The time was five after one in the early morning hours. Karma leaned against one of the entryways that led into the water base. The harvester she was to meet was described as "The Tall Indian."
Karma waited along the train tracks for all the men to get off the arriving trains. There were men everywhere setting up stalls to sell their items from the surface. The cement platform was chaotic. If Rea knew she was here, he would be hopping mad.
Since he'd found out she was pregnant, he'd gone back to watching her all the time. It wasn't that he was concerned she would leave. No, Rea was simply afraid for her. He'd been worried since Gears had described giving birth. As far as she was concerned, he'd used one too many details. She told Gears a real Davis wouldn't have screwed her over like that. She wasn't apprehensive about birth, and Rea shouldn't be either. Besides, she needed to pick up this new blanket from this particular harvester. Supposedly, only he could find things that were unique. There was no way just any present would do to celebrate their one-year anniversary. Even if Rea discovered she was here, getting his gift was worth his irritation.
Karma pressed closer to the stones next to the door and then tipped her head to see around a stack of crates. She recognized the man she was supposed to meet the second he lumbered off the train. Brice had said he was tall, had a long black braid, and was an Indian. She'd questioned if the man was from India or native to the Americas. Brice said he didn't know. Honestly, she didn't care. Karma only asked for clarification to be able to recognize him faster. As far as she was concerned, as long as he was willing to sell her items, his background didn't matter.
"You Karma?" The stranger crossed the cement platform away from a group of men unloading what looked like coffins filled with bolts of fabric.
"Yeah." She set her hand lightly on her gun. She never trusted harvesters, not even her uncle when she was young, but they were the only people who could get the good items from the surface of the planet.
"My name's Soaring Hawk," the tall harvester announced.
She guessed American Indian.
"Do you have the blanket I want? Brice said you could get it."
The huge muscles of his biceps flexed as he reached behind him. He started pulling what appeared to be fabric from his pack. A relaxed smile appeared on his face when he handed it to her.
Karma pulled out a corner of the folded fabric and petted the fleece. It was perfect. A massive king-sized feather comforter that supposedly came from a real store. She squeezed it and thought about how much Rea was going to love the blanket. For a second, she pictured him and her and their new baby cuddling in this.
"It's not free. I had to trek far to get that, all the way to the Beyond," Soaring Hawk said.
Karma rolled up the fabric. She tucked it under her arm.
"Here." She tugged out the money she brought from a pocket in her jeans.
"I got a little girl at home and a new baby boy."
"Spare me the negotiation tactics. You're not getting more." Karma sighed.
Soaring Hawk shrugged. "Can't blame a harvester for trying."
Karma chuckled and headed back into the water base.
Once she was back in the halls, she started jogging. It was the middle of the night, and she figured that no one was going to be awake. She had to hurry back so that Rea wouldn't wonder where she'd gone. If he woke up without her, she would get twenty questions. She couldn't have that. Particularly with a human lie detector. She didn't want him to find out about his present until tomorrow night when she gave it to him at their anniversary dinner.
Switching to a full run, she spun around the corner. She ran directly into Gears. He reeled backward and then righted himself. She dropped her blanket on the floor. Gears recovered his balance and adjusted his glasses. He gave her a wide-eyed stare.
"What're you doing?" Gears asked her. "Do you know what time it is? You should be asleep. You need more rest now."
Karma picked up the blanket. "I got this blanket for Rea. I wanted to give it to him at our anniversary dinner tomorrow. I'm going to hide it. But I have to hurry back before he catches me. Wait, why are you up?" She paused. In a mocking tone, she added, "Do you know what time it is?"
Gears adjusted his glasses again. "I'm up because of my rabbits."
"Rabbits?" She could never keep up with what Gears was working on.
"They keep reproducing. I have to get this figured out. They just keep…." Gears put his hands together and intertwined his fingers. He then pulled his hands apart again and stared at her. "Never mind what they do. I just have a lot of bunnies."
Karma laughed at the anxious look on his face. She also thought his way of explaining his rabbit's mating amusing.
"I get it. You're an odd duck, Gears."
"Ducks." Gears' face brightened. "That's a much better idea than rabbits."
Karma shrugged. She needed to get back to bed before Rea sent out people looking for her. Even though Rea was a builder now, The Seemyah still respected him highly. He could get a search party together quicker than anyone she'd ever met —including her father.
