payment page
Summary
Chapter 11-Alias: Izzy Williams
Chapter 11: Present Day
Evie recalls learning about Ryan’s businesses. In Lake Forbing, Louisiana, he manages a branch of a national brokerage firm within a quaint office park, primarily helping elderly women with their oil and gas royalties. In Glenview, Texas, Ryan oversees a secretive trucking and transportation company. This company was founded by Ryan’s grandfather and was originally legitimate, but then expanded into brokerage services for stolen goods. Ryan took over the business when his grandmother was diagnosed with cancer, but limited his involvement at the company to one day a week—Thursdays. She reflects that he’s a thief, just like her.
Her instructions are to help Mr. Smith’s client with a hostile takeover of the company, which is now very lucrative. To gather more information, she disguises herself with men’s clothes and facial prosthetics to appear more masculine. She watches as Ryan changes from a coat and slacks to worn jeans, a T-shirt, and scuffed-up boots; he clearly keeps his two lives separate.
While breaking into Ryan’s office, she hides in a shower stall when he unexpectedly arrives, even though it’s not Thursday. She listens as Ryan confronts a terrified man, accusing him of making a side deal. Ryan threatens to have an enforcer cut off the man’s fingers if he doesn’t reveal everyone involved. He instructs the enforcer to take the man to a warehouse and call Robert, a dangerous client whose merchandise they were trying to sell behind Ryan’s back. Evie’s research confirms that Robert is someone to fear.
After the enforcer returns, Ryan’s demeanor shifts, and the two men engage in casual conversation. Evie struggles to reconcile the ruthless, violent side of Ryan with the man she knows personally. After sneaking out, she texts Ryan from the parking lot, watching him as he replies. He looks tired and haggard, telling her his day “sucked.” She knows he will lie to her about his day, just as she will lie to him about hers.
Chapter 12: Present Day
Evie spends a relaxing day in Ryan’s backyard, thinking about how much her mother would have loved it. She reflects on how she and her mother used to fantasize about their dream home, realizing her mother didn’t just want a nicer house but a more comfortable, secure life for her. Later, while shopping at Home Depot for a new lawn mower with Ryan, Evie unexpectedly runs into James and the woman calling herself Lucca. The woman shows no sign of recognizing Evie, leading her to assume that Lucca is still in the information-gathering phase of her mission. Evie notices Ryan glancing between her and Lucca, clearly seeing the resemblance between them. Deciding to maintain control over the situation, Evie invites them over for dinner, and they accept.
Alias: Izzy Williams—Eight Years Ago
On her first assignment for Mr. Smith, operating under the alias Izzy Williams, Evie follows strict instructions: apply liquid bandage to her fingers to avoid leaving fingerprints, wear a wig to prevent shedding hair, and use colored contacts and contoured makeup to make herself unrecognizable. She reflects that, while her mother taught her makeup to enhance her natural features, she now uses it to look like someone else.
The job involves working as a nanny for Greg and Jenny Kingston and retrieving something from their house. Jenny is an alcoholic dependent on Xanax, while her son Miles quietly runs the household. Each day on the job becomes harder as Evie starts to wonder who will take care of Miles after she leaves, so she decides to raise the stakes. She gets into Jenny’s bedroom while Jenny is in the bath and finds a safe hidden behind a family photo. When she calls Matt for help, he suggests trying Miles' birthday as the code, but it doesn’t work. She tries the day of Greg and Jenny’s first date and the safe opens, revealing a flash drive, which she swaps with a corrupted fake.
Before she can leave, Jenny catches her and accuses her of snooping all week. When Jenny lunges at her, she falls and hits the floor, unconscious and bleeding. Matt instructs Evie to leave immediately and not call 911, but she compromises by calling Greg and telling him to come home.
Back at the AAA building, Matt connects Evie to Mr. Smith, who reprimands her for being careless. He reminds her that she’s on a job, and that taking unnecessary risks—like rushing to open the safe without having done proper research—caused the situation. He warns her only to call for help as a last resort. Mr. Smith emphasizes that she’s meant to be a ghost passing through the lives of her targets. However, Evie realizes that she’s not just a ghost in others’ lives—she’s become one in her own. Determined not to let emotions interfere with her work again, she resolves to never again get attached while she’s on the job.
Analysis
Evie reflects on Ryan as a mirror of herself: both are thieves, but Ryan has successfully cloaked his illegal operations with the right “clothes.” His wealth, social standing, and trustworthiness within his community give him a veneer of legitimacy, allowing him to operate in both respectable and criminal worlds seamlessly. This parallel deepens when Evie watches Ryan change from polished attire into worn jeans and boots—reinforcing that, like her, he uses disguises to navigate different aspects of his life. However, while Ryan’s status protects him, Evie’s identity remains precarious, shaped entirely by the roles she must play for survival.
The theme of appearances and identity surfaces again; her mother taught her how to enhance her features, not to become someone else, but to express her true self. In contrast, Evie uses these skills to transform into entirely different personas, erasing who she truly is. This tension between becoming and pretending underlines the emotional weight of Evie’s journey. She is pursuing what her mother hoped for—a better life—but does so by adopting dangerous roles that put her further from the comfort and security her mother envisioned.
Evie’s assignment under the alias Izzy Williams serves as a formative experience, solidifying her belief that emotional detachment is essential for survival. Her encounter with the Kingstons reveals the cost of becoming too involved—caring about Miles and Jenny makes the job harder, and her moment of hesitation nearly exposes her. Mr. Smith’s reprimand—that she must be a “ghost” passing through others’ lives—resonates deeply with her, but it also forces her to confront a painful truth: she has become a ghost in her own life, disconnected from any real sense of self. This realization marks a turning point, as Evie resolves to never again let emotions interfere with her work.
Ultimately, these chapters underscore the novel’s central theme: identity is not a fixed thing but a performance that must be carefully maintained. Both Evie and Ryan live dual lives, using disguises to navigate worlds that demand different versions of themselves. However, while Ryan’s wealth and privilege allow him to move between these roles with relative ease, Evie’s survival depends on staying invisible, detached, and adaptable. Her struggle to balance these roles highlights the emotional cost of living through deception and the difficulty of ever reclaiming an authentic self.
