The Last Time I Cried Your Name novel Chapter 198

The moment Harris hit the floor, images of Petty flashed in his mind just before everything went black.

Petty’s in danger.

That thought cut through the haze, sharp and cold. Panic clawed at him, ripping through his foggy senses. He bit down on his tongue hard enough to taste blood. The sharp sting pulled him back from the edge, his hands digging into the floor, knuckles bone-white as he forced himself upright.

Outside, a beam from the distant lighthouse swept the room. Pale light slid in through the window, just enough to bring out the shape of someone behind the door. Slowly, the face of the shadowy figure came into focus.

Harris forced his eyes open, just in time to see the man’s grim expression. “Harris...”

Harris felt icy shock trickle down his spine. It was his father’s personal bodyguard.

And Petty—

Before the man could even reach into his pocket for something white—a handkerchief maybe—Harris staggered to his feet. He lurched forward and clamped his hand over the bodyguard’s, catching him off guard.

Normally, Harris was mild-mannered and gentle, but now his face was hard as steel. “Where’s Petty?”

The bodyguard actually looked rattled. He stared at the blood smeared on Harris’s mouth, and after a second, like he finally understood how Harris was still conscious, something shifted in his eyes. Just how much did this woman matter to Harris?

He kept his tone cold, almost mechanical. “Harris, Felton’s doing this for your own good.”

Harris went pale, realization hitting him in the stomach.

It really was his father.

So the reason Petty had come aboard was all a setup. His father had made sure she was assigned to this ship, lured her here—just to deal with her.

Felton answered flatly, not even blinking. “Petty crossed Abbot—he’s the one who controls the borderlands. Once the ship is in international waters, we’re in his territory. What happens to Petty won’t be our responsibility. No one will trace it back to us. Everyone will think Abbot took care of her.”

Harris’s whole body tightened, pure dread running through him.

Abbot from the borderlands.

He’d always devoted himself to medicine, never really tangled with the darker side of the Byron legacy. But he wasn’t naive about the world he’d grown up in. He’d heard the name Abbot, knew enough to be afraid.

But right now, it didn’t matter how Petty had angered Abbot. He just had to get her back.

He knew what happened to people who fell into Abbot’s hands. Whatever his business was, it was brutal—beyond anything ordinary people could imagine. If Petty ended up with him, there was no telling what might be done to her.

Panic driving him, Harris ran to the window. The ship churned up waves in its wake, all glittering white under the fading light. Off in the distance, a yacht sped toward the horizon, heading away as darkness crept in. As the fog rolled across the water, the boat blurred, barely more than a ghostly outline in the gathering night.