Judy looked both ways before she pulled the cruiser into the street. Something had been bothering Nick since last night, but Judy was too wrapped up in her own thoughts to start the tedious task of prying it out of him. The same niggling worry had been gnawing at her all morning: what if Nick wanted kits of his own someday? Judy wasn't opposed to adopting, particularly given that she couldn't have children of her own, but most rabbits preferred to have their own kits if possible, and she assumed foxes felt that way too. Judy remembered when her sister Hazel had been concerned that she herself might not be able to get pregnant, and since Zeke adamantly wanted kits of his own, that could have ended their relationship. Would Nick want to stay with Judy if someday he wanted biological kits of his own?
Judy knew she and Nick should talk about it. If he was ok with not having biological children, would Nick be open to adopting kits with her someday? Now that she thought about it, could an interspecies predator/prey couple even legally adopt kits together? Marriage between them wasn't legal, though there had been some movement recently to change that. Judy felt it was way too soon in their relationship to worry about any of this, but still, it was something to consider now that she and Nick were seriously dating.
She tried to distract herself by thinking about the other conversation they should have soon. Nick had been at her place an awful lot lately. She liked having him around, and surprisingly he was fairly tidy in spite of what his place was like. He'd even offered to do the vacuuming a few weeks ago, a chore she hated more than any other, since the old machine was so loud it hurt her ears and it was just a little too big for her to maneuver easily. He said he liked doing it, though eventually admitted he'd lied, and had only offered because he saw how much she hated it. It was ridiculous comparing the two things, but still… if she asked Nick about having kits of his own, how would she know if he was being truthful and not just telling her what she wanted to hear?
Judy sighed in frustration as she realized she'd managed to meander back to the original issue that was bothering her. She could hear the concern in Nick's voice when he abruptly asked, "You ok, Carrots? You've been awfully quiet this morning."
Judy cringed. His sensitive fox nose made it difficult to hide when she was agitated. Putting on her cheesiest smile, she said, "I'm just sorry we had to crawl out of that comfy bed and come to work this morning."
Nick gave her a puzzled look, then grinned and reached for the radio. "I think my partner may have a head injury. I better call it in."
Judy laughed and batted his paw away from the mic. "What, I can't say I enjoy cuddling with you in the morning?"
Nick shook his head. "You're getting almost as good as me, when it comes to avoiding conversations. Seriously though, what is it, Fluff?"
She sighed, since she knew they needed to talk about a few things, though she could at least put it off until they weren't trapped in the car. "Let's wait until our lunch break." She saw him tense up slightly, and added, "Relax Slick, it's nothing bad."
Later, as they relaxed on a park bench eating their lunch, Judy knew she could get Nick to talk by offering something he wanted to know in return. "I'll tell you what's on my mind, if you tell me what's on yours first."
Nick was silent for a moment, before he began speaking. "I know we haven't talked about it yet… I'm just worried, if you move into the warren. I mean…" He trailed off.
Judy smiled. Not surprisingly, he'd been thinking about them officially moving in together too. "Are you worried that you wouldn't be welcome there?"
Nick nodded.
"Look, there's no way I'd ever live anyplace where you weren't welcome."
He smiled. "Thanks, Carrots." He paused and looked at her expectantly.
Judy couldn't figure out how to lead up to the question, so she simply blurted out, "Do you want to have kits of your own someday, Nick?"
Judy saw a range of emotions surge across his face, until he settled on a look of smug indifference. "No, I'm good." His tone sounded suspiciously like the tone he'd used when he said he liked to vacuum. Her ears drooped slightly and he continued. "I mean, we can always borrow some of your family's kits, right?"
Judy was less than reassured, but before she could say anything else, a call came in over her radio. A small prey shop owner had reported a break-in near the Nocturnal District entrance and, due to the size of his shop, had requested Judy and Nick by name.
They looked at each other knowingly; this conversation would have to wait. Nick put on his aviators and tossed the remnants of their lunch in the trash before he hurried to catch up with Judy at the cruiser.
Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the shop to meet the owner, a mole who sold cell phones and accessories.
"My name is Officer Wilde, and this is Officer Hopps. Can you tell us what happened?"
"Thank you for coming, officers." The mole led them behind the counter to the back of the shop as he continued speaking. "I was running late this morning… usually I open at ten, but I didn't get in until eleven. When I got here to open my shop, I discovered the back door had been forced open."
Judy noted a large footprint on the door, which she took pictures of and measured while Nick continued to question the mole. "And you entered the shop?"
The mole nodded. "I didn't think to call before I went inside, but I didn't find anyone, and nothing appears to be missing."
Nick asked the mole, "Any video footage?"
"Nope, cameras haven't worked in years." Judy froze when the mole asked, "You said your last name is Wilde. Do you know a fox named John Wilde?"
