Contents
Chapter Thirty-Two
Overview
Theo learns Alicia’s burning-Grove painting was vandalized with “SLUT,” likely triggering the attack on Elif. Visiting the injured Elif, Theo hears a more disturbing cause: Elif taunted Alicia that Theo is in love with her. The revelation deepens personal stakes and suggests Alicia’s violence is escalating.
Summary
Theo intercepts Yuri after the emergency and asks about Elif’s condition; Yuri reports she is stable. Seeking context, Theo and Yuri check Alicia’s studio and find Alicia’s painting of the Grove on fire defaced with the word “SLUT,” suggesting Elif provoked Alicia by vandalizing it.
The next morning Theo visits Elif in the ward. Elif, in pain and furious, rebuffs him, but he gently presses for details. She denies responsibility, mocks Alicia as unstable, and rejects the painting as the cause.
Elif then reveals she taunted Alicia by saying Theo is in love with her, turning the confrontation personal. Elif’s shrieking reenactment implies this goading triggered Alicia’s attack with the paintbrush. The claim startles Theo and forces him to confront his attachment to Alicia.
Confronted with Elif’s bandaged eye and accusation that Alicia is a “psycho,” Theo is shaken and wonders if Alicia’s volatility and violence confirm Elif’s assessment, even as the revelation entangles Theo further in Alicia’s case.
Who Appears
- Theo FaberNarrator-therapist; discovers the defaced painting, visits Elif, and hears she provoked Alicia by claiming Theo loves Alicia.
- ElifPatient injured by Alicia; bandaged and furious, admits taunting Alicia that Theo loves her, implying this sparked the attack.
- Alicia BerensonSilent patient and painter; allegedly attacked Elif after provocation; her burning-Grove painting is defaced with “SLUT.”
- YuriNurse; updates Theo that Elif is stable and helps access Alicia’s studio to reveal the vandalized painting.