Chapter 22: Summary 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.
Summary
Back in Spring Brook, Mallory and Adrian waste no time. Mallory gathers every drawing she found in her cottage, plus the three pictures she took from Teddy’s bedroom. Adrian contributes the one drawing left on his desk and all his photographs of the Maxwells’ den, which he has already printed on an inkjet printer. With less than forty-eight hours before Russell arrives to pick Mallory up, they are determined to convince the Maxwells of the truth.
They arrange all the pictures on the pool patio, using stones and gravel to hold them in place, then spend half an hour rearranging them to find a coherent narrative. After trial and error, they settle on a sequence. The first picture shows a hot-air balloon in a wide-open field, with a woman in a sleeveless dress painting it—presumably Anya. A little girl, possibly Anya’s daughter, plays nearby with toys. A white rabbit appears, and the girl follows it down into a valley while Anya, absorbed in her work, does not notice. The next pictures show the girl lost, possibly hurt or dead, then approached by an angel who leads her toward the light. Anya chases after them, but she is too late; the angel and child disappear. Then there is a gap. The next images show a man strangling Anya, though Mallory and Adrian debate whether the man actually strangled her or if that is just an assumption. Later, at night, a man arrives in the forest carrying a pick and shovel, drags Anya’s body, digs a hole, and buries her.
Adrian grows frustrated, asking why Anya does not simply spell out the truth with words instead of cryptic pictures. Mallory realizes she has never asked that question. She recalls Teddy saying Anya talks funny and is hard to understand. She proposes that Anya might not speak English. Adrian connects this to the library book, The Collected Works of Anne C. Barrett, suggesting that Annie (Anya) came from Europe after World War II and may have changed her name to blend in. George, already assimilated as a deacon and alderman, might have been ashamed of his Bohemian cousin. This theory also explains the spirit board: the gibberish Mallory called “alphabet soup” might actually be spelling in a different language. Mallory remembers Mitzi wrote everything down during the séance.
They walk to Mitzi’s house. No one answers the front door, so they go around to the back entrance used by clients. The back door is open, and they can hear a TV playing an infomercial. Adrian insists on checking on Mitzi, worried she might be hurt. They enter, calling her name. The kitchen smells of trash and dirty dishes, with a frying pan full of congealed bacon grease. The living room TV is on Fox News, and Mallory mutes it. They find no sign of Mitzi. In her bedroom, the shades are drawn, the bed unmade, and clothes are scattered. Mallory looks under the bed but finds only dirty laundry. On the nightstand she sees cotton balls, a bottle of rubbing alcohol, and a latex tourniquet—signs of injection drug use. She tries to dismiss it, but later, in the living room, she steps on a thin orange plastic tube, a cap for a hypodermic needle. She finds three more needle caps around the room, confirming Mitzi has been injecting herself, likely not with insulin.
Adrian finds the notepad on the sofa, tucked beneath the heavy wooden spirit board. Mallory flips past shopping lists to the last used page—her séance notes. She rips the page out. The words look like no language she knows. Adrian suggests it might be a cryptogram, but Mallory doubts Anya would make things harder. Adrian tries to decode it, looking for frequent letters, but makes no progress. Then a knock comes at the back door. A man’s voice calls out, and when they enter the kitchen, they see a police officer in uniform. He orders them to step outside.
Key Events
- Mallory and Adrian reconstruct the sequence of drawings and photographs on the pool patio, piecing together a narrative of a girl following a rabbit, getting lost, an angel leading her to light, Anya chasing too late, and a man burying Anya’s body.
- They debate whether the man strangled Anya, noting the gap in the story.
- Mallory theorizes that Anya does not speak English, which would explain the spirit board’s gibberish and the cryptic nature of the drawings.
- They go to Mitzi’s house, find the back door unlocked, and enter after no one answers.
- Mallory discovers signs of injection drug use in Mitzi’s bedroom and living room, including a tourniquet and multiple needle caps.
- Adrian finds the notepad with the spirit board, and Mallory takes the last page of séance notes, which appear to be in an unknown language.
- Adrian attempts to decode the notes as a cryptogram but fails.
- A police officer arrives at the back door and orders them outside.
