The Secret Garden: Chapter 13 Summary & Analysis

Later, Mary shows the note to Martha. Martha explains that the nest is a missel thrush nest, and Mary understands that he's promising to keep her secret. Late that night, Mary wakes up to the sound of a storm. She feels as though she hates the rain and thinks it sounds like a person crying. After about an hour of listening, she hears what she believes is actual crying. She slips out of her room and follows the sound. It gets louder as Mary gets to the corridor with the tapestry covering a doorway. Mary pushes open the next door and finds herself in a richly furnished bedroom. There's a crying boy in the bed, and Mary wonders if she's in a dream.

The boy looks ill, but as though he's crying because he's upset and not because he's in pain. When he notices her, he asks if she's a ghost and introduces himself as Colin Craven. The children realize that they're related; Mr. Craven is Colin's father. Colin asks Mary to come closer so he can confirm that she's not a ghost, and he grabs onto her robe. They discuss that neither of them knew the other existed, and Colin admits that he wants to be a secret because he's ill and he doesn't want anyone to see him. He explains that the servants are forbidden to talk about him, and he's going to either die or become a hunchback.

Mary remarks that everything in this house is a secret and asks if Mr. Craven comes to see him. Angrily, Colin says that his father hates him because Mrs. Craven died. Mary says that he hates the garden for the same reason, but she doesn't tell Colin what the garden actually is. Colin goes on to say that he's been here most of his life. He wore a brace for a while, but then a London doctor said the brace was useless and prescribed fresh air. Colin, however, hates fresh air.

Mary asks Colin if he wants her to go away, since he doesn't like people looking at him. He asks her to sit down and tell him about herself. They talk about India and Misselthwaite, and Colin shows her his beautiful books. Colin says that everyone must please him, as nobody believes he's going to grow up. He asks Mary's age, and Mary says that they're both ten—she knows this because he was born at the same time that Mr. Craven locked the garden door and buried the key. This interests Colin, but Mary evades his questions about the garden. He insists that he can make the servants tell him all about it, and Mary realizes that Colin is very spoiled. She finds it strange, even though she used to be just as spoiled.

Mary asks if Colin thinks he's going to die. He indifferently says that he's heard people saying he won't live for his entire life. His doctor now is Mr. Craven's cousin, who stands to inherit Misselthwaite if Colin dies. When Mary asks if Colin wants to live, he says he doesn't, but he doesn't want to die either. He returns the conversation to the garden and says that he wants to see it and will make the servants take him into it. Mary is afraid that this will ruin everything, so she begs him to not do it, as that will make it so the garden isn't a secret anymore. The mention of a secret intrigues Colin, and Mary tells him that it would be wonderful if they could find the door, sneak in, and play secretly.

Colin wants to know if the garden is dead, and Mary explains that the bulbs will live, but the roses are questionable. She tells him that spring is coming and tells him again how wonderful it would be if they could find the way into the secret garden, watch things grow, says that it'd be nicer if it could be a secret. Colin says this secret is more fun than the secret that he's not going to live. Mary suggests that they could find someone to push Colin's wheelchair. Colin dreamily says he likes this idea. Mary keeps talking to him about what the garden might look like.

Colin points to a pink curtain on the wall and when Colin asks her to, Mary pulls it. It pulls the curtain aside to reveal a painting of a laughing girl whose eyes look just like Colin's. Colin says that this is Mrs. Craven, and if she'd lived, he wouldn't be ill and Mr. Craven wouldn't hate him. Mary closes the curtain and asks why he has the curtain in the first place. Colin explains that the portrait smiles too much, and he wants to keep his mother for himself.

Mary asks what Mrs. Medlock will think if she finds out that she's here. Colin says that he's going to tell Mrs. Medlock to make Mary come talk to him every day. After a moment, Colin decides that he's going to keep Mary a secret too. He explains that Martha is caring for him now while his nurse is away, and she'll tell Mary when to visit. Mary asks if she should leave now and offers to sing one of her Ayah's songs for Colin. She takes his hand, pats it, and sings a song in Hindustani. She leaves when he falls asleep.