Even though Jen Shah hasn’t been on the series, she is still a clear presence. Jen was a member of the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City for three seasons before she was arrested in March 2021. The mother of 2 was sentenced to over six years in prison for her involvement in a telemarketing scheme that prayed on the elderly. At the time, Heather Gay was a ride-or-die friend who always had Jen’s back for some inexplicable reason. But even though Jen is no longer a snowflake holder, Heather is forced to continue to look over her shoulder.
Heather Gay is trying to make a stand
Love her or hate her, but I feel empathy for Heather in her current predicament. As she often boasts, she is a recovering Mormon, and I believe she is still learning how to function in her new role. While a participant in the church, she was forced to blindly follow the rules and hand over control when making life decisions. During this learning phase, I think Heather has forgotten what it takes to be a decent friend. She aligned herself with Jen for reasons I can’t fathom. But I assume one was out of fear and the yearning for power. Jen was a waving red flag who demanded respect wherever she went. This trait must have appealed to Heather at some point.
Siding with Jen for three seasons gave Heather a sense of hierarchy, and she was no longer on the bottom rung. Real Housewives of Salt Lake City fans know Heather has always wanted to be the popular girl. Sadly, longtime friends who knew her back in high school and college keep pointing that out. Heather needs to be careful because it feels like she might be under the spell of Jen. Lest we forget, Season 1 Heather would never have mocked a friend’s or even Bronwyn Newport’s home so openly as she did in the last episode.
Heather Gay has questionable loyalty
The Bad Mormon has always had a lapse in judgment regarding who she chooses to be loyal to. For years, it was Jen who, no matter what, she always sided with. It felt a bit obsessive. Even if Jen were throwing one of her famed tantrums, Heather would try to find the good in her friend. Season 5 is showing fans her lopsided loyalty to Lisa Barlow. And it is rubbing most of the cast the wrong way. Heather has been seen as quite the henchman thus far. Recently, she spun a story and twisted Angie Katsanevas’ words about Lisa’s youngest son. The move seemed utterly out of character for Heather, who usually prefers to stay out of the drama.
Mary Cosby has also noted that Heather is, at times, a two-faced friend. During Angie’s Greek Mafia Party, the preacher called Heather out, saying, “Everywhere you drop, and everywhere you stop, it’s a lie.” Mary poked at Heather, saying, “Don’t push me. You’re a liar. Ask God who’s a liar. Yeah, he does know. And he knows all about you.”
Heather Gay can’t escape the ghost of Jen Shah
The one lie that keeps coming up circles back to how Heather got the black eye in Season 3. Footage showed the ladies partying late into the night on their girl’s trip. Then Bravo cameras focused on someone jiggling Heather’s door, but no one was shown. The next morning, Heather had a shiner, but instead of telling the truth, she claimed she had fallen and hit the sink faucet. However, in Season 4, she finally came clean, telling her friends, “I went on a book tour and defended her and took sh*t for the fact that she gave me a black eye.”
Befriending and staying friends with Jen is undoubtedly Heather’s Achilles heel, and the woman can’t help but continue to use it against her. Heather admitted herself during her confessional: “I think I have a very cloudy past with being blindly loyal to my church and to my friends. But this is not what’s happening right now.” No matter where she turns, she can’t escape Jen’s ghost. I have to imagine that the inmate Shah is living up to the fact that she is still talked about today in the series and has such a lasting impression. However, Heather needs to step out of her shadow and perform an exorcism if necessary. Hell, grab some sage and burn that bridge. But until then, Heather will continue to be haunted.
Real Housewives of Salt Lake City can be streamed on Peacock.
