Chapter 7: Nancy — 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

In spring 1980, Nancy visits her ailing grandmother, Grandmama, at St. Sebastian's Home for the Aged, as she does every Tuesday night. During their tea and chat, Grandmama recounts making a white silk cloak with an emerald velvet lining for Nancy's mother's January wedding. She then remarks that Nancy's parents "got" her around the time they moved to the Annex. The slip of the tongue unsettles Nancy, who has long harboured unanswered childhood questions and noticed that she resembles neither parent. Grandmama quickly tries to dismiss the comment, but Nancy leaves with a growing suspicion.

Three days later, Nancy goes to her parents' house, telling her mother she needs a quiet place to study while they attend a dinner with friends. Her mother, Frances, gives her a floral dress and announces that Nancy's cousin Clara is engaged to Anthony. Nancy feigns surprise, though she already knew and privately disapproves of the match. After her parents leave, Nancy searches their bedroom. She finds a locked brown leather case with six brass dials hidden in her mother's drawer. She tries her birthday as the combination—first in the American month-day-year format—but the lock doesn't budge. As the chapter ends, she tries the English day-month-year format, entering 2-5-0-4-6-1.

Key Events

Grandmama's memory of the wedding cloak and her slip about Nancy being "got" around the time her parents moved to the Annex.
Nancy's internal reflection on her unanswered childhood questions and her physical dissimilarity to her parents.
Nancy's visit to her parents' house under the pretext of studying.
Frances gives Nancy a floral dress and announces Clara's engagement to Anthony.
Nancy waits for her parents to leave, then searches their bedroom.
She discovers a locked brown leather case with six brass dials in her mother's drawer.
She attempts to open it using her birthday in two different date formats, with the second attempt left unresolved.

Character Development

Nancy moves from passive curiosity to active investigation. Her grandmother's careless words ignite a suspicion she has long suppressed. She acknowledges her lack of trust in her parents, admitting, "I don't trust them. Not about this, anyway." Her decision to invade their privacy marks a significant shift from the obedient daughter who plays along with her mother's rituals. She is also shown to be perceptive, noticing her mother's habits of concealment—the gloves that hide bitten nails and a scar, the decorative bowl that camouflages a watermark, the repeated repapering of the hallway. These observations deepen her unease and foreshadow her discovery.

Grandmama is portrayed as declining in health and increasingly less restrained in her recollections. Her slip about "got you" suggests a hidden truth, though she immediately tries to retract it. Her reverence for "The Past" and her willingness to share memories with Nancy—who she sees as an impartial judge—make her a catalyst for Nancy's quest.

Frances is shown as a mother who conceals imperfections, both physical and emotional. She gives Nancy a dress she knows her daughter would never wear, pushes marriage as a goal, and deflects Nancy's questions about her appearance with a dismissive wave. Her habit of hiding flaws—from her own hands to furniture stains—mirrors the larger family secret Nancy is about to uncover.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Memory and the Past: Grandmama's storytelling and her slip of the tongue illustrate how memory can both preserve and betray family history. The chapter emphasizes the selective nature of recollection and the danger of unguarded moments.
Family secrets: The locked leather case is a physical symbol of hidden truths. Nancy's search for it represents her determination to uncover what her parents have kept from her.
Identity and self-discovery: Nancy's reflection on not resembling her parents and her contemplation of the name "Mitchell" on the door knocker highlight her uncertainty about who she really is.
Concealment of imperfections: Frances's obsessive hiding of stains, scars, and gray hairs is a motif that extends to the family's larger secret. The gloves, the bowl, and the repapered hallway all suggest a pattern of covering up flaws.
Mother-daughter relationships: The tension between Nancy and Frances—over the dress, marriage, and independence—underscores the emotional distance between them. Frances's need to feed and clothe her daughter contrasts with her refusal to share deeper truths.
Marriage pressure: Frances's excitement about Clara's engagement and her hope that Nancy will find a husband at the wedding reflect the societal expectations placed on young women in this era.
Trust and betrayal: Nancy's invasion of her parents' bedroom is an act of distrust, and she feels the weight of betraying their privacy even as she seeks the truth.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter deepens the novel's central mystery. Nancy's discovery of the locked box and her determination to open it set up a personal quest that will likely intersect with the broader themes of adoption and the illegal abortion network hinted at elsewhere in the book. The chapter also establishes Nancy as a character willing to challenge her family's carefully maintained facade, making her a potential conduit for uncovering long-buried truths. The unresolved ending—with Nancy entering the English-format combination—creates suspense and propels the reader into the next chapter.

Study Questions and Answers

1. What triggers Nancy's suspicion about her own origins?

Grandmama's comment that Nancy's parents "got" her around the time they moved to the Annex, combined with Nancy's long-standing awareness that she doesn't resemble either parent and her unanswered childhood questions, triggers her suspicion. The slip of the tongue, though quickly retracted, gives shape to a vague unease she had previously ignored.

2. How does Frances's behaviour in this chapter reinforce the theme of concealment?

Frances hides physical imperfections—her bitten nails, a scar, a watermark on the dining table, and gray hairs—through gloves, a decorative bowl, repapering, and dyeing. This pattern of covering up flaws mirrors the family's larger secret, suggesting that concealment is a habitual response to anything deemed imperfect or shameful.

3. Why does Nancy try her birthday in two different date formats?

Nancy first tries her birthday in the American month-day-year format (0-4-2-5-6-1), which fails. She then realizes that her mother, who uses English slang and customs, might have set the combination using the English day-month-year format. She enters 2-5-0-4-6-1, and the chapter ends before we learn whether it works.