Cesar Rollin Balas had Maya waiting at the door early on. When Maya saw only Clarisse, she immediately asked, "Where's Jonathan?"
"Oh, he went to the United States. Said he had some matters to attend to!" Clarisse affectionately linked arms with Maya, signaling to Marc, who promptly took over, "That's right, Mr. Drucker had some sudden business in the States!"
Maya was half convinced, half skeptical, but Clarisse quickly changed the subject and engaged Maya in other conversations. They decided to keep this from them for now. Especially Cesar Rollin Balas; she didn't want him to worry about her worsening condition again. It was better to put up a front, to make them think she was doing fine.
