60 pages • 2 hours read
Stacey AbramsWhile Justice Sleeps
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2021A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 30-39Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 30 Summary
Avery and Jared arrive at the Georgia cabin, sharing a brief but intimate conversation about Jared’s strained relationship with his father along the way. Inside, signs of disturbance indicate someone has been here recently. When Jared reminisces about the constellations he and his father painted in his room here one summer, Avery realizes that the mysterious code following the letters “VGC” corresponds to a constellation, leading them to Jared’s bed. There they find an envelope with the words “For Avery” on it (212).
Chapter 31 Summary
Avery and Jared read the letter Justice Wynn left for them revealing some of his motivation:
I stumbled into a labyrinth of lies told by carpetbaggers and Frankensteins and lesser kings. Revelation may seem the simpler choice, but to tell the truth, I would have to abandon my boy to this damnable fate. I have deserted him once. I will not do so again. So I have left my research for your perusal, certain you will see what I saw (214).
Along with the letter, Justice Wynn has also left the missing codicil to his will, number 27; it gives orders to disconnect him from life support when the term of the Supreme Court ends, unless Avery can provide the document rescinding his order. Avery must continue solving the riddles Justice Wynn has left behind to get this document. Avery realizes that they misinterpreted the Lasker-Bauer reference previously: Avery is not one of the bishops. Justice Wynn is one bishop and has taken himself out of the game already. The other bishop is Ani. “He’s mapped this out like speed chess in the park,” Avery realizes (215). The deadline Justice Wynn has given—the end of the Court’s term—is like the chess clock, and Avery herself is Lasker. As Avery and Jared leave the cabin, Castillo attacks them. They barely escape.
Chapter 32 Summary
Betty learns that the missing $300 million for chromosomal research was funneled to Hygeia. She learns that Hygeia did military research, including testing gene therapies on groups based on genetic markers. From the Atlanta airport, Jared and Avery make contact with Betty via a chat tool. While maintaining their anonymity, Avery and Betty agree to meet at Lincoln Memorial the next day. After ending her chat with Avery, Betty compiles the information she’s found and sends it to Nigel, whom she calls her “Galahad” (229). Betty realizes she “stumbled on a more than a conspiracy. What she’d found was mortal sin” (228). She is afraid to reveal the plot, having “never imagined herself to be a tattletale—or, in government-speak, a whistleblower,” but knows that “the only thing worse than a tattletale [is] a person too afraid to tell the truth” (228).
Chapter 33 Summary
Major Vance has mirror-imaging software installed on Betty’s computer and knows what she’s discovered. He instructs Castillo, who is still surveying Jared and Avery, to shut down the communication between Betty and Jared and Avery—but they’ve already made their plans to meet at Lincoln Memorial the next day, which Major Vance is now aware of. Major Vance waits until Betty leaves work. Then he accosts her in the parking garage of her office building, kills her, and disposes of her body.
Chapter 34 Summary
Avery, Jared, Ling, and Noah meet at Avery and Ling’s apartment. The media is dragging Avery’s name through the mud: A story has been published in the Washington Gazette suggesting she and Jared have a romantic connection, and pictures have been published of Rita, appearing drunk or high, propped up against a dumpster. The headline reads: “JUSTICE’S MISTRESS, SON’S GIRLFRIEND, JUNKIE’S DAUGHTER—WHO IS AVERY KEENE?” (236). As they discuss the situation, they find a listening device in Avery and Ling’s apartment. They realize that the entire apartment is bugged.
Given the danger, Noah suggests, “Loyalty has its limits,” hinting that it may be time for Avery to abandon her mission (238). Avery refuses: “Justice Wynn couldn’t have given a damn about what this would cost me. He had a goal, and he needed a weapon. That’s me. A blind, stupid, loyal weapon that would stay on course until I hit my target” (238). Avery adds, “They’ve killed to stop me, but it won’t work. I’m going to finish it” (239). Listening to Avery’s words through the bug, Major Vance realizes he may need to try a new tactic, since he can’t scare Avery off the case. He calls FBI Agent Lee and suggests putting Avery into protective custody for her own good. Agent Lee, suspecting Major Vance may not have good motives, refuses.
