The next morning, Ethan is out early hauling lumber. He thinks about the previous night when he lay awake until the light in Mattie's room went out. He remembered when Mattie first came to stay with the Fromes. She had not had any place else to go. Her father, Zeena's cousin, squandered money before dying unexpectedly, and shortly thereafter, Mattie's mother died, leaving her destitute. Because family members lost money by trusting Mattie's father with it, they punished Mattie by refusing to help her. Zeena needed household help because of her illness, so Mattie arrived in Starkfield to work for Zeena.
At first, Zeena found fault with everything Mattie did; however, over time, the situation became less tense. After the warning look that Mattie had given Ethan the previous night, Ethan felt it was necessary to leave his work and return home to be sure there was no trouble between Mattie and Zeena.
Ethan was surprised to see Zeena sitting in the kitchen with her suitcase. She announced that she was going to Bettsbridge to see a doctor and would be staying with her aunt, Martha Pierce. The first thought that came to Ethan's mind was that he would be alone with Mattie for one full night. Because he didn't want to drive Zeena to the Junction, he lied to her, saying he needed to pick up money from Andrew Hale but that Jotham Powell would drive her.
