Part III: Chapters Twenty-Eight through Thirty-Six Summary

In chapter twenty-eight, "The Outside Wife," Maggie, now known as Marguerite, is in Nassau, the Bahamas. The date is November 6, 1862, and Marguerite is in the company of Silas at an expensive gathering at the governor's mansion. Most in attendance are blockade runners, as is Silas. Marguerite is quickly learning how to handle herself at gatherings of this kind. There are a number of women in attendance who are, just like Marguerite, not wives but mistresses. These women are known as "outside wives" and the governor's wife refers to them as "companions." Marguerite is happy in her life with Silas though she is worried that he would never love Jacob as his own son if Marguerite gave him a child of his own. Toward that end, she's sought out methods of ensuring that Jacob...