Once Upon a River

The next day, Lily checks the river’s height before starting her chores. She eats her breakfast with the pigs and then goes to the wood pile, where she removes some logs and reveals a hidden compartment with money inside. She transfers the money to a second secret compartment in the bricks of her home. She walks to Buscot, passing by the Vaughan residence and imagining The Child inside. She whispers a conversation to “Ann,” imaging how she is dressed and what she is doing. She reaches the parsonage and makes tea for the parson. He asks about Lily’s behavior at the Swan. The parson tries to walk her through the illogical nature of her insistence that The Child is Ann, noting the 40-year age gap between Lily and The Child. When Lily continues to claim that The Child is her sister, the parson tells her that it would only be harmful if she states it publicly. Lily agrees, then goes about her chores. He pays her and tries to give her a pair of gloves that she rejects, claiming that she will lose them. She walks home in the cold, feeds the pigs, and sees a dozen bottles in the woodshed.