"How did you get here, and how did you manage to make your way out that place?" Klaus asked, Tuska sat around the group that huddled around, wanting to hear the experiences and story of this new cat that had so much to tell. "Like I said, I had so much help from a group of dogs. I owe it to them that I was able to get out of there unharmed"
"Maybe you know them, Chase, Rubble, Rocky, and Brax" Tuska had no idea the weight of the names he had spoke of, all of their ears perked when they had heard that not only they had helped other dogs escape, but they were out and free and somewhere out there. "We dont know Brax, but we know the others, they're our friends. Where are they, where did they go?" Ryder could barely contain himself, seeing his dogs sharing the same amount of angst to find out where Chase, Rocky, and Rubble where after all this time separated.
"Brax had told them to cross the river when we were near the big lake, I didnt follow them, I knew I would end up here if I followed the river"
"What about Brax, is he with them, is he okay?" Ell asked, frantic as ever only to see Tuska lowering his head in sorrow, the Irish setter knowing the news wasnt going to be to her liking as soon as she saw. "Im sorry, We had to leave him back at the prison. He fought off the cats so as many dogs could have a free shot at escape, after that he was too hurt to go on anymore. The guards got to him after that, Im sure hes still alive though, I hope" The cat explained.
"So why didnt any of you try and save him, drag him, find another way. You had just left him to fend for himself like that, how could you do that" She spat back in rage, unwilling to take the news of his fate so bluntly, refusing to stay as happy as she was most of the time.
"I-Im sorry, he-" Tuska tried to reason with her, they had no choice to leave him. However, Ell didnt both to hear him and his reasoning, instead she turned tail and walked away from the group. Tuska wanted to get up and walk after her to let her know of Brax's bravery, but Klaus placed a paw on Tuska.
"She just needs time, Brax was her lover. Give her some space for now" Klaus tried to reassure the former deputy, Tuska himself looked unsure, knowing she would maybe forgive him in something he had no control over in a tight situation, but would never forget it.
"You said they crossed the river, What were they looking for?"
"I may know, I know two cats that live on the other side of the river side. They're farmers and they're super nice, even to dogs. We can go and check by them to see if your friends are there, It would seem like the most logic thing" Klaus suggested.
"Can we go now?" Marshall asked, wanting to know whens the quickest time they could meet up with the friends they havent seen in quite a while. "After we deal with this contract fiasco, then we can. If your friends are in the paws of Klaus's friends. They'll be fine. For now, we have our own problem to take care of" Lily instructed, the others gave a contempt nod, knowing what Lily spoke of was true, they needed to handle the situation of getting their paws on that document so that Griffin couldnt have legal authority over the Lookout back in Adventure Bay.
"The sooner we can get this done, the sooner you can find your friends. I can go and retrieve the document from Maxwell's home, easy peasy" Lily stated.
"You're going to go alone?" Skye asked, a bit surprised.
"Yeah, Why shouldnt I?" She asked back, the thought of her going in alone didnt really phase herself all that much, it seemed that she was perfectly fine with doing it solo.
"But what if you wun into twouble?" Zuma suggested the idea, Lily wasnt exactly a close friend, but it would a shame if something were to go wrong that she didnt plan and ended up being captured, or worse.
"I appreciate the looking over my back thing, but I cant keep relying on others to watch my back for me. If the FBI wanted me to work with others, they shouldnt have sent me here alone. I'll make it back the same night, so I'll let the FBI know where to pick up Jello and his family so they can be extracted out" She boldly claimed.
"I could help" Tuska inclined, feeling he had some police knowledge which could be of use. "I appreciate it, but you can stay here. We dont need every dog and cat out and about. I'm sure Klaus will ask you to do something to help around" Lily stated, her expression turned to a hint of frustration as she tried to break the conversation, not wanting to face any more questions on why she would want to go alone.
Before they knew it, Lily had walked away out of ear shot, leaving the rest of them to think for themselves on what they were going to do about retrieving Jello's family. "I suppose Zuma could come with me, what about you Skye?"
"You're just going to obey what Lily says, what if she cant handle something that comes her way and she needs our help" The cockapoo turned her head to the Dalmatian, bit upset that they were just willing to roll with whatever she had said. "Im sure she'll be fine Skye, FBI Agents are no joke" Ryder stated.
