Chapter 3
Witnesses:

Swifteye and Robrile set out early when the sun was entirely up into the sky. It was a beautiful morning, which wasn’t usual. Though the two preferred to travel unnoticed. It would be easier to work this way. No disturbances in their way. So they stayed in the shadows among alley ways and back roads. Never did they pass by the main metropolitan area. To many about. Driving coaches, walking to shop, and just roaming around.This is why Swifteye usually did his work at night. But this would be too long of a wait for this case. He had to justify the three deaths that took place. Not only was it the mayor’s orders, but Swifteye himself wished to get to the bottom of this. He somewhat had a hunch that one of the victims had been one of his personal aquaintences, or even a good friend. Plus, with a weapon such as that about, it had to be stopped soon. If another victim was killed, Camdom would get worried and become disquieting through the streets. A city of paranoia. All of the animals would stay in their homes with fear of leaving it. Something similar to that had happened once before in Swifteye’s carrier. It was in a different city however. The fox liked this city very much and would hate to see that happen to it. Swifteye and Robrile strode in an alley behind the central market in silence. They were headed in the direction of the first spoken witnesses house. The house of the child, Kimsi. Kimsi was a very young mouse who lived with his parents and grandmother. He was well known in the city as “the cutest furry thing around”. Sadly, he had been upset by the sighting of the body and had not left the house to go to his education lessons at the Fish Pond School House. They very well knew where he lived, but had a bit of a walk set out for them. Swifteye was actually the only one who knew. Robrile questioned him on the location of the house. “Is it a bit up that way?” he asked. Swifteye shook his head, staring straight ahead. “We have to turn then I spose, then? Were not far are we? Sure do hate walking. Not s’good on by feet, what?” Swifteye remained silent the entire time. They would have gotten there in greater due time if the raccoon hadn’t been speaking through the walk. And a dull walk it was. Camdom was quite a sight to see. It was guaranteed to see something new each time you walked through the gloomy yet somehow cheerful city. But the alleys were not this way. Gloomy indeed, but not at all cheerful. Stentches and aromas came upon the duo of sleuths. Robrile scrunched his nose in agony. “That’s a terrible smell, aye? Wonder what it could be. Must we walk back this way, Swift?” he asked. Swifteye nodded and said; “I have told you many times before, we can’t wander through all the publicity.” he spoke quietly, trying to hint to Robrile to be quiet as well. “I know that, mate, but we can just ignore them if they talk right?” complained the raccoon. “Oh, that would be nice.” said Swifteye in a fierce sarcastic voice. “Stay focus, Rob. With all this noise I’m surprised we haven’t already been noticed. Now be still and speak not, understood.” there was no answer. “Rob? Robrile! Where have you gone to?” asked the fox turning to look. To Swifteye’s surprise and dismay, a large and muscular otter stood holding Robrile up to his chest with a knife at his throat. The otter had a tattoo of an anchor on his shoulder. He had a very rough look and was not a pleasing sight at all. “Alright, mateys! I hears you know a bit to much about one o’ our dealin’s! Nah speak up fox or I’ll slice up this ‘ere raccoon like a slab o’ raw meat, hear?”the otter threatened. Robrile was struggling helplessly, wide eyed. Swifteye stared at the sight with anger. “You know about the murder that occurred last night?” Swifteye asked calmly. The otter looked of surprise at the remark, and Swifteye noted this. “I said nothin’ about that, whatever you be talkin’ about! I was talkin’ bout my crew, hear? Now speak up afore I kill your friend!” said the otter. Swifteye smiled a bit. “Well I can understand if you don’t want to talk about it. I suppose no one would. I mean if I had killed someone, I wouldn’t want to speak of it.” he said. The otter began to get angry. “I didn’t kill nobody! But I will if you keep jawin’ about it!” said the criminal. Swifteye simply starred at the sky peacefully. “And with such a powerful and deadly weapon as well. Dear me, I wouldn’t tell a soul.” he spoke soft and quiet. The otter shouted a curse word loudly into the air. “I’m warnin’ you I’ll kill this thing!” he shouted. “Oh, I know you would. I’m sure you’ve done it many times now.” Swifteye said. “Blast it, fox!” shouted the otter. With a mighty rage he slammed Robrile up against a brick wall and shortly after shoved him to the ground. The criminal spun around with his large knife aimed at Swifteye’s through. The otter’s chest heaved in and out through a black leather jacket muddy and torn. He slowly walked over to the fox with fury in his eyes. Swifteye did not move. The skilled professional waited until just the right moment. “Now you take back what you said bout me bein’ a