AN As promised, I managed to get this second half of 'Brought to Terms' out by the end of the month. Last time, I forgot to thank my reviewers for chapter 24, so I'll include them with those for chapter 25. My thanks go to: Blkdragon7, J Shute, pampuru, Piosonivy25, and seakard, for CH. 24, and Blkdragon7,J Shute, Medic 27, Piosonivy25, and Wolfx1120 for 25. I appreciate the time taken for all of them!
Chapter Twenty-six:
Brought to Terms
Part Two
10:25 AM Saturday, in the basement of ZPD Precinct One.
Vivian's aggressive reaction to the arrival of the diminutive fennec fox caught Judy completely off-guard. She steeled herself for an imminent no-win brawl with her mother-in-law inside the confines of the viewing gallery as Finnick cried, "I was tryin ta help him!" in a fearfully high pitch.
He took a half-step back from the taut postured vixen and briefly teetered on the edge of the top riser—his face flashed dismay, then returned to scared. "You gonna make bunnycop look really bad," he said in a lower, but still not normal voice—his paws now raised in futile defense against Vivian's bared teeth.
Judy used a momentary opening to dash beneath Vivian's arm and get between them with both of her own spread wide. For several seconds nobody moved, then the angry vixen slowly folded her arms and shifted her gaze briefly to Judy before re-pinning Finnick with it.
"Present circumstances require me to...postpone my retribution," Viv said precisely as she maintained that eye contact and withdrew to lower herself smoothly into what had been Judy's seat.
Judy sat between them; that forced Finnick to look away first, then jump into and stand in the seat closest to the door—he wouldn't have been able to see much of the interrogation room otherwise. He kept his eyes on it, away from both of them, and kept his mouth shut.
They recognized each other on sight but absolutely must not have met before. That just never came up in my conversations with either of them. Nick had to have unknowingly set this confrontation in motion years ago, and was too young at first to be responsible. Finnick was an adult then, and he's just been forced now to face up to his unforgivable crime of not returning with, and thus in her view abducting, Vivian Wilde's son! She showed forbearance now, will she later?
She'd lost several irreplaceable years of her only child's adolescence—what value would Vivian place on that? Judy wouldn't try to guess how much. Although one of the least family-centric members of the Hopps clan, she still knew she'd never fully comprehend a mother's emotions without first becoming one.
And that terrified squeal was probably the closest I'll hear to Finnick's real voice, since Nick had once described his compatriot's now likely deep affectation as 'Practiced compensation'.
They were spared further awkwardness by the arrival of their guest of honor and his retinue. Fangmeyer had returned to provide the intimidating muscle; she sat the compliant coyote behind the table and clipped his pawcuffs to the stout chain welded to its edge. Nadine chose the end link to give him reasonable freedom of movement. Judy knew their continued joint utilization showed Chief Bogo's desire to minimize the number of his officers aware of the resistance. Fangmeyer's early inclusion had been assured, since her partner Wolfard had been one of the first targeted for investigation by the conspiracy.
An older and dour faced red fox had followed his client into the room. Wes Murry, Esq. his briefcase reminded her. She, Nick, and now apparently Finnick as well, knew him as one of Happytown's overworked public defenders. Particularly today, since he'd been dragged over here on a weekend.
It struck Judy as odd that Alex Clifton hadn't wanted to, or been able to, retain more prominent legal representation. Mr. Murry had a small law practice for his district's many vulpine residents, along with being under contract with the city. He and his client had to be aware of the unusual nature of today's proceeding. That would only be reinforced when the Chief himself showed up to grill his arrestee over what were at present fairly modest property crimes. No one had been injured yet as far as she knew, so that meant Clifton's sabotage should result in a mix of lesser charges like vandalism, theft, and possible intent to harm. Even multiple counts meant that at most, he might get three-to-five along with paying restitution for the company's losses, depending on what kind of plea bargain was negotiated.
Judy felt sorry for the slack tailed Mr. Murry as he glanced through a couple of papers to fill in the 'let them stew a bit' time before the chief arrived. That probably less slick than her Nick lawyer would be the only one in the room or gallery unaware of the sinister background behind his client's actions.
"Dude realizes he's totally screwed, but his lawyer don't," Finnick soberly confirmed her thoughts in his more familiar deep voice without turning his head to them.
"I wonder if his client told him he used to be associated with the ZBI," Vivian said just as evenly, signaling her acceptance of the change of subject. "Judy, do you think he knows enough about his role in the conspiracy to reveal anything about their leaders?"
"I don't know Vivian, I think it depends on how far Chief Bogo is willing to question him about it with counsel present," Judy said. "Things are moving faster now, but we still need to control when we reveal our evidence or accuse any conspirators."
"Nothin right about him from the start bunnycop. Why's he workin for em anyway? I can't see somebody like him goin' grass, so they must have somethin good on him," Finnick said. "Is your evidence about him or somethin else?"
"Something else. On him; it's only what you've gotten for us Finnick," Judy said, keeping her own head straight since she now seemed to be the neutral intermediary. "You earned some trust and gratitude from us, but you'll have to earn a lot more of it before we can let you know what else we've found. It's enough that the wrong word in the wrong ears could get us killed." She hoped that, along with his not wanting to be known as a snitch, would keep him quiet about his recent exploits.
