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Elliot is a widowed history teacher. He is also the father of Naomi and Cara. As Sal’s teacher, Elliot encouraged Sal in his studies. Although Pip likes Elliot at first, it turns out Elliot has some dark secrets: he had an affair with Andie when she was 17, gave her the injury that led to her death, and imprisoned a separate girl in the loft of his old home, delusionally believing that she was Andie. Elliot also murdered Sal, staging the death as a suicide to make it look like Sal killed Andie. Elliot is yet another example of the dark secrets that can lurk in a small town, showing how an outward appearance of politeness can hide the capacity for evil.
Elliot Quotes in A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder
The A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder quotes below are all either spoken by Elliot or refer to Elliot. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 11 Quotes
Stop digging, Pippa.
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Chapter 39 Quotes
The printer clacked behind her and she flinched.
Pivoting on the balls of her feet, she turned as it hissed, sucking in the top piece of paper.
She straightened up as it started to sputt-sputt-sputt the page through.
She moved towards it, a step between each sputt.
The paper started to push through, a glimpse of fresh black ink, upside down.
The printer finished and spat it out.
Pip reached for it.
She turned it round.
This is your final warning, Pippa. Walk away.
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Chapter 42 Quotes
She bent forward and reached down to feel it, the phone in her hand. Pretending to knead her ankle, she twisted her wrist and pushed the phone far underneath the back seat.
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Chapter 45 Quotes
Elliot’s voice broke. His eyes filled and a lone tear snaked down his cheek. “I said I was helping him, that he wouldn’t be a suspect if it looked like he’d been attacked too. He swallowed a few more and then he started to struggle. I pinned him down and forced him to take more. When he started to get sleepy, I held him and I talked to him about Oxford, about the amazing libraries, the formal hall dinners, how beautiful the city looked in spring. Just so he would fall asleep thinking about something good. When he was unconscious, I put the bag around his head and held his hand as he died.”
Pip had no pity for this man before her. Eleven years of memories dissolved from him, leaving a stranger standing in the room with her.
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“We made it nice up there for her. I insulated it, put in plywood walls and proper flooring. She picked out the wallpaper. There aren’t any windows but we put in lots of lamps. I know you must think I’m a monster, Pip, but I’ve never touched her, not since that last time at the Ivy House. It’s not like that. And she’s not like she was before. She’s a different person; she’s calm and grateful. She has food up there but I come round to cook for her three times during the week, once at the weekend, and let her down to shower. And then we just sit together in her loft, watching TV for a while. She’s never bored.”
“She’s locked up there and that’s the key?” Pip pointed to it.
Elliot nodded.
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Chapter 47 Quotes
“It’s not your job anymore, Pip,” he said. “The police have reopened Andie’s case. Let them do the rest. You’ve done enough.”
“I know,” she said and it wasn’t a lie. She was tired. She needed to finally be free of all this. She needed the weight on her shoulders to be just her own. And that last Andie Bell mystery wasn’t hers to chase any more.
Ravi was right; their part was over.
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Elliot Character Timeline in A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder
The timeline below shows where the character Elliot appears in A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 5
Pip goes to see Naomi in the study of her father, Elliot. Naomi has been in therapy ever since her mother, Isobel, died seven years ago. She...
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Production Log—Entry 8
Transcript of interview with Elliot Ward. Pip talks with Elliot, who used to teach Sal in history. Elliot says Sal...
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Production Log—Entry 13
...Emma isn’t aware of any. Emma does inform Pip that Andie had a grudge against Elliot, her history teacher, so Pip regretfully adds him to her persons of Interest.
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Chapter 13
In school, Pip debates whether to ask Elliot about Andie. She decides to do it, and he gives her 10 minutes. Pip says...
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Pip is relieved that Elliot’s involvement has a logical explanation. She asks if Elliot remembers whom Andie bullied, but he...
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Production Log—Entry 15
Transcript of second interview with Naomi Ward. Pip asks Naomi about what Elliot said about Andie being a bully. Naomi says that Andie spread nasty rumors about her...
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Chapter 39
...pumpkins together. Naomi makes a casual reference to how it was lucky that her dad, Elliot, had a spare SIM card lying around for her to use, and Pip tries to...
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Chapter 40
Pip feels certain that Elliot is the unknown number texting her—and that he killed Andie and Sal. Pip asks Cara...
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Chapter 41
...with trick-or-treaters. When they’re gone, she invites Ravi over. Ravi doesn’t want to believe that Elliot is guilty because Sal was close with Elliot. Pip says he has no alibi for...
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Chapter 42
...Cara at school, Pip fakes a limp. Cara takes Pip to the car so that Elliot can drive them both home. On the ride back, Pip drops her phone, which is...
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...refreshing the phone screen, and eventually the dot on the map moves to indicate that Elliot is driving. Eventually it stops by the old house where the Wards used to live....
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Chapter 43
...meets up with Cara, who says Pip was right: Pip did leave her phone in Elliot’s car. Pip lies that her mother is showing Cara’s old house in order to confirm...
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Chapter 44
...then claims that she’s going to see Lauren, when actually, she’s going to the location Elliot’s car went the previous day.
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Chapter 45
...calls the police when she arrives at the location and explains everything she knows about Elliot. The voice on the other end tells her to stay put until officers arrive, but...
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Elliot is startled, but eventually he invites her in. He admits that Andie is alive and...
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By chance, Elliot learned about Andie’s bullying, and he brings it up with her so that they each...
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Elliot admits to reading Naomi’s diary and knowing about the hit-and-run. He used this information to...
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One day, Elliot was driving, and he saw Andie walking by the side of the road. It looked...
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Pip tells Elliot to lie to the police and leave out the hit-and-run to protect Naomi. Just as...
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Chapter 46
...Andie away, Pip whispers to the girl that she’s not really Andie. The police lead Elliot out, and Pip wonders if he really thought the girl was Andie. Soon after, Ravi...
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Chapter 47
Pip writes Cara a note explaining everything Elliot did, but when she tries to call, neither Cara nor Naomi picks up. Ravi comes...
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Chapter 49
Pip goes to see Becca, saying she’s just checking on her after Elliot’s arrest. Becca offers her tea, since she’s just making some for herself, and Pip accepts....
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Three Months Later
...her project shouldn’t be herself but about Sal and uncovering the truth. She mentions that Elliot, Becca, Max, and Howie have all been arrested for different crimes. Pip says that Andie...
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