Sunday the 28th

Sunday the 28th is the date attached to a rumor that Alice Pagett expects the Lady to see her again. The day’s arrival brings that private report into a public setting: people and traffic gather unusually around the church, while Gerry Fenn and his family travel toward the grounds. The passage establishes the atmosphere of anticipation but does not yet confirm that the expected appearance occurs.

The Date and the Report

While Gerry Fenn is perplexed on a sofa, he asks about another reason for concern. Sue tells him of a rumor that Alice has said the Lady wants to see her again on the twenty-eighth, which falls on the coming Sunday. According to the report, Alice has told both Father Andrew Hagan and her mother, Molly Pagett. The claim is presented as hearsay, not as a confirmed promise or an event already witnessed.

Sunday’s Arrival

When Sunday comes, the weather is cold and drizzling. Despite the conditions, activity in the village is markedly busier than on an ordinary Sunday: many people are heading in the same direction, and traffic is unusually heavy. Gerry Fenn senses the excitement as he drives toward the church grounds. The crowd’s movement gives visible form to the expectation surrounding the date, and confirms that Sue’s earlier warning about the atmosphere was well founded.

Ben, seated in the back of the car, is unusually quiet. His expectant expression and attention fixed ahead suggest that he, too, is caught up in the day’s anticipation. The scene does not disclose what will happen at the church; it ends with the date’s significance still unresolved.

Narrative Significance

The twenty-eighth functions as a deadline around which rumor gathers force. The account first frames the date through an uncertain report about Alice, then shifts to the observable consequences: a busy village, heavier traffic, and a family approaching the church among the crowd. This movement from private claim to public attendance raises the stakes without treating popular expectation as proof of a supernatural event.