Page 173 of Girl Between

Breathing heavy,Dana hit pause. Hearing Monroe’s voice brought it all rushing back. The pain, the terror … Maybe it was too soon. With shaking hands, she closed her laptop, promising to come back to it.

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The following isfrom a recorded interview with the District Attorney and Dr. Richard Landry:

DA:Please state your name for the record.

Landry: Dr. Richard Landry.

DA: When did you first meet Levi Monroe?

Landry: His sister was a patient of mine.

DA: There’s no evidence that Levi Monroe had a sister.

Landry: Technically, she was his foster sister. She was one of many fosters who came through the Monroe farm. His father wasn’t an empathetic man. He used them for free labor and didn’t keep records for obvious reasons.

DA: You were her physician?

Landry: Yes.

DA: What were you treating her for?

Landry: Her disorder was similar to my daughter’s. Rebecca needed a kidney transplant, but she had rare complications that made finding her a match impossible. Even if we did, I was confident her body wasn’t strongenough to survive the surgery. I had to make the difficult decision to remove her from the transplant list.

DA: Are you aware that Monroe blames you for her death?

Landry: Yes. He made that painfully clear.

DA: Can you explain what you mean?

Landry: He refused to accept Rebecca’s diagnosis. Monroe was pre-med before he dropped out to care for Rebecca. He had just enough medical education to think he knew better. He was constantly showing up at my practice to berate me for not trying harder, citing far-fetched medical trials and such.

DA: Did you ever report his harassment?

Landry: No.

DA: Why not?

Landry: It happens a lot in my line of work. No one wants to hear there’s nothing more to be done for a loved one. I thought Monroe was harmless. Just another person needing help with their grief.

DA: But he wasn’t harmless?

Landry: No.

DA: When did you know Monroe was killing people and selling their organs?

Landry: Not soon enough.

DA: Why do you say that?

Landry: Because it’s my fault. I’m the one who showed him the way. Not on purpose, but I sent him to the donor support group. And that’s where it all started.

DA: Where what started?

Landry: Monroe’s madness. Instead of bonding with others in his situation, and finding ways to deal with his grief, Monroe saw a criminal opportunity. When he realized how many other people were waiting for organs that might never come, he took it upon himself to provide. For a fee, of course.

DA: This is when he began selling organs on the black market?