The Bird Hotel

Mirabel approaches Irene, who realizes the girl is pregnant. Mirabel explains that she agreed to cook for the Lizard Men, who assaulted her. They threw food at her and broke her beautiful beaded belt. Mirabel is too ashamed to say all that happened, believing she has sinned. Irene knows the police will do something about a local girl being raped by the Americans and goes with Mirabel to the police station. The men are taken away in handcuffs. A crowd stands outside the jail that night, calling for the pigs to be sent out to them. Mirabel goes to stay with her grandmother. Elmer, who is horrified at what happened, goes to one of the men’s houses and frees the monkey they had tied to a tree.

Raya, who goes to northern California every year to earn money harvesting marijuana, dies of a tumor while there. Alicia is six. Clarinda is graduating and going to university. Jun Lan visits with her two boys. She now practices traditional Chinese medicine and reports that someone on the hillside next door to Irene is growing the baby-making herb. Irene thinks that Dora always was a good businesswoman.