Chapter Three 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

The chapter opens inside the cave where Mattie and William have been investigating the creature's lair. Mattie hears the monster's roar in the distance and knows it is returning. For a moment, she considers striking William with one of the bones scattered around the chamber, but she lacks the courage to act. She warns him instead. William, convinced this is his chance to confront the creature, thrusts the candle at her and tells her to stay behind him, warning that she could get shot if she gets in the way.

They move to the cave mouth, where William finds a boulder that offers both cover and a view of the tree line below. He orders Mattie to blow out the candle, worried the creature will smell the fire. They crouch in silence, listening to branches crack and something large moving through the trees. The noise fades, the birds return, and Mattie realizes whatever is approaching is much smaller than the creature.

A stranger emerges from the trees—a young man in a bright windbreaker, carrying a camera and a large pack. He is taking photographs of the meadow. Mattie is struck by a wave of recognition: the camera reminds her of her mother's old camera, of standing next to someone named Heather while her mother took photos, of taping those photos to her bedroom wall in a collage. The stranger's clothes also feel familiar—a red windbreaker she once owned, a pink one that belonged to Heather.

William approaches the man aggressively, lying that they are not from the area. The stranger, unfazed, notes that it is public land and asks if Mattie is William's daughter. William bristles, insisting she is his wife. The stranger looks skeptical and then addresses Mattie directly, saying she looks familiar and asking what high school she went to. Mattie freezes, paralyzed between William's order not to speak and her own instinct to respond.

William pulls her away, accusing her of being a whore and tempting the stranger. He raises his rifle, threatening to shoot the man. Mattie, knowing a beating is inevitable anyway, dares to argue: if the stranger goes missing, search parties will come crawling over the mountain, which is exactly what William does not want. The word