Click.

Clang.

Crunch.

Clack.

Thud.

I looked up from the screen of the laptop that I had sitting on my lap to see Donatello pinning Mikey to the ground. Unlike the first time that I had sat watching the brothers practice, this time they were just having fun. They had been at it all afternoon, even long after Splinter had disappeared to go tend to other things around their home. I suspected that their motivation to keep fighting was that they didn't really have anything else to do. I knew that tensions were rising as the Foot Clan were making themselves more known. The gun truck had only been the beginning - now, they were robbing all sorts of businesses around the city. People were starting to get worried, and the brothers were starting to despise the idea of being trapped in the sewers.

Hence, all the practicing. They needed a way to get all of their tensions out, but at least as they did so, they were remaining civil towards each other.

For now.

I knew that Splinter was aware of the issues surrounding his "grounding" of the turtles. The Foot Clan was running wild, and they were the only ones in the city who really understood who the Foot Clan was. They were also the only ones who actually stood a chance of defeating them. But, the fact still remained that the Foot Clan was onto them, and now to make matters worse, the streets were flooded every night with cops - it made things even more dangerous for the brothers to be running around.

If they were seen, that would be a whole other story.

I sighed, bringing my attention back to the website I had been browsing. I had my own issues to deal with: Eric Sacks' party and the fact that he was incredibly picky when it came to his decorations. There was also the small problem that I still hadn't told Raphael that I was working for him, but as I had predicted, I hadn't come face to face with Sacks at all. The party was scheduled for the upcoming weekend and then it would be over.

The computer screen suddenly froze and I almost threw the damn thing against the wall.

"Donatello," I groaned. "It's messing up again."

The purple-masked turtle hurried over to my side and crouched down.

"Sorry." He said, taking the device from me and beginning to type furiously. "It's still in testing."

Of course my laptop didn't get service down in the sewers, so I was forced to use one of his, which I had thought would make things easier...

I was wrong. Donatello had taken it as an open invitation to get me all of his newest inventions so that I could "take them for a test drive" and "give him feedback". At first I had thought it would be fun, but now I was regretting taking him up on the offer.

"You almost done?" Raphael called over.

He had been lifting weights and I could see the gleam of sweat on his skin from across the room.

"I'll never been done." I replied dramatically.

All he did was laugh and go back to this work out. He wasn't very good at the whole "sympathy" thing.

"That should do it." Donatello said, giving the computer back to me.

"Thank you."

I set back to work, pulling up all the webpages that I had been on once again. I had just began to read an email that had come in, when the screen went black.

"Shit." I muttered. I'd finally had enough.

"Guys, I gotta get this work done before the weekend. I'm gonna go home and use my own computer." I said, already gathering up my things.

"Bye, Lil." Mikey hollered cheerfully as Raphael came over to kiss me goodbye.

It was still a miracle to me that he did such things in front of his family now. It had only been a week since that faithful night when I slept over and everything had changed, but Raphael had been telling the truth when he'd said that he wasn't going to care anymore. The first few times he had touched me in front of his brothers, Mikey had, of course, made comments. Raphael had threatened to kill Mikey, so then Leonardo had stepped in, Raphael had then threatened to kill Mikey and Leo, until finally Splinter put an end to it by threatening to never order pizza again until they all stopped arguing.

Thankfully, the threat had worked, and Mikey now kept his mouth shut.

"Want me to walk you out?" Raphael asked me.

"Nah," I replied as I waved goodbye to Donatello and Leonardo. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

"You know where I'll be." Raphael said dryly.

I sighed. He'd been trying really hard to keep his temper under control when I was around, but I'd been hearing all the horror stories from Mikey about how Raphael acted when I wasn't here. Normally, I'd think that Mikey was just being dramatic, but even Leonardo seemed to treading carefully around his brother, so I figured that the stories were mostly true.

I felt bad for the brothers, but there wasn't anything that I could do. Besides, I'd much rather have them sulking in the sewers than risk getting caught by the Foot Clan.

When I reached the surface, my phone began buzzing wildly inside of my bag. I pulled it out to see that I had three missed calls and five unread text messages, as well as the current incoming call.

"What now?" I muttered to myself, seeing that it was my boss.

"Hello?" I then said cheerfully as I answered.

"I've been trying to call you for an hour." Jen snapped. "Where were you?"

"Sorry, I've been running around the city all day. My phone doesn't get very good service down on the subway." I lied. "What's going on?"

"Mr. Sacks has requested a meeting with one of the party planners to discuss an issue that he has with the seating chart. I'm stuck here at the office and Laura has the day off. I need you to go." Jen explained quickly.

I swallowed hard. "Me?"

"Yes, you. You helped with the seating chart didn't you?"

"I did." I replied meekly.

"Okay, then you can go and meet him. Figure it out. Do whatever you have to in order to make him happy. We need this party to be perfect, Lily, do you understand?" Jen said, sounding like she was on the verge of a nervous break down.

"Of course. I'll handle it. Where am I supposed to meet him?"

