Karla knew Nick must have heard her coming, since she found him sitting stoically and staring at the wall when she stepped through the door. The vixen tried not to look at him as she made her way to the opposite side of the room.

After walking out the door and up a flight of stairs, Karla found herself in the empty gallery overlooking the throne room. She grimly chuckled to herself; of course, no mammal dared call it that in front of Boris.

Karla gazed down into the room, where long ago incorrigible criminals had once been executed, and saw several mammals gathered around the large wooden chair where Boris would sit while he held court.

The vixen scanned the room for John, and spotted him standing between the two wolf guards. They were at the end of a line of mammals waiting to speak to Boris, behind one of the other guards she despised, a wolverine named Cecil. Aside from Boris, he was the only wolverine in the compound, and Karla was pretty sure the two were distantly related. For the longest time, Cecil had been a raging drunk, but lately he'd calmed down somewhat. What Karla hated about him were his constant demands that she bring him things from the kitchen, as if she were some servant to be ordered around.

The room grew quiet when Boris burst through the door, followed by his raccoon second in command and several other mammals. Once Boris was comfortably seated, he addressed the room. "Do my eyes and ears have anything to report?"

Karla found it odd that the only time Boris ever used a mammal's name was when he was angry with them. The vixen nervously reached up and touched the shock collar on her neck, a reminder of how lucky she'd been the one and only time Boris had uttered her name.

A badger stepped forward and shook his head. "No sir. We ain't seen nobody near the warehouse since we caught the fox."

"And his car?"

"We drove it to the train station an' left it like you asked. Locked it up an' didn' touch nuthin'."

Boris nodded. "Good… very good."

Karla watched in silence, while the wolverine spoke with each mammal in line, until it was finally Cecil's turn. Boris motioned him to step forward and said, "Are we taking our medication?" Cecil nodded and Boris smiled. "Excellent. We don't want to be punished again, do we?"

Karla had forgotten that Cecil was taking medication. She was trying to remember what it was, when Boris dismissed Cecil and nodded at the two wolves guarding John.

The wolves roughly pushed the tod forward, and the wolverine's voice cut through the room with an icy sharpness. "Ahh, Wilde. My ears told me about your little reunion. I had no idea you'd managed to hide your family from me so well. No matter. Tomorrow we'll have a most festive celebration in the pit, and you two will be the guests of dishonor."

There were jeers from the other mammals in the room, and Karla's heart sank. She shuddered and remembered the one and only pit match she'd ever watched. A weasel had been injected with a large dose of nightshade, and Karla left after he savagely tore the eye out of his much larger opponent.

Boris stood and the room quieted. "Put him back in isolation." He clapped his paws together. "There is much to arrange before tomorrow. I'll talk with the traitor's son later. Bring the car around."

As Boris and his entourage left the room, Karla knew what would happen tomorrow: either Nick or John, or most likely both of them, would die. John was a jerk, but even he didn't deserve that. And Nick… her heart twisted at the realization that he'd be hurt, or worse.

So much death surrounded Boris. Karla thought of her mother again, and angry tears streamed down her face. She hadn't wanted to admit it to herself before, but the more Karla considered it, the more it became clear that Boris was probably responsible for her mother's death.

A few hours later, Karla was on her way back to Nick's cell, holding a sandwich. She needed some answers, and food seemed like a good way to get them.

The vixen found Nick sleeping fitfully. She paused hesitantly, trying to decide if she should wake him up, when he surprised her with a single whispered word.

"Judy."

She felt a sudden surge of jealousy. "Who's Judy?"

Nick lurched awake with a yawn and smiled at Karla. The vixen repeated her question and the tod gazed at her with half-lidded eyes. "Oh, just a friend." Nick sniffed and licked his lips when he noticed the sandwich. "Hey, thanks for bringing me something to eat." Karla handed him the food. He sat on the bed and quickly devoured the sandwich before he spoke. "Can I ask you a question?"

Nick smiled when Karla replied, "I'll answer your question, if you answer one of mine first."

He shrugged. "Alright, ask away."

"Who murdered my mother?"

Nick's face turned grim and he replied, "I honestly don't know. And I'm sorry you had to hear about it from me." He smiled wanly. "And since you just answered my question about whether or not you were eavesdropping earlier, I'll have to think of something else to ask." He noticed the embarrassed look on Karla's face and laughed. "Don't worry about it, I would've done the same thing. Sometimes it's the only way to get the truth, when you can't trust someone."

