"God, I hate Mondays…" Samantha muttered as she thumbed through the different folders on the shelf to find the patients' folders that had appointments that morning. After retrieving the last one, she sat back down at the front desk to start going through them and write up the sheets for the doctor.
"Want me to make any copies?" The young girl beside her chimed. Samantha glanced over to see her young coworker, Meg, and then back down at the folder she just had opened. "This one year has an outdated medical coverage." She then flashed her brown eyes up to the 3 elderly patients who were already there that morning and sitting in the waiting room. "See if Mrs. Flagstaff has a new card." Samantha gingerly picked up the folder and handed it to Meg.
"Alright," Meg answered as she took the folder and moved over to one of the windows, opening the bottom with a slight pull. "Mrs. Flagstaff?" Samantha watched her and shook her head. Rookie. Meg was fresh out of high school and was taking night courses in nursing at the local community college. This was her first month at the clinic.
"Wait till you have been here as long as me…then you'll wish you had another profession…" Samantha muttered under her breath as she started to write down notes on the next patient's file. Samantha had been working there for nearly 12 years now. She too had got there fresh out of high school and got her degree in nursing, but never took the initiative to change jobs.
Just as she finished dotting down the patient's birth date, something caught her attention. She glanced up to see a young girl in her mid 20's standing at her window. The girl had long dark brown hair to her mid back with blue eyes. She looked a little pale and almost frightened about something…maybe about being there? "May I help you?" Samantha asked politely, flashing the girl with her bright green eyes.
"Yeah I am here to see Dr. Lamb…" The girl replied very softly, her voice trembling some.
Detecting the fear in her voice, Samantha debated if she should ask the girl she was alright or not, but pushed it out of her head. "Do you have an appointment?"
"Yes at 9:30."
"Alright go ahead and sign in and we'll get you taken care of," Samantha said in the same script she had said for the 12 years of her life. She watched the girl jot down her name, birth date, doctor's name and reason to be seen on the clipboard in the required fields. After the girl pulled back up, Samantha reached through the window to retrieve the clipboard. Her green eyes skimmed it over, and then looked back up at Mel, smiling at her. "Thank you, Melinda. I'll go ahead and retrieve your file; Dr. Lamb will see you momentarily."
Melinda smiled and walked back over to the large section of empty cushioned chairs in the center of the waiting room. She fumbled through her purse nervously, trying to keep her mind distracted. Why was she so scared on being here? Was it because the doctor wouldn't find anything to where he could write her excuse for missing so many days of teaching or was it something else? She wasn't sure why, but for the past few weeks, Mel seemed very ill in the mornings to where every morning she got sick and get terrible headaches. Sometimes she became so lightheaded she felt like she was going to pass out. Was it because she didn't have the stomach to eat anything else in the day after getting sick or was something very wrong with her? Her parents weren't too sure what it was and thought maybe she was making herself so sick by stressing out too much over school or staying up so late on the computer. Finally being threatened by her teachers to drop her from the program, Mel made an appointment to see what was wrong with her. Retrieving her cell phone from her purse, she started to punch through her Contacts list for no reason. Her whole body didn't feel normal. It started that way about a month after her departure from New York City. But why?
"Well I don't think you have a virus, Melinda," The elderly man spoke as he sat back on his stool to scribble some writing down into the folder. Dr Lamb was in his late 50's, but his hair color made him look older. He had white hair down to his neck, with a beard and mustache.
"Could it be stress?" Melinda asked, a frown on her face. Seeing that it was nothing major, then it wouldn't give her the excuse she needed to stay in her education program. "I mean…I have been sick like this almost everyday and it has effected my schooling…" Fear crept into her voice.
"It happens only in the morning?" He asked.
"Yeah…I think it is just me stressed out about my student teaching… but I didn't think it was that bad to where I am sick severely practically every morning…" Melinda fidgeted with her hands. Something in her body wasn't feeling right…she just didn't know what.
Dr. Lamb stared down at the folder for a moment, pausing, before he finally looked back at her, his gentle blue eyes looking at her. "Is there any possibility that you may be pregnant?"
The question struck Mel hard as guilt crossed her face. "No," She spat quickly, but then she paused. "I mean…maybe, but I…I…don't think that is what this is. It isn't the same symptoms." She said, protesting the issue. Memories of the intimate moment she had with Don before she left New York crossed her mind…that couldn't be possible…after all he was a different species…it wasn't biologically probable.
"I see…" Dr. Lamb paused again, taking in her words, he could tell by the scared look on her face that this was an issue that definitely petrified her. "Actually, Melinda…" He paused again, gathering his words, before finally continuing, "These symptoms are similar…now I am not saying that you are…it is one of the things we have to consider…I will give you a pregnancy test."
"A what?" Mel's eye went wide when he heard his sentence as if she couldn't quite compute what he was saying.
Garbled murmurs filled the air as passengers rose up from their seats to retrieve their belongings from the top bins once the 727 jet came to a full stop at La Guardia airport. The slowing whirring noise was heard as the turbine engines turned off. Robyn, one of the plane's attendants, stood at the main door to thank the passengers as they departed the plane. She was in her mid 40's with blonde curly hair, this was her 3rd flight to New York and it wasn't that bad. She was thankful that there were no annoying children on board and not a lot of turbulence. She heard all the horror stories from some of her fellow attendants who had experienced terrible turbulence on the flights that took them to California.
She smiled brightly and thanked the passengers over and over as they passed her one by one to go through the terminal. The plane got quieter as the travelers became less and less. Her eyes then focused on the last remaining passenger, who oddly turned out to be a girl in her mid 20's. She was walking down the aisle very slowly, her face fixed upon the floor. She was carrying no other items besides a blue sling bag that was over her shoulder. Robyn's smile disappeared into a frown as she watched her, with no words, just seeing this girl kind of made her sad. The girl seemed to be bummed about something. Once she got close enough up to her, the girl looked up shyly, smiled slightly and then looked back down. "Have a good day." Robyn said gently. The girl nodded her head in acknowledgment, but no words were said. She exited the plane like all the others.
The evening chilly rain began to settle in for the night in New York City. Travelers who were standing in line to catch a cab from the airport began to pop open their umbrellas and cover their valuable luggage with their coats. A large African-American male by the name of Dwayne stood at the front of the line directing the travelers to different designated spots near the sidewalk to where the cabs were stopping. He pulled the hood over his yellow poncho as he projected his voice loudly over the sound of the passing cars to the people in line, asking them how many were in their party. To be a native New Yorker, Dwayne really didn't have that much of a heavy accent.
