Jesse tossed a bag at me from the front seat which I zipped open amidst the tension building up after the announcement of my departure to England.
I opened the bag to see a passport and visa with the details of a 26 year old female named CASSANDRA GERTA HUGH.
"What is this?" I asked, rummaging through the rest of the bag's content.
"Your new identity. Dexter has eyes and ears at the airport so verification wouldn't be hard at all plus we're coming with you. Two weeks from now, you'll be meeting with Mrs. Theresa Wellingtons, mother to Logan Wellington to discuss about your life as a surrogate and you have to pull a good impression as you are the 31st surrogate she's interviewing —"
"31st? Is she searching for Mary or something?" I scoffed, cutting Jesse off.
"She wants her grandkids to have good genes. Don't get nervous, we'll be with you at every step of the way," Jesse said.
"And the Dexter guy, have you guys seen him?"
"No," they both answered.
"Isn't that disturbing?"
"No, as long as I get paid. I don't really mind," Jesse stated with a shrug.
"Hey," Peter called, looking intently at me as I whipped my head to his direction. "Don't get too curious, the curious ones die first," he advised.
"But —"
"Now, I would like to proceed with my sleep. Thank you,"
With that, he dismissed the chit-chat and adjusted his head on the headrest to sleep and we rode in silence.
I couldn't sleep, my head just kept listing out awkward possibilities about this whole mission.
The fact that Dexter was foreverly anonymous was alarming and now…these guys.
What if they weren't sent by him but from another person? What if Rodrigo sent them? I had to be on alert. I still haven't figured out how being a surrogate would help extract information from the man.
If he's married as they said and his wife knew nothing then he probably never trusted her anyway.
⊰☆⊱┈──╌☆╌──┈⊰☆⊱
Westminster, England.
9:00am.
Two weeks after Avery Reigns' (now Cassie Hugh) escape from Mexico.
So here I finally am, with my hair straightened and my body dressed in a red vintage flare knee length corset dress and black stilettos clicking on England's paved sidewalk as I approach the venue for my interview.
I had covered up all my tattoos except the black rose in my back, I just didn't want to part ways with it now. Avery Reigns was officially reborn.
I had prayed once again for luck to win this woman over. I went through her file again last night which seemed to be quite useful.
She's chatty only with the right people, she's obsessed with scents and vintage fashion, she loves tea and coffee more than any alcoholic beverage and she would like intense but brief answers to her questions.
That was the information Dexter provided last night based on his evaluation from her last meeting and so far, I had only managed to tick one box off her list and now it was the meeting.
The address sent to Cassie's email was a cafe and it was scheduled by 10am. I arrived an hour early to make sure that there would be no mistakes.
By 9:15am, I was already seated at our table informing waiters that came up to me that I would like to order after my companion came. The cafe was empty so I understood their plight. I guess this was one of the top secret meetings where she paid them to accommodate us alone for this morning.
Next, was to admire the weather today, unlike every other day it was quite sunny and a bit hot as well. I've been to London a few times while I was still working with Cobra.
The funny thing is that before I left Tijuana, I asked Jesse to take me to Cobra's headquarters only to see an empty wasteland just as Dexter said.
They had indeed relocated to Spain and for that, they would pay dearly with their darn lives.
"Av… Cassie, can you hear me? " Jesse's voice snapped me from my thoughts with a vibration of the bud in my ear. Yes, I was bugged to make sure that this goes well and for them to help me when I needed it.
I must admit, Peter and Jesse have proven to be good companions in just two weeks of my stay here. But I'm not interested in making friends rather, I want to get this over with and toss that rat called Rodrigo into the hole.
I picked up a magazine on the desk, "Yes, I do, "
"Theresa is on her way, "
"What? Didn't she say it's by 10am?"
"It's a strategy to see if she can make them uneasy or so, arrive before them and give them the impression that they came late, "
If she keeps this up, she'd never find a surrogate.
"Well, I guess we beat her to it,"
"I've got to go, she's at the door, "
Minutes later, Theresa Wellington walked through the cafe doors with poise, grace and elegance as the staff couldn't help but stare.
For a 54 year old, she was quite stunning and better than she looked like in her photos. Her short hair was dyed white and styled into a smooth bob, she wore a cream coloured suit and matching shoes plus accessories that screamed luxury like the limited edition Louis Vuitton bag in her hand.
Her eyeballs popped wide as she saw me, probably trying to figure out why I was here early and I quickly stood up to receive her.
She extended her hand for a handshake and I shook her calmly.