killer! Take it back, curse you!” the otter screamed. Just then he charged at Swifteye swinging his knife around wildly. Right when he came to Swifteye’s position, the fox slid a foot to the right and swiped his large foot underneath the otter’s. Swifteye did this with ease and almost no speed. The otter tripped over the leg and fell flat on his face. Swifteye stared down at the criminal with no motion. It didn’t take long for the angry water mammal to climb back to his feet and snatch up his dagger. Gritting his teeth the otter ran forth to make another attack. His feet patted the road loudly as he ran. Blood trickled down from his jaw from the fall he had taken before. Normally, a beast would have been afraid of the evil approaching evil doer. But Swifteye was not. The otter took a vital swipe at the foxes head. Swifteye ducked, a tad bit too much of a close call for his taste. The otter fumbled forward, stumbling on his own feet, still a look of anger on his face. At the right time and place, Robrile flung his fist with a mighty packed up strength. The otter flew back an amazing twelve feet and three more sliding on the ground. Sweat and blood dripped onto the pavement from the blow. At first, the otter remained silent and motionless with his eyes closes. A soft breeze drifted across the alley gently. It seemed as if the violent seen had not just took place. But all reoccurred as the otter struggled to his feet. He trembled in pain, fear, anger and humiliation. He held up the dagger with shaky hands. Swifteye stared calmly at him almost welcoming. “No fears, criminal, I will tell not a soul of how you killed the terrier and the two others.” he said. The otter flinched with further anger. The beast threw the dagger with all his might while screaming; “I didn’t kill em’!” This time, Swifteye was not fast enough to duck from the attack. He protected his face with his arm as best he could. The fox flinched as the knife blade bounced off his forearm, a trail of blood behind it in a long ribbon. It clattered to the road noisily. When Swifteye lowered his arms, the criminal had ran from the spot with great speed. Neither of the animals attempted to chase after him. They stared in his direction with no motion. Finally, Robrile spoke up. “Gorgeous work, mate! We had that un’ in the bag, aye? So that was who killed the folks?” he asked. Swifteye shook his head slowly. He had been ready for that question. And had long prepared the answer. “Not a chance, Robrile.” he said quietly. “Too stupid for our victim. Nice punch though. Since when have you been that strong?” Robrile grinned unmodestly. “Since always.” he said massaging his fist gingerly. “That otter packs a fine wallop as well don’t he?” Robrile then began rubbing his swollen cheek. Blood trickled down from his lip. “How’s your cut, mate. You all right?” he asked. Swifteye held up his arm to examine it. It was a deep and bloody cut. In Swifteye’s eyes it was nothing to worry about. “I’m fine. Now let’s go before we waste any more time. Come along. The rest of the walk was mostly uneventful. Along the way, they spoke of the ambush and what they believed would occur. Both agreed that the otter most likely worked for the assassin that had slain the three people. The unintelligent waterdog had made that quiet obvious. Unintelligent, yes, but unskilled, no. If a beast that low in intelligence quotient was that skilled in the art of fighting, it wasn’t entirely a pleasant thought. Many strong beasts scampering around killing innocent people without knowing why. That was what Swifteye saw it as. Maybe even if they were lucky, he wasn’t part of the assassin’s gang. But that was quite unlikely. Swifteye kept his wound arm still so not to irritate it. It stung greatly and made well needed thought difficult. Perhaps he could get an aid for it at the doctor’s shop. It would be out of their way, but it may have had to be done. The two passed by the shop and watched it in thought. “Swift, I say we go in. Your arm ain’t lookin’ so good.” Robrile suggested. Swifteye didn’t move his eyes away. “There is no time. We must stay on the case. Move along now. We have questioning to do.” he said and they moved on. They discussed thoughts on the subject for a little while longer. Then after a few minutes, the two fell silent for the rest of the way. When at last Robrile and Swifteye arrived at the front of the house of Kimsi the mouse, Swifteye’s wound was already feeling better. He had thought of many questions he needed to ask Kimsi during the walk. There was a minor problem however. It was going to be quite difficult to get the information out of the frightened young mouse child. The two detectives stepped up onto the front steps. Swifteye reached inside of his coat to get his detective’s badge. Robrile made a fist and rapped on the door loudly. From inside they heard footsteps nearing the door. Robrile glanced at Swifteye briefly. The door knob began to wobble noisily. Slowly the door creaked open. A middle aged mouse woman stood in the door way. She was very frightened at the side of the two and was speechless. Swifteye