Judy wished she had darted Chief Trunchbull before he'd struggled into the other elevator and escaped downstairs, but Nick had been right: she'd squander her remaining darts just by getting enough tranquiliser into the elephant's system to knock him out. She could only hope that the ZBI skeleton crew on the ground floor were up to the task of dealing with him.
"They'll be fine. Ever since Swinton lost control of the situation, they've gotten a lot better at doing their jobs." Nick muttered as they sat inside the elevator Cheryl had used to escape with Elba, clutching a dart gun they'd finally managed to find in his size. Judy had expected that Cheryl had manually stopped the elevator, but as it turned out that most Zootopia elevators, more modern than the elevators back in Bunnyburrow, didn't have emergency stop buttons anymore. "Kinda lends more credence to Honey's theory that she's been interfering with the investigation somehow."
"Once she's behind bars, that'll no longer be a problem." Judy grumbled behind the forearms that she rested on her knees, staring at the closed doors as they waited for Honey to relay Cheryl and Elba's location. Aside from waiting for Honey, she was wondering how Bogo was feeling right now. She was so angry at the elephant's treachery that she hadn't spoken a word since they entered the elevator, so she could only imagine what her captain was going through. And Ben… first she almost killed him with a stray dart, and now this. She couldn't see any way to make it up to him for what her precinct had put him through.
At long last Honey called back through the phone Judy had been loaned after losing hers in the river. "Okay, guys, I've got good news and bad news."
"Lay it on us." Judy said.
"The bad news is that I lost them in a blind spot."
"And the good news?" Nick said.
"I narrowed their location to somewhere around Llater's desk on the tenth floor, just before the mayor's office. They disappeared into a blind spot in that room, and I haven't seen them since."
"You told Gabe and Starlight yet?"
"They're already on their way."
"You're positive Cheryl hasn't put a loop on the camera somehow?" Nick asked. There was a long pause. "Okay, dumb question. How're the feds doing?"
"No deaths since we last talked. By the way, feds is getting kinda old. Whadya think about calling them Zurgs?"
Judy stopped and blinked in the middle of pressing the tenth-floor button. "Zurgs?"
"Zurgs. Combines ZBI and CIRG. You know, the ZBI's tactical team."
"I thought they were SWAT."
"I'm paralyzed from the waist down, under the custody of the Tundratown Mafia, and missing my weekly online seminar with the Counter Sheep Terrorist Group, rabbit! I've got bigger things to think about than frigging acronyms!"
Nick snorted. "Let's talk about that after you're off the morphine."
"And after we've saved Elba." Judy added, pointing her gun before her as the elevator reached the tenth floor and opened.
"Cheese and crackers." She gasped and whispered when the doors opened to reveal another one of Cheryl's macabre displays: plainly visible through a ceiling-high wall of glass embroidered with frosted geometric diamonds, a meeting room had been converted into a recreation of the Mad Hatter's tea party. At the head of the table, the bloody body of a llama was propped up in the seat with a top hat covering his eyes, and on either side of the table a hare had been propped with her right arm on the table, positioned to look as though she was reaching for an empty mug, and a mouse had been dropped like a teabag in another, smaller mug bearing the words 'World's Greatest Dad'.
The llama's arm had been raised and pinned to the wall behind him with a long-bladed letter opener, pointing down one of the hallways of the T-junction beside the elevator.
Judy's lip started to quiver. Llater… not you too…
She gave a shuddering gasp of relief when she realised that the llama's body shape didn't match that of their undercover ally, and the bullet holes in his chest confirmed his true identity. Llamadeus, who had been silenced by either the Red King or his queen not too long before City Hall went to hell.
"If this stunt gets her kicked out of ZI6, she could get into the haunted house business." Nick quipped.
Judy bit her lip and punched him in the arm. "Honey, where is Llater?"
"On the eight floor, a little worse for wear. The Zurgs found him, so don't worry about it."
Judy breathed in relief again. One less thing to worry about.
