LOL, Next chapter! ^^

Chapter 17

Jolene

My name is Jolene Kirby.

I am not what you see.

I may be thin, yes, timid and shy, but I have great ambitions. I can play ANY instrument under the sun exceptionally well. I've got this thing for music… just like my Uncle had this thing for art.

The weird thing is, he also had this thing for crystals. As a college gift, he gave me a stone, shining with a weird light, and told me it might come in handy one of these days.

Who knew I would end up on some sort of secret hit list from a branch of the government that no one knows about?

I have no idea what this object I now hide is capable of, but I know one thing for sure.

I won't let it fall into the wrong hands, Uncle Kirby. I swear.

Not even Purple Dragons can take it from me.

***

Tristan had been with Bishop's men for a week, and so far, he was loving it. He was excelling in his combat training, weapons training, heck, even the technology training was a snap. He focused all the emotional pain he was feeling into the harsh education and surprised even Bishop.

"My, and you are only 14?"

"Maybe." Tristan shrugged, growling slightly.

Bishop chuckled softly," Of course. Well, you'll be pleased to hear, doubtless, that your first mission is tomorrow."

Tristan's eyes got huge as he grinned," Awesome!"

Bishop smirked," You'll be briefed in about 22 hours."

"Yes sir." Tristan's curt nod was tempered by a rising sense of adrenaline.

Bishop allowed him some free time, and during those times, Tristan made sure that Chloe heard from him…in a very roundabout way, of course. He didn't want her to go after him.

Not yet, anyways…

***

"CHLOE!"

"AH!" Chloe snapped out of her trance as Alex snarled," You've been staring into space for the past ten minutes!!!"

Chloe's eyes water but she forced back her emotions as she responded roughly," You didn't need to yell at me!"

"You're still worried about him, aren't you?" Charis asked softly, coming into the room after hearing Alex's shout.

Chloe sighed," I can't help it. I'm worried, I miss him and I wish I could have stopped him-"

"You need to stop beating yourself up about that! Besides, who knew he'd-"

"Chloe!"

Chloe jumped up as Raphael came racing into the room. He was clearly worked up about something," I just found out from Casey and Angel that the PDs are holding a young woman hostage! And that's not all…. Bishop's after her!"

"How the heck does CASEY JONES know about that?!" Chloe snapped.

"Cause Angel's been doing undercover work in the PD ranks!" Raph grinned slightly, "And from what I heard, she's good. She tips Casey, the police, heck, I heard she even help Nobody once!"

"Sheesh, she does live on the wild side, doesn't she?" Chloe chuckled quietly," So, what are we going to do about?"

"Me an' Leo are gonna go in as back up… you know Casey. He's such a bonehead." Raph rolled his eyes as he turned to leave.

Alex chuckled," Yep, Beauty and the Bonehead, that's April and Casey."

Tana burst out laughing, her tail thrashing behind her as she bent over double.

***

Casey watched carefully as Angel walked into the PD HQ. Her hair was done in a buzz-cut and dyed hot pink and tainted silver at the tips. She wore heavy eye make-up and a long-sleeved shirt that made it seem like she had her whole arm tattooed. Her jeans were long and ragged. She smirked as they let her in, apparently not recognizing her. Casey chuckled softly.

The kid was good. Since she had been a Purple Dragon, she knew how to slip past them without getting caught, making her the perfect double-agent.

Raphael was covering the back with Leo.

Once in, Angel casually strolled down to where she knew they kept hostages. Her golden eyes flashed at the sight of a pale, black-haired girl, huddled in the corner. The young woman was thin, and bruised, as if she had been beaten.

Taking a breath, Angel walked to the cage and swiftly picked the lock. Raphael had given her lessons, and she had taken to it like a bird to the air. The girl looked up in surprise and Angel murmured," Come on!"

***

Jolene didn't know whether or not she should trust the punk-looking pd girl, but realized she didn't have much of a choice. She slipped out, silent as a ghost, and Angel threw a cloak over her shoulders, leading her out the backdoor. Suddenly, they all heard the alarm, and Angel muttered," Come on!" as the door behind them burst open.

