On January 10, 1969, geologist Bonnie Edquist arrives at her survey team’s camp on Meredith Downs. Learning the team has not introduced themselves to the station owners, she criticizes their manners and decides to visit the MacBrides herself.

After a fruitless morning survey in intense heat, Bonnie finds a dam on her way to the homestead. Overcome by heat, she strips and swims. When she surfaces after diving, the alarmed reactions of nearby sheep and a bird alert her to an unseen presence.

In the decade following the crash, Matt recovers and becomes a quiet, introspective man. Andy grows up in isolation, learning which topics are taboo, and develops a close bond with Matt and Lorna. In September 1966, seven-year-old Andy helps Matt clean an old manager’s house and finds a photograph of a uniformed man signed by someone named Sandy. Matt later finds a matching card in a croquet set and realizes Miles Beaumont had been in a same-sex relationship. Shocked, he burns both items to protect Miles’s secret, using Rose’s old ritual of saying “yawa” three times.

In 1966, a new postmaster, Clive Eedle, and his wife Myrtle arrive in Wanderrie Creek. Myrtle develops a reputation as a funeral enthusiast, attending every funeral in the district and keeping detailed records of each death, including her suspicions about cases she believes involve foul play. She is particularly fascinated by the MacBride family tragedies, especially Rose’s story, which she views as an incomplete puzzle requiring patience.

In December 1967, nine-year-old Andy asks mailman Sneaky Snook why he never receives letters. Sneaky explains the pen pal system in The Countryman newspaper, and Andy submits a letter listing his hobbies as rock collecting, cricket, and sheep.

After nearly three months, Andy receives a response from Harry Badger, an 11-year-old from Mount Halcyon whose father works in a blue asbestos mine. Harry shares Andy’s interest in rocks and sheep. Lorna recognizes how significant a potential friendship is for such an isolated child.

Myrtle Eedle regularly reads newspapers, starting with death notices and court reports, and can recite penalties for various crimes under the Western Australian Criminal Code. She sometimes weeps over tragic cases but finds comfort comparing others’ troubles to her own stable marriage. When she reaches this realization, she feels grateful for Clive and cooks him something special for dinner.

Andy knows Rose’s Fruit Crate is off-limits but secretly explores it when alone, examining items like a knitted sheep pajama holder, dolls, an award for a poem, and a Bible, treating each investigation as a covert mission.

In their correspondence, Harry sends Andy crocidolite asbestos fiber and describes his town. Andy replies with details about Meredith Downs and offers Harry a ram’s skull. Harry reveals his family changed their Italian surname from Baggio to Badger and his own name from Ercole to Harry, then asks if Andy’s parents are dead.

During a mill run in September 1968, Matt explains how horses have been largely replaced by motorbikes and aircraft. Andy asks about Matt’s earliest memory, then wonders why there is no word for something forgotten. Matt suggests he find the answer himself. Andy proposes “forgetment” and reflects sadly that everything eventually becomes one.

At the Perth Royal Show in late September 1968, Andy encounters a distant cousin, Johnno MacBride, and his older friends. When Andy tries to make conversation about rocks, the boys mock him, and one calls Andy the MacBride “bastard.” Matt forces the boy to apologize by alluding to damaging information about his father. Andy does not fully understand the word.

That November, while working on a family tree, Andy remembers the comment and Johnno’s crack about the MacBride bloodline. He leaves the paternal side blank, practicing his handwriting for when he learns his father’s name. In January 1969, during a trip to the cemetery in town, Andy practices telling the gravestones of two deceased men that they are his father, determined his father will not become a “forgetment.”

On January 11, 1969, Matt and Andy discover Bonnie Edquist swimming naked in a dam during a mill run. After she dresses, she introduces herself as head geologist for Hollamby Mining and reveals her team has set up camp on the property. Matt is shocked and angry, explaining to Andy how miners’ rights can override their lease and threaten their livelihood. The next day, Bonnie visits the homestead to formally present her Miner’s Right. Lorna invites her in for tea, but Matt remains hostile and heads out to inspect the property.

