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The story itself and characters Jai Taigas, Edward Fox, Rob Dachs, Bill the Bartender, Even Jones, Veronica Richardson, Rebecca Marigold, Frank Marigold, Jack Marigold, Joy Marigold are copyrighted to me Donald Severns... they shall not be used without asking my permission first. The characters Lee Evans and Lyman Aquilaferi are copyrighted to Cateagle and can't be used without his permission. The characters Lisa, Nester, and May are copyrighted to AssaChris and can't be used without her permission.
I would like to give a word of thanks to Evan "Cateagle" Mayerle, Mike "the Raccoon" Regan, Christine "AssaChris" Regan, Shirh Khan, and Rava for their help with my story. And one last thing ... Eric, James, and Chris you three are the main reason i started writing in the first place. I would like to thank you all for being my inspiration along with the five i mentioned on top.

Chapter 1 : Tragedy!

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�I can�t believe this!� exclaimed the irritated fox, �Do you mean to tell me that you actually let him out of the building without telling me?� �Well� you see Mr. Fox he told me it was urgent and that he couldn�t wait for me to tell you � and, he also threatened me with those claws of his,� explained the guard. �You stay here at the front door and wait to see if Jai comes back,� Edward Fox snarled �and you better pray that he does come back� Nervously Rob paced back and forth before the rotating doors, every now and then the boxer would check for the time to see if he could go home. �7:38 p.m.,� Rob groaned, �about four more hours to go.� As Rob quickened his pace, he cautiously glanced out the window to see if Jai has returned yet. �Damn! Where could he be?� Rob asked himself. Edward Fox�s voice boomed out over the intercom �Rob, Rob Dachs please report to my office immediately.� �What did I do this time?� Rob grumbled to himself as he made his way to his boss� office. �You�re the reason that Jai is gone in the first place. You knew better than to let him leave without telling me,� Edward growled. �But� but sir,� stammered the nervous Boxer. �No buts about it! Now I want you to go out there and find him,� he snapped, making Rob jump in place. �But sir I have no idea where he could be�� Rob, this is your new assignment. Starting tomorrow your job is to find Jai.� �Sir, I wouldn�t know where to start�� Well Rob you better figure that out A.S.A.P. Of course you will still be paid your regular salary and we will cover your food and lodging costs� �You think it might take that long sir?� Edward sat and stared out the window without replying to Rob. �Sir?� �Just go Rob, and don�t fail me this time. The information he holds could make or break this company. I believe that, if anyone can find him, it�ll be you.� �Yes sir,� Rob said, proud in the trust that his boss put in him. The guard strode out of Fox�s office. For a few moments, Fox simply continued to stare out the window, out into the night. �Jai, what has happened to us?� Edward asked to himself. As Rob walked to the elevator and pressed the button, he thought to himself �This is my chance to prove myself to Mr. Fox! This time I won�t goof things up; I will find Jai and bring him back.� With his new found confidence he drove over to the nearest tavern to down a couple of beers. As Rob pushed open the door, he looked around. It was a typical bar; an L-shaped bar where furs sat with their drinks, an open area filled with small tables, a jukebox in the corner, and restrooms in the back. All this, Rob saw, but did not notice; his only concern for the moment was having a nice, cold beer. �The usual, Rob?� the barkeep asked him, as he pulled up to the bar. �Yeah, Bill, sure.� Rob answered grimly. �Anything the matter Rob?� Bill asked, �In the past 10 years I have known you I have never seen you this down� �Tomorrow I have to leave town on a assignment� �Do you know when you will be back?� �Nope, my boss told me to stay gone for as long as it takes� �I see, well good luck to yah� Bill said as he gave him his beer. After two beers Rob decided to leave before he started any trouble. As if looking into the world for the first time, he slowly opened his eyes. To his dismay, he saw an unfamiliar place; however, he was surrounded by kindly looking furries. The old bear before him was the first to speak to him �Hello there young fellow. We found you in terrible shape out in that storm.� Slowly as he staggered to his feet, several furs come to his aid. �Here, grab my paw,� demanded the old bear before him. Cautiously he took the bear�s paw. Standing on his own two feet, he surveyed his new surroundings. �Hmmm, four bears, a one room house, what appears to be a radio, and a table with 2 chairs.� he quietly said to himself. Dazed, he staggered over to the window to see what lay beyond. Before his eyes he saw the most fearsome storm he has ever seen. As he stared out the window, trying to figure out where he was, someone tapped him on his shoulder and spoke to him. �I�I�I am sorry to bother you mister but could you please tell us� what is your name?