Portia's explanations made Blanche feel better about her plan. She was still wary, but Portia seemed logical about this. "But it's not easy to get close to Mr. Huo," she said to her daughter.
"I know. From now on I'll work harder to stand out. You and Dad can try your best to get me the invitations of the parties, dinners, and commercial activities Carlos will attend," said Portia.
She had been trying to be a better woman all the time. It used to be just for show, but now it was for Carlos.
She understood that only an exceptional woman deserved to stand by him.
In New York
The next morning, some professionals came to the Huos' house to investigate the case involving the missing items. Debbie just wanted to get out of there, so she left the house with Carlos without asking the men anything.
She felt much better after wandering around and having some fun.
When the sun started to set, it was time to go back. She wanted to find Carlos to go home together with him, but then she learned that he wasn't in the office, so she had to head home alone.
Since it was late, she ate dinner outside. When she went back inside, not a single soul was around.
The chandelier in the living room had been switched off. Only some dim wall fittings in the hallway were on. The place was almost eerie now. Debbie paused. She could almost hear ghosts, but she wasn't sure what it was. The shadows on the walls did little to dispel the unsettling feeling. She peered into the gloom, trying to see into adjoining areas, but had little luck. She changed into slippers at the vestibule. Just as she walked into the living room, some noises startled her. This wasn't her imagination this time. Debbie looked towards the sound.
A shadow was descending the staircase, trying to be stealthy. Debbie swiftly hid herself behind the shoe cabinet and watched. It was a man, she was sure of it. And the man seemed to be...
At the corner of the stairs, he knocked over a potted plant but was quick enough to catch it.
He looked around carefully. Seeing that no one was around, he moved on.
Debbie followed him cautiously. To her surprise, the man walked towards the storage room she had cleaned.
He walked into the room and locked it from inside after looking left and right shiftily.
Pressed against the wall, Debbie walked quietly to the door of the storage room and listened carefully as she held her breath.
Someone was talking. Too bad she couldn't hear clearly. But one thing was clear—there was a woman inside!
Debbie had a nasty feeling something bad was going to happen. Sure enough, obscene moans hit her ears shortly afterwards.
'Crap! Why do I have to be the one to find out about this?' Debbie thought in frustration.
The two inside were getting noisier. Debbie covered her ears and started to walk back to the living room.
She felt bad about the storage room. It had taken her a couple of hours to clean it, and now it was used to sneak some nookie.
As soon as she reached the living room, Lewis spotted her.
His sudden appearance scared the life out of her. He trotted over to Debbie excitedly and said loudly, "Deb, Deb, you're home. I came downstairs to grab a can of pop—" He was so loud
Debbie had to cover his mouth with her hand and drag him aside.
"Shh! Keep your voice down! The others are sleeping. Do you want to wake everybody up?"
Lewis' eyes narrowed into thin lines as he stroked Debbie's hand with a grin. Debbie let him go immediately and smacked his head. "Touch me again and I'll gut you like a fish!" she warned.
Lewis asked with a goofy smile, "Deb, did you come home alone? Where's Carlos? He isn't home yet?"
Reluctant to talk to him, Debbie wiped her hand on his clothes and went upstairs.
Lewis watched her and swallowed hard.
"Lewis, why are you even here?" a man's voice asked casually. It seemed he was coming from where the storage room was.
Lewis turned to him and looked behind him. "I came down to get a pop. But Uncle James, why did you come that way?"
James smiled. "Oh, I came down to get a glass of water, but then I had to answer the call of nature, so I went to the bathroom first."
The bathroom and the storage room on the first floor were the same way, so Lewis didn't think anything of it and went to the kitchen.
James looked upstairs while pouring himself some water. He asked, "Who were you talking to?"
"Oh, it was... it was Debbie." Lewis intended to say Deb but changed it, considering it sounded a little too intimate.
James' face fell when he heard that. "Oh? What did she come down for?" he asked, pretending to look at Lewis casually. Lewis wasn't buying it. The old man couldn't conceal his contempt for his daughter-in-law. He was tense, too.
"I don't know. When I saw her, she was coming that way." Lewis pointed to the bathroom after he closed the refrigerator door. Thinking that James had just come from the bathroom, he added, "Since you were in the bathroom, maybe she had been to the storage room."
Except for the bathroom and storage room, all the rooms on the first floor were guest rooms.
James lost his cool when the storage room was mentioned. "Did she say why she went there?"
Lewis was confused. He shook his head and wondered, "No, she didn't. Uncle James, What's wrong? You look nervous."
Realizing he was overreacting, James forced a smile. "Nothing. Just curious. You know some things have gone missing in this house recently. We all should be more careful."
James thought about it for a while, and an idea popped in his head. "Carlos won't be back for awhile. Why don't you go to her ask her why she went there? And tell her not to wander around. It looks suspicious as all hell."
All Lewis heard were "Carlos won't be back for awhile," and "go to Debbie's room." He swallowed and nodded immediately, "Sure, Uncle James. I'll tell her."
A trace of contempt appeared in James's eyes as he found out how horny Lewis looked when it came to Debbie. He conceal his emotions and suggested, "Let's go upstairs."
"Yes, Uncle James." Lewis took a huge gulp of soda and followed him.
As soon as they left the living room, a figure snuck out of the storage room, left by the back door, and walked towards the servants' quarters.
Once she was back in her bedroom, Debbie wondered if she should tell Carlos about the disgraceful affair she had discovered.
Should she pretend nothin happened or tell Carlos the truth?
If she kept her mouth shut, she would feel bad about keeping something this big from him.
But if she said anything, surely the matter would turn the house upside down like a torpedo.
She had started thinking about the question the minute she walked in. She thought about it during shower. She thought about it when she was brushing her teeth. After being mentally tortured by the question for more than half an hour, she felt like she was having a meltdown. "oh, whatever." She finally gave up and pushed the thought aside. Lying in bed, she started reading updates on Weibo. That was much more fun.
She typed the name Carlos Huo in the search bar, and saw all the news about him.
Most posts were focused on his marriage.
The night deedpened. It was 11p.m., and yet Carlos was still now back. "Mr. Huo, honey, when are you coming home?" she couldn't help asking him in a text.
But there was no reply. She waited for about five minutes. Then she texted him again. "Don't work too late. I'm waiting for you to tuckw in, honey."