Volume 4: White Devil Chapter 268: Ready to Show Muscle
After seeing his wife Jessica walk into the operating room before but now being pushed out by the nurse in a wheelchair, with the weight of the plaster cast on her left leg looking heavy enough for a sculptor to make a statue of David, Jeff's brain was a little overwhelmed. He looked at the nurse who was pushing Jessica and wanted to ask several questions, but he hesitated.
The main reason is that Jessica's appearance is too scary. It doesn't look like she went to the hospital for a check-up because of a calf bruise, but more like a comminuted fracture. She might not be able to stand up again for the rest of her life.
Jessica seemed to be more sober than Jeff. She was wearing a hospital gown and holding the wheelchair armrests with both hands. She consoled her husband, "Don't worry, Jeff. The doctor has taken care of it for me. The injury is not serious. In about two months, I will be able to move freely like before without any sequelae."
It was not until the nurse pushed Jessica into the luxurious single room and there was no one else in the room that Jeff turned his head and looked at Tommy who had arrived just over ten minutes ago: "Tommy, this is a lie. Jessica just hit a bench on the side of the road with her car and had some bruises on her calves. Doctors don't lie. If you just ask a few people, you will know that Jessica is lying. She is not as badly injured as she looks. Why should we lie to her?"
"I can answer your question. First, this is a private hospital . My father-in-law's friend is the owner of this hospital. The doctor who treated Jessica is his student. Moreover, the insurance company did not pay for the treatment this time, so everything can be manipulated. For example, a bruise can turn into a bone fracture. The problem of bone fracture is very magical. It can be very light or very serious. Whether it is serious depends entirely on the doctor's mood. For example, if you are a poor guy and you don't pay the bill for drinking in a bar, you get a bone fracture from being beaten by the bartender. If you go to a public hospital for treatment, the doctor may prescribe you a few weeks of painkillers and let you go." Tommy sat on the sofa in the living room of the ward, flipping through the entertainment magazines provided by the hospital for patients to entertain themselves, and said:
"But in a private hospital, as long as you are willing to pay, even if it is a bone fracture, you can get treatment comparable to amputation. We are not lying. You can tell everyone that Jessica has a bone fracture, but the doctor has the right to decide how to treat her. For specific questions, let those who are curious ask the doctor. He will tell them why the plaster on Jessica's leg is heavier than yours. And don't worry, you won't have to pay for the treatment."
"I can pay for the treatment myself, Tommy. I'm not worried about the cost, and you don't need to pay for me..."
"NoNoNo~ I'm not the one who paid for this. My father-in-law paid for you. He promised the owner of this hospital that he would give him a reasonable discount price next time he buys a yacht." Tommy put down the magazine, walked to Jessica's wheelchair, squatted down, patted the plaster on Jessica's leg, and asked with a smile, "How do you feel, Jessica?"
Jessica turned away with a sullen face, obviously not wanting to see Tommy, the bastard. "The nurse who put the plaster on me must not have a boyfriend. She was jealous of me. I injured my left calf, but look at me now, Tommy, that crazy woman is almost making me a pair of pantyhose with plaster. Didn't you tell me that my husband is running for election? Besides being injured, I have to abstain from sex."
Who could have thought that her husband and his two smart buddies just registered to run for election and tried to spread the flat earth theory as if they were playing a game, and suddenly it would turn out like this?
After Jeff met Tommy, everything changed. Not only did Jeff become like an abnormal normal person, but she herself was almost becoming a mental patient. She didn't understand why she had to sit in a wheelchair just for an election and the nurse gave her a pair of plaster stockings that could help her abstain from sex.
"I know you've always wanted to have another daughter. Don't worry that this thing will affect you and Jeff's pregnancy. Your dedicated medical team will help you take it off every night so you can sleep well. As long as you promise to put it back on at dawn , and if you cooperate, I can let the two dogs who are fostered in the countryside come to the hospital to accompany you. This private hospital allows patients to bring their pets for treatment." Tommy stood up and looked at Jeff.
