The Witch Summary by Chapter | Freida McFadden
Introduction
Freida McFadden’s The Witch pulls readers into a chilling dual-timeline narrative that bridges the hysteria of 1692 Woodhaven with a present-day mystery soaked in family secrets.
This The Witch Summary by Chapter walks you through every twist, spectral encounter, and buried truth across the novel’s eighty-three chapters, prologue, and epilogue.
The story follows Julia Barlow, a twenty-seven-year-old woman returning to her grandmother’s decaying Pemberton estate, where cold spots, disembodied crying, and a clock that stops at 3:41 AM every night signal something deeply wrong.
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Book Structure Overview
| Section | Content Description | POV Characters |
|---|---|---|
| Prologue | 1692: Caroline reflects on her family’s history of early death and her own impending execution for witchcraft. | Caroline |
| Part I | Chapters 1–83: Alternating between Present Day and 1692, the two timelines gradually converge around buried identities and murders at Pemberton. | Julia / Caroline |
| Epilogue | One Year Later (Present) and 1717 (Past): Resolution of both timelines as the true fates of the characters come to light. | Julia / Caroline |
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The Witch Summary Chapter by Chapter
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This section contains detailed, chapter-by-chapter plot summaries with full spoilers for the entire novel.
Prologue: 1692
Caroline Eldridge reflects on her short life, noting that no member of her family has ever lived past forty. Her mother died giving birth to her at age twenty, and her aunt Prudence died of fever at twenty-nine.
After her father succumbed to illness at thirty-eight, Caroline was married off to a merchant. She accepted her fate to die young but never expected to be executed for a crime she did not commit.
The prologue sets an ominous tone by revealing that she has been condemned as a witch and is currently awaiting her death in the town square.
Part I
Chapter 1: Present Day
Julia Barlow sits in her car outside her grandmother’s massive estate, Pemberton, feeling a deep sense of dread. Although she considers herself a logical person, a past experience at this house has left her believing in ghosts.
She is twenty-seven and moving in because she is broke and her grandmother’s health is failing. Looking up at the attic, she catches a momentary flash of peacock-blue in the window.
When she finally approaches the door, she is startled by Mick Wheeler, the elderly groundskeeper, who looks as frail as a ghost himself. Mick nearly has a heart attack from Julia’s scream, forcing her to help him inside the musty, neglected house.
Chapter 2: 1692
Caroline Eldridge recounts her marriage to Archibald, a handsome and wealthy merchant who is fifteen years her senior. She strives to be a virtuous wife, cooking his meals and tending to Pemberton, the sturdy home his father built.
Archibald is gentle and provides a comfortable life, even buying her a beautiful set of combs for her birthday. However, Caroline carries deep guilt because she has failed to provide him with an heir.
During breakfast, Archibald shares a vision of a son they will have together, and Caroline, desperate to make him happy, lies and claims she is pregnant. Archibald is overjoyed and celebrates the news before departing for the docks.
Chapter 3: 1692
After Archibald leaves, Caroline hears a rustling in the woods and fears it might be the Night Reaper, a serial killer stalking Woodhaven. It turns out to be only Gideon, a stray black cat she frequently feeds.
While she is letting the cat inside, her servant Molly Howe appears and expresses disapproval, calling felines creatures of the devil. Molly reveals she knows Caroline is lying about the pregnancy because she saw the blood on her linens.
Caroline is forced to beg Molly to keep her secret, realizing the girl harbors a strange, ancient malice. Molly agrees to stay silent for now but hints that the truth will eventually come out.
Chapter 4: Present Day
Julia meets her great-aunt Ethel, who arrives with groceries and a sour attitude. Ethel is a sturdy, square-faced woman who contrasts sharply with Julia’s willowy grandmother.
The tension between Ethel and Mick is palpable as she berates him for small mistakes like putting bread in the fridge. Julia is shocked to see the refrigerator packed with moldy, decades-old food and grime.
During the conversation, Gram becomes confused and calls Julia by other names like Celia. Ethel then drops a bombshell: Archibald’s second wife, Caroline, was burned at the stake for witchcraft and buried in an unmarked grave in the backyard.
Chapter 5: Present Day
Julia searches Pemberton for cell phone reception, discovering that most of the house is either musty or dangerously cluttered. She avoids the attic due to its witches’ stairs and the blue flash she saw earlier.
Walking out onto the grounds, she feels overwhelmed by the property’s size and the thought of Caroline’s remains beneath the soil. While standing in the yard, she finally gets a few bars of service and calls her father.
He admits there is a secret reason for her visit: the Woodhaven Museum wants to buy the estate to preserve its history. Julia is torn between wanting to protect the family legacy and recognizing that her grandmother needs professional care.
Chapter 6: 1692
Caroline rides her horse, Lucky, to the market in Town Square to buy herbs and meat. She visits Hitty Atkins, a widow who has taken Caroline under her wing and is known for her knowledge of healing.
Hitty senses that Caroline is in peril due to the Night Reaper, who has already claimed three young maidens. Hitty gives Caroline a mixture of sage and black cohosh to help her conceive, claiming it worked for her.
Caroline pays Hitty more than the herbs are worth, worried about how her friend will survive the winter. Despite the warning, Caroline feels a sense of security at Pemberton, guarded by its bear-head door knocker.
Chapter 7: 1692
Caroline’s final stop at the market is with Elias Fenn, a surly hunter who sells game meat. Elias warns Caroline to stay away from Hitty, claiming the old woman is a witch who cursed his wares.
