Chapter 29 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 on June 21, 2019, with Jackie and her father Ted spending the afternoon pruning the rose garden at Sparrow Crest. Despite the heat, they work with heavy leather gloves and pruning shears, taking breaks for cold beers. Ted found Lexie's stash of marijuana in an old cigar box in the attic, and the two smoke together while sitting in the gazebo. Ted asks Jackie whether she'll keep the house, and she tells him she feels bound to it—that her summers there shaped who she became, and that she owes it to Gram, herself, and Lexie to keep it. Ted offers a reflective answer: a part of her will always be here, just as the family is part of the rose garden and the mortar of the house.

Later, Jackie sorts through boxes of family documents in her room. She finds birth certificates for her mother, Rita, and Diane, as well as obituaries and prayer cards. She also discovers a leather-bound diary belonging to her great-grandmother, Ethel O'Shay Monroe, though the pages are wrinkled, mildewed, and mostly illegible—only fragments about a trip to the Brandenburg Springs Hotel, a woman named Myrtle, and the building of Sparrow Crest can be made out.

The most significant find is a worn blue envelope containing newspaper clippings. The first describes the hotel fire: Samuel Claiborne, a bellboy, witnessed Benson Harding in the halls with a can of kerosene, and Claiborne rescued the Hardings' infant daughter from the burning building. A second clipping reports that Walter Flemming of Lord's Hill legally contested the sale of the Brandenburg Springs property, which had been deeded to Dr. William Monroe after a poker game with Benson Harding. Flemming argued the land should belong to his granddaughter, Shirley Harding, then just one year old. The article notes that Benson Harding took his own life shortly after turning over the property, and that Shirley was being raised by her grandparents, Walter and Eureka Flemming. A third clipping is a wedding announcement: Shirley Harding married Christopher Dufrense on June 17, 1951.

Jackie's mind races as she connects the dots: Shirley, Ryan's grandmother, is the daughter of Benson and Eliza Harding, the original owners of the hotel. The Flemming family had contested the sale to her great-grandparents. Jackie wonders whether Shirley grew up believing Sparrow Crest should rightfully be hers, and whether that explains her persistent presence at the property. She also suspects Terri came to find and remove these documents before Jackie could learn the truth.

That night, Jackie hears knocking at the front door. When she looks out, no one is there. The phone rings with no one on the line—just breathing, then a faint whisper of apology. More knocking follows, and when Jackie opens the door, she finds wet footprints leading to and from the door, along the path to the pool. She grabs the speargun from the hall closet and follows the footprints to the pool gate.

At the pool, Jackie sees movement in the water and aims the speargun, hoping it might be Lexie. Instead, Ryan appears, walking across the pavers. Jackie confronts him, demanding to know what he's doing there. Ryan says he walked over because he was worried about her, and that he'd talked to his grandmother Shirley, who told him something dark lives in the pool and that people who die there are trapped forever. Jackie, however, has already formed her theory: Ryan and his family are the descendants of the Hardings, and they've been trying to scare her and Lexie off the property to reclaim what they believe is rightfully theirs.

Ryan denies everything, insisting he would never have lied to Lexie or manipulated her. Jackie accuses him of filling Lexie's head with stories, getting her drunk on vodka, and talking her off her meds. Ryan protests his innocence, but Jackie is consumed by rage and points the speargun at his chest, ordering him to leave.

Ted appears, and Jackie later shows him the newspaper clippings and lays out her theory. Ted is skeptical and concerned. Diane arrives, having heard from Terri about the confrontation. She dismisses Jackie's theory as projection, suggesting Jackie's estrangement from Lexie was about the house and money, and that guilt is now driving her to blame others. Diane insists they all have tea, go to bed, and leave for the airport on Sunday.

Up in her room, Jackie continues reading Lexie's journals. One entry from June 9 describes Lexie's decision to stop swimming in the pool—it seems too black, too deep, too dark, and the smell is worsening. That night, Jackie dreams of Lexie standing by her bed, soaking wet, with Pig the cat at her feet. When Jackie says Lexie isn't real, Lexie tells her to stop thinking so hard about what's real and what isn't—if she can see her, that should be enough.

Key Events

Jackie and Ted prune the rose garden and smoke marijuana together, discussing whether Jackie will keep Sparrow Crest
Jackie discovers her great-grandmother's diary and newspaper clippings revealing the hotel fire, the contested property sale, and Shirley Harding's wedding
Jackie realizes Shirley is the daughter of Benson and Eliza Harding
Knocking at the door and wet footprints lead Jackie to the pool with a speargun
Jackie confronts Ryan, accusing his family of trying to scare her and Lexie
Diane dismisses Jackie's theory as projection and insists they leave Sunday
Jackie reads more of Lexie's journals and dreams of Lexie standing wet by her bed

Character Development

Jackie's arc in this chapter is defined by a descent into suspicion and paranoia. Her grief over Lexie, combined with the revelations about the Harding family, pushes her toward a conspiracy theory that feels increasingly unhinged. The chapter shows her oscillating between rational investigation and emotional collapse—she recognizes her own erratic behavior (recalling Karen's description of psychosis symptoms) even as she can't stop herself. Her confrontation with Ryan reveals both her vulnerability and her capacity for aggression; she's willing to point a weapon at someone she once trusted.

