A/N I'm not dead, but I do have some 'splainin to do. One, I wasn't able to publish the chapter on schedule as my employment term at BAM had come to an end, Two, I has a new job as a security guard, so chapters will be on time once more, and three, sorry about this chapter, but it is shorter than the new three thousand word mark that I set for myself, but I hope you like it, anyways thanks for reading and ENJOY!
Chapter 18 A New Enemy
Cassidy sat in her cell, fuming about the news report that morning.
"He was supposed to be mine!"
The warden cracked his baton on the bars, "Shut it, psycho!"
He was tired of her going on about how Nick should be with her, how he just didn't know it yet, and how she would make him hers.
"You aren't going anywhere anytime soon, so get comfortable."
A voice came from the end of the hallway.
"Really? I was told VERY differently."
The wolf turned to see who was speaking, but was struck by a dart, slowly rendering him unconscious. The cell door opened mechanically, allowing Cassidy to roam free, the vixen looked at the nearest exit.
"If you go that way, you will be caught within a week, never seeing Wilde."
She looked back towards the voice, seeing a rabbit emerge. He was muscular, with black accents on his gray fur, and black stripes on his face.
"I am known simply as Jack Savage, and I want to help you."
The vixen eyed him curiously, "What do you want?"
Jack chuckled, "To tear apart the only duo that could ever come close to finding me."
Cassidy liked this, "If I help, can I have Wilde after we are done?"
The rabbit thought aloud, "I don't see why not."
Cassidy shook hands with the buck, "I'm in, I want to take that bitch Judy's heart and rip it to shreds while Wilde and I make love on her remains."
The buck took Cassidy down a path he had cleared of security, vanishing with her into the night.
The next morning, Nick got a call from Bogo, "Wilde, I need to talk with you, it's urgent."
Nick took his wallet that had his badge and his pistol, knowing Bogo, urgent meant dangerous.
"Hey, Judy, I need to go to the station for a bit, Bogo needs to talk with me."
Her voice came from the kitchen, "Don't be gone too long, it is our last day together before Flynn comes home."
Nick went down to the parking complex, finding his charger that he had recently converted to be a chase vehicle.
"Didn't think they'd let me do it," Nick mumbled to himself, impressed with the classic car.
He started the car, revving the engine a few times before pulling out to head to headquarters. Halfway to the station, Nick noticed he was being followed. To confirm this, he made a few bogus turns, watching the black sedan follow.
"Let's see who you are."
Nick pulled into a parking lot a few streets down from the station, the sedan parking several places down from him. Nick got out of the car, pretending to walk in the general direction of the sedan.
The door opened, "Freeze, ZPD!"
Nick drew his pistol, aiming at the figure coming out of the car.
Cassidy laughed, "Hello, Nicky, how have you been? You miss me yet?"
Nick growled, "Not at all, Renard, I was doing quite well until you showed your face."
She made a mock display of hurt, "You wound me, Nicky. Why can't you see that I am the one you're supposed to be with?"
Nick scoffed, "I don't think you understand, but you tried to RAPE me."
She smirked, "No, I tried to show you how your true lover feels."
Nick spat on the pavement, "My true lover is in my apartment and my kit is safe with my mother."
Cassidy gave Nick an evil smile, "Oh is he?"
Nick's fur bristled, "What did you do?"
She made a show of zipping her lips. Nick had no patience, so he shot the tinted windshield of the car.
"I won't ask again, what did you do to my kit?"
Nick pointed the gun directly at her head. "Let's just say mommy took a nap and Flynn decided to have a walk."
Nick lunged at Cassidy, smashing his pistol on her temple, "If my kit has so much as a scratch on him, then I will skin you alive."
Nick dashed to his car, screeching out of the parking lot, headed towards his mother's house. Nick parked wildly, not caring about parking violations, his kit was in danger. Nick broke the door to his mother's apartment open, finding her sprawled out on the floor.
Rage engulfed Nick, "They're gonna pay for this, every last god damn on of them."
Nick situated his mother on the sofa, putting an ice pack on her head after calling her an ambulance.
"Hey, mom, I know you can't hear me right now, but don't feel down about this, your little Nicky is gonna get the bad guys."
A tear rolled down Nick's cheek, seeing his mother like this tore him apart inside.
Nick sniffed around, finding a scent that wasn't usually in the apartment, "Got you, fucker."
Nick sprinted out of the complex, following the trail. Nick was pushing himself to the limit, dashing around corners and sprinting through alleys.
"Don't worry Flynn, dad's gonna save you."
Nick ran for another ten minutes before the trail stopped at a metal door.
"Great we have the fucking masters of the cliché." Nick banged on the door.
"It's unlocked," The voice was gruff.
Nick opened the door, it was pitch black. Slowly proceeding, he drew his pistol.
"Drop it, or else the kit dies."
Nick tensed up, this was much worse than the dream he had.
