Anitropolis Police Precinct; Interrogation Room #1; Zach the Fox; 1206 hours:
Zach leans back against the chair with his arms crossed, staring at the grey floor. The metal door ahead of him swings open and out comes the lion in dark blue.
“Ah, Zachary Fox,” the lion utters. “Such an honor to see you again.” The fox remains silent in his position. Leon places his coffee down on the table positioned in front of him and the fox, before sitting down in the chair before him. “You know why I’m here, right? I heard about the events in the park earlier. If you wouldn’t mind, I want to discuss with you what happened. Are you okay with that?” Zach keeps quiet. Leon leans forward towards him with ease. “You have nothing to worry about, Zach. We’re not here to harm you in any way. We just want to know what happened, and why…” There is still no answer. Detective Lionheart leans back in his chair. “Take your time. I understand this is all a lot for you to process.”
Zach lets out a sigh and finally breaks his silence. “I didn’t mean to do it… I was only sitting on the bench, minding my own business…”
“What were you doing?”
“I was sketching, alone… I wanted to relax and draw… When I looked up, Willy appeared in front of me…”
“And how did you react?”
“I was… scared, and reluctant, at first… I didn’t want to interact with him, especially after what happened at the convention... I asked him what he wanted from me…”
“What did Willy say?”
“He said I ‘had some nerve.’ I sensed he was going to berate me like before… I told him to leave me alone…”
“And did he do that?”
“No… He continued to blame me for things that wasn’t my fault… How I made people hate him and how I ‘used my predator influence’ to have my friend steal the superhero role from him… He was also berating my friend for it, calling her a slur… I ordered him to stop and leave me alone…”
“Did he after that…?”
“Not really… He kept yelling at me and demanding that I listen to him… I tried to ignore him… But then…”
“Then what, Zach?”
“He… grabbed my sketchbook out of my paws and threw it into the fountain… After that, he pushed me back against the bench and continued to yell at me… I… I didn’t want to hurt him, Detective… But he pushed me over the edge… He ruined my sketchbook, physically touched me again, and continued to berate me… I… I just couldn’t take it anymore… I felt like something… ‘snapped.’”
“You were very angry with him, weren’t you?”
Zach faces him. He thinks for a second before giving a nod. “Yeah… I was… very angry with him…”
Interrogation Room #2; Ralph the Rabbit; 1224 hours:
“I wasn’t really paying attention to what happened,” says Ralph, sitting in front of the detective. “I was busy with something else…”
“What were you doing?” asks Leon.
“I was playing badminton with one of our neighbors.”
“You didn’t see what was going on? Like how it started?”
“No… When I stopped for a moment, I… noticed Willy in the park… He was standing in front of Zach… Perhaps he must’ve come to relax, but then he saw Zach and went to go confront him… What I mostly saw was Zach tackling him to the ground and biting his neck… It was frightening to see, and I couldn’t believe it… Zach is not the type of fox to do that…”
“I understand you are his roommate. Tell me, does Zach have anger issues? Any medical conditions or mental disabilities that would cause him to explode?”
“No… Zach doesn’t get angry, usually… He does have a mental disorder, and some things have happened prior to this, but I’ve never seen him get so mad about something before…”
“Has he ever talked to you about any problems he’s been having recently? Stress? Trauma?”
“Aside from problems at work with Willy, and the incident that happened at the convention, no… Then again, there was the whole dating debacle not too long ago… That was when he was with Fiona, and we found out what happened after… He didn’t get mad during the whole thing, though… If anything, he was upset.”
“Oh, I agree; he was displeased when I briefed him on it and broke up with Fiona after, but he wasn’t absolutely pissed at the time. Does Zach take any medications at all? Anything that would treat his condition, or anything with side effects?”
“No, he does not… There were the antibiotics he was prescribed when he went to the hospital after getting sliced by Willy, but I doubt those altered his mentality...”
“So, it was just a one-time thing? There’s no history of temper tantrums or acute aggression? Even before the whole Fiona incident?”
“Zach’s mostly cheerful, enthusiastic, and shy. He has no intention to hurt anyone and he doesn’t get really mad… To be honest, I’m not sure what I saw in the park… One thing is for sure; it was nothing ordinary… For me, for Zach, and for everyone there… I’m… not sure that was even Zach at all…”
“What do you mean?”
“This is the first time I’ve seen Zach like this… I really hope it’s the last…”
Interrogation Room #3; Josh the Grizzly Bear; 1248 hours:
“Zach’s a loveable, caring fox,” states Josh, next in line to speak with the detective. “Zach always comes to work focused on the day. Willy should’ve known better than to start problems, as always.”
“You saw Willy approach Zach?”
“Yes, Detective, I have… I saw Willy enter the park, while I was taking a break from badminton. The moment he set his eyes on Zach; he darted toward him and immediately started trouble with Zach. I suspected Willy said something really stupid… Did something very stupid, perhaps… No doubt Willy was harassing him again… I was too far away to hear what exactly was said or see what was happening…”
“Has Willy always harassed Zach?”
