Blake opens the paper bag he pulled from behind his refrigerator and realizes it contains three discolored, swollen human fingers, identifiable by their painted pink fingernails. He battles nausea and momentarily begins to dial 911, but he stops, fearing how the discovery will look to police given his proximity to Herb Zimmerly’s murder and the unexplained bloodstain in his apartment.

Blake worries the evidence might implicate him, even though he cannot think of anyone missing fingers and believes Zimmerly had all of his. He wonders if the situation connects back to Whitney Cross. He sets the bag on the counter and checks his email, where he finds Whitney’s Telmont High School transcript.

Scanning the transcript, Blake focuses on Whitney’s listed home address rather than her grades. Telmont feels familiar to him, and he believes answers about Whitney’s past—beyond the secretary’s account of Jordan Gallo’s ruin and death—may lie with Whitney’s parents.

Blake decides he must speak to Whitney’s parents in person, doubting a phone call will suffice and unsure if they still live at that address. Although he recognizes that calling the police about the fingers would be the lawful course, he fears being arrested and recalls the story of Jordan Gallo, which convinces him Whitney can orchestrate violence and frame others.

Despite lacking a car and the two-hour drive, Blake commits to traveling to Telmont to confront Whitney’s past and learn her motives. He concludes that he will not contact the authorities and will instead pursue this lead immediately.