- Stuck at Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham's house, Tendai tries to make the best of things.
- Too bad Rita isn't of much help.
- She sasses Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham every chance she gets, plus she complains about the food.
- Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham makes Tendai and Rita work to earn their keep.
- They scrub the furniture, pick weeds in the garden, and do chores around the house.
- Kuda is still sick with the chicken pox, and not fun to be around; he cries out for Mama and says he hates everybody else.
- Tendai knows he's not feeling well, so he doesn't blame his little brother for the outbursts.
- As if that's not bad enough, though, Kuda is holed up in what Mrs. Horsepool-Worthingham calls "the invalid room."
- It's a small room in the middle of the house with no windows. She tells them it was built by accident, so it's always been used for sick people.
- In fact, all of her relatives have died there. (Um… anyone else just get the chills?)
- Tendai goes to the invalid room and prays to the ancestors with his ndoro.
- He asks them not to take (read: kill) Kuda and to please wait for someone else.