Hey guys! So I'm in the middle of my exams right now, which is keeping me quite busy. But I wanted to update something since it has been so long, and this chapter was pretty much done already. Once I'm done with exams, and moving to another home I will try to update more frequently. Until then, enjoy the new chapter and wish me luck!
(Reviews will help me study and update faster ^^)
TMNT
"Are you sure you're okay? We can turn around if you want" Leo asks again, causing Don and dad to look in the rear mirror. I scowl, slapping his hands away.
"I'm not fine Leo" I growl, staring at him. "But I'm not going to the hospital before I know Raph is safe" Leo sighs at my statement, looking down with a guilty look. I scowl, looking the other way. I could feel both Don and Leo look at me but I only focused on the view next to me, cars and nature passing by.
We were currently on our way to the police station, they had intercepted a package that was meant for our house, with another DVD in it. And we all knew what was on that DVD, or we all assumed, another video of Kevin hurting Raph. So we immediately headed to the police station, and I refused to be left behind.
Don and dad were in the front of the car, Leo having volunteered to sit in the back with me, to watch over me or something. I was currently wearing a shirt under the hoodie Slash had given me, the hoodie comfortable and comforting right now. I sigh, wrapping my arms around myself.
"We're just worried about you Mikey" Leo suddenly speaks up and I look at him, feeling the same anger bubble up in my stomach. Anger I hadn't felt much since I was taking into their home. Not like I was ever truly angry, at least that's what my psychiatrist said. I used that anger to cover up my traumas.
Was I that kind of angry right now? I didn't even know to be honest.
"You should be worried about Raph" I mutter, directing my face towards the window again to hide the burning tears in my eyes.
We continued to drive in silence, nobody of my family saying anything else to me or anything in general. It was just silence. I didn't comment on it, soaking up the moment of peace and taking it as a gift. I sigh, closing my eyes and letting my head lean against the window, enjoying the slight cold.
Too soon, and yet not soon enough, we arrived at the police station. Dad shutting off the car and taking out the keys. I blink a couple of times, straightening up and looking outside. Two police men were already standing outside, just like a medical, scanning the car until his eyes landed on me.
I scowl, turning around and glaring at Leo. He blinks in confusion before holding up his hands with slightly widened eyes.
"I had no idea they would" Leo defends himself. "They only told us about police protection" He continues but I keep my glare up for another few seconds before softening up, nodding slightly. Leo seems okay with that, quickly getting out of the car and walking over to my side of the car.
I sigh bitterly, tensing slightly as Leo hooks his arm around my waist, carefully helping me out of the car. I hiss harshly, jerking away before my feet even hit the ground but Leo is strong, and he doesn't drop me, or let me go, for which I'm glad. I try to ignore the stares I'm getting from both the police and the medical.
But I keep limping inside, both Leo and Don close and next to my sides, supporting me the whole way.
TMNT
"What is the meaning of this?" Dad exclaims as we walk into the room, but instead of it being empty like we had been promised, another person was sitting in the room as well. Immediately his eyes travel to us, especially the figure on my right. I frown, taking an unconscious step forwards to stand in front of Mikey.
One of the policemen immediately hurried over to us.
"They managed to intercept the package where they sort all the packages before it was sent away, so they could see where it came from" He explains quickly, eyes flickering to Mikey before back to dad. "We found out he was the one to deliver the package" My eyes immediately widen, looking at my two little brothers before looking at the man.
My blue eyes met his brown ones, only worry present in them.
"And he does not want to speak?" Dad questions but I already shake my head. However, it is the policeman that clears up the situation.
"On the contrary, he came to the station himself to tell everything he knows. But he just arrived as it took us some time to contact him as well"
"Let's not waste time then" I whisper, looking at dad and he nods. Don and I share a look before he help Mikey over to the couch that was in the room. He hisses, trying to hide it, as he sits down, flinching away from both Don and me. But I knew not to take it personal so instead I sat down next to him, wrapping an arm around him.
"I don't know much though, I just collect everything and bring it to the factory where they sort it" The guy speaks up
"That's okay Keno, just tell us what you know" One of the man said, looking at Keno apparently.
