Tucker Minnick walked from the hotel to the Trillium House carrying his typewriter, recordings, and Pony’s call logs, reflecting on his past work in Iowa and the weight of current events at the Avallon. He found Sandy Gilfoyle seated in the cabin’s sitting room listening to a recorded German conversation. June Hudson arrived and asked to speak privately.

Outside on the back slab, June described worsening tensions among the diplomats—someone had painted a swastika on the ballroom floor, an Italian had spat on a Japanese consul, and Breznay left a hateful letter for the maids. She then told Tucker she wanted to keep Hannelore Wolfe off the exchange train. June reasoned that if Hannelore quietly missed departure and her parents did not raise an alarm until far away, the exchange would proceed and bureaucratic delays would prevent swift action even if Hannelore later resurfaced.

Tucker pressed for how June would do it, and June said, “The water,” invoking the local sweetwater with which both shared history. Tucker acknowledged his complicated relationship to the water, admitting he was not afraid so much as wary, recalling Casto Springs and Poison Point.

The conversation turned intimate when Tucker asked June what he was to her. He confessed he wanted to be “everything” to her—partner in daily life, passion, and future. June accepted, whispering that he should be that to her, and they kissed, acknowledging their bond as his Bureau tenure neared its end.

Instead of taking a room, Tucker brought June back inside. He drew curtains and blocked an uncovered window to ensure privacy while Sandy continued listening to the heated German recording. Tucker considered how Sandy differed from the rest of the Gilfoyles and resembled June.

Tucker then addressed Sandy with the phrase, “Twenty horsemen.” After a tense pause, Sandy responded, “April Fools’, June,” directly to June, indicating recognition tied to that phrase and suggesting a shared code or past connection.