The mansion almost seemed to glare at Alyssa and Jack as the jeep pulled into the front garden, stopping beside the running fountain. The dark of night coloured the white brick a charcoal black. Tall twin windows glowered orange above the maw that was the mahogany double doors, already open and inviting them in.
The zip ties didn't just hold their paws; a second zip tie sat tight around their waists, linking with the first and holding their arms to their backs.
NEST escorted them around the fountain and straight into the entrance hall. Alyssa did not fail to notice the condition of the wooden floorboard or the crimson wallpaper. Rather pristine for a place that had been abandoned for over two decades.
They were directed left, entering a wide hallway smothered in portraits. Alyssa expected the door they approached to be a guestroom, or a closet refashioned into a cell. Instead they found themselves in a study, the room overly large for its purpose. Two chairs stood in the centre of the room, facing the black and gold executive desk. Alyssa and Jack were set in each one and bound to them with a third zip tie. The NEST agents left without a word, locking the door behind them.
Neither of them spoke at first. What could they talk about that was even remotely productive to their situation?
"Well, bollocks." Alyssa muttered.
"I wonder whose office this is." Jack's whole face dripped sarcasm, but at least his nose wasn't dripping blood anymore.
Alyssa had to smile at how the blood looked on his face. "You look nice. Well groomed."
Jack wiggled his nose and eyed the sore spot above her eyebrow. "You don't look too scuffed up yourself."
"Ha, ha."
"No, I'm serious. The way you got thrown into that steering wheel, I thought-"
"The steering wheel? What about you when you-"
"Ok, let's not do this." Jack said sharply. He wriggled his nose again. "Good grief, the blood is drying. So irritating."
"I'll say. You look like a stripy dictator. It's endearing."
Jack scowled. "Really? You're going there? You of all mammals?"
"I could have just called you cute."
Jack looked away. "I've been trained not to respond to that."
"The ZIA has a training course for how to not have a hissy fit over the C word?"
"I said we weren't doing this."
"You started it, Jack."
Jack sighed. "Tale as old as time."
Alyssa turned slightly in her seat. The zip tie pulled at her in protest. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Jack's head fell back against the chair. Alyssa noticed his paws inching toward his tail. The razor lay tucked in that little tuft where he'd put it back, fortunately before the shock of the ship hitting the coast had incapacitated him. Just like before, the trick was finding the opportune moment to use it.
"Every time I try to be professional, you start being irritating. Do you perform all your interrogations like this?"
"This isn't an interrogation; it's called lightening the mood."
"Why start with a false compliment?"
"How is it false? It's a nice moustache."
"Just say what's on your mind. They'll be back any moment."
Alyssa huffed. At least Winters was no longer around to make this harder. "You've been distant."
"Oh?"
"Since we met up, you've been keeping things professional."
"So, have you. As you should be."
"Yeah, but we've been too professional. We never talk anymore. Don't you trust me?"
Jack stopped searching for the razor. "What brought this on?"
"There's something we're not telling each other." She could feel it, the tension forming a transparent barrier between the chairs. She knew something. He knew something. The same something.
Jack's blue eyes lost some of their hard gleam. "Winters and I are not seeing other."
Alyssa tilted her head, momentarily stunned. "Are you taking the piss?"
"But she is related to Woolton and Rameses."
Alyssa smirked. "That's more like it."
"Did Honey tell you?"
"Nah. You did."
Jack scoffed. "Every damn time."
Alyssa felt her humour dissipate very quickly as familiar dark thoughts came to her. They'd haunted her since Slothfeld's death. Maybe even longer than that. She owed it to him to make them known. "Jack, I want to ask you something. What if… what if I still want to make them pay? What will you do?"
Jack seemed lost in his own thoughts. Whatever came to mind seemed to trouble him. "Depends what revenge you take, I guess."
Footsteps came too soon. The agents fell silent and straightened their backs against their chairs, bracing themselves. Whoever came down the corridor strode with brisk, heavy steps.
