Raphael stared out the window of April's car, tapping his fingers on his knee. In his mind, he again went over the things he wanted to say to LaShawn's mother. Just the thought that someone might think that he would shoot a young kid was infuriating to him. He had to put this thing to rest. He just had to.

From time to time, Raphael stopped his internal rehearsal to glance up at the front passenger seat, where Splinter was sitting. Just before they left, Raphael heard Splinter tell April, "His reasons may be wrong, but that does not mean the trip will not be worthwhile." What did that mean? No matter how many times he tried to concentrate on what he was going to say, he kept thinking back to those words.

Raphael finally stopped obsessing as April parked the car across from the apartment complex. Raphael looked up at it, frowning. It looked wrong to him somehow. Finally, as he got out of the car, it hit him. He was used to seeing the backs of buildings. And most of those looked the same - brick and stone, unattractive windows, ugly doorframes. Generally, the fronts of buildings were a lot nicer, but this one looked about the same in the front as it did in back. Apparently, LaShawn's family wasn't much better off than his was.

April led them across the street. It was getting late, so neither Splinter nor Raphael worried too much about being spotted. April buzzed the intercom and waited.

"Yes?" an indistinct voice said.

"Mrs Jackson? It's April O'Neil."

There was a slight pause, and then the voice said, "OK". A loud buzzing pierced the air, and April grabbed the door handle and pulled it open. April led the mutants up the rickety staircase and down the hall until she reached the last door. She paused there, looked back at Splinter, and smiled grimly. Splinter took a place just to the side of the door, somewhat in the shadows, and indicated for Raphael to do likewise. Once they were in position, Splinter nodded to April, who knocked on the door. A few seconds later, a voice spoke through the door. "Yes?" it said, somewhat uncertainly.

"Mrs Jackson?" said April. "It's April O'Neil."

There was another slight pause. "And you brought..."

"The two mutants? Yes, they're here."

Once more, there was a pause, and then the sound of locks being drawn back. Finally, the door opened, and Wanda Jackson peered out into the hallway. Raphael was somewhat surprised. She looked older, more run down, than she had seemed on TV.

April decided to take the initiative. "Mrs Jackson? I'm April O'Neil."

Mrs Jackson nodded, then asked, "Where are the...?"

"Right here." April moved to the side, and Splinter and Raphael stepped into the light. "This is Hamato Yoshi and Raphael." Splinter bowed when his name was said, and Raphael decided to follow suit.

Mrs Jackson simply frowned. After looking them up and down for a bit, she sighed. "Well, you may as well come in."

She opened the door a bit wider, and headed back inside. April pushed the door further open, and held it open for the others. Raphael looked around as he entered the apartment. He hadn't been in too many human residences, and this one easily appeared to be the worst. The front door led straight into the living room, with a smallish kitchen off to the side. The furniture and appliances were about as old and patchwork as what the turtles had in the lair, and although the place was fairly neat, it looked quite run down.

Mrs Jackson wearily sat down at a small table just outside the kitchen area - presumably the dining area. She looked at Splinter, and then at Raphael, waiting for one of them to begin.

Raphael looked at Mrs Jackson, about to launch into his rehearsed speech. But something about her made him pause. Her face wasn't unattractive, but it was haggard, as if she hadn't slept in several days. And Raphael detected an overwhelming sadness about her. Well, that wasn't surprising, thought Raphael. She just lost her only kid. And she didn't appear to have a husband around, either. Raphael pictured this woman, living with her daughter, probably struggling to make ends meet - them against the world, just like his family. But now she didn't even have LaShawn.

Suddenly, Raphael was aware of everyone staring at him. He swallowed, and looked back at Mrs Jackson. He thought back to his rehearsed speech, but he decided that he couldn't say it. Not to her, not now. She had just lost her only child - the last thing she needed was some mutant complaining that someone thought he had done it. Raphael was only vaguely aware of the tears welling up in his eyes as he finally spoke.

