CHAPTER 28: CHAPTER 28: EUGENE VAUGHN’S HIDDEN EFFORTS

"Want something to drink?" Victoria Sinclair composed herself and got up to walk towards the kitchen.

Angela Austin, with her elbow resting on the back of the sofa, turned around and said, "Warm water is fine."

Victoria went into the kitchen and came out with two glasses of warm water, handing one to Angela.

"Thank you." Angela took the glass and pointed back at the corner of the ceiling, slightly nervous, "You’ve got surveillance cameras here?"

Victoria shrugged it off and sat back on the sofa, "Don’t you?"

"My grandma and my parents are home long-term, no need for surveillance cameras."

Victoria glanced up at the camera, responding casually, "It’s for burglars."

Angela took a sip of the warm water, holding her cup with curiosity, "Where’s the backend?"

Victoria took a sip as well and said, "In both our phones and the study’s computer."

Angela leaned over, whispering, "So will he see us chatting here in the backend?"

Victoria appeared slightly speechless, "He’s not that free to watch the surveillance."

"Will it alert if a stranger comes in?"

"Yes."

Angela covered her mouth in shock.

Victoria, realizing something, put down her glass and took out her phone, discovering the system had sent a stranger alert.

She was stunned for a few seconds, then looked at Angela, "You came, so it did alert."

Angela smiled faintly, "So, your home has never had a Cinderella visit. Why not check the previous footages to see who’s doing the housekeeping?"

Victoria hesitated for a few seconds, then started operating her phone.

Angela curiously moved over, put down her glass, and leaned on Victoria’s shoulder to watch intently.

The surveillance has a week’s storage; anything older is automatically deleted.

Victoria selected a time and played it.

Eugene Vaughn would get up around nine o’clock, and the first thing he’d do after leaving the room was head to the kitchen for a glass of water. He’d stand on the living room balcony to drink it, take in the street view outside for a bit, and then have the breakfast she left on the dining table.

He’d enter the kitchen and stay there for at least a dozen minutes before coming out.

Angela, watching Victoria drag the timeline forward, asked in shock, "What does he do in the kitchen for over ten minutes?"

Victoria slowly looked at Angela, "He’s a bit of a neat freak."

"Don’t you wipe the stove after making breakfast?"

"I clean if it’s dirty, otherwise no." Victoria felt a bit guilty.

Angela laughed helplessly, covering her forehead, and nudged Victoria’s arm, "Fast forward a little, see what else he does."

Victoria dragged the progress bar again.

In the surveillance footage, Eugene walked out of the kitchen with a white cloth in hand.

He went to the cabinet, took out a pair of Bluetooth headphones, put them on, and casually started wiping the liquor cabinet while listening to music.

Half an hour later, he went into the room, dressed in a suit, and headed out.

The time showed 10:35.

Victoria opened the next day’s footage at the same time.

The same morning routine, but this time Eugene was changing the curtains, stuffing the dirty ones into the washing machine.

The day after that, Eugene was wiping the TV cabinet and vacuuming the sofa.

The day after that, he was cleaning the robot vacuum cleaner and wiping the window glass.

The day after that...

Angela sighed deeply, commenting, "He gets up at nine every day, leaves by ten-thirty, spending at least an hour managing your little home. He’s quite the clean freak."

Victoria remained motionless, her eyes were inexplicably moist as she recalled things Eugene had said, leaving her heart suddenly lost.

Angela glanced at Victoria, nudging her shoulder, "Really? You’re touched by this? Don’t you make breakfast for him every day too, wash his dirty clothes and fold them nicely?"

Victoria bitterly smiled, "It’s not that I’m touched; I just suddenly remembered something he said before, and it made me a bit sad."

"What did he say?"

Victoria turned off the phone screen and put it on the sofa, gazing outside at the heavy rain, feeling gloomy and damp inside, "He said I’m a free housekeeper he married for five hundred thousand, beautiful to look at without costing him a dime, a good deal for him."

Angela was dumbfounded, "You can’t tell, Eugene is that sharp-tongued?"

Victoria lowered her head, recalling, "He was drunk then."

It was also at that time that Eugene said he found her dull, like tasteless water, boring and tiresome.

Angela clenched her fist, angrily saying, "I think he’s closer to being a housekeeper."

Victoria pursed her lips, feeling increasingly down, maybe due to the bad weather, or Sarah Lowell’s words, or seeing a side of Eugene unknown to her from the surveillance.

All of it was affecting her mood.

Angela was still curious about whether Eugene usually watched the surveillance.

The two chatted away and lost track of time.

Late into the night, as Angela prepared to leave, she pointed at the surveillance camera, patting her chest, "I bet, in Eugene’s eyes, this camera isn’t for guarding against burglars but to monitor you."

"Stop talking nonsense." Victoria shoved an umbrella into Angela’s hand, "Take advantage of the rain break and get home soon, it’s late, your parents might worry."

Angela touched her cheek, "You too, get to bed early, don’t overthink. Take Sarah’s words as a puff of air, ignore them."

Victoria nodded.

Angela added, "The day after tomorrow, our university alumni group is holding an offline event. Many old classmates are attending. It’s the May Day holiday; come with me and meet our old Sterling classmates."

"Sterling classmates?" Victoria was puzzled.

Angela grinned, swinging Victoria’s hand, "Just accompany me! I’m about to turn 26 and have never dated. I want to see if there are any quality single men."

Victoria also wanted to relax over May Day, realizing one can’t function like a perpetual motion machine all the time.

"Okay." Victoria agreed with a smile.

"Deal, I’ll pick you up the day after tomorrow." Angela waved goodbye, taking the umbrella with her.

Victoria watched Angela enter the elevator before returning inside to close the door.

After bathing, she lay in bed, unable to sleep.

Even by the wee hours, she remained wide awake, Sarah’s words heavily weighing on her mind.

She got up, warmed a cup of milk, and sat on the living room sofa.

She glanced at the clock; it was 1:10 a.m.

Then she looked at the surveillance camera.

A childish idea suddenly crossed her mind; she wanted to test if Eugene actually watched the surveillance.

Although it was a foolish notion, her scientific spirit urged her to practice to reveal the truth.

Time ticked by, second after second.

Victoria sat in the living room waiting, without her phone or a book, the bright lights shining on her as she gazed quietly at the night outside the window.

The rain, which had paused for a while, began pouring down again.

It grew heavier and was accompanied by thunder.

For Victoria, who was accustomed to sleeping early, even if experiencing insomnia, she would’ve never stayed up until three in the morning.

But tonight, she endured.

At 3:30 a.m., the door finally made a sound.

He was back.

Victoria closed her eyes in fatigue, gently exhaling.

She listened attentively to Eugene’s first words to determine if he had watched the surveillance.

The sound of the door closing, shoes changing, steady footsteps, the sofa slightly shifting, a whiff of alcohol filled the air.

A man’s cold and deep voice came to her ears, "Why aren’t you asleep?"