by James Gough
“Stinky, where were you?” Mars stepped back and punched him in the shoulder.
“Don’t hit him.” Nurse Starr stepped forward to examine him. “He could be injured.”
“I’m fine,” blushed Will.
The door to his room flew open behind the tape. “What is the racket? We are trying to investigate a horrific crime. Now return to your…” Agent Liska stopped short and caught her breath. “You?”
“Will?” Rizz stepped in front of Liska with his jaw hanging open, then swept him into hug, squeezing the air from his lungs. “We thought you were toast, kid.”
Manning, Dr. Noctua and Flores emerged from the room with looks of amazement. Everyone pelted him with questions, impressed with his ability to survive yet another attack—everyone except Deputy Liska. She stood inside the demolished room and glared at Will, her fiery eyes burning with suspicion.
24
Accused, Arrested, and Tried
News of Will’s miraculous escape was the talk of the mountain. The morning addition of The New Wik Times had pictures of Will’s broken room, a sketch of the wolfchant hunter, and a drawing of a Builder on the front page.
Stripe was being called a kidnapper. Protesters lined up outside St. Grimm’s doors shouting for the incarceration of all Builders. As guilty as he felt, Will thought it best to play along until he could communicate with Dean. But that wouldn’t be easy now that Rizz and the team had tightened security even more.
Will’s room was a disaster. His things had been moved to an interior room with one door and no windows, like a vault. With Kaya still recovering from her injuries, Rizz was put in charge of Special Branch, and in some ways he was far stricter. He ordered two agents to be present at all times, including inside the room when Will was sleeping.
The new setup was basically a claustrophobic cell with no privacy, but at least Will was allowed to move around the hospital again. To his relief, Will found out he wasn’t the one setting off carnivores after all. While he’d been locked up, aggression had been flaring throughout St. Grimm’s. Will was in the clear.
Agent Manning said it was probably just the Builder attacks and the stressful preparations for Sanctuary Day that brought out the worst in everybody. Random brawls had broken out among the decorating committees. A bearchant, a wolverine, and two coyote enchants were in critical condition after a fight started over someone dropping one of the glass decorations being hung in the carnivore cafeteria.
Tension wasn’t isolated to the carnivores. In the herbivore cafeteria, the antelope enchants on the decorating committee sat huddled in a corner with their boxes of decorations, wild-eyed and skittish, jumping out of their seats if their neighbor asked for saltlick.
Even with the unusual aggression, St. Grimm’s seemed to blossom with festive decor overnight. Bright banners, streamers, and giant swirling globes of glass with “200” written on them filled the corridors. The Sanctuary Day bicentennial celebration was only two days away.
Huge white and gold flags filled the front lobby, except where the investigation tape still cordoned off the entrance to the Gathering Hall. A mountain of decorations had been stacked outside the restricted area by anxious teams of decorators awaiting permission to enter the Hall.
As the hours ticked by, the need to start dressing the giant domed arena turned into desperation. Scuffles broke out hourly between the impatient flamingo enchant decorators and Liska’s ISPA goons.
While Will was locked up, the hatred for Liska had turned into pure loathing. An anonymous jokester had executed several practical jokes. The ISPA crime tape had been replaced by toilet paper. All their equipment cases had been filled with chocolate pudding. Someone had even managed to put blue dye in Liska’s shampoo bottle, turning her red hair purple. She offered rewards for information on the identity of the culprit. No one said a word, but Mars and Berko had been getting secret high-fives for days.
There was a new energy that seemed to invigorate every activity in the mountain, including Will’s naturalization lessons. Agent Manning reinstituted his training and finally allowed him to use his hearing enhancer when they sparred.
At the sound of the whistle Will closed his eyes and blocked every punch, kick, and charge Manning threw at him until he finally vaulted over her, flipped her twice, and pinned her to the mat. Rizz snorted while Manning begrudgingly admitted that Will was ready for the combat portion of his naturalization test.
