A/N: Hey guys I worked really hard to get this next chapter written as fast as I did and it was a lot longer than I thought it would be but I had to get to the point I wanted it to be at before I stopped. Now keep in mind that this story is rated what it is rated for a reason. I warned that there would be darker themes in this story and I meant it. So no hate mail please... trust me I know where I want this story to go. And this chapter was a very important step in getting there.
Thank you again for those who have reviewed. I really appreciate the support for this story and hope you guys enjoy this chapter. I'll post again once I get the next chapter written. And now on with the next chapter.
Chapter 7
"Hmm," Donatello frowned as he closed the hood to the battle shell. "Well it's got a busted fan belt and I still need to fix that loose drain pipe. She isn't going anywhere for a while, Raph."
Raphael leaned against the shell cycle, watching as Donatello tried to wipe the grease off his hands with little success. "Ya gonna make a junk run, Donny?"
"Maybe later," Donatello said. "Leo will kill me if I miss another training session."
Raphael snorted. "Dat hasn't stopped ya before."
"I don't think we should test him, Raph. Leo's been on edge ever since you told him about Elizabeth," Donatello said carefully. He wasn't willing to push Raphael's temper either – he was just as close to the boiling point as Leonardo was.
"Leo jus' needs ta stop bein' a bonehead and get over it already," Raphael snapped.
"You weren't exactly subtle when you sprang the news on him though, Raph. Leo has his reasons to be worried." Donatello pointed out.
"Whatevah – he's still bein' a bonehead," Raphael grumbled.
"I'm not saying you're not right, Raph. Leo could be less hostile towards her – but after what happened to the last lair… " Donatello trailed off. He didn't need to finish.
Raphael flinched, remembering how their last lair had collapsed, almost trapping them all – and would have if it hadn't been for a dimensional portal stick that Donny and the alternate Donatello from another dimension had invented. Donny had been skeptical that it would work – it had been made out of a flashlight. But the alternate Donatello had been certain that it would – and to everyone's surprise, except for Donatello's of course, it had. But Splinter had been trapped underneath the collapsing lair and had been taken captive by Hun.
"Anyway," Donatello continued. "If Elizabeth doesn't tear those stitches again and her blood pressure keeps going up she'll be able to go home in a couple days anyway."
"What?" Raphael asked suddenly straightening up. "We're jus' gonna send 'er back ta da guy dat's been given 'er all dem bruises?"
"Raph, we don't know if he's the one doing it. She hasn't said anything about it," Donatello said patiently.
"Donny, she said he would kill 'er. Dat ain't enough fer ya? What more da ya want from 'er?"
"Raph, we can't go around accusing someone of physical abuse unless we have more evidence. Elizabeth hasn't actually told us that someone is beating her up – we've just guessed. Unless she says something we can't do anything about it."
"So let's go make 'er talk 'bout it," Raphael growled.
"Raph, this probably isn't something she'd want to talk about. If it is her husband he's more than likely intimidated her into silence. We have no idea who this guy is or what kind of influence he has with authority figures. If he's powerful enough he could have friends in the right places, that alone could help keep him out of trouble. Even if he doesn't he could have enough money to bail himself out with and then where do you think he's going to go first? Elizabeth would be in danger either way. Besides unless we know for sure that it's him… well this isn't in our jurisdiction."
"Who else could it be, Donny? Ya saw dat ring – she's gotta be married ta someone."
"Raph, think about where you found her. She was by herself in Central Park. Who knows if the guys you stopped were the first to try and take advantage of her? If someone did rape her she won't talk about it unless she really trusts you. Even then that isn't certain. The point is we don't have all the facts so we can't act until we do."
"It ain't right, Donny. Sender 'er back der when it could be puttin' 'er right back in da lion's den," Raphael growled.
Donatello sighed. "I know, Raph. But unless Elizabeth says something – we can't go in with fists flying. Now come on – we're going to be late for training."
"Tag you're it," Michelangelo laughed as he caught Raphael on the shoulder and jumped to the next roof.
"Stop fooling around, Mikey," Leonardo scolded catching up with his younger brothers.
"Aww… come on, Leo. Lighten up a little bit," Michelangelo protested as he leapt from the building, caught a clothes line and used the momentum to swing him to the next rooftop.
"You're supposed to be practicing stealth training," Leonardo snapped.
