Chapter 14 - A Fallen Star
Pink, puffy clouds billowed and rolled over the city skyline like waves on the ocean. Some came together to form a collage of shapes plastered across the sky. Tremendous lizards did battle with elephants and rhinos among castles and sailing ships. Others stretched into long ripples like sand formed on the bank of a river. No two clouds were the same, but one thing was certain about the evening sky hanging gracefully above the city; it was always changing.
A bright flash illuminated the city as the sun dropped below the clouds, turning them into a multitude of vibrant colors before it nudged the horizon. The late evening sky was filled with colors like an immense, domed rainbow. It ranged from warm reds and yellows, to bright pinks that faded into dark purples in the east.
The sun had already gone behind the little convenience store nestled out of the way in that older neighborhood, but the color show could still be seen reflected on the clouds high above. The flat-roofed building that the little store was built into was only about the size of a normal residential home. Several advertisements were plastered in the main storefront window, blocking out the view of the street for anyone inside. A large, yellow sign hung above the window with the letters 'E-Z STOP' written in a bold, red font.
Parked along the sidewalk in front of the small store, was a large black and white police cruiser with the numbers 240 painted on the side. It's engine was still running and the driver sat impatiently watching the main entrance. The driver was a small grey and white rabbit, with black tipped ears, wearing a crisp and well-groomed police uniform. However, her expression was anything but cheerful or pleasant.
Judy wiped her clammy paws on the steering wheel, trying to dry them to no avail. Rubbing them on her pants proved to be slightly more effective, but they remained moist and sticky. With her paws a little dryer, she put both of them to her forehead hoping to rub away the pain.
"It's too hot in here," the rabbit said, as she pressed a button on the car door that would automatically roll down the windows. Then she reached over to a knob on the dash and turned the fan on the air conditioner up to high.
She leaned back in the seat letting the cool, evening breeze blow through her fur, "Ah, much better." Still rubbing her aching forehead, she looked over at the entrance to the small shop where her partner had disappeared in search of coffee several minutes before.
Inside the little convenience store, the shelves were packed with dozens of small bottles, boxes and bags filled with every convenience a mammal could need in their day to day lives. Everything from canned foods and sundries, to cheap over the counter pharmaceuticals were crammed into those narrow aisles. The store even had a large chest freezer and a coffee dispenser along the wall near the cash register. Carefully hung on the front of the register, was a neat, hand-printed sign that read, "If you plan to shoplift, let us know, thanks."
Behind the counter was a tall, dark brown antelope with pencil-thin, white stripes across his chest with a rich black muzzle and white triangles under each eye. He was wearing a denim button up shirt over a dingy, grey t-shirt, and a thin, silver necklace hung around his neck. The bongo was glaring angrily at a fox standing on the other side of the counter.
"Can you give me their descriptions again sir?" The fox's uniform was slightly wrinkled and only half tucked in while his necktie was coming loose from a long day on patrol. He balanced two freshly poured, hot cups of coffee in his dark paws. Sipping from the larger cup in his right paw he looked up and tried to calm the angry store manager, "I need to know what the perpetrators looked like."
Taking a deep breath, the ungulate calmly repeated the descriptions he had given the officer several minutes earlier. "As I told you, they were two felines. They keep hanging around outside my store and harassing my customers."
"Yes, I got that. Two felines. Can you give me any details of what they looked like?"
"Alright. One was short and round with medium brown fur that was covered in small, black spots, and he had black tufted ears. The taller one was much thinner with golden brown fur. He had a black ring like marking around his white muzzle and the very tip of his tail was also black. Oh, and the short, round one had no tail that I could see."
"You say that they hang out here every day when you arrive for work?" the canid officer asked, and when the manager nodded, he continued. "Can you describe what they were wearing?"
"Oh, sure," the bongo replied angrily. "The short one always wears a long, dark green trench coat and a white tuskball cap, with the Bovine's team logo on it."
Taking a long sip from his coffee, the fox looked back up at the store clerk, "What about the other one?"
"Yeah, he is the worst. That mammal won't ever shut up. He goes on and on about some existential dung all day, but recently he started telling these outlandish stories about how he and his partner saved the world in some place called Emm Gee Emm. Whatever that is."
"Ok, I get it, a rather talkative kid. But what was he wearing?"
"The tall one? Uh, right... ok. Unlike the short one he doesn't wear the same things everyday. It's usually some jacket or other, with some band's logo on the front. I've never heard of any of them mind you, but that punk does always wear the same damn knit cap." The bongo kept rambling on about how the pair would stand outside with a portable stereo and smoke catnip all day in front of his store.
"So if they are here as often as you say they are, did you happen to catch any names."
"Absolutely. I'm positive that the short round one is named Bob, mostly cuz the other won't stop saying that name. But I think the tall one's name is John, or maybe it's Jeremy. I'm not really sure, because the short one never says anything, he just nods his head whenever anyone speaks to him."
"Well, I think that's enough details for a BOLO, unless you have some pictures. Security cameras maybe?" Nick hinted at the camera over the counter.
"Naw, that thing hasn't worked in years. Can't you just go and arrest those two punks or something?"
"Well sir," the todd looked up at the taller mammal firmly, "From what you have described so far, the loitering, and possession of a controlled substance, are both finable offences. For any arrests they are going to have to do something more serious."
It was beginning to dawn on the dark brown antelope that the police weren't going to be able to help and he grew even more agitated. "What's the point of having any police in the first place, if all they do is let punks like these run around the streets, harassing law-abiding citizens?"
"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to please calm down."
"I called the police three times this week. When you finally do show up, it's two hours after the damn punks have already left. And now you're telling me that all your going to do is give them a stupid fine."
