Author's note: Sorry about the delay, I was out on vacation last weekend and that's usually when I get most of my writing done. Plus, I ended up rewriting this chapter a couple of times. Thanks for all the wonderful comments, follows, and favorites. I'm having a blast writing this story.

Chapter 10

Judy's heart pounded in her chest, her breaths coming in gasps. She wore one of Nick's large black sweaters with the hood pulled up over her head to hide her face. Both of her paws clutched the cold metal handle to the back exit of Nick's apartment building. She pushed the door open an inch and listened, both ears straining to pick up any noise from under the hood. The rabbit's nose twitched as she sifted through the complex smells emanating through the crack in the door. She smelled nothing out of the ordinary, just the usual smells of garbage, diesel exhaust, and the smell of stale cigarettes. Mustering her courage, Judy pushed the door open and slipped through. A dark, wet night greeted her as she walked out. The rabbit turned and started walking with what she hoped, was a non-incriminating pace. Judy was unsure if she was going to be followed but she didn't want to take chances.

The rabbit did keep her pace brisk as she ducked into a nearby department store. The scents of women's perfume and men's cologne assaulted her senses as she pushed through the store, quickly finding another exit. She had planned her path well and a subway entrance was only half a dozen paces away. She sprinted down the stairs and used one of the few subway passes she had stolen from Nick's place to move through the turn-styles. The subway smelled of stale air, axel grease, and a faint hint of urine. Judy squinched up her nose in distaste at the familiar scent as she moved quickly to the large subway map on the wall. The rabbit was quite familiar with the map, having used the subway multiple times a week for the last year. She quickly found the 'L' line and took the short couple of steps to a platform where, as luck would have it, a train was already waiting. Judy slipped through the doors of the second car just as the train started to leave the station.

After half a dozen stops the train dropped her off at a station just a few blocks away from Oak St. Judy was surrounded by animals of all sizes, pushing past her as they hurried about their day. The rabbit took a deep breath, and with a final furtive glance behind her, she walked up the stairs into the night. The street she emerged onto was filled with four to five story buildings. The kind with store fronted windows on the bottom floors and apartments built above. Mostly, she saw small boutique shops that catered to a lower clientele. The rabbit glanced up at a nearby street sign and oriented herself before setting off toward her destination. She passed fast check cashing locations, stores that boasted quick money now, cheap jewelry, and a multitude of small fast food franchises. As she approached her destination her pulse and respirations began to rise. By the time she reached Oak St. her pace had picked up and her paws were clenched into tight fists.

Judy watched the street numbers climb as she walked by each building before 1594 Oak St. came into view. The address was unimpressive. A small building was wedged between a sad looking flower shop and a twenty-four-hour pharmacy. A gray steel front door with a large warning sticker, 'HIGH VOLTAGE: AUTHORIZED PERSONEL ONLY' greeted visitors. No windows adorned the outer facade of the building and the rabbit wondered if she had misheard Nick when he gave her the address. The building in front of her looked like a power substation, not a… Well Judy wasn't sure what she was expecting to find. The only give away was a lonely security camera that was fixed to the building, it's lens centered at the gray door. She didn't pause long on her inspection of the building but walked up to the door. She wondered if she should knock or just try the handle. She decided on the later and surprisingly the door swung inward to a well-lit interior. Without a look backwards she stepped in and let the door shut behind her.

The bunny was met with a well-lit room which was characterized by more gray walls which, surprisingly, were decorated with hanging pictures. The pictures seemed to be all of foxes. No two were alike, each seeming to originate from a different time period and a different artist. After pausing in front of the door Judy quickly realized that she wasn't alone in the room. On the far wall, sitting at an old wooden desk was an elderly looking female fox. The fox was wearing a knit shall, horn-rimmed glasses, and looked very much like a stereotypical librarian. The fox was staring directly at Judy with a look of surprise on her muzzle. The rabbit took a deep breath and hurried the few steps to stand in front of the desk; pulling back the hood to her sweater, allowing her tall ears to return to their erect position.

"Hello." Judy said a bit awkwardly, as she was unsure how to start.

"Good evening, my dear." The fox said with a kind looking smile. "How may I help you. Are you lost?"

The rabbit shook her head and tried to return the smile, "I'm here to see Wildthing."

The look of shock the fox gave her as she made her request was a bit unnerving.

"Do you have an appointment?" The librarian-looking fox said with one eyebrow slightly raised.

