Chapter 2 Summary

The boy, who is narrating the story, admits that even though he tried to hide his pain, his Auntie knew about it. She advises him to mash up aspirin and put it in a little cotton to put on his tooth. However, that doesn't help. He doesn't want his Aunt to tell his Mama, because he knows they don't have any money. Instead, his aunt refers him to Monsieur Bayonne, whose method for curing the boy's pain is to pray over him. Monsieur Bayonne does the sign of the Cross on the boy's jaw and prays for a long time. When the boy admits that the pain is not improving, Monsieur Bayonne asks what kind of prayers he's praying. The boy says, "Baptist." Bayonne believes it's because the boy doesn't know any Catholic prayers that his tooth won't quit hurting. After the boy...