Mariam resumes her story. In prison, she is tortured by being dunked in a tub of water. Her treatment leaves a mark even now: she has removed the doors from the hinges in her apartment, and once, she fled from her husband out of a semi-involuntary flight reaction after he stood up when she said something provocative.

Mariam recalls the beginning of her and Charlie’s relationship and how he came to be pursued by the Stasi after a playful game involving swimming out to a Swedish boat while on holiday. The authorities think he is trying to leave the country. Afterward, he quits teaching and starts writing provocative books and articles.

Being that Miriam is an ex-criminal and her husband is under surveillance, the authorities occasionally search their house. Because Charlie has applied to leave the country, and because they suspect that he is trying to leave illegitimately, the Stasi arrest him. Miriam is not allowed to visit him and almost two months later, a policeman comes to tell her she should collect his things because he is dead.

Angered and distraught, Miriam contacts Major Trost, the district attorney, who tells her that Charlie hung himself. She doesn’t believe him. She meets with Dr.