Fellowship Point

Maud phones Agnes, telling her that she has discovered her authorship of the Franklin Square series. She vows to keep Agnes’s secret. Maud helps Agnes edit the latest Franklin Square book as she writes it; Agnes hopes that she can introduce Maud to her publisher and secure her a position as Agnes’s new editor.

Robert drives Agnes to an oncology appointment in Portland. Her doctor states that he has no way to know whether the cancer will return. He urges Agnes to make a living will that lays out her wishes for the end of her life. As she exits the office, a newspaper catches her eye, and she buys a copy. In it is a story of Hamm Loose and his real estate endeavors. The article quotes Loose regarding his hopes to build a resort on Fellowship Point. Agnes shares the article with Robert, who notices a second article: An Abenaki teen has been arrested for killing an eagle. The girl asserts that the right to do so is part of her Indigenous heritage.

Upon returning home, Agnes phones her doctor and tells him that she wants to begin chemotherapy.

Polly leaves a social lunch early when the other women defend Seela Lee (the woman who accused Robert of stealing from her home). She and Robert have settled into a routine in which they chat each day outside but take most of their meals separately. They continue to plan Polly’s landscaping together.

One day, Polly, believing she sees Lydia’s ghost, trips and falls. Robert drives her to the hospital, where she’s diagnosed with a minor concussion. On the way back, he passes the home where, several years ago, Polly saw the neglected dog. Polly is surprised to see the dog still there (since Dick assured her that Animal Control had taken care of it). Robert buys the dog from the owner and takes it home.

Polly’s children arrive for their annual visit and urge her to move to an assisted living facility. They worry that she’s not safe around Robert.

Agnes is in the cemetery visiting her father’s grave when Polly approaches. The two talk, apologize, and make up. Polly invites her over, taking Agnes into Dick’s study, and shows Agnes the essay she wrote years ago, explaining how she anonymously mailed it to Dick at the university. Agnes sees that he wrote a note to himself on the paper to discover who the author was and invite “him” to lecture at the university. They talk about Dick and how Polly’s boys have become like him and then begin cleaning out the study. Polly asks about Agnes’s writing, and Agnes says she’s trying to write another When Nan book. She then decides to share with Polly the last of the notebooks, which she withheld from Maud.

Agnes writes to Elspeth, musing about Nan, her pets, and the fullness of her life. She returns to the letter later that day to recount the afternoon’s events: Karen invited her to lunch at Virgil’s home. Confused but seeing that Karen was excited, Agnes followed her to the Chalet. Over lunch, the two told Agnes that they were engaged. Agnes was shocked. She’d loved Virgil and hoped he’d take an interest in her. She now feared that Karen would replace her in Nan’s life. Then, Virgil read aloud from a piece he’d written, which was essentially the story of how he came to know Karen via Agnes. They asked Agnes if she might allow Nan to sleep over for the night, and Agnes agreed.

As she closes her letter to Elspeth, Agnes admits to wanting children, confessing that she thought this could have happened with Virgil.

Agnes explains that she must tell Elspeth of the events the morning after Karen and Virgil’s announcement. Agnes woke and saw no smoke coming from the Chalet, which was surprising because Virgil was always up before her. A snowstorm had come overnight and, certain school was canceled, Agnes let Nan sleep in. Eventually, Agnes went to wake her, but Nan was gone. She found Nan at the Chalet. Nan said that Virgil was asleep, but Agnes discovered that both he and Karen had died during the night. The investigation revealed that they died of carbon monoxide poisoning since the cottage wasn’t properly ventilated. Agnes recalled closing the window in Nan’s bedroom the night before when she retrieved some items for Nan to spend the night and blamed herself for the deaths.

Polly picks up Agnes to spend the afternoon at the local pool. On the way home, they briefly discuss the Reeds. Polly tries to assure Agnes not to feel responsible for Virgil’s death; Agnes agrees but confesses that she still mourns losing Nan.

They spot a person in the road ahead, who has fallen off a bicycle. It’s Seela Lee. Agnes and Polly help Seela despite her rudeness. They drive her home, and Agnes cleans her cuts while Polly wanders through the house. Polly comes across the wampum belt, which Robert was imprisoned for stealing. Just then, Archie arrives. Agnes and Polly confront him about the belt, and he admits that it had merely slipped behind the case, which they discovered a year earlier. Agnes and Polly insist that Archie publicly exonerate Robert and agree to the land trust. Archie counters that he’ll agree to only one action, and Polly chooses Robert’s exoneration. They leave Archie as he promises to call the newspapers.

Maud and Clemmie travel to Fellowship Point; Maud takes her time on the drive, relishing the scenery. They arrive and briefly visit the Rookerie, where they’ll stay, and then they head to Agnes’s.

Clemmie immediately takes to Robert, and Agnes and Polly are amazed at how much Clemmie resembles Nan. Agnes asks how Heidi came to live in Florida. Maud recalls the words in Heidi’s file; one, “Fur,” is what Nan called Virgil. Agnes and Maud are certain that Heidi is Nan.

That night, Maud steps outside to stare at the sky, thinking of Heidi. Robert had many questions for Maud about Heidi and tells Maud about his memories of Nan.

It’s time for the annual Point Party, which hasn’t been held since the year before Dick died. When Hamm Loose and his sons arrive, Agnes sneaks away, noticing that James Wister clearly aligns himself with Hamm.

Maud, Clemmie, and Heidi are present, as is Robert. Heidi has improved, but everyone is cautious with her. Like Agnes, Polly, and Maud, Robert is certain that she’s Nan, having never been convinced that Nan was truly dead.

Alone in the Sank, Agnes thinks about her mother, then recalls her conversation with Mary Mitchell, the Indigenous girl accused of killing the eagles, whose legal defense Agnes funded.

At the party, Polly introduces Heidi to Hamm, explaining that she’s part of the Reed family, and challenges Hamm about wanting to develop the land. Heidi doesn’t fully recall her time at Fellowship Point, though details slowly return to her.

As she lies on the ground in the Sank, Agnes realizes that a land trust is unnecessary: They’ve been good stewards of the land all along. She returns to the party just as Heidi announces that she remembers she’s Nan Reed.

Agnes writes a final letter, seemingly to Elspeth. She reveals that she published the final book in the Franklin Square series, publicly revealing herself as their author. She describes her daily routine and then takes stock of her life. She reflects on what she has decided about stewardship and land ownership from her conversations with Mary Mitchell. Because of these insights, Agnes and others decided to turn over ownership of Fellowship Point to the Wabanaki people in 2006. She provides updates on the others: Robert and Heidi have moved to Deel Town, and Maud and Clemmie have moved back to Manhattan, where Maud continues to work in publishing. Agnes continues to work on the memoir.

As Agnes closes the letter, it becomes apparent that she’s writing to Polly, who has passed away.