Emily and her friends usually spend their afternoons at the home of John Sullivan, the owner of a small estate on the edge of the Murray property. Emily has always kept a secret diary in which she writes letters to her father. One day Elisabeth catches her writing on her and the girl, to prevent her aunt from reading her most intimate thoughts, throws the notebook into the fire and, upset, takes refuge in John's house. The host is not there but there are some nice apples on the table: Emily eats some, noticing too late John's note that the apples are sprinkled with rat poison. The girl returns home knowing she is dying and writes her will. Elisabeth rushes to John Sullivan's house, and there she discovers that it was a stupid joke. She gets very angry with the man, and even Emily, in a way, feels betrayed by him.