A/N

Thanks to the surprising work put in by my beta readers, Tinbuzzard and Cam02, I've got most of the story written down as drafts. With that said, I don't like to make promises about updates, but I may be able to release chapters more regularly from on. Currently I'm aiming for one chapter a fortnight. I guess I'll see if I can keep that up. There will be a few weeks in May that I won't be able to upload, however.

Chapter 12

Iron Grip

June 11th, Monday, 5:03 pm

Nick and Judy once again dreaded the trip home, but after talking with Luke, Clawhauser and Bogo, it became more bearable to sit through their usual reception on the subway home. While they couldn't call the mammals out openly, they at least knew the circumstances behind their fellow riders' collective mindsets.

Judy paid particular attention to others that caught on, who studied them with fascination or sympathy. This prompted a thought: if she and Nick could somehow have their child safely, then that would be enough to at least spark an interest into predator-prey couples in general, and lead to the public asking the questions themselves. That was enough for her to be able to bear whatever ridicule they would get until then.

Their stomachs rumbled demands for dinner as they made their way up to their front door. As Nick pushed the door open, the tod's phone rang, and was surprised to see his friend's name on the small screen before he answered.

'Uh… Hello?'

Judy's ears perked up from the kitchen as she heard the deep voice blast out of the phone.

'And what kinda greetin' is that? You think I'm some damn telemarketer or something?'

'Well…' Nick managed a smirk. 'Most of the time, if one of us called you, you'd be all "What the hell? Send a text like normal mammals! Don't bother me while I'm working!"'

'Are you working?'

'Not the point, big guy.'

By now, Judy was listening while standing alongside Nick, and he brought the phone down a little.

Finnick grunted impatiently from the other end. 'Anyway! Did you find anything?'

Nick's ears folded back for a moment. 'You mean…?'

'Yes, that.'

Nick sighed, and Judy stood up on her toes to speak next.

'It was bad, Finn. We considered ourselves lucky if the doctor didn't look down at us in some way.'

'Seriously…?'

'At least those on your list weren't like that,' Nick said, 'the ones we were able to see, anyway. Half of them didn't even respond.'

'What about that Breeze place?'

'You mean… Breeze Healthcare?' Nick repeated, recalling that it was the first place that Finnick had recommended. 'What about them? They haven't responded, just like a few others.'

'They should've responded by now – usually within 2 calendar days. It's pretty much standard for any private clinic.'

This prompted Nick and Judy to raise their brows and study each other, both thinking the same thing.

'Why do you know so much about this clinic, Finn?' Judy asked suspiciously. 'What's so special about it? And if it is special, why didn't you mention it before?'

Finnick was uncharacteristically silent for a second, before he groaned. 'Look, I'm acquainted with one of those doctors – we go way back. Problem is… she's a cold, prickly bitch.'

'Not sure if that's a problem for you,' Nick said, maintaining his amused grin. 'If she was that bad, she wouldn't get very far with her patients.'

'She has… circumstances of her own. I was hoping she would at least see you.'

Finnick fidgeted and seemed to be trying to find the right words. He started muttering to himself, but Nick couldn't catch anything clearly. After a few seconds, Nick spoke up.

'So what do you suggest, then?' Nick said tiredly. 'After getting thrown out of a fancy restaurant, it's clear to me our options are starting to run dry.'

'Huh? Restaurant? What'cha talkin' about?'

'Never mind that,' Judy interrupted. 'Do you think we should try them again? What's the name of this doctor?'

'…'

Nick frowned impatiently. 'C'mon, buddy. You know how serious this is.'

'I know. It's just…' Finnick sighed, conflicted. 'You know how you talked about those asshole doctors who looked down on you? Despite having little actual reason to be like that?'

Neither Nick or Judy liked where this was going.

'Yeah…'

'Well, Gabs is worse. If you make a mistake, she'll tear you to shreds. Not literally, but you know what I mean. It's a risky bet, and it's all but guaranteed you'll get nothing out of it except misery.'

'…Gabs, huh?' Nick repeated. For all he knew, that could be any type of mammal. 'I'll keep that in mind. We do have a couple of other leads to pursue, though.'

'Good. Though, if you do end up going to Breeze… ask for Claire. She should be one of the receptionists. As far as I remember, that zebra works there every day. Otherwise you'll probably be thrown out… again.'

That prompted a flinch from Nick as his eyes widened at the recollection.

'I'll… have to hope it doesn't come to that.'

'So do I.'

Finnick then hung up abruptly. Nick and Judy stared at the phone for a second.

'I think I grilled him too hard,' Judy said regretfully.

'Well, considering our predicament,' Nick reassured, 'we can't really hold back. Not now.' He sighed. 'I kinda wish we knew what kind of mammal "Gabs" is… but at the same time, I'm not sure I want to know.'

Judy glanced around the room and cupped her chin thoughtfully, seemingly ignoring Nick's comment. 'What did he mean by that…?'

Nick watched his wife pace the room with another raised brow.

'Uh… Carrots? You had enough vegetable juice today? You're losing me.'

Judy continued to pace. 'What do you think he meant?'

'Meant with what?'

She stopped to study him. 'Wait… you didn't hear it?'

'Hear what?' After a moment, Nick perked up. 'When he was muttering to himself? I couldn't make anything out.'

'Oh. Well, I caught something like "Worse than I thought".' She continued pacing. 'I don't know how good or bad this doctor could be, but he's clearly holding something back.'

Worse than I thought? It was Nick's turn to think. 'Sounds like this "Gabs" has some history of her own. Not so different from me and Finnick, I guess.'

'Maybe.' Her ears drooped a little. 'So Finnick too, huh…?'

'He's not kidding when he talks about his age.'

Their stomachs grumbled again, and so they set about getting their dinner ready, leaving any further discussion until tomorrow morning.

Fortunately for them, Clawhauser called early the next morning with news from Luke. The weasel had started the process for both former mayors, but both had their own difficulties: Lionheart was simply not responding to the weasel's calls, and the council prison required some paperwork to complete processing. However, Luke seemed optimistic about getting them within the next couple of days, and said he would be in touch.

However, until their last appointment that afternoon, Nick and Judy found it difficult to decide what to do until then. Though Judy hadn't really felt significant symptoms from her pregnancy yet, she was starting to feel some fatigue. So, they spent that morning researching what kind of medicine would be safe for her to take, in preparation for any other problematic effects of pregnancy. This included them calling Bonnie and Stu again, who turned out to have a lot of information on that subject.

