Contents
Thirteen
Overview
Tana visits Arthur with pizza and beer, and they end up having sex, exposing Arthur’s numbness and shame. Tana details Jayne’s exploitation, her uncertain pregnancy, and fear for a daughter. She praises Gwen’s past kindness and bleakly suggests Arthur kill Jayne. The encounter deepens Arthur’s moral drift and the stakes around Jayne.
Summary
On a rainy Sunday, Tana arrives at Arthur’s apartment with pizza, beer, and wearing his Biko hoodie. Arthur, numbed by recent crimes, lets her in. The sight of the stolen rare books underscores how far he has drifted. Their banter turns intimate as Tana undresses, and they have sex, a choice Arthur recognizes as driven by desire mixed with self-loathing.
Afterward, Arthur worries he has become like Jayne and Ronnie, taking what he wants because he can. He asks if Jayne pushed Tana to do this; Tana remains evasive. Their conversation shifts to her pregnancy and life under Jayne’s control. Tana admits she has been made to sleep with people over debts, does not know the baby’s father, and hopes for a boy to avoid the abuse a girl might face.
Arthur suggests going to the police; Tana scoffs. She shares Ronnie’s cruelty, even keeping a tally of animals he runs over, and confesses she sometimes hopes someone will kill Jayne. Tana also recalls Gwen Underfoot’s past kindness, urging Arthur not to let Gwen slip away, even while admitting Gwen could do better than Arthur.
They linger in the gloom, a moment of brittle tenderness passing between them. Tana half-jokes that Arthur could make life easier by killing Jayne. The chapter closes with Arthur recognizing his moral erosion and the escalating danger and corruption radiating from Jayne’s influence.
Who Appears
- ArthurProtagonist; numb after theft; has sex with Tana; wrestles with guilt, complicity, and moral drift.
- Tana NighswanderPregnant visitor; brings pizza and beer; sleeps with Arthur; reveals Jayne’s exploitation; fears for her child; suggests killing Jayne.
- Jayne NighswanderOffstage antagonist; exploits Tana for debts; source of threats; her potential death is contemplated.
- Gwen UnderfootOffstage; remembered for generosity to Tana; held up as a good partner Arthur shouldn’t lose.
- RonnieOffstage enforcer; cruel, keeps score of animals he hits; emblem of the Nighswanders’ brutality.