FSE

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Chapter 21

At first, I don't know how I'll catch up, not with Eddie having such an impressive lead on me. But the alleyways behind the high walls of the club and its surrounding buildings are dark and quiet. Every unknown sound that travels between them reverberates loudly. Eddie has already made his first mistake of the chase: don't wear anything that can be tracked. And the ermine loves his jewelry. Not only is that much gold, silver, and platinum is heavy, it's, more specifically, noisy. So all I have to do is follow the 'jingle, jangle, jingle' of the fleeing pawn shop.

I gun down the narrow alley and then cut to my right once I hear the sounds growing louder, nearer. I follow it past puddles of collected water, improperly disposed trash, and the crumbling dilapidation of the city until I wash out into a wide, poorly-lit courtyard and stumble to a stop. My ears tense as the tingling sound appears to come from every direction. I wish I had Jackie's paws right now, the clack of my own hooves drowns out my metaphorical scent trail. But in the ensuing silence, my tall ears home in on the sound. Over the usual orchestra of the night, the sound of my prey tickles my ears and for a moment I feel like a predator.

Loud huffing and the clanking of heavy chains against themselves. I also hear the low, climbing roar of engines along the avenue and wonder if Jackie is close at hand, tightening the noose around Eddie's lanky neck. Finally pinpointing the sound from one of the exits opposite me across the cardboard and filth-littered courtyard, I make my choice and dash forward. I shoulder through a chain-link fence door there that slams shut behind me with a clatter, no doubt alerting the perp, and come to a halt at a crossroad just thirty feet ahead.

Peering down to my right, my eyes meet the terrified stare of a stoat dressed like a traffic cone. Eddie's ears flatten and his jaw drops open, his collar blinking green and then a slow yellow, as he suddenly realizes that I'm ready to fall upon him, that his lead has vanished. He stumbles backwards, almost tripping over his clothes and own paws, while he holds his arms wide. I hear him gasp before he shakes his head in disbelief.

"No fucking way!" he cries out, distraught.

"Stop where you are!" I command him. "We just need some answers!"

"No fucking way!" he repeats himself, though in a much more frustrated tone.

Then he turns and speeds towards the end of the alleyway, where the lamp-lit street beckons. I don't know why I bothered to yell out. Old habits, I guess. Groaning, I let my tail fall and break into an all-out sprint to catch up to him. Eddie throws over a few trashcans and even a bicycle, anything to add to the distance between us. But doing so garners him no favors. I leap over the trashcans and sullied boxes effortlessly as the perp hops the sidewalk and bolts into the street.

The only reason I throw on the brakes when I exit the alleyway is out of self-preservation. A car whirs by in front of me, horn blaring, as the ermine rolls into the median, his back end barely avoiding an unplanned shaving. A pickup's wheels squeal as it swerves to avoid the suicidal creature that has thrown himself to the mercy of traffic. But as quickly as Eddie is down, he's up again, chains clinking, and dirty orange jacket heaving with his chest. Seeing him adding distance, stupidly, I follow him into the gauntlet.

Eddie scuttles up onto the sidewalk on the other side and stumbles back against a brick wall just as I make it halfway. A 24-foot box truck's brakes hiss as its air-horn blasts a deadly warning to my left. Like the proverbial deer in headlights now made real, I roll forward to avoid it, narrowly missing my own execution. The truck mounts the curb on the other side and promptly comes to a halt. And while the driver rolls the window down and tosses abuse, I don't stop to apologize. I have more important things to attend to.

The ermine peers, horrified, over his shoulder as he leans against that wall. Then he sneers when he realizes the traffic isn't halting his pursuer. So he does the only sane thing he can: put more distance between us. This time he chooses to cut to the right and dash toward the propped-open door of a 24-hour laundromat. I round two mailboxes just atop the curb and follow his footsteps. My hooves clack up the sidewalk as the ermine cuts in front of a cow, yanking a hamper of laundry from her arms. She squeals and pirouettes off the curb, taken by surprise and sending negligee and intimates flying.

"I'm so sorry, ma'am!" I cry out as I leap her laundry.

