Unknown to the majority of the characters, Shelly has contacted the New Guineans befriended by her family during the futile search for the lost tribe, urging them to masquerade as the Shelmikedmu in order to disappoint Ruth Allen. The ruse succeeds, and the accusation of fraud is abandoned. James, relieved of his worries, ends his fraud. Because Veronica has become sexually involved with him during her participation in his deceit, she assumes the role of a mother toward the children, though she is not explicitly said to marry James.