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“Shit!” Jake yelled. He quickly closed the front door as both he and Fiona realized what was happening. Applegate wasn’t trying to escape them—he was just trying to catch a small, but destructive monkey.
Fiona watched wide-eyed as the monkey hopped over furniture and swung from curtains, dodging Applegate’s outstretched hands.
“He’s fast,” she muttered to herself.
Jake nodded in agreement, then took a deep breath. Fiona could tell he was ready for this.
“Let’s go,” he said, and they both ran after the monkey. Jake tried to grab it, but it was too quick—it jumped away from his hands and sprinted into another room.
The monkey dashed into the kitchen, knocking over a few chairs in its wake. Applegate followed closely behind it, trying to grab it with his hands but missing every time. It was too fast for him.
Fiona and Jake went after them, but they were no match for the monkey’s speed either. The animal jumped onto the countertop and started throwing pots and pans at them, making it even harder to catch up with it.
Finally, the monkey made a break for it and ran out of the kitchen toward the hallway. Applegate chased after it, followed by Fiona and Jake close behind. They chased the monkey through several rooms until eventually it ran into a bedroom at the end of the hallway.
Applegate followed closely behind, determined to catch his runaway pet before it caused any more damage to his house. Fiona’s heart raced as she tried to think of how to help, but she was an entomologist, not a zookeeper—monkeys were not her specialty!
Applegate quickly ran up and scooped up the monkey in his arms.
“Gotcha!” he yelled triumphantly as he hugged the animal close to his chest. It was still wiggling and trying to escape, but now that it was contained, Fiona was able to appreciate how cute it was.
Applegate huffed and looked at them, a string of sweaty hair caught on his forehead. “Now, who the hell are you people and why did you break into my house?”
Jake let out a breath, also panting. “Secure that animal, and we’ll explain everything.”
***
Once Applegate had the monkey in a cage, he sat across from Fiona and Jake in his extravagant living room. Fiona couldn’t help but be in awe of the luxury of his home; he had many pieces of fine art and vases that, well… they were in great condition. That monkey had done a good number on many of his pieces, and Fiona could only estimate the cost of damages.
Which begged the question: why on earth did he have a monkey in his house? He had a zoo for that.
But Fiona kept her thoughts to herself, letting Jake take the lead.
“Mr. Applegate,” Jake said, “I’m Special Agent Jake Tucker with the FBI. This is Fiona Red, forensic specialist. Sorry we busted into your house, but when we heard the smashing, well…”
“You helped me catch the little rascal,” Applegate said. “But why is the FBI here? Are you here for him?”
“Him?” Jake asked, confused.
“The monkey,” Applegate said. “I assumed the Pinewood Zoo sent you here.”
Jake shot Fiona a confused frown, but she just shrugged. She had no idea what he was talking about.
“That ball of chaos you saw was stolen from them,” Applegate said, “by me. I fully admit it, but they were not treating the little thing well, and I had to save him.”
Fiona’s eyes widened. She hadn’t expected that.
“So you stole a monkey from the zoo,” Jake said. “That’s a very serious crime.”
Applegate shrugged. “I did what I had to do. I’m not sorry for it. You have no idea how they are treating their animals there.”
Fiona didn’t like the sound of that. “Are they neglecting them?”
Applegate nodded. “Unfortunately, yes. Animals are living in squalor, and the staff doesn’t seem to care. I’m trying to do something about it, but it’s been hard to get anyone to listen.”
“That’s awful,” Fiona said. “So how did you end up taking the monkey?”
Applegate sighed. “I had been keeping an eye on the zoo for weeks, and I noticed the monkey seemed especially neglected. So I decided to take him and bring him here. I had no idea he was so mischievous.”
