Laure

Laure is a strong secondary character, even though she is in a coma for the most of the novel. It is through her red notebook, and various items in her handbag, that the reader and Laurent is able to learn more about her.

Laure works as a framer, in particular, a gilder (adding metallic accents to frames). It is on her way home from work that she is attacked. In fact, after she picks herself up off the ground, she doesn't even realize that she's sustained a head injury. However, she's a distance from home, it is dark, and she is tired. She manages to talk the hotel clerk into trusting her for a room for the night.

While in the hospital, and experiencing her coma, she has vivid dreams. Through these dreams the reader learns that she was married to a photojournalist named Xavier, who was the...