Part IV, Chapter 21 Summary

Robert awakes with a blinding pain in his chest and a rumbling sound in his ears. He is lying in a bed and his chest is bound in a blood-soaked bandage. He looks up to see barred windows. He realizes that he is going to die but he cannot comprehend it. He hears footsteps but he cannot move. Finally, a woman enters the room, offers him water, and wipes his brow. It is Ruth. They have a halting conversation. She asks him why he didn't heed her warning and leave. He tells her he started to pack but he didn't want to leave the house he was used to. She then asks him why he fought his captors; they had orders to bring him back unharmed.

Robert thinks to himself that Ruth has changed. He asks her whether the...