While still grieving his breakup with Kitty, Fogg moves in with Solomon and gets a job moving furniture. As Fogg starts drinking alcohol during his period of grief, Solomon tries to mediate the lovers’ reunion. When this effort fails, he refocuses on keeping Fogg company instead. One night, Solomon reiterates his desire to search for Effing’s cave, believing that this quest will help to distract Fogg from his grief. Though Fogg initially argues against the idea, believing the whole endeavor to be futile, he comes to accept Solomon’s proposition.

Two weeks later, Fogg and Solomon begin their road trip west with a stopover in Chicago, where they plan to visit Emily and Victor’s graves. Throughout the drive, they chat over their cultural preferences. When they arrive at the cemetery, Fogg finds himself on the verge of tears, and he is weeping profusely by the time he notices that Solomon is weeping as well. Eventually, Fogg realizes that Solomon is professing his feelings for his lost love, and this leads Fogg to realize that Solomon is his father. In the wake of this revelation, Fogg antagonizes Solomon and demands that he explain himself. When Solomon argues that Fogg should have known of their connection, Fogg becomes angry and pushes Solomon, who walks away and trips, falling into an open grave.

Solomon is rushed to the hospital, where he is diagnosed with a broken back and a fractured skull. Fogg spends the next month keeping Solomon company. Solomon professes that his heart is healing, and he begins to share the story of his romance with Emily. Fogg privately denies that Solomon is his father, clinging to the belief that the mystery of his parenthood is one of the central myths of his life. At the same time, he cannot believe that his best friend and his father can be the same person. As Solomon loses weight in recovery, Fogg first observes the resemblance between Solomon and Effing, then realizes that there is also a resemblance between Solomon and himself. Only then does he accept that Solomon is his father.

Solomon contracts an infection from which he cannot recover. Fogg accepts the inevitability of Solomon’s death one night when he goes to a diner to order chicken pot pie, which he had last eaten when Emily was still alive. When the waitress tells him they have no more chicken pot pie, Fogg becomes upset. Three days later, Solomon dies, prompting Fogg to call Kitty simply because he has no one else to talk to. He expresses his guilt over ruining their relationship, and Kitty reassures him that it isn’t his fault. When Fogg tells her that he still loves her, Kitty becomes upset with him, given that he hasn’t spoken to her in months. Fogg guesses that she is in a relationship with someone else, though Kitty denies him any right to know the truth.

Solomon is buried next to Emily. Fogg inherits Solomon’s assets, which he uses to settle Solomon’s affairs. He arranges for the rabbi from his bar mitzvah to officiate Solomon’s burial. The rabbi reluctantly accepts, then tells Fogg that he is “disturbed” after the service is over. Fogg packs his things, then destroys the furniture and appliances in his motel room. He drives throughout the night, resolving to follows chance and continue the search for Effing’s cave. When he reaches Utah, he recalls Effing’s descriptions of the state’s vast otherworldliness. He arrives in the town of Bluff, then traces a path to the area where Effing would have gone during his expedition. He manages to consult locals about the former hideout of the Gresham brothers, but they claim that this location was flooded upon the creation of Lake Powell years ago.

Fogg gives up his quest, but he still makes the journey to the lake to see what became of his intended destination. He rides a motorboat over the water but finds nothing else to do. When he returns to the parking lot, he finds that his car has been stolen, along with his money. Fogg starts walking down the highway, trying to hitch a ride, but he cannot get anyone to stop. He walks for over two weeks, first in a state of anger, then in a state of resignation. Though he injures his ankle in California, he continues to walk until he reaches the Pacific Ocean, where he realizes that he is no longer the same person he used to be. Standing on the edge of the continent, he declares that his life has begun. The sun sets and the moon rises over a nearby hill, settling in the darkness.