-Chapter 11-

"Let me get this straight," Nick said, trying not to laugh at how ridiculous the whole situation was. "You went into city hall, stalked a jaguar, uncovered that Fasco somehow speaks Alimandish, and then figured out from Clare who the next P.P.P. victim is going to be?"

"Yes," Etson confirmed, nodding his head. "I know it sounds crazy, but you have to believe me. I know what I saw."

"Do you have proof of any of this?" Nick asked.

"Well, no, but—"

"No 'buts.'" Nick snapped. "We need evidence if we want to do anything."

"Why isn't my word enough evidence?" Etson asked.

"Because it doesn't line up with the facts of the case," Nick explained. "The person you told us is going to be attacked next isn't even a predator. Can you explain to me why, exactly, the Prey Protection Program would attack someone who is prey?"

Etson looked back at Nick in disbelief. He thought he had cracked the case. He turned to Judy, eyes hopeful. Surely she would agree with him.

"I…uh, hate to say this," Judy started, causing Etson to frown. "But Nick's right." The fox grinned victoriously. "When you look at the facts of the case…it just doesn't make sense that whoever is doing this would go after a member of the prey family. So far, the only link we have is that everyone who's been attacked has been a predator," she told him regretfully. "It's the strongest lead that we have. We can't just throw that out the window."

Etson's expression shattered. "So you…you don't believe what I said?"

"No, no, that's not it at all," Judy quickly replied. "I know that what you said is true. Look, I trust you, Etson. I know you wouldn't lie to us. It's just… I'm not sure that what you've told us…solves the case," she said, his face still sunken. "I know that's hard to hear, but please don't think that it means that I don't believe in you. Because I do."

Etson's facial expression lifted slightly, but it was clear that he was still upset. He glanced down at the slip of paper he was holding, the address hastily written down. Crumpling it up and shoving it into his pocket, he let out a depleted sigh. "Okay. Where are we going?"

"You have the address, right Nick?" she asked her partner.

"Yep."

"Perfect. Let's do this," she said, beaming with confidence. They had never done a stake out before, but she'd trained enough at the Academy to know exactly how the whole procedure worked. It was simple. All they had to do was wait in the cruiser for the criminal to show up at the location and then apprehend him in the act.

The three of them walked to the police parking lot where the cruiser was parked. Judy clambered into the driver's seat, Nick climbing into shotgun next to her. Etson sat behind them, riding in the seat normally reserved for arrested criminals. The rabbit started up the car, and headed out onto the street.

Etson stared out the window as they drove, his head resting on his paw. Inside him he felt a wide variety of emotions swirling about. The elation of finally being recognized as a citizen, the excitement of solving the case and the sadness of rejection were all simultaneously competing within him for supremacy. He sighed. He had really thought that he had cracked the case. How had he been so stupid as to look over such a major detail? A pig would never be targeted. Not even Fasco would go that far. His gut feeling had gotten the better of him, and he had been completely humiliated for it.

I just need to clear my mind, Etson thought. I just need to reboot.

There were too many things bombarding him at once. He stared at the buildings as they passed, feeling entirely numb from the sensory overload he was experiencing. He knew this part of town very well, including a particular spot he knew would help to calm him down. He could ask them to let him out here…

No, he told himself. I promised myself I wouldn't go back there.

They were passing the area. If he was going to be asked to let out, he had to do it now.

Etson took a deep breath. As much as he told himself otherwise, he knew he had to do this.

"Stop the car," Etson said, causing Judy to apply the brakes. The car behind her honked.

"What's going on?" she asked, pulling the car over to the side of the road. "Is there a problem?"

"No, err, yes…It's complicated," Etson replied. Nick and Judy glanced at each other, both confused. "There's something… private… I have to take care of here." He opened up the car door and started to hop out.

"Etson…are you okay?" Judy questioned. He hadn't seemed himself ever since he had gotten his story shot down.

"Yes," he responded calmly. "It's just some business I have to take care of. I will meet you at the address," he slammed the car door shut. "Goodbye."

He started walking down the street.

"What…what just happened?" Judy asked, turning to Nick.

