On the day after returning to Naples, Ellena enters the Santa della Pieta convent. The abbess is the complete opposite of her counterpart at San Stefano, being dignified without arrogance, religious but devoid of bigotry, and mild yet firm and decisive. She conforms to Roman Catholic customs without believing all necessary for salvation.

In her lectures to the nuns, she demonstrates greater concern with moral duties than points of faith, reinforcing the practice of sisterly kindness and universal charity. The convent resembles a large family, of which the abbess is the mother, rather than a group of strangers. The location of the convent is hardly less appealing, with gardens, groves, and sweeping views of Naples.

As Ellena contemplates her life, the past appears as a romance. Finding herself incapable of loving Schedoni as a father in light of her initial impressions, she nonetheless feels gratitude for the favors she believes were granted by him. Yet while she shudders at the vindictiveness of the marchesa, she would probably be even more shocked at the larger extent of Schedoni’s against her if she knew of his actions.