Chapter 182: You Want to Destroy Me, I Want to Destroy You

[Chapter 183: You Want to Destroy Me, I Want to Destroy You]

Sitting on the cold iron chair, Bella deeply regretted getting that mental illness record.

Her experiences in recent days had made her acutely aware of one truth: this sort of thing only worked well for the rich. Unfortunately, she wasn't a wealthy person; she was just a little better off than the rest.

Bella felt that if she stayed any longer, she would surely go insane.

There were two assessors, one man and one woman.

Before either of them spoke, Bella hurriedly exclaimed, "I don't have a mental illness! I swear!"

After a few sleepless nights of being tormented, she felt slightly delirious and unconsciously raised her voice. "I really don't have any mental illness! I don't!"

The two assessors exchanged glances and subtly nodded, reaching the same conclusion.

Based on past cases and their experience, Bella Sain was diagnosed as having a serious mental illness!

The rest of the assessment proceeded like a factory assembly line. Throughout the ordeal, Bella repeatedly insisted, "I really don't have a mental illness!"

When the assessment finally concluded, Bella was taken back to the special ward. The two assessors then entered the observation room.

...

The male assessor said, "Bella Sain's situation is quite severe. I suggest we increase the medication dosage, continue solitary confinement, and maintain long-term observation..."

This outcome came as no surprise to Hawke.

When Bella shouted that phrase, he had sensed the fate was sealed. In a psychiatric treatment center, claim you don't have a mental illness, and you surely do.

The specialized doctors from the professional institution offered a highly specialized conclusion: Bella Sain had serious mental issues and was unsuitable to leave the St. Mary's mental health center, let alone be released on bail.

As everyone retraced their steps and exited the treatment center, the two professional assessors, along with Milner, sped away in their cars.

...

Hawke opened the back door of the Mercedes G-Class and stowed the gun bag under the back seat.

Brian approached and said, "You see? Nothing happened, right? I told you, the problem doesn't lie with me but with you two."

Hawke exchanged a look with Erica and rebutted, "Even unlucky people can have their moments of good fortune."

Erica, believing herself not to be the source of bad luck, retorted, "It's because Hawke kept an eye on you; your jinx of a mouth never had the chance to utter those words."

"Stop staring at me!" Brian shot a glance towards the treatment center. "This place is old and has held so many mentally unstable convicted felons. Do you think they won't escape?"

Erica got into the driver's seat and just before closing the door, remarked to her cousin, "If anything happens at this treatment center, it's definitely your fault."

Hawke hopped into the passenger seat and immediately closed the door.

Brian, vexed by those two, paced in frustration, pointing back at the center. "Look! No issues, right?"

The treatment center was very quiet, and indeed, nothing had happened.

"It's too soon," Hawke insisted; he wouldn't let the reputation of misfortune fall on him and Erica.

Brian, disinterested in arguing with them, ambled towards the cars.

Erica started the engine and was the first to pull out of the parking lot.

Brian quickly followed.

Just as the two cars hadn't gone far, a piercing alarm rang out from the direction of the treatment center.

Erica swiftly stopped the car.

Brian followed suit and all three stepped out, standing by the side of the road, gazing up at the St. Mary treatment center.

The sky had darkened completely, but the lights there blazed intensely as if chaos was unfolding within.

Erica remarked, "That kind of alarm usually only goes off during riots or escapes."

While no one knew what had happened, it didn't stop Hawke from directly placing the blame on Brian. "You still won't admit you're a jinx?"

Brian wanted to retort, but given the alarm still blaring in his ears, he opened his mouth but couldn't find the words.

Had what he said merely minutes before turned into reality so quickly?

Was it really this uncanny?

Hawke shrugged Brian's shoulder and said, "Just admit it. You're the god of curses, born with a crow mouth. Think about it: you just said something about me, and the very next day I found myself entangled in Bella Sain's troubles."

Hawke emphasized, "When you said it, Erica wasn't around, and there was no Erica in my office either. So the problem lies with you and not us."

"Your desk has a picture frame of Erica," Brian blurted, sounding tougher than he felt inside.

Could it really be that he was a jinx? Did all his blessings turn to curses?

That shouldn't be! After all, the real jinxes were those two!

Hawke glanced at Erica.

Erica slightly nodded at him as the treatment center initiated movement again.

Moments later, the alarm from the treatment center ceased.

Brian quickly took out his phone to call, wanting to prove he wasn't a jinx.

...

After making a few calls, he received another one, which he answered, only to turn pale.

Hawke inquired, "What's going on?"

Brian felt as if his soul had taken a serious hit. "They were escorting Bella Sain back, but one of the nurses colluded with a highly dangerous patient, quietly throwing him a set of keys to help him escape."

Hawke noted the inconsistency, "A Joker and Joker's girlfriend?"

Brian wasn't into comics, shrugged, and replied, "That patient is a psychopath and a locksmith. He didn't escape but instead used the keys to open many inmates' doors. A whole group of mentally unstable individuals broke out and caused chaos. One of them even pulled out a sharpened toothbrush and stabbed Bella down there..."

Erica asked hesitantly, "She's not dead, right?"