Sergeant Benedict Rundle arrives in Wanderrie Creek from Subiaco at the end of 1968, replacing the retiring Sergeant Wisheart. Armed with law and statistics degrees, Rundle represents strict enforcement over Wisheart’s lenient approach. He identifies discrepancies in Wisheart’s records and quickly establishes a reputation for rigor, increasing fines and arrests for offenses including drunk and disorderly conduct, selling liquor to minors, and draft dodging. He feels out of place in the bush and looks forward to his return to the city.

Bonnie visits the homestead with Hollamby Mining’s annual report and a legal summary of the company’s rights under the 1904 Mining Act. Matt reads aloud provisions allowing miners to occupy Crown land, including water points with compensation. Lorna agrees to consider a fuel arrangement with advance payment and leaves a mapping request pending. An uneasy truce develops.

In early February, Matt finds Bonnie’s wrecked vehicle after she crashes from a blown tire. She has a neck injury and briefly loses consciousness. Matt carries her to his vehicle, radios the Flying Doctor, and keeps her talking. He takes her to their homestead where she stays the night and wakes to Andy keeping watch over her in case she gets sick. They talk of rocks before he leaves to get the adults.

Sergeant Rundle frequently visits the post office. There, Myrtle Eedle strikes up conversation and gradually gets him to reveal more about the happenings in town. One day, as she manages things while her husband is out, she discovers that some packages arrived damaged. Deciding to rewrap them, she discovers that one contains lingerie and is addressed to Pete Peachey. She speculates on what this means and decides to investigate.

In Perth, cartographer Lawrence Niblock processes mining claim applications and grants mining companies access beneath pastoral leases. On March 3, 1969, he grants Hollamby Mining a claim for various minerals on Meredith Downs, including cobalt, copper, nickel, and asbestos.

Wanderrie Creek experiences a boom from mining companies pegging nickel claims. Locals learn Bonnie is Sir Reginald Hollamby’s niece and assume she obtained her position through nepotism.

In March, when Bonnie delivers a fuel payment, Andy asks to show her his rock collection. In his room, Bonnie declares his tektite collection the most impressive she has seen outside a museum. When Andy mentions his mother died at a mine, Bonnie struggles to respond. She promises to save tektites the crew finds.

When Bonnie mentions Andy to Matt, he accuses her of extracting information from a child. She clarifies they only discussed tektites. That evening, Matt warns Andy to be careful about sharing where his rock samples come from. A week later, Bonnie finds Matt working on the pearling lugger, and they discover a shared passion for sailing.

When Sneaky Snook goes to the post office, Myrtle gives him food and drink and mentions she included a parcel for Pete Peachey in the Meredith Downs bag. She explains she had to rewrap his damaged parcel and found it contained a gift for a lady. Myrtle speculates about the recipient, but Sneaky does not engage in the conversation. After Sneaky leaves, Myrtle puts question marks in her black book around Peachey’s name.

Matt examines a map showing two new bores Hollamby Mining will sink for water in exchange for the MacBrides not objecting to their claim. When Bonnie’s stomach growls, Matt invites her to stay for lunch. On the back verandah, Bonnie explains that crocidolite, mentioned in the company brochure, is blue asbestos, and that including it in claims is precautionary. Matt mentions Andy’s pen pal in Mount Halcyon. He then reveals he had not planned to take over the station, having hoped to build boats and sail, but cannot leave until Andy is old enough to take over the property. As he watches Bonnie drive away using the shortcut he sketched on her map, Matt feels unsettled by having talked about himself to her.

When Janine asks her husband, Sergeant Rundle, to reconsider excluding their son Gavin from the hockey team, he refuses, insisting the decision was made on merit, not as a father. He argues that bending rules creates a slippery slope toward corruption, citing pressure over arresting a draft-dodger and Janine’s criticism of the national service ballot. He contends that enforcing rules fairly prevents the favoritism that wars were fought to stop. After dinner, he offers to practice tennis with Gavin.