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Casey urges Raph to help him solve the puzzle, but the red banded turtle and his oldest brother are locked in a mystery of their own.\nPairing this part: Leo/Raph\n~~This haunting preview art was created by the very talented @GwenIala", "description_bbcode_parsed": "Word Count: 4,783
Rating: NC-17 TCest OT4, language, violence, adult concepts
Summary: Young, healthy males throughout New York City are dying in a mysterious manner. Casey urges Raph to help him solve the puzzle, but the red banded turtle and his oldest brother are locked in a mystery of their own.
Pairing this part: Leo/Raph
~~This haunting preview art was created by the very talented \r\n\t\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGwenIala\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t		\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGwenIala\r\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
", "writing": "\tLeo saw Don’s frantic expression first and then he noticed the fresh abrasion on his brother’s olive toned skin.\n\n\t“Where is he?” Leo demanded tersely.\n\n\t“It’s my fault,” Don said in a rush. “Casey’s worse and I shouldn’t have told Raph . . . .”\n\n\t“Get Master Splinter to watch Casey,” Leo interrupted. “We have to go after Raph before he gets himself killed.”\n\n\tDon moved fast, going to Master Splinter’s room and calling to his father. Leo bounded up the stairs and rapped sharply on Mikey’s door, yelling, “Mikey, get up!”\n\n\tMikey yanked his door open almost immediately, his nunchucks in one hand and his mask in the other.\n\n\t“What’s wrong?” he asked.\n\n\t“Raph went after the skinwalker on his own,” Leo said.\n\n\t“Shell,” Mikey cursed, leaping after Leo to the floor below.\n\n\tMikey shoved his nunchucks into his belt and tied his mask on as they waited for Don, who was leading Master Splinter to the infirmary, explaining what was happening as they walked.\n\n\t“I gave him a shot of morphine twenty minutes ago,” Don said. “I’m keeping the dosage low, so he’ll need another in four hours. There’s a filled syringe on the tray next to his cot. Please give him that injection if we aren’t back by then.”\n\n\tMaster Splinter nodded and watched as Don joined his brothers. “Be careful my sons,” he called after them.\n\n~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~\n\n\tRaph raced through the tunnels, moving fast because he knew that Leo would try to stop him if he caught up before Raph made it topside.\n\n\tHe was taking a calculated risk and he knew it. If Raph had tried to reason with Leo that they had to go after the skinwalker tonight, his brother would have fed him the same line of bullshit negating that plan, despite the downturn in Casey’s condition.\n\n\tRaph didn’t really want to hunt for the skinwalker alone, in spite of his actions to the contrary. The area that she operated within was too vast and the odds of Raph finding her without help were poor.\n\n\tPunching Don had served two purposes; it had kept the genius from slowing him down, and it had made it appear that Raph was out of control. That coupled with his outburst about finding and slaying the skinwalker would guarantee that Leo and his brothers would come after him.\n\n\tThe advantage of being known as a hot head was that sometimes Raph could manipulate his family into doing what he wanted. The disadvantage was his estranged relationship with Leo.\n\n\tRaph exited the tunnels at a location some distance from the target zone and took to the roof tops immediately. He moved slower now, all of his senses heightened as he approached the area where Casey had been attacked.\n\n\tWithin just a few minutes he perceived another presence and immediately merged into the shadows. Gliding forward on silent feet, he spotted a dark bulk curled at the base of a chimney pipe.\n\n\tAfter watching it carefully and seeing no movement, Raph slid in for a closer look. When he drew nearer, he saw a police radio lying on the ground close to what he could now see was a body.\n\n\tRaph lunged forward quickly, kneeling next to the prone form of a man. Turning him gently, Raph pressed a finger to his neck, sighing with relief when he detected a pulse. Checking the man’s throat, Raph did not find the tell-tale markings left by the skinwalker, but he noticed that the man had a small build and was probably in his forties, not the woman’s type. His coat had fallen open when Raph had moved him, and the man’s badge was visible on his belt.\n\n\tThere was a spot of blood on Raph’s finger when he pulled his hand away from the policeman’s head, so he carefully perused the man’s skull for injuries. Matted blood marked the area where the officer had been hit by something; the wound a nasty welt on the side of his head that had fortunately stopped bleeding.\n\n\tRaph had no idea how frequently the officers were required to report in, but his gut told him that either he’d just called in with an all clear, or the skinwalker had done it for him by imitating his voice. A call for assistance would have already been answered and the roof would have been teeming with cops.\n\n\tStanding slowly, Raph contemplated the adjoining roof tops. The skinwalker hadn’t bothered with the policeman other than to incapacitate him, which had probably taken only a few minutes. She was in a hurry for some reason and hadn’t wanted to draw any more unwanted attention to her hunting grounds. That was no doubt the reason the officer hadn’t been tossed to the street below.\n\n\tThe only explanation that Raph could think of for her hasty, yet quiet, disposal of the cop was that she was stalking another target. He didn’t see her anywhere, but then the sky was dark with heavy clouds, limiting visibility to only a short distance.\n\n\tA rumble of far off thunder urged Raph to move; minutes even seconds could mean the difference between life and death for someone. Yet his running blindly would do her next victim no good if Raph wound up going in the wrong direction.\n\n\tTaking a deep breath, Raph calmed his urge to leap into immediate action. The area where she’d attacked Casey and eventually killed the Purple Dragon was two blocks away to his right. If she had stayed with her original pattern, the skinwalker would have been hunting for her next victim several blocks to the left of that location.\n\n\tIf the police were on to her pattern, they should have had a man or two perched on the roof tops there instead of where Raph had found the unconscious officer. There was a chance that Raph could run across some more cops while pursuing the skinwalker, but Raph had a feeling that wouldn’t be the case. He would bet that the police had located a man or men who fit the killer’s victimology and that those potential targets lived near the police stakeout.\n\n\tFollowing that train of thought, Raph took a quick peek over the side of the building. His sharp eyes soon picked out a ‘drunk’ leaning against an alley wall, a ‘couple’ making out in a parked car, and a man who was seated at a bus top ostensibly ‘reading’ a newspaper.