Out of prison, Hester pleads to keep Pearl, as the Boston magistrates debate whether she is fit to raise her child. When Dimmesdale passionately intercedes on her behalf, the magistrates relent. Meanwhile, Hester’s husband, Chillingworth, pursues his wife's lover. Dimmesdale, racked by a mysterious illness, weakens, and the magistrates call in a physician -- Chillingworth -- to tend him.