Chasing the Horizon

Story by Billy Leigh on SoFurry

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#1 of Chasing the Horizon

This is the start of a novella-length story that's been kicking about on my laptop for a while. I got the inspiration after watching a lot of Fast & Furious and Top Gear episodes, as well as classic car movies like Vanishing Point.

Originally I was in two minds about posting it, but I thought I'd test out the beginning on here to see what everyone thinks.

Synopsis:

Doberman street racer Diego lives a fast lifestyle comprising of exotic cars and casual sex. He delivers expensive automobiles to wealthy furs while smuggling illegal items to earn money on the side. When given the lucrative job of delivering a Shelby Mustang and a secret package to a mysterious client within a specific time-limit, he enthusiastically takes the offer, wanting to use his paycheck to retire from illegal work once and for all. However, the situation takes a complicated turn when he runs into his new neighbour Spike, a Coyote and a disillusioned police officer on a mission of his own.


Diego Faust looked at his naked reflection in the mirror as he stretched out and flexed his muscles. He was a tall, handsome and toned Doberman Pinscher with cropped ears and a sleek black and tan coat. All the female furs he knew had a crush on him, whereas a lot of guys wanted to be him. Despite the female attention he got, he never reciprocated the flirting. He had a preference for male furs and enjoyed brief, intense and sometimes rough one night stands. He had two close friends, Karl and Nina, but mostly kept himself to himself. Karl was a Rottweiler that Diego had known for a number of years. He was Diego's business associate and best friend with benefits. When they weren't planning a job or racing cars, Diego would go to Karl's apartment to have sex with him. Nina was a female Doberman from Germany who lived in Diego's apartment building. Any casual onlooker who saw her and Diego together would naturally assume that she was his girlfriend. At first, Diego had contemplated starting an open relationship with Nina, while continuing his sexual fun with Karl. He also had the occasional and fleeting desires for a serious relationship, but other than that, he preferred to play around and enjoy it while he could. His life was too fast paced for lasting romance and in his line of work, it was not good to associate with another fur for too long. Behind Diego, a male Shiba Inu stirred and awoke on the bed "What time is it?" the Shiba Inu moaned. Diego glanced at his watch "Almost nine" he replied "Ah, I should get going" the Shiba sighed, pulling on his clothes. Diego called the Shiba a cab "Thanks" the Shiba said before making his way out the door. Diego pulled on a pair of Adidas shorts and a tight black wifebeater that emphasised his muscular build. He was off for a workout before meeting with Karl, who had some important information to give him, followed by lunch with Nina. Diego made his way to the kitchen to get a bottle of water. His apartment looked bare, with only a couch and a television in the living room and no decorations. It said little about the fur who lived there. Diego preferred to keep it that way and he hoped to move out soon. Grabbing his gym bag, Diego slipped on a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses and made for the front door.

Diego sauntered out into the basement carpark. His white Audi R8 was waiting near the elevator doors. Diego jumped into the driver's seat and put on a pair of fingerless driving gloves. He fired up the powerful V10 engine and drove out into the blinding Los Angeles sunshine. He put on some R&B and sped down the street with the windows open. Diego had learnt to drive as a pup, often on mountainous and semi-desert roads. By the time he was twelve, he was racing cars around a dust track on his uncle's farm in Patagonia. He had continued this lifestyle after he had arrived in the US, participating in both legal and underground races. Due to impressive performances, he had been hired as a getaway driver for various robberies, always leaving the site long before the police showed up. Diego didn't like to associate with criminals, but driving fast gave him an addictive high that he had no desire to get rid of. He eventually quit getaway driving, wanting to bow out before the law caught up with him, and began to undertake more subtle work. Karl's uncle owned business dealing exotic cars to wealthy clients, but was also the kingpin of a vast smuggling empire. Diego would deliver the cars personally while smuggling contraband items to earn money on the side. He never asked about the content of the packages and decided that it was best not to know. Recently, he had been thinking of quitting illegal activities altogether. The situation had become more awkward after a Coyote cop by the name of Spike had moved into his building. By chance, Diego had spotted Spike at Freddie's, a gay bar in West Hollywood. Spike had tried to strike up a conversation, but Diego had rudely rebuffed him. In reality, Diego did find the Coyote attractive, and had things been different, Spike was the sort of fur he would have been tempted to ask out on a date. Spike had deep amber eyes that could look both intense yet thoughtful. Diego also liked the look of his slim, but athletic body with grey and fulvous coloured fur. However, he purposely acted like an ass to ward Spike off. As handsome as the Coyote was, Diego didn't want to associate with a law-enforcement officer. Karl had implied that the information he was going to pass on concerned a lucrative smuggling operation, and Diego had decided he would use his cut to retire and leave town. He would move into a big house with a pool and a gym, but most importantly, a garage to store all the cars and motorcycles he wanted.

