Animal Whisperer: Take Back My Life and Love Chapter 51: My Brother Has Arrived

"It’s me, Nancy!"

Nancy let out a massive sigh of relief. Thank goodness—he had arrived just in time.

She was currently stuck on top of the wall, neither up nor down, while the bat circled her ear, chirping urgently.

"Quick, help me down!" Nancy cried out, past the point of caring about her dignity. She looked at Barry with wide eyes. "I know where the killer hid the boy. He's close!"

Barry frowned and strode toward her. At six-foot-three, the height of the perimeter wall was nothing to him. He reached up, his elegant, long fingers gripping her waist as he effortlessly plucked her off the wall like she was a small child.

Under the startled and curious gazes of the bodyguards, Nancy felt like she had died of embarrassment.

The world spun for a moment as her feet finally hit the ground. But her legs suddenly gave out—the combination of zero dinner and the physical exertion was too much. She began to pitch forward, but Barry caught her instantly.

Sensing her weakness, his gaze dropped to her pale, bloodless lips. His eyes darkened. "You haven't eaten?"

Nancy nodded weakly, her voice barely a whisper. "I'm starving..."

She tried to explain more, but the bat was screaming in her ear. "Hurry, they're getting out from the cave. They're leaving!"

"Follow that bat, it's leading the way!" Nancy waved her hand frantically. "Don't worry about me. Save the child!"

Barry’s expression turned cold. Without a word, he swept her up into a bridal carry. His powerful arms locked her against his chest like bands of iron.

"Give me directions," he commanded, his voice low and firm as he broke into a rapid stride.

Nancy felt her ears turn beet red, but she knew now wasn't the time for modesty. She pointed ahead. "Fifty yards up, there’s a hidden path leading up the mountain on the west side of the road!"

With Nancy acting as a live GPS, the guards quickly located the abandoned tool shed.

At that moment, a man in a disheveled plaid suit was emerging from the shed, clutching a large sack.

"That's him! That's the killer!" Nancy recognized the bloody dress shoes immediately.

The bodyguards swarmed him at once.

Terrified, the man stumbled toward the road, fumbling a sharp dagger out of his pocket and pressing it against the neck of the little boy peeking out from the sack.

"Back off! One more step and I'll make sure this kid doesn't make it!" he screamed hysterically.

The guards froze in their tracks.

Barry’s gaze sharpened. The moment the man pulled the knife, Barry shifted his stance. Still holding Nancy securely with his left arm, he used his suit jacket to hide his right hand as he reached into an inner pocket.

"Everyone, step back," he ordered the guards, while simultaneously giving a subtle tactical hand signal.

The elite guards understood immediately, beginning a pincer movement under the cover of the darkness.

"Put the knife down," Barry said, his voice as smooth as ice but filled with a dangerous underlying threat. "Leave the boy. What do you want? Money? A car? I can arrange anything."

The moment the man’s eyes flickered with hesitation, Barry struck.

He twisted his body and flicked a weighted metal pen from his pocket—whish—it struck the man's wrist with surgical precision.

"Gah!" The man cried out in pain, his hand losing its grip. Before the dagger could even hit the ground, two guards lunged. One secured the weapon and the man, while the other carefully pulled the child to safety.

Realizing his leverage was gone, the man broke free with a desperate burst of adrenaline and scrambled down the mountain path.

The guards were about to give chase when a deafening roar of an engine erupted from below.

A blinding beam of light cut through the night, accompanied by the sharp screech of tires on asphalt. A heavy-duty police motorcycle performed a flawless drift, skidding sideways to block the man's path.

The glare of the headlights left the man blind. Before he could react, a uniformed officer vaulted off the bike.

Thwack!

An expandable baton struck the man’s knee with brutal efficiency, dropping him instantly. The officer’s movements were a blur of calculated violence; in seconds, the man’s arms were pinned behind his back and the handcuffs clicked shut.

With the situation under control, the officer finally removed his helmet.

Underneath was a face of striking, cold beauty. His eyes tilted upward, casting a shadow of detached indifference. His thin lips were set in a grim line.

It was Nancy’s brother, Simon.

The guards hauled the killer to his feet, and Norman’s grandson was quickly rushed back to the villa’s medical bay.

Nancy’s eyes went wide. "Simon? How did you get up here?" The mountain road was supposed to be a disaster zone.

Hearing his sister's voice, Simon looked up. When he saw Nancy being held in a man’s arms in such an intimate fashion, his handsome face turned as dark as a thundercloud.

"Let. Her. Go."

He growled each word, his long legs eating up the distance as his heavy boots splashed through the puddles.

Barry had been about to put her down, but the demanding tone pricked at his pride. Instead of letting go, he actually tightened his grip on Nancy, his muscles tensing under his suit.

"Officer," Barry said, a dangerous smirk playing on his lips. "It’s not that I don’t want to let her go. It’s that your sister... is far too hungry to stand on her own."