Angel and Jolene raced down the alleyways, not looking over their shoulders. Angel heard Leonardo and Raphael leap down to give the dragons hell… but it wasn't quite enough…

Jolene suddenly reached into her pocket and pressed something into Angel's hand," Take this! They mustn't get it!"

And then, Jolene branched away from Angel.

Angel looked down at the object and smiled in relief as she saw Casey give her the retreat signal, as he headed off the girl and took her under his wing.

***

Angel quickly lost the dragons on her trail, making her way to the sewer.

She looked down on a small, blue stone and wondered," Why the heck do they want this thing?"

She put it back in her pocket and was about to head down into the sewers when she heard a growling chuckle.

She whirled around, snapping," Casey, that's not funny!"

"Well, thanks, but I'm not Casey… and I wasn't being funny."

Angel's eyes widened as a wolf-like boy stepped from the shadows, smirking," you were good. Got the job done. And I thought you were gonna be an amateur."

She snapped," Who are you?!"

"Heh, I'm Tristan Mab. And you? What's your name?"

"Melissa." She lied.

He smirked," You're a damn good liar, little girl."

She put her hands on her hips," WHAT do you want?"

"Just was curious… do you happen to have something resembling a crystal?"

"Nope." She replied firmly.

"You're lying."

It wasn't a question. It was a flat statement, spoken without a blink of the eyes.

Angel sneered," what do you intend to do about it, wolfie?"

"Nothing. Go on, with whatever the hell you plan to do." He chuckled as he turned and left.

Angel blinked.

"What the heck?" she muttered as she backed away, silently slipping into a manhole, casting a backward glance.

She felt for the small crystal in her pocket and snarled as she discovered it was gone. Quickly, she rushed back to the surface and looked around, her eyes darkening as she saw the wolf-boy disappear over the rooftops. With a dertermined expression, she quickly followed him, staying out of sight.

***

Casey lead Jolene into the sewers and asked," What the heck did they want, kid?"

Jolene looked up at him, tears skimming down her face," They wanted something my uncle gave me."

She smiled faintly as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a pink crystal. It glimmered faintly as she added quietly," I gave Angel a decoy just in case something happened. This is the real thing."

Casey frowned," What the heck is that?"

"It's a crystal. I don't know what it does, but the government wants it… and so do the Purple Dragons." The pale girl added, cursing under her breath.

Casey shook his head," Look, I know a place where you'll be safe."

She shook her head," I'll just put you in danger. Uncle Kirby told me not to let anyone get their hands on it."

Casey stopped short," Whoa, whoa, hold the phone! You have an uncle named Kirby?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Like, Jack Kirby?"

She stared," Do you know him? Where is he?! I haven't seen him in a long time! Is he okay?"

Casey sat against the wall," oh boy, Donnie's gonna LOVE this…"

She cocked her head," Who is Donnie?"

Casey scowled," A friend of mine… he was the last one to see your Uncle."

She clapped a hand over her mouth. Tears pooled in her dark, dark eyes.

Casey looked at her and groaned," Aw, please don't cry! I hate it when women cry!"

"Please, tell me where I can find Don!" Jolene begged.

Casey sighed," It ain't that easy!"

She smacked him across the face then, snapping," Damn it, I was just held prisoner by the toughest gang on the Eastside! I think I can handle whatever it is you don't want to throw at me!"

Casey chuckled," Look, sweetheart, you don't know me… I make some pretty weird friends!"

"JUST take me to him! I have to know what happened to my Uncle! I have to!" Jolene cried.

He grumbled, turning away,, just as she gave a leap and smacked him upside the head," And DON'T call me sweetheart!! My NAME is JOLENE!!"

Casey groaned," Geez, and I used to complain I didn't know enough women… I know too many now!"

Jolene shivered as he said," Look, I gotta make a phone call, okay? Sheesh…"

She snapped," Just do it!"

Lol, poor Casey!

Like? hate? Review!!!

Oh, yeah, and I don't own Jack Kirby! but... i do own his daughter, lol, that sounds so weird...