Chapter 2. A Deal

After exchanging phone numbers with Victoria, Sarah returned to her apartment nervously. Did she just make the wrong decision? But a billion dollars?! Even if she worked for years, she might never be able to collect that much money. With that money, she could buy a house in the country, open her own business, and live a quiet life with her grandmother. Something she had always wanted.

“Granny, are you asleep?” she whispered as she entered the motel and found her grandmother lying on the bed. She looked so sick as usual, especially after Antony Russo beat her up.

“Sarah? Is that you? What took you so long? Did you manage to get us a new place to live?” asked Granny, turning to look at her.

Sarah smiled and nodded. “Take a look at this! It looks comfortable, right? You will have your room, and look at this balcony! You can sunbathe every morning there and get enough vitamin D!” She mumbled excitedly while showing her Granny the apartment video on her cellphone. She was lying, of course.

Granny smiled widely, making wrinkles in the corners of her eyes. “Is it expensive?”

“Um, well, not cheap but not too expensive, still quite affordable for us,” Sarah replied as she walked over to Granny’s bed and sat on it.

Granny smiled. She knew Sarah was lying to her but didn’t want to break her spirit. “Um, granny, I have something to tell you...”

Granny straightened herself, looking at her only granddaughter with a questioning look.

Sarah bit her lip, contemplating how she would explain to Granny the job Victoria had offered her. “You know what? Maybe I’ll tell you tomorrow! I have to take a shower now. I’m covered in dust!” She got up from her seat and rushed to the bathroom, leaving Granny with a deep frown, wondering what Sarah wanted to talk to her about.

In the bathroom, Sarah was busy thinking. If she didn’t take Victoria’s offer, she might regret it for the rest of her life. How on earth would she get a billion dollars just by pretending to be someone? She could pay her parents’ debt and live peacefully with her grandmother. Something that she could never experience since her parents died when she was in high school.

While drying her hair with a towel, her phone suddenly vibrated. A call from Victoria. Hesitantly, she took her phone and pressed the green button. “Yes,” she whispered.

“I’ve made a contract and a module for you. Meet me tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. at the beach where we met earlier, and decide immediately if you agree to work with me. I need someone serious. If you are in doubt about your decision, you should back off right now,” Victoria said coldly and firmly.

Sarah bit her lip. “I’ll let you know at two o’clock tomorrow afternoon,” she said hoarsely. After that, the call was disconnected. She looked at her reflection in the mirror. If she agreed to the offer, would she be able to act like Victoria? From the way they talk and everything, they have opposite personalities.

Sarah was warm, but the harsh life made her more introverted. On the other side, Victoria was very cold and mysterious. Sarah feared that her incompetence might turn into a boomerang that would someday attack her. But the thought of her and her grandmother living in a comfortable house in the countryside made her very tempted. Shouldn’t she be trying to get what she wants, or should she just live her life as miserably as before?

Stepping out of the bathroom, she found her grandmother fast asleep, even though the clock on the wall only showed 8:00 p.m. With barely audible footsteps, she hopped onto the bed and lay beside her grandmother.

She opened her cell phone and typed Victoria Jane Abbot into the search engine. News about her was published in various domestic and foreign media. It turned out that Abbot’s family was quite famous and respected in upper-class business circles. Almost all the media said Victoria was burned to death in her car. Only several media reports said she might still be alive because the rest of her bones were not found at the scene.

She clicked on a photo of Victoria with Benjamin Abbot, who looked very warm, intelligent, and handsome. He was the perfect man who would become a bone of contention for many women.

She took her cell phone, looked for Victoria’s number, and typed a message.

‘How long do I have to pretend to be you?’

A few minutes later, her cell phone vibrated with an incoming message.

‘Depends on how fast you can find the culprit; my goal is 3 to 6 months.’

‘What if I don’t make it? How are you going to pay me?’

‘I’ll go to my husband and confess everything to him, and you’ll get half paid. Because even if he divorces me, I will still get the property and assets that are rightfully mine.’

‘I have one condition. Whether you like it or not, you have to accept it.’

‘Spill it out!’

‘You must look after my grandmother while I do my job. I can’t leave her alone.’

‘Easy!’

She closed her eyes and bit her lip hard. She had to decide so she could sleep well. Otherwise, her brain would continue to spin, and she would think harder. After much thought, finally...

‘I’m in.’

That night, she slept very soundly and dreamed of a beautiful house with a large wheat field and a dozen healthy cows.

The following day, she woke up feeling much better. She may have made the right decision after all.

“Granny, I have to meet someone. If you need anything, just call me, okay?” she said, kneeling on the floor and holding her grandmother’s hand, who was sitting on the bed.

“You’ve been looking weird since yesterday. What’s the matter?” asked Granny, looking into her eyes.

Sarah was quite surprised. She bit her lip, thinking of the right words to explain to her grandmother. “Um, I got a job offer this afternoon. I will meet with that person who gave me this job, and after I sign the contract, I will explain everything to you,” she said softly.

“Is that a dangerous job?” asked Granny worriedly.

Sarah raised her eyebrows, and then she shook her head quickly. “Absolutely not. I just have to improvise to become an actress and a detective. This will be fun! So don’t worry!”

“Is that so?” said Granny a little disbelievingly.

“Yeah, why should I lie? I’m leaving! I love you!” She got up on her feet and kissed her grandmother’s cheek fast before she disappeared behind the door.

When she arrived at the beach, Victoria was already there. She sat up straight with sunglasses covering part of her face. Beside her was a black bag that looked quite heavy.

“Hi,” Sarah greeted as she plopped down on the chair.

“You’re late,” Victoria said dryly.

“What?” Sarah glanced at her watch. She was only a minute late but chose not to say anything.

“It’s all in that black bag,” Victoria said without turning her head.

Sarah quickly opened it, and several bundles of documents were inside it. One of them was their contract. “If you want to use the services of a lawyer, make sure he is someone you trust. I don’t want anyone else to know about this, but if you insist, make sure he won’t leak our contract to anyone!” chirped Victoria curtly.

Sarah fell silent. How could she possibly get a lawyer she could fully trust? Moreover, that was about the agreement with the significant amount of money. Suddenly, a name flashed through her head. She smiled a little and then turned to Victoria.

“Don’t worry. I have a personal lawyer who can be trusted!” She said. She was half-showing off.

Victoria snorted in disbelief.

Confidently, Sarah opened her cell phone and searched for a number. A few moments later, “Matt? Are you busy?”