At ten o’clock, Saint waits by a truck and watches the search party looking for Patch. Chuck Bradley and two friends approach and crudely insist that Patch is dead, mocking the attention reporters are giving him and repeating old accusations that Patch is only a thief. Chuck then turns his cruelty on Saint, but Dr. Tooms intervenes and sends the boys away.

Afterward, Saint fixates on the blood from the attack and fears what it means for Patch. Dr. Tooms tries to calm Saint by saying blood often looks worse than the injury truly is. Chief Nix then kneels beside Saint, acknowledges how close Saint and Patch are, and urges Saint to hold on to hope, reasoning that the attacker wanted Misty Meyer and took Patch instead, which Nix treats as a sign that Patch may still be alive.

Sammy, the owner of Monta Clare Fine Art, appears among the exhausted townspeople and asks about Misty’s condition, showing how the whole town is caught up in the aftermath. Before Nix can answer, a call from the searchers stops everyone. Saint breaks from Nix and runs toward the discovery.

At the search site, Nix lifts a small piece of cloth in a gloved hand. Saint recognizes the purple fabric and silver star, a sign connected to Patch, and the sight nearly makes her cry out. The search continues for three days through the woods as volunteers gradually fall away, but Saint stays, recruits local kids to help, barely sleeps, and watches the days of summer disappear into the effort to find Patch.