The Fire Triangle, A Zootopia Fanfiction -- Part One: Fuel - 102

Disclaimer: Zootopia stories, characters, settings, and properties belong to the Walt Disney Co. This story is written under Fair Use Copyright laws.

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The Fire Triangle—A Zootopia Fanfiction

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Part One:

Fuel

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Chapter 12 –The Best Laid Plans

(Continued...Pt. 3)

"What the heck's going on over there, Carrots; is Clawhauser giving away free movie passes or something?"

The words were vintage Nick Wilde, hale, rich, and sardonic. His tone of voice was anything but; a fox with a rough day ahead of him—before he's had his morning coffee.

Once again, Judy's partner was singing the deep-fake blues....but never mind that for now; what the heck WAS going on, over at the reception desk? It was surrounded by a crowd of blue uniforms at least three officers deep. Seriously, it looked almost as if poor Benjamin was under siege. Instinctively, the doe-bunny raised an ear, and at once heard the plus-size cheetah, speaking in a wheedling voice.

"Look, I already told you, I have no idea why he gave the order. All I know is that the Chief wants every available officer to hold up for an emergency meeting...including the ones just getting off day-shift."

"What time?" someone else asked.

"17:30." Clawhauser answered, growling when he said it, a first for him as far as Judy knew; he had obviously answered that same question a hundred times already. What could it be, though? Were the V-for-Vendetta kids already planning to raise the stakes?

No, Judy realized; there was another, much more likely reason for...

"Oh come ON," another officer snarled, "right when were about to come off shift!"

It was the fox standing next to her.

She could hardly fault him; the last time they'd heard the words, 'every available officer', they'd ended up in a proverbial minefield. And not only that; today was supposed to be the end of their work-week, the longest work-week, ever, (or that was how it felt.)

"And you really have no idea why he's doing this?" Another voice asked, this one belonging to Francine Trunkaby. "For crying out loud Clawhauser; Chief Bogo didn't call an APOD even during the savage predator crisis."

Clawhauser instantly threw up his arms. "Look, what do you want from me? I'm only the messenger."

Judy would have dearly loved to know what an APOD was, but wasn't about to ask it while this elephant was in the room. Luckily, she wasn't the only officer present unfamiliar with the term.

"What's an APOD?" Kii Catano asked.

"All Paws On Deck," Office Fangmeier told her, "I don't think there's one been called since...I think was still at the Police Academy when it happened."

"Yep, that's right," said Benjamin Clawhauser...who couldn't possibly know what year the tigress gone to the academy, not off the top of his head; he was obviously trying to deflect the conversation away from his inability to explain the Chief's order. "It was during the Ratpox epidemic."

Judy shuddered slightly. Even though the outbreak had occurred more than six years previously—and had never spread beyond the confines of Zootopia—she remembered it all too well. How could she not? Ratpox was highly contagious to rabbits. Bunnyburrow had practically become a ghost town when word of the epidemic had hit.

"Look everybody," Clawhauser had drawn himself up to his full height, (such as it was,) "For the last time I don't know why Chief Bogo called an emergency briefing for today—but I DO know something else he told me; that I'd be on parking duty for a week if I asked him about it again. Now, do you understand? He doesn't want anyone to know why he's calling it, at least not yet."

And that was that; almost at once the group surrounding the reception desk fell silent and began to drift away. In so many words the donut-loving cheetah had just reminded them he was acting under the orders of someone you absolutely didn't want to antagonize—especially now.

Watching the crowd disperse, Judy was reminded of a suspicion she'd long been keeping under wraps; somewhere beneath Benjamin Clawhauser's bumbling, roly-poly exterior, there lurked a very different animal, one with a lot more smarts than the average mammal might be willing to give him credit for.

A disgruntled growl from beside her pulled the doe-bunny from her reverie.

"What do you think, Carrots? What the heck does Bogo want?"

Judy sighed and rolled her eyes. And then there were the animals NOT so quick on the uptake...at least while they were down in the dumps.