"Well… no." Judy said simply, holding up her paws in a placating fashion.

"I'm afraid he isn't seeing strange rabbits who come tumbling through our door. Why don't you try coming back once you have made an appointment?" The fox said, her friendly demeanor dropping slightly.

"I must see him tonight, right now!" Judy pleaded. "It's a matter of life or death. Please!"

The friendly smile the fox originally gave the rabbit was now only the ghost of a memory as her face morphed into a wicked snarl. "That's not my problem. Wildthing is indisposed at the moment and isn't seeing any visitors. Now if you would turn around and go back to where you came from, we won't have a problem."

A loud buzz announced the opening of a door to the right of the large desk she was standing next to. Two extremely large foxes emerged from the door and walked toward Judy, each wearing a menacing, determined expression.

"Please, I have to see Wildthing. Please." Judy tried again, but to deaf ears. The fox behind the desk had gone back to reading a magazine. Two pairs of paws took hold of her arms and dragged her back towards the exit. She started to panic, this was her only option. "Nick Wilde sent me. He is in trouble. He told me to find Wildthing!" She shouted back to the librarian-looking fox.

"Wait." Was the fox's only reply. Instantly, the two toughs at her sides halted their forward progress and turned Judy around so she was once again facing the desk.

"You said Nick Wilde sent you. How exactly do you know Mr. Wilde?" She said looking over her horn-rimmed glasses at her.

"He's well he's my partner…" Judy said trailing off.

"Your partner? In a business franchise?"

"Well no, we're both police officers." The rabbit said truthfully.

"You came here and admitted to being a cop?!" The fox said incredulously, dropping her magazine back on the desk, standing up.

"I don't even know what 'here' is." Judy said, her ears falling.

The fox reached down and picked up a phone on her desk and dialed. Her eyes never left Judy as she whispered into the handset and nodded to herself. "Boys, take miss police officer back to see the boss. Let's see if he can decrypt this bunny's lies."

The two goons didn't reply, but pulled her toward the door from which they had come and, after another audible buzz, yanked her through it. Judy found herself at the top of a long twisting staircase. On the wall directly in front of her, some animal had spray painted the words, 'The Fox Den' in red. She shuddered slightly as she felt the paws on her arms practically carry her to the first set of steps leading down.

"I can walk on my own. Let me go!" She said, her voice filled with fear and anger. To her surprise, the pair let her arms go and she was free to walk down with the two toughs following closely behind her.

Judy walked down four floors of cement steps before finally rounding the last corner to find another long hallway. This one was surprisingly wood paneled and was softly lit with antique gas wall lamps. The rabbit tentatively stepped onto the hardwood floor of the new passage, with the two fox's still in tow. At the end of the hall was a wooden door with a frosted piece of glass set in the upper part of the frame. Large black letters spelled out the words, 'The Fox Den' on the glass. Judy's mustered her courage and walked toward the door, her shoulders thrown back in a confident posture. She had come to save Nick. That thought gave her the strength to reach her paw out to the door.

The two toughs on either side of her, replaced their paws on her shoulders and assisted her through the door. Judy found herself standing in a replica of a turn of the century English pub. A brick wall sat directly across from the door they had entered. Dozens of paintings hung there showing old hunting scenes with small fox's being chased by hunters on horseback. In the center of the brick wall, mirrors had been hung behind a gorgeous mahogany bar. Dozens of liquor bottles were set against the mirror, each proudly displaying its contents with a brightly colored label. Judy's nose twitched at the warm smells of wood, beer, and cooking food. To the left and right of the bunny were high-back mahogany booths, hiding the sitting patrons. The place felt almost unworldly, almost as if she had stepped into an alternate dimension.

The goons held Judy's arms as they waited near the door. She felt almost in shock as she waited. After nearly five minutes, a couple of auburn foxes stood up from a table to her left and she was ushered forward. As the rabbit passed the pair, they both gave her a scornful, disgusted look, as if she were beneath them. Judy tried to remain calm, but her heart began to race as she was lead to the booth. With an overly hard shove, the goons pushed Judy into the booth. She barely had an opportunity to use her paws to steady herself before she noticed she was sitting across from someone. Someone who looked surprisingly like an older Nick.

Confident half-lidded eyes peered back at her. The fox in front of her wore a dark suit that seemed to match the mischievous grin he wore. He tilted his head curiously and slightly raised his right eyebrow.