"I don't know," he replied. "But it's something sketchy."

"Sketchy? What are you talking about?"

"Oh, c'mon. You don't think that he's doing something suspicious?" Nick asked her.

"You do?" Judy retorted.

"Seriously? He didn't even tell us where he was going," he exclaimed. "Nobody does that unless they're hiding something."

Judy sighed. "Why do you still think he's hiding something? He's a good animal, Nick," she argued. "He has a right to his privacy just as much as anyone else."

"I don't know, Carrots," he said. "Every time I look at him I have to remind myself of that. I know we're supposed to be cops and it's innocent before proven guilty and everything…but there's just something about him…that I don't trust," he confessed.

"But what Nick? What about him don't you trust?"

"Everything, Judy!" he exclaimed. "I know you don't understand it. But when I look at him, I just know," he explained. The rabbit's face remained confused. He sighed. "Look, Carrots, I know every animal in Zootopia. I've dealt with all sorts of shady mammals on the street for the past decade. I worked for years to be able to tell when someone was lying to me," he told her. "And I'm telling you right now that I know Etson is lying to us."

Judy was silent for a moment. "…what are you going to do?" she muttered. She disagreed with Nick wholeheartedly, but if he really felt that strongly about it, then she wasn't going to stop him.

"I just want to follow him and see where he goes," Nick stated calmly. "That's it."

"Fine," she conceded. Nick smiled. "But if you screw this up in any way, you take full responsibility for it. Got it?"

Nick nodded. "Sure thing, Carrots," he said. "I'll be back in a minute."

She shook her head. "You'd better be."

Nick started up the sidewalk in the direction Etson had left, scurrying to the corner of the street. Slowly, he peeked his head around the corner, scanning the street for the raccoon.

Ah, found him. Nick thought. He was on the opposite side of the street, walking down a sidewalk. He glanced around him and quietly melted into the shadows of an alleyway, completely unnoticed by the rest of the animals around him.

What's he up to? Nick wondered. Carefully, he crossed the street, following after Etson. Hugging the wall of a building, Nick peered around the corner again to watch the raccoon. He disappeared into the darkness of the alleyway, just as his suspect had done moments earlier. His eyes quickly adjusted, his night vision making it easy to see everything. Etson slowly kept walking, his paws in his sweatshirt pockets. He suddenly turned around, eyes darting back and forth across the alley. Not seeing anything, he faced forward again, and kept walking.

Nick let out a sigh of relief. He had just been able to sneak behind a dumpster.

Etson kept walking. He glanced around, trying to draw as little attention to himself as possible, before stepping back into the sunlight. Nick followed him as he walked down the sidewalk, using all of his years of conning experience to remain unnoticed. They passed a number of buildings, eventually passing by a thick brick wall. Etson stopped upon reaching a large, arch gateway in the otherwise flat wall. . Nick hid around the corner as the raccoon checked his surroundings again. Taking a deep breath, he walked in through the gateway into whatever was behind the wall. Nick watched, slowly approaching the arch in pursuit of Etson.

Is this…a cemetery? Nick wondered. There were a large number of tombstones, each inscribed with the names and years of those who were buried there. There was a central pathway running down the center of the walled-in area which Etson was walking along. Nick stayed close behind him, seeking refuge behind a tree. He carefully observed, as Etson slowly began to walk off the path, his eyes fixed on a particular tombstone. Reverently the raccoon sunk to his knees.

Etson cleared his throat. "Maz…Paz…" he said aloud. Mom. Dad. Tears started to well up in his eyes. He stared at the tombstone, his heart aching.

"I…I really miss you both," he sniffled, still trying not to cry. "I know…I know I promised last time…zhat…zhat I wouldn't come back here again," he whimpered as he wiped his face, the tears beginning to flow. "But I can't…I can't do zhis anymore!" he sobbed, burying his face in his paws. Etson couldn't contain how broken he felt anymore. Water ran down his cheek in a constant stream, his eyes becoming red and puffy. "You're probably… so…so disappointed… in me," he forced out between hiccups. "But I…I can't…let you go. Please…please…"

He looked up to the sky, lowering his voice to a whisper.