A young Asian couple stood at the front of the line, waiting for their turn. Dwayne glanced over at the sidewalk to see the cabs pulling up to pick up their passengers and then squealing off, while another group of them continued on their way like a school of hungry sharks, waiting for their next bite. Seeing it was time to get some more, Dwayne turned his dark brown eyes back over to the Asian couple. "How many?" The man held up 2 fingers and Dwayne pointed over to the number 6 spot. "Take 6." The couple bowed politely, and then grabbed their stuff to head over to their designation, right before Dwayne asked the businessman behind them how many was in his group.
Mel shivered as the cold rain started to dampen her hair. She had neglected to bring an umbrella or a jacket on her journey. Who ever heard of rain in New York? That was a joke. She glanced around and counted the people in front of her trying to estimate how much longer she had to wait. Even though she had no clue where she was going, she felt like she was in a hurry; as if she was afraid that somehow her parents were following her and would catch her before she managed to find her haven in Manhattan. She seemed to be the only one who didn't bring any sort of travel luggage with her besides her bag. She was in such a hurry that she shoved enough clothes for 2 days in her bag along with her hygiene products and wallet. She really didn't want to put up with dragging around a luggage bag in the city. To make things even harder for her, she didn't really have that much money to stay in a hotel. The plane fare ate up just about all her money. How prepared she was! Course this wasn't very prepared…A LOT of things weren't that prepared…. Her parents thought she had went to school that day, but instead she left a note at her house saying she was going to out of town on a short notice to see Lea and that it was urgent. Without any other thoughts she had left to the airport to get the next flight to the Big Apple.
Finally after 15 minutes of standing in line, Dwayne glanced back over at her. "How many?"
"One," She said politely, her voice soft from her shyness and couldn't really be heard over the noise of the traffic, but Dwayne was good at reading lips so he knew what she said. He glanced over and then held up 4 fingers. Mel hurried her steps over to that spot and stood. Her blue eyes watching the cabs passing by. No sooner than a minute later, a normal dull yellow cab pulled up to her spot. A dark black man stood out of the car and walked over to see how much luggage she was carrying. He was almost stunned to see that she had none. Feeling odd, Mel quickly opened the back passenger side door and got in, placing her bag on her lap. The man got back into his seat and jotted down something in his log, before he reached over to hit a button on his fare monitor. "Where to?" He asked in a thick Jamaican accent.
Mel's brain just crashed. She had no clue honestly where she was going. "Uh…Midtown," She said quickly.
"Dat's a pretty big place. Any street?" He asked again.
"Uh…42nd street. Sorry," Mel said in embarrassment. That was the only place she could think of. Usually she knew a lot of streets for Manhattan, but her brain had completely died. What a time now! Times Square usually had a lot of people so she would feel safe there for the time being.
"42nd street," The man confirmed before he put the car back into gear. She watched him glance over behind his shoulder before he pulled off suddenly with a jolt into the mass of yellow cabs.
Mel let out a sigh of relief as she looked back to see the airport fading more and more into the background as the cab continued on its way into New York. As she neared the city, Mel saw the perfect aligned skyline. A warm feeling arose deep down inside her. Being in the city attracted her like a strong gravitational force. Her mind began to fill with recent images of what had just transpired within the past 48 hours.
Mel fished through her bag to retrieve the wallet as she felt the cab slowing down as the cab pulled over to the side of the busy street. She glanced up to see that the fare meter read $25.00. Mel wanted to smack herself for taking a cab into the city. She almost forgotten how expensive it was, but of course, she had no other way to get into the city. Now all she had left would be $100 to buy her meals. She pulled out a twenty and a ten and handed it to the driver. "Thank you." She said as she opened the door facing the sidewalk and scooted out.
"Have a good day," The driver called after her.
Mel shut the door and the cab pulled off quickly back into the rest of the traffic. Standing there almost stunned, Mel looked around. No matter how many times she had visited the city, it always seemed so new to her. It was just so gorgeous! Trying to see what time it was, she reached into her jeans pocket to retrieve her cell phone. A message displayed on the screen saying she missed a phone call. She thumbed through the buttons to the call log to see it was from her house. Definitely her family. With a deep sigh, Mel shoved the phone back into her pocket. She would deal with them later once she got settled. She sniffled some as the chilly air made her nose cold. She knew if she stayed out in this weather too long she may get a cold. Until she had decided on what to do, Mel decided it would be in the best interest to go inside one of the souvenir shops to look around.
The blood almost froze in her veins when she heard the sound of 2 familiar voices enter the shop that she was at. She glanced up fearfully from the rack of souvenir t-shirts towards the front entrance on the other side of the store to see Casey and April walking in. "I'm tellin' ya, April, I will be like 2 seconds. I just need to get me another pendant."
"Your 2 seconds is up, Casey Jones," April replied with annoyance in her voice. "Besides I thought you ALREADY had a Yankees pendant. Why didn't you get another one when we went to that game a few months ago?"
"Awe, come on, April. Don't be all nerdy with me," Casey huffed loudly as his eyes desperately skimmed the area in search of what he was looking for. Mel ducked down behind the shirts and caught the glimpse of a fellow woman shopper near looking at her in bewilderment. Mel peered around the sides, hoping that they didn't see her.
"I don't believe it…" Casey's voice filled Mel's ears and she started to panic. She kneeled down to act like she was tying her shoe. WHY did she have to run into them? She desperately glanced around, looking for a possible escape route.
"Believe what, Casey?" Mel heard April ask.
"They actually have one!" Casey yelled out loudly in excitement. Blinking in confusion, Mel lifted up some, becoming more sure of herself and saw that Casey had actually saw his pendant and not her. She watched the 2 make their way over to the other end of the store to where there was a corner filled with Yankees merchandise. Mel let out a sigh of relief. How CLOSE of a call that was! Letting her guard down briefly, Mel watched the 2 with interest. The red head stood behind the black haired man with a hand on her hip in frustration.
"Again I ask, Casey, DON'T you already have one of those?" April asked.
"That was an old one…besides I gave it to Raph." Casey answered with his back still to her, he reached out and retrieved one of the pendants off the shelf. His blue eyes looking over his prize like a young child finding a toy that he had been looking forever for.
"Oh…you mean the one you LOST to Raph right?" April smirked; remember when Raph and Casey had made a bet who could build the fastest bike. Casey had given Raph some kind of pendant, but she wasn't sure which one until now.
"No…I GAVE it to him," Casey pouted.
Seeing the 2 distracted and not for too much longer, Mel took the time to quickly move out of the store without being seen. Knowing that April lived in Soho, Mel decided it would be safer for her for the time being to go Uptown. Without another thought, she darted to the pedestrian crossing and followed the crowd across to the next block, blending in with the mass of people.
"I hope you're happy, Casey Jones. We went all the way up here to just get you a pendant," April said like a mother scolding her child.
"You bet, babe," Casey said, his eyes still on the pendant as he held it cautiously with his hands.
"Don't call me, babe…"
"Alright, sweetcakes."
"Case-."
