Chapter 23 Summary: Hazel in the Present Moment
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
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This page covers Chapter 23, titled “Hazel: Now.”
It is the final chapter before the execution itself, and it places Hazel directly in the machinery of the state’s punishment system.
The chapter is told entirely from Hazel’s perspective in the present tense, as she moves from a motel to the prison’s witness room.
It is a chapter of waiting, memory, and a startling revelation that reshapes what Hazel—and the reader—thought they knew about Ansel Packer’s past.
The chapter also deepens the novel’s central questions about spectacle, justice, and the human cost of both.
Below, you will find a chronological summary, a list of key events, an analysis of character development, a discussion of themes and motifs, an explanation of why this chapter matters, and three study questions with answers.
All claims are drawn directly from the chapter’s text.
No external sources are used.
The chapter is dense with internal monologue and sensory detail, so the summary will focus on the sequence of events while the analysis will unpack Hazel’s emotional and philosophical responses.
The chapter is a masterclass in building tension through stillness, and it sets the stage for the novel’s climax.
Let’s begin.
Summary
The chapter opens with Hazel standing at the edge of a drained motel pool, surrounded by dead leaves and plastic lawn chairs.
Her mother emerges from her room, dressed in an outdated pantsuit with oversized shoulders, clearly an attempt to mark the occasion.
Hazel notices that her mother’s eyes still flicker with hope when they see her, only to cool into disappointment—a painful reminder that Hazel is always the “wrong” daughter, the one who survived.
A beige sedan arrives, and a woman named Linda introduces herself as a representative from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Victim Services.
Linda drives them to the prison, but first they must review paperwork.
The paperwork includes a description of Ansel’s crime and an overview of the execution process, which Hazel finds absurdly theatrical.
She learns that Ansel has invited two witnesses: his lawyer and a woman named Beatrice Harrison, a name Hazel has never heard.
Hazel reflects on the seven years since her twin sister Jenny’s death.
Her mother has been feigning excitement, saying she cannot sleep until she watches Ansel “fry,” but now that the moment is near, her bravado has evaporated.
Hazel feels complicit in the spectacle, noting that Ansel gets attention, media coverage, and a carefully regulated procedure, while real punishment would be a lonely, forgotten life sentence.
She thinks about the privilege of being seen, and how Ansel’s status as a serial killer grants him a kind of glorified martyrdom.
She also recalls her own activism against institutional injustice, but feels helpless in the face of this particular event.
At the prison, Hazel helps her mother through the imposing red-brick building.
They are greeted by a trauma support team and the warden, who leads them through security.
They are placed in a support room with brightly colored office chairs and a sterile table.
Hazel’s mother is visibly shaking, and Hazel wants to reassure her but cannot find words that feel true.
She waits, listening to the distant sounds of men in the prison.
Hazel then remembers that morning, when her fourteen-year-old daughter Alma came downstairs to say goodbye before the flight.
Alma, with her braces and self-conscious gestures, told Hazel that Aunt Jenny would be proud of her bravery.
Hazel is uncertain whether Jenny would be proud, imagining different versions of her twin’s reaction.
The warden returns with two reporters, who sit in a corner.
Hazel dislikes journalists; they have hounded her family since Ansel’s confession, even showing up at her daughter’s daycare.
She reflects that the media’s interest is not about Jenny but about the other girls Ansel killed, and the endless question of why.
Hazel finds this question baffling and irrelevant; she believes a person can simply be evil, and that Ansel is not extraordinary for acting on his desires.
Needing a moment alone, Hazel goes to the bathroom.
There, she encounters a young woman who is startled by Hazel’s resemblance to Jenny.
The woman introduces herself as Blue, and reveals that she is Ansel’s niece—the daughter of his brother, a family Hazel believed did not exist.
Hazel remembers a Christmas when Ansel spoke of his baby brother, but she had assumed it was a manipulative act.
Blue explains that she is there because “bad people feel pain, too.”
Hazel sees hurt in Blue’s eyes, different from her own but real.
Blue leaves, and Hazel returns to the conference room.
The warden asks if she is ready.
As they walk down the hall, Hazel recalls a childhood memory of climbing a maple tree with Jenny, who showed her the view and said, “You can see everything, from the beginning, all the way to the end.”
The chapter ends as they enter the witness room—a tiny theater with a barred window and drawn curtains.
Hazel hears the glug of an IV bag and a heart monitor.
As the curtains slide open, Hazel feels Jenny’s presence everywhere, in the air, in her own reflection.
She realizes that death is not the end; Jenny lives on in her, in every room she walks through.
Key Events
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Hazel and her mother are picked up by Linda, a victim services representative, and review execution paperwork.
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Hazel learns that Ansel has invited two witnesses: his lawyer and a woman named Beatrice Harrison.
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Hazel reflects on the spectacle of the execution and her complicity in it.
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They arrive at the prison, pass through security, and wait in a support room.
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Hazel remembers Alma’s goodbye that morning, and her uncertainty about Jenny’s approval.
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Reporters join them, reminding Hazel of the media intrusion her family has endured.
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In the bathroom, Hazel meets Blue, who reveals she is Ansel’s niece—a family connection Hazel never knew existed.