"But I am training," Michelangelo insisted. He laughed the sound of it carrying over the rooftops.
"You know Mikey, Leo," Donatello said stepping out of the shadows.
Leonardo growled low in his throat.
"Why don't we call it a night?" Donatello suggested. "We've been at it for over an hour and we're close to the junk yard – I need to stop and see if they have a few things for the battle shell." His eyes took on a glint that Leonardo recognized.
Leonardo sighed, Donatello wasn't going to be focused on training anymore. He would be too preoccupied with what he hoped to find at the junk yard. "Raph, let's go get Mikey."
Raphael nodded and sprinted across the rooftop.
Leonardo turned to Donatello. "We'll meet you back here in twenty minutes, Donny. If you aren't back we'll meet up at the junk yard."
"Thanks, Leo," Donatello turned and sprinted off in the opposite direction.
Leonardo watched Donatello go for a minute waiting until his brother disappeared into the shadows then he turned and followed after Raphael. He'd only gone a few blocks when he found Raphael. Raphael was crouched on the rooftop, touching the rough surface with the tips of his fingers.
"Raph?"
"He's around here somewhere, Leo," Raph said straightening up and glaring around the empty rooftop.
Leonardo paused, barely breathing as he too listened, depending on that sixth sense that Splinter had drilled into them for as long as he could remember.
Be aware of your surroundings at all times.
"Hey guys!" Michelangelo's voice came from the water tower on the far side of the roof. From underneath Michelangelo's head appeared upside down, making his grin look rather funny. "Look I'm training. Now you see me… now you don't." He disappeared into the shadows of the water tower again.
"Ya wanted 'im ta practice stealth trainin', fearless," Raphael said with an irritated sigh.
"Now you see me… now you don't," Michelangelo said laughing again as he disappeared into the shadows once more.
Leonardo watched as his energetic brother popped in and out of the shadows for a few more minutes. Raphael snorted and shook his head, turning back the way they'd come.
"Come on, Mikey. We've got to me up with Don," Leonardo finally insisted.
Michelangelo dropped from the water tower, brushing his hands together. "Another lesson mastered by the Battle… "
"Don't you say it!" Raphael interrupted, turning back to glare at his younger brother.
"… Nexus Champion!" Michelangelo crowed triumphantly. He grinned when Raphael growled and stormed away.
"Mikey… " Leonardo started but then he thought better of it. Michelangelo wouldn't listen anyway. "Let's go."
"I think dat might be harder den ya think, fearless," Raphael said quietly. He was glaring over the edge of the building into the dark alley below. Leonardo joined him, glaring down into the semi-lit alley. A young woman had a toddler clutched to her chest, her heels clicking quietly on the cement as she backed away from two street thugs who were cornering her.
Leonardo unsheathed his katanas and Raphael drew his sais. Michelangelo joined them, his body tensing as one of the men lifted something in a threatening gesture.
"Please, I told you I don't have any money," the woman from down below pleaded, clutching the infant even tighter to her bosom.
"Den hand over yer jewelry, sweet thing and we won't get rough on yas," one of the burly men said with a hard laugh. His companion laughed stupidly along with him.
"Raph!" Leonardo whispered.
"I'm on it, Leo," Raphael said. In an instant he was gone, making his way down the fire escape so quietly that he was less than a shadow. Leonardo and Michelangelo waited, watching as Raphael slipped unseen into the alley below.
"I won't tell ya again, lady – now hand over da stuff before we have ta get rough!" One of the men snapped.
Raphael clung tight to the shadows, watching the men approach the woman and her infant. The infant cried and the woman patted his back, trying to quiet him while trying not to panic herself. She was almost to the back of the alley now, in a few more seconds she'd have nowhere to go. Raphael tensed, ready to spring.
"Time's up lady – da kid goes first," The man holding the weapon clicked back on the hammer.
Ah shell.
Raphael struck fast darting out of the shadows as the gun went off. The woman screamed and fell to her knees clutching the wailing toddler tighter to her chest. She turned around, protecting the infant with her own body.
"What in da hell?" The second man screamed. He pulled out his own weapon and pulled back the hammer. "George, what was dat thing?"
George didn't answer.
"George?" The second man asked his tone going up a pitch in his distress. "George!"
