The Last Housewife

Shay and Jamie arrive at 35 Bell Pond Road, following a text Shay received alerting her that she passed her background check and can now be initiated into the society. Jamie’s team discovered that the Bell Pond house belongs to a church called Mountainsong. Shay says that the suburban street is a good place to hide a secret society, and she indicates that there is a recording device in her bra. Jamie tells her to be careful at the initiation ceremony.

Inside, Shay forgets the key phrase “humble daughter” that Nicole told her, but Nicole leads her to the man in black, called the Lieutenant. The Lieutenant asks what Shay wants from the Pater Society, and Shay repeats phrases from her time with Don. The Lieutenant orders her to take off her clothes, which forces her to slip the recording device in her mouth. The Lieutenant explains that he is going to brand Shay with the symbol found on Laurel and Nicole’s arms, as a mark that shows membership in the society. Shay is reluctant, but she resolves to follow Laurel’s path. The Lieutenant explains that in the society, “daughters” submit to “Paters,” or fathers. After the branding, Nicole leads Shay to the party, at which the members are not wearing masks, allowing Shay to see the Paters’ faces. Nicole explains that daughters try to “ascend” and move to Hilltop, where the Philosopher lives. The party is a punishment for another daughter, Cynthia, whose pater is the Disciple. Cynthia is being punished for refusing to have sex with one of the Paters, and the Disciple pushes her into a bed much like Don did to Shay years prior. The Paters beat Cynthia with a belt, and other Paters begin grabbing daughters to punish. Shay leaves and finds a portrait of the Lieutenant and his family, then sprints outside to meet Jamie.

In the car, Shay and Jamie identify the Lieutenant as Michael Corbin, a former pastor for Mountainsong Church. They plan to infiltrate the society and uncover names one by one, leading to Don at Hilltop. Shay is restless, and she tells Jamie to interview her about whatever he wants. He asks about her father, noting how he disappeared when they were children.

This chapter is a transcript of Jamie’s podcast, Transgressions, episode 705, in which Jamie interviews Shay. Shay tells Jamie about the day she realized her father, Peter Herazen, had left her and her mother, Nina. Shay was 10 years old, and she wasn’t allowed to go to a “lock-in,” or sleepover, at school because Nina hadn’t spent enough hours with the PTA, or Parent-Teacher Association. When Nina got home from her second job, Shay asked her about the PTA hours, and Nina revealed that she was struggling to pay rent because Peter had left them. Shay didn’t believe that her father had abandoned his family, and Nina explained that her father’s work trips were not always real. Peter left to sleep with other women and party, and Nina didn’t think Peter would come back this time. Shay reflected that her father always played with her in the park, but Nina revealed that she had to beg Peter to spend time with Shay, commenting that Peter never really loved his family or wanted a family at all.

Shay lied to Jamie, telling him that Peter had gone on a mission for the CIA, and, in the present, Shay notes that the lie was also a way for her to cope with her father leaving. Jamie asks if Shay thinks her father’s disappearance relates to Shay’s time with Don, and the two agree that Peter’s abandonment likely pushed Shay toward Don.

Shay goes to the hotel bar for a drink, but her card is declined. Jamie arrives, and Shay asks to stay with him, since she can no longer afford her hotel. Shay receives another Pater Society message, directing her to 25 Marion Coates Road, which is within walking distance of Whitney College. Arriving at the Paters’ party, Shay notices that the women are all wearing modest dresses that extend past the knee. She almost bumps into a man who introduces himself as the Marquis, likely a reference to the Marquis de Sade, an author known for the violent sexuality of his works. The Marquis introduces Shay to a young woman named Katie, and he notes that women do not belong in higher education. Shay escapes the conversation, saying she has to bring a drink to someone, and she finds an office, where she discovers that the Marquis is the president of Whitney College, Reginald Carruthers. Shay suspects that the Pater Society has men placed in high positions everywhere, and she speculates that Don might have a broader plan than just sexual dominance.

When she returns, the party has gathered around the Marquis and Katie. The Marquis gives a speech about how Eve, the Biblical first woman, betrayed Adam, the Biblical first man, by selfishly seeking knowledge. He claims that women need to be reminded of the place God made for them, and he starts smearing blood from a bucket on Katie. The other Paters and daughters join, smearing blood on Katie and calling her names, like “whore,” “feminist,” and “sinful.” A man next to Shay notices that she is not participating, and he presses her against a wall while touching her. Shay fights between memories of Don, discomfort, and arousal. It is implied that Shay has sex with the man, and she feels regret afterward.