"What's there to guarantee my kit's safety? No dice, buddy."
Another voice piped up, "How about a deal? If I put your kit back in your mother's care, you take the punishment that I had planned for him."
Nick growled, "First his safety, then you can do whatever."
The voice commanded the wolf to take him back, "No scratches, or you get the same punishment."
The rabbit stepped forward, "See, I can be reasonable."
Nick tapped his emergency beacon, activating it.
A few minutes later, the rabbit's phone buzzed, "Look, safe and sound."
Nick didn't believe him, "Video."
The rabbit laughed, "Not taking chances, huh?"
A few minutes later a video was produced, calming Nick slightly, "I am a mammal of my word, but one question before I surrender to you, why are you attacking me?"
The rabbit gave Nick a disgusted look, "You're the only two who could ever hope to stop me, and to add to that you are an interspecies disgrace with a fucking hybrid monstrosity as a child."
Nick was taken to a room with shackles on the wall, "Come on, please quit with the fucking clichés."
The rabbit said in a very serious tone, "They're just there to hold you in place."
The pain of the shackles didn't bother Nick, since he had kept Flynn safe.
"Well I know this has been a very short get together, but I must bid you farewell."
Nick heard a loud pop, feeling something impact him, pinning him to the wall. The rabbit flipped on an array of flood lights, blinding Nick as he escaped in a sports car. He eventually adjusted to the light, seeing what looked like a large rifle in front of him, tubes protruding from the back. Nick suddenly remembered that he was pinned to the wall, looking down he discovered that a metal rod had impaled him.
"Sorry carrots, looks like I'm not gonna make it home tonight."
Nick was fading out when Judy and chief Bogo breached the metal door. "Nick!"
He looked up to see Judy's horrified face.
"It was… the only… way to… save Flynn."
His breathing grew more ragged and labored with each second.
"Get the saw, I want this officer in the hospital, YESTERDAY."
The saw hurt as it vibrated the metal rod.
"I… love… you… carrots." Nick blacked out before the crew finished cutting the rod.
"Nick, please don't leave me, you have to stay, Flynn needs his father."
Nick was unresponsive, but his chest still rose and fell in short, ragged breaths.
The two medics on each side of Nick caught him as the bolt was finally cut, "We have to get him to an E.R. he's lost too much blood."
The ride took only a few short minutes, but it felt like a year to Judy, staring at his chest, hoping that Nick would not stop breathing. Exactly like last time, Judy was kept out of the operating room. Nick jolted in one last moment of consciousness, grabbing the doctor's coat, urgently garbling to him before collapsing once more. The doctor worked on Nick tirelessly, relaxing after several hours.
The doctor had never done anything like this before, but mustered the courage, "Ms. Hopps, you are the betrothed of Mr. Wilde?"
Judy nodded, "How is he?"
Judy had seen him take a bullet, so she had a high amount of hope. "I'm sorry, the surgery was going well, but an artery that was bruised ruptured. We were unable to save him."
Judy stood in shock, her world had come crashing down around her.
"But, he promised." Judy fell to the floor, sobbing.
"He was a fighter, miss. Before he went under, he grabbed me and told me to tell you that he loves you."
This only made her hurt even more. Judy was in the reception area when Vivian burst through the door.
"Where's Nick? Judy, what happened, is he going to be okay?"
Judy slowly hugged Vivian.
"Judy I'm happy to see you, but shouldn't we be going to see Nick?"
Judy looked up at her with bloodshot eyes, slowly shaking her head from side to side.
"Judy, he can't be that badly hurt."
Judy finally choked out three words, "Not… hurt… dead."
Vivian hugged Judy tightly, "He did it for Flynn." Vivian was choking on her words now, "Nick wouldn't… b-be here… i-if I was… w-w-watching Flynn b-b-better."
Judy hugged her tighter, "N-no, y-y-you were attacked. Y-you couldn't h-have done anything, Vivian."
The fox's ears drooped, "Call me mom, it's what he would have wanted."
Judy started sobbing again, "I c-c-couldn't s-save h-hiiiimmmm, m-m-mom. H-h-he w-was right t-there and I c-couldn't do a-anything."
Judy and Vivian grieved for the next few days, uninterrupted by Bogo, as he knew how hard this must be for them. Flynn and Vivian were the only two things Judy found comfort in now. Bogo announced the funeral date for Wilde, being a few days away, Judy pulled out her dress that she had worn to Alphonse's funeral.
"You need a mourner's veil."
Judy nodded as she slowly laid out her outfit for the funeral. Judy jumped as her phone buzzed, and giving a hollow greeting, she answered it.
"Hopps, I hoped that the day would never come that I had to tell you this, but Wilde's viewing will be tomorrow. The doctor said that the funeral has to be closed casket, I'm sure you want to know why, but I would rather spare you the sight of him in that condition. That is all, I am truly sorry."