They watched the lawyer read, and his client slowly become unsettled for another couple of minutes. Clifton glanced at Fangmeyer, then turned and appeared to stare through the window at them—he had to know there was an audience behind it. Chief Bogo chose that moment to snap the door open and elicit a visible twitch from the coyote—he immediately pressed that advantage as he took his seat.
"Mr. Clifton, your rights have been read to you earlier and you have legal counsel present; do either of you wish to have them repeated for the record?" His voice came forth clearly from the gallery's intercom.
"No Mr. Bogo, I apprised him of them again during our consultation," said Mr. Murry. Clifton slowly shook his head no as well—or in resignation, it was hard to tell.
"I want to hear it from Mr. Clifton," Bogo said curtly.
"No! Happy now? Let's just get this charade over with, we both know what's going to happen!"
"And what might that be? With your background you are certainly aware of the procedures we are legally required to follow," Bogo said with the dangerous tone he reserved for those who dared question his authority—or integrity. "You will not be subjected to either malice or favoritism while in our custody."
"How...proper of you chief. While in your custody," Clifton said in angry sarcasm. "So you're the type that doesn't want dirt on your hooves. Just pass the pelt along to his prearranged fate all nice and legal..."
"Mr. Clifton, please!" Mr. Murry reached a paw out to his larger client. "This is why I warned you…".
"You're just part of the show, fox!" Clifton barked to cut him off and tried to slap his arm away—his own paws snubbed short by the chained cuffs. "Follow the script, tidy the paperwork, clear this on a weekend to keep it under wraps, then collect your payoffs like good little pets!" His frustrated glare swept past Murry to Fangmeyer—who quietly maintained her composure. He then turned towards them again to blindly stare at the one way window. "And Ms. Sadist gets to enjoy her command performance."
They were already sitting, or in Finnick's case standing, up attentively due to Clifton's unexpected tirade. His last bitter comment had Judy exchange a look with Vivian; they knew who he meant. Bogo had to as well, he motioned for Judy to join them. She got up, which unfortunately seemed to confirm Finnick's natural assumption that Clifton had meant her—he now looked at her with nervous respect.
"He didn't mean Mrs. Wilde or me, that's all I can say." She motioned the still doubtful little fox down the steps ahead of her, and stretched to open the door. "This just went beyond what you need to know."
Officer Catano stood watch just outside, while Clawhauser was down the hall at the base of the stairs. That made Judy wonder who was posted up in the lobby to provide warning about incursions by Tarija or her agents. The pervasive atmosphere of paranoia was enough to keep Finnick from objecting when she asked that he be escorted away from the precinct. She watched them go, then joined the interrogation.
Clifton examined her in puzzlement as she sat down at the table across from Mr. Murry—but only after the coyote had paused to see if anyone else might follow her in. Maybe he would have recognized her if she'd been in uniform. Chief Bogo had expected considerable resistance from the former ZBI agent, presumably bolstered by either some perverted ideology of his, or by what seemed more likely now; serious blackmail. If so, that had certainly been contingent upon his remaining undiscovered, and successfully setting up the AblePaws incident that Nick had predicted as their goal. Bogo should easily be able to coerce more information out of Alex Clifton—it seemed that his failure had already broken him.
"I'd asked Officer Judy Hopps here, who took and filed the initial report, to observe today's proceeding. No one else from any department or agency was present with her," Bogo stated. Clifton's eyes showed recognition; then faint hope given the chief's careful emphasis. Mr. Murry realized he was now superfluous, and remained silent while he took down a few desultory notes.
"Your charges will include at least two felonies Mr. Clifton. That is obviously not your main concern here; it's clear that your arrest has you in imminent fear for your life—you even saw us as accomplices in that. Telling us how you were coerced into your illegal actions could help us protect you from reprisal. Before you do," Bogo shifted his attention, "Your counsel needs to understand that nothing we discuss here can leave this room; that is for his own safety as well as ours. I am sorry Mr. Murry; but by accepting Mr. Clifton as your client, you automatically assumed the same extralegal jeopardy that has threatened us for some time. That will become apparent as soon as Mr. Clifton's arrest is logged into our system."
"You haven't booked him yet?" Mr. Murry said in surprise; shortly before his face showed that he'd made the connection as to why his interrupted weekend had just gotten worse. He looked from Bogo's serious face, to his client's somewhat hopeful one, and then to hers as he continued to fit pieces into place.
And everything we're doing will be revealed Monday. Tarija and the rest of the conspirators are almost there already; Jack's subterfuge gets exposed as soon as they learn the Deerbrooke remains went straight to Dr. Alder, whose sudden absence will confirm that. Bogo's procedural delays regarding Nick, and now Clifton, will further implicate him; they'll need to act immediately on his removal so they can gain control over the ZPD. We have one day, at most two, before they start to roll all of us up!
"Mr. Clifton, confirm for me that ZBI chief Asa Tarija is your operational manager," Chief Bogo said firmly. "Was it her, or the ZBI's Deputy Director, that instigated the scheme to subvert the AblePaws company? If I am mistaken, and you were actually a willing participant in their great cause, I would like to know how they induced this...realignment of your known natural predilections."
Bogo's blunt words stunned the coyote as thoroughly as if he'd reached across the table and slugged him. His choice to lay out everything they had, however tenuous or insultingly provocative, to elicit further information from Mr. Clifton, meant the chief also knew they were out of time.
