Before We Were Yours: Chapter 19 Summary & Analysis

Avery is driving to May Crandall’s nursing home—Avery got Ian to call ahead to make sure May is out of the hospital—with Trent following her in his own car. Avery feels a little like a kid skipping school because she’s not answering any of Leslie’s calls and Trent has closed his real estate office for the day to go with her to see May. Leslie calls again as Avery pulls up, but she still doesn’t answer. Avery knows Leslie probably just wants her to come home early to go to a press op or something, so she puts her phone on vibrate and gets out of the car.

Trent greets her at the curb, and they joke around about Avery’s driving. Avery likes Trent but knows they can only be friends; she let it slip that she has a fiancé just to send the message that she’s not romantically available. As they walk into the nursing home, the conversation turns to how hard it is to see a loved one living in a facility like this. Once they get to May’s room, Avery realizes she doesn’t know what to say and pauses at the door to think of how to start the conversation. Suddenly May calls out and asks who is by her door before throwing a slipper through the doorway. Avery hesitantly approaches the door, introduces herself, and asks if May remembers her. When Avery mentions Judy, May tells her to come in.

May is in her bed when Avery comes into the room. Avery tells her that Judy didn’t remember May’s name but could remember there was someone named Queenie. May is unsettled by this and acknowledges that it must be difficult for Avery. Avery agrees and says that she was always close to Judy; as May points out, however, Avery and Judy were not so close that Judy ever told her about the people in the picture. Avery says she’s hoping May will tell her, but May gruffly says that it has nothing to do with Avery. Trent makes a noise outside and May tells him to come in. Avery says Trent is her friend and May says she doubts he’s just a friend.

May looks intently at Trent and asks what his last name is. When Trent tells her, May says Trent has “his eyes,” but doesn’t say whose. May reaches out to touch his face and Trent blushes when May tells Avery that he’s “a keeper.” Avery mentions that she’s engaged to someone else and May retorts that there’s no wedding ring yet. Avery’s phone buzzes and May frowns at her, so Avery puts it on silent and pulls out the pictures from the office to show May. When Avery mentions the TCHS, May snaps at her. Trent gently takes May’s hand and tells her what he knows about his grandfather’s past and the files he left behind after his death. At this, May’s eyes water up, and she asks if Trent’s grandfather passed away. When Trent confirms this, May kisses him on the cheek and says his grandfather was her friend.

Trent asks May if his grandfather was adopted from the TCHS and she tells him he was; furthermore, she says she herself was adopted from the TCHS as well. She tells Trent that his grandfather had a different name in the TCHS and reclaimed his real name after finding out he was adopted. May shares her story with Trent and Avery, starting with the names of her parents (Queenie and Briny) and her siblings (Camellia, Lark, Fern, and Gabion). Avery is mesmerized by the tragic story of how the family was broken up in the TCHS—all except May and Fern, who were adopted together. May tells Trent she knew his grandfather as Stevie, and originally thought he was a fraud when he contacted her.

Avery shows May the picture of the four women on the beach and asks if they are May’s sisters. May looks closely at the photo and says the picture is of herself, Lark, Fern, and Judy at Edisto Island. Avery asks if that’s where May met Judy. To herself, Avery admits that she wants an answer that doesn’t involve Judy doing penance out of guilt for the role their family played in the TCHS. May confirms that she met Judy at Edisto and that they became good friends, but Avery realizes this doesn’t explain why Judy was concerned with the TCHS. Avery decides to show May the papers about Shad Arthur Foss that Trent gave her. As soon as she tells May about them, however, May says she’s exhausted. Avery begs May to tell her if Judy was involved with the TCHS, but May says she’ll have to ask Judy.

Trent tells Avery they should leave but Avery pleads with May to tell her if her family is involved in the TCHS. May tells Avery that Judy was just helping May write her memoir until she decided to keep the story to herself. Avery asks if that’s everything and May says it is, but also that she wishes she could tell Avery more. This sets off alarm bells in Avery’s head because her experience as a lawyer says that when witnesses are lying, they “have a hard time stopping on an absolute yes or no.” May looks to Trent and tells him that his grandfather helped reunite her and Fern with their sister Lark. Lark and Fern, however, have since died and their families don’t know about the past. May wants Trent and Avery not to bother their families and tells them that she’s at peace with the past.

Avery tells May that she’s sorry for what May had to go through as a child. May tells Trent and Avery they should let her sleep before the nurses get her for physical therapy and makes a joke about how at 90 years old, she has no need for muscle tone. Trent chuckles and says his grandfather wanted to just be put in a boat to drift down the Edisto River. At this May smiles and says she’d like to go “home to Augusta” and float down the Savannah River. As they leave, Avery wonders what it must be like to live two different lives like May and wonders why May didn’t talk about her life with her adoptive family.

Trent tells Avery that the revelations May made about his grandfather make him wonder what his grandfather’s life would have been like if he hadn’t been kidnapped. Avery thanks Trent for helping her, but when their eyes meet, she blushes and wonders at the chemistry between them. Suddenly, a random thought enters her mind that she might be making a mistake with Elliot. As soon as it enters her head, however, she realizes it’s not random—it’s actually a question she’s been avoiding. She considers the possibility that she’s getting married for the wrong reasons, but also knows that it will look bad if she breaks up with Elliot now—their families are both excited and would be hurt if the wedding were cancelled.

Trent says Avery’s name, calling her out of her thoughts. She asks him what he was going to say, and he apologizes for being rude to her when they first met. Avery excuses him and to herself thinks that he wasn’t rude considering how pushy she was, and notes that she truly is a Stafford who assumes she’ll get what she wants. It occurs to Avery that this makes her a lot like the parents who bought children from Georgia Tann, who must have known how some kids were being kidnapped but believed their social status justified their decision to buy the kids anyway. This thought makes Avery question if she really deserves any of her privileges just because of her birth.

Trent tells Avery that he should get back to Edisto. As they say goodbye, Avery hears a car pull into the parking lot. Trent thanks her for helping him find the truth and leans in to kiss her on the cheek. As Trent pulls away, Avery sees Leslie walking over out of the corner of her eye. Avery realizes how intimate the moment between herself and Trent looked and abruptly thanks Trent as Leslie walks up. Trent watches Leslie scold Avery for not answering the phone and then leaves. Watching Trent leave, Leslie tells Avery to be more considerate of her public image and remember to avoid scandal. Leslie then tells Avery that a news article about the difference between Magnolia Manor and the nursing homes being sued for mistreating residents. Avery is furious to learn the article includes a picture of Wells and Judy at Magnolia Manor.