Six weeks after the accident, Jude Farraday is consumed by Grief and Loss, her life now "gray" with a deep depression that makes even simple tasks feel impossible. Her husband, Miles Farraday, struggles with her inability to heal, urging her to move on for the sake of their family. Meanwhile, Zach Farraday retreats into video games, isolating himself further from his parents.
Chapter 16: The Aftermath
The tension between Jude and Miles reaches a breaking point when Miles decides to pack up Mia’s room. Jude, horrified, rushes to stop him, only to find him kneeling on the floor, weeping while clutching Mia’s stuffed dog. Zach witnesses his father’s breakdown and slams his bedroom door. Jude feels blamed for the family's unraveling and retreats to her bed, feeling utterly alone in her sorrow.
Meanwhile, Lexi Baill navigates the terrifying and lonely prison environment. Her great-aunt, Eva Lange, visits, and Lexi sees the physical and emotional toll the weekly trips are taking on the elderly woman. In an act of Love and Loyalty, Lexi tells Eva not to visit anymore, urging her to move to Florida and live her life. Lexi is moved to a permanent cell with a lifer named Tamica Hernandez, who offers a gruff sort of companionship.
Back at the Farraday home, Zach announces his decision to attend USC, the university that was Mia's dream. Jude attempts to act like her old self and throws Zach a small going-away party, but the celebration is strained and painful, a constant reminder of Mia's absence. The chapter concludes with the Farradays' trip to California to drop Zach off at college, underscoring the profound fractures in their family and the immense weight of their shared and individual grief.
Chapter 17: A New Life and a New Loss
It is Thanksgiving weekend, and Zach is home from college when Scot Jacobs, Lexi's lawyer, arrives with shocking news: Lexi is five and a half months pregnant with Zach's child. Jude reacts with fury, accusing Lexi of destroying Zach's life just as she destroyed Mia's, highlighting the theme of Guilt, Blame, and Forgiveness. Despite his mother's objections, Zach accepts his responsibility, declaring his intention to quit school and raise his child. Lexi has sent custody papers, asking only that the child never know she is in prison and that she be the one to physically hand the baby to Zach.
Lexi gives birth in a hospital, shackled to the bed. After delivering a healthy baby girl, she has a brief, heart-wrenching reunion with Zach. She tells him she would have named the baby Grace, a name symbolizing the forgiveness she seeks. Zach honors her wish, naming their daughter Grace Mia Farraday. Jude holds her granddaughter for the first time but feels a chilling emptiness; the baby is a painful reminder of Mia, and Jude feels nothing but her own loss.
The chapter ends on a dark note as, back in prison on the first anniversary of Mia's death, Lexi's despair is overwhelming. She accepts drugs from another inmate and punches Tamica when she tries to intervene. As a result, Lexi is sent to solitary confinement, hitting rock bottom in her journey of Choices and Consequences.
Chapter 18: Six Years Later
The story jumps to 2010, six years after the accident. From the outside, the Farradays seem to have recovered. Zach is a second-year medical student and a devoted single father, Miles has thrown himself into his work, and Jude has constructed a brittle, carefully controlled existence to manage her grief. During a therapy session, she admits she cannot love her granddaughter, Grace, because the little girl's resemblance to Mia is a constant, agonizing reminder of her loss.
Five-year-old Grace is a lonely child who has created an imaginary friend, Ariel, to cope with her isolation. At her after-school program, she is an outcast and gets into a fight with another child. Her grandmother, Jude, was supposed to pick her up but forgot, a common occurrence that underscores Jude's emotional distance. Miles arrives instead, and Grace lies about the fight to avoid disappointing him. The chapter reveals the deep, generational impact of the tragedy, showing how the unresolved grief of the adults has shaped Grace's lonely childhood.
