The Last Carolina Girl

Mrs. Griffin wakes Leah before sunrise; she needs help preparing the house and family for a planned luncheon. Leah cannot believe she overslept. She exerts herself with domestic responsibilities more than usual, wanting to maintain her trip to the fair with the Griffins. Mrs. Griffin frowns while looking at the picture of Leah’s mother and father on Leah’s dresser.

Having thoroughly cleaned the sunroom the previous day, Leah focuses on helping Mrs. Griffin dress for the event, taking special care to style her hair in a trendy updo. The women plan to learn about and discuss Dr. Foster’s new medical procedure. Before Dr. Foster speaks, Mrs. Wemberton updates the ladies about the upcoming ball, the first event for debutantes in Matthews, North Carolina. Mrs. Griffin looks forlorn when Mrs. Wemberton emphasizes the value of introducing their daughters as debutantes.

Dr. Foster begins speaking about his work in genealogy. As he introduces his new procedure as something that will better American families and society, Mrs. Griffin dismisses Leah to prepare drinks, closing the sunroom doors behind her as she leaves. Unable to hear anything besides gasps and applause, Leah busies herself with the refreshments. The women soon file out of the sunroom, accepting drink refills from Leah without looking at her. Dr. Foster approaches and comments on Leah’s rare hair color. He passes out pamphlets about his eugenics program to the ladies to give to their husbands.

Suddenly, the mouse appears again. The majority of the women scream and run from the house. Mrs. Griffin instructs Leah to get a broom and kill the creature. Leah tries to chase the mouse into the yard, but Mrs. Griffin corners her, ordering her to strike the mouse with her broom. Leah thinks of the fair and Jesse; she kills the mouse. She believes that the act is not in keeping with the character Harley intended for Leah to have.

On the day the Griffins plan to go to the fair, Leah eavesdrops outside Mr. and Mrs. Griffin’s bedroom, listening to the couple argue. Mrs. Griffin dislikes how Mr. Griffin travels to Raleigh for work, particularly when he shares stories of their old hometown. Leah is surprised that the Griffins are originally from Raleigh, which was Emma and Harley’s hometown. Leah estimates that Mrs. Griffin and Emma would have been the same age as adolescents. She asks Mary Ann if Mrs. Griffin ever talks about Raleigh. Though Mary Ann can’t recall, she mentions Mrs. Griffin talking about a woman with red hair similar to Leah’s.

Exiting his room, Mr. Griffin joyfully announces that the entire family will eat a light dinner before enjoying treats at the fair, Leah included. There, Mr. Griffin hands out ride tickets to each child. Leah rides the Ferris wheel with Mary Ann, scouring the crowd for Jesse. She sees him only when they exit the ride. Jesse runs to Leah and embraces her; they remain close as the crowd pushes them together. They travel to a quieter seat to talk but are soon interrupted by Dr. Foster’s presentation about his eugenics research and program. Using rat populations to demonstrate his point, Dr. Foster states his beliefs about genetic cleansing and sterilization. Leah feels unsettled by Dr. Foster’s presentation. She leads Jesse away from the fair, where they can stargaze.

Leah notices that Jesse looks taller, with broad shoulders and bigger hands. He reports Mrs. Barna’s newfound appreciation for Maeve, which delights Leah. Jesse tells stories about school and happenings in Supply. Leah decides not to ruin her happiness by telling Jesse about the Griffins’ cruelty. She asks Jesse if she might be able to return to the Barnas’ house, but he mistakes her question for a request to visit. Before she can clarify her request, the Griffins find Leah with Jesse and assume that she is acting “promiscuously.” With judgment and anger, they separate Leah from Jesse and make her walk home.

Although Leah makes extra effort to accomplish all household duties, Mrs. Griffin remains displeased. She begins thinking about how she might run away and return to the Barnas’ house; seeing Jesse has made Leah feel desperate to return to her home—Harley’s dilapidated cabin.