Raphael watched him from the shadows, clutching at the bullet graze on his arm. He'd been lucky, George's finger had already been on the trigger when Raphael jumped him but at least he hadn't been able to aim properly. Raphael had felt the bullet graze his arm as he'd taken the man down. It wasn't as bad as a direct shot would have been, but the graze was painful enough.
"GEORGE!" The second man turned back to the woman and child who were cringing underneath the street light. "WHERE IS HE?"
Raphael pounced out of the shadows once again, twisting the man's arm when he cried out in alarm. The gun in his hand went off but this time Raphael had managed to twist the gun away from him and away from the cringing woman on the ground. He heard the bullet ricochet off the brick as he took the second thug out with a swift right hook. The man crumpled. Raphael turned and hurried back to the fire escape, making his way up as quickly as he could with his wounded arm.
More hot sticky blood made its way down his arm as he climbed but he paid it no mind. Donatello could patch him up when they got back to the lair.
Leonardo was there before he even made the rooftops. "You did good, Raph."
Raphael nodded as he climbed onto the roof. "Thanks, bro."
"Ha ha, you should've seen the look on that guy's… Raph, is that blood?" Michelangelo asked, his eyes widening in shock.
Leonardo was on his brother in a flash, examining the wound with narrowed angry eyes. "He shot you?" He demanded glaring at Raphael.
"Bullet grazed me – it's nothin' Donny can't patch up at da lair," Raphael said tugging his arm out of Leonardo's grip.
Leonardo glared at him, then untied his mask and wrapped it around the bleeding wound. "Mikey, give me your mask we need to slow the bleeding."
Michelangelo did what he was told without question. Leonardo tied it around Raphael's arm as well then ground his jaw together. "Let's get Donny and get back."
"Ah ha!" Donatello grinned triumphant as he straightened up from a pile of garbage he'd been digging through. "This is perfect! Thanks, Professor!"
The weathered old man in rags with dirty clumped gray hair grinned back at him. "You are most welcome, my young friend."
Donatello slipped the misshapen hunk of metal and wires into his duffel bag and shouldered it. "I've got to get back. But I'll see you around, Professor."
"Take care, Donatello," The Professor said with a grin then he turned back to where a small cluster of his homeless friends stood warming their hands over a small fire.
Donatello hurried out of the junk yard, making his way to the rooftops quickly. He had a feeling he had been in the junk yard for more than twenty minutes… so where were the others? He picked up the pace, hurrying back to where they'd said they would meet up.
It took him less than no time to get there, but the rooftop was empty. He stopped and frowned, looking around at the surrounding rooftops for any sign of his brothers. The rooftops were empty.
"Ok," Donatello said slowly as he pulled his shell cell from his belt and flipped it open. "Where are you, Leo?" He muttered as he pressed the button to his brother's phone.
Suddenly there was a sharp prick in the back of his neck, Donatello's phone fell from nerveless fingers and he grabbed at his neck, jerking the dart from his skin. He turned, disoriented as his vision began to blur. He heard someone laugh, a sharp pain as someone's foot connected with his side and then nothing.
Donatello's insides were burning, as if acid was coursing through his veins, spreading throughout his entire body. He tried to writhe and scream in pain but his hands were bound in an uncomfortable position behind is carapace and his beak was clamped shut by what felt like a leather muzzle. He tugged at his restraints, testing the tightness of his bonds. They didn't give.
"What is this! I told you to bring me back my wife not some giant turtle!" Someone snapped.
Donatello slowly peeled open his eyes, wincing at the bright white light of the room he was in. He could make out vague outlines of two people across the room from where he was but they were like shadows with no distinct shape to them. His vision blurred in and out, his eyes watering as the fire continued to course through his body.
He wanted to cry out, to cut open his flesh and let the fire escape his body. But he couldn't – the restraints on his wrists prevented him from doing much of anything.
"You said you've looked everywhere for her, Mr. Cooper," Someone hissed. "Trust me – if these turtles have seen her or have her all you have to do is threaten one of them and the others will do whatever you want. The poison in my dart will kill this one in two hours… tell them you have the antidote and they'll come to you with any information they have."
No!
Donatello's mind rebelled against what they were saying. They wanted to use him to get to his brothers. But why? For who? Elizabeth? Were these people looking for her? Donatello wanted to cry out to his brothers, to warn them not to come. These men wouldn't hand over the antidote… they never did. He was going to die… and what was to stop these men from poisoning his brothers as well?
Donatello couldn't stand the thought of his brothers writhing on the ground in this horrible agony.
