Before Maria is born, her cousin, Nemecia, comes to live with her parents. Although Nemecia's circumstances are somewhat secretive, they are not entirely unusual for their small New Mexico town, and by the time Maria is old enough to remember, Nemecia is part of the family. One day, Nemecia admits that when she was five she killed her biological mother, Maria's aunt Benigna, and their grandfather. Not knowing what to do, Maria asks her mother what happened to Aunt Benigna, but her mother refuses to tell her. Maria asks about her great aunt, but receives the same answer. When Nemecia is fourteen and Maria seven, Nemecia gets acne. One night, Nemecia digs her nail into Maria’s cheek and makes a small cut. She repeats this every night until Maria has a scar from her nose to her lip. Two years later, at sixteen, Nemecia begins to ignore Maria completely. Heartbroken and confused, Maria decides she wants to lead the Corpus Christi parade so that she will finally be seen. Maria practices fiercely for her recitation and gets the part. Her family celebrates, but Nemecia tells her she is the only option, as the other candidates had already led the procession. Maria cries. That night, Nemecia wakes Maria up and tells her that she is in fact the miracle child. In the morning, Nemecia tells Maria that she is going to lead the procession with her, to help her. Maria doesn’t want her help, but Nemecia and Maria’s mother insist. In an outburst, Maria yells that Nemecia is a murderer. Nemecia runs off. Later, Maria’s mother packs Maria’s things and tells her she must live with her great aunt for a while. On a Sunday night, after a family dinner, Maria walks back with her aunt Paula. Maria once again yells about Nemecia being a murderer. Finally, Paula tells her the story: when Nemecia was five, her grandfather came over to her house for a visit. Nemecia’s father was beating her mother. Her grandfather tried to stop it, and in the chaos, her father stabbed her grandfather and her mother ended up unconscious. Nemecia leaves for California and Maria moves back into her parents’ home. The whole family eventually travels to California for Maria’s wedding.