"How could you possibly know that! How did you even find me out? Our operational security was very tight!" Clifton seemed genuinely shocked that he and his ZBI connections had been unmasked by a local police department—regardless of his own unwilling role.
"She is involved in...other operations that have attracted the interest of our detectives. Corruption can occur within any organization; it behooves us all to engage in cross jurisdictional oversight. Integrity can also be found if you look for it, even where it is denied by ones own prejudice."
"Still can't escape my past, can I? My own ambitions and...leanings made me a satisfying target for extortion by...the majority; I didn't expect to find an actual...moralist hidden among them…in your position," Clifton said deliberately and somewhat sullenly after a pause for thought. "If you know as much as you seem to, then our predilections align. My...our first concern is staying alive, which won't happen if she learns of this and gains custody of either of us. Tarija has very powerful allies although I'm obviously not in a position to do more than speculate about them."
"Chief? If we publicized Mr. Clifton's case and arrest first, wouldn't that make it harder for them to cover up another snatch? It should at least buy us time," Judy said with some hope that it might work.
"The agency is skilled," Clifton said as he gave her a patronizing look, "at arranging unfortunate accidents when needed. My exposure by law enforcement; you," he then glared at her, "Is such a need."
"What do you know about their objective for your assignment, and their ultimate goals for society at large? And to be clear, did you work undercover and thus remain affiliated with the ZBI?" Bogo asked.
"No, I was set up well in advance of their need, then terminated for cause before this assignment to give them deniability, and let them brand me as a rogue ex-agent. They made sure this inside job, and its success, was the only out I had. What they want is retribution for AblePaws profiteering at the expense of the...majority—and to gain control of their rich cash flow. As for us," Clifton tapped himself and looked over at Fangmeyer, "Read the news, they haven't given up on last years anti-pred plot."
"Do they need the extra funds to continue that media campaign they've started, or might you know about other initiatives of theirs that require such support?" Bogo asked the obvious follow-up.
"That could be; I don't know much beyond my part of their, as you say, initiatives. They've realigned and compartmentalized their operations well since Bellwether's power grab failed." Clifton paused and acknowledged Judy with a grudging nod. "Beyond her immediate...collaborators, many more of the majority in government still has it in for us preds, they can't hide that they've started to clean us out of several...organizations—yours being the latest."
"How did you become aware that predatory personnel were being selectively removed?" Bogo anticipated the question that Judy wanted to blurt out due to Clifton's past connection to Skye.
"In my case, it was noticed by an analyst when I still worked for the agency. It had barely gotten beyond the rumor stage when the subject became—unwise to explore further," Clifton said cagily.
"It would be of immense help to our investigation for you to detail who, even if just intermediary contacts, and how they induced you into furthering their cause. We agree this conspiracy is embedded within government; it has been difficult to attach names to it," Bogo said, aware that Clifton had nothing more to lose by confessing everything. Mr. Murry agreed, as she overheard him whisper to his client.
Your specieism doesn't compensate for that of others, Mr. Murry; although your choice of phrase is certainly accurate. Your client should confess everything; he really is 'as screwed over as a rabbit's mattress.' He also knows that it would have been to our benefit to just turn him over to the ZBI—be done with him, case closed. And he did mean Skye; I wonder how he'll spin his harassment of her?
"Maybe your option is my best chance to not be disappeared," Clifton said, first looking at her, then the chief. "You have my permission to record this, if you're not doing that already. Politicians and department leadership always know how to cover themselves, but this way, someone will know."
Bogo set things up himself, then formally re-obtained permission from Clifton and a now nervously curious Mr. Murry. He then asked a couple of questions to let Clifton recap his earlier comments.
"As for me, my managers took advantage of my ambition." Clifton suddenly appeared beaten, and sounded fatalistic. "I didn't expect my own superiors in the agency to use those mammal-engineering techniques that security training taught us to avoid! I was climbing as fast as I could; making connections, seeking more prestigious assignments—I was noticed, encouraged—then they offered me a Federal protective assignment; Garwood's chief economic adviser's family, the Kinsley's!
"They didn't rate Capitol Police protection, but they liked having a new Special Agent assigned to them! I was close enough to smell the halls of government! The duty was light, mostly being seen as a symbol of their importance at various functions. They liked having their personal pred on display and I acted my part to maintain my newly won and enviable position!
"One of the perks was Mr. Kinsley's niece. Yeah, I should have been more careful, but everything was open and innocuous for some time. They're deer after all; the whole extended family herd lived on their estate—really almost no chances to get entangled in anything improper. She was sociable—liked to show me off to her friends like the rest of her family did. I upheld my professionalism well enough that I was eventually asked to shadow her on dates to ease the family's worries about her welfare."
Bogo scowled, Fangmeyer, Mr. Murry, and herself had varied combinations of closed eyes, facepaws, and lowered ears. Mr. Clifton himself looked deeply embarrassed by his failure to foresee the set-up.
"Right out of the 'entrapment' training module," he admitted. "Close enough to my age, cute, free-spirited doe, and in on the plan from the beginning! Asked me to accompany her on a couple of outings to get away from her stifling family and their social expectations. She hinted enough about being 'pred curious' that I realized I badly needed a visible girlfriend to keep things under control—of course, I didn't want to lose my prime assignment!