"But Ryder, shes needed our help previously. Like the time were got back the Paw Patroller" Skye stated, getting a bit of conflicted look from the chocolate Labrador next to Ryder. "To be faiw, that time was kinda ouw fault that we got spotted" Zuma corrected, he was indeed correct. It was Zuma and Skye who had accidentally raised the alarm first.
"True, but remember when we planted bugs in the Mayor's Tower. If Lily worked alone, theres no way she would have been able to pull that off so easily, relatively speaking" Skye said at the end, knowing that breaking into anywhere was no cake wake. However still emphasizing that Lily would have had more trouble if she did it alone.
"But we dont know if she'll need our help" Marshall pointed out.
"But thats the point, Lily is sure she doesnt need help but in reality she doesnt know either" Skye replied.
"Hear me out on this, I say we follow her without her knowing. Just to see if she needs any help after all" What Skye had suggested seemed a bit unorthodox, certainly spying on Lily would be a breach in trust, but no one else looked at it like that, it wasnt that they didnt trust her, it was that they cared for her more than the ordinary.
"Skye, I know you mean well when you suggest that, but is that really the best option?" Ryder asked, not quite sure of what to make of it.
"I dont want to see her get captured Ryder, and I'll make sure that doesnt happen" She said, getting up to her paws as she looked at all her other friends to see what were their finally thoughts, suddenly seeing Zuma get to his paws right after. "If you'we going, Im going too" He said.
"I support you Skye, and I wish you the best of luck" Ryder couldnt help but look around and see the friendship and trust the dogs and cats had shared with one another, Lou would loathed this sort of thing, knowing eventually Lou would be the next target down the line.
"Keep going...Keep going...Little bit more...aaaaannd...Stop, Thanks Chase, You're one strong dog, I'd wager you could beat Brax in a friendly competition" Dixie encourage, she stood by the German Shepherd in the hot sun. Chase stood still as he let go of the box he had been pulling, He had been asked to carry each heavy crate into the open of the ranch along a dirt road that came just few feet from the porch of the homestead that sat just at the front view of the farm.
"Okay, So thats the corn, punpkin, carrots, wheat, soybeans. Wait, Dixon where's the boxes with the rice, We need everything in one spot!" She shouted for her brother, soon seeing the white and brown patched feline come into view with Rocky and Rubble both hauling a giant bag. It was clear and filled the brim with hard rice grains, looking like they were freshly harvested.
"Im coming, Geez, Nag Nag Nag" His brother muttered under his breath, finally coming face to face with his sister as he sat right down beside her, licking his paws as if he was the one hauling the load. Rocky and Rubble both looked exhausted with each step, Chase hurried over to them, taking a hold of the back in his mouth as he helped. However even with the German Shepherd's strength, Chase felt the pain in what his friends were feeling. This bag was on a different level of weight compared to the other crates Dixie had instructed him to haul.
"So you're just going to let these nice dogs carry that sack of rice by themselves?" Dixie said, smacking his paw against the back of her brother's head. Dixon turned his head in a bit of annoyance. "What, They're fine, Plus there's no way I could help lift that" Dixon stated, it was a reasonable excuse he had thought, but an excuse his sister instead rolled her eyes at.
"Whatever we cant argue about this right now, I think thats all the crops and meats we need for her, She'll be here shortly" Dixie said, there was freight in her voice as she spoke, worry about the quantity and would it be enough for 'her'.
"Her?" Rocky asked letting go of his corner of the back, letting it flop the ground in a big thud, letting the orange dust and gravel of the ground poof upwards in his face and eyes. "Yeah, Who's this for?" Rubble asked as well. Suddenly Dixon's ears and tail perk up in a flash, as if he had just remembered something he could have thought of moments ago. "I forgot, You three need to go inside right now, and dont come outside until shes gone" He urged, pushing them away gently toward the homestead.
"Wait, I dont understand, What did we do?" Chase asked, feeling a bit hurt as if he or his friends had done something. "You didnt do anything, just trust us, we'll explain once this is all done and sorted. Just please go inside and do NOT look obvious" He stated, Chase looked over to Dixie as she had the same look. The german shepherd could tell Dixie was siding with her brother over the issue, as if she knew the danger herself.
