9
The climb up to the apartments wasn't easy. The elevator to the upper part of the canyon had broken down years ago and never been fixed, leaving an exhaustive trek up the stairs as Judy and Nick's only option. Flight after flight they climbed. Judy lost count somewhere in the mid-thirties. The stairs had been chiseled right into the stone, with the upper part open to allow for natural lighting to illuminate the way. But it also allowed for other, less favorable elements, like wind. The farther up they went, the stronger the gusts that buffeted them and the more eroded the steps became. The last few floors had no stairs at all, just a bumpy incline smoothed to a shine. Easy to trip on, easier slip on, and hardest of all to climb. And always there was the wind, tugging at their clothes, blowing at their faces, blasting grit into their eyes even from so high up.
The top, when they finally reached it, wasn't any more welcoming. The apartments were arranged side by side, each with a connected balcony that made up a truly impressive breezeway that stretched the length of the complex, eventually disappearing down a second set of outdoor stairs at the far end. If anything, the walkway was even more dangerous than the stairs. The balcony railings had been chiseled from stone, beautiful and delicate pieces as detailed as any sculpture, but without the structural integrity to withstand long bouts with the elements without being treated and kept up. Most of the railings had already fallen away, and the sections that hadn't crumbled at the lightest touch. Cracks spread like intricate spiderwebs over the clay flooring. Stepping too close to these spots produced a sound like grinding stone. Nick and Judy kept as close to the cliff walls as they could, just in case.
But hugging the wall posed it's own set of dangers. Most of the doors to the apartments had been broken down, either by time or looters, leaving Nick and Judy exposed each time they passed a doorway.
"Should we be searching the rooms?" whispered Judy.
"That would take all night. And we still might not find them." Nick poked his head into another dark entryway and flicked on his flashlight. Clear white light illuminated a set of dusty and dilapidated furniture Judy would have been too scared to sit on.
"I think our best bet is to call it in and keep going," said Nick. "We can have backup come in behind us and search more thoroughly."
"But what if we miss Ray or the Corsacs?"
Nick swept his flashlight to the left and then to the right, revealing more broken doors to other rooms and a small kitchenette. "If either are hiding up here, they won't be able to get away without us seeing them. There are only two exits." He nodded to the opposing stairways.
He was right. As much as Judy hated passing over possible hiding places, if they dawdled inside these rooms, their quarry could find an opening and get away.
So Judy called Clawhauser and gave him an update, asking for reinforcements as soon as could be. Then they continued on.
The place was certainly atmospheric. Wind whistled with all the fury of a squall without the rain and coyotes howled in the distance, a mournful echo so high up in the canyon. More than once Nick shined his flashlight into a room, startling or freezing or ducking away from the doorway, hissing to Judy, "Carrots. I think there's something in there." But it was always nothing. The glint of light off a busted television, their own foggy reflections in a dirt-caked mirror, the shiny carapaces of two long-dead but perfectly placed beetles that in the dark looked like a pair of eyes.
Nick shuddered. "It's so creepy up here. It's like that movie. Poltergoose."
Judy slid him a look. "Nicholas Wilde, don't tell me you're afraid of ghosts."
"Who, me?" Nick stuck his nose into the air with a disdainful snort. "Please. Foxes know better than to believe in something so ridiculous."
"Uh-huh."
They passed a few more apartments. Judy casually extended a paw, lightly dragging her tiny claws against the stone. The scratching noise sent Nick springing away from the doorway. "What was that?"
Judy bit her lip. Nick scowled and shook his flashlight at her. "Not funny, Carrots."
Judy smothered a laugh, but sobered as another gust of wind nearly lifted her off her feet. Nick caught her by the arm and tugged her over so she was shielded by both him and the wall.
Judy swallowed and gave him a shaky nod. "Thank you."
"Don't mention it."
They managed to make it to the end of the breezeway without any other incidents. And, unfortunately, without finding a single suspect.
"Now what?" asked Nick, pocketing his flashlight and edging as close as he dared to the balcony railing so he could take a peek over. It was like looking down into Little Rodentia. Even the camels strutting the streets below looked like baby gerbils from this height. Judy could make out the Palm Hotel and Casino in the far distance, a glowing monument surrounding by the twinkling lights of the other buildings.
"I think I see cruiser lights down there," said Nick. "Should we stay here and wait for them?"
Judy chewed her lip as she debated. "The stairs on this end look like they wrap around," she told him. "I think it might be worth checking it out."
