"What the hell's taking so long in there?"
"Well...I'm sure they're doin' a little more than drinking coffee up there, Don."
"Mike, shut up, will ya?"
"Why should I?" Mike shot an annoyed glance in Raphael's direction. "You've been grumpy this whole trip. Geeze, maybe you shoulda stayed in that gay bar longer. Those guys coulda loosened you up a little. Might've done ya some good..."
Raph snarled at Mike and lunged for him, but he ducked and scooted out of the way, causing his brother to land plastron first in the dirt.
Raph glared up at him. "When we get home..."
"Will the two of you knock it off?" Leo was growing impatient. "I see movement up there. I think someone's coming out."
Eight eyes peered up at the second story window. A light was on now, illuminating the shade just enough to make out the faint shillouettes beyond.
"Oh geeze...I think they're kissing goodbye..." Mike scooted up closer to Leo as Don and Raph both lunged at him.
Blackness. Pain. Dizzying recollection...
She opened her eyes slowly, the intensity in her head growing to the point of near explosion as her eyes fought to adjust to the brightness. An intense heat spread behind her forehead, crawling like ghostly fingers down the back of her skull.
She struggled to sit up, the whole world spinning recklessly around her, but something was holding her down, keeping her body pinned flat to the surface beneath her. But where was she? What was this thing she was laying on? Gasping, she closed her eyes in a desperate attempt to lessen some of the pain. Memories from the past flashed through her head - the darkness, the Foot, the seering pain, her rescuer...Raphael. She remembered now. Something had knocked her across the head, pretty hard too by the feel of it. She couldn't help but wonder if she had a concussion...or worse.
A dim light began to grow behind her eyes. She could see it now - the object looming toward her, propellers spinning like some sort of giant hellicopter, the mechanical arm reaching, the voice looming in the darkness, calling "April! April!"...
"My god!" A startling realization hit her. Whatever it was that had happened to her, wherever she was now, whoever that person or...thing was, it had wanted April. What would happen to her now, once her true identity was known? And more importantly, where was April? Was she even alive?
She gazed up at the flourescent lights above. Turning her head to the side, she studied the perfect white walls that surrounded her on three sides. The sterile smell of clean linens and medicine almost made her choke. A hospital...but why do they have me tied down like this?
She flexed her hands, realizing that they were strapped down tightly next to her hips. She struggled to loosen the bindings a little, but the hard leather only dug deeper into her skin. Her ankles were also pinned down to the table beneath her. She must have done something weird in her sleep to convince the doctors she was a danger to herself or the baby. But what could she have possibly done? This all seemed so strange.
"Oh my god, the baby!" she whispered in fright. In all her confusion, she had almost forgotten about the child inside of her. Struggling, she raised her head just enough to glance down at her rounded stomach, the pain behind her eyes flaring again. The bulge under her shirt was even higher than before. Sighing, she laid her head back down on the bed. It was still there, growing inside of her. It was safe. At least for the moment.
He sat in the suffocating silence, the light beeping of the monitor the only sound. Stifling back the tears, he gripped April's hand, studying the bandages that covered her delicate cheeks, the closed eyelids that refused to flicker open. She had lost so much blood. So much blood...
The rescue crew hadn't gotten there fast enough. Robyn's heart had stopped beating five whole minutes before they'd arrived. If she did survive, the probability of brain damage was great. If only he could have gotten to them sooner. If only he had taken that damn CPR class...but he had to try not to think about that now. April needed him. He had to be strong.
He spared a glance out the window, staring into the small courtyard below. Two children, about four or five years of age from what he could tell, were playing happily, totally oblivious to the world around them. Only a couple years younger than Shadow... He closed his eyes, breathing deeply. At least they would be okay. His precious children. Christian and Shadow were in good condition. Only a few minor cuts and scrapes. He had gotten lucky.
But what about Megan? Luck had turned it's cold cheek on her it seemed. He tried not to think about it. Tried not to dwell on the pain, but the tears fought until they gained the victory.
"She...she's been...kidnapped."
"What!?!?!? What the hell do you mean, kidnapped? She was just out here in the car, for chrissakes!"
"Sir, please, calm down and let me explain this to you. You see, a gigantic aircraft of some kind--"
Casey balled his fist, landing it right in the officer's gut. He knew instantly that had been a mistake, but it was too late to do anything about it. As the other officers rushed to their comrad's aid, Casey was whisked away in a patrol car and taken down to the station. He cursed himself for being so rash, fearing that he wouldn't get to see April and Robyn, that he would never know the truth behind his cousin's disappearance. But after extensive questioning, and a brief interrogation from the commissioner, he had been set free. He figured they must have been feeling extra generous that evening. Whatever the case, he'd decided he wasn't going to argue.
As the warmness trickled down his cheeks, Casey's eyes fell on April's silent face again. What was it the cops had said to him? "We have squads out searching the city for her now. They couldn't have gone far. Don't worry, we have everything under control..."
"Yeah, right." Casey spat. "So 'in control' you can't even keep a woman from being snatched right out from under your fucking nose..."
They watched in silence as the man entered his car and shut the door. It seemed to Don like an eternity before he finally drove away.
"Okay, now we go." Raph jumped up over the wall and began his descent across the street to the apartment building beyond.
"Raph wait!" Leo called quietly. "We need to at least have some kind of a plan and--"
"Already covered." Don said blankly, and followed his brother over the wall.
Mike flashed Leo a curious frown. Leo returned the gesture with a shrug.
"I'm not sure what those two are up to, but I don't know if I like this..."
"Guess we don't have much choice, do we?"
