Alfred Lambert Timeline & Summary

•  Back
• More 

• Alfred is a hard-nosed Kansas native who works for the Midland Pacific railroad. He marries another Midwesterner named Enid and they have two boys, Gary and Chip.
• Enid becomes pregnant with a third child, which gives her some unearned confidence, in Alfred's eyes. She tries to give him financial advice and he storms out of the house for almost two weeks.
• During that period, Alfred surveys the Ernie Belt railroad because the Midpac is looking to purchase it; it is a miserable—but productive—trip.
• Afterward, he tells his neighbor Chuck Meisner about the Midpac's future purchase. Chuck is eager to use the financial information for his own benefit.
• Fast forward to the summer after Denise's high school graduation. Alfred gets her a job working at the Midpac, and she does great and earns the respect of her coworkers.
• That summer, the Midpac is purchased by the Wroths. Although Alfred initially accepts a job with the new company, he's forced to quit after a man named Don Armour threatens to reveal that he had an affair with Denise. To prove it, he tells Alfred to look under his desk at home: Sure enough, Alfred finds "DA <3 DL" carved into the wood.
• Alfred and Enid are left all alone in St. Jude. Their marriage grows increasingly hostile and Alfred's health begins to deteriorate.
• While on a cruise, he hallucinates every night, and eventually falls off of the boat, though luckily he survives.
• The entire Lambert family is home for the following Christmas. Alfred has grown increasingly depressed and detached from reality. He's even considering suicide.
• During a hallucination, he accidentally tells Denise the truth about his departure from Midland Pacific. His hallucinations become more intense and frequent.
• Alfred is diagnosed with dementia a few weeks after Christmas, shooting down any chance for treatment he has.
• In the end, Alfred is sent to an assisted living center. He stops accepting food and dies two weeks later.