All too familiar with this type of reaction from the mammals he met on patrol, Nick decided to take the apologetic approach before heading towards the main exit. "I am very sorry sir, it has been a fairly busy week for the ZPD. But unless these two felines actually try to steal something or you have proof that they are selling catnip, then there is not much the ZPD will be able to do in this case."
Looking down at the red-furred officer the bongo replied gruffly, "Fine, if the police won't do something, I will just find some other way to deal with those damn punks."
Stepping through the front door, the fox added, "Good for you sir. Just keep whatever you do within the law." He waved to the store manager and quickly left the shop with the bell that was tied to the door, ringing as he went.
All of the orange color in the sky had faded to rich pinks and purples as the fox sauntered out of the building carrying two cups of coffee that were no longer as steaming hot as when he had poured them several minutes before.
Walking up to the black and white car, he noticed his partner sitting in the driver seat rubbing her forehead again and wincing in pain. "Oh, Carrots. That hangover still got you in it's claws?"
"Where in the moldy cheese wheels have you been," the grumpy rabbit cried, unlocking the car door for her partner who promptly climbed into his seat and handed her a full cup of coffee.
"Sorry, Carrots," he apologized. "The store manager wanted to file a complaint about two mammals loitering outside the shop all day."
Pinching the bridge of her nose, Judy grabbed the hot cup from Nick's paws and drank deeply. She let out a wet, pleasant sigh before replying, "Who would want to hang out in a run down neighborhood like this?" Regretting the words almost as soon as they left her muzzle, she tried to apologize but the todd's reply cut her off.
"I grew up in a neighborhood like this you know."
Holding her head painfully, she leaned back in her chair and took several long breaths, "Yeah, I know."
Watching his partner struggle with the headache, Nick decided to ask her about it, "Are you ok? It's not normal to have a hangover for this long, especially with as much coffee as you have had to drink."
"I don't know," she admonished. "Maybe it's just the hot weather that is really getting to me today."
"Hot? It's barely summer and the weather has been perfectly cool and breezy all day. Are you sure there isn't something else bothering you?"
"Yeah I'm fine," the rabbit said as she turned away to sip at her coffee.
Reaching for the knob on the dash, Nick asked, "and speaking of cool weather, why is the AC turned all the way up?" He then promptly turned the dial back to the first setting. The strong, frosty gale blowing from the console switched to a soft, gentle breeze.
Several minutes passed with the cruiser sitting on the side of the road while the sky slowly darkened and the two cops silently sipped at their cups. Both of them looked out their open windows, letting the cool evening breeze ruffle their fur while pretending to watch any mammals that passed by on the nearly empty street.
After her tenth sip, Judy turned back to her partner with a soft look in her purple eyes. "Uh, Nick?"
"Yeah," he said, still looking out the window on his side of the car.
"Can I ask you something?"
"I don't know Fluff. Will answering your question put my life in danger?"
A swift, grey paw promptly struck the fox's shoulder, "No. What? Are you afraid of a wittle wabbit?"
Turning to look back at his partner, he shook his head, "I have learned, working around you, not to underestimate anyone."
"This is serious Nick."
"Ok, Carrots. Go ahead. What's your question?"
The two mammals slowly drifted closer together as they stared into each other's eyes. "Nick?"
"Yes?"
"Have you ever taken adv-"
Suddenly, the radio crackled to life with Chief Bogo's voice cutting off the rabbit's question. Both officers sat up straight in their chairs, listening to their boss's instructions.
"All units, we have a 10-58 at 621 North Palm Court," Bogo announced sternly while the two small mammals looked at the radio in concern. "I repeat we have a code 10-58 at 621 North Palm Court. All available units respond immediately with a 10-12."
Judy's eyes once again held the sparkle and shine that she always had when she was about to catch a 'bad guy,' and all evidence of her earlier headache was gone. She put the car in gear, turned the big vehicle around in the narrow residential street, and headed towards the sahara.
"This is bad Carrots. A mammalicide, and that is in a very ritzy part of town."
"I know, but what has got me worried is why the Chief had to call this in. Where is Clawhouser?"
Speeding down the street, Nick reached for the switch that activated the lights and sirens but Judy swatted his paws away, "No, didn't you hear the chief? He asked for a code 12."
"Twelve," the todd asked, confused. "I don't remember that one."
"Nick," she exclaimed. "I thought you were going to work on this. Do I have to quiz you on all the radio codes in our time off?"
"You can quiz me right now if you like," he stated with a broad smirk.
"Ok, then, Slick, what is a code 10-12?" the rabbit asked, taking a sharp corner at speed. Tires screeching, the cruiser flew into the far right lane and scared a sheep driving a foriegn model, compact car.
Tapping on his chin, the fox thought for a second. "Twelve, twelve, hmm, code ten dash twelve." After several more turns his eyes lit up and he responded enthusiastically, "I remember- it's 'visitor present'"
"Correct, but what else is Bogo implying in this case?" Judy suddenly swerved the car and jumped onto the freeway without signaling or slowing down.
"Hmm…. What kind of visitor could be present at a murder?" With the rabbit's reckless driving, his paws itched to at least flip on the lights. "It's in an upscale neighborhood so I wonder if the important visitor is the one who died."
"Really Nick," she glared at him, swerving past a large van to catch the next exit. "Did they not teach you the alternate code meanings in the academy?"
"Well, the alternate meaning of a code twelve was not covered in the required reading, so no."
"It means 'be discrete.' He doesn't want to draw any attention, so nix the lights and sirens until we get there."
It was completely dark when the cruiser turned the last corner onto Palm Court. Stars could be seen in the clear patches of the sky between the clouds. Porch lights and covered, iron lamps lit the street. Quaint, old fashioned homes were crammed tightly together like soldiers to form several solid blocks. Each house, though part of a whole, was built with it's own unique style and charm.
