Arthur informs his employers about having found the Flood Tablet, and they immediately arrange for his return home, ignoring his pleas to let him remain in Nineveh a while longer. He promises Leila that he will return, and while she shares this certainty, she asserts that he “will return changed, and […] will find things changed” (386).

Arthur receives a hearty welcome and a mix of both praise and scrutiny back home. More famous than ever, he continues to receive invitations to events. He and Mabel attend a party at an earl’s place, and Arthur is shocked and discomfited to find that his host has acquired a number of Mesopotamian artifacts and keeps them on display at his home. When questioned about his journey over dinner, Arthur fiercely defends the “devil-worshippers,” to the guests’ astonishment and amusement.

Arthur and Mabel get married in the summer, and she soon becomes pregnant, but there is a growing distance between the couple. She cannot understand his fascination with Mesopotamia, especially as Arthur increasingly yearns to return to Nineveh and, in secret, to Leila as well.