ryethenovel Chapter 26 Vijay's Birth Account
Chapter 26 Vijay's Birth Account
"Hannibal Lecter..."
Vijay's eyes were glazed over, as if he were reminiscing. After a moment, his strange voice, tinged with the cuts from his lips, rang out again:
"He is my therapist, and I owe my current state entirely to him."
Titus noticed that his eyes were strange when he said this, filled with regret, anger, and affection.
He saw Vijay's lips curl slightly upward, especially when he said "my therapist." Titus's heart sank. Lecter had ruined Vijay's face, but besides anger, he felt a different emotion, a kind of attachment. Vijay had a distorted attachment to Lecter.
How utterly perverse is this?
Starling stepped forward and reminded her:
"Mr. Vijay, would you mind if we put a microphone in your collar clip?"
"I don't mind."
Starling bent down to clip the microphone onto him and turned on the recording function.
"This is Special Agent Starling Clarice, who was sworn in on June 21 and is witnessing Mason Vijay's testimony."
"This is Titus Gallagher, same as above."
Starling rolled her eyes at him.
"Okay, this is Federal Agent Titus Gallagher, who, along with his partner Starling Clarice, swore an oath on June 21 and witnessed Mason Vijay's testimony."
Vijay asked:
"Thank God I've gone through all this. Do you believe in Jesus?"
Starling shook her head and said:
"No, Mr. Vijay."
Titus added:
"Instead of that, let's talk about Lecter's belongings. Please give them to me. Also, did Lecter contact you through any means during his escape?"
"No, I would say that everything has a cause and an effect. I will start with the cause: I was raised by Luther and am a born-again Christian."
He started rambling on and on:
"It was an unforgettable summer camp experience. My father set up a Christian summer camp that specifically took in homeless boys and girls. If you gave them a piece of chocolate, they would do anything for you."
Titus realized what he was saying and whispered sharply:
"Mason, we're not here to find out about your dirty deeds."
Vijay glanced at him, his voice unchanged, and continued:
"I just wanted to... say it without worry. The prosecutor's office won't prosecute me, Jesus won't judge me, I'm a born-again Christian, no one can judge me—"
Titus sneered and asked:
"Really? I heard that Dr. Lecter tailored a psychotherapy program specifically for you."
Vijay's face darkened with anger, and he said:
"That's right, he did my therapy, and I invited him to my house."
"Back then, everyone was afraid of me because I could do whatever I wanted, but he didn't seem afraid at all."
Vijay fell back into his memories, his tone gradually becoming calmer:
"I put on my most seductive clothes and opened the door for him. We played together. I wore a mask that would make it hard for him to breathe but not suffocate him."
Titus took a deep breath, wondering if he could achieve unparalleled pleasure through sexual asphyxiation...
"He gave me stimulants, and I felt incredibly, incredibly happy!"
He said, "Let me see the smile that makes the children depend on you," and I smiled.
He said, "I understand why the children trust you."
"Then he smashed the mirror, handed me a piece of glass, and said, 'Use this to cut off the flesh from your face.'"
"..."
"He used my meat to feed his dogs."
He said, "That's not enough, I can still see your smile," so I kept cutting.
"My face, my paralyzed body, are all thanks to him!"
Titus felt much better; Uncle Ba had done a good job, but he wasn't going to listen to the old bastard's rambling anymore.
So Titus reminded him again:
"Mr. Vijay, your assistant told me that you received a tip from Lecter."
Vijay nodded and asked Cordel to bring over a CT scan, a CT image of the hand bones.
It was sent two weeks ago.
"Where's the outer envelope?"
"Good question. There's no important information written on it, Cordell (assistant). Should we just throw it away?"
"Yes, sir."
Titus had had enough of this deadbeat and asked:
"This is a CT scan of Lecter's broken arm. What happened?"
Vijay said:
"You've heard the story, right? Lecter bit the nurse who treated him and tore her entire face off."
"That's when his black caregiver broke Lecter's hand bone while trying to hold him down."
Titus nodded, thinking that it was Barney who did it; he'd have to verify it with him later. Having obtained the clue, he couldn't help but think about how to kill this damned sinner.
Vijay suddenly said:
"Did you feel particularly compatible when you talked to Lecter?"
Titus thought for a moment and nodded.
Vijay continued:
"I was the same way back then. Dr. Lecter... he was very good at manipulating people."
Titus said:
"So... he played you?"
Vijay looked at Titus in shock and anger; this was the second time the young man had rubbed salt into his wounds.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Did I say something wrong? You're collecting Lecter's items, aren't you? You have more than just this one CT scan, don't you?"
"Then you're wrong, I'm doing this now—"
Titus waved his hand to interrupt him, then leaned down to look directly into his broken eyes.
"You don't hate him, do you?"
"On the contrary, you are twistedly and obsessively infatuated with Dr. Lecter, and you are so focused on finding him that you are even willing to cooperate with the FBI."
Vijay's face flushed. He tried to get up and shout with all his might, but he was paralyzed from the waist down and couldn't even remove the miniature microphone from his collar. Starling silently took the microphone off.
Vijay roared:
"What are you talking about? How could I possibly..."
Titus interrupted him again:
"Let me guess why you're infatuated with a murderer."
"I won't allow you to do this—"
"When I came here, I was puzzled. How could someone who runs a farm turn his home into a church? Why do you hate your background? I've seen your file. Your father was a rude man. He slaughtered animals in front of you and said your bone structure was that of a pig."
"You had a tragic childhood; your father taught you violence and the worship of power. Until you met Hannibal Lecter, who was elegant, rational, and possessed a transcendent social status, did he surpass your biological father at that moment and become the perfect father in your heart?"
"You want to keep him, but Mr. Lecter feeds your flesh to the dogs and makes you eat your own nose. You know he looks down on you from the bottom of his heart, just like your biological father! So you can't help but be infatuated with him."
Titus's words were slow and sharp, like a scalpel used to slowly torture someone:
"Do you know how I see you? A dog with no dignity waiting for its father to feed it."
Vijay shouted:
"How dare you!"
"Cordell, throw them out and chop them up to feed the pigs!"
Titus did not pause at all:
"They're going to great lengths to please Lecter's daddy, even going so far as to select two rookie agents to investigate Lecter's case."
"You wanted to lure Lecter out through us, you wanted to frame us, right? You know Lecter, he won't let anyone else touch his prey. Good plan, but unfortunately, that idiot Hod gave himself away."
"If I were to accidentally kill you right now, do you think Dr. Lecter would mourn for you?"
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