I had no shoes, only wet socks with holes in them. Snow bit into my feet. The wind sliced my face raw. My arm throbbed so fiercely it made me dizzy. I crossed the empty main road while the storm made the metal roofs groan. I passed the chapel, Mr. Parker’s store, the deserted square. That night, the town looked abandoned by God.
I wasn’t going anywhere. I was only going away.
Without thinking much, my legs carried me to the junkyard on the edge of town. I had been there before, gathering cardboard, cans, and rags Evelyn could sell for a few coins. Between piles of rusted metal, I found an old barrel tipped on its side. I crawled into it like a wounded animal into a den and curled around my arm.
The fever came before dawn.
On the first day, I thought Evelyn might regret it and come looking for me. On the second, I stopped thinking much at all. By the third, the cold no longer felt like cold. That was the most frightening part. My teeth no longer chattered. My feet no longer burned. It felt as if my body were slowly shutting down.