In 1968, Kya finally finds a manila envelope in her long-ignored mailbox: an advance copy of her field guide, The Sea Shells of the Eastern Seaboard. Her editor, Robert Foster, had fast-tracked publication and sent a $5,000 advance, with royalties to follow. Holding the book, Kya reflects on each shell’s story and feels validated as her work appears in coastal shop windows.

Wanting to thank Tate for setting her on this path, Kya writes him a note and invites him to stop by for a signed copy. With new funds, she hires Jerry to install running water, a bathroom, electricity, appliances, cabinets, and shelving, while keeping the old woodstove and table. The shack remains outwardly weathered, but inside becomes orderly and secure; Kya still sleeps mostly on the porch.

Hearing developers plan to drain marshland, Kya worries about ownership. She takes the family Bible to the courthouse, where the clerk finds a deed from 1897 in her grandfather Napier Clark’s name. Owing only about $800 in back taxes because the land was listed as “wasteland,” she pays and receives the deed—310 acres of lagoons, marsh, oaks, and private beach—resolving to protect her home.

After Tate leaves a note, he visits that afternoon. Kya gives him a copy and inscribes, “To the Feather Boy—Thank you—From the Marsh Girl.” The exchange softens their distance. Tate asks her not to hide and suggests exploring together; Kya agrees, later wishing she had invited him for tea and thinking they might be colleagues as well as friends.

Kya then brings a copy to Jumpin’, thanking him and Mabel for sustaining her. Declaring she is “okay now,” she stops accepting handouts but continues trading at the wharf. Jumpin’ displays her book proudly in his window, honoring her transformation from isolated survivor to recognized naturalist and landowner.