Chapter 20 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 with Mirabelle arriving at Belle of the Ball, the boutique she believes she and her mother own. She feels unusually clear-headed, and in the shop's window display she sees her mother standing in a garden, wearing a red dress and red shoes that match her own. But the image is marred by a row of gray, headless figures that Mirabelle perceives as corpses—dressed in sack-like garments and chunky silver jewelry. She is horrified and resolves to fix the display.

An employee named Esther appears at the door, blocking Mirabelle's entry. Esther is confused and frightened, insisting that Mirabelle does not work there and that a woman named Sylvia has instructed her not to let anyone in. Mirabelle dismisses Esther's objections, speaking as though she and her mother are one person, and pushes past her into the shop. Esther texts someone on her phone, clearly alarmed.

Once inside, Mirabelle runs to the display window and topples the headless figures one by one, gathering one into her arms. A small blond woman confronts her, clutching her pearls and looking aghast. Mirabelle mistakes her for a customer, but the woman—who addresses Mirabelle by name and speaks of her grief—is clearly someone who knows her. Mirabelle babbles about retail, severing, and a woman named Sylvia, all while the blond woman grows more insistent that Mirabelle leave.

Mirabelle carries the headless figure into the stockroom, where she discovers what she calls her