Knowing he'd found the needed documents made him realize he was actually going to send Bri away.

Who died and made me boss? he asked himself. Not wanting to know the answer, he gathered his schoolbooks and decided facing the wrath of Father Mulrooney would be a welcome diversion.

Thursday, June 9

Alex had waited to tell Father Mulrooney that he'd be gone from school all day until after he'd served detention for being late the day before. Father Mulrooney had given him a ten-minute lecture on the importance of education in troubled times, but at least Alex didn't have a guilty conscience about cutting classes.

He went through his closet until he found Carlos's old duffel bag. It still had that faint smell of sweat and aftershave Alex associated with Carlos, but he doubted Bri would mind.

Alex wished he had a list of what Bri was going to need, but he hadn't been given one. This kind of packing was best done by Mami, he thought. She'd done it for their Fresh Air Fund summers. She knew how to pack, just as she knew how to cook and clean and do all kinds of things no one had ever felt the need to teach Alex. And yet here he was, going through Bri's most private things, trying to decide what she would need to have with her and what the sisters would provide.

She'd be working on a farm, he told himself, so she should have work clothes. It promised to be a hot summer, so T-shirts and shorts were good ideas. He added a couple of pairs of jeans and the oversized Vincent de Paul sweatshirt he'd given her for Christmas two years ago. Nights got cold in the country.

The girls might be expected to dress for dinner and they'd certainly have to for church, so Alex carefully packed a skirt and two blouses, as well as Bri's best dress. She had her uniform on, so that was an extra blouse and skirt. She was wearing a pair of shoes, but she'd need something more practical for farmwork, so Alex dug out a pair of sneakers he was reasonably sure were Bri's. Next came nightgowns and la ropa intima. Alex grimaced at the thought of handling Bri's most personal clothing, but it had to be done. He pulled open the top drawer in the bureau, and trying hard not to think about it, threw an assortment of undergarments into the duffel bag. Nightgowns were a little less awkward, and he felt a sense of relief when he remembered that Bri would need socks, slippers, and a robe as well. He knew which robe and slippers were hers, so that was easy. Any socks would do, just as long as he left enough for Julie.

Next came the bathroom items. The nuns would certainly have toothpaste and soap, but Bri would want her own toothbrush. The only problem was Alex had no idea which brush was hers. He knew his, but Bri's could have been any of the others. Not knowing what else to do, Alex threw all except his into the duffel bag. He could always find another one for Julie, he supposed, somewhere in New York, and if Mami or Papi came back, he'd find toothbrushes for them, too. As far as anything else a girl might need, he decided the nuns could handle it.

He found Bri's diary and put it in the duffel bag. He looked around her room for something that she loved and would want to have with her. Most of the pictures she'd Scotch-taped to the walls were of TV stars, good-looking guys that Alex was pretty sure wouldn't be welcomed at a convent, no matter how open-minded the sisters might be. But the postcard of the van Gogh painting Starry Night Bri had gotten because it reminded her of the night skies in the country should be acceptable, so he peeled it off the wall and slipped it into the bag.

What else? A photograph of the family, he decided, but that was in Mami and Papi's room. A sweater. He found one in the closet and threw it in. A jacket? A coat? If Bri stayed at the convent past the summer, she'd need a coat. Alex felt his throat constrict at the idea that Bri might never leave the convent, that he might be sending her away from home forever. He told himself that whatever happened, Bri would be safe and healthy and he couldn't guarantee that in New York. It was best for Bri to be gone. And he'd always know where she was. It wasn't the same kind of gone as Mami and Papi. It was more like Carlos, only better, since the church would know just where Bri was and he'd be able to get in touch with her in an emergency. And she'd be on a farm, with other girls like her, protected by the sisters. It was the best thing that could possibly happen.

He rolled up Bri's raincoat and put it in. There wasn't room in there for her winter coat. He knew he should carry it but couldn't make himself. If Bri stayed on into the winter, he'd find a way of getting the coat to her, he decided. Besides, the sisters probably were prepared with coats for the girls, just in case.

Bri's rosary beads! No matter that the sisters would have extras; Bri had to have her own. They were on top of the bureau, and Alex packed them, then went to his parents' bedroom and took the framed picture of the six of them that Mami kept by her bedside. Uncle Jimmy had taken it at Christmas, right before Carlos enlisted. Alex looked at it carefully before packing it. They all looked so much younger. Had it been less than six months ago?

There might have been other things Bri would want or need, but Alex couldn't figure out what they might be. Besides, he had to get Bri to St. Benedict's before the bus left for the convent, and it would be a long walk there from the school. He went back to Bri and Julie's bedroom, gave it a quick appraisal, decided enough was enough, then went to his bedroom, and pulled the documents out from under the mattress.

He walked to Holy Angels and went into the school office. He didn't know what to expect, but things seemed reasonably normal there, busier than at Vincent de Paul.

"I'm Alex Morales," he said to a woman sitting at a desk. "Briana Morales's brother. I'm here to take her to St. Benedict's for the bus."

The woman looked at him blankly. "What grade is she in?" she asked.

"Ninth," Alex replied.

"Room 144," the woman said. "If she isn't there, try Room 142."

Alex thanked her, walked down the hallway, and located Room 144. Bri was sitting at her desk, scribbling madly in her notebook.

Alex walked into the classroom and approached the teacher, sitting at her desk. "I'm Briana Morales's brother," he said. "I've come to take her away."

The girls all looked up, Bri clearly puzzled to see him.

The teacher didn't seem all that surprised. Judging from the number of empty desks, Alex guessed Bri wasn't the first kid in class to be mysteriously called away lately.

"Will Briana be coming back?" her teacher asked.

"No," Alex whispered.

"We'll miss her," the teacher said. "Very well. Briana, get your things, and go with your brother."

Alex thanked her, and walked over to Bri. "Come on," he whispered. "We have to get going."

"Is it Mami?" Bri asked. "Or Papi? Are they home?"

"No," Alex said. "Come on, Bri. Don't worry about your textbooks."

"I don't understand," she said.

"I'll explain later," he said. "Just follow me."

Bri did as she was told. They left the classroom, and then the school. "We have a bit of a walk," Alex said. "All the way to Madison Avenue and 112th. We'll cross the park at 96th. Are your shoes comfortable? You can switch to your sneakers if you want."

"I'm okay," Bri said. "But what's going on? Where are we going? Where's Julie?"

"Still in school," Alex said. He paused for a moment. "Bri, something great's happened, thanks to Father Franco. There's a convent upstate that's taking teenage girls. Julie's too young, but you're the right age, so you can go there."

"To be a nun?" Bri asked. "Alex, I'm too young."

Alex pretended to laugh. "Not to be a nun," he said. "It's a convent but it's also a working farm, and the sisters decided to open it up to good Catholic girls. You'll be working on the farm, but it'll also be a school. And because it's a farm, there'll be plenty of food. You like the country. You always had great times with your Fresh Air Fund family. This'll be like that, only better, because there'll be other girls your age there, and the nuns."