\n\n\tLeaving the police to their stakeout, Raph leaped across to another roof top and began running towards the buildings to his left. Somehow he knew that for the skinwalker it wasn’t just about the victim, but also about a certain comfort zone.\n\n~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~\n\n\tLeo knew that Raph had a large enough head start that the possibility of his still being in the sewer tunnels was doubtful. Since it was easier and faster to move through New York via the city’s roofs, the three turtle brothers left the hidden safety of the underground fairly quickly.\n\n\tFortunately they weren’t going to have to search the entire city for their rogue brother. He was on a mission to kill the skinwalker and his best chance of finding her was to go where she hunted. With that knowledge, Leo led his team in that same direction.\n\n\tA crackling sound from the roof top of one of the buildings along their route pulled Leo up short and he lifted a hand to warn Don and Mikey. Taking to the shadows, the threesome approached the spot where the noise had emanated from, spotting the police radio and the unconscious officer when a flash of lightning illuminated them.\n\n\tSeeing that no one else occupied the roof, the brothers crossed over and knelt next to the man. As Leo was checking his vitals, the radio came to life again.\n\n\t[i]“Report in, short code,” [/i]a voice said. [i]“Acknowledge all clear.”\n[/i]\n\tDon reached over and picked up the radio. Clearing his throat, he pressed the send button and whispered, “10-4.”\n\n\tThey heard a double click as the sender thumbed the transmitter and then the radio went silent.\n\n\t“The police?” Leo asked quietly.\n\n\tDon nodded. “A command unit, no doubt in a van parked on the street near here. This probably isn’t where we’ll find the skinwalker.”\n\n\t“She found him,” Mikey said, pointing to the wound on the man’s head.\n\n\t“On her way to somewhere else,” Don insisted.\n\n\t“Raph agreed with you,” Leo said, studying a scuffed spot in the grime that had settled on the slate roofing material. “He was here.”\n\n\t“Can you tell where he went?” Mikey asked.\n\n\tLeo didn’t answer immediately, instead walking slowly across the roof with his head down as he studied Raph’s trail. Neither Don nor Mikey moved as they waited for their oldest brother to track their hot headed one, following signs that were completely invisible to the purple and orange banded ninjas.\n\n\tTurning back to his brothers, Leo signaled them to follow and then leaped across to another building without hesitation. Don and Mikey were practically on his heels, knowing without a doubt that Leo had found Raph’s path.\n\n~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~\n\n\tRaph squatted atop a water tower, letting his eyes search the surrounding buildings. He knew he couldn’t remain so high up for long, lightning had begun to trail across the sky and he didn’t want to become turtle flambé. \n\n\tThe approaching storm shortened his window of opportunity for locating the thing he’d vowed to kill. Climbing to the top of the tallest structure that was nearest to him was the fastest way to search for her and he figured taking the chance of getting hit by lightning was an acceptable risk.\n\n\tHe was about to descend and continue on when movement atop the building directly in front of him caught his attention. Flattening himself as much as possible, Raph stared hard at the spot and saw a man climb up from the fire ladder onto the roof.\n\n\tThe man was big and strong looking, something Raph could discern by the way his overcoat stretched across his shoulder blades. Once he was on the roof, the man turned and reached back towards the ladder, lending a hand to the woman who was trailing along behind him.\n\n\tRaph’s heart began to beat faster as he studied her. She was several inches shorter than her companion, with jet black hair that hung sleekly down to her waist. Wearing a pants suit that molded around her slim figure, she carried what appeared to be an expensive camera attached to a cord that was suspended from her neck.\n\n\tThe man and woman conferred for a moment, their heads close together, and then made their way towards a small roof top greenhouse. Once they were near it, the man tried the door but it didn’t open.\n\n\tWhile he attempted to see through the opaque glass, the woman slowly removed the camera and set it aside. Raph watched as she tipped her head to the side in a coquettish manner, apparently saying something to the man because he turned his head to look at her.\n\n\tWhen she had his attention, the woman slipped her jacket off and tossed it on top of the camera. The move caused the man to spin towards her and when he did, she stepped in closer to him and slid her hands beneath his overcoat, pushing at it until it fell off his shoulders.\n\n\tThus encouraged, the man shrugged the overcoat completely off, following it with his suit jacket. As soon as he was unencumbered by those layers of clothing, he pulled the woman into his arms and began ravishing her lips.\n\n\tRaph knew without a single doubt that the woman was the skinwalker. Narrowing his eyes, he tried to see past the glamour she had created for the man’s benefit, but the magic, or the man’s belief in it, was too strong.\n\n\tThe woman pushed her victim against the greenhouse wall and tore at the buttons on his shirt as they kissed. Pulling it completely open, she lowered her mouth to his chest, licking and sucking at his skin while working loose the knot in his tie and then tossing it behind her.\n\n\tHer victim attempted to move then, shaking his head as though trying to fight his way through a fog. The skinwalker responded by lifting one of his hands and placing it on her breast and then attaching her mouth to his neck.\n\n\tRaph quickly vaulted from atop the tower, dropping into a crouch and cautiously making his way towards them. If he was careful enough, she wouldn’t see his approach until it was too late.\n\n~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~\n\n\t“There,” Mikey whispered excitedly, pointing towards a spot on a roof top half a block away. “He’s over there.”\n\n\t“Go silent,” Leo instructed in a sharp undertone, seeing immediately that Raph was stalking something.\n\n\tAs quiet as they were, Raph’s excellent hearing picked up the sound of his brother’s approach. He didn’t risk looking back at them, his eyes glued to the woman who at that moment had one hand jammed down inside her victim’s boxers. His moans were audible as she pulled at his trapped erection, removing her hand a moment later to lift it to her mouth. Her abnormally long tongue darted out to lap at her fingers and then Raph heard her growl just before she turned a glare full of venom on her victim.\n\n \tThe light thud of his brothers landing on a nearby roof top reached Raph’s ears and he lunged forward, breaking into a run. At nearly the same moment, the dark haired woman jerked away from her prey, black eyes flashing as she caught sight of Raph bearing down on her.