Chapter 35 Summary and Analysis: Dane Rubra’s Investigation
⚠️ 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
Chapter 35 introduces Dane Rubra, a YouTuber from Milwaukee who has traveled to Granby five times to investigate Thalia Keith’s murder. In one of his videos, Rubra examines the faint blood smears found on the doorframe and wall near the gym’s emergency exit. He questions the police narrative that Omar Evans killed Thalia inside the building, pointing out that luminol testing revealed no blood in Omar’s office. Rubra suggests that if Omar had struck Thalia a second time, blood would have been everywhere, contradicting the police theory. He also raises issues with the lack of video surveillance, photos from the pool scene, and the school’s alleged influence on the district attorney. Rubra believes the back door was not alarmed in 1995, meaning anyone with a key—such as Robbie Serenho or Puja Sharma—could have entered. He appeals for yearbook photos from the 1990s to document the door’s configuration. The narrator, Bodie Kane, watches the video and notes Rubra’s intense, exhilarated manner.
Key Events
- Dane Rubra posts a video analyzing blood smears outside the gym’s emergency exit.
- Rubra argues that the absence of blood in Omar Evans’s office undermines the official murder theory.
- He recaps the luminol testing that found a confusing mix of bleach and possible blood near the pool.
- Rubra speculates that the back door was not alarmed in 1995, allowing entry by other suspects.
- He publicly asks for yearbook photos showing the back of Mardis Gymnasium in the 1990s.
- Bodie observes Rubra’s fast blinking, lip-wetting, and overall intensity during the video.
Character Development
- Dane Rubra: Portrayed as a persistent and skeptical online sleuth. His excitement is palpable, and his mannerisms—blinking too fast, wetting his lips—suggest a man exhilarated by being close to the case. He challenges official narratives with specific technical points and appeals to crowdsourced evidence.
- Bodie Kane (narrator): Her observations of Rubra’s video reveal a critical eye; she notes his details and emotional state without endorsing or dismissing his theories.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Unreliable Evidence: The luminol results are contested—bleach vs. blood signals—highlighting how forensic science can be ambiguous and manipulated.
- Media and Investigation: Rubra represents the rise of amateur internet investigators who fill gaps left by official police work. His YouTube platform and crowdfunding show how the case has become a public spectacle.
- Institutional Secrecy: The suggestion that Granby Academy’s influence led to suppressed evidence (no photos, no surveillance) underscores a theme of powerful institutions protecting themselves.
- The Door as Symbol: The back emergency exit becomes a focal point—whether it was alarmed, who had keys, and what it reveals about possible alternate killers.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter amplifies doubt about Omar Evans’s guilt by introducing a credible alternative hypothesis. It also deepens the novel’s exploration of how unsolved crimes attract online communities, turning grief and curiosity into a crowdsourced investigation. Rubra’s video recasts the physical evidence—blood smears, luminol results, door alarms—as open to interpretation, preparing the reader for later revelations.
Study Questions and Answers
1. What specific piece of physical evidence does Dane Rubra challenge in his video, and how does he reinterpret it?
Rubra challenges the blood smears found on the doorframe and wall outside the gym. He suggests they may have come from the stretcher or paramedics entering, not from Thalia’s murder. He contrasts this with the total lack of blood in Omar Evans’s office, arguing that a second blow would have created much more blood than the police claim.
2. Why does Rubra believe the back door’s alarm status in 1995 is important to the case?
If the door was never alarmed, campus security could have opened it for the EMTs without triggering a sound, and anyone with a key—like Robbie Serenho or Puja Sharma—could have entered undetected. This opens the possibility that Omar was not the killer.
3. What actions does Rubra take to gather additional evidence, and what does this say about the nature of his investigation?
He asks viewers for yearbook photos of the back of Mardis Gymnasium, offering compensation and anonymity. This shows his reliance on crowdsourcing and social media, contrasting with official police procedures, and highlights the participatory, unregulated nature of online sleuthing.