Chapter 6 Summary

The next Sunday, both Carolee and Astrid are reluctantly dragged to church. Starr sits very straight when the Reverend appears on stage, hoping he will notice her. He is good at playing the crowd. As he talks about a kid in the sixties who ends up being one of the Manson killers but has a revelation in prison, Astrid sinks back in her chair as far as Carolee is. Starr's perfume and the Reverend's hissing words make her sick to her stomach.

As she listens to the Reverend drone on about sin being a virus, Astrid remembers the day she tried to warn Barry. She realizes that she's infected, and that there's blood on her hands. She thinks about her mother who believes in anything but herself. She has no conscience.

In July, Astrid is baptized into the Truth Assembly of Christ. Afterwards...