"Okay Okay, We'll go" Chase had spoke up, seeing the urgency in Dixie and Dixon's eyes as if this wasnt a matter that could deciphered with time. Chase opened the front door of the farm home, letting in Rocky and Rubble before he too went inside. When inside, Chase didnt know exactly what to do with himself, thinking he could finally take this time and cool down and rest his body after being subjected to hard work in the hot sun, he laid down on the couch, seeing Rocky doing the same thing with his stomach against the cushions.
"Guys, I see something" Rubble called over, Rocky and Chase looked over to just a few feet away from the front door was a window at each side, at one side leaning up against the window sill was the British bulldog, up his hind legs peaking out from the window into the front of the house. "Rubble, Dixon said not to look obvious. You dont think a bulldog looking out of a window counts as obvious to you?" Rocky seemed frustrated, already on his paws and getting ready to pull back Rubble from the window. "Just look" Rubble urged, Chase's curiosity was peaked as well as he saw Rocky peaking from the side out the window, barely letting his face be seen, but just enough to see.
"Whats going on out there?" Chase asked, coming up on the other side to do the same thing Rocky was doing. Peaking out just enough for his snout not to poke out and be obvious like Dixon warned, but just enough to see. Outside, The three saw Dixon and Dixie both standing side by side as they both stared down the dirt road that lead up to them, on the dirt road in came three small white vehicles and one black SUV, appearing to be white vans that came at a moderate speed down the wide dirt path that lead to the homestead. The first vehicle of the four parked just a few feet away from Dixon and Dixie and they're crates of crops. The dust plowed into their face as the vehicles came to an abrupt stop.
Dixie and Dixon both coughed the dust from their system, their eyes squinted as they both saw they were just mere inches away from their demise, their bodies just inches away from the hood of the black SUV. Dixie and Dixon looked at each other with worried eyes, it didnt seem like they were all too worried about being struck down by the car, but as to who was inside. The driver of the SUV, a male cat stepping out as he ran over to the backseat door of the SUV, it was clear he was the driver, opening the door for the real cat of importance. Once he had opened the door, out came a black cat, female, and looking sweet and regal. It was Susanna.
Susanna, the mayor's sister, stalked over to the two farmer siblings, both looked concerned and a bit shaken as she fixed her gaze on both of them. Behind Susanna were more cats that must have been in the white vans, they looked a bit dirty and scuffed, hard cats for hard work. Susanna didnt speak, she only stared as she looked away from the two siblings and at the crates and bags of crops that they stood beside.
"This is it?" Susanna asked, she seemed annoyed and not impressed. As if out of all the times she had come for the crops, this was probably the worst one. "Susanna we told you last month about the weather a-and the climate and all the coyotes and foxes running around. I-Its been hard to maintain a good amount of crops like usual" Dixon tried to explain, already knowing that this month's result werent going to be up to par with Susanna's expectations.
Susanna had always managed to keep up a persona of being happy and down to earth like most of the folks in the county, however it seemed when she was away from prying eyes and cameras, she was a more cold and stern cat that didnt appreciate backtalk or less for excuses that threatened her business.
"and I remember telling you to sort it out, but it looks like you both have shit for brains. When I have a problem, I find a work around, not sit around with my paw up ass waiting for some miracle to fall out of the sky" Susanna broke off as she continued on she foul mouthed shouting spree, certain not the sweetheart everyone knew her as. "B-But, how would we change the weather?" Dixie asked, bringing up fair argument to her own, without proper weather conditions there's nothing much Dixie and Dixon could have done.
"Do you take me for a furbrained fool, I know both of you have crates filled with surplus crops that you stash away for 'special occasions'" Susanna pointed out. "Susanna I-Im sorry, but we cant pull from that stash, We only use it in case of floods, or droughts, or families that had been hit by natural disasters, Its an emergency stash" Dixon replied, clearly both siblings were unhappy that Susanna would even be interested in tapping into their stash of emergency crops.
"I have to run a business, If I dont receive what I ask for when I ask for it, I will go under and I will not allow that to happen. You can restock your stash of 'emergency crops' when the next harvest comes, I however, cant wait that long" She retorted, she had already become closed minded to their opposition as she turned away from them, turning to the cats behind her and flicking her tail toward a barn that was just a short distance away. "Of course I will be taking your little 'offerings' as well" She stated, as if rubbing salt into the wound.
