Boilerplate Disclaimer: The various characters from the movie Zootopia are all owned by Disney the great and powerful. Any and all registered trade names property of their respective owners. Cheap shots at celebrities constitute fair usage.
Ramin Djawadi has composed scores for a number of movies and television series. His soundtrack for Game of Thrones may be his best known work. This week's chapter title is from the television series Prison Break.
The Manhunt Begins
Nick expected flack from his interview with the parole board. He had vastly underestimated the amount and how viciously the attacks on his sanity were worded.
Judy supported his initial decision, and continued to support him. The fox appreciated that very few of the attacks came from fellow officers. Which is not to say the officers of the ZPD supported his position, they felt like Nick had lost his mind. The media was more hostile, replaying video of riots from the Night Howler crisis years earlier and clips from the trial.
The general opinion in the Forensics Lab was less harsh towards Ramsey than that of the city's general population. Three of them had taken classes from him at the University. They knew the lab could use more highly qualified chemists. He was not trusted, or liked, but his qualifications were recognized and the staff was more willing to wait and see if he would be an asset.
Doug Ramsey felt a fierce determination to show he deserved to be out. Maybe, if he could solve some crime in a particularly brilliant fashion, he could... He knew he couldn't clear his name. That wasn't possible. Good work might convince the court to let him take off the GPS monitor. Not that he really cared if the GPS monitor was removed, he didn't plan on going anywhere he shouldn't or meeting with any criminals. His dream was, if he demonstrated he was still a brilliant scientist, that he might be offered his position back at the university. A return to the classroom and research was his dream, not slaving away at routine laboratory tasks.
When Judy and Nick visited the forensics lab they made no effort to see Ramsey. They doubted they would ever be comfortable around him. He was equally pleased not having to face animals he had tried to kill.
"I really am sorry for the crap being thrown at you," Doc Wheeler told the detectives as they met in one of the conference rooms. "I was hoping it would die down by now."
"It's only been a month," Judy reminded him.
"She's always the optimist," Nick pointed out. "In another month she'll be saying it's only been two months, and four months later she'll be pointing out it's only been six months. She's very good at math."
"And by six months it will have been long forgotten," insisted Judy.
"I hope you're right," the hamster told her. "I'm sure you're right, the question which remains is when? Something else will grab the public attention and media headlines – eventually. It's already getting a little better around here. The professor is doing his work and not starting any fights. Things improving for you at the First?"
"Some improvement," Judy assured him.
"They've stopped call me 'Crazy Nick' and throwing rocks at me when we come in to work."
"They don't really throw rocks," Judy assured the hamster.
"But I'm sure they've thought about it," insisted Nick. "And misery loves company, so I hope you're having some thrown at you too."
"Some," Vaughn admitted. "But, like I said, some of the other technicians are starting to appreciate the Prof's work. He stayed late last night to do spectrographic analysis on the dust you brought in. That was from glass polishing, a unique glass formula patented by the Jubilo Wolf Custom Glass Company. Do you know if the victim had any association with them?"
Judy thought a second, "Not that we know about. We'll check that out. A unique formula?"
"Absolutely."
"So, if the victim has no connection with the firm we'll start seeing what suspects might."
"Glass polishing?" asked Nick.
"The formula is used in bake ware. There is sometimes a seam on the glass from where the molds meet that needs to be buffed out."
"I don't think I'm heard of Jubilo Bakeware."
"They don't sell it under their name. They manufacture for several suppliers. You might have some in the kitchen and not even know it."
Nick wanted to know, "If the stuff common? Could it come from a broken baking pan or is it a definite link to to the company?"
"The bakeware is fairly common. But breaking a casserole dish is not going to put glass dust like that on anyone. These aren't slivers of glass, it has to be linked to polishing in the manufacturing process."
Nick and Judy never established the killer's motive. It might have been a random thrill killing, the deer hoping he couldn't be identified without any witnesses and any connection between himself and the victim.
"Brilliant work, you two," Alces told them. "Sometimes I don't know how you do it."
"Not just the two of us," explained Nick. "Forensics put us on the scent."
"And Professor Ramsey put in extra time just to do the analysis for us. He gets most of the credit."
The moose looked at Nick, "Is she just saying that to show you aren't crazy?"
