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CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

NED

Garrett and Olympia were waiting when Ned's Ford pulled into the hardware store parking lot. The store was closed, so he knew the black Mercedes had to be their vehicle. Certainly a less conspicuous car than Garrett's Mustang, if they were venturing into the crime district.

The two Triad members themselves were dressed more or less the way they always did, in black leather and black jeans, although Olympia had pinned two long chopsticks through her mane. After Ned and Scarlett had got into the Mercedes - the back seat - Garrett turned around and asked "You two are both armed, right?"

Ned replied that they were. "But are we going to need to use them?" Their guns were actually the only item from work that they'd worn; Garrett had requested they dress in plainclothes, so Ned wore a military jacket and jeans; Scarlett in her jean jacket.

"Probably not" Garrett said. "Just a precaution."

That did not seem particularly reassuring, but Ned did not ask about it again. Instead, he and Scarlett listened while their two less-lawful companions explained how the evening would proceed:

"Let us do the talking" Olympia said. "Do not speak to Javon's boys unless I specifically tell you to."

No fear of that; this was Garrett and Olympia's world, not theirs. "What exactly are the Panthers getting in return?"

"That is my concern" Olympia turned the car down a darkened street.

"Aren't you and the Panthers rivals?"

Olympia replied that that was true.

Presently the Mercedes pulled into a darkening lot next to a run-down café, boarded up and abandoned. Warily Ned got out of the car, catching scents of smoke and trash and grime. He had never been this far into San Fernando's crime district before, and instinctively he felt his fur prickling, entire body on edge.

Garrett walked around the car and gave him a quick hug. "You're ok, right?"

The coyote's jacket seemed bulkier than usual. "I'm fine" Ned said, with a half-smile. He glanced curiously at Garrett's chest.

He'd expected Garrett to bring some sort of weapon to this meeting, but that had not prepared him for the sight that met his eyes when the coyote opened his jacket and revealed no less than two small handguns and four knives, each slung through individual strips of leather on the jacket's inside.

"Geez, Garrett! You've got an entire arsenal in there."

"I'm always prepared" the coyote told him, seriously. He zipped the jacket back up and patted his chest. "Anyone who messes with me will get what he's asking for."

Ned remembered the night of the gala. "That ocelot that attacked us after the Mayor's gala...."

"Is dead" Garrett said in matter-of-fact tone, and Ned knew better than to question him further than that.

Scarlett looked very nervous, so Ned gave her a hug too. "Just remember why we're here."

"I know" she muttered. "Is it bad to admit I'm scared?"

"Of course not."

"Let's move" Olympia barked sharply. She too appeared heavily armed, and she had two Chinese swords slung over her back.

The white wolf led the way as they crossed the street, went down a block along dirty sidewalks, and down a long alley, which was crowded with overflowing dumpsters and rotting furniture. Ned tried to imitate the wary but steady way Garrett moved down the alley, but nonetheless he was constantly glancing this way and that, waiting for an unseen enemy to pounce, as the fur of his neck rose, breathing quickened in anticipation for he knew not what.

Olympia saw them first.

There were seven of them, of which five were panthers. Three leopards and two jaguars, Ned thought, all black as night. They were walking abreast of each other, and were accompanied by a skunk and a cross-fox. They did not look friendly.

"You know these guys?" Ned asked quickly as they neared the panthers.

Garrett's reply was as detailed as it was quick. "The skinny leopard in the middle is one of Javon's lieutenants; a cousin of his, I think" he tipped his muzzle toward the panther in question. "His name is Kalifa Abruzzi, but he calls himself Ringo. I don't know the other panthers by name; just some of Javon's goons."

Scarlett was practically shivering. "And the fox? And skunk?"

"The fox is a contract killer calls himself Rafael Greene. I don't know the skunk, but probably another mercenary."

Ned steeled himself, standing up straight in Alpha wolf stance. "There's only one reason the Panthers would bring hired guns to meet us..."

