Who's Crying Now, Ex-Husband?

Chapter 327 Fortunately, it wasn't too late.

On stage, Forrest sat at the grand piano, his fingers dancing across the keys. Under the soft glow of the lights, he seemed to shine. Mila stood in the audience, eyes brimming with tears, her heart overflowing with emotion.

In that moment, she knew he was the one. The person she wanted to spend the rest of her life with.

She stepped forward, moving in twith the gentle melody, each step bringing her closer to a happiness that felt almost within reach. Her eyes sparkled with hope.

Miranda, watching from the crowd, couldn't contain her curiosity. She pulled out her phone, eager to identify the tune.

"This sounds so familiar," she murmured. "And it's really beautiful." Within moments, herdelivered the answer.

She glanced up, excited to share the discovery with her best friend-only to find that Mila was gone. On her phone's screen, the song's title spun in a loop: "I LOVE YOU." I love you.

Somewhere in a dark, narrow corridor, a girl's startled cry was abruptly cut off.

"Leonard, what are you-!" Mila had been about to cross the dance floor, but halfway there, a strong hand seized her arm and yanked her away. Before she could even scream, a hand clamped over her mouth and dragged her down the hall.

For a split second, as the lights flickered, she saw his face.

Leonard.

Back in the ballroom, the crowd swayed to the music, oblivious to the brief unfolding just out of sight. Mila struggled free at last, only to stumble into a pitch-black room. The door slammed shut behind her, the click of the lock echoing in the dark. The air was thick with tension, each breath tight and ragged.

Panic clawed at her chest.

Without thinking, she lunged for the door, twisting the handle and pounding against the wood.

"Leonard! Leonard, open the door! Letout!" She could hear footsteps approaching, slow and deliberate, and the sound of heavy breathing. Terror squeezed her heart until she could barely breathe. Her composure shattered.

"Leonard, please! Please letout! I'm begging you, don't lockin here! I'm really scared, please, I'm begging you-ah!" She could feel his hot breath closing in.

Mila scrambled away, blindly running farther into the room, tears streaming down her face. Her voice was raw with fear and desperation as she shouted, "It was you! You took it! It wasn't my fault!" Afraid she might provoke him further, she quickly changed her tone.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I'll go to the hospital with you, okay? I swear I didn't put much in there-please, let's just see a doctor, my boss said it was harmless, really!" "I'm sorry, I'm sorry-your fiancée, call her! Let her chere, please, I'm begging you..." Mila ran frantically around the room, sobbing so hard she could barely breathe.

Somewhere in the darkness, a low, mocking laugh echoed. She caught a whisper -hoarse, almost inaudible. "Who was that drink meant for?" Her mind was too clouded by panic to answer. Taking advantage of a brief opening, she lunged for the door and pounded on it, crying for help.

No one answered.

He pinned her against the door. All reason fled as she thrashed and kicked, her hand accidentally brushing against the light switch. Suddenly, the room blazed with light, blinding her for a moment.

She didn't notice- The young man pinning her, his eyes red and brimming with tears, a single drop falling onto her hair. He dragged her back into the room.

Outside, in the dimly lit hallway, Leonard leaned against the wall. He listened to Mila's muffled cries and pleas, unable to steady his own ragged breathing. His head hung low, one hand pressed over his eyes.

He said nothing for a long time.

At last, as if he could no longer hold back, he pulled out a cigarette. It took several tries to light it—his hands, so steady when holding a gun, now shook uncontrollably.

He slid down the wall until he was crouched on the floor.

In the darkness, the ember flared and faded, ashes scattering across the carpet. Inside, Clothes lay strewn across the floor. The girl was trapped beneath the young man's broad shoulders, her voice hoarse from crying. In the dim light, her eyes were dull and lifeless.

Drifting in and out of consciousness, she could barely make out the sound of piano music, growing fainter and fainter.

Soon, she couldn't hear it at all.

She couldn't hear anything.

-Big brother, I can't hear anymore.

-It hurts so much.

Tears kept falling, endless, until gentle kisses brushed them away-each one tender, yet desperate, as if he wanted to pull her into himself and never let go. Her tears soaked her cheeks and hair.

After a while, it was impossible to tell them apart.

The piano piece cto an end. In the ballroom, laughter and conversation filled the air.

Forrest rose from the piano, scanning the crowd, a gentle smile frozen on his lips when he realized the person he was waiting for wasn't there.

He stepped forward, accidentally brushing his hand against a porcelain vase on

the bench. The rose stems inside scratched his finger drawing a thin line of blood. He stared down in shock as a single drop slid onto the rose petals.

A sense of dread washed over him.

He rushed off the stage, ignoring the people who tried to stop and talk to him, frantically questioning everyone he could find. Had anyone seen Mila? Everyone shook their heads.

He searched the dance floor in a panic, his heart sinking with a dread he couldn't put into words.

In a daze, Mila was jolted awake by someone calling her name. She opened her eyes to see Archie's terrified face, his voice urgent.

It didn't take long for her to realize what was happening.

That morning, they'd set out for Luminara. Rain had been falling m lightly, but now it was pouring, and somewhere nearby, a deafening rumble echoed through the mountains.

Her mind was still foggy as she turned and looked out the window.

Then she saw it.

Their car was speeding along a mountainside road.

On one side, massive boulders were thundering down from the cliffs-a landslide.

On the other, a river raged below, swollen and violent.

If the rocks hit their car, they would be swept away in an instant.

There'd be no escape.