So Far Gone

Brian is shocked after shooting Dean. Joanie, who rode up to Rhys’s house with Brian, goes to call the police and paramedics. A large force of emergency units soon arrives at the scene to take Dean and Shane’s corpse away. They find that David Jr. has kept Asher and Leah safe inside the house, having discovered the air rifle that Bethany used against Dean.

Rhys is also placed into an ambulance so that he can undergo surgery for all the injuries he has sustained over the past few days. Before he goes, he reassures Bethany that he is okay and apologizes for what happened to Shane. Rhys tells Bethany that he loves her as he goes.

Brian shares his experience with the police, who are impressed by the shot he took at Dean. Brian goes to check on Rhys in the ambulance. When Rhys sees Brian, it occurs to him how close he and his family were to getting killed, which causes him to weep. Brian reassures him by saying “X̣est sx̣l̓x̣al̓t,” the only consolation he has learned at Salish School.

After undergoing reconstructive surgery, Rhys moves to Spokane to facilitate his recovery and to support Bethany and her children through their grief. He similarly experiences post-traumatic stress, grappling with the reality of their near-death experience.

Lucy gets Allison to write a story about Rhys’s experience, though the article disappoints him because it reduces the death of Shane to a petty domestic squabble. He reflects upon the failure of daily journalism to capture the wider social and cultural issues that underlie everyday violence. On the other hand, the story amuses him because it misrepresents Brian as an “air force marksman,” rather than as an electrician.

Brian also experiences post-traumatic stress, fixated on the alternate outcomes that could have happened if he had arrived late or if his bullet had been a few inches off from where it hit Dean. He and Joanie have become friends with Jeff from Paititi, who has offered to give them a guided LSD trip.

Dean’s trial is scheduled for the following year, though he tries to challenge the case by blaming Shane for his own death. The prosecutor is skeptical that Dean’s assertion will hold in court. As a result of his gunshot wound, Dean’s arm was amputated to save his life.

Rhys gets a new cellphone, which he struggles to adjust to. Although he finds relief in his ability to contact Bethany, he worries about the constant stream of news he gets on it. Despite his best efforts to avoid reading the news, Rhys cannot help but stay informed.

Shane is buried in Salem, though the funeral is tense as Shane’s parents blame Bethany for his death. Rhys reassures her that it was not her fault. Leah grieves more than Asher does. After the funeral, however, Asher experiences intense nightmares of Shane as a ghost. He reckons with the fact that Dean was supposed to be Shane’s friend. Bethany supports him as he struggles to make sense of Shane’s death.

Leah starts closing herself off to everyone except David Jr., with whom she continues to correspond over email. David’s parents call off his conversion therapy. David Jr. takes a leave from school to explore his identity, postponing his betrothal to Leah. Leah attends public school, which starts affecting the way she talks to her family. She declines family therapy and starts expressing her doubt in God. The only other person Leah is open with is Rhys, whom she helps to clear his library in exchange for newer titles. Rhys shares that there may be nothing to his Atlas of Wisdom project. Leah encourages him to reframe the book to discuss “what to do when the world seems like it’s gone crazy” (253).

Bethany chooses to remain in Spokane, working as a part-time English as a Second Language teacher with the intention to go full-time. Rhys puts the Kinnick property up for sale, regretting only that he did not share it with his family the whole time he lived there. Rhys starts working as a golf course starter, urging the players to respect the land they are playing on. He remains in touch with Lucy, who tells him that Chuck is dating another woman now. Rhys raises the possibility of them dating again, which Lucy nearly laughs off.

Asher starts playing chess with a boy named Abdel, who is much better than him at the game. Instead of being discouraged, Asher is awed by Abdel’s technique and aspires to reach his skill level. Asher continues going to church at a Unitarian service with Bethany, who is relieved that the church does not have a militant wing.

The novel ends with Bethany and Rhys visiting the part of the Spokane River where Bethany had scattered Celia’s ashes. They spend time cleaning up waste from a nearby clearing, after which Bethany goes to spend a moment of solitary silence by the water. Rhys respects her privacy and admires the place. When Bethany gets back, she reveals that she told Celia that Rhys is home again.