The narrative plunges into the depths of Ellie Mack's nightmare as she's drugged and imprisoned by her tutor, Noelle Donnelly. These chapters reveal the chilling details of Ellie's captivity, marked by psychological manipulation, brutal violence, and a desperate fight for survival against Noelle's twisted control.
Chapter 36: The Basement
The story flashes back to the day of Ellie Mack's disappearance. Reluctantly, Ellie enters the home of her math tutor, Noelle Donnelly, to retrieve study papers. Noelle coaxes her to stay for a drink, and despite her unease, Ellie accepts a glass of elderflower squash, which is laced with drugs. Ellie loses consciousness before Noelle even returns from upstairs.
Ellie awakens in a dark basement room, her body heavy and unresponsive. Noelle sits calmly in the shadows, informing Ellie that she has been unconscious for twelve hours. Ellie's immediate thoughts are of her mother, Laurel Mack, and her worry. Noelle's behavior is a disturbing mix of feigned apology and cold control. She dismisses Ellie's fears about her mother, suggesting Laurel probably thinks she’s out with her boyfriend. As Ellie slowly regains movement, Noelle helps her sit up and offers her a sandwich, acting like a kindly nurse. The chapter concludes with the chilling sound of three separate locks clicking into place, sealing Ellie in the basement, marking the beginning of her captivity, driven by Noelle's deep-seated Obsession and Psychological Manipulation.
Chapter 37: The First Fight
The next morning, Ellie attempts to fight back. She climbs on a chair to peer out the high, grimy window, managing only to see a small patch of garden. She writes "help" and "Ellie" in the dirt on the glass, hoping someone will find her. When Noelle enters the room, Ellie attacks her with the chair. However, Noelle is surprisingly strong and quickly overpowers her, strangling Ellie to the point of near-unconsciousness before tying her ankles with a plastic tie.
Noelle lectures Ellie, telling her they must "work as a team" and that her good behavior will be rewarded with "treats." The threat that her captivity will be prolonged if she continues to resist is enough to make Ellie submit. Noelle’s control is established through this blend of violence and conditional kindness, a key element of the theme of Deception and Hidden Truths. Defeated, Ellie accepts her first "treat"—a chocolate bar—and is overwhelmed by a wave of grief as she thinks about the simple, happy life she has lost.
Chapter 38: Trudy and Amy
A day later, Ellie informs Noelle that she is due for her period, a practical problem that annoys her captor. When Ellie asks why she is being held, Noelle cryptically alludes to a "fabulous plan" that is falling into place. While Noelle is out shopping for supplies, Ellie frantically pounds on the walls and window, screaming for help until her hands are bruised, but no one hears her.
Noelle returns with a bizarre "surprise": two hamsters in a cage. She falsely claims that Ellie always wanted hamsters and coerces her into naming them Trudy and Amy by threatening to flush them down the toilet. Noelle draws a disturbing parallel between their situations: "I keep you clean and fed. You keep them clean and fed. A lovely little circle of caring we have here." To further isolate Ellie, Noelle lies and tells her that the news is reporting she ran away from home due to exam stress—a story she claims came directly from Laurel. This cruel lie is designed to break Ellie’s spirit and her faith in her family, twisting the novel's exploration of The Nature of Family and Motherhood.
Chapter 39: A Masterstroke
This chapter is a brief, chilling monologue from Noelle's perspective, seemingly recounted at a later date. She coolly details the premeditation behind Ellie's kidnapping: clearing out the basement, buying specific organic juice to gain Ellie's trust, and faking insomnia to get a prescription for sleeping pills. She expresses a detached surprise at her own capacity for violence, recalling how she "throttled that poor girl."
Noelle reframes the captivity as a situation where they "rubbed along together OK" once Ellie accepted her fate. She proudly calls the gift of the hamsters a "masterstroke," noting how they gave Ellie a maternal purpose. She reveals that the hamsters were not both female and bred prolifically, filling the basement with cages. Noelle concludes by confirming she had a "truly audacious plan" and boasts that she succeeded in pulling it off, a dark foreshadowing of the events detailed in the Full Book Summary.