Caroline dismisses the accusation as preposterous, but Elias points to the gallows in the town square as a warning. As she prepares to leave, she notices a disheveled stranger in deerskin watching her with an intense, inky stare.
The man claims he is just passing by, but his presence spooks Lucky and leaves Caroline deeply unsettled. She realizes Archibald was right about the dangers of the town and resolves to be more careful.
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Chapter 8: Present Day
Julia prepares for her first night at Pemberton, feeling far less adventurous than she did as a child. She remembers the absolute best monkey bread her grandmother used to make, but those memories are tainted by a night that changed everything.
She brushes her teeth and encounters Ethel, who is dressed in green silk pajamas but still has her hair in a severe bun. Ethel hands her a stack of blankets and gives her a chilling warning: she must lock her bedroom door at night for her own safety.
Julia follows the advice and locks herself in, though she knows doors cannot stop everything. She lies awake, dreading the return of the voice that once whispered to her.
Chapter 9: Present Day
Julia wakes up at 3:00 AM to find her bedroom has turned into an icebox. She grabs the extra fleece blanket Ethel provided and tries to go back to sleep.
Suddenly, she hears a low-pitched, inhuman moan and the creaking of stairs. The sounds seem to be coming from the ceiling, suggesting someone or something is coming out of the attic.
Julia is frozen in bed, staring at the doorknob and waiting for it to turn. She eventually gathers the courage to call out hello, but the moaning stops and no one replies.
Chapter 10: Present Day
The next morning, Julia feels exhausted and looks like a train hit her. She goes downstairs to find Gram alone in the kitchen eating buttered toast.
Gram seems lucid and calls Julia by her real name, but the mood shifts when Julia mentions her dream of the moaning sounds. Gram matter-of-factly states that it was not a dream; it was Caroline.
She asks Julia if she moved the combs on the vanity, and Julia admits that she did. Gram grips her arm and identifies the spirit as Caroline Eldridge, the witch.
Chapter 11: 1692
Caroline is at home drinking the sage and black cohosh tea, which she finds difficult to stomach. She has not left Pemberton for a week since her encounter with the strange man at the market.
Her neighbor, Hiram Hatch, arrives in a panic because his wife Judith is gravely ill with a fever and is babbling nonsense. Hiram begs Caroline to fetch Dr. Shaylor, but Caroline remembers how the doctor’s remedies killed her father.
She decides to ignore Archibald’s orders and travel to the market to find Hitty Atkins instead. Molly Howe watches Caroline leave with a sullen, suspicious expression.
Chapter 12: 1692
Caroline arrives at the market but is devastated to find that Hitty Atkins is missing. Elias Fenn claims Hitty has gone away, though he looks annoyed by Caroline’s questions.
Refusing to let Dr. Shaylor treat Judith, Caroline returns home planning to use Hitty’s prior advice to help the woman herself. When she reaches the Hatches’ cottage, Hiram is overjoyed because he believes Caroline brought the doctor.
Caroline turns around and sees Dr. Shaylor and Molly Howe riding toward them on horses. Molly has disobeyed Caroline and fetched the doctor herself, leaving Caroline with a terrible feeling about what is to come.
Chapter 13: Present Day
Julia tries to process Gram’s claim about Caroline Eldridge being a witch, but she is interrupted by the toaster catching fire. Julia yanks the plug out of the wall, but Gram calmly serves the charred toast as if nothing happened.
Julia realizes her grandmother is in a dangerous state and needs constant supervision. Before leaving for an appointment at the museum, Julia notices that the grandfather clock has stopped at exactly 3:41 AM.
Mick reveals that the clock and his own watch stop every night at that exact time. Julia is shaken because that was the approximate time she was woken by the moaning.
Chapter 14: Present Day
Julia visits the Woodhaven Museum, which looks like an old castle. She meets the curator, Henry Ziegler, who is young, handsome, and dressed in old-fashioned 1930s attire.
Henry is passionate about historic preservation and views Pemberton as a portal into colonial times. He shows Julia artifacts he wants to move into the house, including the Eldridge grandfather clock and the parlor portrait.
Henry admits he has been the biggest champion for the museum’s purchase of the estate. He invites Julia to dinner the following night to give her a pitch on why selling is the best option for her family.
Chapter 15: 1692
Caroline watches in horror as Dr. Shaylor prepares to treat Judith Hatch with bloodletting. Judith is skeletal and burning with fever, and the doctor demands ten pounds for the surgical procedure.
Since Hiram cannot afford the fee and offers his only horse, Caroline steps in and pays the doctor herself to save her neighbor’s livelihood. Dr. Shaylor uses a blood-stained, uncleaned lancet to cut Judith’s arm.
He is dissatisfied when the blood does not flow quickly enough and suggests cutting Judith’s neck, which Caroline correctly fears will kill her. Molly Howe mocks Caroline during the ordeal, calling her a barren woman.
Chapter 16: 1692
Just as Dr. Shaylor approaches Judith’s neck with the lancet, she begins to shake violently on the bed. The doctor backs away in fear, claiming she is under possession by the devil.
He flees the cottage, leaving Caroline alone with the dying woman and a frightened Molly. Caroline remembers Hitty’s advice about cooling a high fever and enlists a reluctant Molly to help apply cold rags to Judith.
They spend hours swapping rags until Judith’s fever finally breaks and she speaks coherently. Hiram is incredibly grateful and tells Caroline that she saved his wife’s life.
