Olivia comes to believe that Mrs. Pentland's ravings about a secret in the attic were not madness. She soon discovers a packet of letters that reveals that the Pentland family's ancestor was a bastard child who stole the name from an aristocratic family that had died shortly after arriving in the New World. She suspects that Anson knows the truth and that he is lying about the family in his book.
Olivia comes to believe that Mrs. Pentland's statements about a secret in the attic were not mental disturbances. She soon discovers letters indicating that the Pentland family's ancestor was an illegitimate child who stole their name from an aristocratic family that had perished shortly after arriving in the New World. Olivia suspects that Anson knows the truth and is lying about the family in his book.