As autumn arrives in Barcelona, Daniel finds his obsessions easing: he thinks less about Clara Barcel, Juli’n Carax, and the hoarse stranger who smells of burned paper. Business at the Sempere bookshop improves, and Daniel suggests the "right candidate" when his father says they need someone who is "half detective, half poet." Daniel seeks out Fermn Romero de Torres, still living as a beggar under the arches of Calle Fernando, and brings him toward the shop despite Fermns fear of being chased by the Security Services and his nemesis, Inspector Fumero.

Daniels father welcomes Fermn without judgment, insisting he join them for lunch and offering him a bath and clean clothes. As they wash and shave him, Daniel and his father see deep wrist and ankle marks and terrible scars on Fermns body, but they do not question him. Afterward, Daniels father offers Fermn a job finding rare books for clients, with food at their table and a place to stay until they find a room for him; overwhelmed, Fermn bursts into tears and accepts.

With wages and stability, Fermn transforms quickly, taking a room in a pensin on Calle Joaqun Costa without filing the police form, thanks to neighborhood help, so Inspector Fumero cannot easily find him. He proves extraordinarily effective at the job, using disguises and persuasion to enter private libraries and secure requested books fast and cheaply. Daniel remains uneasy about Fermns scars, suspecting they may connect to Fumero, but avoids pressing him.

Months later, Fermns landlady calls at 2 a.m.: he has locked himself in, screaming and threatening suicide. Daniel fetches Dr. Bar while Daniels father forces entry; they find Fermn naked, terrified, and thrashing in a wrecked room. Dr. Bar sedates him and identifies the scars as torture burns from a soldering iron. Fermn sleeps for two days and wakes with no memory of the episode, ashamed and apologetic; Daniels father pays damages and, afterward, Daniel takes Fumeros threat more seriously and tries not to leave Fermn alone.

The three make a routine of Sundays at the Novedades Caf and sneaking into the cinema, where Fermn becomes obsessed with movie actresses and urges Daniel toward romantic experience. During one screening, Daniel notices a lonely man enter and, in the projectors beam, recognizes Coubert—the faceless figure who smells of burned paper. When the scene changes and the hall goes dark, Coubert vanishes, but the lingering odor of burned paper convinces Daniel the encounter was real. Daniel finishes the film shaken, understanding Coubert has not forgotten him or their pact.