A woman dressed as a nun was looking at the stained glass of the brightly lit chapel, kneeling and praying to the Lord. She was focused, silently singing hymns to her God. She didn’t feel anything else than happiness and bliss, just like she usually does.

After spending the time that she judged necessary, she finally stood up, ready to leave. She noticed another nun waiting for her, which wasn’t there when her prayer started. It was her friend, Maria. They had known each other since childhood, and even if time didn’t keep them close, they still considered each other like an important friend. Her friend looked worried, and before she could ask anything, her friend answered her question.

“I’m sorry Elizabeth, but it’s important. Father Benedictus is asking to see us as soon as possible.”

Seeing the distress in her friend’s voice, Elizabeth couldn’t help but feel worried for her old companion.

“It’s alright, did something happen?”

“I don’t know.” Answered Maria, still with worry in her voice “We should go, we wouldn’t want to make the others wait.”

“You’re right, I’ll follow your lead.”

The two women returned to the monastery as soon as possible. The bishop, Father Benedictus, was waiting, with monks and nuns waiting around him. When he noticed the two of them arriving, started talking, in an annoyed tone.

“Finally, what took you so look?”

“I’m sorry father.” Answered Maria “I went to get Elizabeth, at the chapel.”

“I see.” Answered Father Benedictus. It was hard to tell his feelings with the tone of his voice, as he made sure to stay as neutral as possible “If I asked you all here so suddenly, it is because someone has been stealing our wares. And I suspect one of you to be the culprit.”

The nuns and monk seemed shocked, but Elizabeth herself was the one who was the most. The monastery made most of its earnings from selling wine, and she was the one who was taking care of the stock. Surely she would have noticed if the bottles were stolen. She politely raised her hand, trying to get the man’s attention.

“I’m sorry Father, but I checked yesterday, and I didn’t see any signs of anything being stolen.”

“You should probably check again, I’ll send someone with you.” The man points to another nun, understanding that he chose her to go with Elizabeth.

Even if he didn’t say so, Elizabeth knew that Father Benedictus was wary of her. If something was indeed stolen, she would be the biggest suspect since she was the one who was supposed to make sure that nothing happened. She accepted humbly, and with the other nun, she went to the cellar.

She counted meticulously the bottles, one by one, making sure that everything was correct. The numbers that she noted, and the number of actual bottles were off, by one. She turned toward the nun who accompanied her and shared her discovery with her.

“Well, we lost a bottle. But it was just one, so I think I must have noted the wrong number somehow. But how did he know? Is he coming here regularly? I’ll just tell Father Benedictus it’s my fault, and apologize for the mistake. I’m deeply sorry to have caused problems to you.”

“Oh, it’s no problem.” The other nun looked away like she was dodging Elizabeth’s eyes. “Are you going to say it’s your fault? Won’t you end up in trouble?”

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“Maybe, but it is my responsibility. And I probably won’t be kicked out of the monastery for such a small mistake.”

“You don’t know that, he can be pretty strict sometimes.” The woman seemed uncomfortable for some reason. She still dodged the gaze of the person she was talking to, and instead, seemed to be lost in her thoughts.

“Are you perhaps worried for me? It is my mistake, it’s normal that I face the consequences.” Elizabeth gently caressed her long black hair that got outside her wimple, in an attempt to calm her.

“Sister, you’re too kind for this world. I can’t bring myself to hide it from you.” The nun a deep breath, and finally found the courage to look into Elizabeth’s eyes “I was the one that stole the bottle, I am very sorry, I thought no one would notice.”

“Really? But why?” Asked Elizabeth, curious.

“I just wanted some alcohol last night, but I promise it won’t happen again. I’m Sukebe, you can say to Father Benedictus it was my fault.” The nun named Sukebe bowed, and hurried outside the room, leaving Elizabeth alone and perplexed. She thought about how strange the situation was, she never heard of another person in the monastery drinking alcohol before. But for now, all she could think about was to give her report to the bishop.

After searching for a while, she finally found the father Benedictus, walking in the grassy path near the chapel.

“Father.”

“Ah, you’re here. But where is the other one?” He asked, after noticing that the other nun sent was absent.

“She had urgent matters to take care of. But you were right, there is a bottle missing.”

“I knew it, I saw someone stealing, I knew it wasn’t a dream!” Father Benedictus seemed a bit too happy to be right, but quickly regained his composure “Do you have any who it might be?”

“No, father.” Elizabeth answered, clearly and with confidence “But it is only one bottle, surely it’s not important.”

The man looked at her surprised and put his hand firmly on her shoulder.

“It’s not about wine, it’s about justice. Whoever stole this, should be punished for its crimes.”

“But isn’t it God’s role? I don’t think that it is our duty to judge and that it is instead, to forgive.”

“Elizabeth, you fulfilled your role, you can go now.”

“Yes, father.”

The man left, visibly annoyed. But Elizabeth could only think about that woman, Sukebe. A nun who sinned, it was pretty unusual, and yet she still looked like a nice person. She wished to talk to her once more.

Elizabeth joined her friend, Maria. They walked around the green field, silently. Elizabeth couldn’t help but remember this nun, Sukebe. She was afraid to tell her friend, but muttered all the courage she could and finally said what was on her mind.

“Maria, I know who stole the wine. But... I didn’t tell Father Benedictus.”

“Really?” Her friend looked at her with confusion, trying to understand “But why not tell him? Lying is against the principles of God, you know it.”

“I know, but she seemed so innocent. And it was only one bottle, I’m sure the Lord will forgive her.”

“It isn’t for you to say. And ‘she’? Is it a nun of the monastery? Is it the one that accompanied you? I knew that she was the devil, the way she let her hair visible, and all those sinful things she’s done.”

“Please, don’t tell anyone, Maria!” Elizabeth grabbed her friend’s hand, trying to convince her the best she could. Seeing her innocent eyes, Maria nodded her head, but clearly showed her difference of opinion “Thank you. But I am curious, what sinful things were you talking about?”

“Who knows? She stole alcohol, probably to drink it. I’m sure she did other things too, I wonder if she even believes in the Lord.”

“Maria, watch your tongue. This isn’t our duty to judge, as the Lord is the only one that can.”

“Yes, well don’t get too close to her. She’s the devil, and like you know, the devil likes to take pretty shapes. She’ll corrupt you.”

Elizabeth thought for a moment. It was true that she seemed like the devil in a way. This Sukebe not only stole and drank alcohol, but she also was very nice about it. Maybe she was the devil that her friend was talking about, and it meant she had to make sure of it. It was like a force was bringing her toward this woman, something that she couldn’t explain.

“Maria, do you know where she is?”

“Didn’t you listen to me?” The woman let out a sigh, but after seeing the innocence on her friend’s face, decided to tell her anyway “She’s the one that takes care of the cooking, so probably in the kitchen.”

“Thank you, my friend. Now can you excuse me? I need to go for totally unrelated reasons.”

“You could at least not lie about it too...”

“But I’m not...” Said Elizabeth while making an annoyed face “I need to take care of my garden.”

“Oh, is it already that late?” Maria looked at the sky, and saw the sun high in the sky, indicating noon “I’m sorry Elizabeth, you can go. Don’t be late for lunch.”

“I won’t, sister Maria. It will only take a minute.” Elizabeth bowed and swiftly left. She still couldn’t stop thinking about this other nun. Once she did everything she was thinking that she should go see her. She still didn’t know why she was thinking that way, but she was, and didn’t want to repress her wish to see her.