Evelyn and Della discuss the eviction notice, which gives them a two-month deadline of April 7th. They learn the council’s plan is to lease the sheds to celebrity chef Rufus Rowan for a new restaurant. Evelyn recalls a recent visit from a dismissive council inspector, Mr. Palmer, who had mocked her museum’s low admission fee. Della finds Evelyn’s copy of the eviction letter, which Evelyn adds to a pile of paperwork on her desk. Noticing a salt-stained dog lead among Evelyn’s recent finds, Della borrows it, claiming to have a hunch about its owner. 

While attempting to catalogue her finds, Evelyn reflects on her museum’s most meaningful object: a piece of handmade Cornish lace that was pinned to her blanket when she was abandoned as an infant. Her adoptive father, Edwin Silver, established the museum partly in the hope that someone might one day recognize the lace and reveal Evelyn’s origins.

Della returns with an elderly man named Leonard, who tearfully identifies the dog lead as belonging to his deceased dog, Jago. He explains that he had tossed it into the sea in a moment of grief and deeply regretted it. Seeing Leonard reunited with the lead inspires Della. She suggests to Evelyn that they can save the museum by proving its relevance to the community and connecting its objects to local families. After, Evelyn considers the idea while observing a diorama of Cornish life she made at 28 after the passing of her aloof mother, who contrasted with her steady, supportive father. The diorama often receives teasing by visitors, but she worries what will happen to it if the museum closes. She decides to pursue Della’s plan.

A flashback reveals Evelyn’s upbringing by her adoptive parents, Edwin and Elsbeth Silver. They were emotionally distant scientists who were matter-of-fact about her being a “foundling.” After their deaths, Evelyn discovered the family had significant debts and their house was a rental. She was forced to sell the contents and move into a static caravan in a holiday park, where a stray cat called Toots befriends her. 

Spurred by the threat of eviction, Evelyn stays up all night creating a poster for a public meeting, inviting people to visit her museum and see if her displays contain objects connected to their family history. She illustrates it with drawings of four museum objects: an embroidered picture, a painting of a ship, a teacup, and her own piece of lace. At the local newsagent, the clerk, a young man named Jacob, makes copies of her poster. He recognizes the museum from his childhood visits with his grandfather, a silver-haired man Evelyn had recognized as Sir Jasper Warburn. He offers to distribute Evelyn’s posters around town.

On the day of the meeting, a small group of locals attends, including Jacob; Alison from the sports center; Sariah, a hotel manager; sisters Jude and Kayla, who work at the pub; and George Rook, an antiques dealer with a dubious reputation. Della explains the eviction threat, and a debate ensues about the museum’s value versus the economic benefits of a new restaurant. Jacob says that Rufus’s restaurants are infamous for inviting people for trial shifts and then not paying them; those who do get hired are paid minimum wage and mistreated. 

Afterward, several attendees leave, while a few remark about display items. Della tells Evelyn to be patient, as some may discover connections to her museum or may simply take a renewed interest in their community’s history through it. George Rook, an odd man Evelyn went to school with, approaches Evelyn and makes a veiled comment about identifying the “uncertain provenance” of some items, which she dismisses. She notes the Rooks are known con artists.

The narrative shifts perspective to four people who saw Evelyn’s poster. Sariah Carnie, the hotel manager, recognizes the teacup as a family heirloom she broke as a child, a memory tied to family conflict and her grandmother’s death. She angrily resolves to avoid the museum, feeling not all stories attached to items need to be resurfaced. 

Alison Blake, who works at the sports center, hesitated to attend the museum meeting. She struggles to manage work and caring for her son with her husband, with whom she has a tense relationship. At the meeting, she sees the embroidered sailcloth and believes it was made by her beloved grandfather, Fred. However, she discovers its initials and message differ from a similar piece in her family, revealing her grandfather had a secret love. Upset, she rushes home and calls Sariah.

George Rook, the antiques dealer, recognizes the painting of the ship as a forgery he created years ago and sold to an anonymous client, rumored to be the wealthy local landowner Sir Jasper Warburn. George earnestly enjoys art, but his talent—discovered young—only encouraged his father to force him to paint forgeries. He worries Evelyn may be sending him a message to flush him out and expose his fakery. 

Finally, an anonymous narrator reveals they have the other half of the Cornish lace, confirming it was a traditional “foundling” token left for their baby, Evelyn, as a sign of love.

Evelyn wakes up in the museum after sleeping on the cot bed within the roped-off diorama area. Outside, she finds Della, Alison, and Jacob waiting. They announce they have formed a “museum committee” and Alison, who has a PR background, outlines a plan for a media campaign built on local stories connected to the objects. She lies that she had no connections to them. 

After the meeting, Jacob—whose family is from the town, though he was raised in London—tells Evelyn he recognizes the painting of the ship from the poster; it used to hang in his grandmother’s bedroom at Warburn Hall. Evelyn had already suspected the painting might be an Alfred Wallis, and Jacob’s information supports this, strengthening her belief that the discovery could be financially valuable enough to save the museum.

Sariah Carnie is at her demanding job as manager of the Warburn Spa hotel. While she enjoys it, she dwells on how the town is used as a tourist site for rich visitors while its actual residents are often underpaid and overworked. She sees messages in the museum’s campaign WhatsApp group, including one from Alison asking if she recognized any objects. Sariah ignores it, unwilling to share the painful memories associated with the teacup. Soon after, Jacob messages asking if she can build a website for the campaign. Motivated by a desire to prove her capabilities—and realizing she can control which items are featured—Sariah agrees. This way, she can ensure the teacup and its story remain hidden.

Alison explains the plan for the website to Evelyn, who agrees to let Sariah photograph items from the collection. Sariah arrives and is brusque, immediately dismissing the cracked teacup as not “museum-quality.” Della arrives and helps Sariah choose a selection of other interesting objects to feature, including a WWI-era tobacco tin, a handmade doll, an antique highchair, and a necklace of faience and gold beads. Sariah shows Evelyn a working template of the “Save Our Museum” website, which will allow people to submit their own stories. Della suggests that these stories could become the basis for a future exhibition.

Back in her caravan, Evelyn feels unsettled by the sudden activity in her life. She reflects on her solitary past and her emotionally distant upbringing. The memories lead her back to when her father arranged a trainee curatorship for her at the British Museum in London. The anonymity of the city was liberating, and she thrived in her work. There, she met and fell in love with a fellow trainee, Asa Lingard. The chapter ends with Evelyn recalling this period of happiness just before an unspecified event ruined it.

At the public library, George Rook learns about the new museum website. He logs on and is alarmed to see his forged Alfred Wallis painting prominently featured. As he looks through the other items Sariah photographed, he finds something else that disturbs him even more. He quickly leaves the library, abandoning the computer with the webpage still open. The librarian notices he has left a page from the museum’s website on screen, showing an unnamed item she enjoys.