Chapter 19: An Unforeseen Return
Lexi is released from prison after serving her entire sentence. She is met by her former lawyer, Scot Jacobs, who gives her a bus ticket to Florida for the following day, where she plans to start a new life with Eva. Scot informs her that Zach and Grace live on the island in a small cabin. Though determined to stay away for Grace's sake, Lexi is given a key to Scot's office for the night and a photograph of her daughter, which haunts her.
The next morning, Lexi finds herself drawn to Grace's elementary school. She watches from a distance as Jude drops Grace off, noting the stark lack of warmth and affection between them—a sharp contrast to the loving Motherhood and Parental Control Jude once embodied. Later, during recess, Lexi sees that Grace is completely isolated from the other children. The sight of her lonely, unhappy daughter is more than Lexi can bear. When Grace sees Lexi and waves, a small, hopeful connection is forged. In that moment, Lexi's carefully constructed plans crumble. She cannot abandon her child and decides she is not getting on the bus to Florida.
Chapter 20: A Collision Course
Jude picks Grace up from school, and Grace lies about being popular, sensing her grandmother's need for good news. At Zach's cabin, the atmosphere is tense until Zach returns home from his classes, exhausted but a loving father. The family shares a rare moment of warmth and normalcy over breakfast the next morning, giving Jude a fleeting sense of hope.
Later that day, while Jude and Miles are watching Grace, Lexi approaches her daughter as she plays outside. They have a quiet conversation in the trees at the edge of the property. Grace, in her childlike way, reveals the painful truth of her life: she knows her grandmother "hates" her because she looks like "Daddy's dead sister." Miles, seeing Grace talking to a stranger, angrily calls her inside.
From the deck, Jude sees the exchange and recognizes Lexi. The shock of seeing Lexi—the person she blames for all her pain—with Grace is a physical blow. The chapter ends with Jude collapsing, her chest exploding with pain, as Lexi, oblivious to the chaos she has just triggered, rides away on her bike, resolved to fight for a place in her daughter's life.
Key Events
- Jude's Descent: Jude sinks into a severe depression following Mia's death, unable to function or connect with her family.
- Lexi's Prison Sacrifice: Lexi pushes her Aunt Eva away for Eva's own good, leaving herself completely alone in prison.
- The Pregnancy Reveal: Lexi's lawyer reveals to the Farradays that she is pregnant with Zach's child, adding another layer of complexity to their grief.
- Grace's Birth and Handover: Lexi gives birth to Grace Mia Farraday and, in a heartbreaking scene, hands her over to Zach to raise.
- Six Years Pass: The narrative jumps forward six years, revealing the long-term emotional scars on the Farraday family and introducing five-year-old Grace.
- Lexi's Release and Return: Lexi is released from prison and, after seeing how lonely Grace is, decides to stay on the island instead of moving to Florida.
- The Confrontation: Lexi speaks to Grace for the first time, which Jude witnesses, causing Jude to collapse in shock and pain.
Character Development
| Character | Development in Chapters 16-20 as well.
"I am not afraid of storms, for I am learning how to sail my ship." - Louisa May Alcott
This quote encapsulates the journey of the characters in this section. They are battered by the storms of grief and loss, but they are also learning how to navigate their lives amidst the chaos. The quote speaks to resilience and the ongoing process of healing, even when the scars of the past remain.
Significance
This section of Night Road is the novel's crucial turning point. It bridges the immediate, raw aftermath of the tragedy with its long-term consequences, transforming the story from one about a tragic accident into a complex family drama about healing, forgiveness, and redemption.
The time jump of six years is a pivotal narrative choice. It allows Hannah to explore the deep, permanent ways grief can reshape individuals and family dynamics. The introduction of Grace shifts the central conflict. The story is no longer just about the Farradays' loss and Lexi's guilt; it is now about the future of a child caught in the emotional wreckage of her parents' past. Lexi's release from prison and her decision to stay on the island reignites the central conflict, forcing every character to confront the pain they have tried to bury for six years. These chapters set the stage for the novel's ultimate questions: Can a family fractured by tragedy ever become whole? And is forgiveness possible when the wounds are so deep?