“‘And do you, Mariam jan, accept this man as your husband?’ Mariam stayed quiet. Throats were cleared….’Yes,’ she said shakily.” Even though Mariam is scared and does not want to marry Rasheed, she finds it in her to say yes when asked, pulling her strength from inside.
“‘Well, then, as of tomorrow morning I expect you to start behaving like a wife. Fahmidi? Is that understood?’ Mariam’s teeth began to chatter. ‘I need an answer.’ ‘Yes.’” While Mariam is still scared of everything and hasn’t gotten used to her new life, she still agrees to keep going. Rasheed is being impatient with her but she still decides to start acting how she’s expected to.
“That night, as most nights, Laila set the dinner table for two only. Mammy said she wasn’t hungry. On those nights that she was she made a point of taking a plate up to her room before Babi even came home. She was usually asleep or laying awake in bed by the time Laila and Babi sat down to eat.” Laila has, in essence, been raised without a mother. At this point she’s learned how to care for herself and be the female figure of the house. Knowing that your own mother in particular doesn’t care about you is a very heart wrenching thing, but Laila does perfectly fine regardless.

	“She turned to Jalil again. ‘Tell them. Tell them you won’t let them do this.’ ‘Actually, your father has already given Rasheed his answer,’ Afsoon said. ‘Rasheed is here, in Herat; he has come all the way from Abul. The nikka will be here tomorrow morning and then there is a bus leaving for Kabul at noon.’” Jalil giving Mariam away without her consent or well being in mind is an incredibly evil idea to American society because here, no one can make anyone marry anyone else. Rasheed turning out to be a horrible man just adds to the injustice of Jalil’s decision.
	“Mariam began shivering. His hand crept lower still, lower, his fingernails catching in the cotton of her blouse. ‘I can’t,’ she croaked…His hand was on her right breast now, squeezing it hard through the blouse, and she could hear him breathing deeply through the nose.” Though Rasheed and Mariam are married, this is still rape. Mariam is terrified of Rasheed, but he doesn’t care and he keeps going until he’s satisfied. Rape is a hellish thing as it steals lives from people. That’s why this is so evil.
	“Mariam struggled against him, mumbling, but he kept pushing the pebbles in, his upper lip curled in a sneer. ‘Now chew,’ he said. Through the mouthful of grit and pebbles, Mariam mumbled a plea. Tears were leaking out of the corners of her eyes. ‘CHEW!’ he bellowed…Mariam chewed. Something in the back of her mouth cracked. ‘Good,’ Rasheed said. His cheeks were quivering. ‘Now you know what your rice tastes like. 