we folded blankets together.
“Where is he?” I asked.
“Upstairs. I think he wanted to go to the shipyard, but Caleb thought it was too risky to have either of you out in the open.”
“Oh.” As we folded up the blankets, a question that had been nagging at the back of my mind rolled out of my mouth before my brain could stop it. “Is Berrett your kid or does everyone call you Mama B.?”
She smiled. “Yes and yes. Is the fact that I’m pink and he’s brown confusing you a little?”
“No, I just ... well, I ... I just wasn’t sure what to call you, exactly.”
I am such an idiot.
Mama B. pursed her lips, but the corners of her mouth quivered, like she was trying to suppress a laugh and look stern all at once. “Tabitha, honey, do you want to throw your clothes in the wash while we have power? I can loan you some of mine. They might not fit perfect, but it’ll be better that way if you’re going out. I have a cabby hat I can give you too. I used to steal Frederick’s all the time.” She smiled and sipped her coffee.
“Frederick?” I asked.
“Jordan’s father. He never minded my cabby hat thievery. He was a good man. Jordan’s a lot like him. Looks just like him too.”
“Well, he must have been very hot—er ... uh, handsome.”
On fire this morning. Absolutely on fire.
“Ah, so you think Jordan’s handsome? Well, I think you have excellent taste, honey. Of course, I am completely biased.”
I smiled in spite of myself. She was so disarming, so seemingly oblivious of my blundering, so ... motherly.
“Go on into my room, find whatever’s in that closet that’ll fit you, and get dressed, hon. Big day ahead of you.”
I walked into the other room and started rifling through the closet. “How long do you guys usually have power?”
“At our house, we usually max out around two in the afternoon on a day like today. When we aren’t doing chores, we can sometimes make it last until seven or eight at night. Helps that we’re gone so much of the day. I don’t know how Caleb and his wife manage it with four small children.”
“Children? I didn’t see any—”
“Oh, they were safely tucked away long before you two arrived.”
I exhaled as the full weight of the danger I had put these people in hit me. I tried to keep the conversation light. “Wouldn’t it be aces if you could save up power somehow?”
“Or at least install your own solar panels,” she replied.
“Yeah.” I pulled on a tunic and cinched my belt around it, then shimmied into Mama B.’s jeans. They fit around my waist, but the legs stopped partway up my calf. I pulled my boots on and stuffed the ends of the jeans into the tops.
Problem solved.
Mama B. came in as I was zipping up the sides of my boots. “This tavern we stay at on Mars has solar panels. Only nobody cares because it’s Mars.”
Mama B. laughed. “You must have had some crazy adventures.”
I sighed. “Yeah. Crazy adventures that have put all of you in danger.”
“You’ll have to tell me all about it over breakfast.”
I swallowed hard. Not the topic I really wanted to get into over eggs. Still, I followed her up the steps and out into the bottom floor of the townhouse. We walked up to the second level where the kitchen was. Caleb’s wife was fussing over breakfast and three very small children. I felt awkward and unsure of how to help, so I fidgeted with the hilt of my knife and tried to avoid making eye contact with the little guys.
Berrett, on the other hand, seemed perfectly at ease. In between shoveling down mouthfuls of scrambled eggs and toast, he played peek-a-boo with a kid in a high chair.
I thought I was safe, that the tiny monsters would be engrossed by Berrett, but one of them wandered over to me and tugged on my borrowed tunic.
“Escews me?” asked the boy. His dark curls framed round, ruddy cheeks. I coughed and looked away, but the little one was relentless in his quest for my attention.
“Escews me?” He
“Where is he?” I asked.
“Upstairs. I think he wanted to go to the shipyard, but Caleb thought it was too risky to have either of you out in the open.”
“Oh.” As we folded up the blankets, a question that had been nagging at the back of my mind rolled out of my mouth before my brain could stop it. “Is Berrett your kid or does everyone call you Mama B.?”
She smiled. “Yes and yes. Is the fact that I’m pink and he’s brown confusing you a little?”
“No, I just ... well, I ... I just wasn’t sure what to call you, exactly.”
I am such an idiot.
Mama B. pursed her lips, but the corners of her mouth quivered, like she was trying to suppress a laugh and look stern all at once. “Tabitha, honey, do you want to throw your clothes in the wash while we have power? I can loan you some of mine. They might not fit perfect, but it’ll be better that way if you’re going out. I have a cabby hat I can give you too. I used to steal Frederick’s all the time.” She smiled and sipped her coffee.
“Frederick?” I asked.
“Jordan’s father. He never minded my cabby hat thievery. He was a good man. Jordan’s a lot like him. Looks just like him too.”
“Well, he must have been very hot—er ... uh, handsome.”
On fire this morning. Absolutely on fire.
“Ah, so you think Jordan’s handsome? Well, I think you have excellent taste, honey. Of course, I am completely biased.”
I smiled in spite of myself. She was so disarming, so seemingly oblivious of my blundering, so ... motherly.
“Go on into my room, find whatever’s in that closet that’ll fit you, and get dressed, hon. Big day ahead of you.”
I walked into the other room and started rifling through the closet. “How long do you guys usually have power?”
“At our house, we usually max out around two in the afternoon on a day like today. When we aren’t doing chores, we can sometimes make it last until seven or eight at night. Helps that we’re gone so much of the day. I don’t know how Caleb and his wife manage it with four small children.”
“Children? I didn’t see any—”
“Oh, they were safely tucked away long before you two arrived.”
I exhaled as the full weight of the danger I had put these people in hit me. I tried to keep the conversation light. “Wouldn’t it be aces if you could save up power somehow?”
“Or at least install your own solar panels,” she replied.
“Yeah.” I pulled on a tunic and cinched my belt around it, then shimmied into Mama B.’s jeans. They fit around my waist, but the legs stopped partway up my calf. I pulled my boots on and stuffed the ends of the jeans into the tops.
Problem solved.
Mama B. came in as I was zipping up the sides of my boots. “This tavern we stay at on Mars has solar panels. Only nobody cares because it’s Mars.”
Mama B. laughed. “You must have had some crazy adventures.”
I sighed. “Yeah. Crazy adventures that have put all of you in danger.”
“You’ll have to tell me all about it over breakfast.”
I swallowed hard. Not the topic I really wanted to get into over eggs. Still, I followed her up the steps and out into the bottom floor of the townhouse. We walked up to the second level where the kitchen was. Caleb’s wife was fussing over breakfast and three very small children. I felt awkward and unsure of how to help, so I fidgeted with the hilt of my knife and tried to avoid making eye contact with the little guys.
Berrett, on the other hand, seemed perfectly at ease. In between shoveling down mouthfuls of scrambled eggs and toast, he played peek-a-boo with a kid in a high chair.
I thought I was safe, that the tiny monsters would be engrossed by Berrett, but one of them wandered over to me and tugged on my borrowed tunic.
“Escews me?” asked the boy. His dark curls framed round, ruddy cheeks. I coughed and looked away, but the little one was relentless in his quest for my attention.
“Escews me?” He
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