A young woman named Nicole, who goes by Cole, narrates this story. She tells us: “When my nephew Tomi was a baby, I stole the thousand dollars his mother, Natalie, kept in her closet” (140). Cole immediately spent the money on alcohol and clothes. Although Cole was never proven to be the thief, Natalie suspected her of being the guilty party ever since the incident. Cole’s brother, Manny, insisted on Cole’s innocence.

Six years after this, Cole “stole a ‘94 Honda Civic and drove head-on into an elderly couple’s picture window at four in the morning” (140). Cole was then sent to La Vista Correctional Facility, located in Pueblo, Colorado. During her time there, her family rarely called her and did not visit her.

Cole has been released early on the condition that she finds employment and housing for herself. She had been planning on relocating into a halfway house when Manny called her to tell her that she could come live with him and Tomi. When Cole asked Manny if Natalie would be angry with this arrangement, Manny told her that Cole had moved out and abandoned the family. Manny also told Cole that he was taking her in because they were family, but warned her not to “fuck up this time” (141).