"You think Jessica is deceiving everyone by being in a wheelchair, don't you?"
"Tommy, you always tell me to do the right thing. I don't think this is the right thing. We are men. Men can solve all problems by themselves and shouldn't let their wives... Like now, I can face all opponents head-on. I have the courage to face them." Jeff said to Tommy seriously.
During the time he had known Tommy and Martin, he had changed a lot. Before, he could only read Bible stories in front of children, but now he could give speeches skillfully in front of the TV camera. Before, he could only show a harmless smile, but now he could frown for dozens of minutes just to make himself look very serious.
He even learned to use more aggressive language to criticize his opponents after Martin's repeated threats with the electric shock device. He can change, but that doesn't mean he is willing to do so in his heart. He just wants to not disappoint those who support him, and with Martin's constant reminders, he tries to force himself to do so.
And now, his wife actually sat in a wheelchair just to cooperate with him in running for election. Jeff felt that this was completely unnecessary. He could face those opponents by himself. There was no need to let Jessica use a pitiful look to gain sympathy. That would only make him feel guilty, because for so many years, anything outside the family, no matter how hard or tiring the work was, was handled by Jeff as a man and head of the family. That was what a man should do. Whether the job was repairing pipes or participating in elections, it should not change Jessica's life.
His Jessica should be humming songs while doing housework at home, or playing with the dog in the backyard, or driving the children to the supermarket for shopping, instead of sitting in a wheelchair like now, looking unhappy.
"Do you have the courage to face your opponent? Do you really have it, Jeff?" Tommy looked at the big, good man in front of him with a smile and asked.
Jeff nodded: "Of course."
"Very good. Just before I rushed to the hospital, there were several vicious incidents of veterans beating Cubans in the 18th District. Those veterans said at the police station that they did such things because they were influenced by you in the televised primary debate." Tommy told Jeff the news he had received.
Jeff was stunned for a moment, and after more than ten seconds he asked, "No~Oh my God~Are those who were beaten seriously injured? I...I mean those veterans who beat people, were they all influenced by me?"
"It's not serious, but there are many witnesses. The severity of the injury is not important. Just like Jessica's injury, it can change at any time as the situation develops. What's important is the voters' attitude towards you, and whether you have the courage to face it..." Compared to Jeff's shock, Tommy still had a nonchalant expression and spoke gently.
Jeff interrupted Tommy: "Of course I have the courage to face those veterans. I want to ask them clearly why they did this. I..."
"Don't go to face those veterans who injured people. I need you to have the courage to face the wounded. You have to go to the hospital to visit those Cuban injured." Tommy corrected Jeff's words.
Jeff's expression was a little embarrassed. Although he had never said anything to incite the veterans to hurt people, his speeches since he ran for election had always been directed at Cuban illegal immigrants. In the minds of Cuban voters, his image was almost equivalent to that of a white racist. When he faced those hurt Cubans, he didn't even know what to say. He had nothing to say except sorry.
Thinking of this, he asked: "Should I apologize to them on behalf of the veterans? I am willing to do so."
"Yes, you have to apologize and say you are very, very sorry that this happened and you had no idea it happened, but you fully understand why the veterans did this," Tommy said.
Jeff didn't object, but Jessica, who was sitting in a wheelchair next to him and listening attentively, reacted: "You want Jeff to admit that the veterans' beatings had something to do with him? He will be torn to pieces by the Cubans! He can't go to see those Cubans!"
"Shh~ calm down, Jessica." Tommy raised his index finger to his lips and made a quiet gesture to Jessica: "You are hurt, don't talk."
"I don't want to attend my husband's funeral in a wheelchair, Tommy. When will you let us go? I don't want to be a widow in a wheelchair." Jessica said dissatisfiedly.
Tommy pushed Jessica in a wheelchair to the door of the independent bathroom in the ward and let Jessica face the bathroom: "Use this time to learn how amputees go to the bathroom, Jessica."
