Animal Whisperer: Take Back My Life and Love Chapter 481: Partners in Crime

The brief smile vanished instantly, replaced by a look of sharp concentration.

Nancy turned back to the Dimsdale police and spoke rapidly. "Get the lightest micro camera you have and find a way to attach it to the thinnest sparrow chick. That way, we can see exactly what is happening inside in real time. If things get dangerous, we can tell them to pull out immediately."

The officers tracking the garbage truck were highly efficient and soon reported back.

"Nancy, we found it!" The officer’s voice crackled with tense excitement over the comms. "The target vehicle did indeed exit through the west gate around four this morning. We traced its route and found it made a brief stop to collect trash near a commercial office building. Here is the big lead. Surveillance shows a person in a janitor’s uniform dragging a medium sized, heavy looking sealed cardboard box out from the back of the truck."

A high definition screencap from the Dimsdale police hit Nancy’s phone. While slightly grainy, the outline of the box and the heavily bundled figure of the person moving it were clear.

Nancy held the phone back slightly, her eyes narrowing as she compared the volume and shape of that box to the scale of the potted plants she remembered from Flowie’s balcony.

"Based on the proportions and the way it is being carried," she said, her voice dropping, "that box likely contains the replaced plants. The most critical issue now," she added, her pace quickening, "is finding exactly where that box went and whether it contains the evidence we need."

The lead officer sounded hesitant. "We know that is the key, Nancy. But if we deploy a massive search near that office building to find a box of discarded plants, the noise would be too loud. It would basically be telling the husband we are on to him. He will definitely panic."

She knew he was right. Flowie’s husband was meticulous and hyper vigilant. If he sensed even a hint of trouble, there was no telling what he would do to Flowie. Right now, the police’s greatest advantage was that they were still operating in the shadows.

A flash of inspiration hit Nancy.

"Got it!" she urged. "Recruit squirrel volunteers in that area immediately! Have them search for the box of plants. Those little guys remember the unique scent of those plants perfectly. Their noses are far better than ours. Plus, they move through green belts and corners without anyone ever noticing."

She added quickly, "The squirrel brothers and I will stay in contact via remote link to guide them in real time!"

The Dimsdale officer paused for only a second before responding firmly. "Understood! We are on it!"

Time slowed to a crawl. Finally, the sparrow chick that had snuck into the villa sent back a live feed.

The moment the connection went through, everyone in the command van held their breath. The footage from the micro camera was shaky and blurred, but it was horrifying. The interior of the villa was dim, every curtain pulled tight to shut out the last of the daylight.

Flowie was slumped on the living room rug, her ankle locked in a gleaming metal shackle that bolted her to the heavy leg of a piece of furniture.

However, a chill raced down Nancy’s spine when a third person appeared in the corner of the frame. It was a woman curled on the floor, her hair a matted mess and her face a ghostly, sickly white. She was tied up, a cloth stuffed into her mouth. Most terrifyingly, her eyes were wrapped in thick white bandages, through which dark stains had begun to seep.

The woman was clearly blind, lying on the cold floor like a discarded piece of trash.

Kurt Bordian, Flowie’s husband and the man with the homemade crossbow, stood between the two women. His face held nothing but a cold, obsessive malice.

Kurt took a gleaming dagger and forced it into Flowie’s trembling hand.

"Go," he said, his voice like the hiss of a snake. "Stab her. It does not have to be deep, just enough to draw blood."

He watched Flowie’s face turn ashen and twisted his mouth into a sick, distorted grin. "That way, you will have blood on your hands, too. We will be accomplices. After that, we will never be apart. We will be together forever, okay?"

The logic of these psychopaths is absolutely sickening.

Nancy’s fingertips turned white from gripping her phone. She stared at the screen, screaming internally. Hurry! Squirrels, find the evidence! Police, get ready to move!