Meg wakes up in the car being driven by Tom and Lucille Heidelberg. They arrive at a large Victorian house painted a red brick color. Meg is impressed with its size. Inside, she is introduced to modern amenities like an indoor toilet and an electric refrigerator. Lucille immediately expresses her desire for an alcoholic beverage.

The household food is already prepared and waiting on the counter; Tom directs Meg to help herself from the spread of dishes. Eager and unaccustomed to such abundance, she eats too quickly and vomits on the floor. Mortified, Meg tries to clean up the mess. Tom comforts her, saying it is a common accident, while Lucille pats her on the head and tells her that she will “fit right in here, sugar” (253).

The next morning, Meg wakes up in a beautiful pink-and-white bedroom. She recalls Lucille warning her not to tell the maid anything about her past at the orphanage. Following the smell of bacon downstairs, Meg meets the maid, Willy May, a middle-aged Black woman. Adhering to Lucille’s instructions, Meg says that she is there to help the Heidelbergs; Willy May assumes she means that she is helping with the baby.