Chapter 10 – Tuesday, 25 June: Alix Meets Pat, Nathan’s Secret Plans

⚠️ 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

Alix arrives at the low‑rise housing estate where Josie grew up. Josie joins her, wearing jeans and a chambray top, with her dog peeking out of a denim carrier. Inside a community hall, Josie’s mother Pat greets them. Pat is unexpectedly glamorous and talkative, a stark contrast to Josie’s stiffness. Pat reveals she studied social anthropology at Goldsmiths but dropped out after becoming pregnant with Josie. She now runs community projects on the estate, which she calls her “career.”

Alix asks about the day Josie was born. Pat recalls being twenty, unmarried, drinking and smoking through the pregnancy. She tried to finish an essay even as contractions began, delivered Josie around 8 a.m., felt “terrified” seeing her daughter, and then completed the essay afterward. Pat admits she hates thinking about that day.

Alix shows Pat a photo of her own mother holding newborn Alix, asking if Pat remembers any other women at the hospital. Pat says it’s all a blur. The conversation turns to nature/nurture, but Pat’s narcissism becomes clear—she constantly steers the talk back to her own sacrifices.

Pat gives a tour of the estate, bragging about her achievements. They visit the flat where Josie lived as a child. Josie shows Alix her old pink room and says that’s where she first saw Walter through the window. Alix asks Pat if she knew what was happening when Josie was fourteen. Pat responds with fury: “What do you think?”

Later that evening, Alix is at home with Nathan. He has been extra nice since a recent conflict (Thursday night), promising he “lost control” and won’t do it again. Nathan says he’ll work from home the next day and suggests a cheeky lunch. Alix admits she has an interviewee coming in the morning. She lies, saying it’s a “birthday twin” experiment. Nathan is skeptical. Alix feels he doesn’t deserve her confidences—he has his own secrets.

Key Events

Alix meets Josie’s mother Pat at the estate’s community hall.
Pat describes her difficult, unplanned pregnancy and her terrifying feelings after giving birth.
Pat dismisses any memory of Alix’s mother or other women at the hospital.
Pat gives a self‑aggrandising tour of the estate.
Inside Josie’s childhood room, Josie points out the window where she first saw Walter.
Alix asks Pat about Walter; Pat reacts with defensive anger.
That night, Nathan announces he will work from home and wants to have lunch.
Alix hides the true nature of her podcast project, claiming it’s about birthday twins.

Character Development

Alix: For the first time, she keeps a significant secret from Nathan. Her white lie about the podcast shows growing distrust and a desire for autonomy after Nathan’s “lost control” incident. She also shows keen observation: she quickly recognises Pat’s narcissism.
Josie: Remains mostly passive, letting her mother dominate. Her flinch when Pat says “terrified” reveals deep emotional wounds. Her childhood room is presented as a shrine to a past she can’t escape.
Pat: Emerges as a full‑fledged narcissist: glamorous, self‑absorbed, dismissive of her daughter’s trauma. Her description of Josie’s birth—finishing an essay immediately after—shows emotional neglect. She never expresses love or curiosity about Josie’s life.
Nathan: Off‑screen for most of the chapter, but his return to “extra nice” behaviour after losing control hints at a cycle of apology and manipulation. His decision to work from home without telling Alix why suggests he too has secrets.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Nature vs. Nurture: Pat explicitly raises the academic concept, but the chapter subverts it. Pat was intelligent and ambitious (nature), yet her environment (poverty, single motherhood) shaped Josie’s upbringing. Alix’s “swapped babies” thought experiment lingers.
Narcissism and its damage: Pat’s relentless focus on her own achievements, her dismissal of Josie’s feelings, and her rage when asked about Walter illustrate how a narcissistic parent distorts a child’s reality.
Secrecy and trust: Alix lies to Nathan about the podcast because she feels he “doesn’t deserve her confidences.” This parallels the larger web of lies around Josie’s life. Trust is eroding on multiple fronts.
Windows and thresholds: Josie’s first sight of Walter through her bedroom window symbolises the boundary between safety and predation. The window is both a vantage point and a barrier she eventually crosses.

Why This Chapter Matters

Chapter 10 is the first time Alix sees Josie’s origins firsthand. Pat’s narcissism provides crucial context for Josie’s guarded, damaged personality. It also reinforces the novel’s central mystery: how did Walter come to abuse Josie, and what role did her mother play? Alix’s decision to withhold the truth from Nathan sets up domestic tension and hints that Alix may be walking into danger. The chapter deepens the psychological portrait of every main character.

Study Questions and Answers

What does Alix’s white lie to Nathan reveal about their relationship?
Alix is starting to withdraw emotionally after Nathan’s loss of control. She no longer feels obligated to share everything, and her lie (“birthday twin” experiment) allows her to maintain a boundary. It shows that trust has been broken and she is asserting independence.
How does Pat’s story about giving birth contrast with Alix’s expectations?
Alix likely expected a warm, maternal account. Instead, Pat describes terror, denial, and finishing an essay immediately after delivery. This contrast underscores Pat’s narcissism and emotional detachment, and it explains Josie’s fraught childhood.
Why does Alix avoid asking Pat the question she has in mind after Pat’s angry reaction?
Alix senses that pushing further would provoke a defensive explosion and might jeopardise the interview. She also likely wants to protect Josie from further pain. The moment shows Alix’s instinct as a journalist (read the room) and as a human being (avoid unnecessary cruelty).