Nick walkied to their backup and told them to wait at the front stairwell, just in case their fugitive friends were around and decided to make a break for it once Nick and Judy were out of sight. Then they headed down the stairs.
The steps were more sheltered on this side, less eroded than those out front. It led them down to the backside of the building where the canyon butted up against the climate wall that served as the boundary to Tundratown, separated by a single slice of beaten up road used only by maintenance crew and shipping trucks.
This close to the climate wall, the temperature was sweltering. Heat rippled over them in waves, distorting the very air and making hard to breath. It felt like standing in the mouth of a giant oven on broil, the glowing heating coils bathing everything in a burning red light.
A chain-linked fence topped with razor wire and covered in signs warning animals—KEEP OUT... DANGER... RISK OF DEATH—ran parallel to the road. Considering the roar of pure heat emanating from the climate wall, a fence seemed a bit superfluous a deterrent in Judy's opinion.
"Carrots, look."
Judy tore her eyes away from the giant heater to follow Nick's gaze. Further down the road, half obscured by jagged boulders and forgotten maintenance equipment, sat a truck. It was a long white shipping truck, sleek and without any graphics advertising the company. Its back door was up, and inside Judy could just make out the slouched, slumped, and sprawled bodies of three familiar foxes with their tell-tale cream colored fur. None of whom were moving.
The Corsacs. They had found them!
Judy started forward, but Nick put a paw on her shoulder, halting her. He whispered, "Where's Ray?"
As if summoned into being, the raccoon appeared from around the other side of the truck. There was a spring in his step and he stopped to admire his caught quarry. Hands on hips, quiet laughter hissing through his teeth.
"There he is," said Judy. And sprinting forward with Nick right behind her, she yelled out, "Ray Raqune! You are under arrest!"
Ray whirled, smile twisting into a snarl as he spotted the officers. He dove into the back of the truck, ducking behind an unconscious Reynard, turned, and pulled out a gun.
He aimed at Judy.
Judy saw it and leapt to the right, taking cover behind a pile of debris. There was a loud pop and then a muffled thunk as a tranquilizer dart struck the ground inches away from her foot. A second later Nick dove in behind her, another dart pinging off the scrap metal above them.
"Why didn't you tell me he was armed?" said Nick.
"Because he wasn't before!" said Judy.
"He must have gotten some tips from his mole friend. I'm really starting to hate these guys."
Judy couldn't help but agree. Quickly, she pulled out her walkie and radioed for their backup, but even as she filled them in she knew they wouldn't be of any use. It was take them at least twenty minutes to make it over to them. Far too long to be of any use.
Nick had pulled out his own tranq gun. It was standard issue, same as Judy's. They had both checked one out at the station before heading over, just in case.
"Should I try and take a shot?" he asked.
Carefully, keeping her ears folded safely back, Judy peeked out, estimating the distance. She ducked back down and shook her head. "Better not. I'm almost positive Ray took down the Corsacs with his own tranquilizers. If you miss and hit Reynard or one of the others you risk double-dosing them. Another shot could kill them. Especially if we're mixing our serum with whatever Ray is using."
She looked down at her walkie, as if by staring at it it would magically turn on and tell her backup had arrived with miraculous swiftness.
It stayed quiet.
"If only I could somehow make it to the truck, I know I could take him down," she said.
"How sure are you on that?" asked Nick.
She looked up. "Pretty sure. Why?"
"Because I think I have an idea. A way to get you to the truck without being shot."
"How?"
Nick held out his arms, both in invitation and answer.
Judy gaped at him. "No. No way."
"It'll work."
"It's too dangerous. We don't know what's in those darts Ray's using, but they took down all of the Corsacs, and that couldn't have been easy."
"My point exactly," said Nick. "Mo's darts messed you up enough. You can't risk getting hit with one of these. But I can keep you covered long enough to make it to Ray and take him down."
"I am not using you like some kind of walking shield!"
"It's called teamwork, Carrots. And really, out of the two of us, you'll be the one taking the bigger risk here. Once I'm down you'll be on your own until backup gets here. I'm the one who will have the easier part of the job. You know that's how I like it." He didn't look like he particularly liked it, however. The corners of his mouth were turned down and his brow was tightly pinched.
"And what if whatever is in those darts is deadly?" demanded Judy. "For all we know the Corsac's are on their last breaths right now."
"I'm a cop," said Nick. "It's a chance I'll just have to take."
Judy frowned at him. She didn't like the way he said that. And something about it nibbled at a recent memory where he had made a similar statement. But she didn't have time now to figure out what bothered her about it exactly, or to correct Nick on it.