Ryan, for his part, is presented as bewildered and hurt by Jackie's accusations. His claim that he walked over because he was worried, and his admission that he spoke to his grandmother about the pool's darkness, suggest either genuine concern or a more subtle manipulation—the chapter deliberately leaves this ambiguous.

Diane's role here is to ground the family in a rational, if dismissive, perspective. Her insistence that Jackie is projecting her own guilt onto Ryan and his family echoes the way Lexie was treated—Jackie explicitly notes this parallel, feeling the sting of being on the receiving end of pitying looks.

Ted's quiet support and his admission that they're all wrecked and raw shows a father trying to hold his family together while also being honest about his own confusion.

Themes, Symbols, or Motifs

Family legacy and property dispute: The newspaper clippings reveal a multi-generational conflict over the Brandenburg Springs property. The poker game that transferred ownership from Benson Harding to William Monroe is the root of a grievance that Jackie believes has been passed down through the Harding/Flemming/Dufrense family.

Hidden family history: Jackie's discovery of the clippings and diary represents the unearthing of secrets that have been deliberately buried. The mildewed, illegible diary of Ethel O'Shay Monroe symbolizes how much of this history has been lost or obscured.

Paranoia vs. reality: The chapter deliberately blurs the line between Jackie's legitimate discoveries and her escalating suspicion. The wet footprints are real, but her interpretation of them—that Ryan and his family are orchestrating a campaign of terror—may or may not be. Diane's accusation of projection and Jackie's own awareness of her erratic thoughts keep this tension alive.

Gaslighting: Jackie accuses Ryan of gaslighting Lexie, but the chapter also shows Jackie being gaslit by her own family—Diane's calm dismissal of her theory, and Ted's gentle skepticism, echo the way Lexie's experiences were dismissed.

Water as symbol: The pool continues to function as a site of mystery and danger. The wet footprints, the movement in the water, and Lexie's dream appearance all reinforce the pool's supernatural pull.

Grief and guilt: Jackie's theory is rooted in her guilt over her estrangement from Lexie. Diane's accusation that Jackie is looking for someone to blame is a painful but plausible reading of her behavior.

Why This Chapter Matters

This chapter delivers a major revelation about the property's contested history, connecting the Harding family's claim to the land with the supernatural events at the pool. It also marks a turning point in Jackie's psychological state—her confrontation with Ryan and her family's dismissal of her theory push her closer to the edge, mirroring Lexie's own descent. The chapter raises the central question of whether the pool's power is real or a product of grief and suggestion, and it sets up the final act of the novel by forcing Jackie to choose between leaving Sparrow Crest and staying to uncover the truth.

Study Questions and Answers

1. What does Jackie discover about Shirley Harding's family history, and why does she believe it explains Ryan's behavior?

Jackie finds newspaper clippings revealing that Shirley is the daughter of Benson and Eliza Harding, the original owners of the Brandenburg Springs Hotel. Benson set the fire that destroyed the hotel, and the property was transferred to Jackie's great-grandfather, William Monroe, in a poker game. The Flemming family contested the sale, arguing the land should belong to Shirley. Jackie concludes that Ryan and his family have been trying to scare her and Lexie off the property to reclaim what they believe is rightfully theirs.

2. How does Diane respond to Jackie's theory, and what does her response reveal about the family's treatment of grief?

Diane dismisses Jackie's theory as projection, suggesting that Jackie's estrangement from Lexie was about the house and money, and that guilt is now driving her to blame others. She insists they leave for the airport on Sunday. Her response reveals a pattern of minimizing and rationalizing grief—the same pattern that Jackie recognizes was applied to Lexie, who was dismissed as poor crazy Lexie rather than believed.

3. What is the significance of Jackie's dream of Lexie at the end of the chapter?

In the dream, Lexie appears soaking wet by Jackie's bed with Pig the cat at her feet. When Jackie insists Lexie isn't real, Lexie tells her to stop thinking so hard about what's real and what isn't—if she can see her, that should be enough. The dream reinforces the novel's central tension between rational explanation and supernatural belief, and it suggests that Jackie, despite her attempts to ground herself in evidence, is being drawn into the same uncertain space that consumed Lexie.