Girl, Stolen

“Cheyenne knew she had a twenty, two tens, and some ones. The twenty was folded the long way, the ten the short way, and the ones weren’t folded at all. Whenever she got money from someone else, she asked which bill was which and then folded it. Every blind person had their own way of folding money to tell it apart.”

Through the course of the novel, Cheyenne shares her experience of what it means to be blind and the methods she and others use to navigate the world. The way she is able to distinguish currency is one example of the overcoming of disability. It is a reminder of how challenging ordinary tasks can be for the disabled and a reminder of how well Cheyenne has adapted in such a short time. The use of touch connects to an overarching theme of the development of senses other than sight.

“Cheyenne took a long shuddering, breath. Her head felt like it was stuffed with cotton. Everything seemed unreal. This couldn’t be happening to her. It was like those old maps from back when they thought the world was flat, where out past the land, far in the ocean, they had written ‘Here Be dragons.’”

“Here Be Dragons” was a way for old cartographers to indicate the dangers of the unknown. Cheyenne’s accident has already thrust her into unknown territory, but her kidnapping amplifies that feeling. She is in uncharted territory, and there are numerous potential “dragons” or threats lurking. Her journey off the map also marks her as a pioneer and/or an explorer. The reference to maps parallels Cheyenne’s visualization technique of mentally mapping her surroundings. She is, thus, also a cartographer.

“And there were a few advantages to being blind—not many, certainly not enough. But a few. For one thing, she knew how to use all her other senses in a way that most sighted people never did. They smelled and heard and touched all the same things she did, but they had let that part of their brain go numb with disuse, so the sensations didn’t register.”

Cheyenne notes how little the sighted use their other senses and a disadvantage, her blindness, can become an advantage. She is continually thinking about how to use the skills she has developed because of her blindness. For example, she uses her blindness as part of an argument to the kidnappers that they can let her go because she will be unable to identify them. Ironically, however, her heightened senses are why she gathers so much information about them.

“All muscle and no heart. In truth, Griffin didn’t know what kind of dog Duke was. He looked like he had been put together from half a dozen different dogs, taking only the ugliest parts. He had the short, sleek fur of a pit bull, brindled brown and gold, but scars from fighting marred the tiger’s-eye pattern. One ear stood up, and the other flopped down. His legs were a little too short, and his tail was all wrong for a junkyard dog—fluffy and curved. And with his one droopy eyelid, Duke looked sly. Like he was plotting something.”

Duke plays a key part in Cheyenne’s escape. She befriends him with kindness and the kibble she carries in her pocket for her own dog, Phantom. Duke’s rescue and rehabilitation at the end of the novel support the importance of nurture. In the quotation, Duke’s appearance makes him part of the group of criminals. In particular, his history of abuse and scars connect him to Griffin; both have a similar story arc in their progression from antagonist to protector/helper. Despite the difference in their histories, Duke’s potential puts him on the path to becoming like Phantom.

“Now, if she wanted to see anything at all, she had to turn her head away from it. It seemed like a metaphor, Cheyenne didn’t know for what.”

The metaphor reinforces the importance of multiple perspectives, of needing to see things in a different way. Just as the narration alters point of view so that we can see different sides, Cheyenne can see, but only from an altered vantage point. The ability to see differently is an advantage.

“Cheyenne still ‘saw’ things, even things she had never laid eyes on before the accident. And it was more than just the little blurry slice of vision that she had left. She didn’t know what it was like for those who had been born blind, but for her, imagining that she could still see, as if she had simply closed her eyes and could open them to view the world at any time, helped her to create maps of rooms and buildings and even neighborhoods.”

The novel stresses that there are different ways to “see.” Even though she is blind, perhaps because she is blind, Cheyenne sees things others do not. She sees with her remaining senses and through visualization techniques.

“The kitchen looked the way it always did, but imagining what Cheyenne would think if she could see it made Griffin look at it differently.”

Griffin is beginning to see through Cheyenne’s eyes, which causes him to become self-conscious about how and where he is living. His growing self-awareness creates a moral struggle, alienating even more from his criminal father.

“She didn’t like to accept more than she could give back. She kept a mental tally of people who did favors for her, and she tried to keep the balance sheet even. If she helped Kenzie with an essay for English, then it was okay for Cheyenne to accept Kenzie’s offer of a ride home.”

Cheyenne does not want special treatment and is very self-conscious about accepting favors, even from friends. This is indicative of her desire to be independent and not to rely on anyone else.

“Before she had lost her sight, she could barely be counted on to remember left or right. After the accident, one of the first things the orientation and mobility instructor had taught Cheyenne was to always, always orient herself using cardinal directions.”

This connects us again to Cheyenne as an explorer and hyper-aware. She is continually mapping her surroundings.

“Right now she must be moving as fast as she could through the woods, knowing that the only thing she had on her side was a little bit of time. Griffin felt a grudging respect.”

This is evidence of Griffin’s growing attachment to Cheyenne and his admiration for her resiliency. Though Cheyenne’s blindness limits her, she is brave, and Griffin (who has a limiting learning disability) admires her confidence. Whereas Griffin gave up on school, Cheyenne finds opportunities in her disability.

“My dad even tries not to say he’s going to see me later. I keep telling him that see is just a word. Everyone uses it. I use it all the time.”

This quote refers to another discussion in the novel about seeing. In this case, Cheyenne reassures Griffin that she is not offended when others use the word as a figure of speech, telling him that she uses it all the time. This discussion further characterizes Cheyenne as confident: she isn’t embarrassed by her disability and sees no reason to change her speech patterns to avoid the topic.

“For a second, Cheyenne stiffened and then let herself be rocked back and forth while Danielle made sh-sh sounds in her ear.

