“I don’t think that is something I would be interested in. I’ll stick with just the relocation.”
“I understand. But before you make that decision, you should know that the payment to you would be $250,000, up front, for six to eight months of your time. You’re only expected to play the role of wife to the public-no sex, no kids, no strings other than keeping up the appearance of a faithful wife to the client.”
“That’s it? There has to be a catch.”
“There isn’t. You are helping our client with a problem that requires him to have a wife. He can explain his reasons to you, if he chooses to do so. That is strictly between the two of you. Our job is merely to provide him with a suitable candidate. In addition to the payment, your living expenses during your stay with him will be fully covered. You’ll live under his roof and play your public role, nothing more.”
Kelly considered this. It was a bit over the top, in her opinion, but it was a lot of money. She wouldn’t find a job making that much with her limited skills. There was no desire to find a mate anytime soon, so why not do this and use the money to better herself once it was done?
“I’d like to think about it.”
“I wish I could give you that luxury, but time is of the essence. Keep in mind that you are under no obligation until you’ve signed a contract with him. We can assign you a new identity and send you to where he is located. You meet with him and make your final decision there, but we do need to know if you are interested in the opportunity now, as it affects where we send you for your relocation.”
“Where is this client located?”
“I’m not sure yet. I’ll need you to fill out some forms and then I’ll make a match from there. We will need to takephotographs for your identification.”
“Okay. Let’s give it a shot then.”
“Great.”
Charlotte handed her a clipboard from the desk in front of her and told her to fill it out while she made some other preparations in another location. Kelly looked at the form and began answering basic questions about herself. It looked a lot like the questions one would be asked on a dating site, which she found concerning. If this was a fake marriage, why did any of this matter? She posed the question to Charlotte as she returned to the room.
“You have to live comfortably with this person and pretend to be his loving wife for months. We need it to be believable, so your appearance should be similar to his usual type and your personalities should be amenable to cohabitating. For instance, we wouldn’t match a vegan with a trophy hunter. That sort of thing.”
“Are there vegan bears?” Kelly countered.
Charlotte looked at her with a bit of exasperation, a silent indication that it was irrelevant.
“It was merely an example I plucked from the air.”
“Of course,” Kelly replied.
Blushing, she handed the completed form back to Charlotte, who lay it on the desk behind her without looking at it.
“All right then. Are you ready to do this?”
“Yes.”
“And you have the money?”
“I do,” Kelly replied, pulling the envelope from her bag and handing it to the woman.
She sat quietly while Charlotte counted it out, trying not to be offended, as she realized she was a stranger. Of course, the money would need to be counted. She was relieved to be parted with it, actually. Carrying that much cash around made her feel paranoid and anxious.
“Perfect,” Charlotte said finally, putting the money into a separate bank bag of her own and standing with it in hand. “Come with me.”
Kelly followed her down the hallway that ran congruent to the outer area where the travel agency was positioned and then into a door that seemed to open out to both areas, but was private to the open area beyond. There was camera equipment and a white screen, along with some other equipment she didn’t quite recognize.
“Biometric equipment for passports,” Charlotte said, noting the direction of her gaze.
“Does my payment include that?” Kelly asked.
“No. We are unable to get passports with such a quick turnaround, so we do not include them. There is, however, no reason that you cannot get one on your own with your new credentials once you are resettled at an address.”
“I see,” she said, surmising that they merely provided this service to people using the travel services.
“Okay, stand in front of the screen and let’s get your photos made.”
Kelly noted that she took both front and side photos, more than would be needed for a mere license photo. She wondered what the others were for but decided that they probably went to potential clients as part of the compatibility criteria. A few moments later, she was escorted back to the original office and they were seated across from one another again.