“I… don’t know if I should share this… All of this is private and Zach wouldn’t want me to share this unless he thought it was okay… He doesn’t like to talk about it…”
“We just want to know what happened, why it happened, and what lead to these events. Your coworker has cooperated with us, and he has no problem sharing any information relating to the case. He even has knowledge of his friends being interviewed. Now, tell me, has Willy always been causing problems for Zach?”
Josh lets out a sigh. “Yes… I know most of the things Willy has done towards him… Either Zach’s told me about them, or I’ve witnessed them myself… Willy always accuses him of things he hasn’t done and tries to get him in trouble… I mean, Willy’s been negative to me, too, but he’s set his sights on Zach, mostly.”
“Zach’s been constantly targeted by Willy?”
“Yes, he has… Willy’s been harassing Zach nonstop; not just because he’s a fox/predator, but also because he accuses Zach of trying to take his job and hurting him. Willy developed that judgement of Zach and has severe distrust of him. Willy’s gone to management several times to report Zach of things… They hardly believe him, however.”
“Do you know if Zach’s gone to management, himself, to discuss Willy’s behavior? Did he try to get Willy to stop or have the issues resolved?”
“Zach’s tried before, a few times… But all of his complaints have been shot down because of Willy’s high status, his mother, and our boss’ carelessness. After that, Zach stopped going to them for issues and has been keeping to himself at work… He says everything he’s tried doesn’t work. I believe him because it’s always been the case at the studio. Management doesn’t care.”
“Has Zach ever mentioned to you, or anyone else, about plans of harming Willy in any way? Like, has he said anything about dealing with the issue himself since management doesn’t listen to him?”
“What? No, of course not. Zach is not the type of guy who would go after someone out of vengeance or malice… Zach’s quiet, shy, and keeps to himself when he’s working. As I’ve said before, he’s a loveable, caring fox and has no desire to hurt anyone… However, what I saw at the park today… I guess he couldn’t take it anymore… It’s hard to believe Zach finally snapped after everything he’s suffered…”
Interrogation Room #4: Winifred “Winnie” the Chicken; 1303 hours:
“Listen,” starts the chicken, crossing her arms before the lion. “That sheep had it coming to him! He started this whole thing! Everything was peaceful until he showed up to start trouble. It’s all his fault!”
“Calm down, Ms. Winifred.”
“Winnie…”
“All right, Winnie. Did you see what happened?”
“Yeah… I was talking to friends when it happened… I saw Willy enter the park and go up to Zach to harass him… I saw Willy yell at him, toss away his sketchbook, push him back against the bench, berate him, flip his hat off and calling him ‘Flawed Fox.’ I was going to go over there to give ‘Mutton Boy’ a piece of my mind… But what I saw next… I froze… I couldn’t believe what I was seeing … Zach pinned Willy to the ground and bit him… Willy kicked him off and was ready to hurt him… However, Zach lunged toward him again and threw punches at Willy… I thought the little shit deserved it, but for Zach to beat the crap out of him… I just couldn’t believe it... Zach’s doesn’t get into fights, nor does he start them…”
“How did the fight begin? Do you know?”
“I believe Willy started it… He was the one looking for trouble and went to pick on Zach… Just like at the convention…”
“Do you think Willy was blaming Zach for the convention incident?”
“I… suppose… Maybe that’s what Zach was thinking when he attacked ‘Mutton Boy…’ However, I did hear Willy was dismissed from the superhero show role, which one of our friends took because Zach helped her get it. Willy must’ve known about it and probably went to confront Zach about it. Blamed him for it, even.”
“It’s a strong possibility. Aside from that, has Zach had any other extraordinary events happen in his life lately? Anything else he could’ve thought of to set him off?”
“Well, I mean, there was the whole thing with that Fiona Fox girl, and dating struggles surrounding that not too long ago… There was also the time he was extremely upset when Willy sabotaged him for the superhero show when he first auditioned… He discussed those things with us, but he wasn’t angry about any of it when he was going through it all… He was deeply upset, mostly… I have no doubt he also thought of Willy sabotaging him…”
“Was there anything else that could’ve gotten Zach mad enough to go after Willy?”
“No… Not that I could think of… Zach never gets mad at anything… I’m usually the angry one, and the one who starts fights, not Zach…”
“Maybe something had changed in him. Could it be that when Willy was yelling at him, Zach was thinking of all the things you had mentioned? Everything Willy has done to Zach?”
“Perhaps… I think the convention incident was the main reason Zach got pushed over his limits… I mean, he’s been dealing with Willy’s crap for a while… And now, I guess he had enough and acted on impulse… He never does that… Maybe he HAS changed…”
Interrogation Room #5; Emma the Warthog; 1319 hours:
“I didn’t really see what was happening,” Emma informs the detective. “I was drawing in my sketchbook when… I heard screaming… I looked up to see what was happening, and that’s when I noticed Zach on top of Willy, biting him… I was so shocked, I didn’t know what to do… I just watched as Zach tore into Willy… I wasn’t expecting that to happen…”
“No one expected this, Ms. Warthog,” Leon tells her. “That’s why we’re investigating and asking questions about it.”
