Chapter 3

The next morning, Variety broke the news.

"Ethan Cole Casts Newcomer Tiffany Starr in Lead Role for 'Cobalt Horizon' ."

Cobalt Horizon. His passion project, the indie darling script he' d been nursing for years.

The project my studio, King Global, was bankrolling to the tune of twenty million dollars.

The lead role was meant for Eleanor Vance, a seasoned actress, a friend, someone I had personally championed for the part.

Starr, a no-name with a viral video of animal abuse, was replacing her.

Ethan wasn't just defending Tiffany, he was rewarding her, elevating her, using my money to do it.

It was a calculated insult, a public slap in the face.

My lawyers were already on standby.

I called my CFO. "Kill all funding for Ethan Cole' s production company, 'Wandering Muse Pictures'. Effective immediately. Terminate all existing contracts. And I mean all of them."

"Scarlett, that will bankrupt him," he said, a note of caution in his voice.

"Precisely," I said. "And start divorce proceedings. Cite irreconcilable differences. I want a forensic accounting of all assets acquired during our marriage. He came to me with nothing, he' ll leave with less."

The betrayal ran deep, but my resolve was iron.

I remembered when I first met Ethan.

He was a film school graduate, brimming with raw talent but utterly broke, hawking a brilliant short film no one would touch.

I saw the spark. I invested in him, mentored him, funded his first feature.

King Global made Ethan Cole a name. I made him.

Our marriage, in hindsight, was another one of my investments. One that had yielded bitter returns.

He had been charming then, grateful, full of promises.

"You saved me, Scarlett," he' d whispered once, after his first film won a minor festival award. "I'll never forget what you did for me."

He forgot. Or perhaps, he never truly meant it.

Loyalty. It was a currency I valued above all else.

Desert Mirage, in his stable, recovering under the best veterinary care, was more loyal than the man I had shared my bed and my fortune with.

The horse wouldn't understand the complexities of human betrayal, but he understood kindness and cruelty.

Tiffany had shown him cruelty. Ethan had endorsed it.

My lawyers served Ethan with divorce papers and notice of King Global' s complete divestment by lunchtime.

He was reportedly "devastated" and "blindsided."

Good.