Stay away, guys! Please stay away!
"How are we supposed to contact them?" The first man demanded.
"That one had this on him – looks like some kind of phone… " The second man laughed.
No! The shell cell!
Donatello cringed inwardly. If those men activated the tracking device in his phone it could lead them right to the others! He tested the bonds on his wrists again, and felt a white hot burning pain shoot up his arms and through the rest of his body, almost causing him to black out again.
He clung to consciousness, but just barely, trying to breathe through the heavy leather that covered his beak. His eyes closed again, it was too hard to keep them open.
"Try that one," The first man suggested to the second.
Donatello couldn't see what they were doing but he strained his ears, listening.
"Donny… ?"
Donatello could hear the relief on the other end of the line as his brother picked up.
"Where are… ?"
"If you ever want to see your brother again… " The second man hissed into the phone, making his brother stop short. "You will do exactly as I say… and you've got less than two hours to do it. Otherwise we'll be dropping off a dead turtle at the docks."
Donatello's sob was muffled by the leather muzzle. He never heard his brother's reply as the fire burning through him dragged him back into unconsciousness.
"Hey, Leo?" Michelangelo called back to Leonardo who was sticking close to Raphael. He didn't like the strange color Raphael's skin had taken. Raphael was breathing heavily and both masks were soaked through with blood.
"What is it, Mikey?" Leonardo asked, gripping Raphael's arm when Raphael stumbled after his last jump.
"Weren't we supposed to meet Donny here?" Michelangelo asked, looking around the empty roof confused.
Leonardo frowned, it had been well past the twenty minute time frame he'd given his brother to go scavenging through the junk yard. So he was surprised that his brother wasn't waiting for them. He pulled his shell cell out of his belt, annoyed. He didn't have time to go looking for his brother – they had to get Raphael back to the lair before he blacked out. It was obvious that Raphael was going into shock.
"Hey I think I see something," Michelangelo called darting over to the next roof before Leonardo could call him back.
"Leo – I ain't feelin' so good," Raphael grumbled, leaning against his brother.
"Hang on, Raph – we're going to get you home. Donny will patch you up." Leonardo reassured him, tightening his grip on his brother.
He opened his shell cell to dial Donatello's number, but then his phone rang. Donatello's name flashed onto the caller ID.
"Perfect timing, Don," Leonardo muttered as he pushed the send button. "Donny… ?"
Donatello didn't answer right away. Leonardo frowned.
Raphael sagged against him and Leonardo fought to keep his brother on his feet.
"Where are… ?" Leonardo started to demanded but paused when Michelangelo's panic voice echoed over the rooftops.
"LEO!"
"If you ever want to see your brother again… " A strange voice echoed from the speaker on his shell cell almost making Leonardo drop it in shock. Leonardo felt his eyes bulge in horror and he instinctively clutched the two things he was holding tighter to him when Michelangelo appeared carrying Donatello's duffel. "You will do exactly as I say… and you've got less than two hours to do it. Otherwise we'll be dropping off a dead turtle at the docks."
"Leo?" Raphael's voice was weak, he tipped his head up to peer into Leonardo's face. "What's wrong? Where's Donny?"
Leonardo's hand clutched the phone so tightly he heard the casing crack. "Where's my brother?"
"Meet me on 111th and 5th in one hour," The voice hissed. "If you aren't there I don't think your brother will survive a double dose."
With that the line went dead.
Leonardo felt numb.
"Leo," Michelangelo sobbed, horrified by the look on his brother's face. "Leo!"
Leonardo blinked and stared back at his brother, frozen in shock. "Mikey, they have Donny."
"Leo, stop!"
Michelangelo's voice echoed around the lair, making Elizabeth look up from where she was sprawled out on the couch watching a boring sitcom. She gasped as she saw Leonardo hauling a very gray Raphael through the front door, Raphael was moving sluggishly, his feet dragging across the concrete floor.
Leonardo's face was strained with worry and Michelangelo's face was tense with stress.
Elizabeth propped herself up on one elbow as Leonardo half carried half dragged Raphael towards the infirmary.
"My sons," Splinter called as he exited his room, his eyes widening in shock when he saw Leonardo dragging Raphael towards the infirmary.
"Mikey, we don't have time. If what they said is true then Donny is in real trouble!" Leonardo snapped as he, Raphael, Michelangelo, and Splinter disappeared into the infirmary.