"And who might you be? It isn't often we get one of your kind in the Fox Den." The fox said, picking up the half-full glass of beer to his right and taking a small sip.

Judy didn't quaver, she looked directly at the fox in front of her. "My name is Judy. I'm a police officer and partners with Nick Wilde. He was taken hostage this morning and he sent me here to find help. He told me to find someone named Wildthing."

The fox didn't react as much as she would have expected. His eyebrows may have risen just the slightest in surprise, but he quickly mastered his expression. "Is that so? It's been quite some time since I've seen that fox. He ran off and joined the police force? He always was a bit of an odd one. That fox always played by his own rules." The fox said with a slight smile, before snapping his fingers and summoning the bartender. "John, could you please bring the lady here a whiskey sour, something to calm her nerves."

The bartender bowed and returned to the bar and started preparing the drinks.

"Well, I am Wildthing if you were wondering." The fox said, continuing. "If you haven't guessed, he is actually my son. Folks around here call me Wildthing as sort of a nick name, but you can call me Paul. Paul Wilde at your service." He said holding out his paw.

The rabbit almost laughed at his gesture, "The lady at the entrance isn't quite as hospitable as you." She shook his paw and looked at Paul in a new light. Here was Nick's father, sitting in front of her. Strange he had never mentioned him and only his mother.

"She is quite harmless I assure you. We get quite a few shady characters crawling around this building so having a lady who is as tough as nails really makes things safer for all of us. She makes the best crumb cake, goes great with espresso." Paul said, smiling before taking another sip of his beer.

In almost no time at all, Judy's drink arrived and she launched straight into her story. Her words flowed more smoothly as the level of the drink dropped. She was shocked to see that after fifteen minutes of nonstop talking, that her drink had been emptied and another fresh one was dropped in its place. The fox didn't interrupt her but only nodded and offered the occasional exclamation of, 'Hot Damn!'. She eagerly took another sip of the relaxing liquid as she felt a new feeling of strength flow through her body. Paul was going to help her find Nick.

"So, this megalomaniac thinks he can control all the prey animals in one fell swoop and you are to his spokesbunny? It makes sense, he is in the perfect position to pull something like this off. You say yourself and Nick have only been partners for less than a month? Why would they hold him hostage? Is there something I'm missing about your relationship with my son?" Paul gave her an odd look as Judy drained the last drops from her second whiskey sour.

The rabbit was definitely feeling the effects of the drink. She was inexperienced with alcohol and was visibly tipsy, one of her ears bent at the middle and her body swayed slightly. "Nick and I, we are just really close friends. It's complicated, we…" She said, trailing off her eyes drifting down to the wood table top in front of her. "We just have to save him. I'll do anything to get him back." Judy said, her voice a whisper.

"Well, I've never been one to judge, especially in my position. Do you know what I am?" Paul said, leaning closer, his smile fading. "Do you know what kind of place you are in. You're the first bunny or even the first prey animal to see the inside of this room. You may feel trapped in the lion's den but here you are, asking the hyena's for help. Figuratively speaking."

The rabbit shook her head, "That doesn't matter right now. Whatever business you are into, I won't tell. I won't give up the location of this place. I just want to see Nick again." She said with a desperate fervor.

"You have to realize, little bunny. I have to protect my organization. You're a police officer and so is Nick. If we help you, how do we know that a SWAT team isn't going to come barging through those doors after Nick is free? As you can imagine, we aren't on the right side of the law here. If you do keep our secret, how long can that last? What happens if you see one of my fox's here committing a crime and you use the knowledge gained here to find his compatriots. This isn't a simple black and white situation." The fox in front of her said before gestured to his fellow foxes around the room.

"I'll do anything you want, anything. Just save Nick and help me save the prey animals. You're my only hope. Please." Judy tried to ignore the fact that she was pleading, almost begging the fox. The rabbit had hoped he would be more willing to help his son escape from the clutches of Derrick.

"You're not just asking for my help. You're asking for the help of my organization. We are scoundrels, thieves, and rouges. We don't work for free. I haven't seen my son in half a dozen years. He is my kin, but I won't sacrifice my position and my members for no gain." Paul leaned back in his chair with a contemplative expression on his face.

Judy's panic started to rise, she felt like he was getting ready to say no. "I don't have anything. I don't have any money. Isn't saving the life of your son payment enough?"

