THE DIVORCE GAMBIT From Dumped Wife to CEO's Forever novel Chapter 796

Hearing that Caitlin wasn't coming back yet, Hannah sounded disappointed. She had already laid out all the ingredients to make peach blossom shortbread.

"Why aren't you coming back? Freya, when do you think you'll be home?"

"Don't worry, Grandma, I'll be back as soon as I can," Caitlin said before changing the subject. "Actually, I wanted to ask you something."

"Of course, Freya. What is it?"

"Do you know someone named Diana?" Caitlin asked.

Diana? Hannah thought for a moment, then shook her head. "I don't think so."

"What about the Vance family?" Caitlin tried again.

Hannah shook her head once more. There were so many prominent and minor families in Neon Spire; she couldn't possibly remember them all. After a moment, a flicker of recognition crossed her mind. "Do you mean the Vance family that immigrated to Valerium twenty years ago?"

"Yes," Caitlin confirmed. "That's the one. Grandma, did our family have any dealings with them in the past?"

"No," Hannah said, shaking her head again. "I only met the Dowager Vance once, very briefly. Freya, why are you suddenly asking about this?" The only reason Hannah even remembered them was because of the unsavory methods the family had used to facilitate their immigration.

At this point, everything was just Caitlin's speculation. At best, it was a lead on her mother, Carey. At worst, it was just about a piece of shortbread. Hannah was getting older and couldn't handle major emotional shocks. Without concrete evidence, Caitlin didn't want to get her hopes up for nothing.

"I ran into the Vance family's daughter here in Valerium a few days ago," she said casually. "It just made me curious."

"Freya, did someone from the Vance family give you trouble?" Hannah asked immediately, her tone sharp with concern.

"No, of course not," Caitlin said with a light laugh. "Grandma, don't worry yourself. If I were really being bullied, would I be having so much fun that I don't want to come home?"

The next morning, Tina arrived at Vance Castle for her shift. She hadn't slept well, her mind troubled. Flavia looked so much like Carey, yet she had lied. The unease gnawed at her. After clocking in, the first thing she did was go to Flavia's room.

Flavia was taking her medication. Perhaps because of the pills, her face had been especially pale these last few days. The bruising on her face had faded, though, and the swelling was gone. After she finished, a maid named Shirley took the remaining medicine away.

"Ma'am."

Flavia had been about to lie down for a nap. She often felt dizzy lately. Hearing Tina's voice, she looked up. "Oh, Tina, you're here."

Tina walked over to her, getting straight to the point. "Ma'am, I'd like to ask you a question."

"Go ahead," Flavia said with a soft smile.

Tina spoke each word clearly. "Do you… do you know someone named Carey?"