Tim had no time to waste. He told Laura about the chimpanzee and they hurriedly left her place in her black Navigator. As a security guard, he had to make sure that all the animals stayed in their cages. As much as he hated the idea of chasing down a chimpanzee in the middle of a cold, rainy night, he had to return to the compound and join his colleagues in the search. Deeply disappointed that his night with Laura was effectively ruined, he did not utter a word.

“How the hell did that damn chimp escape?” Laura spoke in frustrated tones, on their way down the mountain side. “I mean, don’t you lock those cages?”

“Yeah, we do.” Tim’s voice had completely lost its firmness. He would not look ahead; instead, he simply lay back in his seat and closed his eyes.

“What’s wrong, Mr. Shaw?” Laura said, her tone all of a sudden much sweeter, as she turned her head to the right to face him.

“Of all the damn days…” he grumbled.

“Yeah, I didn’t like that, either.” She reached towards him and patted him on the shoulder. “But, don’t worry. We just met. Besides, the whole thing felt a little rushed, if you ask me.”

“What, you didn’t like it?” Tim’s eyes snapped open.

“The kiss was amazing,” Laura confessed. “I loved it. I just wish we’d kissed on a real date.”

“Tonight wasn’t my idea, sweetheart,” He replied tauntingly. “It could have been anything you wanted, but you chose to talk about business.”

“I’ll tell you what, then,” she chirped. “Let’s go out for dinner tomorrow night. But here’s the thing. You’ll have to forget about the money and our conversation.”

“You’re a weird lady, you know that?” Tim spoke in a disapproving tone.

“I just don’t mix business with pleasure,” Laura declared. “If we… sealed the deal tonight, it would be a one-time thing. I’d never date a business associate.”

“You sound like an old man,” he laughed. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“I think I sound like my old man,” she sighed. “Those are his words, not mine. But, I agree with him. Dating someone that you work with can only distract you.”

“This doesn’t look good.” Tim remarked, as they entered the parking lot. His three colleagues had gathered outside, with tranquilizing guns in their hands and the police were also there. Josephine was yelling at her employees. Luckily for them, the rain had almost stopped. At least Tim wouldn’t have to battle that as well in his quest for the chimpanzee.

“Tim, we are so glad you could join us: catch!” Tina said sarcastically, tossing a tranquilizing gun to him.

“Can anybody tell me what happened?” Laura asked, following him.

“I left the cage door open,” Wally Bartlett, the oldest of the four security guards, raised his hand like a timid schoolboy.

“Why?” Laura raised her tone.

“It can happen to anyone,” Josephine interjected. “It’s happened to me, too.”

“Where’s the chimp? Still here or is it taking a walk in the forest?” Laura’s ironic tone did not go down well with Josephine. She frowned at her and would not dignify her question with an answer.

“It can’t go to the forest,” Tina assured. “Security footage showed him getting out the back door. Dr. Marlon is monitoring the cameras. We’ve turned on the power to the electric fence. If he touches it, he’s dead. He’s probably hiding somewhere.”

“Well, don’t just stand there. Find him!” Laura commanded.

“Alright,” Bartlett spoke. “Shaw, Bradley, go right. Stilton, you’re with me.”

“I need a flashlight.” Tim requested.

“I don’t think so,” Tina disagreed. “I’ve turned on all the sidelights. We can’t miss him.”

His colleague’s words gave him some hope, but Tim’s heart sank as they turned around the corner. The 200-yard long strip of land was filled with huge boxes. Smaller crates were scattered in disarray. Simply touching one of those would make enough noise to alert the animal. More than that, the chimp could easily be hiding in one of those boxes, trying to shield itself from the cold.

“Hey…” he whispered, “where did those boxes come from?”

“Animal food,” Tina responded. “We’re supposed to collect those in the morning.”

“Stay close.” Tim urged.

Tim’s footsteps dragged, as the snow thickened. His legs gave way and he stumbled to his knees in the snow, soaking the light wool fabric of his dress pants. He gave a frustrated gasp, as he brushed past two black crates, stacked on top of each other. Walking in the snow took a lot of effort. Their footsteps were quite noticeable. If they had any chance of finding the missing primate, they had to spot him from a distance. It didn’t take them long to come across an incredible sight that shocked them both to their very core: there were three, large boxes; piled on top of one another; just inside the fence; roughly thirty yards away from where they stood. But that was not what surprised them the most. Just outside the fence was another pile of three more boxes. Before either of them could speak, the chimpanzee jumped onto the top of the pile outside and over the 20ft-tall fence, with something squeaking in his mouth. He raised his left hand to his face and pulled it out. Tim couldn’t believe his eyes, but knew he had to overcome his shock. He pointed his gun down at the primate and shut his left eye. The dart struck the chimpanzee in his left arm. A split second afterwards, Tina shot the animal as well. Her dart hit him in the stomach. Whatever was in his mouth fell off and disappeared into the thick snow, just before he fell hard on his right hand side.

“We got him!” Tina spoke through her intercom, as they both rushed towards the unconscious primate.

“I thought chimps liked bananas!” Tim’s astonishment was showing in his voice.

“I did, too!” She confessed.

“Be careful with him!” Josephine’s voice echoed in the wilderness. “Let’s get him somewhere warm, fast!”