� The stranger turned to face the voice, before him stood a young girl, probably no more than ten years old by his guess. �My name is Rebecca,� she said, �what�s your name?� �My name?� he asked the little girl. �Yes sir could you please tell us your name?� she repeated. �Um �well�. you see�.my name is�.� The stranger wasn�t able to answer the girl�s question before he collapsed onto the floor. �Jack, quickly get him to the bed!� the old lady cried in fright. With ease the old bear picked up the mysterious tiger and set him on the bed. �Joy� we have a problem here,� The old bear said grimly, �look at this.� As Jack rolled the tiger onto his side, the blankets stuck to his back for some unknown reason. Carefully, Joy peeled the blanket off of the tiger�s back and found a gash down the right side of his back. �Hurry Jack get the alcohol and some cottonballs,� cried Joy, �Don�t forget something to wrap up this wound in� Jack quickly ran into the bathroom and grabbed the cotton and alcohol out of the medicine cabinet, as well as some gauze and adhesive tape. �Here Joy,� Jack said breathlessly, holding out the supplies he held in his paws. Joy snatched the supplies out of Jack�s hand and then pleaded with Jack to cover Rebecca�s eyes so she wouldn�t see such a gruesome sight. After a couple of minutes Jack asked, �Hey Joy, how is our mystery guest doing?� With a frown on her face she replied, �It�s not good, Jack. He is coughing up blood, we need to get him to a hospital.� �The nearest hospital is 20 miles from here,� stated the gloomy bear, �there�s no way we can get there in time Joy� �We have to try Jack. It�s better than just sitting here waiting for him to die,� shouted Joy, �now let�s go!� �Frank, Rebecca we�re heading to the hospital. This guy is in worse condition than we thought!� shouted Jack. As the two put the tiger down in the back seat of their sedan, they looked back at the house and hoped that Frank would be all right. As the two pulled out of the driveway Joy asked, � Are you sure we can leave Frank in the house by himself?� �Come on Joy, Frank is a grown man now. He can take care of himself� Jack growled. �But Jack, it was only five years ago when his wife was � you know,� replied the sullen wife. With a sigh Jack answered, �Yes that was a tragic day,� he said referring to the day when he, Joy, and Frank had found Frank�s wife lying on the front porch, motionless. For a while, there was silence; no sounds could be heard beyond the swoosh of the windshield wipers and the occasional low moan from the stranger in the back seat. The silence came to an end not far from the hospital, however, when the stranger began to thrash about. �We can�t do this! Not even for the business,� the tiger groaned. �Joy! Go back there and calm him down. We�re almost at the hospital. It�s just a couple more miles to go!� �Ok Jack� As Joy squirmed her way into the back of the sedan, the tiger began to spasm uncontrollably. Joy tried her best to hold him down, but she wasn�t strong enough to restrain him, and she was thrown against the window. Undaunted, she decided to try to use the weight of her own body to keep the tiger down. Despite this, however, the tiger continues thrashing, and Joy becomes concerned that her attempts to hold him down will fail. �Jack hurry! I can�t hold him down, he is too strong� �We�re almost there Joy don�t worry. See if he has a wallet; we will need the information for the hospital.� Joy carefully went through the tiger�s pockets, avoiding his flailing arms while she tried to find some form of identification. �Jack, all I could find is this card that says �Jai Taigas� on it with a barcode under the name.� �That name sounds so familiar too me I just can�t put a finger on where I have heard it� replied Jack. �No! No Edward don�t, we can�t do this, it�s all wrong.� The tiger mumbles. �He must be having one hell of a nightmare,� commented Jack. A few minutes later things began to calm down, and the two bears had a feeling that this visitor would have a good chance of survival, now that he was sleeping soundly since his last outburst. Their peaceful moment crumbled as their unconscious companion began to violently cough up blood, which in turn started his spasms up again. Joy tried in vain to hold the huge tiger down, but she was thrown against the window once again. This time she hit the window hard, cracking the glass and rendering her unconscious. Not thinking, Jack turns around in his seat to try to help out the tiger and his precious wife. As a result, the car started to swerve out of control across the freeway; tossing Jack left and right like a rag doll. After a few hectic seconds he regained control of the wheel just in time to see the front end of a Ford Contour SE, approaching head on and fast! Reacting mainly out of instinct he took at hard left turn off the freeway into the grass, where he reached a rocky but safe stop. Momentarily forgetting about the tiger, Jack steps out of the sedan and walks over to the Contour to see if the driver is all right. �That was a close one� Lee Evans quietly said to himself. He quickly examines himself, and his friend Lyman Aquilafe, and finding everything all right, he and Lyman decide to check on the driver they narrowly missed. Lee and Lyman hopped out of their car and walked over to the large bear standing at the front of the sedan. �Hi, I�m Lee Evans,� said the cat to the bear. �My name�s Lyman Aquilaferi� said the other fellow. �Hey Lee, I�m Jack Marigold� said Jack introducing himself. Are you ok, Jack?