"Oh, come on Nick, you know," she said, and then lowered her voice. "That 'thing' you and I briefed HIM about earlier, fires, jaguars, otters, grandkids..." She knew better than to fully articulate it in a place where she might be overheard.

Fortunately, she didn't need to; Nick grimaced slightly and shook his head.

"Ohhhhhh, right." he said, looking around for a second. That seemed to be all he had to say, and Judy could feel an awkward silence building. She looked quickly at her watch, only a little after 5:00—dangit!

"No time to grab a bite Nick, but let's get some coffee at least before the briefing starts."

Not surprisingly, the commissary was packed. The only good news was that everyone seemed too preoccupied with Bogo's summons to pay much attention to either her or her partner, (thank goodness.) As always, they had no trouble finding a place to sit. It was one of the few upsides to being two of the smallest mammals in Precinct-1; most of the chairs that fit you would only fit you.

While Nick got their coffee, Judy looked around for a moment—and felt her nose begin to twitch. Someone, several someones in fact, were conspicuous by their absence...but who could it be? Before she could even begin to formulate an answer Nick returned with two cups in his paws. When the doe-bunny took hers, she felt her ears go up again. What the heck, this wasn't just cold it was ice cold.

"They haven't put on a new pot since lunchtime, so I got us some iced-tea instead," the red fox explained, taking his seat and raising one ear higher than the other, "unless, of course, you'd rather drink battery acid..."

"I-I-I'll learn to live without, thank you," Judy answered quickly, taking a sip from her cup. Hm, Nick had made the right call; the tea was fresh, relatively fresh anyway.

Then she noticed that he was patting his paw against the tabletop while trying not to look at her. She knew that sign well enough; it meant he had something he wanted to discuss with her but couldn't quite bring himself to say so...which meant that it was probably something she wasn't going to like.

She leaned across the table and lowered her voice.

"What is it, Nick?"

He made a small sweeping gesture with his fore and middle fingers, speaking in a near whisper. "Later," he said, and then angled his eyes around the room. Judy knew that gesture as well; yes, he had something to discuss with her, but it was not for public consumption.

And it was also not about upcoming meeting; of that she was fairly certain.

Just then she heard a cow-elephant speaking; loud, brassy, and jeering.

"...I don't know; maybe Bogo's finally had enough of somebody's inappropriate behavior, and he's going to make an example."

Judy felt her ears slam backwards. It was perfectly obvious who that 'somebody' was...and it was equally clear that Officer Fran Trunkaby had meant for her words to be overheard.

And there wasn't a thing the doe-bunny could do about it. Francine had been very careful not to name names; if either she, or Nick tried, to call Ms. Big Bad Pachyderm out on it, she could simply deny...

Nick!

Looking quickly at her partner, Judy saw that he was halfway out of his seat, and had a fang peeking out from under his lip.

She leaned quickly across the table, her voice a low, dry rasp.

"Nick, don't. Never let them see that they get to you." In here she could say it.

He started to sit back down again...but Fran Trunkaby was like a shark sensing blood in the water.

"Hey, bunny girl...you mean you're not going to kiss him?"

Several officers snickered, one or two shook their heads...and Judy hissed, "Just ignore her Nick." But this time he wasn't listening.

But then...thank goodness that time doesn't fly only when you're having fun. Before the fox could do more than push his chair back a little, the big, broad face of Higgins poked in through the doorway.

"Everyone to the bullpen," the hippo called...and now Judy could have kissed HIM.

When they got to the briefing room, it was even more crowded than the commissary; officers jammed in like sardines. Even Clawhauser was present, a real surprise; Judy couldn't remember the last time she'd seen him attend a briefing. She was just grateful—again—that she and Nick were smaller than everyone else in here; anyone trying to steal their seats would end up crushing them.

They were just about to sit down when it hit her, which officers were absent; Snarlov, Andersen, and Barrow... all of whom had one thing in common.

Beside her, Nick's ears went up.

