The pilot returned and helped her get up. There was no one else to trust, and she was too sick to resist. Her own stench was undignified, revolting. The horror of having soiled herself traveled down her spine. With the pilot propping her up, she staggered, and he led her around the hangar to a lean-to that served as an outdoor shower. From outside, she could see a square solar panel atop a water tank and a showerhead contraption. Behind her trailed the three freed prisoners, carrying her luggage and Lulu. Sam, Max and Zach. Her friendly angels.

The outdoor stall doubled as an open storage area, large enough for her to bring in her bag and place Lulu’s basket in a dry section. Nola shucked her clothes, rolled them into a ball and placed them in a debris-filled barrel, then turned on the water. Her legs buckled and her head felt light. She pulled over a fruit crate, turned it upside down, and sat on it, letting the water cleanse her.

Her bones jutted out in unexpected places, her muscles felt like mush, and her stomach was concave. And she had thought she couldn’t lose any more weight. Leslie and Wade should see her now. No, not Wade.

The sun shone on her as she shampooed her hair and rinsed away the last remains of her previous life. If she’d had scissors, she would have chopped off all that hair, mostly others’ tresses woven into hers.

When she was clean, she stripped Lulu, held her on her knees, and bathed her. The feel of their wet skins touching was delicious. “Get a taste of this first class,” Nola cooed, proud that in nine days she had become adept at handling the slippery body. “Stick with me, kiddo.”

She dried them both with the face towel as best as she could, but remained seated in the stall for a little longer, feeling her strength return. She was grateful for the morning sun on her face and back. She was grateful for the steady ground under her feet. She was grateful to Sam, Max and Zach, who had helped her with Lulu through the tough hours, and who were now guarding her privacy outside. There were many other things she ought to be grateful for—for Daniel, and Leslie, and Ming-Ji, who had given her knowledge, friendship and a passage for freedom, for Beverly, whom she missed so much. But right now she was unable to summon the brainpower to list everything.