The Perfect Plan Always Goes Wrong “Yeah,” came the voice from the phone, “who is this?” Nick, who had lost all hope of an answer, perked up at the sound of the voice.
He raised a finger to let those around him know the criminal had made contact.
Bogo also perked up, pushed aside the papers cluttering his desk, and found the phone with the video feed from Hopps.
“Careful, Hopps!” he whispered.
On the phone screen, he watched the live feed of Hopps not far from the criminal.
“Mr.
Harry Drago,” Nick began in a calm voice.
“Nice to meet you.” “Who is this?” Harry replied on the other end.
“If this is the police, I guarantee you…” “It’s not the police,” Nick replied, interrupting the criminal.
“Then who is it?” “You don’t know us, and you don’t need to,” Nick continued.
“The current situation calls for us to be completely open.
Hear me out, and then decide for yourself what to do.
The thing is, we’ve been planning to rob the Lemur Bank — the very one you’re holed up in right now — for about a month.
And to be honest, you’ve seriously messed up our plans.
But now you can help us.” “Who?
What?” Harry didn’t understand.
“Are you joking?” “No, Harry, we’re completely serious.” “If this is some clever police trick,” Harry threatened, “I’ll blow everyone up right now!” “We don’t care about all these hostages!” Nick replied coldly and casually.
Bogo’s sharp gaze fell on Nick.
It wasn’t so much a look of condemnation for Nick’s words as it was surprise at how coldly and pragmatically Nick spoke.
“Let’s say I believe you,” Harry replied.
“But what good are you to me?
Why should I help you?” “You want to cause the Lemur Bank as much damage as possible, right?” Nick asked.
“Let’s say I do.
Those miserable insects are real monsters.
They took everything from me, and I’ll do anything to take as much as I can from them!” “Yes, yes,” Nick sympathized coldly with Harry.
“Here’s the plan.
We both understand you’re not getting out of the bank alive.
Right?” “That’s out of the question.” “If you just set off the dynamite, you’ll kill yourself and everyone near you,” Nick continued.
“And honestly, that’s a small loss for the Lemur Bank.
But if you can place the charges on the columns in the hall, you’ll bring down the entire ceiling, burying yourself and the hostages.
And most importantly — you’ll collapse the vault in the basement.” “Go on,” Harry said distrustfully.
“While they’re clearing the rubble, we’ll get into the vault through the sewer system and take all the money.
It’s a considerable sum.
And we know very well how much the Lemur Bank loves its money,” Nick laid out his fabricated plan.
“You can refuse, of course, but this kind of opportunity comes once in a lifetime.
And we couldn’t pass it up.
After your visit, the bank’s security will be tightened, and all our plans will go down the drain.” “You’re all lying,” Harry didn’t believe Nick.
“This is a trick!
Whoever you are, you won’t fool Harry Drago!” “Well then,” Nick exhaled, “the choice is yours.
It would just have been easier to pull this off with you.
Either way, good luck — you’ll need it.
And one more thing — as a sign of solidarity with you and your cause, we’ll let you know when the assault begins.” Nick looked up at Bogo.
Bogo immediately caught on and quickly wrote “25” on a piece of paper.
“The assault will begin in forty-five minutes,” Nick lied, seeing the number.
“Either way, you don’t have much time.
Goodbye.” Nick fell silent.
He couldn’t wait any longer — if he was going to play a role, he had to play it to the end.
Nick had to hang up, or his bluff would be called.
A flicker of hope remained that he had hooked Harry Drago.
And with every second, it faded.
The police chief, who knew they wouldn’t get a second chance to make contact, watched this too.
“Wait!” came the voice from the phone speaker at the very last second.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Nick slowly brought the phone back to his ear.
“Yes,” he replied, feeling a huge lump in his throat from the tension.
A bead of sweat ran down his nose.
He was holding himself together with the last of his strength.
“Do you really want to rob the bank?” Harry asked again.
“These kinds of coincidences only happen once in a lifetime,” Nick smiled, though he was trembling all over.
One wrong word and the crocodile would slip off the hook.
“Yeah, right,” Harry grinned.
“You’d have to be a complete idiot to make up such a ridiculous story while working for the police.” “Exactly,” Nick confirmed.
“So, will you help us?” “You said you have your own score to settle with the Lemur Bank?” Harry replied with a question.
“What kind?” “About twenty years ago,” the fox began sadly, “my father dreamed of building a school for the animals of the Slum District.
He said everyone in this world deserves a chance at a good life.
He knew how hard it was for those young animals born in the Slum District.
No education, no money, no hope.
He thought that if he built a school where everyone who couldn’t afford not only an education but sometimes even a crumb of bread could go, they’d have a tiny chance.
Otherwise, in that situation, they had no chance of getting out of the mire.
He knew what awaited them: gangs, drugs, crime, and finally death.” “An idealist,” Harry replied.
“A fool,” Nick replied, lowering his head.
“He bet everything on making that dream come true.
