The truth is that Gat, Mirren, and Johnny died in the fire that Cady asked them to set in Clairmont. She feels so guilty about what happened that she has forgotten the events. Doctors have said this is part of the grieving process. Eventually, after two years away, Cady expressed a desire to return to the island: "On the island, perhaps, she would finish healing" (203).

Cady now remembers the events of the fire. Mirren and Johnny went to the third floor while Gat went to the basement with cans full of gas for lighting the fire. Cady lights the fire on the first floor, but she uses too much gas, and the fire traps her three friends, who die in the blaze.

Cady recalls her dead friends and all they hoped to achieve in life. She feels horrified that she has inflicted so much harm on everyone. She realizes that the Liars she thought were there with her this summer were in fact ghosts who came to her because they loved her.