The Inmate

Throughout the novel, Brooke finds herself struggling to figure out who she can trust. Brooke announces in the first few chapters that she didn’t have a good relationship with her parents. This is the first break in trust Brooke experienced: She believes her parents were ashamed of her decision to have her son and raise him on her own, so she never gave them a chance to explain their true motivation for making her leave town. After this seeming betrayal, Brooke finds herself unable to gauge the trustworthiness of other people around her.

Brooke hires a babysitter for her son, taking the first person who fits her budget. This woman cooks and cleans, winning her trust with her gentle, grandmotherly behavior. Although Brooke has been lied to by people she cares about, she trusts Margie. It will prove to be a mistake.

Brooke went through a terrible episode when someone murdered three of her friends and attempted to murder her. Brooke has put this episode behind her, but when she rekindles a relationship with the other survivor of that night, it brings back bad memories. Tim is a kind, gentle man who helps Brooke with repairs to her parents’ aging house.