Mary Ellen recovers from her fever but Mrs. Clark contracts the sickness and dies shortly thereafter. They bury her before crossing the next river. Mary Ellen notices her sons Jesse Clark and Willie Clark crying and singing hymns. Not long later, Captain Clark gets sick, too. One night, the Todds hear a scream from their wagon. Father checks in on them and discovers that Mr. Clark is having hallucinations from the fever. He became so confused that he tried attacking his sons with a knife. Father brings the boys to their wagon and stays with Captain Clark. However, he dies from the fever not long later. In the days following, Mary Ellen starts to worry about what will happen to them. Suddenly she feels angry with Father for bringing them all this way. She misses Grandma, too, and fears she’ll never see her again.

The Todds and McReynolds cross the Snake River and follow the Burnt River for many miles thereafter. By September, they start to see forests for the first time since leaving Missouri. Then, they head into the Blue Mountains. The road gets harder, and the family runs low on supplies. One night, Mother gets upset when Buck steals her bread out of the frying pan.