That was how her dad had found them. Later, after Danielle and her dad told Cheyenne they were getting married, she wondered if Danielle hadn’t somehow planned being found like that. To show that she could take Cheyenne’s mom’s place.”

Cheyenne’s relationship with her stepmother is complex. On the one hand, Danielle is pivotal in Cheyenne’s recovery from depression. Her tough love opens Cheyenne’s eyes to how dependent she has become and prompts her to attend a residential school for the blind. On the other hand, Cheyenne is uncomfortable with how quickly Danielle has replaced her mother and suspects a certain amount of calculation on Danielle’s part. It is also Danielle who suggested leaving Phantom at home for their trip to the shopping center.

“And she learned that it wasn’t just the cane could tell her what was directly in her path. If she listened closely, she could tell whether the sound it made was bouncing off a brick wall or echoing in an open doorway or rebounding off an awning overhead.”

This is another example of the tools that Cheyenne uses to navigate the world as well as how much her other senses have developed.

“‘Being blind gave me a whole new life. I didn’t ask for it.’ She licked the grease from her fingers. ‘That’s why I’d rather talk to someone on the phone or computer. Because then we’re the same. We’re equals.’”

Cheyenne finds it easier to interact with others over the phone or on the computer because in that environment she is not missing the visual cues that characterize face-to-face interaction. It is important for her to feel that she is treated as normally as possible.

“‘You’re kind, for one thing. And for another, I think you’re smarter than they are.’ Cheyenne was telling the truth.”

Cheyenne reassures Griffin that he is not like Roy, TJ, and Jimbo. She is offering him emotional support, which will encourage him to make the decision to defy his father.

“She wanted to be cool and graceful, but instead she felt clumsy and sweaty. Now with Phantom, Cheyenne walked with poise and speed. He had returned her body to her.”

While Cheyenne did well with the cane, it is no substitute for the freedom that her guide dog Phantom gives her. The quotation emphasize how important Phantom and Duke are for Cheyenne—both help her become free.

“‘Your dog is trained to judge whether your command is safe,’ Cheyenne said. ‘It’s called intelligent disobedience.’

‘Intelligent disobedience, huh?’ Griffin echoed. He liked the way it sounded. Whenever he didn’t do what somebody wanted, they always assumed he was making a big mistake.”

Intelligent disobedience is an important concept. It describes a relationship of trust between owner and dog wherein the dog can disobey its owner if the order is dangerous. Griffin is drawn to the concept because it recognizes that there may be a good reason why an individual chooses to disobey an authority figure. In this case, it provides a rationale for disobeying Roy because Roy is dangerous.

“Even after his burns healed, he was reminded of them constantly. Every morning, his fingers traced the red, hairless scars when he soaped his chest and neck in the shower, or touched the shallower scars on the insides of his thighs where they had taken the skin grafts. Strangers stared at the shine of tight skin on his throat. Every touch, every stare, brought it all back: the lights, the screams, the whispers, the smells.”

Griffin’s experience with severe burns, his lingering recovery, and his physical and psychological scars parallel Cheyenne’s experiences. Their shared trauma allows them to empathize with each other and establish an authentic relationship. They can relate to each other; more specifically, Cheyenne’s resilience and determination gives Griffin hope and provides a model for how to survive and thrive.

“Was he one of the bad guys? Griffin didn’t know anymore.”

Griffin is actively wrestling with his conscience, on the verge of making the decision to help Cheyenne against his father’s wishes.

“I was actually planning on helping you get away. If you had given me a few more minutes, my alarm would have gone off. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t know if I could trust you not to let it slip. Besides, part of me couldn’t believe they would really do anything that drastic. Not really. But then after you hit me with that wrench, I realized that everyone is capable of violence. Even you. Even my dad. And that I was naïve to think that they would really let you go.”

Griffin hadn’t fully believed that his father was capable of harming Cheyenne. After Cheyenne knocks him unconscious, he is convinced that anyone, even a good person like her, is capable of violence. Ironically, her attack supports his decision to help her escape. This quotation also foreshadows the coming revelation that Roy has killed Griffin’s mother.

“‘Cheyenne’—he hardened his voice—‘I can’t. If either one of us is going to survive, you have to get to that road as soon as possible.’”

This moment is key in Griffin’s journey from antagonist to ally and hero. He realizes that he is now a burden on Cheyenne and argues forcefully that she must leave him behind. While her success may well save him, he knows the risk of remaining behind in the wood, where he is likely to die from hypothermia.

“TJ found a little patch of snow. He knelt down and began to wipe his hands on it like it was a towel. Washing his hands in snow. It quickly turned slushy and pink. And then he stood up, without saying another word to Griffin, and walked away. Leaving Griffin with a broken ankle, a bloody backpack filled with a quarter of a million dollars, two guns, and a dead man.”

TJ is emotionally shaken in the aftermath of killing his friend and partner-in-crime Jimbo, realizing that killing someone didn’t feel the way he thought it would. The blood on the money is too powerful of a reminder, and he leaves the scene, literally and symbolically washing his hands of the whole situation. Prior to this moment, TJ has been a one-dimensional character. The reader gets a brief glimpse of his humanity here which the novel later reinforces with the news that he is undergoing mental health evaluations.

“‘To be honest, I kind of feel like Duke. They all watch me out of the corner of their eye.’”

The Wilders have rescued Duke, and the dog is now receiving formal obedience training. Griffin’s situation with his aunt in a new city and a new school can be compared to Duke’s in key ways. Griffin feels as if he is under careful watch by those who are giving him an opportunity for a new life. Like Duke, he is being rehabilitated and reintegrated into society.