"Uhm, I drove over to the place as usual, parked near the pickup point. There weren't many people and the parking lot was quite empty. I grabbed everything and put it in the van and drove off." Keno explained, brows furrowed slightly to make sure he didn't forget anything. But nothing he said was something we could use.
"Think Keno, nothing else? Anything that you noticed, even if you think it won't help" The policeman interrupted the boy's thoughts, and he looked up slowly, still frowning.
"There was an old lady going into the store, and a guy was standing in front of the store to sell newspapers but I don't see how that can help. There was this little girl walking around the parking lot, a bunch of students tried to buy alcohol but could-"
"A little girl? Was she alone?" The policeman suddenly interrupts and I frown slightly. Keno looks up to him, slightly confused as well.
"I thought so at first, yea. I told my buddy Monty that day and he said they were probably doing a social experiment, it happens quite frequently at that place actually" Keno explains.
"A social experiment?" Don suddenly questions and Keno nods.
"I suppose so, why?" He asks.
"Did you see a guy with a shaved side and black hair?" He questions and Keno frowns again, nodding.
"How'd you know?" He asks, turning to the police. "There was a guy like that but I didn't think it was important" He continues, looking at Don again.
"Because I know him" Don whispers. "He's a YouTuber-"
"Which means he recorded everything" Mikey suddenly speaks up and my eyes widen again, looking at the police with almost hopeful eyes. They could do something with this right? I mean, they had to, for Raph's sake. One guy whispered something to the other guy, who nodded before walking towards the door.
"Luther is requesting back-up to track down the guy, if you could come with him to help them" The guy asks, directed towards Don. He looks up to the guy, before glancing from dad to me, almost as if he was unsure whether to go or not.
"I could come with you if you would like" Dad opted but Don shook his head, smiling at us before standing up.
"Stay with them, I'll be fine" He says to dad, but I caught it nevertheless. Don walks up to the other guy, Luther apparently, before they both leave the room.
"We still have the recording they sent you" The remaining officer speaks up, glancing towards me and Mikey almost uneasily. I got the silent message immediately, he was deciding whether to send us away or not. Of course the officer wouldn't want us seeing such a video.
And neither dad wanted us to, but I wasn't leaving, not right now. If Don could help.. then dad couldn't forbid us from watching it as well. Anything to get Raph back right now. I glance to the sight, and Mikey stared right back at me, determination filling his eyes and he nods slowly.
He wanted to help as well.
"We're staying sir" I spoke up softly, but straightening up a bit. The officer seems unsure again, glancing at dad. But my dad sighs, nodding reluctantly, giving us permission to stay and watch the video. And right now, after dad had given us permission, I suddenly wasn't so sure about this anymore.
The officer took out the package, the same package we had received twice already, and the package dad had already hidden us from twice now. Not this time though, this time I wasn't going to shy away or listen to dad. The man takes out the disk, inserting it in the computer and putting it on full screen.
What I saw was like a blow to my gut, worse than any injury or any pain I had ever felt in my life.
And now I understood why Dad wanted us to ignore the video, didn't want us to see it.
The sight was horrifying, and I was sure I could never erase the image from my mind ever again. Raph lying on the ground, specks of blood on the white tiles and staining his ripped clothes. Lips tinted blue, eyes closed, whole body shivering violently and arms tied behind his back with handcuffs.
There were dark circles around his closed eyes, and numerous cuts and bruises all over his body. He didn't wear much, only his pants and a thin shirt to keep him from freezing to death. They wouldn't let it get that far, they wouldn't, at least I hoped they wouldn't. I hoped they wouldn't… push him too far.
I couldn't bear losing my immediate younger brother.
I couldn't bear losing anyone.
I glance to the side, dad was standing there with wide terrified eyes, tears lingering in his eyes. He seemed numb to the situation, detached from his body as he stared mindlessly at the screen in front of him. My pain was nothing compared to his, he lost his sons already, lost Raph once already.
And had already seen him in pain 2 times before me.
I swallow, slowly standing up and placing a hand on his shoulder. He looks at me, quickly wiping his tears away before wrapping me in a side hug. I could feel him burying his face in my shoulder, but he didn't do anything else, didn't cry and didn't sob or something similar for that matter.
But the pain was all too evident.
