Part 2: Torsion, Chapters 3 and 4 Summary

Persia Courtney has a new lover, Virgil Starling, who stays overnight at the apartment on Holland Street with Persia and Iris now that Duke Courtney has moved out. Virgil is a wonderful dancer and rekindles a joie de vivre in Persia that has been buried during her trying marriage to Duke. Vince treats Persia with care, even cooking dinner for her, something that Duke would never have done. Vince is a mulatto and Persia enjoys the sense of danger and breaking societal rules by dating a man who is not all white. Virgil is also the most sensual lover Persia has ever known, but Persia cannot help but be drawn back to her bond with Duke, who haunts her thoughts in reveries about the past.

Before long, Persia and Iris, with Virgil's assistance, move into an old...