[url=https://postimg.org/image/r5cb3enf1/][img]https://s14.postimg.org/ylbkp7b4h/lorrain_by_huginnsmuse_d5xa5bs.jpg[/img][/url][url=https://postimage.org/]image[/url] Sara winced as she slumped down against the crumbling brick wall behind her. Her whole body ached and she felt like she had been awake for days. That wasn't too far from the truth; she had been sleeping fitfully the past few days. It had gotten so bad she had even gone to the shelter for a night; while it was warm and comfortable it was generally more dangerous there then on the streets. People didn't take too kindly to her automatically getting a spot whenever she would show up. But she was young and female and those two things gave her a priority edge for last available bed or last available meal. Today had been a bad one, she was coated in filth and worn out. Food and work had been scarce and even begging had only brought her a whopping sixty seven cents today. She knew she couldn't sleep where she was but she was tired and needed to find a place soon. The building behind her had a quasi-usable fire escape she could climb and some of the upper windows looked manageable. With luck this abandoned warehouse would give her at least some measure of safety and comfort for the night. Just as she was about to stand up she heard the sounds of footsteps. Looking up she saw another girl, only a little older than her, headed straight towards her. Sara wasn't sure what to do but the issue was resolved when the other girl handed her a bulky manila type envelope. “Sign here” she said without any preamble and Sara goggled at her. She plainly saw her name on the package. No one here knew her and no one who knew her knew she was here. At least that's what she thought. Sara quickly signed and the other girl disappeared without any further words. She turned the package over in her hands very puzzled. Finally, with a look at the darkening sky, she quickly opened it and tilted it. The key to a motel room dropped out, the number of the room clearly printed on the key, along with a sheet of paper. [i]Greetings Miss Sara Mackenzie, You have been selected to participate in an interview with Silent Wheel, Inc.....[/i] Sara tried to remember if she had ever heard of this organization before and came up blank. But the motel room key was heavy in her hand and she looked at it again. She knew the motel. It was only a couple blocks away. One of those extended stay type places, super cheap and super basic. And better than any abandoned warehouse or homeless shelter could ever be. She quickly made up her mind. Gift horses could not be looked in the mouth. She stuffed the envelop and letter into her pack, shouldered it, and headed off in the direction of the motel. Along the way she popped into a 7-11 to see what the little bit of money she had from the day could buy her. Two Slim-Jim's. Good enough for her dinner. She walked into the motel office, a dirt covered young girl with an equally dirty and worn back pack. Most would have shooed her out immediately but the guy at the desk didn't even look up. “Um” she said softly “I have this key...” The guy looked up then, looked at the key, and nodded. “The room has been paid for one night, checkout is noon tomorrow. I'll get you some coffee for your room.” He spoke without inflection or enthusiasm, as if he was super bored with everything and disappeared into the back room of the office moving as if on autopilot. Sara just stared as he left then looked around the tiny office. A dish of tiny snickers bars caught her eye, complimentary candy for the guests was almost too upscale for this place but she didn't quibble. Instead she grabbed a handful and quickly stuffed them in her pocket. She was about to grab a second handful but she heard the guy returning. He caught her startled movement but didn't say anything. Just handed her three single serving coffee pods and a McDonalds bag. “What?” she asked but before she could say anything further the guy just shrugged sheepishly. “I got too much food and you looked like you might be able to use it.” There was a time when Sara would have gotten indignant or huffy. No longer, she knew what starving was now and didn't turn down anything that might help. She just smiled shyly, thanked the man, and headed to her room. It was the most luxurious thing she had seen in ages. It had a rather dated but working baseboard heater, a single serving coffee maker, a hard bed with threadbare sheets and blankets, a TV with about 8 channels, 2 rough small towels, and a tiny bathroom with a shower. To most others it would have been awful. To Sara it was wonderful. Several hours later found Sara wrapped in the bed sheet and sitting cross legged on the bed evaluating her belongings with a steaming cup of black coffee beside her. Her first order of business had been to shower and scrub herself over and over till she was quite literally squeaky clean. Next had come dinner. She had made short work of the contents of the McDonalds bag, a cheeseburger and some cold fries. There had been a second burger which she had eaten the filling out of and painstakingly re wrapped the bun for later. She also had 12 tiny snickers bars which she had taken from the office, two slim-jim's, and a bruised apple she had found that day. All of her clothes, what few she had, had been washed vigorously and hung to dry around the room along with her pack which she had cleaned up as best she could. The tattered John Grisham novel she had found in the nightstand drawer had joined her pile of belongings and the three cents she had left over from the day sat carefully on the nightstand. The old tin can she used as a drinking cup and the battered set of fork and spoon she had also had been washed and lay beside the bathroom sink to dry. The letter and it's envelope also lay carefully in the pile, Sara had taken the time to reread it several times to be sure she had all the details clear. She finished her coffee, savoring the extreme bitterness and warmth it brought her, carefully piled her belongings next to her on the bed, and went to sleep. She was exhausted but for the first time in days felt comfortable and relieved she wouldn't have to be up and out with the dawn. She had enough for breakfast and a little extra and the promise of more food, desert at least, tomorrow. She would definitely show up for the interview if only to thank them. *** The next morning she savored sleeping in, watched TV, and had a breakfast of apple, coffee, and the burger bun. She was actually happy and comfortable and even the damp clothing she had to wear the next day didn't discourage her. She set about to panhandling, given she was supposed to be at some sort of interview she figured she should try and have a newish shirt plus she needed bus fare; the address was a long way away. She managed enough to buy a decent second hand shirt and decided to be radical and get a green one. It was a good day and she got the money she needed earlier than expected so with nothing else to do she headed out. The bus stop was a ways away from the house, even then, but she was used to travel by foot. Shouldering her pack with everything she owned she started the long walk. Due to the late hour of the meeting she knew she would need to have a place to crash so she walked slowly, looking along carefully on either side for anything that would do. Her walk was slow enough, with enough detours off the road to check out possible night crash sites, that she ended up almost late. She stood at the gates, watching the others walk in, hesitating. She hadn't realized there would be others, if there was any sort of competition she might as well write herself out right now. Still she owed the folks a thank-you at least. She jogged up the path, keeping to the grass to muffle her steps, and slipped inside following the others like shadow. The building was almost scary, she was terrified to touch anything even the carpet. As she followed the others she was very careful to watch her steps, keep her pack close to her body, and did everything she could to minimize her impact on the furnishings and such.