Chapter 25 Summary

Amal finds her dreams a jumble: Nur in the courtyard of the old Baroudi house, her own children in their bedroom in England, and a beautiful large house she has never seen while awake. The pillars are peeling and the garden overgrown, but Amal knows her mother sleeps inside and Amal feels no longer homesick. Her brother will recognize this place when he sees it and be pleased. When Amal awakes, she remembers only the frescoes of Pompeii. 'Omar has left and Isabel is not soon returning. Most of Amal's friends are gone for the summer, so she packs up her computer, manuscript, Osiris panel, and the unexplored materials, and sets off for Tawasi.

Amal stops at the Mugama' Building, to research Anna's composition and perhaps get a hint where the third panel is. A guard tells her the museum is closed because...