\n\n\tAnother audible growl escaped her throat as the skinwalker’s red painted lips curled back from her canines. Her hands flexed and then the dainty fingers elongated, the nails stretching into something more closely resembling claws.\n\n\tFor a split second, Raph thought she would face him and his grip tightened on the handles of his sais in anticipation. But then her eyes flickered over to the other turtles and almost before Raph could register the movement, she squatted and then bounded away from her prey, crossing the roof top in a blur of speed.\n\n\tThe man she’d trapped groaned and slid down the wall, collapsing in a heap on the slate roof. Raph barely spared him a glance as he rushed in pursuit of the woman, sighting the long flow of her black hair as it billowed out from her head like a raven’s wings.\n\n\t“Raph!” Leo shouted, watching his brother speed away from them.\n\n\tAs the three brothers drew abreast of the man who had been attacked, he whimpered, calling out, “Anna . . . . “\n\n\tDon slammed to a halt, immediately dropping on his knees next to the man. Mikey raced past them, staying on Leo’s heels until Leo spun towards him, his palm out to stop his youngest brother.\n\n\t“No!” Leo exclaimed. “No, no, no. Stay . . . stay with Don; don’t leave him alone for even a minute.”\n\n\t“It’s Villela,” Don said, looking up at his brothers.\n\n\t“But Raph . . . .” Mikey began.\n\n\t“I’m going after him,” Leo said hastily. “Cover that man’s eyes, get him dressed, and take him to the hospital as fast as you can. You two stay together, don’t separate and don’t lose sight of one another. That thing may double back, so you two keep your eyes on each other. I’ll catch Raph.”\n\n\tAs Leo started off, Don called after him, “When you do, make sure it [i]is [/i]Raph!”\n\n\tLeo mentally registered Don’s admonition though most of his mind was busy with trying to track his brother. Raph and the skinwalker had disappeared from view, but Leo could still follow the hot head’s unique scent. Now if he could just catch up to Raph before the rain started falling again and destroyed even that trail.\n\n~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~\n\n\tRaph considered himself to be quick, but the woman he pursued was faster. Just before he lost sight of her, he saw her go down on all fours and begin to bound from roof to roof in strides that were easily thirty feet in length.\n\n\tHaving lost track of both time and his location during the chase, Raph paused to get his bearings. Lightening brightened the sky momentarily, followed quickly by a rumble of thunder, telling Raph that the latest storm was nearly on top of him.\n\n\tJust ahead of him was the old watch tower, its doors and windows boarded up. The entire neighborhood was quiet and the few street lights in the area were out, probably caused by the oncoming storm.\n\n\tA light mist started to fall, further dampening Raph’s spirits. Now was when Raph wished that Leo was with him; his brother was a much better tracker than any of them.\n\n\t“Raph!”\n\n\tTurning, Raph saw Leo hurrying towards him, an enigmatic expression on his face. Raph squared his shoulders, bracing himself for the inevitable chiding.\n\n\tInstead, Leo asked, “Where is she?”\n\n\t“I don’t know,” Raph admitted. “I kept up with her ta this point and then lost her. She’s damn fast and running on all fours.”\n\n\tLeo frowned, looking skyward. “We’re going to get caught in this storm.”\n\n\t“Where are Don and Mikey?” Raph asked.\n\n\t“They stopped to help Villela,” Leo told him. His eyes turned towards the watch tower and his gaze became speculative. “You say she vanished around here? Could she have gone into the tower?”\n\n\tRaph shook his head irritably as a cold raindrop splattered against his face. “That’d be a hell of a jump,” he said.\n\n\tLeo moved over to the edge of the roof and looked down. “The street is deserted; she could easily have crossed over and gone inside.”\n\n\tRaph joined his brother in gazing down at the street, immediately sensing that something was off.\n\n\tHeavier drops started to fall around them. “How’d she get inside?” Raph asked. “I doubt if they leave the front door unlocked.”\n\n\tLeo scanned the building opposite them and then he suddenly pointed towards a window on the seventh floor.\n\n\t“There, do you see how the plywood is slightly slanted? It’s probably only hanging by one or two screws. She could have shoved the wood aside, crawled in, and lifted the piece back into place,” Leo said.\n\n\tLightening flashed around them and the rain turned into a downpour.\n\n\t“Let’s go see if you’re right,” Raph said, jamming his sais into his belt and vaulting over the edge of the building.\n\n\tBoth brothers dropped down into an alleyway and paused there, perusing the street as best they could through the rain. Then Leo tapped Raph’s shoulder and darted across the asphalt, melting into the shadows of the watch tower.\n\n\tWhen Raph joined him, he saw that his brother was already studying the side of the building. Without a word, Leo reached up and found a handhold, pulling himself upwards quickly.\n\n\tRaph allowed himself a small smile despite the situation, if there was a way to get to something he wanted, Leo would find it. Maybe that was partly why Raph was upset with him, he’d been expecting Leo to find the perfect resolution to their problem and when he didn’t, Raph figured he wasn’t trying his hardest.\n\n\tShoving those thoughts aside, he followed his brother’s lead, scaling seven floors of the building and moving across until they were just outside the window with the crooked board. Digging his toes into a small protrusion in the outer bricks, Leo pushed on the plywood, discovered it was indeed loose, and swung it to the side so that he could crawl into the building.\n\n\tLeo held the board away from the window so that Raph could come in, and then pushed it back into place. \n\n\tRaph expected the interior to be completely black because of the boarded up windows, but was surprised to find that there was a filtered light coming in from the centered tower. The window they had entered gave onto a narrow walkway that ran around the entire interior of the building. An ornate rail separated the walkway from a sheer drop to the ground floor.\n\n\t“There are rooms on the first six floors,” Leo whispered somewhat unnecessarily, his head close to Raph’s. “The building narrows to a tip, the top being where the giant clock is mounted. That’s probably where the light is coming from.”\n\n\tLeo’s breath blew across Raph’s shoulder, making his skin tingle. Stretching out as far as he could, Raph twisted so he could look up. There was a wider walkway around the top of the building, with a square opening in it about eight feet wide. A flash of lightening shone through the frosted glass of the clock.\n\n\tLeaning against the railing, Raph turned to look down, trying to see the doors that led into the lower floor rooms. He felt Leo’s hands quickly circle his waist and grunted in surprise.\n\n\t“That rail is old and you’re going to fall,” Leo explained in a low voice.\n\n\tAs if to corroborate Leo’s assessment, the railing creaked under Raph’s weight and he hastily stepped back. His sudden movement caused him to collide with Leo and for a moment he was locked in his oldest brother’s embrace.