They heard an unlocking sound.
A pig gracefully opened the door and stepped through.
Alyssa had expected a suit, and she hadn't been disappointed. The pig's jacketless black outfit absorbed all light, except for the waistcoat where wine red thread had been stitched into a flowerless bramble pattern. He'd aged relatively well, wrinkles appearing only at the corner of his eyes and mouth. As for his eyes, they were those same smug eyes Alyssa had seen set in his daughter's face every time she graced the news. Alyssa had always hated that look on her face, and it pissed her off to see it again on this dickhead.
Let's see what you got, Theo.
Swineton paused in the doorway, taking in the sight of two of his enemies in the flesh. Two mammals stood on either side of him. They carried assault rifles capable of obliterating the fox and rabbit with a three-bullet burst.
He stepped into the room, alone, and closed the door on their faces.
"Did you have a nice cruise?" He paused. Neither of them answered. "Sorry about that hard landing. I did tell them to be careful with our VIP guest."
Alyssa and Jack's eyes followed his route across the oversized study to the desk. He opened one of the drawers and procured a bottle before closing it. The label identified it as a sherry. The corkscrew gleamed like a knife in his hoof. He took a glass from a smaller drawer, and when he tilted the bottle over the glass, red wine came out. The small drawer stayed open.
Alyssa resisted the urge to look at Jack. This wanker wasn't going to psych her out.
Swineton took a light sip and went to Jack first. He locked eyes with the rabbit and held the glass up to his muzzle. "It's more expensive than it looks." He said. "Go on."
Jack took the tiniest of sips. Swineton responded by tilting the glass up, rising the wine level until the fur beneath Jack's nose was completely damp. The pig lowered the glass and took out a handkerchief. Alyssa rolled her eyes when she saw the fancy embroidery.
Swineton paused and glanced at her out the corner of his eye. Alyssa waited defiantly for him to respond to her disrespect.
He turned his eyes back to Jack and dabbed at the fur under his muzzle, until both the sherry and the blood were wiped clean.
"Much better." He said.
Alyssa took a deep breath through her nose. The pig sauntered to her chair next. He held the glass to her own muzzle. The vixen took a taste. She'd play along, but he was an idiot if he thought this creepy performance would work on her. Her tongue detected spice and dried fruit. Swineton huffed and wet a corner of the handkerchief with the sherry. He put the wet corner to the sore spot on her head.
Alyssa clenched her teeth from the potent sting of alcohol on an open wound. "There, there." Swineton said. "We wouldn't want an infection to addle your brains now, would we?"
A treacherous tear underlined her eye, but she blinked it back before it could fall. Swineton's short strokes moved downward, cleaning some of her own blood. When he was done, he sucked some of the sherry and blood from the cloth, then he pocketed the handkerchief and sat down in his office chair.
He looked from one prisoner to the other and beamed. "Alcohol. So many uses, yet so many look down on it. Like you. You're murderers. Both of you. You've killed predators. Prey. Your own kind, even. But you've never killed without reason. You need orders first. You need permission. The blood on your hands has always served a higher purpose. My daughter was not much different. She bloodied her hands because I asked her to. And also… because she believed in the cause. She knew the risks, as did we all. She fought, and she died for it. And for that, I am so proud."
Alyssa held back a retort.
Swineton planted his red glass on the desk behind him. The chair creaked from the movement, a low, wounded sound.
"I assume you know who I am talking about."
"Tilda." Jack conceded.
"Which in turn means you know who I am?"
"The pig who ran two cities to the ground." Jack answered. Alyssa used that opportunity to look again his direction, to get a brief glance at his paws. They were fists. He had the razor in hand.
Swineton chuckled. He rested his arm along the length of the desk, above the open drawer. "Ok, I deserved that. In my defence, my father taught me that there is a fine line between business and government. He wasn't wrong, of course. Both exist to provide a service while at the same time applying an element of control. The difference that we failed to account for is that a business serves a fraction of the population. A government exists to serve everyone."