"That ZBI analyst I mentioned was my only quickly available out. Single, familiar to many of us in the agency, and an Arctic vixen good looking enough that there would be no question about my being interested in anyone else. Unfortunately, she'd earned the name, the 'Ice Queen', and wanted nothing to do with me; even when I tried to explain my problem. She must've thought it was another come-on and eventually filed a harassment complaint even though I'd done nothing but talk to her a few times!"
He must have been in enough of a hurry to overlook Skye's background. Or worse, he assumed she was playing hard to get and kept pushing himself on her! She'd been avoiding overeager suitors for years—and had to have already taken Jack as her mate—of course she'd stay officially single to hide that!
"They sprang their trap right after her complaint was filed—since it could only reinforce their ploy! The next time I was...escorting Miss Verda, we were accosted by an aggressive buck that took exception to my proximity to her. He shoved between us and pulled her back with him while she cried 'get him away from me'. I protected her and took him down—right in front of arranged witnesses ready to take video. In the moment, I didn't realize that he had pulled her behind him so she could act like this buck was protecting her from me! Others pulled me off him and called the police—they responded quickly, deemed it a Federal matter, and turned me back over to the agency," Clifton said dejectedly.
"Two days later, Tarija showed me the evidence and probable charges, and explained my new covert assignment. My sealed Federal indictment would be discharged upon successful completion of it, and I would be allowed my freedom under no-litigation and non-disclosure agreements. Three weeks later, she was assigned to replace the Chief of Station in western regional, and we both transferred to Zootopia."
"That occurred nearly eleven months ago," Bogo said. "She'd supposedly been put in place to alleviate prey mammals fears about the objectivity of the ZBI during the savage predator crisis. That places you here before the initial break in and theft from the AblePaws Palm Market outlet."
"Don't respond to that Mr. Clifton; he's speculating," Mr. Murry said automatically.
"Doesn't matter now, it's just a nip to what's in my indictment. She arranged a sham security consulting business for me before I pulled that job. Ms. Pouncet never questioned why I was so qualified and conveniently available for hire when needed!"
"So they padded your charges to force compliance," Bogo concluded. "It would be in your best interest, I think, to know what they are in advance of trial—which I feel you'd have faced anyway, regardless of your success or failure here."
"I had to go along with it," Clifton said bitterly. "They'd fabricated an espionage charge! They 'discovered' that I'd copied documents regarding certain sensitive government contracts."
"Planted and found after your arrest and a legally obtained search warrant of course," Bogo said somewhat distractedly while he thought. "Do you have any idea what was supposed to be in those documents you found in, I assume, Kinsley's files?"
"This will only be hearsay unless these plotters within the government actually fabricated evidence to present against you," Mr. Murry said with a critical look at both his client and the chief. "Assuming these plotters even exist and are doing what you claim; which will also require solid evidence in order to be used for your defense."
"They do! Stop being a nitpicky lawyer Murry!" Clifton snapped, "Like I said, pay attention to the news; you can figure it out! You also don't have to publicly reveal confidential or secret documents—just certify to the court that they were recovered, we're used to concealing our tracks in the ZBI. No, they didn't tell me what I'd supposedly taken; probably something to do with his financial services company."
Mr. Murry looked like he was about to speak, then thought better of it as everyone lapsed into thought for a minute. Judy took the opportunity to pull out her smartphone and do a search on Mr. Kinsley. She quickly found the right one, expanded her search to 'financial services' and struck gold a few hits down the list. Chief Bogo leaned back somewhat cross-eyed as he tried to read the small screen that she'd shoved under his snout.
"Further questions are postponed pending any additional charges and evidence," Bogo said shortly before he reached to stop the recording. "Officer Fangmeyer, please take Mr. Clifton and his attorney to the consultation room if they want; otherwise back to his cell. Mr. Murry, remember, you still share our jeopardy—it is quite real—many of your questions may soon be answered by coming events."
He waited until Nadine had released Mr. Clifton and they'd all left, then waved at the gallery for Vivian to join them—she was already at the door when he opened it some seconds later. Once he'd waved her into Mr. Murry's place, Bogo began to pace back and forth in the limited space by his own seat.
"We now have another viable tie to the conspiracy's leadership. Officer Hopps just reminded me of last year's cost overrun scandal that was buried by the news of Bellwether's crimes and arrest." Bogo glanced at her, then over to Vivian. "As I recall, that almost derailed the appointment of Vail Kinsley as Garwood's economics advisor. We don't have evidence yet that he's involved in concealing the conspiracy's finances; but this means we know where to look for it!" Her find seemed to have made the chief...almost happy.
"Didn't...Officer Wilde tell us that he thought the prison construction had started before the pred crisis and then stopped after it? Then restarted before he found it?" Judy said. "The timing seems to match up."
"Can you find out what sort of contracts had the overruns? That might tell us how they tried to disguise the funds," Vivian said, getting right to the point. Judy got busy on her phone again.
"Transportation Department had the overrun...contract management through Kinsley's company...it's NextGen high-speed rolling stock and track replacement!" Judy read snippets as she browsed. "If we can tie this to Winter's freight list we might find the suppliers they used and how they skimmed the money."
"We don't have time for me to do more than contact detectives I can rely on and start a preliminary investigation. To support that, you must still obtain compelling evidence of the Junction City project. These together are our most potent counters to any revelations made by the conspirators."
"Agent Winter tipped us to the identity of her interrogator sir! And Mr. Clifton accepted without argument that the ZBI's Deputy Director was involved after you claimed he was! Her testimony about that...and Lionheart's might be worth even more now! We need to secure them!" Judy implored.
