Chapter 133: Strike Lays Out the Evidence Against Abigail
⚠️ 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
Strike, alone in the fire station with Abigail after her shift, reveals he has been keeping her talking deliberately while Robin and Barclay execute simultaneous operations at Chapman Farm. He lays out his full theory of Daiyu's murder: Abigail, jealous of the attention Jonathan Wace gave his stepdaughter and furious over the inheritance she would receive, orchestrated the killing with three accomplices—Carrie Curtis Woods, Jordan Reaney, and Paul Draper. She used bribes of sweets and toys to lull Daiyu into trusting her, then, on the night of the disappearance, drugged the other children in the dormitory and passed Daiyu out the window to Reaney. The four conspirators took Daiyu into the woods, where Reaney throttled her. Abigail then used a hatchet to dismember the body so that pigs, which Draper had deliberately released and penned nearby, could consume the remains. Carrie faked the drowning by driving to Cromer with a straw effigy wearing Daiyu's white dress, then swimming out to sea to dispose of the straw. After the inquest, Becca Pirbright, who had witnessed clues, approached Carrie for explanations; Carrie invented a mystical cover story about Daiyu ascending to heaven. Becca later told Jonathan Wace, who—realizing his daughter was guilty—suppressed the truth, indoctrinated Becca as the keeper of the secret, and sent Abigail away to Birmingham. Strike further accuses Abigail of killing Kevin Pirbright when he pieced together the truth, of shooting at Strike's car, of attempting to break into the office, and of making anonymous phone calls to manipulate witnesses. He reveals that Barclay has recovered Kevin's laptop, the black jacket, and the Beretta 9000 from her flat. The chapter ends with Detective Inspector Ryan Murphy arriving to arrest Abigail.
Key Events
- Strike discloses that Robin and Barclay have trapped Becca and Mazu in the temple at Chapman Farm, securing Becca's safety
- Barclay texts Strike: "Got everything," indicating he found the physical evidence in Abigail's flat
- Strike reconstructs the entire murder plot: drugging the dormitory, passing Daiyu out the window, taking her to the woods, strangling her, dismembering the body with a hatchet, and feeding the remains to pigs penned in a makeshift enclosure
- Strike explains how Carrie faked the drowning using a straw figure dressed in Daiyu's white dress, which she disassembled and scattered at sea
- Strike theorizes that Becca went to Carrie with questions after the murder, that Carrie invented a mystical explanation to keep her silent, and that Becca later told Jonathan Wace the full story
- Strike accuses Wace of realizing his daughter was the killer and choosing to cover up the murder rather than expose Abigail
- Strike identifies Abigail as the person who killed Kevin Pirbright, shot at Strike's car, tried to break into the office, and made threatening phone calls
- Barclay recovers Kevin's laptop, Patrick's black jacket, and the Beretta 9000 from Abigail's flat
- Detective Inspector Ryan Murphy arrives at the fire station to arrest Abigail
Character Development
Strike
Strike demonstrates the culmination of his investigative skill, showing patience in keeping Abigail engaged while his team executed the tactical operation. His systematic reconstruction of the murder—from the drugged cough syrup to the straw figure to the pig pen—reveals his ability to connect disparate clues into a coherent narrative. He displays ruthlessness in laying out the evidence against Abigail piece by piece, watching her composure crumble.
Abigail
Abigail's character is fully exposed in this chapter as a cold, calculating murderer who has been manipulating everyone around her for decades. The tough, cynical firefighter persona she maintained throughout the novel is revealed as a mask for a woman haunted by what she did to her seven-year-old stepsister. Her physical deterioration during the confrontation—shaking hands, blackened pupils, failed attempts to light cigarettes—signals the collapse of her defenses. Strike suggests she may still have some conscience, given her nightmares and her choice of a rescue profession.
Robin (off-page)
Robin's successful operation at Chapman Farm—trapping Becca and Mazu in the temple—demonstrates her competence and courage. Although she does not appear directly in this chapter, her work is essential to the resolution.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
The Epigraph: The I Ching "Pig Covered with Dirt"
The epigraph from the I Ching—describing one who sees a companion as "a pig covered with dirt" and "a wagon full of devils"—directly foreshadows the chapter's revelations. Strike interprets the pig masks used in the sex games and the literal pigs that consumed Daiyu's body as manifestations of degradation and evil. The "wagon full of devils" evokes the four conspirators acting as a unit.
Straw as Deception
The straw figure used to fake Daiyu's drowning represents the fabrication of a spiritual narrative to conceal a brutal crime. The straw—a material that is hollow, lightweight, and easily broken apart—mirrors the flimsiness of the church's myths when tested by forensic reality.
Pigs as Consuming Guilt
The pigs that devoured Daiyu's remains symbolize how the murderers tried to make evidence disappear entirely. The axe, the broken posts, and the burned rope are physical remnants of an attempt to erase a child from existence. That Abigail still dreams of the pigs suggests guilt cannot be consumed or disposed of.
The Polaroids
The photographs of the four conspirators engaged in degrading sex acts represent the hidden power dynamics at Chapman Farm. They are both evidence of collusion and a record of coercion, showing how Abigail dominated the others.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter is the climax of the novel's central mystery: the disappearance and murder of Daiyu Wace. Strike's full reconstruction resolves multiple threads that have run through the entire book—the fake drowning, Kevin Pirbright's murder, the phone calls to witnesses, and the attacks on the agency. The revelation that Abigail, not her father or Mazu, was the killer, and that Jonathan Wace chose to cover up the crime to protect his church, completes the portrait of the Universal Humanitarian Church as an institution built on exploitation and protected by corruption. The chapter also sets up the legal resolution, with Murphy's arrival promising justice—though the novel leaves open questions about whether Becca can be deprogrammed and whether Wace will face consequences for his cover-up.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why does Strike believe Becca Pirbright originally went to Carrie, not to the church authorities, after the murder?
Strike deduces that Becca worshipped Carrie as the only mother figure she had ever known. When Becca's siblings reported seeing Daiyu climb out the window and Abigail burning rope in the woods, Becca went to Carrie for explanations. Carrie, terrified that Abigail might harm Becca if the girl knew too much, invented the story about Daiyu's spiritual destiny and resurrection. This cover story later became the basis for the Drowned Prophet myth that Jonathan Wace adopted.
2. What specific physical evidence does Barclay recover from Abigail's flat, and why is each item significant?
Barclay finds three key items: Kevin Pirbright's laptop, hidden inside a chair cushion; a bulky black men's jacket that Abigail borrowed from her lodger Patrick to wear during the murder of Kevin and the attempted break-in at the office; and a Beretta 9000 handgun, still smelling of gunpowder, sewn into a cushion on Abigail's bed. The laptop proves she stole it from Kevin's bedsit, the jacket links her to the physical attacks, and the gun is the murder weapon used to kill Kevin and to shoot at Strike's car.
3. Why did Jonathan Wace cover up Abigail's crime rather than report her to the police?
Strike argues that Wace, an amoral narcissist, cared only about protecting his church. If the police investigated Daiyu's death, they would also discover that Wace had been taking a fifteen-year-old girl on a road trip during the time of the murder, which would have damaged his reputation. Additionally, having his daughter convicted of infanticide would have destroyed the Universal Humanitarian Church. Wace chose to accept the supernatural explanation that Daiyu had ascended to heaven and indoctrinated Becca as the keeper of the secret, keeping both Abigail and his institution safe.