9. Alex

Alex reflects on his detached emotional state and his complex feelings toward Ophelia after she leaves the library, then receives troubling news from his eldest sister Fleur about their mother's deteriorating mental health back in New York. He reveals his internal struggle between the gray cloud of apathy his father instilled in him and his fierce protective duty toward his seven younger sisters, which is his true reason for being at Sorrowsong University.

Alex notices Ophelia's absence from the library and realizes he's grown accustomed to her presence despite finding her abrasive. He reflects on his profound emotional numbness—a state he attributes to his father Cain Green's psychological damage—and acknowledges that only his sisters' safety and his plan involving Carmichael keep him from succumbing to despair. When Vincenzo brings him tequila shots, Alex receives distressing texts from his sixteen-year-old sister Fleur revealing that their mother has had a mental health crisis, throwing wine glasses into a pool; their father is away at a conference in Boston. Alex agonizes over being three thousand miles away from his younger siblings—particularly the elementary school-aged Charlotte and Josie—despite his promise to always protect them. He returns to his dorm room, where the power is out, and exchanges a tender text exchange with Charlotte about matching friendship bracelets. The chapter closes with Alex retrieving a master key he stole from a cleaner's trolley, preparing for something unnamed.