Harlan Coben’s Run Away Recap ‘Forever Be The Shining Truth’: The Helpful Neighbour

Run Away Episode 5

What do we know so far about Cornelius Faber? He was in the army. He was a good shot. He did not hesitate to intervene when someone was in trouble. The arrest on his record was because someone living in the estate was abusing his son, and he hit him with a bat to put a stop to it. Another neighbour vouched with how protective Cornelius was over Paige. 

Cornelius and DS Fagbenle used to be neighbours; DS Fagbenle was friends with his son when they were kids. The family moved after he lost his wife to cancer, and he admitted to losing his way for a while. He also lost his son, to alcoholism. DS Fagbenle’s visit to Cornelius, and subsequently letting him off though he knew Cornelius shot Luther, were the only times young Isaac had shown any emotion so far. Suddenly, he was human, and he was considering the good that Cornelius brought to everyone he came in contact with versus charging him for shooting to wound a drug runner who had already shot a woman and would very likely have killed her husband as well. We could have used more characterisation like this earlier on, show. 

It’s always a challenge with mysteries — How do you keep your audience guessing? Holding back some key elements to character histories (like the past relationship between DS Fagbenle and Cornelius) was one of them. That in and of itself was understandable. But there is a way to plant seeds to move a story that feels emotionally connected, where the characters are human and not just pieces on a board. Was it necessary to wait until the fifth episode to humanise DS Fagbenle? We had time for bum jokes, we certainly had time to sketch him better before this episode. 

Would DS Fagbenle come to regret letting Cornelius off, especially since we witnessed him getting rid of a knife that likely mutilated Aaron Corval? Go back to what we know about Cornelius so far. He had his own strong sense of what was morally right. He had no problem putting himself in legal jeopardy as long as he was convinced it was the right thing to do. He was also a defender, not an aggressor, and he used only the minimum amount of force necessary to achieve his objective. I’m not saying he was not involved with what happened to Aaron — he had the knife so at some point, he probably became involved. But, from a conscience point of view, DS Fagbenle would probably be okay, would be my guess. Fair warning that I am not great at guessing when it comes to mysteries. 

Simon was trying to solve another mystery with the help of his lawyer Jessica — the paternity of his kids. He took their toothbrushes for a DNA test, and offered to pay double to get Paige’s test within 24 hours. He has had to live with the thought that his beloved wife cheated on him through her hours of surgery; he had little control left when he finally got to talk to Jay. He shoved him and asked him point blank about the affair. Jay alluded to Simon not knowing things about Ingrid, but he neither confirmed nor denied the affair. 

Elena was all but certain the adoption was connected to Damien’s death and Henry’s disappearance. After she was released by the police (for breaking into Maria’s house), she headed to the adoption agency, where the man there refused to give her any information. But he led her to a woman named Alison, who handled the adoptions of Damien, Henry, and Aaron. Alison ran off before Elena could question her further, however.

Why was a cult leader ordering the deaths of men who were adopted? Ash just wanted to get on with the job, but Dee insisted that they stop by the cult compound as, according to her, they wanted to thank him. There was a ceremony she wanted to join, and given what Mother Adiona implied about that, I would prefer not to go there for now. Ash was furious at Mother Adiona’s implication, but before he could do anything, a hulking bodyguard knocked him out. He woke up with Dee nearby looking fine, and two men who could be the cult leader’s sons, The Visitor and The Volunteer. Mother Adiona was also there (along with the bodyguard), and she apologised to Ash.

The cult leader who was named The One (Dee said it would be disrespectful to call him by his old name, Casper Vartage) wanted to meet with Ash. Ash was blunt and just wanted to complete the task for the money; The One did not seem to have a problem with that. As Ash drove away with Dee by his side, still wearing that thin dress they had her change into for whatever that ceremony was, Ash looked at the note Mother Adiona secretly passed on to him. ‘Don’t kill them. Don’t trust Dee Dee.’

Through all this, Ingrid remained unconscious. What were the odds that the secrets she kept that Jay alluded to answered many of the show’s lingering mysteries? Five episodes in and I would say, pretty high. 

Rating: B

Strays

🪷Katie also reached out to Simon and confirmed Professor van de Beek was a creep with students. This scene felt tacked in — we already knew Katie had feelings for the still unseen professor — so I’m not sure what the point was of including this. 

🪷Dee Dee's name within the cult was Holly. 

🪷Damien and Henry both had charges on their accounts to the DNA site Discovered Ancestry. Paige had a charge under a different DNA site, Absolute Ancestry.

🪷Ash told Dee she has been different since she joined the cult. He sensed danger as soon as they entered the cult compound and even asked Dee if he was safe there.

🪷Simon’s kids were mad at him for not telling them until the next day about Ingrid’s health crisis and the fact that she needed to undergo surgery. 

🪷Elena finally confronted Lou about Maria, her husband Joel’s secret daughter. Lou claimed she only found out after Joel had died. Elena asked for space from Lou, except for work, but though Lou tried calling her several times, she kept ignoring her calls. Later, we saw Lou with Maria. 

🪷DS Fagbenle’s partner and lover DC Ruby Todd was not happy he kept his previous relationship with Cornelius a secret. When DS Fagbenle said that Cornelius all but admitted that he shot Luther, DC Todd was adamant that they not bury the truth, no matter how much good Cornelius was doing. 

Episode Title: Forever Be The Shining Truth

Episode Writer: Charlotte Coben

Episode Director: Isher Sahota

Original Release Date: January 1, 2026

You can view Recap Lab’s full coverage of Harlan Coben’s Run Away via this link.