33 Chapter 33

Maria wrinkled her nose at the stale, unwashed clothing smell coming from Cassandra's room as she pushed the door open. She'd bullied Yara into allowing her to bring the supper tray upstairs. She shoved her way past the door and into the darkened bedroom, placing the tray on a side table as quickly as she could. It was quite heavy, since Maria had asked Yara to add her supper to it too. She was going to force Cassandra to accept her company, for at least an hour. If the other woman wanted her to leave after that then she would.

"Cassandra... Cass... Cassie?" she asked, walking slowly through the dim room with her arms out. She headed for the square of light trying to shine through the window blinds and opened them, allowing the light to stream through. She opened the window for good measure, letting fresh air in.