Animal Whisperer: Take Back My Life and Love Chapter 378: The Seed Of Doubt

"Once we finish the transfer and get the core files, we can move out and collect the payout."

The two men had no idea the military was already on top of them. Every word they spoke and every move they made was being broadcast directly to Nancy through the microphones and cameras hidden on the ermines.

At the command post, the technical advisor stared at the feed, his eyes locking onto a specific toggle on the hardware.

"There is the self destruct trigger."

He reported to Graham and Nancy immediately. "We need to kill that switch while keeping the data intact. The trick is the cable leading to that button."

Nancy didn't need a second explanation. She relayed the order to Snowball through the earpiece.

"Snowball, look at the back of the device. Find the thin black wire coming out of that metal button. When we move in, take your team and bite through it. Just that one wire. Do not touch anything else."

Snowball’s ears shifted in the dark. He bared his sharp, needle-like teeth. "Got it. Consider it done."

An ermine’s teeth were built for killing, capable of snapping a spine in a fraction of a second. A tiny copper wire was nothing to him.

The raid hit seconds later.

Soldiers moved like shadows, tearing through the tent flaps and swarming the interior before the men could even stand. The freezing wind roared inside along with a shout that left no room for argument. "Don't move!"

The man with the glasses nearly jumped out of his skin. He couldn't wrap his head around it. There had been no warning, no sound of an approach.

He lunged for the equipment on the table the second he saw the uniforms. His face went pale, twisted with panic as he slammed his hand down on the self destruct button with everything he had.

However. nothing happened. No alarm went off, and the hard drive didn't start its wipe cycle. The screen stayed lit, the progress bar mocking him as it continued its steady crawl.

"No... that is impossible!" he screamed as a soldier tackled him and pinned him to the floor.

A technician moved in to check the gear and turned back with a grin. "The kill switch line has been physically cut. All the intel is safe."

Right then, Snowball and his crew slipped out from the shadows behind the equipment and headed for the treeline. Snowball leaped onto Nancy’s shoulder and gave his whiskers a proud twitch, looking every bit like the hero of the hour.

The big man on the floor stared at his partner in a daze. "What kind of trash equipment is this? It failed when we actually needed it!"

Graham stepped forward, looking down at the pair. "Where are the others? Talk now and maybe we can discuss leniency."

The man with the glasses tried to keep his cool, adjusting his crooked frames. "There are no others. Just us."

They both went quiet. They knew the rules. The strategist had to send a safety signal every hour. If his team didn't get it, they would know the site was compromised and vanish into the mountains.

Graham didn't push. Instead, he let out a short, cold laugh. He paced in front of them, his voice low and sharp. "You think you are protecting them? Ask yourself how we found this tiny tent in the middle of a mountain range with this much precision."

He stopped and looked at them with a look of mock pity. "We found you because one of your own gave you up. Someone already traded your heads for a lighter sentence."

The words hit them like a physical blow. They traded a look, and even though they stayed quiet, the suspicion was already starting to eat at them.

How could the military be this efficient? This was an endless white wilderness, yet they had walked right to the front door. If there wasn't a traitor, it would mean the rocks and trees were talking to the army. To them, a rat in the group was the only logical answer.

Listening to the psychological play through her headset, Nancy felt a chill. It was a brutal move. Graham had just planted a seed of paranoia that would tear their entire cell apart from the inside.