Once Diego had cleared the nightmare traffic on the freeway, he sped down towards Malibu as the Audi's engine gave a fur-raising roar. Other cars and buildings flashed by in a blur. Soon, he was driving through hills and he felt a pounding surge of adrenaline. A wrong turn and he could go flying off into oblivion. Diego smiled to himself; precision driving, beautiful scenery and good music. To him, this was what truly feeling alive meant. He cleared the hills and arrived in Malibu. He parked outside the gym and went straight to the locker room to stash his bag. He spent a good hour and a half working out before making his way back to the showers. Rather than head to wash, Diego sat down on a bench and waited. He knew Karl would come here to meet him. A minute later, he heard the sound of someone else entering the locker room and turned to see a muscular, shirtless Rottweiler holding a gym bag. It was Karl. Diego couldn't help but notice how tight Karl's shorts seemed as he sat down "Is it ok to talk?" Diego asked "Sure, I locked the door into here" Karl replied. He handed Diego a photograph "The car is a blue Shelby Mustang to be delivered to a client in Denver" he explained "it will be ready for pick up tomorrow". Diego grinned "Now that's a nice car" he said, examining the picture "Only catch is, the client wants it by twelve the following day. There's an optional extra with the car to be delivered to the same fur. You think you can handle that?" "You're kidding?" Diego chuckled "fast driving down an awesome route, that ain't a challenge to me dude!" "Good. I'll send information on where you'll meet him when you get to Denver" Karl replied. His expression became playful and he leaned over, sniffing at Diego "You really turn me on after you've been working out..." he began, sliding his paw up Diego's leg. Diego sighed, he was tempted but he had to leave "Later, I'm free tonight" Diego he whispered, winking at Karl "Aw, don't make me wait" Karl replied "Good things come to those who wait" Diego replied, reaching over and groping Karl's crotch. He then grabbed his gym bag and made his way to the door "That dog is such a tease" Karl sighed to himself.

Officer Spike Kowalski sat in his patrol car, gazing out the window. He was dressed in his police uniform with sunglasses and an LAPD baseball cap. He yawned and stretched, looking out for anything interesting. His partner had gone into a nearby Starbucks and left him to keep an eye on the street. However, in this quiet suburb it was rare for anything serious to happen. Spike felt bored and unsatisfied with his job. He disliked the cocky attitudes of his fellow officers who treated him like a pup. He was the first Coyote to work for his division, which mostly comprised of German Shepherds and Wolves, and he was currently the youngest officer in the team. This had found him on the receiving end of plenty of mockery. Hiding his sexuality from his co-workers was also frustrating. He liked to think that most of his colleagues probably wouldn't care, let alone even notice, if he came out. But in a hyper-masculine environment where many of the conversations revolved around who could bed a female fur, it was equally hard to predict. Spike was half tempted to open his phone and check his Prowlr account to give himself something to do, but resisted the urge. Instead, he reached forward and tuned the radio to his favourite station, KROCK-FM, but kept the volume low "Awooo! That was The Chain by Fleetwood Mac, what an awesome song it is. Up next, we have some smooth eighties rock" came the gravelly voice of the wolf DJ, Howlin' Sam. The faint sound of Eric Clapton's "Bad Love" filled the car and Spike leaned back, humming along. His partner, a German Shepherd by the name of Joe, got into the car with two cups of coffee. Joe was one of the few officers that Spike liked to go on patrol with "Did I miss anything?" He asked, Spike shook his head. A white Audi suddenly sped past. Spike was about to turn on the lights but he recognised the car as belonging to his neighbour. Diego he thought to himself. Spike got a funny feeling whenever he saw Diego. He was pretty sure that the Doberman was hiding something. Spike also felt conflicted, as much as he disliked Diego's abrasive personality, he had a crush on him and he was the source of most of Spike's fantasies.

