Animal Whisperer: Take Back My Life and Love Chapter 252: The Eyewitness

Barry pulled the stethoscope away. He’d clearly caught Nancy trying to hide a grin, and he arched a brow at her. "Well? What did he say?"

Nancy pressed her lips together, her eyes darting away. "Nothing. It was... nothing."

If she actually translated that, Star’s treat stash would be cut in half by morning.

Barry reached out and took her hand, his touch surprisingly light as he began cleaning the scrapes on her palm. He kept his head down, his thick lashes casting soft shadows against his skin. The cold, sharp edge he usually carried had vanished, replaced by a focus so intense he seemed like a different person. His eyes, usually simmering with a latent violence, were narrowed and calm. His thin lips were set in a firm line, every movement clinical and deliberate.

Watching his profile from such a short distance, Nancy felt the heat of his fingertips radiating through her skin. A flush crept up her neck, unbidden.

"Nancy! My god, are you okay? Are you hurt?"

The frantic shout broke the silence. Simon was sprinting toward them, his police uniform sharp and pressed even in the middle of a fire scene.

Barry didn’t flinch. He kept a steady hold on Nancy’s hand, carefully smoothing down the last bit of dressing. Nancy instinctively tried to pull away, but Barry’s grip tightened just enough to stop her.

"Don't move," he said softly. "I'm not finished."

Only then did he look up at Simon, his expression a mask of indifference. "A few superficial abrasions. The burns have been disinfected and dressed." He tied off a final, neat knot and finally let go. "Keep it dry for a week."

Simon stared at his sister’s perfectly bandaged hand, then shot a look at the composed, untouchable man standing over her. He practically spat the words through gritted teeth.

"Thanks, Barry."

Before the sentence was even finished, Simon stepped in and hauled Nancy behind him like a predator guarding its cub, physically forcing a gap between them.

Nancy blinked, startled. "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be on shift?"

Simon gave her a look of pure exhaustion, gesturing to his badge. "I am on shift. Dispatch got a fire call, and as soon as I saw the address was Loren Zoo..." He reached out and gave her forehead a sharp, affectionate flick, his voice thick with the aftershocks of a genuine scare. "You nearly gave me a heart attack."

He explained that for major fires, dispatch coordinated with multiple agencies. Often, the police arrived alongside or even before the fire trucks to help secure the perimeter.

"Thank god you’re okay," Simon sighed, his face hardening into professional mode. "Once the fire department finishes their initial sweep, we’re going to need a full statement. My colleagues are already pulling the footage from every camera near the back gate to see if anyone was lurking around before the spark."

The fire captain approached them then, his face streaked with soot. Simon met him halfway, his voice low and serious. "What’s the verdict? Any lead on the cause?"

The captain pulled off his mask, his expression grim. "The fire started fifteen meters up, right in the canopy. We didn't find a single ignition point on the trunks or the ground. Fires don't usually burn from the top down. It’s unnatural."

He paused, his eyes sharp. "We’re suspecting an external heat source. We’re going to need your forensics team."

Suddenly, Master Crow came barreling through the air, wings flapping wildly before he made a precision landing on Nancy’s shoulder.

"I found an eyewitness!"

A magpie followed close behind, its black and white plumage looking like a tiny, ruffled tuxedo. It landed gracefully in front of Nancy, its long tail feathers sweeping the dirt.

"Here's the deal," the magpie chirped, looking a little sheepish. "I was just... uh... conducting some private business. Moving some shiny things. Not important!"

Magpies were notorious for building massive, elaborate nests in the highest branches of the tallest trees. These were real penthouse suites that gave them a perfect bird's eye view of everything.

The bird tilted its head, scratching a mark into the dirt with a claw. "There was this giant thing with three pointed tails! Fat in the middle, with long, thin whiskers trailing behind it. I was just about to get a better look at this weird new toy when boom! The whole thing just burst into flames!"

The magpie flapped its wings indignantly. "My luxury suite went up in smoke! Everything's gone!"

Nancy frowned, trying to piece it together. "A giant triangle?"

"Yeah, thin as a leaf! Floating around in the sky," the magpie chirped, mimicking the motion with its body. "I see humans playing with them in the park all the time. Kids love them."