"Calm down Hopps, I realize their value. We cannot organize a rescue from here, or risk contacting any authorities there without certain exposure and an immediate federal response. For now, we still have a few days to act on other fronts. Also, your team is too small to be a credible force, and without backup or planning, you won't have a reasonable probability of success. You concentrate on obtaining all the evidence, and Mrs. Wilde can assist by taking herself and Dr. Alder to seclusion outside of Zootopia."
That was for Vivian more than to remind me; he must think she's going to join us and help Nick—which she will. That might be too much for the chief—better reassure him and hope he'll provide some support.
"Bunnyburrow should be safe enough for them chief, since the ZBI's already been there with Jack and me and interviewed some of my family. They're gone now, so my folks can put them up or find others that will hide them; there are badger families living in the area."
Yeah, closer to Middleburrow and the airport. And Viv wouldn't be very comfortable with the Grey's, even if I convinced her to stay back there.
Chief? I know you want me out of uniform, but without backup I might really need some equipment— cuffs, body armor, a nightscope, some trank darts?" She knew he wouldn't issue her a gun—maybe she could improvise with something like a slingshot. The door opened behind her to let Fangmeyer slip in.
"No Hopps, no issued tactical gear. Don't even take your badge! Nothing that would—expose you—or officially transfer blame for unsanctioned actions to the rest of the ZPD," Bogo said, his expression failing to match the harshness of his words. "See the precinct quartermaster for disposition and inventory of your kit before you finally leave. And remember Hopps, using certain items from hardware and sporting goods stores in conjunction could be construed as impersonating law enforcement by other jurisdictions."
He said 'obtain all the evidence'. He needs us to go for it—but we'll have to improvise and can't call for help. We're too small a force? Did he hint we need more allies? Or that we're all...just too small.
"Hopps, Mrs. Wilde, I need to finish setting up your meeting with Mister Growley—I had notified him a few days ago to remain available; he may not be pleased that it will happen this afternoon. Officer Catano will sequester you both upstairs, then take you to a rendezvous when we're..."
"I've got to go home first!" Vivian looked horrified. "I can't see them looking like this." She raised her arms and looked down at herself like she'd contracted mange.
The chief slapped his blunt fingers across his muzzle—exactly as he'd done during Judy's first tense confrontation in his office, when he'd tried to fire her and been thwarted by the Assistant Mayor. His unspoken thoughts seemed clear, either it was 'women', or maybe 'vixens'.
"Change of plan. Catano will take you both to Mrs. Wilde's home, then to the rendezvous. Once your meeting concludes, you will transfer back and Mrs. Wilde will be dropped off someplace public and Hopps comes here for debrief. I want Mrs. Wilde to be seen returning home after her release from custody—we will state, if asked about you, that you had no new information for us and were sent home."
"Do you think I'll really be safe staying there? After yesterday morning? They still went ahead and sent someone to check on me in here!" Vivian looked at each of them in turn.
"Just to verify your presence. I don't anticipate anything further like that happening tonight, or until Monday," Bogo said. "I would have preferred that you and Dr Alder leave this evening just to be safe, but early tomorrow morning should suffice—we all will need our rest. Perhaps Officer Hopps could stay with you overnight for security, then see you off; she seems to have an affinity for Wilde foxes."
More looks were exchanged, including with Fangmeyer, as Vivian nodded her approval of the idea. Judy felt a blush develop—she would likely sleep tonight in Nick's old bed—as she wondered what the chief really suspected about them.
"We will maintain a patrol presence. Hopps can be in uniform, and will have the contact information for you to pick up Dr. Alder. Leave your car behind to help cover your absence; obtain a rental from the Soren's dealership. There is little time to waste, so get lunch from the breakroom machines; we all have a full afternoon ahead of us."
"OK, that's the car," Fangmeyer said as they turned into a shaded side lot in a presently underutilized business park east of downtown. Catano stopped their cruiser alongside what only Mr. Growley might consider an inconspicuous vehicle. A uniformed cougar exited from it to open the rear door for them. His impassivity broke momentarily as he eyed a now in plain clothes Officer Fangmeyer, who bore a locked briefcase chained to her wrist. He then looked down at Vivian and herself, and closed them into the limo's cavernous interior. They waited until Catano's cruiser was well away before starting out themselves.
Their trip was fairly short, but took them up and around the downtown end of the climate wall on what had to be the most scenic road inside Zootopia. At least five districts were visible in part from the small parking area and overlook at its crest. Less than a mile further along, on the way back down Tundratown's upper slopes, a gated road led off to the right around a small stony bluff. Behind it, what first appeared to be a group of smaller structures nestled amid the rocks at various levels, turned out to be just the visible parts of a much larger one buried within them. The textured wall ahead pivoted open to swallow them.
The large and well equipped garage within held a few late model rich mammal's toys—and several older ones in different states of restoration. There also appeared to be some antique printing presses. Their driver let them admire the eclectic collection for a minute before ushering them to an elevator in the back.
A casually dressed Mr. Growley met them once it opened a few floors higher. He examined the much larger Fangmeyer for a few seconds—Judy wondered if this was a big cat thing, or just because of her briefcase—he then led them silently along a natural rock walled corridor that was never quite level or straight. A short side passage took them up to a low walled circular room under a clear geodesic dome. The panels overhead and to the west were darkened against the early afternoon sun. A thick, soft carpet had been rolled back to make room for appropriately sized seats for each of them; set to face one another.