"They're speeding!" Joe exclaimed. Dutifully, Spike turned on the lights and set off in pursuit. Up ahead, he saw Diego look angrily in his mirror before the Audi pulled over. Spike got out and walked over "Aw man" Diego sighed as he saw Spike approaching "Sir, do you realise how fast you were going?" Spike said "Uh, dude, I'm in a rush here" Diego said, rolling his eyes "Yes, but this is official police business, give me your licence please" Spike replied Diego cursed under his breath as he handed it out the window. Spike took the details and checked Diego's registration. Diego had been caught speeding before and knew he ran the risk of losing his driving privileges. That would not make his employers happy at all. He needed to stay out of trouble "You'll be hearing from the DMV about this" Spike said. Diego gulped, that was not good news. He was certain he had now collected enough points for his licence to be suspended. Once Spike had taken enough information, he handed the licence back through the window, sniffing surreptitiously at the Doberman. He could tell that Diego had been working out. Diego glanced at his watch and cursed, he was going to miss his lunch with Nina. Worse still, if anyone found out that his licence was revoked, he'd be dead meat. Spike watched as the Audi sped off with a roar. As he drove, Diego was forming a plan in his mind. Although he had been rude to Spike in the past, a charm offensive on the Coyote might be a good tactic to get his record cleared.

Spike drove back to the Station. He made his way through the lobby, surveying the other furs; there was a slightly bedraggled looking Cheetah in a leather jacket and a White Wolf with piercing blue eyes dressed in a suit. The Wolf turned to look in Spike's direction, his blue eyes gazed right at him. Feeling slightly unnerved, Spike walked away. He clocked out for his lunch break, changed into his sports clothes and went for a jog. He spent half an hour running before heading back to the Station for a shower. He couldn't shake the thought of Diego in his black wifebeater from his head. The fact that the Doberman had also been to the gym emphasised a daydream of the two of them getting intimate in the showers. Spike forced the image out of his mind, not wanting to get aroused in front his colleagues. He shook himself dry, pulled on a fresh pair of briefs and began retrieving his uniform from his locker. Behind him, three other officers were chatting among themselves. Spike risked a glance round and saw two Grey Wolves standing with their towels around the waists and a Black Shepherd removing his shirt. Spike turned back, hoping they hadn't caught him looking. It was frustrating being in the company of such good looking canines when it seemed like he was the only gay guy in the department. Spike could hear the three canines chuckling. He turned slightly to see one of the wolves nudge the other and he thought they glanced in his direction before muttering something and snickering. Spike was half tempted to walk over and ask what they found so funny, but he couldn't be sure that they were laughing at him and told himself not to be so paranoid. Instead he sighed, sprayed himself with deodorant and put his uniform on.

Spike made his way back to his desk and was surprised to see one of his colleagues, another German Shepherd by the name of Duke waiting for him "Hey Yote-boy, there's someone here to see you" Duke explained "Oh, and who are they?" Spike asked, Duke shrugged "Didn't give a name, but they claim to be from the FBI and said it was very important". Spike frowned "The FBI? What could they want with me?" he asked. Duke responded with another impassive shrug "Beats me, but they're in interview room two in the basement". Spike grabbed a coffee from the machine near his desk and rode the elevator down to the basement level, his sense of disquiet growing. The door to the interview room was open and a dingy light was spilling out into the corridor. "Spike Kowalski?" a raspy voice said. Spike paused "Yes?" he replied "Come in and shut the door" the voice instructed. Gingerly, Spike made his way into a dimly lit room. In the gloom, Spike could make out a short Boston Terrier dressed in a suit and smoking a cigar. He was standing behind a table with a single chair tucked under it. Something told Spike that it probably wasn't a good idea to point out that smoking was illegal in the building "Sit down" the terrier rasped, despite his voice and small stature, he radiated authority. Cautiously, Spike took a seat opposite the terrier "Who are you and why am I here?" He asked. The terrier smiled, but there was no friendliness in his face "Who I am is not your concern, you can refer to me simply as Jones. All you need to know is that you'll be working for me from now on. The reason you're here is that you are going to help me catch a criminal" the terrier explained "that is your job, is it not?" he added, puffing on his cigar "Yes, but..." "Then you can help me with this case" the terrier cut in "you're a neighbour of Diego Faust". The terrier phrased it as a statement, not a question. Spike frowned. How did the terrier know this? "Uh, yes, but I don't know him socially" Spike replied carefully. He was starting to feel sweat trickle down his muzzle "Well, I'm instructing you to get to know him" the terrier continued "how much do you know about him, his background and career?" "Not much" Spike admitted.