She chanced another peek around their hiding spot, jerking back when Ray fired off another shot, kicking up dirt just to her right.
"We can't keep arguing about this," said Nick. "The longer we stay here the more likely Ray is to make a break for it. If he goes for the front cab now we won't be able to stop him before he drives away. We have to make a choice now. Carrots."
"I'm thinking."
But she wasn't coming up with anything. They couldn't wait for backup. They couldn't use their guns. They had nothing to use as cover. The road between their hiding spot and the truck was completely exposed.
Nick held out his arms for her.
It wasn't anything like how she'd fantasized. Trapped behind a pile of rubble with an armed assailant about to get away. Reduced to panting from the overwhelming heat and soaked to the skin sweat. Both of them wired with adrenaline and a good dose of fear—for each other, for themselves, for the foxes they had yet to save.
It was the last that finally made Judy cave. The Corsacs needed them. No matter what the foxes may have done in the past, they were victims now, and it was Nick and Judy's responsibility to save them.
Judy hopped into Nick's arms, tucking herself into the smallest ball that she could. Nick gathered her close, arms wrapping around her in protective bands, one paw splayed across her side, the other cradling her lower back, just above the tuft of her tail, his chin ducking to cover her head.
He ran.
Scrunched up against him as she was, Judy couldn't see anything. But she could still feel things—the thumping of Nick's heart, the softness of his fur under her cheek, the pounding of his feet against the stone as he raced forward, the heat radiating from his body, the muscles in his arms, holding her steady as he ducked and dodged. And she could still hear—The sounds of gunfire from Ray, the scratch of Nick's claws as he pushed himself even faster, the puff of his breath and the echoing whoosh of his lungs.
The worry and anticipation had her senses humming. They had to be close by now. Maybe Ray was a worse shot than they'd thought. Maybe Nick would make it the entire way, and they could take the Raccoon down together, easy. And then they would save the Corsacs, and finally this case would be solved and—
Nick grunted and stumbled—shot—and Judy's heart lurched. He recovered, though, pressing on even as his steps turned wobbly and his grip on her weakened, the drug invading his system and sapping his strength. He shifted his hold, one paw sliding under her feet to give her purchase.
"Get r'dy, Carrots," he told her, his words already starting to slur, and Judy had to push back both her worry for her partner and her anger that she'd caved to such a ridiculous plan in the first place, because the next thing she knew Nick was lifting her, and suddenly she could see again. There was Ray in the truck, right in front of them, his beady eyes furious and mouth gaping at finding them still coming after him even after getting off a successful shot. But he had either run out of darts or lost his nerve, because instead of shooting at them again he turned and fled deeper into the back of the truck.
"Three!" yelled Nick, and shoved Judy up at the same time she leapt.
Even drugged, Nick's aim was true. Judy stretched out her feet and struck Ray square in the back, sending him sprawling over Todd's limp form, Judy landing in a tumble and coming up on her feet a short distance next to him.
Ray rolled onto his back, bringing up his gun, and Judy knocked the weapon away with one hard kick. She then reached for her own weapon, but the raccoon lunged at her with angry hiss, all claws and teeth, and Judy was forced to throw up her arms to protect her face, ducking away and biting off a cry when she felt a sharp swipe across her back, tearing through cloth and fur.
A strong paw grabbed her by the ear, yanking hard enough to pull Judy off her feet. She let herself go with the momentum, coming up and grabbing hold of the raccoon's wrist. She bit down with all her strength. Ray let out a pain-filled screech and tossed her away. Judy hit the wall of the truck hard enough to knock the air from her lungs and snap her head back, her vision exploding in a swarm black sparkles. She slumped, dazed and wheezing, feeling the burn of overheated metal against her back, knowing she needed to move but without the energy to do it.
"Stupid… bunny…" Ray gasped, clutching his injured wrist. "If the money… wasn't so good…"
As Judy struggled to suck in air and collect herself, Ray grabbed her by the front of her kevlar vest and half-dragged, half-rolled her out of the back of the truck. Judy had just enough sense to throw up her paws to keep from smacking face-first into the asphalt. But she still knocked her head hard enough to set her ears ringing.
The world fell still.
It seemed to take Judy forever to flip herself onto her back. When she finally managed it, gulping air and blinking back the last of the black sparkles marring her vision, she found herself staring up into the face of Marian Corsac.
The eldest fox was curled up against the wall of the truck, head lolling against one shoulder, but awake. Heavy-lidded eyes looked down at Judy, focus glazed but aware. She said a name—Robin? Craven?—but Judy couldn't make it out.
