Chapter 22: Summary, Themes, and Analysis

⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.

For a refresher on the previous chapter, see Chapter 21 Summary.

If you're ready to move forward, the next chapter continues right after this revelation: Chapter 23 Summary.

And if you need the full picture, the Book Hub has all the chapter guides.

Now, let's break down what happens in this pivotal basement scene.

Summary

Josephine and Cate follow Patricia down a long stairwell into a hidden basement beneath the farmhouse. The space is a private screening room—gray concrete, a large white projector screen, a black couch, and a clunky Super 8 projector. Patricia instructs them to sit, then turns off the lights and starts the film.

The footage is from 1977, shot at the Homestead. It shows a two-year-old Fiona sitting at the kitchen table, her red hair vivid even in the faded colors. She's been crying and repeatedly asks for her mother. Patricia's voice from behind the camera tries to coax her into performing a “trick” she'd done earlier. Fiona refuses at first, burying her face in her hands. Then the camera pans to a candleholder on the table. The flame flickers unnaturally, and the holder begins to shudder and rise, hovering just off the table before crashing down and shattering. Fiona runs away, and Patricia chases her with the camera.

The film follows Fiona into another room, where she stands in a corner, hugging herself. Patricia's voice pleads with her to repeat the trick, calling her “our little miracle.” Fiona asks again for her mama, then goes still. The camera captures her body lifting—one hip canted upward, then her whole body suspended in the air, defying gravity. A ceiling bulb hisses and explodes, plunging the room into darkness. The film ends with a soft laugh and static.

When the lights come back, Cate immediately calls the filming an invasion of privacy. Patricia defends it as necessary proof, saying she didn't know how long Fiona's abilities would last. She reveals that Bellanger knew about Fiona's powers and that he wanted to adopt her after Lily-Anne died—perhaps to keep her close. Patricia admits she makes her daughter Isabelle (Girl Two) watch the film weekly, to remind her of her heritage and to see if the power lies within her. She also expresses doubt that any of the other Girls have abilities, calling them “ordinary.”

Cate then speaks up, admitting she has similar abilities. Patricia is reverent and immediately interrogates her about how it happened, but Cate says it came on its own. Josephine stays silent, keeping her own experience at the motel private. The chapter ends with Cate gently asking to meet Isabelle.

Key Events

Josephine and Cate descend into a hidden basement screening room.
Patricia shows a 1977 Super 8 film of a young Fiona at the Homestead.
The film depicts Fiona's telekinetic abilities: a candleholder rises and shatters, then Fiona levitates and a ceiling bulb explodes.
Patricia explains she filmed the events as proof and kept the footage secret to protect the girls from men.
Patricia reveals that Bellanger knew about Fiona's powers and wanted to adopt her.
Patricia discloses that she makes Isabelle watch the film weekly as a form of indoctrination.
Cate admits she possesses similar abilities; Josephine remains silent about her own.
Cate asks to meet Isabelle, setting up a potential confrontation.

Character Development

Josephine: She experiences a profound emotional shift. Watching Fiona on screen triggers a fierce maternal instinct—she wants to protect the little girl. She also feels a mix of fear and wonder at the display of power. Her silence about her own abilities shows her internal conflict: she's torn between solidarity with Cate and keeping her secret under control.
Cate: She is openly defiant and protective. She challenges Patricia's invasion of Fiona's privacy and later reveals her own abilities without hesitation. Her request to meet Isabelle shows her desire to connect with the other Girls and uncover the truth.
Patricia: She is revealed as a complex figure—both a guardian and an exploiter. She filmed Fiona for evidence, but also used the footage to control Isabelle's sense of identity. Her reverence for Cate's power and her insistence on finding a cause suggest she's still chasing Margaret's vision.
Fiona (through footage): Even as a child, she is shown as vulnerable and grieving, her powers emerging in moments of distress. The film humanizes her and makes her a tragic figure.
Isabelle (mentioned): She is positioned as a potential inheritor of the power, but also as a subject of Patricia's repetitive conditioning.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Telekinetic power: The chapter presents the ability as real, observable, and inherited. It's both a miracle and a source of fear.
Evidence and documentation: Patricia's film is a physical record of the impossible. It raises questions about what counts as proof and who controls the narrative.
Invasion of privacy: Cate's objection highlights the ethical problem of filming a child without consent, even for scientific or protective reasons.
Maternal instinct: Josephine feels a protective urge toward Fiona, contrasting with Patricia's more detached, observational role.
Grief and loss: Fiona's repeated cries for her mother underscore the emotional cost of the Homestead experiment.
Inherited power: The film suggests the ability may pass down, and Patricia's weekly screenings are an attempt to awaken it in Isabelle.
Secrecy and hidden history: The basement itself is a metaphor for the buried truths of the Homestead.
Fear of patriarchal exploitation: Patricia's justification for secrecy—that men would misuse the footage—reflects the novel's broader critique of male control over women's bodies and abilities.
Repetition as indoctrination: Patricia's ritual of making Isabelle watch the film is a form of psychological conditioning.
The camera as witness: The film is both a tool of documentation and a symbol of the gaze that objectifies Fiona.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter is a turning point in the novel. It provides the first concrete, visual evidence of the Girls' powers, confirming that the Homestead's claims were not just rumor. It also recontextualizes Bellanger's role: he knew about Fiona's abilities and may have manipulated her adoption for his own purposes. Patricia's admission that she shows the film to Isabelle weekly reveals a darker side to her guardianship—she's not just preserving history, but actively trying to recreate it. Cate's open admission of her own power shifts the dynamic between the three women, while Josephine's silence creates tension and foreshadows her own reckoning. The chapter ends with a direct request to meet Isabelle, setting up the next stage of the investigation and the possibility of a new alliance.

Study Questions and Answers

1. Why does Patricia keep the film a secret, and what does her reasoning reveal about her character?

Patricia says she kept the footage hidden to protect the girls from men who might exploit them. This reveals her deep distrust of patriarchal power and her belief that the women's history must be controlled by women. However, it also shows her willingness to use the film as a tool of manipulation, as she does with Isabelle. Her secrecy is both protective and possessive.

2. How does Josephine's reaction to the film differ from Cate's, and what does that suggest about their characters?

Josephine feels a mix of fear, wonder, and maternal instinct—she wants to protect Fiona and is emotionally overwhelmed. Cate is more immediately critical, calling the filming an invasion of privacy, and later openly claims her own power. Josephine's silence about her own abilities contrasts with Cate's transparency, suggesting Josephine is more guarded and uncertain about her identity.

3. What is the significance of Patricia making Isabelle watch the film weekly?

Patricia's weekly screenings are a form of indoctrination. She wants Isabelle to remember her heritage and to potentially awaken any latent power. This repetition also serves to keep Isabelle emotionally tied to the past and to Patricia's vision of Margaret's dream. It raises ethical questions about consent and the psychological impact on Isabelle.

Continue to Chapter 23 Summary to see what happens when Cate meets Isabelle.

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