Chapter 226 My Followers
The car drove toward the outskirts.
Leonardo sat in another car behind me. Adrian video-called the Soldati in that car to monitor Leonardo's every move.
Leonardo's features resembled Lucas's somewhat, but his eyes were sinister. Years of drugs and indulgence had long since ruined his body, and his eyes harbored shocking hatred and madness.
Thinking back to when he first came from Dawnharbor to Starstream City, he had considerable ambitions. When he appeared in the Chaotic Zone, he seemed high-spirited, openly and subtly mocking Lucas, even trying to use Angelina to collude with him.
Lucas drove him away with a few simple tricks, but Leonardo hadn't been nearly as wretched then as he is now.
During the hunting competition, Donald used him as a human shield. After barely surviving, he laid low for a while. Recently, he tried to take over Lucas's entertainment city and wasbeaten half to death.
His limp came from having his leg broken at that time.
Lucas didn't kill him, but unexpectedly he still had the energy to cause trouble.
I didn't tell Lucas about this, but I sent Brian a message.
Brian was currently holding a campaign event in the Co-governed District. I'd rather overthink than miss the possibility that Leonardo wanted to use me to target Brian.
The fact that he could stop our car meant someone was definitely backing him.
The car drove all the way to the outskirts. Not far from orchards and flower fields, there was a cluster of houses built on a gentle slope.
A few years ago, a developer started a large housing project here, building while raising funds, then ran off with the money. The project was abandoned, and the land failed to sell at several auctions before Lucas bought it at an extremely low price.
Most of the houses were just rough shells, but five small villas in the center looked neat and pretty on the outside. They were supposedly built by the developer for himself and his family.
I observed the surroundings through the car window. Leonardo limped over, urging me, "Hurry up and go in."
I glanced at him. "What's the rush?"
Cole led people to search the area first.
According to Leonardo, Building 1 hid Lucas's secret. Someone lived in Building 5, the farthest from Building 1, and the other houses were empty.
There was a bag of trash outside Building 5. Cole rang the doorbell, but there was no response from inside.
I asked Leonardo, "Who lives there?"
"Lucas's new lover, of course." Leonardo looked at me provocatively.
I thought his intelligence wasn't very high. Since he deliberately said this, the truth must be the opposite.
If it really was Lucas's lover, would they need to live separately?
Cole left two people on guard outside Building 5, then broke into Building 1. After a quick look around, he came back quickly. "Safe, no ambush. You can go over anytime."
"Any findings?" I asked.
Cole hesitated, looking uncertain, with some shock and distress.
For the usually steady Cole to show such an expression made me even more curious—what secret was hidden in the house?
I walked toward Building 1, feeling my fingertips tighten slightly.
Pushing open the half-closed door, when I saw the scene inside, my breathing stopped for a beat.
I had never seen so many versions of myself.
All the walls were covered with photos of me.
Me at work, me greeting the receptionist, me working, me laughing with friends, me eating desserts, me drinking tea, me sleeping.
From wide shots to close-ups, from clear to blurry, at least several hundred photos.
The only furniture in the room was a comfortable long sofa and a projector. There was a blanket on the sofa, and the smell of cigarettes and perfume on it both belonged to Lucas.
The projector was connected to a laptop. I checked the playback history on the computer—the videos all featured me.
I rubbed the goosebumps on my arms, trembling slightly, feeling like countless invisible cameras were hidden in my life.
A sneer came from behind me.
Leonardo said maliciously, "Lucas is a pervert, a madman! Now you see his true face, right? Being monitored by him every day, don't you find it disgusting?"
Facing his provocation, I remained calm. "Are you done?"
He was stunned.
"What kind of reaction is that? Aren't you scared?" Leonardo said urgently. "Do you know the Valeri family has a history of mental illness? I've checked,the more outstanding the Don in the family history, the more cold and crazy they are. Women they fall in love with never end well!"
I frowned in silence. Leonardo tried his hardest to provoke me. "Even if you're not scared for yourself, you should think about the baby in your belly, right? What if you give birth to a little lunatic!"
I touched my belly. The baby lazily stretched its limbs, touching my hand through my belly.
"The prenatal checkup results show this baby is very healthy."
Leonardo seemed annoyed by my stubbornness. "You foolish woman."
Then Adrian said, "Ms. Sorelli, Mr. Sorelli just survived an assassination attempt. He wasn't hurt, and the assassin has been caught."
I looked at Leonardo. "So that's your purpose?"
Leonardo backed up a step guiltily. "What are you talking about? I don't understand."
I didn't bother arguing with him and had Cole knock Leonardo out and throw him in the car trunk.
After walking around the house, I found a pile of medication for insomnia and anxiety by the water dispenser in the kitchen.
"Ms. Sorelli, we've brought the person from Building 5." Cole led in a man in his fifties.
"Miracle Surgeon, hello!" The man smiled and waved at me, looking rather unstable.
He knew me, and I knew him too—a famous psychologist.
"Eugene?" I raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing here? Are you treating Lucas?"
"Yes, he hired me as his private doctor." Unlike most psychologists who are gentle and professional, Eugene had a childlike innocence in his personality. He was skilled in hypnosis and was more famous in assassin circles than in psychology.
Eugene looked around curiously, clearly seeing this scene for the first time. "You know what? You're Lucas's deity. He's like a devout yet twisted believer—he can't live without your love!"
"That's an illness that needs treatment," I said without hesitation.
Eugene laughed. "Lucas thinks so too. He thinks he's gone crazy. He's afraid of scaring you, afraid of being abandoned by you, so he's hiding away for secret treatment. He wanted me to hypnotize him, but unfortunately it failed. He's tried various methods—medication, electric shock, psychological suggestion. He wants to become normal as soon as possible, but the harder he tries with these things, the more disappointed he gets."
I couldn't help but sigh. "Why is Lucas so insecure?"
"I don't know about your relationship issues. He asked me to treat him but won't say anything!" Eugene stroked his chin. "I think he's been traumatized."
I thought of Leonardo's words. "Could it be hereditary?"
Eugene shrugged. "Maybe, but I think it's mostly environmental factors."
"Can you cure him?"
"The success rate is at least 70%. But aren't you afraid that once he's cured, he won't love you anymore?"