Who's Crying Now, Ex-Husband?

Chapter 487 She couldn't help it-laughter burst out of her, sharp and sudden in the quiet bedroom. It was out of place, but she honestly couldn't hold it back. The whole thing was just too absurd-on so many levels.

The laughter faded, and she slowly bent forward, covering her face with both hands as silence settled again. In that hush, a realization crept in.

She and Lysander-what a hopeless mismatch.

But honestly, she didn't care anymore.

She was done with the lies, done with being strung along, never able to trust a single thing. The guilt that had once gnawed at her for what she owed him after he'd taken that bullet for her was fading fast. Who even knew if that night at the gala was just another one of his elaborate performances? Staging a show was what Lysander did best, wasn't it? Besides, her life had moved on. She'd built something new, something better, and never expected anything from the Montgomery family anyway. Even the urge to confront them had dulled. The answers didn't matter much anymore-except for one thing.

Giselle.

She had to settle things between them, once and for all.

She could never forgive what Giselle had done to her great aunt. The woman had nearly died because of Giselle, and even though she'd pulled through, her health had never recovered. She was old, frail, and the doctors wouldn't make any promises.

There had been more than one attempt on her life. There was no room for reconciliation—and honestly, Mila had reached her limit a long tago. She'd never stopped investigating.

But the Harvey family was a fortress.

If she couldn't take them down in one blow, there was no point in even trying. They'd just retaliate, and if she couldn't uproot them completely, it was all for nothing. But now, Giselle had stuck her neck out herself-walked right into a trap of her own making. Mila had no sympathy left.

And as for Cossio...

Let the Montgomerys deal with their own mess. With all their cunning and resources, they hardly needed her help.

Over the next few days, Mila dropped her investigation, quietly shifting her focus to perfecting the first draft of the wedding dress and preparing for production. She stayed away from Montgomery Holdings' headquarters, sending Cara in her place to handle her duties.

She couldn't afford to tip anyone off.

She knew just how slippery Lysander could be.

Without knowing exactly what he was after, she couldn't relax for a second. Every step had to be calculated and cautious. As much as she hated to admit it, compared to Cossio, it was Lysander who truly frightened her.

The shadow he'd cast over her life was enormous.

And now, it seemed, there was a new shadow to contend with.

But she was too tired to keep running, too weary to hide. What was the point? They'd never really seen her as anything but a pawn anyway.

Why keep secrets from her? Did they really think she couldn't figure it out? It wasn't that hard to guess.

With a few days' distance, she'd pieced things together-she was almost certain now. It all cdown to Cossio.

Leonard had said before: they wanted to lure Cosback to their own turf, to finish things on their terms, where they held the power.

Cossio's actions had shown he'd never really cared about her. She'd never been more than a blip on his radar. His real target had always been Lysander.

Just like that night in Rome, when she'd overheard their plan.

She'd been cast in the role of bait-put front and center by Lysander himself, a target to draw Cosout and convince him Lysander was truly dead.

If Coscould have cbefore, he would have. He'd waited all these years for a reason-someone had kept him in check. But now, Leonard said, he was finally coming.

Why now? What had changed? There was only one answer.

Lysander was "dead." Coshad always feared Lysander, and the Montgomerys knew it.

That's why they'd staged this whole charade. That's why, during that brief trip abroad, Lysander had treated her so well-like she was actually someone he loved.

It all made sense if you looked at it that way. Lysander taking a bullet for her was the perfect cover, the only way to make Cosbelieve he was really gone.

If Lysander had been that easy to take down, Coswouldn't have waited so long. But everyone believes the old story-no hero can resist@beautiful woman. Lysander played his part so perfectly, even she almost believed it. The love letters, the confessions, her stunned silence at the funeral, the way she'd wandered around like a ghost... As the "grieving widow," Mila gave the world-and Cossio-all the proof they needed that Lysander was dead.

She believed it.

The world believed it.

Why wouldn't Cossio? In the end, she'd been nothing more than Lysander's pawn. Everyone else had known the truth: Conrad, Leonard, Sophia, Giselle... Who else? Once the pieces ctogether, the truth was impossible to ignore. It was all laid bare.

Great love? What a joke.

If Lysander were standing in front of her right now, she'd tear him limb from limb.

He deserved every bit of it.

A liar, a manipulator.

What did she ever owe him?

After the realization, anger swelled in her, hotter than ever. She even m caught herself wishing Lysander and Coswould tear each other apart and leave her out of it for good. Thanks for nothing, both of you.

Just thinking about it set her teeth on edge. No one likes being lied to and used-especially not on this scale. Mila was so distracted she nearly ruined her sketch, forcing herself to focus and redraw the lines. Then her phone buzzed on the table.

She took a breath and picked it up, clamping down on her irritation. It was Conrad calling-finally.

Now that Forrest had Giselle backed with a new technical team, it wan only a matter of tbefore the project application was brought back to the table. And as a board member, Mila would have to weigh in.

She'd been waiting for this call for days.