Molly dialed the number and waited a long time for an answer. When she finally heard the long-awaited “hello,” she asked at once,

  “Sophie, dear, is Clive still with you?”

  “No, Mom,” her daughter-in-law replied. Sophie always addressed Molly warmly, calling her “Mom,” since she had lost her own mother more than ten years ago. “They left about five minutes ago on some business,” she added sleepily.

  Sophie’s voice was hoarse. Molly understood that she had woken her, but she needed help. It was even better that Clive was busy with Joshua.

  “Sophie, my request may sound crazy, but I need your help.”

  “What happened, Mom?”

  Molly lowered her voice.

  “Listen carefully.”

  An hour and a half later, a bright red Nissan Micra pulled up to the house on Mayoli Street. Molly watched as her daughter-in-law parked by the gate and then hurried along the path to the porch, adjusting her tights as she went. It was obvious how rushed she had been getting ready to come to Clorain. Molly did not wait for the doorbell. She opened the door just as Sophie reached for the button.

  “Thank you, dear,” Molly said anxiously, closing the door behind her. “Come in and try not to make any noise. We must not scare her.”

  “What has she been doing all this time?”

  “Nothing special. I fed her, then entertained her with children’s books. She really liked the pictures. She’s in the kitchen.”

  Angela was not there.

  For a moment, Molly panicked, fearing that the girl had escaped through the window, and was almost ready to cry out. Just in time, she spotted her in the conservatory. It was an extension of the cottage made of a metal frame and glass. In fact, it was another room that expanded the house, a continuation of the dining room. Molly had wanted the winter garden to feel like a seamless part of the house. Angela seemed to like this place. She examined with curiosity the few plants Molly had managed to acquire since moving in. She touched the velvety leaves of episcia and calathea, and the unusual multicolored leaves of tricolor maranta. For a long time, she studied the carissa shrub with its not very large fruits that resembled plums. Molly was not afraid that Angela might try to eat one. They were edible and had an excellent taste. Their flesh, with a strawberry-like aroma, was very tender and juicy. Molly would have gladly grown this tree in the garden, but the climate would not allow it to survive. Angela studied the shrub for a long time but never dared to touch the fruit.

  Sophie watched the girl’s cautious movements closely. Sometimes Angela bent down to smell a flower, and her long, greasy hair fell forward, hiding her face.

  Molly looked at the girl as if spellbound. Now, in the morning light, she could finally see her properly. The first thing she noticed was that Angela squinted and turned away from the bright sunlight, but she was not afraid of it. She was not dirty, and now Molly knew why. Angela bathed in the lake at night. Of course, she did not wash off all the grime, and the unpleasant smell was noticeable even from a distance. She was wearing a straight, knee-length dress. The hem was uneven, with threads sticking out everywhere. The neckline was stretched, and the sleeves barely covered her elbows. Judging by the faded streaks, the dress had once been green, but over time it had lost its original color, faded, and turned a dirty gray.

  Sophie’s gaze dropped to the girl’s feet. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. Molly smiled and explained that Angela had seen colorful socks in one of the books, started humming, and pointed at them. Then Molly remembered that she had similar ones.

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  “Do you want the same? I have some.”

  Angela had nodded eagerly. Now she was wearing warm socks.

  “A pretty girl,” Sophie concluded. “I’d say she’s about eighteen.”

  “I think so too. And you know, Sophie, she has a very intelligent look.”

  “And what is she holding?”

  “Oh, that’s Toby.”

  Sophie made a puzzled face.

  “A teddy bear. A toy and her best friend,” Molly explained, then glanced at the bag Sophie had not let go of since arriving. “Did you bring what I asked for?”

  “Yes. There’s a dress and underwear. I was afraid it might not fit, but now I see we have the same build.”

  “That’s wonderful. Now we have a difficult task ahead. We need to wash her and change her clothes, but without frightening her. First, Sophie, be friendly. Show her that you are not an enemy. And second, under no circumstances touch her Toby.”