Shay finds Katie in the kitchen, crying, and helps her clean off the blood. Shay asks Katie why she is there, and Katie reveals that she was chosen by the Marquis, and the Marquis is paying her tuition at Whitney. Shay tries to convince Katie to run away with her, but Katie fears she will be found, saying that she does not want to go to Hilltop. According to Katie, women who go to Hilltop never return. 

Back at the motel, Shay cries in the shower, thinking about how Katie is doomed to repeat the same pattern as Shay. Jamie knocks on the door, asking if she needs help, and Shay breaks down in tears while Jamie holds her. He helps her dry off and get into bed, and asks if Cal upset her. Shay shakes her head and explains that she had sex with the man at the party, ashamed that she enjoyed it. Jamie assures her that she has nothing to be ashamed of. Shay tells Jamie that she wants to do more interviews with him to get his journalist’s perspective on her life, and Jamie agrees, warning her that his view is still just an estimation of the truth.

This chapter is a transcript of Jamie’s podcast, Transgressions, episode 705, in which Jamie interviews Shay. Shay tells Jamie how, when she turned 12 years old, she developed physically, growing breasts, and began to receive attention, largely unwanted, from men. At that time, Shay started performing in pageants at the insistence of her friend’s father, Mr. Matthews. Though Jamie and Shay got the same grades in school, Jamie was marked as a promising student, while Shay was only praised for her politeness and charisma. In pageants, Shay performed well, and she felt powerful because the adult men who judged the contests paid extra attention to her. She spent time with them outside of pageants, and, on one occasion, a judge implied that he wanted to have sex with her, even though she was only 16 years old. However, the pageants provided Shay with the money to go to college, and she says she felt loved when she won pageants.

Ending the interview, Jamie is upset that Mr. Matthews pushed Shay into the pageants. He thinks it is ridiculous that Shay had to objectify herself to get a chance at going to college. Shay stops him, noting that the pageant was her only chance, so she had to take advantage of the opportunity while she could. Jamie leaves to shower, and the two fall asleep after Jamie gets into bed with Shay.

Shay receives another text message sending her to 145 Murray Street in New York City. When Shay and Jamie leave the motel, Jamie reveals that his friend, Dougie, found out that Carruthers, the Marquis, is also teaching classes at Whitney. He was a religious studies professor, then the provost, and now the president of Whitney, and he was the direct superior to the dean when Shay and Laurel reported Don. Dougie found that two women from Carruthers’s classes have gone missing, and Shay speculates that Katie was a student of his as well. Jamie says he is going to build some connections with the police to start laying a foundation for charges against the Paters, even if they are not involved in Laurel’s death.

Jamie and Shay stop at Jamie’s apartment in the city, and Shay notes that the apartment is messy, with a lot of books and recording equipment around. She finds a picture of her, Jamie, and Clara, Mr. Matthews’s daughter, and she remembers how uncomfortable she was around Clara after she started doing pageants with Mr. Matthews. Shay tells Jamie that she likes his apartment, and he says the picture of him, Shay, and Clara is one of his favorites. After a shower, Jamie asks Shay why she wants to persist in the investigation, and Shay says she wants to tell Jamie a story.

This chapter is a transcript of Jamie’s podcast, Transgressions, episode 705, in which Jamie interviews Shay. Shay explains how her relationship with her mother deteriorated. When Shay was a freshman in high school, Nina started dating Mr. Trevors, Shay and Jamie’s English teacher. Mr. Trevors was cruel to Nina, making fun of her clothes, makeup, and minor mistakes in speaking. Shay progressively spent more time away from home, joining the cheerleading squad, devoting more time to pageants, and spending more time at Jamie’s house. One day, Nina came home with cuts and bruises, and Shay realized that Mr. Trevors hit Nina. Instead of being supportive, though, Shay told Nina that no man had ever loved her, and that she was pathetic for letting a man hit her this way. Nina was crushed, and a wedge formed between Shay and her mother.

Shay acknowledges the similarities between her mother and herself, noting how she knew that Don was abusive before she, Laurel, and Clem got involved with him, but she was unable to stop the abuse from happening. Jamie notes that many survivors of trauma will repeat the circumstances of their trauma to try to achieve a different outcome. Shay accepts that she may be doing that, but she insists that she will save someone from the Pater Society.