Dr. Foster visits and invites Leah for a private examination in the sunroom. He listens to Leah’s heart and lungs. He asks Leah about her “spells,” which he calls “absences,” before asking her to read from a picture book. Nervous, Leah doesn’t read as efficiently as is typical for her. After the exam, Leah overhears Dr. Foster speaking with Mrs. Griffin about Leah’s seizures. While he admits to not completing a full IQ exam, he agrees that Leah is “simpleminded.” He starts to discuss a procedure that can help Leah, but Mary Ann calls Leah away before she can hear more details. She senses trouble in the future.

At dinner, Mrs. Griffin reprimands Michael Henry for failing another test. Mrs. Griffin doesn’t notice when Leah quietly excuses Mary Ann to prepare her for bed. Michael Henry finds Leah stargazing in the backyard; Leah tells him the story of the Great Bear, detailing how Zeus protected his lover, Callipso, from Hera, Zeus’s wife. Leah proposes that she and Michael Henry sneak away to the beach for a day. Eager to miss a school day, Michael Henry agrees to the plan. Leah sees a shooting star and believes that she, too, will soon be able to fly away from the Griffins’ house.

Leah works in the garden as much as possible, attempting to avoid Mrs. Griffin’s wrath. One day, Mrs. Griffin finds Leah in the garden. She speaks nicely to Leah, coaxing her to sit while she brushes her hair. However, her tone changes as she accuses Leah of stealing money from the Griffins. Leah explains that the seven cents sitting on her dresser is the spare change from Mr. Griffin’s dime given to Leah to purchase a soda. Mrs. Griffin declares that Leah should have returned the change.

She then produces a pair of scissors and cuts Leah’s hair close to her scalp. Leah cries and begs Mrs. Griffin to stop, but Mrs. Griffin threatens to cut off a finger or the tip of Leah’s ear if the girl doesn’t sit still.

Mary Ann finds Leah in the garden; she compliments Leah’s hairstyle and wishes she could have a similar look so that Mrs. Griffin’s brushing wouldn’t hurt. Mary Ann shares that Mrs. Griffin speaks as if she cannot understand, but Mary Ann knows and dislikes much of what her mother says. She misses Alma, though she calls her “Gran Alma.” Leah is confused because she had assumed that Alma was a child worker like herself. Mary Ann clarifies that Alma is an older woman; Mrs. Griffin dismissed Alma when she snuck food to Mary Ann, who was locked in her room all day for wetting the bed. Knowing that the Griffins hired Alma changes Leah’s perspective.

Mrs. Griffin appears and scolds Mary Ann for having dirty knees, exclaiming that Mary Ann shouldn’t want to be like Leah. Leah no longer feels compelled to try so hard to impress or resemble the Griffin family; she feels committed to living up to Harley’s moral integrity.

Mary Ann appears in the kitchen the following Sunday wearing her mother’s high-heeled shoes. While Eva Jane and Michael Henry tease Mary Ann, Leah observes the young child putting forth her best attempt to look like Mrs. Griffin. Mrs. Griffin forbids Leah from attending church, layering on extra chores as she ushers the children into the family car. Leah understands that Mrs. Griffin doesn’t want anyone to see her butchered hair; regardless, Leah prefers quiet moments alone in the house.

Leah prepares a hearty Sunday dinner before tidying up the house. She finds another letter from Jesse and runs down the street to the privacy of a cemetery bench to read it. Jesse tells Leah to visit any time; he’ll make arrangements if necessary. Leah writes that she plans to return to the Barnas’ home permanently. She finds an envelope and stamp in Eva Jane’s room, though she must hide the letter under her mattress until she can sneak it out of the house to mail.

The Griffins return from church just as Leah walks out of her room. No one helps Leah serve the food even though they all complain of hunger. Mrs. Griffin scolds Michael Henry for not asking a specific, upper-class young lady to the approaching ball. She sternly expresses her frustration at single-handedly uplifting the Griffins’ reputation as they “start over.” Leah tires of wondering about Mrs. Griffin’s secrets.