Gabriel stood behind her quietly, holding her hand. She had used the dirty sink to clean them up as best she could, tucking a cloth, a towel, and a bar of soap in the plastic bag she carried and then returning the key to the balding, overweight attendant behind the counter. Her neck ached from sleeping, or trying to sleep, in the torn vinyl passenger seat. She’d made a bed for Gabriel on the backseat so he’d be able to stretch out. She’d parked behind the gas station last night and was pretty sure no one had seen her. She didn’t have much gas, so she couldn’t afford to be driving all over town, and she only had $24.37 left in cash after she’d emptied the pennies from the cigarette tray. Her stomach rumbled as she sat Gabriel in the backseat. She opened the trunk and pulled out the loaf of bread and jar of peanut butter that was almost empty. She scraped the jar with what was left and spread it on the bread from one of two plastic knifes she had. She also realized she’d have to find another bathroom to sneak into when it was dark to wash them.
