Motive Episode 1.12 Ruthless

Sonia Brauer is a recently married travel agent who just moved into town. Brendan Kendall is the executive assistant to Jimmy Ramsay, the head of a company known as Cybrex Plastics. He is found dead in his hotel room where Cybrex is holding their corporate strategy meeting. Sonia Brauer is the person responsible for his murder. The question is... Why?

The cause of Brendan Kendall's death is poison. His bed wasn't slept in. He reentered the room at 7:15 in the morning. The victim's boss claims he doesn't know anything about a cell phone found in Brendan's room safe. Another employee reveals that the rules of the corporate meeting were no phones, no Internet. The information being exchanged is very sensitive. Brendan may have been leaking stock info to the outside world. That's a motive for murder.

In the past, Sonia met with a man who provided her information involving the Hotel Georgia. Her husband surprises her as she mixes what looks to be a lethal liquid in her kitchen. Later, Sonia lets the man she met earlier that their plan has been fulfilled. She saw the ambulance leave the Hotel Georgia. That's how she knew. Later, Sonia has a panic attack when she sees the story of the murder on the news.

In the past, Sonia was in the Hotel Georgia during the corporate meeting. She inquired about the breakfast protocol. She followed some Cybrex folks to determine which room was being occupied by a certain female employee. She later changes into workout gear and follows a worker pushing a breakfast cart into an elevator. She holds a water bottle in her hand. In the present, Sonia visits Brendan's mother claiming that she knew him from work. She expresses her deep sorrow for her loss. She later tells the man she met with earlier that she killed an innocent man.

In the present, Angie learns that the victim ate before he died, but he never ordered food. This has her believing Brendan wasn't the intended target. She believes Brendan was hanging in the room across the hall which belongs to Dr. Hillary Burns, who may have been the killer's intended victim. The good doctor admits she was in a relationship with Brendan, who ate her poisoned meal. Surveillance video shows Sonia throwing out the water bottle she had with her in a hotel trashcan.

Lucas helps the team realize that the corporate strategy meeting was actually being held for damage control for an upcoming lawsuit that led to the death of seven infants. Angie questions Sonia about Dr. Burns. She doesn't find a connection between the two of them until she realizes that a past testimony from Dr. Burns helped a big company get away with some harmful wrongdoings.

Angie and Oscar tell Sonia that they know how she and others were hurt by this other company. 47 people were died from cancer because Dr. Burns lied. Sonia wanted her to pay, but an innocent man did so instead. Sonia is paying, too. She doesn't have long to live, as she also has cancer.