Bilbao functions as the Narrator’s home base, though the passages identify it indirectly as her city rather than naming it in the scene. The city is where the routines of caring for Erik unfold; away from it, the Narrator is pulled between her responsibilities at home and her continuing involvement with Alice’s case.

Everyday Life and Divided Attention

The Narrator spends afternoons in a park, among mothers ready to start conversations, but does not want to speak with anyone. When it rains, she takes Erik to a café with a carpeted corner and toys where children can play without disturbing the adults. These ordinary settings are physically close to the work of childcare, yet her attention keeps straying to the courthouse, the chalet at Armentia, and the bistro in Burdeos where Alice’s story began. Bilbao’s daily spaces therefore register not as an escape from the case but as the backdrop against which it continues to occupy her mind.

Distance, Crisis, and Return

The city’s importance becomes concrete when the Narrator learns that Erik is seriously ill. While she is away at a courthouse and about to have lunch with Jakes Ruiz de Infante, Niclas calls from the hospital: Erik has a high fever, is drowsy, and cannot be roused properly. The Narrator leaves abruptly and drives the 65 kilometres separating her from her city, thinking through the journey in guilt and fear. Her distress is bound not only to the child’s illness but also to the circumstances in which she receives the news: she is far away, occupied with the case and with a meeting, while Niclas is at the hospital.

Home as a Maternal Role

After the Narrator and Niclas get off the tram, she plays down a call in front of him. She does not do so to conceal Jakes’s existence; rather, she is preparing to take up the role of a mother caring for her convalescent son, with everything else temporarily set aside. At home, Erik quickly falls asleep, and the couple order sushi and turn on the television. The domestic scene brings the Narrator back to caregiving, while the broadcast of Alice’s verdict places the case inside that same evening: the report says Alice was found guilty of the double murder but received the defense of mental disorder. Bilbao thus anchors the tension between the Narrator’s maternal obligations and the distant story she has been following.