Summary

Chapter 13 returns to Heela, who moved frequently in the months immediately following her arrival at the U.S. military camp in Tirin Kot. At the camp, she was reunited with her son Jamshed and lived in a tent for a few weeks. The family was later brought to Kandahar Airfield, a larger U.S. base. There, Omaid, who had survived four bullet wounds due to the work of American doctors, was recovering in the city’s hospital. A doctor at the hospital gave Heela fifty dollars worth of Afghan currency, allowing her to find an apartment in the city. Before long, however, Heela realized it would be extremely difficult to find work. When her money ran out, a friend of Musqinyar’s built Heela a sign to put outside her house advertising midwife services. The work allowed her to afford...