Moose and Goose

Chapter Sixty

Vera's sleeping with her head on her brother's shoulder and his arm around her, her empty hamster cage sitting on her lap. His jacket is drawn across her, and his head is resting against the top of hers.

"Did you and Malcolm find Isaiah," Judith asks, and he looks at her reflection in the rearview, catching her eyes. He nods.

"He admitted to it, so we roughed him up." She snickers into a smirk, and their mother shakes her head.

"You know how I feel about fighting," she interjects, and Judith rolls her eyes.

"I know you don't like it, but remember you said since I'm the oldest, I gotta look after her?" Sheryl laughs, and it resembles a scoff. She shakes her head again.

"Go to sleep," she tells him, and he and Judith share a glance, flashing a smile at each other before he shuts his eyes. "We'll be home soon."

After a while of silence, Judith asks, "Are you okay?"

Sheryl looks at her, then at the road in a swift motion. She opens her mouth, then exhales.

"I'll be better when we get home." She glances in her side mirror at Stacey and Robbie's car trailing behind them.

"I just asked because – I don't know, I figured you'd like to talk about some stuff," Judith explains, and Sheryl knits her brows at her.

"What's there to talk about? I'm fine. If anyone should be worried, it should be me. You've been acting stranger than I have." Judith looks at her dashboard. "Now, would you like to talk?"

"Never mind. I'm going to sleep." Judith folds her arms across her chest for warmth and shuts her eyes.

They pass wilted trees and acres of snow covering their stems down to what once was flourishing grass. The moon and stars guide them down the gloomy road of potholes and signs, warning them of deer and the hunters after them.

When they exit the long forest-like path, Sheryl discovers a gas station up ahead. She veers into the entrance, her wheels rumbling the car as it passes over potholes. Vera leans off her brother, and he sits up straight.

Stacey and Robbie hesitantly follow her, sharing a worried glance like Stevie and Judith.

"Mom, are you sure this is safe," Judith asks as Sheryl turns the Citroen with the car's left against the pump.

"Do y'all need to use the bathroom?" She looks at her youngest's reflections, but Judith scans the parking lot of beer bottles, cigarette ends, and mostly darkness.

Stevie does the same, but though he doesn't see much, he shakes his head. His stomach is as tight as Judith's, both hungry and needing a bathroom. Sheryl looks at Vera, and when she nods, she turns to Judith.

"Stevie says he doesn't have to but take him anyway." He emits a sound like a mixture of an incredulous gasp and scoff, his eyes wide. "Get twenty dollars out of my purse for nabs and gas."

"Ma, I don't trust this," Judith says, and they turn their heads as Robbie walks along the right side of the car. He taps Judith's window, and she spins the crane to roll it down. He leans against her door, peering through the curve.

"Hey, I needed gas, so I'm sending Judy in to pay for it and let the kids use the bathroom." He looks past their trunk at the flickering, dim neon sign.

"Yeah, I think there's another one up the road," he says, returning his attention to his mother-in-law. "I just get a bad feeling about this place."

"Well – I'm sorry, but if we don't run into another, we'll be pushing ourselves to Florence." Robbie sighs and stands up.