During dinner, Claire barely touched her chopsticks.

She continuously picked up her cell phone, attempting to call Elaine and sending numerous text messages, but there was no reply.

In contrast, Jacob wore a relaxed and content expression. He secretly thought that if Elaine had run away from home like Hannah, it would be a breath of fresh air for him, providing a sense of liberation in his life.

Claire, feeling anxious, insisted on going to the police station to file a report. Jacob interjected, “Oh, Claire, your mother is an adult. Maybe she’s just out doing something? Why are you so worried? What if she did intend to run away? Would you really want the police to drag her back?”

“That’s impossible!” Claire insisted earnestly. “Mom has been looking forward to moving into the villa at Thompson First for so long. Now that we’ve finally moved, there’s no way she would leave! You’ve lived with her long enough to know her better than that!”

Jacob suddenly fell into deep thought.

Her words stirred something within him.

Who exactly was Elaine?

She was the kind of person who cared excessively about appearances.

She had always dreamed of living a lavish lifestyle.

It was simply out of character for her to leave on the very day their family moved into the villa at Thompson First. As he pondered this, Jacob frowned. Could it be that Elaine was truly in trouble?

Despite his disdain for Elaine, they had shared many years together as a couple. If something were to happen to her, it would leave a void within him. Therefore, he felt it was inappropriate to remain at home sipping tea while Claire was worried.

With a sigh, Jacob said, “Alright, let’s finish dinner. After that, I’ll go out with you to search for your mom.”

Seeing her father’s change of heart, Claire felt a bit of relief. She quickly suggested, “How about this? I’ll go to the police station to file a report while you check the mahjong halls where Mom usually goes.”

Jacob agreed, “Sounds good. I’ll look for her later.”

Charlie chimed in, “My dear wife, I’ll accompany you to the police station.”

Claire quickly replied, “I can handle the police report myself. You should go with Dad to find Mom instead.”

“Okay,” Charlie nodded, though still concerned about Claire. He turned to Loreen, saying, “Loreen, could you go with Claire?”

Loreen promptly responded, “Absolutely! I’ll go to the police station with Claire.”

After a swift dinner, the four of them split into two cars and left the villa at Thompson First.

Claire drove Loreen to the police station while Charlie took Jacob to search the mahjong halls.

Before they got into their cars, Charlie sent a text to Isaac: “My wife is going to the police station to file a report. Please inform your contact there not to share any information about my mother-in-law.”

Isaac quickly replied, “Don’t worry, young master. I’ve already contacted them, and they won’t disclose any information about Elaine.”

“That’s reassuring,” Charlie felt a bit lighter as he drove off with Jacob.

Once they were on the road, Charlie asked, “Dad, where should we start looking?”

Jacob sighed and replied, “I’m not sure where she likes to play mahjong. Just drive around and see if we can find any mahjong halls nearby. We can stop if we see one.”

Charlie smirked subtly, realizing Jacob was likely just putting on a front to ease Claire’s worries.

After checking out several mahjong halls without a sign of Elaine, Jacob remained unconcerned. The only reason he had come out was to ease his own guilt, not because he genuinely cared about Elaine’s wellbeing or whereabouts.