Summary

The novel concludes with a summary from the narrator. Skinny returns to Prague, vigilant and haunted by her experience. She does not try to find out what happened to Obersturmfuhrer Sarazin, and attempts to remember Captain Hentschel in a just way, as a sign of gratitude. She tries to allow the experience to be expunged from her body with time.

Reflecting further on Captain Hentschel and Obersturmfuhrer Sarazin, the narrator notes that he does not have a clear image of Obersturmfuhrer Sarazin, because Skinny does not want to remember him. She recalls that when Captain Hentschel left the brothel, however, he looked back before getting into his car and driving away.

Finally, the narrator reflects on his love for Skinny, who goes on to become his wife. They, and Ervin Adler, are trying to decipher what they have lived through and to make...