Mira leaned against the marble counter in the kitchen. Her bottle of sparkling water sat half-empty beside her.
"One million dollars. Exactly what we need for Plan B," she said, turning to face Raquel and Liam. "The money is not just for me. It's for all of us."
Raquel blinked. "All of us?"
Mira pushed off the counter. "Yes. You. Liam. Me. We can't go back to Brookside. And there's no point trying to explain things to our parents. Either way, we'll be punished. You both know that."
Liam looked away.
"So, what are you saying?" Raquel asked, frowning.
"I'm saying we leave the country."
Raquel's mouth opened in disbelief. "Leave?"
"Yes, Raquel. Disappear for good," Mira replied, already getting irritated by her reaction. "We'll start over in a new location. With new names and new identities. I'll cover everything, visas, travel, a place to stay, even a monthly allowancefor both of you, if you wish, until we figure it out."
"We can't just leave. We don't even have our passports," Raquel muttered.
"That's why we're splitting up for the next 24 hours," Mira said. "Go home, quietly. Get your documents, passports, birth certificates, any documents that tie to who you are. Pack the essentials. Nothing that would make your parents suspicious. Just get what you need and be ready."
Raquel chewed on her lip again. "My parents are going to freak out. They'd never let me leave."
Mira's voice turned ice cold. "You don't need their permission, Raquel. You're seventeen, not seven. If you go back and try to reason with them, they'll lock you in your room and never let you leave. You have one job, get in, get out. Fast."
Raquel nodded slowly, her face pale.
"Go this evening. Get your documents. Be gone before nightfall. Meet back here by 8,9pm. The jet and new passports can be ready by tomorrow."
Liam gave her a slow look. "And just how fast do you think you can do that? Get us new passports, change identities. Those are the kinds of things you see in movies, Mira. You think it's that easy?"
"Liam. Do you, for one second, think that I'd suggest such a thing without having a plan on how to carry it out? Or did I ask you to change your identity yourself? I know a guy. And I have the money. So, when I tell you I'll handle it, both of you should stop doubting me!"
"This is insane!" Liam screamed back, holding both hands to his head. "Do you even know what you're asking us to do?! Throw away our lives here and hop on a plane with you to God-knows-where? It's impossible, Mira."
"Hey, hey, hey. Listen to me, Liam," she soothed, holding his face. "It is very possible. You hear me? It is possible. I will make it happen, I promise."
"I… I can't," he cried. "My mum, my dad—I know I don't care much about them, but I don't think I can do this."
"Yes, you can," she whispered, hugging him. "I'll be here with you all the way. We can do this, okay? By Monday, we should be settled down in a new country as new people."
She addressed both of them. "This is for our own good. And this is another opportunity to live a better life, better than what home, Brookside High, this town is offering. We have to make this decision for ourselves."
She looked at her watch. "You guys need to leave now if you can make it back in time."
---
RAQUEL
By 4pm, Raquel stood in front of her family's modest, quiet home, her heart pounding like a mouse's as she turned the key. Her father sat on the living room couch watching his favourite team play. Her mom's voice floated through an open window, humming softly from the kitchen.
It all felt too normal, too stable for the chaos happening inside her head.
She stepped inside quietly.
The scent of her mother's chicken sauce recipe hit her first, triggering something painfully familiar. For a moment, she hesitated.
"I can't," she whispered to herself. "I can't do this to them."
But Mira's voice echoed in her head, …either way, you'll be severely punished… another opportunity to live a better life…
"Raquel?" her mother called, peeking into the hallway. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at school?"
Raquel forced a casual smile. "We had a free day. I just wanted to pick up a few things. I'm going for a sleepover."
Her mother stepped into view, drying her hands on a kitchen towel. "A sleepover? With who?"
"Um… Mira. I didn't think it'd be a problem." She said, trying to keep her voice even, light.
Her father looked over his glasses. "You should've called first."
"I didn't want to disturb anyone. It was last-minute," she said quickly, slipping past them toward the stairs.
She moved fast, retrieving her passport and birth certificate from the safe box, some cash hidden in her jewelry box, and a few pairs of underwear. Her hands shook as she stuffed everything into her bag, praying her mother wouldn't follow her upstairs.