I don't think she even sees me, her eyes look so dazed. As I'm about to cut into the laundromat, a rumbling, rouge rocket blurs by to my right and I look over just in time to see my Chrysalis's blush-red tail lights flicker as it makes a hard turn right at the end of the block. It's Jackie. I hope he knows what he's doing, that he's being safe. Someone yells just as I cross the threshold to tail my quarry into the tile-floored business, causing me to stop and pant, ears perked. Bodies stand erect like bowling pins, eyes filled with shock, staring at the creature running through their midst.

Eddie has mounted the line of commercial washers in the center and is kicking off anything and everything to create obstacles in his wake. He doesn't seem to care if it's laundry, bags, boxes of soap powder, or even other animals. I mutter a few apologies as I push past a pig dressed only in his underwear and a wife beater near the first. His face is covered in white powder, a starkly familiar sight, and he hangs onto the open door of the machine to keep from tumbling over. A few others cry and point at the orange creamsicle blur making a beeline for the back door.

A ewe topples over near the back as the stoat drags her onto the floor, sending a fresh cry through the small room. Then at the very back corner, an emergency exit door thrusts open into darkness as Eddie intends to take our chase into the next alleyway. As I round the corner on the last laundry machine, I spring over the dazed sheep and slow to try to explain to everyone. Shaking my hands in front of me, I laugh anxiously.

"It's ok; I'm a police officer, go back to your business!" I assure other patrons who watch on with awestruck gapes.

I chuckle again and slow to try to make a point by holding my hands up, but realize I put my equipment away. And I'm definitely not in uniform, so I get the distinct feeling they don't believe me. Or even that they care. So I just ignore it. A few of them will believe me, while the rest will just have a very interesting story they'll gleefully tell their coworkers tomorrow and won't really be able to prove. Stepping backwards, I catch the emergency door before the metal arm can pull it shut again and resume the pursuit. Pausing, I look about as my eyes slowly adjust to the change of light.

Eddie isn't visible for a moment until the door behind me closes, but then I hear something crash and look left up the alley just in time to see a trashcan tumble over near the far corner of the building across the alleyway. It rolls around, sending an aluminum-glinted glare in my direction. Grunting loudly, I press on and dig for my badge and gun, knowing I'll need them soon. This chase should be over any minute, the net is closing around him. Not paying attention to what's going on in front of me, I make my first mistake.

As I round the corner, vaulting the gleaming silver receptacle effortlessly, something catches my leg, something hard. Letting out a cry, I hit the ground with a thud and roll over, dirtying myself. Looking up, I see Eddie towering over me with a bent pipe in his hand. At first he sneers, thinking he's gotten the upper hand and he's ready to bash my brains in. But the moment the butt of my tranquilizer gun appears from inside my jacket, he reconsiders. That confident sneer melts away and a glimmer of fear trickles into his eyes.

My legs burn where he nailed me, just below the knees, and my tail whips fitfully around behind me. And even though I'm in pain, even though I'm female and thin, Eddie isn't this stupid. The metal pipe promptly hits the concrete and he flees, turning his back on me. That's his second, nay, third big mistake tonight. Maybe more, I've lost count with this scumbag. Poised, fighting through the pain, I raise the gun and aim it at him. But instead of pulling the trigger, I give him one last chance.

"Stay where you are, Eddie!" I cry out. "Don't make this worse on yourself!"

"Fuck you, you prey cop!" he curtly replies and begins to laugh with premature victory. "And fuck your preyo partner, too!"

I clench my jaw as he nears the end of the alley, but pause as my ears detect the loud cry of a heavy engine roaring nearer. Eddie's confident and mocking laughter is suddenly drowned out by the squeal of tires. Then, as if preordained, Eddie sprints out of the alley and rushes swiftly into the waiting side of a wide, heavy, red metal wall that magically appears in the street. My arm slumps to the ground, weighed down by my gun. Eddie groans in a heap on the ground, having run full force into the door of my car.

Jackie opens the door as the engine sputters and steps out on the other side, slamming it shut behind him. Weakly, I climb to my hooves and limp forward. I tuck my gun away as Jackie appears and drags the ermine from the ground before he can put himself back together. He lifts Eddie by the scruff of that frilly blouse he wears beneath that godawful jacket and slams him into the door, deepening the dent he created. Even though I'm angry, maybe even hateful, I don't want Jackie roughing him up. Although, I do admit seeing a bit of righteous vengeance sends a refreshing chill through my body.