"What'd you say, Carrots?" Oops, she hadn't meant to say it out loud, even under her breath.

"Polar bears Nick." the doe bunny answered, speaking in a near-whisper. "Look around; do you see any polar bears in here?"

He did as she suggested and then shook his head.

"Yeahhh, I mean...no, I don't. I wonder why that is."

"Beats me," Judy shrugged, feeling a tiny prick of guilt. Actually, she had a pretty good idea as to why those three weren't here, but again it was something not to be shared with the masses.

When she at last took her seat, the chair felt harder than usual, as if to emphasize that something serious was about to go down.

Not that it needed much emphasis; there was none of the usual banter and roughhousing going on. No high-fives were exchanged, no arm-wrestling matches were in progress; the officers of Precinct-1 didn't know exactly what was about to go down, but whatever it was, they knew it wasn't good.

Then Higgins straightened up and called "Ten-HUT!" Ordinarily that was good for stamping feet and pounding on tables, accompanied by a chorus of low whoops and hoots. This time, the room fell into an instant, pin-drop silence.

Ducking his way through the side entrance as per usual, Bogo went straight to the podium, nodding briefly at Clawhauser, who nodded back and flicked on an interactive display screen mounted beside the lectern. Hmmm, so that's what he was doing here.

"Evening everyone," Bogo said, taking his usual place at the podium. He seemed to have lost some of his haggard expression Judy noted. She wondered if it meant that, finally, the other hoof was about to drop.

When it did, it hit like an anvil.

"I know you're all wonderin' why you're here, so I won't talk round corners. By now, I'm certain you're aware of the three big arson fires that have taken place in Zootopia over the last few weeks." His mouth set hard and his eyes became shards of flint. "What you don't know is that they may have been the opening shots in a gang-war between the Tundratown mob and Sahara Square mob. All three of those burnt-out businesses belonged to either Mr. Big or the Red Pig."

The reaction to this was a decidedly mixed bag, growls, yowls, and howls of dismay from some officers, grim nods from the others. Officers Jackson and Rhinowitz exchanged an uneasy look...as if they'd always known this was the case, but had never dared to admit it, even to themselves.

Bogo let this go on for a minute and then belled, "Right, shut it!" and the bullpen went quiet once more.

"We've a fair idea why this is happening," he said, offering just the barest glance in Nick and Judy's direction, "and I could tell you, but...I don't care." (For once, nobody smiled.) "What I do care about is stopping this before it goes any further, before any civilians get caught in the crossfire," he lowered his voice just ever so slightly, "before any more of my officers are put at risk."

His last line prompted a cascade of bewildered expressions...on Judy Hopps's face as well as everyone else's. Any...more officers; who the heck was he talking abou...D'ohhh right, how the heck had she forgotten?"

"Yes you heard me," Bogo went on, "I said any more officers." He swept his gaze over the room, finally settling on Judy Hopps. "When the first target's roof collapsed, it took down a power-pole and nearly electrocuted Officer Hopps there; she was pursuing a suspect through the alleyway behind it at the time."

That was good for another chorus...only this time one of sympathy.

"Oh Judy, are you all right?"

"Dang so that's what happened back there."

"So glad you're okay."

"Oh Lordy, I had no idea you almost died."

It was an almost universal response. However unhappy the doe bunny's fellow officers might be about those videos of her and Nick 'behaving badly', it didn't change one singular fact. Next time, the cop 'in the alleyway' might be any one of them. Even Francine Trunkaby was offering her support—although in a decidedly left-hoofed manner.

"Whoa, only a week after you jumped down onto that airplane."

Bogo rapped for silence and continued.

"So now I hope you understand WHY it's vital we put a stop to this before it goes any further."

He was greeted with nods all around.

