Readers Guide for 6:40 to Montreal

The train stalls near Cobourg in a blizzard. All the doors (those between cars and to the outside) lock for the passenger

Finch Weatherby, the obnoxious passenger who took Agatha’s seat, ends up dead. He was bitten by a deadly spider that someone on his seat. Was Agatha the target? Did Cyanne, who has been stalking and harassing her, follow her on the train to kill her?

The tension rises as Rupinder, the university student and Type 1 diabetic, does not have enough insulin to cover the delay. His mother, Vivien, starts to panic.

Dorcas, the business class train attendant, claimed she’s been in communication with the conductor. When Vivien learns the intercom is dead, she loses it, throwing a bottle at Cyanne, which breaks. In a scuffle, Vivien plunges the broken bottle into Dorcas’s throat. Dorcas is the second victim.

Vivien wants to break a window and go for help for Rupinder, but Jeff, another passenger volunteers to go.

As group looks down into the snow they see a discarded train uniform, presumably worn by a trainee attendant who was in their car at the start of the trip and then vanished mysteriously.

Suddenly, Shawn, another attendant, appears with the insulin that Rupinder needs. He explains that a tree fell, smashing a window in the locomotive.

Shawn also tells them that the emergency door locks have a manual override. He speculates that Dorcas kept the doors locked so that the economy class passengers wouldn’t get the extra food she stocked for business class.

Cyanne, Agatha, and Vivien agree on a story that Finch was the one who attacked and killed Dorcas.

Cyanne and Agatha realize the flaw in their plan: Jeff is out on his own, looking for help and he might tell the truth.

6:40 to Montreal: The Ending Explained

Agatha suddenly realizes who did kill Finch: her husband, Teddy.

Teddy was the missing trainee train employee. He put the spider in Finch’s seat, then left the train, discarding his uniform in the snow.

Agatha remembers that the trainee was wearing Blundstone boots, just like Teddy wore, with the left heel worn down, just like Teddy’s were.

Agatha convinces Cyanne not to mention the trainee.

The police question both women, and then when they are satisfied, both Agatha and Cyanne are allowed to go home.

On the way, Agatha writes 20,000 words of her new novel, inspired by what just transpired on the train.

Jeff’s body is found, meaning there is no one to contradict the story.

Agatha reflects that Teddy’s crime wasn’t perfect, but the possibility that he could get caught made it all the more thrilling.

Questions About 6:40 to Montreal

Did Teddy arrange for Finch to be on the train?

Yes, I think so, because Finch had a matchbook from Teddy’s restaurant in his pocket. That, or Teddy knew that Finch was taking that train and chose to put Agatha on it as well.

Okay, did Teddy arrange for Cyanne to be on the train?

I think yes, in a way. Teddy knew Cyanne as she was an employee at his restaurant. Teddy posted on Instagram about buying the train ticket for Agatha. He knew Cyanne was obsessed with Agatha and cyber-stalking her. Agatha also says that Cyanne admits to following Agatha on the train to confront her. So I do think Teddy tried to engineer this.

But why did Teddy do it?

The clue is in the Genevieve novel that Agatha kept trying (and failing) to write. Agatha decides that Genevieve’s sister must be the killer, but why? Teddy tells her that watching a loved one wither could have driven the sister just mad enough to pull the trigger. That, I think, is his motive.

Did Teddy factor the storm into his plans?

No, I think that took everyone by surprise because Freddy was late to pick Freddie up from day care.

If Jeff died in the storm, why didn’t Teddy?

Agatha points out that it was daytime, and not as much snow has fallen.