Chapter 2 shifts to Amabelle’s role as a servant to Señora Valencia , who is in labor. The birth of twins—a boy and a girl—immediately introduces the racial tensions of the setting; the daughter's darker skin tone causes immediate anxiety for the mother, foreshadowing the societal obsession with "purity". Study Tips for Chapters 1-2

CAPE Unit 1 Literatures in English June 2013 P2 | PDF - Scribd

Chapter 1 opens with Amabelle Désir suffering from recurring nightmares about her parents' drowning, a haunting introduction to the theme of loss that permeates the novel.