54 pages • 1 hour read
Lawrence HillThe Illegal
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2015A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 18-23Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Part 2: “Freedom State, 2018”
Chapter 18 Summary
Keita arrives at the Clarkson library, hoping to use a computer to check his email. He meets a man named Vander Vann, an aspiring novelist who tells him about Ivernia Beech, a “friend of the people” who will help him get a library card (228). Keita speaks with her, and she remembers that he is the very same runner who came to her aid after her car accident. Once she helps him obtain a library card, he is able to check his email, where he finds messages from both John and Viola asking for interviews. He also receives an email from Mitch Hitchcock, the Buttersby Marathon organizer, asking if Keita would like to join his Freedom State Olympic Marathon Team. Next is a threatening message from Anton Hamm, and finally a message from George Maxwell about the impending ransom deadline for Charity’s life. After reading these emails, Keita is suddenly overtaken by nausea and passes out, hitting his head as he falls to the floor. He comes to in the library’s first-aid room, where Ivernia is taking care of him. Ivernia is so concerned that she invites him over for tea and even offers to let him stay with her.
Chapter 19 Summary
On his way to Ivernia’s home, Keita passes a demonstration. Angry white people chant at the prime minister, demanding more deportations to get rid of the Illegals. He manages to skirt the demonstration, but as he knocks on Ivernia’s door, her neighbor Lydia comes out and threatens him with Bear Spray, assuming he is a dangerous criminal because he is Black. Ivernia apologizes and invites him in. She shows him her home and the ample extra studio she has for him to stay in. They make an arrangement: Ivernia will provide room and board plus $500 a month if Keita cooks her three meals a week, tends to her garden, and completes other tasks.
One evening after Keita has made a delicious meal, Jimmy comes to the house and sees Keita. He assumes Keita is a home invader and calls the police. When the police arrive, Ivernia explains that her son has a mental illness, and the officer leaves the house without further ado.
Chapter 20 Summary
Keita participates in a 5k. He is beaten by a younger Kenyan runner, so he doesn’t earn any prize money. He does, however, meet Candace Freixa. After chatting, she slips a note into his pocket with her phone number and her winnings from the race, which is a gift certificate to a running equipment store. Keita calls to thank her the next day and asks to meet for a jog and coffee. Candace really likes his style and respectful attitude, so they have dinner at her house and sleep together. After she falls asleep, Keita washes her dishes. As he is putting them away, he sees her police badge. He quickly leaves her house, assuming she will arrest him for being unauthorized.
Chapter 21 Summary
The narrative revisits the night Yvette was taken away: Darlene happened to be taking a smoke break outside when a van marked Reliable Security Services pulled up to Bombay Booty. Lula approached the van and spoke with the driver, telling him to get Yvette Peters and not let her out of his sight “until she [was] on the plane” (259).
Darlene is walking in South Clarkson when she is suddenly approached by Saunders, threatening her with a gun and demanding to know what happened to Yvette Peters. After being punched in the face and threatened multiple times, Darlene reveals that Keita possesses a USB stick with footage that Saunders wants. She flees to a women’s shelter and plans to escape the city as well, knowing she may share Yvette’s fate.
Chapter 22 Summary
Rocco Calder now understands that his visit to Bombay Booty was a trap set up by the prime minister. Wellington had hoped that Calder would be caught and take the fall, distracting attention from himself. As Calder thinks about this, John arrives with questions about the deportation process. Anton Hamm interrupts, angrily referring to blackmail and demanding that Calder deliver Hamm’s payment.
After this interaction, Calder hosts a public meeting to discuss the issue of Illegals. Some people stand up and support the Family Party line, spewing racism and suggesting that AfricTown be bulldozed. Candace Freixa speaks up and reveals that she is from AfricTown. Ivernia then shares her opinion: that people cannot be “illegal” and that the government should stop referring to them as such. After the meeting, Calder receives a call from Darlene. She implores him to help her, and he promises to call her back after work.
Chapter 23 Summary
Keita receives another email from Anton Hamm demanding repayment of the money Keita owes him, plus another email from Maxwell. This confirms that Charity is still alive and that Keita is expected to pay the $15,000 the day after the Clarkson 10-miler. Keita returns to Ivernia’s home late at night, and she is very upset that he has neglected to cook her meals. She tells him she waited up for him because she was worried. He promises to be more attentive going forward.
Chapters 18-23 Analysis
Spurning the damsel-in-distress trope, this novel often shows Keita being rescued by women. Ivernia Beech is an opinionated, strong woman willing to stand up to her society. She takes Keita into her own home even though it is illegal to harbor refugees—an act that reveals her understanding of the Legality Versus Justice distinction. She repeatedly puts herself at risk to help those without authorization despite being a physically frail woman who herself is persecuted by her son and to some extent the government. As she says, “I am an old woman, Keita. I can’t help every person who is in a bad way. But I can help you” (242). Her character reflects an ally or advocate’s role in changing society, developing the theme of Race, Privilege, and Power.
Candace Freixa is also a rescuer figure for Keita. Candace has a stereotypically masculine profession and competes with men in the races where she meets Keita. Her first move is to slip her phone number, along with a gift certificate, into Keita’s pocket. This is a reversal of traditional masculine and feminine roles: Candace pursues Keita and courts him with material goods. She does not tell him she is a police officer, leaving Keita in the more vulnerable position in their power dynamic. On their date she takes a stereotypically masculine approach, lusting after Keita and feminizing him by observing the lack of hair on his legs and then wondering “if his ass was that smooth. She hadn’t been laid in…how long was it now?” (255). She later invites him to her home, again asserting her dominance as the person who, although Black, possesses citizenship, a home, and money. For both Ivernia and Candace, Keita fills a hole in their lives. To them, he is special and worth taking personal risks.
The section also exemplifies the literary devices used in the thriller genre. From Saunders threatening Darlene with a gun in an alley to the threatening emails that Keita receives, this section is heavily reliant on plot twists and shock value. A particularly significant plot twist occurs when Calder realizes he was set up at the Bombay Booty. This gives the plot a new direction and Calder cause to question his loyalty to the government.
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By Lawrence Hill
