VACATION

Tom watches the sunlight dapple her skin as it comes through the trees, while she plays in the warm lake water. It had taken him two days to convince her she could swim in the lake and another that she did not need a swimming suit. She said she couldn’t, she was too fat and why would he want to look at her like this anyway. His eyes float over her, watching the swell of her belly. She carried a child. All children were precious to his people but this one was much more precious to him. She carried HIS child.

"Okay, mister, I thought you wanted to go swimming. It’s your vacation. Why aren’t you down here with me?"

Vacation, he’d never had a vacation before. Everyone had convinced him that he might as well go off for a week with Sloan. There was nothing for him to do there at the lab, and they both needed some time together. With the baby on the way, soon they’d have no time for anything at all. He still wasn’t sure about being a father. He had no memories of his and wasn’t sure exactly how he should feel about this. But Sloan was pleased, very pleased he’d discovered. Even with the morning sickness and aching back she was starting to have occasionally. The doctor had said that a week camping out shouldn’t hurt as long as she ate well and didn’t exert herself. She wasn’t due for a few weeks yet and he’d brought a cell phone in case anything should happen. She slept better here than she had back at the base they had developed. He didn’t know why. It was peaceful and calm, but no one knew better than he, it could be nothing less then the calm before the storm. He didn’t know how prophetic he could be.

"I’m watching you. It’s my vacation and that’s what I want to do, watch you."

She playfully splashes water at him. If he was going to be wet he might as well be in the water with her. He pads down to the water and joins her. The bottom here was gravel and a little rough, but there was no mud to churn up and cloud the water. They play in the water until he could see her start to chill even in the warm water. Without comment he picks her up and carries her out. "Tom, I can walk. I’m not helpless."

"Yes, but you are starting to chill, don’t deny it. Come, let’s get you warmed up and we can go for a walk." He carries her up to the one room cabin that she had inherited from her favorite uncle, and now is their vacation cottage. He helps her dry and dress. Her hair was soaking wet and together they comb it out and he braids it. He still loves the feel of her hair in his hands. "Where should we walk?"

"Over to the meadow, we can sit on that big rock and watch the sunset. Tomorrow we go back. Will they be sending someone or are we hiking? It’s not that far, I can walk you know."

"I know. I’ll call tomorrow and talk to your doctor. If he says yes, you can walk. If he says no, we get a jeep to come for us. I’ve got almost everything packed already. Tomorrow we’ll be ready to go after we eat and clean up. Unless you want to go swimming again."

She giggles and kisses him, playfully. "It’s too cold to swim in the morning and you know it, too. Mornings are for sitting in the sun and picking wildflowers and looking into your eyes and telling you how much I love you. That’s what I do in the morning. That’s what I’d like to do every morning." She says suddenly becoming serious. He stops what he’s doing and is suddenly very still. He’s receptive to her and reaches out to feel her. She’s afraid of something. Here, now, and he sees her shudder slightly. He quickly stretches his senses, but other than a few animals, there’s nothing close but the two of them.

"What’s wrong? What are you afraid of? There’s nothing here. Nothing that could harm us."

"I don’t know. I just had the feeling that someone was walking over my grave. Kind of an odd, eerie feeling." She hugs him close. "Don’t worry about it."

Tom gets his rifle and slings it over his shoulder. Sloan didn’t want him to take a gun with them but he convinced her that there were still dangerous animals in the forested area. He would not risk her, either the gun came with them or they stayed.

He watches the sunset with her, still wondering why she likes to watch. The golden of the sun turning to crimson and shades of orange fading into the purples that signal the impending night. She said a beautiful sunset foretold a beautiful day. He only saw the colors including the colors she could not. Colors that he could see but there were no names for. He once had asked what an ugly sunset meant, she had only laughed and said there was no such thing. He shrugs off his jacket and places it across her shoulders. She hadn’t brought a jacket even though she knew it would get chill, sometimes he wonders if she does it deliberately. He knew how much it pleased her to wear it. Ever since that first time so long ago, she loved to have something he had worn close to her. He suspected it was because it smelled like him. Even when he was with her, she wanted to know his closeness.

