I spent the whole bus ride deciding about Telly. Over and over in my head I heard him say “You’re my boy, right?” But if I was his boy, why had he upped and left? Why didn’t he come and get Maisy and me? It took me a while, but I finally figured it out. I was the same as those old ladies he used to brag about to Gloria. They came into the garage with their not-so-broken cars. Had no clue about engines and carburetors, about brake pads or the cost of replacement parts. He would fix stuff that didn’t need fixing or break something just enough so they’d drive a couple of weeks and come right back again. Every now and again he’d lift up the hood, pour oil on the inside, then point at the dripping underneath. A fresh black stain spreading on top of all the other black stains. Smooth words slid out of Telly’s mouth, right into their brains. And they believed him.

Telly had fooled me, too. I was just another con. Another stupid scam. But that was the last time.

When I got back to the circle, Darrell was in his driveway again. He waved at me and said, “Hey, Row. Got the motor purring. Want to listen?”

I didn’t even answer. I marched past him and went straight into the woods.

ROWAN

Stomping through the trees, I kicked every stick and root and rock I passed. Eventually I reached the bridge. The creek was gurgling along. It smelled of damp cement and dog and fried egg. Insects buzzed and leaves shivered. When my eyes adjusted, I saw the circle for the fire. A finger of smoke wiggling up. I saw a mess of twigs that looked like a nest. I saw a folded blanket. I saw a mound of wrappers and cans off to the side. And after I’d stood in the middle of the camp for several minutes, I saw Carl. He and Girl lumbered out of the bushes.

“Heard you coming a mile away,” he said and cleared his throat. There were more shards of metal worked into his bushy beard. “Thought you might’ve been the Workers.”

He had mentioned workers before. Were there people repairing the bridge? “What workers? Why are there workers out here?”

“Not much sun finds its way, urh. Always stays pleasant. And cool. It’s a fine place to live.”

“Oh.” Girl came over and licked my hand. A bird was cheeping up above. “Yeah, yeah. I can see that.”

He stared at me for a minute without moving. I shifted my feet.

“Anyway,” I said. I started to feel wobbly inside. Carl kept twisting strands of his beard in his blackened fingers. Tugging and releasing the loose hairs. There were some patchy spots. “Um. I was just walking through.”