"Whoa…" Casey replied, cutting her off as he held up his hand, a serious expression was on his face. His eyes darting around the busy streets.
"What is it?" April asked the expression on his face was starting to scare her. Why did he suddenly get so quiet for?
"I sense something…" Casey said with strong confidence in his voice.
"Oh don't be so melodramatic. Don't start to freak me out like the guys do." April rolled her eyes.
"I seriously felt a presence!" Casey whined.
"Sure you did. Let's head back." April beckoned as she took his hand to lead him away.
"Can I keep this at your place?"
"I thought you wanted it in your living room, Casey?"
"Nah…your place would be cooler with it there."
"I don't want it, Casey…"
"Aww…it will go along with your other junk, April."
I don't HAVE junk." April said bluntly as the 2 walked along with the crowd of evening travelers to head back downtown.
"Again!" Leonardo's voice barked at his 3 brothers as he blocked all 3 of their attacks. Raphael growled out in frustration as he dove at his brother, his right sai lashing out, but quickly being blocked by Leo's katana. Michelangelo and Donatello went in unison. Michelangelo's attack a littler quicker than Don's, giving Leo the time he needed to maneuver to kick at Mike and use his other katana to block Don's bo staff. With one hard shove he was able to push Don away far enough to where he could focus both of his swords against Raph, holding both of his brother's sais up, leaving his plastron vulnerable just briefly to where he did a hard swift right kick, knocking Raphael back into Mike. Donatello went for another to strike with his staff, but Leo turned around swiftly on his heel, putting one of his katana back in its sheath, then grabbing the bo and slinging Donatello to the side. Donatello let out a cry as his body impacted into the cold hard rooftop.
"Donatello…you are slow. Get faster!" Leo barked, his breathing was intense. "Michelangelo, your moves are sloppy! Raphael, your anger gives away too much weakness. AGAIN!" Every muscle in his body was tense, his knuckles became lighter in color as he gripped his one katana tightly. His eyes focused on all 3 of his brothers. The rainwater was coating their reptilian bodies, but none of them seemed to mind it.
"You're REALLY getting under my shell, Leo. You know that?" Raphael growled in annoyance as he went at his brother again in a solo attack. A move that Leo could predict so easily.
"Raphael, have you EVER learned!" Leonardo screamed as he blocked his brother's attack with his sword, his other hand reaching out grabbing his brother's wrist tightly, twisting it as he pulled back his arm, then his foot double struck Raph's plastron again with an immense force. Raphael's body fell onto the roof with a sickening thud.
Michelangelo's eyes went wide as he watched the 2. "Raph! Come on, Leo, lay off will you?" Leo's younger sibling pleaded.
"Attack me!" Leonardo ordered. His eyes focusing on his brother. "You too, Donatello." No response came from his other younger brother. "Donatello?" He glanced over to see Donatello standing there, his eyes off in the distance, his mind totally away from the fight. A feral growl escaped Leo's throat as he sheathed his other sword and stormed over to his brother. "Donatello! Focus!"
"Oh….sorry, Leo." Donatello said, embarrassed as he turned back around to face his brother, his bo staff in an attacking position.
After helping his brother up from the roof's floor, Mike walked over to where Don stood. "What's up?" He searched his brother's expression, trying to see what was wrong. It didn't seem normal for Don to be the one distracted from practice.
"It's…it's nothing, Mikey," Donatello replied back. He let his eyes wander back to where he was looking at earlier…he felt something…as if someone was nearby…who wasn't sure who…but something was tugging at his soul.
"Man…I wish Leo would take it easy…I still hurt all over from our battle with the Shredder," Michelangelo whined as he rubbed his sore right arm.
"I hear you, Mikey," Donatello replied as he rubbed his injured wrist that was still bandaged up. At least he was thankful to be out of the arm sling and it didn't hurt as bad, but it was still quite painful to spin the bo staff or even use the weapon at all. Michelangelo's legs still had some bandages around him, but he was able to walk now without the crutches. Raphael had some small bandages on his body, but nothing major. Leo's shell had a piece missing, a scar to remind him of the battle he thought they supposedly lost…a battle to where he felt they could have won…if they had TRAINED better…hence his brutal training sessions. He blamed himself…he wasn't going to let them down again.
"You sure you're okay, Donnie? You seem kind of lost…" Michelangelo interjected.
"Yeah…just…I don't know…I just felt something…" Don whispered as he overhead Leo and Raph bantering each other.
"Felt what?" Michelangelo whispered back.
Before Donatello could reply, Leo said, "Are you 2 going to join us?"
"Uh sure….um, sorry," Donatello said as he and Michelangelo ran over to join their brothers in the sparring match.
A sad sigh escaped her mouth as Melinda sat on the bench near the park. Night had settled in and she watched the many car headlights travel along the street as the sound of water splashing from their tires. She felt the bench's wetness underneath her, but she didn't care. She needed to rest some. She felt so alone inside, almost scared. What was she doing here? This was stupid! Suddenly she felt a calming sensation enter her body, suppressing all the bad thoughts that came into her mind. She glanced up across the street at one of the old catholic churches. Its grey stone architecture differed from the steel that ran throughout the city. She let her blue eyes survey the structure to the roof top to where a small cross was on the top, then along the roof was a small grey stone angel, perfectly carved, almost inseperatable from the building if one didn't look closely. A smile appeared on her face as she heard her voice in her head asking Donatello if he was her guardian angel months ago. Pushing the thought out of her mind, she rose up from the bench and decided to continue her way on; oblivious to the fact that on top of the building next to where she almost sat were 4 humanoid turtles engaged in a rigorous training exercise.
The sweet taste of the wine flowed into his mouth as Hun sipped from the wine glass as he sat in the back of the limo. Across from where he sat in the car, there was a television screen to where the local news was reporting. The report was on the new high tech equipment that the industry, TechCor, had developed. A sinister smirk appeared on the large man's face as he watched the report. His brown eyes glowed with pleasure. The technology that the company was creating was what he wanted to get his hands on…it would promise him a guarantee to keep everything that he had right now in his life….the power that he held. The deal that he made with Ruffington could guarantee all that and so much more…IF he could get what Ruffington wanted from TechCor plus he could keep some of it…no sense in Ruffington keeping it all for himself. He glanced out casually from the tinted limo windows to the streets as he rode by. His brown eyes then fixed on a young girl walking in the rain. He spat out his wine and placed the glass down quickly on its stand. "Holy…." He turned around quickly in his seat to look back to watch her start to disappear as the car moved away from her. "Stop the car!" He bellowed. The limo came to a quick halt as it pulled over to the side of the road that she was walking near. Hun opened the door. The driver moved quickly out of the car and over to hold the door open for Hun. Mel stopped in bewilderment as she looked on. Suddenly a very familiar form stepped out of the limo, it was Hun. His appearance had changed from last that she saw him. Instead of having the same black outfit that he had on while he was with his gang, he now had on a very expensive looking suit. This stunned her and she felt like she was frozen into place. A cool, smirking grin appeared on his face as he started to approach her. Why couldn't she move away? Every nerve in her body began to tingle as flags started to go off, warning her to get away. "Well…well look who's back," a deep chuckle came from his throat.
