I needed to rinse off not only the dirt, but the desperate days I’d spent under the cairn. I probably needed to wash off months of pain and fear, but that would take a while. For now, I started with a twenty-minute shower. Someone had left fresh clothes on the bed. I unfolded a knee-length pale blue sundress covered in a white hibiscus pattern, the kind found in tourist shops across the islands. It wasn’t the sort of thing I’d buy for myself, but it beat walking naked through the compound. I combed the tangles from my hair until the blond waves lay smooth against my back. I didn’t have the patience for anything else. As soon as I was dressed and presentable, I went in search of Mac. I kept a little dignity and didn’t run toward him. I walked very fast, however. The solarium was on the top floor. It had been built for visitors who didn’t adapt well to the underground lifestyle, though the fires used it when they desired a break from their day-to-day life as crazy mole people.
