Ruddy held up the pair of bright orange Converse tennis shoes. “Are you sure these are all you have?”

  “Yep,” the roadside merchant said.

  Ruddy gestured toward the U-haul parked behind the tables. It was filled with junk. “Got any shoes in there?”

  The old man spit brown tobacco juice into a cup. “Does this look like Payless?”

  “No.” Ruddy turned the shoes over in his hands. The soles were worn.

  Ugh. Teri is going to hate these. She was asleep so he couldn’t check with her.

  “How much?” he said.

  The old man shrugged. “Depends on how much you want ’em.”

  “What does that even mean?” Ruddy’s face grew red.

  The man spit again. “How much you willing to pay?”

  Ruddy coughed. “Uh, twenty …”

  The old man sneered at him.

  “I mean ... forty dollars?” Ruddy said.

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  The man’s eyes narrowed. “You come here to insult me? Make an offer that’s worth my time.”

  “Sixty, then?” Ruddy said.

  He fumbled in his pocket, pulling out all three twenties Corey had given him. He slapped them down on the table next to the shoes and cleared his throat.

  “Sixty dollars is all I have. You can take it or you can keep your stupid shoes.”

  The man picked up the bills and studied them. He tucked the wad into his shirt pocket and stared at Ruddy for a moment.

  “Well, they’re all yours,” he said. “Get on outta here.”

  Ruddy hid a smile. He snatched up the shoes and walked down the road into Hobbs to meet Xeke at the gas station.

  “You paid too much for those,” Xeke said. “You were supposed to get coats and blankets, too.”

  Ruddy’s face was red. “He didn’t have any, and Teri didn’t have shoes! What did you want me to do?”

  “Not spend all the money on a pair of worn-out shoes,” Xeke said.

  Teri’s lip quivered. “At least they fit.”

  Xeke nodded and his voice softened. “That’s true. We were lucky to find your size. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad deal.”

  Ruddy glared at the windshield. “Don’t patronize me.”

  “I’m not,” Xeke said. He looked at Teri, then back at Ruddy. “I just think we should all look at the bright side. You know. Stay positive …?”

  Ruddy muttered something under his breath.

  Corey pulled the driver’s door open. “Hey guys. I got some ...”

  Teri, pillow marks still on her face, was holding a pair of shoes as if they might bite her, and Ruddy was glaring at Xeke.

  “... some chicken ... and some potatoes.” Corey put the ice chest of food down between the seats. “Uh, is everything okay?”

  “Everything is fine.” Ruddy spat each word.

  “They don’t have any gas here,” Xeke said.

  “Ohhh kayyyy.” Corey climbed into the driver’s seat. “I see you got Teri some shoes. Did you find any coats?”

  “They didn’t have any,” Ruddy said.

  Corey nodded. “How much were the shoes?”

  Xeke winced.

  “Does it matter?” Ruddy said. “We got them.”

  Corey shook his head and started the truck.