  Sophie inhaled, then exhaled.

  “Understood. I think.”

  Molly had no doubt that Sophie would handle this better than anyone else. Even Dr. Leary made her uneasy. Tara’s daughter was too loud. She would not have been able to approach Angela carefully. Sophie was different.

  “Angela,” Molly called softly, smiling widely. “I want to introduce you to a good person. Will you allow it?”

  The frightened doe-like gaze flicked past the old woman’s shoulder and moved over the slender figure of the blonde in a checkered jacket, which from a distance looked too big for her. Sophie was short, with small facial features, and overall rather unremarkable, almost comically so. That did not matter to Angela. What mattered were the intentions she had come with.

  “This is my daughter-in-law, Sophie,” Molly said, catching the moment.

  Angela was not afraid to approach her and touch her hair. Sophie struggled with the urge to cover her nose with her hand. The girl smelled disgusting, a mixture of different odors: earth and grass, urine and an unwashed body. The stench was unbearable and heavy.

  “Hello,” Sophie said, forcing a polite smile.

  Angela smiled back. She turned to Molly and began pointing at her own dirty gray face and then at Sophie’s rosy one. Molly took it as a sign.

  “Do you want to have a clean, fresh face like that?”

  Angela did not nod. She stood still.

  “Look what gifts Sophie brought you,” Molly exclaimed then, clapping her hands. After that, they all sat down on the floor to show the clothes to Angela.

  The girl smiled broadly, pulling the items she liked most toward herself. Like an eight-year-old who had never seen beautiful clothes, she jumped around and held sweaters and dresses up against herself.

  “All of this is yours, Angela. But first we need to wash,” Molly said kindly, in a gentle, instructive tone.

  She was not surprised when the girl enthusiastically pointed out the window at a small patch of lake visible through the bare trees, then imitated swimming motions with her hands.

  “There’s no need to go far. There’s a bathtub here and fragrant soap.”

  Angela frowned.

  Molly remained polite.

  “Come on, I’ll show you.”

  On the way upstairs, Sophie could not resist whispering to Molly,

  “She really understands everything.”

  “I told you. She’s not hopeless.”

  The bathtub frightened Angela. She shook her head and stepped back warily. Sophie did not lose her composure and began offering her the soap to smell. Angela liked the scent and, thinking it would taste just as wonderful, licked it. She made a face of disgust and spat loudly onto the floor. Molly burst out laughing, which startled the girl into freezing. Sophie joined in, and soon the bathroom was filled with loud female laughter.

  While Sophie distracted Angela by showing her jars with lids of different shapes and colors, tubes of toothpaste, toothbrushes, and combs, Molly filled the tub with water, pouring almost half a bottle of bubble bath into it.

  “Look, this will be your toothbrush. And this one is mine,” Sophie said, taking brand-new brushes out of their plastic packaging. “Do it like me.”

  They squeezed a bit of toothpaste onto the brushes and turned to the mirror. Angela copied Sophie’s every movement.

  “Smile.”

  Angela did not understand.

  “Show your teeth,” Sophie explained and demonstrated her white, straight teeth.

  Angela did the same. As it turned out, she had no rotten teeth at all. Yes, they were yellowish, but not enough to be repulsive. Teeth like that are often seen in smokers or tea lovers.

  They brushed their teeth. It was time to lure Angela into the bath.

  The foam delighted the girl. Splashing and squealing, she climbed into the tub fully clothed. Trying to stop her, Molly slipped and fell into the water herself. Sophie, without any modesty, began undressing, and Angela, who copied absolutely everything she did, took off her dress as well. The women soaped the girl, then rinsed her with the shower, chanting, “Rain. Warm rain.” Angela held her face and palms under the streams of water and, squeezing her eyes shut, froze, moaning softly, unable to restrain the bliss that had overcome her.

  Molly looked around the bathroom. Water was everywhere. It ran down the walls, shimmered on the floor, and dripped from the ceiling onto the tiles. This was to be expected, she thought with satisfaction. And yet, I am happy.