Chapter 15 - The Woman in the White Coat
We found Dr. Shaw at a private airfield outside the city, not because she left a trail but because June noticed a small detail: the security company on her flight paperwork shared an address with one of Adrian's shell vendors. Noah obtained authorization to intercept the departure. Ruth and I watched from a distant control office as federal vehicles blocked the runway.
Shaw stepped off the jet wearing a flawless cream suit, carrying a blue tote. She didn't struggle. She didn't raise her voice. She asked for her attorney and a bottle of water, in that order.
In the interview room she looked straight through Noah's questions. When I entered with counsel present, she finally blinked.
"Eleanor's daughter," she said. "You have her eyes."
"You have her voice on tape," I answered.
Shaw's hand tightened around the water bottle.
"There was never a conspiracy," she said. "There were vendors who exceeded their contracts."
"And my mother?"
"Your mother couldn't accept how institutions work."
I wanted to throw the water at her. Instead I set Mom's first cassette on the table. Shaw heard Eleanor describe the basement archive. Her expression stayed calm until Mom said she'd copied the north stairwell recording.
"That's not admissible," Shaw snapped.
"It might not be," Noah said. "But your attempt to flee is documented. So are the records. And we've found Lena."
That last part was news to me. I looked toward Noah. He gave a tiny nod.
Lena had surrendered herself to federal agents that morning, provided her attorneys were present and her son was protected. She'd brought copies of correspondence identifying the person who ordered the deletion of the north stairwell footage.
Shaw stared at the table for a full minute.
May you like
Then she leaned toward me and said, "You think your husband was the monster in your story? He learned it from someone you still call family."
THE DOORS SHE OPENED •
