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Chapter 3

The days passed more quickly as they came and Mutt began to wonder if there was anything else he was allowed to do. He decided to ask the buck when he brought lunch one day, but instead the buck came to let him out. He took the fox back to the gate to meet Goldsmith once more.

This time Mutt noticed that instead of the sadistic panther, there was a smiling vixen at the gate.

"Hope we don't have to see you again," she smiled.

Mutt smiled in return and followed the cat up the stairs, looking back to smile again to the friendly officer.

Goldsmith led Mutt down a hall and into a room where he left him. Mutt looked around the room and saw a table with four chairs, a bench stretching along one of the walls and another door on the other side of the room. The floor was tiled in white and the walls were painted a matching white. Looking up, he noticed a small camera posted visibly, but securely in a corner, near the ceiling. Mutt sat down at the table and soon after, the door opened again for a bovine and a dingo to enter, both cuffed.

The dingo noticed Mutt's free paws and turned quickly back to the door before it closed, "Hey! Why ain't he cuffed? Take mine off, too."

"Not a chance, Grunt," came the voice from the other side.

"M'name's Gunt. Gunt!" The dog shouted back then turned and muttered as the door closed, "Lousy, stupid Guard, don' know nuthin' and can't think f'shit." He then turned back to the fox at the table with a smile and held out his cuffed wrists, "Hey buddy, wanna 'elp me wit' these things?"

Mutt looked back at him with a little fear and confusion, "Um, Are they supposed to come off?"

"Absolutely," smiled the bull that had sat down quietly at the table. He then turned his wrists and slimmed his hands to let the cuffs slide off and land on the table. Raising his hands freely, he smirked back at the fox.

The dingo jibbered enthusiastically, "Yeah, that's the trick, but I ain't got the thick wrists that he got. Just stick oner yer little claws in this 'ole 'ere and twist the latch. Ain't nuthin' to it. Com'on."

"Then what do they put them on for?" Mutt asked.

"So they'll feel safer," the bull replied.

Mutt looked back at the dingo curiously.

"Com'on. Jus' one li'l twitch an' that's it," the dog pleaded.

"Okay." Mutt reached up to try removing the cuffs.

Just then, the door opened and the dingo cursed. The bull discretely slipped his cuffs back on as the two officers entered the room.

The tabby in front checked the papers he had in his paws, "So, we have Gunt Willis, Jonah Gable and Mutt." He looked up at the fox, "I'm guessing you're Mutt, since you're the one with no cuffs. Sorry, but we'll have to do something about that for this trip."

The rabbit behind him walked around with some cuffs and put them on Mutt despite his whimper.

"Well, we've got a small group today, but that won't make any difference. Let's head out to the van and get things moving."

The rabbit opened the other door and invited Mutt into a small hall with just another door. He clipped a small chain to Mutt's cuffs and opened the next door, which led outside.

It was raining, but there was a roof overhead. Mutt could smell the fresh rain and smiled. He could not remember how long he had been in that cell.

The rabbit led him to a gray van and opened the side door. He directed the fox into the first seat and clipped the chain on his cuffs to a bar in front of it, then shut the door.

Mutt waited patiently in the van. There were three sections behind the driver, each separated by a metal grid. Two of the sections faced forward and the last one faced the back door.

After a while the door opened again and the dingo climbed in the second section. The officer clipped the chain on his cuffs to the bar in front of his seat and shut the door again.

A moment later the back door opened and the bull climbed in. After shutting the back door, the rabbit and cat got in the front and the cat turned back before starting.

"We're not going to have any problems, are we?"

The dingo griped, "I gotta piss."

The cat shot back, "Save it till we get there," and turned around to start the van.

The trip was fairly short, but then they sat in the van for about as much time while the cat checked the papers in. When he came back, two more officers were with him and they escorted all three prisoners into a large building. They continued through two more doors; then were put into separate rooms.

