After hanging up, Debbie waited impatiently at the entrance to the emergency department. Within half an hour, several ambulances pulled up, their sirens wailing loudly. More cars and military vehicles followed.
She didn't know which ambulance Carlos was in. All she could do was stand there and watch the doctors and nurses open the doors of the ambulances and shift the patients from the stretcher to the hospital cot.
She noticed that one of the ambulances had more doctors and nurses than the others. When the door opened, some military officers walked out of it in a hurry.
And a man covered in blood was carried out carefully. "Come and give a hand. Take care not to touch Mr. Huo," a doctor said hastily to a nurse.
'Mr. Huo?'
Debbie ran towards the stretcher. It was Carlos!
His face was as white as a sheet, and his clothes were blood-drenched. 'Blood… So much blood…My God!' Tears streamed down her cheeks.
One of the doctors wanted to push her out of the way, but all he said was, "Mrs. Huo, we're trying to save Mr. Huo. Every second is valuable. Please move out of the way."
"What… what happened to him?" It took Debbie a while to find her voice.
The doctor replied as he quickly wheeled the cot into the hospital, "A bandit stabbed him thrice and he was also shot twice. His old wound has also reopened. Mrs. Huo, we will do our best to save Mr. Huo's life. Right now, every second is crucial. Please excuse us."
Her face went deathly pale when she heard his situation. It was like a bomb exploding inside her brain, turning her world into complete darkness. She didn't know what to say or do. She just ran beside the cot.
Carlos was wheeled into the elevator. She pushed to the edge of the cot, grabbed his bloody hand and called in a whisper, "Carlos, Carlos…"
He heard her soft voice and his eyelids fluttered.
Debbie pressed his hand against her cheek. "Can you hear me, Carlos?" she asked tearfully. Slowly, Carlos opened one eye.
He saw her.
'Hmm… It's so good to see her…' Carlos' mouth twitched a little, but before he could say anything, he passed out.
When they got off the elevator, Debbie was asked to stay out of the operating room. The sign above the door of the operating room had been turned on. Damon and some injured military officers walked over to her.
"Is Carlos inside?" Damon asked as soon as he saw Debbie.
Debbie looked at the operating room and nodded slightly.
Damon was relieved. But he noticed that there was something wrong with her. She was pale and wouldn't stop crying.
"Both Carlos and Wesley were wounded. But there was a military surgeon with us, who gave them timely emergency treatment. Don't worry, they will be fine," he tried to comfort her.
Debbie just stood there, without moving.
Knowing what she was going through, Damon walked her to the bench outside the operating room and sat her down. "Carlos has Lady Luck watching over him. He is blessed. He will get through this."
Her fingers moved. A touch of light finally came to her eyes. She looked at Damon and asked, "Is there going to be a next time?"
Damon was wounded too, but it was not as serious as Carlos' situation. A doctor had attended to his wound in the ambulance. His arm was bandaged, and there was a band-aid on his cheek.
He replied positively, "A lot of the bandits are dead. The ones that survived are either wounded or arrested. This won't happen again. Don't worry."
'Don't worry?' Debbie didn't think so.
She wiped her eyes silently and leaned back against the bench. She was so tired.
Damon looked at her and sighed. "Carlos' family has been informed of his situation. James and Tabitha are on their way here."
Debbie remained silent.
At last, Damon said, "I'll go check on Wesley."
Debbie was left alone.
Learning what had happened to Carlos, Tristan and Emmett hurried to the hospital.
Emmett greeted Debbie when he saw her, "Mrs. Huo, don't worry. The doctor said that the military surgeon had been with them all along. Mr. Huo will be fine."
There was no response from her.
Seeing her like that
made both Tristan and Emmett worry. But they did not say anything more.
The surgery went on for five hours, during which, Debbie just sat there, refusing to eat or drink.
The food Emmett had brought for her lay there without being touched.
The sign above the door of the operating room was finally turned off. The doors opened, and the doctor walked out.
The people who were waiting outside gathered around the doctor. But Debbie didn't get up. She had been sitting there for so long that her legs were numb.
"All his wounds have been attended to. The nurses are taking him to the ICU. Once he is out of danger, he will be transferred to the general ward," she heard the doctor say.
'Once he is out of danger… So, that means that he is still in danger.'
When Carlos was pushed out of the operating room, Debbie managed to stand up and follow him to the ICU. Through the window, she watched the doctor and nurses move Carlos onto the hospital bed.
She stayed outside the room and waited, not knowing for how long. Many people came and told her to go home and get some rest.
She refused. She couldn't eat or sleep until Carlos woke up.
In the dead of the night, Debbie leaned against the wall, thinking about the times she and Carlos had spent together. Tristan was talking quietly on the phone. Hasty footsteps suddenly echoed in the hallway. Debbie turned to look.
It was James and Tabitha.
Tabitha's eyes were red and puffed from crying. She trotted towards Debbie and asked, "Where is my son? How is he?"
Debbie stood up from the bench and nodded to them in greeting.
Before she could answer, James slapped her across the face.
It was such a heavy blow that Debbie went right to the floor.
Lying there, she raised her head and saw the anger in James' eyes. His face was twisted in rage. 'Huh! How ironic this is. I slapped Megan this morning, and now the slap has been returned to me. Karma is a bitch, ' she thought bitterly.
Tabitha and Tristan were both taken aback by James' action.
"James, why did you hit her?" Tabitha asked, trembling. Tristan hung up immediately and helped Debbie to her feet.
James pointed at Debbie and barked, "Is this how you take care of my son? As his wife, what have you done for him? Nothing!"
Debbie sneered, "Learn the truth first before you point your finger at others. Your son got wounded because of Megan, not me."
The expression on James' face worsened. "Don't talk back to me! Look how rude you are. Carlos has spoiled you too much. Why didn't you stop him? This is ridiculous! He is a CEO now, not a soldier. Why did he want to be part of this mission?"
Debbie laughed. She looked at James sarcastically. "I was explaining the situation to you and you call that talking back? I didn't even know that he was going on a mission. How was I supposed to stop him? Since you are Carlos' father, I won't hit you back this time. But I won't tolerate it if you ever lay a finger on me again."
