?Chapter 552:


    Kristian’s gaze was ice cold. “What do you mean, ‘what now’?”


    “Now that we know Melvin works at Anita International and Ms. Briggs is the owner,” Gerard said earnestly, “what’s your n?”


    The simple question hit Kristian like a punch to the gut, leaving him utterly speechless.


    He had started digging into Melvin purely out of curiosity, just to figure out who Melvin and Freya really were—but now that he had those answers, everything felt even murkier than before.


    For once, Gerard stood there without a word, his usual banter nowhere to be found.


    Kristian eventually said, “Nothing specific—just trying to clear up the doubts gnawing at me.”


    Sometimes, people did things just to find a little peace in their own heads.


    After a beat, Gerard asked, “When are you heading back to Jeucwell?”


    “I’ll decideter,” Kristian muttered vaguely.


    Gerard picked up on his boss’s half-hearted tone and could tell the regret over the divorce from Freya was creeping in stronger by the day. But what was done was done. Some mistakes couldn’t be undone. There was nothing Kristian could do now to rewrite the past.


    In the days that followed, Freya went on with her life, while Kristian, aside from sending her flowers daily, would drop by the Briggs Group now and then to catch a glimpse of her.


    He knew she didn’t want to be bothered, but he also knew he had to make it look like he was still pursuing her—for the sake of that mysterious mastermind.


    Lаτ??τ ch?ρτ?rs ιn g??l??ov?ls.??????


    He’d already failed her once as a husband; he couldn’t afford to blow it again.


    Soon enough, September rolled toward its end.


    It had been five days since Melvin received the first mysterious contact. Then, on September 29th, someone reached out to Melvin again, instructing him to initiate the second phase of the n during thepany’s end-of-month retreat.


    The objective was simple: to make Freya’s rtionship with Melvin public within the Briggs Group. Melvin ryed the update to Freya.


    That afternoon, they were both at the Briggs Group headquarters. Afterying out the details, Melvin asked, “How do you want to handle this? Looks like quite a few people are involved in the retreat.”


    Even if Freya gave the green light, he’d never go through with it—even if it was all just for show.


    Reputation meant something. And he couldn’t let her go off the rails.


    “You don’t need to worry,” Freya told him, her voice firm. “I already know who’s behind this. I’ll meet with herter.”


    Before the incident with Farrah, she hadn’t been certain, but now she was.


    Now that she was sure, it was time to confront the truth.


    Melvin didn’t push for more answers. “Want me to go with you?”


    “No, I’ll go alone,” Freya declined.


    Later that afternoon, in a quaint café humming with warmth and soft chatter, Freya sat across from a polished young woman. It was Norah, the same woman who had called her when Farrah was dragged to the hospital for an abortion.


    As the barista set down their drinks, Norah blinked at her in surprise and said, “Honestly, didn’t expect you to ask me out for coffee. You need something from me?”


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