\n\n\tRaph swallowed thickly as he strove to remember where they were. Extricating himself from Leo’s grip, he turned to look at his brother. Leo’s expression was soft, his eyes bright as another flash of lightening made them shine.\n\n\t“If she’s here, where do ya’ think she’s hiding?” Raph asked.\n\n\tFor a moment, Leo seemed to be contemplating the question. His tongue flicked out, swiped across the corner of his mouth, and disappeared again as he looked upwards. Raph watched him, the sight of Leo’s wide tongue making his stomach muscles tighten.\n\n\t“I think she’d go up,” Leo said.\n\n\t“’Cause of that whole ‘line of sight’ thing Mikey came up with?” Raph asked.\n\n\tLeo’s head jerked back down and he looked at Raph sharply. “Y~yes,” he answered somewhat hesitantly. “It’s also less likely anyone could sneak up on her if she has an unobstructed view into the whole building.”\n\n\t“That means she might already know we’re here,” Raph whispered harshly.\n\n\t“If we go down to search the rooms and she’s up there,” Leo said, indicating the tower with a twist of his head, “then she’ll get away. If we search the tower first and she isn’t there, the chances are good that she won’t know we’re here because she’s locked inside one of the rooms. We have to do this quietly.”\n\n\t“Okay, I’ll bow ta that reasoning,” Raph said. “We got another fifteen floors ta the top; how sturdy do ya’ think the stairs are?”\n\n\tLeo looked over at the metal stairwell and smiled grimly. “Stay on the inside, nearest the wall. Keep your weight on your toes and your fingers crossed,” he said with determination.\n\n\tWithout waiting for Raph’s reply, Leo darted towards the stairs and began to ascend silently. Raph followed, making note of the places where Leo put his feet so that he could follow in his brother’s steps.\n\n\tAs they passed each floor, the pair did a quick survey to ensure the skinwalker wasn’t waiting to pounce on them. Each time that they didn’t see her, Leo would look down at his brother and offer a smile of encouragement.\n\n\tLeo’s smiles were so rare these days that Raph couldn’t help but revel in them. There was something both joyous and exciting about hunting with his oldest brother; a kind of connection to Leo’s purposefulness that caused Raph’s adrenaline to flow.\n\n\tStaring at Leo’s strong legs and the hint of his taut rump showing beneath Leo’s shell caused a familiar ache to course through Raph’s body. The thoughts in his head were clearly inappropriate under the circumstances, but Raph knew he was having them because his brother seemed so much more approachable tonight than he had been of late.\n\n\tMaybe the thrill of the hunt was having an effect on Leo too. When they finished off the skinwalker, Raph was determined that he’d take advantage of Leo’s openness and solve the problem between them tonight.\n\n\tLeo slowed and then stopped when they were nearly at the topmost set of stairs. Turning, he leaned in close to Raph, placing a hand on his shoulder as his face drew within an inch of Raph’s.\n\n\t“Let’s not get our heads cut off,” Leo whispered against Raph’s mouth. “Move fast through the opening so she doesn’t have a target.”\n\n\tRaph tipped his head up in acknowledgement and his lips lightly brushed Leo’s. The corners of Leo’s mouth lifted at the touch and then he unsheathed his swords. Even before they slid completely free, Raph’s sais were in his hands.\n\n\tWith a last long look at Raph, Leo spun around and leaped through the opening. Raph was practically on his shell as he bounded into the tower, moving in an opposite direction from Leo’s.\n\n\tHands out to the side and knees bent, Raph surveyed the clock room. The floor wasn’t nearly as dusty as he’d expected and the wall opposite the giant clock face was bare. The clock itself was more than twice as tall as Raph and its hands were just visible through the frosted, reinforced glass that made up its face.\n\n\tHe saw that Leo was looking around the room as well, noting that no one else was there. In fact, the only other thing in the room was in the most shadowed corner of the space.\n\n\tApproaching it cautiously, Raph was amazed to see what looked exactly like a giant nest. Along with the long pieces of straw that were woven together to form a solid base, the interior was lined with fresh linens, piled together to form a soft resting place.\n\n\tRaph felt Leo slide up next to him. “Looks like she’s been robbing clothes lines,” Raph said. “I guess we found her bedroom.”\n\n\t“She won’t leave this,” Leo told him. “She’ll be back. We should wait for her.”\n\n\tHis brow furrowed, Raph turned to his brother. “If we wait, she’s gonna find herself another victim. We should at least search the lower floors ta see if she’s hiding in one of those rooms.”\n\n\tLeo had sheathed his weapons and now he placed a palm gently on Raph’s chest, just above his heart. “Do you want to waste this moment, Raph? I know you can feel the same thing I’m feeling. This is our time to be together, without Mikey or Don nearby to add pressure and stress to our relationship.”\n\n\tRaph swallowed; his tongue heavy in his mouth. His heart had begun to beat faster and he knew from the pleased look on Leo’s face that his brother felt it as well.\n\n\tAs much as he wanted to see how far Leo would go, Raph’s thoughts turned to the reason for their being inside the watch tower in the first place. That helped him to remember that while they dallied, Casey was suffering.\n\n\tTaking a step back, Raph shoved his sais into his belt and said, “Ya’ got lousy timing bro’. I’d be happy ta jump ya’ right here, but there’s too many good reasons for us ta find that bitch and kill her tonight.”\n\n\tHe tried to walk around Leo, but his brother stepped into his path. “Those reasons can wait a half an hour, can’t they? I need you, Raph. I’ll give you what you’ve wanted the most, right now. Tell me you haven’t been thinking about it.”\n\n\tRaph’s hidden manhood stirred at those words, the mental image of Leo giving in to him in this secluded tower almost overwhelming. It took him nearly a minute to realize he’d stopped breathing and then he sucked in a lungful of common sense with his oxygen.\n\n\tLeo had moved closer while Raph was trying to steady himself. Seeing how near Leo had gotten, Raph shuffled to the side, wanting to keep enough distance between them so his needs wouldn’t skyrocket from his brother’s scent.\n\n\tOnce more Leo paced him, not allowing Raph to pass. His amber eyes shone avidly, the desire in his demeanor obvious.\n\n\t“A few minutes of ecstasy, Raph,” Leo purred. “We are owed that.”\n\n\tIt was then that Raph realized his brother wasn’t giving off a scent. Leo’s musk should have been strong inside the small room, considering the level of arousal his brother displayed.\n\n\tA chill shot up Raph’s spine as he met the glowing eyes across from him. This wasn’t Leo.\n\nTBC………………..", "writing_bbcode_parsed": "\tLeo saw Don’s frantic expression first and then he noticed the fresh abrasion on his brother’s olive toned skin.

