The Divorce That Brought Us Back novel Chapter 220

Meanwhile.

Nora and Cassidy were slowly making their way through the blistering cold, arms linked tightly.

"Seriously," Cassidy chattered, "why did Diana drag us outside? Why couldn't we just walk back to the ballroom?"

"I have no idea," Nora replied, teeth chattering so hard she could barely form the words. Without her fur wrap, she was freezing. "Maybe she had to step out for something."

"Or maybe she didn't want Seraphina walking back through the main hall looking like that."

"Ugh."

Cassidy let out a long sigh, her breath puffing out in a thick white cloud.

"Let's hurry." Nora tried to speed up. "You can't catch a cold. My ankle is fine."

"You literally twisted it. Don't be a hero. Walking on a sprain will only make it worse."

"It's not sprained. I just tripped over my heels."

"You were knocked across the hallway."

"I didn't fly! It was the stupid heels. I lost my balance."

They bickered affectionately as they hobbled along.

Cassidy suddenly asked, "By the way, how do you know Lucius Vane?"

Nora shook her head. "I don't."

"Then how did he know your name?"

Nora looked startled. "Wait, that was Lucius Vane?"

Cassidy shot her a deadpan look.

"I swear I don't know him," Nora insisted. "But I did see him once when I was a kid. He visited my house. That scar on his eye is pretty hard to forget."

"He visited your house?" Cassidy frowned. "Why?"

"How should I know?" Nora shrugged. "I only saw him that one time. I was a teenager. Vivian Cole and Bella Monroe were entertaining him."

"Was David Dodge there?"

Nora thought for a second. "I don't think so. He rarely stayed at the house back then."

Which meant Vivian and Bella were personally acquainted with Lucius Vane.

And they had known him for over a decade.

Cassidy's voice dropped. "This feels extremely sketchy."

Nora nodded in agreement. "I'll mention it to Maloney later."

As they spoke, they rounded the final corner, spotting the hotel's grand entrance just ahead.

The massive revolving doors spun steadily. As the gala neared its end, guests were pouring out, bringing waves of warm air and chatter with them.

Salvation was in sight.

By unspoken agreement, both girls quickened their pace.

"Still," Cassidy couldn't help but add, "if you didn't even know who he was, how did you have the guts to talk back to him like that?"

"Huh?" Nora tilted her head. "I didn't say anything crazy."

"You were practically mouthing off."

"I was not."

"You absolutely were."

"He was literally holding us hostage! I'm allowed to be a little annoyed."

"Do you have any idea what that man does for a living?"

"No! I told you I didn't know who he was!"

Cassidy sighed heavily.

Fair enough.

Ignorance truly was bliss.

"He used to run organized crime."

"It's a civilized society now."

"Which makes him even more dangerous!"

"Oh. Right."

She had texted saying she was going to confront Cassidy's enemy.

It sounded like a spectacularly terrible idea.

And then she didn't answer his call.

So much for their agreement about always answering the phone.

Unable to sit still, Maloney immediately headed to the third-floor tearoom to find her.

He had no idea the girls had wandered down to the first-floor backstage area.

After burning a few minutes searching the wrong floor with no response from her, Maloney realized something was horribly wrong.

He ruthlessly ordered his security team to lock down all the exits.

He dispatched staff to sweep every inch of the hotel.

He personally marched into the security room and pulled the footage from fifteen minutes prior.

Before he even stepped out into the lobby, he had watched the footage of her being violently knocked into a wall.

The car didn't head home. It pulled up to the emergency room.

As Maloney carried her out of the vehicle, Nora was still whispering, "I'm fine. I really just tripped over my heel."

Still lying.

Maloney stared at her for a long moment. "I am giving you one final chance to tell me the truth."

Nora clamped her mouth shut.

She was subjected to a full-body scan.

After she emerged from the CT scan, Maloney wrapped his arms around her, his voice a low rumble against her ear. "Are you ready to tell me what happened now?"

Nora blinked innocently. "The doctor said because I got a CT scan, I can't try for a baby this month."

Maloney closed his eyes in defeat.

Unbelievable.

She had officially wasted her final chance.