Chapter 218: Chapter 218: Neither Human Nor Ghost, Too Scary
Interrupted, Julian Hawthorne frowned and glared irritably at Leif Shaw.
"You’re late every single time. You really think this old man is that easy to fool, don’t you?"
"Hey, old man, it’s not like I did it on purpose. Work at the station has been insane lately. Just yesterday, we pulled a decomposed female corpse out of a lake on the west side of town. The department gave us five days to crack the case. I don’t even have time to eat. The fact that I showed up at all is me doing you a huge favor."
Leif Shaw was a criminal forensic examiner who specialized in major cases. It seemed he’d run into a particularly thorny one this time; he looked completely disheveled, as if he hadn’t groomed himself in days.
His hair was a mess, dark circles hung under his eyes, and his eyes were bloodshot—a stark contrast to his usual trendy appearance.
Wren Wynter introduced Leif Shaw to Finn Wynter. Leif just gave him a nod before dragging his exhausted body into the inner hall.
Ho-ran Park helped Julian Hawthorne up and ushered Wren and the others in to eat. As soon as they entered, they found Leif sprawled on the sofa, eyes shut, letting out an occasional sigh.
"Leif, what kind of major case has you looking so miserable?"
"What else? It’s that decomposed female corpse from the west side. You should have seen it—the body’s face was so rotten it was unrecognizable. We can’t identify her at all."
Wren Wynter gave a helpless smile. Suddenly, Leif shot up from the sofa, his eyes gleaming as he looked at Wren, his voice thick with excitement.
"Wren, how about you help me out? I know you have a gift for this stuff. A little thing like this will be no problem for you!"
Wren froze, waving her hands in refusal. "Leif, that’s against procedure."
"No, it’s not! You’ll be a consultant I brought in. As long as it helps solve the case, the department will definitely commend you for it!"
Leif’s face lit up with joy. He grabbed Wren’s hand, his eyes full of expectation. Seeing him like this, Wren didn’t have the heart to refuse.
"All right, then. I was heading to the police station anyway, so let’s go together."
Leif was overjoyed. With Wren’s help, his workload would finally get a little lighter.
After the meal, Leif impatiently dragged Wren off to the police station.
Wren, exasperated, could only say to Finn Wynter, "Brother, I’m going to the station to handle something with Leif."
"I’ll go with you. I was about to leave anyway."
Wren was a little surprised. She thought Finn would stay at Moonwater Villa a while longer. Perhaps he could find some answers about his father from their master.
But he didn’t seem very interested, or even to care at all.
"Brother, about Uncle..."
"My mother never mentioned that man to me. I just assume he’s dead."
Finn’s expression was calm, as if he were discussing something trivial.
Wren didn’t feel it was her place to ask more, so she just pressed her lips together and said nothing.
The three of them went to the police station on the west side of town together. When the officers saw Leif Shaw, a look of respect would invariably appear on their faces, and they would respectfully address him as "Medical Examiner Shaw."
Leif would give a slight nod, his demeanor completely different from how he’d been at Moonwater Villa. Here, he was all meticulous seriousness.
Leif led them to the morgue and asked his assistant to wheel out the corpse that had been pulled from the lake.
"Brother, maybe you should wait outside. I’m afraid you won’t be able to handle this."
Finn chuckled and shook his head. "No need. Your brother’s not that mentally fragile."
"But..."
Wren started to say something more, but Finn stopped her with a raised hand.
As they spoke, the assistant had already wheeled the body over.
"Medical Examiner Shaw, the body fragments have been mostly pieced together. The deceased is a female, approximately twenty-two or twenty-three years old, about five-foot-three, and weighing around a hundred pounds."
Leif nodded and pulled back the white sheet covering the corpse. A body, pieced together from scattered remains, was exposed before them.
Wren sucked in a sharp, cold breath. The deceased’s skin had rotted away, especially on her face, where the bone underneath was visible. The air instantly filled with a foul, putrid stench.
Finn reached out and covered Wren’s eyes. His handsome face was grim and serious, and his heart pounded in his chest.
’What kind of hatred could lead someone to mutilate her like this?’
’Neither human nor ghost... It’s terrifying.’
Wren pulled Finn’s hands away and carefully observed the body. With only the clues provided by the assistant, it was impossible to pin down the victim’s identity.
"Was anything found on her?"
"Yes."
Leif nodded at his assistant, who quickly grabbed a bag from the pile of evidence to the side and handed it to Wren.
Wren put on a pair of gloves and carefully examined the bag. Inside was a ring. Though it had been submerged in water, the logo engraved on it was still clearly visible.
It was a limited-edition Chanel ring.
’Someone who could afford this ring... The deceased was likely a young lady or wife from one of The Capital’s wealthy families.’
’But I haven’t heard about anyone from those families going missing recently.’
’Except...’
Wren remembered that Tina Wallace had been missing for a few days. The Wallaces had even come to their door, accusing them of kidnapping their daughter.
’Could this body be Tina Wallace?!’
The absurd and daring thought startled even Wren herself. She hurriedly inspected the ring through the bag and finally discovered a string of letters on the inner band.
WTT.
Tina Wallace.
’It really is her!’
Wren showed the ring to Finn Wynter, pointing out the letters. When Finn saw them, his expression also grew solemn, and he fell into thought.
"Wren, this alone isn’t enough to prove it’s Tina Wallace. We still need to do a DNA test."
"I understand." Wren looked at Leif. "Leif, can you do it?"
"Normally, with the body this badly decomposed, it’d be impossible. But who do you think I am? Don’t worry, leave it to me."
Leif even puffed out his chest, giving Wren his guarantee.
Wren suppressed her joy. If this body was confirmed to be Tina Wallace, it would prove Seraphina Sutton is an impostor. There would be no way for her to argue her way out of it then.
"Leif, I’m counting on you, then."
"Don’t you worry. I’ll go run the test for you right now."
Wren nodded and waited quietly for the results.
DING—
Suddenly, Finn Wynter’s phone rang. He answered it.
"Hello."
"Son, pass the phone to Wren."
It was a call from Grace Wynter.
Finn handed the phone to Wren. She took it, completely bewildered, as Grace Wynter’s gentle voice came through the line.
"Wren, it’s your aunt."
"Auntie! Are you doing okay abroad? When are you coming back?"
Wren was pleasantly surprised; she hadn’t expected a call from Grace. Remembering she hadn’t called her aunt since they last parted, she felt a sudden pang of guilt.
"Wren, I’m doing fine. I’m calling this time because there’s something I need to ask of you."
