The Handmaid's Tale, #2
The Testaments
by Margaret Atwood
Contents
61
Overview
At dawn, Agnes and Nicole begin their escape but are confronted by Aunt Vidala. Nicole swiftly incapacitates Vidala, and they hide her before proceeding. Using passes, they exit Ardua Hall and board a waiting car arranged by Aunt Lydia. The escape advances, exposing Nicole’s boldness and Agnes’s rising fear.
Summary
At first light, Agnes (as Aunt Victoria) and Nicole (as Jade) leave Ardua Hall through Doorway C, moving toward Aunt Lydia’s statue as planned. The grounds are empty, but Aunt Vidala intercepts them and questions their clothing and Nicole’s presence.
When Aunt Vidala grabs Nicole’s pearls, Nicole punches her in the chest, dropping Vidala. Nicole drags Vidala behind the statue base to conceal her. Agnes worries Vidala may be dead, but Nicole urges speed, pockets a fallen orange, and hustles Agnes onward.
They reach the gate, present their passes, and the Angels allow them through. Up the street, a black car awaits as Aunt Lydia promised. The driver, clearly an operative rather than a standard Guardian, takes them without comment.
As they drive, Nicole eats the orange despite Agnes’s sense that it was a sacred offering, highlighting Nicole’s irreverent pragmatism. Agnes, anxious that Nicole’s boldness could expose them, remains tense as their escape proceeds beyond Ardua Hall’s walls.
Who Appears
- Agnes (Aunt Victoria)Narrator; accompanies Nicole in the dawn escape, anxious but compliant with the plan.
- Nicole (Jade/Baby Nicole)Acts decisively; disables Aunt Vidala, hides her, and pushes the escape forward.
- Aunt VidalaConfronts them at the statue; grabbed Nicole’s pearls; is knocked down and hidden.
- DriverOperative posing as a Guardian; collects Agnes and Nicole in a black car.