Everything he had.
He couldn’t pay back the Lemur Bank.
And then they came to our house.
But it wasn’t bailiffs or the police — it was the Lemur Bank’s security.
And those animals don’t mess around with debtors from the Slum District.
So the bank owes me for a lot.” Harry grinned, nodding approvingly.
“Agreed,” he said after a couple of seconds of silence.
“I’ve got nothing to lose anyway.
I don’t know if you’re lying or not, but I’ll do what you ask.
I’m going to blow everyone up here anyway, whether you’re a cop or telling the truth.
You can’t outsmart me.
I just need a little time — twenty minutes or so.
And one more thing — if what you said is true, then good luck, kid.
Maybe you’ll have better luck in this city than I did.” Nick wanted to add something else, but Harry hung up.
Meanwhile, Bogo had everything ready for the assault.
The hippo Jonsi, who had been sent for the thermite mixture, had already arrived.
A service car with the negotiators had also pulled up.
“Right on time,” Bogo remarked, then added, looking at Nick and wiping the sweat from his forehead: “Well, Wilde, you certainly have a silver tongue.
You spun him quite a tale about your father and the bank.
All right, let’s get to work — we have ten minutes.” “Yeah,” Nick replied quietly, sighed, looked up, exhaled, and continued sadly: “I made it up.
I’ve been good at that since I was a kid.” He tossed the phone onto the desk.
Meanwhile, the wolf special forces, in full gear, were taking positions near the bank entrance.
Sappers were placing charges on the heavy metal shutters blocking the bank doors.
All this commotion stirred up the crowd of onlookers again, and they perked up once more.
Nick watched it all from the sidelines.
The negotiators, who had arrived very late, were saying something into a megaphone, trying to shout through the walls to the crocodile.
“Mr.
Harry Drago!” they began.
“Sir, this is the ZPD negotiators speaking.
Let’s stay calm.
We’re sure we can help you…” Nick listened to them for a bit, then walked back to the police chief’s desk.
“Next,” Bogo commanded, “on my signal, we burn through the iron doors and storm inside.
Throw caustic smoke grenades into the hall.
And make sure they’re serious grenades!
After all, we’re dealing with a crocodile.
I authorize the use of poison darts.
The primary target is Drago.
The hostages are by the east wall.
We wait until the criminal moves away from them to place the explosives under the columns, and then we start.
That’s the best option right now.
While he’s placing the charges, there’s a chance we can catch him off guard.” Having finished giving orders, the police chief turned to Nick, who was standing nearby watching all the commotion.
“And your main task is this,” he began.
“Get in touch with Hopps and brief her on the situation.
Have her watch the crocodile, and as soon as he’s near the column closest to the door to set the dynamite, have her give the signal.
That’s our chance to neutralize him.
Here, take this.” Bogo handed Nick his phone.
Minutes earlier, inside the Lemur Bank.
In the vast hall, Judy was carefully watching the enormous crocodile.
Breathing was getting harder and harder; the stale air pressed on her chest.
It felt like the air in the room had become like an oven — heated to the limit.
She wiped her forehead with her paw again, getting rid of the excess moisture that ran in tiny droplets from the tips of her fur, falling to the floor and sometimes getting into her eyes.
“Who is this?” Harry said into the phone, answering the call.
“If this is the police, I guarantee you…” Harry Drago was immediately interrupted, and Judy realized the negotiations had begun.
Taking advantage of the situation, she darted back to the next column, and from there to Gren, who had been waiting for her.
“It looks like the negotiations have started,” she whispered, out of breath.
“That’s good — I hope the police can convince him to surrender,” Gren said happily.
Judy smiled in reply, agreeing with her “partner.” “Amazing,” she voiced her thoughts aloud, watching the crocodile as he talked on the phone, “how does that giant stay so active in this heat?” “Nothing unusual, Miss Hopps,” Gren explained.
“Crocodiles are cold-blooded by nature.
The hotter it is, the more active they can be.
I once saw…” Judy stopped Gren by putting her index finger to her lips.
“Shh!” she whispered.
Nick’s familiar voice sounded in her earpiece.
“Hopps,” Nick said in a half-whisper, “can you talk?” “Yes, Nick, I can,” she replied.
“Uh-huh.
Got it.
Okay.
I’ll let you know as soon as he’s near the column closest to the entrance.
Understood.” “Good, things are moving — there’ll be an assault soon.
Now we just have to avoid being seen by the crocodile,” Judy told Gren her plan.
“Let’s act,” the mouse replied bravely.
“Not now,” Hopps stopped the brave rodent’s enthusiasm.
“Right now we need to hide.” “Where?” “Back into the ventilation.
It’s the only safe place.
The main thing is not to be seen.” Having said this, Judy quickly unbuckled her belt, rolled it up more conveniently, and held it in one paw, grabbing Gren with the other.
Then Judy quietly ran to the ventilation grate they had come from.
