Who's Crying Now, Ex-Husband?

Sophia arched an eyebrow. "You're awfully sure of yourself."

"Of course I am."noveldrama

"I may not know why you're making a scene here, but since you're working with Lysander, you must know why he hasn't shown up-even more, you must understand what this engagement party means to him. I can guarantee it: Lysander would never dare to sabotage this event. In fact, he needs to make sure everything goes off without a hitch."

Mila was absolutely certain.

After her last, fruitless attempt to confront Lysander, she'd spent a lot of time thinking-putting herself in his shoes, weighing her value to him, trying to guess how he'd use her.

She'd figured it out.

That's exactly why she chose this moment for the engagement party.

She was sure nothing would go wrong.

Cossio was the lynchpin.

If this engagement party failed, if Cossio-ever suspicious and still lurking in the shadows—sensed trouble and retreated back to Italy, Lysander's plan to hunt him down would be ruined, or at least thrown hopelessly off course.

If they wanted Cossio to let his guard down and walk right into their carefully laid trap, then this party had to go off perfectly-smooth, safe, utterly convincing.

It was a lesson she'd pieced together after that whole mess at the English manor. Mila had always wondered: knowing how ruthless Lysander could be, why did he simply threaten her-so half-heartedly when he learned she'd taken Forrest to meet Jade Sutherland in England? Why not go on the attack, like he usually would? There was only one answer: he didn't dare make a move that would scare off Cossio.

And sure enough, right after she'd returned from England, Leonard had warned her to be careful-told her Cossio would be arriving soon.

It all lined up.

It was obvious, really.

Just as she'd once faked her own death to help Lysander deceive Cossio, now every move she made was a test-Cossio's way of probing whether Lysander still had any tricks up his sleeve.

She was a reference point. A trial balloon.

Both sides were using her-one to lull the other into complacency, the other to sniff out any hidden agendas. Without even realizing it, she'd become a weathervane in their little war.

Bastards, the lot of them.

Mila ground her teeth in frustration.

But it wasn't all bad. If they were bold enough to use her, then she could flip the script and let Lysander use her for once. This engagement party was her gambit: so long as she and Forrest went through with it, Cossio would finally let down his guard and commit to coming to the country-exactly what Lysander needed.

And consequently, Lysander couldn't risk ruining the party. If he tried anything, Cossio would smell a rat. If he didn't, things would progress in Lysander's favor.

Lysander had always been ruthlessly pragmatic.

She was sure he'd make the right call.

As for her, beyond getting engaged to Forrest, she would use this party to publicly sever ties with the Montgomery family-make a clean break, step out of the battlefield between the Montgomerys and Cossio, and let them tear each other apart.

She'd go live her own life.

It was the perfect plan.

Not that she had

much of a

choice-Cossio was on his way, the Montgomery family had proven themselves unreliable, and Lord

knew what else they might forget

into

her

into. After all, they'd already used Adrian Montgomery and Julian Pembroke two children to lure her back to the country.

She couldn't trust the Montgomerys anymore.

And with Cossio to watch out for as well, this was her only way out.

Might as well use the chaos to make her escape.

Once the two sides were locked in battle, too busy with each other to care about her, she'd stay out of it and be safe. All she needed to do was protect Adrian. The

novelet

Montgomerys had already

abandoned him during this last

mess, which, in a way, meant they'd given up on her too.

So it should be fine.

Even though the memory of those two gunshots from Cossio still haunted her― and the kidnapping in the old manor lingered in her mind-for her own safety, she'd wait for the two families to finish tearing each other apart before making any

moves.

"You really do see things clearly."

Sophia, catching the drift of Mila's plan, didn't bother to press further. She shrugged, taking her time. "It's a bold strategy. But do you really think Lysander will let you pull this off? Don't forget, he's a madman You're trying to outwit a lunatic-but are you a lunatic yourself?"

At that moment, the door rattled.

Before anyone could answer it, Cara's anxious voice came through from the hallway, "Ms. Sutherland, someone from the Montgomery family is here—it's... Mr. Whitmore sent me to warn "

Mila's expression darkened. She shot Sophia a hard look.

Sophia flicked the stub of her cigarette and shrugged. "Don't glare at me I had nothing to do with this. But if you want my help, all you have to do is—"

Bang!

The door slammed shut. Mila was gone.

Sophia froze, her hand still holding the cigarette, her face turning stormy. She suddenly stood, kicking the swivel chair over in frustration. "Let's see how you handle this, then!"