Chapter Thirty-Two through Chapter Thirty-Six Summary

In Chapter Thirty-Two, Joe returns home and although he questions his daughter about her health, he does not press her for answers. Shell finds she is hardened by the death of her child, and severely depressed. She steals Christmas gifts, not caring if she is caught. On Christmas Eve, the sheriff arrives at the door, and says they have found a baby in the cave by the beach, and it is dead. Shell is confused, but Joe tells her not to say anything, as they are being taken in for questioning.

Shell is left alone in Chapter Thirty-Three, as doctors examine her and police ask questions, while her father is interrogated in another room. Shell is questioned by a man named Molly, who cruelly explains that her father told them "everything". Shell admits she has...