The blocks of townhouses formed a large circle around a central courtyard or park. Oak and maple trees lined the street around the central area and a couple of park benches could be seen nestled cozily under them.
In the dark of late evening Judy could still make out the large crowd gathered around one of the blocks of townhomes on the far side of the circle. Several larger police vehicles were parked in front, their headlights and flashers illuminating the onlookers. Carefully passing the first group of townhomes, she noticed that the lights were being reflected off of a large pond that nearly filled the central court.
Flipping on the car's flashing lights, she circled the pond and approached the crowded yard in front of the townhouse. She pulled to the side of the road and parked behind another black and white cruiser and climbed out of the car.
The crowd consisted of several of the local neighbors trying to find out what all the commotion was about, but she also spotted several news vans lining the street. She counted at least 4 camera crews that had already been set up, with their respective reporters describing the scene and trying desperately to get more information from the police. The smell of fear was thick in the air and with so many mammals gathered in one place, she was worried that there might have been a stampede at any moment.
Before the rabbit's paws hit the pavement a deep voice boomed over the crowd. "Hopps, Wilde!"
Judy spotted the head of a large cape buffalo above the crowd. He was wearing the full stars of the ZPD police chief on his uniform, and was standing near a yellow wall of tape barring off the crowds. She quickly approached her boss and saluted. "Yes chief, do you want us to help with the crowds?"
He looked down at her and she thought for a moment that his gruff exterior had cracked and was replaced with anguish. "Not this time Hopps," he said sternly and the tough look in the old cops eyes had returned. "You have been here for over a year."
Judy nodded her reply and the buffalo continued.
"But you still have a lot to learn." He looked up from the rabbit as a large van pulled up. Judy thought it looked like an ambulance but instead of the usual hospital markings, it was black and white and had a big ZPD painted on the side. She could hear him comment under his breath as he watched the van arrive. "Good the M.E. is finally here." Then he turned to the rabbit once again, "Hopps."
"Yes, Sir?"
"I want you to shadow them, observe everything and take notes. In the morning I will expect a full report of everything you see here."
"What about me boss?" Nick asked with his best fake smile that clearly said that he would rather be somewhere else.
Grunting to himself, Bogo glared at the fox, ready to tell him what he could do with his insufferable sarcasm, but he held his anger in check and only replied, "Sure you can write a report too Wilde. But just don't touch anything." With that he turned and walked over to the medical van.
"Oh, and Hopps," he stopped for a second to look back at the rabbit. "I will be including this report as part of that application we discussed last month."
The rabbit officer saluted her boss smartly and replied, "Yes, Sir," before ducking under the police tape and heading towards the home's entrance. Walking away, the two smallest cops could still make out the booming buffalo's voice as he addressed the van's driver.
A young buck who had yet to come into his antlers stepped out of the van wearing a ZPD jacket and cap. He was immediately confronted by an irate police chief. "Where have you been? What took you so long?"
Dropping a black bag that was held in one hoof, he stuttered without looking at the bigger mammal, "Uh, sorry sir. We ran into some traffic on the way over."
Not stopping to let the younger mammal finish, the chief proceeded with his interrogation grunting, "An where is Dr. Phill?"
"Right here Chief," a tiny voice said and the medical assistant lifted a large mouse, wearing a white lab coat, into the air and showed him to the buffalo. "Don't forget your tools Mr. Hoofmer," the mouse noted to his assistant.
"Oh right, I almost forgot," the young deer said as he reached down and retrieved the black bag that he had accidentally dropped earlier.
Addressing the mouse doctor, the police chief took a deep breath and dropped his gruff tone to speak calmly, "All right, good. But I had hoped we could get this over with as discreetly as possible. This crowd, and the reporters, showed up even before we did." He said the last bit with a grunt.
"Well chief," the mouse replied in a fatherly tone. "In a case like this, the scavengers are always circling just out of arm's reach."
As the fox and rabbit neared the front of the house, the buffalo's and mouse's voices faded into the background along with the rest of the crowded mammals. Judy noticed that the tiny front lawn was perfectly manicured, exactly like all the other yards on this block. The grass was all the same height with little iron fences marching along the sidewalks and well trimmed rose bushes sat under each picture window next to their respective doors.
The solid oak door to this particular townhome was wide open and all of the lights were on inside, with most of the activity on the second floor. Grey stucco covered the outside of the home, while its neighbor had an off white color. All the townhomes crammed together in this block had the same style of dark slate tile on their pitched roofs.
Nearing the door, Judy jumped off the sidewalk and into the grass, pulling Nick with her, as two wolves charged through the open portal and into the street. One of the wolves had mixed grey and white fur, while the other had shades of brown with the occasional black stripe. As they ran past, they deliberately sniffed the air and the ground around them. After sniffing around in the street, they nodded to each other and took off in different directions.
Inside, the main living room was expensively furnished and looked extremely comfortable for medium or large mammals. The thick plush carpet was recently cleaned and any tracks through it showed up clearly. A large, wrap around couch dominated the room, facing an enormous, curved, high definition television screen. Between the couch and the TV was an imported, crystal coffee table from which a floral centerpiece had fallen and lay broken on the floor. Along the far wall, was a very large armchair sitting in front of a bay window that almost covered the full length of the back wall.
Walking through the living room, Judy followed the stream of boot prints that headed up the stairs, but before ascending them, she stopped in front of the armchair to take note of something on the floor in front of it. Taking out her phone she began to take pictures of the scene.
"What do you see, Carrots?" her partner asked after several moments.
