"I think you are making sense." Sylvester nodded. "I will still have the chance to get the money from her."
"Yeah, I will make arrangements for it now."
"Alright. Let me inform Vanessa." Sylvester said and left the doctor's office. In as much as he wasn't unsure about the new plan, he knew there was no turning back now. The stakes were too high, and they had to act fast if they wanted their plan to work.
Vanessa glanced at him as he entered the room. Her brows furrowing slightly when she noticed his facial expression. "What’s wrong, sweetheart? You look like you are disturbed." She said. Her voice sounded tired but curious.
Sylvester closed the door behind him and walked over to her bedside. "Nothing much. Just that the plan has changed." Sylvester said, and Vanessa’s eyes narrowed with suspicion. "What do you mean by the plan has changed? What is going on?"
Sylvester weakly pulled up a chair and sat down beside her, the leaned in closer. "We are moving you to another room. And then, we are going to tell Anabel that the surgery has already started. I will tell her that one of my friends finally came through and lent us the money for the surgery."
Vanessa blinked in surprise and sat up slightly. "Wait, what? Why the sudden change? I thought we were waiting to convince her to pay."
Sylvester ran a hand through his hair. "Anabel is starting to ask too many questions. She even threatened to report the doctor to the authorities. This stunt might get to the CEO of this hospital if we waste any time. Then she will figure out that there is nothing wrong with you. We can’t let that happen."
"So what’s the point of moving me and lying about the surgery? How does that help us?" Vanessa asked. Are we not going to lose the money? All our efforts will be in vain, and we will be on the losing part. We have spent a lot already."
Sylvester placed a hand on her shoulder. "It buys us time. If Anabel thinks the surgery has already started and that someone else paid for it, she will back off. That way, we still have a chance to get the money back from her later. We just need to be patient and play this carefully." Sylvester explained, and Vanessa leaned back against the pillows, exhaling slowly as she processed his words.
"So you are telling me we are doubling down on the lies?" She asked, and Sylvester nodded. "It’s the only way, Vanessa. If Anabel finds out the truth, she will cut us off completely. We will lose everything. This is our best shot at keeping her on our side long enough to get what we need. I will tell her we needed a week or so to pay back."
Vanessa’s lips pressed into a thin line as she weighed his expectations. Finally, she nodded. "Fine. I will go along with it. But this better work, Sylvester. If we mess this up, we are finished."
"I believe it will work. By that time, she must have resolved her bank problems." Sylvester said, trying to sound confident even though his nerves were fraying. "We just have to stick to the plan and stay calm. I’ve already spoken to the doctor, and he has agreed to move you to another room. Anabel won’t suspect a thing.
"I hate all this waiting and pretending." Vanessa sighed, crossing her arms over her chest. "It’s becoming so exhausting. I'm getting tired."
"I know." Sylvester replied sympathetically. "But it’s almost over. Once we get the money from Anabel, we can walk away from all this."
"Let’s just hope she believes you." Vanessa gave a small bitter laugh. "Annabel doesn't look stupid, Sylvester. If she catches even a hint of something being off, she will dig until she uncovers everything."
"That’s why we need to make it airtight," Sylvester said. "For Anabel, I will handle her. You just focus on playing your part."