26 I Can Read You Like a Book
The answer revealed
The students who figure out who the guilty party generally do
so through questioning and by putting aside their preconceived
notion that “father of despair” must be a man. Good questioning of
the woman who hates Americans will reveal that she does not like
or trust her sister-in-law, whom she does not consider a real Iraqi.
Why? The wife of the shepherd left Iraq when she was 10 because
her father was on the outs with the Saddam regime. Her family
lived in Germany until after the first Gulf War, and then came back,
thinking that the Shi’ites would take power.
A star student of body language will notice three telling things.
First the wife of the electronics repairman points at the other woman
in an accusing way as she says, “Ask her!” Second, the other woman
moves in a way that suggests she has only recently started wearing
Iraqi garb again. A woman who had worn pants for period of time
would stride, but not a woman who has worn a dress and lived
among traditional Iraqi women her whole life. Third, the shepherd’s
wife approached her questioner directly, which is uncharacteristic
behavior. She has a Western woman’s sense of comfort talking
face-to-face with a man.
The truth you needed is this: She still has friends in Germany
and mules sensitive information back and forth. She is the source
of sophisticated design information and supplies for new IEDs.
The moral of the story is: Don’t jump to conclusions based on
things you think are true. Watch and listen for clues that add up
logically, not ones that fit a pattern you think should be there.