"Really? There's nothing else you can tell us?"
Nick sat across the table from Judy in the small, brightly lit interrogation room. One wall sported a two-way mirror. Nick hated that the questioning needed to be done in such a dingy-looking place, but it was the only available room. Judy sat motionless across the table with her head in her hands. Nick could see the bruising on her head and arms and a small bandage wrapped around her left forearm and a brace on her right wrist. Judy looked up at Nick.
"There isn't much to tell, Nick," Judy replied in a tired and exasperated tone. "He jumped me on the way to work yesterday. He roughed me up a bit. Nick, I'm fine."
"He did a little more than rough you up, Carrots," Nick said as he checked the file. "A sprained wrist, a few cuts, and a ton of bruising. Why would someone want to take the effort to beat up an cop?"
"I don't know. People do crazy things, Nick," Judy answered. "Maybe he thought I would have money or something. Either way, the guy was a nut job and I'm safe now." Nick leaned back in his chair and internally analysed what Judy had said. He leaned forward again when a nurse walked into the room to double check some of Judy's bandages.
"Well, I'm glad for that, Carrots," he said as he stood and walked out of the door. He entered the hall briefly before ducking into the room next door. It was a dark room with several monitors and recording equipment stacked against one wall. The other wall was dominated by the other side of the two-way mirror. Bogo stood next to the glass wall, arms crossed.
"It's good to have her back," the Chief said. Nick remained silent, studying Judy's reactions. Years of making a living as con man meant that he had an excellent grasp on body language and there was something about Judy's that made him uneasy. Bogo noticed Nick's silence.
"Something wrong, Wilde?" he asked.
"Yeah there are just so many things that make no sense, sir," Nick replied.
"There's a lot in the world that makes no sense, Wilde," Bogo countered. "Either way, it's an open-and-shut case."
"It is though?" Nick shot back. "Why would he speed if he knew he was carrying a hostage in the back seat? That's asking for trouble."
"Nick, the suspect has a history of mental illness, he clearly wasn't in his right mind," the Chief replied.
"Nothing this bad, though. And how did he manage to jump her in one of the few places along her route that wasn't covered by security cameras? That takes planning," Nick countered back. Bogo turned to the fox with a stern look on his face.
"Wilde, I know you want believe that the world is not that random," he said. "It was something I had to come to grips with when I first joined the force. Just be glad we got her back safe." Nick looked back toward Judy through the window. He sighed and nodded.
"Yeah, I guess you're right," Nick said. He straightened his posture. "Welp, catch ya later!" Nick said as he walked out of the room. He strolled into the hall just as he heard the door to Judy's room open. Nick stopped and watched as Judy walked into the hall.
"Hey, sorry about grilling you so hard there," Nick started. "It's just procedure." Judy let out a laugh.
"Nick, I know the procedure, probably better than you," she said. "Don't worry about it." She started walking toward the lobby. "You coming?" she called back to Nick.
"Coming where?" Nick asked as he jogged to catch up to the bunny.
"Look, I haven't really eaten since yesterday and I am starving," she said. "Want to grab some dinner?"
The pair walked out of the front door and began walking down the street. There was a small diner situated a few blocks from the precinct that Nick and Judy had eaten at several times before while on patrols. The two police officers entered the diner and took a seat in the first available booth. Other animals scurried about as the waitress walked up to their table.
"How can I help you two today?" As she spoke, Nick could tell she was eyeing the numerous bruises on Judy's arms.
"I'll have the salad," Judy replied in a happy tone. Nick seconded that order but requested a side of blueberries to go along with his salad. The waitress wrote down the orders and walked away. A moment of silence followed.
While Judy seemed to be perfectly calm on the outside, Nick began to notice subtle twitches in her ears that betrayed the fact that she was on edge.
"Carrots, are you sure you're OK? You had a rough day," Nick said, letting genuine concern creep into his voice.
"Nick, I told you I'm fine. Yeah, it was a rough day, but it's over now." Judy paused for a brief moment. "I just want everything to go back to normal as soon as possible." As she spoke, the waitress brought out their food. The table became totally quite as they both began to eat.
Suddenly, Judy began tapping her nail against the table. It sounded like the beat to some song. Maybe Judy was humming the newest Gazelle song in her head? Then, just as fast as she started, she stopped tapping and curled her hand into fist, as if to stop herself from doing it again. Nick noticed the behavior, but opted not to comment on it.
Then Judy looked up from her food and stared Nick dead in the eye. It was an action Nick couldn't ignore. Judy stared at Nick for several seconds, blinking at random intervals. Nick glanced around the diner to check if anyone else noticed her odd behavior. No one did.
"Hey, Carrot's, you OK?" he asked. Judy seemed to snap out of what appeared to be a trance, but Nick saw the faintest trace of an exasperated expression cross her face. She looked back at her food.
"Yeah, I'm OK," she said slowly. "I'm just tired." She looked back up at Nick. "I probably should go get some sleep, and call my parents. They're probably worried sick about me." Judy finished the last of her salad and stood, placing the payment on the table.
"I'll see you tomorrow, OK?" she said.
"You're not going to take some time off?" Nick asked back in surprise as he stood.
"Like I said, Nick, I want things to just go back to normal." Judy said as she walked back toward the door. "I had desk work I needed to do anyway." With that, she left. Nick stood still for several seconds, watching Judy walk away. He then fished money out of his pocket and paid for the food before leaving the diner himself.