When Tess tells her father about Eben’s threats, he grows irritated and tells her not to look for trouble. Stung, she thinks about how his life won’t be impacted as much as hers if they have to leave the island because he’ll still be able to fish his usual waters. Mrs. Brooks calls her husband and says that Aaron is on his way to the wharf because it’s been a “hard morning.” Natalie declined his request for a visit with his mother, and Libby has wanted his constant attention. Tess worries that her mother is already regretting becoming a foster parent.

Tess tries to avert bad luck by greeting the redheaded boy before he boards the boat, but she thinks his presence contributes to her unimpressive catch that day. Mr. Brooks shows Aaron how to use a tool called a bander to put rubber bands around the lobsters’ claws. When the lobsterman identifies a crustacean that is too small to keep, the boy gently returns the creature to the water.

Aaron vomits over the side of the boat when seagulls swoop around the boat to devour the leftover bait. Eben and his father see and mock Aaron over the radio. Mr. Brooks tells them to mind their own business and turns the radio off, something he’s never done before. Feeling sorry for Aaron, Tess gives him a piece of mint candy and tells him that everything will be okay, even though she doubts her own words.

The narrative moves forward two weeks. Aaron continues to go lobstering with Mr. Brooks, and Tess wonders if he’s drawn to the man because he doesn’t know his biological father. Aaron usually declines Tess’s invitations to spend time with her, so she’s pleasantly surprised when he offers to help her scrape paint off the skiff she’s repairing. She wants to ask Aaron about his life and whether he likes her and her family, but she remembers that she’s meant to stick to light topics, so she strikes up a conversation with him about ice cream instead. Mentally, she makes a note to add his favorite flavor to the grocery list.

Natalie arrives, and Mrs. Brooks calls Aaron inside. Tess wonders if he’ll share his struggles with his caseworker, like the fact that “he still isn’t comfortable opening the refrigerator or cupboards when he’s hungry” (77). As she listens to the mournful song he plays on his trumpet after Natalie leaves, Tess wishes that Aaron saw his new island home as an adventure instead of a punishment. The Brooks’s neighbor, Doris Varney, comes onto her porch to listen to the boy’s music. Inspired by the woman’s praise for Aaron’s trumpet playing, Tess concocts a plan that she hopes will make the boy feel like he’s part of the community. She hints to Mrs. Varney that the Fourth of July picnic would be a good occasion for everyone to hear Aaron play, and the woman eagerly agrees.

The following day, Tess, Aaron, and Mr. Brooks are fishing on the Tess Libby when Mrs. Coombs, who’s in charge of the entertainment for the Fourth of July picnic, calls them on the radio and asks Aaron to play his trumpet at the event. Aaron looks “like he’s looking for a place to run” and protests that he doesn’t have sheet music for the songs that Mrs. Coombs wants him to perform (83). The woman assures him that she has the music and invites him to come over to her home to collect it that evening.

Tess says that she wants to set one of her lobster traps near Dead Man’s Island, and Mr. Brooks explains that it’s called that because the body of an unknown sailor washed ashore and is buried there. Aaron shares that his grandmother, who had cancer, drowned when fluid filled her lungs. Mr. Brooks hugs him and says, “You’ve been through more than any child should have to” (87). Tess expects the boy to withdraw, but Aaron rests his forehead against Mr. Brooks’s shoulder. To cheer him up, Tess points out a diving seal. Seals eat the lobsters out of fishermen’s traps, but Tess thinks that they’re beautiful animals. When they haul up Tess’s empty lobster trap, Aaron surprises Tess by joking that it’s a lucky day to be a seal.

That evening, Tess takes Aaron over to Mrs. Coombs’s house so that they can collect the music book. On their way, she turns in a circle counterclockwise three times to undo the bad luck of Aaron saying “drowned” on the Tess Libby, and he finds her behavior strange. Aaron doesn’t like playing songs that other people choose for him, and he worries that he won’t know the melodies. Tess encourages him to practice on the upright piano in the parish hall, which is left unlocked. The boy hurries inside and eagerly begins playing. He explains that his grandmother taught him how to play the piano and that playing the keyboard was his only time to himself at his first foster home. He asked for a trumpet for Christmas when he was eight and was surprised when he received the gift he requested.

Tess asks if Aaron has written back to his mother, but he says that his attempts come out “wrong” and “angry.” She suggests that they record his performance at the picnic so that she can see it. He grows frustrated and explains that her parents and Natalie would have to decide if he’s even allowed to share something like that with her. Tess cheers him up by showing him some donations for the Ladies’ Aid Society Rummage Sale, and the children enjoy dressing up in the ugliest clothes they can find.

Aaron encourages Tess to sing while he plays the piano. When she protests that she’s not good at singing, he encourages her to pretend to be someone else, which is what he does “when everyone expects [him] to be someone [he’s] not” (97). With his encouragement, she begins singing a church hymn. Reverend Beal enters and praises the children’s musical abilities. He thanks Aaron for agreeing to play at the picnic and joins Tess in singing “Amazing Grace.”