The Smooth Fox
The fox in the pressed maroon suit was smooth. The way he talked, the tone of his voice, the way his fingers caressed along Nick's mother's fingers. Such a comforting gesture that left his mother blushing despite the tears swelling in her eyes. Mr. Smooth Fox, as Nick called him, smiled and touched his mother's cheek, another comforting gesture. She blushed again, this time, she swooned leaning against the door frame for support. Nick couldn't understand what the Smooth Fox was talking about but it seemed to make his mother happy. When Nick drew closer to the kitchen his mother stepped away from the door frame letting the door swing closed.
“His birthday is tomorrow. I've already spent so much of the grocery money for his state-issued collar.” The quivering voice of his mother muffled through the kitchen door.
“Worry not, my dear. We're ready to compensate you immensely for all the troubles you've been put through.”
Smooth Fox was turning on the charm once again. Nick pressed his ear to the kitchen door waiting for the sound of his mother's inevitable giggle but there wasn't one this time. Just a sigh, a hitch of tears and a tremble in her voice. Nick's ears slipped back, he felt a lump forming in this throat. Why would his birthday cause his mother so much pain? What did he do to upset?
“I don't know if I can go through with this.”
“Mallory, you have to, for his sake and for yours. Your collar, it's like a prison, right? Can you imagine every time your son gets happy he gets shocked? Excited over a new toy, buzz. Every time he hits the ball in his little league game, he's rewarded with electrocution. We can make all that pain go away. Don't think of it as he's gone, you'll get to see him anytime you want. Just come to the address posted in the pamphlet and sign in at the desk.”
“I...I already lost his father, I can't lose him too.”
“Like I said, you're not losing him, you're giving him the greatest gift of all. A collarless existence.”
Nick reached up and touched the soft fur at his neck. What was this collar they kept talking about? Nick was starting to feel antsy wanting to barge in and ask them what they were talking about but he was supposed to getting ready for bed. His mother would be awfully mad at him if she found out he wasn't. Nick backed away from the door but stopped when he heard his mother speak again.
“And the money?”
“It's very much real, all of it.”
“Alright, I'll do it. But I want to see my son every day.”
“No, you'll follow the guidelines that every other parent has too. Twice a week, the rest of the time your child will be busy with school, work, and learning how to survive out there in the world. We are providing a service after all. The days you come are your son's days off too. Please understand.”
There was another hesitation, Nick could picture his mom's considering face. “Alright.”
“Excellent, I will draw up the paperwork, write the check, and be over by noon tomorrow. Make sure that he's packed and got his collar on. He can bring his favorite toys and books, limited to three each please, we are running on almost no space. So many parents want their children to be safe and happy.”
Nick's mother didn't say anything but Nick could hear her crying. “I know this is hard, Mallory, but it's the best choice for your child. Thank you for putting your faith in my company.”
Nick didn't wait around to hear the rest. Instead, he hurried off to his bed climbing under the cover. When he heard his mother approaching he pretended to be asleep. Nick heard the door open, a shadow crawling across the wall and then a warm hand touched his hip. It was followed by a soft voice whispering a gentle tune.
“I'll love you forever, I like you always, As long as I'm living, my ba-” The word hitched in his mother's voice, then he felt the warm kiss against his cheek. “I love you, Nicholas.”
The shadow slinked away into the light of the hall and then the kit was cast into darkness again with the closing of the door. Warm tears ran down his short muzzle as he buried his face in his pillow. What had he done to cause his mother so much pain?
The next morning went by in a haze like a long-winded dream. Nick's mom was oddly happy, or at least, very good at pretending to be. She helped him pack his small suitcase making sure to put his favorite toys in it. Officer Gruff and Robber Tom made it into the bag along with a couple of his favorite books. Afterward, she made him his favorite breakfast, blueberry pancakes.
They laughed and joked around. There were tickles and hugs but Nick also noticed that there were little white pills his mom took when she was starting to feel stressed. By how many she was taking, it must be a very stressful day. Nick thought as he gave her legs a tight hug.