Mutt's room was small, but had a bench along the wall and a toilet similar to the one in his cell. He sat down to wait. A few hours later, a slot in the door opened and a tray was pushed through. Mutt took the tray and ate the meal, still wearing the cuffs, but glad they did not put the muzzle on him again. After eating, he put the tray back through the slot and lay down on the bench.

Mutt was awakened by the door opening and a skunk beckoning him out, "Come on. Rise and shine. Time for court."

Mutt got up and followed the skunk down the hallway, up some stairs and through a fancy door. On the other side of the door was a large room with lots of people sitting on one side, a few fancily dressed individuals standing at tables in front of them, a small group of people sitting beside them and a black robed rat sitting at a high desk on the other side. The skunk led Mutt to one of the tables to stand beside a ; then left the same way he came in.

A loud cat announced, "Theodore Xavier Barnes vs. Mutt"

The rat silenced some stifled chatter from the crowd behind Mutt; then looked to the other table.

A lizard read from the papers in his hands, "The defendant has been charged with trespassing on the property of Theodore Barnes. However, the plaintiff is now deceased."

"Was the defendant responsible for his death in any way?" the robed rat asked.

"No, your honor."

"Do the beneficiaries of Mr. Barnes' property have any complaints against the defendant?"

"The beneficiaries are also deceased. The property has been turned over to the city and is awaiting further claims."

"Does the city have any complaints against the defendant?"

"No, your honor."

"Was there any damage to the property?"

"No, your honor."

"Is there any other reason to hold the defendant further?"

"No, your honor."

"Then I move to dismiss the charges. Any objections?" The rat looked towards the small group sitting to the side. No one spoke. "Then all charges are dismissed and the defendant is free to go."

A husky came up to remove Mutt's cuffs and lead him past the crowd and out the door in the back where he handed him some papers and pointed him towards a desk at the end of the hall.

Mutt walked down to the desk and gave the papers to the rabbit sitting behind it.

"Do you have any complaints?" she asked as she filled out and filed some of the forms.

"About what?" Mutt asked.

"About how your case was handled."

"I don't think so."

"Then sign here," she pushed one of the pages towards Mutt with a pen.

"Sign?"

"This just says you are satisfied with the results and do not intend on bringing any cases against the city regarding this one."

"Um, okay."

"If you are unable to write, simply make a cross mark on the line."

Mutt picked up the pen and marked the line.

The rabbit took the page, signed her own name, pulled a copy from the back and gave it to Mutt. "Thank you. This copy is yours. The exit is that way. Have a nice day." She pointed down another hall and finished filing the papers.

Mutt turned and walked down the hall towards a door. He went through the door and was outside, blinking in the sun.

After a moment's thought, Mutt turned and walked back inside. He returned to the desk and asked the long-eared doe, "What about my things?"

"What things?"

"The things I had before they took me."

"Anything you had at the time of your arrest would most likely still be kept at the station," she said without looking up as she finished one set of paperwork and prepared the next.

"How do I get there?"

"You can drive, take a bus, however you normally get around."

"I walk."

"Then walk."

"Which way? Where am I?"

"This is Pendelton. Where were you arrested?"

"I'm not sure. We were headed here, but I don't think we had made it, yet."

The rabbit instructed a dingo to sign the form and began looking through the files. She pulled out a folder and looked through it, "Your file says you were accused of trespassing on a farm outside Perrin. So, I would suggest you go to Perrin and ask there about your stuff." She filed the folder and tore off a page from the dingo's form and gave it to him. "This is your copy. The exit is that way. Have a nice day."

Mutt walked back out behind the dingo and leaned against the wall to think. He had nothing left. Billy was gone and so was everything they had collected. He could not think of where to go or even where he wanted to go from there.

Just as he was about to give up and curl up on the courthouse steps, an officer walked up to ask him to move along.

"Which way is it to Perrin?" Mutt asked him.

"Perrin's to the west; about an hour's drive." The officer replied. "Now, come on away from the door here."

Mutt walked down the steps to the street. The sun was working its way up the sky, so he turned away from it and headed down the road.