Slash's Revenge

Chapter 19 - The Truth Hurts

*Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise.

*Author's Notes: Chapter 19 of 'Slash's Revenge' is here and this one is a race against time.

Before jumping into the chapter, I want to take a quick moment to thank everyone who nominated and/or voted for my stories in the 2018 TMNT Universal Reader's Choice Awards. I'm so very grateful to each and every one of you. I truly, truly am. *hugs* ヾ( ˆᴗˆ )ノ

Thank you ALL so much for reading. You're amazing! ;)

CJ

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Chapter 19 – The Truth Hurts

Leaning his weary back against a damp, brick wall, Master Splinter let his aching bones rest for a bit while his oldest and youngest sons once again attempted to contact Raphael on their mobile devices. As the father silently watched on, he felt his heart grow heavy with sorrow.

It had been twenty-six hours since the three of them had left Slash's apartment, and still, they had found no trace of Donatello. They had searched nonstop through the night, then on through the day, and now, the night again.

Still, nothing.

The storm had let up some time ago, tapering down to a light drizzle. No longer enough to affect visibility, but still enough to make them cold and miserable.

Needless to say, morale was running low.

"Any luck, Mikey?"

"No. How 'bout you?"

In lieu of a verbal response, Leonardo simply shook his head. Without the rain to mask his tears, he had to work harder to keep his emotions under wraps.

"I'm gonna check with April, again. Maybe she's heard something." Before Mikey even finished his last sentence, he was already dialing the number and walking further down the alley for what Leo assumed was privacy.

Swallowing thickly, Leonardo turned towards his father and dipped his mouth down into a textbook frown. He only hoped he didn't look as bad as he felt.

"How are you holding up, my son?"

"You want an honest answer?" The question was followed by a mirthless laugh.

"Always."

"Well, two out of my three brothers have been missing for over twenty-four hours now, I'm totally exhausted, my T-phone battery is just about dead, I feel like I'm drenched to the bone, and my feet are killing me. Aside from all that, everything's just hunky-dory."

Now, it was Master Splinter's turn to laugh, but the sound he produced was somehow even grimmer than the sound his eldest son had made just seconds before.

Though his father was oftentimes extremely difficult to read, Leonardo could see plain as day that Master Splinter's thoughts were weighing heavily on his mind.

"Sensei, is there something you're not telling us? About Donnie, I mean? Did you sense something back at the apartment that I should know about?"

The wall behind him suddenly seemed to be the only thing holding Master Splinter upright. His dark gaze met Leonardo's sapphire one and the oldest turtle could see the intense fear residing in his father's glossy stare. It sent a chill up and down Leo's spine.

"What is it, Sensei?" Urgency hijacked what little voice the blue-masked turtle could muster. It took all his willpower not to scream at his father for continuing to keep the truth from him. It had been twenty-six hours now, and still, every time Leonardo asked his father if something was troubling him, the Ninjutsu master would manage to dodge the question. Now that Michelangelo was temporarily out of earshot, the blue-clad turtle was bound and determined to get to the bottom of things.