Massachusetts, Boston, Southern part of the Brookline Region, a high-end villa district, a luxury three-story mansion.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
In the fitness room on the first floor, to the left, Luo An is wearing boxing gloves, punching the heavy bag hanging before him.
It's been a month since Valery's case.
The entire Special Investigation Team has gone on holiday; Winslow spends every day at home with his wife and son, while Michelle is back to lounging around the library.
It's rumored that a man is pursuing Chenier, and they seem to get along quite well; Reesi is still indulging in all kinds of parties and even brought her neighbor's daughter to one, almost prompting the neighbors to grab a shotgun in frustration.
After the event, Luo An and Mona rested for a few days at a mansion in Washington D.C, then took a plane to Boston and have stayed there ever since.
Bang—
With a muffled sound, Luo An punches with all his might, sending the heavy bag flying.
Taking a deep breath, Luo An hangs a new heavy bag on the chain but doesn't continue punching. Instead, he takes off his gloves, briefly cleans up the heavy bag that was knocked away, and then heads to the bathroom.
After a quick shower, Luo An changes clothes and walks upstairs, he knocks and then opens the door to Mona's room.
In the room, Mona is dressed in simple pajamas, with disheveled hair and no makeup, sitting at the computer desk, focused on her typing, fingers flying rapidly over the laptop keyboard.
Seeing the very noticeable dark circles under Mona's eyes, Luo An's face is written with speechlessness:
"It's been more than ten days, Mona, isn't it time to go out and stroll around?"
For the entire half a month, fifteen days, Mona hasn't left this mansion, turning into a complete homebody.
"Soon, soon, give me a few more days,"
Mona doesn't even glance at Luo An, continuing without looking up:
"Get me a glass of water, thanks."
"..."
Luo An sighs helplessly, goes out to fetch a glass of water for Mona, brings it back to the room, and then stands behind her, looks at the flickering characters on the computer screen, and asks:
"Can you tell me what exactly are you working on?"
"A facial recognition system."
Mona drains the cup of water in one gulp, then licks her somewhat dry lips, saying:
"Valery's case made me realize something:
Once we're out of the federal loop, we're almost blindfolded, unable to find out many things."
Whether it's Valery's true identity, his multifaceted plans, or the dubious intentions of people like Conrad and Evelyn, they've all left a very negative impression on Mona.
This time, due to Luo An's cautious thinking and prudent arrangements, they were able to thwart Valery's plans and even take out Conrad.
But what about next time? Who can guarantee that Luo An will never make a mistake?
The inability to obtain useful information in time, causing members of the Special Investigation Team to be deceived by enemies and end up dead in a pool of blood...
Just thinking about the scene where Luo An's corpse would stare at her with eyes wide open, Mona felt breathless, her heart racing, unable to sleep at night.
It happened that during the investigation of Valery's case, Mona used the identity of CIA agent Roland to log in to the CIA database and briefly used a micro facial recognition program developed by the CIA.
This program was quickly reclaimed and purged by CIA technicians, but Mona remembered its underlying logic, hence she planned to develop her facial recognition system based on this program.
Certainly, Mona couldn't connect directly to the depths of federal databases such as the CIA, FBI, DIA, CSS, etc., as their technicians weren't just sitting idly by.
Instead, she brainstormed ways to use the real identities of individuals who had access to that information, developing a shadow identity.
Then, by borrowing the authority of these shadow identities, she'd log into those law enforcement databases for investigation at critical moments.
Mona did not explain these subsequent thoughts to Luo An directly. She felt Luo An was tired enough, and she needed to take on some of the burden for him.
Luo An sighed, bent down to wrap his arms around Mona, and kissed her ear, feeling her anxious emotions and faintly guessing some of her thoughts.
He wanted to comfort Mona but didn't know what to say. Because even with the system in his mind, he couldn't guarantee that he would always make the right choices.
At critical moments, he could protect his own life, but what if Mona was too far away? Moreover, there were other people in the special investigation team.
With a myriad of thoughts flashing through his mind, Luo An remained silent for a long time and eventually didn't say much, just smiled and asked softly:
"What would you like for lunch? I'll go buy it for you."
"Lobster rolls and clam chowder, I'll take two portions."
Mona lifted her head, kissed Luo An's lips in return, and smiled:
"And add a portion of maple fruit cake."
"No problem."
After kissing Mona's cheek with a smile, Luo An helped her tidy up her somewhat messy hair, then went back to his bedroom to change his clothes.
He walked down the stairs to the garage next to the villa, where an orange Dodge Hellcat sports car lay lazily on the ground like a fierce tiger. Luo An opened the car door and took the driver's seat, ready to leave.
Beep—Beep—Beep—
Just then, a somewhat piercing car horn suddenly sounded in front of the villa's gate.
Luo An frowned slightly, got out of his car, and walked towards the gate, only to find a pink Porsche sports car parked right in front of it.
As Luo An opened the gate and stepped out, the driver's door of the pink Porsche swung open.
A young girl in a white dress, not very tall, barely over one meter sixty, with a very generous bust, a delicate face, and a hint of baby fat, rushed toward Luo An with a beaming smile, saying:
"Good morning, dear!"
...And then the young girl lunged into thin air.
Luo An took a small step to the left, avoiding the young girl's hungry dive, and asked:
"Who are you?"
"I'm Sweety!"
The young girl who missed her target looked a bit angry, blinked her big eyes, and watched Luo An with her hands on her hips, discontentedly:
"Don't you remember? I used to hit you!"
Luo An: "…"
Sweety, the name spelled with the English alphabet, a name that rose with the internet era and could be easily misunderstood.
Luo An thought for a moment and remembered her identity.
When he was in elementary school, Sweety's family lived next door, and they were neighbors with Luo An's family. The parents had a good relationship, but Sweety and Luo An didn't get along well.
Back then, Luo An hadn't hit his growth spurt yet, was short and skinny, and often got bullied by Sweety who had developed earlier, was taller, and a bit chubby.
After Sweety's family moved away, Luo An was happy for a long while. He had always thought that Sweety would grow to be one meter eighty or even one meter ninety, but she ended up just a bit over one meter sixty.
However, seeing Sweety's ample 'conscience', Luo An's eyelids twitched, realizing where all those nutrients had ended up.
"Good morning, Sweety, long time no see, you've gotten even more beautiful."
Now that he remembered her identity, Luo An didn't pretend to not recognize her and simply greeted her before asking directly:
"Do you need something from me today?"
"You've become so direct after all these years."
Sweety rolled her eyes displeased and was just about to speak when Mona suddenly walked out of the villa and smiled, asking:
"Luo An, is she your friend?"
"…"x2