After researching their options, Lola finds a clinic in New Mexico that performs in-clinic procedures and is a viable option after ruling out Kansas and Colorado, both of which require parental consent. Pepper tells Moth about the plan, and he objects, worried about the health risks of a long car ride for Pepper and the high probability that her fame will attract unwanted attention. He proposes a safer alternative: He will drive, and they will rent a large SUV so Pepper can lie down and rest in the back. Maisie rents a huge vehicle, which they call the “water buffalo.”

To avoid raising suspicion, Lola tells her mother, Darcy, that she is spending the weekend at Pepper’s. Then, Moth, Pepper, and Lola depart before dawn. On the road, they are disturbed by a talk radio show where callers make vicious comments about Pepper’s pregnancy. Later, at a gas station, Pepper is recognized, forcing them to leave in a hurry. During the drive, Lola asks why Pepper didn’t get an out-of-state abortion herself. Pepper explains that the medical risks were too severe at her age and that once her pregnancy became public, she couldn’t ask anyone to help her break the law. She frames her decision to carry the baby to term as a choice to protect her own life and her future with her family. With only an hour left to go, they enter New Mexico and name Lola’s new hamsters Hamling and Hamlet.

When Pepper and Lola arrive at the New Mexico clinic, they are met by aggressive protesters. Lola is frightened, but when Pepper gets out of the car, her famous and heavily pregnant form stuns the crowd into silence. The protesters part, allowing Pepper and Lola to walk into the clinic unbothered. The abortion procedure itself is very quick and simple, lasting only about five minutes.

In the recovery room, Lola asks if Pepper is jealous that she was able to get an abortion. Pepper replies that she isn’t jealous but “grateful” that Lola had access to a choice she herself did not. The next morning, Pepper wakes to find Lola missing but then discovers her outside by the pool playing ukulele in the early light. There, Lola confesses she called her mother. Pepper reveals that Darcy had already texted her in the middle of the night, expressing immense gratitude for taking care of Lola. Relieved, the group begins the long drive home. However, just a few miles after crossing the border back into Texas, they are pulled over by a police car.

The officer, a deputy sheriff, accuses Pepper of “human trafficking” for transporting Lola across state lines to get an abortion, which he claims was done without the “consent” of the “unborn baby.” Pepper is arrested and taken to a jail cell in what the deputy calls a “sanctuary county for the unborn” (248). From jail, Pepper is allowed one phone call and reaches her daughter Alice, a lawyer, who is furious and immediately declares the arrest illegal and based on an unconstitutional local ordinance.

The deputy, whom Pepper calls “Mr. Sir,” reveals he is running for sheriff and that a protester at the clinic had identified Pepper and her car, tipping him off. He refuses Pepper’s requests for water, a restroom, and her medications. Under the stress and deprivation, Pepper begins to hemorrhage in her cell. She cries out for help, but the deputy ignores her until he eventually finds her collapsed on the floor in a pool of blood. Realizing the severity of the situation, he calls for a medical helicopter, which airlifts Pepper to the hospital, with a frantic Moth and Lola by her side. They land on the hospital roof, where Dr. Kim and her medical team are waiting.

Pepper awakens in the hospital to discover she has had an emergency C-section. Moth is by her side and gently places their newborn daughter in her arms. Dr. Kim joyfully reports that despite being five weeks premature, the baby is perfectly healthy. Soon after, the entire family—Darcy, Alice, Max, and all the grandchildren—arrives, filling the room with celebration. Max is wearing a “Big Brother” t-shirt he has kept since college, when Pepper suggested it as a Halloween costume while she was teaching 1984, and jokes that he may be clairvoyant.

Amid the excitement, Pepper remembers a promise she made to her late friend Dot not to name the baby after her. The family begins suggesting names. Finally, Lola proposes the name Bob after Moth’s English saying that “Bob’s your uncle.” The unconventional choice amuses everyone, and they officially decide to name the baby Bob.

Pepper and baby Bob remain in the hospital for more than a week for observation. During this time, Pepper shares what Dr. Blankman threatened and why she dismissed him from the team. However, Alice reveals that she called the state medical board about Dr. Blankman’s HIPAA violations, resulting in his license being revoked. She also filed a complaint with the state AG’s office while separately seeking significant compensatory damages. While Bob thrives, Pepper’s recovery from the major surgery is slow. Without the pregnancy, she feels she is no longer a miracle but simply an old, tired woman.

One day, the deputy sheriff who arrested her visits the hospital bearing gifts. He offers a partial apology for failing to provide her water, food, and medication in jail, but insists Pepper should thank him and those “fighting to put abortion recruiters behind bars” for saving Bob’s life (269). He argues that since mothers love their babies, they must always give birth. Pepper rejects his logic, countering that love is not a substitute for the resources, health, and stability needed to raise a child and that it never negates a person’s fundamental right to choose. Unmoved, he leaves, vowing to continue his patrols.

One year after being forced into the Vista View retirement community, Pepper retakes her driving test, passes, and receives a new license, reclaiming a piece of her independence. This is prompted by a Vista View information session for a new after-school tutoring program where Evangeline, formerly of “She’s Worldwide”, is the program leader. Afterward, Evangeline pulls Pepper aside privately and recruits her to volunteer for a clandestine network of “abortion fairies” who secretly drive people across state lines to access care.

Pepper accepts, gets her license, and for her first mission, she brings baby Bob along. She is stunned to discover that her contact for the network is Father Frank, the priest involved in her long-ago fender-bender. He confesses that he stopped short for geese in the median, causing the accident, though he acknowledges Pepper may have been driving too close. He apologizes for cutting up her license. Pepper picks up her first passenger, a terrified young woman named April. During the drive to New Mexico, Pepper comforts April by telling her about Lola’s own abortion and positive outcome. They arrive at the clinic to find it empty and free of protesters. Overcome with relief, April hugs Pepper and tearfully whispers, “You’re saving my life” (284). The novel concludes as Pepper embraces her new purpose, with Bob in the backseat, ready for the road ahead.