The Divorce That Brought Us Back novel Chapter 94

Last night.

When Nora returned home, she clung to Maloney, chattering away about how amazing Jasmine was, how much courage she had mustered, the immense pressure she had faced, and what a brilliant decision she had made.

In Nora's eyes, her friend was the absolute best.

At moments like this, Maloney's actual opinion didn't matter in the slightest.

He just needed to validate her.

The more he agreed, the happier she became.

The happier she was, the more cooperative she'd be.

However, validation aside, the reality of the situation remained.

Yes, Jasmine's courage to flee an oppressive household was commendable.

But practically speaking, she had absolutely zero leverage to stand against her parents.

Her so-called escape was entirely superficial.

None of her real-world problems had been resolved.

Of course, everyone's circumstances were different, and there was no need to be overly critical.

After he was completely satisfied and had coaxed Nora to sleep, Maloney ordered Mr. Hudson to have someone monitor the Smiths' every move.

Less than half an hour after the order was given, Mr. Hudson called back.

Maloney carefully let go of Nora, gently tucked the pillows around her, got out of bed, and walked to his study.

"It's not the Smiths; it's the Quigleys."

Mr. Hudson reported, "Half an hour ago, the Quigley family publicly posted a marriage certificate for Yates Quigley and Jasmine Smith on their social media."

Were those two actually married?

Nora hadn't mentioned it.

Most likely, they weren't. If divorce were on the table, Nora wouldn't have kept quiet about it.

Maloney's index finger tapped lightly against the desk. He asked in a low voice, "It's a fake?"

"We're still confirming," Mr. Hudson paused before continuing. "The Quigleys also issued a statement saying they will host a banquet next week to make up for the engagement party."

The tapping stopped.

In an instant, Maloney pieced the entire puzzle together.

The Smiths hadn't taken Jasmine's disappearance seriously at all.

After all, they assumed Yates and Jasmine would inevitably get married anyway.

In most cases, the sudden rebellion of a weak person was merely dismissed as a temper tantrum.

Once the parents arranged everything, they would assume they held the moral high ground.

If Jasmine failed to fall in line, any fallout would be deemed her fault.

She would be painted as a selfish, spoiled child.

Maloney listened to Mr. Hudson's report in silence.

He formulated a countermeasure.

"Keep watching the Smiths."

After hanging up, Maloney contacted his friend, Leo Sterling, the President of the Capital City Chamber of Commerce.

He asked Leo to reach out to the higher-ups in the Quigley family.

"First, tell them you received a request from the Smiths today forbidding any company from hiring the runaway Jasmine Smith. Then ask them why the bride ran away right after they supposedly got their marriage license."

Leo agreed to the task.

Fifteen minutes later, he called back. "Howard Quigley said he had no idea about the marriage license. The photos and the statement on social media have already been taken down, and he's going to personally confront the Smiths to negotiate."