"It's always possible Doc Wheeler said Ramsey did it so I'll think he was right to twist my arm when I spoke to the parole board. But my feel is Ramsey really did it. I think he finds a lot of the work so routine we could train a chicken to do it. He wants challenges."
"An animal who wants harder work? We could use a few more like... Judy? Call the cold case unit. Tell them there's an animal in forensics who loves a challenge."
"Will do."
It appeared the hamster's prediction would be proven correct. Accusations, and counter-accusations of infidelity as married celebrities filed for divorce replaced the parole of Doug Ramsey as the top news story. A scientific study proving the harm of caffeine became the topic for debate, and would remain a topic of coffee shop debate for at least six weeks until the results of a different study was certain to show the benefits of drinking caffeine.
Ramsey broke two more significant cases, neither for Judy and Nick. Usually the names of forensic scientists did not make news. Carson and Parr at the Third made it a point to publicize Ramsey's name for his help on one of their cases. They did it not so much as a favor for the Professor but as a way to show support for Nick, sort of an announcement, "Nick Wilde was right to put in a good word for Doug Ramsey." The praise for his research skills, like the attacks for his being out on parole, soon receded to the back of public consciousness. Had things continued on as they were Doug Ramsey would have been forgotten in the public mind within the year.
Things did not continue as they were. It all hit the fan a bit more than five months after Doug Ramsey's parole. The top story in every media when animals woke to face the day was Dawn Bellwether's escape from prison.
At two in the morning the prison had lost power. The emergency generators, not located within the prison, had been sabotaged before power was cut to the prison. The loss of power, by itself, would not open cell doors. Someone had supplied Bellwether with a key, or had opened the cell door for her. With the loss of power none of the video cameras was able to record events. Three other prisoners testified they thought the sheep went down the prison corridor alone, but in the darkness of the night They could not be positive.
Given the harm she had caused the city Dawn Bellwether's recapture became the ZPD's highest priority.
Doug Ramsey was ushered into an interrogation room at the Second. Two panthers entered. The female wore a Captain's uniform and looked vaguely familiar from news reports. The ram asked, "Captain Nyte?"
"Used to be. Captain Bagheera. This is my husband, George."
"I assume I was brought here because of Dawn Bellwether's escape. And I assume I am a suspect. But I am somewhat surprised by your presence, I had taken it for granted that Detectives Hopps and Wilde would be assigned the case."
"Not sure that you can be called a suspect. You are definitely an animal of interest, and that's why you're here. I fought like hell to get this assignment. A lot of animals wanted it, Judy and Nick weren't even considered – that I know of. What you and Bellwether did nearly ruined my life seven years ago. I want Bellwether back behind bars."
"And me?"
"If you had nothing to do with this, I don't give a damn what happens with you."
"Do I have the right to have a lawyer present?"
She started to close the notebook in front of her. "You do. Give us the name–"
"No need. I'll tell you anything I know, which is absolutely nothing. I assume you've checked the record of my GPS monitor and know I was nowhere near the prison."
"We have," George assured him. "Lylah and I don't usually serve as partners. Bellwether's recapture is very important." Ramsey nodded in agreement. "You still might have information that will be important in the case and we would like anything you can tell us about her support network."
"The fact you were nowhere near the prison doesn't rule out you having a part of this," Lylah stated.
"So, the good cop – bad cop is a real technique and not just something on television shows?"
"There is an element of truth in it. A sympathetic ear can invite a suspect, or an animal of interest in your case, to open up. Clearly an animal of your intellect–"
"Don't flatter him, George," snapped Lylah. "He's certainly smart enough to see through that."
"It wasn't flattery," George replied. He looked at Ramsey, "I told you, my wife and I don't usually serve as partners. She's representing the Second. I'm here on behalf of the First. The whole city is worried."
"And the city should be worried. I've put my cards on the table. I have nothing to hide and will be completely honest with you. I expect the same courtesy. Now, am I suspect or not?"
"There is no evidence to make you a suspect," Lylah assured him. "But there is a hell of a lot of suspicion about you. Potential witnesses, or animals who might become suspects, or animals who potentially know anything which might help a case are animals of interest. George told you we've seen the record of your movements. Doesn't mean a thing – either way. You said you'd be honest? I want names of animals in Bellwether's network."
"And I haven't had contact with Dawn Bellwether in more than six years!"
