Chapter Sixteen Summary

On the wagon ride home, Angel struggles with her guilt, angry with herself for leaving Michael and for all the mistakes she'd made. Michael questions his judgment, wondering if he can ever forgive his wife, and if she was even meant to be his wife in the first place. At home, Angel feels so guilty and unclean that she goes to the creek to clean herself, rubbing herself raw before Michael finds her and pulls her out. In the cabin, Angel finally opens up fully to Michael, telling him about her entire past, saying she was never meant to be born and she will never be anything but a prostitute. When Michael hears about her childhood for the first time, he begins to see her as the nameless child, abused and mistreated, instead of as the prostitute who betrayed him. He...