Chapter 10: Annie

Annie describes ten weeks at Lulabelle’s operation: Sundays bring Lulabelle’s sermons, which Babydoll scorns, while Clyde stays bored and Bobo dutifully takes notes. Pressed by Babydoll, Annie reviews the ledger and discovers they earn almost nothing; the men’s wages are cryptic, implying Clyde’s sexual favors. Annie accepts they cannot stay indefinitely despite small comforts.

During laundry, Annie and Babydoll find sheets soaked with blood, likely from an abortion Lulabelle arranged. They try washing them, then set them aside. Bobo arrives, is told to bury them, and the trio solemnly folds and inters the stained linens, each reacting with shock, prayer, or quiet grief. The moment deepens their sense that the place is haunted by suffering.

That night, Bobo confides he saw a woman earlier who knew his given name, Carver, and solicited help with repairs. When he entered later, he witnessed her under a white man, unresponsive except for pleading eyes; when he retreated and looked back, the shack was empty, suggesting a spirit. He admits shame for turning away, feeling he failed both as a man and a soul.

Annie comforts Bobo, assuring him his soul is clean. Their shared fear and tenderness lead them to become lovers in an intimate, nonphysical way that night, foreshadowing a deeper union to come. The experiences—the debt trap, the buried sheets, and the haunting—galvanize Annie and Bobo’s resolve to leave the brothel.