Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the song or it's lyrics used in this chapter.
Chapter 17:
Two fists hit heavily upon the long metal table just to the side of a barely human figure while another, smaller figure shivered in the background. The man grumbled and then turned to the face of the young woman who was almost back to normal. The muzzle that she grew was nearly gone except for the wet nose that still held its form and a few stray pointed teeth.
"I just don't understand," he grumbled as Hun walked back into the room with a large canvas bag over one shoulder. The man looked over at Hun and pushed his hair back, out of his eyes, "I don't understand these weak young women. She made it through the first mutation. You would think that she would have made it on the mutation back to human. Didn't she want it hard enough?"
"Don't say that. She wanted it so much she died for it," Cherise said from the bed and hugged herself as a tear fell down her face. Her hands then gripped the sheets which she hugged tightly against her body, even though most of her body was sprinkled with a light coat of fur.
"Don't cry, sweetheart," he walked from the table to her side on the bed. Her body leaned away from him before he hugged her close to him, "She just wasn't strong enough. Not like you were."
Cherise looked past him to the girl on the table. She had spent a few hours talking with her once she calmed down from her form. She said her name was Stephanie. She was there to be tutored in Chemistry since she wasn't doing too well in the subject. She reminded Cherise of her much younger sister who was just finishing up her fourth year at UCLA on the other side of the country. It wasn't that she wasn't strong enough. It was because he pushed her too far too fast. She survived the mutation to something between canine and human, but he tried too early to turn her back.
He kissed her on her temple and she closed her eyes tight to try and block him out. She whimpered softly as he got off the bed and looked over the body as Hun began to pack Stephanie into the canvas sack.
"Maybe I need better subjects… stronger subjects for my tests," he mused to himself and rubbed his chin, "It would be better if they were already mutated when I begin."
Cherise closed her eyes and scooted to the headboard of the bed.
He turned back to her with a smile, "Don't worry yourself, love. You're too far in your progression for me to touch or compromise. Too dear to me. It wounds me to have you even think that I would risk a mistake with you."
"Who do you have in mind?" Hun asked and tied up the canvas bag for his boys to dispose of later in the night. If they kept that body in the house for too long it would start to stink and possibly lead people to wonder. He looked up at his employer and then found a smirk growing on his face.
"Four pains that keep showing up at inappropriate times," he said with a tired flare to his voice.
"Sounds like we are hunting tonight."
"I always love a good hunt," he growled as his pointed teeth began to align in his mouth.
"So," Donatello lugged a couple small pieces of machinery into the Battleshell, "Why exactly am I with the girls?"
"Yeah, why is he with the girls?" Michelangelo asked and whirled his nunchakus in the air before placing them in his belt.
"I feel so loved," Analise said and narrowed her eyes toward Donatello.
"So that we can concentrate and not get distracted by their well being," Leonardo explained, "We need our heads in this if we are going to find these women alive."
"Are you calling us a distraction?" Deidra asked with a smirk and crossed her arms over her chest.
"You can be at times," Raphael answered and put his sais firmly in his belt. He then looked over at Leonardo, "I'll call Casey."
"Not this time, Raph," Leonardo shook his head and looked over his katanas before he put them back in their scabbards, "He's got his own responsibilities tonight with April and Shadow. I'm not going to pull him away from that."
"Let's saddle up, ladies and gents," Michelangelo put his arms around Analise in a hug that lifted her from the ground and around in a tight circle. He set her back down and held her a little longer, "You be careful out there, Turtle Avenger."
"Same to you, Turtle Titan," she touched the end of his beak, "Be safe out there, hero. Want you back, safe and sound, by midnight."
"But that's too early to cause any real damage," he rolled his eyes.
"Then one a.m., and I will not go a minute over," she waved her finger in front of him.
"What do I get if I am back by curfew?"
"You'll just have to wait and see, won't you?" she smiled up at him.
"We're all on pins and needles," Raphael said sarcastically as he passed by them toward the exit tunnel.
"So much for the mood of the moment," Analise shrugged and hugged Michelangelo one more time before he left.
"I've learned to ignore him," Michelangelo shrugged with her and then held her face in both his hands. He leaned toward her and gave her a swift, yet sweet kiss on her lips. Her eyes widened a little at the action. He leaned away from her and smiled childishly at her still dumbfounded expression, "See you at one."
"Yeah…" she nodded her head with red cheeks.
"Alright, Casanova," Leonardo chuckled and led Michelangelo out toward the door, "You girls be careful."
"Always," Deidra nodded and steered Analise toward the Battleshell and their first adventure out of the lair.
"Hey, can I drive, Donnie?" Analise asked as they climbed in through the side door, "I always wanted to drive one of these so called battle vehicles."
