Apparently abandoned by her hippie mother and brought up in a Catholic orphanage, Jerry goes to stay with her great-aunt in New Mexico, who, though an observant Catholic, follows family customs that eventually reveal her as a descendent of Spanish Jews who came to the New World to escape the Inquisition, eventually intermarrying with the local Native Americans. When Jerry investigates an ancient trunk in the cellar, voices from the past take up the story of generations fleeing imprisonment, torture and burning at the stake. This is an important part of history for young people to know, but there are many unanswered questions, including what did happen to Jerry's mother?

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