"As for the two-faced pachyderm, he's on the bottom floor, a few rooms from the lobby. Other than doing a hell of a job fighting off the toxin, I'm not quite sure what he's up to."
Judy and Nick traded glances. "Most poisons are less effective the bigger the mammal. Maybe the night howler needs more time with him." The fox said.
Judy nodded, deeming the theory plausible. "Honey, if you haven't done it already, warn them." She paused, remembering the only Triumvirate member neither dead or savage. "What about Pottermass?"
"Across the street in Precinct One. Not quite sure how he got out in one piece."
The route to the mayor's office was easier than expected on account of the majority of the savage mammals having been darted or slaughtered, though Judy did still have to dart a hippo on their way through another meeting room. In the waiting room where Cheryl and Elba had last been seen, they found Gabe and Starlight already searching the place. Both predators were being calm and thorough in their search, but their distress was evident in their eyes. Having had to fight to get her parents out of a vicious riot only days ago, Judy understood all too well what they were going through.
Starlight suddenly kicked the desk she'd been searching for switches and put a finger to her headset. "Honey, are you sure they didn't leave this room? You know what I frigging mean!"
Honey had hung up, so Judy didn't hear the response, but she could hazard a guess; neither the tiger nor the water buffalo had left the waiting room.
Gabe burst out of the mayor's office and jammed his kukri into one of the black wall pillars that surrounded the waiting room. He started to pace, digging his fingers into his scalp, the grenade fixed to his belt rattling against each other, but stopped when he spotted Judy and Nick standing in the doorway. "Guys." He said simply, too tense to say anything more.
"Grumpy-guts." Nick responded in kind.
"Don't give up, guys." Judy said as she and the fox approached. "Cheryl's been leaving us clues. This is definitely the place."
"I know. I saw her Humpty Dumpty exhibit at the bottom of the rooftop stairwell." Starlight said with a growl of disgust.
"Humpty Dumpty? What was it like?" Nick asked.
"She dropped some poor bastard headfirst from the top. Then she used his finger to write the number ten in his own blood."
"Aaaand I'm sorry I asked."
"Meh, nothing we haven't seen before." Starlight said. "But I'd rather she not have our bollocks for breakfast, so let's be careful."
Judy gave her a look. "Boll- bullhooks?"
Starlight cocked a shoulder. "Elba introduced me to British movies when I was a kit. Speaking of which, can we focus?"
"So you learned the Geordie lingo. Figures. Parlez-vous posh-piggy?"
Gabe pointed his other kukri at Nick from across the wide room. "Wilde, I swear to God if you don't shut the fuck up, I'll fucking shank you myself!"
Judy saw Starlight's blue eyes tilt upward just a fraction before she suddenly grabbed Nick by the shirt and threw him behind the desk. "Get down!"
Judy's body jolt in fright when gunfire exploded out of nowhere, before it leapt to the side and joined the other three mammals behind the desk. Splinters flew as their attackers relentlessly continued their assault, Judy flinching away from the wall of the desk as the entire piece of furniture shuddered. It was a sturdy desk, half wood, half steel, but it wouldn't hold back the bullets forever. Gabe and Starlight were the first to return fire, but a mere second passed before they dropped back down. Judy aimed around the side and managed to fire once before a bullet struck the edge right beside her paw and the flash of pain across her arm made her jerk back behind cover on reflex. She couldn't tell if she had hit someone, but whoever had made the shot had cleaved right through her arm guard and grazed the flesh underneath. Adrenaline dulled the pain, for now, and she quickly set about reloading.
She'd counted five mammals and recognised two of their faces. TUSK. No doubt they were here for Swinton, or Cheryl, or both.
In between the clapping of the live rounds, Judy hear the hiss of a dart being fired. While she'd been reloading, Nick had poked his 'borrowed' dart gun through the gap between the floor and the underside of the desk. Judging from the thump soon after and the cursing of at least two other mammals, he'd managed a direct hit.