"I'll text you the address. Get there as soon as you can." She ordered me and then hung up without even saying goodbye.

My legs were shaking as I stood in the alley and waited for the text.

Don't panic. Don't panic. Don't panic.

My phone buzzed once more and I struggled to open the text since my hands felt like jelly. It took me a moment to realize where I was supposed to meet Eric Sacks. At first, the numbers just looked vaguely familiar, but then, I felt like I was going to pass out when I remembered where I had seen them before.

The address was for the building that I had bugged.

I stared down at the screen in shock. What the hell was I supposed to do now?

I looked over at the manhole, wondering if the right thing to do was to tell Raphael. He'd be mad at me for keeping everything a secret from him, but that honestly wasn't what I was afraid of: if I told him, he'd lose it. He'd go after Sacks and the Foot Clan. There would be no way to stop him, and it would probably result in him getting hurt, or captured, or... killed.

No. I couldn't tell him. Raphael, and his brothers as well, were in no mental state to handle this kind of information right now. I couldn't risk them doing something drastic, not when I was most likely overreacting.

What did I think was going to happen? My boss knew where I was going and it wasn't like Sacks had requested me specifically. They'd never recognize me, since the last time that I had gone to the building I had pretty much been in disguise.

I'll be fine. It's just for work. I'll get in and out as quickly as possible.

I gave the manhole cover one last glance. No matter what, I knew that I was making the right decision by not telling the brothers.

That was the only thing I felt truly confident about.

The building hadn't changed.

It was still tall, ominous, with no signs or markings of what it was for. Once again, I entered the cold, uninviting lobby and found the same receptionist behind the desk. I took a deep breath and approached her, trying not to appear as nervous as I felt.

"Uhm, I'm here for a meeting with Eric Sacks." I said quickly. "I'm with The Special Event."

She looked up at me briefly, and I felt a little relieved that I saw no signs of her recognizing me as she did so.

"Second floor, first door on your left." She replied curtly.

I turned around and headed for the elevator as fast as I could without seeming suspicious. I was sweating like crazy, which made me feel gross and only added to my stress. He'd know something was wrong with me if I appeared in his office looking like I had just run a mile. I wiped at my forehead as the elevator doors opened and I stepped into the hallway. Unlike the first time I had been in the building, there was no one standing guard. I took note of everything: maybe, once this party was over, I would tell the brothers what had happened and these details might be of some help to them.

I knocked on the first door to my left and heard a muffled "come in!" from the other side. I steeled myself for whatever was about to happen and entered.

It seemed to be some kind of conference room. There was a long, black table in the center and at least two dozen chairs seated around it. On the walls hung the usual boring, blandly colored pictures that most offices have. The shades were drawn tightly over the window, which gave the space an eerie darkness despite the light being on overhead. Eric Sacks was sitting at the head of the table on the opposite side of the room from the doorway. He had paperwork spread out in front him and a mug with a tea bag sitting beside it on a small plate.

"Hello." He greeted me. His tone wasn't rude, but it also wasn't welcoming. It just... was.

"Hi. I'm Lily Goldson. I'm with The Special Event." I replied, trying not to give away the fact that I was actually panicking.

"Ah, yes. Please, have a seat." Sacks said.

I hesitated, unsure of where exactly he wanted me to sit.

He chuckled, picking up on my reluctance. "Right here will be fine," he added, motioning to the seat to his right.

"Great." I said stupidly, as I smiled nervously.

I walked alongside the long table and took up the spot beside him. I felt uncomfortable, being so close to him, but I had no choice. I had to suck it up and remember that I was here on business. I had to be professional.

"So, Mr. Sacks, I was told that you have some issues with the seating chart? What can I do to fix it?" I questioned him, pulling the paperwork out of my bag and finding the piece that had the floor plan for the party printed on it.

"Please, call me Eric." He said smoothly, giving me a small smile that sent a chill up my spine.

I nodded politely. "If you insist."

"But yes, I do have an issue." Eric said, pulling the piece of paper towards him and examining it. "This table is too close to the stage."

He pointed to the table that we had planned to put right up front. I quickly made a note of his comment.

"That's any easy fix!" I said cheerfully. "What else?"

"That's all." He said simply.

He leaned back against his chair and fixed me a level glance. I tried to not let my jaw drop to the ground at his words. He had called me all the way down here for... that?!

"Oh." I said, pulling my eyes away from his face and looking at the paper. "Well then, that was easy. If all our clients had such small complaints, I'd be out of a job!"

I smiled at him, trying to hide that fact that I was now not only nervous, but also confused and more than a little annoyed. Still though, he was a customer, a very, very important customer, and I had to be nice to him.

He chuckled, though I got the feeling that he wasn't laughing at my joke, but at something completely different all together.

"You've done a lovely job on the party so far. But, have no fear, I'm sure we'll have a few more... problems to work out before it's over."

"Well, just let me know, Eric. I'll be happy to address any problems that you have." I said, gathering up the paperwork and tucking it back into my bag.