took a step up and showed her his badge. It was a golden diamond with his name imprinted on it. A picture of the fox was in the center. all information needed was written on the badge. “Ma’am, this is detective business. I am Swifteye Fox and this is Robrile Raccoon. Step aside if you will, we need a few words with your son.” said Swifteye in a low voice. The mouse woman looked very uneasy. “W-why do you need to speak with Kimsi?” she stammered. Swifteye put a hand on her shoulder and spoke quietly to her. “Your son was said to have seen a body floating in the river. I apologize for the intrusion but we need to ask him a few things. Then if all goes well we’ll be out of here in no time.” he said. The mouse frowned. “If all goes well?” she asked. “Kimsi doesn’t want to talk about that anymore, I thought everyone knew that.” Swifteye leaned back and forth to get a look around the house to see if the young mouse was about. “I’m sorry, these are orders from the mayor. I promise you if your son answers each question truthfully he shall be bothered no more.” said the fox. “My partners right, mate. We know how much animals hate to talk about these things.” Robrile replied. The mouse mother hesitated wringing her hands. “Well I...” she started looking behind her briefly. “I suppose you could ask a few questions.” she cupped her paws around her mouth. “Kimsi!” she called. Her long whiskers wiggled as she yelled. “Yes!?” called back a young voice form the upper levels. “Could you come down here a second?” Kimsi’s mother called back. She looked over to Swifteye. He nodded gently. Shortly after, a young mouse came waddling down the steps. He stopped abruptly when he saw Swifteye and Robrile. “Who are they?” he asked his mother. She felt deep sympathy for her son. “Kimsi, these are two detectives here to ask you questions.” she said. Kimsi looked afraid. “I don’t want to answer any questions.” he said weakly. “Look, mate. We won’t hurt cha. We just want to ask you a few questions about the body you saw in the river, then we’ll quit muckin’ with you and get out of here.” Robrile said. Kimsi took a step back up the stairs, suddenly looking very horrified. “Body?” he asked quietly. Swifteye shot Robrile a dirty look. “Yes, Kimsi. We understand that you don’t want to talk about it but, we can’t put the person in jail who did it unless you tell us. You want him jail don’t you?” Swifteye asked. Kimsi looked hesitant, and slightly nervous about something, but then he nodded, relaxing a bit. But not much. “Then come and sit over here by us.” Swifteye said sitting down on a cushioned footstool. Swifteye patted the couch for the young mouse to sit in it. Robrile seated himself as well in a chair by the door, not too far from the couch. Kimsi looked very weary. But slowly he came forward and seated himself on the large couch. “Okay, now we’re getting somewhere.” said Swifteye. “Now, my friend. We’ll take this slowly. What we’re you doing that day?” he asked in a way trying to avoid the subject. “What day?” asked the mouse. Swifteye sighed a bit. “The day you saw the body.” he said after hesitation. Kimsi thought a second. “Well, I was out to by some candy at Mother Peacock’s Shop.” said Kimsi. Robrile smiled a bit getting an idea. “You like candy then, aye?” he asked. Kimsi nodded. “Then ‘ave a look at this beauty.” Robrile grinned pulling out a large lollipop and handing to the mouse. The young one’s eyes lit up as he took it. Swifteye looked back at Robrile in surprise. The raccoon winked. “Okay, then.” said Swifteye watching the mouse lick the sugary treat happily. “Moving on. Why did you decide to go look in the river?” he asked. Kimsi smacked his lips. “I heard a plop kinda noise, from far down it.” said the mouse, stumbling on “I heard”. “Ah.” said Swifteye taking out a quill pen and notepad. Briefly he scribbled down; “Most likely a recent murder. Child was present during the dumping of the body.” “Go on.” said Swifteye setting the pen down. Kimsi took another lick and went on. “I was pretty hungry, but I decided to see what it was anyway.” at this point the mouse was speaking as if it were nothing at all. The candy had helped greatly. “Where exactly on the river did you see the body floating?” asked Swifteye. Kimsi frowned for a small second. “Oh, about right behind the candy shop. I told you, I almost didn’t go look.” said Kimsi. His mother was almost in shock. She had not heard this much of the story before. According to rumors, Kimsi didn’t talk for three days. Swifteye scribbled down a note about behind the candy shop. He thought in his mind that the body had to have been dumped nearby if Kimsi had heard it and saw it nearly at the same time. “Could you see who the body was?” asked Swifteye. Kimsi shook his head, not seizing his lollipop licking. Swifteye nodded and wrote something else down. “Why not?” he asked next. Kimsi swallowed. He hesitated to speak. Finally he opened his mouth slowly. “Well, it was dark water. And there was a lot of blood too.” said the mouse slowly. His mother looked as if she was going to cry at that point. Swifteye and Robrile