Caoimhe begs her sister to talk, but Lizzie cannot make herself do so. Lizzie gets anxious, scratching her arms and breaking the skin.

Lizzie’s doctor wants to start her on medication and therapy due to her frequent violent outbursts. Her father agrees, while her mother argues she’s too young.

As Lizzie’s family boards a plane for Ireland, her mother assures Lizzie that Lizzie is intelligent even if she doesn’t show it.

There is no space for Caoimhe to re-enroll at her old school, forcing her to go to an all-girls primary school instead. She angrily yells at Lizzie, taking her anger out on her.

Lizzie’s listens as her mother, Catherine, and father, Mike, argue about treating her symptoms. Catherine insists there is nothing wrong.

On the day Lizzie turns four, her parents and her sister celebrate her birthday. Lizzie tells Caoimhe that she is turning four, and then counts the candles on her cake—speaking aloud for the first time.

Caoimhe yells at her parents, angry about the way Lizzie behaved at school. She attacked another child, scratching him and drawing blood.

As Lizzie crawls into her mother’s lap, she notes how much smaller and thinner Catherine has gotten since being diagnosed with cancer.

Lizzie stays in bed, refusing to get up for school. She tells her mother that everyone treats her strangely because of how she was born.

As Lizzie’s parents fight over her medication, Lizzie runs upstairs and shuts herself in her room. She hears voices in her head, which scares her, as they tell her to do bad things.

Lizzie’s family goes back to England for Catherine to get cancer treatment. Catherine is distraught when Mike’s sister, Nell, visits and takes Lizzie away for several hours without telling anyone. Catherine is adamant that they need to be in Ireland, away from Mike’s family.

Upstairs, Caoimhe comforts Lizzie and listens to Fleetwood Mac with her. She explains that Nell is dangerous when she doesn’t take her medication. Nell hears voices that tell her what to do. Lizzie responds that she hears them, too, but Caoimhe begs her not to tell anyone.

Lizzie and her family return to Ballylaggin, moving into Catherine’s family estate.

Caoimhe cries in her room, angrily blaming Lizzie for ruining her birthday party. When a girl pulled Lizzie’s hair, Lizzie reacted by violently scratching the girl’s face.

Lizzie is sent to St. Anthony’s, a school for children who struggle academically. However, it bores Lizzie, who knows more than everyone else there.

Caoimhe comes home excited from her first day at Tommen College. A boy named Mark Allen asked her on a date. Mark’s father is marrying the mother of Gibsie, a boy that Caoimhe babysits every weekend.

When Mark comes over, Lizzie likes him because he plays with her. He pretends to be a monster, chasing her through the house while she hides.

Lizzie lies in bed. She tries to make the voices in her head stop talking to her, as they repeatedly tell her that she is a “bad girl” (37).

Lizzie stays up late, waiting for Mark. He has been to her room several times, claiming that he wants to fix her, which makes her happy. She promises not to tell anyone.

Mark gets into Lizzie’s bed. He’s brought a camera to take pictures of her. He tells her that she is in danger of getting sick unless she does what he tells her to do. He has her take off her clothes, then takes off his own and begins to touch her.

Hugh Biggs and his friend Gibsie are playing soccer in Gibsie’s yard when the ball goes over the fence. Their neighbor Mr. Murphy yells at them for ruining his flowers again, then destroys the ball.

Gibsie’s father, Joe, is moving out. He is separating from his wife, Sadhbh. She has a new boyfriend—Keith, who is Mark’s dad.

Gibsie complains about his father having to leave, which escalates into him blaming his mother. He swears at her, causing both of his parents to yell at him. Gibsie angrily leaves the house.

Six-year-old Lizzie sits outside the principal’s office with her friend, Shannon Lynch. Lizzie is in trouble for biting a boy in the face for pushing Shannon. However, she is adamant that she will always defend her best friends, Shannon and Claire Biggs—Hugh’s sister.

