Zora and Me

Carrie and Zora follow a monarch butterfly to the Blue Sink. There, they meet Mr. Ambrose. Mr. Ambrose is a white man who helped deliver Zora when she was born. The girls sit next to him as he fishes. He asks after Zora’s family and how school is going for both of them. Carrie is not used to talking to white people. Zora tells Mr. Ambrose that they know that a “gator man” killed Ivory and “stole his head” (73). She recounts seeing Sonny wrestle with Ghost, Old Lady Bronson’s fall, and their meeting with Ivory. She also tells him about the book they saw in the bookstore. She wishes they had been able to learn more from it. Zora admits that Mr. Pendir is the suspected gator man. 

Mr. Ambrose gives his own theory about Ivory’s death. He thinks that white people in Lake Maitland are nervous at the idea of Black people killing each other. He worries that white people will form lynch mobs and hang Black people if the unrest continues. He also blames turpentine workers, thinking them untrustworthy. While Mr. Ambrose affirms that he does not want to see anyone die, he exclusively uses racial slurs to refer to Black people.