Chapter 17: Present Day
Julia spends the afternoon deep-cleaning the kitchen, which is filthy with grease and decades of grime. She throws away moldy food and dozens of ketchup packets, feeling proud of her work.
When Ethel returns, she screeches in fury, claiming Julia had no right to disturb her property. The conflict escalates as the kitchen lights begin to flicker wildly.
Ethel claims the electrical disturbances are caused by Caroline being angry. She reiterates her warning to Julia: lock the bedroom door and never come out at night.
Chapter 18: 1692
Caroline walks home through the dark woods and is terrified by a shadow emerging from behind a tree. It turns out to be Archibald, who is angry and worried that she was out after dusk.
He reveals shocking news: Hitty Atkins has been arrested for witchcraft. The town believes she was chanting hexes at the cemetery and consorting with the Night Reaper.
Caroline is devastated and insists Hitty was only praying at her family’s graves. Archibald seems to believe the sheriff, warning Caroline that there is a witch amongst them.
Chapter 19: Present Day
Julia lies awake at 3:00 AM, haunted by Ethel’s warnings about what Caroline is capable of. She tries to appease the spirit by organizing the coral-blue combs in size order on the vanity.
The temperature in the room suddenly drops to freezing, and Julia hears the sound of a woman crying. The crying turns into anguished wailing, and Julia hears the word no whispered clearly.
Terrified, Julia decides she cannot stay in the room and prepares to open the door to see what is on the other side.
Chapter 20: 1692
Judith Hatch has fully recovered, but the mood in Woodhaven remains grim. Molly informs Caroline that Hitty Atkins has been found guilty and will be hanged in the town square the next afternoon.
Caroline is hit by a blow to the stomach at the news and realizes her friend’s trial was unnervingly swift. Molly seems satisfied with the verdict, believing the town is safer without the witch.
Caroline resolves to speak out on Hitty’s behalf, despite Molly’s warning that people might start to talk about her as well. She believes her status as the wife of a wealthy merchant will protect her.
Chapter 21: Present Day
Julia opens her bedroom door and finds the hallway empty, but the unlit chandelier above is swaying as if someone just passed through. She notices an ethereal glow coming from under the attic door and smells a horrible stench like something is rotting.
Braving the witches’ stairs, she climbs to the attic door, nearly toppling over. She reaches for the doorknob, but to her frustration, the door is locked.
She calls out for Mick or Ethel, but no one answers. She resolves to get into that attic the following day to find the source of the light and the smell.
Chapter 22: 1692
Caroline visits the town jail to plead for Hitty’s life. She encounters Deputy Oliver Strickland, a man with a reputation for a fierce temper and cruelty.
While they are talking, Sheriff Bixby arrives leading a man in shackles: the mysterious stranger Caroline saw at the market. The sheriff announces that they caught him in the act of murdering another maiden, Leonora Rowley.
The crowd begins to pelt the man, Jonas Reeve, with fruit as he is led into the jail. Caroline is terrified when Jonas looks directly at her with pure evil in his eyes.
Chapter 23: Present Day
The next morning, Julia encounters Ethel and asks for the key to the attic, lying that she wants to check for rats. Ethel snorts at the idea and claims she does not even know if she has the key anymore.
She pressures Julia to focus on her job search rather than rummaging through the house. Julia realizes Ethel is intentionally blocking her access to the attic and decides she will have to find the key herself while Ethel is out.
Chapter 24: Present Day
Julia spends the day searching the entire house for the attic key but finds nothing but dust. When Henry Ziegler arrives to pick her up for their dinner date, he is immediately besotted with the bear door knocker.
Henry’s old-fashioned interest in the craftsmanship of the door irritates Julia, who put on makeup specifically for him. As they leave, Julia sees another flash of peacock-blue in the attic window, but it disappears when she tries to show Henry.
She becomes more determined than ever to get inside that room.
Chapter 25: Present Day
Henry drives Julia to a 1950s-themed diner called Roxie’s, listening to Frank Sinatra on the way. Julia uses the opportunity to pick Henry’s brain about the Salem witch trials and the history of Woodhaven.
Henry explains that mass hysteria and the power of suggestion often led to the execution of innocent people. He notes that nineteen people were killed in Salem, often because they failed tests where they were supposed to stop fits by touching the afflicted.
Julia asks about Caroline Eldridge, and Henry reveals that her execution was unusual and disturbing. Julia then confides that she believes Caroline’s ghost is haunting Pemberton.
Chapter 26: 1692
On the day of Hitty’s hanging, Archibald insists that Caroline accompany him to the town square. He argues that the townspeople will gossip if they do not attend.
Archibald suggests that Hitty might have been the one who made him sick originally with her strange potions. Caroline is horrified that her husband believes the accusations.
She agrees to go, hoping that seeing a friendly face will comfort Hitty in her final moments. Caroline is secretly relieved she is not actually pregnant, as she would not want to expose a child to such violence.
Chapter 27: 1692
The town square is crowded with people eager to watch Hitty die. As Hitty stands on the gallows, she is pelted with fruit and jeered by the mob.
Caroline cannot bear it and pushes through the crowd to shout for silence, declaring Hitty’s innocence. Her public outburst alarms Archibald and angers the sheriff and deputy.
Hitty speaks to Caroline from the platform, telling her she must allow this to happen to save herself. Hitty is hanged, and Caroline watches in anguish as her friend’s body twitches and then goes still.
