The bus rattled along the road on its way to the city where the San Uriel Seminary was located. Tomás's suspension had left him with a lot of free time, and Sunny, with her inexhaustible enthusiasm, had decided that the best way to make use of it was to embark on this quest. Of course, she spent most of the trip asleep with her head resting against the window or eating snacks she pulled from her backpack as if she had an infinite pantry inside it.
Tomás, on the other hand, couldn't relax. He gazed distractedly out the window, watching the fields and houses flash by, but his mind was elsewhere. The image of Professor Krikket, pale and frail in his bed, wouldn't leave his mind. He wasn't a man to complain or ask for help, and yet, in their last conversation, he had felt that, somehow, he was asking him to do just that.
"We're here," Sunny announced in a thick voice, stretching and yawning as if waking from a centuries-long slumber.
Tomás got off the bus behind her, feeling the fresh city air hit his face. The San Uriel Seminary was on a hillside, its gray stone facade and narrow windows giving it a solemn, somewhat intimidating air. They looked at each other for a moment before walking towards the entrance.
Inside, the atmosphere was quiet and sober, as if time moved slower there. They asked for Professor Krikket or anyone who had worked with him during his time. After a few minutes of waiting, they were led to the vice-principal's office.
She was a woman with salt-and-pepper hair pulled back in a bun and a shrewd gaze. She didn't smile, but she wasn't hostile either. She looked at them curiously before speaking.
"I was told you were asking about Emanuel Krikket. I worked with him. What brings you here?"
Tomás, without preamble, replied, "He's dying. And he has no one. We're looking for someone who can help us locate his family."
The vice-principal raised her eyebrows, surprised. Then she sighed and leaned on the desk, crossing her hands. "I don't know how much I can help you with that... Krikket left this place under strange circumstances. At the time, many things were said. That there was violence, that his wife threw him out of the house... they even argued here, in the staff room. Those were very tense times, but back then I was just a trainee teacher; I preferred to stay away from trouble. What I can assure you is that both of them taught at this school, but the truth was never entirely clear."
"So she left too?" Sunny asked, leaning forward.
"Yes. He left first, and she soon followed suit. I don't know where they went. We weren't friends, but..."
She paused, as if debating whether to continue or not. Finally, she opened a desk drawer and pulled out a small piece of paper with a handwritten number. "If you really want to know more, you should talk to Eleonor García. She was a friend of Krikket's wife. She doesn't work here anymore, but maybe she can tell you something."
Tomás took the paper and nodded in thanks.
When they left the seminary, the sun was beginning to set, painting the sky a melancholic orange.
"Call her now," Sunny said, brimming with anxiety.
"We can wait until we get back..."
"No! Call now. I can't stand the curiosity."
Tomás sighed, took out his phone, and dialed the number. The ringtone sounded once, twice, three times. No one answered.
"Again," Sunny insisted.
He dialed again. Silence.
"Maybe she can't answer right now," Tomás murmured, feeling a slight frustration.
"Or maybe she doesn't want to..." Sunny pursed her lips, as if she were considering a thousand theories at once.
With nothing else to do, they took the bus back. The return trip was quieter. Sunny, though still eating snacks, seemed less enthusiastic. Tomás leaned back against the seat, Eleonor García's number still in his hand, wondering what he would do now.