Miriam

Miriam is the daughter of Jalil and Nana and she is born out of wedlock. She is raised in a kolba or hut in the hills above Herat or the town where kill lives with his legitimate wives and children. She is married off to Rasheed after her mother kills herself, and Rasheed abuses her, after she fails to have a child for him. When Laila comes to live with them, she is resentful and angry, but as Rasheed abuses Laila as well, the two women eventually befriend each other. When Rasheed is strangling Laila, Miriam kills him with a shovel. She is eventually executed for her crime, but she seems to have accepted her fate, and is glad she has at least saved Laila and her daughter.

Laila

Laila is the daughter of Fariba and Hakim. She is beautiful with blonde hair, which is uncommon. She is...