Chapter 17 Summary: The Return of Paulie Aandeg
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
Dennis escorts the narrator to the Gazette offices to share urgent news: a man calling himself Kris Jefferson has arrived in Lilydale and claims to be Paulie Aandeg, a six-year-old boy who vanished in 1944. Chief Amory Bauer is the only person who has spoken to him, and Jefferson will later grant an interview to the newspaper. The narrator searches microfiche archives and finds two articles about Paulie's disappearance and the subsequent burning of his mother's house. The first article describes Paulie vanishing from kindergarten wearing a sailor suit; the second reports that his mother's home burned down and she is missing. The teacher from that day, Becky Swanson, now works as a secretary at Schmidt Insurance. Dennis assigns the story to the narrator. She realizes Paulie disappeared on September 5, the same date as her due date, which unsettles her. The chapter ends with her accepting the assignment but feeling a creeping unease.
Key Events
- Dennis rushes the narrator to the Gazette offices and tells her that a man claiming to be Paulie Aandeg has returned to Lilydale.
- The narrator views microfiche records and reads two historical articles: one about Paulie's disappearance on September 5, 1944, and another about the fire that destroyed his mother's house five days later.
- She learns the kindergarten teacher was Becky Swanson, who now works at Schmidt Insurance.
- Dennis gives the narrator the assignment to write the story, but Kris Jefferson will only speak when he is ready.
- The narrator connects Paulie's disappearance date—September 5—to her own due date, causing a moment of personal dread.
Character Development
- The Narrator (unnamed reporter): Her journalistic instincts are engaged, but the coincidence of the due date shakes her confidence. She begins to see a thread linking her unborn child to the town's dark past.
- Dennis: He demonstrates trust in the narrator by giving her the high-profile story, and his physical description (pale, slender) suggests a gentle, supportive presence.
- Amory Bauer: The police chief is the first point of contact for the returning man, hinting at a long-standing connection to the case that may implicate him in the town's secrets.
- Becky Swanson: Once Paulie's teacher, she is now a secretary at the insurance agency, suggesting that she has remained in Lilydale and possibly holds knowledge about the disappearance.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Memory and Erasure: The microfilm records are fragile fragments; the fact that only two articles survived implies an intentional suppression of the full story.
- Rumors vs. Truth: The townspeople believed Virginia Aandeg killed Paulie and fled, but his return undermines that narrative. The telephone-game nature of gossip is exposed.
- The Past Intruding on the Present: Paulie's disappearance date aligns with the narrator's due date, merging her personal timeline with the unresolved mystery of the Aandeg family.
- The Sailor Suit: The description of the missing boy's clothing becomes a vivid symbol of innocence lost and the passage of time; it is the first tangible link between the past and the returned man.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 17 lays the emotional and investigative foundation for the novel's central mystery. It introduces the historical case of Paulie Aandeg and ties it directly to the narrator's pregnancy, raising the stakes on a personal level. The chapter also reveals that key town figures—Amory Bauer, Becky Swanson, Stanley Lily, and Ronald Schmidt—were present at the time of the disappearance, suggesting a web of complicity that still exists decades later. The narrator's assignment to cover the story forces her to confront both Lilydale's hidden history and her own vulnerability.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does the narrator feel uneasy when she learns that Paulie disappeared on September 5? The narrator's due date is September 5, so the coincidence creates a disturbing connection between the missing boy and her unborn child. It implies that the unresolved past may directly affect her future, heightens her sense of danger, and makes the case feel personal rather than purely professional.
2. What does the second newspaper article reveal about the town's reaction to the Aandeg fire? The article shows that community leaders—Stanley Lily and Ronald Schmidt—publicly offered support for Virginia Aandeg, promising a home for her if she returned. However, Sheriff Tucker's statement that "something is off in the village of Lilydale" suggests that local authorities suspected foul play and that the town was hiding secrets, even as they projected unity.
3. How does the character of Becky Swanson link the past and present in Lilydale? Becky was Paulie's kindergarten teacher on the day he disappeared, and she now works as a secretary at Schmidt Insurance—the business of Ronald Schmidt, one of the men quoted in the original articles. Her continued presence in town means she may hold crucial, uncounted details about the events of 1944, and her proximity to the narrator's father-in-law's office makes her accessible to the investigation.