They had stopped eating meals together in New York, and Mirella wondered how they would learn to be together here, over the next two months in this house. Penelope hadn’t grown any quieter in the past year, but she seemed to love her solitude now, rather than fight against it. She still asked for permission to go to school dances and art shows, but when Mirella forbade her, she hardly flinched, and returned, unperturbed, to her room to draw. She didn’t come into Mirella’s bedroom anymore to say good night, which must have been normal for a girl of thirteen, but she didn’t hug her anymore
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