Chapter 20

She wastes no time. Alone in her empty flat—for once she is glad to be alone there—she changes clothes and gets right to work, sketching her ideas, crafting them into an organized plan. There is no tingle in her nose; instead, her whole body feels as though it is suffused with light. She has emerged from a long, long stupor and is as wide awake as she was in those early days with Martin down at the Dead Sea. Her plan takes shape on a dozen sheets of plain white paper and over the remaining hours of darkness. She rises from the floor, where she has been scribbling, only when the sky begins to lighten, but she knows she cannot possibly sleep. Instead, she flops back down to the floor and continues until it is time to head to the coffee bar for a day of work on her feet.