so something was wrong. Then Alli went rogue and the knot in Zoe's gut became a rock. Whatever made her think she should go into this solo? Did she not realize her own limitations? The girl was frail. Hell, her younger sister was more capable than she was of surviving this. Breakable. Fragile. That was what Allison had become. Clearly, she did not realize it.

Still, Leo said they waited.

The van ride to Marco's was just more waiting. But they were close. Not much more waiting. Good. She was ready.

She was polishing her tessen when the rock in her gut felt like it'd been drawn back and launched in a slingshot. That's when everything snapped to clarity. What they'd been missing. What's they assumed was okay. The most obvious thing that they'd all missed.

She dropped her weapon, looked to Raph. "Drea's out of bounds." Her eyes darted back and forth between his, then turning toward their family she yelled. "Have any of you talked to the kids? Any of them? Andrea just went out of bounds." Her eyes ricocheted back to Raph as he speed-dialed their daughter. One by one Karai, April, and Aries reached for their cells.

SAPPHO

Sappho sat on the floor of the van, leaning back against Arcos's furry chest, his heavy arms wrapped around her in lieu of a seatbelt. She never felt safer. He always had that effect on her.

The van was packed tight as they traversed their way back to Marco's. When Denim had called about Alli, Mikey had sped off in a panic with Anton, Yuuta and Phoenix in tow. It had taken the rest of them a little longer to load up.

Leo drove with Donnie riding passenger, making suggestions about navigating the traffic which Leo mostly ignored. Crammed shoulder-to-shoulder in the back were her and Arcos, across from Medusa with Aries lounging against her coils. Zoe and Raph were tucked against the front seats flanked on either side by Karai and April. Only Horace remained behind in case Scout escaped and returned home. Even Casey had been put on alert with this latest development.

Leo's phone rang and she, already patched into the communication network to rapidly trace calls if need be, saw it was from Anton's number. She linked into the call and listened to their conversation.

Marco's van.

Scout.

Essence.

Several things abruptly clicked together. Earlier, Marco had mentioned that he provided transport for his drug supplier. The supplier who specialized in designer drugs, like Essence. The drug Scout had been taking. Were they going to the right place?

Before she could voice her concern, Zoe snapped upright, looking about wildly. "Drea's out of bounds. Have any of you talked to the kids? Any of them? Andrea just went out of bounds."

Her head read the sudden outflow of calls to children, all hitting a busy signal, except for Nik whose went straight to voicemail.

Her mind connected with Donnie's tablet as he attempted to triangulating their position from the towers their cells were using as they moved, Scout being the only one who had earned GPS tracking thus far. Something likely to change in the near future.

She recognized that area. Her location software added her earlier destination to it. The drug dealer that Marco had pointed out to them, owned an establishment in that area.

As Donnie was explaining the map range he'd narrowed them down to, she interrupted. "I think they've gone to the Essence dealer." With a thought, the location popped up on Donnie's map.

For a moment, the van was silent. Then Leo spoke in a quiet voice. "You found Scout's drug dealer?"

April glanced at Karai. "Maybe. We were on our way to confirm it, when you called about her abduction."

"And ya didn't think it might be connected? Because the kids sure did." Raph roared.

Karai's eyes turned serpentine. "Ssshe'sss been clean for weeksss and they tranq darted her with a rifle." She hissed.

"It brought to mind the other abduction. The EDF. We were all thinking it." April added darkly.

"Enough." Leo's tone forestalled further argument. "Medusa, Arcos, Sappho, if I let you out here, can you get to Marco's and back up Mikey's team?"

"Of coursssse." Medusa answered.

Leo spoke into his phone again. "I'm sending you, Arcos, Medusa and Sappho. All the other kids are missing too now and we need to pursue them." He paused and she listened to Anton update him. "What do you mean, you're going in? Wait for back up. Anton? Anton? Dammit." He tossed his phone into the cup holder and stomped the brake, causing a cacophony of horns behind them.

Twisting around, Leo looked into the back at Arcos, Medusa and her. "Go."

Sappho stood. Arcos pulled the sliding door open and she followed Medusa and him out into the street. Leo took off once more before Raph had a chance to completely close the door.

It looked like Leo had a bone to pick with a drug dealer.

MIKEY

His brain overloaded.

Jem was missing now and Denim was going rogue too. All the threads of his life were rapidly unraveling.

Being the action sort when confronted with problems, he opted for the one he could see and do something about.

Skidding the car into a sliding halt, he illegally parked, half on the sidewalk, half in the street in front of Marco's, jumping out.

"Blue Jeans!" He cried out, running for the entrance. But she was already inside.

He pushed through the line, ignoring the swears and threats.

The bouncer stepped up, holding out a hand and signaling him to stop. "Hold..."

That was as far as he got before Mikey caught him by the wrist, flipped him and side kicked him into the brick wall, mid-air, before charging into the building.

