James Ponder gives Mrs. Gidley a new list of four names for Theo’s next portrait “bestowals.” Mrs. Gidley protests that approaching strangers is risky and could draw police or angry spouses, but Ponder concedes only that it is unusual, insisting he reviews Theo’s letters for propriety and that meeting in daylight reduces danger.

Following Theo’s intuition for “faces that have suffered loss,” Theo focuses on Kendrick Whitaker. Shep tells Theo that Kendrick works nights as a university custodian—reliable, diligent, and largely unseen—whose quiet seriousness is often mistaken for sullenness, though he is gentle beneath the surface.

Mrs. Gidley sends Theo’s handwritten invitation through the university custodial department, asking Kendrick to meet at the fountain across from the Chalice on Thursday morning to receive the portrait as a gift. On Thursday, Theo arrives early and waits, studying the fountain, the dawn sky, and the gnarled oak trees while feeling mildly nervous.

When Kendrick does not appear at 7:30, Theo grows anxious and tries to explain the delay with benign possibilities, deciding to wait until eight. At last, Kendrick rounds the corner, and Theo stands, greets him with a bow, and offers a handshake, which Kendrick accepts awkwardly.

The narration reveals Kendrick had watched Theo from a university window and nearly refused to come, worried the letter was a scam and unsettled by being contacted by a stranger. Torn between fear and curiosity, Kendrick lingers past his shift until Theo’s solitude and apparent frailty soften his suspicion; when the church bells chime eight, Kendrick crosses Broadway cautiously, scanning for accomplices. Theo addresses him directly: “You are Mr. Kendrick.”