Garrett didn't even answer.

The two groups stopped to face each other.

The pause gave Ned a chance to study these adversities. The panthers were all dressed rather casually, in hoodies and torn jeans, while Greene, the fox, wore a longcoat, and the skunk wore only a wife-beater and shorts. The panthers looked like a rough group, especially the leader, Ringo, who had a wildly dreaded mane. A cigarette dangled from his muzzle, the scent burning Ned's nose. Most of the other panthers just grinned, while the skunk wore an emotionless expression. Greene looked apprehensive, frowning at Olympia.

All of them held a gun.

They didn't invite us here to barter for information, Ned realised in horror. They brought us here to kill us - well, Olympia, anyway. He shot a quick glance at his companions, but to his surprise, neither Garrett nor Olympia appeared surprised, or even nervous. Scarlett, on the other hand, was trembling; her ears lower than he'd ever seen them, her tail as far between her legs as it could go.

It was Ringo who spoke first. The leopard was grinning, wild eyes glinting out of a malevolent black-furred face. "I know you, Xang Lan" his voice was heavily accented; some dialect Ned wasn't familiar with; African of some sort, perhaps. "..and you, Tang Guang" he grinned at Garrett, "and...new toys?"

Ned realised the panther was looking at him, and he bared his fangs.

"New hires" Olympia flicked an ear dismissively. "Good evening, Ringo. Javon must be expecting a big party, if he sent so many of his pets to so simple a rendezvous."

Ringo only smiled broader. "Oh no, Xang Lan! You have been a thorn in our side much too long, too long. Javon wants you dead."

"Let him try, then" Olympia murmured calmly. "Evidently he thinks it's a seven-man job."

The fox, Greene, was still frowning. "You did not tell me the target was a Triad member, much less their leader."

"Shut up, fox" Ringo growled, the cigarette bobbing on his lips. "Do as you were hired to do."

The fox bristled. "This ain't my fight."

Ned was half listening to this exchange while looking for cover in the event of a shootout. The alley was dark and scattered with assorted rubbish; no large objects to take cover behind, though. He wondered if the panthers could smell his and Scarlett's anxiety; their noses wouldn't be as good as his. "I do not have time for games" Olympia growled, still softly, but enough to show she meant business. "You are aware of the information which we seek."

Ringo smirked. "I am aware."

Several things happened very fast.

First, Olympia's left paw came up, launching a small object, which landed right at Ringo's feet. Instantly, smoke exploded around the panthers - a smoke grenade. Simultaneously to tossing the grenade, the wolf jerked one of the metal chopsticks from her mane and flung one of them at Ringo, who gave an angry hiss of pain.

Likewise as Olympia made her own attack, Garrett, who had remained silent during the entire exchange, eyes never wavering from the panthers, made his own. Ned had never seen the coyote remove his knives from his jacket, but in one quick flick of his wrist, one of them was airborne, and the leopard next to Ringo gasped, clutched his chest, and fell forward.

The smoke had partly obscured the panthers, but from it a spray of bullets ricocheted, so close Ned could almost feel them whizzing past. Responsively, he threw himself to the ground like he'd been taught at the academy, grabbing for his pistol as he did so, and rolling on to his back. Just in time, because no sooner had he pointed the pistol upwards than a jaguar charged through the smoke, pointing his own gun at Ned. There was nothing to do but fire, which Ned did.

The cat jerked backwards and fell limply. This was the first time Ned had ever shot someone on the job, but he had little time to analyse this first because suddenly a tough foot kicked the pistol out of his paw, so that it bounced once off the alley floor and fell several feet away. He'd barely began moving his head when the paws were at his neck, squeezing, choking.

Gasping, Ned brought his knee upward, trying to connect with someone, but his attacker had a grip of iron, and seemed determined to strangle him. Even as he fought this, Ned was aware that the gunshots had ceased, only to be replaced by the grunts and thuds as someone fought paw to paw.

His vision began to blur.

