Summary

Leda has trouble falling asleep after Gino leaves. She lies awake and thinks of Bianca and Marta, thinks about calling them and decides not to. She thinks about how they compete for her attention and affection and keep track of what she does for the other, each feeling slighted by Leda. Leda thinks about how she had let her daughters have the apartment in Florence to themselves when they asked, so they could be alone with boyfriends. She wonders why she should do the same favor for Nina, whom she barely knows, that she has done for her daughters.

Leda wanders around the apartment wondering why Nina wants her to give Gino the keys to the place. Leda projects her own experiences and expectations onto Nina, assuming that Nina wants “to take the risk of flight, the road to a future different from the...