"I just want you to come back."

Nick swallowed heavily, a new weight setting in on his shoulders. This…this wasn't what he had wanted to see. A feeling of overwhelming guilt washed over him. He felt something he had never felt before…an unworthiness of being in his own skin. He had spent years stealing from animals, smooth talking them into giving up their life savings without an inkling of remorse. Why, then, did he feel like such scum now?

He started backing up, making his way towards the exit.

A twig snapped.

Etson whirled around. "Who's zhere?!" His eyes widened. "Nick?"

Nick winced. The jig was up. Slowly, he turned around to face Etson.

"What are you doing here?"

"About that…heh…funny story, you see," Nick started, trying to remain calm. "I thought I saw a—"

"Nick…did you…did you follow me?" Etson asked, taken aback.

"No, no, that's not it,—"

"Really?" Etson interrupted. His depressed expression had changed into a stare of hatred. "Zhen why else would you come into zhis isolated cemetery?"

Nick's ears dropped. "Look, Etson, I'm sorry—"

"Sorry?! I don't care if you're sorry!" Etson yelled.

"I know, I know, but I just thought that—"

"What? What did you zhink? Zhat I was doing somezhing shady off by myself?" Etson shook his head in rage. "I can't believe it. You, of all mammals. I thought at least a fox would know what it feels like to be written off as untrustworzhy."

Nick realized what he was implying. "Etson, that's not why I did it."

"Oh yeah? Zhen tell me, Nick, why did you do it? If it wasn't because you didn't trust me, zhen why did you follow me?" Etson bellowed.

Nick opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out. Slowly, his face sunk. He didn't know why he had done it.

"Zhat's what I zhought," Etson spat. "You were scared of me zhis whole time. I knew it. I knew from the first time you looked at me. Zhat whole thing where you talked to Judy in private? Yeah, don't zhink I didn't know what zhat was about. Zhis whole time…zhis whole time you tried to hide it from me, Nick. But I still knew," Etson pursed his lips as he said each of the words, sheer abhorrence for the fox in his bloodshot eyes. "You never trusted me. Every time you looked at me…all you could see was an Alimandish infiltrator. Well, congratulations, you finally figured me out," Etson retorted, his words seeping with vitriol. "You caught me in a conspiracy with my dead parents."

Nick stared back at the raccoon. For the first time he could recall, he was at a loss for words.

Etson turned his head away from the fox, fuming. He started walking towards the gate of the cemetery, his fists clenched by his side. He looked back over his shoulder, the silence of the moment piercing the air.

Softly, Etson opened his mouth to speak.

"Why did I ever trust a hypocrite like you?"

The words, though not louder than a whisper, seemed to compress the atmosphere around Nick, a very real, even tangible weight pressing down on his chest.

Etson stared ahead. He chose not to watch the aftermath his weaponry had caused, not wanting to even give the fox a chance to instill a sense of pity in him. He was resolute— he would feel no empathy. Putting one foot in front of the other, he stepped out of the cemetery.

Nick could only watch as the raccoon disappeared into the street, leaving him alone in the cemetery. Lifelessly, he wandered through the still air to where Etson had been kneeling mere moments before.

HERE LIES

Jacques Sonet: June 2nd, 1972 - March 7th, 2008

Marie Sonet: February 16th, 1975 - March 7th, 2008

TAKEN BY TRAGEDY INTO GOD'S ARMS

He stood there motionlessly for a moment. 2008...that was seven years ago. He sighed, his shoulders slumping. To say Nick felt utterly dejected would be an understatement. In truth, he wanted nothing more than to curl up and hide from the world. Maybe then, he thought, he could find a way to forgive himself.

Turning around, he walked onto the path and exited the cemetery.

Judy tapped her fingers on the steering wheel nervously. She stared at the clock again. 1:34 pm. This was taking too long. They needed to be at the stakeout location. Every minute they weren't there was another minute that the P.P.P. could strike, meaning that all of the time Nick and Etson spent sidetracked was precious.

The car door suddenly opened, causing Judy to flinch.

"Oh, it's just you," she said, letting out a sigh of relief. "You scared me for a second."