Dixie and Dixon looked visibly upset and they looked as if they had been betrayed, they never once smiled when Susanna and her group had step paw on the property, knowing this was a common occurrence of the black cat's bullying to get what she wanted. Susanna eyed the two of them, looking at their fur and noticing a strange detail about them, they were almost clean.
"Hmmm" She hummed. "You both must have worked quite hard this morning to get all of these crates out here, in the hot sun. Strange how you both dont seem to have a lot of dust, dirt, or sweat on you. Its not like you two...had someone else to do your work for you?" Susanna smirked, seeing both Dixie and Dixon both gave a sharp shiver of fear.
"Just a coincidence I'm sure, after a bunch of dogs had gotten loose from the County Prison. It wouldnt take much of a hastle to take a few in and let them give you a hand around the farm" She conspired in her head, unbeknownst to her that she had been mostly right. Dixie and Dixon didnt say nothing just as Susanna herself began to laugh, as if she had told a joke. Both the feline siblings awkwardly smiled in response and gave half heart forced bursts of laughter, as if they too shared in the joke. "That would be something, wouldn't it Dixon, us taking in Dogs" Dixie continued to joke.
"Uh huh, especially harboring dogs would be illegal, as the law says. We would definitely think twice at letting dogs stay on our land, we would call the Sheriff's Department right away" Dixon stated, getting a nod from his sister. "Hmmm, I'm sure" Susanna replied, instantly her smile turning back to the cruel looking frown she once had, looking over to seeing her cats hauling box after box of crops. Dixie and Dixon could only watch as their hard earn stock of crops they had intentioned to be under only in dire circumstances, where now off to be chopped up and served to cats who were already getting fat off of a surplus.
"Listen now and Listen good, I will be returning next week, Same time sharp. This time I want livestock, I want chickens, cows, pigs, and goats too. Each 15, loaded up and ready to go" Susanna ordered for her next pickup, now requesting live animals as she turned tail and slowly walked away from the two. Dixie and Dixon couldnt believe it, 15 of each animal was too much for them to loose. Dixon was the first to put his paw down and approach Susanna.
"Susanna, we cant do that. We wouldnt be able to produce as much milk from the cows we were to be left with, and eggs from the chickens, and goat cheese from the-" Dixon had continued drawing close to Susanna, The white and brown patched cat was almost close enough to touch Susanna just as she had suddenly spun around, lashing a single unsheathed claw across Dixon's face. Dixon fell back, stunned that he had been hit so fast and so sudden.
"Dixon, Are you okay?!" Dixie ran over to her brother, her head bowed to her brother and her paws holding Dixon's head up from touching the ground, with Dixon's white fur, it was easy to see the damage. There was blood already trickling down from his face. Susanna's expression didnt change, instead whipping the blood from her paws onto the dirt. Dixie looked up, her face furious and her fur bristled with rage. "Whats wrong with you, You take advantage of what we have and then attack my brother, I'll-" Dixie could only think of one lawful course of action to take, until Susanna had stopped her.
"Call the Sheriff's Department? Have me Arrested?" She had already read the white and beige coloured cat's mind as she trotted toward the both of them, Dixon now pressing his paw against his wound but still laying with his back on the ground and his sister over him. "Go ahead, call them. So when they get here, they can find and arrest the mutts that have been helping you. Oh yes, I knew, I can smell them. Their scent, that rancid smell of canine off the both of you. I'm willing to keep it a secret from the Sheriff himself for sake of business. Good day to both of you" She concluded, turning her tail finally to walk away. All the crates and bags of crops were now gone, the vehicles soon reversed off, kicking up dust.
Rocky, Rubble, and Chase both watched from the house window as the vehicle became smaller by perspective until they were out of sight. Afterwards, All three friends bolted out of the front door, rushing over to Dixon who was now getting back on his paws, but being huddled by his sister still, pressing a paw against the blood riddled wound on his cheek. "I'm fine, I'll just let it heal up itself" Dixon tried to reassure his sister, but she wasnt having it.
"No you're not, Chase can you go and fetch the first aid kit, Its underneath the sink in the kitchen" Dixie asked, Chase nodded without a second thought, running back into the house to fetch what she had asked for. "Who was that?" Rubble asked. "I'll explain it all later" Dixie promised as they all stepped back into the farm house for them to help Dixon mend his newly received wound.