"No, she's fine; just a superficial cut on her thigh," Brian explained. "The guards arrived in time and stopped them, but Bella was left shocked and dazed. One jerk claimed he wanted to cut out one of her kidneys and eat it."

Hawke patted Brian on the shoulder, "Man, keep your mouth shut from now on. Don't speak mindlessly."

Brian instinctively nodded, "I got it."

After saying that, he felt something was off and quickly shook his head. "No, no, this isn't right!"

He looked at Hawke and Erica, realizing something was wrong. "It's clearly you two; you came to St. Mary, so St. Mary got into trouble..."

Hawke had already passed the blame onto Brian and was tired of dealing with him. He called Erica, "Let's go home."

The two got into the car, and the Mercedes G-Class sped away.

...

On the dark, empty road, only Brian stood alone.

He glanced back at the brightly lit St. Mary's treatment center, thinking about the recent turmoil, wondering if he might cross paths with an escaped inmate.

Not daring to linger, he quickly hopped into his car and sped off.

...

Inside the Mercedes G-Class, Hawke mused, "This time, Brian will truly start questioning his life choices."

Erica chuckled, "I wonder how effective it will be."

Hawke understood her implication: "If Bella refuses to open up, we might as well try something out."

Erica added, "If she were a man, some of these tactics wouldn't be so sensitive, but with women, it's a bit more complicated."

Hawke wasn't in a hurry: "Let's return and wait for feedback."

...

Saint Mary's Mental Health Center, Medical Room.

Bella Sain had two cuts, one at the base of her thigh and another near her left kidney.

Though they bled a little, they were merely superficial wounds.

The doctor applied iodine to her injuries and arranged for her to be returned.

Arriving at her door, a sudden crashing noise came from the opposite iron door. A man with a huge scar on his waist pressed his face against the iron bars, revealing a gnashing grin.

In another corner, the sound of nails scraping against the door echoed like a malevolent presence arriving.

This brought Bella back to the earlier incident when that creep had poked her with a toothbrush handle.

When the guard opened the door, she hurriedly darted inside, slamming it shut behind her.

The guard locked the door and left.

On the opposite side, the man's menacing grin widened, "Sweet kidneys must be delicious..."

Bella dared not look at him and shrank into the corner of the room.

That night became unbearably difficult; strange noises echoed around her constantly.

The moment Bella closed her eyes, she visualized her kidneys being gruesomely removed and stuffed into someone's mouth.

For a normal person, the mental stress of residing in such a place far exceeded imagination.

Even though Bella had prepared mentally for jail time, being surrounded by a group of madmen and experiencing last night's attack became too much to bear.

The elite, who had grown up in privilege, would find it unimaginable just how oppressive and terrifying this experience was.

...

By the next morning, Bella proactively requested a face-to-face meeting with Officer Milner, who was responsible for her case.

Her conditions were surprisingly simple: to be transferred to a safe, secluded place away from those perverts, under solitary confinement.

...

In the afternoon, Hawke learned from Erica the name of the mastermind behind everything -- Hailey Field.

Quickly, both sides reached a plea agreement and negotiated a private deal.

...

Bella confessed the identity of the mastermind and authorized Twitter to use a complete program algorithm she had developed, which could effectively increase Twitter's operational efficiency by fifteen percent for free.

Hawke ceased pursuing her charges, planning to help her leave North America at the right opportunity. However, she couldn't be released immediately and would be detained in a separate area for now.

Once she was out, the masterminds would likely take notice.

As for calling the LAPD to summon Hailey, Hawke outright denied it because Bella had no concrete proof.

...

Harland and Kasim confirmed the algorithm had no issues and even suggested Hawke consider keeping Bella Sain.

But Hawke dismissed that idea too, reasoning that it might be a ruse and too risky.

...

Subsequently, based on the information provided by Bella, Hawke instructed Edward to retrieve some documents from a bank safe deposit box.

The material wasn't very useful; Bella's greatest asset was that complete algorithm.

Hawke scrutinized the documents, which mostly contained information about Hailey Field.

This woman belonged to the Bell Strategic Consulting Firm in Sacramento, and she had previously worked in the Governor's Assistant Office.

With the information on one individual, the rest would be easy.

...

Hawke directly called Brian, sending a copy of the related documentation over.

Before long, Brian had found out about the consulting team of Hailey Field.

This team was one among several providing services to the office of the Governor's assistant, led by a man named Grant Cesar, with three other members under him: Hailey Fields, Madison Jensen, and Augusto Stones.

Brian got in touch with people up the chain to procure detailed information about this team.

Once Hawke received the news, he called and instructed them to dispatch reliable personnel from the Ferguson family for a round trip.

Additionally, Hawke tasked Campos to find the whereabouts of these individuals in Los Angeles.

Especially Hailey Field, because there was a photo of her in the information Bella provided.

He aimed to gather comprehensive information to deal with subsequent matters, which included how to handle this team.

Grant's team used the most vicious and shameless methods, tried to inflict social death upon Hawke.

He felt indifferent towards Bella Sain since she posed no threat anymore.

But against that secretive team, he would unleash a much more ruthless revenge.

If they sought to directly destroy him, he would do the same.

*****

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