Chapter 28: 1692
That evening, Archibald confronts Caroline and asks if she had her blood this month, revealing that Molly told him she is not pregnant. Archibald is hurt by the lie and reveals that Molly has told him other things, including that Caroline bewitched Judith Hatch.
He accuses Caroline of lying to him, stating she is the only person who has done so. The conversation is interrupted by Deputy Strickland, who arrives at the door in the middle of the night and arrests Caroline for the craft of witchery, shackling her.
Chapter 29: Present Day
At the diner, Henry tells Julia more about Caroline Eldridge’s execution. He explains that Molly Howe, the Eldridge servant, was the one who accused Caroline and later married Archibald.
Caroline was burned at the stake, which was an execution method almost never used in colonial New England; hanging was the standard. Julia mentions the moaning and crying she has heard, but Henry remains a staunch skeptic.
While Henry is in the bathroom, Julia googles how to detect ghosts and downloads a ghost-hunting app. Henry shares that his own skepticism comes from losing his parents at age eight and resenting people telling him they were watching over him.
Chapter 30: Present Day
Julia wakes up better rested and realizes that the woman in the portrait, Molly, is the villain of the story. She feels a deep surge of sorrow for Caroline and decides that her ancestors were responsible for a grave injustice.
Gram enters the kitchen and confuses Julia for her sister, Ethel. Julia plays along, calling Gram Letty and asking for the attic keys.
Gram trusts Ethel and gives her the necklace containing the keys but warns her that Caroline’s ghost is up there. Julia waits until Ethel is out and Mick is busy to head up to the attic.
Chapter 31: 1692
Caroline is in shock after her arrest and begs Archibald to stop the deputy. Strickland threatens to seize Archibald’s property if he interferes, leading Archibald to resign himself to her arrest.
He tells her that if she is innocent, it will be proven in court, though Caroline notices a flash of doubt in his eyes. Strickland shackles her wrists tightly and leads her from her home in the middle of the night.
Caroline fears for her future as she realizes she is being taken to the same cell where Jonas Reeve is held.
Chapter 32: 1692
Strickland takes Caroline to the town jail, which is pitch-black and foreboding. He leads her down an endless, steep stairwell into the cellar.
In the darkness, she sees Jonas Reeve watching her from his cell with terrifying black eyes. Strickland mocks them both, suggesting that if the Night Reaper tries to touch her, she should just bewitch him.
He leaves with the only torch, plunging the cellar into near-total darkness. Caroline is left alone with a man she believes is a serial murderer.
Chapter 33: Present Day
Julia enters the musty, cobweb-filled attic and feels a strange presence immediately. She tries her ghost-hunting app, but it only displays nonsense words like DRY and CARROT.
She notices fresh footprints in the dust that appear to start in the center of the room rather than the door. Investigating a partially opened box, she finds a peacock-blue dress that looks centuries old.
Underneath the box, she discovers two yellowed, unmailed envelopes written by Ethel to her mother. Julia hears Ethel and Mick talking outside and quickly hides the letters in her jeans before locking the attic and fleeing to her room.
Chapter 34: Present Day
Julia reads the first unmailed letter, dated from decades ago. In it, Ethel reveals that her boyfriend, Howard, was killed in the Vietnam War.
She also confesses to her mother that she is pregnant with Howard’s child and is terrified of the judgment. Ethel mentions that a girl named Celia has been helping her around the house while she keeps the pregnancy a secret from Letty.
Julia realizes the letter reveals a side of Ethel she never knew, one filled with maternal longing and grief. She wonders what happened to the baby and why Ethel and her parents had such a massive falling-out.
Chapter 35: Present Day
Julia is woken by the sound of howling wind and what sounds like hoofbeats. She checks her window and is horrified to see a noose hanging from a large oak tree in the backyard.
The noose was not there the previous day and seems to be swinging in the breeze. She also notices the perfect imprint of a hand on the window glass, with elongated fingers that appear to have been dragged downward.
Sickened and terrified, Julia decides she cannot stay in the room any longer.
Chapter 36: 1692
In her jail cell, Caroline tries to ignore Jonas Reeve as she examines her meager surroundings. Jonas speaks to her, claiming he is no more a devil than she is a witch.
He reveals that Hitty Atkins spoke of her before she died and told him that Caroline was here because she is a fool. Jonas predicts that Caroline’s trial will be unfair because Putman accepts spectral evidence.
He tells her that in one week’s time, she will be condemned to hang. Caroline is terrified by the certainty in his voice and the malice she senses in him.
Chapter 37: Present Day
Julia wakes up after fleeing to a smaller bedroom and immediately checks the backyard. The noose and rope have vanished from the tree as if they were never there.
She runs outside in her pajamas to talk to Mick, who is mowing the lawn. Mick admits he has seen the noose too, and even claims the tree sometimes looks like it is on fire.
He matter-of-factly states it is Caroline and notes that her spirit has become much more angry lately. Julia is left wondering if the ghost is actually dangerous.
Chapter 38: 1692
Deputy Strickland and Sheriff Bixby come to the cellar to perform a search on Caroline. They forcibly rip her dress off to search for a witch’s teat, which they believe is a mark of the devil.
Caroline is left naked and shivering while they inspect every inch of her skin. Strickland finds a red mark on her arm, the burn from the hot broth, and declares it to be a mark from the devil.