After passing Manning’s training, everything became easier for Will. During his enchant history lesson, he knew the answer to every question. Dr. Noctua announced that he was ready for the history naturalization test. Will’s days of sequestered reading had helped.
The team seemed happy with Will’s progress. Even Flores complimented him on his ability to crawl into holes. Rizz gave him two thumbs up for his tagging, which only left the instinct control portion of the test. But since Kaya was still recuperating from pneumonia, and Will’s smell enhancer would be more than enough to pass the test (seeing that binding instincts wouldn’t be part of it), the team scheduled Will’s naturalization exam for the week after Sanctuary Day.
That meant Will now had more time to relax, or so he thought, until Rizz reminded him that he had promised to help Mars decorate the maternity wing.
Everyone in the mountain had a decorating assignment. Will saw Nurse Starr carrying a box of banners. Sergeant Gnar, now with a cast on his ankle, strung flags above elevators. Will, Rizz, and Flores even met Dr. Dervis waddling down the hall, clutching several swirling glass globes in his tentacles. The squid enchant’s eyes were darting from side to side as he handed Flores a yellow envelope marked Top Secret and asked him to deliver it to Dr. Noctua.
“It’s about a conspiracy. Something big,” whispered Dervis.
After Dervis was out of sight, Rizz leaned close and whispered, “That’s the fourth Top Secret conspiracy note in a month. That squid needs a vacation.”
“Pass me the big one, Stinky.”
Will pulled a swirling globe from the box and tossed it to Mars, who flew up to the four-story ceiling of the prenatal nesting room and hung it on a strand of lights. Rizz, Flores, and Berko strung white and gold bunting above roosts built into the walls of the hive-like room. A few birdchant mothers nuzzled large eggs and watched the decorating committee create a festive mood.
“Throw me another one.”
Will bobbled it and the globe bounced loudly across the floor. He received stern glares from the nesting mothers. Rizz caught the bouncing glass ball and checked for cracks before handing it to Mars and shooting a reproving look at Will.
Abruptly, Rizz put a hoof to his ear and spoke into his dental floss. “Rizz here.” There was a pause. “Yeah, he’s right here. They all are.” He listened some more. “Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Now?” Rizz tensed. “She can’t be serious. It doesn’t make sense.” He stared at Will and the two bat enchants. “Fine. We’ll be there in five minutes.”
Rizz motioned for Will, Berko, and Mars. “What did you guys do?” He spoke through gritted teeth.
“Who?” Will and Mars looked at each other.
“You two and Kevin.”
“Who’s Kevin?” asked Will.
“Me,” grunted Berko. “But only if I’m in trouble with me mum.”
“Liska issued a warrant for your arrests.”
“All of us? For what?”
“She won’t say, but Bump has ordered you to his office.”
“What if we don’t want to go?” Mars put her hands on her hips.
“Then Liska threatened to cuff you in the middle of the lobby in front of the cameras. She wouldn’t dare try this without some sort of hard evidence that you did something criminal. Burglary or assault or extortion, something like that.”
Suddenly the fang hanging around Will’s neck felt like an anchor.
Rizz massaged his temple. “I suspect this is just a way for Liska to finally get Will alone in an interrogation room. It’s probably just a bunch of hot ai
r. But if not, please tell me you guys weren’t stupid enough to incriminate yourselves.”
“Of course not,” huffed Mars.
“You’d better be right.” Rizz raised his watch. “Alright, we need to go. Noctua will meet us there in five minutes.” He spun and clopped toward the hallway.
Will and his friends shared an uneasy look. Mars pointed to the silver chain peeking above Will’s collar. Quickly, he slipped it off his neck and into the deepest pocket of his parka. The fang and the silver were ice against his rubber glove as he followed after Rizz and Flores, dragging his feet like a prisoner being led to the gallows.
Dr. Bump’s office was opulent and impressive, a sharp contrast to the squatty beetle that paced its marble floor. He insisted that Will, Berko, and Mars share a hard wooden bench in front of his antique desk. Sitting on the bench, the three suspects were eye-level to Dr. Bump as he interrogated them.