Then Ray was there, yanking Marian back. The fox went, unprotesting, her eyes fluttering shut, and Judy scrambled with nerveless paws for her tranquilizer gun. But she was too slow. The truck door slammed down, locking her out—and locking the Corsac's in.
Judy grabbed for the bumper, using it to haul herself up. By the time she had steadied herself enough to let go the engine was coughing to life, black exhaust exploding from the muffler. The truck began pulling away Judy stumbled after it, gun raised, but she was too spent to give chase and she couldn't get an angle on Ray, who was nicely ensconced in the front of the truck with his windows smartly up. Out of pure frustration, Judy shot the back tire, but the dart was too small to do anything but stick to the rubber.
She radioed it in, but knew even as she was doing it that it would be in vain. She told them to watch the maintenance roads, gave them the license plate number and a description of the truck, then hobbled back to Nick.
He was sprawled out on his back, chest rising and falling with each straining breath. The red glow from the climate wall made him look bathed in blood.
He squinted up at Judy. "Did we get'em?"
Shame twisted Judy's insides. He had trusted her to catch Ray, sacrificed himself in order for her to do it, and she had failed. Spectacularly. He had taken the shot for nothing. Judy fisted her paws and shook her head.
"Oh. S'ok, you'll get'em next time." That was it. No blaming, no worry. Being drugged to the gills might have had something to do with it, but Judy thought it was more because it was Nick.
"You al'right?"
No. She was not all right. And it had nothing to do with the scratches on her back that burned like fire or the throbbing of her one ear where Ray had twisted it. But she said, "I'm fine. How are you feeling?" He was still awake. She took that as a good sign.
"Cool as a pawpsicle. Get it? Paw-psicle?" He gave a breathless chortle. "Pawpsicle. Pawp!" He popped the P loud enough to echo off the canyon walls.
Judy let herself collapse down next to him. She hadn't meant to go down so hard, but the waves of heat were relentless here and she was starting to feel a bit dizzy. She really should move them to somewhere a bit more sheltered. But the climate wall stretched on for miles in both directions and she didn't have the strength to tackle the stairs again, especially not with Nick in tow. The best she do was put her back to the climate wall and block Nick from as much of it as she could.
She took his paw in her own and checked his pulse. A bit fast, but steady and strong. It helped her to relax a fraction more.
"Carrots," said Nick, and there was whine in his voice now. "Carrots, I think I'm melting."
Judy smiled despite herself. She patted her partner's chest, right above the grinning Chief Bogo, who was now a shade darker and slightly damp. "Don't worry, you're not melting. We'll get you someplace cooler soon, I promise. Just rest."
In the distance, two officers were racing down the last few flights of stairs.
The cavalry at last.
She wiped at her own sweat-drenched fur, feeling a droplet roll from her temple down to her chin. Nick tracked it with wide eyes, his pupils blown. "Oh no. Carrots, are you melting too?"
What had Ray shot him with? Before she could reassure Nick that no, she wasn't melting either, he let out another rasping chuckle. "Melting like a bunny pawpsicle."
He rose up then, with more speed than Judy would've expected from him, and before she could stop him or ask him what he was doing, his tongue darted out and he licked up the drop from off her chin.
Judy sucked in a breath.
Nick sighed and collapsed back onto the ground, oblivious to his partner's shocked silence. His eyes fell shut as he shuffled himself around into a more comfortable position, stretching and rubbing his shoulders against the asphalt, mumbling, "Waiter... Waiter, there's fur on my pawpsicle… I'm gonna need some free coupons…"
His head hit her leg and Judy watched, eyes wide, as he chuffed and burrowed his nose under her knee, half curling around her feet. One heavy paw flopped across her lap. His tail brush her back, fur sticking to her sweaty shirt.
"Judy?" he asked, and the sudden lostness in his voice threw her almost as much as the use of her first name.
"Yes, Nick?" She could feel his breath on the inside of her knee. It made it hard to focus.
"I don't want it to be a hustle."
"What do you mean?"
No answer. This drug really did a number on an animal, didn't it? Judy looked again for the other officers. They had finally made it down the stairs and were heading their way, looking more than a little winded from their run. She returned her focus to her partner. "Nick? What do you mean? You don't want what to be a hustle?"
Still no answer.
Concerned, she shifted away a bit to reveal Nick's face. Her partner's eyes were closed, his features lax in sleep, breathing even, the drug having finally won out.
Judy sighed and relaxed back, giving his head a pet because she could. Wondering, and worried.