Finally finding the strength to lift her feet off the ground, Mel turned around and ran as hard as she could to get away. Not daring to look back, she ran as straight as she could, but afraid that he would catch up with her, she spun quickly on her heel and darted into a darkened alley between 2 buildings, hoping that the darkness could hide her form as she ran. To her horror when she was about midway into the alley, she saw that there was a dead end. A huge brick barricade was up and it was too high for her to reach up to climb over. Glancing around frantically she started to grab a box from the alley's floor to move over to see if that would give her the height she needed to grip the top, but it was still too short. As she went to retrieve something else, she saw that Hun was now standing at the front of the alley. His eyes watching her in amusement seeing her desperate struggle to get away. "Got yourself in trouble again…didn't you, Melinda?" He sneered as he started to approach her, his brown eyes twinkling at her in pleasure.
Mel's heart was pounding as she backed further away, but to only find herself being stopped by the solid blockade. Her lips were trembling and no words could be spoken. "Where are those freaks?" He asked as his facial expression had changed from pleasure to almost disgust.
"I haven't been with them," She replied, finally finding the courage to speak. "I have been gone for months!" The last sentence was emphasized as fear rose in her voice.
"I see…so you came back for them?" Hun spat as he finally stopped, he was now only about 10 feet away from her. His large form blocked her only means to escape. She felt so alone.
"No," Mel replied quickly. Trying to change the subject and in hopes for any further confrontation, she looked at him. "What happened while I was gone? Why are you dressed like that?" Her hand motioning to his new outfit.
The smile reappeared on his face from her question; she noticed how much interest he had in replying to her almost like he was bragging. "So you really don't know what happened do you? Looks like those freaks tried a front assault on the Shredder during my Master's…last dinner celebration." Mel noticed that Hun said the word "master" like it was pure poison. This was very different from how he use to act around Oraku Saki. Before he held him up with such honor and respect that if anyone had just what he said months ago, Hun would have probably knocked them out. "Well the Shredder's gone now…too bad the freaks didn't go with him. So now I AM the Master."
"Of the Foot?" Mel asked baffled by what he just said.
"No, of the Dragons…MY men…we don't need all that martial arts crap to get the job done…" His brown eyes twinkled as he spoke, pride entering his voice. "Soon I will have more power than the Shredder ever hoped to have." Mel was puzzled by how negative Hun was towards Oraku Saki. What exactly had happened during the last battle? Did he betray him? Were the guys okay? "Why don't you join us?" A sly smirked appeared on the large man's face. "You know…once a Dragon…always a Dragon."
Mel's brow furrowed as his remark hit almost like a slap across the face. Her jaw became clenched as she gained more courage to approach Hun. "What makes you say that? I have no need to join you, Hun…I am NOT that stupid…now if you excuse me." She started to walk past him, her blue eyes never glancing up at him, but set straight ahead around him to where the entrance of the alley was.
Hun sidestepped to let her pass, but he wasn't giving up just yet, his dark eyes followed her. Right when she got to the entrance of the alley, he spoke again, "Where are you going to go to then? Just how long do you think a person like you will last on the streets of this city? This is my turf."
"I am not scared." Mel replied back, hiding the fear, her back still to him. "Who says that I don't have somewhere to stay?"
"Because…." Hun let out a pleased, but teasing chuckle. "You are lying…you are alone, Mel. You have been down this path before…and look where it took you? Right to the Dragons…MY Dragons…"
Mel spun around on her heels, her blue eyes glaring at him angrily; fire was in her eyes. "Get it out of your head right now, Hun." She spat; anger had clouded her fear as she faced him.
Hun's facial expression proved that he wasn't amused, but yet he showed no threatening irritation towards the young woman. "Then go on…I bet you won't last all night on the streets…" A teasing smirk appeared on his face. "Wait to be murdered or even raped…"
Mel's eyes went wide as she heard his words, seeing how amused he was. "Bastard!" She screamed as she turned on her heel to leave.
A sickening laugh filled the air from Hun's mouth. Her words not even fazing him. "You know, Melinda…you are pretty cute when you're so pissed off."
Mel's fists tightened as she bit her lip, suppressing the much desire to scream more vulgar words to him, but she took deep breaths to calm herself. No she wasn't going to let him get to her. "Go on then." Hun continued to laugh.
Mel sighed sadly as she stayed where she was and looked down the roads. Her eyes glanced down at her stomach. She knew he was probably right and she had more to worry about now than just herself. Hun watched her with interest, seeing the hesitation now in her. He started to approach her once again. "Doubts?" He asked beckoningly.
Mel cursed under her breath as she looked up across the street, and then turned back around to face him. "Hun, I will go back for now…BUT…" She paused as she looked squarely at him, making sure she had his utmost attention.
"What's that?" Hun asked, almost in shock how firmly she stood up to him.
"I don't want any of your men to touch me."
An eye ridge raised on the large man's face as he looked at her, the smile disappearing, but reappearing once again, but bigger. "You have my word."
"Especially YOU." Mel added. She could tell by Hun's new stature that he probably didn't have the same original gang before…and with all the power that he had…most of the people in his gang were men…men with no lives…men who would take anything that was thrown to them. She wanted to make it clear that she wasn't going to play by their rules. Not even Hun's.
"I would never think of such a thing," Hun laughed at his own joke.
Her feet gingerly pressed against the marble color plush carpet in the room as Jade made her way into the large multipurpose room as she tied her silk jade robe around her body. The soft material caressed her moistened skin as she slipped it over her gown, her skin still partially wet from the bath she had just taken. As she sat down on the large King size bed that was covered with a black satin comforter, Jade moved her hair around behind her with the fingers on her right hand to hold it up into a nicely formed bun, then using her left hand she started to place into her hair 2 chopsticks to support the hair's structure. After momentarily sitting there, Jade lifted herself back up from the bed and walked over to the large glass window that overlooked the main hall of the building. The window gave an ideal view to the entrance door. It must have been perfect timing because right when she got up right to the window, her hazel eyes saw a few of the Dragons walking to the door to greet their leader's return. A warm fuzzy feeling filled Jade's body as her eyes cast upon him, however, it soon dissipated when she saw that he wasn't alone…and with another woman no doubt. Jealousy now overflowed her emotions as daggers filled her eyes, her attention now centered fully on this strange woman who looked to be about the same age as her. To sicken her even more was by seeing the huge smirk on Hun's face as he talked to his men, he was definitely pleased about something. However, the girl didn't seem to be that interested in Jade's Master or she really seemed to hide it; plus she really didn't dress the type to be some girl that Hun easily picked off the streets.
