The Blue Dress Sisters

CHAPTER 44: THE NOVICE AND THE PRIEST

Massimo stood abruptly and rushed out of the room.

Once he was alone, he leaned against a wall, taking deep breaths as he begged God to cleanse his mind of impure desires.

Moments later, Delilah appeared in the hallway.

"I can't believe it's your last day!" Emma exclaimed as she spotted them. "There's no way to thank you enough for everything you've done."

"It was a team effort, Emma. You were part of it too. You helped me get through my first days," Delilah replied, heading downstairs to the children's care ward. "I'm going to say goodbye to the little ones."

Massimo, having regained his composure, followed her.

"Don't go!" a little girl cried, clinging to Delilah's neck. "Who's going to tell me scary stories now?"

"Emma will, or another nurse. They've been ordered to keep reading to you every night. And if they don't, write to me. I'll make sure everything continues just as I left it."

"It won't be the same," a boy pouted. "Are you leaving too, Father Massimo?"

"We won't be the only ones," the priest assured him. "You'll all be discharged soon and return to your families. We need to leave so we can help more people."

After spending time with each child, the novice and the priest went to pack their belongings.

Before long, a carriage arrived at the hospital to take them away. Saud was already inside. Though he had fully recovered, he had come back to travel with them to the orphanage. He could hardly contain his excitement about seeing the stars through a telescope for the first time.

"We have something for you on behalf of the hospital staff." A nurse placed a medal around Massimo's neck and another around Delilah's just before they boarded the carriage. "This is in recognition of the lives you've saved and the permanent changes you've made to the hospital." She then handed them a rolled-up scroll. "And this is for the Mother Superior at the orphanage, for her collaboration in sending us her best soldiers."

***

Delilah climbed the hill, chasing the nimble goats that scaled the damp, vertical rocks as if their hooves were coated in glue.

With a book tucked under her arm, she didn't stop until she reached the top of the mountain, where she was greeted by a breathtaking view of Mondovì.

It was her favorite time of year: spring. It might be cliché for women to favor that season, but she didn't care. She loved watching the flowers bloom, breathing in their fragrance, and sneezing from the pollen.

She adored the colorful transformation the meadow underwent during those months of sunshine and fresh breezes.

Finally, she lay down on the grass beneath the warm rays of sunlight and opened her book to the page she had marked. She needed to take advantage of the last glimmers of daylight to finish her novel.

"One half of the world cannot understand the pleasures of the other," Delilah read aloud. Then, turning to the goat lying beside her, she added, "I agree. Don't you, Anacleto? It's hard to understand what someone else enjoys—or hates—if you've never felt the same. In the end, we're not as understanding of others' feelings as we like to think."

***

In the middle of the night, Immacolata knocked urgently on the door of the parish house.

Massimo answered, confused and still in his nightclothes.

"Forgive me for disturbing you or waking you," the Mother Superior began. "I don't mean to impose, but it's past midnight, and Delilah is nowhere to be found, Massimo. I thought... perhaps she might be with you."