Chapter 4 Summary

On Wednesday of Lenten Week, Caridad starts on her first pilgrimage, following dona Felicia on the long walk toward the Sangre de Cristo foothills, where two centuries before, a Penitent Brother found a buried statue of Our Lord of Esquipúlas. Afterward, the Catholic Church made sacred the earth of Tsimayo, whose healing powers the Native peoples had known all along. Because of its holiness, Caridad had chosen a spot near El Santuario (The Sanctuary) to build her house, which don Domingo is paying for with his lottery winnings.

On Good Friday, Caridad and dona Felicia catch up with the penitent procession, led by dona Felicia's godson Francisco, who carries a huge wooden cross over his bare shoulders. On that Holy Friday, Caridad falls in love for the first time since Memo. Amid the swarming tourists, she spots a woman...