\t“Where is he?” Leo demanded tersely.

\t“It’s my fault,” Don said in a rush.  “Casey’s worse and I shouldn’t have told Raph . . . .”

\t“Get Master Splinter to watch Casey,” Leo interrupted.  “We have to go after Raph before he gets himself killed.”

\tDon moved fast, going to Master Splinter’s room and calling to his father.  Leo bounded up the stairs and rapped sharply on Mikey’s door, yelling, “Mikey, get up!”

\tMikey yanked his door open almost immediately, his nunchucks in one hand and his mask in the other.

\t“What’s wrong?” he asked.

\t“Raph went after the skinwalker on his own,” Leo said.

\t“Shell,” Mikey cursed, leaping after Leo to the floor below.

\tMikey shoved his nunchucks into his belt and tied his mask on as they waited for Don, who was leading Master Splinter to the infirmary, explaining what was happening as they walked.

\t“I gave him a shot of morphine twenty minutes ago,” Don said.  “I’m keeping the dosage low, so he’ll need another in four hours.  There’s a filled syringe on the tray next to his cot.  Please give him that injection if we aren’t back by then.”

\tMaster Splinter nodded and watched as Don joined his brothers.  “Be careful my sons,” he called after them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

\tRaph raced through the tunnels, moving fast because he knew that Leo would try to stop him if he caught up before Raph made it topside.

\tHe was taking a calculated risk and he knew it.  If Raph had tried to reason with Leo that they had to go after the skinwalker tonight, his brother would have fed him the same line of bullshit negating that plan, despite the downturn in Casey’s condition.

\tRaph didn’t really want to hunt for the skinwalker alone, in spite of his actions to the contrary.  The area that she operated within was too vast and the odds of Raph finding her without help were poor.

\tPunching Don had served two purposes; it had kept the genius from slowing him down, and it had made it appear that Raph was out of control.  That coupled with his outburst about finding and slaying the skinwalker would guarantee that Leo and his brothers would come after him.

\tThe advantage of being known as a hot head was that sometimes Raph could manipulate his family into doing what he wanted.  The disadvantage was his estranged relationship with Leo.

\tRaph exited the tunnels at a location some distance from the target zone and took to the roof tops immediately.  He moved slower now, all of his senses heightened as he approached the area where Casey had been attacked.

\tWithin just a few minutes he perceived another presence and immediately merged into the shadows.  Gliding forward on silent feet, he spotted a dark bulk curled at the base of a chimney pipe.

\tAfter watching it carefully and seeing no movement, Raph slid in for a closer look.  When he drew nearer, he saw a police radio lying on the ground close to what he could now see was a body.

\tRaph lunged forward quickly, kneeling next to the prone form of a man.  Turning him gently, Raph pressed a finger to his neck, sighing with relief when he detected a pulse.  Checking the man’s throat, Raph did not find the tell-tale markings left by the skinwalker, but he noticed that the man had a small build and was probably in his forties, not the woman’s type.  His coat had fallen open when Raph had moved him, and the man’s badge was visible on his belt.

\tThere was a spot of blood on Raph’s finger when he pulled his hand away from the policeman’s head, so he carefully perused the man’s skull for injuries.  Matted blood marked the area where the officer had been hit by something; the wound a nasty welt on the side of his head that had fortunately stopped bleeding.

\tRaph had no idea how frequently the officers were required to report in, but his gut told him that either he’d just called in with an all clear, or the skinwalker had done it for him by imitating his voice.  A call for assistance would have already been answered and the roof would have been teeming with cops.

\tStanding slowly, Raph contemplated the adjoining roof tops.  The skinwalker hadn’t bothered with the policeman other than to incapacitate him, which had probably taken only a few minutes.  She was in a hurry for some reason and hadn’t wanted to draw any more unwanted attention to her hunting grounds.  That was no doubt the reason the officer hadn’t been tossed to the street below.

\tThe only explanation that Raph could think of for her hasty, yet quiet, disposal of the cop was that she was stalking another target.  He didn’t see her anywhere, but then the sky was dark with heavy clouds, limiting visibility to only a short distance.

\tA rumble of far off thunder urged Raph to move; minutes even seconds could mean the difference between life and death for someone.  Yet his running blindly would do her next victim no good if Raph wound up going in the wrong direction.

\tTaking a deep breath, Raph calmed his urge to leap into immediate action.  The area where she’d attacked Casey and eventually killed the Purple Dragon was two blocks away to his right.  If she had stayed with her original pattern, the skinwalker would have been hunting for her next victim several blocks to the left of that location.

\tIf the police were on to her pattern, they should have had a man or two perched on the roof tops there instead of where Raph had found the unconscious officer.  There was a chance that Raph could run across some more cops while pursuing the skinwalker, but Raph had a feeling that wouldn’t be the case.  He would bet that the police had located a man or men who fit the killer’s victimology and that those potential targets lived near the police stakeout.

\tFollowing that train of thought, Raph took a quick peek over the side of the building.  His sharp eyes soon picked out a ‘drunk’ leaning against an alley wall, a ‘couple’ making out in a parked car, and a man who was seated at a bus top ostensibly ‘reading’ a newspaper.

\tLeaving the police to their stakeout, Raph leaped across to another roof top and began running towards the buildings to his left.  Somehow he knew that for the skinwalker it wasn’t just about the victim, but also about a certain comfort zone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

\tLeo knew that Raph had a large enough head start that the possibility of his still being in the sewer tunnels was doubtful.  Since it was easier and faster to move through New York via the city’s roofs, the three turtle brothers left the hidden safety of the underground fairly quickly.