"Give it some time, Ana," Donatello answered and started the engine. He backed out of the lair and onto the streets of New York, "I don't think you'll be able to handle the supercharged engine and battle capabilities of this vehicle. They can be a bit overpowering at times, even to the most experienced driver."
Analise and Deidra looked at one another and gave each other a smirk. They looked forward and waited for their moment. Donatello started to push on the break for a red light when both girls, simultaneously shot their arms out in front of them and began to scream as if they were going to crash. This in turn made Donatello yell out, slam the breaks and jerk the wheel to the left and right. As the Battleshell came to the abrupt halt both girl's screams died down and they sighed. Analise licked her lips calmly and then looked at Donatello in a confused fashion.
Deidra leaned over one of the seats calmly and looked at the hyperventilating Donatello, "Whoa, Donnie. Take a chill pill."
"Seriously," Analise joined in and chuckled a little to herself, "You know, I don't know if you are able to handle the supercharged engine and battle capabilities of such a manly vehicle. You sure you're qualified?"
Once his heart was beating at a normal pace he nodded and rolled his eyes, "All right, I get your point. Let's see how the day goes, then we will talk."
Analise pumped her fist in the air with an excited smile, "That means maybe."
"It's scary how similar you and Mikey are," Donatello took another breath before he hit the gas again. He turned on the radio to drown out their laughter. Deidra leaned over and changed the stations a few times before they hit a rock station. 'Bohemian Rhapsody' played and had already gone through half of the song. The girls laughed with one another once they figured out where in the song they cut in on.
"I'm just a poor boy nobody loves me," Analise began to sing.
"He's just a poor boy from a poor family," Deidra joined in and threw an arm around Analise's shoulders as they both sang the next line.
"Spare him his life from this monstrosity."
Donatello smirked and could see Michelangelo singing along clearly in his mind. He knew he was going to regret it, but he began to sing along, "Easy come, easy go, will you let me go?"
Analise squealed in glee and positioned herself on one side behind the driver's seat. Deidra laughed quickly and positioned herself on the other side as she started it again.
"Bismillah! No, we will not let you go."
"Let him go," Analise sung as if she was actually pleading for Donatello.
Deidra shook her head, "Bismillah! We will not let you go."
"Let him go!"
"Bismillah! We will not let you go."
"Let me go!" Donatello joined in as Analise joined Deidra.
"Will not let you go."
"Let me go."
"Will not let you go."
"Let me go-o-o-o-o," he finished off.
They all laughed together for a while and as the crescendo hit Deidra and Analise head banged as Donatello smiled to himself. He had to hand it to them; they had a way of getting under your skin in a good way. No wonder his brothers were wrapped around their fingers so tightly.
"All right, girls, we're here," he announced as they pulled up into one of the campus parking lots. He pulled into a dark section of the lot surrounded by two buildings and a dark over hang, "Where should the questioning start?"
Deidra pulled out a sheet of paper with a few names and random information on it. Analise looked over her shoulder and looked at the paper, "What's that for?"
"It's a list of witnesses of Stephanie's last locations before she went missing," Deidra sighed and ripped the paper in half, "You take the students, I'll take the professors?"
"No double teaming?" Analise asked as she took the bottom half, "You know I'm not all that good at interrogation."
"Which is good because that isn't what we're doing," Deidra turned to Donatello, "You going to put some microphones on us, or what?"
"Already did," he tapped where there collars on their shirts sat. They both checked the neck of the shirt and found a tiny microphone under the hem.
"Damn ninjas," Deidra smiled.
"So remind me, what exactly am I doing if not interrogation?" Analise asked as she opened the side of the Battleshell.
"Act like a student. Start up some information. I'm pretty sure that Algut and his boys missed something out here. We will keep you posted, Don," Deidra shrugged and saluted Donatello as she shut the door. She turned to her best friend, "Don't let on that you're fishing for information. I don't need Algut all over my case for stepping on his toes. The less the students know the better."
"So how are you going to ask the professors without tipping them off?"
"I have my ways," she popped her knuckles as they entered the central part of the campus.
"I hope that dusk comes soon," Raphael sighed and looked over the slowly darkening streets below him, "Then we could get down there."
"I hate to say it, but I agree with Raph on this one, Leo," Michelangelo tilted his head toward his red clad brother, "We aren't doing all that much up on this rooftop."
"We are getting a lay out of the neighborhood," Leonardo explained and took another sweep of his eyes over the area below, "According to Deidra's files, Stephanie was heading in this direction to find her Chemistry tutor."
"Not the place you would look for homework help," Raphael looked over Leonardo's shoulder, "I haven't seen a single soul out and about today. You think that they're scared to walk the streets?"
"Or maybe they just aren't here," Michelangelo shrugged, "Perfect place to hide is among shadows."
Both of his brothers looked back at him a little surprised at his insight.
"Think about it, dudes," Michelangelo tapped on the side of his head, "No one knows the shadows and what they can offer like a ninja."