PHOENIX

Phoenix wasn't able to grab Michelangelo before he took off like a shot, seeming to forget everyone but his wife. When he chose to be, he was one of the fastest of her children rivaling Yuuta and even Medusa for speed. Although she suspected what he would do in advance, it wasn't enough to give her an edge.

The shock of Mikey's takeoff did slow Yuuta and Anton, still on the phone with Leo, enough. As they started after Mikey, she snagged the back of each of their shirts. They both turned their heads to look at her.

"Go around the back and we'll meet in the middle."

Then she started off after Michelangelo.

SPOT

It took a while for Spot to figure it out as Alli's was nothing like any phone he'd ever seen, but he finally found, removed and crushed her SIM card.

He knew that he was supposed to destroy and dispose of her phone as quickly as possible, but the design was turtle-shaped and he liked it. The pink color was a little girly, but it shouldn't be too much effort to paint it green. The lock screen was a problem, but he knew a guy who ought to be able to crack it for him.

The sound of frightened girls and fighting caused him to look up...in time to see Alli's roommates in the changing room and barreling towards him over the still forms of the fallen door guards.

Oh shit.

DENIM/MIKEY

The second piggie-boy's fingers touched her butt, Denim's instincts took over. One hand reached for the berretta strapped to her right thigh, while her left hand grabbed his wrist, twisting and applying pressure. Now she could steer this porker wherever she wanted him.

"Ow!" He squeak-snorted. "Ow! What is with all the violent bitches these days? Ow! Ow! Ow!" His eyes were locked on the barrel of her gun as Denim guided him to the swinging door by the bar, applying pressure to his ready-to-snap joint while motioning her head in that direction. "Let's have a talk, shall we?"

Club patrons in her immediate vicinity scrambled, most making for the exits. Then, right as someone screamed, "Gun!" She heard Michelangelo shout, "Denim!" The entire club was in a shrieking frenzy, peeling away from Mikey as he barreled towards her. For a half a second, she couldn't figure if he was mad at her, or the pig she held captive.

Maybe both.

She flinched as she glanced beyond him to see the scowl on Phoenix's face.

Damn.

Hopefully their combined fury would be directed at Pig-Man.

Hopefully.

Mikey pushed through the tide of screaming, fleeing patrons and employees, desperate as he could see several guards closing on Denim and the Hogfather. He vaulted atop the surprised, chubster-dude in front of him, running for the door with a shrill shriek that rose an octave as Mikey landed on his shoulders.

Hopping across top of the crowd from shoulder to shoulder, as patrons were packed too tight to dodge his feet, he covered the distance in seconds. Diving into a shoulder-check, he slammed the bartender into the back wall in an explosion of booze and glass.

Dude had been creeping up behind Denim for some kind of ambush. Mikey didn't know what he planned to do with a cute, little paring knife and wasn't planning to find out.

From the floor, he looked up to find Denim and Porky staring at him.

But what about the other guards?

Scrambling to his feet, he glanced around in time to see the last one drop, screaming as a ball bearing tore through his shoulder.

Good they were safe.

He grabbed Hampton, really needed to decide on an official nickname for this one, by the back of the neck and slammed his face into the bar, pinning him there with his foot so he could hug Denim. "Geez, Blue Jeans. How 'bout a little teamwork?"

"You're one to talk." Phoenix pointed out, approaching them through a now mostly empty club, slingshot in hand.

Denim returned Mikey's embrace, realizing the second he touched her that she was on the verge of coming apart. Reflecting on a promise they'd made before the twins were born, Denim believed more now than ever, they really were each other's soul glue. Pressing her lips to his cheek, she exhaled a shaky breath. "Sorry. I just want our girls' home. And Gods I'm glad you're here."

Whether it was her words, their combined worry, or the whole thing Denim didn't know, but Mikey turned his head, catching her lips with his.

Porky began to let out a pained-disgusted grunting noise as Mikey's weight shifted putting more pressure on his neck, and Phoenix clapped her hands as if to scold everyone. "Time and place children! And this is not it."

Mikey and Denim pulled apart to look at their mother with sheepish grins, and dazed eyes. They always had picked the most impossible moments to stop and remind each other of their love. Years together had done nothing to change that.

Getting shot at? Steal a kiss.

Cops are coming for you? Steal a kiss.

Kids are missing? Steal a kiss.

The bottom line was, as long as they were together they'd get through. They always had and this would be no exception.

"Hello! Missing children?!" Phoenix threw up her hands, exasperated. "Question your hostage! Must I tell you everything?"

Denim looked from Mikey to Phoenix to the gun in her hand, and finally to the red-faced pig beneath Mikey's foot. "Right. You- "

"Uh, Blue Jeans, there's something I gotta tell you." Mikey's tone stopped her. She lifted her gaze, knew it was more bad news. He frowned. "Jem and the rest of the kids are gone too. We think they went after Scout."

