The Last Time I Cried Your Name novel Chapter 546

Abacus sat in stunned silence for a moment, listening to the lack of movement outside the door.

Suddenly, he tossed his teething toy aside, scrambled to the other end of the sofa, and gripped the armrest, tilting his little head toward the entrance.

"Gale, uncle..."

But after a few seconds of staring, there was still no sign of Galen.

He pushed himself back onto his bottom. His little mouth puckered, and his chubby cheeks scrunched up into an expression of profound misery.

"Waa..."

The instant that sound escaped him, panic washed over Livia's face.

She dropped to a crouch in front of the sofa, her brows knitted tight as she whispered fiercely, "Don't cry."

But Abacus entirely ignored her command, drawing in a massive breath.

In that split second before the toddler unleashed a full-blown wail, Livia—who had literally never comforted a child since Galen was a toddler—panicked. In a flurry of uncoordinated desperation, she reached out and poked his squishy, chubby cheek with her index finger.

Abacus froze.

The heavy tears wobbling on his lashes hung in suspense.

Livia froze, too.

She had no idea a baby's cheek could be so incredibly soft and delicate.

For several agonizing seconds, the two of them just stared at each other, wide-eyed. To Livia's immense relief, he seemed to have stopped crying.

But just as she let out a breath, the toddler let out another whimpering sound, his face scrunching up once more.

"Don't cry," she ordered again, reaching out to gently poke his cheek a second time.

Abacus paused again.

Livia felt like she had discovered the magic off-switch to toddler tears. Apparently, all you had to do was poke his cheek.

When Galen returned, he walked in on Livia crouching by the sofa. She had one hand propping up her chin and the other rhythmically poking Abacus's face.

The little boy looked utterly bewildered, likely trying to comprehend why this lady kept jabbing him.

Meanwhile, the icy armor in Livia's eyes had melted into something soft and radiant. A faint smile grazed her lips as she gazed intently at the child.

As the seconds ticked violently against Galen's heartbeat, a dark, suffocating fury eclipsed his face.

He narrowed his eyes, his voice dropping to a terrifyingly soft whisper. "What did you just say?"

Unfazed by his lethal aura, Livia maintained her flat cadence. "You refuse to use protection. There is zero chance I will ever carry your child, and I absolutely refuse to damage my own body by taking birth control. So, the only logical step was to eliminate the problem at the source."

Years of suffocating beneath his control had eroded her sanity, breeding a dark, twisted psychology. Originally, she had genuinely planned to chemically castrate him altogether.

But then she overheard their adoptive mother praying for grandchildren, and she changed her mind.

"Mom and dad raised me. I owe them my life, and I won't let the Carter family bloodline die out. Once you marry another woman, I will naturally provide the antidote."

"Heh." A violent storm raged in Galen's pitch-black eyes. He ground his molars together, a sinister sneer twisting his mouth. "I didn't realize my big sister had so much nerve."

Never breaking his predatory stare, he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed a number.

The line connected.

"Jay. Get down to the Cabinda Institute of Pharmacology and pick up Manley right now. I have some family business to handle."