"I've got to go. I'll talk with you later about ducks."
"Fine." Gears nodded. "Let me take the blanket. I'll hide it in my room until your dinner tomorrow."
That was good luck. "Thank you."
As soon as Gears took the bundle, she dashed down the hall again. From behind her, she heard Gears call out the word "rest."
When she got to their bedroom, she opened the door as silently as possible and entered.
Rea sat on the side of the bed. He'd put on a pair of pants. A shirt was in his hands. He looked up when she came in.
"I was coming to look for you. I was…" He trailed off.
"Worried?" She finished his sentence.
"Scared out of my mind. I'm trying, but I don't know what I'll do if you get hurt or if the baby gets hurt. Gears said women can die in childbirth. He also said if you fall, you can lose the baby."
Karma crossed the room to stand between his legs. She took the shirt from his hands and tossed the top to a nearby chair. "Gears should've never talked to you about me having this child. The baby and I will be okay. I love you."
She climbed into his lap and snuggled under his chin. Slipping her hands over his bare chest, she tipped back so that Rea could put his hand on her belly.
"Where were you?" Rea asked.
"I was talking to Gears." That was the truth, so she went with it. "He's having problems with his rabbits making a lot of babies and—"
Rea cut her off. "Forget I asked."
"I guess I told him to get ducks instead." She looked up at Rea. He shook his head.
"What your dad said was worse. He told him to get owls. He told Gears that owls would eat the rabbits. You should've seen Gears' face. He was horrified."
"Is Dad home again? I thought he left to meet the Prime Minister."
"He returned yesterday, but he was in a meeting with The Seemyah. You were perfecting your new cold-weather suit with Gears." Rea wrapped an arm around her and scooted so he rested his shoulders against the pillows.
"What did I miss?"
"The Prime Minister is impressed with Keith. He thinks The Seemyah shouldn't only protect the acting president but also protect the underground population after the borders close. Their job description is all about protecting the people so that we can flourish."
"What did all the men say?" She kissed Rea's neck. Her tongue slid out and caressed the sensitive spot under his ear. He shuddered.
"I think they wanted your opinion about it. Your dad went over radon poisoning, Snow Flu, and weather safety that might need to be addressed. The Prime Minister also wants a new official government name. Let's see if I can recall it. It had a lot of words, and they were using an acronym by the end of the meeting."
Karma licked his ear again.
Rea sighed. "I'm never going to remember if you keep distracting me."
"I love distracting you." Karma slid her shirt over her head and then removed her bra. His eyes hungrily ate her up. It always amused her when he did that. She tugged off her jeans next and then curled around Rea once more.
"I know. It was the H.S.P.C.," he announced suddenly. He pulled their quilt over her chest. "It's the Human Survival and Population Care. Your dad wants a set of gears to be the symbol for the group."
"Sounds like a government name to me." Karma stopped listening and instead considered how to get him out of his pants. She pushed the quilt down again.
"I think your dad is only staying a few days. Then I think he's planning on talking to some of the other teams that have settled onto the other bases. He also told me he asked Gears to change his last name to Davis for protection purposes. It'll be helpful if Gears has a little more protection and privacy. We all agree on that."
She pressed her body close to Rea. "Is Gears going to go with Dad and Bennett?"
"Yes. He's going to get the research they have on Snow Flu."
"I guessed that he would do that. Once they're gone, we could have a few romantical months together, just you and me, before the baby gets here."
Rea pulled the quilt up to her chin.
Karma spread her hand flat on his nipple and toyed with his sprinkle of chest hair. She didn't want to talk anymore. What she wanted was Rea, and then she would follow Gears' advice and get some rest. She nuzzled his neck.
"You know what I think?"
"What?"
"We should stop talking about my dad and the H.S.P.C. and copy Gears' rabbits."
Rea batted her hands away when she reached for his pants.
"I don't know. It's late, and you should be sleeping. Gears said lots of rest and plenty of water and—"
"Have faith in me. I'm going to be okay, and so what if it's late?" she murmured into his neck as her hands found the buttons of his pants again.
"What time is it?" he asked absently. Her hands slipped into his waistband, and he didn't swat them away. He'd promised her he would never turn her down or tell her to leave for the rest of his life. She unsnapped the buttons.
"It's almost two."