Take My Breath Away

'Carlos left instead of waiting for me, ' Debbie thought, heartbroken and sad. She folded the papers, stuck them into her pocket, and reached out her hand. "Emmett, give me the car keys. I can drive myself home. You're free. Do whatever you want."

"I'm available now. Why not let me drive?" Emmett offered as he could tell something was not right with her.

"Thank you, but I'm good. Don't worry. I just need to go to the East City Villa first to fetch my luggage, and then head to the manor." Debbie took a deep breath, pretending to be calm.

Left with no choice, Emmett handed her the car keys. "Mr. Huo has the Emperor. This Mercedes-Benz belongs to the company. Just leave it in the manor, and I'll grab it later."

"Sure. Thank you, Emmett." Debbie took over the car keys and cranked the ignition. After hearing a satisfactory roar from the engine, she drove off.

Little did she know that Emmett walked into the hospital as soon as she was out of sight. He went straight to the obstetrics and gynecology department.

Several minutes later, Emmett called Carlos. "Mr. Huo, Mrs. Huo just drove herself back."

"Mmm." After a short pause, Carlos asked, "The test results?"

Recalling what the doctors had told him, Emmett swallowed before stammering, "Mr. Huo, the pills would harm a woman's health. The doctors suggested Mrs. Huo stop taking—"

Before he could finish, Carlos hung up the phone.

Emmett looked in the direction where Debbie left, and wondered, 'I thought Mr. and Mrs. Huo loved each other. Why take the pills?

What's more, everyone knows long-term use of birth control pills is harmful. Why did Mr. Huo allow his wife to take them?'

On her way, Debbie was absent-minded. She kept going over it in her head. What foods had she eaten recently? Could any of those foods cause the results to skew?

She had eaten a lot of seafood lately. And scientists had recently found contraceptive compounds in fish. Could the doctors be detecting that, instead?

Sometimes, she would pull over and think about whether there were the same steroidal compounds in seafood and what kind of seafood might have the same chemicals.

But she had to admit that she knew next to nothing about this.

When she arrived at East City Villa, she plugged her phone in to charge it, since the battery died. It was lunchtime; she ordered some food delivery on Meituan app. She sat down for a quick meal, then checked to make sure she had all her luggage, and drove towards the manor.

On her way to the manor, she kept thinking about what the doctors had told her. 'There must be something wrong with the two doctors. Is it possible that they were b

, but she paid it little mind. 'Not much time left. Need to break the window.'

She held the hammer, and put a ding in the window. At this point, she might run out of air before she got through. But she swung the hammer, again and again, with strength born of desperation. It didn't take long before a crack formed. Then, a spiderweb of cracks. Finally, the window exploded inward as torrents of water gushed into the cabin.

Holding her breath, she swam out of the car and made her way upwards.

The water was deep, and she had to hurry up.

The lack of oxygen made her feel dizzy. Although she had escaped the car, she had no idea whether she could make it all the way to the surface.

How she wished she could call Carlos and listen to his voice. She wanted to tell him that she loved him and wanted to have his baby. But she couldn't right now.

The water was muddy, and she was unable to open her eyes. She only heard a honk coming from far away.

It was winter, and the water was freezing. Luckily, she had taken off her down jacket in the car. Her soaked sweater alone was so heavy.

She struggled to take it off, and then she felt lighter.

She kicked her legs hard and saw the blue sky.

But then, the rapids washed over her, and the currents dragged her under again, as she gulped a mouthful of water.

Myriad feelings gripped her—cold, hurt, terrified, sad... 'Carlos Huo... Save me...'

Although she could swim, she gradually lost consciousness after staying in the water for so long. She wasn't cold anymore. Instead, she felt comforting warmth embrace her. It was a fiction, though—she knew the end was near.

'No! I can't die here. I haven't had a baby with Carlos yet. I haven't found my brother. I haven't said goodbye to my friends...'