Elizabeth 'Beth' Crenshaw

Beth Crenshaw is the first person narrator of the story. Beth is a woman who reinvented herself in middle age, starting over in a small Florida town after living her entire life in New York City and its boroughs. Beth was once a nurse, but now she is a nursing assistant, going to people homes to care for the ill who can live alone but need the occasional bit of help. Beth enjoys her work, although it is less challenging than what it was before. Beth refuses to look back, she instead focuses on the future. Beth is afraid, but she knows that she is strong enough to keep herself safe.

Beth has a son, Robert, for whom she builds her life. Beth wants her son to have a chance to have a normal life. Beth worries about the anger she sees in her son, but...