“We need answers,” Kiki says, “And you’re right. The convent is our only lead.” She turns to me, expression grim. “There’s something happening there. And I want to know what it is.”

Kiki

As much as I want to head straight to the convent, the horses need rest for the remainder of the day. And to be honest, so do I. I tumble into my bed, not bothering to change. I’ll just be wearing the same riding clothes tomorrow anyway. I doze for a few fitful hours before I arise and begin preparations. The nunnery is a long ride away, and we’ll have to make sure we have everything we need. None of the stable hands ask us why we need provisions for a longer than usual ride, but I suppose that’s none of their business.

Magdalena slips an extra-large hunk of cheese into my saddlebag, along with a loaf of crusty bread and apples for the horses. The stables are quieter than normal. We have had no guests for days. The only people coming and going are Ana and myself.

“How is my father?” I ask.

She shakes her head, concern pinching her features. “He’s hardly left his room. It’s all I can do to convince him to eat.”

My heart squeezes in my chest. I should be home, taking care of him. Being a dutiful daughter. But the lives of these missing girls are more important than my grief or his. “If he asks for me…”

“I’ll come up with something,” Magdalena says. “I’ll tell him you’re sequestered in prayer for your brother’s soul.”

I don’t say anything to that. I don’t want to approve, but I cannot reasonably disapprove of her lie either. It’s a good one. Believable. But the thought of using Alejandro’s death like that makes me feel flush with shame.

“Ready?” Ana asks as she strides back into the stable, her own saddlebags slung over her shoulder. “We’re burning daylight.”

I nod. We mount our steeds, and together, we ride.

Leaving Potosí is like stepping into another world. The chaos of the city falls away to reveal a sweeping landscape, expanding as far as the eye can see. Mountains thrust up into the sky, puncturing slate gray clouds far in the distance.