Caroline protests that it is a simple burn, but the sheriff agrees with his deputy. They tell her the trial will be on Monday, and she will hang on Tuesday if found guilty.
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Chapter 39: Present Day
Julia meets with Alistair Dixon, a ghost hunter she found online, at a coffee shop. Henry Ziegler happens to be at the same shop and joins them, mocking Dixon’s diploma in practical ghost hunting.
Dixon ignores the mockery and tells Julia she has a cold spot in her bedroom caused by a specter. He offers to do a full evaluation of Pemberton with his electromagnetic field meter.
Henry is furious and calls Dixon a con artist, but Julia is desperate for answers. Henry gives Julia his phone number and tells her to call him if she needs anything.
Chapter 40: 1692
Caroline is starving in her cell and is relieved when Strickland brings rye bread for dinner. The deputy taunts her, making her promise to behave before he will give her the food.
He tells her it will be a shame to see you hang, but his eyes are filled with a disturbing hunger. Caroline realizes that Strickland intends to see her executed regardless of her guilt and eats the bread like a wild animal, feeling the weight of her impending death.
Chapter 41: 1692
During the night, Caroline is woken by the sound of Jonas Reeve striking the stone floor with his metal boot buckle. She realizes he is trying to dig his way out or create a weapon.
Jonas warns her that if she tells the deputy, the first life he takes when he gets free will be hers. Caroline feels a physical sensation of being choked even though Jonas is still in his cell.
She promises not to tell, realizing that his threat is real. Jonas goes back to his work, and Caroline is left in terror.
Chapter 42: Present Day
Julia tries to bridge the gap with Ethel by helping with the dishes after dinner. She carefully broaches the topic of hiring a supernatural specialist to investigate the house.
Surprisingly, Ethel is not angry but instead expresses a touching concern for Caroline, asking if the man will hurt her. Ethel admits she has always wanted to try talking to the spirit.
Julia feels a new sense of connection to Ethel, especially after learning about the child she lost. They agree to allow the ghost hunter to visit.
Chapter 43: Present Day
Alistair Dixon arrives at Pemberton with a duffel bag of equipment. He sets up an REM pod in the living room, which is supposed to alarm if a paranormal presence is detected.
The device immediately lets out a deafening screech that Dixon cannot turn off, forcing him to throw it outside where it eventually stops. He then uses a K2 meter, which flashes orange near the grandfather clock and the portrait of Archie and Molly.
Dixon claims he can feel a spirit and that the haunting is intelligent. He sets up an Electronic Voice Phenomena recorder on the mantel and tells Julia he will be back in a week to interpret the results.
Chapter 44: 1692
Deputy Strickland brings Caroline a wool dress to replace the one he ripped. He insists that she change in front of him, taunting her about her husband’s absence.
Caroline refuses at first, but Strickland threatens to take the dress away and leave her without food. When she finally changes, Strickland attempts to touch her bosom, but he is hit in the head by a bowl thrown from Jonas’s cell.
Infuriated, Strickland enters Jonas’s cell and brutally beats him with a baton until he is unconscious. Strickland tells Caroline that Jonas will be moved to Boston for trial on Tuesday.
Chapter 45: 1692
After the sun goes down, Caroline hears Jonas groaning in the cell next to her. She is relieved to find he is alive, though he is badly injured and covered in bruises.
Jonas manages to make a joke about the deputy swinging like a babe, which makes Caroline laugh until she cries. She finally lets out all her fear and grief, realizing that her trial is only days away.
Jonas agrees that the situation is a grave injustice. They sit in the darkness, waiting for Monday.
Chapter 46: Present Day
The EVP recorder has been running for two days, and Julia is intensely distracted by it. She goes to find Gram for lunch and realizes the woman has disappeared from the kitchen.
Julia panics, searching every room on the second floor and the attic door, which is still locked. She worries that her grandmother has wandered off and might be in danger.
Just as she is about to call 911, she spots a stooped figure in the backyard. She finds Gram on her knees, crying and holding a human pelvic bone she dug out of the earth.
Chapter 47: Present Day
Julia takes the bone from Gram and follows her footprints to a hole in the dirt near the shed. She realizes this must be where Caroline Eldridge, or someone else, is buried.
Julia decides not to call the police to avoid traumatizing her grandmother and turning Pemberton into a crime scene. She wonders how her grandmother knew exactly where to dig and fears the ghost might have told her.
She realizes she needs professional help to identify the age of the bone. She thinks of the one person who might have the resources to help her without calling the cops.
Chapter 48: 1692
Monday arrives, the day of Caroline’s trial. She is led to the courthouse in Town Hall, shackled and wearing the same dirty wool dress.
The room is packed with townspeople who are squabbling for choice seats to watch the show. Caroline is heartened to see Archibald in the second row, believing he will defend her virtue.
Her hope is tempered when Molly Howe enters wearing one of Caroline’s best dresses. Magistrate Putman asks for her plea, and she resolutely answers not guilty.
Chapter 49: 1692
Witnesses begin to testify against Caroline, claiming she pinched them or bewitched their children. Elias Fenn takes the stand and claims he saw Caroline and Hitty Atkins dancing naked around a fire.
The courtroom erupts in a loud commotion at this lie. Caroline is devastated to see Archibald with his head bowed, seemingly believing the accusations.
She realizes that Molly Howe is looking at her with a look that suggests even worse testimony is coming. Putman struggles to maintain order in the courthouse.
