Chapter 1359 Affections Like Sand Through Fingers
Selena's shoulder was firmly in his grip as she could still smell the metallic scent of blood in the air.
In such a tense and adrenaline-filled environment, her brain couldn't process much information. Coupled with the fact that Victor had taken a bullet for her, she was instinctively inclined to trust him.
With her rationality pushed to the edge, she noticed Victor twist the ring on his finger. The movement was quick, but it seemed to flip a switch in her mind.
Her consciousness surrendered control to something else, and as if possessed, she followed behind him.
Victor held her hand as they swam for what felt like eternity before finally reaching the shore.
He gazed at her silently. "Remember this feeling."
"What?" Selena's heart pounded as she looked up at him, confused.
Victor's fingertips gently brushed aside the wet strands of hair from her face.
Though she furrowed her brow, Selena couldn't control her racing heart.
She asked with concern, "Dr. Barnes, is your shoulder okay?"
"It's fine. Let's head back first."
"Alright."
Selena trudged behind him, alternating between concern for his wound and thoughts about Raymond.
Yet she couldn't shake the feeling that her affections were like sand slipping through her fingers—the tighter she held on, the faster they seemed to vanish.
As this sense of loss made her want to resist, she paused in her tracks only to hear Victor call out, "Selena, come here."
Something jolted through her brain, and she immediately complied.
What Selena didn't know was that Victor had been hypnotizing her for days.
Selena was a person of strong will; hypnosis alone couldn't subdue her, so he had supplemented it with a special compound.
From the moment she entered that mansion, every breath of air she took contained traces of this drug.
Everyone else had the antidote except her.
That was why even when she slept, she still felt exhausted and fatigued—her rational mind was on the verge of collapse, and her resistance was gradually weakening.
Victor's techniques came from top-tier hypnotists, and with this rare compound's assistance, hypnotizing Selena wasn't difficult.
Still, he was cautious, repeatedly testing and adding suggestive gestures.
Even this "accident" was part of his plan.
He deliberately leaked two pieces of information to Tessa, knowing that with her temperament, she would frantically persuade Lawrence to act.
Lawrence had grown accustomed to favoring Tessa; a few tears from her, and he'd abandon all principles.
Everything was within Victor's calculations, serving as another experiment on Selena.
As Selena approached him, she remained oblivious to her altered state.
To his satisfaction, the experiment yielded the desired results.
A slight smile curved his lips as his fingers moved toward her chin.
In psychology, there was an effect known as the "foot-in-the-door technique": once someone accepted a minor request, they were more likely to accept a larger one next time.
Now, his fingers reached her chin, but she merely looked at him, seemingly unaware of the intrusion.
Victor paused for a few seconds before slowly lowering his hand, hooking one of her fingers with his.
She finally reacted, but instead of pulling away, she inquired, "Dr. Barnes, what are you doing?"
Unaccustomed to interactions with women, Victor felt a bit awkward and released her finger. "Follow me."
"But I still need to find Raymond."
The thought of Raymond was too deeply embedded in her mind.
"I'm taking you to Raymond. After tonight's events, the Smith family will surely react. I'm taking you somewhere safe first, and then we'll assess the situation."
Selena nodded and followed him, inquiring about his wound. "Do you want to find a place to treat your gunshot wound first?"
"How rare, you actually care about me." A smile played on his lips as he patted her head. "Good girl. From now on, be obedient, okay? I won't harm you."
Selena instinctively frowned, wanting to object, but to what? From the beginning, Victor had never harmed her; he'd even saved her.
She finally nodded. "Alright."
Seeing her nod, Victor's expression grew increasingly satisfied.
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