Chapter 30

Fatima grieves the choice to save Hana by giving her to the boat passengers. Mahmoud spots a body floating in the water and takes the man's life vest after saying some funeral prayers. He puts the vest on his mother to help her stay afloat and focuses on surviving the rest of the night.

Chapter 31

Josef cries for help for his dad, and a Cuban police officer jumps into the sea to rescue a flailing Aaron. Josef watches in horror as his dad struggles and two shark fins appear nearby. The rescue boat is dropped into the water, and the policeman pulls Aaron to safety. Someone fires shots at the sharks so the police officer can escape.

Aaron is restrained in the boat, and it heads toward shore. Josef realizes his father is now "gone." He worries that his family will not be allowed into Cuba and may be sent back to Germany.

Chapter 32

Isabel's party's boat continues to disintegrate, and Lito seems captivated by a memory he won't discuss. An argument breaks out about the construction of the boat, and Amara proposes a water break and hands out bottles. To help everyone stay slightly more comfortable in the extreme conditions, they decide that a couple of people will take turns getting into the water and hold on to the boat.

Chapter 33

Mahmoud and his mother are still fighting to stay above water when Mahmoud hears a boat. He uses the light on the phone to attract the boat's attention, and it turns out his father and Waleed are on the craft, a Greek Coast Guard boat. They have to tell Mahmoud's dad about Hana, but he assures Mahmoud he did the right thing and they will find her.

When they arrive on shore at Lesbos, they see piles of life vests as well as some bodies of those who didn't survive. One of the bodies is that of a small child, and Fatima rushes over but finds it isn't Hana. They cannot locate any refugees on the boat with her, either. Mahmoud's dad wants him to find shoes from the dead bodies.

Chapter 34

People keep sharing condolences with Josef, and Josef watches as boats sell food and other items to passengers on the St. Louis. Officer Padron, who rescued Aaron, comes to the ship to be recognized for his bravery in saving Josef's father.

Officer Padron is happy to see Josef's family and compliments Josef's mom. He reveals that Aaron has been sedated in the hospital. The officer tries to make a joke about how often the passengers ask when they can enter Cuba, but it falls flat.

Chapter 35

Isabel takes a turn in the water, which is slightly cooler than sitting in the sun on the boat. Meanwhile, in the boat, Isabel's mother thinks her contractions have begun. Ivan and Isabel joke about the baby's name, but the fun quickly dissipates when they spot sharks in the water. It bites Ivan's leg, and he begins bleeding profusely. They pull him up into the boat, but he dies of his injuries. Luis shoots at the shark, which attracts more, surrounding the boat.

Chapter 36

There is another city of tents on Lesbos full of refugees. Fatima walks around seeking information about Hana but is not successful. The family buys tickets for a ferry to Athens. Mahmoud worries about Waleed, who seems to be catatonic at all times.

As Mahmoud considers the tourists on the boat, he thinks they probably are disgusted by the refugees. He realizes that refugees need to be visible to those around them if they want to motivate anyone to help them. The family will next take a train to the Macedonian border.