49 pages 1 hour read

John Grisham

The Pelican Brief

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2006

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Chapters 19-27Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 19-20 Summary

Darby’s landlord Mrs. Chen receives a visit from Darby’s friend Alice Stark. Alice explains that Darby has sent her to investigate the apartment, so Mrs. Chen leads her through a side entrance. Alice inspects the apartment. She discovers that files have been deleted from Darby’s computer and that floppy disks missing. Darby’s car is outside still, so Alice asks Mrs. Chen to watch over it. Alice leaves.

The streets of New Orleans’s French Quarter are busy. Alice finds Darby in a bar and explains what she found in the apartment. Darby thanks Alice but refuses to tell her too much lest to keep her friend safe. Instead, Darby asks Alice to attend Callahan’s memorial service to spread a rumor that Darby is in Denver with an unnamed aunt.

Verheek waits impatiently for Darby to contact him. At midnight, he decides to go to the bars to search for her. He makes small talk with one barman, then tries another bar, and then goes to a pool hall, but finds nothing. He returns to his hotel room at 3am and no messages are waiting for him. He wonders whether Darby is still alive.

Garcia contacts Grantham for the final time, just two hours before they are due to meet.

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