Ch. 13: The Flash-est of Them All
"Maybe they just moved," Judy said, talking about the Felino gang.
"Maybe right after that shoot out Pedro talk about?"
"Maybe," Nick replied in a quiet, distracted voice.
The sky was darkening as they made their way home in the car. Nick has his face pressed against the window, watching the blurred buildings as they passed; his eyes dark.
"Are you okay?" Judy asked worriedly, glancing at him from the corner of her eye.
"Yeah, just a little frustrated," he offered her a small smile, "Dead ends are the worse."
"They can't hide from us forever," Judy assured him confidently, "We are ZPD's finest after all."
He chuckled softly, "Yeah, we are."
At the apartment they found Amelia walking around the living room, a sleeping Suzy in her arms as she sang a soft lullaby.
She smiled at the two, "How'd it go?"
"Not that great," Judy admitted. "How was Suzy?"
"She was the perfect little angel," Amelia said softly.
Nick stepped forward and stifled a yawn, "Are you staying the night, Mom?"
"Would that be okay?" Amelia asked. "I've recently found out I desperately miss being a mother."
Judy smiled at her, "We'd love that."
"I'll set up the guest room," Nick replied, disappearing down the hall.
"Where will the baby sleep?" Amelia asked, following Judy into the kitchen as the rabbit fetched herself a glass of water.
"Last night she just slept with Nick and me," she answered. "We don't mind."
"She can sleep with me," Amelia offered.
"No, it's okay," Judy said, knowing the guest bed was much smaller than the bed she shared with Nick. "Besides, I think she helps Nick sleep easier."
Amelia smiled, "He used to sneak into bed with me and Max when he was a kit, always helped me sleep."
"I think he'd be a good father," Judy admitted to her.
Amelia's smile widened excitedly, "I think so too. Now we just have to convince him, of course, after the wedding-"
"Are you two talking about me?" Nick asked as he walked into the room.
"Of course not," they said in unison.
Nick looked them both suspiciously, "You know, it's a real shame when I can't trust my own mother and girlfriend."
"Oh, you know you can trust us," Amelia said, placing Suzy in Nick's arms. "Now if you excuse me I need my beauty sleep."
She walked off and Nick looked back at Judy, "Sleep?"
She nodded, "Sleep."
.
Judy's cellphone buzzed loudly, waking her and telling her she had a call. Judy's eyes blinked open and she yawned, rubbing said eyes and wondering why her body felt so heavy. She found her answer when she realized Nick had at one point sprawled over her back in the middle of the night. Suzy was sleeping in the middle of his vacant pillow, curled up and peaceful, her rattle hugged between her paws.
"Nick," she moaned, trying to crawl out from under his heavy body, "Get off."
Nick mumbled something unintelligible in his sleep before finally rolling off her. Judy reached out to the bed side drawer and answered the call, "Yes?"
"Judy?" Fru Fru's worried voice spoke up, instantly waking up the bunny.
"What's wrong?" she slid off the bed, heading to her closet to hurry and get dressed.
"Billy's gone."
"What do you mean?"
"Daddy let him drive home to get some things from his house," Fru Fru explained, "He offered to get one of our drivers to take him but he said he didn't need it. He left and he hasn't been back all morning."
"Oh, Fru Fru I'll-" her voice stopped when her phone beeped, she was getting another call. She checked the screen, it was the precinct. "Fru Fru, the precinct's calling; I'll tell them about Billy." She hung up and answered the call, "Hello?"
"Hey, Jude the Dude," Wilfred greeted.
"Wilfred?" she spoke in surprise, "…How do you know that nickname?"
"Well, according to the word around the precinct, your dad told Nick, Nick told Clawhauser, and Clawhauser told me…and I told everyone else."
"Oh my God," Judy placed her paw over her face.
"Hey now, there's nothing wrong with a father calling his baby girl a boy," he laughed.
"Wilfred, why did you call me?"
"Oh right! I was looking through the traffic cameras from last night and…you and Nick need to see this."
.
Judy and Nick watched the security screen with Wilfred that showed a quiet road in Tundra Town. A red car appeared on the road, driving slowly through the snow. Then quite suddenly a dark green car appeared out of nowhere to crash into the back of the scarlet vehicle, stopping it immediately.
Out of the red car stumbled Billy Beardby, the goat tried to hurry away but then a figure dressed all in black rushed out of the other car and slammed into Billy, holding him to the ground.
Billy struggled as two more figures in dark clothing got out of the car and headed to the goat. The taller one glancing up at the traffic camera as if mocking them, then the three grabbed hold of the struggling goat, but they didn't return to their car, the engine having been totaled in the crash. They dragged Billy through the snow and out of the camera's vision.
"We need that car's license plate," Judy told Nick, stepping away from the computer's screen. "We need to know its owner." She and Nick looked to Wilfred.
The wolf looked away, "Yeah…the system's been a little wonky; we can't run any plates at the moment."
"What happened?" Nick demanded. "Someone spilled some coffee…"
The two looked at him with droll looks and the wolf's ears drooped, "I spilled some coffee."
Nick looked to Judy, "You know what this means."
Judy stared at him in horror. "No," she whispered.
"We gotta, Carrots."
Judy moaned but nodded, "This isn't going to be my day."
.
The two went to the DMV that was packed more than usual. But luckily for them Flash's window was free.
And sitting next to him was a younger sloth who looked ecstatic to be there.
"Nick," Flash greeted as the two walked over. "…Hi."
"Good to see you Flash, flash, one hundred yard dash," Nick greeted with a smile before looking down at the smaller sloth. "And little Dash."
Exactly nine months after Flash's wedding he and Priscilla had a son, though Nick had been put out he wasn't named the godfather. He had asked why and Flash had explained that he apparently still found it hard to see Nick as 'responsible' considering he knew him in high school. Nick didn't say anything more after that.
Flash patted his son's head. "It is…take…your….kid…to…work…day. Dash…say…hi."
Nick glanced at Judy as Dash began his introduction and how happy he was to be working with his dad. "How are you holding up, Carrots?" he whispered.
Judy wore a painful smile as she kept her eyes on the two sloths and didn't reply.
"How can…" Flash began when his son was done saying hi, "I…help…"
Judy began, "Well, we were hoping-"
"You," Flash finished.
Judy blinked and then looked to Nick who chuckled at her expression before looking at his old friend, "We need you to run a plate just like the old times."
Flash nodded, "What's…the…plate?"
The two waited for Flash to say 'number' for a good few minutes before realizing he wasn't going to. Judy quickly recited the license plate of the green car and Flash began his slow typing. Judy impatiently drumming her fingers on the table as Nick watched her, loving this feel of nostalgia.
Flash let Dash type in the last number (which looked to have made the young sloth's day) before he printed out the name of the car's owner.
Judy read it aloud: "One Darwin Mosby, an armadillo."
"Wait," Nick broke in, his face scrunched up in thought. "I know that name that's…" His eyes bulged, "Carrots, that's on the name plate of the landlord for the Hill."