TMNT
"Easy" Leo glared as Mikey hissed in pain, jerking away. The medical glanced at Leo for a second before turning back to the smaller boy again, dabbing the small cuts and slashes on his arm with alcohol to disinfect it and simultaneously wipe away the blood from his arms. But the cuts were still sore, and his arms were littered with bruises.
Leo shifted his glare towards his little brother's arms.
He could see the clear outline of fingers on Mikey's wrists, on his upper arms, hand shaped bruises on his arm and shoulder as well as his chest and back. Mikey was currently still on the couch, huddled into himself as much as possible while the doctor treated him. His body language was clear, he wasn't comfortable.
Luckily no one else besides their dad was still present in the room. But still, the doctor didn't put Mikey's mind at ease. They hadn't taken into consideration that Mikey wouldn't be comfortable around men, especially after the last 3 days, but Mikey just silently sat there, jaw muscles tightened.
"I know you are reluctant to do so.. but you may want to consider going to the hospital to-"
"I'm not going" Mikey interrupted with gritted teeth, hissing as the doctor touched a particularly big bruise.
"Mikey, you are still bleeding below, that suggests you may have internal damage. Leaving this too long can be dangerous." The doctor spoke with a calm yet urgent voice. Mikey scowled, turning his head away.
"Not before we find Raph" Mikey protested and Leo squeezed Mikey's hand gently, but before either could say anything else, the door opened again, Don almost running inside with a panicked look on his face.
"We have to go right now, that guy filmed someone dropping off the package, they know who he is and where he lives, the police are going right now" Don said, gaze falling on Mikey, who in turn narrowed his eyes and immediately reached for his shirt with pained movements, putting the piece of fabric on.
"Just carry me" Mikey hurriedly said facing Leo. The latter seemed reluctant for a moment before he reached out for Mikey's wrists, carefully hosting his little brother onto his back. Mikey whimpered as pain raced through his body, burying his face in Leo's face with a low growl.
Leo seemed to hesitate for a minute more before he started walking, following Don and dad outside. Don got into one of the cars without hesitation, in the front seat. Leo stepped inside the car, putting Mikey in the middle and dad on the other side. He immediately put an arm around Mikey's form.
"Luther is going to drive us to the town where they keep Raph" Don says, turning around as Luther already steps on the gas, racing off. "They are in Morristown, and they already contacted the police over there to investigate the houses."
"Who are they investigating my son?" Yoshi asks and Don frowns.
"Baxter Stockman, he was a famous scientist who has gone off the rails a decade ago"
"Is that the same guy you read about so much when you were younger?" Leo whispers and Don nods painfully, turning back to the front again.
"I knew he wasn't a good person anymore after getting arrested a couple of times, but he was still incredibly smart and his theories were interesting" Don tries to explain but Leo simply leaned forwards, touching his little brother's shoulder with a firm yet gentle grip.
"It's okay Don, this isn't on you" He says and Don sighs, leaning backwards.
"I know it isn't" He whispers, rubbing his eyes as faint tears already appeared. "Besides, he wasn't a real criminal really"
"Why?" Leo asks with a frown and I turn my head away, facing the window.
"He mostly turned towards drugs and alcohol. Got arrested for disturbing the public and driving under influence a couple of times" Don shrugged. "But eventually the police took his license away when he hit a car, killing a family almost instantly" I swallow painfully, not daring to look at Don right now.
So I ignored them all as we continued driving, Luther breaking every rule with the speed limit right now to get there faster. Over halfway through the drive, Luther's communication device went off, but he didn't take his eyes off the road when he answered.
"Change your directions, Baxter talked but they don't keep the boy in Morristown" Was the immediate reaction from an officer on the other side of the line. Immediately Luther tensed.
"Where are they keeping him?"
"Union" And for the first time in 4 days or so, after finding Mikey so quickly that is, luck was on their side. But neither could smile at the green board with white letters that displayed the town 'Union', and 3 kilometres, just less than 2 miles. Luther frowned, switching on his lights and alarms before stepping on the gas even more.
Immediately cars parted for them as they raced over the highway.