"Wonderful. I'm sure that you have a lot of other things to take care of today. I hope I didn't take up too much of your time." Eric said, nodding to me somewhat dismissively.

"Not at all." I said. "It was wonderful to meet you. I'm sure that I'll see you again before the party."

I stood up, getting the hint that it was time for me to leave, and not wanting to prolong the experience anymore than I had already.

"Goodbye, Lily."

His voice sent another chill up my spine, and once I had closed the door to the conference room behind me, I practically ran to the elevator, and then out of the building.

What the hell had just happened?!

I didn't get home until late that night.

After the extremely weird meeting with Eric Sacks, I had gone back to the office so that I could fill Jen in on what had happened. She was just as confused as I was about why he had made a big deal about such a small change, but she had been even more thankful that it hadn't been something hard to fix.

All I knew was that I was glad to be back at home. I had no words to describe the day... I was just tired and done stressing out about everything.

As the day had gone on, I'd become more and more worried that I had made a mistake about not telling Raphael about the party or the meeting with Sacks. I was digging a pretty deep hole for myself, but I honestly wasn't sure what was the right or wrong thing to do anymore.

It was midnight by the time I had rinsed off, put on pajamas, and sat down on my couch to finally relax. I had just turned on the TV when I heard a knock at my front door, which was odd, because I hadn't buzzed anyone into the building. Figuring it was just a neighbor, I got up and peered through the eyehole in the door. Even though my vision was limited, I could see a women standing next to four men. They were wearing all black, except for the woman, who also had on a green scarf. I shrugged, figuring they just had the wrong apartment and would figure it out. I was about to go and sit down once more, when they knocked again, this time louder.

I peered through the hole again, an uneasy feeling settling into my stomach. Something was strange about the way they kept glancing down the hall and leaning close to whisper to each other.

And then I heard her say in a low, dangerous tone, "pick the lock. Quickly."

I jumped away from the door like it had shocked me. I ran into my bedroom and closed the door. I grabbed my cellphone and tried to call 911, but no matter how many times I tried, the call wouldn't connect. I dropped it to the floor and hurried over to my bag where I knew the T-Phone would be. Each second felt like a lifetime as I waited for them to break into my apartment. I finally found the phone and was just about to try calling again when I heard footsteps approach my door.

They can't see this phone! I thought wildly, and I darted over to the window, yanked it up, and tossed the phone out just as they threw open my bedroom door.

"She's trying to escape!" One of the men, who now had a black mask pulled over his face, called to the others.

I was too shocked to even try to scream or move. He had grabbed me before I could even blink and dragged me back out into the living room. Another man had picked up my cellphone that I had dropped to the floor and flipped it open.

"It worked, Karai. She wasn't able to call the police." He said, tossing my phone to the woman, who then tucked it into her pocket.

The woman wasn't wearing a mask like the others. She had cold eyes and dark hair that was streaked with bright red. She smirked at me gleefully, seeming just like a cat that had caught it's helpless, mouse prey.

"Who are you?" I asked shakily. I didn't even bother struggling against the man's hold. There was five of them and one of me. I didn't stand a chance.

"We are the Foot Clan." She hissed in reply. "Did you really think we wouldn't find you?"

"Find me? What did I do?" I questioned her.

She laughed cruelly. "Don't play innocent, Lily. We know you planted a bug on one of our properties, which also means that you probably also know about our partnership with Eric Sacks. We can't have that information getting out to the public."

When I didn't respond, she took a step closer and brought her face down close to mine. "The only question that remains is who you are working for?"

I shook my head. "No one."

"You don't expect me to believe that a little party planner was able to pull this off all on her own, now do you?"

"How did you find out it was me?" I asked.

"Mr. Sacks confirmed it today. Thanks to our facial recognition technology, and all the images we have from you planting the bug, we were able to narrow it down to only three suspects. You were the last on the list. That little birthmark of yours really threw us off. Quite clever of you, actually." The woman explained.

"I don't understand." I murmured.

Facial recognition? I was so far out of my league. And here I thought that I had been sooo sneaky when I planted that device. Little did I know that they had been onto me the entire time, just chipping away at the pieces until they finally tracked me down.

"You will." She replied, another delighted smirk crossing her sharp features. "Lets move."

The other three men hurried out of my apartment quickly. The one who was holding me hung back with the women, Karai.

"Make a noise and I kill you." She told me, her voice low. She pulled up the hem of her jacket to reveal a gun and I felt my heart skip a beat.

"Go." She then ordered the man, and he began to pull me from my home.

We traveled quickly, soundlessly, down the hallway and to the staircase. They took me to the bottom floor, and then out the back where a van was waiting. It seemed as though they had planned everything out. Blocking my cellphone signal, how to get in and out of my building unseen... It had all been carefully calculated.

"Get in." The man ordered, shoving me towards the van.

I took a quick glance down the alley, and even in the dim headlights, I could make out the shattered T-Phone laying on the ground.

At least I had kept the brothers safe... That had been my only tie to them, and now it was destroyed. No one would ever cast it second glance.

I climbed into the van, ready to meet whatever fate awaited me.