Polly descends into the basement, where her late mother once received hospice care, and is flooded with memories: Hank’s deathbed promise to look after her and her mother’s insistence that Polly’s family would someday be complete despite infertility. The space—still set up with the hospital bed, commode, and books—reopens Polly’s grief.

Hank lowers injured, pregnant Tegan onto the hospital bed. Polly masks her envy as they discuss the pregnancy. Tegan refuses to let Polly remove the boot to assess the painful ankle, which Polly suspects is fractured. When Tegan begs for pain medication, Polly cites pregnancy safety and limits her to Tylenol, pointedly avoiding the stash of narcotics left from her mother’s care.

Navigating the dark house during the outage, Polly retrieves Tylenol and finds Tegan’s luggage and purse. She notes a fresh wrist bruise from Mitch’s earlier assault. Rifling the purse, she learns Tegan is twenty-three and nearly broke. Hank heads downstairs with extra blankets while Polly continues searching.

Polly finds Tegan’s locked phone, powers it off, and pockets it. She then uncovers a whiskey-filled flask and a gold lighter, which inflames her resentment over Tegan’s apparent drinking while pregnant. Finally, Polly discovers pepper spray and takes that too, rationalizing that a guest shouldn’t have a weapon. With Tegan settled for the night, Polly’s quiet control over the situation deepens.