"Look who I found, Officer," Jackie announces with a smile as I exit the alleyway.

"You should've just stopped when you had the chance," I reproach Eddie as he opens his eyes and looks to us. "Fleeing an arrest, assaulting a police officer, on top of everything else I've got you on? That's a hard rap to beat."

Eddie just moans, still stunned from his unforeseen collision. I approach Jackie and put my arm on his shoulder to support myself, feeling a bit of comforting warmth. I rub my legs and feel for any breaks, but don't find any. While I'm sure I'll be massaging bruises out tomorrow morning, I'll live. Jackie looks over to me and folds his ears back. He's wiped most of the powder off of his person, but, he still looks like a naughty puppy who got into the flour bag in the pantry.

"Are you ok, Jane?" he asks, genuinely worried.

"Yeah," I nod, "he caught me with a pipe is all. He got lucky."

"Story of his life," Jackie replies with a chuckle.

"F-fuh . . . fuck you," Eddie mumbles, mouth full of marbles.

Jackie lifts the ermine and slams him into the car again. Eddie gasps and wheezes, the wind knocked out of his short form. Jackie's collar beeps yellow and I squeeze his shoulder to keep him from escalating. His eyes widen from their anger-filled slits and his collar returns to a serene green once more. I step forward and look directly at Eddie. Dazed, his eyes swirl around before meeting mine. Half of me expects him to hock a loogie directly in my face, but he's docile now. His species probably isn't used to fighting anything bigger than them, just running and hoping for the best.

"Now we're gonna play this by my rules, ok, Eddie?" I inform him sternly. "Where are the drugs coming from?"

Eddie sneers and then tells me through clenched teeth, "Fuck you."

"Wrong answer," I tell him.

Jackie rears his right hand back to punch him, but I intercept it when I conjure a better idea. It's scuzzy, but, I'd rather that then have to rough up a suspect, whether he ran or not. I don't want to sink to that level. What Jackie did, well, I'll ignore. He isn't a cop, after all, and I'm not technically on duty. Jackie looks over, confused, and I meet his gaze with a smirk. Intrigued, he lowers his fist and cocks his head to the side, something I've never witnessed him do. It's kind of cute.

"I don't want to beat him, that's too easy. And he might just lie anyways. So, I've got an idea. What's your heartrate?" I ask him.

"I rest under 100. Why?" he asks.

"What about a stoat?" I continue to question. "What's his heart rate?"

"A lot more than mine, probably. I wasn't great at science in school," Jackie replies.

"Well, maybe we don't have to beat him," I then say with a bit of an unaccustomed, sadistic smile. "We can just play a simple little game instead."

Eddie turns his head towards me and his eyes widen as he mentally catches up with what I want to do. His body, once limp, now begins to grow taut once more. His orange suit, sullied from taking a tumble on the ground, shines in the yellow light cast from the streetlamp above. I dig into my pocket and find the little key every police officer in the city has: for predator collars. One that right now blinks a quick yellow on Eddie's neck, chirping a stern warning. It glimmers in the light and Eddie coughs at the sight.

"How about we take your collars off," I tell the both of them. "Then I'll make the straps equal and toss them about behind my back and put one on you, Eddie. Maybe you'll get lucky and get yours. And maybe you won't."

"Fuck you, you bitch! You don't have the balls!" Eddie curses, having now fully regained his wits.

"Oh, really?" I question him slyly.

I lean forward and insert the key into Jackie's collar and twist it until it clicks off. The green light begins to blink as I gently slide it from under his muzzle. As I do so, Jackie actually sighs a little bit and his tail gives a bit of a wag. Eddie watches on with astonishment and then reaches up to Jackie's hand to try to free himself. It looks like he can't believe what's going on, like he's living a nightmare. Jackie has none of it and sharply punches the ermine directly in the gut, making him gag and go limp, his legs kicking and tail wagging.

His eyes, watering from the punch, watch me as I approach. When the key nears his collar, he gasps several times and then yips loudly, a sound I didn't know his species could make.

"Ok, ok, you got me!" Eddie cries and thrusts his arms directly towards me. "Jesus Capybara, I don't wanna go out that way! Just calm down, ok? Let's talk, huh?"