Chapter 50: Present Day
Julia brings the pelvic bone to Henry Ziegler at the museum, wrapped in a blanket. Henry is horrified and insists they should call the police, but Julia convinces him that it would ruin the museum’s acquisition of Pemberton.
She asks him to find someone who can date the bone to see if it belongs to Caroline. Henry agrees to send it to a friend in Boston for carbon-14 dating.
He warns her that if the bone is less than a hundred years old, they have to go to the police. Julia agrees, knowing this is her only chance to solve the mystery.
Chapter 51: 1692
Hiram Hatch is called to testify and reluctantly admits that his wife Judith had a fit in Caroline’s presence. Dr. Shaylor follows and gives a highly distorted account of the events, claiming Caroline tried to summon the devil.
He asserts that Judith was only saved by his own tireless efforts. Caroline is outraged by the lies but remains silent to avoid being removed.
Finally, Molly Howe is called to the stand. Caroline realizes that the crowd is now fully convinced of her guilt.
Chapter 52: Present Day
Julia waits for the bone dating results and tries to manage the growing tension at Pemberton. She tiptoes into the primary bedroom to retrieve the rest of her clothes and notices the blue combs have been moved again.
She finds the two unmailed letters in her pocket and decides to read the second one. Her guilt over violating Ethel’s privacy is outweighed by her need for the truth as she sits in her room, preparing to uncover the next piece of the family puzzle.
Chapter 53: Present Day
The second letter from Ethel reveals that she was profoundly disappointed by her mother’s lack of support during her pregnancy. She was due in two months and planned to have the baby at home to avoid the judgment of being an unwed mother.
Celia, who worked as a nurse’s aide, was going to help deliver the child. The letter is dated two months before Julia’s father’s actual date of birth.
Julia realizes with a shock that Ethel was the one pregnant with a baby boy at the exact time her father was born. She concludes that Ethel might actually be her biological grandmother.
Chapter 54: 1692
Molly Howe gives a theatrical performance on the stand, claiming Caroline fed a devil in the form of a cat from her teat. She asserts that Caroline tried to make her sign the devil’s book of laws.
Caroline is stunned by the outlandish lies and waits for Archibald to defend her. However, Archibald shakes his head and tells the court he is unable to defend his wife’s actions.
This betrayal condemns Caroline, and she realizes Archibald likely wants her dead so he can marry Molly, who appears to be pregnant. Putman calls Caroline to the front of the room to issue his verdict.
Chapter 55: Present Day
Julia watches Ethel at the stove and wonders if the woman is actually her grandmother. She called her father to ask about his relationship with Ethel, but he barely knew her as a child.
Julia’s father agrees that if Pemberton is not safe, they should sell it and move Gram to assisted living. During breakfast, Ethel is uncharacteristically kind, seasoning Julia’s eggs with extra salt and pepper.
Julia asks Ethel if she ever wished she were closer to her father, but Ethel shuts the conversation down sharply. Julia decides her next move is to talk to Mick about the woman named Celia.
Chapter 56: Present Day
Julia manages to get Mick alone by offering to help him spread mulch in the backyard. She visits the shed to get a bag of mulch and finds two fresh, muddy footprints that appear to belong to a woman.
Mick tells her that Caroline often visits the shed, which is one of her favorite places. Julia asks Mick if he remembers a woman named Celia Caine who used to work there.
Mick reacts with intense pain and longing but sharply denies ever knowing anyone by that name. Julia is convinced that both Ethel and Mick are hiding a massive secret.
Chapter 57: 1692
Magistrate Putman questions Caroline about her contract with the devil. Caroline tries to argue that spectral evidence proves nothing, but Deputy Strickland interrupts with tangible evidence.
He claims that Caroline has a witch’s teat on her arm that does not bleed. Strickland performs a public test, jamming a needle into the burn mark on her arm.
Because the needle’s tip was intentionally worn down, it does not break the skin and no blood appears. Putman declares her guilty of witchery and sentences her to death by hanging.
Chapter 58: Present Day
Julia receives a phone call from Henry, who says his friend has the results of the carbon-14 analysis. Henry invites her to dinner again and promises not to mention selling the house.
Alistair Dixon comes by to pick up the EVP recorder and notes that the painting of Archie and Molly really freaks him out. He warns Julia not to do anything to piss off the spirit.
Julia feels a sense of impending doom as she realizes she has removed one of the bones from the property. She plans to meet Henry to get the bone back and bury it.
Chapter 59: 1692
Deputy Strickland returns Caroline to the jailhouse for her final night. He taunts her, saying he will bring her a special final meal if she is well-behaved.
Caroline asks why he brought false evidence into the court, and he reveals it was because she showed herself to be ungrateful for his earlier advances. Strickland also screams at Jonas Reeve, expressing his hope that Jonas will be beheaded.
After the deputy leaves, Jonas expresses his sympathy to Caroline, but she is lost in her own grief. She realizes she will die tomorrow just as Hitty did.
Chapter 60: Present Day
Henry and Julia return to Roxie’s diner, where Henry reads the two unmailed letters. He agrees that the dates match up with Julia’s father’s birth, but he is confused why Celia is not mentioned as being pregnant too.
Henry offers to check town hall records to find Celia Caine’s full name and history. He reveals that Celia had a criminal record for theft before working at Pemberton.
Julia tells Henry about the haunting again, but he remains a skeptic, arguing that being a ghost would be a hellish existence. He suggests a DNA test between Julia and Ethel to confirm if they are related.
