The House at the End of the World

Katie calls Gunner Lindblom, the realtor who sold her Jacob’s Ladder, to ask about Tanner Walsh’s death. Lindblom reveals that Walsh was found drowned in the lake in his pajamas with one of his slippers still on the dock. Katie asks in a roundabout way about the explosions on Ringrock, but Lindblom only gives her the official explanation that the Environmental Protection Agency was cleaning the lake water of algae.

Katie contemplates her painting again, wondering how she will manage some of the technical details that will give the painting its symbolism. Then, she arms herself and circles her house, looking for evidence. Despite the day’s fog, she finds a patch of grass that has been torn up and smells of ammonia. By the dock, there are dozens of dead fish rotting on the beach. While she tries to convince herself that everything is normal, she hears the motor of a boat cutting off near her island.

In a flashback, Katie is meeting her therapist for the last time before moving to Jacob’s Ladder. Her therapist tries to convince her not to become a hermit and to keep up with her painting career, but Katie does not want to live around people or paint for anyone else.