At 145 Murray Street, Shay finds a warehouse with a loud party going on inside. Amid bright lights and loud music, there is a video of a woman being tortured playing on one wall. Shay finds Nicole, and they meet three young men in finance. One man is Greggy, and he offers Nicole and Shay drinks and pills off a waitress’s tray. When Shay does not take a pill, another of the men, Steven, orders her to take one. Steven’s friends call him Incel, meaning involuntarily celibate, referencing a paradigm of internet misogyny. Steven hates the name, but he confirms that he is a misogynist by noting how women need to be oppressed by men. When Steven turns away, Shay spits out the pill, and she asks him about the other Paters, noting that Steven and Greggy are much younger than most Paters. Steven confirms that they are members of the new crowd of Paters, and he does not like the ritualistic aspects of the Pater Society that older Paters enforce.

Shay sees Adam Dorsey, the police officer who dismissed her and Laurel, and she realizes that he is a Pater as well. Shay turns to leave, and, though Steven tries to stop her, Nicole helps, distracted by something in the distance. Shay escapes, afraid that Dorsey might reveal her identity to the other Paters, which could lead to her death.

Shay reports the events of the evening to Jamie, and he realizes that he can contact Governor Barry, who pledged to investigate the missing women. Jamie is excited, and Shay kisses him. Jamie hesitates, noting that Shay is married, but she urges him to continue. The two have sex, during which Shay strangles Jamie with his permission, and Shay notes that she did not expect the desires she felt during their intimacy. Afterward, Jamie suggests another interview.

This chapter is a transcript of Jamie’s podcast, Transgressions, episode 705, in which Jamie interviews Shay. Shay tells Jamie about working at a restaurant called the Red Lodge when she was 17 years old. She worked as a hostess with another girl who was homeschooled. The waiters were largely young men in their teens and twenties, and they all paid attention to Shay because she was attractive. Zane, the restaurant manager, threw a party, and Shay went with the other hostess. When the other hostess left, Shay was the only woman at the party, and the men all attended to her. Shay singled out a waiter named Dizzy, and she kissed him, bringing him to a bedroom. They didn’t have sex, but Shay got Dizzy to say more and more flattering things to her, kissing him each time as a reward. The evening culminated in Shay getting Dizzy to say that he was in love with her, which Shay felt was proof of her power over men. After the party, Zane started flirting with Shay more frequently. She invited him to a high school party, and he accepted. Shay knew that he would wait until the end of the night to kiss her, and the night followed Shay’s expectations exactly. Shay notes that she stopped talking to Dizzy and Zane after the parties. Jamie says these men probably think they were manipulating her, and Shay says that sex and love are only power to her. Jamie is about to contradict Shay, then he ends the interview.

Jamie expresses concern that Shay is using him like Dizzy or Zane, and Shay admits that she may be. Shay asks if Jamie wants to end their involvement, and Jamie says that he wants Shay regardless, noting that he considers himself warned that Shay may be using him.

Shay goes to a Pater Society event at an estate owned by the Initiative for Truth and Beauty, an art advocacy group. There she finds a garden full of lifelike sculptures of women in the grass. The Lieutenant introduces Shay to Angelo De Luca, the artist who made the sculptures, and Shay notes that she is a fan of his work. Three younger men approach them and make fun of Angelo, then they turn their attention to Shay. When Shay tries to leave, the Lieutenant tries to stop her, but Angelo tells her to go.

Shay finds Nicole on a balcony, and she sees that she is injured. Shay tells Nicole that to leave the society, but Nicole resists. Nicole asks why Shay doesn’t seem to be involved with any of the Paters, and she explains to Shay that she thinks the Pater Society is just like real life, but more honest. Nicole tells Shay that she grew up in a dysfunctional family with an abusive father, and, when her family became religious, she felt oppressed by religious values. When she finally left home, Nicole fell in love, and she realized that love made her feel like property. For Nicole, being “owned” by a Pater is no different from any other relationship, and she likes that the Paters are wealthy. Shay tells Nicole that she knows the Philosopher, and that Hilltop is not a good place. Nicole is surprised, but she tells Shay that Rachel kills any women who try to leave the society, mentioning that the rumor around the society is that Rachel killed Clem in college. Shay finds out that Adam Dorsey is the Pater who “owns” Nicole, and Shay says she can protect Nicole from Rachel. When Shay says Don’s name, Nicole says the Philosopher has a Greek name, which confuses Shay. Nicole runs away as Dorsey approaches, but he catches her in a stairwell. Shay stays on the balcony, ashamed that she could not save Nicole.