As the crowd leaves the Whitsuntide celebration, the town feels unsettled. Helstone mentions that he will not be sleeping at home that night and wants Shirley to stay with Caroline. Neither woman wants to go to sleep that night as they feel something is about to happen, and they look toward Hollow Mill, knowing that's where Helstone must be. Outside, they hear the march of hundreds of men stop in front of the rectory and they hear men discussing the best way to get into the house, before the Helstone’s dog barks and scares them away.

They know the men are heading toward Hollow Mill, and Shirley suggests they go there to warn Robert, but they are too late. The women watch as the mob breaks down the mill gates and windows, but they comfort themselves that Robert must have prepared for days for an attack, which he has expected for a week. Within an hour, Robert, Helstone, and the group of curates and rectors that have assisted them disperse the mob. When the women come closer the following morning, they see that several men are dead and the mill is in ruins. Caroline wants to speak with Robert, but Shirley prevents her before he rides off to fetch a surgeon.