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of residual loyalty to her grandmother, or perhaps genuine sympathy for the girl herself, the
elder woman spent nights on end trying to imbue the same deep-rooted faith in Min that she herself had. Yet, despite these efforts, the words of the Lord seemed to flow into one ear and out the other. Min would do fine in prayers, and could hold her own in choir, but the studiousness
that had set her older relative apart in the eyes of the clergy seemed absent. Her young voice would echo the words, but not their sentiments. Her essence was devoid of conviction, and it often came across to Sister Tonya that the adolescent was placating her supervisors in the hope that when they let her be she could turn her attention to other, less holy things.
These suspicions seemed to be corroborated when Min was twelve. An older girl, Charlotte, had taken Min under her wing in the weeks following her own transfer to St. Mary’s. Sister Tonya attempted to keep Min from taking too much of a liking to this girl, as the seventeen-year-old had come with suitable baggage and a reputation that warranted sheltering more impressionable girls from her influence. It seemed these efforts only fueled the haste with which Min threw herself at the newcomer. Sister Tonya could do nothing but watch, heartbroken, as the two began to get written up for numerous misbehaviors together. First, they passed notes in Bible study, then they were caught after curfew. Sister Maggie let Min slide on both instances, in no small part due to Sister Tonya’s counsel. Eventually, such responses were made untenable.
One day, Sister Tonya was summoned to Sister Maggie’s headquarters for a matter of “great urgency.” Rushing as best she could, she made it to the office just as Charlotte was strutting out of the door, self-satisfied.
“Watch your tongue, young miss!” Maggie called after her, only for Charlotte to turn and