Two hours before the show on opening night, Trudi, Rachel, and the rest of the cast prepare. Trudi is still livid at Wallace, but Rachel and the rest of the group feel like they treated Wallace poorly. Trudi yells at them all to remember how Wallace walked out on them, and Rachel remembers Wallace’s suggestion to let Old Shep live. The kids all agree to change the ending in honor of Wallace and all the books where dogs die, and they raise a chant of “no more dead dogs” (154).

Later that night, Wallace calls up Rick and Feather’s houses, but they’re at the production of Old Shep, My Pal. Suddenly, Wallace realizes one of them might be planning to destroy the performance. Despite Mr. Fogelman’s order not to come to the performance, Wallace goes because he can’t bear the thought of all that hard work being ruined. The drama club may have turned on him, but he “refused to do the same to them” (156).

Wallace sneaks into the school and finds Rachel in an otherwise empty hallway. He tells her about the possible attack on the show and not to tell anyone else so that