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This chapter begins as Wanderer enters a typical friendly, but not-so-in-the neighborhood convenience store. Feeling like what she is doing is wrong, Wanderer is slightly panicky, but Melanie keeps her mind in focus, telling her what to buy and how much of it.
Wanderer attempts to quell her nervousness by telling herself that she’s simply doing this to get the coordinates from Melanie. After Melanie tells her where Jamie and Jared were headed, she will go find another Seeker who is nicer and give them the information they want. Melanie doesn’t believe this, so she ignores the thought, instead telling Wanderer to hurry up before it gets dark. The final shopping list consists of three gallons of water, a roll of doughnuts, a bag of chips, a topographical map, a box of granola bars, and a backpack to carry it all in. All of these items are props in the charade that Wanderer is going hiking. The cashier falls for the charade and Wanderer is free to be on her way.
Melanie mocks the souls for being very creepy and for the fact that they still scan stuff at the stores, despite the fact that nobody pays for anything anymore. Wanderer replies that money is not important because everyone is honest. At this thought, she starts to feel guilty again and hurries up to dismiss the feeling.
After Wanderer leaves the store, Melanie brings up the image of the rigged and pointy lines. Wanderer scans the skyline and is able to match four of the points to the lines of a mountain range. Melanie exclaims in excitement as she recognizes a landmark. Wanderer doesn’t immediately move as the mountains look so far in the distance. She refuses to walk the entire way, so she takes the car at first. The drive continues until civilization is far behind them and Wanderer thinks about how soon she will have to walk. To both her and Melanie’s amusement, Wanderer pictures what the Seeker is doing and how angry she will be when she finds out she has been ditched.
As the day carries on, Melanie and Wanderer quarrel over which is the right way to go. Wanderer suggests that Melanie show her the rest of the lines, but she refuses. As a result, Wanderer is forced to continue, almost blindly. Night soon comes and Wanderer is forced to park the car and fall asleep.
