Runaways (Orphans 5)
"Money is money, especially when you're on the road. You girls will learn. Hang around me a bit, you'll learn real well," Sunshine said.
"That's just what I'm afraid of," Crystal grumbled.
Sunshine laughed.
"Let me tell you about this time in Kansas," she said instead of continuing the argument. "Talk about being desperate. I had about twenty cents to my name."
She went from story to story, telling us about places and people and events, stringing the tale of her road trips crisscrossing America, describing her instant love affairs without the slightest embarrassment or regret. It became apparent to us that men were there to be used in her eyes and sex was just a good way to a meal ticket, a bus ticket, or a way not to spend another lonely night someplace in the heart of nowhere.
However, for me and my sisters, it was more than entertainment as we traveled along. It was a description of what could possibly be our own fate if we weren't careful. The problem was how do you be careful when you're in Sunshine's world, where we were now? It made me wonder if we should just turn back and be grateful for what we already had.
We didn't pull off the road again until we all had to go to the bathroom. Crystal returned to her role as navigator and guided us on roads paralleling the main highways for as long as she could. We drove on, holding our breath every time we saw a police car.
"Don't worry so much," Sunshine told us.
"There are so many vehicles stolen in this country every day, the police couldn't possibly keep up or care. You've got to develop the mask, anyway," she continued, behaving as if she were our tutor, teaching us how to scrounge and claw out an existence with barely nothing to our name.
"A mask?" Butterfly asked her. She didn't seem as alarmed as we all were by Sunshine's actions and that was beginning to worry me.
"The look," she replied. "See?" she said turning, batting her eyelashes and looking as sweet as could be. "You have to appear innocent and never give anyone the feeling that you're worried they'll discover something bad about you. Just relax, be casual."
 
; "How?" Butterfly pursued.
"Tell yourself everyone else is wearing a mask, too, and you can do it. Everyone is, you know. Everyone's taking something from someone else. Some do if regally because they have the government behind them or because they know how to bend laws and take advantage of people. I've seen plenty of it. You ever hear that old expression, whoever didn't sin can throw stones?"
"Let he who is without sin cast the first stone," Crystal said dryly. "It's in the Bible. Jesus said it."
"I knew it was from the Bible," Sunshine replied sharply. "Anyway, that's the way to think and you can get the mask. No one can throw any stones, sweetie pie. Believe me."
"I'm surprised you call yourself Sunshine with all that dreary, dark thinking," Crystal commented.
Sunshine turned to her and smiled.
"That's the mask, Pollyanna. Now you're getting it. See, she's smarter than you all thought."
Even I had to laugh at that. Crystal sat back sulking. Soon, Raven began telling her more and more about us. I saw how it made Crystal nervous, but I couldn't see why it mattered. What was Sunshine going to do to hurt us? She was truly an experienced runaway. We were only freshmen. She talked as if she had graduated from the college of hard knocks years ago.
As night began to fall, we thought about dinner and sleeping. Things were more complicated now that Sunshine was riding with us.
"Where did you guys sleep last night?" she asked and Raven told her what had happened.
"Well, we're in luck tonight too," she declared and pulled a credit card out of her pocketbook. "We'll be able to get a motel room."
"Whose card is that?" Crystal asked suspiciously.
"Mine," she said.
"I don't believe it," Crystal said.
Sunshine shrugged. She did have a hard shell. Nothing Crystal said could get to her.
"When it gets us the room, you'll believe it, Pollyanna."
"We should just sleep in the car," Crystal insisted.
"I don't know, Sunshine, we could get caught if you're using a stolen credit card," Raven said, and I could tell she was already worried about the few times I used Gordon's gas card.