Their sumptuous cupola was situated close to the top of the climate wall, which put them above nearly all of the buildings further out in Tundratown. The view on this clear day was impressive. Nadine and Judy managed not to stop and stare before they took their seats—Vivian couldn't resist a quick look about. It felt like they'd been brought into a hi tech version of some nomadic tribal leader's domicile.
"My storm room," Mr. Growley said sans introductions, "they roll in from over the bay in the winter and spring, are uplifted by the climate wall by design, and mostly dump their precipitation on this side. That can also trigger cumulonimbus formation—the thunderstorms seen from here can be spectacular."
He's something else—started up right where he'd left off back when I was in his downtown office—describing his cool stuff to the commoners! And although Vivian had me worried earlier with that concern about her outfit, she's heeded my warning so far and remained fairly composed, even though this indulgence of his probably cost far more than her house.
"Now to business," Growley stated firmly. "Fangmeyer, is your last minute inclusion by your chief meant to impress me with the gravity of your present situation? Bogo has been parsimonious with any information that would justify my risk to provide you with the covert transportation he cannot. Unless the contents of your case do obviate its theatricality." Growley turned his gaze away before Nadine could reply. "I see that you have another...partner Officer Hopps. A curious choice of replacement, related to your first and more pleasing to the eye, but woefully un-credentialed compared to your previous. I thus assume that you now lack ZBI support?"
"Right now, Agent Savage is desperately trying to keep some of your...past history out of reach of the conspiracy we discussed with you before Mr. Growley," Judy said, annoyed at both his anticipated erudite condescension, and the off-pawed partial compliment directed at Vivian.
"And what past history of ours do you both assume exists, and that we could be credibly linked to?" Mr. Growley said with an edge to his voice as he leaned closer. He'd also noticed that Fangmeyer hadn't been able to wholly suppress her own curiosity as the tip of her tail flicked about.
"That history the conspirators want to, and will, accuse you of if they find the living evidence that we now know exists," Judy said carefully, watching for his response to her provocative statement. Just like Bogo had done with Clifton, it appeared that Growley would force her to present their uncorroborated suppositions as hard facts. Both Jack and the chief had succeeded with that ploy—could she pull it off?
"I am aware of the curious remains recovered last year in the mountains up north Officer Hopps, and now apparently unavailable—that is hardly living evidence, nor proven to have been so anytime recently," Growley said smoothly as he stretched and placed his paws behind his head—but his tone had drifted into that hint of apprehension she'd hoped to hear.
"We know of your family's presence here during the Gold Rush era, and about their Pine Flat meat supply operation. Descendants of escaped feral animals brought in and raised there still live in the Mammoth foothills today. That was proven before the recent specimens became...unavailable for their security," Judy told him as confidently as possible while she embellished.
The noticeable deflation of Mr. Growley's demeanor when she's mentioned Pine Flat, confirmed his family's culpability and justified Judy's gambit, but didn't provide her much satisfaction; there were still far too many challenges immediately ahead. She pressed her advantage.
"The ongoing anti-predator conspiracy also knows about the existence of, and is presently searching for those feral Coypu above the Mammoth north fork. Although we're fairly certain that they haven't discovered, or can prove your family's past connection to them yet, we expect them to at least succeed with their search effort fairly soon, possibly within days!"
"Fairly certain?" Mr. Growley said with evident concern. "If you were able to make the connection, what would prevent them from doing so?"
"Local lore, a few historical facts, and careful deduction pointed us to Pine Flat. Nothing prevents them from doing that too. Agent Savage has already reported that the conspirators within the ZBI he is embedded with have reached many of the same conclusions we did. What they don't know about are a few essential deep family historical recollections."
Let him wonder about the details and fear for his secret. And about how much we do know. Now, how much more will I have to give up to secure use of his jet?
"I assume these sources of yours wish to remain anonymous? Understandable. Now, regardless of the possibility of our involvement, there are no records of that beyond your supposed passed down local legends," Mr. Growley said more confidently, recognizing that her conclusions were weakly supported. "How could this conspiracy plausibly link us to these unfortunate, but past historical events?"
"As I told you, they'll manufacture a plausible enough connection as soon as they have live animals to reveal, or appear to have rescued from your control as the case may be." Judy said, sensing she'd already lost her temporary advantage to the too close and more assertive predator. Both Vivian and Nadine remained quiet—possibly realizing that any support they offered her now would only weaken their negotiating position further.
"And what Officer Hopps, would prevent your ZPD, or me, from exposing their efforts as soon as they recover something? Agent Savage recommended exactly that as you might remember. As this conspiracy's primary target, wouldn't my thwarting that plan of attack immediately bring them down before they can implicate me? As soon as I recognized this vulnerability, personnel were emplaced in that area to monitor developments. My easy media access will allow a swift response to any of them!"
No choice, I'll have to give up everything to convince him now. Maybe I made a mistake by asserting myself again and not being more deferential, now he just wants to dominate me and win. Against a rabbit. Seems like having money and power doesn't soothe a predatory ego in the face of a perceived challenge from anyone. At least he sees me as worthy of that! Viv's being carefully inoffensive, Nadine's getting upset, but not engaging him, she's chosen to follow my lead. Seems I was the one that failed to see that Growley's condescension to the three of us might be an expression of some misogyny."
