Still standing on the curb before he went back into the diner, Evan called the Sisters of Mercy Children’s Home at the convent. When he asked after Melissa Benton, he was put through to Reverend Mother Bernadette.
“I’m Reverend Wycliff of First Baptist,” he told the nun, “a friend of the Benton family. Perhaps you know Melissa and her baby were taken forcefully from their home this morning.”
The mother superior’s voice was kindly but feigned ignorance, not of the child but of her whereabouts. “Bless your concern, Reverend,” the nun replied. “But if I did know more about it, the matter would still be confidential. All I can say is this institution is no longer responsible for that poor girl’s care.”
Assuming a devout Carmelite would have trouble telling a deliberate lie, Evan surmised th
