Summary

By 1956, Irén is married to a waterworks engineer named Pali, and they have a young daughter named Kinga. Pali is a kind, moral man, but there is a rift between him and the Elekeses due to all of the traumatic experiences that the Elekeses experienced before ever meeting Pali. After Bálint returns to the Elekeses, Irén realizes that she married Pali simply “to put my own life in order” (189). Five years later, she and Bálint will decide to marry one another, and thus Irén will inform Pali that she will be leaving him. In 1956, Blanka is about to leave the country and she makes contact with Irén to say goodbye. After Blanka has escaped the country, Bálint informs Irén of his role in facilitating the escape. The narrative then transition to 1961. Throughout the past years, Henriette...