A warmness spread through her stomach. She closed her eyes as little twinges of pain attacked her abdomen. If this was what pregnancy was like, she wondered now why she'd wanted this so bad. Curling her fingers around the sheets, she gulped in a deep breath, hoping to push away some of the pain. She could feel it again. It was still growing. At this rate, she figured the kid would be a good twenty pounds by the time it was born.
Sighing, her grip loosened. She opened her eyes, staring groggily up at the ceiling. Her surroundings looked different somehow. Just what had changed, she couldn't be certain, but as the numbing pain in her head began to fade, she found herself growing impatient under the bindings.
Why were they keeping her here like this? Had they found out that the baby wasn't entirely human? How long had she been unconscious? Where was Raphael? Would they let her see him? Suddenly, she longed for him as she had never longed for anything before. A tightness rose in her chest, and she could feel fear's long talons grip her in a paralyzing grasp. What were they going to do to her and the baby? Would she ever even see Raph again?
Raph? Don? Where the hell were they?
Leo turned toward Mike and placed a finger in front of his mouth, gesturing for Mike to be quiet. His brother nodded and glanced around the dark hallway, attempting to gain his bearings and strutinize the situation.
Suddenly, they heard a noise in the darkness, more like an ear penetrating scream. At once Leo knew where his brothers had headed. He just hoped he wasn't too late.
Casey threw the clipboard down in disgust. "Shit! I can't even read this crap! How the hell can ya expect a doctor to slice someone open correctly when they can't even write worth a damn?"
He paced impatiently toward the window and peered out at the courtyard once again. The children were no longer there, and only a few dried up leaves were left in their place, scurrying around in the wind.
Forcing his temper back into check again, he took in a deep breath and turned toward his wife. She was still laying there in silence. Those daring eyes still hidden under the closed lids, the soft mouth that had on more than one occasion spat angry words at him, that had kissed him so tenderly, now still. He brushed back a strand of hair from her forehead, and stood there, unmoving for a long time, just staring at her - at the woman he'd married and loved and created a child with.
As the beep of the monitor continued its steady rythym, he thought he could hear footsteps approaching. Under normal circumstances, he would have snatched up a bat, ready to defend himself in case of an attack, but he found he just didn't have the strength right now. That, or he simply didn't care anymore.
"Mr. Jones?"
He turned to see a young, innocent face looking back at him. Keep that smile as long as you can, kid. he thought bitterly. Cuz sooner or later life will get you and then it's all over.
The young woman forced another smile. "We have some news about Robyn O'Neil..."
Raphael's grip on the man's collar grew tighter. "Now, why don't you tell me where the fuck the kid is, and I won't have to tear your arms outta their sockets?"
"B...but I told you already...I d...I don't know what you're t...talking about." The man stuttered.
Raphael shot Don an annoyed glance.
"Look, either you tell me know, or..." He pulled out a sai and held it to the man's throat. "I slice your head clean off. How about that?"
Donatello wasn't so sure he liked that evil glint that had been growing in Raph's eyes. He'd expected him to get the job done. That was why he'd brought him to San Fransisco with him afterall, but he hadn't expected him to use quite this much violence to get the point across.
"Raph, maybe we should..."
He backed off. He didn't like that glare.
I almost got him Donny, don't blow it.
Raphael slammed the guy up against the wall, still holding the sai to his throat. "Now, let's start from the beginning. You were married once, right?"
"I...I don't know w--"
"Yeah, can the crap, shit head. Were you married or not?"
The man stared at him in fright. "Y...yes, okay...I was married once, a long time ago. Look, if you're here about the alimony payments, I--"
Don shook his head. First he left her and took her kid, and now he wasn't paying her any allimony?
Raph snarled at him. Then he got an idea. "Yeah, that's right. I'm here because you haven't been paying your allimony payments. And now it's time to collect."
The man began to visibly shake again. "Look, I..I know it's b...bad, but I didn't...I didn't have the m...money..."
"You took the kid too, didn't you?"
"No! I--"
"Cut the bullshit. We know you took him. Collin."
The man's eyes grew so wide, Don thought they might pop right out of their sockets. "H...how did you know--"
"Just call it a lucky guess." Raph was growing impatient. "Now, you gonna tell me the where the kid is, or not?"
"Hello, my name is Doctor Hudson."
She stared up at him in silence. He was short for a man, only about five-six or so, and his curly blond hair hung down just below his ears. Thick glasses brimmed his nose, and behind the light eyes was the hint of a smile. She watched as his hands fidgeted nervously with the clipboard. He must have been a new doctor just out of med school or something, although from the looks of it, he was much older than his early twenties.
"I wasn't expecting you to wake up for at least a few more hours."
Still, she said nothing in response.
"How are you feeling today?"
"Where am I?"
That question seemed to take him by surprise. "Excuse me?"
"Where am I?" Her gaze burned into him.
"Y...you're at a medical facility."
"Why do you have me tied down like this?" She struggled to free her hands, but it was no use.
He stared down at her for a moment, as if trying to think up a suitable answer. "You were...thrashing around quite a bit when we brought you here. We didn't want you to get hurt."
The answer seemed genuine enough, yet she wasn't quite sure she believed him. "Can you take them off now?" It was more a statement than a request.
"I'm sorry, but I have to clear that with the head doctor first. I will ask him once we're done here with the preliminaries."
Preliminaries? What the hell was this, an SAT test?
"Now, miss O'Neil, how long have you been in this...condition?"
Miss O'Neil? Oh shit! They really do think I'm April! But her name isn't O'Neil anymore...
"It's Hamato. Megan Hamato."
"What? You mean you aren't April?"
"Who the hell are you and where am I?" she almost yelled.
He ignored her question. Suddenly his face grew very pale, and she could have sworn his eyes were filled with fear. "Ohhh...doctor Stockman isn't going to be happy about this at all..."
Chapter Seven Coming Soon!