Thud.

The skunk, for that was who had been choking him, fell away and lay unmoving, as Ned struggled to catch his breath. "Ned! Are you ok?"

It was Scarlett's voice, and vaguely the wolf realised that his partner had her paw extended, for him to grab. She was holding her pistol, but hadn't fired it, so apparently she'd knocked the skunk over the head with it.

"I'm fine" Ned groaned, raising a paw to grasp hers and pushing himself to his feet. No time to chat though - he glanced around. The jaguar he'd shot lay where he'd fallen, unmoving. The smoke had begun to fade, though, and clearly the two cops could see where the rest of the battle was folding out.

Garrett was spinning, twisting, locked in a martial-arts duel with the other jaguar, each of them holding a knife. Only feet away, Olympia was battling not one but two leopards, one of them Ringo, who apparently had not been seriously injured by the chopstick.

Ned raised his pistol, but now to shoot without striking either Garrett or Olympia? Besides, if the panthers really did know who had bought the dagger, they need someone alive to question.

It was almost magical watching Garrett and Olympia fight. Every move of the panthers was matched perfect, paws and feet ever-moving to connect with their opponents. The jaguar Garrett was fighting was making wild slashes with his knife, but Garrett evaded them easily, bending back so far that his torso was almost at a right angle to his legs, so Ned almost feared he'd break in half. Likewise, although she was facing two opponents, Olympia did not at all seem outmatched. For being a lieutenant, Ringo did not seem to be overly impressive as a fighter - sure, he probably knew more about martial arts than most of the officers at SF Metro did, but compared to Olympia or Garrett, the panther was slower, his movements frantic, the casual attitude gone. As for the other leopard, he appeared to be rather young, late teens maybe, and was totally outmatched, his chops and kicks careless and ill-planned.

Scarlett was also at Ned's side, pistol raised, but neither of them moved, staring wide-eyed at the battle taking place before them. No chance for a shot, but neither Garrett nor Olympia really looked like they needed help anyway.

This battle seemed to go on and on, but in reality it was probably less than a minute or two before Garrett's duel came to a quick and final end. Eyes narrowing, the coyote threw a sharp chop of his palm towards the jaguar's side, which the panther countered with a defensive motion of his own. This was shown to be a feign, because as the jaguar responded, Garrett's other paw shot up in one quick motion and drove the point of his dagger right through the bottom of the panther's jaw. It must have gone straight up into his brain, because when Garrett jerked the dagger out, the jaguar dropped like a stone, sprawling lifelessly on the ground.

God, Ned thought. Olympia was right about Garrett, so very right. He was beautiful in the way he spun and twisted, almost like a dance, but he was deadly too.

He had little time to contemplate that his boyfriend had just killed someone, though, because practically at the same moment, one of Olympia's feet collided with the teenage leopard's muzzle, and he flew back, landing hard on his back.

"Freeze, Police!" Scarlett fairly screamed, throwing herself at the teen and pointing her pistol at his head. She bared her fangs. "Don't move a fucking hair!"

The sound of her voice seemed to free Ringo from his fighting-stance. "What, police?" he gasped, glancing away from Olympia, if just for a second.

That was his mistake.

Olympia's foot shot out, striking the leopard in the knee, while her arm caught him in the neck broadside. Feet and paws flew in a barrage of blows, knocking away Ringo's knife.

It was unreal how fast the white wolf moved. Ned couldn't exactly say when the long Chinese sword appeared in her paw, just that it was suddenly there, and a moment later, Olympia was holding a struggling Ringo from behind, and the sword was held across his neck.

He realised what she was doing.

"Olympia, no!"

"Goodbye, Ringo" the white wolf whispered, and she slashed his throat.

Ringo reeled away in a spray of blood, gasping red and grabbing at his throat, only to collapse, gurgling, tail twitching as his gasps of breath quieted, and then ended.

For a moment, no one said a word, all panting heavily, catching breath.

Gradually Ned raised his head to take in the scene.