They were able to walk to the local shopping centre for their medicine, and Doctor Franklin's info included what medicines were safe for a pregnant rabbit to take. Judy did a good job of keeping their situation under wraps with some thicker clothing around her waist, though they had to slow their pace to avoid overheating. The morning through lunchtime passed without incident.

However, they weren't looking forward to seeing their last doctor that afternoon, even if he was from Finnick's list. Thankfully, Judy's tricks from that morning spared them the usual public ridicule, and the doctor himself remained cordial throughout their discussion. Unfortunately, the oryx wasn't able to provide a different recommendation. However, when Judy asked what would happen if she did not get an abortion, he surprised them by saying she would be able to get the same amount of hospital care that any other pregnant rabbit would. The problem was that this level of care had never been enough in the case of a predator-prey pregnancy, and he knew of no specialist or hospital that would have the required technology. It was somewhat reassuring that the oryx wished the technology was available, though.

Just before 5pm that afternoon, Clawhauser gave them another call, and reported that Luke had gotten them appointments to Lionheart and Bellwether. Clawhauser had found it hard to believe at first, but after asking the weasel how he got it done so fast, Luke simply said he "had his ways".

Lionheart was willing to meet Judy any time that Wednesday between 2 pm and 4 pm, while Nick's appointment with Bellwether was set for 2:30. However, Luke had said that would probably mean an actual start at 3 pm.

Judy stuck with her casual clothes along with the jumper-around-the-waist trick, while Nick decided to get out his uniform and a shoulder bag. He gave Clawhauser a heads-up that he would be technically representing the ZPD in this visit, so Clawhauser gave him the all-clear after a quick check with Bogo. While the prison was within walking distance of the nearest train station, Judy now needed some mode of transport: a smaller patrol vehicle that Luke and Clawhauser had thankfully arranged for her to use. It was larger than her meter maid buggy, and covered distance far more efficiently.

And so, after a small lunch, they both packed what materials they would need before heading out on the subway together. Just before Judy hopped off at the ZPD to go their separate ways, they shared a quick kiss for good luck.

June 13th, Wednesday, 2:27 pm

Judy's trip to Centennial Park was thankfully smooth and uneventful, due to the pre-rush hour traffic. Lionheart was currently gallivanting about in the park's small golf course; apparently it was one of his regular hangouts. From what Judy had been able to gather, the former mayor had enjoyed his time off to the point where he hadn't shown any interest in re-election, even years after his term had been unceremoniously cut short.

This meant that despite Judy having been responsible for exposing his actions in the missing mammals case, it became clear that the lion bore her no ill will. In fact, just before he was released from prison, he ended up thanking her for giving him time to think about what he wanted to do. He'd had enough assets squared away that he was able to afford a temporary retirement – which was still ongoing.

Judy spotted her destination: a regal stone archway that signalled the park's entrance, and she pulled her small car into one of the small mammal's car bays.

Unfortunately, the golf course was more to the far side of the area, so it was going to be a lengthy walk. On the bright side, it was a rather cool day despite being summer, and as Judy absorbed the serene atmosphere amongst the tall trees, she wished she had more time to explore the place.

Maybe once this is all over… we can come together. As a family.

She found herself thinking of picnic ideas as she saw other mammals relaxing in shady spots, especially around the numerous ponds she passed along the way. Judy also internally thanked the caretakers for the clear signage and paved roads that made it very difficult to get lost despite the park's size.

After half an hour of walking, she caught sight of a miniature windmill, standing out against the blue sky with bright orange paint on its winding arms. She checked equipment bag, making sure her clipboard, notepad and carrot pen were ready. She also carried a more ordinary ballpoint pen with similar functions – there were times when her flashy carrot version was too conspicuous.

Whether she would use her pen's other function would depend on whether Lionheart was hiding anything. While Judy had never been as good at reading mammals as Nick, she had picked up some pointers, as Nick had pointed out some tells that were shared among most predators. Paying attention to ears, whiskers and jaws were the usual suspects when it came to large ones.

The large lion, when Judy finally spotted him, would have been difficult to recognise compared to his days as mayor. Lionheart was wearing a sky blue, long sleeve shirt and casual jogging trousers, as well a wide brim hat. As Judy got closer, she spotted him holding a putter and getting ready to start on the windmill as his current challenge.

'Mr. Lionheart?'

The lion's ears turned in her direction after a moment, but he remained where he was as he swung and shot the ball through the tunnel under the windmill on his first try.

'Ah!' He turned and smiled brightly. 'Miss Hopps! It's been too long.'

Mrs…

She reached up and shook his large paw as best she could when he offered it.

'Wonderful weather today, wouldn't you say?' The lion waved toward the sky. 'I suppose it's good for us that the little weasel called me when he did.'

'It is very nice,' Judy agreed with a smile, 'and it almost makes me want to take some time off for a visit.'

Lionheart chuckled. 'Emphasis on the "almost". I'm well aware of your track record, Judy.'

She followed as he went to retrieve his golf ball, while lugging the rest of his golfing bag on his back. Judging by its size, mini golf wasn't the only game he was playing today.

'So! What do I owe you this fine afternoon?'

'Well… I wouldn't say you "owe" me, but I do want to ask some questions.'

'About the Night Howler case?'

She paused in surprise; even now, the lion seemed to have no qualms about talking about that whole fiasco.

'Actually… no. More about your tenure as mayor.'

The lion seemed somewhat displeased as his ears folded back, while searching for his next golf hole. 'Really? Are you sure? It's far less interesting to talk about my mayoral duties, rather than the dramatic final days in office.' He scowled as he glanced up thoughtfully. 'I went into politics in order to make a difference; to bring prosperity and order to Zootopia. But in reality, it ended up being constant maintenance and trying to please everyone, but the citizens were never happy. Always "Moose want this" and "Food poisoning" that. And the paperwork!' He groaned heavily. 'Urgh! If I had known how much was put on my desk every hour I would never have gone into office!'

'No offense, sir, but you ended up pushing all that onto Bellwether.' Judy said. 'That's likely part of the reason things blew up the way they did.'

'True, true…' Lionheart sighed with a tinge of regret. 'Perhaps there were things I could have done differently. But then again…' His smile returned. 'If I did, I might still be mayor. And I would still have the paperwork problem. Hah!'

Judy resisted the urge to groan out loud.

Thankfully, the lion caught himself after a second. 'Oh… My apologies, Judy. Was there anything specific you wanted to ask me?'