Chapter 61: Present Day
On the drive home, Henry and Julia listen to The Way You Look Tonight. Henry pulls over and insists on teaching Julia how to dance the foxtrot on a quiet sidewalk under a single streetlight.
Julia is surprised by how light on his feet he is and how well the music fits the moment. They share several romantic dances and Henry finally kisses her in the moonlight.
He asks her to go dancing with him again, and Julia realizes she is starting to fall for him. He drops her off at Pemberton, where a light is still on in the living room.
Chapter 62: Present Day
Julia wakes up from nice dreams but immediately steps on and shatters one of Caroline’s coral-blue combs that was mysteriously on the floor of her room. She feels a deep sense of dread, knowing that breaking the comb will infuriate the spirit.
She resolves to get the bone back from Henry and bury it immediately. Julia needs a sample of Ethel’s hair for the DNA test and decides to sneak into Ethel’s pristine bedroom.
She finds a small tangle of hair in the wastepaper basket and stuffs it into a plastic bag. Mick nearly catches her as she leaves the room, but she manages to lie her way out.
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Chapter 63: 1692
Late at night, Jonas Reeve reveals to Caroline that Hitty Atkins told him Caroline is actually a witch. Jonas starts to scream accusations at her just as Deputy Strickland arrives with their dinner.
Jonas suddenly falls into a violent fit, just as Judith Hatch did. Strickland is terrified and unlocks Jonas’s cell to help him, believing the possession is real.
As soon as the door is open, Jonas stops the fit and bludgeons Strickland with a large stone he mined from the floor. The Night Reaper is now free and has the deputy’s keys.
Chapter 64: Present Day
Julia drives to the museum but gets lost and pulls over at a motel, where she sees a white Buick identical to Ethel’s. She continues to the museum and asks for Henry Ziegler, but the girl at the desk claims nobody by that name works here.
The girl tells a chilling story about a curator named Henry Ziegler who was burned alive in a 1952 museum fire. Julia is momentarily terrified, wondering if she has been dating a ghost.
Henry then appears and reveals the girl was playing a prank on her because of his old-fashioned style. He takes Julia into a private room to discuss the bone results.
Chapter 65: 1692
Jonas Reeve unlocks Caroline’s cell and tells her they must flee Woodhaven immediately. He reveals that Hitty’s last words to him were to take Caroline with him if he escaped.
Caroline is reluctant to follow a murderer, but Jonas argues that she will surely be hanged if she stays. Jonas gathers the straw from their cells and stacks it outside, then uses his torch to set it on fire.
Deputy Strickland is trapped inside and burned alive as they flee the cellar. Caroline realizes she is now an accessory to murder and will burn in hell.
Chapter 66: Present Day
Henry gives the bone back to Julia and reveals a shocking detail: based on the pelvic angle, the bone likely belonged to a man. He also notes that since Caroline was supposedly burned at the stake, her remains should have been ashes, not an intact bone.
Julia realizes the history books might have been wrong or something else happened at Pemberton. Henry also shares that the maid, Celia Caine, had a criminal record for theft before disappearing.
He tells Julia he is sending the hair sample for testing. Julia feels a deep sense of unease as she prepares to return home with the bone.
Chapter 67: Present Day
Julia returns to Pemberton and finds her bedroom has been ransacked, with clothes strewn everywhere. She checks the top dresser drawer and realizes the two unmailed letters from the attic are missing.
She is certain that Aunt Ethel or Mick went through her things and found the letters. Julia is terrified, realizing that whoever searched her room now knows she was snooping into their past.
She feels trapped in the house with people who may be hiding a murder. She resolves to leave Pemberton first thing in the morning.
Chapter 68: 1692
Jonas and Caroline travel through the woods toward Pemberton in the moonlight. Caroline falls from exhaustion and Jonas sits with her to rest.
He reveals a shocking truth: he did not kill Leonora Rowley. He loved her and was searching for her when he found her body, but the sheriff caught him before he could explain.
Caroline is skeptical but notices Jonas is genuinely crying. Jonas suggests they sneak into Pemberton to steal money and jewelry from Archibald before they leave Woodhaven for good.
Chapter 69: Present Day
Julia and Henry have one last dinner, and he admits he called Adult Protective Services because he was worried about Letitia. Julia feels betrayed, believing he used her personal information to force the sale of the house.
Henry insists it was out of genuine concern, reminding her of his own experience with his grandfather. Julia tells him that Ethel is throwing her out and she is leaving Woodhaven.
Henry asks her to stay and even offers her a job managing Pemberton once the museum takes over. Julia says goodbye, believing she will never see him again.
Chapter 70: Present Day
Julia prepares to return the pelvic bone to the ground in the middle of the night. On the wall outside her room, she sees a terrifying message written in what looks like blood or reddish paint: JULA GET OT NOWW.
She ignores the warning and heads to the backyard with a shovel and the bone. While she is digging a deeper hole, her phone buzzes with multiple urgent text messages and voicemails from Henry.
Henry’s last text is in all caps: CALL ME!!!!!!! Julia decides to call him back despite it being 2:00 AM.
Chapter 71: 1692
Caroline creeps into Pemberton through a window, leaving Jonas and Gideon outside. She reflects on her time in the house and realizes that Archibald likely never loved her.
She enters the parlor and finds the key to the desk drawer inside the family Bible. As she is about to unlock the drawer to steal the money, she is frozen by the sound of a woman’s scream coming from upstairs.