With an angry growl escaping her throat, Jade spun quickly around on her heel towards her room to change into her clothes. She wanted to confront Hun on this matter and this woman, whoever she was.
"After you," Hun smirked as he held the door opened for Melinda as she walked into the Dragon's hideout. Mel's eyes were wide when she saw where she was. She felt like she had just stepped into the lobby of some luxurious hotel like the Plaza at Central Park! This was definitely not the Hun she had remembered months ago or for that matter the Purple Dragons. There weren't young teenagers walking around with chains and multiple tattoos. Instead it was actually men, not mere boys, but actual men who looked a step up more dignified. Hun watched Mel look around in pure astonishment. He walked closer and moved his head down lower to where his mouth was right near her ear, "Does it impress you?" A bragging tone in his voice.
Mel moved quickly away and hid her expressions. She waved her hand like she wasn't that impressed. "It's decent." She walked over more to gain more distance from Hun, then turned around to face him. "So where am I to sleep? I am kind of tired," she lied.
"You don't want a tour?"
"Master, it is glad to have you back," Another feminine voice filled the air. Mel turned around to see a young woman around her same age wearing light green slip over spring type dress with 2 black chopsticks in her hair holding it up in a bun. The girl's hazel eyes were focused on Melinda in resentment.
"Mel, this is Jade. A fellow, loyal, Dragon…" Hun motioned to the young woman.
"Nice to meet you," Mel replied politely, confused on why the girl appeared to be so hostile against her.
Jade's focused went to Hun once again, not showing any interest in Mel. "Who is she?"
"An old friend…" Hun chuckled. "Jade, take her to the spare room. She needs her rest after all." Without any more words, he turned and walked off towards the hallway on the right leaving the 2 women alone.
Jade glanced over at Mel and sighed in annoyance. "Come with me."
Mel followed Jade up the spiral soft staircase to the 2nd floor to where there was a hallway. She opened the room about 3 doors down on the right that led into a very spacious bedroom. In the center was a bed that had velvet red covers on top, something that looked like it belong for a Honeymooner's suite. "Uh…here? It's kind of much." Mel said as she walked inside.
Jade laughed a little. "I figured you would like something a little more luxurious to be Hun's old FRIEND." Jade said as she walked past Mel and sat down on the bed.
Mel stood there blinking in confusion. What was going on? Did this woman know about her past? Was that she was so ticked at her? Or was it something different? Judging by how the girl was dressed and how her eyes at locked onto Hun, was she his lover? The thought almost disgusted Melinda, this girl seemed to be a lot better than to be with Hun. "Thank you…I promise I won't stay long. I just needed the rest." Mel stuttered some as she walked over to place her bag onto the floor.
"Yeah right. Don't think you will be leaving here anytime soon," Jade said as she rose up from the bed. "What does he want with you anyways?" That was it…it was jealousy. The girl had cut down to the chase.
"Me? Uh…" Mel's brain totally froze. Maybe this strange women didn't know who she was, but now her hesitating like this was making her a lot more guilty on the girl's suspicions. "I'm not really sure." She stammered, her blue eyes darting up to look at her, then back down. "Look whatever you think is going on…it's not. I HONESTLY have no interest in him what so ever."
There was a long pause, Mel flinched, waiting for the girl's reaction, but instead there was silence. Gasping slightly from shock, Mel slowly lifted her head back up to look at Jade. "He will speak with you in the morning," the girl spat coldly as she walked out of the room and slammed the door. Mel shuddered from the impact of the door closing. Maybe she didn't make the right decision.
"You don't understand…" Mel said softly into the emptiness of the room. "I don't want Hun….I…want Donatello…" Sadness filled her heart as she sat on the bed. Her eyes fell down to her stomach once again. After all that had happened she knew she couldn't go back to him.
The mattress of the bed pressed down by Hun's weight as he sat down, his hands unbuttoning the buttons on the middle of his suit jacket before he pulled it back over his arms and layed it upon the bed. He then began to undo his tie. There was a light knock on the door and he lifted his eye ridge as he casually looked over before turning back around, his back towards the door. "Come in."
Jade opened the door and walked inside, a displeased look upon her face as she entered, but she quickly covered it up. Her eyes never leaving him as she closed the door. Hun turned back around to look at her in a non-caring glance then he turned back around to keep his back to her, his hands going back to untying his tie. A soft chuckle escaped from his mouth. "Something that you want, Jade?"
Becoming annoyed by his question, she moved around to where she could face him, she pressed her back against the table and leaned back against it some casually. "So who is she?"
A smirk slid across Hun's face. He was actually becoming quite amused by the sheer jealousy that Jade had. "You do not approve?" He placed his tie down on the bed's cover.
"You didn't answer my question," Jade replied back in a harsh tone, not wanting to play any of Hun's games.
"An old friend." Hun said as the smirk disappeared.
"What KIND of an old friend?"
"She use to be a Purple Dragon…" Hun said as he sat back up from the bed, waving his hand. "Does she bother you THAT much?"
"I wouldn't be bothered with a girl like THAT," Jade spat. "I just wanted to know your intentions with her."
"Business use I assure you, Jade."
"Yeah right…" Jade scoffed as she looked away. "I know how your BUSINESS deals go." Becoming angrier inside, Jade stood straight back up and started to make her way back towards the door. She let out a gasping cry as she felt him grab her arm roughly and pull her back to him. His deep brown eyes looking right down into her hazel ones. His hand reached out to stroke her face.
"She has pure innocence, Jade…something that I can take advantage of for our new heists…BUSINESS only…you…" A feral smile appeared on his face. "I have many uses for you."
Ripples flowed throughout the pool in the middle of the lair as Don dipped his legs gently into the cool water. Beside him was a breathing mask apparatus that he was going to use to go down into the water to explore the tunnel some more for any more upcoming projects. Sitting there, he leaned down to look into the pool, seeing his own reflection in the smooth waters. He sat lifeless, just staring into the pool as his mind drifted off to somewhere else.
Becoming kind of bored of just lounging around the place, Raphael walked over to see what his brother was up to. Michelangelo had taken his normal place in front of the televisions, playing Battle Ravage, and Leonardo was sitting on the floor with his Master, meditating. Raphael found both what his other 2 brothers were doing was not interesting at all so he decided to check in on Don since he seemed kind of out of it during the sparring match. But then again who was in the mood to spar so intensely 24 hours a day with Leo's new attitude? "Yo, Brainiac, what are you workin' on this time?" Raph asked playfully as he approached him. There was no response from Don, not even a head turn to acknowledge that he was talking to him. "Donnie?" He asked again, now more concerned for his brother.
