Chapter 5 288 Vouchers She pouted and sighed , deciding to apply ointment to Claudine's forearm personally tonight . After having dinner , Damian and Darlene came home . As he pushed open the door , she immediately wriggled out of his arms and dashed to the second - floor bedroom . She remembered seeing Claudine place the ointment on the dresser . She was too short to see the dresser top , so she reached up and felt around instead . " Got it ! " Her hand brushed against the tube , and she grabbed it with a grin . With a tug , she accidentally yanked something else down , too . Looking around , she saw nothing on the carpet . No longer dwelling on it , she skipped out of the bedroom . The ring rolled across the carpet before disappearing under the bed . She searched every corner downstairs , but Claudine was nowhere to be seen . " Angie , where's Claudine ? " she asked . While wiping a table , Angie replied , " She left with a suitcase right after you did . " She didn't say where she was going , though . " " She went out ? " Darlene was a bit surprised . She thought , " Claudine's never been away while Daddy and I are home . " So … Claudine really is mad ? " She's so petty ! " To think she even ran away from home ! " Does she think Daddy will go looking for her ? She's wrong ! " In a huff , she tossed the ointment onto the sofa . She was upset with Claudine again . Claudine didn't deserve her kindness ! After dealing with business in the study , Damian returned to the bedroom but didn't see Claudine . 0.0 % 03:50 Chapter 5 288 Vouchers Only then did he notice something wrong - something was missing from the dresser . Also , the card he had given to her last night was gone . Between last night's argument and Darlene's burn , he figured Claudine had left to steer clear of his anger . He didn't dwell on it . After all , he never wasted time on trifles . He was confident - Claudine would come back within two days , tops . *** Claudine went back to the riverside penthouse she had bought before her marriage . A thick layer of dust covered ev- erything , which was hardly surprising , since she hadn't set foot in the place for years . But she had reached out to the property management beforehand , so the penthouse was spotless when she arrived , complete with all the essentials . After organizing her things , she took a satisfied look around . Every decorative piece in the room delighted her , and all her trophies and certificates were perfectly arranged in the living room display cabinet . For a moment , she felt like going back to those days before her marriage . She slept soundly that night . When she finally awoke , golden sunlight already filled the room . It had been ages since she'd slept so well . Gone were the frantic mornings of rushing Darlene to school and the last- minute ironing of Damian's suits . For once , she could take her time to enjoy her breakfast . Then she began reviewing the auction materials . She had to admit - she was thrilled about becoming an auctioneer again . While others struggled with lot descriptions and technical specifications , she knew them like the back of her hand . As her gaze swept over those familiar terms , she seemed to see her former self again , glowing under the dazzling light , standing center stage . She was very much looking forward to the auction tomorrow night . *** On the contrary , Damian had been in a foul mood these days . Early in the morning , he stormed around when the cuff- links didn't go with his tie . To make things worse , even his suit was still unironed . The servants all shook their heads , saying they didn't know where his cufflinks were . They told him Claudine had per- sonally taken charge of things like this . He wanted to call Claudine , but then decided not to . Why would he ? She'd come back soon anyway . Meanwhile , Darlene kept giving him a headache . Claudine had always taken care of her , and she stubbornly refused to let any servant near her . Even the breakfast was- 37.5 % 03:50 Chapter 5 n't to her liking - she pouted , saying the food was awful . 98.5 %