At home that night with his father, Peter, Hugh writes the invitations for his seventh birthday party. His father praises him for his handwriting and his intelligence, which makes Hugh extremely proud.

When Hugh’s mother, Sinead, gets home, she reminds Hugh that he has to invite four of Claire’s friends to the party. Hugh argues, but Peter insists that this is gentlemanly.

The next day, Lizzie, Shannon, and Claire leave school together. Lizzie gives Shannon her birthday invitation, but Shannon won’t be allowed to come, as she never is.

On the bus, Lizzie sits in the back by herself. Overwhelmed by the commotion, she pulls at her fingernails, making herself bleed. A few moments later, Claire gets on with Hugh. He introduces himself to Lizzie and gives her the invitation to his party.

Lizzie is overwhelmed by how nice Hugh looks and smells: His eyes are “warm and kind and chas[e] away the scary feeling in [her] head” (65). She asks him about the headphones he is wearing, and he lets her listen to his music. Hugh awkwardly changes the subject to his party. He tells her that most people will dress up in costumes, but she can do whatever she wants.

As Lizzie watches Hugh return to his friends, he stops, turns back to her once more, and smiles.

When Hugh gets on the bus, he dreads having to give out invitations to Claire’s friends. However, when he spots Lizzie, he is shocked at how pretty she is, especially her eyes. Although he finds the way she acts strange, he finds it intriguing as well.

On Halloween, Caoimhe helps Lizzie get ready for the party. Her mother was supposed to help, but she is back in the hospital as her cancer has returned. Lizzie asks whether their mom is going to die, but Caoimhe avoids answering the question.

When Lizzie arrives to Hugh’s party, the first thing she does is compliment his handwriting. Hugh is proud that she noticed how hard he works on it.

Instead of going inside to play with the other kids, Hugh stays outside with Lizzie. She gives him two presents. The first is a video game that just came out, delighting Hugh. The second is a card that Lizzie made. When he compliments her handwriting and spelling, she insists that she is smart. When Lizzie expresses her embarrassment over being older than the other kids in her class, Hugh assures her that he is impressed by her and that she has nothing to be ashamed of.

A while later, Lizzie sits on the edge of the party alone. The noise overwhelms her, and she begins to have a panic attack. However, Hugh sits next to her and holds her hand. He reassures her until she calms down.

Lizzie, Hugh, Gibsie, Claire, and their friend, Feely, throw eggs at Mr. Murphy’s house as revenge for destroying their ball. When Hugh throws, Mr. Murphy comes out and grabs him. Lizzie runs out from their hiding spot and bites Mr. Murphy, which allows Hugh to get free and run away.

Once they’re safe, Gibsie praises Lizzie for standing up to Mr. Murphy. Hugh assures Lizzie that she is now part of their group.

The next morning at breakfast, Gibsie’s father comes to pick him up to go swimming. Gibsie begins to cry. Hugh explains that Gibsie is struggling with his parents’ divorce and rarely gets to see his father.

Later that night, Lizzie is reading in bed when Mark comes into her room. He tells her that he is sleeping over, as Lizzie’s parents are still at the hospital. He comes to her bed and scolds her for what he calls cheating on him by sleeping over at Hugh’s. He then takes off her clothes, with Lizzie too afraid to stop him.

Lizzie and Hugh play together in the yard, climbing among the trees. As Hugh helps her, she calls him her knight, prompting him to call her “milady” in return. Hugh is shocked by her bravery when she recklessly jumps from the limbs.

In early December, Lizzie goes swimming with Hugh and her friends. Lizzie jumps into the deep end, earning a reprimand from Hugh. However, she insists that she trusts him to save her. He promises that she will always be safe with him.

Two weeks later, Hugh’s parents go on a date. They tell him that Caoimhe is coming over to babysit and that Mark is coming over to watch a movie. Hugh responds angrily, as Gibsie has always called Mark creepy. Hugh’s mother scolds him, insisting that he needs to behave.

