April stared at the TV screen. Casey had recorded yesterdays news so she could watch.
Their apartment building was burning down.
Immediately, she grabbed her phone and called Leo. She could only imagine what was going through May's mind. If she was okay.
Leo answered.
Before he could even open his mouth, April started asking him about May, about the apartment, about the Purple Dragons.
"Woah, woah, slow down." Leo filled April in on the details, stuttering a little on the news of the building. "We don't have any leads on the Purple Dragons yet, but I have a feeling that's going to change soon. May's doing okay. She and Raphael are getting along really well."
April took a breath. At least her daughter was safe.
"We're going to find the Purple Dragons soon, April. And then, you and Casey can move into the lair for a while or something while you look for a new place to stay." Leo promised.
"Thank you, Leo." April sighed. "It's just been so stressful over here- and I just heard the news about the apartment building..."
"The important thing is that none of you got hurt." He assured her. "If any of you had been there that night-"
"Yeah..." April nodded, although she knew he couldn't see. "You're right."
"You found a clue?" May raised an eyebrow. "How? We barely were even in there."
"Yeah, but this caught my eye." Raphael held up a small ornamental purple box. It had no burn marks, and May had never seen it in her apartment before, but the small white outline of a dragon on the side was unmistakable.
"What's in it?" May asked, frowning.
"Uh..." Raphael twisted the dial on the lid a few times, back and forth, before giving up. "Donnie could probably get this open."
"We can't take it to Donnie!" May argued. "If we do, Leo will know we were back here and we'll get in trouble! They'll never trust us again, and Leo was just starting to maybe like me!"
"Since when do you care what Leo thinks of you?"
"That's my business." May growled.
Raphael smirked, lightly tossing May the box. "You open it, then."
May studied the box closely, and twisted the dial. There were no numbers, just a ticking sound every time the dial moved, like a typical numbered padlock. There was no indication what way you had to turn the dial.
"You don't have a stethoscope, do you?" She asked, holding the box to her ear and turning the dial slowly.
"A stethoscope? Why would I have a-"
"Nevermind! Got it!" May grinned, slowly opening the lid. Inside was a necklace and a note.
Raphael took the note and read it aloud as May examined the necklace.
"Dear May Rose Jones;
We know you and your family abandoned your apartment, so we set it on fire to send a message. We will find you, it's only a matter of time.
Since you're so clever, May Rose Jones, we figured you would manage to hack into our puzzle box. Or your friends the turtles did it for you.
The necklace is a gift. You can check it over for any sort of device you want, bombs, tracking device, microphones... You'll find nothing. It's just a necklace. Just something we stole that I thought would look good on your pretty little neck.
You don't know me, May Rose, but I know a lot about you and your family. You're not of age yet, but the law never did stop me. The things I would do to you if I could get my hands on you. We'd have a lot of fun, my dear.
Regardless, we figured you would be looking for us. So I took it upon myself to arrange a little clue hunt for you and your large turtle friend. Raphael is his name, correct? Not a very smart one, I would say.
Your next clue will be somewhere only you would find it. You'll know where to look; in the pile of ash that was once a building.
Good luck and have fun, you beautiful girl."
May shivered. The message was creepy. Raphael growled.
"What a creep."
May nodded wordlessly, and turned the necklace around in her hand. The pendant was a green heart that sparkled in the dim light of New York. Holding it up to her ear and shaking it revealed nothing. No ticking or weird static sounds. Nothing rattled inside. There appeared to be nothing suspicious about the necklace. That part of the note had been true, then. It was just a pretty necklace.
May tucked it back in the box with the note, closing it. She was hesitant to wear it, still unsure if it held any other secrets.
"The sun's coming up. We should go."
Raphael frowned. "You don't want to keep looking?"
"No. They want us to." May sighed. "We should go back to the lair and... I dunno. I just... I don't want to stay out here anymore. We're exposed... vulnerable."
Raphael nodded in understanding. The note had probably scared her more than she was letting on. They weren't giving up, they were regrouping. Taking a break. Besides, May was right about the sun.