"Come look at this, Nick," she motioned to a circular depression in the thick, plush carpet.
"Oh, it looks like the chair was moved."
"Yeah, and with that broken flower pot in the middle of the room, there might have been some sort of struggle. Oh, and look at this." The rabbit took more pictures around the edge and behind the chair. "They look like hoof prints, and they lead over to the window."
Puzzled, the fox asked, "Do you think whomever it was, might have been trying to hide behind the curtains?"
"No, I don't think so. At sunset, the light would have been shining right through this window, and anyone hiding here would have been clearly illuminated. Wait, what is this?" Moving the curtains aside, she revealed a lump of pink cloth laying on the floor at the base of the window.
"That is someone's bra," Nick exclaimed. "Wait. Don't. Bogo said not to touch anything," he cried as the rabbit reached down to pick up the plushy pink bra.
"He just meant you, Slick."
"I'm sure the warning to not disturb the crime scene goes for both of us, Fluff."
"Yeah, I guess we should leave it there," she said taking a picture with her phone instead. "And it looks like the tracks lead upstairs from here."
Following the tracks up the steps, they soon became lost in the clutter of police boots. "Oh, no. They are all trampled now and I can't tell where they went from here."
"Well we could try the other direction, Carrots. Where did the tracks come from?"
"Um, let's see... I found them next to the armchair, but they came from..." her voice trailed off as she followed the tracks back to the coffee table. "They circled the coffee table a few times, and stomped across the couch once."
Stopping near the broken flower pot, she spotted something different, "Check this out, Slick. These prints are much larger than the others."
"And here, look at the size of these paw pads. This larger print belongs to some kind of predator."
"After, or I should actually say 'before,' running around the coffee table the tracks came from that direction." Judy pointed her phone at an archway on the other side of the room, next to the large television.
"Is that the kitchen?"
"Let's go check it out," and the rabbit hopped off to the other room.
The next room was a mixed kitchen and dining room, fully equipped with a flat top stove, double ovens, and a huge side-by-side refrigerator. On the dining table was an open bottle of wine, with a label written in a foreign language, next to two tall, narrow glasses. One of the glasses still had a few swigs of the dark red liquid inside. Laying in a crumpled pile next to the glasses was a bright red shirt. In the sink, on the other side of the kitchen, were the unfinished dishes from an intimate dinner for two. In a plastic rack next to the sink sat a single, clean plate, while the rest of the dishes lay soaking in the cold, soapy water.
Judy stood in front of the sink pondering her own dishes from breakfast in Nick's apartment earlier that morning, "Did someone get interrupted while doing the dishes?"
"And I don't think the interruption was all too unwelcome, Carrots," the fox added, while reaching a dark paw into the fridge. Inside, along with an assortment of normal foodstuffs, he spotted a six pack of beer cans with a golden label. The beer was warm, and one of the plastic rings was empty and hanging limp.
"Get your paws out of there," the rabbit cried, trying to swat at her partner. "We need to go, the MEs just went up the stairs."
Leaving the kitchenette, neither of the small officers spotted the missing can, crushed and laying on the floor in the toe space under the cabinets.
Climbing the large set of stairs, Judy stopped at the top to take a picture of a pair of black, lace panties hanging from the banister, before following the medical examiners into the bedroom.
Carrying the mouse doctor in one hoof and the black medical bag in the other, the young, male deer stepped into the room with a great deal of caution. He watched every step like he was walking on broken glass, or trying to avoid a child's playset carelessly scattered around the room.
Right behind the deer, was a very enthusiastic rabbit ready to solve this case in a heartbeat. She had no idea of the tragedy that waited for her in that room, or that it was about to change her life forever.
Walking into the bedroom, the first thing Judy saw was Officer Wolfard, breathing heavily and talking to a large brown bear with captain's bars on his uniform's collar. Before her focus moved on, she caught a few words of their conversation, "Officer Lupeo and I followed it out to the street but lost it in the lake."
"Did you check for an exit point?" the bear asked with a quick nod.
"Yes, we circled the perimeter but found nothing," the grey wolf affirmed. "Lupeo is still checking along the canal."
Looking beyond Wolfard and the Captain, Judy spotted Officer Fangmeyer and the cheetah from last night's karaoke club. While the cheetah was taking photos of the scene with an expensive, high powered camera, Fangmeyer was laying out yellow, numbered tags. The tiger was squatting down with a tag numbered '8' next to a pair of very large zebra-striped, stretchy pants. She set down a small ruler as the cheetah snapped the picture.
As the deer carefully moved further into the room, the bed slowly came into view of the ZPD's smallest officer. The bed was built in a modern, raised-futon style, and the mattress was enormous. White, ruffled sheets shimmered with the light from the many lamps in the room, and the folds and creases showed signs of recent activity. At first glance, it appeared very comfortable, even for an entire litter of rabbits. However, the amount of blood covering the mattress would have made it very difficult for anyone to sleep on. Yet someone familiar lay, in a pool of their own blood, as if taking a short nap.
Seeing the naked mammal resting on the bed, Judy covered her muzzle with a small grey paw before slowly taking in the details of the crime. The species of mammal laying on the bed was one of the many that belonged to the antelope family. Her naked body lay on its back and was fully exposed to anyone walking through the door.
Her nose twitching, Judy noticed that the victim had very tiny hooves for such a tall mammal, and her fur was a golden brown with a lighter creme color that ran down from her chin and across her midsection. Swallowing her initial shock at the sight of all that bare fur, the rabbit's eyes slowly followed the shape of the dead body until she saw that half of the mammal's neck was missing. A large, bleeding hole was all that remained, and was roughly in the center of the bloody pool covering the bed sheets.
