Through Black Spruce

Will debates whether to wake from his coma: “I hear water rushing not so far away, a big river’s voice. I’m scared of it, me. [...] Something’s there. Through the black spruce, just on the other side. […] The sound makes me want to go to it. But I’m afraid” (317).

He then resumes his story. Will is back home but still spending a lot of time in the bush trapping animals. He feels out of place in his town; “here in the cabin, the stillness of the world outside under a thick coat of snow, the river beside us a white cut through the trees, I found something like peace” (318). At the cabin with Joe and Gregor, he resists admitting to them that he shot Marius. When he hears a snow machine outside, he panics that it is Marius here to kill them, but “in walked my ancient half-brother, Antoine” (319). Antoine’s house burned down, so he came down to spend the winter with his brother in the cabin. After spending two days alone with Antoine, during which they speak “in Cree with only a little English” (321), Will decides to go to his house in town for a bit.