Greetings From Witness Protection!

When the Trevors arrive at their new home in Durham, Charlotte is pleased: “It has a turret. On the right front side of the house, where the porch curves around the corner, the roof tapers to a perfect point, atop which sits a polished brass weathervane” (110). Charlotte immediately decides to claim the turret room as hers, but Jackson has the same idea. The two scuffle on the staircase, each racing to reach the room first. Jackson’s phone is damaged during their struggle, and Charlotte prevails, alienating him even more.

Jonathan observes, “You’re brother and sister now, and you go and act like brother and sister. I even told Elena that the hullabaloo you two created made it seem like you’d been getting on each other’s nerves all your lives” (116). Charlotte savors her victory as she surveys her new domain. For the first time in her life, she feels that this bedroom is her own space to control.

In the days that follow, the Trevors unpack and settle into their new surroundings. During Charlotte’s training as an agent, she was given a 58-item list of things to check, including the chimney flue. These are all precautions to prevent someone from breaking in and harming the family. Because she’s so tense about keeping the Trevors safe, Charlotte finds her anxiety building, and theft becomes her coping mechanism. She steals Harriet’s fake engagement ring and hides it in her bedroom.

Charlotte immediately feels sorry and lies awake that night, racked with guilt. She hears sounds on the stairs and creeps out, fearful that an intruder might have broken into the home. Instead, she sees Jackson on the stairs, trailing his pillows and blanket. He stands indecisively outside his parents’ bedroom: “His eyes are red, cheeks swollen, and he’s wearing a grimace that seems locked somewhere between fury and despair” (124). He drops down on the stairs and sleeps in front of their closed door.

The next morning, after Charlotte comes downstairs and starts eating breakfast, an intrusive neighbor named Nancie Guthrie knocks on the back door. She talks nonstop, briefly introducing her shy daughter, Britney, who will be in the same seventh-grade class as Charlotte. Charlotte invites Brit to accompany her to buy school clothes, and Brit seems delighted. Nancie then tells Charlotte that the Trinity Park Neighborhood Association is staging a “pig-pickin’” party in honor of the Trevors on Sunday. Charlotte says that she’ll relay the message. Later, the family is baffled by the invitation, but they decide it’s best to be on good terms with everyone in the neighborhood.

That afternoon, Charlotte and Brit go to the mall to shop for school supplies and clothing. After hours of shopping, Charlotte offers to buy Brit a cinnamon pretzel. As they wait in line, Brit is accosted by some mean schoolmates, who cut in line ahead of her. They’re led by a girl named Deidre. Deidre calls Brit “BritGut” and intimidates her. Turning to Charlotte, she asks, “‘Are you Brit’s friend?’ There’s a twinge of something in the way she says Brit’s friend, maybe the little snap she puts in the t and the d, that makes it seem like she’s painting the tips of her words with poison” (146). Charlotte decides to take Deidre down a peg. She lifts the credit cards and cash from Deidre’s two companions and casually places the stolen loot in Deidre’s backpack. Later, from a distance, Charlotte watches as the other two girls accuse Deidre of stealing from them.

On Sunday, Harriet is frantic as she prepares for the neighborhood party. She still can’t find her fake ring, and Charlotte still can’t bring herself to confess that she took it. As the Trevors walk down the block, they’re intercepted by Nancie, who leads them to the shindig. Charlotte goes into the Guthrie house in search of Brit and finds her upstairs playing in an online gaming tournament. Brit is an experienced player, and Charlotte watches in amazement as she wins every round. Brit is shy about letting the kids at school know about her gaming expertise.

Once the two girls join the party, Charlotte is appalled when she finally learns what “pig-pickin’” is: “There, spitting and hissing over a steel grate, is an entire pig, its head brown and shriveled and its hairless legs left to dangle over the edge” (164-65). Jackson is gleeful when he sees Charlotte’s queasy reaction. Fortunately, the party ends well because both agree that the barbecue is delicious.