"Allegedly." Alyssa said.
Swineton eyed her. "You really are as wily as they say. But I'm not here to discuss politics. Do you know why I'm here? Why… you're here?"
"Not really." Jack said. "If you've been keeping tabs, you'd know that neither of us were even in the city when your daughter was killed."
"Yes, I do know."
"Then you'll also know that while we were under orders to recaprure Dr. Slothfeld and expose your operation, the Red Queen had ruined your plans long before either of us arrived."
"Yes, I heard. Miss Radames had truly earned her title that day." Swineton's smile widened as he said this. "My men acquired the reports, and I read them thoroughly. However, there are a few details I wanted to clarify before I decide my next steps."
"Why not have your men wring it out of us?" Alyssa spoke for the first time since he'd entered the room.
"I did. They questioned you aboard the ship, before they were interrupted. But now, I feel that while you're in my house, I should have the courtesy of finishing the questions myself."
Jack frowned. "Go on."
Swineton procured a recorder from the open drawer and set it on the desk. The drawer stayed open, and his arm still rested above it.
"I listened to the recording from the ship, and you claimed no knowledge of the Red Queen's whereabouts. Do you wish to change that statement?"
"Her location is still classified." Jack said bluntly.
"Agent Skyfall? Anything to report?"
"I've got no idea." Alyssa said coldly.
"Since it's clear that any further questions concerning Radames would be a waste of time, I will move on. Agent Skyefall, shall I remove your cuffs so you can have a drink?"
Alyssa blinked. How thick could one pig get? But then she remembered the gunmen just outside the door. They were in no position to exploit his 'stupidity', and his smile suggested he knew it. "Sure. I wouldn't mind a drink."
"Sherry?"
"Please."
She willed herself to stay still as the pig took out a knife from beneath his waistcoat. The blade gleamed like a mirror. He moved behind Alyssa and cut the ziptie with a brief tug. The knife pricked at her spine. She stayed in her seat while he returned to his desk and poured a second glass and handed it to her, and all the while she wondered why he didn't extend the same offer to Jack.
Swineton refilled his own glass. "Now, where were we?"
"You had some questions to ask us." Jack said.
"And I'd appreciate it if you'd answer truthfully."
Alyssa would make no such promises. She held the glass without drinking it.
Swineton went on, adjusting the recorder's position as he did so. "Now then, according to the reports, the Red Queen was the chief instigator of the Twilight Incident, but it was confirmed that she had outside help. How familiar are you with Liberum?"
"I heard the group advocated for carnivore rights, before they were charged with causing the Roarcadia meltdown and disbanded." Jack said.
"Why?"
"Because you treated them unfairly?"
"Why did they cause the meltdown?" Swinetown tapped the desk. "Perhaps that was too open a question. Can you tell me who founded Liberum?"
"Koobus Lupine?" Alyssa said,
"And who was he, before he betrayed our nation?"
"The first candidate for the Roarcadian Inclusion Initiative. Roarcadia's first wolf officer." Alyssa said.
"Yes. He passed with flying colours; I remember like it was yesterday. Bright eyed. Bushy tailed. Could fight like an animal. Are you also aware of the incident that led to his dismissal?"
Alyssa swallowed. "You accused him of killing a senator. Your old friend from college. The victim was… apparently… eaten."
Swineton looked down at the blood-red liquid in his glass. He swirled it in a smooth circle but didn't take a drink. Alyssa felt a twinge of unease in her gut.
"Liberum's secondary goal was proving you framed him." Alyssa went on. "They said on the news that you set him up right from the start. Then you did the same thing to Nick when you allowed his 'clinic' to open. Am I wrong?"
Swinetown finally took a drink. "Very quick, Agent Skyefall. Now, if you may answer some questions about his most recent activities. Agent Savage, I'm going to ask you to remain quiet. These questions are for your companion alone."
