As Rachel walks with her dogs to the beach to deal with her neuritis, she meets a young surfer, who describes his surfboard, which is hollow and has a fin for steering. Returning home, she waits for Kenji to wake up. His right eye, affected by leprosy, stays permanently half-open and half-closed. He heads to the Kalaupapa Store, which he has managed the last five years, and, although Rachel normally helps him, she goes to Bishop Home on Thursday.

Catherine tells Rachel that her sister Polly has died, and Catherine rebuffs Rachel’s suggestion that she visit her surviving brother. She leaves Bishop Home, returning to the store to see Kenji. The next day Rachel and Kenji go to the landing to pick up the supplies from the SS Hawaii for the store. Rachel discusses the rations with Diedrichson, a clerk from the superintendent’s office, and she criticizes the lack of variety. He implies he can help her personally if she will become intimate with him. Rebuffing him, Rachel opens a box of combs from the steamer addressed to her. As she puts away the combs later, she and Kenji wonder about their daughter. Rachel fills in for Kenji later in the week because he has a fever, and Diedrichson again propositions Rachel, offering her chocolates and other delicacies.