A few minutes before noon, Nick's mother came out of her room with a gray box in her hand. “Well, sweetie, It's your sixth birthday today.”
“Is that my new collar?”
There was a tone of excited wonderment in the small kit's voice. His mother smiled politely and nodded but he could tell that she wasn't as excited about it as he was. She knelt down opening the lid of the box before pulling out a clunky-looking device. A black box attached to a very sturdy looking strap. Slowly she wrapped the device around his neck adjusting it so it fit snugly without choking him. Once she placed the slide strip into the receiver there was a clipping sound and the green light flickered on.
The mother fox settled back on her heels, a weak smile tracing her narrow muzzle. “There, who is my big boy?”
“I am!”
There was a crackling pain in his neck. It jarred his entire core making his fingers and toes tingle. Instinctively he fell to the floor, tears welling up in his eyes. A panic starting to flow through him as another jolt attacked his nerves. His whole body shuttered on the carpeted floor. His mother covered her mouth trying to contain her own anxiety for fear of the pain that her collar would cause.
“Just...calm down.” She said through strained words.
It didn't work, though, at least not at first. Nick flailed and gripped the collar, that harder he pulled the stronger the current pulsed through him. Finally, after sixty grueling seconds, the kit settled to the floor panting. Tears ran free from his eyes but he didn't have any strength left to be upset or anxious about them. He just lay there. His mother scooped him up and cuddled him to her bosom.
“Why, mommy?”
“Because, they think we're dangerous.”
'They', Nick wasn't sure who she was talking about but there was a pain in his gut as he thought about them, whoever they were and why they hated him so bad. “I'm not.”
“It doesn't matter, sweetie. They hate us for what we are and feel that this is the only way for them to be safe. That's why...”
“Why, what?”
“Why I have to send you away. The fox that's been coming around has promised to take you somewhere special. Somewhere you don't have to wear this collar.”
“Will you come to see me?”
“Of course.”
“Good, because I'll miss you so much, mama.”
“I'll-”
There was a knock at the door. Nick's mother rocked onto the balls of her feet gracefully getting up from the floor. She ignored the extra weight of her son's body. She crossed the meager living room, opening the door to be greeted by the Smooth Fox's sterling smile. Tucked under his arm was a large legal envelope. Behind him was another fox who removed his baseball cap politely.
“Good day, Mallory. You're looking splendid.” The fox ruffled Nick's head fur. “Hey there slugger, are you ready to go on an adventure?”
“Mama?”
“You'll be fine. Just remember what I told you.”
“Okay.”
“Splendid. Nick, say goodbye to your mother and get your stuff, kiddo. We're going to a place where your dreams will come true.”
Nick's mother set him down and he raced off to his room to gather his backpack and his suitcase. When he came back into the living room. The Smooth Fox was embracing his mother rubbing her back comfortingly. Nick's mother wept against his chest.
“It'll be okay, my dear. As I told you, the envelope has the address to the building. The schedule in which you can see your darling boy and I even threw in my personal phone number so you can talk to me directly anytime you have questions or concerns.”
“I just don't like the idea that I sold my son.”
“Perish the thought, the check is to help you get back on your feet. Give you a more stable life. It's our way of helping cope with such a big change in your life.”
Nick's mom just nodded and didn't say anything. Instead, she wiped her eyes on the sleeve of her pink sweater and turned to look at the boy standing in the hallway. She held out her arms to him and he ran to her. Quickly she swept down and picked him up, her lips pursing painfully to his cheek. Nick knew his mother was sad, but he was at least glad that she'd stopped crying.
“Alright, Nicholas. You be a good boy and be nice to the other children. I'll come visit you as soon as you get settled.”
“Okay, mama.”
“I love you, sweetie.”
Nick gave his mother a kiss and slipped down from her grip to the floor. “I love you too, mama. See you soon.”
The Smooth Fox held his hand out taking Nick's as he lead him to the front stoop. The kit stopped when he heard his mother rushing to the door. Nick turned his green gaze that mirrored her's.
“Don't be good just for my sake. Be good because you're a good boy and the world deserves to see it.”