\tFortunately they weren’t going to have to search the entire city for their rogue brother.  He was on a mission to kill the skinwalker and his best chance of finding her was to go where she hunted.  With that knowledge, Leo led his team in that same direction.

\tA crackling sound from the roof top of one of the buildings along their route pulled Leo up short and he lifted a hand to warn Don and Mikey.  Taking to the shadows, the threesome approached the spot where the noise had emanated from, spotting the police radio and the unconscious officer when a flash of lightning illuminated them.

\tSeeing that no one else occupied the roof, the brothers crossed over and knelt next to the man.  As Leo was checking his vitals, the radio came to life again.

\t“Report in, short code,” a voice said.  “Acknowledge all clear.”

\tDon reached over and picked up the radio.  Clearing his throat, he pressed the send button and whispered, “10-4.”

\tThey heard a double click as the sender thumbed the transmitter and then the radio went silent.

\t“The police?” Leo asked quietly.

\tDon nodded.  “A command unit, no doubt in a van parked on the street near here.  This probably isn’t where we’ll find the skinwalker.”

\t“She found him,” Mikey said, pointing to the wound on the man’s head.

\t“On her way to somewhere else,” Don insisted.

\t“Raph agreed with you,” Leo said, studying a scuffed spot in the grime that had settled on the slate roofing material.  “He was here.”

\t“Can you tell where he went?” Mikey asked.

\tLeo didn’t answer immediately, instead walking slowly across the roof with his head down as he studied Raph’s trail.  Neither Don nor Mikey moved as they waited for their oldest brother to track their hot headed one, following signs that were completely invisible to the purple and orange banded ninjas.

\tTurning back to his brothers, Leo signaled them to follow and then leaped across to another building without hesitation.  Don and Mikey were practically on his heels, knowing without a doubt that Leo had found Raph’s path.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

\tRaph squatted atop a water tower, letting his eyes search the surrounding buildings.  He knew he couldn’t remain so high up for long, lightning had begun to trail across the sky and he didn’t want to become turtle flambé.

\tThe approaching storm shortened his window of opportunity for locating the thing he’d vowed to kill.  Climbing to the top of the tallest structure that was nearest to him was the fastest way to search for her and he figured taking the chance of getting hit by lightning was an acceptable risk.

\tHe was about to descend and continue on when movement atop the building directly in front of him caught his attention.  Flattening himself as much as possible, Raph stared hard at the spot and saw a man climb up from the fire ladder onto the roof.

\tThe man was big and strong looking, something Raph could discern by the way his overcoat stretched across his shoulder blades.  Once he was on the roof, the man turned and reached back towards the ladder, lending a hand to the woman who was trailing along behind him.

\tRaph’s heart began to beat faster as he studied her.  She was several inches shorter than her companion, with jet black hair that hung sleekly down to her waist.  Wearing a pants suit that molded around her slim figure, she carried what appeared to be an expensive camera attached to a cord that was suspended from her neck.

\tThe man and woman conferred for a moment, their heads close together, and then made their way towards a small roof top greenhouse.  Once they were near it, the man tried the door but it didn’t open.

\tWhile he attempted to see through the opaque glass, the woman slowly removed the camera and set it aside.  Raph watched as she tipped her head to the side in a coquettish manner, apparently saying something to the man because he turned his head to look at her.

\tWhen she had his attention, the woman slipped her jacket off and tossed it on top of the camera.  The move caused the man to spin towards her and when he did, she stepped in closer to him and slid her hands beneath his overcoat, pushing at it until it fell off his shoulders.

\tThus encouraged, the man shrugged the overcoat completely off, following it with his suit jacket.  As soon as he was unencumbered by those layers of clothing, he pulled the woman into his arms and began ravishing her lips.

\tRaph knew without a single doubt that the woman was the skinwalker.  Narrowing his eyes, he tried to see past the glamour she had created for the man’s benefit, but the magic, or the man’s belief in it, was too strong.

\tThe woman pushed her victim against the greenhouse wall and tore at the buttons on his shirt as they kissed.  Pulling it completely open, she lowered her mouth to his chest, licking and sucking at his skin while working loose the knot in his tie and then tossing it behind her.

\tHer victim attempted to move then, shaking his head as though trying to fight his way through a fog.  The skinwalker responded by lifting one of his hands and placing it on her breast and then attaching her mouth to his neck.

\tRaph quickly vaulted from atop the tower, dropping into a crouch and cautiously making his way towards them.  If he was careful enough, she wouldn’t see his approach until it was too late.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

\t“There,” Mikey whispered excitedly, pointing towards a spot on a roof top half a block away.  “He’s over there.”

\t“Go silent,” Leo instructed in a sharp undertone, seeing immediately that Raph was stalking something.

\tAs quiet as they were, Raph’s excellent hearing picked up the sound of his brother’s approach.  He didn’t risk looking back at them, his eyes glued to the woman who at that moment had one hand jammed down inside her victim’s boxers.  His moans were audible as she pulled at his trapped erection, removing her hand a moment later to lift it to her mouth.  Her abnormally long tongue darted out to lap at her fingers and then Raph heard her growl just before she turned a glare full of venom on her victim.

 \tThe light thud of his brothers landing on a nearby roof top reached Raph’s ears and he lunged forward, breaking into a run.  At nearly the same moment, the dark haired woman jerked away from her prey, black eyes flashing as she caught sight of Raph bearing down on her.

\tAnother audible growl escaped her throat as the skinwalker’s red painted lips curled back from her canines.  Her hands flexed and then the dainty fingers elongated, the nails stretching into something more closely resembling claws.

\tFor a split second, Raph thought she would face him and his grip tightened on the handles of his sais in anticipation.  But then her eyes flickered over to the other turtles and almost before Raph could register the movement, she squatted and then bounded away from her prey, crossing the roof top in a blur of speed.

\tThe man she’d trapped groaned and slid down the wall, collapsing in a heap on the slate roof.  Raph barely spared him a glance as he rushed in pursuit of the woman, sighting the long flow of her black hair as it billowed out from her head like a raven’s wings.

\t“Raph!” Leo shouted, watching his brother speed away from them.

