The Last Time I Cried Your Name novel Chapter 539

"Send them in," Franco signaled to Jay.

Jay relayed the order to the secretary's desk.

Galen stared at Franco, who looked as immovable and unaffected as a mountain facing an avalanche. Suddenly, it dawned on him that maybe things weren't as chaotic as they seemed.

His panic had clouded his judgment. He had forgotten that while Franco might be hopelessly obsessed with a woman, he would never abandon his son.

"You're playing a dangerous game."

A public apology broadcasted across the entire internet?

"She's getting psychiatric treatment. She might not even have a phone on her, and Hans certainly isn't going to update her on your drama. Who is this apology even for?"

Reputation and power were both on the line. Was such a steep price truly worth it?

"It was my mistake to begin with. I promised I would give her, and Hans, the accountability they deserve. It doesn't matter if she sees it or not." Franco pushed back from his desk and stood.

Everything clicked into place for Galen.

Franco was deliberately generating this media firestorm to show the world that Petty was the only woman who had ever mattered to him. Laura was nothing more than a tool he had used to save his child.

Even so, plenty of online critics were tearing into him, calling his grand gesture a case of too little, too late. Now that she was gone, they felt he deserved exactly what he was getting.

The office doors swung open, and two uniformed police officers walked in, escorted by the secretary.

"Mr. White, you need to come with us."

Over at the military compound.

Arthur clicked the radio off and rubbed his temples.

"He covered for her, yes, but he wasn't aware of the crimes beforehand, nor did he act as an accomplice. He subdued the killer and handed her over to the police himself. The forged marriage certificate didn't result in any catastrophic fallout. It wasn't for financial gain, just a moral failing. Since he turned himself in, under our laws, he'll get a suspended sentence."

By those calculations, The White Group's legal team had already run the simulations: an eight-month sentence, suspended for a year. During that year, Franco would be legally barred from leaving Cabinda.

And until his probation was up, Franco would have to step down as chairman of the company.

He would have plenty of time to stay home and raise Abacus.

Knowing him, he was probably plotting a dozen other things, too.

But the most crucial detail was obvious—he had orchestrated this to put a legal leash on himself, physically preventing him from flying abroad to drag her back. In this world, the only things capable of reigning Franco in were Petty and the law.