Peace Like a River: Winning Her Hand Summary & Analysis

Reuben explains that Teddy Roosevelt had asthma as a child. His father would gallop down the street with Teddy sitting in front to try to get air into his lungs. Reuben thinks of this as he rides in front of Davy and feels better. Davy lets him off behind the barn. Reuben wakes several hours later with a horrible fever and Roxanna's hand his forehead. Roxanna pins a quilt over the window to dim the light.

Reuben sleeps off and on all day. At one point he wakes to see Swede sitting next to him rifling through a new Sunny Sundown poem. Reuben reminds the reader of Sunny's arc from lawman to "misunderstood outlaw." Sunny now finds himself in a beautiful valley with one entrance and a stick of dynamite to seal it. Reuben points out that this sounds a lot like another Western novel, and Swede says these things need to be written about so they don't fall out of circulation. Sunny hasn't yet set off the dynamite because he wants his wife to live with him in the valley.

Reuben finally wakes in the evening feeling much better. Roxanna deems him recovered and feeds him soup. As she rolls out piecrust, Reuben asks when Dad is coming home. Roxanna shares that there's been no big news, and Reuben sees that she's scared for Davy. Roxanna tells them they must be steadfast and have faith, and Reuben notes that she's using Dad's language. Swede says that if Dad says they have to leave she won't let him, and Roxanna agrees with Swede.

Later that night, Swede and Reuben see Dad appear by the gas pumps. They bounce excitedly in the window. Dad looks strangely at the gable in the house, not at the window, and Swede and Reuben stop bouncing. Swede's face mirrors Dad's strange but happy expression and she shushes Reuben when he grouses about Dad not coming inside right away. Finally, Dad straightens his coat and approaches the door. Reuben tries to go to the hallway to open it, but Swede won't let him. Then Roxanna comes down the stairs smelling of perfume. When she opens the door, she and Dad hold hands and Dad laughs. Reuben thinks that Dad looks stronger than ever.

Dad moves out to sleep in the Airstream that night. Swede tells Reuben that it's "for honor," which she finds quite romantic. Reuben asks why they're not moving out there too, since they also love Roxanna. Swede snips that he should go ask Dad if he's so concerned.

In the barn, Reuben tells Dad that he liked it better when Mr. Andreeson was an enemy. Dad leads Reuben in questioning what role Mr. Andreeson plays in what Davy did. Reuben admits that he'd like for Davy to escape consequences even if he did do a "wrong thing." Dad says that he himself has to listen to God but suggests that Reuben can keep viewing Mr. Andreeson as an enemy. He then asks Reuben what God said about enemies. Reuben thinks of the Old Testament, where enemies of God suffered all manner of gruesome fates. Dad quotes Jesus instead: "love your enemies."

That afternoon, Reuben spots Davy on the hillside. Davy is waiting for Reuben behind the barn again that night with the news that Mr. Waltzer is gone for the night. Reuben is relieved; he'd been dreading seeing Mr. Waltzer again. Reuben asks Davy to come home and bring Sara, but Davy refuses.

Reuben tells the reader that he made the trip with Davy three more times and struggled to justify deceiving Dad. One night, Reuben mentions how sad Mr. Finch looked and asks Davy if he feels bad. Davy says regret won't help, since he has to go on anyway. On another night, Davy explains that Sara isn't Mr. Waltzer's real daughter—he "got her" from a man in Utah. Reuben can't fathom why a man would give his daughter away, and Davy explains that Mr. Waltzer is raising her to be his wife when she's old enough. Reuben deems this "the pukiest idea in the world."

Reuben asks Davy if he's afraid of Mr. Waltzer. Davy says he isn't, he just listens closely when Mr. Waltzer is around. Davy says he doesn't know if Sara's afraid either. Then Davy points out an owl hunting. Reuben can't see the owl and thinks that he can't ever see what Davy sees.

On Reuben's second visit, Sara asks if Mr. Waltzer showed Reuben his missing fingers. She explains that his fingers were damaged when a tow chain slipped. She says that it was her fault, and her punishment was to watch him cut off his own fingers and then dispose of them herself.

Reuben wakes up around noon the next day, barely able to breath and feverish again. Dad offers to fetch some aspirin, and Reuben notices that Dad is wearing nice clothes. He asks why Dad is dressed up. Dad admits that he's going to court Roxanna and asks Reuben's opinion on his chances. This makes Reuben feel very adult, and he tries to assure Dad that Roxanna feels more than "respectfully" about him. Dad spends his days outside in the Airstream and when he does enter the house, knocks and offers Roxanna carnations from a small nursery in Grassy Butte. One day, the man at the nursery offers Dad a guitar. Dad insists "he's no musician," but his face lights up holding the instrument.