The Headline Queen: President Hawthorne is Her Die-Hard Fan!-Chapter 515: Take Her Away

Did he miscalculate? Was Paige Sterling not as powerful as he thought?

Henry Hale was in a momentary panic and forgot what to do next.

So when the authorities came to search the Hale Family, Henry was unprepared, and the Hales were caught in the act.

However, Henry wasn’t at the Hale Family residence at the time, but everyone else in the family was taken away by the authorities.

Because the authorities found a stash of firearms at the Hale Family home, including the gun used in the assassination attempt on Paige Sterling.

Now, the entire Hale Family was taken away for investigation due to their involvement in the attempted assassination of a high-profile national figure, even Helen Hale couldn’t escape.

Dad Hale and Old Master Hale were in disbelief. Their family had never done such a thing, and where did that box of firearms come from?

This frame-up was way too obvious, wasn’t it?

The Hale Family was in a daze, but Dad Hale sensed something was amiss. Could all of this have been orchestrated by Henry?

He had only recently realized that his son wasn’t as straightforward as he appeared. He always thought nothing of it, believing that a man needs some cunning to succeed.

But now, seeing the entire Hale Family implicated by Henry, Dad Hale no longer thought that way.

He couldn’t understand why Henry would be so foolish as to attempt to assassinate Paige Sterling. Even an idiot would know that whether Paige lived or died, if it traced back to the Hale Family, they would be ruined.

And after everything happened, Henry disappeared, leaving them to deal with the mess.

Dad Hale knew they mustn’t admit to anything now, so they staunchly denied it, insisting that they were being set up.

There might just be a sliver of hope if they did that.

Otherwise, the Hale Family might be finished for good.

But the authorities couldn’t be bothered with their excuses and simply took the family members away.

The Hale Family members were taken away, Henry disappeared, and the family business was left leaderless, quickly falling into an awkward situation. But in the end, the Hales sacrificed small losses for big gains, appointed a new chairman, and prevented Apex from collapsing too quickly.

Paige Sterling only saw Henry Hale again a week later.

At that time, Henry was holding a hostage—Sonny Chambers.

To threaten Paige Sterling, a hostage was necessary, and a child was the perfect choice.

Moreover, Paige had always valued this younger cousin, making the child more than adequate for threatening her.

If Paige could be made to willingly remove her protective gear, taking her away wouldn’t be too difficult.

Henry Hale had abandoned his usual gentle demeanor for a more obsessive and cold expression, "Paige, I thought you were really dead. I didn’t expect... you always surprise me."

Paige looked at Henry, her expression calm. Perhaps influenced by her, Sonny didn’t seem too scared either, even winking playfully at Paige.

Paige was left speechless, while Henry asked, "You’ve suspected me for a long time, haven’t you?"

Paige nodded, not denying it, "Yes."

Henry chuckled. He thought he had hidden well and would be the final victor, but he didn’t realize that he had long since fallen into Paige’s trap.

Ever since he stirred up trouble by bringing Mrs. Hawthorne back to the country to create problems for Paige, he had become a suspect in Paige’s eyes.

Because since Mrs. Hawthorne returned, his plans began to gradually and fully unravel, but he remained oblivious, believing everything was under his control.

He underestimated Paige and ultimately lost to her due to underestimating his opponent.

Paige had set a big trap for him, and if he hadn’t hired someone to assassinate her, he might not have walked into it so quickly.

But the moment he hired someone to kill Paige Sterling, the trap was ready to be sprung.

He only realized how big of a mistake he’d made after learning that the Hale Family members were taken away.

He always believed Paige was high in intelligence and low in emotional intelligence, failing to see that Paige wasn’t lacking in emotional intelligence; she simply couldn’t be bothered to deal with it sometimes.

When she was fully armed, she quietly and steadily chipped away at others’ schemes without them noticing.

Henry’s lips curved into a cold smirk, "PAige, you’re good."

It sounded like he was praising Paige, but his expression didn’t seem friendly.

Paige let out a small laugh, "Thanks for the compliment. I’ve always thought I’m pretty great, almost the embodiment of kindness and justice."

Not modest at all.

Henry squinted his eyes, "Paige, you made me lose several bases and the entire Hale Family. I can’t let this go."

Paige rolled her eyes. It’s simply a case of the victor takes all; what’s the point of settling scores?

Probably no one expected the true owner of those underground research labs to be none other than Henry Hale.

Maybe it wasn’t him initially, but he eventually took out the person who established the labs and became the new master, an undeniable fact.

A significant portion of Apex’s profits came from these underground research bases.

Even though they ultimately failed to develop a serum that could completely alter human genes, they did make some other advancements, selling these findings through underground channels to different countries, bringing massive profits to the Hale Family.

This was why Apex could endure for so long despite being surpassed by Penson.

Because Apex was never entirely reliant on its overt businesses for support; it was always the underground research labs that upheld Apex.

"Mr. Hale, there’s no need for pleasantries. Just say what you want now. Kill me?"

Henry shook his head, "I won’t kill you. You’re the first person to make me suffer such a loss. How could I kill you?"

Strong people always have a sense of mutual appreciation for their kind, and even though Henry knew Paige was dangerous, he was reluctant to kill her.

"Paige, come with me. Otherwise, I’ll kill your brother."

Paige raised an eyebrow, "Mr. Hale, what makes you think you can take me and leave Veridia unscathed?"

Judging by Henry’s demeanor, he had long been planning to escape Veridia. After all, he was now fully aware that his actions had been completely exposed, and Veridia no longer had a place for him.

If he left, the Hale Family could place all the blame on him, thereby preserving themselves.

If he didn’t leave, the Hale Family would be finished along with him.

Yet before leaving, he wanted to take Paige with him.

It was a risky move, but Henry was still determined to take the chance.

Because once he left, he might never see Paige again. So, he thought, why not take Paige away, ensuring she’d never see Julian Hawthorne again?

As for how difficult the process would be and whether Paige would hate him for it, that didn’t concern him.

He was the kind of person who would stop at nothing to achieve what he wanted, never abandoning his plans despite all the hardships.