BIT

Chapter 101

“Ma’am, are you sure about this? Mr. Specter is going to be furious when he hears about your plan,” Max said as they moved into a medium–sized camper van and headed back to New York.

Rebecca let out a long sigh, gently stroking Lily’s head before turning to Max, who was seated beside her. “That’s why I don’t want you to tell Harvey about this. I’ll pay you more, please?”

Max drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, silent for a moment before nodding. “But if your cover is blown, you have to leave the country immediately. I won’t negotiate on this.”

Rebecca nodded. “I will. Thank you, Max. I mean it,” she said earnestly.

“I’m just doing my job. Everything you asked for is in the back,” Max replied as he turned into a rest area and parked the camper van.

Rebecca carried Lily and moved to the back of the van. She placed Lily in the car seat, smiling faintly when she saw a complete vanity set with lights, just as she had requested. After ensuring Lily was fed and sleeping comfortably, Rebecca sat down at the vanity and began something she never thought she’d do–transforming herself into someone unrecognizable.

She had asked Max to prepare everything she needed, and he had done so flawlessly, following her instructions to the letter.

An hour later, Max knocked on the divider between the driver’s seat and the back of the van. “Becky, are you done?”

“Yes!” Rebecca replied, fastening the buttons on her plaid cardigan. The divider opened, and Max’s face appeared, his eyes widening in shock as he saw Rebecca, who looked completely different from the woman she was an hour ago. She had transformed into a girl with shoulder–length hair, thick glasses, acne, and a large, hairy mole on her left cheek.

“Wow, who are you?” Max muttered in awe.

Rebecca clicked her buckled loafers together and smiled, revealing the braces on her teeth. “Marianne Stevanson, according to the new identity you gave me,” she answered, unable to hide her excitement for the disguise she was about to undertake.

Max nodded, still in disbelief at Rebecca’s incredible transformation. “I guess I was wrong to underestimate you when you explained this disguise to me. You’re better than I thought. Buckle up, we’re hitting the road again.”

Rebecca nodded, taking a deep breath as she tightened the garish plaid cardigan Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

around her body before sitting in the passenger seat, her emotions a mix of excitement and apprehension.

Five hours later, they arrived in Long Island, New York, and quickly switched to an SUV waiting for them at a motel with no CCTV. They drove for a few more minutes to a cabin where Rebecca would stay for a while.

Max knocked on the cabin door, and a sleepy–looking elderly woman soon appeared. “Maxim!” she exclaimed cheerfully upon seeing Max.

“Susan, this is Marianne, the woman I told you about,” Max introduced Rebecca’s fake identity to Susan, who immediately broke into a wide smile.

“Hello, darling! So nice to have you here. Is this Rose?” Susan asked, pointing to Lily in Rebecca’s arms.

Rebecca nodded, smiling to reveal her braces. She had deliberately hidden their true identities, even from Max’s closest confidants. She wouldn’t let anyone jeopardize her plan.

“Come on in!” Susan said cheerfully.

“Susan, I have to leave now because I have work to finish. Thank you for letting Marianne and Rose stay here for a while Max said, quickly kissing Susan’s cheek before half–running back to his SUV.

After Max left, Susan smiled at Rebecca and gently patted her shoulder. “You and Rose are safe here, Marianne. Your abusive husband is far away in Texas. He won’t find you here.”

Rebecca swallowed hard, feeling a pang of guilt for deceiving someone as kind as Susan.

“This is your room. I don’t have a crib, so I lowered your bed to make sure Rose won’t fall,” Susan said, showing them the guest room with a mattress only thirty centimeters off the floor, where Rebecca and Lily would sleep.

“This is more than enough, Şusan. Thank you.” Rebecca replied, opening the new

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backpack she had bought and taking out a thousand dollars from inside.

“Um, this may not be much, but I hope you can accept it,” she said, pushing the money into Susan’s hand.

Susan shook her head. “You don’t have to pay anything. I’m helping you for free,” she insisted, trying to return the money, but Rebecca refused to take it back. She could have given Susan more, but she didn’t want to raise any suspicions.

“Susan, please, I’ll feel like a burden if you don’t accept this,” Rebecca said earnestly.

Susan sighed deeply and nodded. “Okay then, thank you. Well, get some rest. You must be tired. See you at dinner!”

Rebecca smiled broadly until Susan disappeared behind the door.

After Susan left, Rebecca quickly turned on her new phone. She wondered about the chaos unfolding in Boston after she decided to disappear from Sean’s life. She genuinely felt sorry for Sean, who must be lonely, but living with a killer wasn’t something she wanted.

“Lily, we’re going to stay here for a while until your father can join us, okay? I’m sorry for moving you from one place to another, but I promise that after this, everything will be okay,” Rebecca whispered as she held Lily close.

After taking care of Lily and making sure she was fed, Rebecca left the room and found Susan pouring Italian minestrone soup into bowls on the dining table.

“How was your sleep?” Susan asked, smiling as Rebecca appeared.

Rebecca nodded. “Yeah, I really love the vibes of your house–it’s so homey!” she said honestly.

“Really? Glad to hear that! Sit down, you need to eat something. You’re looking so thin,” Susan said cheerfully.

Rebecca nodded, pulling out a chair at the dining table and sitting down, her stomach growling with hunger.

“So, Max said you’d be working as a daily maid for a while?” Susan asked as she placed two plates of potato gratin on the table.

Rebecca cleared her throat nervously and nodded. “Yeah, I need a daily income until I

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can arrange my own place,” she replied, trying to sound casual.

Susan nodded. “Have you contacted the daily maid agency?” she asked curiously.

Rebecca nodded. “Yeah, um, actually, I’ve already got my first job,” she replied as she cut into the potato gratin and took a bite.

Susan looked up. “Really? Where?”

“Um, at the Specter mansion. They said they need a daily maid for a while…”

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