It was already dark when they returned.
"This is dinner I had packed for you. I thought you and your grandmother might not have eaten yet," Lance said, handing over the food container.
Deanna felt a warmth in her heart. "Thank you."
She accepted it gratefully, surprised by Lance's thoughtfulness. She and her grandmother had been busy tidying up the herb garden all evening and indeed hadn't eaten.
Old Ashley also expressed her gratitude. "Mr. Mercer, thank you for looking after Gregory and Chloe."
"They were very well-behaved," Lance replied with a gentle smile.
At that moment, the two little ones hugged their great-grandmother and mother, excitedly recounting their dinner outing with Handsome Uncle. Chloe, especially, seemed like Lance's biggest fan, showering him with praise.
"Mommy, Uncle was so nice. He took care of me and my brother during dinner."
"We ate so much, and Uncle even bought Chloe a cake. It was delicious."
Gregory nodded in agreement. Though he spoke less than his sister, he shared the same sentiment.
Lance raised an eyebrow slightly, pleased by their compliments. He felt his efforts with the children had not been in vain.
Deanna couldn't help but laugh.
After some light conversation, Lance inquired about the herb garden.
"Is everything sorted out over there?"
"Not yet. It's too dark to see the herbs clearly. I'll handle the rest tomorrow," Deanna replied, her smile fading as she looked troubled.
Lance felt an inexplicable pang of sympathy and instinctively offered, "I'll send a few people over to help you tomorrow."
Deanna instinctively wanted to refuse. She had already troubled Lance enough and felt she could manage this on her own. Her thoughts didn't escape Lance's notice.
Before she could speak, Lance interrupted, "Don't feel burdened. Consider it for the sake of those rare herbs."
Hearing this, Deanna couldn't refuse any longer. "Thank you, Mr. Mercer," she said gratefully.
Gregory, overhearing their conversation, sensed something was wrong at home. "Mommy, what's wrong with the herb garden?" he asked, frowning with concern.
Chloe also looked worried.
Not wanting to worry them, Deanna told a white lie. "The herb garden is fine. Mommy just failed again in cultivating some rare herbs and felt a bit down."
"Oh, that's it? Don't be sad, Mommy. You'll succeed next time," Chloe comforted her, holding Deanna's hand with her sweet voice melting hearts.
Gregory also reassured her, "Chloe is right. This failure can be an experience for next time."
Listening to them, Deanna felt her gloomy mood lift considerably.
Lance was also touched by the interaction between the mother and children.
Later, noticing the time, he decided to leave. "You've had a long day. Get some rest. I'll be going now."
"Uncle, are you leaving?" Chloe asked reluctantly, looking at Lance with big eyes.
Lance patted her head gently and smiled. "We'll see each other again soon. I need to go now."
Though reluctant, Chloe obediently waved goodbye to him.
When he reached downstairs, Xavier was already waiting with the car at the entrance of the community.
Once inside the car, Lance's smile vanished, replaced by a serious expression. "How's the investigation going?" he asked Xavier in a steady voice.
Xavier responded respectfully, "I found unfamiliar footprints near the herb garden. Judging by the size, it should be a man's. I've had them copied for evidence. However, there are no cameras in that area, so we haven't found anything else yet."
Lance frowned deeply at this news. "What about other investigations?"
"I had someone check the surveillance near Dr. Deanna's residence and found some clues," Xavier continued. "A suspicious car has been parked near her house for the past few days, seemingly monitoring Dr. Deanna."
Hearing this, Lance's eyes narrowed dangerously, a cold light flashing within them.
"Have you identified it?"
"I've ordered an investigation into the car's details. We should have results by tomorrow morning," Xavier replied truthfully.
Lance nodded but couldn't shake the image of Deanna's red eyes from his mind. Though it was his first visit to the herb garden, he could tell from its layout that Deanna had put a lot of effort into it.
After a moment of silence, he instructed Xavier firmly, "You must get to the bottom of this and find out who is causing trouble for Dr. Deanna."
"Understood," Xavier responded.
In fact, even without Mr. Mercer's reminder, he intended to thoroughly investigate this matter. After all, what was destroyed wasn't just Dr. Deanna's herb garden but also Mr. Mercer's life-saving medicine!