Chapter 196 Cold War
My fingertips clenched suddenly. I lowered my eyes, pretending not to notice Lucas and Roger's probing gazes.
It was a psychological barrier that made me instinctively resist using this hand—a post-traumatic stress response.
Lucas guessed, "Is that it?"
"Roger, help me create a rehabilitation plan. If I want to recover to my previous level, I need a lot of training." I quickly interrupted Lucas.
Roger frowned. "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
Roger said he'd send me the rehabilitation plan once it was ready. Lucas and I got up and headed out.
Lucas kept a straight face. It wasn't until we got in the elevator that he spoke. "You're not actually neglecting your hand. On the contrary, you know better than anyone what's going on. You only came because I kept pestering you about getting it checked."
I heard a hint of frustration in Lucas's tone. I pressed my dry lips together and explained somewhat helplessly, "I really haven't had a checkup in a long time. Regular examinations are necessary. I would have come eventually."
The elevator descended smoothly, the sliding cables making soft sounds.
"If you don't want to come, I won't force you," Lucas said sullenly.
"You're not forcing me. I told you, I should have come for the checkup anyway." My brow furrowed as irritation and helplessness rose inside me.
"Is it a psychological barrier?" Lucas suddenly asked.
I pressed my fingers against my temples, not wanting to discuss this topic. But thinking about how much Lucas cared about my hand, I didn't want to hide it from him either, so I gave a soft sound of confirmation.
Lucas asked again, "You don't want to talk about it?"
I confirmed again.
"Then who will you talk to?" Lucas's suppressed anxiety and agitation suddenly exploded. "Your dear brothers? Karen and Jonathan? Or someone I don't know? Or Jonas?"
"You're being completely unreasonable!" Hearing his tone, I knew he still hadn't gotten over what happened earlier. I couldn't help saying, "We're discussing my right hand. Can you please not just randomly get jealous all the time?"
"Randomly jealous?" Lucas pointed at his own nose and laughed bitterly. "If news gets out that your right hand can no longer hold a scalpel, those who fear you will rush to trample you underfoot! My concern is just random jealousy in your eyes?"
The elevator reached the first floor. With a soft sound, the doors opened on both sides.
I locked eyes with Lucas for a few seconds, then walked out before the elevator doors closed.
"Even if Jonas isn't our friend, he's my collaborator. The fact that I'm the Miracle Surgeon benefits him—he won't leak the information easily," I said seriously.
"You trust him that much?" Lucas wasn't comforted in the slightest. "How much effort have I put into your right hand? What has he done? Why should he get to know about your injury without any effort?"
In the end, he was still jealous.
I stopped and turned to ask him, "What exactly do you want?"
Lucas pressed his lips together hard, as if holding a thin blade between them.
"Are you going to ask me again if I've been taking my medication on time? Do you think I'm obsessive, like a lunatic?"
I froze, not understanding why Lucas had suddenly become so sensitive.
Or rather, was this a thought he'd been suppressing all along?
His face dark, he reached out toward me. I instinctively dodged, afraid he'd do something stupid like forcibly drag me away again.
Lucas's hand stopped in mid-air. A flash of hurt crossed his eyes. Without a word, he turned and walked away.
I came to my senses and quickly chased after him. Lucas walked fast. I jogged to the entrance of the rehabilitation center, only to see his car driving away.
My phone chimed. Lucas sent a message saying he had an urgent matter come up.
I stood there holding my phone for a long moment, then replied with "okay."
We didn't contact each other all evening.
Around seven-thirty, I had James bring dinner to my office.
James seemed surprised. "Mr. Valeri isn't coming today?"
I looked at the empty office, feeling uncomfortable.
Lucas had been having dinner with me regularly lately. Not only had I gotten used to it, but others had too. His sudden absence made people feel uneasy.
I picked up my phone and stared at the chat window for a while, then slowly put it down without reaching out to Lucas.
The next morning when I woke up, I instinctively opened my phone. My conversation with Lucas was still stuck on yesterday morning.
I tossed my phone onto the blanket in frustration.
What was this?
A fight or a cold war?
In a bad mood, I decided to give myself a day off. I hadn't gone shopping in a long time anyway.
Regal Court Mall was as lively and bustling as ever.
Passing by "StitchKing" Men's Wear, I couldn't help thinking of Lucas again.
"Ms. Sorelli?" Adrian, his hands full of shopping bags, looked at me in confusion, not understanding why I'd suddenly stopped in the middle of the walkway.
"Let's look at men's clothing." I pushed open the door. The welcome bell above chimed crisply.
"Welcome." Seeing me, Minna looked very surprised, her greeting awkwardly cut short.
"Minna, long time no see. How have you been?" When I held my birthday party last year, I'd verbally invited Minna, but she didn't come. We hadn't been in much contact since.
There were a few customers in the store. Everything seemed normal.
"Long time no see. I've been okay. How about you? You must be busy." Minna's smile was somewhat unnatural, with a hint of distance.
I thought for a moment and guessed the reason.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hide my identity from you before. I had my reasons."
Minna curved her lips in a smile but said nothing. Her attitude wasn't as warm as before.
I casually picked out two ties. When checking out, I asked bluntly, "Does my identity bother you?"
Minna was carefully packing, repeatedly adjusting the bow decoration on the gift bag. At my words, she looked at me with a complex expression. "I'm just an ordinary person. My family's shop is just an ordinary clothing store with no powerful backing. I'm afraid of offending you—whether it's you, your brothers, or Mr. Valeri, my whole family can't afford to provoke any of you."
"I understand. Thank you for being honest with me." I didn't react much. Minna and I lived in different circles and social strata. Most mafia family children only played with other mafia children, like me with Karen and Jonathan.
Leaving the clothing store, I felt gloomy, but I didn't stay down for long.
Passing by Elite Emporium, I was surprised to see Julie and Jacqueline confronting Brenda.
Julie showed no expression, shadows hanging over her brow. Jacqueline held her arm, glaring at Brenda.
Brenda blocked the counter, chin raised provocatively at Julie, her face wearing an arrogant, smug smile that was particularly grating.
Last time in the parking lot near the airport, I'd taught Brenda a harsh lesson. She'd been scared out of her wits then. How long had it been, and she was out provoking people again?
I happened to be in a bad mood, and she'd walked right into my line of fire!
Thinking that she seemed to have something to do with Gale and Julie's argument, I strode in aggressively. "How lively! What's going on here?"