These chapters deliver shocking revelations, shifting the narrative from a mystery to a psychological thriller. Noelle's confession exposes her twisted motives, while Laurel uncovers fragments of Poppy's repressed memories, leading to a final, destabilizing twist involving Hanna. The story accelerates, creating immense dramatic irony as Laurel inches closer to the truth.
Chapter 31: Noelle's Confession
The chapter unfolds as a long, confessional letter from Noelle Donnelly to Floyd Dunn. Noelle admits to lying about being on the pill, which leads to her first pregnancy. While initially terrified, Floyd's reaction is cautiously accepting. However, during the ultrasound, the clinician can't find a heartbeat. Floyd doesn't sigh in sadness, but in annoyance, as if Noelle has failed yet another test. She says this reaction "virtually killed me."
After the miscarriage, Floyd tries to distance himself, but Noelle clings to the relationship, accepting a purely physical role and even moving in with him temporarily. She describes his daughter, Sara-Jade Virtue, as a "terrible child" who constantly stresses Floyd. Two years later, Noelle becomes pregnant again after Floyd fails to "pull out" in time. Fearing a repeat of his devastating reaction, she doesn't tell him. However, she miscarries again just a few days later. On the very same day she loses her second baby, she has her first tutoring session with Ellie Mack. Sitting in the Macks' warm, happy home, surrounded by signs of a loving family, Noelle feels a strange connection form in her mind between "the gone baby and the spoiled girl," spiraling into a dangerous obsession.
Chapter 32: A Mother's Goodbye
The narrative returns to Laurel Mack, who visits her mother, Ruby, in her nursing home. The conversation is tender and has an air of finality. Laurel tells her mother she is happy with Floyd, knowing this is what Ruby has held on to see. As Laurel prepares to leave, her mother says, "I won’t see you again." Laurel gives her a heartfelt, emotional goodbye, telling her she was the "best and most amazing mother in the world."
After leaving, Laurel sits in her car and allows herself a brief cry, feeling a deep premonition that this was, in fact, their last meeting. Overcome with emotion, she feels the need to talk to someone who truly knows her. She picks up her phone and almost calls her ex-husband, Paul Mack, but ultimately decides against it, highlighting her lingering connection to him and her current emotional isolation.
Chapter 33: The Golden Girl
Noelle's confession to Floyd continues, describing her fixation on Ellie, comparing her to the "posh, posh, posh girls" she both envied and despised at a previous job. Ellie was the ultimate "golden girl." Noelle even met Ellie's boyfriend, Theo Goodman, and remembers thinking about the "spectacular" babies the two of them could make—a chilling piece of foreshadowing. When Laurel calls to cancel the tutoring sessions, Noelle is devastated, calling it a "fucking travesty."
Her resentment festers and morphs into a nostalgic longing for the time she spent with Ellie, leading her to begin stalking Ellie, watching her come and go from school. During the half-term break, Noelle stakes out a café on her street corner, knowing Ellie passes by on her way to the library. One day, she sees Ellie waiting to cross the road and approaches her. For a split second, Ellie doesn't recognize her. In that moment of non-recognition, Noelle feels completely invalidated, as if Ellie had "completely failed to verify my existence," implying that this moment was the final trigger for the events that followed.
Chapter 34: The Monster in the Basement
Back in the present, Poppy Dunn serves a "restaurant" dinner for Laurel and Floyd. Laurel feels a moment of peace, convincing herself her suspicions about Floyd and Noelle are unfounded. The next morning, however, Floyd says he has to meet his financial advisor and asks Laurel to stay with Poppy. While comforting Poppy, Laurel drops a kiss on her head and is struck by a familiar scent: the smell of Ellie's hair. Her suspicions return with full force.
Laurel takes Poppy to the café on the corner of Noelle's old street. In a calculated move, she tells Poppy that she used to live on this street and that she has cousins—Noelle's nephews, Joshua and Sam—living in her old house. Intrigued, Poppy agrees to go with Laurel to meet them, rationalizing that she doesn't have to tell her father everything. At the house, the cousins give them a tour. Poppy is stunned when she sees the rabbit-and-tortoise wallpaper in her old bedroom, a memory flooding back to her. However, when they go to the basement, Poppy freezes on the threshold, gasping that she isn't allowed in there. She recalls her mother telling her a "big, scary monster" lived in the basement, a memory that clearly terrifies her.
Chapter 35: A Shocking Revelation
Laurel walks a shaken Poppy home, trying to rationalize Poppy's memory, telling herself the "monster" was probably something mundane, not Ellie's body. When they arrive back at Floyd's, he is already home. Watching him in the kitchen, Laurel has a disorienting moment where he momentarily blends with her memory of Paul, highlighting her unresolved feelings. She finds herself unable to confront Floyd with her questions, fearing it will destroy their "lovely pot" of a relationship. Instead, she deflects, asking about his first marriage.
The next morning, Laurel leaves. As she walks to her car, she spots a handsome young man with a dog outside a Tesco. She recognizes him as Theo Goodman, Ellie's boyfriend from ten years ago. She considers approaching him but decides against it. Just then, a woman comes out of the store to join him. She is tall and blonde, wearing a parka and a green bobble hat, and has a wide, happy smile. Laurel is stunned as she realizes who it is: her own daughter, Hanna Mack. The sight of her daughter, looking happy and in a secret relationship with Ellie's former boyfriend, leaves Laurel reeling.
Character Development
The characters undergo significant shifts in these chapters:
- Noelle Donnelly: Her twisted motivations are revealed, portraying her as psychologically shattered by grief, jealousy, and perceived rejection.
- Laurel Mack: She transitions from a passive victim to an active investigator, using Poppy to get answers, but is also paralyzed by her fear of losing her relationship with Floyd.
- Poppy Dunn: Fragments of her traumatic past begin to surface, suggesting a deeply repressed trauma.
- Floyd Dunn: He is cast in a darker light through Noelle's confession, portrayed as emotionally cruel.
- Hanna Mack: Her appearance with Theo reveals a secret life, suggesting deception and unresolved issues.
Themes & Symbols
- Obsession and Psychological Manipulation: Noelle's obsession with Ellie is detailed, while Laurel manipulates Poppy in her investigation.
- Deception and Hidden Truths: Noelle's life with Floyd, Laurel's investigation, Poppy's memories, and Hanna's secret relationship all contribute to this theme.
- The Nature of Family and Motherhood: The chapters contrast different forms of motherhood: Laurel's goodbye to her mother, her grieving for Ellie, and Noelle's twisted desire for a child.
- Symbol: The Basement: The basement of Noelle's house symbolizes the subconscious, repressed memory, and hidden horror.
Key Quotes
"virtually killed me."
Noelle says this about Floyd's reaction to her miscarriage. It highlights the profound emotional damage inflicted by his lack of empathy and sets the stage for her later obsession with Ellie, born out of a desperate need for validation and connection.
"completely failed to verify my existence."
Noelle says this about Ellie's momentary failure to recognize her. This moment encapsulates Noelle's deep-seated feelings of inadequacy and invisibility, serving as the final trigger for her actions.
"I won’t see you again."
Laurel's mother says this during their final meeting. It underscores the theme of loss and the poignant nature of their relationship, contrasting with the twisted relationships that dominate the rest of the narrative.
Why This Matters and Section Significance
This section marks a critical turning point, shifting the narrative from a "whodunit" to a psychological thriller. The central mystery is no longer what happened to Ellie, but how Laurel will uncover the truth. Poppy's recovered memories provide the first tangible link between her present life and Ellie's disappearance, while the revelation about Hanna destabilizes Laurel's world.