Ellis Island: Hope or Tears?

Tears

No longer fighting, I was led over to a table. Another doctor examined me, while tears streamed down my face, my sister's scream ringing in my ears.
"Bianca."
Someone was attempting to pull me back into the present.
"Bianca," the voice said again.
Marco. I finally focused on him, seeing the pain on his face.
"Adriana."
It was all I could utter, the words getting caught in my throat. He put his hand on  my shoulder.
"Come on," he said.
He pulled me over to the side where Giuseppe stood in the corner with another man. My twin's eyes were bloodshot and I knew, I wasn't the only one who had been crying. I stood beside him and felt him take my hand.
The other man then started asking us questions, like, "What are your names?", "Where are you from?, "What brings you to America?".
As Marco explained that our parents had been building a life here for two years, all I could think about was the look on my sister's face as she was led away, the fear, which mirrored my own.
Finally, the men let us go and we followed the crowd up another staircase, my hand still clutching Giuseppe's. A silence hung over us, thick as the fog that used to roll over the hills in the country.
"Bambinos!" a familiar voice cried, as we reached the top of the steps.
I looked up and among the families, I saw Mama and Papa. Without hesitation, we ran to them, hugging them for the first time in three years.
"My bambinos!" Papa cried, hugging me tight, the recognizable scent of tobacco enveloping me.
Mama released Marco and looked around, realizing someone was missing.
"Where is Adriana?"
I felt a lump in my throat. Next to me, my brother's tense.
"Where is your sister?"
Mama's voice began to crack.
"They took her," Marco whispered, hanging his head, "She didn't pass the medical examination."
"No!" Mama wailed, collapsing to the ground, "No!"
Without a word, Papa turned and ran back toward the stairs we had just come up. Marco and Giuseppe exchanged a look and both of them took off after him.
I sat down beside Mama and put my head in my hands. I said nothing, listening to Mama's sobs as I waited for my brothers and Papa to return, Adriana's cry ringing in my ears.
I don't know how long it had been, but my brothers finally returned, without Papa. Mama stumbled to her feet and practically fell into Marco's arms.
"Where is she?" she choked, "And where's Papa?"
Giuseppe's eyes remained fixed on the ground, tears streaming down his face.
"Papa went to the hospital area,"  Marco answered, his voice strained, "He told us to wait for him at the house."
Mama stiffly nodded and silently, led us out of the building
Adriana died two weeks later. Papa came home and told us that doctors believed there was an infection in her lungs. They tried everything they could, but in the end, they couldn't save her. I barely heard a word he said.
My baby sister, my angelo, was gone. Never again would I see her smile, hear her laughter, hold her tight.
Ellis Island was supposed to be the start of a new life of hope, not despair. It was supposed to the Island of Dreams, but it became the Island of Tears.