He circled them as he spoke. They had to lean away to avoid being battered by his immense belly or overpowered by his potent breath. On the end of the bench, Will received the worst of the stomach smacks.
“Agent Liska tells me she has proof of something serious. Very serious!” His high-pitched voice was like scraping tinfoil across teeth. “Now tell me what it is, and I will ask for leniency. That is why I have convinced Deputy Liska to make her arrest here. What are you hiding?”
Will worried that Deputy Liska had learned about Stripe or Dean scent-speaking, not to mention the fang in his pocket. Rizz stood in a corner with his hooves crossed, yawning at the tirade and waiting for the others to arrive. Flores stared at his mirror.
The four-armed administrator’s lecture was beginning to repeat itself when the door opened. Agent Liska led the way, her torch-like hair still stained purple.
“I like your hair,” said Mars, running her fingers through her own purple highlights.
Liska’s fiery eyes bore into her.
Behind Liska, Cylus slithered into the room with his hands stuffed into his pockets and an air of smugness. He flicked a black tongue at Will.
“Agent Liska. Thank you for coming here, what with the hospital’s reputation to think of,” Dr. Bump squeaked.
“Sit down,” snapped Liska. “I only agreed to arrest them here to protect the reputation of the victim.” She nodded to Cylus. “I’ll make this short and sweet. You three, Wilhelm Tuttle, Margarit Carmona, and Kevin Flugel, are guilty of malicious assault on a fellow enchant, Cylus De la Vega.”
“Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty?” Rizz moved behind Will.
“They are guilty,” hissed Cylus. “Look what they did to me.”
He pulled back his scaly lip and flicked his black tongue over his new silver fang. “Now hurry up and arrest them already.”
“Yes, I agree. The quicker the better.” Dr. Noctua stood in the doorway adjusting the spectacles and clicking his beak, Agent Manning at his side. “But is it customary to carry out punishment before proof is presented?”
“These three are under arrest.” Liska produced three sets of handcuffs.
“One moment, Agent,” said Dr. Noctua. “I would like to hear this evidence before we throw these children in jail.”
“Dr. Noctua,” Liska snarled.
“Senior Councilman Noctua, and as such I can order you to comply and request the presence of the Director of ISPA, but I doubt if that’s needed now, is it? Your evidence please, Deputy.” Dr. Noctua folded his feathers over his cane and waited.
Liska’s confidence flickered. “I have the signed testimonies of twenty enchants who saw these three attack the victim unprovoked.” She produced a sheath of papers and dropped them on Bump’s desk.
“Twenty enchants saw an innocent boy being assaulted and did nothing to stop it?” Dr. Noctua moved to collect the testimonies. “I would like to see those names. It sounds like several cases of depraved indifference. Shameful.”
Liska retrieved the papers. “I’m afraid these names are confidential.”
“Confidential witnesses? That doesn’t seem very fair now, does it, Agent?”
Liska’s eyes flashed. “The witnesses were a redundancy. We have a statement from the morgue assistant, Ralph Granger, who will testify that Miss Carmona and Mr. Flugel brought him the fang of an adolescent viper enchant and requested that it be mounted on a silver chain.”
Berko and Mars shifted at Will’s side.
“I also have an eye witness who has seen the boy wearing the chain for days.” The fox woman sauntered toward Will. “It is the same trinket you will find around his neck right now.”
“That’s a serious accusation, Liska,” said Agent Manning with a growl in her voice.
“A ridiculous one,” added Rizz.
Deputy Liska smirked. “There is an easy way to prove it. Let’s see the boy’s neck.”
In a flash, Manning was crouching between Will and his accuser, daggers unsheathed.
Liska arched her back and bore her claws in response.
“Ladies.” Dr. Noctua spoke calmly. “I see no problem with Wilhelm submitting to this request.” He turned to Will. “Would you please show us your neck?”
Will looked around nervously. He stood and opened his parka, pulling down the neck of his t-shirt to show his throat was bare.
“There. You see. Nothing,” stated Dr. Noctua.
