Theo's Dream of His Mother

While hiding in an Amsterdam hotel after a traumatic event, Theo Decker dreams vividly of his mother for the first time in years. In the dream, he is in Hobie's shop, and she appears behind him, reflected in a mirror. The vision is intensely real, filled with her specific details—her freckles, her smile—but he knows he cannot turn to face her directly. The dream feels like a visitation, a moment of connection from beyond, and it leaves him with a profound sense of loss and longing upon waking. This dream sets the emotional tone for the entire novel, establishing the central, aching absence of his mother.