Leaving Jessica staring at the bathroom in a daze, Tommy walked back and continued to Jeff, "I had someone check the time. The veteran's beating happened three minutes after Jessica had a traffic accident. Although it's a bit exaggerated, it can barely serve as an excuse. You have to tell the injured Cubans that it was an accident. It's likely that the angry veterans did this in a fit of rage after learning that Jessica was maliciously stopped and injured by Cuban stowaways. You apologize to them on behalf of the veterans, and then say something disgusting to the Cubans."
"Do you think they will forgive me because Jessica was injured?" Jeff frowned, scratched the back of his head, and asked doubtfully.
"Of course not. If they hadn't had their balls castrated by Castro and were still men, they would have shown you some color. Of course, if they don't dare, Paige will arrange for people to do it for them, such as throwing paint all over you to humiliate you, and then you have to let them see your strength." Tommy said to Jeff considerately, "You can choose a color you like first, and I'll let Paige tell people to prepare it."
"My power ? What power do I have? You and Martin and the others?" Jeff asked puzzled.
Tommy looked at Jeff. "Veterans from four cities are driving to Miami to attend a campaign rally held by the Crossroads Foundation, which is the foundation I founded. The founders of seven Christian denominations in Florida will also come to support you and give speeches to canvass for votes at this rally. This is part of the power you show after being enraged."
"Hasn't it always been me who's giving speeches and canvassing for votes?" Jeff was even more surprised to hear that Tommy had arranged for other people to help him organize rallies and canvass for votes.
Tommy walked to the bathroom door and pushed Jessica, who had already greeted her family several times, back and said, "You don't need to attend. This is a show of strength. This can't be done by Ileana Letty. This is an internal action of the Democratic Party against you. They don't believe that you have the ability to be successfully elected, or they think that you have nothing but a mouth, so they are looking for trouble with you. This rally where you are not required to attend is to prove to them what else you have besides a mouth."
"Then why did they find seven founders of Christian denominations to speak to veterans?"
"First, you need to publicly clarify that this kind of rally has nothing to do with you, even if the whole world knows that they are your supporters. Second, I believe that if the seven founders of the sects take turns to give speeches, and those veterans with low education still have self-awareness, there is only one possibility, that he is definitely a Soviet communist spy lurking in the United States." Tommy looked at Jeff:
"I just want to make it clear to everyone. If there are still people in the fucking Democratic Party who think you are just a plumber, you can let countless veterans who have fought in the battlefield and whose hands are stained with blood and are now brainwashed to destroy everything the Democratic Party has in this district for you, so that it will not have a chance to win this district in the next 30 years."
"Then what do I do?"
"During the rally, you took Martin and your team members, as well as some reporters, to the Miami Police Department and expressed your intention to donate money to the Miami Police Foundation. You told them that a large number of veterans who had experienced the Vietnam War had told you that they hoped you could help them communicate with the police department. They did not want any compensation, but were willing to spend more than ten hours a week as volunteers out of the simple reason of patriotism to cooperate with the police in combating crimes committed by illegal immigrants in the 18th District."
"That's a great idea!" Jeff's eyes lit up after hearing what Tommy said: "Veterans are willing to take time out every week to serve as volunteer police? This will definitely be of great help to improve the security of the constituency!"
"Jeff, even I understand what Tommy said!" Jessica was sitting in a wheelchair pushed by Tommy. She heard her husband think Tommy had a good idea and said irritably:
"He wanted to tell those people in the Democratic Party that if they don't give you a reasonable explanation and compensation for the false accusation that you incited the veterans to beat up the Cubans, Tommy will let those brainwashed veterans beat up or even kill Cubans in the name of supporting you and the Democratic Party."
Tommy nodded and said to Jessica, "Jessica, you are as wise as Hillary to Jeff."
Then he raised his head and looked at Jeff: "That's pretty much it. If the Democrats dare to get you out of this district, you'll get the Democrats out of this district."