Chapter 35 Summary
Avery worries that whoever tried to kill Avery and Jared will try to hurt Rita. Jared comforts her and tells Avery he’ll help her look for Rita. They’re interrupted by Agent Lee, who mentions that Major Vance suggested putting Avery in protective custody. Avery tells Agent Lee that her apartment has been bugged. Agent Lee offers to have his men clean her apartment out, but Avery insists on keeping the bugs in place. She now realizes that she can work the surveillance to her advantage, providing false clues to whoever is listening.
Chapter 36 Summary
Avery, Jared, Ling, and Noah assemble at Noah’s office. Agent Lee joins them and reveals that Major Vance is an ex-Marine who was in the Chemical Biological Incident Response Force (CBIRF). President Stokes personally appointed him to serve as his liaison for the Science and Technology Directorate at the Department of Homeland Security. Major Vance was “assigned to a region roiled by ethnic tensions,” meaning India/Pakistan (251). The group does not tell Agent Lee what they know about Hygeia.
Chapter 37 Summary
Avery goes to the Lincoln Memorial for her meeting with Betty, but Betty, who has been killed by Major Vance, doesn’t appear. Avery returns to the group and asks Agent Lee if he can find Betty. The narrative then shifts to Major Vance, Castillo, and Phillips. Major Vance tells Phillips to make contact with Rita; he warns Phillips that the FBI is also looking for Rita (to protect her). Major Vance recognizes that Agent Lee may be a “loose end,” as he seems to be aligning himself with Avery, which causes Vance to reflect on their different understandings of loyalty and duty:
Though they both worked in the same shadows, Agent Lee struck him as a man who would not understand nuance or the absolutes of national security. Lee was a domestic soldier, whereas Vance had no such luxury. The commander in chief had given him orders. Nothing meant more (260).
Chapter 38 Summary
Nigel receives the information that Betty sent, which she managed to drop in her office’s outgoing mail before Major Vance killed her. He calls Indira, telling her that somebody knows about the Hygeia Tigris Project, the funds from the US government, and the president’s involvement. Indira suggests that Nigel tell Avery everything and use her to tell the truth and out the president. Nigel replies:
Are you insane? Tell her Hygeia attempted to manufacture a genetic virus to kill Muslims—with research illegally funded by the US government—and the successor corporation [Advar] now wants to take over my company [GenWorks]? You don’t think this might damage our fucking merger? (263).
Indira argues that if Betty has this information, then someone else does too—it’s bound to come out. Indira is flying to North Carolina (where GenWorks is headquartered) the next day.
Chapter 39 Summary
Avery gets a call from Ani. He asks her to meet him “in the square” in two days (266). Avery still doesn’t know what “the square” refers to. Avery is running out of time to solve Justice Wynn’s riddles, as the end of the Supreme Court’s term is fast approaching. Overwhelmed, Avery seeks comfort from Jared.
Chapters 30-39 Analysis
These chapters further tease the subplot surrounding the growing romantic tension between Jared and Avery. The two characters are brought closer together on the trip to Georgia, when Jared shares intimate details of his childhood with Avery. Their shared experience of a life-threatening situation also binds them together. Justice Wynn seems to be playing matchmaker, even while unconscious: The Judge was aware that Avery and Jared would have to work together to solve the riddle of VGC.