"Since our last arson fire," the big Cape buffalo continued, "Intel Division and the arson squad have been working nonstop to determine the next possible target. The 'where' was fairly easy to determine. Since the last fire took place at a firm owned by Mr. Big, it goes without sayin' that the next one's going to happen at one of the Red Pig's properties. However, it almost certainly won't be at any one of his holdings inside Sahara Square; too risky that, even for Mr. Big." Again, said with just the barest glance in Nick and Judy's direction, mostly the fox. "So while that still leaves more than a few possibilities, it at least narrows things down—and now we believe we've got the number of potential targets pared down to five." A rare smile flitted across Bogo's muzzle, grim and ironic, all at the same time. "Which, fortunately for us, are some establishments with which a few of you are at least passingly familiar; Clawhauser?"

He nodded at the plus-size cheetah, who looked away, embarrassed for a second as if he were being forced to perform some shameful act. Then he clicked on the remote and a picture appeared; five of them actually, each one showing a different storefront.

This time the reaction was universal; everyone gasped—including Clawhauser himself, even though he'd seemed to know what was coming. "A few?" 'Passingly familiar?' Nope, try practically everyone and intimately familiar. There wasn't an officer in Precinct-1 who didn't know one of these joints when they saw it.

"Pizzeria Pianeta?" Officer Grizzoli's response was practically a howl of distress. "No way, I love that pizza."

"As if that makes a difference," Judy snickered, whispering to Nick behind a raised paw.

But the red fox only furrowed his brow slightly. "Actually Carrots—it might," he said, and then fell silent as Bogo began to speak again.

"Any questions, then, before we continue?"

Someone a few rows back raised a hoof, a bongo named...Drummond or something, Judy wasn't sure; she rarely had much contact with the officers on the night shift.

"Just wondering Chief," the antelope said, "Why, exactly, are these locations considered to be the most likely targets?" She was at least as unhappy about the situation as Grizzoli had been.

Another brief smile flitted across the Chief's features, as if this was a question he'd been hoping for.

"It was a combination of factors, led us to this conclusion, Drumgold." He said. Again, he offered just the hint of a glance in Nick Wilde's direction. "Mr. Big is an old-time mobster with old-time Cosa Nostra values; eye for an eye, tail for a tail, make the punishment fit the crime, that sort of thing. He'll almost certainly want to strike back against the Red Pig in similar fashion to the arson attack he's just suffered." He pointed towards the display screen, "And, believe it or not, there are actually quite a number of things Pizzeria Pianeta and Tundratown Limousine Service have in common. First of all, both of them were failing businesses before Mr. Big and the Red Pig took them over—and now they're both big money makers. Secondly they're the only business either one of them owns that are permitted to operate in the other's territory. Tundratown limo is allowed to make drops and pick-ups in Sahara Square, while Pizzeria Pianeta is allowed to deliver pies in Tundratown."

Judy glanced over at Nick and saw his ears were standing at full attention; this was news to him, apparently. Well-l-l-l, he HAD said that he didn't know all that much about The Red Pig...and that Tundratown Limo had come into existence only after his falling out with The Big Shrew.

"But the most important similarity is this," Bogo was saying, "The Red Pig and Mr. Big are not merely the owners of these businesses, they're also their own best customers."

Now Judy felt her ears rise up. The Red Pig having a fondness for his own pizza? That made sense but...

"But doesn't Mr. Big have his own fursonal driver?" she queried, in another whispered aside to Nick.

"Yes, but he also has more than just one limo," the red fox explained under his breath, "a lot more. Back in the day when I knew him he had three...and he never used the same one more than two days in a row."

"Ohhh, I see." Judy nodded and sat back in her chair with a knowing nod. Yessss, changing rides on a frequent basis made perfect sense for a mob boss. And if you happened to own a limousine service, the sky was the limit.

Bogo rapped the podium again, harder this time.

"Right, right; all of you, settle down and listen. As I've just pointed out, we've known the 'where' for some time now. What we've not been able to determine is the 'when'." He folded his arms and looked over the group, "That is, until now; according to our sources, the attack is happening tonight."

A sound like a cave wind swept through the bullpen, a hundred mammals, taking in a fast, sharp breath all at once.

