- After Mr. Mehta dies, Chandra is called home for the funeral. The girls are excited for time to catch up, but they don't get much since Mrs. Mehta is too busy parading Chandra around to all of her friends and barking orders at Koly. You know, as Mrs. Mehta does.
- Chandra tells Koly that her husband brought a computer and a TV home for them; she tries to explain the wonderful images and colors she gets to see.
- She confides in Koly that she wishes she had learned how to read, like Koly suggested—when her hubby types on the computer, she doesn't know what the characters mean on the screen.
- Koly notices that Chandra wear expensive clothes, gold bangles, and even has her toenails painted. Seeing her sis like that makes Koly think she can be happy one day, too.
- When Koly shares with Chandra that she plans to run away one day, Chandra tells her not to do it. Who will take care of her?
- Koly plans to take care of herself, thank you very much, but she doesn't bother saying this to Chandra.
- Chandra leaves after a week, and Koly keeps herself busy with the chores.
- Without Mr. Mehta's paycheck, Mrs. Mehta starts selling everything to feed them. When she goes to sell her husband's precious book of poems, though, Koly begs her not to—it was his favorite, after all.
- Koly makes a bargain with her mother-in-law: She'll get her silver earrings and Koly will keep the book for herself.
- It's not until after she hands over the earrings that she realizes this was Mrs. Mehta's plan all along.
- One day Mrs. Mehta gets a letter from her brother in Delhi saying that she can come stay with him. When Koly asks where she will go, Mrs. Mehta says she'll come along, too.
- Mrs. Mehta buys the train tickets for them with the money from the earrings. Even though Koly hasn't had a happy life during her three years there, she is said to leave the house.
- They board the train and get off at the holy city of Vrindavan. This isn't their destination, but Mrs. Mehta suggests they get some air and a bite to eat.
- They take a rickshaw to a temple, and Mrs. Mehta argues with the driver about the four rupees he wants to charge them.
- She sends Koly off with a fifty-rupee note to buy some lunch, which Koly thinks is weird since usually she's not trusted with money.
- When Koly gets back with their samosas, though, Mrs. Mehta is nowhere to be found. So she waits.
- An hour goes by and then another, until finally Koly decides to ask around.
- She comes across the rickshaw driver, who tells her that Mrs. Mehta boarded the train to Delhi right after he dropped them off at the temple.
- With this, Koly realizes she's been ditched.