ignored her. Swifteye continued to write in the notebook. There was an odd essence in the room. Wind whistled by outside eerily. The house creaked gently. Swifteye repeatedly thought he heard noises from outside the window to his left. And Swifteye’s pen made the constant scratching sound. Everyone shifted their weight uncomfortably. Except Swifteye. He sat up. “What did the wound look like?” he asked. Then Robrile broke in. “Could you see it even?” he asked. Kimsi had finally stopped licking. “It was pretty bad, sir.” he said quietly. Swifteye scribbled a very short note and smiled at the child. “Almost done now, Kimsi. You’ve been a great help. Just one more question. Or two more, come to think of it. First, did you hear any gunshots throughout the time?” he asked. Kimsi shook his head. After another note, Swifteye asked; “And, what day was this?” he asked. Kimsi picked up his lollipop again. “Um, I think it was-” “Two weeks ago tomorrow.”his mother chimed in. Swifteye looked over to Kimsi with question. The mouse nodded. Swifteye finished off the notes and put it back in his jacket. “Thank you for your cooperation Kimsi. And you as well Mrs. Mouse. You two may have saved a few lives just now.” said Swifteye. Kimsi smiled a bit. He seemed proud of this. His mother as well. “Well, thanks, mates. I spose we’ll be off now, aye Swift?” Robrile asked. Swifteye rubbed his chin. “Yes. We shall go now. Thank you again friendly mice. May you have long and prosperous lives.” Swifteye said turning the door knob. The two mice waved after them smiling uneasily. Slowly, Swifteye shut the door and stepped down from the steps. “Helpful.” remarked Robrile. “Indeed.” spoke Swifteye. Robrile brushed off his hat and set it upon his head. “Well, it’s a bit obvious that the killer didn’t shoot the victim that day. Anyone would have heard it. I’m sure quiet a bit o’ people heard the gunshot last night, aye? In that case, who knows how many animals could already be killed.” Robrile said. Swifteye nodded, exchanging glances with the raccoon. Once again they set off to seek their next witness. Mr. John Gorilla. Swifteye knew of this beast as well. Luckily, it wasn’t too far of a walk. “Where’s this John primate live anyway?” Robrile asked. Swifteye lifted his head slowly. Pointing backwards he said; “Back there.” Robrile frowned thinking of what to say. “Uh, then why are we goin’ this way, mate?” he asked. Swifteye chuckled silently. “He lives down there. But works up here. He’s at work now.” said the fox pointing up ahead. Robrile nodded with knowing. They walked forward behind the sub-urban area. It was much more peaceful than the rest of the city and provided much more cover. They walked across the soft green grass staring at the ground. The birds chirped loudly in the sky circling the city. Swifteye took no notice to the noise and walked on trying to remember the location of the shop where their next witness worked. He remembered it being an expensive watch factory. Gold and silver mostly. John was a very gentlemen type person as Swifteye recalled. The watch shop was somewhere at the edge of town in a semi populated area. It was quiet popular for the watches sold there. Swifteye couldn’t find a way to see how John could have seen the body in an alley, the jeweler never went near them usually. It was no where near his usual agenda. It was useful to know a lot about just about everyone in a city for a sleuth. This is why he was questioning the gorilla. Not only was he a witness, but Swifteye needed to know more about the mysterious beast. He wasn’t very social. At that time Swifteye recalled all they had learned in his mind. There is a gun involved, that was obvious. The criminal had shot down another criminal. The shooter was most likely trying to hide the evidence, the otter may have a link with it all, and as far as Swifteye and Robrile could tell, there was no link between the victims. All of different assortment. The fox guessed from the clues that the killer would indeed kill another beast (or attempt to) that night. He made sure he was to be on the look out for any action or danger of some sort. Too many lives had already been lost. He wasn’t sure if it was good that they didn’t know who the other two victims were or not. It would be valuable information, but it may cause trouble later on. “How much further?” asked Robrile. He too had obviously been plotting. His voice told that in an apparent way. Swifteye sniffed the air for no real reason. “Not much. I can see the shop from here.” he said. Robrile rose his head and squinted into the distance. “Ah!” cried Robrile. “He works at Gold Chain’s.” that was the name of the watch shop. Oddly, most stores were named after a sort of animal, usually the founder or owner. It was a rare name, The Gold Chain. Swifteye nodded. A while after that they arrived at the large metal entry door to the shop. Swifteye grabbed a dangling string to his right and yanked it. A loud bell rang inside. It was a system of pullies. A while after, the door slid to the side and a large eagle in a tuxedo stood before them. He was smiling