Raphael is out cold for the entire drive and the unloading. The men wheel the cages out of the back of the trailer and through a set of double doors, arguing in whispers over cuts and what to report, what to ask for. Whether or not to ask for some kind of compensation for Norm's death. They shut up as they pass through a fourth set of doors and the cages come to a gentle halt.

"Just two? I heard reports there were four."

A woman with large, square shoulders draped in a lab coat crouches right next to Leonardo's cage and peers inside. Her eyes linger over the shape of his shell, the length of his limbs.

"We only found two down there, so we grabbed them and got out. We already got one guy dead, and that's just with two of them. The girl one's even got a busted up leg and the boy's got a knot on his head, but they're fine. Were conscious and talking and everything, which you didn't-"

The woman straightens up out of Leonardo's view. "Talking. Did you say talking?"

"Yeah, creepiest thing. Talking freakin' English, making demands, oh and killing Norm-"

"You're not to mention to anyone about their understanding of speech. Do I make myself clear? I'm going to write an addendum and you're going to have your supervisor sign it before I pay you a cent."

There's an awkward silence before the woman crouches down again. She catches Leonardo stirring lightly. "And this turtle is clearly male. Aren't you?"