It was the rhino on Nick's right who asked it, "Tonight sir?" he queried looking slightly incredulous.

"That's right McHorn," Bogo told him, folding his mouth into a thin, black line, "To be more precise the next arson attack is supposed to happen sometime in the next 24 hours." He lifted his gaze slightly, looking over the group once more. "And yes, we're certain; this information comes from not one, but TWO reliable sources." For the first time since his arrival, he softened his tone a little. "And now you know why you're here. I apologize having brought you in on such short notice, (he didn't sound sorry,) but I only learnt of this meself less than an hour ago."

Several sighs and many more nods greeted this revelation. When Judy happened to glance in Nick's direction, she saw him wearing an expression more appropriate to a sheep than a fox. She felt not a little contrite herself. If that was the case, Bogo had been exactly right to call in every officer he could get his hooves on. The heck with their day off; this was too important.

"All right, how do you plan for us to handle it, Chief?" It was Officer Howell.

Bogo looked at the red wolf and tilted his head slightly.

"I'm glad you asked me that Howell," he said, and then waved a hoof at Clawhauser again. The plus-size cheetah clicked on the screen and a new image appeared, a map of Zootopia decorated with five pulsing yellow dots, each one in a different district.

"These are the five Pizzeria Pianetas located outside of Sahara Square—except for the one in the Nocturnal District. Intel division considers that one a low priority target, since it's the only one open 24 hours—and so far, both our mob bosses have been going out of their way to avoid any collateral damage."

He did not elaborate, and none of the officers asked him to; they all knew the score. Mr. Big and his Sahara Square rival would do everything in their power to avoid any civilian casualties—and the heat that came with it. Sooner or later however, the inevitable had to occur, an innocent animal would find him or herself in the wrong place, at the wrong time.

And after that happened, it would be gloves off for both gangs.

"A stakeout team consisting of two officers apiece will be assigned to cover each Pizzeria Pianeta location," Bogo informed them, "surveillance to continue until they reopen at 11:00 AM tomorrow morning."

A confused hubbub wafted through the room, and this time it was Judy who raised a paw.

"Only two, sir?" she asked, nose twitching in perplexity. That sounded pitifully inadequate to her—and to everyone else, judging by the facial expressions all around her.

"That's right," Bogo answered unfazed by the response, "and there are two reasons for this." He held up a finger, "First and most important, too many officers in the vicinity of these locations might give our game away—and that's the last thing we want. If Mr. Big were to realize the ZPD is lying in wait for him, he'd simply call off the operation and wait for a better day." He gaze fell momentarily on Nick again. "He's nothing if not a patient mammal—and you don't have to be the head of a crime syndicate to know the ZPD can't run an operation like this one every night."

No, they couldn't and the officers responded appropriately; groans, grumbles, and mutterings of, "No kidding!" and "Tell me about it."

"The other reason for only two officers on each location," Bogo told them, "Is that while we're about certain that one of the Pizzeria Pianeta locations is the target for tonight, we can't be entirely certain."

Clawhauser clicked the controls again and a series of irregular blue geometric shapes superimposed themselves on the map; one in each district where a yellow light was flashing.

"The rest of the officers assigned to tonight's operation will be held in reserve in these staging areas. They'll be primed and ready to respond instantly in the event of an incident at either a Pizzeria Pianeta, or any other of the Red Pig's businesses within their zone of operation."

Judy studied the screen closely; yes-s-ss, that could work. But just to make sure, she laid a paw against the side of her muzzle, whispering to Nick again.

"What do you think; does it sound like a plan?" Like it or not, he knew the streets of Zootopia better than her.

"I think the Chief's onto something here," he said, a thread of excitement in his voice—which promptly snapped, dropping him swiftly into a tone of dubious uncertainty. "Only...I-I don't know, Carrots; I just don't know."

Judy almost asked him what he meant, but then caught herself. This was no doubt something else that would have to wait until they were alone.