“That only proves he’s hidden it,” spat Liska. “Turn out your pockets.”
Will felt a chill of nerves. His eyes dashed to Dr. Noctua, who nodded. This was it. Will had been caught red-handed. Slowly he reached into his pocket and closed his latex-covered fingers around…nothing. The pocket was empty. He felt every corner, but nothing was there.
“Well?” the fiery fox woman snarled.
With surprise and relief, Will confidently turned his pockets inside out, producing nothing but the pack of gum and lint.
Liska looked more infuriated with each empty pocket. She bore her pointed teeth. “This boy is hiding something, and I will find out what it is.”
Dr. Noctua cleared his throat. “It appears that your information was mistaken.” He turned to Cylus, whose waxy yellow face was beginning to flush a violent maroon. “Do be more careful in the future, Cylus. The swamp chamber is full of all kinds of accidents waiting to happen. The next time you are injured we may need to alert your uncle.”
Cylus’ face drained of color, and he sat back in his chair quietly. Whoever his uncle was, it was obvious that Cylus was not eager to see him.
“Now, Deputy Liska, if there is no other evidence, I suggest we conclude.”
She could do nothing but shake with anger.
“Good. Now, if you’ll excuse us, I hear there is still quite a lot of decorating to be done in the maternity ward.” Dr. Noctua turned to the three teens. “I think it best you get back to it.”
The doctor limped out of the office, then paused and swiveled his head 180 degrees to face the fuming foxchant. “Oh, and Deputy Liska, I suggest you allow the decorating committee into the Gathering Hall if you don’t want this little false accusation to accidentally leak to the papers. Good day.”
Just before the door closed, Will caught a glimpse of the rage in Liska’s orange eyes. He had no clue how the fang had disappeared from his pocket, but as Liska’s angry snarls bled through the door, Will was glad it was gone.
25
Maggot Duty
The first thing Will noticed when he entered the larvae nursery was the smell of rotten eggs and rancid maple syrup. The second was the thick, greenish mucus that coated every inch of the long, low-ceilinged chamber. Hundreds of white maggots the size of watermelons wriggled through the slime, some crying like babies and others cooing as they blew out green bubbles. Will coughed and held back a gag as the odor stuck in his throat.
“What’s that smell?” he gasped.
Mars kicked a blob of slime off her bare foot. “That depends. It could be the gassy larvae or it could be their delightful crib liner here.”
“Because we need to talk and this is the only place where Stinky’s babysitters won’t follow us.” Mars sidestepped a curious larva that had scooted between her feet. “Rizz is grossed out by larvae and Manning’s allergic to the slime. Besides, don’t whine. We could be in jail.”
Mars moved to a wall and pushed a string of lights through the oozing goo. “Although right now, jail doesn’t seem all that bad.” She pulled her hand out of the mucus and shook it, causing slime to splatter onto Will’s cheek.
“Ew. It smells like rotten eggs.” Will wiped his cheek.
Mars picked up more decorations and headed back to the goop. “So are you two gonna help or just stand there and watch?”
Will and Berko each grabbed some lights. After rolling his sleeves, Will pressed the glowing lights through the warm mucus until his hand hit stone. He stepped back to admire his work. The lights looked like an uneven line of fireflies trapped in Jell-O—not very festive.
Something touched his leg. One of the larvae was nudging his ankles like some slimy, legless cat. Will felt the warm ooze making its way into his shoes. Mars was right—jail couldn’t have been worse than this. The larvae at his feet made a gurgling sound followed by a mass of bubbles that popped loudly through the surface of the slime. A moment later, Will knew where the rancid maple syrup smell came from.
After an hour wading through mucus, the larvae nursery walls glowed with pale lights and dim lanterns suspended from the ceiling. The maggots all migrated to the lights. None were crying anymore.
“We should have you three come in more often,” said Nurse Gifford, a bristly hedgehog in hip-waders. She fed the larvae their evening meal of formula and rotten meat. “I’ve never seen baby waspchants this quiet. Their mother will be so proud.”