Nick shut the car door, not saying anything in reply.

Judy looked at him quizzically. Something about him seemed off. "Nick...are you okay?" she asked. "Did...did something happen?"

Nick turned to look out the window, remaining silent.

"Okay, tell me what's going on," she ordered. "What did you mess up?"

Nick kept looking out the window. "Etson..." he said, "isn't going to be working with me anymore."

Judy's eyes widened. "What?" she exclaimed, a look of bafflement on her face. "How did this happen?"

Nick let out an exasperated sigh. "We got in a fight, okay? I don't want to talk about it."

"What was Etson doing?" Judy pressed him. She wasn't going to let him off the hook on this. "Tell me now. What was Etson doing?"

Nick stared out the window for a second, taking a deep breath. "He was mourning his dead parents," he mumbled.

Judy put a paw to her face, sighing. This literally was the worst possible thing Nick could have done. "I told you," she said, gritting her teeth. "I told you that he wasn't doing anything suspicious."

"Yes, I know, Carrots," he replied, annoyed. "Look, I screwed up and I'm sorry about it. What else do you want from me?"

"What else do I want? Nick, I want you to get my friend back! I want you to fix this mess!" Judy snapped.

"And how exactly am I supposed to do that?" Nick rebutted sharply. "I can't just wave a wand and have everything magically get better."

"Maybe you could, oh, I don't know, apologize to him?" she yelled.

"I tried, Carrots! He wouldn't listen to me!" Nick shouted back, before adding, "Why are you mad at me for this?"

"Because, Nick, I care about Etson," Judy said, "unlike you."

Nick slammed his paws on the dashboard. "That's IT!" he bellowed. "I'm sick of it, Judy! Stop antagonizing me just because I see things differently than you! I'm not the bad guy here!"

"Calling you out when you did something wrong is antagonizing you?" she retorted sharply. "You're the one who scared off Etson in the first place! You're being made into the bad guy for a reason, Nick!"

"Are you serious? Carrots, I'm out there trying to protect your career by checking up on Etson, yet you still think I'm the evil one!" Nick sneered.

"Oh, so that's what this whole thing is about? You trying to protect me?" she asked fiercely, becoming increasingly angry. "Yes, of course, because the wittle bunny pwincess is in danger, the oh-so-great knight in shining armor has to come to the rescue! Because the dumb bunny couldn't possibly fend for herself, could she? Is that what you think, Nick? Is that all I am to you - some damsel in distress to with the...with the purpose of validating your superiority?"

"Validating my superiority?" Nick scoffed in disgust. "Judy, what on earth are you talking about?"

Judy groaned in frustration. "I was the one who put my job on the line!" she screamed. "I signed up for this! I didn't need your so-called 'help!' It's my battle, Nick, not yours! Why is that so hard to understand?"

"Because we're partners, Judy!" Nick shouted. "We're supposed to look out for each other!"

"That's exactly the problem, Nick. You're not looking out for me. You're controlling me, like... like..." she choked on the words, "Like you're no more than some territorial predator!"

Nick's face contorted into an expression of disgust. That was the final straw. "If that's what you think of me," he quietly spat, "then maybe..." he swallowed, mustering the willpower to finish the sentence, "then maybe we shouldn't be partners."

Judy stared back at him, her ears sagging."Maybe... we shouldn't."

They gazed into each other's eyes for a moment, both incredibly pained.

"Fine!" Nick said, snapping out of the daze. "I'll solve this by myself."

He opened up the car door, slamming it forcefully as he jumped out.

"Good!" Judy replied scornfully. "I don't need you anyways!"

Nick glanced over his shoulder, took one last look at his former partner, and started running down the sidewalk, the rabbit watching from the cruiser as he slowly faded out of sight. Tears began to well up in her eyes.

How could he do this to her? He was supposed to be her closest friend, her coworker, her partner. He wasn't supposed to hurt her, yet she felt a searing pain in her heart left by his words. All of her life she had been underestimated, written off as a joke. When other animals belittled her, she used it as fuel for her determination. But when the words came from Nick...She wiped away the water from her eyes. Never let them see that they get to you, Nick had told her. If only she had heeded his advice, maybe she wouldn't feel so hurt now. Ever since their first case together, there hadn't been a doubt in her mind that he cared about her. But now...now she wasn't sure. Animals who loved each other...weren't supposed to hurt like this.