At the other end of the room, Officer Pennington blew an uneasy note through his trunk.

"Sir, with all due respect, even with all that back-up, only two officers on each pizzeria...well, that doesn't sound like nearly enough bodies to entirely cover a place that size.

"No, but those will be only the hoofs on the ground." Bogo answered him and then spoke to the group again, "We'll be monitoring the traffic cams within a three-block radius of every Pizzeria Pianeta and running camera drones round all of them." He flashed that thin, bitter smile again, "By the time the officers covering them at ground level see anything amiss we might already have back-up on the way."

His words seemed to jar something loose inside of Nick and he quickly raised a paw. Seeing this, Judy hoped her partner was also not about to broach an uncomfortable issue; this would not be an especially good time, (to put it mildly.)

Her fears were allayed when the fox instead asked an entirely pertinent question.

"Has the Zootopia Fire Department been made aware of this situation?"

"Good question Wilde," Bogo nodded appreciatively, "And yes, I've notified Chief Packer fursonally; he's got all his engine companies on full alert."

Judy frowned slightly. That was a risky move; the more animals there were that knew something was happening tonight, the greater the chance that Mr. Big might be tipped off—or even the Red Pig. On the other paw, Bogo couldn't just assume his officers would be able to stop the arsonists before they struck.

As if reading her thoughts, he said "The firefighters haven't been told exactly why they're being put on alert." He smirked again, briefly, "although according to a text I got from Chief Packer a short while ago, many of them think it's got something to do with those kids who've been painting that graffiti all over the city."

Judy couldn't help smiling. Without meaning to, those Zoomer and V-For-Vendetta kids were actually helping the ZPD tonight. The irony was almost delicious.

"Now," Bogo rapped the lectern again, "those of you assigned to watch the pizzerias will go in unmarked cars, but keep y' uniforms on." The left side of his mouth turned upwards, "Even Mr. Big's soldiers will think twice about hurting a ZPD officer in uniform."

"In a public space anyway," Nick chimed in cynically, under his breath. And Judy didn't disagree with him; the Tundratown mob boss had once come that close to putting her on ice for good—knowing full well she was a police officer. Yes, he'd ended up setting both her and Nick free, but not because of the badge she'd worn. Under the present circumstances, it was something the doe bunny could not allow herself to forget...even if she was godmother to the Tundratown boss's oldest grandchild.

"Just the same," Bogo was wagging a finger. "If any of you assigned to a pizzeria stakeout see Mr. Big's polar bears approaching, you're to call for backup immediately; do NOT attempt to take them on y'selves, unless it's the only way to stop the business from being burnt. Am I clear on that, then?"

"Yes, sir!" the officers answered in chorus.

Bogo leaned forward, laying his elbow across the lectern, regarding them with a steely gaze.

And then he repeated himself, reciting each word as if pinning it to a bulletin board.

"Am...I ...CLEAR...on...that?"

This time the response was much louder.

"Yes, SIR!"

"That's better," Bogo drummed his fingers on the lectern, and scanned the room again, "any more questions, then?"

Judy's paw went up at once...as always before she could stop it.

"Yes, Hopps." the Chief said, regarding her with his patented 'This had better be good' expression. 'Any more questions', the second time in a row was Bogo-speak for 'NO more questions!'

"Well sir," she answered, standing up on her chair, (in or a penny, in for a pound.) "I couldn't help noticing; officers Andersen, Barrow and Snarlov aren't here. In fact, I don't see any polar bears in here; why is that?" She could only hope it was an acceptable inquiry.

Apparently it was.

"Another fair question Hopps, and I can see that some of the rest of you have been wondering the same thing. They've been told to stand down for the evening. And the reason for this is, if they're be spotted anywhere close to an enterprise owned by Rocco Peccari, they might possibly be mistaken for one of Mr. Big's soldiers." A grim smile flitted across his features. "I think you can imagine what would happen in that scenario."

