Chapter 55 Summary, Analysis, and Key Themes
⚠️ 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 in June 2019 with Lucy receiving a middle-of-the-night phone call from Libby. Libby explains that the detective has traced Miller's phone and that both she and Miller must attend the police station at three o'clock that afternoon to answer questions. Libby is not being arrested, but she is clearly anxious about how much the police now know and how long she can continue avoiding the truth. She urges Lucy to find Henry and get their stories straight before everything unravels.
As the afternoon arrives in the UK, Lucy feels helpless and sick. She is consumed by guilt for having brought lies and darkness into Libby's previously uncomplicated life, and she is also haunted by a separate shadow: the events of the previous summer in Antibes, which she fears she will never be free of.
Marco interrupts her spiral with an idea. He proposes that Kris contact Henry, pretending to want to meet up, to lure him out. Marco explains that Henry had messaged Kris on Tuesday night while drunk, apparently trying to hook up. The plan is to arrange a meeting and then confront Henry. Lucy is initially confused about whether Kris is gay, but Marco shrugs this off, noting that it doesn't matter if Henry fancies Kris. Lucy agrees the plan is a tiny bit genius.
Kris messages Henry, and Henry agrees to brunch at 11 at Blanche, a restaurant opposite the apartment block where Phin might be staying. Marco is excited at the prospect of seeing Henry.
Between waking and heading to Blanche, Lucy calls Libby six times. All six calls go to voicemail, and each unanswered attempt tightens her chest as she imagines what Libby and Miller are being forced to reveal on the other side of the world.
The group prepares carefully. Lucy dresses neatly and shampoos her own hair and Stella's. Marco also makes an effort, combing his hair and wearing shoes instead of trainers. They sit silently in the hotel foyer, waiting for Kris to message from the restaurant. At 11:08, Marco's phone buzzes. Kris reports that they are in the back left-hand corner near the bar and that Henry looks like shit.
As they rise to leave, two men in dark clothing enter the hotel and head toward the front desk. One pulls out a badge and asks the receptionist whether a guest named Marie Caron is staying there. Lucy instinctively moves herself and the children out of view, then herds them quickly out of the building. She notices an unmarked police car parked outside. She bundles the children into a waiting Uber, but as she tries to close the door, she feels resistance from the other side. A man's face appears at the window, holding a police badge against the glass.
Key Events
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Libby calls Lucy at 2:15 a.m. UK time to report that police traced Miller's phone and that both must attend the police station at 3 p.m. for questioning.
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Lucy struggles with guilt over involving Libby in the family's secrets and over the Antibes events from the previous summer.
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Marco devises a sting: Kris will pretend to want to hook up with Henry to lure him to a meeting.
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Henry agrees to brunch at 11 at Blanche, opposite the apartment block where Phin might be.
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Lucy makes six unanswered calls to Libby.
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The group dresses carefully and waits in the hotel foyer.
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Kris confirms at 11:08 that Henry is at the restaurant and looks unwell.
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Two men with a police badge enter the hotel asking about a guest named Marie Caron.
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Lucy rushes the children into an Uber but is confronted by a man with a police badge at the window.
Character Development
Lucy is at her most vulnerable in this chapter. Her guilt is twofold: she blames herself for dragging Libby into the family's secrets, and she remains haunted by the Antibes incident. Her repeated calls to Libby show her desperation to stay connected to her daughter even as events spiral. Yet she also shows practical resolve, dressing carefully and moving decisively when danger appears.
Marco emerges as a strategist. His idea to use Kris as bait is clever and pragmatic, and his excitement at the prospect of seeing Henry reveals a personal investment in confronting the past. His attention to his own appearance suggests he wants to present a composed front.
Libby, though off-page, is defined by her phone call: she is anxious, apologetic, and clearly under pressure from the police investigation. Her plea for Lucy to get her story straight underscores how fragile their web of lies has become.
Henry is only described through Kris's message, but the detail that he looks like shit suggests his own deterioration under the weight of events.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
Police investigation and pursuit: The chapter is framed by the police closing in on multiple fronts—Libby and Miller in one location, and Lucy's group in another. The unmarked police car and the badge at the window signal that the authorities are no longer distant.
Secrets and lies: The sting operation is itself a lie—Kris pretending romantic interest to lure Henry. The false identity Marie Caron suggests the group has been operating under assumed names, and the police asking for that name indicates their cover is being blown.
Guilt and past trauma: Lucy's internal monologue explicitly connects her current helplessness to the Antibes events, showing that her guilt is layered and unresolved.
Family protection: Lucy's instinctive movement to shield the children and get them into the Uber demonstrates that protecting her family remains her primary drive, even as the walls close in.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter is a turning point in the novel's pacing. The police investigation that has been building in the background suddenly becomes immediate and physical. The sting operation against Henry represents the family's attempt to take control of a situation that is rapidly slipping away, but the arrival of the police at the hotel—asking for a name that is not Lucy's—suggests their efforts may be too late. The chapter ends on a cliffhanger with Lucy trapped at the Uber door, leaving the reader uncertain whether she will be detained, whether the children will be separated from her, and whether the confrontation with Henry will ever happen. It also deepens Lucy's emotional arc by making explicit the double burden of guilt she carries.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does Marco's sting plan depend on Kris pretending to want to hook up with Henry?
Marco knows from Henry's drunken message on Tuesday night that Henry is attracted to Kris. By having Kris appear to reciprocate that interest, Marco creates a lure Henry is unlikely to resist. The plan also places the meeting at Blanche, which is conveniently opposite the apartment block where Phin might be, allowing the group to pursue two objectives at once.
2. What does Lucy's repeated calling of Libby reveal about her state of mind?
Each unanswered call tightens her chest, showing that she is desperate to know what Libby and Miller are revealing to the police. The calls also reflect her helplessness—she cannot be with Libby, cannot protect her, and can only wait. This reinforces the guilt she already feels about involving Libby in the family's secrets.
3. How does the chapter use the police presence to create tension?
The chapter builds tension in stages: first the phone call about the police station interview, then the unanswered calls to Libby, then the arrival of two men asking about Marie Caron. The unmarked police car outside and the badge at the Uber window escalate the threat from abstract to immediate, leaving Lucy trapped at the moment of attempted escape.