Don looked over at Raphael, knowing he was caught daydreaming and then reached over beside him to grab apparatus. "Hey, Raph, I am sorry. I was resting." He stumbled even though Raphael could pretty much tell that he was lying.
"What's eatin' ya, bro?" Raphael asked as he looked down at him, standing there with his arms crossed.
"Nothing, Raph," Don said quickly as he shifted his body some to act like he was ready to get into the water, ripples flowing again in the pool once again by the movement of his legs.
Raphael rolled his eyes, hating to see his brother moping around lately. First it was Don when Melinda left, then Leo was when Lea left and after the battle with Shredder, now it looked like Don was at it again, but he wasn't sure why. "Look…" He said in a harsh tone. "I'm getting really tired of seeing you and Leo walk around like somethin's stuck in your shells! What the hell is wrong with you two!"
"Raph, just let it go…I said I was fine," Donatello replied softly, his eyes never looking at his brother.
"Why don't you frickin' call her already? You NEVER call her so it's your own damn fault why you are down."
Leo overheard the conversation as he got up from meditating to start to go through his daily solo katas. He turned his glance over to where Raph and Don were. He then quickly glanced over at his youngest sibling to see Mike had sneak in a glimpse as well, but turned around quickly to continue his game. Leonardo was hoping that since Don wasn't the one to talk back that it wouldn't provoke Raph anymore and Michelangelo was hoping the same thing.
Leonardo felt himself growling lowly as his eyes focused on Don's facial expressions, no matter how much his nerdy brother was covering up his emotions, Leonardo could read through the barrier. Raph was striking serious blows to Don. "Raphael." Leonardo called out. "Come here for sparring." He ordered sternly.
"Don't defend him, Leo," Raphael barked back. "You ACT the same way. I wish you 2 never MET them…this is just getting stupid. You 2 mope around with your tails between your legs when you don't do a damn thing and then want us to pity you!"
Don's eyes went wide by Raphael's words, the words had seeped in deeply. He looked away once again, staying out of the conversation. However, Leo had chosen something else. With a flash, he was right up on his brother, his eyes in slits, looking right at his brother. "I don't WANT your pity…" He hissed.
"Good…" Raphael hissed back challenging. Donatello tensed up as he heard his brothers….the air was thick and everything was now on pins and needles.
Before any more words were said between the 2 brothers, Splinter moved in quickly and pushed them away. His right hand resting against Raphael's plastron to keep him apart as his other hand with his walking stick held up to block Leonardo. "Leonardo…you will practice with me. Come." He said in a commanding tone and turned to walk over to the training section of lair, leaving no time for any replies back. Giving his brother one more glare, Leo spun on his heel and followed his Master.
"Just don't turn out to be like him, Don…" Raph said lowly as he turned and walked up to his room.
With a heavy sigh, Donatello had lost all interest in whatever he was going to do before the talk. He set the apparatus back on the floor and got up. He walked over to his workstation and sat back down once again in front of the computer. His mind filled with Raphael's words. He hadn't really spoken to her months, just once after she went home. He didn't call her because she never called him and he felt if she really wanted to talk, then perhaps she would call him. He slumped down into his chair as he continued to ponder about everything, his eyes tiredly looking at the computer monitor. "Maybe she forgot about me…" He thought to himself.
Mel's eyes skimmed down the computer's LCD screen as she stood in a makeshift lab that morning at the Purple Dragon's hideout. That night before she had plotted to leave very early in the morning without Hun noticing because she felt like she was doing the wrong thing by being there. However, her body had protested and she didn't wake up that morning till nearly 11! Was she that tired? She had cursed herself for sleeping in so late to prevent her from leaving. She was greeted that morning by one of Hun's henchmen, Fang, and he escorted her down to the computer lab where he said his master was waiting for her. "Let me get this straight…you are going after some of the tech plants now?" Mel asked in confusion as she blinked at the screen. Hun had trusted her in telling her what they were doing.
"We have been successful against NeoTech and are about to hit TechCor and Symatradon." Hun replied.
"What for though?" I mean…this doesn't look your type." Mel decided to act like she was interested so he wouldn't be suspicious of her leaving so soon.
"I have a business deal and let's leave it at that for now." Hun said coolly.
"And why are you showing me this?" Mel looked away from the PC back to Hun, her arms crossing casually.
"I need your help," Hun smiled back as he gazed over at Jade who was standing near Mel, her back pressed up against the wall as she listened.
"My help?" Mel asked, surprised by his question. What qualifications could she possibly have to do any heists?
"Because you look too innocent for anyone not to trust you…something my men don't have to offer," Hun paused then a smirk slid across his face. "Besides you were with the nerd…you must have learned something."
Mel felt her face flush from Hun's last comment, her mind instantly going back on Don. "Look…I KNOW high tech stuff without HIS help." She spat back angrily.
"So you joining us?"
Mel stared at Hun as she debated inside her head what to do. She knew this was a bad idea to even be there…more than less join up with him again. "I don't think so, Hun. I won't be that useful to your little missions." She said as she looked away, feeling herself crumbling. Just the thought of knowing that Hun wanted to use her for her technological capabilities made her think how similar she was to Don, but this time, the high tech knowledge would be used for a bad gain.
Jade watched Melinda with interest, seeing the internal conflict that she had. "Maybe she misses that freak still, Master?" She asked evilly.
Mel was shocked by Jade's question and anger quickly entered her mind to defend her. "That's not true!"
"Then why are you hesitating? You were a Dragon once right? Why is it so hard to go back to us?" Jade continued on. Hun watched the 2, his eyes glowing seeing how Jade was breaking down Mel's defenses.
"You will be rewarded, Mel…I spoil all the Dragons now and you will be counted as one of them," Hun added.
"Maybe she wants to be spoiled by that freak instead?" Jade continued on as she looked over at him. She knew that the nerd that Hun had referred to was one of the turtles. Who else could it be? He did overhear Hun talking to Fang that night about Mel as well. Jade's hazel eyes then looked back over at Melinda as she began to wonder why this girl even liked one of them. Hun chuckled softly by Jade's question, but remained silent, his eyes locked on Mel, waiting for her to respond.
Mel looked down at her shoes, her fingers fidgeting nervously. She knew they were looking directly at her, but her brain was rushing with responses that she totally froze on the spot. What was she going to say? Finally after calming herself down, she glanced back at them. "Look. Let me think on this, okay? Could you at least give me that?" She looked directly into Hun's brown eyes, gathering her courage.
"I don't see why not."