"Yes sir," Judy answered hurriedly sitting down again and feeling a little foolish. Nearly all of Mr. Big's heavies were polar bears, the same species as the three absent officers. The Red Pig's enforcers, on the other hoof, were almost exclusively wild boars, an animal not noted for having keen eyesight; yes, it all made perfect sense when you thought about it.

"So does that mean the Red Pig knows there's going to be trouble tonight, too?" It was Kii Catano.

"No," Bogo informed her with a curt nod, "but he's known he's got trouble brewing ever since the Tundratown Limo Fire. Since then, he's been keeping a close watch on all his premises...in and outside of Sahara Square. And that's the other reason I'm only assigning two officers apiece to each of those pizzerias; we don't want the Red Pig to know they're under surveillance either. Otherwise he might just decide to take a little pre-emptive action against Mr. Big."

A murmur of concurrence rippled through the bullpen; that sort of move would be just like the Sahara Square mob boss.

The next animal to risk raising his paw was Wolford, "Sir, you mentioned earlier that so far both the Mr. Big and the Red Pig have going out of their way to avoid any collateral damage...so uh, may I assume the Big Shrew won't be hitting any of those places until after they close for the evening?"

At this Judy's ears stood up and she saw Nick's do the same. As loaded questions go, that one was a howitzer. Except for the location in the nocturnal district, every other Pizzeria Pianeta was open until 11:00 PM; another five hours at least.

So what the heck were he and the other officers doing here now?

The wolf's unspoken inference did not escape Chief Bogo's notice. He said, "There's no way Mr. Big would go after one of those pizzerias without sending someone in to give it a final case; he's nothing if not thoroughgoing."

"But..." Officer Johnson protested, "Didn't you just say that if any of his polar bears are seen..."

"Oh come on," Nick Wilde cut him off irritably, "of course he won't send in his soldiers to do the job; any kid with a cell-phone camera could handle it."

"And I can think of only about a hundred kids who'd be willing to do it for a free pizza," Claire Swinton put in, adding wryly, "provided they didn't know the reason, of course."

It was a good answer but not enough to satisfy Wolford's fellow lupine Grizzoli.

"Okay, fine...but if it could be anyone casing the targets, what good does it to do put a watch on them so early? Ever been to a Pizzeria Pianeta on a Saturday night? They're always full up, with a line outside, waiting to get in. How the heck are we supposed to pick out a shill from a crowd that size?"

"We probably won't," Judy was up on her chair again, "But if we don't at least try, we definitely won't."

"Ummm, yeah, you've got point there Hopps," the white wolf conceded, sitting down again. He understood; there wasn't an officer in this room who hadn't nailed a perp by just plain stumbling onto the proverbial needle in the haystack; you just never knew.

"Well, obviously the watch teams won't be going in that early." Bogo said, "After we break up here, those of you on day shift will be free to get some dinner or take a nap until 8:30—that's when I'll want you all back here—and the first watch teams will go in at 9:30." He lifted an eyebrow, "Any morequestions?"

This time everyone's arm stayed where it was.

"Right then, assignments." Bogo snapped open his reading glasses and placed them on his muzzle, "Wolford and Grizzoli will take the Pizzeria Pianeta on Outback Island, Swinton and Fangmeier, you've got the one in the Rain Forest District, Howell and Simmers, Old Growth City. The location in the Canal District will be covered by Officers Higgins and Pennington," He scratched at a horn, "and last but not least, we come to the Savanna Central location—probably the most likely target as it's the same district as the first arson attack." His eyes found Nick and Judy again, but this time they didn't move away. "Hopps, Wilde... you're on that one."

"WHAT?!"

The angry bellow came from three rows back, cutting through the air like a razor through rice-paper. The trumpet-blast that followed could have brought down the walls of Jericho all over again.

For the next few seconds, Judy didn't know what to think; she'd barely had time to register her new assignment before Francine Trunkaby had leaped from her chair, sending a shudder through the floor when her feet hit the lionoleum.

