Chapter 8 A Sense of Foreboding

• Elsie and her team arrived on the eighth floor of the major crimes unit building.
• This floor was shared by the forensic and pathology departments. The bright fluorescent lights illuminated the space, but the cold here was more intense than on other floors, likely due to the proximity to the body storage room.
• Wasting no time admiring the new workspace, Elsie began sterilising herself, preparing to take the two forensic pathologists into the autopsy room.
• As she turned around, she noticed Yvette standing by the window, staring intently at the Bentley still parked below.
• "Still thinking about Leonel?"
• As if caught in a personal reverie, Yvette quickly denied it. "No, I'm not ... Don't be ridiculous."
• "Whether I'm being ridiculous, you know best," Elsie said coldly. "I don't interfere in my subordinates' personal lives, but if your personal feelings affect your work, I will have you pack up and leave, even if your grandfather is the highest-ranking officer in the major crimes unit."
• Yvette bit her lip, feeling both frustrated and helpless.
• Before Elsie officially took the position, her grandfather had repeatedly warned her to curb her temper and learn diligently from the forensic consultant. He had made it clear that if she received a D rating from the consultant at the year-end evaluation, he would not cover for her and would dismiss her according to regulations.
• Fearing that Elsie might really report her to her grandfather, Yvette abandoned her thoughts of Leonel and focused on her work.
• In the autopsy room, the green surgical light shone on the dissection table, softening the starkness of the blood.
• Elsie began piecing together the fragmented body parts on the table, and once assembled, she started suturing them.
• Her movements were professional and skilled, the surgical thread gliding through her hands seamlessly. Bradley and Yvette watched in stunned amazement.
• They had known that Elsie's appointment as a special forensic consultant was due to her top-notch abilities, but they hadn't expected her expertise to be this formidable.
• Wow, this woman ...
• Could she really not be affected by the stench and gruesomeness of these body parts?
• After the suturing was completed, they began DNA testing on the broken tissues, and the three of them dove headfirst into their work.
• ...
• That evening, Juliet hurried to the Tyland Estate after finishing her shooting schedule.
• The Tyland Estate, where the Tylands resided, was a grand mansion purchased by the Scarlet Veil Pack to better integrate into human society. It was comparable to a castle, located in a prime, highly valuable area.
• Juliet came to the Tyland Estate under the pretense of visiting the twin babies she had given birth to, but her true intention was Leonel.
• Five years ago, she thought she could leverage the twins to become the Luna of the Scarlet Veil Pack, but Leonel only acknowledged the twins, not her as their "birth mother."
• In human society, except within the Tylands' inner circle, no one knew Juliet was Fabian and Sophie's mother.
• Among the Scarlet Veil Pack, the werewolves only saw her as the children's mother, but none regarded her as Luna because Leonel, their Alpha, had never recognised her status.
• Juliet had endured these years, forcing herself to be kind to the children Elsie had given birth to, hoping that having Fabian and Sophie would eventually secure her position with Leonel.
• But five uneventful years had passed, and she still wasn't the Luna of the Scarlet Veil Pack.
• "Ms. Simmons, you're here." Luis guided Juliet through the foyer.
• "Luis, has Leonel returned?"
• "Mr. Tyland hasn't returned, but Mr. Fabian and Miss Sophie are home." Luis, a human butler hired by Ridley Tyland, treated Juliet with great respect, considering her the birth mother of the two little masters. "You haven't seen them in a while, have you?"
• Hearing that Leonel wasn't home but the twins were, Juliet felt a headache coming on.
• The twins weren't biologically hers; they weren't close to her and often set traps for her. When Leonel was around, things were fine, but in his absence, they wouldn't even talk to her, leaving her completely ignored.
• She wished she could teach those two a lesson, but they were Leonel's true darlings.
• She feared that if she laid a hand on them, Leonel would never let her back into the Tyland Estate.
• "Ms. Simmons ... "
• "Hmm?" Juliet snapped out of her thoughts and smiled slightly. "Luis, I was just feeling guilty. Guilty that as their mother, I can't always be there to watch them grow. Even though I miss them, I ... I don't have the right to live here permanently."
• To boost her influence and become more suitable for Leonel, Juliet had become a popular actress.
• As an actress, playing a heart-wrenching scene was all too easy for her.
• Luis believed Juliet's guilt was genuine and tried to comfort her. "Ms. Simmons, don't think too much about it. I'll take you to see them now."
• "Thank you, Luis."
• Juliet followed Luis to the second floor, where he knocked on Fabian and Sophie's door.
• "Mr. Fabian, Miss Sophie, open up. Your mommy is here to see you."
• Juliet expected the two little ones to ignore her as they usually did, but this time, a clear child's voice came from inside.
• "Mr. Sharp, let her come in alone. Sophie and I want to be with her alone."
• Feeling gratified, Luis remarked, "Ms. Simmons, you see, it's still a mother-child bond. Not only do you miss them, but Mr. Fabian and Miss Sophie also miss you."
• Juliet smiled sheepishly, but a deep sense of foreboding suddenly welled up inside her.