"Fine. But I don't believe the handful of you who went to prison were the full extent of the conspiracy. It had to require more animals."
Ramsey hesitated. "I don't know if it's right to give you names."
"You know what you did was criminal."
"I know... None of us gave names at the time of our arrest. At the time of my trial I wasn't going to turn in other animals, I still believed in Bellwether's crazy idea. After I gave up the idea of driving preds from the city... Well, I hope the animals who'd financed her have wised up too."
Lylah drummed her claws on the table in the interrogation room. She finally spoke. "I'm not the DA. Frankly, I doubt if there would be enough evidence or willingness today to bring charges against her supporters from six years ago. I don't even know if the statute of limitations would allow it. My only interest is in finding out who's helping her right now. Maybe your release on parole inspired a couple of them to free her. Maybe it's just weird coincidence. But I need names, names of animals who helped finance her then. That's the best potential lead we have for finding the animals who're helping her now."
"They did nothing to help you while you were in prison," George reminded him.
"Which is immaterial," Ramsey answered. "I can give you some names of animals who supported her six years ago. There may have been others I didn't know about. None of these animals may have any connection with her escape."
"They give us a place to start our investigation."
The ram paused for a moment. "You probably assume that Detectives Wilde and Hopps are possible targets for revenge. That was discussed years ago when we were on trial. I have no way of knowing if Bellwether's remaining followers have retained that as a goal–"
"We are working on the assumption it may be true. It's why, I believe, they weren't considered for the investigation."
"Good. There is another animal who inspired a great deal of hate at the trial. That weasel who turned state's evidence, he–"
"Duke Weaselton."
"Was that his name? I really don't remember his name, perhaps I didn't pay as much attention as some of the conspirators. But I know there were animals, and I was among them at the time, who wanted him dead for his testimony."
"If you don't mind," asked George, "why did prey species use a pred species like a weasel in your plan?"
Ramsey sighed, "Parts of the plan were too complex. Night howler bulbs could have been purchased by anyone, no questions asked, all perfectly legal. Instead, in case the toxin was identified with a prey species plot, it would throw off the investigation to have a pred animal making the purchases. But the weasel became greedy and decided to simply steal the bulbs and keep the money with which he was to pay for the bulbs in addition to the money promised him for his work. And, being a curious weasel, he managed to uncover a lot more about our operation than we realized."
Lylah scribbled a note on the pad in front of her. She was no friend of Duke Weaselton, but he still should be warned of potential danger. She felt certain the weasel served as an informant for the fox and rabbit. She'd ask them to pass on the warning. If he were an informant, and if Bellwether sought revenge, his connection with the detectives made the weasel even more of a target.
"And, of course, if we're talking revenge targets and overly complex plans, you know you will need extra protection for Mayor Lionheart. I'll be honest, I told Bellwether that if she wanted to start a prey against pred war the way to do so would be to hit some pred animals with the night howler toxin and let them kill some prey animals. It would have been faster and far more effective."
George was shocked, "You told her to–"
"I'm being honest. And I can't be convicted for intent. Perhaps she didn't want any prey animals killed, although she had to know it could happen. My point is that she had a deep hatred for the mayor. She wanted to find a way to discredit him, and she found one. She was, and probably still is, a master manipulator. She tricked the mayor into his failed coverup. She tricked Judy Hopps into 'discovering' the mayor's crime – which of course Bellwether was well aware of herself."
He gave them the names of more than a dozen animals who had helped the Bellwether, but had never been prosecuted for their roles.
"We'll be careful to keep your name out of this," Lylah assured him. "Have you considered that, if you're not associated with breaking Bellwether out of prison, she might want revenge on you as well?"
"Well, if you don't tell anyone where you got the names I–"
"I was referring to the fact you've been out of prison for five months. If you had nothing to do with her escape, or contact with animals who might help her, she might be angry with you for not having tried to free her."
The professor frowned, "Hadn't thought... It's possible. Perhaps the police lab is a good place to be working until you find her."
Nick hadn't slept well, worried about Dawn Bellwether's plans and afraid it might include an attack on Judy. Judy hadn't slept well either, worried about Dawn Bellwether's plans and afraid it might include an attack on Nick. They might have been willing to stay in bed a little longer, but were forcibly reminded of their duty.