Judy shuddered at the icy edge that crept into Nick's voice. "Yeah, I know him."
The mole didn't seem to notice Nick's tone as he continued. "I sold him a phone, and he used to come by now and then… let's see, the last time I saw him was probably six or seven years ago. I don't get many foxes in here, and he was hard to forget."
After a long pause, Nick said, "Actually, I've been investigating a missing mammal case for some time now. John Wilde went missing nearly seven years ago. Would it be possible to see any records you have on him?"
Judy knew that the mole didn't have to comply with the request, at least not without a warrant, but immediately the mole replied, "Sure! I'm more than happy to help, let me dig through the system for a bit." Judy got an odd vibe from the mole's voice, but it could just be her unfamiliarity with his species. She didn't go down into the Nocturnal District often, and moles tended to avoid venturing to the surface. She listened to Nick ask a few more questions about the break-in as the mole worked on the computer, but she could tell her fox was distracted.
Fifteen minutes later, Nick and Judy had wrapped up and were about to leave when the mole said, "If you ever need a phone, please don't hesitate to come by. I'll give you a good deal." He handed each of them a business card. While Nick and Judy walked towards the front door, he added, "Good luck with the search for the missing fox."
After they were back in the cruiser, Judy asked, "Did he seem nervous to you?"
Nick shrugged. "He was pretty hard for me to read. Moles tend to have a fairly distinctive scent. Sort of a musty earthy smell that masks their emotions. They tend to be kinda twitchy when they're topside, though, so it could just be that."
Judy nodded. "There was a large footprint on the door, probably from a rhino. But there's no way a large mammal could have fit through the door, so why kick it in?"
"Maybe they had a partner? Or it could just be vandalism, since nothing seemed to be missing."
Judy pulled into traffic while Nick settled into the passenger seat and started to go through the thick stack of paper the mole had given him.
That afternoon back at the precinct, Nick raced through his paperwork before he started following the new leads on his dad's case. While Judy methodically went through her own paperwork, she grinned as she listened to Nick in the background. He called in favors, did the hustle, and pulled out all the stops as he went after information. Judy was amazed at how he meticulously followed the trail, using every trick to get past even the most stubborn roadblocks. She also realized that his hustling con-mammal methods had started to turn her on.
Judy heard Nick finish speaking. He hung up the phone and turned to her to say, "You're killing me over here, Carrots."
Judy smirked and looked at him mischievously. "Oh whatever do you mean, Officer Wilde?"
Nick closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Tell me, what's got your motor running all of a sudden?"
Judy glanced at the time on her phone and said, "Wouldn't you like to know. We need to get home before Hazel drops off the kits." She stood up and grabbed his arm to playfully pull him away from his desk. "Wow, this is a first. I'm dragging you home, for once." Judy paused for a moment, and added, "Are you sure you're ok watching the kits tonight, Nick?"
Nick smirked and strode past her into the hallway. "Sure. Actually, I need the distraction, and you bunnies are great for that. Though if it's ok with you, could you drive the Carrotmobile tonight?"
Judy scowled at the nickname Nick had for the rusty reddish orange car she drove. When she caught up with him on the stairs, she said, "You know, it's more fox colored than carrot colored."
They hurried out the back exit and Nick flicked open his aviators to put them on before he replied, "Yeah, but it's not handsome enough to be the Foxmobile."
They began walking to her car and Judy said, "Oh, so you're saying it is ugly enough to be the Carrotmobile?"
Nick chuckled and replied, "Not everything related to carrots can be as beautiful as you are, Carrots."
Judy giggled. "Nice save, Slick. How come you want me to drive tonight?"
They both got in and buckled up. Judy started the car and drove towards the street before Nick spoke again. "According to the records the mole gave me, it looks like my dad had an extra cellphone I didn't know about before. I called the phone company, but they wouldn't tell me anything without a warrant, though they did helpfully mention that I should call a detective in Northlund. It seems they pulled the records on that number seven years ago."
"Northlund?" Judy didn't know much about the province, except that it was in the mountains several hundred miles north of Zootopia.
Nick nodded. "Yep. So I'm hoping the detective will call me back shortly."
"Why would a detective way up in Northlund-"
She was interrupted when Nick's phone rang. He looked at it and smiled. "I think we're about to find out."
Judy continued to concentrate on driving through the evening traffic while Nick exchanged pleasantries and spoke with the other mammal for a few moments, his jovial demeanor quickly becoming serious.
Nick ended the conversation with, "Yeah, I'll send over what I've got." He paused for a moment as he listened to the mammal on the phone and then replied, "Great, I appreciate it. I owe you one, big guy."
Nick hung up the phone and looked somber. "If what the officer just told me is correct, my dad was calling a vixen up there regularly, and it just so happens she was found murdered right before my dad disappeared seven years ago."