Judy tapped her chin. 'How do I put this…? Hmm…' She paused. 'How familiar were you with medical policies? Were there any noteworthy ones you put forward, or abolished from the previous party?'

'Medical?' He twisted his jaw. 'I was hoping for something a bit more specific than that.'

'What about pregnancies and childbirth?'

Lionheart studied the rabbit with narrowed his eyes. 'Now why would you be asking about that, hm? Oh well, I did ask.' He dumped his bag next to a row of mini-statues as he took out his next club. 'That was one area I did not have to do much work on, thankfully. On principle, Zootopia needs a good medical infrastructure to accommodate just about every mammal you can think of. As such, we do have high demand for quality medical professionals. There was already a robust selection process for any university student in the city, and I may have upped the restrictions on graduating in that field somewhat. When I first started, the number of preventable medical accidents over the past year were rather concerning to me. I presume Mayor Gilesby has maintained that high standard since he started?'

Judy eyed him quizzically after she finished writing. 'If he hasn't, I don't think I'm the one to ask.'

'Well, I've all but washed my hands of mayoral affairs, so I wouldn't know if things have changed since I left – just so you know.'

He doesn't really seem to know much… And I don't get the sense he's hiding anything.

'So nothing really about pregnancies and childbirths in particular?'

Lionheart shrugged. 'Not really; those issues would be under the overall umbrella for multi-species medical expertise. Why so interested in those two subjects, anyway?'

'Well…'

Judy shifted uncomfortably. If Lionheart genuinely did not know more than he was letting on, then there was little point in revealing the entire story to him.

'Wait! I think I know what's going on…' Lionheart grinned knowingly. 'Has that fox partner of yours gotten into some trouble?'

'Huh?' Judy squeaked as she absorbed his expression. 'Nick? Why would you say that?'

'Well… I say I've washed my hands of mayoral duties, but I have been following your progress – the pair of you. It has been most impressive.' He squinted at Judy for a second. 'The chance of you settling down over your work is astronomically low. On the other paw…' He tilted his head while maintaining his smile, 'I've only met your partner a few times since his graduation, and he certainly had his charms. He sometimes described his earlier years when I spoke with him… and we got to talking about some rather scandalous escapades we both had in our youth. It was a point of solidarity I wasn't expecting to find in a fox. Though, it wouldn't surprise me if some old paramour of his came back years later, demanding child support.'

Judy froze for a moment. 'That's… quite an imagination you've got, sir.'

'Nonsense! I was only speaking from experience.'

Experience? What… On second thought, I don't want to know.

'What if I said it was more about prey, then?'

'Is that so…? He didn't mention anything about that preference.' The lion shrugged again. 'Well, if that's the case, he doesn't have much to worry about. Predators can't impregnate prey. So, no worries about child support! If you tell him that, I'm sure he'll be relieved.'

Judy fought to keep her disgust from showing. Is this guy really that dense?

'I… think you might have the wrong idea about Nick, sir.' Actually, maybe not…'But I guess you've answered that, at least.'

'Alright.' Lionheart glanced at his golf club, and took out his ball to line up his next shot. 'Did you have another question?'

'Just one.' Judy inhaled. 'Have you heard of someone named Ethan Hodge?'

The lion frowned in concentration, before swinging his club and getting the ball to bounce from gnome to gnome, getting fairly close to the hole at the other end.

'No, I haven't. But he sounds like a badger – their last names tend to have certain patterns to them.'

'Are you sure? Not in the news or anything?'

Lionheart shook his head. 'I don't watch it every day, but I do tend to catch the big things.'

That matches up with what Nick got from Linnalo…

Judy tapped her foot as she wrought her brain further, but couldn't think of anything further to ask. It was clear to her that she wasn't getting anything useful out of him.

She checked her phone – it was 3:57.

Seriously? This guy's been wasting my time! Nick might be back at the ZPD by now…

The rabbit swallowed her ire, knowing that Lionheart was at least being honest with how little he knew. She bowed her head politely.

'Thank you for your time, sir.'

Lionheart watched her turn around with an air of regret.

'Are you sure that's all? It's not like I have any duties to return to, so I'm not in any hurry.'

Judy sighed as her chest tightened as she recalled Nick's meeting with Linnalo. 'Sorry, sir… but I am.'

June 13th, Wednesday, 2:35 pm

It had been a while since Nick had to put so much effort into maintaining a front for any sustained length of time. The casual smirk he wore while approaching the pigs and wolves on duty did little to stow the anxiety building in his gut. His shades did a good job of hiding any weakness he might have shown as he glanced up at the pair outside the first council building, which had enough glass windows that made him wonder if they had space for the actual floors.

'Detective Wilde?'

The female pig stationed at the automatic doors greeted him before he was able to say anything. The pair's forest green uniforms blended well into the dim surroundings. She remained stoic even as Nick tipped his glasses to read her name tag.

'In the flesh… Emma? Nice to meet'cha.'

She continued without pause.

'Are you ready to see Bellwether now?'

He put his glasses back up as he cleared his throat.

'…Yeah. Let's get this over with.'

Emma nodded, turning her attention to her wolf companion.

'Do you need backup, Cal?'

The arctic wolf snorted. Nick couldn't help noticing how the fur reminded him of Alex.

'Are you kidding? Nothing ever happens around here.' He glanced down at Nick with interest. 'How come you get to show him around?'

Emma actually returned a small smirk. 'Orders are orders… but I'll take that as a yes.'

Orders, huh? I'm guessing Grenn doesn't command the wolves himself, then.

Cal gave them one last look of disappointment as Emma waved Nick to follow her. Instead of heading directly through the building like he hoped, they went around the building down a stone pathway that diverted at perfect right angles in between lush, fully maintained vegetation. The sounds of the bustling city were distant. As general impressions went, the building complex turned out to be… complex, as Nick had a hard time maintaining his bearings as they went.

Emma thankfully did not exude the same domineering presence that Grenn had, so Nick wasn't as on edge as he thought he would be. Still, she didn't smile once, and was stone-faced at Nick's attempts at levity as they went. At the same time, she didn't probe into his reasons for being here, despite it being so short notice and on the assistant mayor's orders.

Nick's brain was working overtime as he studied his surroundings as they went, looking for any structural weaknesses or signs of Ethan Hodge. Another reason for him wanting to see Bellwether, which he hadn't yet shared with Judy, was to scout out the place in case he needed to enact more desperate measures. But it soon became clear he would need a map or blueprints to figure anything out. For all he knew, Bellwether and Hodge were in completely different sections. At the very least, he was able to spot at least a dozen security cameras on the way, as expected.

