Chapter 7

• Mariselle begged the heavens for strength as she was trying her best to stay afloat with all the gruel yelling and screams of torture from the next room, and she wondered how Nayeli remained calm through it all.
• The silence of the cell had grown so obvious that even Mariselle’s shallow breathing sounded like thunder to her delicate hearing. Hours had passed—or maybe days. She could no longer tell the difference. Her head rested against the cold concrete wall, eyes red from crying, body trembling from hunger and fear. Nayeli hadn’t said a word in a while. The scalded woman had gone quiet, curled up on her side, back turned to Mariselle.
• Then it came—loud and sudden.