� Lee asked the distressed bear. �Yes I�m fine� Jack replied with a distant sigh, then memory kicked in. �OH MY GOD,� Jack cried, �Joy! Can you hear me Joy?� Lee and Lyman watched as the bear ran towards his car and checked inside. �Look it�s been nice meeting you two, but I gotta get to the hospital. My wife and this tiger are in serious trouble� Jack fumbled with his keys as he tried to start the engine. His first attempt at starting the old hunk of junk failed as he nervously looked back at the two injured furs. �START YOU BIG PILE OF JUNK!� the angry bear screamed as he beat the steering wheel. His second attempt produced no more progress than the first. Lee and Lyman watched from a distance as the frantic bear tried to start his car. Regretfully they make their way back to Lee�s car and drove off. A few miles later Lee started to reconsider as they made their way to Pennsylvania to keep an appointment. He began to think about that bear, how desperate he was, and how he kept on looking at the back seat of his car. The words the bear said came to him ��I gotta get to the hospital, my wife and this tiger are in serious trouble�. He looked over at Lyman. �It doesn�t feel right to drive off without knowing if that bear was able to get those furs to the hospital. I�m going back to check.� Lyman nodded in agreement to Lee, and sat in silence the rest of the way back to where they first met the bear. At Lyman�s agreeing nod, Lee commented, �Brace yourself.� Taking the smoothest possible path across the median, Lee crossed over and hurried back to where the near-accident had occurred. As Lee and Lyman get out of the car they looked at the bear, who hasn�t moved from where they�d last seen him, leaning on the front hood of his sedan, tears streaming down his face. Lee stood there for a moment to gather his composure and then made his way to the bear. �Umm Jack?� �You�re back?� �Yes, and I�m sorry for leaving like that, I feel badly about leaving you like I did. I normally wouldn�t do something like that.� �It�s ok, Lee,� the old bear replied �I can�t start my car and now my wife and that tiger is in serious trouble. �Come on, Jack; let�s get them into my car,� Lee offered, as he and Lyman began moving to the back of Jack�s car. Jack just nodded his head and made his way to his sedan where he carefully picked up Joy and made his way to the Contour. Lee unlocked the back door and then made his way to the sedan to get the tiger. �Be careful that tiger has blood all over him� the bear called out. As Lee picked up the huge tiger he noticed the blood dripping out of his mouth. �Here let me help you, that tiger is pretty big� Lyman offered. When the two finally got the tiger crammed into the backseat with Joy and Jack, Lee said, �Now with that done with, next stop, the hospital� �I don�t know how to repay you for your help Lee,� the old bear quietly said from the back seat as he held the two patients �without you they both might have died.� �Don�t worry about it Jack, the important thing is that we get them to a hospital before it�s too late for either of them� �Thank you�� Jack managed to get out before he passed out in exhaustion. Lyman looked over to Jack to see if he was all right, and saw that he was asleep, and quickly turned off the radio to let the old fur sleep. Thank God, only 3 miles left till we get to the hospital. Lee thought to himself as he continued to drive down the freeway. Lee pulled out his cell phone as he pulled into the hospital�s parking lot. �Livingston Regional Hospital, this is Veronica speaking. May I help you?� �Yes, this is an emergency, I have a male tiger with excessive bleeding and a female bear that in unconscious, I just pulled into the hospital� Lee replied, a touch of anxiety in his voice. �Ok, calm down sir, just pull your car into the emergency entrance and I will have 2 doctors there to help you� �Yes, thank you� �Triage staff needed in Emergency, Triage staff needed in Emergency. Incoming, two patients, two patients incoming.� Lisa and May quickly got up from the break room table and made a dash for the Emergency entrance. �Well May, you know our break couldn�t have lasted too long as short handed as we are today� �Yeah, yeah don�t remind me Lisa. Let�s just get this over with ok?