"Hey, Furball," Nick told the toddler who joined them in bed. "What's the good word?"
"B'eckfast."
"Ah, breakfast. A very good word indeed. Of all the words I can think of, and I can think of many, many words – enough words to fill three large buckets and a small glass – yet I confess that breakfast is–"
"B'eckfast, Daddy. Now."
"She gets this from your side," Nick told Judy as he gave Jade a hug. "Stay here and bother mommy for a few minutes," he instructed the child, "and daddy will start oatmeal."
"You never bother me," Judy said, taking her daughter in her arms. "Daddy is being silly." As she hugged her daughter she wondered what would happen if she and Nick were both killed in the line of duty. Was this why the ZPD had initiated the policy that married officers shouldn't work together?
"Mommy?" Jade asked when Judy seemed unusually quiet.
"Sorry just thinking." She rubbed noses with Jade and assured her, "thinking how much I love you. Shall we go to the kitchen and watch daddy make oatmeal?"
"Yay! Oh'meal!"
In the kitchen Nick had the radio on softly. "Any news?" Judy asked.
"I can give you the weather forecast, if that's what you want. But I assume you mean something important."
"You know what I mean, Nick."
"Then no, no news. And no news is not good news."
The worry in the back of their minds made it a little harder to drop the toddler off at daycare before heading to the First.
"Alces' office," Clawhauser warned as they walked in.
The moose's office was unusually full. The police commissioner was there, and George and Lylah Bagheera.
"Nick, Detective Hopps, always good to see the two of you," the Commissioner greeted them.
"But I have the feeling this is not a standard social call," murmured Nick.
Lylah looked at Alces, "This is where Judy is supposed to point out that Nick is smarter than he looks, and I answer he'd have to be."
Judy drew a small sigh of relief, "Glad to know this is not entirely serious. But Nick is right, you must have something you want to tell us."
"A little potential progress," George told them. He didn't need to say, 'on the Bellwether escape', that was understood. "Doug Ramsey gave us the names of several animals who were never prosecuted for their financial support during the Night Howler crisis. We can't be sure if any of them had anything to do with this, but we'll examine them all closely."
"Which is going to take some time," Alces told them. "You have a fair amount of leave time accumulated and I'm suggesting, for the good of the ZPD, that you use a chunk of it now."
Judy frowned, "How is that for the good of the ZPD?"
"Because almost every officer on the force is spending too much of his or her day worried about you. You've got a lot of friends who want you to be safe. But even animals who might not like you think it would look bad for the detectives with the highest profile in the ZPD to be killed. Go off somewhere safe for a few weeks, spend time with Jade, and let George and Lylah see what they can find."
"Give us a minute to think," requested Nick. "Doug Ramsey gave you some names? Ruling him out as a suspect?"
"I don't believe he–" George began.
"Of course not," Lylah told them. "But he seemed open to talking and the intel he provided seems legit. He confirmed something a lot of us knew already. Bellwether had a deep hate for the mayor, which is why she worked to trap him as she began."
"I talked with Leodore," the Commissioner told them. "He is not interested in a vacation. But most of his job is at home or office. It's a lot easier to protect him. Your job has you going out in public much more often. If she is looking for revenge, and we are assuming she could be, you are much more visible and available targets than the mayor."
"Like Nick said, we need to discuss this before we give you a decision," Judy told them.
"That's fine," Alces assured them. "But it would be for the good of the ZPD as well as for your own safety."
"Oh, another thing Ramsey said that you might want to know," Lylah told them. "He claims he's heard nothing from the members of the gang since the Night Howler Crisis. But he says at the time there was a lot of hate directed at Duke Weaselton for turning state's evidence on them to save his own hide. Sometimes hate and a desire for revenge will die down over five or six years. Sometimes it just burns hotter. Just thought I'd mention it in case you see the weasel."
Nick nodded, "Judy finds Duke an easy animal to hate. He hears so much he may already know that, but we'll look him up and pass on the warning."
"Good," Alces told them. "I know you said you need time to discuss a vacation, but I want you to know," he tapped some papers on his desk, "the paperwork is done. Go visit parents or something. They want to see the grandchild, and they want you safe. Visit Casablanca. Go see Serengeti. Lie out on a beach somewhere – but get out of town. I'll give you a couple days – finish up anything you can finish up. Get any cases you can't get finished in shape to pass them off to someone else."
