Chapter 7

"Hey Mick, wake up," Oswald ordered, reaching up around the passenger seat to poke the mouse in the shoulder.

"Huh? What?" Mickey asked, jolting awake.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you," Oswald offered. "We're getting to the town."

"Yeah, you can see it now," Felix said, back behind the wheel.

Mickey rubbed his eyes before he could see out the windshield. Seeing only a few buildings barely standing he asked, "And it was a ghost town when you two where here?"

"Yap," Oswald said with a nod.

"I'm surprised any of it's still standing," Felix admitted.

"Hey, what's that?" Ortensia asked, leaning against her seat belt to point between the front seats out the front window.

"It looks like some sort of bike or motorcycle," Mickey said, squinting against the sun to see it.

"I bet'cha it's ol' Nutty," Oswald said, pulling Ortensia back in her seat.

"Guess that means we should get out," Felix said, slowing down as he pulled off the road. "Don't need him hearing our engine."

The car pulled to a stop behind the parked motorcycle before they jumped out.

Mickey held up a hand. "Hey!" he hissed, freezing the three as Oswald held a foot out of the car. "I think I hear him."

Oswald slowly crawled out, standing still a moment as Ortensia crawled out on the other side. "Can't tell what he's saying but yeah," Oswald whispered, nodding his head. He turned his head before looking towards what might have been the saloon at one time, all that was left of it being the awning for the second floor and the corner holding it up. "Over there," Oswald said, pointing towards the building.

Felix and Ortensia came around the car, Felix already digging through his bag.

"So what's your plan?" Mickey asked, undoing his green jacket.

"Depends on what this thing gives me," Felix admitted, pulling out a hammer.

"What, no guns in that bag of yours?" Oswald asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I don't think it's ever given me one," Felix admitted, dropping the bag down so he held it by the handles with the hammer in his right hand.

"Give it here, I have a plan," Ortensia ordered, holding out her hand.

"Are you gonna tell us your plan?" Oswald asked as Felix handed over the tool.

"Come on." Ortensia led them over to the falling apart building, the closer they got the more they could make out what the professor was saying to himself.

"It's pointing towards this building," the old man muttered.

The four poked their heads around fallen timbers to see the old man with the photo album open on an old wooden crate as he held a metal detector-like device in his hands. "If that isn't it, could it be the old bank?"

Ortensia pulled the three back and whispered, "Stay. Give me fifteen seconds before making some noise."

"You sure?" Felix asked as the girl slipped away. He turned to the brothers, noticing Oswald mouthing the numbers as he counted and Mickey keeping an eye on the Professor. He threw a look upwards with a shrug. Poking his head out the way Ortensia had gone, his eyes grew wide to see her pulling nails out of what was left of the old building. She dropped a nail before disappearing around the one corner the building still had, letting Felix drop back behind their coverage.

"Now!" Oswald called out before Mickey let out a cry.

Unsure what else to do, Felix let out a yell, hearing the Professor exclaim something under their voices.

"Geronimo!" Ortensia called out before the last corner of the building fell inwards. A dust cloud billowed up, ending the yelling as the Professor's coughing sounded.

Mickey, Oswald, and Felix stepped around their hiding stop as the dust cleared, revealing beams that had struck in the ground in a makeshift cage around the old man. He dropped his hands as the air cleared up only to see the prison he was in.

"See, I know what I can do," Ortensia said, handing the hammer back to Felix with a smug smile on her face.

"Don't underestimate my wife," Oswald said as he walked over to the old man. Seeing the photo album opened with black pages holding old black and white pictures, a large smile pulled on his lips. He picked up the album to turn it so he could see the picture right side up as he said, "Hey, Mick! This has to be the proof they'd want."

Mickey stepped over to see a picture of Oswald and Walter Lantz, the man holding a stick of dynamite as he looked to be explaining something. Beside them was two humans and a camera on a tripod as they loaded in new film. A large smile pulled at Mickey's face as he said, "It has to be!"

"You had that bag!?" the Professor exclaimed, holding onto two of the planks barricading him. "Than what was all that about needing a picture for proof?"

"We need the picture," Ortensia said with a smile. "Nothing to do with Felix or his bag."

"You went on a while goose chase," Felix laughed.

-.-.-.-

Oswald held tight to the old photo album as the three left the taxi and headed straight up the steps to the police station. "I wonder if I should've stayed over there," he thought aloud. "At least until you find out if this would count as proof."

"Oswald," Ortensia tried, smiling at him.

"Hey Mickey, you here to see the chief?" a dog asked as an officer held open the door for them on her way out.

"Yeah," Mickey said as they walked through the door. "Thanks Nelson."

"Good luck," Nelson offered as she left the building.

"Maybe I should've just waited outside," Oswald said, already turning around.

"Oh no you don't," Ortensia said, catching his shoulder to spin him back the right way. "It'll be fine, I'm sure."

"I hope you're right," Oswald said, holding the album tighter.

Mickey threw a glance at the couple before he knocked on the door with 'Seamus O'Hara Chief of Police' written on it.

"Come in!"

Mickey pushed open the door and found the Irish dog sitting behind his desk as he wrote something down. The three walked in and the door closed before he looked up.

"Mickey! Please tell me you found something."

"I'll say we did," Mickey said, motioning to Oswald. "And if this doesn't count as proof, I'll eat my hat."

Oswald opened the album on the chief's desk and found the page before turning it towards the old man. "This was taken by Felix the Cat while we were shooting Hells Heels," Oswald explained.

O'Hara picked up the album to get a better look. A smile pulled on his face as he looked up at the three, "I'll have to get a copy of this, but this should count!"

-.-.-.-

"Yeah, the album just arrived," Felix's voice said through Mickey's phone on speaker. Mickey, Minnie, Oswald, and Ortensia sat around the phone on Mickey's kitchen table as Felix asked, "Have you heard the verdict?"

"That's part of the good news," Oswald said. "You helped clear my name. All charges have been dropped."

"That's great news!" Felix exclaimed. "So what's the other part?"

"The law books have been changed," Minnie offered, leaning closer to the phone.

"Oh, that's good to hear," Felix said.

"Oh Felix, I worked hard on that," Minnie said, noticing the cat's voice wasn't as amazed.

"I'm sorry, maybe you should've led with that news?" Felix suggested. "But it's nice to hear no one else over there'll have to go through what Oswald did."

"Well, this is only for Mouseton, but the next step is to have the preventive law for all of the cities over here," Minnie explained.

"I think she missed her calling," Mickey said, throwing a smile at Minnie. "Should'a been a lawyer yourself."

"Maybe I still could," Minnie said with a laugh.

"I'm glad to hear everything's worked out," Felix said.

"Any words on the Professor?" Oswald asked.

"There wasn't much they could charge him with other than breaking and entering and theft," Felix admitted. "They gave him a few days of jail and community service but he'll be back like a bad penny."

"We know how that is," Oswald said with a smirk.

"Well, glad to hear things are going good for you, Oswald," Felix said. "You too, Ortensia."

"Thanks Felix," Ortensia said.

"Hey Mickey, maybe next time we see each other, have it be for fun," Felix offered.

"Maybe next time I can come," Minnie said, smiling at Mickey. "It's been a while since I left the studio."

"That'll give Kitty ideas, I'm sure," Felix said with a laugh. "Well, I've gotta go. See you soon?"

"Yeah, see you soon, Felix," Mickey said, reaching over to end the call.

The End