Summary

In Part Three, “The Blue Circle,” Chapter 17, after seeing death’s face near her garden, Noria again reflects on water and death’s companionship.

A few days after her foiled departure, Noria understood her new situation (222). She realized she was a prisoner in her own home. Because her house had been marked with the circle, she could not leave. Her food and water were rationed. She was unsure why she was being punished and if someone had betrayed her. Noria also worried that Sanja had “been captured” (224). She wanted to leave, but feared that doing so would mean being “shot dead on the spot” (225).

One day, she decided to leave the property. She took small slow steps outside the gate. She heard gunshots, but knew the soldiers’ intention was not to hurt her (227). She then decided to try using her message pod, discovering...