"Theresa Wellington, " she introduced herself with a thick British accent.
"Cassandra Hugh, Cassie for short, "
"Latina?"
My Hispanic accent has sold me out again, "I guess. My father's from England and my mother from Mexico, my mother raised me shortly after his passing,"
"Oh, I'm so sorry about that, "
"No biggie, it happened a long time ago," I said, trying to dismiss the discussion and focus on the agenda for today.
She sat down and motioned me to sit down as well.
"You know, when I was 26 I lost my husband as well so I can understand your mother's plight, "
"Oh, I'm so sorry about that, "
"No biggie, it happened a long time ago, " she giggled and I smiled.
"My son Logan reminds me of him, it's almost like he never left. The worst perk of being a single mother is that everyone assumes that your kids wouldn't turn out well and then again your kids are always your first priority which brings me to why we're meeting today. What would you like to eat or drink? "
"Er…a latte would be okay, "
"As you wish, " she smiled at the waiter close by to come closer.
"A latte and a cup of black coffee please, " she gave her order and looked back at me.
"Thank you, " I acknowledged.
"You're welcome, why do you want to be a surrogate mother, Cassie? You look quite young for a girl aged twenty-six, "
That's because I'm twenty-three.
"I lost my mom few years ago and.. "
"Oh dear… poor child, I'm so sorry, "
"It's fine. Thank you. Aside from the fact that I want to help your son, I feel everyone should experience the joy of being a parent. I also need the money to pay off my mom's debts and go to college, " I explained with a fake sniffle.
"Nice one, Cassie, " Jesse's voice praised from the bud.
Our orders arrived and I held on to my cup of latte, waiting for her to take a sip of her black coffee first.
"That is devastating but, how do you feel about your child being taken away from you? "
"Well, based on the contract we are probably going to sign, the child doesn't belong to me legally. I have no intention of coming back because I trust that my baby is in safe hands, "
"That I can assure you, Cassie. The child would be properly taken care of, that being said let's head to the hospital for a fertility test, "
Fertility test?
"Do as she says, Cassie. It's just an ultrasound, "
"Sure, of course, " I smiled.
"Congrats, I think you may have passed the first stage of the interview, " Jesse hinted.
I got up from my seat and grabbed my purse.
"Pardon, you look so beautiful today, " She complimented and my cheeks changed to a warm shade of red. Her compliment was heartwarming.
"You're beautiful as well. Thank you, " I returned the gesture, trying to stop my lips from smiling.
"Thank you as well, "
Minutes later, we were at the backseat of her Lexus LX 600 chatting about fashion and other topics. I never knew I had so many things to say about literally anything, it felt so natural to talk to her like she was an old friend or something.
The car pulled at the hospital and as Jesse predicted it was just an ultrasound.
"Doctor Jeremy, is our family doctor so I can assure you that you're in safe hands, Cassie, " Mrs. Wellington had earlier reassured me and luckily, the only thing that wasn't a lie about me since my arrival in England was the fact that my reproductive system was sound.
Theresa seemed to be more happy than ever and Jesse repeated the words, "Good job, " in my ears.
Now, we were in Doctor Jeremy's office which Theresa had asked him to lend to her for the contract signing.
"You are a remarkable person, Cassie, " Theresa complimented again after her guard handed her two copies of the contract and left.
"You too, Mrs. Wellington, "
"Theresa please…Do you have friends here in England? "
"Not really, "
"Good, I'm going to list out a few terms in here before you sign and if you're not comfortable with it you can leave, "
Even if I'm not comfortable, I'm not going anywhere. I would have to force myself to adjust to them along the line.
"This is top secret, all interviewed surrogates were paid off to seal their lips and I may have to do the same for you if you wish to pull out. My son, Logan doesn't approve of this but his wife does,"
Dexter said so but now I have to act shocked again.
"He doesn't? "
"Sadly, yes but I have a good feeling that he'd change his mind when he sees you. So I've decided that you would stay with us for a period of 3 months and if he doesn't change his mind until then, you'll leave and I'll still give you the surrogate money. You'll be housed and taken care of like every other member of the family,"
"Jackpot," Jesse whispered.
"Is his wife comfortable with me living there? "
I don't care but I'm not that evil to act inconsiderate.
"Yes, I've informed her. After all, it's just to convince Logan that you can mother his child, not to fall in love or get married to him, "
That is what I can assure you. The only function of my heart is to pump blood, not to catch feelings.
"Is that all? "
"Yes, that is all, "
I sighed, "So, where do I sign? "