Holding back her sudden gag reflex, Judy's sense of familiarity only grew stronger. Taking a step into the room, she took a harder look at the victim's muzzle. She noticed the cute white stripe that ran from the victim's nose and up her muzzle to frame her pretty brown eyes. Her long, curly, blonde hair covered one eye, and a pair of flat ears flopped on the bloody sheets.
Realization only dawned on the small rabbit when the young medical examiner knelt on the bed and removed one of the pillows revealing a pair of angelically curved horns. The room started to spin and Judy grasped her head painfully. When the room stopped spinning she suddenly ran out the door with fear and anguish plastered firmly on her small features.
Running full tilt down the hall, the rabbit's only thought was to flee as far away as she could from that horrible scene behind her. But before she could take two hops down the hall, she barreled directly into a dark orange mammal wearing a blue uniform and nearly knocked him off of his feet.
Nick caught the small terrified bunny as she suddenly leapt into his arms while crying furiously. He let her cry for several moments while he rubbed her soft ears. Quickly he remembered where they were and tried to pry the tearful rabbit off his shirt, "What's wrong Carrots?"
With an anguished sob, the rabbit looked away from her partner, "I can't Nick. I just can't do this anymore." She planted her muzzle deep in his chest and continued to cry, soaking his uniform in a shower of her tears.
"You have to get a hold of yourself."
"It's just too horrible, I can't," she cried.
"What happened to the super bunny cop I used to know?" the fox asked, once again trying to break free of his sobbing partner.
Lifting her chin, she looked into the deep calming sea that was his emerald green eyes, "What do you mean?"
"Judy, you are the one of the strongest, toughest and most determined mammals I know, as well as my favorite police officer."
"Yeah?" the rabbit sniffled, wiping her tiny pink nose.
"You are always ready to help any mammal in need, and are always so excited to take on the next case," the fox affirmed, holding the rabbit's shoulders firmly in both paws. "This is not like you at all. I have never seen you run away from a case before."
Tears nearly flooded the pained bunny's eyes again and Judy replied with a choking wail, "You didn't see her laying there. How could anyone do such a horrible thing?"
"Well, I guess it's time to show everyone here, like you showed me, that you are not just another cute, emotional bunny," Nick declared firmly. "And together we will find out who did this and bring them to justice."
The change in the rabbit was so sudden that it was almost scary. Gone was the shower of tears, and the look of pain and horror in her eyes. They had been replaced by the firm determination and resolve that Nick knew well. She still felt a little queasy and the room spun slightly when she moved wrong, but she grabbed the fox's paw and led him back into the bedroom saying, "Let's do this."
On the heels of the fiercely determined bunny, Nick entered the crime scene for the first time. He glanced around the room slowly taking in every detail. When his eyes fell on the bed he exhaled with a slight shock in his voice and covered his muzzle with a paw in an attempt to not let any emotions show, "Oh, it's Gazelle. Maybe that's why Clawhouser wasn't on the radio?"
Quickly, the bear tried to cover the fox's reply, "Hush Wilde. We don't know enough yet to make those kinds of assumptions. Until we get proper DNA identification back, all we know for sure is that she is A gazelle."
At that moment, the cheetah holding the camera added, "The townhouse is also registered in her name, so that is something. It's clear that the home does at least belong to the pop star."
Ignoring their conversation, Judy saw the young medical examiner pull a large and very sharp thermometer from the victim's chest while discussing medical procedures with the mouse on his shoulder. "Do you remember a gazelles average body temperature Mr Hoofmer?" the mouse asked his assistant.
"Of course, doctor. I was looking it up on the way over."
"Ok, then. Well go on and subtract the difference from the ambient room temperature and give us an estimated time of death."
Looking down at his watch, the medical assistant touched the tips of his hoof-digits with his thumb while calculating the numbers in his head, "Let me see. Based on this temperature reading, I calculate that she died around 8:11 pm this evening."
"Try not to be so exact Jake," the mouse scolded. "In this business a more relative answer is better. So let's say sometime between eight o-clock and nine just to be fair."
"And why is that doctor?"
"I would rather not have the courts hold my staff accountable for being too precise."
The deer thought about what the doctor had said for a few moments and eventually nodded in agreement.
"If you're not too busy thinking about the meaning of life, and death, would you help me with something?"
Coming out of his own thoughts, the young deer replied, "Sure doctor."
"Can you move her right arm for a second? There is something on her shoulder I would like a better look at."
Watching the examiners curiously, Judy continued to take photos as they worked.
Pulling the victim's arm across her body to reveal the back of her shoulder, the assistant leaned over to give the mouse a better view. "Just as I thought," the mouse exclaimed. "Bite and scratch marks, and a lot of them too."
The old mouse held a paw up to his chin thoughtfully before he spoke while pointing at the victim, "You know, this reminds me of a time when I used to date a young kangaroo rat. She was a feisty little thing, we used to chase each other around the bedroom before..." The small doctor's voice slowly cut off when he noticed that every officer in the room was staring at him, and the captain's glare was harsh.
"Sorry, nevermind that," Dr. Phill apologized. "Ok, Jake, I think we have seen enough here. Let's get her packed and ready to move."
While the deer pulled out a large plastic bag with a zipper along one side, the mouse pointed at the two felines standing at the end of the bed and asked, "Would you two like to help us lift the body onto the gurney?"
Puffing out her chest, Fangmeyer replied proudly, "I can easily lift her all on my own."
"I'm sure you can ma'am, but we need the body to remain as still and level as possible so I can finish the examination back in autopsy."
Once the victim was encased in the bag, the three large mammals lifted her carefully and placed her on the wheeled recliner to be escorted out of the room and down the stairs.