"Kudos." Starlight muttered when she saw Nick contributing to the fight, and Judy shared the sentiment.
"How did they get in here?" Nick asked as he felt around for another dart.
"Must have gotten in from the roof, same as us." Starlight said. She fired a few more shots before continuing. "I think I remember Slothfeld reading a document about it while we were hiding in that lab. Operation Swinton... no, Swindle."
"And that is…" Gabe inquired. He flinched
"An emergency evacuation if the chess motif is anything to go by. A protocol they set in the event that Zootopia descended into a situation beyond all hope of salvaging."
"Meaning they're here to bail out Swinton before she either gets dead or arrested." Gabe bared his teeth as he reached for the grenade. "Not if I can fucking help it!"
He frowned, feeling around his belt, then looked down to see that there was no grenade at all.
With a sudden jolt of suspicion, Judy turned her head just in time to see Nick pulling the pin.
"Fire in the hole!"
He threw the grenade blindly over the desk. Judy slapped her paws over her ears and braced herself, as did the others. Four seconds later there was an airy bang, and the shockwave pushed the desk back two inches.
With her paws over her ears Judy peeked under the desk; the smoke had not quite cleared, but she could see that the razorbacks had vanished, taking cover somewhere in the hall beyond the doorway.
"Honey, close the shutter!" Starlight shouted, frantically making a downward pointing motion in full view of the security camera for good measure. A second later the thick shutter lowered, sealing the razorbacks outside. There was a loud clang as someone kicked the shutter from the other side.
When she heard Gabe speak, he sounded both annoyed and impressed. "Nice one. But if you ever pick my pocket again, I'll have your balls for brunch."
Judy turned to Nick, even though she hadn't decided whether to say 'good one' or chew him out.
The thought died in her brain when she saw the pistol pressing in the side of Nick's head, a finger-width from his wide, terrified eye.
Keeping her other arm around Nick's neck, Mayor Swinton stood just outside the open elevator that had once been a wall pillar, specifically the one right next to the one that still had a kukri embedded in it.
Judy aimed her gun straight at Swinton's face. "Let him go, Swinton!"
Whatever Swinton had gone through since Judy had last seen her at the press conference, it had not gone well. Her blonde hair dishevelled, a bruise on one rosy cheek, she did not appear to be the slightest bit perturbed by the three guns aimed at her. Judy searched for any sign of despair or anger in her eyes, anything that could be used against her, but they were only dull with disappointment. "It didn't have to end this way, Hopps. The token bunny thing, that was just a phase. You could have become more than that."
"Better a token bunny than one of them." Judy jerked her head at the razorbacks beyond the shutter.
Swinton looked to the sealed shutter. "Gentlemen, I understand you have orders, but I have some unfinished business to attend to."
Judy heard another, quieter clang as one of the razorbacks touched the shutter. "Ma'am, the ZBI will have heard that gunfire! We need to get you out of there now!"
Swinton smiled the same smug, Moona Lisa smile that she had used for Judy. It was incredible that she had once mistaken that smile for compassion. "I am so glad you mentioned that, because I need you to take care of the ZBI in the meantime. I don't want anyone left standing by the time I come back."
"But ma'am!"
"This elevator here also stops at the rooftop. I expect a helicopter fuelled and waiting when I meet you there."
The razorback sounded reluctant. "Yes, ma'am. I'll have two of my men wait here, just in case."
Gave hissed through his sharp fangs. "You're not going anywhere, bitch."
"I don't recall giving you a say in this, Fourteen." Swinton pointed her gun at Judy, and then waved her toward the elevator. "Come along, White Queen. Cheryl is eager to meet you, and I would hate to deny her final request. Drop the weapon first."
What choice did she have? Judy dropped her weapon and slowly walked past Nick and Swinton, her wounded arm leaving a trail of red droplets on the floor.
"Using a fox for a shield, I'm not sure you have any right to be disappointed in her." Nick said.