"Sir, you are a target for the conspiracy embedded inside our government, but you're not their ultimate goal—that's far larger and will impact all preds severely—obtaining better evidence of that is why we need your jet!" Judy nodded to Nadine, and the tiger officer unlocked her briefcase. "The night package."
Nadine reached to lay out the Junction City photographs on a perimeter shelf close to Mr. Growley, then gave him a redacted copy of Nick's report. His first look at the photos was cursory; he examined them far more carefully after he'd read the text. He gave it back to Nadine, then looked over at Vivian.
"It appears we owe your fugitive son a considerable debt. How did he, or any of you know about this, where is it, and do you know who any of the perpetrators of this abomination are?" Derreck Growley's confrontational attitude with them had vanished. "I will provide my aircraft for your use of course...for this." He picked up one of the enlargements again. "If these were only better, we could go public with this now...I can't imagine a bigger national story for Fabienne than government sanctioned genocide!"
"We can't let any word of this leak out yet! You can't tell her!" Judy said in a near panic. "We need to have hard evidence in paw; what we have here could be dismissed as a misinterpretation or even a hoax. This was a serendipitous find, Nick only had a cheap cellphone with him. We have additional powerful evidence against parts of the conspirators plans, but it all needs to be correlated first, then released together to really break this whole plot open!" Once finished she realized she'd gotten to her feet.
"Once I provide the means to obtain clear imagery of this...facility; what else, Officer Hopps, could possibly require us to suppress the biggest interspecies story since the Natural Order riots? You've deliberately withheld critical information from me to ensure that suppression. Knowledge is a weapon," Growley emphasized, "I wish to make a fully informed decision about my participation, and the public's right to know about this."
Oh cucumbers! He wants to share the credit for breaking this story! He agreed, but now wants to meddle. Well, I've faced him down before, so I have some conditions too!
"Certain names and facts only, absolutely no locations since lives would be lost if those were revealed, no operational plans." Judy said, feeling like she was reciting lines from a spy novel. "Give him 'M'."
Nadine riffled through her briefcase for effect, and gave Mr. Growley a photo. He looked at it for almost a minute before slowly returning it.
"Leo Lionheart. A poor angle, but I've seen that muzzle thrust in my face enough to be sure," Growley rumbled, anticipating her question. "Our ex mayor does not appear to be taking his fall from grace well."
"We think he knows something damaging about the conspiracy that forced them to illegally transfer him out of Zootopia's jurisdiction and imprison him secretly," Judy said, anticipating his next as well. "Just like Bellwether. Unlike her, he and a few others with similar information would immediately lose their lives if any of their connections to them, or especially their location, was revealed!" She sat again.
"And our opposition had to keep hers public because of your Mr. Savage's tip. My Fabienne would certainly appreciate any more like that one; although unfortunately your chief's contribution regarding the purported ZBI hare, while mildly amusing, wasn't newsworthy." Mr. Growley looked over, perplexed by a suddenly eager Vivian.
"The hare's name is Ervin Leland, his ZBI role is minor, but relates to something that could keep the local conspirators off-balance for the next few days to our great benefit," Judy said, as Vivian's excitement was now sufficient to make her feet gently pat alternately against the floor in anticipation. She nodded for Viv to go ahead just before Growley put a paw up.
"It might save time if I have Fabienne join us for this one." He waited a few seconds without objection, then gave his mate a call. She joined them within a couple of minutes—in an outfit she often wore for her broadcasts, and almost as excited as Vivian was. Mr. Growley rose to make proper introductions this time.
"The stakes are far higher than we realized my beautiful Fionnula. I perhaps underestimated our personal danger. This likely will not hold for much longer, you'll have the story of a lifetime soon enough. For now, discuss or reveal nothing except what we agree upon here." He relinquished his seat to Fabienne and stood under the middle of the dome. "Of course, all coverage will be submitted through us to, then released by, ZNN. We will have a standard exclusivity agreement to sign before you leave."
"Chief understands Mr. Growley," Nadine said, "We'll have the fox read it so us dumb cops don't get into trouble." That drew a few smiles and broke the ice for Vivian, who was beckoned to take over.
"I have a story for you that could give us several more days to gather evidence of ongoing institutional corruption by distracting the perpetrators," Vivian said somewhat stiffly, closely following the script they'd agreed on earlier. "Yesterday morning, several ZBI agents tried very hard to persuade me to come with them to answer questions about my son, Officer Nicholas Wilde, and the accusation..."
"Please relax Mrs. Wilde I don't bite," said Fabienne, "Except him." She turned to her mate. That drew a few laughs including Vivian's. "This sounds interesting, since you're free and here and not with them."
"That's what I was afraid of. They tried too hard and when I wouldn't cooperate; threatened force!
"What time did this happen and how many agents came?" Fabienne sounded calm and sympathetic.
"Eight thirty Friday morning; four showed up, two at my door, another couple around the back. It didn't seem right since I hadn't done anything, so I called the police right away. I recognized Chief Tarija from the ZBI; she showed me a fake ID! When the police came, I told them the name she'd used."
"So you were at home? Were there any witnesses to this other than the agents?" Fabienne said hopefully. "Did the police talk to the agents?"
"My neighbor's daughter Catherine got most of it on her cellphone," Vivian said while she produced a memory stick and handed it to the delighted snow leopardess.