Judy could hear Bogo's voice crack at his last sentence. Judy decided to wear Nick's favorite outfit on the day of his viewing, dressing in her purple plaid shirt and her blue jeans.
Judy saw Vivian approach her with a little red cloth, "You remember this thing?"
Judy could never forget the scout bandana that Nick always kept on him. She held it to her face breathing in the scent of Nick and blueberries, letting more tears roll down her cheeks.
"I miss him, I miss his stupid laugh, I miss his stupid smile, I miss his stupid jokes, and I miss his stupid hugs."
Vivian knew she had to be the stronger of the two, even though she had just lost the most precious thing in her world.
"Let's go, he wouldn't want to see us like this."
The drive to the church was a very solemn one. Judy had not expected the amount of people that were at the church, thousands of mammals, all gathered to show their support. Bogo was waiting outside for her, but as she stepped out of the car she was bombarded with microphones and questions. Judy couldn't answer any of the questions, she just wanted to be by Nick's side, and thankfully Bogo's thundering voice came to her rescue.
"This is neither the time, nor the place for your questions, she is simply trying to see her deceased fiancé before the funeral, and if I find anyone trying to pry information out of her, I will have you arrested for harassment and disturbing of the peace."
With this thunderous statement, all the reporters parted to allow Judy passage. Fangmeyer and Delgato were standing at both ends of the coffin, clad in dress blues with rifles on their shoulders. Their faces did little to show the sorrow that they felt for their fallen brother.
"Hey, Nicky, you comfortable? You'd probably have made some quip about fluffing your pillow. I just wish I could see your face one last time, you know, with your goofy smile and your stupid sunglasses." Judy couldn't stop her tears. A picture of Nick saluting was set beside his coffin, the Zootopian service medal of valor draped over the corner.
"Wilde was always concerned about you." Bogo put his hoof on the casket, "He was… a good mammal. He never did believe in losing."
He silently sat in the front row, still somewhat hoping that Nick would pop out of his casket, laughing about how all of this was just a sick prank. Judy stayed beside the casket until the viewing was coming to a close.
A tiger in preacher's robes walked up to Judy, "You are welcome to stay the night, if you wish."
She simply turned and hugged him tightly, "Why did he have to go?"
The tiger sighed, "The creator works in mysterious ways, dear."
Once she was done sobbing, the tiger brought a blanket for her to curl up with. Judy stayed beside the casket, holding Nick's old bandana, wishing for it all to be just a bad dream. To Judy's sorrow, it was not so, she attended the funeral, as per the standard he would have bagpipes and a twenty-one-gun salute. The flag with Nick's badge felt heavier than anything she had ever carried, it was a reminder that her fox would never come home to see Flynn babbling his first word, take his first wobbly steps, or even see him graduate. Judy wasn't the same in the weeks that followed, so Bogo had her put on paid leave, so to help with her recuperation. She simply moved in with Nick's mother, since she would be able to help her with Flynn as well as getting out of her slump.
Judy sat on Nick's bed from when he was a kit, "I hope you come back to haunt me, asshole, I can't leave you yet." Judy had not once taken the ring off of her finger.
Across the city, a crème colored fox watched the funeral on the television. "You bastard, you said I could have him when we were done!"
Jack simply shrugged, "The bolt wasn't supposed to kill him. I guess his old wounds opened up when he was struck? In any case, Wilde is dead, therefore the duo is no longer a threat. You can use this safe house to hide, but if you attract any attention, I will not hesitate to end you. Now, about that attitude, you have to see the glass as half full. Look at it this way, now that Wilde is dead, that means Hopps can no longer have him."
This lifted the vixen's spirits, "Yeah, at least I got to rip her heart from her chest." The two continued on in silence for the rest of the night.
It was midnight at the hospital, and the halls were barren, save for the occasional nurse.
"Clear, let's get him to a private ICU, and make sure no one goes in, except me."
The nurses wheeled a blanket covered patient through the halls at a brisk pace. The IV had a blood bag hanging on it, jostling as they wheeled it alongside the figure.
They reached an elevator, pushing a button for the top floor, "Not one person even remotely related to the media is allowed on the same floor as him. His room will be one without windows, as to keep him from prying eyes."
They wheeled the gurney around several turns before stopping in a room suitable for his concealment.
"Lift on three, one, two, three."
They smoothly transitioned the figure to his hospital bed.
The surgeon looked down at the blanketed figure, "If you make it out of this shit storm, then you owe me BIG, Wilde."
He flipped the blanket off of the fox's face, revealing a stupid grin.
"Don't worry, doc, it takes a lot more than that to kill me."
The doctor chuckled, "I believe it, I had to wait a few more hours, just so your death would seem plausible. We couldn't even move you from the OR due to so many reporters trying to get a snapshot of your dead body." Nick smiled, "Not the most comfortable weeks I've spent."
The doctor shook his head, "Rest now, your physical therapy will be unique, to say the least."