Helen in Killers of a Certain Age: Character Analysis

Overview

Helen is one of the four core members of Project Sphinx, the all-female assassination squad at the heart of Deanna Raybourn’s Killers of a Certain Age. When readers meet her again after a two-year gap, she has transformed from a grief-stricken widow into a sober, white-haired woman who has rebuilt her life. Her arc in the novel is one of loss, resilience, and quiet renewal: her beloved home Benscombe burns down, she confronts the ghosts of her past, and she emerges ready to forge a new future—possibly with Naomi, her former colleague. Helen is the team’s voice of cautious reason, a planner who balances Billie’s impulsiveness with steady competence, and a woman learning to trust herself again.

Plot Role

Helen serves as the team’s strategist and emotional anchor. She is the one who memorizes mission plans, gathers supplies, and often provides the sobering analysis that keeps the others grounded. On the Queen Mary 2, she reviews Billie’s hit plan and calls it “risky but doable,” showing both her respect for Billie’s instincts and her own need for methodical preparation. After Benscombe is destroyed by arson—a blow that would shatter many—Helen does not fall apart; instead she helps the team regroup, escaping to Sardinia and later participating in the pursuit of Pasha Lazarov and his sister Galina. In the climactic train confrontation, Helen pursues the mole Marilyn Carstairs and recovers the stolen Raphael painting, Leda and the Swan. Her role is not the lead killer but the indispensable coordinator who keeps the operation running.

Motivations and Traits Shown Through Actions

Helen’s primary motivation is to protect her chosen family—Billie, Mary Alice, and Natalie—while finally reclaiming a life of her own. Her sobriety is a key trait: she gave up alcohol after a dark period of widowhood, and the novel shows her ordering green juice at the airport rather than a cocktail. This discipline reflects a deeper commitment to living fully rather than numbing her pain. She is also deeply practical: when discussing the arson, she immediately focuses on rebuilding Benscombe with improvements like heated floors and a plunge pool, refusing to be defined by loss. Her fear of starting a permanent relationship—revealed when she confides about her lover Benoit—shows her vulnerability. She worries about being seen with glasses and crossword puzzles, but Billie’s reassurance helps her see that love does not require perfection. By the end, Helen’s blushing hint about finding a “spare bed” signals she is ready to take a risk, likely with Naomi.

Chronological Arc

Helen’s journey mirrors the novel’s structure of past and present missions. In the 1982 flashback (Chapter One), she works undercover as a Playboy Bunny alongside the others, executing a hit that goes wrong. By the time of the main timeline, she has lost her husband Kenneth and emerged as a sober, white-haired woman. Her house Benscombe—a physical symbol of her settled life—is burned down in Chapter Eleven, forcing her to confront impermanence. Over the rest of the book, she travels from England to Sardinia, Switzerland, Venice, and Montenegro, rebuilding her sense of purpose through action. The final chapter shows her in Venice, discussing renovations with Billie and dropping a clear hint that she expects to stay with Naomi while Benscombe is rebuilt. This arc from widowhood to renewed possibility embodies the novel’s central theme of aging and competence.

Relationships

Benoit: Helen’s younger Belgian lover is a source of physical pleasure but also anxiety. She admits that the arrangement is “rapturous” but fears moving toward something permanent. Her decision to eventually call him or not remains ambiguous, but the relationship shows her capacity for intimacy after Kenneth’s death.

Naomi Ndiaye: The strongest hint of a new relationship comes in the final chapter when Helen discusses money with Naomi and then, when asked where she will stay, blushes and says she can “find a spare bed.” Interpreted in context, this strongly suggests she will begin a romantic partnership with Naomi. This aligns with the novel’s theme of loyalty and chosen family, as Helen chooses a fellow operative over starting fresh alone.

Billie, Mary Alice, Natalie: Helen is the sister who keeps the group together. She mediates between Billie’s recklessness and Natalie’s theatricality, and she shares her most private fears only with Billie. Their bond, forged over decades, is the emotional core of the book.

Key Decisions and Consequences

1. Giving up alcohol – This decision allows Helen to function as a clear-headed strategist. When the team needs someone to memorize a plan, she is ready. The consequence is that she earns the trust of her friends and proves she has conquered her grief-fueled addiction.

2. Confronting the loss of Benscombe – Rather than mourning indefinitely, Helen chooses to see the fire as an opportunity. She decides to rebuild with improvements and to let go of the ghosts of Kenneth and Constance. This decision frees her to pursue a new life with Naomi.

3. Pursuing Marilyn on the train – When chaos erupts, Helen does not hesitate to chase the mole. She recovers the painting Leda, which is crucial for the team’s retirement package. This shows her willingness to take physical risks despite her age and lack of recent field experience.

4. Hinting at a relationship with Naomi – By the final scene, Helen has made the emotional decision to open herself to love again. The consequence is left open-ended, but it signals her full recovery from widowhood and her embrace of the future.

Themes and Symbols

Loss and Rebuilding: Benscombe’s destruction is a literal fire that forces Helen to rebuild from the ground up. It mirrors her internal need to rewrite her life narrative.

Disguise and Reinvention: In the Swiss retirement home mission, Helen assumes the role of an elderly patient in a wheelchair. This act of deception and disguise echoes her real-life transformation from grieving widow to active agent.

The Necessary Monster: Helen is among the women who toast Constance Halliday as “necessary monsters.” She accepts that her skills as an assassin are part of her nature, but she also seeks a softer identity as a partner and homeowner. This duality is central to her character.

Art and Legacy: By reclaiming Leda and the Swan, Helen directly participates in the theme of art and legacy. The painting represents both the spoils of war and the enduring value of what the women protect.

Helen Questions and Answers

1. Why did Helen give up alcohol?
   After her husband Kenneth died, Helen spent months drinking heavily. She stopped when she realized the alcohol was preventing her from living fully. She now orders green juice and has maintained her sobriety for at least two years.

2. What does Benscombe mean to Helen?
   Benscombe was her home in England, a symbol of the settled life she built after leaving active assassination. Its burning forces her to confront that she cannot cling to the past. She decides to rebuild without the ghosts of Kenneth and Constance.

3. Who is Benoit?
   Benoit is a younger Belgian man with whom Helen has a sexual relationship. She calls the arrangement “rapturous” but fears moving toward a permanent commitment. He lives in Brussels, and they meet in various European cities.

4. Does Helen end up in a relationship with Naomi?
   The novel strongly hints at this. In the final chapter, Helen blushes when Billie asks where she will stay while Benscombe is rebuilt, replying she can find a “spare bed.” The context—Naomi’s recent discussions with Helen about money—implies Naomi is that person. It is an interpretation based on the subtext.

5. How does Helen change by the end of the book?
   Helen transforms from a widow still haunted by grief into a woman ready for new love and a new home. She reclaims her competence as an assassin, helps recover the stolen Raphael, and decides to let go of the past, embracing the future with Naomi.