Chapter 23 Summary

This chapter is set in June of 1987, which is almost thirty years after the events of the rest of the book.

In the first part of this chapter, the now middle-aged Leonard Marnham returns to Berlin, which is now divided into East and West. Narration describes his confused attempts to make his way through the now unfamiliar streets to his hotel, his visit to Maria's apartment building, and his eventual visit to the site of the tunnel facility, now divided by the Berlin Wall. There, he sits and reads a letter that was sent to him ten weeks before and has followed him through several addresses.

The letter is from Maria who had married Glass and moved to America. In the letter, Maria reveals that on the afternoon Marnham had discovered her and Glass together, she had just finished two intense days of...