"Not daring?"
Faced with Amy the Amazing's confidence, Juno and Heather exchanged a glance and smiled.
"Karen."
Juno called out.
"Got it."
Karen understood immediately and stepped forward to raise the head of Amy the Amazing's hospital bed, allowing her to see the entire room.
Amy the Amazing's eyes narrowed as she took in the scene—a surgical table with a large deer lying on it.
"Heather."
Juno nodded at Heather.
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
Heather nodded back, pulled the cord on a small electric chainsaw, and started it up. She flashed a bright smile at Amy the Amazing before raising the chainsaw and cutting off one of the deer's legs.
"Ahhh!!!"
The gruesome sight made Amy the Amazing scream involuntarily. "You're trying to scare me! You're trying to scare me! I'm not afraid! I'm not afraid!"
Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!
The sound of the chainsaw was the only response she got.
There's a reason the Texas Chainsaw Massacre series remains a classic in the horror genre—it has a unique, enduring appeal.
American audiences don't care much for the eerie horror style of the East. Instead, they have a particular love for over-the-top gore. The more blood splattered everywhere, the louder the inevitable screams.
Heather had planned to keep her cousin, Leatherface, locked in the underground wine cellar for the rest of his life, preventing him from killing again. But aside from eating and sleeping, Leatherface had an uncontrollable thirst for blood.
To keep him calm, Heather would regularly buy or hunt animals, allowing him to unleash his urges.
Growing up in a slaughterhouse herself, she had become an expert at dismembering animals with a chainsaw over the years.
Now, as she casually displayed her skill, Amy the Amazing initially just screamed but held firm. However, as things became bloodier, she quickly broke down.
"You can't kill me! If I die, Adam is finished too!!!"
Juno raised a hand, and Heather immediately stopped the chainsaw.
"What do you mean?"
"You can't kill me! If I die, Adam is finished too!!!"
Amy the Amazing kept repeating the same sentence, screaming it over and over, even though Heather had already stopped. She shouted it four or five more times before finally realizing that Juno and the others were simply watching her.
"You don't dare to kill me!"
Feeling as though she had escaped death, Amy the Amazing exclaimed excitedly, "If I die, Adam is finished too! I have important evidence! The police will definitely go after Adam, and from there, they'll trace everything back to you! I'm famous! Public pressure will force them to solve the case! You don't dare to kill me! Hahaha!"
Juno calmly let her finish her outburst, waiting until she had regained her confidence before speaking leisurely.
"October 24, 1995. Boston. There was a writer's networking event that evening. I went, and unexpectedly ran into my high school ex-boyfriend.
Though he had changed a lot and looked successful now, just as I had taken the initiative to break up back then, I still felt nothing for him. No feelings are no feelings. But clearly, he didn't think the same way…"
"No!!!"
Hearing this, Amy the Amazing's face turned deathly pale as she let out a desperate scream.
"Who do you think we are?"
Juno picked up a diary from the table, walked over to Amy the Amazing, and patted the book lightly with a sigh.
"A bunch of deranged serial killers? Do you really think we went through all this trouble to kidnap you for no reason?
No! We are delivering justice. We are on the side of righteousness! You are the villain here! We hold the real, crucial evidence!"
"No!!!"
Amy the Amazing screamed again, but this time, it was a cry of utter despair…
New York.
Morning jog.
"Adam, you're really something!"
Monica praised as they finished their run. "If you hadn't been there, Phoebe would probably be pregnant with quintuplets by now."
"Exactly."
Chandler chimed in. "Adam's persuasion skills are top-notch. Just look at how many female friends he has! I'd bet money that back in high school, he probably had a thing with a hot teacher or two. Otherwise, how else could he have convinced young Frank's teacher-wife so easily? Clearly, he's got experience!"
"Is that true?"
Monica's gossip instincts flared up instantly.
"Heh."
Adam chuckled without confirming or denying anything. "Honestly, I'm not even the best at persuasion. When it comes to manipulation, Juno is the real expert. She has a gift—she can see right through people and play mind games so well that no one can resist. If she had gone instead of me yesterday, it would've been faster and even more effective."
"Seriously?"
Monica found it hard to believe. "Juno seems nothing like Roger!"
Roger—Phoebe's ex-boyfriend, a psychiatrist. Everyone hated him.
Every time they met, Roger would psychoanalyze them all. And the worst part? He was a professional—his insights were spot-on. He constantly exposed their unconscious thoughts, leaving them first stunned, then completely humiliated and angry.
Although he wasn't quite on Beverly's level, he wasn't far off.
"Think about it."
Adam tapped his temple.
"I get it now!"
Chandler suddenly exclaimed. "The fact that we can't see it just proves how good Juno really is.
Look at Roger—he's a psychiatrist. You think he doesn't know how annoying he is?
Of course he does! But he can't control himself. That's the hardest part—self-control!
And Juno is so in control that she's fooled us all. We just think she's the sweet girl next door, never realizing that she's even scarier than Roger. That is what makes her truly terrifying."
"Huh?"
Monica was stunned. She found Chandler's explanation hard to believe but, at the same time, oddly convincing. She couldn't find a single argument against it.
"Anyway, let's change the subject."
Adam smiled. "Monica, how's your funeral catering business going?"
"Oh, amazing!"
At the mention of her work, Monica perked up immediately. "I just landed another big gig yesterday—60 people! It was a referral from a previous client. Word is spreading! My reputation is growing!"
"Congrats!"
Adam congratulated her.
She had quit her job at MAX's diner, where she had to wear an embarrassing bear costume.
Now, she was fully focused on funeral catering, working as an independent banquet chef.
It wasn't a random decision.
Over the past three years, she had done occasional catering gigs but never considered making it her profession.
Being a restaurant chef meant stable work with little pressure and occasional downtime.
But being a catering chef meant running her own business, earning more money, but dealing with stress, instability, and a lot more responsibilities. It was exhausting.
Both paths had their pros and cons.
"I really have to thank you!"
Monica said sincerely. "If you hadn't lent me 500 bucks for ingredients and encouraged me to take a chance, I never would've accepted such a big job."
Catering jobs varied in size. She had only ever handled small gatherings of 10–20 people before. A 60-person event required a significant upfront investment.
Unemployed at the time, she probably would've turned it down if not for Adam's help.
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