With the body gone, Judy took another look around the room and snapped her own photos where each numbered tag marked possible evidence. The first tag was next to where the victim had lain on the large mattress. Other tags marked a tuft of black and orange fur on the edge of the bed, large bloody paw prints on the floor, a couple of broken lamps with huge claw marks on them, the dried splotches of a white or clear liquid on the sheets and pillows, and a familiar looking bag of pills on the nightstand.
"Nick, look at this," Judy called to her partner holding up the bag.
"Well, would you look at that?"
Turning the bag over, she noticed a small, scratched and faded number on the side of one of the larger pills. "Hey I recognize these numbers."
"Yeah, isn't that one of the batches that the clinic reported was stolen?"
"Sure is, Slick. How is it that you can remember one of those numbers, but you still struggle with our own police codes, hmmm?" the rabbit smirked at him playfully, and the fox just shrugged.
After teasing the fox about his selective memory, Judy spotted Wolfard coming out of the master bathroom carrying an evidence bag that contained two different toothbrushes. One of the toothbrushes was slightly larger than her own, but the other was huge. It was so large in fact that at first she thought it was a hairbrush, but the shape of the head and the arrangement of the bristles said otherwise. Plus it had the name of a common dental brand molded onto the handle.
Judy carefully walked through the open door that the wolf had come through moments before, and entered the bathroom. Unlike the rest of the house, this room was fairly messy. Dozens of beauty and cleaning products lined the counter top, leaving little room for anything else on its white marble surface. Looking up at the huge mirror, she almost felt disappointed to find the reflective surface was covered in fresh water spots instead of some dark message from the killer written in blood.
She turned to leave, but stopped for a second to glance at a small waste basket next to the toilet. Inside the basket were dozens of wadded up newspapers, but what caught the sharp rabbit's attention was a colorful brochure that had been wedged carefully between the papers. On the brochure, were images of pregnant mammals and families playing with their children in a grassy park. The top of the brochure, where the name would have been, was torn off and was nowhere to be seen.
Beneath the brochure, buried among the newspapers was a small plastic stick that appeared like a flat, blue and white pen. On one side of the handle was a flat oval depression with colored lines and symbols inside. Most of the colors had faded after laying in the basket for several days. Without the instruction manual the rabbit was unable to make heads or tails of what any of it meant so she left it laying in the basket untouched.
Returning to the bedroom, she found Wolfard holding a large black shirt, with no sleeves, out to Nick, "If you can remember a scent take a good, long sniff of this."
"He is not trained for this," the large bear complained with his muscular arms crossed. "Why even bother?"
"Because the more noses we have on the street looking for this guy, the better, Captain."
Nick clasped the cloth in both paws, holding it up to his black nose he inhaled deeply. He closed his eyes, scrunched his nose and pulled the cloth away sharply in disgust, before trying again.
"What do you smell?" the wolf detective asked.
"Um, a jungle," he sniffed the cloth again. "And dry grass, and something huge that I should avoid with my life. It's definitely a feline, that's for sure."
"Good, that's a start at least," Wolfard praised, taking the shirt back and adding it to an evidence bag. "Remember that specific scent, and if you ever run across it again call for backup. Our guy is large and probably very dangerous."
While the wolf and her fox were busy sniffing muscle shirts, Judy was examining some of the bloody splotches at the end of the bed. Most of them looked like they were left there by a single large paw, yet one splotch seemed out of place.
"Hey Wolford," the rabbit asked. "Can you come look at this for a second?'
Seeing what the smaller officer was looking at, the wolf just shrugged and calmly replied, "Yeah, we looked at those already. That's just some blood that fell off the perp when he ran out of the room."
"I can see that, but this one doesn't match the others."
"Oh, really, let me see what you've found." The wolf bent down to get a closer look at the spot on the floor where Judy was pointing.
"See, these other prints look like paw pads, but this one looks almost like a hoof."
"Yes, you're right," he agreed. "It does look like a hoof print.
"Could the victim have made that before she fell on the bed?"
Officer Wolfard shook his head in disagreement, "No it's not her's. Take a closer look." The rabbit bent down to see the wolf trace out the print with his claw. "The teardrop shape of this print is similar to the hooves of our victim but they are much too large, and the sharp ends are too close together."
"So what are we looking at, detective?" the captain asked.
"Another mammal was here, sir," the wolf stated as he stood up, facing the uniformed bear. "I thought I picked up a third scent in the room earlier."
"Could that scent have belonged to the witness or the medical examiner?"
"I don't think so," he said, sniffing around the room and across the mattress. "No, the smell was here long before the examiners arrived, and it's all over the mattress. And as for the witness, she is a zebra, and the hoof print is not even remotely similar to their tracks." Shaking his head, he looked at the captain and concluded firmly, "I think we have another suspect, Sir."
"But all we have to go on is a faint scent you happened to catch on the mattress?"
"And this hoof print, sir." the rabbit added smartly. When she stood up, the room started to spin and the temperature began to rise. "Excuse me Sirs, I think I need some fresh air," and she quickly rushed out of the room.
Walking outside, a few drops of rain fell on the rabbit's short nose. After the sun had gone down, the clouds had rolled in to cover the sky and the air was thick with moisture, giving it a heavy and muggy feeling.
In the dark, Judy could barely make out her boss as he was skillfully avoiding the herd of questions shouted at him by the reports. With her poor night vision, he only appeared as a grey outline amongst the other shadows. There was another large, furry shadow standing next to him in front of the crowd.
When she had arrived earlier that evening, there were only four reporters, now there were dozens and all of them were assaulting the police chief with their insidious questions. "Don't they know that his idol was just murdered upstairs," the bunny thought solemnly. "Or maybe they do, and that's why they are all here."
