The only other person who knew the full extent of her involvement in the case, apart from Tina, was Kit, her sister.  Mike had been extremely reluctant to allow Bette to share information with Kit, but Bette felt she owed it to her sister, knowing full well that she would never be able to leave L.A without coming clean with her. Besides, she needed Kit to help her provide the plausible cover to anyone who asked that family interests, apart from Tina moving to New York, were triggering all the major changes Bette was making.

Everyone who knew Bette knew how committed she was to those she loved, including family. So there wouldn’t be any cause to doubt the rationale of two triggers: Tina and family, leading to the changes Bette was making.

Before sharing anything with Kit, however, she took extra care to feel out how prepared her sister would be to play a role in all the changes Bette was making.  And for that, she needed to talk to her sister face-to-face.  Over Mike’s objections, she managed to make things appear that Kit had been invited to participate as a judge in a young talents competition in a legendary jazz club in Georgetown.  When Kit landed, the car that picked up Kit took her to see Bette in a non-descript office in Crystal City, instead of directly to her hotel.

Kit had been surprised to see Bette, as she thought Bette had been calling her from various places, or from New York during the few calls she placed (from the office set up for her in Crystal City).  This was consistent with the story the business advisers who had been helping out in the gallery and in the business jet service, had been telling Kit and Bette’s friends. In the meantime, Bette had arranged for James to take a month-long vacation (“You’ve been working so hard James, and I never got to send you on any kind of vacation all these years you’ve been working with me.”).

“I’m so glad you found that special someone in Tina, Bette,” was the first thing she said, after Bette described the dramatic events that had occurred over the past few weeks.  She knew her sister would be strong enough to overcome all the business related transitions she was going to have to make.  But the news that Bette had fallen in love, and so completely, was the true transformation in Bette’s life, she said.