No, she told herself. I'm not going to feel sorry for myself.

Judy forced the tears back. She had lived through twenty some odd years without Nick, powering through her problems with raw grit. This was no different. There was a case to solve, and with or without the fox she was going to solve it. She turned the key in the ignition, bringing the car to life. Putting it into gear, she took off down the road.

Etson kept walking down the sidewalk, watching as the slabs of concrete passed by underneath his feet. He looked again at the crumpled up piece of paper he had pulled from his pocket. Jonathan Summers, 756 Hill Street, Downtown.

Etson let out a sigh. He still had a long ways to go. He would be lucky if he got there within an hour from where he currently stood in Savannah Central.

At least, he reasoned, it will give me some more time to think.

Etson's temperament had cooled down considerably since his interaction with Nick, and by all accounts he was back to his normal, level-headed self. Of course, it was not to say that he no longer felt the sharp twinge of betrayal - he still did. Etson fully intended never to speak to Nick again, but now that an hour or so had passed the altercation wasn't always present at the forefront of his mind, disrupting his other thoughts.

He kept studying the sidewalk, continuing to walk forward. His footsteps suddenly stopped.

A police cruiser had pulled up besides him. The passenger's side window slowly rolled down, showing a certain bunny in the driver's seat.

"Wanna ride?" she asked. Etson smiled. He pulled the door open, pulling himself up into the shotgun seat.

"You too, huh?" he remarked, noticing her puffy eyes.

She nodded. There was a moment of sympathetic connection between them, both relating with one another's situation.

Judy watched as Etson buckled his seat belt. "So… what's the pig's address?"

Etson looked back at her in shock. "I thought you said that-"

"I know what I said," Judy interjected. "Just...tell me his address."

Etson made a confused, but also excited, face. He read the address to her, and they drove off.

Nick slumped against the wall of the building, a number of animals passing him along the sidewalk, staring at him oddly. What was a police officer doing here, depressed and alone?

He sighed. He was feeling too many varying emotions to pinpoint all of them. Certain emotions would surface, briefly leaving him feeling a certain way before fading into the background, allowing another emotion to take its place. The arguments played on repeat in his head, a constant reminder that he had managed to lose everything important to him. Was what he did so wrong? Yes, it was true that he didn't entirely trust Etson. He had been wrong about that. But what Judy had said to him...that was what he didn't believe. He knew who he was. She didn't. Everything he had done for Judy was to show how much he cared for her, yet somehow she continued to perceive his actions as something bad. Wasn't this how you were supposed to love someone? Weren't you supposed to go out of your way for them? What part of that did he do wrong?

He stared across the street, watching as various mammals went about their days. He didn't know how to answer any of those questions. The only thing he knew was that Judy saw his fondness for her as nothing more than predatorial instinct. She had belittled him, and it hurt him tremendously. He thought that she saw how much he loved her determination, her fighting spirit...the things that made her who she was...but apparently she only saw a predator protecting his pack. And he didn't know what to make of that.

Nick cocked his head to the side, something catching his eye across the street. Was that...the police cruiser?

He stood up, moving closer to get a better look. Yep, that was the police cruiser all right. He watched closely as the cruiser pulled over to the side of the road. What...what was Judy doing? He stared, squinting to see what was going on.

Nick's jaw dropped. She...she was picking up Etson? And she was letting him ride in his seat?

Disgusted, he turned around, not able to watch another instant. Who did she think she was, replacing him? He clenched his fists, bubbling with anger. It was one thing to insult him and hurt his feelings. But to completely dispose of him so quickly after their argument? Nick was infuriated at her. Why couldn't she see that he loved her more than anyone else? She was supposed to be his partner, not Etson's. He was supposed to be riding shotgun next to her, not some dumb raccoon.

Nick's face suddenly eased. His ears and tail both dropped.

Oh my gosh, he thought. What am I saying?