The terrier reached into a briefcase and pulled out a file which he slide across to Spike "Diego Alexander Tomas Faust. Born in Valparaiso to a Chilean-German family of canines. As a teenager, he was a member of street race gangs in South America. He moved to the States seven years ago and is now an American citizen, but brought his racing habits with him. I've been tracking his movements for some time. Your neighbour not only took part in illegal street races but worked as a getaway driver for some of LA's lowlife. He seems to have found more legitimate work dealing rare cars, but another_informant I have claims that he helps to smuggle drugs and black market weapons" "Why are you telling me this, do you want me to arrest him?" Spike asked "No, I want you to follow him. Go wherever he goes and report his movements back to me. According to my other informant, he's going to take possession of a package that must not fall into the wrong paws. Then he'll leave town forever before we have a chance to arrest him". Spike frowned "And you're asking me to do this because I'm his neighbour?" The terrier gave a sly grin "Partly. I looked into the backgrounds of everyone around him to find a suitable fur to snoop on my behalf. I discovered that you're both of the same _persuasion. It would look the most convincing if you got friendly and ran off with him. My other informant can't travel around without someone noticing" The terrier explained. Spike cocked his ears in curiosity as Jones continued "I checked both of your phone records, internet histories, social media conversations and money transactions. I uncovered every secret I could. Diego is slippery, asides speeding penalties he tries to keep himself hidden, but I know for a fact he's either homosexual or bisexual. My informant says that he's in an on/off a gay relationship, and occasionally picks up other furs from bars and clubs. However, you had a lot of dirt I could dig up. When you're not patrolling, you spend a great deal of time at your desk visiting gay pornography sites, browsing dating apps or internet gambling. You're struggling to pay off debt. You say to your few close friends you hate your job. You're unhappy, estranged from your family..." Jones listed the facts on his paw. "Right, you've made your point. You basically want me to form a relationship with Diego?" Spike asked "Yes, and leave town with him if necessary" Jones explained. Spike shook his head, his grandmother lived nearby and he didn't want to leave her "Certainly not, you'll have to get someone else" Spike said defiantly, he stood to leave "Well I could leak all your secrets to your superiors" Jones replied. Spike gave a sarcastic laugh "That's a hollow threat. I'm contemplating quitting anyway" "I thought you might say that. The one member of your family you keep in regular contact with is your grandmother. I checked her history too. She's a tax evader, and for an elderly Coyote, jail would be a harsh environment..." "Don't you even..." Spike growled "I thought that'd do the trick" Jones said "now, do I have your full attention?" Spike sat back down, feeling defeated "Get talking to Diego, flirt, buy him a drink, do whatever you can to gain his trust. Get in his bed if necessary" "What kind of fur do you think I am?" Spike cut in, hackles raised "What I think you are isn't important, it's whether you can gain Diego's trust and spy for me, or your grandmother ends up behind bars" Jones replied "I caught him speeding today" Spike said "he's not going to want to talk to me" "Tell him you'll wipe his record" Jones cut in "he needs to think his job is going ahead without a hitch". The terrier pulled a card out of his pocket and slid it across the table "Memorise that number, call it and ask for Mr. Jones when you establish contact with Diego, then let me know when he meets the client. In theory, I could arrest Diego now, but I need to find out who he is meeting. I'll ensure your grandmother is cleared of all charges and your debts are wiped". Once Spike had the number ingrained in his memory, Jones took the card away "Don't think of making a run for it" Jones said menacingly, he leant forwards until Spike could smell the cigar smoke on his breath "I'll be watching you" he whispered. With that, the terrier put his cigar out in Spike's coffee and left the room. Spike growled to himself and followed a moment later, but as he reached the lobby, the terrier had already gone.

Later that evening, Spike was sitting alone in his apartment, watching the television. He had changed out of his police uniform and was now wearing jeans and a t-shirt. He glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed, it looked like it would be another evening to himself. He was wondering whether to order pizza and watch a movie, anything to help him relax. He was still fuming at Jones dragging his grandmother into his scheme. Even if Diego was gay, the Doberman had shown that he was someone who didn't like to be approached. What was he supposed to do? Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Spike got up to answer and his eyes widened a fraction in shock as he saw Diego standing in the hallway. It seemed his prayer of desperation had been answered but he was lost for words "Hi, sorry to bother you" Diego began "Uh, you've come to ask about your licence?" Spike filled in. He looked the handsome Doberman up and down, seeing that there was different look in his eyes. His expression was unusually soft "Spike, I'm wanted to say that I'm really sorry man, about the way I spoke about you before... and this isn't just about you taking away my licence. Well, it kinda was, but I've been thinking, and now I've come to tell you something else". Spike glanced up and down the corridor to check it was empty "Come in" he said, gesturing at Diego to follow him into the apartment. Spike's mind was racing and his heart was thumping hard against his chest. He could not believe that Diego had come to him, now he had to try and gain the Doberman's trust. Diego was also surprised that Spike wanted to invite him in. He had expected the Coyote to tell him sharply to beat it, but now it seemed his plan had a chance of working...