"Police are there already but no update yet about the boy's condition or anything else" Was heard but Luther didn't respond, exiting the highway with immense speed. "I'm sending the coordinates of the address right now"
Nobody dared to say anything as they raced over the roads, but they didn't need the coordinates after all, as they could already see the blockade the police had made when they arrived. Luther slowed down significantly but they let him pass without any hesitation almost, driving up to the house, as much as the police allowed them to.
But before the car could even stop Leo's eyes widened.
"Oh my god" He whispered, eyes focused on the two men supporting his little brother. He didn't hesitate, opening the door and jumping out despite the car still moving. He stumbled for a second before sprinting over to his younger brother. "Raph!" He screamed, rushing towards his little brother and wrapping his arms around him.
Raph tensed in his hold, flinching away and blinking a couple of times. "L-Leo?" He stammered and Leo nodded in the hug, reluctantly breaking the hug to look.
"It's me, I'm here" Leo whispers, before he frowns slightly. "You're freezing" Leo's eyes widened, staring at Raph's shivering body and blue tinted lips in concern. Raph didn't say anything, tears appearing in his eyes. Immediately Leo took off his jacket, wrapping it around Raph's body.
"My son" Yoshi called out, carefully pulling Raph into a hug as well, wrapping his arms tightly around the shivering form of his second oldest son.
"M-Mikey?" Raph's hiccupped but Yoshi stroke Raph's back, trying to get him a little warmer.
"Safe my son, worried about you" He told him and Raph sobbed again, trying to control his breathing.
"I-I w-want t-t..to g-get out o-of h-here" Raph rasped in a shaky voice, both from the cold and the sobs. Yoshi nodded, releasing his son and looking back as Donnie quickly approached them.
"Thank god you're alive" Don joined the three, wrapping his arms around Raph for a quick second and smiling through the tears. Raph smiled weakly, shivering heavily. "They called an ambulance already, it should be here soon" Don said and true to his word, not soon after the sirens of the ambulance were heard.
They had moved Raph to the van Luther and Mikey were still in, pulling Raph inside and cranking up the heat to the maximum. Raph held onto Mikey the moment he entered, blabbering about being sorry, and it was obvious that the cold was getting to him, and it worried them.
The ambulance stopped right next to their van, and immediately two medicals swarmed the van, opening it and assessing the shivering boy.
"We need to get him to the hospital quick, he's freezing" One of them stated, feeling Raph's forehead and putting a hand in front of his mouth. "His breathing is laboured, ready an oxygen mask" He ordered, turning around to grasp the gurney. They carefully lowered Raph on the gurney, wheeling away without bothering to secure him.
"Dad, go with him, we'll be okay" Mikey whispers, eyes focused on the figure of his older brother being wheeled into the ambulance. Yoshi seemed unsure but nodded, quickly getting out of the van and entering the ambulance.
"There is another ambulance ready, they said there were more injuries" Another medical said and the focus immediately shifted towards Mikey, who frowned. Leo nudged him gently.
"No arguing right now little bro" He smiles lightly, despite the situation. "Don and I will go with you, we won't leave you alone"
That seemed to convince the blond, as he slowly nodded and even accepted their help as they lowered him on the second gurney. Instinctively Mikey reached out for Leo's hand as they placed a blanket on top of him and secured him to the gurney. Leo and Don both walked next to him the whole way, entering the ambulance as well.
"I'm not this injured" Mikey says and Don chokes out a laugh, a small smile appearing on Mikey's face.
"But you love being a drama queen" Don whispers, leaning backwards to let one of the doctors secure the gurney. The doctor smiled gently as well at the joke, before continuing to work on the gurney.
"Do you need any painkillers?" The doctor asks, placing a soft hand on Mikey's shoulder. The latter swallows, looking up to her but before he can deny, Leo cuts in already.
"He does" Leo opts, looking at Mikey with a determined look on his face. He wasn't going to let Mikey be stubborn right now. It was obvious that Mikey was hurting, even if he wasn't showing it. And it was obvious that something was wrong with him, something happened in that brothel. But both him, Don and dad had figured it out before Slash told him.
He had served a customer again.
Mikey sighs bitterly, nodding slightly and looking away as the doctor pushed up one of his sleeves to expose the inside of his elbow. She carefully cleaned it before giving him a slight sedative. Mikey closed his eyes, inhaling and tension seemingly draining from his body as the sedative slowly started working.