“What do you want to know, Detective…?”
“I was told you have a better understanding of Zach’s history. Can you explain that to me?”
“Zach’s… had a rough past… He’s been dealing with a lot of issues before coming to Anitropolis.”
“Can you tell me about it?”
“Zach grew up as an orphan, and he was bullied constantly… People of his hometown called him ‘Flawed Fox.’ A group of animals ruined his reputation, and he had to leave his town on his own… Along the way, Zach became friends with someone I knew before he met me… They were very close… She sadly died due to a horrible disease, and Zach was never the same after that… I met Zach after her passing.”
“Willy was not the first to bully Zach?”
“No… Zach’s been dealing with pain, mentally and physically, his whole life; enduring it from his hometown and the group he was with, previously.”
“Has he ever lost his temper over something, or told you a time where he was very angry about something?”
“Zach’s never been angry, Detective… Despite all of the horrors in his life, not once has he been angry…”
“How does he normally react when something doesn’t go his way or something horrible happened?”
“He’ll get really upset and become quiet… Sometimes, we usually find him alone in silence.”
“Did that happen after the ‘fight?’”
“In a way, sort of… After realizing what he did, Zach bolted out of the park in fear… We chased after him, and when we caught up to him, he broke down; hunched over on the pavement. He hated what he did… I can’t imagine Zach’s feeling too good right now… I hope he’s doing okay…”
Interrogation Room #6; Kyle the Fox; 1336 hours:
“From what I’ve heard, you were the one who broke up the fight,” says Leon. “And that you are one of Zach’s neighbors. Is that correct?”
“Yeah,” Kyle responds. “Well, I started to break up the fight…”
“What happened?”
“When I saw Zach beating that sheep boy, I rushed over there to intervene… I grabbed Zach and pulled him away… He was struggling in my grip so much, it was very hard to keep hold of him…”
“Is Zach strong?”
“Not really… I’m stronger than him, Detective… I wasn’t expecting Zach to overcome my strength… When he was wriggling in my grasp, I thought he was going to break loose… I’ve held him before, and he’s not able to break free from me… Then again, Zach wasn’t in his right mind…”
“What got Zach to stop, finally?”
“The rest of the group came running over to help… We were all calling his name; trying to get him to stop and calm down… I shook him to get him to snap him out of it… It felt like an eternity, but he finally stopped… Once it was over, Zach froze and looked at the scene before him… He was so scared and ashamed of himself for what he did. It was as if he was coming out of a trance…”
“How did he react after? What did he do?”
“He gathered his belongings and bolted out of the park… Ralph, Emma, and Winnie all chased after him… The rest of us stayed behind and looked at the lamb… I wasn’t too surprised it was Willy Wool; the same sheep that attacked Zach with a knife at the convention, previously.”
“What did Willy do before emergency services arrived?”
“He just lied there… on the ground… He didn’t say a word… Normally, we all expected him to yell and utter how he was assaulted by a predator… I find it surprising that this time… he didn’t… He was… quiet as a mouse…”
Interrogation Room #1; Zach the Fox; 1452 hours:
“I think we have everything we need, here, Mr. Fox,” Detective Lionheart tells Zach. “I appreciate you and your friends being cooperative with us.”
“What’s gonna happen?” Zach asks.
“Well, we’re just finishing up all the testimony we gathered from you, your friends, and other witnesses who were present at the scene.”
“Am I going to jail?”
“I cannot say for certain what will happen. That decision is mostly up to the court to decide. We will present all of our findings at the trial and we will go from there.” He stands up. “We will brief you on what’s to follow.” He walks out of the room and closes the door. Standing at the window of the interrogation room is the mayor, who had been overseeing the case. “Hello, Mayor Wool. I take it you are here to review the case?”
“I am,” Ewenice says, keeping her eyes on the fox inside the room.
Leon walks over to her. “I would’ve hoped your son would learn his lesson by this point… Instead, he has created more problems.”
“You think I don’t know that, Detective? I went to go visit him at the hospital shortly after, and he would not stop talking about it…”
“I take it he wants to press charges against the fox…”
“Good guess, Detective… He’s been going on about how the fox ‘assaulted him in cold blood…’ But based on the witness statements, previous events, and cell phone video before the ‘fight,’ it’s not likely he would win… He ignored my word and went after this fox, again, which I am most disappointed in. I do not condone what this fox did to Willy, either, yet I do not blame him after what my son has done to him…”
“You plan to throw the whole trial out?”
“No, I don’t. I will be present for it, however. No doubt that everyone will be on edge because of what happened. I will address the issue to the public before, during, and after the trial. I do hope Willy will learn his lesson afterwards… This is a lesson for all of us, though.” Leon looks back at Zach, who just remains in original position from the beginning of his interrogation. There is no movement from him. He continues to be seated and stares at the floor with his arms crossed.