After about ten minutes of navigating the secluded property, they finally arrived at their destination – a large, steel-grey entrance, only one storey above ground.

Great… more giant steel doors.

It seemed like the council had no need to spruce up the place to please onlookers. The entrance was tucked away deep within the skyscraper complex; if he didn't have a guard to guide him, he probably wouldn't have been able to find it.

To his relief, Emma used her pass on a card reader to the side, and the door slid open automatically.

'After you.'

Nick gulped as he embarked down the steel steps, with Emma following closely behind and the door shutting behind them. Thankfully, the path was brightly lit, if only with sterile white lights.

The prison passageways were not as convoluted as the path had been up to that point. There were clear signs pointing them at particular sectors, the first being kitchen and cafeteria, and then cell block A.

Emma seemed to avoid taking him close to the cells where possible, but from those he could glimpse, most of them were empty, and imprisoned criminals didn't seem particularly violent or deranged. Nothing like the savage mammals he'd seen before, in one particular asylum that he'd rather forget.

It was at cell block C that Emma turned directly into the passageway, and this cell block was significantly smaller than A or B. All of the cells were empty, except one.

Bellwether was sitting on the single chair in her cell, her small LCD TV up in the far-left corner, playing a report from ZNN in the finance segment of the news.

Emma rapped her knuckles on the bars.

'Bellwether – you have a visitor.'

The miniature sheep turned with a slow scowl, which shifted to surprise as she saw Nick alongside Emma. Her scowl quickly returned.

'You're that fox partner of Judy's. I can't say I'm particularly interested in talking to you.'

Nick made no effort to maintain a front in his reply, his contempt exuded through his sneer he pushed up his shades.

'Nice to see you too, Bellwether.'

Even Emma seemed slightly off-put at the mutual glares.

'Ahem… if you would stand back, Wilde?'

Nick lowered the shades and adopted a more subdued frown as he stood back. He heard metal clanging as Emma prepared cuffs in one paw while unlocking the door with her other. Bellwether didn't resist the cuffs wrapped around her wrists as the pig led the sheep out. Nick followed them a few steps as they approached what looked like a meeting room door, with a desk and chair visible through the small openings at multiple heights. There was also a set of small lockers next to the door.

Emma went to unlock the door before she shoved the sheep in.

'Make yourself comfortable, Bellwether. There are some things I need to notify our visitor of first.'

The sheep was silent as she went in. Emma shut the door before addressing Nick.

'Just a few ground rules to go over. Since you're in uniform, there's no problems with the dress code… However, I need you to leave all non-essential personal items with me, and I'll keep them in a locker over there' –she pointed out the lockers– 'until you are done.

Nick nodded, getting out a couple of pens, his clipboard with some paper, and a metal drink canteen. Emma studied them briefly before nodding in return, letting him keep those while Nick handed his bag over.

'Finally, I have to ask you to remove any jewellery.'

Nick paused for a second, before raising his right arm and examining his silver ring.

'Are there… any exceptions?'

The fox's pained expression earned a flash of sympathy in Emma's gaze. '…It's up to our discretion. Is that a wedding band?'

'…Yeah.'

Emma looked off to the side in thought for a few seconds.

'Very well, I'll permit it.'

Nick lowered his arm with relief.

'Thanks.'

'… Don't mention it.'

As she moved to open the door again, Nick raised a paw. 'Hold up.'

He cleared his throat when the pig raised a questioning brow.

'Correct me if I'm wrong, but there were other sheep in here too, right? Bellwether's cohorts and such?'

'No, you are correct.' Emma counted on one paw. 'Woolter, Jesse and Doug, I believe their names were.'

'"Were"? They've been released already?'

'Already? It's been two years.' Emma shook her head. 'Our Commander had to intervene directly to get their rehabilitation done. He doesn't like releasing prisoners who have no intention of changing their ways.'

Nick took a quick glance at the meeting room awaiting him. 'I see…'

'From what I gather, those three ended up leaving Zootopia anyway. I suppose they found it too difficult to get employment in the wake of their involvement in the Night Howlers.'

'… That doesn't surprise me.'

As he stepped forward to open the door himself, he took a deep breath. It was unlikely this discussion was going to be fruitful.

'Good luck with that one,' Emma said, 'she's about as friendly as a pissed-off porcupine right now. Though to be honest, she's not much better normally.'

Nick flashed her a short grin. 'Thanks for the warning.'

As he opened the heavy door himself, Bellwether kept her gaze fixed to the table as he went in. The empty room only added to the tension in the air.

As Nick sat down and studied her, the sheep didn't move a muscle. Her wool was not as puffy as he remembered, and her skin was paler. If he was any other mammal, or if Judy had come in his place, they might have felt sorry for her.

But Nick hadn't forgotten what Bellwether had done, and had tried to do. She was willing to kill Judy in her attempts to dominate predators. The latter was one thing; the former was unforgivable.

He smirked while masking his ire. 'You've seen better days.'

'… Shut up.'

Nick let out a dry, mocking laugh. 'Now that's a funny thing to say. You're not leaving this room until I choose to end this meeting. Keep that attitude up, and I'm sure Emma will be happy to correct your behaviour. I'm sure you're plenty friendly with the wolves, too.'

That last remark earned a flash of fear in the sheep's downcast gaze, but she quickly recovered, raising her head to scowl at him.

'Fine. I want to be out of this room as soon as possible – and away from you.'

'On that, we agree.'

Nick did a quick scan of the room as he laid his clipboard out. There was one well-hidden camera disguised against the dark, black wall off to the far left.

Night vision has its perks…

There was also an unassuming pot plant to his right. It seemed real, so he doubted there was a camera hidden in there. He had to wonder what kind of plant survived without proper sunlight, though.

'Can we get on with this?' Bellwether barked impatiently. 'Is this about the Night Howlers again? I'd already told the ZPD everything back when it all went down.'

'No, it's not.' Nick pushed up his shades to look her in the eye, which she quickly averted. 'I'm more interested in your time as mayor, brief as it was.'

Bellwether frowned suspiciously. 'No one from your department has ever asked me about that. Which is no surprise, since I had basically no time to enact the changes to legislation that I wanted.'

Nick folded his arms. 'What was your relationship to the council?'

Bellwether leaned back and scrutinised the fox as he lowered his shades. 'Why do you care? The new mayor has done such a good job of running the place. I hope the whole thing comes crashing to the ground – that hamster is a fool to trust predators.'

