Animal Whisperer: Take Back My Life and Love Chapter 2: How Dare You Report False Leads?

"I didn't make a false report, what I said was true!" Nancy panicked.

"Still denying it? The call center just contacted our task force. They said a woman named Nancy reported seeing Felix near her home."

Jack's voice was filled with anger. "Good thing they notified me right away, otherwise our entire team would have been running in circles because of you! You know how much trouble the Felix serial murder case has caused me. So you came up with this stunt—lying about a lead just to make us worry about you and bring you back home?"

Nancy was shocked, her heart turning cold. "I really didn't."

"How could I joke about something like this?"

"Heh. Stop lying. You're just an impostor who stole someone else's place."

Jack's fury only grew. "Do you even know what kind of suffering Ginnie has endured all these years outside? Your real brother is nothing but a lowly officer at some remote station, barely making three thousand a month. How much could a broke nobody like him possibly give Ginnie for living expenses?"

He sighed with heartache. "Ginnie had to start working while still in college. She never had the luxury you enjoyed, being spoiled by our Summers family."

Nancy held back a bitter smile, wanting to speak but stopping herself.

At least Ginnie was healthy.

The crushing pressure of the Summers family and their endless academic demands had ruined Nancy's health, leaving her frail and sickly. She would rather have had an ordinary life with a healthy body than be like this—constantly falling ill with fevers, coughs, and fainting spells.

Now she couldn’t even afford her own medical bills or nutritional supplements.

"If you dare report false leads again, don't blame me for showing no mercy. Making false reports is punishable with detention!"

Jack hung up mercilessly.

Nancy rubbed her throbbing temples, tears of anger and frustration streaming down her face.

That idiot Jack—who was he to take away her right to call the police?

She was going to die!

A big, fluffy tail suddenly brushed against her cheek.

It was Squirrel Brother, using his furry tail to wipe away her tears.

"My tail’s just been washed today. It’s clean—don’t mind it."

Nancy broke down crying even harder.

Someone she had treated with sincerity for over twenty years was worse than a little squirrel she hadn’t even known for twenty days.

What was she supposed to do now… That bastard Jack had really screwed her over! Just as panic gripped her, a name flashed across her mind—

Wait. There was still someone else.

Nancy’s biological brother, Simon Zach, was a police officer at a township station thirty kilometers away.

Because they had only recently reconnected, Nancy and Simon hadn’t yet met in person—she only had his contact information.

But when he heard she’d been kicked out by the Summers family, he arranged through someone to find her a place to stay.

Surely… he couldn’t be a bad person?

Nancy nervously dialed her brother’s number.

The call connected quickly.

Nancy tested the waters with a soft call: "Simon?"

"Nancy? What’s wrong?"

A steady, upright male voice came through, tinged with surprise, as though he hadn’t expected her to call.

But before Nancy could respond, Simon asked sharply, "Why do you sound so weak and hoarse? Are you sick?"

Nancy hadn’t expected him to notice so quickly. Her chest tightened with emotion. "I had a little fever yesterday."

She rushed to the main point. "I’ve been targeted by an A-level fugitive. Can you help me? I don’t want to die…"

Nancy’s trembling voice recounted what had just happened, leaving out the part about the squirrel.

"They don’t believe me, and I really don’t know who else I can turn to…"

Nancy thought Simon would press her for details, but instead his reply was firm and immediate—

"Don’t be afraid. Stay at home and wait for me. Lock your doors and windows. I’ll be there right away."

She could already hear rustling noises on his end, like he was packing things up.

Then Simon added, "If you’re scared, don’t hang up. I’ll stay on the line with you."

Nancy froze, then choked out, "Okay."

She hadn’t expected someone she’d never even met in person to rush over from thirty kilometers away just because of one phone call.

She quickly searched online for information about Simon.

She hadn’t expected much—township officers usually just dealt with petty disputes, like stolen chickens or missing cows…

But what she found shocked her.

Article after article showed Simon was a top graduate of the National Police University, champion of a national martial arts competition, and had even earned commendations back in his sophomore year.

With his education and skill, why would someone like him be stationed in a remote township?

Had he offended someone powerful?

Nancy even wondered if she had searched for the wrong name.

Simon’s voice pulled her back to reality. "Nancy, have you eaten?"

"No, I was going to buy some oats," Nancy said, curling up in the corner of her bed. "But now I don’t dare go out, and I don’t dare order delivery."

"Alright. Wait for me," Simon said simply, his words filled with strength.

Soon, only the sound of the wind came through the line.

Nancy, strangely, felt at peace.

Wait a second…

If her brother really was that capable man she’d read about online, did that mean tonight he might actually catch the A-level fugitive?

Could they even end up with the 500,000 reward?

Exhausted and weak, Nancy lay down and drifted off into uneasy dreams.

She didn’t know how long she’d slept when—

The younger squirrel’s voice whispered in her ear. "Someone's here, kind lady!"

Nancy snapped her eyes open, shivering.

The sky outside was completely dark now.

She lived in a crowded neighborhood where the lighting was poor, shadows swallowing the view outside.

The walls were thin, and footsteps echoed from the hallway.

Nancy’s heart leapt into her throat—

Until she heard Simon’s voice, both through the phone and at the door.

"Nancy, I’m at your door. Open up."

Nancy exhaled sharply in relief and hurried to open the door.

The moment it swung open, she froze.

The man standing there was tall and striking, with tanned skin, sharp brows, piercing eyes, and strong, chiseled features. His brighteyes slanted upward, giving him an air of righteousness.

He looked like the very image of a model officer, as if handpicked by the nation itself.

Holy crap—this was her brother Simon, the one by blood?