Summary

Ariel returns from Mongolia deeply depressed. For the first time, she understands the experience of both unconditional love and deep grief.

Ariel notices something is wrong with Lucy as soon as she gets home, but she is too consumed with her own loss. More than ever, she does not feel like she had a miscarriage and corrects people when they try to sympathize. Everything Ariel does and everywhere she goes reminds her of her loss.

Ariel goes to see a series of doctors and specialists to find a cause for her placental abruption. She is determined to find out if the extended flight to Mongolia could really have been the cause. Everyone tells her: "There's no reason to think the same thing wouldn't have happened had you never left New York City" (153). Placental abruptions are more common in older pregnant women.

Ariel takes no...