He ran his paws through the fur on his face, his body going cold. A sweeping realization came over him.

He was jealous of Etson.

Nick took a few steps backwards, reeling. It all made sense now. That feeling he had, deep in his gut...it hadn't been mistrust. It had been envy. Judy liked Etson. From the beginning she had gone out her way for him - putting her job on the line, offering him a place to stay, consoling him... Nick wanted all of those things for himself. He wanted a monopoly on Judy's affection - which made her right. He was acting like a territorial predator.

Nick groaned. He had been wrong this whole time. Everything about this situation was his mess to clean up, and he had absolutely no idea where to start. He sat against the wall of the building again for a minute, closing his eyes. If he wanted to have any chance of them actually forgiving him...the plan he formulated would have to be perfect. He opened his eyes, exhaling.

The fox reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone. He turned it on, the bright display cheerfully greeting him. He instinctively swiped to unlock it, opening up his home page of apps. He tapped on the web browser, launching it, before tapping again on the search bar. His fingers quickly darted about the keyboard, typing in what he needed to look up. Nick hesitated for a moment, his finger hovering over the enter button.

Was this really the best way to go about this? He wasn't sure. Investigating something so private seemed invasive, but he needed more info he wanted to make things right again.

Sighing, he pressed down on the button. As the page loaded, Nick was surprised at how many results showed up. Scrolling through the links, he looked for the one that seemed to be most informative, eventually deciding on a Zootopia Chronicle article. The page first loaded an ad, which Nick promptly closed. With nothing else in his way, he started reading through the article.

Car Accident Results in Death of Local Couple

March 8th, 2008

Last night at approximately 10:54pm, a terrible noise pierced through the Savannah District. The sound of screeching rubber followed by a loud bang resulted in many locals being awoken in the middle of the night. Some of them, curious and worried as to what had happened, stepped outside of their homes. What they saw was truly a calamity of catastrophic proportions.

Two cars had collided in the middle of the intersection between Grassland Street and Sunrise Avenue, shattered glass forming a perimeter around the two cars. In a panic, a number of locals pulled out their phones, dialing 911, while others ran towards the site of the accident. The collision had occurred between a small Mouzda sedan and a large Miceler truck, the truck having rammed into the driver's side door of the smaller vehicle, completely crushing the car. Frantically, animals pulled the bodies from the wreckage and began to do CPR while emergency teams responded. EMTs arrived not minutes later, quickly transferring the animals to stretchers while trying to perform life-saving maneuvers.

At 11:21pm, the couple who had been in the smaller car, raccoons Jacques and Marie Sonet, were declared dead due to fatal wounds to vital organs. The two had been longtime members of the community, despite having migrated from Alimand not four years ago. Mrs. Sonet served as a member of the school committee and held a famous bake sale every year to help raise money for various community recreational programs. Mr. Sonet worked for a packaging company and was known for his volunteer work at various soup kitchens around the city. Their friends and neighbors are mourning their loss.

"You never expect it to happen so suddenly," a cheetah who served on the school board with Mrs. Sonet commented. "I think we're all heartbroken."

"I'm still in disbelief," a possum who was coworkers with Jacques remarked. "He was such a good friend to me. I'm going to miss..." he wiped away a tear, "seeing him and his red bowtie that he would always wear to work. It's truly a tragedy that this happened."

Authorities say that the accident occurred when the driver of the Miceler ran a red light. According to their report, the car was also going approximately twenty five miles over the speed limit when it rammed into the Mouzda, which had happened to be in the intersection after the light turned green.

As he continued reading, Nick's eyes suddenly widened.

The driver of the truck has been identified as Christopher Wilde, a fox from the Canal District. He has since been arrested and is currently a number of charges, the most notable of which is manslaughter.

Nick felt his heart stop for a moment. He clasped his head as everything around him began to whirl. His stomach felt incredibly light, the contents inside all screaming to exit his body. His breathing suddenly intensified into panting.

His father had killed Etson's parents.

Cliffhanger! :P As always, please let me know what you think of the story and whether or not you like where it's going, as well as any other tips that you may have for my writing. And of course, thanks for reading! :)