Each member of the Torrance family feels a strange sense of relief when the snow begins: “The bridge had been crossed” (211). Nevertheless, when they go inside, they feel like “microbes trapped in the intestine of a monster” (211).

Two weeks later, feet of snow cover everything. Danny enjoys sledding outside, and the grounds are beautiful.

After checking on the boiler one day, Jack looks through papers and boxes downstairs. He finds a bloody piece of a sheet, a mangled teddy bear, a disturbing puppet, and other nasty objects. As Jack rummages, Danny is outside Room 217 with the passkey. He went to the firehose to prove that it wasn’t scary, and now he is feeling brave. He goes in and the room is empty, but the bathroom door is ajar.

There is a dead woman in the bathtub. She sits up as Danny tries to scream. He runs, but the door to the hallway is now closed. He remembers Hallorann saying that nothing can hurt him in the hotel: “They’re like pictures in a book…close your eyes and they’ll be gone” (218). He closes his eyes, but then he feels the dead woman’s hands around his throat.