The sound of the church bells chiming in the cathedral nearby made Mel glance up towards it. She looked at the hands on the clock to see that it was nearing 4pm that evening. She had been walking around aimlessly in the city for nearly 4 hours now. The city didn't seem to be that big enough because she felt like she had nowhere else new to visit unless she went into places that wouldn't be safe like Harlem, Bronx, and Queens. Luckily her bag held all of her clothes and Hun didn't know that she had her clothes with her so she had taken her bag with her when she went out so she wouldn't have to go back to the Dragons. She honestly didn't want to return there. But where else was she going to go? Would she really risk staying somewhere on the streets in the city? How long could she walk around and stay awake like this? She had rationed herself to only eating a pack of crackers for her lunch to preserve her money and her stomach was already grumbling loudly from hunger. Melinda had even chanced on walking around Soho that afternoon to go somewhere different. Turning the corner onto Spring Street, Mel spotted a market store and knew she should better stop to try to find some more snacks to pack along with her. Walking up to the door, Mel lowered her eyes to reach into her side jeans' pocket to see how many dollars she had as her other hand reached for the door's handle. Glancing back up, Mel stopped suddenly seeing a form moving towards the door to go out. "Excuse me…" She mumbled as she kept her head down shyly and moved back some to let the person pass.
"It's okay," A male voice replied back, a very familiar male voice. Recognizing it, Mel looked back up to see Casey Jones standing there, who carried 3 plastic bags filled with different food items. Casey's blue eyes focused more on her and he nearly dropped his bags. "I don't believe it! Melinda? That really you!" He said loudly, still standing in the doorway.
"Hey, Casey. Yeah it's me. How are you doing?" Mel asked, her voice shaking as she looked at him.
"Whoa! Don's going to be so thrilled when he sees ya!" Casey went on, ignoring her question. He walked past her to his car nearby on the sidewalk and tossed his bags into the backseat. "Come on." He motioned with his hand.
Mel froze in place. Would she really go with him? She didn't mean to see the guys so quickly. She was actually quite scared. "Uh…go…go where, Casey?"
"To see them. You not busy are you? Don't you wanna see Donnie?" His blue eyes focused on her once again.
"I'm not busy, Casey….it's kind of late though," Mel stumbled, trying to make up excuses.
"Late? What are you? Leo? Come on. They are at my grandma's farm and I was stopping in the city to get some food and pick up more stuff from April's place. It shouldn't be that long of a drive," Casey smirked playfully as he turned and walked over to the driver side of the car; he leaned over the roof, still looking at her. "Trust me, Don NEEDS to see you." His voice became more serious.
"Needs to see me?" Mel asked, confused by the urgency.
"Yeah…well you see….the guys took on the Shredder…and got pretty banged up by it…they are not the same, especially not Leo…I dunno about Don…you know the dude never talks. Come on, Mel. April will be worried if I don't get back soon." He opened the door and got in. Mel stood there blinking by what he just told her. She knew he was waiting for her to get in. What would she do? Would she turn around and run off? Finally stepping forward, she walked over and opened the car door and got in. She held her bag to her nervously as she kept her eyes away. She could feel her heart now pounding so fast. Why was she feeling this way?
There was great silence in the car as they made their way out of Manhattan towards upper New York where the farmhouse was. Finally Casey broke the silence as he casually asked, "So why you in New York again? Did you just get here? Could you not find the guys?"
"I just got here actually," Mel lied. "I was on the way to my hotel. I was actually pretty jetlagged from the flight so I thought I would try to call them in the morning…"
"Cool."
"So what happened to them?" Mel asked, diverting the attention from her back to the guys, though she was pretty guilty of worrying for Donatello. That was a given and she couldn't hide it.
"Dunno…I remember they asked for me and April's help to get into Shredder's place. He had some weird spaceship thingy…from what the guys told me, they were on the ship."
Mel listened, becoming lost at what was said. She couldn't take in what he was saying. It didn't seem real at all. Spaceship? It sounded like a sci-fi movie. She had stayed months with the Shredder and he didn't seem the type. "And you said they were hurt? What's wrong with Leonardo?"
"Yeah…the Shredder really hurt the guys…they are getting better though. Leo…well he has changed. See Lea left right before they took on the Shredder…and Mike says they almost had to die on the Shredder's ship to get rid of him…so you know how Leo gets…he's blaming himself."
Mel fell silent from her friend's response. All of this was too much to absorb at once. When did Lea leave? Why did she leave? The guys almost died and she didn't know anything about it till now? What if they did die, then she would have never known about it. Something tugged at her heart as she pandered, just the thought of losing Donatello was crushing her. "So they are at the farmhouse?" She asked more softly as she choked back her tears.
"Yeah. April and I took 'em there to get them out of the city. They weren't safe. Even Splinter got hurt. They actually went out hiking today for a few days. They needed some fresh air and I think Leo needed it the most. They are staying not far from the river so I will drop you off there first before taking the stuff back to April." Casey replied back, his eyes never leaving the road. Mel nodded her head silently and leaned back against the seat as she felt her eyes closing some from exhaustion; within moments she had fallen asleep.
The jolt of the car stopping woke Mel up from her sleep. She looked around almost in a lost fashion, her eyes still blurry from waking up so suddenly. She sat up more in her seat and looked out the window to see nothing, but trees around without any sign of the guys. "Where are we?"
"The guys are probably staying over the hill. It's too steep for me to drive the car over. I need to call April and tell her I have you so you can go ahead and go to them." Casey said as he retrieved the cell phone from his pants pocket, not really giving her the option of staying.
Mel nodded and opened the door to get out. Her heart was pounding even harder and she fidgeted with her fingers as she started to slowly walk up the hill. She could hear distant voices nearby, familiar voices, and this made her slow down her pace. She glanced back nervously at Casey, hoping he was off the phone and would follow her, but he was still in the car on the cell. Letting out a sigh and taking a deep breath, she neared the hill and looked over. There were a few trees in her way, but she could see the clearing near the river to where she saw some memorable forms. Luckily the guys' attention was focused away from the hill so as far as she could tell they had not seen her. Hearing far-off bantering, Mel looked towards the shore of the river to see Michelangelo and Raphael in an extreme sparring match with one another. Leonardo had taken solo refuge about 20 yards from their campsite to go through his daily ritual of katas, while Donatello sat on a log near what appeared to be their campfire. Donatello's focus was on something across from him. Mel strained her eyes, trying to see. She had to take a double look because what she saw completely shocked her: There lying on an open sleeping bag was a young, blue skinned woman. Donatello was watching over her as if he was very concerned about her well being. A wave of nausea hit Melinda and she felt the sickening, acidic taste of bile in her throat as she finally turned her eyes away. She then refocused her attention on her lover….had he found someone else to take her place? Feeling immense anger rising up inside, Mel turned quickly away and hurried back over to the car where Casey was.
Casey nearly dropped the phone when he saw the look on Melinda's face as she opened the passenger door and got back in. "Melinda…? What is…" He started.
"Drive, Casey," Melinda bluntly said. Her mind filled with the emotions and the sickening images of what she just saw. Afraid that the guys may catch onto their whereabouts, her patience had grown very thin. "Drive, please!"
