Thomas wakes to the sound of Irish: It is Mary, the Widow Hallett’s servant. She explains that she is “no idiot” and knows that the Widow Hallett poisoned Thomas with something, likely an aphrodisiac, and that she and Thomas had sex. Thomas is full of anger, shame, and regret. Mary swears that she will keep his secret, but still he worries that word will get out. He returns home to find Margaret worried and Bess gravely ill. Margaret tells him that she has scarlatina, or scarlet fever. She bathes Bess in an herbal mixture and her fever breaks, but Margaret cautions him not to be too hopeful. This often happens with scarlatina, and Bess is still in danger. They pray the rosary all night long: Thomas reflects that no amount of “Protestant reform” can ever erase the prayers he learned to cherish in childhood.

Bess is dead, and Thomas and Margaret are united in grief. They take a poppy mixture that Margaret often gives to those who are grieving or in pain and sleep all night long.

Bess is buried in the churchyard, but Margaret knows that her daughter will always remain with her in spirit.

In the weeks following Bess’s death, Margaret and Thomas are both mired in grief. Margaret, however, begins talking to Bess as if she were still there. She sets out food for her, and Thomas watches her pretend to carry Bess around the house. Neighbors notice, and people begin to talk. Again, Thomas worries that Margaret’s behavior will garner unwanted attention and that people will continue to characterize her as odd and “cunning.” He takes her to the churchyard to show her Bess’s grave but can see that he hasn’t gotten through to her. Upset, he decides to deal with his frustration by throwing himself into his work. The Widow Hallett shows up at his workshop door, tries to seduce him, and asks him to run away with her. Using harsh language, he insults her and tells her that they have no future.

Margaret visits the former Governor Bellingham to treat his gout. She finds both him and his wife genial and would be happy to treat him again, should he require her services.

While Margaret is away at Governor Bellingham’s, a young man comes to see her and speaks with Thomas in her stead. He explains to Thomas that Margaret made him a salve to increase sexual performance and that he’d like more of it. As the two talk, it becomes apparent that this man worries that God would disapprove of the salve. Thomas tries to comfort him, but he worries that this man will change his mind and speak ill of Margaret in town.

Margaret returns, and Goody Tanner, one of their neighbors, rushes to the door. Her child is ill, and she needs a remedy. Margaret laughs and insults her intelligence for not obtaining the remedy several days past when Margaret first recommended it. The woman accuses Margaret of cursing her child so that she would need to purchase the medicine. Thomas is filled with white-hot rage and pulls Margaret aside. He reminds her that Goody Tanner is wealthy and well-connected and cautions her that she has just been accused of witchcraft. Margaret realizes Thomas is right and tries to smooth things over with Goody Tanner. It is evident, however, from the woman’s icy tone of voice that she will bear a grudge.

Margaret continues to treat Governor Bellingham. She hears that the Widow Hallett has married a young pastor named Longfellow and is glad of it: Perhaps now she will stop “casting those doe eyes” at Thomas (157).

Thomas and Margaret get together with Alice and Samuel, and the talk is of the Widow Hallett. The four joke and laugh until they are interrupted by a knock at the door. It is Goodman Storey, a neighbor, and he is upset because Samuel’s goat knocked a hole through the fence, and Goodman Storey’s cow is eating Alice’s onions. Now Goodman Storey’s cow’s milk will be spoiled from eating onions, and he blames Samuel for the damage. He demands payment for the milk. Samuel is shocked and gently refuses, but Margaret loses her temper and yells at Goodman Storey. Thomas, Samuel, and Alice all caution her to watch her tongue. Margaret ignores them and leaves in a huff, saying that she must go tend to Bess.

Thomas mourns Bess on the day that would have been her birthday and wonders if her death was punishment for his indiscretion with the Widow Hallett. He hears Margaret speaking to someone and worries that she is talking to Bess, but it is a cat instead. Margaret explains that someone sent her the cat and that its name is Molly. The cat becomes quite popular among Margaret’s clients, but one day, when she is with Goodwife Pierce, the cat growls. Goodwife Pierce thinks that the creature should be drowned and is upset when Margaret seems to hint that the cat can read her thoughts. They bicker, and Thomas overhears. When she leaves, he cautions Margaret that Goodwife Pierce is also well-connected, and Margaret would do well to hold her tongue. Margaret suggests they get a fresh start somewhere else, but Thomas declines. He does not want to move again.

Margaret is out looking for cranberries to treat scurvy when she runs into an Indigenous woman. The woman does not know where cranberries might be found, but she does show Margaret some hellebore, which she claims is useful for treating toothaches. Just then, Governor Winthrop and his son happen upon the two women. The elder Winthrop is unhappy to see Margaret, but the son is pleasant enough. Governor Winthrop cautions Margaret against trusting Indigenous people, and Margaret responds angrily and hastily that Winthrop and his friends were only too happy to trust Indigenous individuals when they needed something from them and that it is hypocritical of him to distrust this woman now.

Thomas is upset to learn about Margaret’s run-in with Governor Winthrop, and the two discuss the possibility of moving, but neither think that life would be much different in another colony; everywhere, religious rules are strict, and women are being hanged for witchcraft. They attend Sunday service, and Longfellow, the Widow Hallett’s new husband, gives a sermon. He appears sickly and seems quiet and unassertive in temperament. After the service, Margaret observes that the Widow Hallett is pregnant. No one else can tell yet, and Margaret speculates that she and Longfellow consummated their marriage before the ceremony. Thomas worries that the child is his and that he will be found out.

Mary Doyle, the former Widow Hallett’s servant, brings a small poppet (a homemade doll) to Margaret. It is fashioned with hair that looks like Margaret’s, and into its belly Hallett has stuck 13 pins. Margaret is sure that it is witchcraft, and that the Widow Hallett used it to curse her.

The Widow Hallett, now Goodwife Longfellow, has greater social standing now because she is married to a minister. For this reason, Thomas cautions against confronting her when Margaret shows him the poppet. He is sure that Goodwife Longfellow does consort with the devil—she drugged him after all—but he knows that because she is now a minister’s wife, her word is beyond reproach, while Margaret’s word means little to their neighbors. When Margaret tells him that Goodwife Longfellow feigned a fainting spell and then accused Margaret of being a witch in the town square, Thomas worries. He now thinks that every time they embrace could be the last.

Margaret is arrested for witchcraft, for using familiars (her cat), for creating supernatural tinctures, and for cursing and hexing various people. Goodman Storey attests that she cursed his cow, but there are many other accusers. Thomas hopes to find people to testify to her good name, but struggles to do so. Even the townspeople who regularly consulted her for medicines will not speak on her behalf. He goes to see the former Governor Bellingham, who explains that he tried to clear her name, but Governor Winthrop wouldn’t hear of it. He refuses to testify on her behalf at the trial because he does not want to complicate his life or draw attention to his own interest in alchemy. Angrily, Thomas returns home. He gets drunk with Samuel and Alice and then appears at the jail the following morning to see Margaret. He is arrested and goes willingly.