Sliding it aside, she lowered Gren down onto the floor of the ventilation shaft, followed by the troublesome belt that had gotten in her way last time.
Judy was the last one down into the ventilation.
As soon as she was hidden, closing the ventilation cover behind her, the crocodile Harry’s loud, commanding voice rang out.
“You see?
I’m not insane — I’m fully aware of what I’m doing.
And many people agree with me.
I’m honestly sorry you got caught in the crossfire,” Harry said, addressing the hostages.
“Maybe you’re not to blame for what happened to me.
But believe me, the Lemur Bank is a terrible corporation that will grind you up like a meat grinder and spit you out to die in the Slum District.
If it could crush and destroy my family — the Drago family!
— then you miserable animals,” he pointed with the paw holding the poor squirrel like a rag, “it won’t even notice.
Now, everyone stay where you are, or anyone who disobeys, I’ll personally strangle!” Harry bared his teeth in an evil grin, showing off his enormous fangs.
And that had a stronger effect on the hostages than the bundle of dynamite wrapped around the crocodile.
Judy immediately remembered Mr.
Big’s words: despite all animals being sentient, inside they were still animals.
And animal fear had gripped the hostages more than anything else.
The poor hostages lowered their eyes and silently obeyed the crocodile, not daring to object.
Seeing their complete submission, Harry untied some of the dynamite from himself and placed it next to the nearest column.
Sticking a wire into it, he moved to the next column, trailing the wire behind him.
Judy watched him closely, holding Gren in her palm, trying to show as much as possible on the camera mounted on her chest.
Nick was watching everything through it.
He was very worried, though he didn’t show it.
The crocodile continued to place explosives under each column, connecting the elements with wires.
Soon he reached the last column — the one right by the entrance.
Judy watched him through the grate.
And suddenly, in an instant, he turned his snout toward her and stared intently at the ventilation grate.
At first she thought he had spotted her, and in an instant, holding Gren in one paw and covering her mouth with the other, she recoiled.
The crocodile stared long and hard at the grate in the wall, as if he could scent Hopps.
Judy felt poor Gren’s heart start pounding wildly when Harry’s intent, sinister gaze fell on them.
She herself involuntarily fell silent and froze.
The crocodile stared at the ventilation grating where Judy and Gren were hiding for a few more seconds.
It was clear he sensed something, but couldn’t figure out what.
Time was pressing him, and casting aside all doubts once more, Harry Drago continued setting the dynamite.
At that moment, Judy realized this was the perfect moment for the assault.
The crocodile was busy setting the dynamite and was far from the hostages and from the main door where the assault would begin.
The perfect moment.
“Nick, it’s time!” Hopps said.
“Nick, do you hear me?
Act!” As soon as Nick heard her, he immediately signaled Chief Bogo.
And like a clock whose every cog and mechanism had started working, the ZPD special forces began to move at their chief’s command.
The thermite mixture they had set ignited at the command, burning through the solid metal of the armored door bolt.
One more second and the massive steel structure would collapse under the onslaught of the immense heat.
Nick saw how focused everyone heading into the assault was.
They understood perfectly what they were risking and what would happen if they failed.
And, strangely enough, he began to feel respect for these animals, despite all their attacks on him.
They were risking their lives for animals they didn’t even know, bravely doing their duty.
Nick also spotted the Lemur Bank special forces in the crowd, led by Säng Eisi.
He was curious to see his face.
But, strangely enough, Säng Eisi, though absorbed in the assault process, remained completely unruffled.
And that put Nick on alert.
But the assault had begun, and Nick turned his gaze back to the bank building.
“Go!” shouted the enormous rhinoceros in the armored special forces suit, as soon as the door, burned clean through, collapsed outward.
One of the wolves at the head of the squad threw a smoke grenade toward the open doorway where the door had fallen.
It flew into the clouds of smoke and, by all laws, should have exploded inside the bank’s lobby.
Instead, it hit something metal and ricocheted back.
The grenade started smoking, completely enveloping the entire square and the whole police cordon in smoke.
The square was completely blanketed in smoke, making it utterly impossible to tell what had happened.
“What the…” Chief Bogo coughed from the acrid smoke, peering ahead.
“Assault, go, go!” Nick, like everyone around him, began slowly backing away from the smoke.
It was so acrid and nasty that his eyes started watering, his throat began to sting horribly, not to mention it was impossible to breathe.
Only the special forces in gas masks stayed in position.
One of the wolves at the head of the squad assaulting the bank made out through the smoke that directly behind the first steel door they had burned through with the mixture was another metal door.
The distance between the two doors was considerable, so the thermite mixture had only burned through the first door, slightly charring the second one behind it.
“Sir,” the special forces officer immediately reported the problem to Bogo, “there’s another steel door here, we didn’t make it into the bank, sir.
I repeat, sir, behind the first door there’s another armored door.” Seeing practically nothing and coughing constantly, Bogo pressed the microphone to his ear, trying to hear everything the special forces were telling him.