Summary

Bennedith tells Mercuro what happened over a bottle of wine. He declares “There’s no point being in Madrid in the summer,” proposing a holiday “to one of the islands” (144).

On their flight out of Madrid, a Swedish man named Johnny imposes himself on Bennedith and Mercuro. Although repelled, Bennedith imagines having sex with Johnny. Thinking about sex and relationships, she recalls her ex-husband Martin.

Johnny ends up staying in the same neighborhood as Bennedith and Mercuro. At their hotel, Bennedith notices Johnny “walking . . . beneath the balcony” (148). Despite Bennedith’s trepidations, Mercuro invites Johnny up for “a glass of wine” (149). Johnny talks about his job as a catastrophe pilot, discussing fear, control, and power.

Bennedith wakes in the night, a “flow of thoughts” in her head (154). Thinking about Miranda and Santiago, she has a revelation about aging, which “fills her...