I pause and then stand with arms akimbo, though I don't put the collar or key away as a persistent reminder. Jackie chuckles and lowers the grease ball to the ground. He gasps several times and then dusts himself off. Despite being very unhappy with his situation, he doesn't make any motions that suggest he'll bolt. Finally able to take in my surroundings, I make sure nobody has been watching us and find the street deserted. Nothing but small shops and a few row homes here and there. Other than the occasional car, there is no traffic, on the street or otherwise.

"Alright, let's start at the beginning. Who sold you the drugs you sold to Jacob Catwright?" Jackie demands.

"I didn't sell no drugs to that cat," Eddie replies plainly.

Jackie makes a motion to grab and punch him again, but Eddie throws his arms up in defense.

"Whoa, whoa, I ain't lying!" he cries out in anticipation of punishment. "I never sold the drugs to that cat! And that wolf? I didn't sell drugs to him, either!"

Jackie lowers his arms and Eddie calms down. He gasps a few times and then looks to me, the fight completely gone from his eyes. I think he's telling the truth, for once.

"But I did know them," he begins to explain.

My brow rises as my eyes widen. We're finally getting somewhere. I feel my ears twitch atop my head as I look to the ermine with subtle disbelief mixed with anticipation. Eddie seems to pick up on it and sighs loudly. Then he begins to relax by leaning against the door of my car and sinking his hands into his pants pockets.

"That cat, Catwright?" Eddie begins, his eyes looking at the pavement. "I heard about him going nutso, killing that prey girl. Shook me, sure. It's horrible when shit like that happens, especially with all those deaths happening. But I never sold him the drugs. It was the other way around. He sold them to me."

It almost feels like my ears will drop off, they fly back so hard.

"W-what?" I stutter with disbelief.

Glancing over to Jackie, I see the same reaction fleet across his eyes.

"Ok, maybe not sold. He's a courier, or was," Eddie says and shrugs his shoulders. "I told you the truth when I said I never saw my supplier. They only ever sent uniformed couriers that would come every Friday. The leopard, Catwright, he was the last one that would bring me the Nip supply. He only did it once, though. For about four months, it was this wolf. Howie, you said? Yeah, he was my regular. Always professional, always discreet in one of them white boxes they wrap nice stuff in."

"He was a courier? And Catwright dropped off the drugs two nights ago?" I ask him.

"Yeah, it was supposed to be my big night. I ordered three times what I usually sell because of how popular the drug became. When he came, he pulled it from his pocket," Eddie replies with a nod of his head. "Must've had a hole in the bag, he was missing about an ounce. And I don't know what happened to the wolf. I saw him last week and he was fine. He was nice, smart, from the old neighborhood. Like I said, he was always professional and showed up in his uniform like he was supposed to. The cat didn't. I don't think he was used to doing that, seemed jumpy, dangerous. Maybe he was using. Would've explained the missing Nip."

Yeah, it definitely would.

"Catwright only delivered once?" Jackie asks. "What happened to the wolf?"

Eddie leans back against the car and then crosses his arms.

"I said I don't know! You deaf!?" Eddie snaps. "Last time I saw him, he was fine! Although, he sounded worried. Maybe he was getting tired of running drugs."

"What kind of uniform?" I interject, trying to get him back on track.

"The one the front business animals wore," Eddie explains, turning his eyes back to me. "It was blue and white, with a little logo on the left breast. Some kind of dumb shit, matched the van he always drove around in. I think they used it to move around the city without being suspected and whatnot."

I lean forward at this bit of information. Something familiar leaps from the back of my mind, but I need to hear him say it. I need to know where. Eddie just sighs and looks down towards the ground. Slowly, he pulls a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and bums one. But he never pulls a lighter, he just pats at his pocket, trying to buy himself time. Soon, the silence becomes too heavy to bear, so I press him.

"What was the company? How long has this been going on?" I demand.

He turns his head away from mine, as if my breath stinks, and sneers. The cigarette bobs up and down on his lips, the dirt brown contrasting against the low quality dye job he obviously gave himself. Then he turns his eyes back towards me and thrusts a ring-covered finger in my direction.

