Husbands & Lovers

A porter gives Hannah a package. She pockets it and goes up to her flat. Alistair is in the bath, and she informs him that she’s pregnant, implying that the baby is his. He knows that she’s been sleeping with Lucien, and he points out that Lucien is only interested in women who can pass him information. For this reason, Alistair had Lucien investigated and learned that he is part Jewish and an Israeli intelligence agent. Hannah recalls the baby that she had with Jànos about a year after his fever broke, a boy called Kàroly. One morning, Jànos told her that he received news that Hannah’s father was deported to a death camp, like many other Hungarian Jews. Jànos believes that Hannah will be safe in the countryside. As a Jew, however, Hannah believes that there is literally nowhere safe for her on earth.

Now, Hannah gets into a taxi, opens the package, and finds the gold cobra bracelet. At the hotel, she goes to Lucien’s rooms. They are “too tidy,” and she finds the closet and bathroom empty. Hannah remembers one “golden afternoon” with Kàroly, the day Jànos told her that the Soviets had crossed the border.