Semua Bab Goodbye Ex, I Married Your Uncle!: Bab 31 - Bab 40

LILA’S POVThe next morning, Monica arrived with two lawyers and a box full of files.She carried it in herself, dropped it onto the dining table in Adrian’s house, and gave me a look that said today was not going to be gentle.“Coffee first,” she said. “Then heartbreak.”I almost smiled.Almost.The legal team spread papers out across the table with a kind of cold efficiency that made my stomach tighten. Old insurance claims, company transfer documents, probate filings, banking summaries, some things I couldn’t even understand. I stared at line after line of text until the words began to swim.When they talked, it all sounded important, but after ten minutes I felt like a child sitting at the grown-ups’ table, nodding at things I didn’t fully understand.Monica tapped one page. “Here. This is where it starts to get dirty.”I leaned in.“What am I looking at?”“This,” she said, sliding the paper toward me, “is the initial claim timeline after your parents’ crash. Look at how quickly

LILA’S POVI stared at the note in my hand so long that the words started to blur.I know where Chloe is. Text me when you’re alone so we can talk. — Jason.My heart kept thudding hard against my ribs.If I told the authorities right away, there was every chance Chloe would vanish again. But if Jason really knew something...I looked up.Taylor sat two tables away in jeans and a dark jacket, pretending to read a newspaper. He hadn’t reacted much to the little girl who handed me the note. To him, she had probably looked like what she was pretending to be—just another child wandering through a café, curious about adults.I looked back at the note.Texting Jason meant unblocking him.The thought alone irritated me.But if finding Chloe got us closer to the truth—about her, about the missing box, about my parents—then what exactly was I protecting by refusing?Pride?Pride had already cost me enough in life.I wasn’t stupid. I knew the risks. I would take it only as far as possible withou

LILA’S POVBy the time Taylor arrived, it was nearly midnight.I was still wide awake.There had been no chance of sleep after that phone call. Adrian had called Luca back to the house, and now the three of us stood in the living room watching Taylor carry in the old document box like it might contain a bomb.In some ways, it did.He set it down on the coffee table with a quiet thud and ran a hand over the back of his neck.“Sorry for being late, sir,” he said. “The box was locked with a passcode. I had to find someone to crack it.”Adrian’s eyes went straight to the metal latch. “We can open it now?”“Yes, sir.”The room seemed to hold its breath.Adrian stepped forward and opened the box.At first, it looked disappointingly ordinary.Papers. Envelopes. Old files. Some brittle receipts. A thick folder with Montero Construction written across the tab in fading ink. I felt my heartbeat drop slightly.Then I started seeing words.Dates.Amounts.Company names.And one name that made my

LILA’S POVSome days later, the news broke just after breakfast.I had barely settled into the living room with my coffee when the first red banner flashed across the bottom of the screen.TRIAL DATE FOR CHLOE MONTERO SET IN ATTEMPTED MURDER CASE OF MRS. LILA SHEPARDMy fingers tightened around the mug. Then another headline rolled in beneath it.ANDREW AND MARGARET MONTERO FACE LEGAL TROUBLES AS FINANCIAL DOCUMENTS LEAKI leaned forward instinctively.The anchors were speaking too quickly. Documents, the same ones I had read surrounded by lawyers, had reached the press. I barely blinked as I watched it all unfold. The screen shifted to a business reporter standing outside Montero Construction’s headquarters.“Several investors have already begun pulling out,” she said, wind lifting her hair as cameras flashed behind her. “The company, once known for the impeccable standards established by founder Nicholas Montero, now appears to be facing a severe crisis of confidence under current

ADRIAN’S POVI stood at the head of the conference table in my Ambrosia office, sleeves rolled up, eyes moving across the latest ownership transfer plan for Montero Construction while my legal team sat around me.Jackson Hart, one of the senior corporate lawyers, adjusted his glasses and looked down at his file. “Given Mrs. Lila Shepard’s claim through Nicholas Montero and the estate findings, there’s a strong path to move control under her name.”“Good,” I said. “But,” he continued carefully, “the company is unstable. Investors are fleeing. Suppliers are nervous. If Mrs. Shepard takes over…” I looked at him. He cleared his throat. “All I’m saying, sir, is that she has no experience running a business. It won’t calm investors if she steps up.” “That’s why I need a temporary CEO to handle things until she is ready,” I reminded him. Jackson looked at me carefully, as if choosing his next words with extreme caution.“Sir, respectfully, why not bring Montero Construction under Ambros