I guess I can't blame Grenn for keeping her in here…

'You do realise the only reason you're still stuck in jail is because you still think that way?'

'You sound like Grenn.'

Nick growled. 'Whatever –just answer the question.'

'They were rather hands-off, for the most part,' Bellwether said after a moment, 'but that was because it took a long time for any legislation proposals to go through. The only one I did, they shot down immediately.' She smiled mockingly. 'It was the beginning of my quarantine plans. Small predators, like foxes and weasels, would have been banned from all venues except –'

'I didn't ask about your policies.'

Unfortunately, her smile remained. 'You're here because I have information that you want. You can't stop me from talking.'

'But I can cut you off from needless chatter. And I can ask Emma for help if you ignore my warnings.'

He managed another smirk. 'Besides, I'm only assessing the possibility that you have the information I want. Don't get a big head.'

Nick leaned back for a moment as the sheep's smile fell. 'Why did the council shoot down your proposal?'

'They claimed it was "tone deaf". Focusing on penalising predators went against the spirit of Zootopia, so they said. As if predators going savage wasn't actually a problem.'

'A problem that you caused.'

And if my hunch is correct, they knew you were behind it, but were unable to prove it. It doesn't take a genius to figure something was up, when savage predators only became a thing when you were employed into the mayoral office.

'Did you, or they, ever discuss medical policies?'

Bellwether paused uncertainly, as if weighing her options. Nick braced himself, as he guessed the sheep was only interested in getting under his skin.

'Only in reference to my predator quarantine proposal. Naturally, predators would not be allowed in areas where prey sought medical services. Aside from containment, of course.'

'… Which is pretty much every hospital in Zootopia.' He sighed. 'And let me guess… they also called that tone deaf?'

'No, actually.' Bellwether frowned. 'Several called that abhorrent, even criminal – which stirred up the other members in requesting me to resign. I had to backtrack on that fast.'

Nick raised his brow. Really? I guess she wouldn't have lasted that long, even if Judy and I hadn't dug up her little scheme.

'Sounds like they knew their stuff.'

'Don't patronise me, fox.'

He smirked again. 'Asking me not to patronise is like asking the clouds to stop floating.'

'Tch…'

As Nick fell silent, trying to search for other ways to frame his questions, it was Bellwether's turn to study him.

'Now why are you even asking about these things? And why is Judy not here with you?'

The fox stiffened. 'That's none of your business.'

She ignored his statement, her smile slowly returning. 'So… Medical policies, huh? Then I guess it's finally happened. Her partner being a predator, it was only a matter of time before you pulled something.'

Nick was now very still as he glared at her from behind his shades.

'If I were you, I'd choose my next words very carefully.'

'What happened to her? Did you poison her with your food? Did you bite her while subduing a suspect?'

'… Shut up.'

She's trying to goad me into attacking her… Just how spiteful can she be? And… It's working…

'You did, didn't you?' Her smile widened. 'Is she even alive? Actually… if she wasn't, you wouldn't even be bothering with me, would you? But being partnered to a predator, it's only a matter of time before she–'

Nick stood up and slammed his paws on the table.

'She's pregnant!'

Bellwether stared at him at first with shock. However, her smile slowly returned as she studied the growl etched in Nick's muzzle, and his shades fell on to the table to reveal his eyes. Her smile was one that delighted in the suffering she could see.

Nick hadn't recalled a time when he wanted to harm another mammal so viscerally as of that moment. He felt his claws digging into the table.

'Oh, this is delicious! It was even worse than I thought possible! But you–'

They both started as the door swung open with a slight gust of wind. Nick's ire vanished for a moment as Emma stuck her large pink head through.

'Pardon the interruption, Wilde.' She raised her belt radio. 'I just got notified that Grenn is due to return in about ten minutes. Did you want to meet him?'

Nick stared at her, confusion completely displacing his previous fury.

Why would I want to…?

'Uh… no thanks. I'm hoping to be done by then.'

Emma nodded expectantly, which only fuelled his curiosity. 'As you were.'

She shut the door again. Nick continued to stare at the closed door in bewilderment before he turned his attention back to the sheep in front of him.

Except, the sheep's expression was now one of utter terror. She was still staring at the door where Emma just was. She started fumbling her paws.

'Problem?'

'I don't know anything else.'

Nick frowned.

'...Huh?'

'I seriously don't! If you want my honest opinion… the council hated me! They were already talking about replacing me with one of their own. And I don't know of any medical policies they supported, because they refused to share them.'

Nick, while still confused, decided to take advantage of her sudden compliance, and sat back down, putting his shades back on.

'Have you heard of an Ethan Hodge?'

'Hodge?' She stopped for a moment to think. 'I heard one of the guards mentioning a new inmate. There aren't many that come in here, after all. I think… I think they've kept him in one of the other blocks, but I don't know which.'

Well, that's something. As for Grenn…

Nick glanced around quickly, and his gaze fell on the plant beside him.

'Can we please finish this? I seriously don't know anything else!'

'Why the sudden rush, Bellwether?'

'I… can't say. Just get on with it.'

'Well… I'm in no hurry.'

While Bellwether was glancing around the room frantically, he took a swig from his water canteen and tucked it into his trouser pocket, before he stood up and projected his voice through the nearest door window.

'Uh, Emma? Where's the nearest toilet? I'm itching for a leak.'

Emma frowned for a moment as Bellwether scrunched her nose in disgust. 'Uh… Apologies, but I would have to take you back closer to the cell block for that.'

'Damn…'

Despite his words, Nick smirked in Bellwether's direction.

'Would you mind if I used this convenient plant right in front of me?'

Emma was silent for a moment. He could tell cogs were running in her head.

'I do mind, but not to the point of stopping you.'

'You're a champ.'

Bellwether threw her paws up in protest. 'You can't be serious! Surely this is a violation of my–'

'Don't be such a baby, Bellwether,' Emma muttered, 'just turn around until he's done.'

The sheep gave Nick one final, suspicious glare, before pushing her seat away from the table and turning around as she was told.

Keeping the hidden camera's position in mind, Nick angled his body between it and the plant in front of him. An awkward silence passed until he was done, which was thankfully short. Nick didn't bother with a farewell as he shoved the door open on his way out, and Emma was quick in returning his bag.

Emma followed up by fetching Bellwether and putting her back in her cell, though not as roughly as she had previously. Nick waited at the end of the hallway.

