Take My Breath Away

Although Portia was acting rather odd, Debbie didn't say anything about it. After all, they were not friends. Debbie didn't give a damn about her mental state.

"I have a message for you, Lewis Huo. Now that you married Portia, just treat her right," Debbie said as she pulled something from her pocket.

Lewis kept nodding his head, staring at the table instead of looking Debbie in the eye. Big mistake, because suddenly the girl opened the knife and stuck it in the table with a thunk! His face turned pale immediately.

But Debbie wasn't done. She threatened, "Do something stupid again, like flirting with other girls... I'll chop your dick off!"

Frightened, Lewis clamped his legs shut and nodded vigorously. "Easy, easy! I swear I'll be nice to Portia. Jeez!"

The truth was Carlos had already fixed it, so Lewis would no longer be welcome at any club in Y City or New York. Debbie's husband was nothing if not thorough.

Upon hearing that, Debbie took the knife back and pushed the gift towards Lewis. "I don't need this. Buy your wife something nice instead."

Lewis gulped and nodded again. "Got it."

Saying nothing more, Debbie cast a warning glance at him before leaving the cafe.

.A few days passed. Kasie called Debbie and told her the Huo family members had returned to New York. But Lewis was not among them. Carlos put him behind bars, and told him he had three months to reflect on what he had done.

If Lewis realized where he'd gone wrong and promised to mend his ways, Carlos would let him go. If he didn't, Carlos would still stop him from being released from prison.

Portia, the once proud princess, couldn't accept this and tried to OD on sleeping pills. Luckily, her family discovered it in time and took her to the hospital to have her stomach pumped.

After being discharged from the hospital, Portia went back home and transferred to a new college. No entertainment company would sign her, since her damaged reputation preceded her. Kasie had no idea what college Portia was attending. After Lewis got imprisoned, Portia went back to the Gu family and into Hayden's care. He would look after his sister.

And the pregnant woman who lied to Debbie? Before Carlos put Lewis behind bars, the latter had taken her to the hospital to get an abortion. He had paid her for her silence and told her to leave Y City.

When Debbie thought that her life would finally be back to normal, Carlos' grandpa woke up. Of course the Huo family members notified Carlos, and he flew to England on his private plane to pick up Debbie. Then they flew to New York together.

At the hospital

By the time Debbie and Carlos arrived, all the other members of the Huo family were there. Wade and James were talking outside the ward. Carlos walked over and shook his uncle's hand. "Uncle Wade," he said in greeting.

Debbie greeted Wade as well.

Neither of them said a word to James. Not a "hi", not even acknowledging he was there. James' face turned livid.

Wade spoke up, breaking the ice. "Took you long enough. Carlos, your grandpa has been waiting for you for awhile. He'll be glad you came."

Carlos nodded and entered the ward with Debbie on his arm.

Inside the ward, Valerie sat on the edge of the bed, staring at her husband, who drifted in and out of consciousness. Tabitha and Gloria were standing behind her, weeping. The air inside the ward was too thick to breathe.

When they saw the couple walk in, they made room for them. Tabitha wiped her tears from her face, bent over and called out in a soft voice, "Dad, Carlos is here."

The old man in the bed was a mere bag of bones. He struggled to open his eyes.

Carlos disentangled Debbie's fingers from his own, and came over to the bed. He slowly and gently took his grandpa's hand. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Grandpa, I'm here."

Seeing his beloved grandson, Douglas flashed a smile. He gasped, "Carlos..."

"Grandpa..." Carlos' voice was shaking. His calm and cool persona was shattered at the sight of his grandfather one step away from the pearly gates.

"My grandson..." Douglas shifted his gaze from Carlos to the girl behind him. With a grin, he raised his finger and pointed at Debbie.

Carlos grabbed Debbie's hand and pulled her to Douglas. "Grandpa, this is my wife, Debbie Nian. Remember? You arranged our marriage."

Trying hard to suppress her sadness, Debbie gave the old man a big grin. "Hi Grandpa. I'm Debbie. Nice to meet you."

Douglas was glad that the couple seemed to love each other very much. Love was what the Huo family needed more of. "Great... You're both... good kids..."

Then he turned to the others in the ward and stammered, "You...get out... Carlos...stay... I...have something to....tell you."

The others present looked at each other and then left the ward one after another. They knew these would be Douglas' last words.

Debbie was the last one to leave the ward. She closed the door behind her.

Through the glass door, she looked at Carlos, who was also staring at her. When their eyes met, Carlos nodded at her to try and reassure her. This was a trying time for everyone.

The hallway got so quiet you could hear a pin drop. James must be really sad at this moment as he didn't even try to mess with Debbie.

After a while, Miranda took Debbie to the end of the hallway, away from the others. Staring out the window, she told her in a whisper, "The biggest secret of the Huo family is about to be exposed. The secret has been kept for more than twenty years."

'The biggest secret of the Huo family?' Debbie was confused. "What is it?" she asked.

Miranda turned to Debbie and gave her a meaningful look. "Carlos' grandpa is dying. You better be careful with James from now on."

Again, Debbie didn't know what she was trying to say. But her words left Debbie uneasy.

Miranda said nothing more.

Unable to hold back any longer, Debbie asked, "Aunt Miranda, what are you trying to say?"

'She is acting weird today, ' Debbie thought.

But Miranda didn't answer her question. She just stood there, lost in thought.

More than ten minutes passed, and Carlos' cries came from within the ward. "Grandpa! Grandpa!" The call bell rang. Doctors and nurses rushed into the ward, one carrying a clipboard. They all had surgical masks obscuring their features. The Huo family members stood at the door, waiting anxiously.

Within two minutes, the attending doctor took off his gauze mask and said in a serious tone, "Mr. Huo, I'm sorry. But your grandpa passed away."

The Huo family members started crying, tears streaming down their faces.

Valerie called her husband's name again and again. Everyone in the ward was a hot mess at that moment.

Even though Valerie had mentally prepared for this moment, she passed out and fell into Frasier's arms. Luckily, this was a hospital, and the doctor helped her regain consciousness again quickly enough.

As Douglas liked things simple, his funeral was a basic one, with no frills.