Justice Wynn’s character is also used to address The Pervasive Nature of Corruption, the book’s central theme. As with the “matchmaking” described above, the judge’s character doesn’t even have to be conscious for this to happen; the author accomplishes this through the letter Justice Wynn leaves Avery and Jared. Justice Wynn’s harsh assessment of the corrupt world he inhabits is clear as he describes his discovery of Hygeia and Tigris: “I stumbled into a labyrinth of lies told by carpetbaggers and Frankensteins and lesser kings” (214). The same letter explains why Justice Wynn has selected Avery to unveil the truth: “To tell the truth, I would have to abandon my boy to this damnable fate [Boursin’s syndrome]. I have deserted him once. I will not do so again. So I have left my research for your [Avery’s] perusal, certain you will see what I saw” (214). Avery and Jared already know that Hygeia’s research could cure Boursin’s syndrome, saving Jared. They now have confirmation that Justice Wynn was aware of this—and that it informed his decision to remove himself from the equation, sparing himself the morally impossible question of saving his son versus shutting down unethical research.
The symbolic nature of chess and the famous Lasker-Bauer game also becomes clearer in this cluster of chapters. Avery previously assumed she was one of the bishops that had to be sacrificed to win the game. She now realizes that Justice Wynn is one bishop, and Ani is the second one—and she is Lasker. Upon discovering the missing codicil in Justice Wynn’s will—which gives orders to disconnect him from life support when the term of the Supreme Court ends, unless Avery can provide the document rescinding his order—Avery tells Jared, “He’s [Justice Wynn] mapped this out like speed chess in the park” (215). The previously mentioned deadline—the end of the Supreme Court’s term—gains greater significance, amplifying the pressure on Avery and heightening the narrative tension. If Avery doesn’t crack the case before the term ends, not only will President Stokes win; Justice Wynn will die.
This heightened tension is exacerbated by Betty’s death. The reader is reminded that the people Avery is up against have no qualms about taking lives. Betty’s character appears only briefly in the narrative but is an essential plot device, as the data that Betty uncovers shows the financial link between the US government and Hygeia’s research. Betty’s character also exemplifies the dangers that “whistleblowers” face when they try to face down deeply ingrained corruption: “She’d never imagined herself to be a tattletale—or, in government speak, a whistleblower. […] The only thing worse than a tattletale was a person too afraid to tell the truth” (228). It’s troubling that corruption is so rampant that it’s seemingly impossible to call out—even in the case of an act so egregious that it’s a “mortal sin,” as Betty thinks of it (229).
The theme of The Pervasive Nature of Corruption is further emphasized by the portrayal of the corrupt media. This has been hinted at in the narrative, but now becomes more prominent when the Washington Gazette publishes the headline about Avery: “JUSTICE’S MISTRESS, SON’S GIRLFRIEND, JUNKIE’S DAUGHTER—WHO IS AVERY KEENE?” (236). Previously, in Chapter 25, President Stokes told Major Vance, “If the girl can’t be persuaded to act, we may need to fully discredit her” (178). It seems that the president has direct ties to the media, given the fact that these salacious headlines are now appearing.
Considering the targeted attacks against Avery—on her career, her reputation, her family, and her life—others start to question whether she should continue pursuing the terrible truth. Noah tells her, “Loyalty has its limits” (238). However, Avery seems unable to stop: “They’ve killed to stop me, but it won’t work. I’m going to finish it” (239). She also identifies herself as a “blind, stupid, loyal weapon” (238). The book’s suggestion that loyalty can be “stupid” is intriguing: It’s true that staying loyal to a person or a cause is not always in an individual’s own self-interest. By staying true to Justice Wynn, Avery jeopardizes her career and life. This plotline asks the reader to evaluate why they value loyalty as a trait—perhaps because it’s so rare? The narrative emphasizes Avery’s loyalty repeatedly and ultimately portrays it as a positive trait, since it will allow Avery to save Justice Wynn and expose President Stokes.
Avery’s loyalty also extends to her mother, Rita. The narrative provides some essential foreshadowing on this point: Avery is worried about Rita, realizing that whoever targeted Jared and Avery may also target Rita. Avery’s concerns are valid; later in the book, Rita is taken hostage by one of Major Vance’s men. Avery’s concern about Rita now foreshadows this future development.