"Hold your tongue." Swinton as she pulled Nick into the elevator with her. Gabe and Starlight quickly ran in front of the elevator and kept their guns on the pig, as if hoping to find an opening at the last second. The opening never came, and the doors closed on their frustrated, hateful faces.
"Use the keypad first. Three-one-four-one-five."
Judy inputted the code.
"Press the middle button." Swinton said. Judy hesitated, her finger hovering over the three buttons. From the moment Swinton had ordered her into the elevator, she'd been trying to think of a way out of this that didn't involve going through Cheryl, but she couldn't. It was too easy to simply press the rooftop button and hope that ending up on the wrong floor would distract Swinton just enough to take her down without getting Nick killed in the process. But Swinton was right, in a way. Denying Cheryl her last request would deny Elba his only chance of survival.
And, bizarrely, a voice in Judy's head kept telling her that doing what Cheryl wanted was the right thing to do. She and Judy had a common enemy in Swinton, and she had seemed unusually intent on ensuring that Judy and Nick survived to the end. It was an insane thought, but the Red Queen, the most murderous mammal she had ever faced, may be her only hope.
Judy pressed the button and turned around, glaring at Swinton for the entirety of the short ride up the shaft.
"Take me off the board, would you?" Swinton muttered to herself, the barrel of her gun pushing Nick's head to the side as she kept it on him. "You witless, delusional, sanctimonious bitch. Take me out the game, I'm the goddamn mayor! We'll see how well you play the game with a bullet in your throat…"
Bogo knew that something was very wrong when he heard that Trunchbull had dispatched a large number of razorbacks to City Hall. Leaving Benjamin alone in his office had been out of the question, so the feline had accompanied him as he'd raced to find the nearest federal agent, eventually finding one at the reception desk. Though he'd been sceptical of Bogo's warning at first, a quick perusal of the incriminating video had changed his tune and he got on the radio straight away.
That had been ten minutes ago. During that time, Bogo and Benjamin had travelled around the building in search of the Assistant Chief, who had to know that their boss had betrayed everything the ZPD stood for.
They'd found the Assistant Mayor in a hallway on the second floor. The appalled look on his face when he'd watched the video suggested horror at his superior's betrayal, but to Bogo, it could just as easily be horror at a fellow conspirator being exposed. Without a thorough investigation, there was no way to tell, so Bogo had refrained from making any accusations. After getting over the worst of the shock, the Assistant Chief had warned Bogo and his co-workers against attempted to join the raid on City Hall. The ZBI would be able to handle it, now that they had been warned of TUSK's potentially treacherous motives. When Bogo had asked about Pottermass, he'd confirmed that the hippo was in the precinct, but refused to tell him where.
With Benjamin trailing behind him, Bogo started back toward his office, intending to call Higgins for an update on McHorn's condition before retiring to his chair for a long awaited rest. The authorities had been informed. The ZBI were dealing with the situation. As far as the Assistant Chief was concerned his part in this complete clustercuss was finished, and Bogo couldn't agree more.
They exited the walkway overlooking the reception desk, their direction giving them a clear view of the front entrance and its ceiling-high windows. A large elephant with a broken tusk was struggling up the exterior steps.
The glass rail cracked, and the metal rim distorted under Bogo's hooves. "Ben. Go through the door behind us and take the second door on the left. Stay there until I come get you."
Benjamin wrung his paws. "Be careful, Bogo."
"Mansa."
"Huh?"
"When this case is closed, call me Mansa. You've earned it. A lot."
He turned and strode to the elevator before he could see how Benjamin had reacted.
When the elevator opened, the receptionist was on the phone, staring in surprise at the glass revolving door. Bogo knew he was calling the Assistant Mayor. He signalled for the receptionist to stay where he was, and slowly approached the door. His hoof fingered the gun in his holster, but something kept him from pulling it out.
The revolving door spun, spilling Chief Horace Trunchbull into the lobby. He pressed his arm against the sandstone pillar beside the door as he struggled to stay on his feet.
