When he heard what Erica said, Louie breathed a sigh of relief and nodded seriously. "Don't worry! I'll be good to Tessie," he said. As long as Tessie was okay living with him, he'd make her really happy.
His first wife had cheated on him. She couldn't take the loneliness anymore, or so she said. He divorced her once he found out.
They continued their bull session. Louie told Erica he owed her dinner. He had to find some way to repay her for taking care of Tessie.
Erica didn't turn him down. Anyway, she was going to stay with her family for Spring Festival. Matthew would be coming up to visit, and they'd go back home to Y City together.
She had never imagined she'd be without him for so long. She'd been there half a month, and Matthew hadn't shown up yet. And he did something pretty major while she was gone.
One day, she was out with the kids. They were at a playground, and the kids were having a great time, laughing and shrieking. Wesley was playing with his grandsons nearby. Erica sat on a swing and casually opened Weibo.
She listlessly scrolled through the shared content and status updates. Finally, something caught her eye. "Michel Wang, Drug Lord, Captured."
She tapped it to get a more in-depth look. It said, "Michel Wang, CEO of Wang Group, long suspected as a drug lord and racking up an impressive list of charges, was hauled in for questioning by local police yesterday.
Eight major players in the financial industry remain under suspicion, including the well-known entrepreneur Neville Chai, chairman of Champion Group. The police say they'll know more as they continue their investigation."
She jumped off the swing excitedly and asked Wesley, "Dad, where's my brother?"
Gifford hadn't been home these past few days. Chantel had been here two days already, but hadn't yet seen her husband.
Wesley knew he couldn't hide it from her anymore. "Your brother, Sheffield, and your hubby are doing something in Y City," he answered.
"And just what are they doing?" Erica pressed.
Standing in front of her, Wesley didn't answer her question. Instead, he said in a soft voice, "The men in our family can handle themselves. We don't want you going up against a drug lord."
They had Matthew, Gifford, Sheffield, Joshua, Remus, Harmon and Sean. Each of them had their own strengths, each of them useful in the fight against evil.
Erica pouted and cried indignantly, "Dad! You're so sexist, you know that?"
Although she was not as powerful as a man, she could at least help. She thought Matthew would bring her along.
But now? What was he doing? He did everything behind her back.
"I'm not sexist. I just think that men should protect their women. Come on, let me explain it to you." Wesley pulled out a small stool and sat beside her.
What Matthew feared most was that Erica would be angry, so Wesley decided to talk to her first. Maybe he could smooth things over.
"What is there to say? You can talk to me till you're blue in the face, but it won't change anything. Matthew broke his promise. He not only left me here alone, but also dealt with my enemy. He thought I wouldn't find out? I wanted to avenge Orange myself!" The more Erica thought about it, the angrier she became.
Wesley patted her on the arm and demanded, "Come here, you. Let's talk about this like reasonable adults."
Seeing his stern eyes, Erica had to reluctantly sit back down on the swing, gripping the chains defiantly.
"Put yourself in Matthew's shoes for a minute. If you were him, would you hide behind a woman and let her put herself in danger?" Wesley asked in a calm voice.
"Dad, it's not like that..." Matthew wasn't hiding behind her; it was just that she didn't want him to get involved.
"But it is, sweetie! I know you want to find the evidence of Michel's crime, but have you really thought this through? You're good, but not that good. By the time you uncover everything, Michel's grandson will be all grown up, and replace him. More importantly, if you delay this kind of thing for one more day, that will put countless people at risk from his dealers. They have a well-entrenched network, and he could easily increase the number of people hooked on his product. Michel's not your garden-variety drug lord. The police had found out a ton of drugs in Kirk's place, and he was just a lackey. If those supporting Michel rallied their forces, then he might be difficult at best to deal with. He'd be like a plant with many roots. You might uproot some of them, but the rest just can't be seen. It's really scary, Rika." Wesley looked serious. He didn't try to frighten Erica, nor did he lie to her. He believed that she understood.
Erica knew her father was right, but she was still angry Matthew went back on his word.
Wesley looked at his silent daughter and knew she was fuming. "Well, don't be angry. You and Matthew have the same goal, that is, you want to bring Michel and his men to justice. You want to do it to avenge your friend. But what about Matthew? He did it all for you! Just for you! Why would he risk his life otherwise? He's the CEO of ZL Group. Why did he mess with a powerful drug lord? If you're still mad at him, Rika, I'll disown you. I'm not going to have someone like you as my daughter. Think it over!"
After saying that, Wesley stood up and left the garden.
Erica was flabbergasted. Apparently he hadn't thought it over, either. Would he give up seeing his grandkids that easily? She had not even been that angry. She thought she stated her case firmly, without getting upset. Why was Wesley so mad? Why did he leave as soon as he stood up? "Aren't you watching the kids?" she asked.
Without turning his head, Wesley answered, "No. I was pissed off so I let Blair handle them."
Erica was not convinced. She whispered, "You're mad at me, not them. Don't punish them to get back at me, okay?"
Blair looked at the father and daughter from a distance and guessed what was going on. She figured that Erica had put Wesley out of sorts again.
She watched her grandsons play in the garden and didn't seem to mind at all. Erica and her father were always fighting. It was how they showed they loved each other. Ironically, Wesley was closer to Erica than Blair was.
At Orchid Private Club
Matthew lit a cigarette and played with the lighter. He closed his eyes and tried to relax.
Cigarette in his mouth, Sheffield looked around but couldn't find his own lighter. Finally, he stood up, grabbed the lighter from Matthew's hand, lit his cigarette, and handed it to Gifford.
At the sight of the lighter, Gifford suddenly remembered something and popped off with, "Dad has a lighter that's so old it's broken. He still keeps it around. It's one of his little treasures."
Joshua reclined on the sofa and replied, "Maybe your mom gave it to him. He wouldn't throw something like that out."
Sheffield took off his suit jacket and draped it over the back of the chair. He agreed with Joshua. "A woman gave it to him. Yeah, it's just like him to keep it around."
Gifford chuckled. "You're both right."
"Of course I am. After all these years, your dad is still a henpecked husband," Sheffield said with a proud smile.
The three of them chatted for a while. Gifford kicked Matthew's toes and asked, "Hey, what are you thinking about?"
Matthew opened his eyes and looked into Gifford's eyes. "I'm thinking about your sister."
Before Gifford could tease him, Matthew added, "She's going to be so pissed when she found out what we did!"
Gifford chuckled after hearing that.
Sheffield burst into laughter. "Dude, you are so screwed. Don't let her cook or pour you a drink." Erica was not that easy-going.
In fact, from the very beginning, they had been investigating Michel and his business behind Erica's back, and had done their best to expose and report him.
Matthew glanced at Sheffield indifferently. "Man, you're the charmer of the group. Tell me what to say to her."
Sheffield exhaled a mouthful of smoke and said, "I think she can be swayed by reason but not be cowed by force. Do something to demonstrate you're sorry. Kneel on a keyboard or durian shells. The rest depends on her."