Once the pig had removed Bellwether's cuffs and locked the cell, they wordlessly left the cell block and began making their way back, Nick tucking his paws in his pockets. He found himself thinking about that moment – just before he might have ended up attacking Bellwether. Doing so would have been disastrous, especially in the sense of their ongoing personal investigation. Emma's timing couldn't have been better. However, he still had to wonder just what Grenn had done to Bellwether to instil such a reaction just from being mentioned.

'…Thanks for the assist,' Nick managed to say after they were out of earshot.

'Don't mention it,' Emma said. 'Seriously. Especially that part with the plant.'

Nick could only chuckle, but the guard still looked uncomfortable. However, her eyes lit up as she saw a metal tap over a metal grate in the floor for drainage.

'Speaking of… if you wouldn't mind, Wilde?'

Nick pulled his paws out of his pockets. 'If it'll ease your sanitary mind.'

After he gave them a quick wash, he wrung his paws over the grate while glancing at Emma with apprehension.

'It's been ten minutes… shouldn't Grenn be here by now?'

She regarded him stoically. 'Did I say ten minutes? I meant forty.'

'Ah.' Nick said with a knowing smile as he began following her again.

June 13th, Wednesday, 4:40 pm

Judy was tapping her foot constantly over the next few minutes, with a combination of impatience and anxiety, lounging around the desk behind Clawhauser.

I hope Nick's alright…

'He'll be fine, Judy,' the cheetah reassured her, 'they wouldn't dare attack an officer or anything. Especially if it came from the assistant mayor.'

'I know, Clawhauser,' Judy said, 'I just hate not being there with him. Being partners and everything – I can't get used to it. Not to mention his meeting with Linnalo.'

'Well, it's only going to be an issue until the baby is born.'

Judy raised her brow, speechless for a moment. 'That's… quite the vote of confidence.'

Her ears perked up as she heard the front doors open. As she peeked her head out from behind the desk she sighed with relief as she saw Nick no worse for wear.

'So how was it?' She called out as she approached him.

'Better than I expected,' he began, with both of them heading towards the elevator, 'but worse than I'd hoped.'

The fox waved to Clawhauser as they passed, and headed up to their cubicles to discuss their information in more detail… as well as their lack of it.

'Lionheart really wasn't much help,' Judy explained as she sunk into her desk chair. 'But I got enough from him to believe he really has no idea what the council is up to.'

'How can you be so sure?' Nick asked. 'Remember, this is the guy who was able to keep the missing mammals case under wraps to the point where even the Chief didn't know.'

'When it comes to his own career, he can be shrewd, sure,' Judy continued, 'but… He really doesn't pay much attention otherwise. He seriously didn't even know we were together.'

'I… guess that's understandable, considering how out of the loop he's been.'

'Another reason was… some unflattering comments directed your way.' She frowned for a moment. 'Actually, if you heard them, you might think the opposite. But I don't think your ego needs to get any bigger.'

Nick's ears perked with interest. 'Oh? Do tell.'

'Yeah, I don't think so.'

'Come on, Carrots. Don't say something so juicy and leave me guessing – It might be something useful.'

Judy rolled her eyes and groaned. 'If you insist.' She paused as she recalled what she heard in detail. 'He thought the reason I was asking about medical policies, childbirths and whatnot was because you had gotten into "trouble" with women. And that you were into prey.'

'Ooh… really?'

'And he capped it off by saying you had nothing to worry about, because predators couldn't get prey pregnant! So much for that.'

'So… I guess that's why you believe him? If we didn't happen…' The fox was wearing a grin that was more than a little irritating. 'Well – nice to know the old lion has such a high opinion of me.'

That earned him a kick in the leg.

'Ow!'

The rabbit managed a sly smile. 'Oh, and he mentioned there's a good chance some of your old girlfriends will eventually chase after you demanding child support.'

Nick's eyes widened in that endearing way, as he rubbed his shin.

'Heh… very funny, Carrots.' He chuckled nervously as he put up a smile. 'If that were true, they would surely have come after me by now.' He glanced away uncertainly. 'Uh… right?'

'I don't think we're in a position to worry about that right now.' She sighed heavily. 'Moving on – what did you find out, oh humble detective?'

Nick cleared his throat as he refocused. 'Right. Bellwether was… not happy to see me, to say the least. When she actually cooperated, she wouldn't shut up about how she wanted to enforce ridiculous laws on predators. But… it seemed like she and the Council were at odds.'

'Huh? Seriously?'

Nick nodded. 'If I'm reading it correctly, she was on the verge of getting removed from office. The council really hated the idea of predators being singled out as hard as Bellwether wanted. I also think they suspected her of being behind the savage incidents in some way.'

Judy slowly nodded. 'Linnalo, and by extension Gilesby… they would feel the same way, I feel.'

'…Yeah.'

'But if the council really cares about both predators and prey living together… Why is this happening to us?'

They both fell silent.

'The world really is broken…'

Nick opened his mouth, but was unable to say anything.

However, Judy sucked in a short breath as her body perked up. 'Well… that just means we have more to fix.'

Nick managed a short smile.

'Don't ever change, Carrots.'

'Well, apart from my waistline…'

Nick sniggered, and Judy smiled back at him.

'Anyway, was there anything else? I asked Lionheart about Ethan, but he had nothing. Though he could at least tell he was a badger by his last name.'

Nick nodded. 'Bellwether let slip some info about a recent inmate that sounded like our honey badger. Unfortunately, Emma wasn't allowed to show me the other cell blocks.' He glanced at the ceiling as he counted off with his fingers. 'Assuming they hadn't moved Ethan just to hide him from me, we can cross blocks A, B and C off the list. I saw signs up to F.'

'So… D, E or F? Maybe Bogo can give us more information.' She glanced at her phone. 'We might still be able to catch him.'

Nick grimaced as he straightened his body stiffly.

'Uh… you're gonna have to wait up for a moment, Carrots. I need to take a leak.'

She raised her brow. 'You didn't go before leaving?'

'I… might have drunk too much water. The air in that prison was a little oppressive.'

She sighed impatiently as he got up. 'Fine, but hurry it up. I'll let Bogo know we're coming.'

'…Sure.'

As the fox returned a couple of minutes later, he was wearing a nervous smile as he approached the cubicle.

'Uh… Carrots? I know I might have worried you, going to the prison by myself – and you might hate me now for it – but I left something there.'

Judy stared at him for a moment, letting her ears drop with disapproval.

'Seriously? You want to go back there? What did you lose that was so important?'

'Uh… I suppose my dignity?'

