Content Warning: This section of the guide describes and discusses the source text’s treatment of domestic abuse.

Fifteen-year-old Trey Reddy carries a broken chair over the mountain toward her house. Her dog Banjo, who never leaves her side, runs beside her. She intends to bring it to Cal, the American who moved to Ardnakelty several years before, after lunch. He mends furniture for the villagers with Trey. Trey enjoys the peace at Cal’s house because at Trey’s home, her younger siblings Maeve, Liam, and Alanna always yell. In contrast, Trey’s mother Sheila hardly speaks at all. When Trey arrives home, she finds that her father, Johnny Reddy, has returned home after years of being absent. Johnny tries to reconnect with Trey, but she leaves for Cal’s house.

As they work on the chair, Trey tells Cal about Johnny’s return. Trey asks if she can spend the night at his house. Cal asks her if she is worried that her dad will hurt her, but Trey says that she does not want Johnny to think he can just come back into her life as if nothing has changed. Cal calls his girlfriend Lena Dunne, who says that Trey can stay with her for the night.