As Avery prepares for Emily Laughlin’s memorial fundraiser, Landon coaches Avery on public messaging while stylists work on Avery’s hair and makeup. Landon wants Avery to appear relatable, grateful, friendly with the Hawthornes, and unlikely to destabilize the industries she will inherit. Avery resists being scripted, but Landon insists Avery must find an authentic way to say it.

When Avery says the experience is incredible and admits she wishes her mother were there, Landon approves the emotional direction but warns Avery not to mention her mother publicly. Avery is unsettled by that restriction, especially because questions about Avery’s mother connect to Avery’s growing suspicions about Toby Hawthorne and Avery’s true father.

Later, dressed in a polished but uncomfortable outfit, Avery is still thinking about Landon’s warning. Once Avery and Max are alone, Max reveals that a tabloid has been publishing claims that Avery’s mother lived under a fake name. The story has not spread widely, but it gives context to Landon’s concern and deepens Avery’s anxiety about what the press might discover.

Avery tells Max that Avery’s mother had no family and that it had always been just the two of them. Max points out that Toby also lived under a fake name, pushing Avery to wonder how Avery’s mother became involved with Tobias Hawthorne’s son and whether Avery’s mother knew Toby’s real identity.

Alisa interrupts to summon Avery, making clear that Avery cannot avoid the fundraiser. Avery turns the moment into a decision: since Max is there on her eighteenth birthday and wears Avery’s size, Avery opens her closet and tells Max to get dressed, refusing to attend the event alone.