"Let a guy think, will ya?" Eddie spits and finally pulls a lighter, a gold one to match his social mask. "I guess the suppliers changed about four months ago. I used to work a front for this bear outta Baron Bay, selling some good stuff. Don't think it was Rodionovich, but who knows? But suddenly this guy shows up, don't know what species, didn't get a good look at him. Tells me my guy sold his stake and I'd get this new blue stuff from now on. I wasn't sure, but it was . . . good. And the money started rolling in. The preds couldn't get enough of it! Hell, even the prey liked it! Some of the users seemed farther gone than usual, but they didn't go insane. Then again, some of them just didn't come back. Hey, price of business. I did hear about what happened uptown, and that hyena that killed his roommate and died? He bought from me. But the money was so good that--"

"You didn't ask any questions," Jackie concludes.

The lighter clicks open and then births a flame. The cigarette glows a hellish red before Eddie snaps shut the lighter and deposits it again into his suit, like a gold coin into a purse. Then he clenches his jaw before spouting smoke out his nose, not appreciating being cut off. His fingers reach up and take the cigarette away before he sighs once more.

"I picked up dead drops, until it got regular. Then the wolf showed up with the delivery. Always delivered in that white box with the wrapped flowers, always came in that white van with the blue print," Eddie says and rubs the back of his neck.

Just say it already. We're racing the clock, goddamnit!

"What was the company, Eddie?" Jackie asks, his voice impatient. "We have shit to do and the clock is still ticking."

"Ok, ok," Eddie says before sucking on the cigarette once more. "It was the Paw Print Flower Company. You see those vans all over town, yeah, running gifts, messages, and shit? Their main location is down in the Red District, right on the waterfront. I know that's where he was coming from." Then he adds when he sees that we finally got what we wanted from him. "Just don't tell those fucks where you got this information. Whoever they are, they play for keeps and I'd like to keep my fur."

Eddie then gives me this look that says 'whoever they are, they're horrifying' especially if they were able to chase the mafia out. I tap my hoof and look to him, feeling both relieved and annoyed. I've spent more than enough time the presence of this pile of filth. With another plume of smoke escaping from his mouth filled with yellow teeth, the body of the cigarette now wasted away to a stump, Eddie just rustles his clothes, dusting them off, and eyes the empty street around us.

Then he demands, "Can I go now?"

"Yeah, get out of here," I tell him, satisfied, though my legs ache for justice.

But he doesn't get too far. Before he can even show me that ratty tail of his, Jackie has reached out and grabbed his shoulders. The ermine gasps, the cigarette hitting the sidewalk with a thud barely audible above the natural ambience of the city. Next, he's being picked up and slammed against my car again, creating more dents I know I'll have to bang out later. Eddie squirms around as Jackie holds him close, and I just let him. I guess this is revenge enough.

"Hey, what's the big deal?" Eddie cries out, taken by surprise.

"Hold it, Eddie, she might be mollified, but we still have business," he explains. "And I think now would be a real good time to finish it. Something tells me that the moment you leave my sight, nobody in this city is going to find you for quite some time. So, let's settle accounts."

Eddie snarls as Jackie pulls one of his arms out and away from his form and thrusts it against the window. Then he pries three gold rings with a variety of inset jewels from his fingers. Despite being way too small for him to wear, he examines them in the light and then gives them a toss into the air. When he catches them in his palm, they jingle and clatter.

Jackie smiles and then loosens his grip. The ermine slips to the ground like a limp noodle and then rubs his sore fingers. He throws daggers with his eyes to his acquaintance and then looks to me accusingly.

"You're just gonna let him shake me down? Some cop you are. I hope whoever you're chasing does you right!" Eddie declares angrily. "Fuckity bye!"

Without another sound, he rolls over and pushes himself up into a run. We both watch as our very dissatisfied informant dashes up the street, appearing and disappearing as he plunges through the islands of light cast by the streetlamps above. It's not like I'm expecting to rely on him again anytime soon. And just like that, Eddie's gone. I look to Jackie, who meets my gaze with a sort of 'I'm sorry, don't be angry' puppy dog look. At that, I can't be angry, not with my shins aching like they are.

"Are you happy?" I ask him, somewhat playfully.

"Very," he replies. "What about you? You ok?"

"Yeah," I tell him confidently. "But we should get going. You know where this place is?"

He nods his head and then begins to step backwards, towards the boot of my car.

Then he kindly tells me, "Yeah. Hop in, I'll drive. Try to relax."