In the airlock, Holston sits exhausted and emotionally numb while Nelson, the head of the cleaning lab, helps him into the white hazard suit. Nelson explains that the joint seals and spray-on lining have been improved, which should let Holston survive outside longer than previous cleaners. As Holston listens, he is pulled back to the memory of watching Allison’s cleaning from the top floor.

Holston remembers that he had forced himself to watch Allison all the way through. He recalls recognizing her movements even through the bulky suit, seeing her finish the cleaning carefully, wave once at the camera, and then walk toward the hill and the ruined city beyond. Holston also remembers watching Allison collapse on the slope as the toxins ate through the suit and killed her, while he stood frozen.

As Nelson continues guiding him through the familiar dressing routine, Holston reflects on how strange it is to be the condemned man instead of the sheriff supervising the process. He remembers Jack Brent’s cleaning as well as Allison’s, and he realizes that even defiant people comply because the ritual feels too unreal to resist. The process is so orderly and detached that the mind cannot fully react to its own impending death.

When Nelson begins reciting the cleaning instructions, Holston tries to stop him, but Nelson insists on following procedure. Holston thinks about the near-sacred status of the suit makers and cleaning technicians, whose inherited methods preserve the silo’s view of the outside world. As Nelson points out the wool pads, bottle, towel, and films, Holston finally notices fear in Nelson and interprets it as anxiety that Holston might refuse to clean or waste the carefully made suit. Holston says he is ready, and the chapter ends with his recognition that, just as he is now, Allison had also been truly ready to go.