Elizabeth gasped again.
Donatello was in trouble? Why? What had happened?
"Did they say who they were or what they want?" Michelangelo barked in a tone Elizabeth didn't recognize.
"Leonardo, what has happened to your brother?" Splinter demanded.
"He's in shock, Sensei." Leonardo said quickly. "I don't know who they are, Mikey. That isn't the point. They have Donny and we're going."
"My sons! What has happened? Where is your brother?"
There was silence for a long moment. Then Leonardo spoke, his voice less angry and more broken than Elizabeth would have ever thought it could be.
"I'm sorry, Master Splinter. It's my fault. I never should have let him go on by himself. I should have gone with him."
"Leonardo," Splinter said impatiently, a sharp edge to his tone that made Elizabeth want to cringe. "Where is your brother? What has happened?"
"I… I don't know who they are, Master. I didn't recognize them," Leonardo confessed. He paused as if waiting for Splinter to snap at him, but there was only silence. Elizabeth swallowed hard.
Was it possible that Graham had something to do with this? Did he have his dark minions of the criminal world scouring the city for her? If he did she knew they would stop at no length to find her. She sat up, pushing aside the blankets that had been covering her.
She was grateful that Raphael had snuck up to their penthouse now to retrieve some clothes for her. He'd found her address on her driver's license and had retrieved a few fresh pieces of clothing she could change into. Donatello had helped her change after she'd woken up from her nap on the couch. He hadn't let her shower though… he said she'd have to wait at least another day for that. Still being in fresh clean clothes had made her feel a little better. She'd combed her long dark hair out with her fingers and had braided it smartly into a long dark plait behind her head and when she'd finished she'd looked halfway decent again.
She got to her feet carefully and made her way across the room so she could hear better as the others dropped their voices to low whispers.
"This doesn't have anything to do with her, Leo!" Michelangelo hissed.
"We don't know that, Mikey! Raph brought her down here and now Donny is in trouble! Why else would these people want to talk to us unless they suspected something?"
"How would they even know about us?" Michelangelo demanded.
"Mikey! We don't have time for this! We have half an hour to meet this man or else he's going to kill Donny! We have to go!"
"Leonardo, are you willing to put the life of this young woman into the hands of your brother's abductor?" Splinter asked quietly.
"If that's what it takes to get Donny back, Master Splinter. We can't let Donny die for her." Leonardo's voice had taken that cold hard tone that Elizabeth hated.
She shivered and walked away from the door quietly. She didn't want to hear anymore. She didn't need to hear anymore. If Leonardo's suspicions were correct and Graham hired these men to kidnap Donatello in an attempt to get her back then she would go on her own. Donatello had been so nice to her, he'd cared for her and had never once spoken to her or lashed out at her in anger. She couldn't let anything happen to him. And from the way Raphael had looked when Leonardo had dragged him in he would need his brother to help him.
Her heart clenched with pain at the thought of losing Raphael. She had just met him, and yet the thought of never seeing him again hurt her more than going back to Graham. But knowing he was still out there… knowing he was probably saving someone else's life was enough to steady her resolve. She had to go back. She had to face her husband. She had to try.
The front door was still open, the others had been too busy bringing Raphael in to even notice. Elizabeth glanced once more over her shoulder, felt tears prick at her eyes, then turned and disappeared into the tunnels.
She walked in the opposite direction that she'd taken the last time, hoping she'd have better luck in finding a manhole this time. Her shoes sloshed through the dirty sewer water. She didn't care. Hot tears splashed down her cheeks as she made her way down the dark sewer passage. She wasn't afraid of Graham. She wasn't afraid of what he was going to do to her. She'd been through it all before. She'd either wake up in the hospital again after having another "accident" or she simply wouldn't wake up at all. She hoped for the latter – it would be better.
She lost track of how long she'd been walking through the sewer tunnels, forgot which way she'd come – or how to get back. It was all for the better. That way she couldn't tell anyone where these strange turtle creatures lived.
She felt a knot rise in her throat. She'd brought this on them. She was the one who had put their lives at risk – just as Leonardo had feared. She realized now how right he had been to be worried about her presence there. As long as she was with them, his family had been in danger. And now Donatello's life was at stake.