Nick looked somber and stared at the ground. Karla realized that the tod really did feel bad about breaking the news to her. Normally she would take advantage of that, to get what she wanted, but she realized she wasn't sure what that was anymore.

Nick cleared his throat. "Where's my dad?"

Karla shrugged. "I'm pretty sure he's locked up in the same room he's been in for awhile, on the other side of the building."

Nick nodded. "Is he being guarded?"

Karla could see where this was headed. She started to demand that he answer one of her questions first, before she realized there wasn't a reason for her to do that anymore. She was done working for Boris. In fact, as far as she was concerned, the wolverine could go straight to hell.

Karla blurted out, "I'll help you escape, if you take me with you." Nick stiffened, then looked at her hopefully when she added, "I think Boris killed my mom. I don't have any proof, but it makes sense."

Nick nodded. "Okay, but only if you help my dad escape too."

Karla made a rude noise. "Why do you want to help him?"

He sighed. "I like to think even assholes deserve a second chance now and then." The disarming smile Nick gave her before he spoke again made her stomach flutter. "Thank you, Karla. I really mean it."

Karla gingerly crouched against the wall next to the cell door and they sat quietly for awhile. Eventually Nick asked, "We need to get the key to my cell. Know where it is?"

"The guards keep it in the desk in the guardroom."

"What about that camera up there?" Nick nodded his head slightly towards the far corner of the ceiling where it was hanging.

Karla didn't turn her head and spoke softly. "They all feed into the guardroom up the hall. The guards hardly ever look at them, though."

Nick nodded. "Any ideas on how we could distract the guard?"

Karla scrunched up her brow in concentration. "The one coming on duty soon, he gets sick sometimes. I think he's on some kind of medication." She tried again to remember what Cecil was taking. "An… abu… abuse, or something?"

Nick nodded and a smile crept onto his face. "Does he drink? Alcohol, I mean?"

Karla shook her head. "He used to, but not anymore."

"Is he taking antabuse?"

Karla nodded. "Yeah, I think so."

Nick smiled. "Ok, that gives me an idea..."

Twenty minutes later, Karla smiled to herself after Cecil bolted out of the guardroom into the adjoining bathroom. She was surprised at the severity of his reaction to the small amount of vinegar she'd slipped into his coffee. Karla grabbed a chair and jammed it under the doorknob while she tried not to laugh at the sound of Cecil retching violently. She had to admit, Nick was one clever fox.

Karla opened the desk drawer and grabbed the key. She eyed Cecil's cellphone on the desk, but she decided to leave it, since there was no cell reception this far out of town anyway. The vixen hurried to Nick's cell, and found the tod waiting expectantly. After she unlocked the door, Nick quickly stepped out and said, "The gas leak in the kitchen-"

Karla cut him off. "Yeah, we should hurry." She handed him the key and said, "Follow me."

After cautiously creeping through several dark deserted hallways, they arrived at a metal door with a small window. Nick peeked inside and seconds later John's surprised face appeared. Nick stuck the key in the lock, but when it wouldn't turn he cursed quietly and whispered, "It doesn't fit."

John's voice was muffled by the thick glass as he said glumly, "Just leave me here."

Nick shook his head. "That's not gonna happen."

As the tods argued, Karla noticed a nearby open door. Every time she'd tried it before, the door had been locked. She started to investigate, but Nick gently grabbed her shoulder and plucked the comb from her head.

Karla scowled. "What are you-"

"Hang on, I've got an idea." He looked at the metal comb for a moment, before he quietly mumbled to himself, "Sorry Ma," and snapped two of the teeth off.

"Hey!"

Nick stuffed the comb into his pocket and carefully started bending the small pieces of metal. "Keep it down. Don't worry, I'll get it fixed for you after we get out of here."

Karla figured she could lift the comb out of his pocket later, and she tried to ignore the flutter in her stomach after hearing Nick mention that he wanted to see her after all this was over.

"They're going to catch us if you don't hurry up," she said crossly.

Nick smirked as he started working on the lock. "Have some faith, sweetheart. I may be a little rusty, but I'll get it open."

While the tod worked on the lock, Karla decided to investigate the storeroom. She stepped inside, and was surprised to see it was empty, except for a metal box sitting on a table. She opened it and peeked inside to find it was filled with vials carefully packed in foam. Karla pulled one out and immediately recognized the dull blue liquid inside them. Nightshade.