Turning to get away from the bright, painfully flashing lights and the crowd of mammals, Judy could still hear the buffalo's sad voice, "I assure you that we will answer all of your questions in time. Once we have completed our investigation, Captain Berenstain and I will disclose the full details of this case."
Pulling her ears tightly behind her head, she stopped listening and proceeded to walk down the street in the opposite direction. When she reached the end of the block of townhomes she crossed the street and headed down a small, grassy slope to the edge of the lake.
Kicking the still water with a toe, she thought to herself, "What is wrong with me?" It was clearly cool outside yet she was still sweating, and her head and shoulders ached. "I have seen much worse on this job, so why is this crime scene bothering me so much?" Mulling over these and other depressing thoughts, she looked across the dark lake.
She grabbed a small rock on the shore, and was about to toss it into the water, but instead turned around when she heard a quiet rustle behind her. Thinking it was her partner that had come looking for her, she was surprised that instead of the fox, she saw a tall, smartly dressed weasel standing next to a bush under the lamp light. He wore a clean suit and was holding his phone level with his chest. She couldn't tell if he was recording her or reading from it. Dropping the rock she faced the newcomer.
"Officer Hopps?" the weasel asked.
"Y-yes," she replied shakily, trying not to let her dark mood interfere with this encounter.
"Hello. My name is Newt. Newton Wessels, from the Mammal Enquirer. Enquiring mammals want to know and all that." He held out a paw in greeting.
Being the friendly mammal that she was, the rabbit accepted the reporter's paw and shook it firmly. "Um, how can the ZPD help you this evening sir?"
"Well, my readers and I are curious about something, and I was wondering if you could answer a few questions."
"You know I won't be able to talk about any ongoing investigations," she said sternly.
Newt chuckled warmly, "Don't worry ma'am. This has nothing to do with the mess behind us."
"Ok, that's alright, I guess. What questions do you have?"
"Well, as I mentioned before, we at the Mammal Enquirer are curious if the rumors are true."
Judy's small white jaw dropped, clearly showing her surprise at the reporter's question, "Rumors, wha-what rumors?" His question had sparked her curiosity.
The weasel made his next statement as if he was stating a clear and obvious fact, "Why, the rumors about you and your partner having a romantic affair."
Her mood immediately turned from cheerful and friendly to dark and dour. "What in the manure pile do you think you're talking about mister?"
With the subject of his next big story standing in front of him, the weasel continued to press the issue. "I have proof, Miss Hopps."
"You have been clearly misinformed Mr. Wessels!" the rabbit explained angrily, pointing a still sharpened claw at his chest.
Turning his phone to face the irate officer, he reminded her of his last statement, "I have a lot of proof that the two of you are romantically involved, on and off the job. Here, let me show you." On the phone was a picture of the fox and rabbit couple riding a ferris wheel. In the picture they appeared to be cuddled closely together, and the rabbit's expression was positively joyful.
"Ugh, That's nothing," Judy tried to explain. "The ride hit a bump and I leaned against him."
"And this one?" He showed her a grainy picture of a restaurant dining room, obviously taken through a window from the far side of the street. The fox and rabbit officers could barely be seen between a pair of boars, but the rabbit was clearly sitting in the fox's lap, and she was delectably licking the fox's fingers.
He showed off several more photos while the rabbit stuttered to explain each one. There was a photo of them sitting in a coffee shop staring into each other's eyes, and from the right angle it appeared like their lips were touching. It was a very convincing shot of a candid kiss. Another had them holding paws while walking to work, and still another of them entering a family planning clinic paw in paw. And finally, one with her leaving Nick's apartment wearing his green shirt.
"Oh and this is a good one I found on the internet," he swiped the phone and showed her the image of her clearly kissing the chocolate smudge on her partner's muzzle. The image was taken inside their ZPD office.
"What, how, where?" she asked in rapid succession, but she already knew the answer. "Clawhouser! I told him not to post that."
"So you can confirm these photos?"
"What," the rabbit exclaimed, waving her paws in the air between them. "No, of course not. This is all circumstantial. There is absolutely nothing going on between us."
Swiping his paw across the phone several times he revealed his final card, "Ah, here we go. This one is my absolute favorite. I call it an Ode To Wildehopps." At first glance, all Judy could see was a crowded dance floor, but as her eyes slowly came into focus she saw a beautiful rabbit wearing a lovely pink dress. The rabbit in the photo was passionately clutching a fox who was dressed to kill. His shirt was half unbuttoned and her muzzle was buried in his chest.
"Nothing going on, you say? Well this charming image clearly shows the two of you romantically dancing together in the middle of a club exclusive to mixed species couples. I would say that two self-respecting mammals like you claim to be, would not be caught dead in a place like that. Unless you didn't want anyone to notice your little affair."
Trying to grab the offending photos from his paws, Judy cried a hasty explanation, "You've got it all wrong, We were working!"
With a gleam in his eye, the weasel replied, "So you were having an affair on the clock."
"No! Not at all," the rabbit proclaimed. "If you are just going to twist everything I say, then I am leaving right now, and don't try to follow me Mr. Wessels." She took a step to the side and walked past him trying to extract herself from the offensive scene.
"Just one more question, Miss Hopps."
"I am not answering any more of your questions."
Not at all phased by her reply, the reporter continued, "Is the rumor about your partner true?"
She stopped abruptly to glare at him like he was a week old rotten fish, "What are you talking about?"