Now, she stood with her forehooves braced against the assignment table, dark eyes shining with outrage.

"Wha...? I can't believe this. You're giving the lovebirds...?"

"WHAT did you say?" Bogo glared daggers at her. That was normally all it took to get someone to sit down and be quiet.

Not this time; the cow elephant was only slightly deterred.

"You're giving these two troublemakers the most critical assignment?" she said, waving a flustered trunk at the fox and bunny-cop, "WHY?"

"Because," Bogo informed her with deep, faux-courtesy, "Unlike most of the other officers here, Hopps and Wilde have had actual close encounters with Mr. Big's enforcers...and as such they're able to recognize them on sight."

"I can recognize them by their scent too," Nick Wilde growled, before turning to give Francine Trunkaby a withering stare.

His response had no effect on her either.

"So what? Anyone can recognize a polar bear; it's not brain surgery..."

"Sit down, Trunkaby," Bogo rumbled. His voice was hard as onyx and half an octave deeper than a moment ago.

"No," she replied, refusing to back off. "I will not." All around her, mouths were hanging open in shocked surprise. From somewhere behind the cow elephant, Judy heard a troubled whisper, "For God's sake, Fran..."

Trunkaby ignored it, waving an angry trunk in Nick and Judy's direction. It reminded the bunny cop of the way Judge Schatten had gestured at Conor during the young silver fox's arraignment. J'accuse!

"Bad enough that you tolerate this fox and bunny's inappropriate behavior but REWARDING it..."

For the past few seconds Judy had been mentally begging Nick not to get involved...but now SHE was on her feet.

"What behavior? That video was a deep fake and you...."

Francine cut her off with another trumpet blast.

"Yeah...SURE it was, cutie!"

Bogo slammed his hoof into the lectern, so hard that Judy thought she heard wood splintering.

"That's it Trunkaby, you've just earned yourself two weeks parking duty, starting tomorrow."

Her reaction to this stunned even him; reaching up with her trunk, she snatched off her badge and threw it down on the table in front of her.

"Here's what you can do with your parking duty, I QUIT!"

At once a chorus of protest erupted all around the cow elephant; Officer Stevens, her fellow pachyderm tried to take hold of her arm, but she shook off his trunk like an errant vine.

"No...I'm sorry, but enough is enough. Deep-fake, my tail! Go back and look at that video again...if you can stand it." She leveled her trunk at Bogo like an accusing finger. "Anything to protect the department's image, eh Chief...or were you just following orders from City Hall?"

"Francine, stop it!" It was Kii Catano. Her plea was what finally dampened the cow elephant's anger.

What replaced it wasn't much better.

"I-I'm sorry," Francine sniffed, shaking her head and blinking back tears, "But there comes a time when you just have to stand up for your principles." She focused her gaze on Bogo. "You'll have my formal resignation on your desk tomorrow morning. And...and I apologize for what I said just now, about protecting the department's image. That was out of line."

Bogo said nothing, only folded his arms. The last accusation was something she couldn't take back and both of them knew it.

What she had to say next was something she wouldn't take back.

"But I won't say I'm sorry to YOU two." She blared, casting a steely gaze on Nick and Judy, "ever!"

She turned and stalked towards the exit, head held high and mighty. Halfway there, Officer Drumgold got up and gave her a hug. She hugged the bongo back quickly and then went on her way. Judy half-expected her to fling the door open when she got there and slam it behind her.

Instead the cow-elephant simply pulled it open and slipped through quietly (as much as was possible for her species,) allowing the door to swing shut on its own.

A silence like a leaden fog fell over the briefing room; the few faces Judy could see were unreadable...and yet, the hostility emanating from certain quarters was so palpable, she could almost taste it.

Finally Bogo spoke again; his voice low, and steady as a touchstone.

"If any of the rest of you want to go with her, either leave now...or not at all."

There were no takers...and so he shuffled his papers and went on—smoothly, as if nothing untoward had just occurred.

"As for everyone else..."