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oozing from a gash on her forearm. A dog bite, he thought. Her face was covered in so much dirt he knew he would not recognize her if he saw her cleaned up. He could not tell what she looked like or even make a reasonable guess at the colour of her hair. He’d never seen a dirtier more pitiful looking kid in his life and, the truth was, he’d never been happier to see another human being. She got into the car and he began driving immediately it was beginning to get dark and he did not want any surprises. He glanced at her after he got them on the freeway headed back towards Eloy.
    “What’s your name?”
    It took her a long time to answer. It seemed like she was searching her mind for the answer.
    “Sara” she whispered.
    “I’m Jack. Are you alone?” he asked though the answer was obvious.
    He glanced at her but not being a confident driver did not take his eyes off the road for long. He saw her eyes well with tears; the drops making muddy tracks down her cheeks. Her thin shoulders hunched together as she hugged her arms tight to her body and trembled.
    “My dad,” she said, her voice a hollow whisper of disbelief,” left me.”
    He saw by the look on her face that she couldn’t believe that her dad would do that to her.
    “It wasn’t his fault Sara, something happened to people, something really bad,” he said trying to explain the unexplainable. She struggled to control her emotions and when she relaxed her shoulders clumps of dirt fell from her to the carpet.
    “Your arm looks bad,” he said.
    It took her a while to respond and look at her arm. At first she looked at the wrong one then at the injured arm and she moved her head a tiny bit nodding in agreement.
    “Does it hurt?”
    She stared at her injured arm but did not answer, they drove on in silence and when he thought of another question to ask he glanced over and she was slumped against the door asleep. He checked her every few minutes but she was completely out of it. He wondered how long it had been since she felt safe enough to sleep. After a few miles he had to put his window down to let air into the car because she smelled. It was dark when they got to Eloy and he parked the car up close to the door on the lawn. He looked around carefully before getting out and running to the front door. He unlocked it and went inside and found a candle to light. Exhausted from the trip he stood at the window looking out at the car.
    He did not want to go outside in the dark but he was torn. He wondered if she would be okay in the car or if he should go out and bring her inside. His decision to go out and get her was ultimately a selfish one, he was worried she might die or runaway, and he would be alone again. He ran to the car and opening her door slowly so she would not fall out he shook her shoulder to wake her but she did not stir. He didn’t want to touch her, she was filthy, but he was worried about being outside, so he reached in and picked her up and ran with her in his arms back the house. He was breathing hard when he kicked the door closed behind them as he went through but it was not because she was heavy it was from fear and adrenaline in equal measure. She seemed to weigh too little for her size and he wondered how long it was since she’d eaten. He set her down on the sofa and when he let go she startled awake and let out a shriek.
    “Hey it’s okay we’re home now.”
    He watched the word ‘home’ work its magic as the terror leaked from her face. She peered around the semi-dark living room as if awaking from a long sleep trying to recall where she was. When her eyes came to rest on the television she turned to him with a look of hopefulness. He shrugged, smiled sadly, and shook his head,
    “There is no electricity,” he said and she sagged a little lower on the couch at this news.
    “My mom and my sister are gone too. I’ve been waiting for them to come back home,” he said.
    He spoke the words though he no longer believed what he