In Adrienne Hale’s enormous kitchen, Tricia assumes there will be nothing usable to eat because the house has supposedly been abandoned for three years. Instead, Ethan finds bread, cold cuts, and mayonnaise that are still in date, which suggests the food was placed there recently. As Ethan makes sandwiches, Tricia reflects on how caring he is and worries again about a personal revelation she has not yet told him.

When Tricia goes to get water, she notices a half-full glass by the sink with condensation on the outside. The fresh-looking water immediately alarms her, and she tells Ethan she thinks someone else is in the house. Ethan first tries to explain it away by blaming Judy, but Tricia rejects that idea and points to the footprint she saw earlier and the light they thought they saw upstairs as more evidence.

Because they are trapped in the house for the night and Tricia cannot get cell service, Tricia argues that they need to check the second floor. Ethan agrees to investigate but wants Tricia to stay behind; Tricia refuses to be left alone. Ethan then takes a large serrated knife from the kitchen for protection, and together they walk past Adrienne Hale’s portrait and climb the dark, creaking spiral staircase.

At the top, Tricia is unnerved to find the entire second floor dark, which seems to contradict what she saw from outside. Ethan switches on the weak hallway light, and the two of them begin opening the six upstairs bedrooms one by one. The first five rooms are empty, which makes Ethan doubt Tricia’s fears, but Tricia insists they continue. The chapter ends with both of them tense and frightened as Ethan reaches the final door, likely the master bedroom, and quietly turns the knob.