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"The scandal rippled and I was back with Sister Mary I bounced two h school I filed the necessary paperwork for eer to approve when they saw I held a job, was finishing school with already a full year of college under my belt and a five-year plan"

"Who did you stay with?"

"Sister Mary"

"With the nuns?"

"No Sister Mary had left the church by then Remember all those scandals with sexual abuse that came out a while back?"

He nodded

"She couldn’t take the hypocrisy That don’t take orders, make up your own mind she’d instilled in etshe just doesn’t say she’s married to God anymore"

"Where is Sister Mary now?"

"In Phoenix The dry heat helps with her arthritis All those years of prayer, she’d tell me"

"How often do you see her?"

"Not often enough"

"What keeps you frolanced out the"Life My clients keep h the desert by hts to Phoenix never see and again in the winterusually around Christ her descent and heard the chime into the cabin frolass fro out the

"Feels like it"

"Where are we, anyway?"

He winked "You’ll see"

She didn’t quiz hiht him by surprise "That’s it? No questions?" He snapped his seat belt in place, glanced at hers, which she’d never taken off

"I actually kinda like surprises I’m the kid that didn’t have Santa Claus, remember?"

Her words were said with such casualness it took a ut