Paul took a few final sips of his beer before emptying the mug into his muzzle. He sat quietly for nearly a minute gazing off into space, clearly thinking. "There is something you have. If we are going to help you, then you have to be a mole for us, inside the police force. At least long enough where we can pull a job that makes my organization wealthy. Following that, you have to quit the police force. Forever. And leave Zootopia. I'm not going to run the risk of having you change your mind a few years later and turning us in."

Judy looked shocked. She had a strict code of ethics, plus it was her dream to be an officer. If she took Paul's help, she would be sacrificing everything. Her heart made the decision before her mind even had a chance to rationalize what the Fox had said. "Deal." The rabbit said holding out her paw.

The fox grinned and returned the shake with one solid pump. "Excellent. Now, let me see. We have to get you back home so you don't miss your early morning appointment." He said before fishing around in his pockets and pulling out an older looking cell phone. "Take this. It has my number preprogrammed into it. We can communicate without Derrick being any the wiser." Paul felt a sense of elation he hadn't felt in some time. He was confident they could rescue his son. He would have done so anyway, no one takes his boy hostage. Getting this bunny to agree to help them make, what could possibly be, the largest score in his career, was just icing on the cake.

Judy took the phone with a sense of Déjà vu. She now had two burner phones in her possession. The alcohol sloshed in her stomach as the gravity of her promise whirled in mind and heart. She felt sick.

Paul watched the bunny carefully, and could tell it was time for her to go. He beckoned to one of the goons who had been waiting at the door. "Could you please escort Judy back upstairs and have one of our drivers take her back to her place."

The rabbit stood on shaky legs and nodded to Paul before saying, "Thank you."

Paul returned the nod and smiled, holding his empty beer glass in the air, "To new friendships and endless possibilities. We'll be in touch."

Judy turned and allowed the two toughs to lead her back up to the street. She didn't bother looking toward the desk where the librarian fox sat, but continued straight out until she found herself back under the rainy night sky. The two large fox's pushed her into the back seat of a large black sedan that pulled up within a minute of the them arriving on the street.

The next fifteen minutes felt like a blur as Judy sat with her head resting against the window. The driver stayed mute and she didn't offer anything in the form of conversation. Her mind spiraled under the weight of her thoughts as she stared blankly out of the window at the dark streets flashing by. She instructed the driver in a slurred voice that she needed to be dropped off at the back entrance. He replied with a silent nod.

The car arrived and she slipped out into the night. Her feet guided her back up to Nick's apartment as her vision swam from a combination of tears and the effects of the drinks. Barging inside she collapsed on her fox's bed, burying her noes under the blankets and pillows. It smelled of him. She breathed deeply through her nose and found some peace in his warm musky scent that permeated the bed. Judy pulled the lump from her pocket and placed the new burner phone on the bedside table. Her nose could still smell the sex on the sheets as she pulled the blankets completely over her head, cocooning her body in darkness and the fox's musk. The rabbit drifted off to sleep, her thoughts filled with Nick's green eyes and charming grin.

/\/\/\/\

A gentle tapping.

A pause.

A more insistent tapping.

Another pause.

A louder knocking.

Nick awoke. His eyes were blood shot and the fur between his ears was plastered to one side. The knocking on the door continued. He shook his head, trying to clear the last memories from the horrid nightmare he had been having. It was something about Judy, an endless hall, and a creature trying to get her as he watched helplessly. "What is it?" He groggily yelled at the door.

"Breakfast!" A cheery voiced called through the door.

Nick answered with a long groan.

The door opened tentatively allowing a small serval to slip inside. She carried a tray with several covered dishes that wafted tasty smells into Nick's room. The small cat maneuvered around the near pitch black room expertly, finding the windows and flinging the black-out shades open. The east facing windows were suddenly filled with the mornings sunlight, a splash of light landing directly across the fox's naked body. Nick growled unhappily and pulled a pillow over his head. He felt perfectly miserable.

The fox held the pillow over his eyes with both paws and practically whimpered. His voice muffled by the pillow, "What time is it?"

"It's seven and I've brought you breakfast." Kamari said, averting her eyes politely from the naked fox on the bed.

Nick lifted his head and peered out from under the pillow at the small cat. He had not slept well. His mind had continuously played out the scenes Judy might be having with his father. He wondered if he had made the right suggestion in sending her to see him. There was a reason he didn't talk to his father. He wasn't a purely evil man, but he was a conniving, lying, manipulative asshole. The fox sat up and in a flash realized he was naked in front of Kamari. He pulled the sheet quickly over his lower half, trying to hide his shame.

