Every morning we meet in the kitchen and unsheathe our needles. Serena delicately peels down her underwear, exposing a modest triangle of buttock; I count to three, hold her hip to steady her tremblin...

Allegra Hyde is the author of the story collections The Last Catastrophe and Of This New World; her debut novel, Eleutheria, was named a best book of the year by The New Yorker and shortlisted for the...