Judy shook her head. 'This isn't funny, Nick.'

'I know.'

As she looked into his eyes, she could tell he was up to something. He wasn't being entirely honest. However, they had worked together long enough to know to let things go – it wouldn't have been the first time.

She reluctantly tipped her head forward. 'Alright. Are you coming back here, or…?'

'Nah, I'll meet you at home after I'm done.'

He grabbed his bag, patted down his pockets to make sure he had everything. He ruffled Judy's ears as he was leaving.

'Tell Bogo how terribly sorry I am for missing out.'

She smiled as she smoothed out her fur. 'I'm sure he'll manage.'

One silver lining of the council building being out of the way was that it left a bigger time gap since Nick's visit. The shadows had spread long enough that most of the complex was shrouded, but that didn't hamper his ability to navigate it in the slightest.

As he spotted the entrance, he thanked the lucky stars as he spotted the same wolf on duty during his initial appointment. Curiously, Emma was nowhere to be seen as he approached.

'Huh?' Cal sniffed long before Nick was in his sight range. 'Oh! You're that fox. Nick Wilde?'

Nick did a casual salute as he stopped before the wolf. 'Glad you remember me.'

The white wolf tipped his head for a moment. 'What are you doing here? Linnalo only approved one visit.'

Nick rubbed the back of his neck. 'Well… embarrassing story, but I think I left something in that meeting room. Would it be possible to get it back?'

Cal frowned thoughtfully. 'I don't remember any lost property being returned after Emma checked the room.'

'It… might be a bit difficult for you guys to see something so small. Being sized for a fox and all.'

'Normally I'd need further clearance with my boss… but for you, I can make an exception.' Cal tapped his chin. 'What was it?'

'A pen.'

The wolf stared at him in bewilderment. 'You're willing to come all the way back here just for a pen?'

Nick shook a finger. 'Not just any pen, my friend – A Mooséblànc. It was a gift from my w –.' He paused. 'A special someone.'

'Ah.' Cal nodded in understanding. 'I see – I think I can show you in, then. Technically, you're not allowed in without another approved meeting. I'll just have to authorise a bit more time for you when I submit my time sheet.'

After nodding thankfully, Nick took a quick glance around. 'But who's–'

His question was quickly answered by Cal pulling out a handheld radio.

'Yo, Bruce. Tag in for a bit.'

'Sure… sure.' The answer came after a moment of static. 'What's the occasion?'

'I'm just helping Nick Wilde fetch a lost pen of his.'

'Wait… you mean…?'

'Yep.'

There was a moment of silence on the other end.

'… Lucky bastard. Remember to record it or Max will scold you.'

Nick grinned with embarrassment as Cal put his radio away.

'I guess my reputation precedes me.'

'Yeah… I guess it does,' Cal said. 'Most wolves would know of you by now. It's not every day us council guards can meet someone like you.'

Bruce, a brown-furred wolf, grudgingly took Cal's place as the automatic doors opened from within, and Cal waved Nick on through. Instead of the long winding route that Emma had taken, Cal cut straight through the main building.

Also unlike Emma, Cal was open to some chatter, though he indulged in the gossip a bit much for Nick's liking. It was clear how boring the job was, though. At least Nick's presence was a clear break from the mould for this wolf.

They got to cell block C in about half the time Nick was expecting. Taking note of how empty the place still was, Nick spoke up.

'Did Grenn come back? I remember Emma saying something about him returning from a job or something.'

Cal nodded. 'Yeah. He dragged Bellwether back in that room not long after you left.' He tightened his jaw. 'Even us wolves find that guy… well, a bit hard-nosed, to put it lightly.'

Nick nodded sympathetically. 'Tell me about it. I've got a buffalo for a chief.'

'At least our commander is a bit more flexible.'

Nick spotted movement in Bellwether's cell to their left, and the TV was on once again. However, when she turned around to inspect the intruders, her eyes widened in terror as she saw Nick.

'You! No – stay away from me!'

Even Nick was confused. Before she backed away, he didn't spot any obvious injuries on her.

Just what did Grenn say to her? Now I'm even more curious…

Cal held up a paw. 'Keep your wool on, Bellwether. He's just here to pick something up.'

The tod stuck close to the wolf as Cal unlocked the door to the meeting room. As they both entered, Nick didn't see any signs of struggle or torture or anything. The hidden camera and plant were exactly the way he had left them, much to his relief.

'So where did you lose it?'

'It was right as I was leaving…'

Nick pretended to examine various corners of the room, but after a minute he came to check the plant's soil.

'Ah! Found it!'

As Nick showed Cal the pen with what he hoped resembled child-like glee, Cal stared at the jet-black pen lined with gold.

'How'd that get in there?'

'Oh… Emma didn't tell you?'

Cal shook his head.

'Nature called me just before leaving. Emma said there were no bathrooms nearby, so – you know.' He rubbed his neck with embarrassment. 'It must have dropped out of my shirt pocket.'

Cal's muzzle twitched for several seconds before he burst out laughing.

'Eheh… Ahahaha! That's rich! I can only imagine the look on the sheep's face.'

Nick grinned sheepishly, but was starting to feel uncomfortable with the seemingly unanimous contempt the staff had for the former mayor. Even he wouldn't want her to live the rest of her life in this state.

'Uh… there's not gonna be a recording of that, is there…?'

'Unfortunately… yeeeah. The meeting rooms have it all. At least the individual cells don't – we still don't have the budget to get more than one security camera per cell. Hell, even some only get a view from the central hall.'

Nick sighed sympathetically.

'Well… as amusing as this all is, I do need to get home to said special someone. The air around here isn't the most stimulating.'

'I hear that,' He shot a quick scowl in Bellwether's direction as they left. 'The company isn't any better.'

'Speaking of company,' Nick said as they left the block, 'any other prisoners give you as much trouble as she does?'

'Not in the same way, no,' Cal said as waved at other night guards on patrol. 'The ZPD, such as yourself, is doing good work. I might complain about it being boring, but it's better than having a full prison, along with the risks that would entail.' He gave a tired sigh. 'Bellwether has been here way too long. Grenn wants her gone, but Gilesby seems to think she still could turn things around if she really tried.'

Nick maintained a friendly smirk.

'Would you say she's the worst prisoner you've had to deal with?'

Cal furrowed his brow thoughtfully. 'In a way. Knowing that those above my pay grade are bickering about what to do with her doesn't help. But there are prisoners that we barely get to see; that the Razorbacks keep to themselves.' He scowled. 'Which isn't really fair, considering we did as much work getting them in.'

