Several hours later, Judy's excitement had disappeared and been replaced by frustration. Papers and folders were scattered across she and Nick's desks, and for all the digging they had done, they'd still come up with nothing. The bunny groaned, her ears laid all the way back, "We haven't found anything!"

Nick too was growing weary of the paper shuffling and constant phone calls to different cabbies. His plan had been sound, but none of the drivers had a client in the correct time frame that fit the description. He ran his paw over his muzzle tiredly.

"This would have been so much easier if we could have just looked at the traffic cams to see where she went when she left The Watering Hole," Judy sighed.

"Yeah, but lucky us! The camera on that street just so happened to be down last night," Nick growled, putting his paws behind his head and leaning back in his chair to stare at the ceiling.

"And it's impossible to identify anyone on the cams once they're in the vehicle; it just had to be that one camera!" the rabbit groaned again and slummed over the desk, planting her face in the pile of papers before her. "Any new ideas from the clever fox?" she mumbled, her voice muffled through the desk.

Nick shook his head with a sigh, even though he knew she couldn't see him, and stood up, walking around their joined desks to place his paws on his partner's shoulders comfortingly. "Maybe we need a new perspective," he said and he gently kneaded at the tension in the bunny's muscles. She made a small sound of appreciation, but didn't say anything for a moment. "Look, we've got about an hour before we're off for the day. Why don't we review the statements from the family one more time, and then go grab some dinner or something? Try and clear our minds of it so maybe new ideas can surface?"

Judy nodded, and finally raised her head from the desk. "I hate the thought of just doing nothing while there's an animal missing, but you might be right," she agreed, however she wrinkled up her nose in displeasure. She always felt so useless when leads ran cold like this – she knew there just had to be something they were missing.

"I know, I know," the fox sighed. He wasn't any happier about it. "But I think it will do us some good. The night team will keep looking into it, and Bogo will call us if there are any new developments."

"Well, let's review the family's statement one more time, shall we?" Judy said, straightening up and squaring her shoulders.

Nick dropped his paws back to his sides, "You got it, Carrots."


Later, Judy had to admit that she did feel a lot better after she'd gotten some takeout food in her and had a chance to relax. She was currently sitting on the couch at Nick's place, next to the fox himself while the tv played Pig Hero 6.

"The criminals in these movies are always so straightforward – why can't it be this easy in real life?" she sighed, and sipped on her carrot milkshake a little more.

Nick chuckled, and since she was leaning on his arm where they sat, she could feel the laughter vibrate through his body. "Sometimes they are, those just aren't the fun ones."

Judy cracked a smile at that. It was true, of course. Some of the cases they'd had over that past year had been so mind-numbingly simple, it hadn't even been that thrilling to solve it. Smart and crafty criminals made their jobs a lot harder, but honestly, they also made it more exciting too.

It was relaxing, lounging here on the couch with her best friend, and she was happy that she'd agree to come over after work. If she'd gone back to her own little apartment, she'd probably just be brooding over the case. She never did sleep much when there was a case to crack, and without anything to even review at the moment, she knew she'd just end up driving herself insane if left alone to her thoughts. Nick was aware of this tendency of hers too, and usually tried not to give her the opportunity to sulk when they hit a roadblock like today. After all, according to him (jokingly of course) she was 'small and emotionally unbalanced.'

It was nearing midnight by the time the movie finished, and Judy groaned inwardly when she realized the time. Five thirty would come awful early, and she knew she'd need the energy for tomorrow. Just as she was about to tell Nick she was off for the night, her phone started ringing.

"It's Chief Bogo," she told Nick after glancing at the caller ID, and then swiped to answer. If the chief was calling at this hour, then something serious had gone down. "Officer Hopps," she answered.

"Hopps, that missing mammal case of yours just got a lot darker," came the deep voice from the other end of the line.

"What's happened, sir?" Judy asked, sitting up properly, her ears standing straight up in attention.

"You'll see for yourself when you get here. And brace yourself – it's not going to be pretty." Judy swallowed, her eyes wide. They hadn't found the poor zebra dead, had they? "Would you call Officer Wilde and have him come down here with you as well?"

"He's with me right now, so we'll head down there right now. What's the address?" She scribbled down the address in her note book as Bogo relayed it to her, and then ended the call. Nick was looking at her expectantly, and she noticed he had already grabbed his gun and utility belt.

"Time for a midnight stroll?" he drawled playfully, raising a brow.

"Of course. Want to do some sightseeing in the moonlight?" she responded sarcastically.

"Oh how romantic," Nick shot right back with a smirk, and Judy had to fight back a blush at his teasing.

"Shut up," she complained, punching in his arm as they left. Unperturbed, Nick rubbed his arm in mock hurt and laughed.

Well, at least outwardly he was unruffled.

Never let them see they get to you, he thought.