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Blue explains her presence with the line “bad people feel pain, too.”
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Hazel recalls a childhood memory of climbing a tree with Jenny, who showed her the view.
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The warden leads them to the witness room, where the curtains open onto the execution chamber.
Character Development
Hazel is the focal point of this chapter, and her internal conflict reaches a peak.
She is torn between her grief for Jenny, her anger at Ansel, and her growing unease with the execution itself.
She feels complicit in a system she despises, yet she cannot escape her role as the victim’s sister.
Her reflections on the privilege of visibility and the glorification of killers show a deepening moral awareness.
She also grapples with her identity as a twin, seeing Jenny in her own reflection and feeling that she is always the “wrong” daughter.
The encounter with Blue forces Hazel to confront the humanity of the condemned man’s family, complicating her black-and-white view of evil.
Hazel’s mother is portrayed as fragile and diminished, her earlier bravado replaced by trembling vulnerability.
She is a reminder of the long-term toll of grief, and her dependence on Hazel highlights Hazel’s role as caretaker.
Blue is a new character who serves as a mirror to Hazel.
She is Ansel’s niece, a young woman carrying her own pain and confusion.
Her presence challenges Hazel’s assumption that Ansel had no family, and her quiet statement about pain suggests a more nuanced understanding of human suffering.
Alma appears only in memory, but her brief scene establishes Hazel’s role as a mother and the generational impact of violence.
Alma’s comment about Jenny being proud shows that the family’s grief is passed down.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Execution as spectacle: Hazel repeatedly compares the execution to theater, noting the schedule, the witness room, and the media attention.
She sees it as a performance that grants Ansel a kind of martyrdom.
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Glorification of killers: Hazel reflects on how Ansel’s status as a serial killer makes him captivating to the public, and she resents the attention he receives.
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Institutional injustice: Hazel thinks about the systemic racism in the justice system, and her own activism, but feels powerless to change the situation.
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Privilege of visibility: Hazel notes that it is a privilege to be seen and to speak last words, a privilege Ansel is granted.
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Media intrusion: The reporters in the support room and Hazel’s memories of being hounded highlight the invasive nature of media coverage.
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The question of why: Hazel dismisses the public’s obsession with Ansel’s motives, believing that evil can be simple and unexplainable.
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Twin identity and sisterhood beyond death: Hazel sees Jenny in her own reflection, and the chapter ends with the idea that Jenny lives on in Hazel.
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Grief and loss: The chapter is steeped in Hazel’s grief, and her mother’s fragility underscores the lasting pain.
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Futility of punishment: Hazel questions whether the execution serves any real purpose, calling it “pointless” and a “pure waste.”
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Humanity of the condemned: Blue’s presence reminds Hazel that Ansel is not just a monster but a person with family, complicating her hatred.
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Hidden family connections: Blue’s revelation that Ansel has a brother and a niece overturns Hazel’s belief that he was alone.
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Complicity in the system: Hazel feels guilty for participating in the execution, even as she knows it is supposed to be for her benefit.
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Death as sleep: Hazel imagines death as a long, yawning sleep, and she has yearned for it at times, but she also sees the execution as a sterile, unnatural version of death.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 23 is pivotal because it brings Hazel to the threshold of the execution, forcing her to confront the reality of what is about to happen.
It also introduces a major revelation—Ansel’s niece Blue—which humanizes the condemned man in a way that challenges Hazel’s (and the reader’s) assumptions.
The chapter deepens the novel’s critique of the death penalty as a spectacle, and it sets up the emotional and moral climax of the book.
Hazel’s internal struggle between her desire for justice and her discomfort with the state’s methods is central to the novel’s themes.
The chapter also reinforces the motif of sisterhood and memory, as Hazel carries Jenny with her into the witness room.
By the end, Hazel is not just a victim’s sister but a participant in a system she finds deeply flawed, and her journey to this point is essential to understanding the novel’s conclusion.
Study Questions and Answers
1. How does Hazel’s view of the execution differ from her mother’s, and what does this reveal about her character?
Hazel’s mother initially expresses excitement about watching Ansel die, but as the moment approaches, she becomes fragile and dependent.
Hazel, on the other hand, is deeply conflicted.
She feels complicit in the spectacle and questions its purpose, even as she acknowledges her own desire for recompense.
This contrast reveals Hazel’s moral complexity and her ability to see beyond her own grief to the larger systemic issues at play.
2. What is the significance of Blue’s revelation that she is Ansel’s niece?
Blue’s revelation shatters Hazel’s belief that Ansel had no family.
It forces Hazel to see Ansel as a person with connections, and Blue’s statement that “bad people feel pain, too” complicates Hazel’s black-and-white view of evil.
This moment also introduces a new perspective on the condemned man’s humanity, which is a central theme of the novel.
3. How does the chapter use the motif of sisterhood to frame Hazel’s experience?
Throughout the chapter, Hazel sees Jenny in her own reflection and recalls memories of their childhood.
The final image of Jenny “everywhere” suggests that sisterhood transcends death.
This motif allows Hazel to find a kind of solace even as she faces the execution, and it reinforces the idea that love and memory are more powerful than death.
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