- In present day, Mattie reads another of Grace's letters, knowing that there's no happy ending for Grace. In the letter, Grace says she hopes the girls are exaggerating about Chester, and she admits that she can't swim.
- Beginning to cry, Mattie understands what Chester has done.
- Mattie puts the letters away and tries to sleep, but she imagines that she is Grace and the lake is closing around her as she struggles.