Briggs Penitentiary

Briggs Penitentiary is the prison where David is held at the start of the novel. He is here serving a life sentence for murdering his three-year-old son Matthew. The evidence against him is overwhelming, and David barely contests his guilty sentence. Because he feels guilty for having failed to protect Matthew, he therefore feels that he deserves to be at Briggs. The setting is undeniably entrapping. However, five years into his sentence, David feels resigned to his fate at Briggs. He has learned how to survive, convinced that escape is not only impossible, but not worth pursuing.

Shortly after Rachel shows David the photo of the boy she believes to be Matthew, David escapes Briggs. He does so with the help of the warden, his father's close friend Philip Mackenzie, and Philip's son Adam, David's childhood best friend.

Revere, Massachusetts

Revere is the town in Massachusetts where...