\tAs the three brothers drew abreast of the man who had been attacked, he whimpered, calling out, “Anna . . . . “

\tDon slammed to a halt, immediately dropping on his knees next to the man.  Mikey raced past them, staying on Leo’s heels until Leo spun towards him, his palm out to stop his youngest brother.

\t“No!” Leo exclaimed.  “No, no, no.  Stay . . . stay with Don; don’t leave him alone for even a minute.”

\t“It’s Villela,” Don said, looking up at his brothers.

\t“But Raph . . . .” Mikey began.

\t“I’m going after him,” Leo said hastily.  “Cover that man’s eyes, get him dressed, and take him to the hospital as fast as you can.  You two stay together, don’t separate and don’t lose sight of one another.  That thing may double back, so you two keep your eyes on each other.  I’ll catch Raph.”

\tAs Leo started off, Don called after him, “When you do, make sure it is Raph!”

\tLeo mentally registered Don’s admonition though most of his mind was busy with trying to track his brother.  Raph and the skinwalker had disappeared from view, but Leo could still follow the hot head’s unique scent.  Now if he could just catch up to Raph before the rain started falling again and destroyed even that trail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

\tRaph considered himself to be quick, but the woman he pursued was faster.  Just before he lost sight of her, he saw her go down on all fours and begin to bound from roof to roof in strides that were easily thirty feet in length.

\tHaving lost track of both time and his location during the chase, Raph paused to get his bearings.  Lightening brightened the sky momentarily, followed quickly by a rumble of thunder, telling Raph that the latest storm was nearly on top of him.

\tJust ahead of him was the old watch tower, its doors and windows boarded up.  The entire neighborhood was quiet and the few street lights in the area were out, probably caused by the oncoming storm.

\tA light mist started to fall, further dampening Raph’s spirits.  Now was when Raph wished that Leo was with him; his brother was a much better tracker than any of them.

\t“Raph!”

\tTurning, Raph saw Leo hurrying towards him, an enigmatic expression on his face.  Raph squared his shoulders, bracing himself for the inevitable chiding.

\tInstead, Leo asked, “Where is she?”

\t“I don’t know,” Raph admitted.  “I kept up with her ta this point and then lost her.  She’s damn fast and running on all fours.”

\tLeo frowned, looking skyward.  “We’re going to get caught in this storm.”

\t“Where are Don and Mikey?” Raph asked.

\t“They stopped to help Villela,” Leo told him.  His eyes turned towards the watch tower and his gaze became speculative.  “You say she vanished around here?  Could she have gone into the tower?”

\tRaph shook his head irritably as a cold raindrop splattered against his face.  “That’d be a hell of a jump,” he said.

\tLeo moved over to the edge of the roof and looked down.  “The street is deserted; she could easily have crossed over and gone inside.”

\tRaph joined his brother in gazing down at the street, immediately sensing that something was off.

\tHeavier drops started to fall around them.  “How’d she get inside?” Raph asked.  “I doubt if they leave the front door unlocked.”

\tLeo scanned the building opposite them and then he suddenly pointed towards a window on the seventh floor.

\t“There, do you see how the plywood is slightly slanted?  It’s probably only hanging by one or two screws.  She could have shoved the wood aside, crawled in, and lifted the piece back into place,” Leo said.

\tLightening flashed around them and the rain turned into a downpour.

\t“Let’s go see if you’re right,” Raph said, jamming his sais into his belt and vaulting over the edge of the building.

\tBoth brothers dropped down into an alleyway and paused there, perusing the street as best they could through the rain.  Then Leo tapped Raph’s shoulder and darted across the asphalt, melting into the shadows of the watch tower.

\tWhen Raph joined him, he saw that his brother was already studying the side of the building.  Without a word, Leo reached up and found a handhold, pulling himself upwards quickly.

\tRaph allowed himself a small smile despite the situation, if there was a way to get to something he wanted, Leo would find it.  Maybe that was partly why Raph was upset with him, he’d been expecting Leo to find the perfect resolution to their problem and when he didn’t, Raph figured he wasn’t trying his hardest.

\tShoving those thoughts aside, he followed his brother’s lead, scaling seven floors of the building and moving across until they were just outside the window with the crooked board.  Digging his toes into a small protrusion in the outer bricks, Leo pushed on the plywood, discovered it was indeed loose, and swung it to the side so that he could crawl into the building.

\tLeo held the board away from the window so that Raph could come in, and then pushed it back into place.  

\tRaph expected the interior to be completely black because of the boarded up windows, but was surprised to find that there was a filtered light coming in from the centered tower.  The window they had entered gave onto a narrow walkway that ran around the entire interior of the building.  An ornate rail separated the walkway from a sheer drop to the ground floor.

\t“There are rooms on the first six floors,” Leo whispered somewhat unnecessarily, his head close to Raph’s.  “The building narrows to a tip, the top being where the giant clock is mounted.  That’s probably where the light is coming from.”

\tLeo’s breath blew across Raph’s shoulder, making his skin tingle.  Stretching out as far as he could, Raph twisted so he could look up.  There was a wider walkway around the top of the building, with a square opening in it about eight feet wide.  A flash of lightening shone through the frosted glass of the clock.

\tLeaning against the railing, Raph turned to look down, trying to see the doors that led into the lower floor rooms.  He felt Leo’s hands quickly circle his waist and grunted in surprise.

\t“That rail is old and you’re going to fall,” Leo explained in a low voice.

\tAs if to corroborate Leo’s assessment, the railing creaked under Raph’s weight and he hastily stepped back.  His sudden movement caused him to collide with Leo and for a moment he was locked in his oldest brother’s embrace.

\tRaph swallowed thickly as he strove to remember where they were.  Extricating himself from Leo’s grip, he turned to look at his brother.  Leo’s expression was soft, his eyes bright as another flash of lightening made them shine.

\t“If she’s here, where do ya’ think she’s hiding?” Raph asked.

\tFor a moment, Leo seemed to be contemplating the question.  His tongue flicked out, swiped across the corner of his mouth, and disappeared again as he looked upwards.  Raph watched him, the sight of Leo’s wide tongue making his stomach muscles tighten.

\t“I think she’d go up,” Leo said.

\t“’Cause of that whole ‘line of sight’ thing Mikey came up with?” Raph asked.

