As chapter 6 opens, Cole and his father are having a very heated exchange of harsh words. Why were they out of line and wha did the Keeper do about it?

In the opening of Chapter Six, Cole continues remembering the incident that came back to him in Chapter Five. In Chapter Five, Cole yelled out publicly and in front of his parents that his father abuses him physically. Chapter Six, finds Cole continually haunted by the Circle Justice meetings, which cause him pain as he reflects on his current predicament on the island. Cole and his father have a very public argument about whether Cole has indeed been beaten. The Keeper, or leader of the circle, continues to insist that only the person with the feather may speak, and so she gives the feather to Cole to respond to his father’s comments. Cole insists that he has been abused, and he hands the feather to his mom so that she may confirm this fact. His mother, however, is too afraid to speak, and simply passes the feather on.