But just as she was zipping it up, the door creaked open.
Her mother stood there, arms crossed. "What exactly are you packing for? That bag looks too full for a sleepover."
Raquel hesitated, then gave a tight smile. "We might go camping too. You know, just girl stuff."
Her mother didn't buy it. "You're not going anywhere tonight, Raquel. Not without proper notice."
"Mum, please. It's just for a few days—"
"I said no."
A beat of silence passed. Raquel's fingers tightened around the bag's straps.
Then, without another word, she bolted.
"Raquel!" her mother shouted, startled. "Come back here!"
But Raquel was already flying down the stairs, pushing out the front door and into the street, ignoring her name being called behind her.
She didn't stop running.
---
LIAM
Liam's house was quiet when he walked in. His father was fixing a leaking tap in the kitchen, his mother hunched over the dining table with her laptop.
His mother looked up, startled. "Liam? Why are you home?"
"School's going on an excursion," he said with a casual shrug. "They let us come pick up our stuff. International trip. Quick notice."
His father straightened. "At this hour? That doesn't sound right."
"That's what I said," his mother muttered, reaching for her phone. "I'm calling the school."
Liam froze.
"Yeah, yeah… you can call the principal. I… I already saved the principal's number in your phone, when you asked me to," he explained, rubbing his right hand over his head, fighting to keep his voice steady. "Call her. She'll explain everything to you."
But inside, his stomach had twisted into a hard knot.
His mother shot him a suspicious look, then tapped open her contacts. Liam watched her thumb scroll to the name Principal Morris and press the green button.
The phone rang.
Once.
Twice.
Each chime seemed to pound louder in his ears.
Three times.
Liam felt sweat bead beneath his shirt. What if Mira didn't pick up? What if she fumbled the lie? What if—
"Hello, Principal Morris speaking."
Liam's shoulders dropped an inch.
His mother raised an eyebrow. "Yes, this is Mrs. Kenner. Liam tells us the school is going on a last-minute excursion?"
Mira's voice came through the phone, clipped and professional. "Yes, Mrs. Kenner. We received an invitation from the Ministry of Youth and Culture for a week-long academic exchange. It was very sudden. Only a few students were selected. Liam is one of them."
There was a pause.
"I wish we were given more notice," his mother said.
"We understand completely. It was out of our hands. The ministry approved the trip just yesterday. Liam will be safe. We'll ensure daily communication."
Another pause. Then she said, "Alright then. I suppose that's fine."
"Thank you for understanding."
Click.
Liam exhaled.
His father gave him a long look. "Just pack carefully. And behave."
"Sure thing, Dad."
---
BACK AT THE MANSION
By 9pm, they were both back at the Koker's mansion.
Raquel sat curled on one of the velvet sofas, still shaken but silent. Liam leaned against the pillar by the staircase, sipping juice, his eyes dark with thought.
Mira came down the stairs in fresh clothes, her hair tied up in rollers.
"So," she said, checking the table clock. "You guys made it back in time. Passports?"
Raquel and Liam held theirs up.
Mira smiled. "Good. You did well."
Raquel looked up. "What about you? Don't you have to tell your dad?"
Mira laughed. "Please. He should be in Geneva right now with a strange woman warming up his body. He doesn't even know I'm home. And if he does, he doesn't care why, as long as I don't crash a Ferrari or overdraft the family account."
There was a beat of silence.
"Do you ever miss your mum?" Liam asked quietly.
Mira looked at him, her face unreadable. "Sometimes," she shrugged. "She left since I was twelve. Said she couldn't do this life anymore. Couldn't stay married to a man who loved money more than her. I chose to stay with him because he pays for the clothes on my back and the food in my mouth."
She turned, her voice dry. "Love doesn't get you out of Brookside. Money does."
With that, she pulled out her phone, dialed her private travel agent, and walked away.
Raquel looked at Liam. "This is really happening."
Liam nodded slowly. "It is."
And as Mira's voice drifted from the other room, cold and commanding, Raquel realized something else:
Plan B wasn't just escape.
It was reinvention.
A new chapter.
And there was no going back now.