Scarlett had handcuffed the surviving panther, and was now doing the same with the groggy skunk. Strangely, the coyote seemed almost triumphant, jerking the skunk's paws together and pushing him into a sitting position....almost like she'd come in control of her emotions, and her fear.

For their part, Garrett and Olympia were even more so - Garrett was actually smiling, while Olympia looked merely pleased. Watching the pair, Ned came to a startling realisation. They had never been scared; for them, this was ordinary business.

And that was sobering.

He waited until he'd caught his breath to confront Olympia. "Why'd you kill Ringo?" he waved a paw at the still form of the leopard, who seemed less menacing now that blood was pooled around his head, soaking into the dreads. "We needed him for questioning."

Olympia was unperturbed. "He had to die. Javon needed a reminder as to why he should avoid double-crossing me." She walked over to the teenage leopard, who, now that he was hand-cuffed and weaponless, just looked scared. "Miss Lewis has done a satisfactory job of detaining captives as it is."

"Yeah, nice job, Scarlett" Garrett said seriously. "You'll make a great addition to our team." The coyote bent to clean the blood off his knife - with Ringo's shirt.

Scarlett opened her muzzle, to retort, Ned thought - but she didn't. "Thanks" was all she said. She really did seem to have gained confidence from this, Ned understood in amazement. Her ears were higher than they had been before the confrontation, and her tail wasn't between her legs anymore either.

"Alright, stud?" Garrett had finished cleaning his knife, and, having retrieved the other from the chest of the leopard he'd slain, he walked over to Ned and gave a hopeful smile.

"I think so" Ned said, and they kissed. Was right after you'd just killed several gangsters in an adrenaline-rush martial arts battle the best time to kiss your lover? Perhaps not, but it felt good, so for a moment Ned just enjoyed the muzzle pressed to his, the taste of Garrett's tongue.

"The fox got away" Scarlett barked.

The kiss ended as Ned glanced around. In the stress of the battle he'd forgotten all about Rafael Greene, but the cross-fox was clearly gone. So far as Ned had seen, he hadn't participated in the battle at all.

Olympia shrugged. "Tis no matter. He's not important."

Scarlett didn't look convinced. "What if he returns to Javon and reports what we've done?"

"He's a fox, not an idiot" Olympia replied. She'd pulled the skunk over so he and the young panther were side by side, and knelt in front of them, studying their faces. "He knows if he returns to Javon as the only survivor, his chances of leaving their lair alive are next to zero. The Panthers will see no more of him."

Just as well. Ned gave Garrett's paw a squeeze and turned back to Olympia. "We have business to finish."

"Yes, we do" the wolf acknowledged. She was still holding the sword, still red with Ringo's blood, and she used its tip to tip up the skunk's muzzle. "I will ask politely: will one of you please provide us with the information we request? Who did you sell the jewelled dagger to?"

"I don't know nothin' about any fuckin' dagger" the skunk spat. "And if I did, I wouldn't tell you, bitch."

Just before Olympia moved, Ned had a sudden hunch. Before he could cry out, though, Garrett grabbed his arm, and audibly shook his head.

Olympia never replied, just swung the sword in one quick blow, severing the skunk's head from his body.

Scarlett gasped, and Ned was, for one horrible moment, reminded of the way the Prophet had beheaded Ken and Eliza Harding. The way Olympia's expression remained entirely neutral, devoid of emotion -

A glance at Garrett showed the coyote to be regarding Olympia and the prisoners with a grim air of approval.

The white wolf turned her gaze to the now-trembling teenager, and suddenly it became clear.

The teen was now drenched in blood - Olympia had executed the skunk in such a way that the spray of blood had landed directly on the shivering leopard.

The prisoner more likely to know about the dagger.