'Which prisoner is that – if you don't mind my asking?'

'Oh… my bad. Didn't mean to come off as whiny.' Cal refocused their route. 'Some honey badger was caught last week and hauled off to block G. It's one we Nightstalkers have never seen for ourselves. I guess the only way we could is if Commander Maxwell agreed to fully absorb the two organisations into one… but that's never going to happen.'

'What makes you say that?'

'Well… the whole point of Razorbacks and Nightstalkers working together is to cover each other's weaknesses,' Cal explained, 'being distinctly prey and predator and all.' He slapped himself on the forehead. 'Eh – don't mind me. I guess I'm just a bit salty about it.'

Nick shrugged, taking special note of all the info that had just been dumped. 'Not at all.'

Once they returned to the entrance, Cal took his previous position as Bruce went back inside the building, still begrudging. Nick signed off with another casual salute.

'Thanks for letting me in on such short notice.'

Cal grinned and reached down towards him. 'Anytime. Today would have been a lot more dull otherwise.'

Nick awkwardly shook the wolf's larger paw, and he made his way back. On the way to the train station, however, he slowed as he tried to find a secluded spot before getting back to the city proper.

He managed to find a small park with a few seats and swings that suited his purpose. The only other mammals around were a few kids playing on the swings, and they were too busy to take notice of him.

The tod fished out the pen he'd just retrieved and flicked off a red switch at the top. Then, he got out a small earpiece that snugly fit into his right ear. He flicked another small blue switch, and he quickly received audio in the earpiece. The first thing he heard was his own voice and Emma's fading into the background.

'…especially about the plant.'

Nick pressed and held a green switch periodically, as there was little but silence for the next half an hour. As soon as he heard heavy footsteps, he let it play, though it was faint.

There was a rapid tapping in the distance – metal meeting metal bars.

A deep voice mumbled something, and was distant and familiar – as if it was on the other side of the wall. Then he heard Bellwether respond, clearly anxious, but Grenn muttered a curt response. Then, there were sounds of keys and a door swinging open. Oddly enough, Nick didn't pick up the sound of cuffs.

Grenn grunted impatiently and seemingly led Bellwether to the meeting room, as his and Bellwether's footsteps grew clearer until the meeting room door opened.

'Sit.'

Bellwether was silent, but seemed to comply as the chair slid across the floor slightly. Grenn's footsteps continued, as if he was pacing.

'It seems your rehabilitation has hit a snag, Bellwether. If you recall – the last step we were at was acknowledging the merits of having predators in Zootopia.'

'Y-yes…'

'You actually were able to come up with some reasons of your own. Are you able to recite at least one of them?'

'Yes, sir. Many groups of prey naturally fall into patterns like herd behaviour, which means we can handle monotonous tasks at a mass scale better. Predators are more individualistic but excel when both individual and team-based critical thinking is involved.'

'…Indeed.' Grenn stopped pacing. 'However, just knowing the logical reason why both predators and prey are needed isn't enough to be reformed, in my eyes. You must get past your disdain and fear of predators. Until today, I believed you were making good progress. However, as Emmaline reported, it seems my optimism in you was poorly placed.'

'Please sir! I can explain–'

A fist slammed on the table.

'Quiet!'

He paused before pacing again.

'As Emmaline said… you had a visit from Nicholas Wilde, a fox. Whatever personal history you had should not have coloured your interactions with him. As far as I am concerned, he did Zootopia a tremendous service, as well as start you on the path to correct your behaviour.

'Why then, did you torment him in such a manner? Even worse, you used his status as a predator to undermine his talents. If you really respected predators as much as prey, you would never have done such a thing. Unless you throw an equal number of insults my way, but I have yet to see that.'

'I…I…'

'Perhaps this continues to fall on deaf ears, but Zootopia needs predators. We've already been through why Zootopia's economy could all but collapse without them.'

'I know that, sir…'

'And you see it every day. Razorbacks and Nightstalkers both work for the council. If I had refused to work with them, I wouldn't be alive now.'

'A wolf… saved your life?' Bellwether said. 'That's… ridiculous!'

There was a slight pause.

'See? You are wasting my time.'

'Wait, I didn't mean–'

'You have officially worn out my patience. I am going to push Gilesby harder on this; there's no hope for you. You will always be the pathetic sheep that blindly followed her instincts and let it cloud her judgement to Zootopia's detriment.'

'No! I can–'

'You can what? Change? It has been three years. Why haven't you listened to anything I've said?'

He sighed heavily. 'No matter. I am going to see how to get rid of you. The most likely outcome is being ejected from the city, and revoking of your Zootopian citizenship. You can thank Gilesby that it's lasted you this long.'

'Please don't–'

'Enough. Remain silent, for I am not finished.'

A heavy metal object tapped the table, and Bellwether did as she was told.

'Pigs and wolves have different strengths. Wolves work well in packs, but there is a limit. Anything over nine per team tends to result in internal squabbles and inefficiency. Us pigs, however, have no such hierarchy, so the wolves ask pigs for assistance when a team requires additional backup.'

Nick frowned; something felt off in his tone.

'Us pigs also see things differently on a base level. Wolves are loyal to each other. Pigs are loyal to the mayor. This leads to both perspectives complementing each other. If the mayor made a sweeping decision that would be to our detriment, we may not pick up on that until the effects are felt. However, wolves would more likely object in the short term, which leads to fair compromises overall. Thus our conflicting loyalties actually benefit us both, despite conventional wisdom saying otherwise.

'Our collective evolution saw us develop in opposition to another. This is exactly why we can now benefit from working together. This is also why predators and prey who, once upon a time, were natural enemies, make such good teams. Pigs and wolves. Lions and gazelles. Rabbits… and foxes. Isn't that right – Nicholas Wilde?'

Nick's fur on the back of his neck stood on end.

'It's unfortunate that we got off on the wrong foot, Wilde… as well as the manner in which I am delivering my message. But this matter is one of Zootopia's future… and for that, I am all but sworn to secrecy.

'We at the Council greatly value you and your contributions to the city, especially in light of how you've been treated in the past. We don't need to be enemies. Your wife does not need to die. For the good of Zootopia, do as you have been told. Our prosperity is not without sacrifice. And if you choose not to heed my advice… then I will have no choice but to enact more drastic measures.'

His footsteps sounded once more as the boar escorted Bellwether out of the room. After Bellwether's cell was closed and locked, the sounds faded as Grenn left the cell block.