Character Development
Mallory shows increasing determination and resourcefulness. She takes the lead in arranging the pictures and interpreting the narrative, and she is the one to propose the language barrier theory. Her empathy for Anya grows as she imagines Anya’s struggle to communicate and her desperate attempt to save her daughter. Mallory also demonstrates caution and awareness of danger, noting Mitzi’s paranoia and gun ownership, yet she still follows Adrian into the house because time is running out.
Adrian is analytical and persistent. He prints the photographs, helps arrange the sequence, and immediately tries to decode the séance notes as a cryptogram. His frustration with Anya’s cryptic communication pushes Mallory to think deeper. He also shows a protective instinct, insisting they check on Mitzi even when Mallory wants to leave. His willingness to enter the house, despite the risk, highlights his commitment to solving the mystery.
The chapter also reveals more about Mitzi through her absence and the evidence of her drug use. She is not present, but the clues suggest she is struggling with addiction, which may explain her erratic behavior and the séance’s strange outcomes.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
Visual storytelling is central. The drawings and photographs form a sequence that tells a story without words, mirroring Anya’s inability to communicate in English. The pictures are a puzzle that Mallory and Adrian must decode, emphasizing the power of images to convey trauma and truth.
Language barrier is a key theme. Mallory’s realization that Anya may not speak English reframes the spirit board’s gibberish as a foreign language rather than nonsense. This also connects to the immigrant experience, as George’s assimilation and shame about his cousin suggest a tension between old and new identities.
Coded messages appear in the séance notes, which Adrian tries to crack as a cryptogram. The idea of hidden meanings and deliberate obfuscation runs through the chapter, as Anya communicates through pictures and possibly a language the characters cannot understand.
Substance abuse is introduced through Mitzi’s needle caps and tourniquet. This adds a layer of instability and raises questions about Mitzi’s reliability and her role in the séance.
Police intervention at the end introduces an external threat. The officer’s arrival suggests that Mallory and Adrian’s investigation may have crossed legal boundaries, and it creates immediate tension.
Time pressure is a constant motif. Mallory repeatedly notes the deadline of Russell’s arrival, and the chapter moves quickly from the patio to Mitzi’s house, underscoring the urgency of their quest.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 22 is a turning point in the investigation. Mallory and Adrian finally piece together a coherent narrative from the drawings, giving them a clearer picture of what happened to Anya and her daughter. The language barrier theory provides a plausible explanation for the spirit board’s gibberish and opens the door to decoding the séance notes. The discovery of Mitzi’s drug use adds a new layer of complexity, suggesting that Mitzi may not be a reliable witness or that her behavior has been influenced by addiction. The chapter ends on a cliffhanger with the police officer’s arrival, raising the stakes and forcing Mallory and Adrian to confront the consequences of their actions. This chapter also deepens the mystery of Anya’s identity and her connection to the Maxwell family, setting up the revelations that are likely to follow.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does Mallory believe Anya might not speak English, and how does this theory explain the spirit board’s gibberish?
Mallory recalls Teddy saying Anya talks funny and is hard to understand. She also remembers that Anya’s drawings are cryptic, using pictures instead of words. If Anya does not speak English, she would not be able to spell out messages on the spirit board in English. The gibberish Mallory heard during the séance might actually be Anya spelling in her native language, which would explain why the letters seemed like nonsense.
2. What evidence suggests that Mitzi has been using drugs, and why is this significant?
In Mitzi’s bedroom, Mallory finds cotton balls, a bottle of rubbing alcohol, and a latex tourniquet. In the living room, she steps on a needle cap and finds three more caps around the room. These items strongly indicate injection drug use, likely not insulin. This is significant because it suggests Mitzi may be unreliable, possibly impaired during the séance, and it raises questions about her motivations and mental state.
3. How does the sequence of drawings that Mallory and Adrian reconstruct advance the mystery?
The sequence tells a story: a girl follows a rabbit, gets lost, an angel leads her to light, Anya chases but fails, and later a man drags Anya’s body and buries her. This gives Mallory and Adrian a timeline and a possible murder scenario. It also introduces the idea that Anya’s daughter was taken away, and that Anya was killed and buried. The gap in the sequence—the missing piece of whether the man strangled Anya—leaves room for further investigation and suggests that more clues are needed.