Life as I knew it

My phone is vibrating in my back pocket, my eyes wide. Valentina looks uncomfortable, shifting from foot to foot.

"Do you need some guards to escort you home, Miss Maxwell?" she asks, genuine concern on her face.

The thought of going home right now sends me into an almost panic attack; although I try to keep my home life as secret as possible, some clients have been known to drop in my home unannounced. And with Ms. Hughes basically outing me out on the city news, I could almost see everyone swarming my house like moths to an open light.

I've been silent for too long; giving Valentina a strained smile, I pull out my phone. "I'm gonna make a quick phone call, Valentina, if Asher has any concerns, she can call me." She nods as I walk off, punching in the numbers by memory.

She answers on the first ring. "Hello?"

"Hi, yes, I need a favor."

Fifteen minutes later, I'm making my way out from Asher's house, waving good bye to Valentina. I make sure to hand Valentina the keys to my car, giving her instructions on where to keep it, since I won't be seeing it for a while.

A black Nissan is running, the passenger door swinging open.

"Hiiiii!" she pipes up happily, blue eyes staring at mine.

Rowan Rue, a long time friend of mine and quite possibly the only person I trust, sits in the driver's seat, drumming her fingers against the steering wheel. Glossy blonde hair is made into a messy bun, black framed glasses perched on her nose. She wears a ruffled shirt with a mini skirt, and ballet flats.

"Thanks for coming on such short notice." I say, stepping in the car. The faint smell of mint and strawberry hit my nose.

"Yeah, I saw what was going on in the news. Emilia really needs to contact you in a different way." she replied, starting the car, and pulling out from the estate.

"That's the thing, she did contact me three days ago, but she's not the only person I need to see. I have a wait list that's as long as six months." I answered, brushing a strand of red hair out of my face.

"She probably didn't want to wait that long."

"Well, she's going to have to; I can only take one person per day, unless I wanna tire myself out, which I really don't." I respond, shutting off my phone.

Rowan arches an eyebrow at me, briefly looking over at me.

"I'm probably gonna have to get a new phone, and a new place to live..." I trail off, dragging a hand through my hair, a bit exasperated.

"Do you also find it weird that Emilia is the one asking for help and not her husband?" Rowan asked. "I've seen the news, and ever since he stepped down in his industry for Emilia to take over, he's really spiraled."

"I have no doubt that he's the one that actually needs the help. But he's not asking for it for one, and I can't help someone who doesn't ask for it, or wants it." I respond, staring out the window as Rowan pulls into her driveway.

Her house is small, one story with 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. Since Rowan partly helps me, and is a musician, she was able to move out on her own, and live a life she deserves.

Stepping out, I stretch, yawning a bit. I still haven't recovered from Asher's mind, and a bath, and some rest sound very good at the moment. As Rowan steps up to unlock her door, she stops, pulling a folder that was tucked away in her mailbox. Confusion flickers on her face, and she reads the stamp.

"It's addressed to you, Laney." She replies, handing it to me.

Surprised, I take the file, skimming over the stamp.

Sure enough, my name is on it in red ink. I take a deep breath, tearing off the piece of tape that held it closed.

I read over the words in silence, chewing on my bottom lip lost in thought.

"What does it say?" Rowan asks, curiosity piqued.

"Well, they've been monitoring me for the past three days, they know nearly all of my locations. And by they, I mean she." I show Rowan Emilia's signature at the bottom, the swirl of letters large and pronounced.

"She really wants you to help." Rowan says, taken aback. I nod in agreement, trying to roll some of the tension out of my shoulders.

I drop the note back in the folder, making my way towards Rowan's house. "I need rest and some water." I say, exhaustion clouding me.

Rowan is right behind me, and she directs me to the guest room. Walking up the steps, I collapse on the neatly made bed, succumbing to sleep.

In a car, three blocks over, a woman peeks back to the front of the Rowan's house. She wears sunglasses despite the cloudy sky. Watching her target get in the house, her phone rings, the shrill ringtone breaking the silence.

She answers.

"Were you able to pinpoint her location?" her boss asks, his voice gruff, and raspy.

"Yes sir, I found her. She's the one we've been tracking." the woman replies, dropping the Spanish accent.

"Good. Keep an eye on her, she's very valuable to what we need."

"Of course boss. What now?"

"Pull back for now. She has a lot of eyes on her, thanks to that damn Emilia announcing her existence to the whole city. If she goes missing now, people will try to search for her. We need to keep this as quiet as possible."

The woman nods. "I will not let you down, boss."

"Good. Now prepare yourself for the next phase of the plan."

She nods, hanging up the phone.

Her appearance changes, hair going to a dark shade of black, eyes going from brown to green. Wrinkles that once took up her face disappear, lips plumping, as she de-aged. In her new form, she looked to be around her mid-twenties at least, and she threw back a strand of her black hair, practicing her movements.

Once finished, she glanced at herself in her compact mirror, smiling, and winking at her reflection.

"Hello. The name is Rosie, pleased to meet ya." she practiced in a southern drawl.

She would see to it that this plan would be successful; she had messed up once many years ago, this time it would be different. Because this time, there was no time for mistakes. Especially what was in store for the plan ahead/

Starting the car Laney had entrusted her with, she sped off, new identity, new purpose awaiting her.

She would be back for Laney, and together, they could accomplish everything. As long as everything went according to plan.