Chapter Six: The Lie That Haunts Nic
⚠️ 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
Nic serves court‑ordered community service at a local animal shelter, where she bonds with a one‑eyed cat named Banksy. She replays Jenna’s visit from the previous night, fighting a nagging feeling that Jenna might be right about a connection between their missing sisters. At her weekly AA meeting, Nic listens to a fellow attendee, Michaela, describe losing custody of her daughters after a DWI. The story triggers a buried memory, and Nic suddenly realizes that something she told the police the summer Kasey disappeared was not true.
Key Events
- Nic spends the day at the animal shelter, sneaking time with Banksy and clashing with employee Pam.
- She obsesses over Jenna’s words about Jules’s sudden desire to leave home and the possibility that the two missing women share a pattern.
- Two days later, at an AA meeting in a church basement, Nic hears Michaela share about her DWI and its aftermath.
- Michaela’s story cracks open Nic’s suppressed memory: she remembers that a statement she gave to the police about the summer Kasey vanished is false.
- The chapter ends with this abrupt, shocking realization, but the content of the lie is not yet revealed.
Character Development
- Nic remains guarded and numb but begins to actively want to remember, reversing her usual strategy of burying memories. Her anger at Jenna softens into curiosity, and she becomes more vulnerable during the AA meeting.
- Pam reinforces Nic’s view of herself as a criminal, highlighting Nic’s shame and low self‑worth.
- Michaela serves as a mirror for Nic: both women have DWI histories and are separated from loved ones because of their drinking. Michaela’s raw honesty provokes Nic’s breakthrough.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Memory as a buried object – Nic describes trying to “reach out and grab” memories that are “murky and ethereal.” The effort to dig up truth echoes the novel’s central search for missing people.
- The animal shelter as a purgatory – The depressing shelter and its rules reflect Nic’s stalled life. Banksy, a damaged and overlooked cat, symbolizes Nic’s own neglected self.
- Step Eight (making a list of harms) – The AA reading mirrors Nic’s need to confront the harm she may have caused by lying. The meeting’s forced honesty parallels the novel’s demand for truth.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter marks a turning point: Nic stops suppressing the past and actively seeks a memory she knows is crucial. Her admission that she lied to the police changes the reader’s understanding of the Kasey investigation and raises new questions about Nic’s role in those events. It also deepens the parallel between Jules and Kasey, suggesting that Nic’s lie might have obstructed the truth about both women.
Study Questions and Answers
1. What specific detail from the animal shelter shows that Nic is still haunted by her past?
She associates her inability to properly care for her own cat, Slink, with the sad dogs in the shelter. She also avoids Pam’s scrutiny because she feels like a criminal, a label she internalizes from her DWI.
2. How does Michaela’s story help Nic uncover the forgotten memory?
Michaela describes driving drunk with her children and the resulting loss of custody. The parallels with Nic’s own DWI and the squeal of tires she hears at every meeting finally break through the “nagging feeling,” leading Nic to realize she gave false information to the police.
3. Why does Nic initially resent Jenna’s visit, and what changes her mind?
Nic resents Jenna for digging up painful memories she had buried and for lying about following her. Over the next few days, however, Jenna’s theory about a link between the sisters won’t leave Nic alone, and she begins to wonder if Jenna is right—prompting her to try to remember.