They walk back to the cabin slowly. She depends upon him to see for her. The moon is dark so, to him, it is much like the day only in shades of gray. Back at the cabin he lights the fire in the fireplace and the lantern. They eat lightly for dinner. Their supplies are almost depleted. Their large meal was at noon; not that she eats much at any meal. He makes sure she eats something frequently.

He wakes sensing something amiss. He smells smoke. He sniffs the air. It’s not from the fireplace, something else. If the woods are on fire they must leave now. He unwraps himself from her and goes outside. Over to the west he sees a glow, a fire lights up the night, or actually the early morning. It’s 3 AM, the sun will be up in less than 3 hours. To the west is their base camp, could that be aflame? He retrieves his binoculars from the cabin. It’s too far away he can’t see clearly. He quickly scrambles to the roof of the cabin. He can see the base camp IS in flames. They have to leave NOW. He jumps down and goes into the cabin, and wakes her. "Sloan, we’re leaving to the mountain cache."

He gets her up and lights the lantern. He doesn’t need the light but she does. He helps her to dress and is glad that her shoes are right there. Having to be dressed for the outhouse is now, a plus. He ties her boots on, tucking in the laces so she cannot trip. He rolls up the sleeping bag and attaches it to his backpack. He checks his rifle and makes sure it’s loaded and ready. He knew it was habit but in this case was constructive. He made sure she was dressed warmly and finished dressing himself. He put his backpack on and made sure he had extra rounds in his pocket. He slings the rifle over his shoulder.

"Come on. The base camp’s in flames. I don’t know what happened to Jason and his men. The mountain cache is safe and we can live there for weeks if we have to."

"Tom, we can’t be there for weeks unless you want to deliver the baby. Oh, God, my back hurts. I must have slept wrong. Come on lets go and you can tell me what’s going on."

He stops and stares at her. He hadn’t thought about that. He had only thought about getting her out of danger. He’d have to get her to help soon. The baby was due in 3 weeks. He had all kinds of first aid training but he wasn’t up to delivering a baby.

He puts the light out and they leave. He leads her to the trees and up into the mountains. They were going on at least a 10-mile hike. He could do it in a couple of hours even with the pack. With her it would take at least twice that long, maybe longer.

They start out through the trees. The only light they need is the one only his eyes can see. He hurries her along through the trees to where they become scarce. He explains that he saw the base camp in flames. He doesn’t know what happened to the dominants in training there, but he doesn’t dare call and distract them.

They stop every half-hour or so. The walk is making her back hurt worse. He doesn’t know what to do about it. She says to ignore it it’ll get better. When they’re safe she can rest. He had hoped to be at the cache by sunrise, but they are still working on getting there when dawn breaks. She’s slowing down and her backache is worsening. She knows what it is, now. There’s nothing that can be done about it. They have to get to the cave where the cache is. She tries to control her breathing like she was taught. Her legs feel weak and she only wants to stop. She will not interfere with what he’s doing. She concentrates on putting one foot before the other and watching him. She only hopes she can last ‘til they get there.

They get to the cache more than two hours after dawn. It’s in a cave that’s shielded by a boulder near the front. They slip in and he digs out a flashlight and opens one of the metal canisters that hold supplies. He takes her to the back of the cave and lights some of the emergency lights. One of the medical supplies boxes has blankets and water in it. He gets them out, lays a blanket down and sits her on it so she can rest. "Tom, untie my shoes so I can get them off. I need to take my sweat pants off, too. Do you know if we were followed?"

He starts to untie her shoes. "Why do you need to take off your sweats? There are plenty of blankets to keep you warm but why? I don’t think we were followed but if whoever got the base camp finds the cabin they may be able to track us."

She takes his hand and places it on her abdomen. He’d been feeling her pain for hours. He didn’t realize what it was. Now he feels the ripple of a contraction across her. She clenches her teeth and rides it out, they are getting worse. "We’ve got to get you out of here."

"You brought me here because right now it’s the safest place to be, right." He nods at her. "Fine, we’ll manage. Women have been having babies without a hospital for centuries. I’ll be fine. I need you to do some things for me though. You’ve got to measure my dilation. I need to know about how far gone in labor I am."

He helps her take off her sweats and asks, "Okay, what do I?"

