Chapter 18

Amid a heatwave and power shutoff, Birdie manages primitive chores, highlighting the Tartts’ unpreparedness for poverty. After days of strain, she gathers Frances and Mrs. Tartt to deliver the bank’s ultimatum: pay $2,754 by September 15 or lose Idlewilde. Birdie outlines two options—sell the house or sell the contents. Mrs. Tartt refuses to sell her ancestral home and opts to liquidate belongings.

They prepare the house and summon dealer Mr. Fauster, who exploits the times to offer paltry sums. Negotiations grind painfully as sentimental attachments collide with necessity; piece by piece, they sell major furniture, rugs, art, and valuables for far less than expected.

As totals lag, Mrs. Tartt surrenders her pearls, and Bird persuades a devastated Frances to part with her wedding ring for appearances’ sake and survival. By day’s end, the house is nearly bare, they are still slightly short, and Birdie promises to pay Pic and Polly from the proceeds.

That evening, the four eat together by lantern light; Charlie hesitates but joins the table as Mrs. Tartt gives thanks for still having her house. Birdie vows to seek a bank extension and restore electricity the next day, while Frances submits to austerity.

On the porch, sharing purloined cigarettes, Charlie confides she’d risk returning to jail to get Meg back. Birdie, recognizing the stakes of family, says she would do the same.