Elizabeth turned a corner and almost cried out with relief. There just ahead she could see a light coming from the ceiling… a manhole cover. Elizabeth ran through the disgusting water, feeling more hot tears trickle down her face as she approached the rung ladder and the manhole covering.
She climbed up the slick rung ladder, surprised at how hard it was to climb. Her hands were coated with sweat forcing her to grip the iron rungs extra tight so she wouldn't lose her grip. When she reached the top she pushed against the manhole covering.
It didn't budge. It was much heavier than she would have expected. Elizabeth bit her lip and pushed against the manhole cover again, gripping the ladder with one hand and almost crying out in pain as she lifted the heavy manhole cover just for a second before it fell into place again.
She sobbed, her muscles screaming with fatigue as she sagged against the ladder. It was too heavy. How was she supposed to save Donatello if she couldn't even lift the stupid manhole cover?
She thought of the gentle purple-banded turtle, his soft chocolate colored eyes filled with concern as he tried to stop her pain. His soft gentle hands as he restitched her wounds, his warm breath as it brushed past her skin. His gentle smile.
Elizabeth's eyes snapped up towards the manhole cover again. She had to get that thing out of the way. She had to save Donatello! If anything happened to him because of her…
Elizabeth pushed against the manhole cover again, shoving the heavy covering with every ounce of strength she had left. To her surprise it lifted, shifting slightly to the left. Elizabeth paused, panting and leaning against the ladder before pushing at it again. It moved another couple inches. And after a third try it was over far enough that Elizabeth could climb out.
Sobbing in relief Elizabeth pulled herself to street level, breathing in a breath of fresh air. Surprised at how strange it felt in her lungs. She had gotten so used to the musty air of the sewers that the outside air made her head spin. She sagged against the pavement, her muscles screaming their exhaustion and her back heaving with her exertion.
After several long minutes Elizabeth forced herself to get to her feet. Her legs shook underneath her and her heartbeat thudded loudly in her ears. She had to get to Graham's office. But first she had to figure out where she was.
She made her way slowly out of the alley, grateful that the manhole cover hadn't been in the middle of a busy street. Ignoring her screaming muscles Elizabeth ran down to the nearest street corner and gasped, clutching at her side as she blinked up at the street signs.
She was too far away to walk to Graham's office –she'd have to get a cab and pay for it when she got there.
"Taxi!" Elizabeth shouted, waving her hand in front of a yellow cab in the closest lane. The taxi driver pulled the vehicle to the side of the street and Elizabeth jumped in.
The taxi driver watched her climb in and turned to look at her from his seat. He was rather fat, a cigar butt hung from the corner of his mouth and his black hair was streaked with gray lines. His black eyes studied her, calculating whether or not she would be able to pay him for the ride.
"Where to lady?"
"Cooper Enterprises, and step on it!" Elizabeth said slamming her door and bucking her seatbelt. "If you get me there in fifteen minutes I'll pay you twice what I'll owe."
"You've got it lady." The cab driver turned around and pulled back into the heavy lanes of traffic.
Ten minutes later the yellow taxi cab pulled in front of Cooper Enterprises front doors. The taxi driver turned around to look at her.
"Will you just wait here a minute please?" Elizabeth begged.
The man frowned, but nodded reluctantly. He shifted the taxi into park and Elizabeth hurried from the back seat, running to the front doors. They were locked for the night – but there was a code box to the side of the door to let the night guards and her husband in and out when he worked after regular business hours.
Elizabeth punched in the code and wrenched open the door. She didn't see the night shift security guard which told her he was probably patrolling one of the inner corridors. She rushed to the elevator and punched the up button. The elevator door dinged and opened immediately. Elizabeth stepped inside and pressed the number 16. The doors closed slowly and the elevator rumbled as it began to climb up the shaft.
Elizabeth's heart was beating so loud in her hears that she couldn't hear the soft elevator music playing from the speakers.
When the doors opened again Elizabeth left the elevator on numb legs. She walked down the hall past three doors and paused outside the door that had the large letters spelling out her husband's name. She knocked softly.
"Come in!" Graham snapped from the other side of the door.
Elizabeth cringed then pushed open the door slowly.
"This had better be… " Graham snapped turning around from where he'd been pacing in front of his mahogany desk. He froze, his eyes narrowing when he saw her. Elizabeth's insides turned to ice and she had to quell the instinct to turn and run. Her eyes darted around the office, hoping to see Donatello somewhere.
