Chapter 82: Chapter 82: Did She Take Annie Away?
Renee Jennings left with the macaque, Annie, in a police car.
The car was silent inside.
Annie sat next to Renee, turning her head to look out the window. She was in no mood to enjoy the scenery, her thoughts consumed with worry for Yumi.
Henry Stark sat in the front passenger seat, his lips pressed into a thin line. A solemn look shadowed his deep-set brow, and he exuded a stern, cold aura.
Renee sat bolt upright in the back, occasionally glancing over to check on Annie’s emotional state.
After a moment, she couldn’t help but ask, "Are we taking Annie back to Wylern Peak now?"
Sawyer, who was driving, glanced at her in the rearview mirror. "That’s right."
"Okay." Renee nodded.
A second later, she suddenly remembered something. "Annie, did you come down from the mountain by yourself?"
Hearing her voice, Annie turned to meet Renee’s gaze. Her eyes looked blank for a moment before she shook her head. "Two of my friends came with me."
Renee was silent for two seconds, her pupils suddenly dilating. "...Then where are your friends?"
Annie looked utterly innocent. "I don’t know either."
Hearing Renee’s question, Henry also recalled that the staff at Wylern Peak had mentioned several wild monkeys leaving the mountain.
His brow furrowed, and he took out his phone to make a call.
Seeing that he was already making arrangements, Renee said to Annie, "Don’t worry, the police are already helping look for your friends."
Annie nodded gratefully. "Thank you."
Renee relayed her thanks to the two officers in the front.
Sawyer smiled. "Don’t mention it."
Henry said coolly, "It’s the duty and responsibility of the People’s Police."
Renee pressed her lips into a smile, unaware that she had just gone viral online again.
Reporters had posted videos online of her communicating with the macaque to successfully rescue the baby.
A macaque snatching a human baby and prancing around on a nine-story rooftop was, in itself, a sensational news story.
Netizens who came across the video were all on edge and incredibly worried about the baby’s safety.
Even with an air cushion set up below, no one could predict what would happen if a fragile infant fell from a height of over thirty meters.
Even if the baby survived, there was no guarantee it would be physically or mentally unharmed.
Just as everyone was holding their breath, a beautiful young woman suddenly appeared on camera.
She seemed to be talking to the macaque, and a firefighter next to her looked furious.
Some netizens also thought the girl looked very familiar.
Before long, the police and firefighters withdrew, leaving only the girl behind.
Netizens were baffled by this move, thinking they had given up on communicating with the macaque and rescuing the baby.
Unexpectedly, after the girl said a few words to the macaque, it actually came down from the dangerous railing and moved to a safe spot.
The girl said something else, and the macaque, astonishingly, walked right up to her and handed over the baby it had snatched!
[Ahhh, does this girl know Magic? This is incredible!]
[If that were me, I’d probably make the monkey so mad it would jump off the building the moment I opened my mouth~~]
[Why does the girl in the video look so familiar?]
[Isn’t she the one who was riding a tiger at the zoo a while back? I think she was livestreaming last night, too.]
[Yes, yes, she streamed last night! She went through two stories, and the ending of the second one was so frustrating! If I were Stella, I would never have reconciled with Begonia!]
[Huh? What’s her account name? Link please!]
[@Renee Jennings]
Renee had no idea that her Douyin account was gaining followers like crazy.
They took Annie back to Wylern Peak. On the way back, Henry Stark received a call from Quentin Lowell.
"Are you with Kane right now?"
"I am."
"Two monkeys just burst into Rylan Bay No. 1 High School. You need to get over there with Kane, quickly."
"Understood."
Henry hung up and looked back at Renee, who was watching the scenery. "Two monkeys got into a school," he said softly. "We need to go there now."
Renee’s expression turned serious. She nodded. "Okay."
As the police car entered the city, Henry had Sawyer pull over when they passed a cake shop.
He went into the shop and bought a bag of toast, a few bottles of fresh milk, and two small, exquisitely decorated cakes.
He stood outside the driver’s side door and knocked on the window with a bent finger.
Sawyer rolled down the window and looked at him, confused. "Chief, what’s up?"
"I’ll drive," Henry said.
Sawyer got out of the car. Henry handed her the bag and said coolly, "We probably won’t have time for lunch later. You and Renee should eat something to tide you over."
Sawyer took the bag. "What about you?"
"I’m not hungry." Henry ducked into the driver’s seat.
Sawyer carried the bag to the back seat and started eating the small cakes with Renee.
Twenty minutes later, the car stopped at the entrance of Rylan Bay No. 1 High School.
Henry showed his credentials, and the vice principal, who was already waiting at the school gate, saw them and quickly led the three toward where the monkeys were.
As they walked, the vice principal explained, "The children were lining up for lunch when two monkeys suddenly appeared..."
"One of the boys is a bit of a troublemaker. He went over to tease them, and somehow, one of the monkeys got angry, jumped on his head, and started yanking his hair..."
Henry frowned and asked in a low voice, "Was anyone injured?"
The vice principal hesitated. "I’m not exactly sure. I got a call telling me to meet the police and... and the animal consultant at the gate."
He kept stealing glances at Renee, who wasn’t in uniform. ’Is this young girl really the animal consultant?’ he grumbled inwardly. ’She’s so young! She doesn’t look reliable at all!’
The group strode quickly to the middle school’s Cafeteria No. 2.
Security had already blocked off the cafeteria entrance, but a crowd of middle and high school students had still gathered outside.
The vice principal led Renee and the others into Cafeteria No. 2. The monkey was still perched on the boy’s head, its small hands clutching his hair as its eyes warily scanned the people around them.
"You’re all bad people!" it snarled, baring its teeth. "Don’t come any closer!"
Its companion, Fable, stood on a dining table, nibbling on a green leaf clutched in its little hand. "Rascal, do you think they’re the ones who took Yumi?"
Rascal retorted irritably, "Of course! These humans are so unreasonable, they’re definitely capable of stealing Yumi! If they don’t hand Yumi over today, I’ll pull this kid’s hair out until he’s bald!"
Renee, who had overheard their conversation, spoke up cautiously. "Are you Annie’s friends?"
As soon as she spoke, countless pairs of eyes snapped to her, including those of the macaques, Rascal and Fable.
They glanced at Renee, then looked at each other in surprise.
"Fable, did you hear that? She knows Annie!"
"Rascal, do you think she’s the one who captured Annie?"
The two macaques’ expressions changed abruptly. The look they gave Renee now had a viciousness that sent a chill down the spine.
Renee quickly waved her hands and explained in a gentle voice, "Rascal, Fable, is it okay if I call you that? Please don’t misunderstand. I didn’t capture Annie. I just took her back to Wylern Peak. She’s entrusted us with the task of finding Yumi."