Alyssa and Jack traded glances.
"Lupine's last confirmed sighting was in Bunnyburrow. At the Redwood Estate to be precise, where a priceless Jagan codice was stolen. Can you confirm it was he who stole the artefact?"
"He stole a PDA that held photographs of the text." Alyssa said. "He probably stole the codice in case we missed a page."
"You saw him do this?"
"No. He made Jack and the others crash their car and stole the PDA."
"How do you think he knew where to intercept your friends?"
Alyssa paused. Took a deep breath. "He's a smart guy. You pretty much said it yourself."
"So, he was also smart enough to track you down to the motel you were staying at?"
"…. Yes."
"Why did he show up at the diner?"
"To tell us that he didn't kidnap Commissioner Elba. You did."
"He crawled out of the shadows just for that?"
"If there was another reason, he didn't mention it."
"What do you think he wants with the codice?"
"I don't know. We never got a chance to translate it."
Swineton motioned for her to take a drink. She obeyed.
"You paint a mysterious picture, Agent Skyefall." He said. "Some say wolves as a whole are mysterious. Others call them misunderstood. The rest just think they're dangerous."
"Pigs are dangerous, too." Alyssa replied.
"As are elephants. As are cape buffalo and rabbits. I mentioned before there is a fine line between business and politics. I'd say there is a fine line between predation and self-preservation. There is a neighbourhood, south east of the island, that once housed a rather conservative community. If that community still existed today, and one day, they found a gay mammal in their midst, how do you think they'd respond?"
"They'd run the mammal out of town." Alyssa said.
"And why would they do that?"
"Because they're bigots."
"Let's say this community consisted entirely of predators, what would you assume their motive was then?"
Alyssa frowned. "What?"
"Predators hunt to gain something. Prey hunt to destroy a threat. If either of them caught a gay mammal, they'd probably hunt it down and kill it. Their motives would differ, but the desired outcome would be the same. The mammal would be destroyed. The community would survive. But what if the motives weren't so black and white? What if it were the predator who sought to protect themselves, or the prey who sought satisfaction? Revenge, even? That is where the line blurs."
Alyssa didn't want to know where this was going.
"That was the lesson I learned when Zootopia was lost to me. Had I focused more on similarities than difference, I may not have lost two cities. I know I made many mistakes with them. But I learned from them. Which brings me back to the reason you're here."
Alyssa felt so tense her body seemed fused to the chair she sat on.
His smile slowly flattened into a thin line. "Lupine may be a dangerous mammal, but he is no lone wolf. He aids other mammals aligned with his goals and seeks aid from them in return. He'd never pose a threat to me, otherwise."
"You'd be surprised how much damage one mammal can do." Alyssa's tongue felt thick.
"You'd know more than anyone." Swineton's eyes bored into hers. His hoof slid into the open drawer. "You're also more useful to me than Agent Savage here. He may not have played a direct hand in my daughters death. But he still ruined any chance I had of handling Radames discreetly."
Alyssa felt the blood drain from her entire upper body as he pulled out an engraved pistol and aimed it at Jack's chest. The rabbit glared daggers and showed no fear of death.
"Pragmatism dictates that I shoot him, here and now, before he uses that razor to cut his bonds and then lose half his body mass trying to use that razor on me. Unless there is more to Lupine's plans than you're telling me, in which case I'll be more than happy to keep him alive until I find more questions to ask him."
Alyssa felt the agonising ache of defeat settle in her. She never wanted Jack to find out. Not like this.
Swineton never took his eyes off of her, even as the gun focused unwaveringly on the bewildered Jack.
"You've been in contact with Neo Liberum, have you not?"
"… Yes."
Alyssa hung her head, unable to look at Jack. She couldn't bring herself to see the look on his face.
"He's heading for my island right now, isn't he?"
"… He is."
"Tell me everything I don't know."