Rei dropped her mouth as her partner fell to the grass. "Luna!"

She ran toward her partner and pushed her two fingers on Luna’s throat. The panther still breathed although her eyes were closed shut. Whatever struck her, it instantly rendered her unconscious.

Rei glanced up. A figure climbed out on top of the cat head. He wore a dark gray hoodie, covering his entire short body. Two long ears struck out on his hood.

With her chance, Rei grabbed Luna’s railgun and printed it at the suspect. "Freeze!"

The hooded person held up his hands and turned around. His grin spread beneath his hood, displaying his sharp teeth under his exposed gums.

Rei’s spine shivered, but she kept the gun aimed at the Cheshire Cat. In case she has to shoot Luna’s gun, it shouldn't be a problem. "Get off that thing! Now!"

The cat jumped off and landed in front of her. He kept his hands up.

Rei could now see his wide yellow eyes, glaring at her. His fur was light gray, which doesn't match his persona's color. He may not look like the Cheshire Cat from the book, but he does have that unnatural smile.

"What are you going to do now, my Alice?" The cat asked in his low, husky voice. "Kill me?"

"You are wanted alive. There is no reward if I kill you."

The Cheshire Cat chuckled. "Can you capture me without killing me?”

Rei smiled and stepped up close toward him. “Ye ye!”

She swung the gun and knocked the Cheshire Cat out. She played his games enough.

*****

In the parking lot, the bright sun rose over the ocean horizon. Rei never thought she would ever see daylight ever again. Walking through the Cheshire Cat's trap maze felt like an eternity in hell. If backup didn't arrive, Rei feared she wouldn't hold the Cheshire Cat captive for long.

While the police infiltrated the theme park, Rei sat behind the ambulance with a towel around her body. Her bare feet rested in a container, filled with warm water. The medics bandaged her wounds and allowed her to rest before they would bring her to the hospital.

Behind her, Luna lay on the gurney, still unconscious. Whatever the Cheshire Cat used, it completely knocked the panther woman out. Hopefully, her coma will only last for a few hours. If Rei has to work alone without her partner, she might make more money than Luna. If she doesn't get herself killed at least.

Two dog cops escorted Mr.Dreams toward a hover police car in handcuffs. The human glanced at the concrete ground with his head down in shame.

He admitted he murdered his father to take over his theme park. His father planned to sell his park to the Wonderprises corperation to expand the park’s funding. But Mr.Dreams believed the corporation will ruin the theme park for their greedy nature. Prices will be raised, politics will stand in the way, and boring new rides will be built. Mr.Dreams ran the park fine without bending the knee to the corporate overlords in the city. Sure he sacrificed lives to protect his secrets, but he did it so Dreamland wouldn’t become corrupt like other corporate theme parks. He hated capitalism.

Still, murder and helping a psychopath commit more murder doesn’t excuse him for protecting his park. After the police found the bodies in the sewer, Rei knew the Cheshire Cat and Mr.Dreams will be locked away for a long time.

Whatever the fate the park has now, a corporation might buy it or close it down for good. Maybe nobody will come after they will learn the park owner sent his customers to their deaths. Maybe they might call his park, Deathland.

Commissioner Fiona and Rally soon approached her from the police crowd. The commissioner wore a red leather trench coat as if she expected rain in the morning. “How are you feeling?”

Rei yawned. “I totally need coffee.”

“I’ll get you a cup, but I want to say congratulation. With your help, we finally caught the mysterious serial killer.”

“Does that mean Luna and I will get the reward?”

“Probably only you because you brought the Cheshire Cat to us while Luna is unconscious. But you can still share the reward with her. I would so she wouldn’t be angry.”

Rei sighed at the ground. “Al-ass-eo…”

Rally crossed his arms. “How is Luna?”

Rei glanced at her sleeping partner. “She is still out. The meds said she should recover soon.”

Fiona smiled. “Good. I’ll get your coffee now. The park cafe is still open.”

After the commissioner walked away, Rally stepped toward Rei. He rubbed the back of his head. “I’m sorry about the freak ruining our date. If we didn’t listen to Mr.Dreams, our romantic adventure wouldn’t turn dark.”

Rei giggled. “It’s okay. We wouldn’t have found the killer if we didn’t enter his playhouse.”

Rally grinned. "Yeah… That's true." He scratched his chin. "I don't know when there will be the next time, but I can schedule another date if you like."

"Sure! That will be great!"

"Good. I’ll give you a call when the time comes."

Rei nodded. This time, no more theme parks.

*****

A bright light shined on Luna's face after she opened her eyes. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, feeling her dizziness drift away. "Where the hell am I now?"

Luna found herself wearing a white medical gown on a bed inside a plain white room. On the left was a glass window where Luna could see the skyscrapers and flying cars beneath the sunny sky. Fresh antiseptic smells flooded the entire room but were not too heavy.

"A hospital?" Luna turned to the right when the door creaked open.

Rei stepped through the door in a pink leather jacket, black shorts, and dark fishnets wrapped around her legs over her boots. Her outfit was better than the blue dress she wore for some reason.

With a grin, Rei strolled toward Luna’s bed, carrying a brown paper bag. “O johne! You are finally awake!”

Luna rubbed her head. “How long was I out?”

“Two days.”

Luna widened her eyes. “Two days?”

“Yeah, but don’t worry. I caught the Cheshire Cat. He is rotting in prison right now.”

Luna narrowed her eyes. “Explain everything since I passed out.”

Rei pulled up a small chair and sat on it. She told Luna how she capture the Cheshire Cat and what the police did with the park. Mr.Dreams received a ten-year sentence in prison at the Pound. If he is lucky, he might survive long enough to reach the end of his sentence. But at the Pound, most Humanimal prisoners love to prey on the weak. The Cheshire Cat received a lifetime sentence, but who knew what he could do in the Humanimal prison center. He might be more dangerous than the wild animals there.

During a couple of days, Rei split the reward and placed the rest into Luna’s account. Luna appreciated that, or else she would have squeezed Rei’s tail for an hour. Fiona didn’t post any recent bounty for a while as if the criminal world decided to take a long break. That gave Rei some time to shop and relax in her apartment. She also kept checking on Luna, waiting for her to wake up.

“Did you and Rally make out?” Luna asked with a chuckle.

Rei’s face blushed, but she kept her smile. “He hasn’t called me since the incident at Dreamland. That park is still closed.”

“Bumper.”

“Well, he is a busy dog. Criminals do put food on a cop’s plate. Heeheehee! Oh! I brought you something.” Rei pulled out a book from the bag and handed it to Luna.

“What is this?” Luna stared at the book’s cover. It has a picture of a little human girl, walking through a giant mushroom forest. The title above the image read, ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll.”

“I brought the sequels too,” said Rei. “I thought in case the Cheshire Cat escapes, we should be ready for him.”

Luna raised an eyebrow at Rei. “Are you serious?”

“If we study the novels, we will know how to solve his new traps. You told me to be ready for anything. Remember?”

Luna laughed. “You really are a silly kitty!”