I called up Daisy half an hour after we found him, called her instinctively and without hesitation. But she and Tom had gone away early that afternoon, and taken baggage with them.
Chapter 9 · Narrator
Context
Immediately after discovering Gatsby's body, Nick's first instinct is to call Daisy—the woman for whom Gatsby sacrificed everything, including taking the blame for Myrtle's death. He discovers that the Buchanans have already fled, having packed bags and departed without leaving a forwarding address.
Analysis
The detail 'taken baggage with them' transforms the Buchanans' departure from spontaneous flight into premeditated abandonment—they had time to pack, which means they chose to disappear rather than face consequences. Nick's word 'instinctively' is quietly devastating: it reveals that even he, who knows the Buchanans' character, still expected Daisy to care, exposing the gap between Gatsby's faith in her and the reality of her complete indifference once the situation became inconvenient.
How to Use in Essay
Essential for essays on Daisy's moral failure and the Buchanans' pattern of retreat from consequence, or for arguing that Gatsby's devotion was always unreciprocated at the level of genuine commitment—Daisy loved his dream of her but not him.