"Sorry." He muttered, trying not to look at the small cat.

"It's quite alright. I've seen quite a few of my master's guests naked. I'm quite used to it." Kamari said with a grin. She tottered over to the table next to the bed and placed down the tray. She whipped off each metal cover, revealing several hot steaming breakfast foods. Tasty eggs, hash browns, and oatmeal with fresh fruit now stood surrounded by orange juice, ice water, and a cappuccino.

The smell of the coffee and hot food did peak the fox's interest. It had been some time since he had eaten. He fished around the bed for his clothes but saw them laying on the ground at the foot of his bed. Sheepishly he slid out of the bed and slipped his briefs and pants on, skipping the shirt for a moment. "Do you always offer room service in the morning for the guests?" Nick said, sitting down in front of the meal.

The serval laughed and shook her head. "Of course not. You're getting special treatment. Mr. Byrd knows nothing about this. You're one of the few animals I've met here who actually treated me like an equal." She said, pulling the chair across from the fox out and sitting down.

The fox pulled the plate of scrambled eggs toward him and smiled happily at the cat. She had provided a spicy salsa for the eggs which really made his mouth happy. Nick had to slow himself from eating the dish too fast. He paused and took a sip of the cappuccino. "This is great!" He said, his voice filled with enthusiasm. "Won't Derrick be upset that your spending so much time with only one guest?"

"Well, he has instructed the staff to take excellent care of you. I can't stay too long or someone might get suspicious. As I said yesterday, we aren't even supposed to speak to the guests. That's one reason I had to come so early." She smiled and tilted her head. "I wanted to speak with you."

Nick wasn't slowing down as he finished the eggs and moved onto the oatmeal. The fox hadn't realized how hungry he was until the warm food was put in front of him. He only paused to take a long gulp of the orange juice.

"Slow down or you'll choke." Kamari admonished.

Nick laughed around a mouth full of the oatmeal, before pausing to look at the serval. "You're right. As much as I hate to admit it, Derrick's chef makes some mean grub." The fox said before slowing down and taking a more moderate sip from the cappuccino mug. "So, tell me Kamari. Have any ideas how we can escape this place?"

Kamari frowned and looked down at her paws. "No one leaves without permission. There are armed guards at all the gates and camera's everywhere. Over a year ago an oriental panda girl tried to escape. She was caught trying to hide in a garbage truck. Her punishment was…" The serval looked up, and Nick could see glistening tears in the corners of her eyes. "Brutal. For weeks and weeks, she was forced to move heavy rocks back and forth between two piles. She had nearly no breaks, minimal water and was forced to sleep outside, in the rock pile. The poor girl collapsed several times from heatstroke. I don't think I could have lasted as long. I haven't seen anyone make an attempt after that."

Nick had come to the conclusion that he was going to focus on punching Derrick's face first before focusing on the stomach. The more he heard about the coyote the more he seemed to resemble a super-villain. How had such a monster been allowed to become so powerful?

"Maybe we can think of something. Two heads are better than one. You know I am a police officer after all." Nick said with a shrug,

"You're a police officer?" Kamari said incredulously.

"When you have a chance, I'll explain the entire situation to you. I don't want to be the reason you're in trouble by spending so much time here." The fox said looking up at a conveniently placed wall clock.

The small cat sighed and stood, nodding. "You're right. I should be more careful. I'll be back in an hour or so to collect your dishes. I think Razor has a busy day scheduled for you. I just wanted to make sure you were well fed."

The serval bowed as she left, it looked like nearly an automatic gesture. She gave a friendly wave as she slipped out of the door, leaving Nick alone.

The fox looked back down at his breakfast and pushed the plates away from him, having lost much of his appetite. He took a final sip of his cappuccino. Nick sat with his eyes on the windows, his mind far away thinking about Judy when the bedside phone rang. The fox jumped slightly at the unexpected sound and picked up the receiver with a sense of trepidation. "Hello?"

"Good morning, sunshine." Razor's said, his voice sounding slightly muffled through the questionable phone connection. He was obviously using a cellphone. "Are you ready to start your day? I'll be at your room in fifteen minutes so make sure you're ready."

"I…" Nick started but was cut off by the neon fox.

"The time's a ticking, see you soon!" Razor said with a laugh before the line went dead.

Nick replaced the receiver and sat on the bed for a few moments before gathering his clothes and heading into the shower.