Summer went out first, standing by the door and waiting for Vicky, whose face collapsed upon seeing her.
“We’ll see how long you can remain this arrogant before Dad kicks you out of Jarrett Group!”
“Oh, yeah? Kick me out of Jarrett Group?” Summer broke into a gentle smile. “Didn’t you want capital injection from Leonardo?”
Vicky sneered, “Heck! Do you really think the cripple has money?”
“Watch your mouth!” Summer glowered.
“Well, then you better watch yours!” Vicky raised her chin, smiling gloatingly. The next second, her expression changed as she turned around and doubled back into Lynn’s office.
Summer glanced at the tightly shut door and left.
Inside, Vicky sat across the desk, her face grave. “Daddy, I forgot to tell you that Summer holds a Black Card. It’s limited globally and only available in Moo Corporation!”
“How do you know?” Lynn appeared shocked. “She just married into the Emerson Family. Leonardo has given her a Black Card?”
“The last time Jerome and I had dinner in the Golden Cauldron, I saw her pay with a Black Card with my own eyes!” Vicky looked excited. “I heard that the Emerson family’ Black Card has no credit limit. Is it true?”
Only a limited number of the Emerson family’s Black Card was issued globally. Even Lynn had no idea whether the card had a credit limit or not. As one of the wealthiest families, even if the card had a credit limit, the threshold had to be astronomical.
Knowing that her words were doing their job in Lynn’s mind, Vicky continued, “If we can get our hands on the Black Card from Summer, we don’t have to worry about the money anymore.”
Lynn was slightly moved, but a veteran businessman like him was too careful to fall for her youthful impulse. Nevertheless, he gave it careful thought and said, “But Leonardo gave the Black Card to Summer. Do you think she’ll let us have it?”
Sensing that Lynn was moved, Vicky said, “Dad, you’re Summer’s father. What’s wrong with you borrowing her Black Card for a while? Even if she doesn’t feel like lending you the card because of some misunderstanding, at least there’s still Mom…”
Lynn was silent for a while, then he nodded in agreement.
…
After work and back home, Summer had begun to prepare dinner. Before she could get it ready, “Douglas” returned.
The heater was working overtime in the mansion. The minute he stepped in, he took off his overcoat, leaving only a dark-colored shirt and dress pants on. Hearing the sound in the kitchen, he walked toward it. Leaning against the doorway, he asked in his usual low voice, “How did the negotiation go?”
“Toast,” Summer nonchalantly replied as she prepared the veggies.
“So much for your first project.” He wore a half-smile.
His tone of voice was subtle, and Summer had a hard time figuring out if he was mocking her. She turned around, looking at him. “For the record, it was Vicky who screwed things up, not me.” Even though Vicky blamed it on her, she refused to give in. She turned around again and picked up where she left off.
Leonardo lowered his head, chuckling.
It was a Saturday morning. As usual, Summer had risen early and gotten breakfast ready. “Douglas” had risen early too.
“Is your cousin awake now? Perhaps you can bring breakfast to him.”
“I’m not doing it.” Leonardo refused at warp speed. He was already there.
Summer shot him a glare and asked one of his bodyguards to send the breakfast upstairs.
After breakfast, Summer went out. Leonardo wondered where she was going-she seldom ventured out on weekends. He instructed Tim to follow her.
It turned out that Summer was seeing a psychologist. Sitting in the car, Leonardo looked at the mental health clinic across the street, asking, “What is she doing there?”
Thinking of what Summer said to him the day before, Tim carefully said, “It’s likely that she’s in there because of you, Young Master.”
Me? Leonardo tried to figure out why and quickly put two and two together. The woman must have thought that he had a mental disorder. She had joined the Emerson Family for quite some time, but she had yet to meet Leonardo. Anyone in their right mind would have thought that Leonardo suffered from some mental problem. The woman had been putting a lot of effort for him.
Seeing the changing expression on his young master’s face, Tim tried to sound him out, “When do you plan to tell your wife about your identity?”
When? Tim got him on that one.
Just then, a familiar figure appeared in front of the clinic. Taking a careful look, it turned out that the person was Adams. He said, “Young Master, isn’t that person your elder cousin?”
Leonardo looked in the direction Tim was pointing at. Knowing Adams like the back of his hand, he instantly made out the identity of the man who had his face covered.
While Tim was still waiting for his young master to respond, the door opened, and Leonardo darted across the street toward the mental health clinic. Tim quickly got out and followed.
…
Inside the clinic, after listening to what Summer had said, the psychologist responded in a solemn voice, “From the symptoms you’ve described, I’m afraid that it’s PTSD-Post-traumatic stress disorder. It must have something to do with his past. In his case, he needs help and guidance from the people closest to him.”
“His past?” Summer repeated the doctor’s words.
“Yes. Something happened that traumatized him. Usually, it has something to do with events during his childhood and adolescence, during which a person’s mind has still not fully matured and is relatively fragile,” the doctor further explained in layman’s terms, making it easier to understand.
It was more or less what Summer had speculated. However, she did not divulge everything to the doctor. She just said that her husband shied from meeting people and withdrew into himself. The condition of Leonardo was already an open secret, at least in Hoover City. If she gave too detailed an account of his condition, the doctor might figure out his identity.
“Thank you very much, Doctor.”
Just as Summer walked out, she saw two men coming in her direction, one behind the other. The man in front had his face covered up, but he looked familiar. When the man came closer, he took off his sunglasses. Perhaps it was due to the smile on his face, but his voice was just right and gentle.
“Summer, we meet again.”
“Adams?”
Summer looked at the man in front of her, surprised. I’ve bumped into the best actor again! she shouted in her mind. Adams took all of her expressions in, smiling. “Why are you so surprised to see me?”
“I’ve bumped into you three times in a row in just one month. I think I’m lucky enough to buy a lottery ticket.”