Nick and Judy headed for their desks. "I don't believe I've ever been told to get out of town before."
"You picked that up too? It was so subtle I thought you might miss it."
"Very funny, Judy. At least they didn't tell us to be on the noon stage and be gone by sundown."
"If there was a noon stage they might have. The internal combustion engine put a lot of equines out of jobs... What do you think, Nick? This morning... I was... I don't want Jade to be an orphan."
"That's the maternal instinct. With male logic I carefully weigh the suggestion and realize that it will be in the best interest of the ZPD if we... Do you have any sense that we need to stay here and work on this?"
"And that is your male pride thinking. We are not Fox Male and Rabbit. We are not indispensable. There are plenty of other good detectives. Don't let the fact we get more publicity than any other partners in the city go to your head... Or do you want to go back and tell Lylah you think she's incompetent?"
"The instinct for self-preservation beats strongly in my veins. We've earned vacation time we haven't taken. We need to cash some of it in. What sounds good to you, Bunnyburrow? Fox Ridge? Beach? Mountains?"
"Would I sound selfish if I asked for Bunnyburrow?"
"Well, we've probably been to Fox Ridge more. So I'd really sound selfish if I objected... And we have no idea how long this will take, do we?"
"I'm hoping not too long. She's a known criminal and prison escapee. Hard to stay in hiding here."
"Good point. However, how long do we stay out of town if she's skipped Zootopia territory? Would we even know? And, while she may be a recognized criminal she has some kind of support network here in the city. She didn't escape by herself. She's still got followers with brains and resources."
Judy shrugged, "Let's discuss how long to stay away after a week or two. Lylah and George said they had some potential leads to follow. I say we tell Alces we're going, warn Duke, call my mom and dad and say we're coming Wednesday night, pack, and get the evening train."
"Sounds like a plan."
Duke was not in his most common locations. They didn't worry about it. "We'll find him tomorrow," Nick promised Judy.
They returned home after picking up Jade at daycare and Nick explained the upcoming trip while Judy made phone calls.
"G'anma Bonnie and G'anpa Stu?"
"Yep. We're not sure how long we'll be there. But we may discover if you are old enough to shell peas?"
The child looked puzzled. "Shell peas?"
"Ah, yes. It's a very important job... Or so I've been told. I was born here in Zootopia and deprived of the opportunity to learn to shell peas. But your mother, who has shelled peas since she was no bigger than you, assures me it is a job of extreme importance. Not everyone can do it, but I believe you have what it takes. What ya say, Furball? You up to the test?"
"Yes, Daddy, yes!" Jade exclaimed, jumping up and down for emphasis.
Judy entered the room and looked at her daughter, then at her husband. "Have you been giving her sugar again?"
"Shell peas! Daddy says I can shell peas!"
"I don't know if your father knows–"
"Our kid is a genius, remember?"
Judy sighed, "Let's see if the peas are ready to pick. Your father is a city animal and doesn't understand growing seasons."
"G'oing seasons?"
"Maybe you can teach Daddy what that means while we're in Bunnyburrow." Judy turned to the fox, "Nick?"
"Yes?"
"Housing front. I know you find the beds too small at Mom and Dad's. Missus Lanol sometimes takes in roomers and can let us have a room, just for the two of us–"
"Me!" Jade demanded. "Me!"
"You'll stay in my old room at Grandma and Grandpa's. Mommy and Daddy will be close and see you every day. This is the home were a good friend of mine lived, her name is Sharla and I hope she'll come and visit while we're in Bunnyburrow. You'll like her. She's very nice."
Nick frowned, "I don't know about being a roomer..."
"Well, the choices are a room at the Lanol house, staying with my mom and dad, the over-priced new motel for an indefinite period, or the Bungalows if they're still open."
"Wow! I never realized how excited I was at the idea of learning about rooming houses! This will be great."
"I thought you'd feel that way. Oh, it may be a week with mom and dad before there's a room there for us."
"Be nice if they caught Bellwether before that wouldn't it?"
"I won't take that as you not wanting to spend time in Bunnyburrow. I want her caught too."
In the morning, before reporting to the First to clean up their assignments they cruised the areas where Duke normally operated. They were unable to find the weasel at any of his usual locations. Even Judy felt apprehension as they clocked in at work.