Into the Water

Triggered by the opening line of Nel’s book, Jules recalls the aftermath of her rape by Robbie:

Drunk, she wanders to the Drowning Pool and climbs in. Nel eventually rescues her there. Nel demands to know what Jules was thinking, claiming, “To spite me, is that it? […] Jesus, Julia, what have I ever done to you?” (183). Nel makes Jules promise never to tell anyone what happened. 

Helen worries about Patrick’s deteriorating mental state and her own, since “lately she had not been herself” (186). In the wake of Sean cheating on her, Helen stays with Patrick in the converted barn. Patrick tells Helen stories about the Drowning Pool, insisting Nel is a liar and blaming Nel for Sean’s self-doubt. Helen sees Louise at the supermarket and runs from her. 

Sean recalls being mute for a time after his mother died. Erin calls Sean to let him know about the vandalism of Mark’s house; Sean goes to talk to Josh, who is distraught. Sean brings Josh to the station, and in doing so, triggers his own memory of being cared for by Nickie’s sister after his mother died. He notes, “I never know which of my memories are real—I’ve heard so many stories about that time, from so many different sources, that it’s difficult to distinguish memory from myth” (193). Upon prompting from Sean, Josh tells Sean that he needs to tell him about Mark and Katie. 

Lena recalls her and Katie’s game of flirting with male teachers to try to get them to blush, and how Mark’s initial reactions were anger and boredom. In her recollection, Lena tells Katie that Josh saw her holding hands with Mark. Lena and Katie argue, and Katie tells Lena that she has been seeing Mark for months. In the present moment, Sean and Erin arrive to question Lena about Mark. Sean tells Lena that Josh told him that Katie and Mark were in a sexual relationship. Lena insists: “He didn’t take advantage of her. She wasn’t a child!” (201).

Lena feels that she is betraying Katie by talking, since Katie made her promise never to tell anyone. Katie was still in love with Mark and didn’t want him to get hurt. Jules intervenes in Lena’s interrogation to protect Lena. When Erin tells Lena at least Louise will understand why Katie died, Lena insists that Katie’s suicide was her way of “getting rid of the evidence” (204) of her relationship to protect Mark. 

Erin moves into the Wards’ cottage so that she will be living in town as the investigations continue. Since Sean cannot question his own wife, Erin goes to speak with Helen about Mark. Helen refuses to let Erin talk and casts blame for Katie’s death on Lena’s making up lies rather than on anything Mark could have done, bringing up past instances of Lena inappropriately flirting with adult men. Riled, Helen tells Erin: “All that flirting, the endless batting of lashes and tossing of hair, that insistent, tiresome expression of sexual availability—where do you imagine Lena learned that?” (209). Erin returns to the cottage and is spooked by a sheep bleating in the distance, which she thinks is the sound of someone in the cottage with her.