Avery spends another night in Libby’s room, but Libby is not there. Avery asks Oren to confirm that Libby is safe and still on the estate; Oren confirms both facts but does not reveal Libby’s location. With Max gone and neither Jameson nor Grayson nearby, Avery feels more isolated than she has since arriving at Hawthorne House.

Avery focuses on the numbers from the clue: eight, one, one, or possibly one, one, eight. The three-number clue convinces Avery that Toby’s tree in the Black Wood was only a tree, not the missing answer. Avery concludes that if a fourth number exists, it remains hidden, and the Black Wood clue may appear in any form rather than as a carving.

Late at night, Avery hears sounds that might be footsteps and becomes unsettled by the wind, the memory of gunshots, and the possibility of hidden movement in the walls. Avery does not fall asleep until dawn, when Avery dreams of her mother on Avery’s fifteenth birthday, teasing that she has a secret about the day Avery was born.

Avery wakes with a headache when Alisa opens the shutters and insists Avery get up. Alisa reminds Avery that, after Avery’s impromptu press conference, Alisa arranged for Avery’s debut in Texas society at a charity benefit that evening. Despite Avery protesting that someone tried to shoot her, Alisa says Oren approved leaving the estate and orders Avery to prepare for dress shopping, media training, and hair and makeup.