Walk Two Moons

Phoebe cries in her sleep that night and tries to get out of school the next day by claiming to be sick. Meanwhile, the household is in a state of upheaval, because chores Mrs. Winterbottom used to do—e.g. making breakfast—have been neglected. Sal remembers going through something similar when her own mother left, and continues to experience a sense of déjà vu at school, where Phoebe claims her mother is on a business trip to avoid discussing the real situation. Phoebe once again insists that Sal come home with her, this time to search for clues into Mrs. Winterbottom’s supposed kidnapping. Knowing from firsthand experience why Phoebe is acting this way, Sal watches as Phoebe marks “bloodstains” and collects strands of hair. At dinner, Phoebe pesters her father about calling the police; Mr. Winterbottom insists his wife left of her own free will, but does call some family friends to see if they know what’s happening.

Sal’s father is having dinner with Mrs. Cadaver, and as he accompanies his daughter home, she explains Phoebe’s theories about the “lunatic.” Sal also speculates that someone could have forced her own mother to travel to Idaho. Her father tries to reason with her, and Sal apologizes when she sees how upset he is.

Gram’s breathing has become raspy, so Gramps reassures everyone that they’ll soon be stopping in the Badlands. While there, he goes to help a pregnant tourist, and Sal hurries away to be by herself: Pregnant women have frightened her ever since her mother’s second pregnancy. Shortly before the due date, Sal fell out of a tree and had to be carried inside by her mother, who went into labor later the same night. The baby was stillborn, and Sal’s mother hemorrhaged so badly she ultimately needed a hysterectomy. Sal and her father buried the baby, whom Sal named “Tulip,” while Sugar was still in the hospital.

Now, Sal watches the pregnant woman from a distance and tries to imagine she’s her mother. She tosses a stone and remembers a Blackfoot legend about the origins of the human race: “To decide if these new people should live forever or die, Napi selected a stone. ‘If the stone floats,’ he said, ‘you will live forever. If it sinks, you will die.’ Napi dropped the stone into the water. It sank. People die” (145). When her mother told this story, Sal wanted to know why Napi used a stone rather than a leaf, but her mother hadn’t known.

That night, Sal, Gramps, and Gram stay in a hotel room on a single water bed. Sal dreams she and her mother are floating downriver only to suddenly find themselves up in the sky: “Momma looked all around and said, ‘We can’t be dead. We were alive just a minute ago.’” (147). On the way to the Black Hills the next day, Sal continues Phoebe’s story. A new message appears on the Winterbottoms’ porch: “You can’t keep the birds of sadness from flying over your head, but you can keep them from nesting in your hair” (148). Phoebe believes the messages are clues left by her mother’s kidnapper. That night, she and Sal go to the Finneys’ house for dinner while Sal’s father visits Mrs. Cadaver.

Mary Lou’s parents serve fried chicken for dinner, which Phoebe complains she can’t eat. She likewise rejects the potatoes and buttered beans as unhealthy, hinting that the Finneys shouldn’t eat them either, before finally accepting a bowl of muesli. Sal wants to explain why Phoebe is “acting like a complete donkey” (152) but remains silent. As Sal and Phoebe walk home, Sal invites Phoebe over to her house for the weekend. When they reach Phoebe’s, they find Mr. Winterbottom doing the dishes. Phoebe criticizes the way he’s doing the washing before once again raising the idea of calling the police. She then makes him promise to call her at Sal’s house if he hears from Mrs. Winterbottom over the weekend. Later that night, Phoebe calls Sal to tell her she caught a glimpse of her father crying.