Bogo's blood boiled at the sight of him, but the urge to shoot the elephant gave way when Trunchbull's legs gave out. Bogo lunged for the elephant and grabbed his torso, slowing his fall to the floor. Both mammals hit the cold stone, separating upon impact. Trunchbull groaned and writhed like he was on fire, oblivious to the receptionist as he finished his call with the Assistant Mayor and rang for an ambulance. Two officers came in the lobby from different doors and raced toward their chief.
The receptionist shot out an arm. "Stay back! He's been hit with the serum!"
Bogo scrambled over to Trunchbull, keeping one hoof on his gun as he grabbed the elephant's shoulders. Even as Trunchbull locked eyes with him, he couldn't bring himself shoot him yet. He'd sold Benjamin out to Cunninghorn. He'd betrayed Elba and Bogo and nearly cost them their lives. Cheryl had given her own theory as to his motive, but Bogo wanted the truth. God damn it, he had to know why.
"Trunchbull!"
Trunchbull must have seen the hurt in his protégé's eyes. "You… you know… don't you?"
"Why?" Bogo pressed.
Trunchbull groaned and curled in on himself. "I did… what I thought was best for you."
Best for you… Apparently what had been best for Bogo was aiding the rogue commander who cut his throat and left him to die. The right thing to do had been to arrange the kidnapping of the predator Bogo had risked so much to protect, and then have him delivered to a place of psychological torture and horror. Trunchbull had had the best intentions, sure. But so did the majority of parents who sent their kids to conversion therapy camps.
Bogo clenched his jaw and reached for his gun. "Don't care."
Trunchbull's trunk spasmed, knocking Bogo back and sending the gun skidding across the floor.
"Get back!" Trunchbull rolled onto his hooves and tried to crawl to the exit, but the convulsions continued in earnest and he slowed to a stop several feet from the buffalo. Sitting on the floor, arms propped behind him, Bogo froze as it fully sunk in what was about to happen. An elephant was turning violent, right in front of him. His heart started to pound. His mouth turned dry.
"There's no coming back from this…" Trunchbull's voice shook with his body. "Forgive me, Theodore!"
Bogo heard Trunchbull bellow, the rumbling, terrible bellow of a maddened animal, and then he was back in the marketplace, looking past the long barrel of a rifle at the fluid at an elephant driven insane with musth.
No. Not musth. Night Howler. Hot chocolate. Endorphins. Endolphins.
Two police officers ran into view, firing darts from pistols that looked too tiny to be effective. The elephant roared and charged at the one on the left, tossing him with his tusk. Bogo lowered his rifle and stared at the blood on his hoof.
This is not history repeating itself. You're wiser. Stronger. He is a criminal and you need to stop him.
Bogo looked up from the gaping round hole in his gut. At the back of the square was a big metal door, which burst open as more officers came forward to take him down.
That door was not there when it actually happened. This is a flashback. Nothing more.
With the heavy-duty rifles all taken on the field or destroyed in the armoury bombing days prior, all the officers had to work with was their pistols. The elephant had three darts sticking out of him, but the accumulated tranquiliser was not enough to slow him down. He ploughed right through the officers, scattering them left and right, smashing market stalls in his wake.
I still have so much to answer for. Predators I've profiled. People I've hurt. Little things I should have said and done. I just never took the time.
In the midst of the vision, he saw a partial image of a blue mask and a black piano shining in candlelight. The blood coating his hoof became the speckled skin of a colossal strawberry.
I am in control. I am not dying. Things are going to end different.
Bogo felt the puncture wound shrink and vanish, taking the blood with it. He looked left and right, searching for his gun, spotting it on the polished terrazzo of the police lobby.
Benjamin Clawhauser is upstairs. Trunchbull will kill him if he finds him. Do not let him find him.
Bogo grabbed the gun and stood up, the pounding of his heart becoming an ache of regret as he took aim at the elephant that had once been his chief. Trunchbull fixed his fierce eyes on Bogo. His harrowing scream lingered and echoed around the lobby.
Now it's your turn to pay the price.