"Um…okay…," Casey said as he quickly put the car back into gear and drove off down the dirt path from where they came. "You gotta tell me what's eatin' ya so suddenly though." He asked, shooting her a quick glance in frustration.
Mel remained silent as she brought her knees some up to her chest as if she was hugging herself. Everything was so clear to her now. No wonder she had not heard anything from him lately. She had moved away from him and he couldn't wait. "At least he is happy…" She sighed sadly to herself as self pity started to devour her. But why did Casey not tell her about all of this? Or maybe this was so sudden that he didn't know about it.
It was only a quick drive to the farmhouse from the turtles were camping at, but the 10 minute drive seemed to take forever. Casey had sat there, glancing over at her every so often, waiting for her to answer his question, but she never replied back, so he sat there brooding. Finally after stopping at the farmhouse, Mel spoke. "I can't stay here either, Casey, please take me back to the city…" Mel said softly, her eyes not even looking at him.
Casey sighed in annoyance, he looked away to the front porch steps of the house to see April looking out at them through the window. He knew that it was growing later in the night and if he took her back, then it meant that April would be worried sick all night. "Look. I am not driving any further until you tell me what's wrong? Sheesh…what's with everyone around here's? All you are so mopey and you won't talk," He pouted. "Did Donnie say somethin' to yas or somethin'?"
"No…he didn't speak to me…," Mel said.
"Did you not want to see him? Because I mean that would be pretty mean. He misses ya." Casey stated, becoming more impatient on how their conversation was turning out.
"Look…you don't have to tell me anything else…," Mel replied as she finally looked back at him. "I know it's a lot on you…please take me back to the city." She pleaded again as she reached into her pocket and took out one of her twenty dollar bills. "This can be for the gas."
Casey studied her face and saw how stern she was in her decision. He sighed and started the car back up. "Look I'll take you back…you keep your money. I just wish someone would talk around here. Let me go tell April okay?" He reached over to the left side to pull the door handle.
"Thank you…just promise me….promise me that you or her won't tell them I am here…you didn't see me okay? At least for now…" Her voice trailed off again as she turned away and looked out the window towards the river, afraid they would be walking up the road any moment now.
Casey tilted his head, struck by her request. "Um….okay. I don't like this you know?" He got out of the car and made his way into the farmhouse. Mel dipped down into her seat, trying to be out of sight until his return. She glanced nervously towards the porch window to see Casey and April talking, then she saw Casey pull April away from the window as if he knew she could see them.
Mel let out a sigh and whispered, "I have no choice but to go back now…"
"Thanks for the ride back, Casey," Mel said softly as she opened the car door, not really looking back over at him. The evening cool air made her shiver as she exited the car. She had made Casey drop her off near Broadway so that way she would walk around in the still lighted areas.
"Your hotel is around here?" Casey asked with concern, the usual playful tone in his voice was absent.
"Yeah over on the next block near 42nd, I…I didn't want you to get stuck in the mess of traffic." Mel stumbled through her words as she stood there, casting her gaze near the nearby busy intersection.
"Okay…" Casey replied with doubt in his voice. "Listen…don't go getting yourself in trouble."
"I am not, Casey," Mel smiled trying to provide him comfort. "Please remember what I said though…" Her voice turned sad once again.
"Yeah…I know."
Mel nodded her head and turned to walk towards Times Square, not looking back at the car.
Hun was already waiting at the front door as she walked up the sidewalk towards the Dragons' building. She had decided to go onto there at night before it got too much later because she didn't have anywhere else to go. The only options she had besides going back to the Purple Dragons was staying back on the streets or calling her parents to head home. She really didn't have any money to get another plane ticket home so she didn't want to face her parents just yet. Going home wasn't on her list. She would rather stay with Hun, then go home back to a life that she wasn't truly right for her. Hun almost looked displeased as he stood in the doorway with his arms crossed, his brown eyes watching her. The expression on his face was very readable: he was judging her. She had been out too long and now she knew he would question on where she went.
Stopping in front of the large man, Mel looked up at him with a weak smile. "Your decision?" He asked sharply, very blunt and to the point.
"I am staying with you, Hun," Mel replied back as she looked right into his eyes, gathering her nerve. "Trust me…there's NO way I am going back to the turtles." She emphasized strongly.
Hun cocked his eye ridge as if he was shocked by her reply. "That simple?"
"Yes. So what do you want me to do to help?" She asked with a smirk on her face. "Master."
A look of pleasure filled Hun's face as he let out a soft chuckle. "Right this way." He motioned her to follow him inside. "We already have plans in place for NeoTech and TechCor…there's another facility called Symatradon that I may need your expertise in."
"What is that?" Mel asked as she walked with him down the main large corridor.
"I may need for you to pose as a possible investor to get inside and see what we are up against. Our recent thefts may have them increase their security. We need to know what measures to take. You think you are able to do that?"
"Not a problem."
A week later Mel had made arrangements to go on the tour of Symatradon. She got their fairly early and so far she was able to get past the secretary and the front guard. Maybe her innocent looks was an advantage to her? Finally at their last spot in the tour, which was the main highlight, the young man stopped in front of a sliding door with a panel beside it. "At our final destination, this is our chamber to where we hold our newest product. For security purposes, I cannot disclose what it is yet, but let me reassure you again that we at Symatradon only fund projects that we will help the human society advance further in nanotechnology. Behind this code-vault door is a 50 foot hallway with laser beams at precisional pinpoints to where no human could EVER crawl or jump over," He chuckled gently, trying to spark laughter from the crowd. There were a few polite laughs from his comment. As he waited the crowd quiet down once more to listen to more what he said he caught a glimpse of a young woman in the back. She wore a black 2-piece suit, with a pink top underneath the jacket portion. Her dark blue eyes were fixed on him intently, and a polite smile stayed on her face as she listened.
Mr. Clarksburg smiled back politely at the young girl before resetting his attention back to his guests. "So this concludes the tour of the Symatradon research facility here in New York City. Does anyone have any questions?"
"Yes. I have one," A voice called from the back. Some of the people glanced back to see who had the question.
"Yes, ma'm?" Clarksburg asked as his soft green eyes looked back in the back to where the voice came from to see it was the same woman he just glanced at moments ago.
"How can we be sure that this facility won't get robbed as well? I mean with the current robberies of new technological developments by the Purple Dragon gang, Mr. Clarksburg, don't you see a pattern?" Her eyes straight at him.
Mr. Clarksburg tensed some, wishing she had a different question. He hated to be put on the spot like this. He felt the crowds' eyes linger on him. "I assure you, Miss, we are taking the necessary steps in preventing any possible intrusions. I mean after all the Purple Dragons…are what street rats, ladies and gentlemen? I am sure they do not have the capability or knowledge to get access into this facility.
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