The Weight of Ink

The narrative resumes in London in October 1659, more than two years after Ester began scribing for Rabbi Mendes. She is now 21 years old. Students regularly come to learn from the rabbi, including two brothers, Manuel and Alvaro HaLevy, who are sons of a wealthy London Jewish merchant. Manuel in particular is intrigued by Ester’s confident and assertive nature. Manuel can sometimes be cruel toward his brother and Ester stands up to him.

The rabbi’s household also sometimes receives visits from his relatives. One is the rabbi’s nephew, Diego da Costa Mendes, a wealthy man who sponsored his uncle to come to England. Diego da Costa Mendes is married to a woman named Catherine, and they have a daughter named Mary, who is about the same age as Ester.

One day, Catherine and Mary approach Ester with a plan: Mary wants to spend more time exploring London, meeting new people, and displaying her beauty to prospective suitors. The time is ripe to do so, since “the city has been overfed with strictures, and now clamors to shake off Puritan ways” (115). However, Catherine is too sickly to accompany her daughter and wants Ester to act as Mary’s companion.