"He's got a point," Raphael shrugged.
"Just keep your eyes open," Leonardo sighed and then pulled on the headset that was resting around his neck, "Hey Donnie?"
"What's going on, Leo?" Donatello's voice cut through the static.
"Nothing. The girls find anything interesting on campus yet?"
"No," Donatello paused, "Unless you want to know what happened lately to the newest heart throb."
"These kids think they're in high school, or somethin'?" Raphael asked.
"Keep us informed."
"Will do, Leo."
"So, now what?" Michelangelo shrugged.
"We wait for dusk."
"Thank you again for the talk, Professor Grayson," Deidra said as she walked out of office of Stephanie's Chemistry professor, "I feel a lot better. I didn't think that my cousin would be that bad off in your class."
"Well, if she looked to you earlier for a tutor, she wouldn't have had such a problem," he smiled and locked his office door, "I hope they find her."
"Me too," she nodded and watched the man walk off. That didn't really bring in any more information than what she already had.
"So, whatcha' got?" Analise asked from beside her and she let out a breath of frustration.
"Nothing new."
"I thought I would get you, I didn't even make a noise," Analise frowned.
"I can sense you a mile away," she chuckled, "You find anything out?"
"Nothing new about Stephanie," she shook her head and grew silent.
Deidra turned to her and noticed her pulling on her jacket sleeve, "What's wrong, Ana?"
Analise looked at the sleeve and then at Deidra, "Something isn't settling right with me. I don't like the feeling I'm getting."
"About the last interviewee?" she asked and pointed over her shoulder where the professor just walked off.
"No, about today," she looked up at the sky from under the stairwell they were by. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, "Maybe I'm paranoid."
"I've learned to trust your judgment and feelings. What are you getting about today?"
"Tonight, specifically," Analise opened her eyes slowly, "Something is really off."
"Then we'll be careful," Deidra put a hand on her shoulder, "Come on, let's go see if we can hear any gossip in the Student Union."
"Sounds good."
Three shadows passed from one building to the next in hopes to find some kind of life in the ghost town of a neighborhood. Every other town house they were met with darkened windows and empty garages. It was as if the life was sucked from every corner.
"Someone did actually live here at one point, right Donnie?" Michelangelo asked over the communication link up on his shell cell.
"According to the census of 1983 that was a thriving community," Donatello reported, "Although, it seems that most of the residences were filled with older tenants. They may have died and didn't leave the homes to anyone. The area became unused."
"Strange for how many people are looking for homes in New York," Leonardo said and looked into another empty home.
"You would think," Donatello typed on the keyboard in the Battleshell and kept an ear focused on the girls and their conversations. He pulled up a few realty statements of the townhomes and hummed in interest.
"I know that hum," Michelangelo smirked, "What did you find, Donnie?"
"When they were trying to put the homes up for sale, many of the renters had heard moans and screams in the night. Some believed that the units were haunted and moved out."
"Superstitious bunch, weren't they?" Raphael huffed.
"And even more interesting," Donatello paused, "One of the elderly tenants had a young grandson living with her. When everyone else either moved or died, she is still listed as having residence in the townhome."
"And her grandson?"
"He isn't mentioned after the 2000 census."
"He left her on her own in a neighborhood like this?" Michelangelo asked confused, "I see no inheritance for him when she kicks the bucket."
"I think she already has," Donatello pulled up her file, "She wasn't in great health according to all these medical calls out to her home, but she's still getting checks to that address to this day. I smell a bit of possible fraud in the wind."
"Maybe the grandson is back in town," Raphael punched his fist into his hand, "Trying to make a buck by not reporting her death."
"Then we should drop by and make a house call," Leonardo nodded his head, "Thanks for the info, Don."
Michelangelo turned his head slightly and saw movement on the street, "Well, there's an old lady. You think that's our girl?"
Both of his brothers were too busy going over specifics and didn't pay attention. Michelangelo watched the lady from the shadows for a little while to make sure she was going to be okay on her own. Then from behind her a large thug began to creep toward her.
"Not on my watch, dude," Michelangelo ran toward the thug with nunchakus whirling. He took the creeper down to the ground with a swift kick, "Not cool to go after ladies."
"Thank you, young man," the older lady said from behind him.
"No probelmo," he said as he turned and saw that the old lady wasn't a lady at all, but a Purple Dragon.
"Surprise freak," the dragon hit him and made him stumble back from surprise.
Michelangelo hit a solid force and looked up to see Hun above him, "Hun, surprise meeting you here. I didn't know that your guys are taking up cross dressing."
Hun only growled and reached down for him. He grabbed him by the head and swung him in a tight circle over his head. He hurled the turtle into the side of the building next to them and smiled as Michelangelo slide to the floor.
"Welcome to the nightmare."