The Wonder

Content Warning: This chapter contains depictions of an eating disorder and sexual assault.

Wright tells Byrne about Anna’s confession, and he encourages her to go to the committee meeting and tell them the truth. At the cottage, Anna is too weak to be wheeled outside in her chair. Wright accuses Anna of attempting suicide, but Anna responds that it’s a sacrifice. Wright reads in Anna’s prayer book that reciting the prayer to the cross 33 times while fasting will release souls from purgatory. Anna confirms that she’s trying to bring Pat into heaven. Wright tells Anna that she has a duty to live.

At the committee meeting, Wright implores the committee to end the watch, but they refuse. One member explicitly states that he wants Anna to become a saint to bring glory to Ireland. Sister Michael appears with Anna in a wheelchair, and the committee is disturbed by her physical appearance. Nevertheless, they refuse to stop the watch. Wright leaves, distraught. Later that night, Wright tells Byrne about the meeting. He asks how far she’d go to save Anna, and Wright responds that she’d do anything. Wright reveals that she is not a widow: Her husband left, and her parents agreed to move her to London and lie about her being a widow.