Page 56 of The Girl and the Lies

“No, we really appreciate you telling us this,” I say. “I’m going to have one of the officers walk you back to your house, and I want you to make sure that all the doors and windows are locked.”

She nods, and I look at the second officer, who stands.

Bonnie looks at Carla. “I’m so sorry about Marshall. Please don’t hesitate to tell me if there’s anything I can do for you. You can just stop by.”

“Thank you,” Carla says.

They leave, and Carla goes back to making her statement. I sit with her, but my mind is wandering. The events of the night aren’t adding up. This situation feels too different from the others, but I don’t know what to think of it.

“Do you want to stay here tonight or go somewhere else?” one of the officers asks after Carla finishes providing her formal statement.

“It would probably be best if you went somewhere,” I tell her. “Just for your own peace of mind.”

She nods. “Yeah, I don’t think I’m going to feel safe here for a long time.”

“I’ll make sure she gets somewhere,” I tell the officers. “Make sure that Detective Fuller gets her statement.”

They agree and leave. Now that Carla seems calmer, I have the same question for her that I asked Ander earlier.

“It’s come up in the investigation that it’s expected that everyone who works for Tracy Ellis acts as sort of a watchdog and reports anything against the company’s morality standards directly to her,” I tell Carla.

“That’s true,” Carla says. “It’s presented as a means of keeping the community close and holding each other accountable, so we’re helping each other stay on the path of the truth. Tracy’s favorite words.”

“And if someone makes a report like that, the person who was turned in can face serious consequences, can’t they?” I ask.

“They can be disciplined in a few different ways, all the way up to being fired. That’s usually reserved for really egregious things or for people who refuse to accept responsibility for what they’ve been accused of and won’t cooperate with other forms of discipline,” she says.

“It sounds like dealing with children,” I say.

“Discipline is important for everyone. Maybe even more important for adults than it is for children. How can we expect to raise the next generation of responsible, moral, strong people if they don’t have that as their example? Besides, the people who work for Tracy know what they are getting into. They agree from the very beginning to act in a certain way or risk having others expose what they are doing. If they decide to go against those standards, then they should expect to deal with the consequences they were warned about,” she says.

She doesn’t defend Tracy Ellis’s views or teachings, but I reluctantly know she’s right about the reports. Regardless of how I feel about people being in a climate where they feel constantly judged and vulnerable to the people around them, fearing they could lose their livelihood for any perceived transgression, it is the reality of the company. No one forces anyone to work for Tracy Ellis. If these adults willingly seek employment by her and agree to the terms she puts forward to them, then they have made that choice for themselves. That doesn’t change the impact the policy has.

“That could be a very pressing motive for retaliation,” I point out to her.

“I thought that you were investigating this as someone who is acting against the ministry,” Carla says, looking alarmed. “Are you saying you think this might be personal?”

“I’m saying I’m looking at the situation from all angles to make sure I don’t miss anything. Have you or Marshall reported anyone to Tracy recently?” I ask.

She hesitates, her eyes locked in front of her like she’s lost in thought. She jumps slightly as she seems to come back into the moment.

“Oh. I don’t think Marshall ever has,” she says. “He prefers to stay out of things. Not that I think he’s ignored anything serious, but he’s never told me about anything that he heard within the company that would warrant being reported…”

Her voice trails off, and I can tell there’s something more to the thought.

“But what?” I ask, encouraging her to continue.

“Except for one situation,” she says. “And he didn’t make the report. I did. One person in a married couple making a report is sufficient for both people, according to Tracy, but it also works the other way. If one spouse knows something and doesn’t say anything and the other doesn’t either, both can get in trouble. So when he told me he’d heard someone in the outreach department talking about filing for divorce, I knew I had to say something so we wouldn’t both have problems.”

“Getting divorced is against the morality standards of the company?” I ask.

“Yes. Especially for people who deal directly with the public like the outreach team. They are considered the face of the company, and they are held to even higher expectations by Tracy. Which means happy couples,” she says.

“What happened to the person you reported?” I ask.

“They were forced into company-mandated therapy,” she says. “And were barred from attending public events with the company until further notice. Which means a major decrease in pay.”

“I’m going to need this person’s name and contact information,” I tell her.

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