Summary:
Nick greets a pair of rednecks and they conduct a little transaction in front of Judy. Suspicious of the fox and his motives, Judy demands to know just what Nick is hiding from her.
"…...rrrrrrrrrrrRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAARRRRRRRR!"
Judy's ears flicked about as a rising wail assaulted her hearing. She flinched away from Nick's penetrating gaze as her eyes darted back and forth. "Dragons!?" She squeaked, terrified that she had missed their presence. She had been distracted, beguiled, by the unwavering intensity of the masculine vulpine before her, and he had lead her unwittingly to her doom in the den of ravenous dragons!
Nick's ears flicked as well as the rolling sound ebbed and crested, frowning in annoyance. He snorted, "No, not dragons. Dragons hiss." He turned and pointed down the dirt road to their left, "That's the sound of a completely different kind of predator." He slung his lever action rifle over his back and stood in the middle of the road to wait for the coming beasts.
Judy hung back and attempt to look calm, trying to pretend she wasn't actually hiding behind his bulk. "What kind of predators?" She called out to him over the rising din.
Nick turned his head and grinned over his shoulders at her, "Rednecks!" He yelled back as two large red quad ATVs roared around the corner and bore down on the ranger. They split and slid to a stop on either side of him, throwing pebbles and dust into the air. The scruffy boars that sat astride their great beasts killed the engines with a flick of their thumbs. They were dressed identically in surplus green camouflage BDUs, dark googles over their eyes and red handkerchiefs tied back over their snouts.
The one on the right sat back on his seat and growled down at the smaller fox, "Ranger Wilde! We've been lookin' all over hell and gone for you, ya damn fox!"
Nick nodded at the porcine boor, "Earl." He turned to the other brute and addressed him, "Earnest." He stood lightly on his feet
The older boar, his muzzle faded with age, grunted as he swung his leg over the side of his mount and dropped lightly to the ground. On the back of his jacket, Judy spied an acronym over two crossed knives. T.U.S.K.S.? Some sort of local biker gang? She wondered. Did we just stumble onto some sort of gang warfare? Should I call for backup? She glanced down at her phone screen, but realized that it would be impossible for her to call anyone. She had no reception out in these remote hills. Crap!
He stared down at the little fox underneath him, "It's been a dirty morning, Ranger Wilde. We're hot, we're hungry, and we want to get paid like you promised us."
Nick nodded slowly, "Alright, show me what you got, and then we'll talk."
Ernest reached out and pulled a black garbage back off of the rear rack. Setting it down before Nick, he opened it up and pulled out a canvas sack that dripped clotting crimson onto the dirt at the canine's muddy feet.
"Hang on," Earl demanded, pointing at Judy, "Who's the dame?"
Nick turned to look back at Judy, who recoiled slightly from the intensity of his gaze. His nostrils were flaring as his glistening tongue, darting from his jaws, wet his long lips. He nodded, "Earl, Earnest, may I introduce to you the august Detective Judith Laverne Hopps, ZPD?" He tossed a clawed finger in her direction, "She's out here to help us with a little problem this morning." He shrugged.
Earnest swung his head to stare at her with a beady eye, "Oh? And what problem might that be?" He pitched his voice down low.
Paid? What's going on here? Why is Ranger Wilde acting so weird? Why are they so paranoid about me? And what is in the bloody bag? Just what have I stumbled onto here? Swallowing, Judy set her face and bravely bit out, "I'm not at liberty to discuss those details at this time."
Nick snorted in laughter and just shook his head while Earl stood up on his ATV, tilted back his snout and took in a deep breath through his large nostrils. "What do you smell?" Earnest asked him, his eye never coming off of the rabbit.
"Blood" Earl sat back down and looked at them, "Old blood… And fear..." He turned his beady eye to look her as well.
"Wilde…" Earnest growled low and long. "What's going on?"
Nick pointed down into the valley behind them. "What you're smelling is a mammal who came to a very unfortunate end. Very unfortunate, actually." He growled.
Earl sank back into his seat with a curse, "Shitfire..."
"Indeed?…" Earnest drawled, his eye returned to stare at Nick. "How unfortunate?" He asked.
"Well, they were skinned, and their body was dumped down in the ravine." Nick explained.
Earnest held his snout up and took a deep drink of the morning mists, "Yeah… Bear… Smells like they spilled their guts too?" He looked down at the fox.
Nick nodded in affirmation, "Yeah, pretty sure of that. And they weren't the only ones there."
"More?" Earnest asked, as alarm began to spread across his features.
"At least a dozen, buried in the soft dirt." Nick motioned.
Earl objected, "Well, it wasn't us!" as he quickly glanced back at Judy.
Nick laughed, "I know that!" He turned serious, "But I need you to let me know if you see a strange truck running around here. It might be a flat or box truck with dual rear axles and a forklift tied to the back. Can you do that for me?" he asked them as he reached into his fanny pack. He pulled out an envelope and handed it to Earnest. "I believe this is what what we agreed on."
Earnest opened the envelope and peered into it. He nodded, "It is." He folded the paper envelope and tucked it int his breast pocket. Mounting his machine, he said with a simple nod, "We'll be in touch, Ranger Wilde." The two boars thumbed their ignition switches, and with a spray of gravel, they roared off back the way they had come.
Judy was angry now, "Ranger Wilde, We do NOT discuss case details with potential suspects! Is that clear?" She was angry, but at the same time a note of fear also threatened to creep out onto her face, and she clamped down on that leaking emotion with an iron resolve. She would NOT show fear of the fox to his face.
Nick, kneeling down by the bag, started to pull the garbage back up and around the canvas bag. With a quick jerk of his head down the dirt trail, he explained, "What? Those two? They're not suspects, Detective Hopps." He shook his head.
I'll be the judge of that, fox! She snarled to herself, watching his paws carefully twist the lumpy and misshapen bag shut. "Ranger Wilde… What's in the bag?"
Neither he nor the hogs had explained to her what exactly their little transaction had entailed, only that the swine hadn't expected to see her, and Nick had been very cagey about details, including the envelope that had just exchanged paws. She wanted to believe that the fox was on the level, but the bloody bag belied that belief. What is he hiding? What have I found? What have I been lured into now?
He spun on the balls of his feet to face her, and cocked his head at the bag with a nod, "This?" He asked, as a little grin turned up the corner of his mouth.
Judy set her teeth, "Yes. Show me. Please." She eased into a ready stance, her right foot sliding back to support her weight.
"Alright… If you want to know..." His grin grew larger, and he turned back to the bag. Untwisting the neck, he reached in and pull out something long and wet, holding it up to her nose for her to examine.
Judy, thinking that he had just pulled out mammal entrails from the bag, recoiled as her paw slid under her coat trying to find her holster.
Nick, noting her reaction as she fell back, smirked cheerfully as he announced a single word.
"SNAKE!"
