"You think she's at one of the locations," I realize. "Shaw isn't hiding somewhere else, coordinating from a distance. She's at one of the sites, waiting to document my choice firsthand."
"Has to be," Kent confirms. "This entire setup is designed around her need to observe and record the psychological breakdown she's been engineering for nine years. She won't trust that level of documentation to video surveillance or second-hand reporting."
My mind races through the implications, testing the logic of Kent's assessment against what I know about Shaw's personality and motivations. She's not just a killer—she's an academic who believes her research will revolutionize criminal psychology. The moment when I'm forced to choose between Janine and Aliyah isn't just the culmination of her experiment; it's the centerpiece of whatever paper or book she's planning to write about us.
"She needs to be there to see it happen," I say aloud, the certainty growing stronger. "To document the exact moment when Dr. Lila North breaks down and becomes Delilah Jenkins again."
"Which means one of these locations is a decoy," Kent adds. "Shaw has both women, but she's only at the site where she expects you to go. The other location either contains additional traps or is empty entirely."
The psychology is elegant and terrifying. Shaw knows me well enough to predict which choice I'll make, which woman I'll prioritize when forced to choose between them. She's counting on that predictability to ensure she's in position to document the moment of my psychological collapse.
But which location would she choose?
I close my eyes and try to think like Shaw, to understand the academic framework she's imposed on this situation. From her perspective, which choice would provide the most compelling research data?
"She expects me to choose Janine," I realize with growing certainty. "Shaw's entire psychological profile is built around the idea that family bonds supersede romantic relationships, that I'll prioritize the woman who raised me over the woman Janine loves."
"You sure about that?"
"Think about it from her academic perspective. The more interesting psychological breakdown occurs when I choose self-interest over moral obligation. Saving Janine is the selfish choice—preserving my own support system rather than making the sacrifice that Janine herself would want me to make."
Kent nods slowly, following the twisted logic. "Shaw wants to document the moment when survival instinct overrides moral development. She's not interested in you making the noble choice—that doesn't serve her research thesis."
"So she's at the rehabilitation center with Janine, waiting for me to arrive and make the choice that proves her theories about dormant sociopathy in trauma survivors."
The realization should feel like victory, but instead it fills me with cold dread. Because if Shaw is expecting me at the rehab center, then she's prepared for that encounter in ways I can'tanticipate. She's had time to set traps, to engineer psychological pressure points, to ensure that any rescue attempt becomes exactly the kind of documented breakdown she needs for her research.
"What about Aliyah?" I ask, though I already know the answer will be worse than I want to hear.
Kent's expression darkens. "If Shaw is at one location, then the other site is either unguarded or designed as a trap. She can't risk Aliyah being rescued before the main event plays out."
We sit in silence for a moment, processing the tactical nightmare Shaw has constructed. Even knowing her likely location, the situation remains nearly impossible. But she's made one critical error in her calculations.
"Shaw thinks she's the predator in this situation," I say aloud, the understanding crystallizing with sudden clarity. "She sees us as subjects to be studied, specimens responding to controlled stimuli. But that's not what we are."
Kent's eyes meet mine, and I see recognition spark in their depths.
"We're what happens when two killers decide to work together," I continue. "Shaw documented the Carver as an individual operator, someone who hunted alone and avoided complications. She studied Delilah Jenkins as a trauma victim with unusual psychological responses. But she has no research on what we become when we stop pretending to be reformed."
"What are you thinking?"
"I'm thinking that Dr. Evelyn Shaw is about to discover that some experiments have variables the researcher never anticipated."
Kent's smile is sharp and predatory, the expression of someone who's just identified prey that doesn't know it's being hunted.
"Tell me the plan," he says.
I take a deep breath, feeling the last vestiges of Dr. Lila North's professional composure fall away like a mask I no longer need to wear.
"We're going to save them both. And then we're going to kill Shaw in exactly the way her research deserves."
Kent stands from the overturned coffee table, his movements fluid and predatory as he processes what we're about to attempt. The transformation from supportive partner to tactical operator is complete now, and I can see the Carver fully awakened behind his eyes.
"If Shaw is at the rehab center with Janine, then I’ll go there," he says, his voice carrying the clinical precision that once made him so effective. "I have experience with confined spaces, with predators who think they control the environment. Shaw won't be expecting someone who understands her methodology."
"And I take the warehouse," I add, though the words taste like copper in my mouth. "If Aliyah is there, if it's not a trap, I can get her out. If it is rigged, then at least I'm the only one at risk."
"No." The word comes out sharp and absolute. "You're not going into a potential kill zone alone. We find another way."
