The chapter opens with a description of the bleak “valley of ashes,” a waste‑filled stretch between West Egg and New York watched over by the huge, faded eyes of Dr. T. J. Eckleburg’s billboard. Nick rides the train with Tom Buchanan when Tom abruptly orders the carriage door open, drags Nick off the train, and insists they alight at a small yellow‑brick garage. Inside the dim, dust‑covered shop Nick meets George B. Wilson, a blond, anaemic proprietor who greets Tom with a hopeful smile. Tom slaps Wilson on the shoulder and makes small talk about a car he plans to sell.

A thick‑set, middle‑aged woman in a dark blue crêpe‑de‑chine dress enters—Myrtle Wilson, George’s wife. She is described as stout yet vivacious, moving with a palpable vitality. Tom greets her warmly, kisses her, and whispers plans to meet later. After a brief exchange, Tom pulls the pair into a nearby street, where they wait for a train to New York. Myrtle pretends she is traveling to see her sister; she purchases a cheap Airedale puppy from a street‑vendor and several trinkets.

The group arrives at a dilapidated, top‑floor apartment that Myrtle shares with her sister Catherine and a photographer couple, Mr. and Mrs. McKee. The rooms are over‑filled with oversized Versailles‑style furniture, cheap magazines, a photograph of a hen that resembles a bonnet, and a small dog in a lap. Tom produces a bottle of whiskey; the party quickly becomes noisy and chaotic. Myrtle flaunts the puppy, flirts, and repeatedly shouts “Daisy! Daisy!” despite Tom’s protests. Catherine gossips about Gatsby, the Buchanan circle, and other social rumors, while the McKees argue about art and introductions.

Tensions rise as Myrtle insists on drinking more. Tom, irritated by her constant name‑calling, loses his temper. He lunges at Myrtle, strikes her hard enough to break her nose. Blood soaks towels on the bathroom floor, and women’s cries fill the cramped space. The McKees, disoriented, retreat; Nick watches the violent tableau, feeling both repulsed and fascinated. The chapter ends with Nick back on the train, looking out over the ash‑strewn landscape as dusk settles, the eyes of Dr. Eckleburg lingering over the scene.