At the end of June, de Winter has to spend several days in London, and he leaves his wife at Manderley alone. She worries about her husband and fears something dreadful will happen to him. Robert brings her the message that de Winter arrived safely and she is tremendously relieved. Now she feels free to do what she likes and is shocked at the feeling.

She and Jasper walk through the Happy Valley to the cove and enjoy the solitude, though she feels guilty for doing so. Jasper again escapes to the adjoining cove, and she follows him. It looks less intimidating at low tide, and she can now read the name on the buoy: Je Reviens (“I come back”). It seems to her an ill-fitting name for Rebecca’s boat.

Jasper does not obey her and noses his way through the partially opened door of the cottage, a door she is sure she closed when she was here last. She convinces herself there is nothing to be afraid of and discovers the simple-minded man from the beach, Ben. He is frightened but denies he is doing anything. He has taken some fishing line, which he tries to hide, and the girl tells Ben he must not take what does not belong to him. She retrieves Jasper and they go back outside; Ben is visibly shaking and asks her not to send him to an asylum.

He explains that one day he looked into the cottage window when a woman was in there; she was tall and dark and gave him the feeling of a snake. She told him she would have him put in an asylum if she ever caught him looking at her again. Ben gives the girl a shell before asking her if that woman is gone now. The girl tells him she does not know who the woman is but no one is going to put him in an asylum.

The walk home is unpleasant for her, and now she understands why her husband dislikes this path and that cove. As she nears Manderley, she notices an unfamiliar sports car in the driveway, parked around a bend from the house. She looks up and is surprised to see a man standing at one of the windows in the west wing. He seems to see her and then someone behind him closes the shutter; it is Danvers.

The girl ponders the odd episode as she retrieves her knitting from the morning room. When she hears voices in the hallway, the girl ducks behind the door where she cannot be seen. She hears Danvers say that the girl has probably gone into the library, so he can leave now without being seen. Jasper gives the girl away, though, and the man discovers her and is astonished. He is a large, unpleasant man who smells of whiskey. He speaks to her in an over-familiar tone, explaining that Danny (Danvers) is an old friend of his as he lights a cigarette and then asks how “old Max” is.

She is surprised at his tone, aware of his bad manners, and offended at his too familiar ways. Danvers enters and just looks at the girl for a long time before reluctantly introducing the man as Mr. Favell. He rejects the girl’s offer of tea but insists she go see his car; Danvers does not accept his offer to join them. Favell is jocular, noting what a wonderful woman Danny is and wondering what the girl thinks of his car. He looks at the girl as he would look at a barmaid before throwing his cigarette butt on the ground. Before he leaves, Favell carelessly says perhaps she should not tell her husband he was here, as de Winter does not approve of him—though he does not know why.

Back at the house, Danvers has disappeared. The girl rings the bell but no one answers and she has to ring again. Soon a distraught maid appears, explaining that Robert is gone on an errand since Danvers told him Mrs. de Winter would be late for tea. It seems odd to the girl that Favell came to Manderley when he did, at a time when Danvers ensured others would not be around to see him; however, the girl does not want anyone to be upset or get in trouble. Favell is the only person who has ever called her husband Max—except for Rebecca.

Now the young girl wonders if Danvers is doing something dishonest while de Winter is away. The west wing is full of valuable things, and the girl has a sudden impulse to go check the rooms herself She will have just enough time to do so before Robert returns and serves her tea.