Slowly, we circle around a small pond and back toward the playground, filling the bag with leaves. Gabby chatters on and on about her old house and her friends and her old school. I don’t really pay much attention until I hear her say, “and so my mom says we may go live with my cousin Louisa and her family. My aunt has a new baby and could use Mama’s help.”

“Wait,” I say, stopping. “You’re moving?”

“Well, yeah, Piper,” Gabby says, throwing me a sideways look. “You think we want to stay in that shelter forever?”

“But I thought you were going to live at the family shelter and we’d stay friends and maybe go to the same school, and—”

“A family shelter is still a shelter,” she snaps.

My heart sinks.

I glance over toward the bathroom. That woman, Ree, and her dog, Ajax are over there.

I nod toward the bathroom building. “That’s Ree. I’m going to let her know I fed Baby.”

Gabby frowns. “She looks kind of scary.”

“She’s okay,” I assure her. At least I think so.

“Hey,” I say, walking up behind Ree. She’s holding Baby in her lap, whispering things I can’t hear.

Ree looks up at me. “Hey yourself.”

Her dog, Ajax, slowly stands. He’s got that old dog kind of stiffness.

“Whoa,” Gabby says. “That’s a really big dog.” She steps behind me, which is kind of funny because she’s bigger than I am.

“Is he friendly?” she asks.

“Depends,” Ree says.

“On what?” Gabby asks nervously.

“On if he’s hungry or not.” Ree winks at me. She sets Baby down and stands.

I see Gabby taking in the woman’s camo pants, orange T-shirt, black army boots, and tattoos.

“I fed him a few minutes ago,” I say, nodding toward Baby, “and gave him water too.”

Ree smiles. “Everybody’s feeding him. He’s going to get fat.” She lets out a laugh that sounds more like a bark. “Baby fat, get it?”

I shrug. I kind of don’t.

“What if that old lady doesn’t come back?” Gabby asks.

Ree narrows her eyes at Gabby. Gabby takes a step back. I almost do too but I don’t.

“That ‘old lady’ has a name. It’s Jewel,” Ree growls. “And she’ll come back for Baby.”

Gabby frowns. “She could be dead, you know.”

Ree shifts and says nothing.

“Besides,” Gabby says in a kind of know-it-all voice I haven’t heard before, “she lives here in the park with that little dog. She can’t take care of him.” She tosses her long black hair. I have a bad feeling about what’s going to come out of her mouth next. “He’d be better off with a real family.”