"There are no surveillance cameras."
Deanna spoke in a calm voice, then paused and explained, "The neighbors around here are all familiar faces, and nothing has happened in the past few years."
That was why she hadn't thought of installing any cameras.
Lance frowned after hearing this. "That makes things difficult."
Deanna remained silent, her mood chaotic.
Lance didn't mind. He glanced at her, then at the destroyed herb garden, squinting his eyes as he analyzed, "So, the perpetrator acted when no one was around. This was clearly intentional sabotage."
Deanna pressed her lips together in silence but her expression showed she agreed with Lance.
She just couldn't think of who would do such a thing!
Garrett? Or Emily?
Deanna clenched her fists, her face looking grim.
Seeing her distressed expression, Lance didn't say anything further. Instead, he turned to Xavier and gave some instructions.
"Check the surroundings for any suspicious clues."
"Yes." Xavier nodded and left.
Seeing this, Deanna gratefully thanked Lance, "Thank you."
"Dr. Deanna, there's no need to be so formal with me."
Lance said, lifting his gaze. His dark eyes held a gentleness even he hadn't noticed.
Deanna didn't notice either; all her attention was on the herb garden.
Old Ashley looked at the devastated herb garden, feeling both heartbroken and helpless.
She turned and said in a choked voice, "Deanna, what do we do now?"
Deanna bit her lip lightly, her mind in turmoil, not knowing what to do next.
Lance saw her helplessness and asked, "Can any of these herbs be salvaged?"
Hearing his calm voice seemed to remind Deanna to calm down.
She looked around the herb garden. Although it had been severely damaged, some herbs were still standing strong.
"Yes." As she spoke, she began to act, entering the herb field to start cleaning up the mess.
She carefully picked up the uprooted common herbs from the ground and grouped those that weren't too badly damaged together.
Although many were damaged, they could still be used, though their efficacy wouldn't be great.
What pained Deanna the most were the rare herbs she had painstakingly cultivated.
Those herbs were almost beyond saving!
In an instant, Deanna's eyes reddened.
She had spent a lot of time and effort cultivating these rare herbs. Sometimes she would wake up in the middle of the night during a rainstorm, fearing that the rain would damage them, and rush to the herb garden.
Old Ashley noticed Deanna's low spirits and knew her granddaughter was feeling very bad.
No one understood better than she did what this herb field meant to her granddaughter.
"Don't be sad. At least we're okay. Once we clean this up, I'll help you plant new herbs."
Old Ashley stepped forward and comforted her in a hoarse voice.
Deanna didn't speak but nodded lightly.
She took a deep breath and began to pick up the wilted herbs from the ground.
At the same time, she felt somewhat relieved that she had transplanted some rare herbs to the mountaintop estate that morning.
So Deanna and Old Ashley started cleaning up the herb field.
They carefully wrapped the usable herbs.
Those that could be transplanted were carefully set aside.
Seeing them busy, Lance rolled up his sleeves and carefully walked into the herb field.
"I'll help too, Dr. Deanna. Tell me what to do?" He looked at Deanna earnestly.
Deanna was stunned for a moment.
She hadn't expected Lance to offer to help, and it warmed her heart a bit.
Then she shook her head and politely declined, "Mr. Mercer, thank you for your kindness, but my grandmother and I can handle this."
Lance frowned slightly, wanting to say something.
Before he could speak, Deanna's soft voice sounded again.
"I know Mr. Mercer wants to help, but some of these herbs require special handling to preserve them, and you wouldn't be able to learn it quickly."
Lance had no choice but to step out of the herb field.
He watched the elderly woman and young girl busy in the herb field and felt uneasy, wanting to do something.
"Dr. Deanna, is there anything I can do?"
Hearing this, Deanna paused her actions and turned to look at him.
Their eyes met in mid-air.
In that moment of eye contact, she saw the sincerity in Lance's eyes. He truly wanted to help her.
Almost instantly upon realizing this, a warm feeling spread through her heart.
After thinking for a moment, Deanna didn't refuse again and said softly, "If possible, Mr. Mercer, could you pick up Gregory and Chloe from school for me?"
Hearing her cautious tone and seeing how she tried to stay strong despite her red eyes moved Lance deeply.
He nodded in agreement. "Alright, I'll go pick them up."