She hears a second scream and a gurgling noise. Against her better judgment, she runs up the stairs to investigate.
Chapter 72: Present Day
Julia calls Henry back while standing in the middle of the backyard with the bone. Henry reveals the DNA test results: Ethel is not related to Julia at all. She is not even Julia’s great-aunt; she is a complete stranger.
As Henry is explaining this, Julia sees two flashlight beams coming toward her from the house. The phone connection cuts out, leaving her in total silence with no service.
Julia realizes the woman she thought was her aunt is an impostor and is now coming for her.
Chapter 73: Present Day
Julia takes Gram for a haircut and she looks decades younger. When they return, Ethel is furious and accuses Julia of calling Adult Protective Services.
Julia realizes Henry was the one who called. Ethel kicks Julia out of the house and tells her she must be gone by morning.
Julia is devastated by Henry’s betrayal and Ethel’s cruelty. She begins to pack her bags, realizing her time at Pemberton is over.
Chapter 74: Present Day
Julia finishes packing and receives a call from Henry on the landline. He tries to invite her to a ballroom dance night, but she confronts him about calling Protective Services.
Henry argues that Julia’s grandmother is a danger to herself and he was only trying to help. Julia tells him she is leaving and that she cannot trust him anymore.
Henry begs her to stay, claiming he really likes her. Julia hangs up, feeling humiliated and alone.
Chapter 75: Present Day
Julia is in the backyard digging the hole to return the pelvic bone. She has seen the GET OT message and is terrified but determined to finish the job.
After Henry’s call about the DNA test fails, Julia watches the flashlight beams of Mick and Ethel close in on her. She realizes she is trapped at the edge of the woods as the mystery of Aunt Ethel’s identity reaches its breaking point.
Chapter 76: 1692
Caroline enters the bedroom and finds Archibald strangling Molly Howe. Molly is naked and clearly pregnant, confirming Caroline’s suspicions about her husband’s infidelity.
Archibald smiles as he kills Molly, looking more joyous than Caroline has ever seen him. Caroline tries to stop him, but Molly dies before she can intervene.
Archibald then admits he killed his first wife and several other maidens because he could not help himself. He then turns on Caroline, intending to kill her too to cover his crimes.
Chapter 77: Present Day
Ethel reveals her true identity is Celia Caine, the former maid. She admits she murdered the real Ethel after she gave birth to Julia’s father, then assumed her identity.
Celia has been paying Mick to help her maintain the ruse for over fifty years. She explains that she used the hauntings to scare Julia away so she would not convince Letty to sell the property and discover the buried bodies.
Celia aims a gun at Julia, intending to kill the final witness to her crimes.
Chapter 78: Present Day
Celia shoots Mick because he betrayed her by leaving clues like the letters and the name on the recorder. She then forces Julia to dig a deeper grave for Mick’s body.
Celia reveals that she and Letty shared the secret of the murder for over half a century. Julia realizes that Letty has been living in fear of Celia all this time.
Celia plans to tell everyone that Julia just left town and was never seen again. Julia tries to fight back, throwing dirt in Celia’s face and running for the house.
Chapter 79: 1692
Archibald pounces on Caroline and begins to strangle her, telling her she was his favorite victim. Caroline accepts that she will die young, just as she always believed.
Suddenly, a gunshot echoes through the room and Archibald’s face explodes into red. Jonas Reeve stands in the doorway holding the deputy’s musket.
He has saved Caroline’s life by killing her husband. Caroline is left gasping for air on the floor, surrounded by the bodies of Molly and Archibald.
Chapter 80: Present Day
Julia runs to the back door but finds it locked. Celia corners her and prepares to pull the trigger, telling Julia that when you are dead, you are just dead.
Before she can fire, a loud thump is heard and Celia falls unconscious. Letitia Barlow stands over her, holding the large shovel from the garage.
Gram tells the unconscious Celia that she will not kill anyone I care about ever again. Julia realizes that her grandmother was the one who finally stepped up to end the cycle of violence.
Chapter 81: 1692
Jonas and Caroline decide that if they stay, they will both be hanged for the fire at the jail. Jonas proposes a bold plan: they will bury Archibald and Molly in the yard and flee.
Since they have Archie’s papers and money, they will assume the identities of Archibald Eldridge and Molly Howe in a new town. Jonas promises to take care of Caroline and give her a good life.
Caroline agrees to the plan, choosing to start a new life with the man who saved her rather than die for a crime she did not commit.
Chapter 82: Present Day
Celia is arrested and sentenced to life in prison for the murders of Mick and the real Ethel. Mick’s body is found in the backyard along with the remains of the real Ethel.
Julia reveals that the See voice she heard as a child was likely the ghost of her real aunt trying to warn her about Celia. Letitia Barlow is not prosecuted for her role in the cover-up due to her advanced age and confusion.
Julia and Henry move in together, and the museum officially purchases Pemberton. Julia decides to stay in Woodhaven and help turn her family’s estate into a piece of history.
Chapter 83: 1692 / 1717
In the year 1717, twenty-five years after fleeing, Caroline and Jonas return to Pemberton for the first time. They have lived their entire lives as Archibald and Molly Eldridge and raised four children together.
They return to find the house standing firm, despite the cobwebs and neglect. Jonas surprises Caroline with a large oil painting he had commissioned, the portrait of the Archie and Molly that Julia saw in the present day.
They hang the portrait in the parlor, resolving to live out their remaining years where their journey began, keeping their secrets buried forever.
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