Hugh is excited to have Caoimhe babysit, as she entertains Claire so that he can play video games. However, when Hugh goes downstairs and sees Claire sitting on Mark’s lap, he pulls Claire off, insisting that she shouldn’t sit on strangers. Hugh isn’t sure why he feels so passionately about it, but something tells him that he needs to keep Claire away from Mark.

Lizzie’s parents host a party for New Year’s Eve, so she invites Hugh and Claire. Hugh and Lizzie stay in her bedroom for most of the night. When the clock hits midnight, they wish each other a happy new year. Hugh then kisses Lizzie on the cheek.

On April 1, Hugh and his friends watch across the street as Mark and Keith move in with Gibsie’s mother. Hugh can see that Gibsie is silently crying. Claire puts her arm around him, then uses her other hand to shield his eyes. As Hugh wonders how they can be so close, Lizzie grabs his hand. He realizes that she has become his best friend.

Three weeks later, Lizzie goes to Claire’s house. She feels exhausted and empty, a feeling that has been growing over the last few weeks. Unable to keep up with Claire and Shannon’s conversation, Lizzie goes to the bathroom and sits in the bathtub. She can hear the voices in her head. One of them is Mark’s voice as he sexually assaults her.

Hugh finds her and puts his hand on her forehead. His voice and touch make her feel better. She assures him that she is just tired. Hugh offers to let her sleep in his bed while he does homework.

On May 6, after Gibsie and Hugh’s First Holy Communion, their families go out on a boat in the Atlantic Ocean. Gibsie and Hugh excitedly discuss how to spend the money they received as gifts.

Suddenly, Gibsie’s sister Bethany falls overboard. Her father Joe jumps in to save her, and Gibsie follows. Seeing that Joe is struggling to save them both, Hugh’s father, Pete, jumps in. Pete manages to grab Gibsie and bring him back to the boat, but Joe and Bethany never resurface.

Hugh’s mother jumps in to help pull Gibsie aboard. They perform CPR as Hugh watches, terrified that Gibsie won’t survive. However, after several moments, he coughs up water and starts breathing. Claire kneels down next to him, locking eyes with him and assuring him that he is okay.

Over the next six weeks, Lizzie feels as though everything is surrounded by sadness. Pete, who was best friends with Joe, struggles to get out of bed, while Gibsie is nothing like his old self.

When Caoimhe goes to babysit Claire and Hugh, Lizzie goes with her. She goes into Hugh’s room, gets in bed next to him, and puts her hand on his face. She can tell that he has been crying. Hugh tells her that he loves her. Lizzie assures him that they will continue to be together “no matter what” (130).

Because Gibsie is still mourning his father and sister, Hugh goes to Feely’s house alone to celebrate Feely’s birthday. Feely lives on a large farm, somewhere Hugh has only been a few times in his life. To Hugh’s surprise, Feely’s father berates Feely during dinner for being a vegetarian and not caring about their farm. However, Hugh defends his friend, insisting that Feely is great at other things and has different aspirations.

Later, Hugh and Feely work in the barn. Trying to cheer Feely up, Hugh starts singing and gets Feely to sing along as they shovel.

From her bedroom, Lizzie hears Caoimhe screaming. Knowing that Mark is with Caoimhe, Lizzie worries that Caoimhe is sick and that Mark has to “fix” her too. She goes to check on her sister. When she opens the door, she sees Caoimhe and Mark having sex. Caoimhe yells at her to leave.

Lizzie goes back to her room and hides under the covers. She is overwhelmed by fear, now convinced that Caoimhe is sick like her and needs Mark to help her.

Later, Caoimhe comes to Lizzie’s room. She apologizes for yelling. She assures her that Mark was just showing her how much he loves her.

Hugh gets home from a rugby match. He asks his mother why his father didn’t come to the game. She assures him that his father wants to, but is still grieving. Hugh angrily responds that they are all grieving, yet his father is the only one who still stays in bed every day.