� �Hey Lisa when we get off you want to come over?� �I don�t know May I just wanted to sleep tonight� �Awww come on Lisa, Nester is making his lasagna tonight� �All right May you win, you know I can�t resist your husband�s lasagna� At the entrance, they found a Contour with the back doors open and a concerned cat pacing. �Your patients are right here, one on either side,� he hurriedly explained. �We�ll do what we can, sir,� answered May. �May, let�s get the tiger first he appears to be in worse condition, the bear seems to have a concussion. Call Dr. Jones to take care of her� As Lisa and May carefully eased the tiger on to the stretcher, Lee could only watched as they carried him away. �Hey Veronica page Dr. Jones and tell him that he has a patient.� May called out as they wheeled their patient to the surgery room. �Attention Dr. Jones, please make your way to the Emergency entrance you have a patient. Lee sat down in the car and woke Jack to tell him the news. �Hey, Jack, wake up� Lee called as he shook the snoring bear. �Wha� what is it Lee?� �We are at the hospital Jack, they took that tiger to surgery and another doctor is on their way to get Joy� �Thank you for waking me Lee, I don�t know what I would do if I was asleep while they treated Joy� As Lee, Lyman and Jack sat in the car talking, an irritated iguana appeared in the doorway and made his way towards the car. Lee helped the doctor to get Joy on the stretcher. As the doctor took Joy to his examining room, Lee, Lyman and Jack walked to the front desk to find a phone Jack could use. �Excuse me ma�am, but where is the pay phone?� Jack asked. The rabbit put down her brush and looked at the two furs in front of her. �The pay phone is like at the end of the hall and to the right ok?� replied Veronica with a little too much pep. �Um thanks� Lee responded politely �Hey, Lee, can you check on Joy for me while I use the phone?� �Sure, Jack, no problem� �I�ll come with you,� Lyman offered. Veronica stated over the intercom �To the gentlefur that just arrived in Emergency, please come to the front desk now� �I guess I will just make the phone call after this then� Jack said with a shrug. When Jack finally got to the front desk the rabbit looked at him irritably and said, �Sir you like forgot to fill out the forms for the two patients.� �Sorry ma�am� Jack took the two forms and then sat down in the nearest seat to fill them out. After what seemed like two hours, Jack finally returned the forms to the receptionist. �Excuse me ma�am, but I couldn�t fill out some of the information for the tiger because we don�t know him. We found him on the side of the road, but I will pay for his care as well as my wife�s.� �As long as you are willing to pay for him it will be ok, but you will have to sign the consent form so we can operate on him� �Yes ma�am� �If you will please sign here sir?� Jack took the form and signed where the rabbit told him too. Then he read the form quickly seeing that it stated that the hospital would not be sued by the patient or authorized fur signing the form if something went wrong and that he gave them permission to operate on the tiger etc�� Finally, after a good long while, Jack was able to get to the payphone. �Hmm let�s see 1-800-COLLECT� Jack thought to himself as the dialed the number on the phone. �Jack Marigold,� Jack spoke into the phone. �Hello?� a familiar voice answered. �Hey Frank is everything ok at home?� �Yeah Pop everything is fine,� Frank answered sheepishly �I put Rebecca to sleep about two hours ago so she won�t be able to talk right now� �I understand, I was just checking to see if everything was ok, I will be here for a while so be careful ok?� �Wait a minute dad! What about that tiger? Is he going to be ok?� Only silence went over the phone for a couple of moments. �I don�t know Frank, Lee said he looked bad when we got to the hospital.� �Lee? Who is Lee? Dad?� �Oh! I am sorry, I almost ran into him on the freeway, the car stalled and I tried to restart it but it wouldn�t, then Lee offered me a ride.� �Sounds like a nice guy Dad well I will let you go now. Bye and be careful� �Bye son,� Jack said before going to see his wife. As Jack entered into the room his wife was in, he glanced at his wife laying there motionless. Quietly he walked over to Lee and asked him if she was going to be all right. Lee whispered, �The doctor told me that she should come to in about an hour� With a sigh of relief Jack went over to Dr. Jones to thank him for his help. Afterwards Jack, Lyman and Lee went back to the front desk to see if there was any information on how the tiger was doing. When they arrived, Lyman was the first one to speak up, �Umm� is the tiger going to be all right?� Slowly, Veronica looked up at them and said, �I am sorry guys, last I heard that tiger was flatlining and the doctors were getting the defibrillator to revive the heart.� To be continued�

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