Chapter 8 Summary

Maryna's successful appearances in San Francisco and on tour lead to engagements in New York City under the name of Countess Marina Zalenska, a name suggested by her new manager, Harry Warnock. But regardless of name, Maryna makes a hit with the New York critics and convinces her manager to drop the fake royalty pretense as she takes her husband Bogdan and son Peter on tour around the country with her. When the company reaches Omaha, Bogdan returns to Southern California to look for a home that the family can live in whenever Maryna is not on tour. During a break, Maryna decides to visit her mother and friends in Poland and sends a note to Henryk with this bit of self-reproach: "I'm a monster, I've thrown love away. I'm a bad mother. I lie to everybody, including myself".

After her trip to...