Homecoming

Dicey wakes her siblings early; they reluctantly begin their day with breakfast in a diner. They share two pancake breakfasts, then travel to an Army/Navy surplus store where Dicey purchases a utility knife. Unsure of their next move, the Tillermans walk around Annapolis. Dicey and James comment on the older girls not wearing bras, and they wonder, laughing, if “the jiggling hurts” (227). They worry about crossing the bay to the Easter Shore, where Crisfield and their grandmother’s farm is located.

The children walk to a boat dock; two adolescent boys teasingly spray each other with a hose, accidentally getting Dicey wet. They invite the four Tillerman children on board their father’s boat for Dicey to dry off. The Tillermans accept sodas from Tom and Jerry and listen to them talk about their parents, who work in politics. When the boys learn that the children are stuck and need to journey to the other side of the bay, they tentatively decide to commandeer their father’s boat to help the Tillermans. They plan on meeting the following morning. Dicey counts their money. The Tillermans have $47 remaining, and Dicey intends to spend as little of it as possible should the children need to return to Bridgeport.

Dicey finds Sammy some distance from the abandoned house the following morning. Unable to sleep, Sammy reports a nightmare in which his three siblings boarded a bus and left him behind. Sammy asks Dicey why she planned to go to Maryland without the others and if she wishes she were alone. Dicey responds honestly, confessing a solo journey would be more affordable. She’s worried about what they’ll find on their grandmother’s farm. However, Dicey also believes she should have included James, Sammy, and Maybeth in her plans while they lived with Eunice.

Though Dicey wants to hold on to their money until dinner, she’s starving and knows her siblings must be, too. Before meeting with Tom and Jerry on their family boat, she buys peanut butter crackers and chocolate bars from a vending machine. Sailing across the bay proves more complicated than Dicey expected, but Dicey feels peaceful on the sea. Jerry allows Dicey to steer the boat for a while. A quick learner, Dicey easily takes on the responsibility of guiding the boat across the bay. Jerry compliments Dicey’s natural talent for sailing. He didn’t believe girls could sail. When Jerry seems disappointed that Dicey is only 13 years old—too young to be a girlfriend— Dicey feels excited to finally be recognized as a girl, not a boy. They reach Maryland’s Eastern Shore; Jerry and Tom try to entice the Tillermans to stay docked with them and drink beer on the boat. The Tillermans decline, and they part ways.

Dicey spends as little money as possible on dinner before the children make camp for the night. The store clerk's accent sounds similar to Liza’s. They eat fresh tomatoes and drink milk, then wash their underwear in the sea. Sammy catches several fish, which they save for breakfast the following morning.

The children sleep in late, waking to a beating hot sun that plasters them to the empty house porch on which they rest. Dicey scales and cleans the fish while James starts a fire. They notice other children floating by in a rowboat, and Dicey comments on the similarities in their appearances. The Tillermans begin walking, though they are tired and hungry. Dicey considers stealing corn from a field, but the fact that it is entirely unprotected deters her. They consider stopping to fish again but see circus tents in the distance. Dicey reminds the children they cannot spend money, but James wants to see the circus from a distance anyway. A woman scolds the children and turns them away as they approach.

They continue walking, only stopping to purchase potatoes, tomatoes, bread, and milk. They eventually come across a creek, and Sammy fishes while the others build a fire and cook the potatoes. Dicey spots a sign offering work opportunities for field pickers, and the children consider working for a day to bring in cash. James and Dicey discuss money, and Dicey confesses she’s trying to hold onto $40 in case they need to return to Eunice’s house. She worries that their grandmother is challenged with psychological conditions and was abusive to Liza and Cilla when they were children. James stresses the importance of finding a home and going to school; he believes they can care for each other as long as they have a residence. Dicey sings uplifting songs to the children as they fall asleep.

The next day, the children approach the farmer’s house and intend to pick crops. A large brown and black dog barks viciously as they walk to the farm’s front gate, and Dicey is too scared of the animal to approach the front door. The farmer walks aggressively across his front yard, addressing the children. Dicey gives him her father’s last name, Verricker, before the farmer agrees to pay the older children 50 cents per bushel. He asks for Maybeth’s name, and Dicey doesn’t like how he looks at her young sister. The Tillermans ride in the farmer’s truck to a poorly maintained field ripe with tomatoes.

The work is arduous, made all the worse by the unrelenting August heat. Dicey eventually tells James, Maybeth, and Sammy to take a break and cool down. She continues picking, and the children realize they will make three dollars for their efforts. James distrusts the farmer and wants to leave before he returns, but Dicey insists they receive their payment. However, the farmer returns with the dog, whom he ties to a sapling, telling the children the dog will chase them down and maul them should they run. He doesn’t pay the Tillermans, but he feeds them biscuits. He intends to exploit the children, forcing them to continue working for him. Dicey apologizes to her siblings for putting them in such a dangerous predicament.

At nightfall, Dicey leaves a pile of biscuits to distract the dog. She waits until the farmer is deep into his field before instructing her siblings to run. Dicey jumps into the farmer’s truck, shifting the gear into neutral. The truck rolls downhill, which catches the farmer’s attention. Dicey leaps from the cab, injuring her arm as she falls. She runs to meet with her siblings, catching up to them quickly. They jump into a deep river and swim to the other side before traveling downstream. The children rise from the riverbank only when they are miles away from the farmer’s field. Though Dicey has always been aware of the dangers around them, this close brush with peril leaves her feeling vulnerable.

Dicey wakes on the riverbank as the sun rises; she snuggles her siblings and feels grateful they’re safe. They begin walking. Dicey keeps them moving quickly while hiding from passing cars. Dicey navigates with her map, leading the children to a more populated town called Hurlock. There, they see advertisements for the circus again. They spot the farmer’s truck driving through town, his dog in the front seat. They decide to hide among the circusgoers, depending on safety in numbers. The farmer finds and chases the children into a circus tent. Will and Claire, leaders in the circus, defend the children when the farmer attempts to lie and claim them as his foster children. Claire scares off the farmer and his dog with her whip, and Will decides the children must travel with them for a while.

James assists the Ferris wheel operator while Sammy works with Claire on a performance with dogs. Dicey and Maybeth assist with food preparation and cleaning, but the work allows Dicey to have breaks. She thinks about Liza and worries they must return to Eunice’s house. Dicey enjoys the rhythm of moving around with the circus and daydreams about traveling the country and the world.