gently. “Welcome to Gold Chain’s, or The Gold Chain. Will you be purchasing a pocket watch today?” asked the eagle. Swifteye stayed expression less while shaking his head. “We’re part of the city detective team. Robrile and I are here on police business.” said he. At that time, Robrile slid out his badge and flashed it before the eagle. The eagle looked a bit surprised, but let them in nonetheless. “Shall you be searching around here, because we do have customers.” asked the eagle uneasily. “No. We wish to speak to the owner, John.” said Swifteye. Robrile grunted behind him. “Oh, I see. I shall go fetch him.” said the eagle, and flapped up the stairs. “He’s the owner?” asked Robrile in astonishment. Swifteye nodded silently. The fox was looking around the room with curiosity. It was a very big building, considering they had a factory in back. There was a large glass desk by the entryway with a cash register upon it. Inside were many golden watches with chains out on display. Columns held up the ceiling which was very large and stable. The room was circular all together. When the eagle returned he merely peaked out from a door to their left and waved for them to come in. Swifteye brushed passed Robrile and entered the room. The raccoon followed. They entered a small office room with two chairs plus one behind a desk. In that chair sat Mr. John Gorilla. He was hunched over many papers and peering over his spectacles. Swifteye took a seat in the chair farthest from the door. Robrile sat while watching the eagle close the door behind him as he left. The was a short silence. “Yes?” asked John in a naturally low voice. Swifteye cleared his throat. “Mr. John Gorilla, I am Swifteye the Sleuth. This is my partner Robrile. We are here on police business, your are said to be a witness of a crime.” he said. The owner leaned back cradling his head with his arms. “I did not see it happen. I saw the carcass of the beast.” said John nonchalantly. Swifteye nodded, writing this down. “I see. Who was the body. I mean, who was it before it was shot?” he asked. John frowned. “Shot? Who said anything about a shooting. When I arrived it looked like the thing had been stabbed several times.” he said. Robrile and Swifteye exchanged glances. Swifteye wrote it down fast. “Very interesting. Very interesting indeed. That puts a twist in the plot. Thank you sir. Still, who was this victim?” asked Swifteye. John leaned forward staring down at his papers. “It was a police officer, but I don’t know who. How long is this going to take because I have a business to run.” John asked impatiently. “Became irritated and unwilling” wrote Swifteye in his notebook. This could turn out to be a suspect as well, thought Swifteye. “So do we.” answered Robrile. “Can you tell us where exactly this was?” he asked while Swifteye wrote notes down. John looked very disturbed. “Don’t I have a right to stay quiet if I wish?” the gorilla asked. “No.” said Robrile directly. The gorilla sighed and shifted his weight. “It was in the alley right near the first aid store.” he said after hesitation. Swifteye stopped writing and looked up. Robrile was looking at him with an eyebrow raised. “Ain’t that where the otter jumped us, mate?” asked Robrile. Swifteye nodded. Robrile sat back in his chair and lifted his hat to scratch his head underneath it. Now John Gorilla looked upset. “One more question if you will, Mr. Gorilla. Why were you in that part of town?” Swifteye asked strictly. John curled up a lip. “I can’t tell you that.” “Why not?” “I can’t tell you that.” repeated the gorilla. Swifteye smiled writing something down. “What are you writing!?” demanded the gorilla. “We can’t tell you that.” grinned Robrile. John was frowning angrily. “Just tell us why you were there and we’ll leave you alone.” said Robrile. The gorilla opened his mouth for a second. Then he shut it quickly and yanked on a cord behind him. Suddenly, smoke filled the room at amazing speed. Swifteye jumped from his feet as fast as he could. He could see nothing in the room. At first he thought it as nerve gas, but once two hands, and not gorilla hands noted Swifteye, grabbed his and pulled him in one direction, he realized it was not. He felt himself jerk around in all directions as the strong hands brought him where they wanted. Suddenly, he felt himself hit the grassy ground. Robrile fell beside him. For a second neither one moved. But Swifteye acted as fast as he could to look behind him. He looked just in time to see the main door slam shut, followed by the gate to the entry fence. They were locked out. Robrile began to stand and brush himself off. Swifteye did the same. Once all the dirt was removed, they stared at each other. “That was interesting.” said Robrile . “Did you get all that down? Looks like we got ourselves our first suspect. Somewhat of a dead give-away.” Swifteye took out his notepad and wrote it all down. After a few minutes he placed them back in his coat and looked up at his partner. “What now?” asked Robrile. “We investigate the two areas.” said Swifteye simply.

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