Page 158 of The Session

“I couldn’t understand why Kevin would use my name as a password. Why he reached out to me in the weird way that he did. Why not any one of you?”

“And why was that, Mark?” Tru asked.

“Because he knew he couldn’t trust you—any of you.”

“What did you see in there?” Lightman asked.

“How each of you abused the Vault. How you used people’s private information to blackmail them to get what you wanted. Some of it was small, some of it was big, but every time it was used in a way it shouldn’t have been.”

“I don’t know what you saw in there,” said Tru, “but that doesn’t describe me.”

“Do you want me to read off some of the items?”

Tru sighed. “No. I don’t.”

“And do you, Max?” Mark asked. “I assume some of the bad things happened behind your back, but there are direct communications from you ordering people to use whatever means necessary—divulging private information, violating the trust of the people who were looking to you to help them.”

“I’m not proud of myself,” Lightman admitted.

“Some of those things need more context, Mark,” Marnie told him.

“I’m sure a judge and jury would agree.”

“I understand where you’re coming from,” said Tru, “but you have to understand, everything’s complicated.”

“I don’t think so. Seems pretty clear-cut to me.”

“Be realistic, Mark. Do you think the body-cam footage from the shoot-out was easy to get? We did that for you. Same as the lawsuit. That didn’t drop itself. We did that. And then there’s the mess with your cousin Devon. We locked that down too,” Tru added.

“I didn’t ask for any of that,” Mark snapped.

“But you accepted it, even though you knew who we were. Now, you didn’t know all the things Kevin found out, but it’s just a matter of degree,” Tru pleaded.

“We’re flawed, Mark, but we’re not monsters,” Marnie said.

“Do you want me to show you the text messages where Kevin reached out to you for help?” Mark asked Marnie. “Where you said you were too busy to bother? I didn’t think so. Kevin couldn’t trust any of you. Maybe he actually could have, but that’s how he felt. And when Morris came to him, he probably thought there was no one to turn to.”

“You’re right,” said Tru. “We’ve done bad stuff. What are we supposed to do?”

Mark searched their faces, trying to understand what they were really feeling.

What he’d seen was corrupt and unethical, but nothing rose to the level of what Morris had done to Kevin and tried to do to Mark. These were people with too much power, he concluded. That was the problem.

But, as Tru pointed out, Mark too was complicit. He’d been drawn to Summit because of that power. Maybe they weren’t the real problem after all . . .

“You created something that had value, but then wrapped it in an organization that often extracts more than it offers. You gathered everyone’s secrets, presumably for their benefit—but then it became leverage that others were ready to take advantage of. Just because someone grants you power in their lives doesn’t mean you can run wild with it.

“Your Sessions are supposed to be cathartic or introspective—instead they’ve become weapons, now turned against us.” Mark gestured toward where they’d run for their lives against hit men. “We were almost killed. You didn’t realize that even if your secrets aren’t inside the Vault, other people’s are. And those people can be manipulated into becoming your enemies.”

“This isn’t what I wanted,” said Lightman.

“I believe you. But here we are.” Mark held up Kevin’s phone. “Your son wanted to fix this. I think he saw a path. Despite everything, he wanted to help you. I don’t know if I’m as optimistic, but I’ll make you an offer,” he said.

“What are the terms?” Lightman asked quickly.

“You either accept it or say no.”

“And if we say no?” Tru asked.