In Portland, teacher Grace McGinnis hears that Gary Gilmore has been sentenced to death in Utah. She considers calling Gary’s mother, Bessie, but hesitates, remembering how Prolixin treatment seemed to leave him darker and frightening. Grace recalls meeting Mikal Gilmore (Gary’s brother) as a gifted student and then meeting Bessie when Mikal asked for help because Bessie was in tax trouble and facing foreclosure. Grace was struck by Bessie’s dignity, humor, and stoicism, and the two began a friendship. Bessie explains her poverty, her work as a bus girl, her arthritis, and her hope that the Mormon Church might help her keep the house. Grace cannot solve the problem, but she visits Bessie often, later learning stories about the house feeling “haunted” and about Frank Sr.’s accidents and decline.

Grace begins driving Bessie to Oregon State Penitentiary for visits with Gary. Grace observes the prison’s routines, the visiting room culture, and the social hierarchy among prisoners. Gary distinguishes between “inmates and convicts” (463), placing himself in the latter category. He is neat, controlled, and serious with Bessie; he talks with Grace about books, art, and spiritual subjects. He becomes furious when Bessie finally loses her house, directing anger toward the Mormon Church.