The house collapses, killing Oliver and Barbara

The house collapses, killing Oliver and Barbara is the final catastrophe of the Roses’ domestic war: a rescue attempt briefly brings the estranged spouses together, but the failing chandelier and ceiling bring them down with the house. In the aftermath, Ann and the children find Oliver Rose and Barbara Rose dead beneath the wreckage, while the Cribb and Molineaux figures remain intact amid the destruction.

The Rescue at the Ledge

Oliver reaches the balcony’s edge, judges the distance to the chandelier, and jumps for its heavy chain. With his feet on its metal rungs, he climbs until he is level with Barbara, then swings the chandelier in widening arcs to reach the ledge where she is hanging. Several passes fall short; at last he catches the ledge and reaches toward her.

Barbara is losing her grip. Oliver urges her to take his forearm, but she shakes her head. When he has to pry her fingers loose, she catches hold of him in a tight embrace as her weight shifts onto the chandelier. The sound of creaking overhead grows louder, and the chandelier bounces beneath them. Their contact becomes a last, desperate attempt to keep hold of one another, but it also leaves both of them dependent on the failing structure.

The Collapse

The chandelier slips. Oliver and Barbara fall together as the ceiling opens above them and the house comes down around them. Oliver grips Barbara tighter during the fall; his attempted rescue ends not with either spouse reaching safety, but with both caught in the collapse. The passage gives no separate account of their injuries before the aftermath establishes that they have died.

Ann and the Children at the Ruins

The crash comes just as a cab pulls away from the curb. Ann stands on the sidewalk, unable at first to move, watching dust drift from the open entrance. Josh Rose and Eve Rose are already in the dust cloud, staring at the house; when they turn toward Ann, their faces and hair are coated with dust and tears run down their cheeks. They try to go inside, saying that their parents are in there. Ann blocks their way and holds them as objects continue to fall within the house.

When the crashing finally abates, Ann looks through the doorway. The roof has collapsed, the interior walls have buckled, and debris fills the entrance. A long clock lies on its side, its Roman-numeral face smashed; shards from the chandelier cover the surfaces, and further clouds of dust rise as Ann moves inside to search. She can hear the children following with hesitant steps and sobs.

Discovery and Last Image

Ann finds Oliver and Barbara under the rubble, covered in white dust and motionless. Their bodies appear to be embracing, their lifeless faces turned toward one another. The sight confirms the cost of the collapse: the children’s parents are dead, and the house that had been the center of their struggle has become their grave. Josh and Eve move among the debris nearby, touching and clearing dust from the familiar figures. Molineaux’s figure remains intact, and Josh rubs its companion against his shirt; Eve reaches for Cribb. The undamaged figures stand out against the smashed clock, shattered chandelier, and ruined rooms, making the final image one of recognizable objects surviving where the family has not.