The chapter opens with Flora Gray’s letter to Molly about the danger and power of belief, explaining that she chose to believe Penelope’s account of Algernon Braun’s assault and recognized her own prior denial. Immediately after Mrs. Mead’s funeral and the Brauns’ departure, Flora summons her parents to Reginald Gray’s office to tell them what Penelope disclosed and to describe Algernon’s behavior during the hunt-day tour.

Reginald and Mrs. Gray respond with classist assumptions, suggesting Penelope initiated any encounter and asserting “the help is often to blame.” Flora further states that Algernon likely stole the egg and threatened Penelope at the funeral; Reginald reframes the threat as a warning and pivots suspicion toward John and even John’s father, the butler, provoking Flora’s defense of their loyalty. When Flora declares she will not marry Algernon, her mother panics and her father seizes Flora’s wrist, commanding that she will wed Algernon.

Flora wriggles free and runs from the house to the boundary oak near Mrs. Mead’s cottage, where she finds John. He holds Mrs. Mead’s gold Claddagh wedding ring and explains his father has gone to town, overwhelmed by grief. Flora tells John about Penelope’s assault, Algernon’s suspected art theft at the baron’s house, and the threat at the funeral. John concludes Mrs. Mead ran to reveal Algernon’s crimes and shares that maids’ whispers linked Algernon to prior misconduct, including unwanted advances that got him expelled, with the Brauns paying off authorities.

Flora blames herself for ignoring warnings, but John reassures her that responsibility lies with the Brauns and that Mrs. Mead loved Flora. John retrieves a locked diary Mrs. Mead intended as a gift for Flora; Flora opens it and treasures the blank pages. Their bond deepens as Flora realizes John’s steadfast worth compared to Algernon’s showy facade.

John reveals he has earned a full scholarship to university in the fall. Flora, genuinely happy for him, reciprocates with her own truth: she refuses to marry Algernon, whom she brands a liar and cheat protected by his family’s influence. She confesses her love for John, and he asks for reassurance; they declare their love to each other and kiss, finding solace amid grief.

They reminisce about childhood—Flora admits she remembered John’s kindness at the oak’s knothole and credits him as the “real magic.” The letter closes with Flora describing, in restrained terms, their tender night together under the full moon, framing it as a profound union born from loss and the beginning of true love.