They froze when she spotted him. He was in the corner, his hands bound behind his shell , a muzzle on his beak, his legs tied together with heavy rope. He wasn't moving.
"Elizabeth!" Graham growled, his face reddening in his anger.
"Graham, I'm here – please let him go." Elizabeth pleaded stepping into the room.
Graham's eyes flickered to the turtle and back to her again, his expression darkening still. "So these creatures did have something to do with your disappearance?"
"Graham, please – they saved my life. Just let him go."
"JENKINS!" Graham bellowed making Elizabeth jump.
A second man that Elizabeth hadn't noticed before stepped out from the shadows. His eyes were lidded, his long black hair hung around his face in uneven pieces as if someone had cut it but hadn't done it properly. He had a long jagged scar across one eye, which was now milky white and made one side of his face hang down in a permanent frown. The other side of his face was smirking.
Graham turned to him. "Looks like you were right. Get rid of that one," he pointed to Donatello's unconscious body, "and tell your master that he has my gratitude."
"It was our pleasure," Jenkins hissed his good eye darting to Elizabeth and a hungry expression briefly crossed his face as he pulled a small dart gun from the waistband of his pants. "Should I dispose of him now then?"
"Do what you want with him I have what I was after," Graham snarled turning back to Elizabeth. He grabbed her roughly by the arms and Elizabeth cried out as his fingers dug into her skin. She dug her heels into the beige carpet but it didn't stop him from slamming her up against the large desk. She heard something rattle then fall off the edge, shattering when it hit the floor.
"Graham, please," Elizabeth gasped as pain shot through her spine where her back had hit the rough wood. "Please don't hurt him!"
"You are in no position to ask for anything, Lizzy!" Graham snarled, gripping her even tighter. Elizabeth cried out in pain and Graham slapped her across the face, silencing her cries. "I promised you that if you ever tried to leave again that it would be the last thing you would ever do."
"But I didn't try to leave," Elizabeth gasped, tears flowing freely down her cheeks. "Graham, please… "
Elizabeth was silenced when a fist connected with her cheekbone and a knee caught her just under the ribcage. Her knees buckled and she gasped as Graham let her fall to the floor. A sharp blow caught her in the stomach and another caught her in the ribs knocking the wind out of her. She was sure she heard something crack that time and she was finding it hard to breathe.
She opened her eyes a bit, hoping to see Donatello one last time.
He was awake. His eyes, the warm color of melted chocolate were staring right at her, his expression horrified and sad at the same time. Elizabeth cringed. She hadn't wanted him to see this. He shouldn't have to witness her death.
Graham's meaty hand caught her around the throat hauling her to her feet again. Elizabeth choked, unable to breathe. She clawed desperately at his hand, but he didn't let go.
"I loved you, Lizzy," Graham hissed through his teeth, bringing Elizabeth so close to his face that his hot breath hit her face. She could smell the whisky on his breath. "I gave you everything. And this is how you repay me?"
Elizabeth gasped, desperate for him to let go of her throat. She couldn't breathe! She was going to suffocate!
Graham's fist connected with her face again, just above her eye this time. Elizabeth crumpled to the ground, coughing and gasping wildly. A coppery taste filled her mouth and she spat it onto the floor, not bothering to open her eyes. Her whole body ached, her chest was on fire and every breath was absolute agony. She opened her eyes and stared up at her husband, regret pouring from every inch of her body. How she wished she'd never met him.
"Jenkins! Kill that thing and get out!" Graham shouted as he reached for the button on his jeans.
No! Elizabeth thought desperately, straining her neck to see Jenkins approaching Donatello, the dart gun held out in front of him a wicked smile curling up one side of his face.
No! She couldn't have done this for nothing. She had to at least save Donatello's life.
"Grah… Graham," Elizabeth wheezed. "Do… don't hurt 'im."
Graham bent down and wrapped his hand around her throat again, cutting off her air and smiling as her eyes bulged in panic.
"You, my dear wife, are in no position to ask for anything," Graham whispered.
Elizabeth felt her heart shatter into a million pieces at the thought of what this would do to Donatello's brothers.
Well, Leo, at least I won't be a danger to the rest of your family. Elizabeth thought.
She felt Graham reach for her pants, lifting them away from her skin and then there was a strange sound. Glass shattering? Had something else fallen off the desk and broken?
Elizabeth didn't have the strength to look. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head and her world went dark.