Nick didn't understand what his mother meant but for some reason, it stuck with him. The Smooth Fox took his suitcase and his backpack, placing them in his trunk. The other fox helped the lad into the backseat of the steel-gray sedan. Nick looked at his mom still standing on the front stoop to her townhouse. When she saw him looking, she smiled and waved. As the car drove away Nick saw her crumble to her knees with her face in her hands and then she was gone.
The small otter girl stared up at him with wide eyes. “Wow, so the smooth fox gave you a good life?”
“Not really, sweetie. It turned out that Mr. Bart or the Smooth Fox was a swindler. He promised all these parents that their kids would be safe and sound. It turned out that he was using us as slave labor for his amusement park. All of his promises turned into lies. The checks he promised were fake, the address as for a burned out building, and the number was to a pizza place in Sahara Square. In truth, I never saw my mother again.”
There was a collective gasp around the room but Nick smiled and reassured them. “It's okay, kids. You will be seeing your parents again as I promised. You see, Mr. Bart may have been a-”
“Very bad mammal?” The girl otter chimed in as if she were stopping the fox from saying a swear word.
“Precisely! He did have some good ideas. I did learn how to fend for myself and I did go to school but the most important thing. I learned how to run his business so that when I was old enough I was able to take it from him.”
“You stole it?” Doug asked.
“No, no. I just made it so he left it to me if he ever failed to make a payment on it. It might have been my fault that the check got lost, though.” Nick gave a sharp smile. “Once it was my business, I ousted his entire crew and put some of the other kids in their place. From that moment on we started running the place as our very own.”
“Did you all get to see your mothers again?”
“Yes, well, they did. When I finally managed to go back to see my mom she was gone.”
“Where'd she go?” The tiger asked rocking in his hammock.
“Heaven, I'll bet.” The lion cub chimed in.
“Yeah.”
That was all Nick wanted to say on the subject. Honey scooted closer to her from her spot on the floor before reaching up to caress along the top of his thigh. Nick gripped her hand in his giving her a loving smile.
“How do you take your collar off?”
“I have a friend named Hexter Boggs, you'll meet him when we get to the sanctuary. He spent some time making collar's for the government.”
“He was a prisoner?” A black wolf piped up from his juice box.
“Well, yes and no. It's...complicated. But during his time making the collars, that clever fox was able to discover a way to deactivate the electric pulsers in it. He also found a way to add a clip to the strap making it easy to put on and take off.”
“Wow, how'd he do that?”
“That's something you're gonna have to ask him.”
“Can you do it for all the preds?” A little girl fox asked.
“Well, we do, in a way. We deactivate the collars for those who pay for us to do it.”
Nick expected the kids to object to this but they stared at him blankly. He explained that the money preds paid in exchange for the collar removal was for keeping the amusement park funded. It was an important part of the inner workings. It allowed him to house and care for the children that he took in.
“And like Mr. Bart promised me. I have a group of individuals that will teach you the skills you'll need to get jobs in the real world. You'll have room and board, learn how to cook. You will have to attend school and keep your grades up. I'll also pay you an hourly wage, which will be deposited into a bank account for each and every one of you. It'll be all yours when you turn eighteen and leave the amusement park.”
The cheetah raised his hand as if he were attending school, Nick pointed at him and smirked. “What if we want to keep working at the amusement park after we're grown ups?”
“Then well renegotiate your contract and bring you on full-time.” Another round of blank stares greeted him.
“Listen, kids, I'll explain all of this in detail later. Go back to eating your snacks. We'll be there soon.”
The kids went back to doing whatever they were doing before he told his story. Nick slumped his shoulders. Honey got up from her spot on the floor, moving behind the tired fox. When she touched his back he let out a soft moan. The badger's hands were strong but had a gentle flair, she started rubbing his shoulder. Nick closed his eyes and let a soft sigh escape his entire body. Honey placed a loving kiss to the tips of his ears, which he flicked at the tender gesture.
“You're such a good boy, Nick.” She whispered and was rewarded with a content moan.
