The Quiet Tenant

On the surface, Aidan appears to be a good father in the sense that he provides for all of Cecilia’s needs, and it is possible that he even feels some form of love for her; however, the nature of his psychopathy prevents him from relating to his daughter as a separate, autonomous entity who is entitled to her own opinions and emotional responses. In Aidan’s mind, Cecilia is nothing more than an extension of him, and while he likely loves both Cecilia and her mother as far as he is able to amidst the shallow limitations of his damaged psyche, both mother and daughter have always served a more practical purpose for Aidan. They provide him with the compliance, obedience, adoration, and attention that he craves. Likewise, they have been programmed to fulfill their essential roles as part of his camouflage, completing the intricate choreography that allows him to enact his “nice guy” performance and continue to fool the world at large.

That “Rachel” is kept in the shed on Caroline’s parents’ property for five years without Aidan’s wife or daughter ever venturing out to the shed is indicative of the complete control that Aiden exerts over his family. The dislike that his in-laws have for him is only articulated through Cecilia’s understanding of his relationship with them, but it is possible that their mistrust is rooted in the way that he controls their daughter, Caroline. By keeping the house in their name and allowing their daughter, granddaughter, and son-in-law to live there, Cecilia’s grandparents are at least maintaining a connection with Caroline and Cecilia despite the dysfunctional nature of Caroline’s marriage. After her death, selling the house and turning Aidan away is the only method they have to express their dislike and distrust of the man, for they have no true inkling or proof of his many misdeeds. This grim reality emphasizes The Omnipresent Threat of Danger, for even Cecilia’s grandparents are unable to discern the true nature of their son-in-law despite years of living in relatively close proximity to him. Nonetheless, their open dislike of Aidan renders them dangerous, from his perspective, for those who are not charmed by a serial killer’s overt charisma are often excised from the killer’s social orbit whenever possible. At best, such individuals no longer serve a purpose for the killer, and at worst, they represent an existential threat, for their dislike might lead them to uncover the reality of the killer’s secret activities.

“Rachel’s” revelation about the lack of cameras in the house provides her with a much greater sense of agency, for she now feels confident enough to take active steps toward her own eventual escape, exercising her body to increase her strength and making unsupervised explorations of critical areas of the house that are off-limits. It is also during this time that her surreptitious forays into Aidan’s world allow her to develop a deeper connection with Cecilia, further developing the theme of Shared Empathy Between Women. Her discovery of the Polaroids emphasizes The Omnipresent Threat of Danger that Aidan represents, for just as he disguises himself in a veneer of respectability (even renting a house owned by a local judge), such overwhelming evidence of his illicit activities foreshadows “Rachel’s” eventual escape and attempt to bring the murderer to justice. Although that moment has yet to be realized, Michallon uses this scene to deliver an unspoken promise to her readers even as the sheer volume of the evidence itself illustrates the full extent of Aidan’s crimes and their coldly premeditated nature. Furthermore, “Rachel’s” observation that the “Miscellaneous” boxes were once stored elsewhere indicates that Aidan has steadily lost control over his own environment, for the fact remains that keeping such incriminating evidence in a rental house represents a serious risk of discovery. Yet his inability to get rid of the photos also speaks to his underlying psychological instability, for he simply cannot bear to give up these souvenirs of his murderous successes. Ultimately, these trophies will help to convince local law enforcement and eventually the FBI that Aidan is a serial predator.

Aidan’s trophies gain additional significance when “Rachel” sees her own necklace on Emily’s neck, for she is startled by Aidan’s boldness. This act of Aidan’s also draws upon common knowledge of the behavior of serial killers in real life, for they often make gifts of the personal belongings of their victims, giving such items to their loved ones and acquaintances. Many of these offenders experience a kind of thrill each time they see the person wearing or using the item, for they gain a surreptitious sense of enjoyment from the notion that the recipient has no idea of the present’s sinister origins. Within this context, “Rachel’s” observation of the necklace allows her to realize that Aidan’s facility with Hiding Key Personality Traits is failing, and his mask is starting to slip. Gifting his kidnapped victim’s necklace to someone else, especially someone who has a personal social connection to him, is a dangerous act that is uncharacteristic of his typically cautious actions.