The rabbit nurse left noiselessly, leaving the lights on their muted setting. Archie used the remote on the side of his bed to adjust the mattress angle slightly so he could see Susan a little better. She was wearing clothes he’d never seen her in before—strange pants and a shirt that looked like something someone would bring back from an island vacation. The low light was just enough to illuminate the features of her face, serene with sleep, blemished only by the stark white bandage that covered her ear. Her knees were curled to her chest. Her head was resting on one hand like a child, and her other arm, the one in the sling, was draped across her belly. He could see her breathing, the slight rise and fall of her body against the baby-blue fabric of the couch. He watched her for a long time. Sometimes her bare feet would twitch or she would go to move her bad arm in her sleep and then her face would tense and her arm would settle back against her side.

Archie liked having her here.

He could have watched her all night.

He didn’t even see her open her eyes. He was just watching her and after a while he became aware that she was watching him, too. Her breathing hadn’t changed, her body was still, but her green eyes were wide and alert. Then she sat up and yawned.

“I guess I fell asleep,” she said.

“I guess so,” Archie said.

“What time is it?” Susan asked, looking around.

“Late,” Archie said. “How are you?”

Susan put a hand on her shoulder. “My shoulder’s okay. They said I might have had permanent damage if she hadn’t fixed it when she did.”

“She?” Archie asked. Then the implication hit him. “You mean Gretchen?”

“Yeah,” Susan said, flustered. “Sorry. I forgot you were unconscious. She fixed it before she left.”

Archie felt a prickling sensation creep up his arms. “Did she say anything?” he asked.

Susan rubbed her eyes with her good hand. “I’ve been through all this with Sanchez and the others,” she said. She laid her head on the back of the couch, and her face fell into shadow. “She said it had been fun. And that help would be there soon. And that I should keep you warm. Then she left.”

“Claire said by keeping me warm you saved my life.”

Susan shrugged. “I just did what Gretchen told me.” She paused. “Do you remember much?” she asked tentatively.

“Not really,” Archie said. He tried to review the fragments of memory he had gathered, to put them in order. “I remember firing the gun, and then it all goes black.”

Susan exhaled and he thought he saw relief in her body language.

“I can’t see your face,” Archie said.

Susan lifted her head. “What?”

“I want to see you,” Archie said. “Come closer.”