The vixen was dumbstruck; each vial easily held a half-dozen doses, which meant the entire box was worth a fortune. She hoped Nick wouldn't disappear out of her life after they escaped, but deep down Karla couldn't help but worry that she'd be on her own again, and a score like this would get her back on her feet.

The vial slipped from Karla's grasp when Nick popped through the doorway and said, "Ok, let's go." The nightshade rolled along the table and fell off the end, before Nick stepped forward and caught it deftly with one paw. He eyed the vial and added, "You should be more careful with these."

Karla blurted out, "This is evidence, we shouldn't leave it behind."

The words sounded lame, even to her own ears, but Nick sighed and rolled his eyes. "Ok, whatever. Let's just grab it and get out of here already." He slipped the vial into his front shirt pocket and reached for the box, but Karla hurriedly snatched it up first.

"I've got it." She clutched it tightly and added, "We need to get to the yard where the vehicles are."

John peeked his head through the doorway. "What's the holdup?"

The three foxes headed down a hallway past several empty rooms, until Nick stopped to look in the window of the only door that was closed. "What the hell?"

Karla looked in the room and saw a dozen younger mammals crowded inside, some lazily watching a television, while the rest drew with crayons or played games by themselves.

John said, "They're the children of mammals that Boris is holding hostage so their parents will help him."

Nick gave his father a surprised look. "You've got to be kidding me." He tried to open the door before he noticed there was a latch holding it closed. Nick reached up to pull it back, but Karla grabbed his paw. "We should go. They'll only slow us down."

Nick shook his head. "There's no way in hell I'm leaving these kits behind."

Karla glared at him petulantly and said, "Haven't you rescued enough useless mammals already today? We have to get-" She was interrupted by a faraway explosion and the shriek of the fire alarm. "See? There's our diversion. We have to get out of here. Now."

Nick looked at her sadly for a moment, before he turned away and spoke to John. "Dad, I need you to go on ahead and find a vehicle large enough for all of us." John hurried down the corridor and Karla huffed. She started to follow him, but Nick grabbed her arm and said in a teasing voice, "I was hoping you'd help herd the kits, since you have such a sparkling personality."

He swung the door open and the mammals inside turned to look at him and murmur quietly as they gazed at the foxes uncertainly.

Nick said in a loud whisper, "Everyone out. And please be quiet." The young mammals warily left the room and milled around uncertainly in the hallway.

Karla watched while Nick tried to coax a small trembling rabbit out from under a bed. The vixen heard the tod say something about a runaway bunny, and to her surprise, the kit smiled and hopped up into his arms.

As Nick emerged from the room carrying the rabbit, Karla hissed, "Why do you care about prey animals so much?"

He didn't reply. Instead, Nick made a shushing noise and jogged past her down the hallway, the gaggle of kits close behind him. Karla followed after as best she could, though the heavy box slowed her down.

Minutes later, the vixen finally caught up with them when she pushed her way through a battered metal door and was temporarily dazzled by sunlight. Ahead, Nick was already loading the kits into the back of a truck. The midday sun reflecting off the snow was painfully bright as Karla raced across the yard towards the idling vehicle. She arrived just as Nick climbed onto the truck bumper and placed the bunny in the crowded truck bed. There was no more room in the back, so the tod clung to the tailgate. Karla hopped up next to him, still clutching the box under one arm.

Nick shook his head. "For Pete's sake, just leave it behind, or give it to one of the kits."

Suddenly a door opened on the far side of the courtyard and two mammals charged out, shouting and racing towards the vehicle. The truck lurched forward with a jerk, and Karla lost her grip. As she fell, the vixen latched onto Nick and pulled him loose, causing both foxes to slam to the ground. There was a crash, followed by a loud tinkling of glass after the box fell from Karla's paws.

The vixen sat up and watched helplessly as the truck smashed through the closed front gate and barreled away. Karla heard Nick whine loudly, and when she looked at him, her breath hitched. His muzzle was twisted into a hideous grimace, and the tod slowly reached into his shirt pocket, where a small circle of crimson was already spreading across the bright fabric.

Nick withdrew a trembling paw to reveal the broken vial of nightshade. Karla flinched when he spoke in an odd growling voice, and uttered a single word.

"Run."