Chapter 214: Scents of Nonsense

Morty asked her what music she liked with the practiced ease of a professional driver, making Ellis wonder if he drove for a living.

“I’ll just listen on my headphones,” she declined.

In truth, she didn’t want to listen to music at all; the headphones were silent. But Morty’s behavior tonight felt increasingly strange to her, and she’d almost prefer his usual sarcastic tone, which at least was familiar and less unnerving.

For the rest of the ride, aside from asking about her music preferences and where she lived, Morty stayed silent, more like a professional driver focused solely on safely delivering his passenger. Ellis ignored the person in the driver’s seat, preferring to play with Maya. Maya was quite smart for a dog, seemingly understanding everything she said and responding well, which made interacting with her a lot more enjoyable than dealing with her owner.

So engrossed was she in playing with Maya that she didn’t notice the occasional glances a pair of male eyes made in the rearview mirror. Every time the eyeballs moved, they were pointed in her direction. When the car stopped, Ellis cheerfully said to Maya, “I’m home now, bye! See you Sunday!”

She had grown accustomed to running into Morty walking his dog at Petal Estates, and had come to expect to see Maya on Sundays. As she reached for the door handle to get out, Morty had already exited the car and, with a touch of gentlemanly flair, opened the door for her.

Despite her dislike for Morty, considering he had driven her home, she felt obliged to be polite. As she got out of the car, she nodded, “Thanks.” Morty didn’t respond to her thanks, but she didn’t mind.

As she stepped onto the sidewalk and turned to walk into her complex, Morty spoke up.

“Good night, and have sweet dreams.”

Coming from anyone else, these words wouldn’t have struck her as odd. But coming from Morty, they seemed bizarre.

Ellis paused and shot a glance at Morty. “Dude, did you take the wrong pills or something? You’re not just idle tonight, you’re creepy! What’s your deal!”

Under the night sky, Morty didn’t reply but got back into his car and drove away. Watching the car that had brought her home disappear into the traffic, Ellis was utterly baffled.

Did she and Easton just naturally clash, extending to his circle of friends too? Morty’s peculiar behavior made it hard not to feel confused and guarded.

With these thoughts, she walked into her house and was about to change into slippers when Maya came over, sniffed her curiously, and asked, “Why do you smell like men’s cologne?”

“I didn’t wear any perfume.”

“Where did you pick that up?” Maya teased, raising the topic playfully. “Did you have a date with some guy? Got a new beau?”

“I’ve been working all day, dead tired, and you’re suggesting I went on a date? Are you insulting me?” Ellis flopped onto the sofa. “I just want to make money; men can take a hike.”

“He who has no men in his heart draws his sword like a god!” Maya sat on the opposite armchair, tossing a pillow to Ellis to hug. “Don’t just lie there, go freshen up before your procrastination kicks in and you end up staying up late.”

“No, I’m thinking.”

“Thinking about what?”

“Morty is super weird!” Ellis sat up, facing Maya squarely.

“Did he give you that sarcastic attitude again?” Maya’s first thought was that Morty had been condescending to Ellis again.

“Not exactly.” Ellis tilted her head. “I ran into him walking his dog today at Petal Estates. After I was done, I saw him again, still walking his dog. He insisted on walking me to the gate of Petal Estates and then drove me home.”

Maya paused. “Didn’t you guys get on friendly terms after he became a client of your company? You’re friendly to that extent now! He even drove you home!”

Ellis shook her head. “It’s not really friendly. I couldn’t stand him tonight, and I wasn’t nice in what I said either.”

“Does he have a masochistic streak: The worse you treat him, the more he clings?”

“No, he wasn’t like this before. He used to be really mouthy. Now, he’s changed: no matter how harsh I am, he doesn’t fight back.”

“Huh?” Maya couldn’t fathom Morty’s behavior but recalled a recent polite encounter with him at Nexus Group, which didn’t align with his formerly immature behavior.

“Could it be that Victoria has tasked him with getting close to me, to take me out at the right moment?” Ellis half-joked, half-seriously considering the likelihood.

“Maybe you should stay away from Easton and his crowd? Avoid any potential mischief and nip any danger in the bud.”

“That’s what I was thinking.”

After their chat, Ellis went back to her room. Before washing up, she sniffed herself. Indeed, there was a faint scent of cologne as Maya had mentioned, detectable if she got close enough.