The Girl on the Train: Anna: Six Summary & Analysis

Tuesday, August 13, 2013. As Anna watches Tom get ready for work, she misses the days when she, too, used to go to her job as a real estate agent. She wishes she could go back to work so the two of them could make more money. After Tom leaves for work, Anna stresses herself out making Evie the perfect breakfast—the fussy Evie is in a picky phase. Anna resists the urge to cry. She realizes that it isn’t just work she misses: it’s the feeling of “being a mistress.” She was always turned on by the idea of being the irresistible other woman; she and Tom would often rendezvous at a house Anna was in the process of selling. When Evie smiles at Anna, however, Anna knows that if she did go back to work—to life before motherhood—she’d miss Evie more than she misses her freedom now.

That evening, Tom texts Anna to tell her he’s going to be late coming home—he’s having drinks with a client. Anna is getting Evie ready for her evening walk when she spies Rachel standing across the street, looking at the house. As soon as the curtains part, Rachel runs off. Anna is full of fury—Tom told her that he met up with Rachel and sorted things out. Anna begins to wonder if there is a part of Tom that likes the fact that Rachel won’t leave them alone—or let him go. Anna picks up the phone and calls Detective Riley.

Wednesday, August 14, 2013. Anna and Tom have sleepy morning sex. Tom says that he wants the two of them to take an extravagant vacation to Bali and focus on each other. Anna points out that it’s odd Tom thinks they don’t have enough money to move—but they have enough money for a lavish holiday. Evie begins crying, and Tom hurriedly goes to get her. Later, as Tom and Anna feed the fussy Evie breakfast, Anna mentions that Rachel was hanging around the house last night. Tom, furious, says there’s nothing more he can do. When he saw Rachel the other day, he says, she looked fine. Anna is shocked—she thought that Tom only spoke to Rachel on the phone. Tom admits having lied to Anna to make things easier for himself. He apologizes and embraces Anna. She decides to let him get away with this one thing.

After Tom leaves for work, Anna takes Evie for a walk. As she passes the house where she and Tom conducted their affair, she feels a small thrill. She remembers that when she used to express fears about getting caught together, Tom would always tell her what a good liar he was. As Anna continues waking, she recalls late nights early on in their marriage when she’d wake up and hear Tom on the phone calming Rachel down. She begins to wonder if he’s actually having an affair with Rachel.

For the rest of the day, Anna is plagued with thoughts about whether Tom has been lying to her all along. She is afraid that she’ll end up just like Rachel if she gives into her doubts—yet she cannot stop herself from grabbing a bottle of wine and Tom’s computer and trying to guess his password. She is unable to crack it—and when she hears Tom coming in the door, she stashes the computer and pretends to be busy with other things. When she catches sight of herself in the hall mirror, she sees that her lips are stained wine-red.