Denim's eyes left his, flickered to the pig-man. "That shouldn't be a problem, since everyone keeps saying they're here." She pressed the barrel of the gun to the pig's temple. "What's your name, Piggy?"

"Fuck you." The pig squeaked.

Mikey scowled and Denim chuckled a cold laugh, cocking her weapon. "Listen close, I'm not big on repeating myself. My kids are missing, and word is they are here and you're going to tell us where." Pig-man looked less than motivated so Denim decided to make it real clear for him. "You need to understand something about me, my husband and my mother here. First, I so want to pull this trigger. In fact, my hubby is probably all that's stopping me- or he'll try. Depends on how fast I pull it." She leaned close to his curly pink ear, whispering. "And I'm real fast. Your brain matter will blow out all over the back of the bar here, all gory like, and see my hubby doesn't like all that mess. Which leads to you understanding how he works. See, that foot resting against your throat. Yeah, he's just got to apply a little pressure, a slight shift and snap. No more piggy. My mom on the other hand- "

"All right, all right, all right!" The pig snorted and squealed. "Who the fuck are you people? You're as bad as those chicks that roughed me up earlier."

Denim glanced at Mikey.

"Sapph, Dusa, and April." He shrugged.

Denim nodded, looked to the pig again. "Where's my girls?"

"Strippers are in the back. How do I know which ones yours?" He tried to wiggle beneath Mikey's foot. "Do they look like you? Lemme see you again."

One of his eyes opened and he looked at Denim, then his fat lips curled into a grin that had her trigger finger shaking. "Oh yeah, I see it now. Cherry. You look like Cherry- or she looks like you." He squinted then his eyes widened. "Well hell- Seeker looks like you too. If I knew they were sisters I mighta kept them here and offered a spec- "

Given the venue along with the crowd of strippers and creepers he'd just charged through and over, Mikey caught onto the insinuations of the swinester, naw the swine-gangster mash up wasn't doin' it, way quicker than usual. Which might not have been a good thing.

Because the next thing he knew, Denim and mom were trying to pry him off the guy as he repeatedly slammed his face into the now splintered bar, teeth scattering like dropped change.

"Easy, bad cop. Don't Raph out on him yet." Denim's words slowed his roll. They still needed the dude to talk.

Mikey spun him around and pinned him against the smashed shelves, all wood shards, jagged glass and alcohol.

"Listen, Bacon Bits," yeah, that was the name, "you're going to tell me where my daughters are. Right. Now." He practically growled, his voice sounding unfamiliar to him.

Bacon Bits moaned.

"Unless you wanna make out with the bar some more, you'd better start talking." Mikey gestured back at the face-sized dents in the wood behind him.

"Mmust ma might-mub manamer. Mum mirls met migger meals man mere. Merry and Meeker mare moo mod mem. Merry mot ma muyer. Moobed mo ma mistimution menter. Meeker meant moo Mipps moo merform." The pig's mouth was swollen so bad he could hardly talk.

Mikey flashed Denim a look that told her he might've messed the guy up more than he meant to. That was obvious to her when he came loose on the guy so damn fast she almost hadn't time to register what was happening. "You uh-getting any of this? He sounds like a cow now, I don't get what moo has to do with our girls."

Denim frowned. "I think- and don't lose your shit because you're not going to like this- but I think he's saying he's just a manager, some of the girls get bigger- deals than this place. Ours are two of them. One has a-" Denim swallowed as her stomach turned. "Buyer," she whispered. "The other went to- Mipps? Mipps? To perform?"

The pig nodded. "Mipps."

"There's an underground club called Tripp's," Anton said, appearing in the swinging door with Yuuta beside him. "I think they were both sold. They're bein' shipped to a distribution center an' neither Spot-" Anton held up Alli's phone, "or that Ham-steak know where it is."

"Maybe I can help."

At the sound of Sappho's voice, they turned to see her, Medusa and Arcos near the front doors.

Arcos looked around the deserted room. "So much for backing you up. Should we head over to the others?"

"Wait to sssee what we can learn about thisss disssstribution sssenter." Medusa responded.

Phoenix looked over at Anton. "Spot? As in Alli's ex?"

"What?" Denim demanded.

Anton gave a dark smile. "He ain't gonna be trafficking any more girls for a good long while. Enough time to get what's left of him behind bars."

"With all their official computers so clean, he must have another means of conducting his illicit business. If it's tech I can hack it, assuming we can find it." Sappho offered.

Yuuta, who'd been eyeing the pig mutant since entering the room, stepped forward. Reached into his coat pocket, he plucked out a slim phone. He handed it to Sappho, signing, "try this."

"Mull mebe kack ib."

Mikey squinted at Bacon Bits, then turned to Denim for a translation.

She shrugged. "He doesn't think Sappho can crack it."

Sappho opened a compartment in her skull and extended out a cable which she plugged into the phone. Smiling at the pig, she said. "We'll see about that."