payment page
Summary
Chapter 21—Alias: Regina Hale–Six Months Ago
Chapter 21
Evie panics when she hears voices in the hall and texts Ryan in distress. But when she hears his phone chime, she realizes he’s talking to George about ensuring she arrives in Atlanta on time. When Ryan returns with some papers in his pocket and embraces her, she forces herself to act normal, despite the crushing realization that he has been manipulating her. She reflects that while she thought they were both on the verge of confessing their secrets, Ryan’s vulnerability was only a ploy to make her reveal hers. Grieving the loss of what could have been, Evie accepts that she will never be the kind of woman who lives with a perfect guy on a perfect street—she is, and will always be, a ghost drifting through others' lives.
Chapter 22
Evie sneaks out of bed and searches through the papers Ryan brought back from his meeting with George. To her horror, she discovers they’re the same business intel she’s been delivering to Mr. Smith. It dawns on her: Ryan is most likely Mr. Smith. Replaying their interactions, she realizes how plausible it is: he told the police she was from Brookwood, Alabama; he delayed her long enough when the police were coming to prevent a clean escape; and it all fits—if Mr. Smith was always watching her, living with her would be the perfect way to do it.
Evie alerts Devon and sneaks out of the hotel room. Devon calls, saying he’s close to cracking the website and uncovering Mr. Smith’s identity. Evie urges him to run if things go wrong in the morning. Returning to Eden one last time, she mourns the girl she used to be when her mother was alive. Then, posing as an electrical worker, she sneaks into a dentist’s office to upload some files. Moments later, Devon confirms he has identified Mr. Smith and sends her a picture—one with a face she instantly recognizes.
Alias: Regina Hale–Six Months Ago
Six months ago, Evie was assigned to surveil Amy Holder, who possessed highly sensitive information about Victor Connolly and was threatening to use it against him. Devon embedded himself as a bartender to serve Amy drinks, while Evie monitored her for two weeks. During that time, Amy mostly drank herself into a stupor and drove home drunk each night. After the Tate mission, Evie knew other operatives were likely involved as well.
One night, Amy noticed Evie and immediately assumed she was working for Mr. Smith, loudly declaring that Evie would never find what she was looking for. Evie denied it, but Amy listed every time she’d seen Evie at the bar, recounting what Evie had worn each time. Amy revealed that she had no choice—if she didn’t take the information, she’d already be dead, and if she handed it over, she was as good as dead anyway.
Evie realized Mr. Smith was likely receiving real-time updates and wouldn’t be happy. Her suspicions were confirmed when he messaged her, saying the timetable had been moved up due to her inability to follow instructions. Later that night, Evie found Amy passed out in her car. Seizing the moment, she dragged Amy out, retrieved her keys, and searched her house—only to come up empty-handed.
Amy relocated to a hotel, and Evie received orders from Mr. Smith to bring her in immediately, as she was now considered out of control. Outside the hotel, Amy made a scene, shouting that she had damning information about Mr. Smith himself—something that piqued Evie’s curiosity. Determined to learn more, Evie followed Amy inside, posed as housekeeping, and forced her way into the room.
Analysis
When Evie discovers that Ryan is colluding with George, it is the ultimate betrayal, forcing her to confront the fact that the intimacy she believed they shared was never real. The emotional manipulation by Ryan exemplifies the precarious nature of their relationship—while Evie thought they were both nearing confessions of their deepest secrets, Ryan was merely angling for control. The sense of grief Evie feels at the loss of the dream of a normal life is poignant. The recurring theme of Evie as a ghost—a transient presence passing through others' lives—highlights her struggle with identity and the impossibility of belonging. This chapter reinforces that her pursuit of stability, trust, and love will remain just out of reach, cementing her role as someone perpetually on the outside, looking in.
The revelation that Ryan is likely Mr. Smith is a major turning point, forcing Evie to reframe every interaction with him through a lens of deceit. This twist underscores the idea that even those closest to her are not what they seem—an ongoing motif throughout the novel. Ryan being Mr. Smith demonstrates how deeply embedded manipulation runs in her world, blurring the lines between love, control, and surveillance. His acts—keeping her close when the police arrived and knowing personal details about her—suddenly become sinister rather than protective.
These chapters explore the tension between control and vulnerability—Evie’s growing understanding that everyone around her, even those she once trusted, has hidden motives. Her relationship with Ryan demonstrates how deeply personal and professional deception intertwine. The revelation that he may be Mr. Smith underscores the novel’s central tension: Evie’s relentless search for truth in a world built on lies. The flashback reinforces that no matter how carefully Evie follows orders, there are always elements beyond her control—echoing the larger theme that every identity she assumes is unstable, destined to unravel.
