The Family Upstairs

When Justin and Birdie move into the Chelsea house, Justin plants an herb garden in the backyard and begins selling herbal remedies in order to make a little money. The herb garden will go on to play a significant role in the story. One day, while gardening, Justin explains to Henry, “I can grow anything out here. Virtually. Do you know what I mean? […] I don’t just grow stuff that’s good for you. I can grow other stuff. Anything you’d like” (166). When Henry asks whether Justin can grow drugs, Justin responds, “Well, yeah, I guess. Good ones. […] And bad ones, too” (166). After Justin disappears from the Chelsea house, he leaves behind his books on gardening, herbal remedies, and the occult for Henry. Henry grows herbs for the members of the household to use in their cooking. When Martina becomes pregnant with David’s baby, Henry grows herbs that he hopes will abort the baby. Henry will later claim that the herbs were just parsley, but this moment shows that Henry is already thinking about how he will use the herb garden to try to stop David and escape David’s hold on the house.