Chapter 43: Maria Lashes Out On Paris

Maria moved the food around her plate aimlessly as Sophie watched on, her mouth chewing in slow motion. "Are you gonna eat that piece of chicken?" the strawberry voice asked. Maria lifted her gaze, smiled weakly, and nodded. She forked a cube of the chicken and put it through her rosy lips. Last night, before Julie returned to the room, she quickly placed her violin case deeper into the wardrobe and stacked towers of clothes and books in front to hide it. She only had her violin left. She had to protect it from harm at all costs. She didn't want to think what would happen if they found the violin. The thought of it made her stomach twist in knots, and the worst kind of bitterness flooded her mouth. Many times she wanted to call home. She wanted to hear those familiar voices again. They might have eased some of the anxieties raging through her veins. But something stopped her. Though Sarkon had told her that she could always regard h