\tLeo’s head jerked back down and he looked at Raph sharply.  “Y~yes,” he answered somewhat hesitantly.  “It’s also less likely anyone could sneak up on her if she has an unobstructed view into the whole building.”

\t“That means she might already know we’re here,” Raph whispered harshly.

\t“If we go down to search the rooms and she’s up there,” Leo said, indicating the tower with a twist of his head, “then she’ll get away.  If we search the tower first and she isn’t there, the chances are good that she won’t know we’re here because she’s locked inside one of the rooms.  We have to do this quietly.”

\t“Okay, I’ll bow ta that reasoning,” Raph said.  “We got another fifteen floors ta the top; how sturdy do ya’ think the stairs are?”

\tLeo looked over at the metal stairwell and smiled grimly.  “Stay on the inside, nearest the wall.  Keep your weight on your toes and your fingers crossed,” he said with determination.

\tWithout waiting for Raph’s reply, Leo darted towards the stairs and began to ascend silently.  Raph followed, making note of the places where Leo put his feet so that he could follow in his brother’s steps.

\tAs they passed each floor, the pair did a quick survey to ensure the skinwalker wasn’t waiting to pounce on them.  Each time that they didn’t see her, Leo would look down at his brother and offer a smile of encouragement.

\tLeo’s smiles were so rare these days that Raph couldn’t help but revel in them.  There was something both joyous and exciting about hunting with his oldest brother; a kind of connection to Leo’s purposefulness that caused Raph’s adrenaline to flow.

\tStaring at Leo’s strong legs and the hint of his taut rump showing beneath Leo’s shell caused a familiar ache to course through Raph’s body.  The thoughts in his head were clearly inappropriate under the circumstances, but Raph knew he was having them because his brother seemed so much more approachable tonight than he had been of late.

\tMaybe the thrill of the hunt was having an effect on Leo too.  When they finished off the skinwalker, Raph was determined that he’d take advantage of Leo’s openness and solve the problem between them tonight.

\tLeo slowed and then stopped when they were nearly at the topmost set of stairs.  Turning, he leaned in close to Raph, placing a hand on his shoulder as his face drew within an inch of Raph’s.

\t“Let’s not get our heads cut off,” Leo whispered against Raph’s mouth.  “Move fast through the opening so she doesn’t have a target.”

\tRaph tipped his head up in acknowledgement and his lips lightly brushed Leo’s.  The corners of Leo’s mouth lifted at the touch and then he unsheathed his swords.  Even before they slid completely free, Raph’s sais were in his hands.

\tWith a last long look at Raph, Leo spun around and leaped through the opening.  Raph was practically on his shell as he bounded into the tower, moving in an opposite direction from Leo’s.

\tHands out to the side and knees bent, Raph surveyed the clock room.  The floor wasn’t nearly as dusty as he’d expected and the wall opposite the giant clock face was bare.  The clock itself was more than twice as tall as Raph and its hands were just visible through the frosted, reinforced glass that made up its face.

\tHe saw that Leo was looking around the room as well, noting that no one else was there.  In fact, the only other thing in the room was in the most shadowed corner of the space.

\tApproaching it cautiously, Raph was amazed to see what looked exactly like a giant nest.  Along with the long pieces of straw that were woven together to form a solid base, the interior was lined with fresh linens, piled together to form a soft resting place.

\tRaph felt Leo slide up next to him.  “Looks like she’s been robbing clothes lines,” Raph said.  “I guess we found her bedroom.”

\t“She won’t leave this,” Leo told him.  “She’ll be back.  We should wait for her.”

\tHis brow furrowed, Raph turned to his brother.  “If we wait, she’s gonna find herself another victim.  We should at least search the lower floors ta see if she’s hiding in one of those rooms.”

\tLeo had sheathed his weapons and now he placed a palm gently on Raph’s chest, just above his heart.  “Do you want to waste this moment, Raph?  I know you can feel the same thing I’m feeling.  This is our time to be together, without Mikey or Don nearby to add pressure and stress to our relationship.”

\tRaph swallowed; his tongue heavy in his mouth.  His heart had begun to beat faster and he knew from the pleased look on Leo’s face that his brother felt it as well.

\tAs much as he wanted to see how far Leo would go, Raph’s thoughts turned to the reason for their being inside the watch tower in the first place.  That helped him to remember that while they dallied, Casey was suffering.

\tTaking a step back, Raph shoved his sais into his belt and said, “Ya’ got lousy timing bro’.  I’d be happy ta jump ya’ right here, but there’s too many good reasons for us ta find that bitch and kill her tonight.”

\tHe tried to walk around Leo, but his brother stepped into his path.  “Those reasons can wait a half an hour, can’t they?  I need you, Raph.  I’ll give you what you’ve wanted the most, right now.  Tell me you haven’t been thinking about it.”

\tRaph’s hidden manhood stirred at those words, the mental image of Leo giving in to him in this secluded tower almost overwhelming.  It took him nearly a minute to realize he’d stopped breathing and then he sucked in a lungful of common sense with his oxygen.

\tLeo had moved closer while Raph was trying to steady himself.  Seeing how near Leo had gotten, Raph shuffled to the side, wanting to keep enough distance between them so his needs wouldn’t skyrocket from his brother’s scent.

\tOnce more Leo paced him, not allowing Raph to pass.  His amber eyes shone avidly, the desire in his demeanor obvious.

\t“A few minutes of ecstasy, Raph,” Leo purred.  “We are owed that.”

\tIt was then that Raph realized his brother wasn’t giving off a scent.  Leo’s musk should have been strong inside the small room, considering the level of arousal his brother displayed.

\tA chill shot up Raph’s spine as he met the glowing eyes across from him.  This wasn’t Leo.

TBC………………..", "pools_count": 1, "title": "The Witchery Way part 10", "deleted": "f", "public": "t", "mimetype": "application/msword", "pagecount": "1", "rating_id": "2", "rating_name": "Adult", "ratings": [ { "content_tag_id": "4", "name": "Sexual Themes", "description": "Erotic imagery, sexual activity or arousal", "rating_id": "2" } ], "submission_type_id": "12", "type_name": "Writing - Document", "guest_block": "t", "friends_only": "f", "comments_count": "9", "views": "135" }