Our Last Resort

The hotel staff have prepared a speech: They say the hotel will still be open for business, and the guests are encouraged to enjoy themselves. Frida cannot help but think that it is inappropriate to get a facial the day after a brutal murder, but she remains quiet. She wonders at the quick arrest, feeling a pang of guilt at her involvement. However, she realizes that there could have been other evidence or that more people could have come forward with information.

She tries to put her anxiety aside, and she and Gabriel decide to go to the pool. Gabriel has a book with him about the history of Rome. He works for a prominent historian, but he also loves his subject matter. He has always told Frida that he enjoys stories of historical figures, emperors, gods, and their families. He is particularly drawn to the story of Romulus and Remus, the orphaned twin brothers who were raised by a wolf and grew up to found the city of Rome.

The novel flashes back to Gabriel and Frida’s time in the cult. They are at their morning lessons.