Chapter 40: Losing Time
As the days turn into weeks, time begins to lose all meaning for Ellie. She misses her sixteenth birthday without telling Noelle. Her captor continues to bring her childish gifts—sweets, glittery lipstick, and supplies for the ever-growing hamster population. Ellie’s thoughts are consumed by a profound ache for her family, a feeling that eclipses her previous infatuation with her boyfriend, Theo. The theme of Grief, Loss, and Moving On is explored here through Ellie's raw, painful longing for home.
One night, Noelle returns drunk after visiting her "boyfriend," a man she describes as a "god." In her inebriated state, she seems vulnerable and promises to get Ellie a TV, DVDs, and books to make her imprisonment more comfortable. Ellie contemplates attacking her but misses the chance. The section ends ominously. A few nights later, Noelle brings Ellie a special dinner and is in a sparkling mood. As they talk, Ellie feels the familiar effects of being drugged. The room blurs, and she wakes up the next morning with the distinct feeling that something terrible has happened while she was unconscious.
Character Development
- Ellie Mack: Ellie transforms from a hopeful teenager into a terrified captive. Her initial defiance is brutally crushed, forcing her into survival-based compliance. Her love for her family becomes an agonizing ache.
- Noelle Donnelly: Noelle is revealed as a cold, calculating, and deeply disturbed individual. Her persona as a quirky tutor is a facade for a manipulative psychopath. Her actions are part of a twisted parody of maternal care designed to control Ellie for her "audacious plan."
Themes & Symbols
Themes
- Obsession and Psychological Manipulation: Noelle's obsession drives the kidnapping. She uses violence, threats, feigned kindness, and cruel lies to break Ellie's will and keep her compliant.
- Deception and Hidden Truths: The kidnapping is built on deception. Noelle's identity, her motives, and the "plan" she alludes to are all hidden from Ellie.
- The Nature of Family and Motherhood: Ellie's imprisonment amplifies her love for her family. Noelle performs a grotesque imitation of motherhood, providing food, shelter, and "gifts," but it is a relationship based on control, not love.
Symbols
- The Basement: The basement symbolizes imprisonment, repressed secrets, and the dark subconscious. It is a space cut off from the outside world, where Noelle has total power.
- The Hamsters: The hamsters, named Trudy and Amy, symbolize Ellie's loss of agency. They are a "gift" she never wanted and is forced to care for under threat, trapping Ellie in a parody of domestic life.
Key Quotes
"I keep you clean and fed. You keep them clean and fed. A lovely little circle of caring we have here."
Noelle's statement reveals her twisted perception of their relationship. She equates Ellie's care for the hamsters with her own control over Ellie, creating a disturbing parallel that highlights her manipulative nature.
"throttled that poor girl."
Noelle's detached recollection of her violence towards Ellie underscores her lack of empathy and her disturbing capacity for cruelty. The phrase "poor girl" is devoid of genuine remorse, highlighting her cold and calculating nature.
Why This Matters and Section Significance
These chapters form the horrifying heart of the novel, answering the central question of what happened to Ellie Mack. The narrative shifts from a mystery about a missing girl to a tense psychological thriller about captivity. By giving Ellie a voice in the "THEN" sections, the novel makes her a fully realized character whose suffering is immediate and palpable.
The introduction of Noelle Donnelly as the kidnapper is a pivotal reveal, establishing her as a chilling and complex antagonist. Her monologue in Chapter 39 is especially significant, as it confirms her actions were premeditated and part of a larger plot. Her mention of a brilliant "boyfriend" heavily foreshadows the involvement of Floyd Dunn, connecting the past timeline directly to Laurel's present-day story and setting the stage for the final, shocking revelations.