"And it turns out that both our responding officers had bodycams and obtained excellent coverage!" Fangmeyer said while giving Fabienne another drive. "Chief Bogo was upset enough by the lack of inter-agency coordination, and the unwarranted actions recently taken against several of our officers, that he chose to interview Mrs. Wilde himself."
"Perhaps," Judy said to Fabienne, "You could release the cellphone video, wait for them to issue a statement that their visit was inconsequential, then 'acquire' and drop the Bodycam vids!"
"Thanks, I know how to frame this! It will feel good to finally push back against our persecutors. I'm happy that you are not among them, and hope for the best for your partner."
"This is all we can give you today," Mr. Growley told his media mate. "It's just a teaser for what's likely to come if these mammals succeed with their investigation. Do not inquire about what that entails."
"And don't forget that video of the hare harassing the vixens! He'd been staking out my house and following me around ever since Officer Wilde was accused," Vivian said as Fabienne turned to leave.
"Thank you for trusting what evidence we have Mr. Growley," Judy said after the heavy door had closed behind his mate, "Unfortunately, the conspiracy is now aware of much of our activity and that has forced both sides to act more precipitously. They're not ready to fully implement their original plans and we need more actionable evidence—like that prison project—and more time to trace connections to find out who is ultimately responsible. We've identified quite a few low level agents and hirelings, but have only circumstantial evidence pointing us to a few probable plotters and instigators."
"I would very much like to know those names," Growley said somewhat impatiently. "I, like many others potentially impacted, inside business and out, have speculated about those implementing these policy changes and their concurrent news campaign." He lifted a paw idly. "Now, I'm aware that you're likely reluctant to disclose without better evidence, or because of some legal impediment, but I do have considerable resources and knowledge that would be useful for making those connections."
Her hesitation irritated him. "I can do so without revealing my activities Officer Hopps, and will keep Bogo in the loop." he said more brusquely. "How far does this go?"
Vivian looked uncertain, Nadine was curious—Bogo had likely only recently gotten her more involved. Her call, and the chief had agreed that they were now in a 'use it or lose it' situation.
"Garwood," Judy said. To her great surprise, Growley didn't look shocked. "And Vail Kinsley is the likely financier for the conspiracy, skimming off rail upgrade projects." Growley merely nodded. "And we know the ZBI Deputy Director in Concordia was personally involved in the interrogations of those who became aware of their activities and pushed back. I don't know if that included Lionheart since we have another team working that angle."
"Apparently, there is no longer a need for me to avoid a direct private meeting with your chief."
"No sir," Judy agreed. "If I may, you didn't seem surprised when I mentioned Arbiter Garwood."
"Not at all. Shaw Garwood's family has an unfortunate past history that involved the Natural Order. He has carefully hidden a lifelong grudge against predators to enable his political career. We have dealt with one another on occasion, and by necessity, I am observant of other's character and know his!
"That explains him," Vivian said, "What worries me is the widespread support that these anti predator initiatives and plots always gather; it just seems innate among the prey population to hate us no matter what we do to be accepted!"
"Our training classes and those civilian instinct deprogramming efforts that pop up from time to time never seem to work for either side," Nadine added, "It's as if we all want or need to hang on to that part of our identities. Hating is easier than losing that part of ourselves."
"I have recently concluded there's something else driving the recent conflicts over pred prey—from the prey side," Growley said. "Our market research has revealed a totally unexpected change in the overall makeup of our society. What's the common wisdom about the normal ratio of prey to pred?" His steady gaze wanted her to answer.
"Ten to one is what everybody always says, although I heard that ninety percent to ten percent is more accurate—so nine to one," Judy said carefully.
"Exactly right!" Growley seemed quite pleased. "That was the ratio between us in the wild before we developed civilization! That has now been influenced by changed interactions between us, diets, longevity, birthrates, societal and even political pressures! In the larger cities where we have better data, that ratio has been slowly decreasing. It has already dropped to as little as seven to one now.
"Consider that most mammals probably haven't noticed that predators seem more ubiquitous than they were for previous generations and that on average herds of prey have gotten progressively smaller. Of course, this varies for both different locations and for each species, but the trend exists! Losing numbers means you have less societal and political influence—this is now the main driver behind prey leaders efforts to restrict what they now see us as—demographic predators!"
"An evil and violent genocide to counter an apparently benign one." Vivian said.
"Which is justified in their minds by our past natures," Growley noted.
"Which we still have to stop, and we need better evidence as soon as possible!" Judy reminded them.
"Yes...Savage had contacted me earlier with some background on trying to get that. Per his request, I will provide some photographic equipment along with my JetStream, although I suggest you bring your own backups. They will be available by late tomorrow or early Monday morning at ZAT's general aviation ramp. I normally utilize a dual flight crew, but the aircraft is licensed for single-pilot operation. That is what we will do for security, as Savage indicated his willingness to assist if needed. He also indicated that you might pick up a couple of passengers in Concordia before returning here."
"We'll need tomorrow to get ready," Judy decided. "Let's go as early Monday as we can, we need to make a stop at Tri-Burrows regional to pick up Agent Savage."
"I'll contact my pilot. As for us, subversive activity still requires paperwork to be filled out, so if you will follow me." Mr. Growley said.
Time can be fleeting. Our next installment rushes on to, Chapter Twenty-seven: The Battle of Bunnyburrow.