Rise of the Formidable Ex-wife (Lucia and Alex) novel Chapter 72

Chapter 72

The house was quiet when Marco walked in.

Too quiet.

The kind of silence that made every step sound louder than it should.

It was past midnight. The lights were off except for one in the living room. A soft yellow glow that didn’t feel warm at all.

Margaret was there.

She didn’t sit.

She stood near the couch, arms wrapped around herself like she was holding something in. Her hair was loose and messy. Her face looked tired. Swollen around the eyes. She had been crying. Or screaming. Or both.

She looked at him the second he stepped inside.

Her eyes went straight to his face.

To the cut on his lip.

To the way he moved slower than usual.

Something flickered in her expression.

Fear.

“Did you see her?” she asked.

Her voice was low. Tight. Like it might snap if she spoke any louder.

Marco didn’t answer right away.

He walked past her.

Dropped his keys on the table without looking.

Then he sank into the couch like his body had finally given up.

His head fell back for a second.

His jaw hurt.

Everything hurt.

Margaret took a step closer.

“Marco.”

He opened his eyes.

“She admitted it,” he said.

That was all.

But it was enough.

Margaret froze.

“What?”

“She didn’t deny anything. Didn’t pretend. Didn’t hide.” He let out a dry laugh that had no humor in it. “She looked right at me and said it.”

Margaret’s hands slowly curled into fists.

“That bitch,” she whispered.

Marco dragged a hand over his face.

“She’s the one behind everything,” he continued. “The suppliers. The contracts. The leaks. Your accounts. My company. All

of it.”

Margaret shook her head, pacing now.

“No… no, this isn’t possible. That doesn’t even make sense. She doesn’t have that kind of power.”

“She does now.”

Marco’s voice was flat.

Successfully unlocked!

“She has Alexander. She has money. Connections. People who can get anything. Do anything.”

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Margaret stopped walking.

Her breathing had gotten faster.

“So she planned all of this?” she asked. “From the start?”

“Yes.”

“And we just… sat here?”

Marco looked at her.

“We didn’t even see it coming.”

Margaret laughed suddenly.

It wasn’t a nice sound.

It was sharp. Cracked.

“Unbelievable,” she said. “She’s been destroying us piece by piece while we thought it was just bad luck.”

Marco didn’t respond.

Margaret turned back to him.

“What did you say to her?” she asked.

His jaw tightened.

“I told her to stop.”

“And?”

He looked away.

“She won’t.”

Margaret’s face changed.

For a second, something broke through.

Fear.

Real fear.

“She said she won’t stop?” she asked quietly.

Marco nodded.

“She said she wants everything. She wants us to lose everything.”

Margaret’s lips parted slightly.

“That’s insane.”

“She thinks it’s justice.”

“Justice?” Margaret let out a short laugh. “Destroying us is justice?”

“She believes it.”

Silence fell between them.

Heavy.

Margaret walked closer.

“Did you apologize?” she asked.

Marco didn’t answer.

“Marco,” she pressed. “Did you apologize?”

He shook his head.

“No.”

Margaret stared at him.

“Why not?”

“Because I was angry!” he snapped.

His voice echoed louder than he expected.

Margaret flinched slightly.

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Chapter 72

“She stuba there.” Marco continued, his voice rising, “talking like she had already won. Like we were nothing. Like she

word everything. I wasn’t going to stand there and bog

“So what did you do?” Margaret asked.

Marco hesitated.

Then he said it.

“I insulted her.”

Margaret’s face went blank.

“What?”

“I told her she was nothing. That she was beneath me. That I regretted marrying her.”

Silence.

Margaret just stared at him.

“You said that,” she repeated slowly.

“Yes.”

“Are you stupid?”

The words came out sharp.

Marco frowned. “What?”

“Are you actually stupid?” she repeated. “You went to the woman who is destroying us and you insulted her?”

“She was destroying us!”

“And you made it worse!”

Her voice rose now.

“You think that helped? You think that made her stop? No. You gave her exactly what she needed. Now she feels justified. Now she feels right.”

Marco stood up suddenly.

“So what was I supposed to do? Get on my knees? Beg her to forgive me?”

“Yes!” Margaret shot back. “If that’s what it took!”

Marco laughed bitterly.

“You don’t mean that.”

“I do.”

Their eyes locked.

The tension in the room snapped tight.

“You think I’m going to humiliate myself like that?” Marco said.

Margaret stepped closer.

“You already are,” she said quietly.

That hit.

Marco’s expression hardened.

“You think this is my fault?” he asked.

Margaret didn’t answer immediately.

That silence said enough.

“Say it,” he pushed.

She looked at him.

“You handled it badly.”

Marco let out a harsh breath.

“Of course. Blame me.”

r

“I’m not blaming you,” she said, but her voice wasn’t convincing. “I’m saying you made a bad situation worse.”

“She was already destroying us!”

Chapter 72

“And now she’ll enjoy it more!”

Marsu lan a hand through his hair.

“This is insane,” he muttered.

“Yes,” Margaret said. “It is.

They stood there for a moment

Neither speaking.

Neither backing down.

Then Margaret’s voice dropped.

“What did she look like?”

Marco blinked.

“What?”

“When you saw her,” Margaret said. “What did she look like?”

Marco hesitated.

Then he answered.

“Different.”

Margaret’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“How?”

“She wasn’t… emotional,” he said slowly. “She was calm. Cold. Like she had already decided everything.”

Margaret swallowed.

“And she didn’t hesitate?”

“No.”

“Not even a little?”

Marco shook his head.

Margaret turned away.

That scared her more than anything.

Not anger.

Not revenge.

But calm.

Someone calm didn’t stop.

She pressed her hand against her forehead.

“This is bad,” she whispered.

୮

Marco watched her.

“Yeah,” he said quietly. “It is.”

Margaret started pacing again.

“We need to do something,” she said. “We can’t just sit here and wait for her to destroy us.”

“What do you suggest?”

“I don’t know yet!” she snapped. “But we can’t just accept it.”

Marco leaned against the back of the couch.

“We don’t have anything left,” he said. “No company. No contracts. No allies.”

“We still have each other.”

The words came out fast.

Too fast.

Marco looked at her.

Margaret stepped closer again.

Chapter 72

“We have to stay together,” she said. “That’s the only way we survive this.”

Marou didn’t respond

Margaret grabbed his hand.

“You can’t turn on me now,” she said. “Not now.”

“I’m not-”

“You can’t,” she repeated, tighter this time. “If we fall apart, we lose everything. Not just money. Everything.”

Marco looked down at her hand holding his.

Then back at her face.

“You think staying together will fix this?”

“No,” she said honestly. “But falling apart will make it worse.”

That was the truth.

And they both knew it.

Margaret’s grip tightened.

“We chose each other,” she said. “We don’t get to regret it now.”

Marco’s chest tightened slightly.

“Do you?” he asked quietly.

Margaret froze.

For a second, something crossed her face.

Something real.

Then it was gone.

“No,” she said.

Too quickly.

Marco noticed.

But he didn’t push.

“Good,” he said.

Margaret forced a small nod.

“Yes. Good.”

Silence again.

Thick.

Heavy.

Marco pulled his hand away slowly.