Sisters of the Northern Star, The

This story was originally published in Day One, a weekly literary journal dedicated to short fiction and poetry from emerging writers.

When Kate, a physics grad student recently dumped by her professor boyfriend, gets a frantic phone call from a childhood friend, she’s more than happy for the distraction. Though she hasn’t seen the luminous Lana in years, she can tell Lana’s crisis is genuine: her younger sister’s joined the Sisters of the Northern Star. The real story—of forgiveness, friendship, and lost hope—unfolds as the two drive from New York to Nevada to collect Lana’s sister from a cult that may not be as dangerous as it seems.