Realisation of this revelation made Ned's fur stand on end. Olympia had never intended to question the skunk. She'd killed him purely to scare the leopard into talking. His eyes shifted to Garrett, who was watching seriously. No doubt the coyote knew exactly what Olympia was thinking. This is the way these people think, Ned thought. Perhaps they made exceptions for their loved ones and friends, but in general, a life meant nothing to them; it was merely a tool.

It made Garrett and Olympia seem even more evil and deadly than ever.

"I will repeat my question" Olympia said, every word pounced perfectly. "Who bought the dagger?"

The young leopard was sobbing. "I don't know his name" he sniffled, as the handcuffs prevented him from wiping his nose. "Ringo was the one who talked to him."

And Ringo was dead. Garrett walked up to Olympia's side. He'd taken one of his guns from his pocket and held it pointed at the captive. "If not a name, a description? Species? Age? Height?"

"He wore a dark hood!" the teen gasped. "I don't know the species. Tall, and kind of skinny. Athletic? His muzzle was always hidden."

"If you tell us something of value, we may spare your life" Garrett prompted. "Surely there's something."

"He has a fake tail!"

"A fake tail?"

The leopard nodded frantically. "Yes. We thought he was a weasel at first, because he had a very small tail, but the next time, he had a tail again. He was wearing a longcoat to hide it, but you could see the outline of the tail. Some kind of canid, I think - I didn't seem him up close. A wolf, coyote, fox; some kind of dog, maybe."

A canid? Well, that would open up a new range of possible suspects. But the fact that the killer had lost his real tail would be a good clue - that would help narrow things down a bit.

Olympia smiled thinly. "That is valuable. Is there anything else you can remember?"

Eyes darting back and forth erratically, the panther continued. "He bought a gun and a machete the first time. I didn't go when Ringo sold him the dagger. He bought something else that time too....I'm not sure what."

"Anything else?"

"Well...." He hesitated. "We thought he might have been a dirty cop."

What?

Ned couldn't help breaking in. "A dirty cop? Why?"

"He talked a bit about the police not having any idea what they were dealing with" the panther explained. "He seemed to know a lot about the police investigation - even about the case against us, and the other gangs. He drove a white car, but he said it wasn't his work vehicle."

Ned and Scarlett exchanged a glance.

"Oh! He called himself 'Ross.' That was it" the teen smiled, relaxing.

Garrett and Olympia looked at each other for a moment. "That's all you have?"

The panther replied that he had no other details.

Garrett pointed the handgun.

Oh God, they were going to kill the kid after promising not to.

"NO!" Scarlett cried, taking several steps towards the other coyote. "You're not going to..."

"Do you have a better solution?" this was from Olympia. Her eyes were devoid of kindness, returned to that penetrating gaze.

"We could arrest him!" Scarlett suggested. "He's a gangster..."

"And have him relate this entire scene to the police? How do you suppose that would help your career, Miss Lewis?"

Scarlett's eyes widened. "But you can't just..."

"I'm with her" Ned yelped. "This isn't right." He glanced from wolf to coyote. "You have to see that!"

During this altercation, the leopard had remained silent, but his ears had flattened again, and the stench of fear once again surrounded him. "I won't tell!" he cried, beginning to cry again. "Just let me go."

"He's too dangerous to let go" Garrett said.

Garrett too? Oh no, no, no, no.

It took just a few quick steps to reach the coyote's side. "Garrett," he pleaded, laying a paw on his boyfriend's shoulder. "Don't do this. It's not you. Taking out drug lords is one thing..." he gestured at the leopard. "This guy's just a kid. And helpless."

But there was no sympathy in Garrett's eyes. "Stand back, Ned" he murmured quietly. "This is part of my world, not yours. Do not interfere."

He gave a slight push, causing Ned to take several steps back.

Tears were streaming down the teen's cheeks. "Please, let me go" he begged.

"Don't do this! Good people don't do this" Scarlett cried.

Garrett gave her a thin, sad smile of the kind people wear when they know they're already, irreversibly, bound for hell. "But I'm not a good person" he answered softly, and he shot the young leopard chest twice in the chest.