Page 123 - NS 2024

“Does anybody know where Min is?”
Tonya’s question hung in the air, polluting it, instantly souring the appetites of everyone at the table. There were twenty-four chairs, all set up for the evening meal. Twenty-three of them were full. Despite having two girls who normally sat next to Min, neither of them had commented on her absence. Sister Tonya had just noticed the singularly empty chair as they were beginning grace.
“She’s probably in the bathroom, Reverend Mother,” comforted Sister Nancy, to Tonya’s right. Despite the reassurance in her words, her eyes were brimming with distress.
“Yes, that’s possible,” Tonya mused, seeming unconvinced. “But did you see her any time after break, Sister Nancy?” The younger nun shuffled a bit in her seat, professing all the answer that was needed to confirm Tonya’s fears. “That’s what I was afraid of.”
Sister Nancy rose shakily to her feet. “Sister Lily and I will go look for her while you eat, and if we cannot find her then—”
She was cut off by the sudden opening of the large oak doors to the dining room. The deafening silence helped highlight the soggy sound of Min’s footsteps as she walked in, drenched in earthen filth and rain. She made her way over to her designated seat, almost entranced.
“Where have you been, girl? You had me worried sick!” the Reverend Mother nearly shouted in relief, breaking the auditory vacuum.