Animal Whisperer: Take Back My Life and Love Chapter 349: The Chemical Con

The old woman looked at Nancy, her eyes narrowing. "Young lady, what are you getting at?"

Faylin had always looked out for her, so she was at least willing to hear out the person her granddaughter had brought along.

"It’s simple." Nancy walked over to where the turtle had crawled. "Thomas didn't use any magic. He rigged the floor. He used chemicals to force that turtle to move exactly where he wanted it to go."

Nancy whispered to Faylin, and a moment later, her assistant came back with a silver testing kit. Faylin’s company dealt with bio-products, so these quick-test kits were standard in their cars for checking raw materials.

Simon opened the case, his fingers moving fast and steady. He leaned down and swiped a cotton swab over the turtle's path. When he dropped the sample onto a pH strip, it turned a dark, bruised purple almost instantly.

"It’s a strong alkaline," Simon said. He held up the strip, his eyes tracking over the room before stopping on Thomas, who had gone pale. "Someone sprayed high-concentration ammonia down here."

Simon’s face was dead calm. "A turtle's belly is incredibly sensitive. Touching an irritant like this burns. It wasn't following a divine path. It was desperately trying to get away from the chemicals. It only hid in its shell because it had nowhere else to go to stop the pain."

Nancy stepped in to finish it. "Thomas mapped out the whole floor with the liquid, except for the parts that spell out Death. The turtle was terrified of the burn, so it stayed on the only dry spots it could find. This magic turtle is just a high school chemistry trick."

Thomas’s face was a mess of red and white. Behind him, his occult team froze. Some of them started staring at the floor like it was the most interesting thing in the world, while others looked at the ceiling, trying to pretend they weren't there.

The old woman’s hand shook as she pointed at Thomas. "So there’s no ghost? You’ve just been putting on a show to scare a grandmother out of her home?"

"Madam, this is a misunderstanding," Thomas stammered. "What about the noises you’ve been hearing at night? We’re just here to help!"

Thomas stepped toward Simon, trying to pull him aside. He lowered his voice, his tone turning jagged and mean. "Look, kid, take some advice and mind your own business. You’re wading into deep water here. Don't go looking for trouble."

Simon didn't budge. A cold, thin smile touched his lips. "Is that a threat?"

Seeing Simon wasn't backing down, Thomas dropped the act. "What if it is? I’ve got people in high places, kid. You have no idea who you're messing with."

He signaled the guys behind him. The team moved in, circling the siblings and trying to look tough.

This was exactly what Simon wanted.

With a quick motion, Simon reached into his jacket and snapped his badge open. The silver shield caught the light.

"Good." Simon’s voice was low and heavy with authority. "I’m a cop. That threat, plus the fraud you just pulled, is all I need."

He looked at the group, his eyes hard. "You’re all under arrest for organized fraud and threatening an officer."

Nancy held up her phone, the recording screen glowing. "I’ve got the whole magic turtle performance right here. Every second of it."

She shook the phone, showing an active call. "The local police are already on their way. And since you’ve swindled over a million out of this family, nobody is getting a light sentence."

The room went dead silent.

"A cop?!"

"A million?!"

The people completely lost it. The second they realized they were looking at serious prison time, they turned on each other in a heartbeat.

"Officer! Thomas made us do it! I’m just a driver!"

"Liar! The whole scam was your idea! You even used your kid’s homework paper for the magic scrolls!"

"At least I didn't steal ketchup from the kitchen to use as holy blood!"

Faylin watched the mess with a look of pure disgust. The anger she’d been holding back for weeks finally came out. "Lock the doors! Don’t let a single one of these bastards leave before the cruisers get here!"