"Mrs Jackson, I'm so sorry."

Ms Jackson looked confused - this wasn't what she was expecting to hear.

Raphael looked at the floor and forced himself to go on. "I...I heard that someone spotted a mutant near your daughter. That was probably me. I talked to her a couple times, out on the fire escape." He felt the tears starting to fall again, but ignored them. "I...I only met LaShawn three times. And...I didn't talk to her all that much. But...she was..." Raphael looked up. "Mrs Jackson, I don't like people much. I don't get along all that good with anyone, even my brothers. But your daughter was really cool. I liked her. And when I heard that she'd been...shot, I..." Raphael closed his eyes and shook his head. "I couldn't believe it. It really broke me up. And if I felt like that after only talking to her three times, I...I really can't imagine what it's like for you. I'm so sorry."

Mrs Jackson, seeing Raphael cry, couldn't help but do the same. She closed her eyes and nodded. Then, wiping her eyes, she said, "My baby was something special."

"Yeah, she was."

"This woman here said it couldn't have been..."

"Me? No," said Raphael, gently but firmly. "No way. First off, like I said, I liked LaShawn. I wouldn't do anything to hurt her. Second, well, look." Raphael held out his hands, palms up. "My fingers are real big. I don't even think I could get my finger onto the trigger of a gun. Plus, I haven't been in this part of town since Monday."

Mrs Jackson stared at his hands, lost in thought. Finally, she said, "How'd you meet LaShawn?"

"I was finishing up patrol a couple weeks ago..."

"Patrol?" Mrs Jackson echoed.

"Uh, yeah." Raphael looked over at Splinter, who nodded. Apparently, it was OK to trust this woman. "See, my brothers and me...and Splinter here...we're trying to take down the Foot clan. So most nights, we go out on patrol looking to bust up their operations."

"The Foot? That's that gang, isn't it?"

"Yeah. Well, I don't know if I'd really call them a 'gang', but yeah. We're sort of...committed to shutting them down."

Mrs Jackson nodded. "Well, good for you, then."

Raphael smiled a bit before he went on. "LaShawn was out on the fire escape, crying. I just wanted to make sure she was OK. We talked a bit. From then on, whenever I was back in this area, I'd swing by and chat with her."

"You don't know who coulda done this?"

Raphael shook his head. "No. No clue. I don't know anyone in a gang."

"You never saw anyone in the alleyway?" asked April.

Scratching his head, he said, "N-no, not really. There was this purse-snatcher I caught a couple weeks ago out in the alley, but I don't think he had a gun on him." Raphael sighed. "I'm sorry. I wish I knew."

Sadly, Mrs Jackson nodded. "That's OK." She got to her feet slowly and looked at Raphael for a bit. "I'll tell you something, Raphael," she said, saying his name carefully. "I sorta knew LaShawn was having problems at school. She didn't like talking about it, and I've been so busy with work, I guess I never really had a chance to talk to her about it. I guess I didn't know it was botherin' her that bad. But she seemed kinda...better these last few days. I didn't really think about it, but looking back, she was happier. And I'm bettin' it's because of you." She stepped forward, and held out her hands. Hesitantly, and very surprised, Raphael stepped forward and took her hands. "Thanks for talkin' to my baby," Mrs Jackson said quietly.

Raphael pulled her a bit closer and hugged her. Once he stepped away, he realized he had started tearing up again. "I'm sorry," he said, wiping his eyes. "If there's anything me or any of us can do, please tell us, K?"

"I will. Thank you, Raphael."

Splinter decided that it would be best to conclude the visit. "Mrs Jackson," he said, "I thank you for allowing us to speak with you."

Mrs Jackson nodded. "Thank you for coming." She showed them to the door. "If you think of anything that might help the police...?"

"Yeah, we'll let them know," said Raphael for the group. "Thanks again, Mrs Jackson."

Mrs Jackson permitted herself a small smile. "Good luck with that other gang."