Hannah thinks about a sketchbook she keeps of Bailey’s milestones, meant to mark the period between the day of Owen’s disappearance and the possible day of his return. When Nicholas assures her that she raised Bailey to be strong, Hannah indicates that her strength has more to do with Owen. Nicholas points out, however, that Owen needs Hannah.

As they approach Èze, Nicholas points out Frank’s house by the water. He suggests that Frank has come here to become a better person and hopes that he has enough of a conscience to do the same.

The novel flashes back to a vacation that Nicholas joined Frank on in Èze to avoid the pain of visiting Meredith and Kate’s graves in Tuscany. Frank showed Nicholas a hiking trail named after German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, who lived in the area for several months. The Nietzsche Path would lead them to two neighboring houses Frank had bought for them to spend their retirement years in. Nicholas was surprised, though he did not admit that he wanted to retire in Italy to be closer to his family’s grave plot.

On the trail, Nicholas wondered if Frank felt that he could outrun his past by moving to Èze. Frank quoted Nietzsche in response, suggesting that whatever sins they committed in the name of love were absolved.

Bailey continues to wait before Ulysses and sirens. She remembers a school project on the Odyssey that she stayed up late to work on. Owen stayed up with her to give her support.

Just then, Owen sits next to her before the painting. Overwhelmed by their reunion, Bailey recalls the project aloud to relieve the tension she is feeling. Bailey observes how much older and sadder Owen looks, though the fact that she can still recognize his eyes causes her to cry. They leave the museum together to go to the boat.

Hannah and Nicholas stop at a restaurant to prepare for Frank’s birthday party. As they proceed to the venue, Hannah observes that Èze is quieter than she expected. Nicholas attributes this to Èze’s town motto: “In death, I am reborn” (197). Hannah helps Nicholas along the path when she sees that he is tired from climbing so many stairs. When she tells Nicholas she feels like she is entering a viper’s nest, Nicholas answers that they are already in it and are hoping to find an exit.

Frank’s birthday party is being held at a restaurant called Le Café du Jardin. At the entrance, a security guard inspects Hannah’s bag and pulls out her tablet. Hannah explains it away as a device to monitor her “son” since she is overprotective of him. The guard allows her to keep it but warns her that digital devices are prohibited at the party, so she must keep it turned off.

Hannah and Nicholas ascend to the party venue, catching the attention of everyone who believes that Nicholas is dead. Nicholas publicly confronts Frank, Teddy, and Quinn. Frank invites Nicholas to talk privately instead. Nicholas warns that if he and Hannah do not leave the party safely within 20 minutes, incriminating files will be sent to Bradford’s office, which will allow him to order Frank, Teddy, and Quinn’s arrests as soon as they return to the United States. He also exposes the bounty that Teddy and Quinn have put on Bailey, directly violating the terms of their agreement.

Teddy lunges at Nicholas, but Hannah jumps in his way, absorbing the blow. Frank’s guards draw their weapons, but Frank orders them to back off. He urges Nicholas to talk with him privately elsewhere. Nicholas insists that Teddy, Quinn, and Hannah must come along since they are all involved in the issue.

Owen and Bailey are on a boat with cabins. As Bailey showers to calm down, Owen enters a cabin filled with computer screens, which will allow him to monitor the situation at Frank’s birthday party. Owen fights the temptation to step away from his computer and take care of Bailey. He remembers feeling the same way when they settled down in Sausalito, moving into the houseboat and relying on no one but Owen himself. He wonders if he can say that things have changed over the last 20 years since he still needs to work to keep his family safe. Knowing that he cannot, he activates the computer and prepares to execute the plan he has been preparing over the last five years.

Hannah, Nicholas, Frank, and his children enter a back room to discuss their issues. Nicholas opens by reiterating that Teddy and Quinn have broken the agreement from their previous negotiation and that he possesses files that could see Frank and his successors imprisoned. Quinn reminds him that he cannot supply evidence under attorney-client privilege. Nicholas rebuts that they are no longer his clients and that he was already disbarred when he was incarcerated.

Hannah passes her tablet to Frank, which Nicholas gets him to unlock using a password corresponding to the date of Kate’s murder. The tablet shows security footage of the houses belonging to each of Frank’s children, including Teddy and Quinn. This threatens them, which prompts Hannah to remind them that this wouldn’t have happened if they hadn’t threatened her and Bailey first. Nicholas adds that his files are so extensive that no one in Frank’s family will be spared the risk of arrest, even if they aren’t involved in the family business. Quinn retorts that they only acted in retaliation against Owen’s actions.

Nicholas urges Frank and his children to let Owen, Hannah, and Bailey live their lives in peace. Frank suggests the possibility of letting his own children take the fall for him, which Nicholas doesn’t believe he would do because he knows Frank is a family man. Frank draws a gun and shoots Nicholas.

The novel flashes back to a steakhouse dinner between Nicholas and Frank. After telling Frank about recent bonding experiences with Bailey, Nicholas thanked Frank for fulfilling the favor he asked of him. Frank dismissed his gratitude, indicating that it wasn’t a favor to allow Nicholas’s family to live safely but something Nicholas deserved for being a good person.

Privately, Nicholas worried about the fact that he hadn’t told Frank anything about Owen reaching out to him. He knew that Owen’s assertion that Bailey would be in danger once Nicholas was gone was right. To prove his point, he confronted Frank over Kate’s death, asking if someone in the Organization had ordered her killed. Frank denied that he had anything to do with Kate. Though Nicholas believed him, he insisted that someone in the Organization found a reason to kill her. This forced Frank to admit that the Organization was becoming nervous about Kate after Nicholas started to involve Owen in the Organization’s work. This culminated in Kate going to the US Attorney’s office, which flagged the government’s attention regarding the Organization.

Frank stressed, however, that he had not ordered punitive action against Kate; someone else had. Frank had even ordered the deaths of the lieutenants involved in Kate’s death. Eventually, Frank confessed that Quinn had ordered the lieutenants to go after Kate, but only to intimidate her. He tried to explain that she was acting out of pain and anger over what happened to Wesley and for fear of what could happen to the rest of their family. Though Frank stressed that he hadn’t been aware of Kate’s actions at the time, Nicholas indicated that their friendship was over.