"Is it true that your partner is nothing more than a cheap conmammal, that only recently joined the force to steal government secrets and sell them to our foriegn enemies? Or that he is just trying to steal your he-"
Even in the dark of night under the streetlamps and tall oak trees, the grey paws were swift as lightning. With uncontrolled fury, the rabbit's fist struck the weasel's jaw with a loud crack, knocking him to the ground. She glared down at him shaking her paws angrily, "Nick is the most thoughtful and kindest and wonderful mammal that I know. He is also an amazing cop. You have no right to spread such horrible rumors! He is my best friend and I lo-" The rage she felt from the slimy mammal's accusations would not let her finish the tirade.
"This is police brutality," Newt cried, trying to stand while protecting his muzzle with the same arm that held his phone.
When the mustelid finally rose from the wet grass, Judy raised her fists threateningly, "Get out of here creep. I don't want to see or hear from you again. And if you publish any of those lies about Nick, I will arrest your slimy, rotten tail for slander."
The weasel quickly ran back to the large crowd still milling around outside the townhouse. As he crossed the street he failed to notice a taller shadow passing by.
Nick suspiciously watched the weasel run from his partner and cautiously approached her, "What was that all about, Carrots?"
She had returned to the side of the lake where it was dark and quiet so she could be alone with her gloomy thoughts. When she heard the fox approach she reached for him, pulling him into a desperate hug.
"Ok, Carrots. It's alright now," the fox said, holding the rabbit close and patting her gently. "What did that nasty reporter want?"
Fighting down her overwhelming fury, she replied with a shaky voice, "Nothing, um, everything. Wait, you know him?"
"Yeah, I recognized his foul stench from across the street. I know who he is and that horrible magazine he writes for."
"Ugh, disgusting if you ask me," Judy stuck her tongue out and gagged. "All he did was twist and turn everything I said."
"You know, Fluff, in this case, the Miranda rights have a profound meaning." Despite the tragedy behind him he lifted her chin and gave her his best smile. With a wink he added, "You know that you do have the right to remain silent."
She gave a sad chuckle at his antics, "Yeah, I know, Slick. And anything I say can, and will be used against me..."
"In a sleazy article, in a highly disreputable magazine," he finished her sentence as she chuckled with a slight, "Har har."
"Without even trying, this cute little rabbit always seems to brighten my day," the fox thought as he watched her nose scrunch at his words. Even her sad little laugh filled the fox with joy, and after witnessing the terrible scene inside, he really needed what joy he could find tonight.
"You know, Carrots, if he was speaking with you personally, that means he most likely, already has an article written. And, in his sick, twisted mind, anything you said just confirmed all of the lies he has written."
"That is truly disgusting!"
"I can't agree with you more, Sweetheart."
"So, if he already has something indiscreet written about me, then I'm probably in big trouble with Bogo?"
"Unless it's about you stealing from old ladies, or hurting innocent mammals. Then I wouldn't worry about it too much."
"Why is that, Slick?"
"Well, if you know the magazine he writes for, you would know that nobody takes those stories seriously."
"I have never heard of this, Mammal Enquirer before, so I don't know what you mean. What are their stories like?"
"That's it, they are just stories."
"Like?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at him curiously.
"Like stories about aliens taking over the government, two headed mammals in the sewers, and monsters living in the forest. You know, the ones about those furless primates who live in caves and steal bad children at night."
"Wow, I've never heard of a real magazine, with actual reporters and all, that write that type of squash. Let alone anyone who reads it."
"You're lucky then, Carrots. It's extremely popular to find next to the register in all the big chain grocery stores."
"That's probably why I've never seen it before, I always avoid those big stores. I much prefer the smaller, cozy, family shops and the open markets instead."
"Oh, look," the fox pointed across the street as he tried to change the subject.
"What's that, Slick?"
"It looks like the crowd is dispersing. Let's see if we can help Bogo and the others close up this crime scene."
"Yes, let's," Judy replied, trying to sound cheerful after everything that had happened that day. Grabbing his paw she led him solemnly across the street and back to the townhouse. Holding his paw, even under the cloudy evening skies, helped to ease the pain in her head slightly and drove away her dark, brooding thoughts. She desperately grasped her fox, firmly squeezing his paw tighter, and hoped that this one simple act would chase away all the evil she had witnessed that evening.
[A/N] And a big Thank You to everyone who is still following this story. I am truly shocked by how many people are still reading my fluffy little mystery. Also a thanks for all the great comments.
I have really been chomping at the bit to get this one out since it has so much important stuff going on, and escalates the little drug ring into a full blown homicide, er I mean mammalicide. Anyways, I actually came up with the idea for the report questioning Judy about her relationship with Nick before I knew how he would find her. In my original plan for the crime scene it was in a cheap motel in the savanna and it was pouring rain outside.
The store clerk in the opening scene was a last minute addition to help fill out the chapter and I thought it would be a nice light hearted start to what could well be the darkest chapter in this story. For everyone who gets the movie reference take a moment to compare the guy behind the counter with a image of a bongo and let me know if a made a good choice for an animal to play his part.
And if you don't all hate me by now, please let me know what you think of this chapter. I have put alot of extra effort into making all the clues and details fit together. I expect to be able to start piecing everything together in the next few chapters.
In the next chapter there should be a nice break from all the crime and mystery stuff with a nice bit of fluff so you can look forward to that.
I would really like to be able to pace myself and spread out the chapters a bit more but unfortunately for me all the ideas hit me at once like a big avalanche so I try to write everything down as fast as I can before they are all gone, but I need to force myself to keep writing and not take such long breaks. We are about three quarters of the way through the story I had originally planned to write back in 2017 so I think I can hold back the writers block long enough to finish what I started. If luck is with me I think I can have part one finished before summer, however work will be picking up again next week and I wont have as much free time to write in the middle of the week, so it may take me a bit more time to get these long detailed chapters published.
Thanks again to everyone who has stuck with me so long.