Esperanza frowned.
“I do not remember that.”
“I know.”
Mother Caridad looked at the doctor.
“What illness?”
“Severe anemia, fever, and exhaustion. She had been caring for Sister Magdalena during the influenza outbreak. Esperanza refused to rest. One night, she collapsed near the chapel.”
Mother Caridad searched her memory.
“I remember an illness, but not that it was so serious.”
“You were away at the diocesan meeting. Mother Inés was still alive then.”
The name changed the air in the room.
Mother Inés had led the convent before Caridad. She had been disciplined, private, and deeply respected. She had died five years earlier after a brief illness and was buried in the small cemetery beyond the orchard.
Mother Caridad’s expression hardened with concentration.
“What did Mother Inés do?”
“She asked me to treat Esperanza here.”
“That is ordinary.”
“Not entirely.”
Paloma looked at Esperanza.
“During your fever, you spoke about your family.”