"You’ve got to measure my cervix and see how open I am. Will your cell phone work? If it does maybe we can get a hold of my doctor and he can talk us through it. And give me your belt."

He looks around the cave, it won’t work in here he’ll have to go to the front of the cave to use it. He looks puzzled as he takes off his belt and hands it to her. "Use your fingers to measure how open I am. If it’s more than 10 centimeters, I’ll be going into final labor soon."

He looks at his hands. "I can’t. My hands are filthy. I can’t touch you like that with my hands like this."

"Use the surgical gloves in the medical kit. It should have everything we need there." She shudders as another contraction hit her. As the wave of contractions hit her, he found out what his belt was for. She clenched her teeth on the leather of the belt, staying silent and controlling the pain. He had no idea that childbirth was so painful.

He does as she says and they discover she is dilated more than the 10 centimeters that mark the beginning of final labor. The baby was coming and soon. He doesn’t want to leave her but he must make a phone call. She waves him away. "There’s nothing either of us can do except let time do it’s job."

He thinks who to call as he scans the woods with his binoculars, looking for movement. He punches in the number for Mark. Someone should have notified him if the base camp was destroyed. The phone rings again and again. He was about to disconnect when he here’s Mark’s voice. "Mark Ward"

He sees it, movement in the trees. Someone is down there. They were followed. And sooner than he had thought. "Mark, this is Tom Daniels. Sloan and I are at the mountain cache, about 10 miles from the cabin. I saw the camp in flames. What happened?"

"The camp was hit by some sort of militia. They objected to us being in their forest. My people got out, with very few injuries. You should be safe there until we can send someone to get you."

"We can’t stay here long. She’s in labor, hard labor. And we were followed. I see movement in the trees below us. I can hold out here for a while but she needs help. I can’t hold them off and help deliver the baby."

"How many are there?"

Tom goes prone to creep out and count the spots of movement. At least 6 but it could be twice that many in parts of the deep woods. And once the first shots go off everyone within hearing distance will be here. "At least six, once the shooting starts it will be more."

"Jason was near there. Our men scattered once the camp was hit with firebombs. The military is out looking for the militiamen. We decided that a lot of bodies was not a way to create a good impression. I’ll get him to you. Try not to be the first to fire. But don’t worry about it. If they are a threat to you or your mate, do not hesitate."

Tom snorted, as if he would. Then the pain hit him. The labor was getting worse. He was going to have to control it to do what he needed. He groaned and then steadied himself. It was only an echo of what she felt. And still she was silent. "Tom, what’s wrong? Are you injured?"

"No, I’m feeling her labor. It’ll be soon. Get him here" he closes the phone and concentrates on the movement below. He fans out his senses trying to find Jason. He could get here quickly if needs be. He watches and waits, feeling the contractions come closer and closer together. The sweat gathers on his brow and trickles down his back. He blinks his eyes to clear them.

Then he sees them. Jason, young and blond, running, followed by three men in combat camouflage. "Jason, drop." Tom, prone, shoots. His Winchester barks three times. Tom slams rounds into the chamber with precision. The 30-06 rounds plow into the runners. He knows he got two and probably the third. He didn’t think they’d be getting up again.

With the men following him down, Jason makes it to the cave safely. Jason, who looks as if he should be in high school, tall as Tom but more slender, barefoot and dressed only in jeans. He’s out of breath and bleeding from a gunshot wound in his side but all in all in good shape. "Jason, dress that wound. Did Mark tell you what was up? Do you think you can hold them off? She needs some help." He hears something from the back of the cave. She’s calling for him. The baby’s coming, coming now.

"Go, Tom. Check on her. I’ve only been grazed. Lots of blood but little real damage. If you can bring some bandages, I’ll be all right. "

Tom leaves him the rifle and gets the box of shells out of his pack and gives them to him. He goes to the back of the cave where he left her. Her hair is dark with sweat. He doesn’t know how she’s doing it. "Tom, I’m going to need some help." A contraction makes her stop and shudder. "Can you help? Will it be safe?"

"Jason’s here. He’ll guard the entrance. He’s been wounded. Let me bandage him. I’ll be back in less than five minutes. Can you last that long?" She nods at him. "Hurry"

He digs in the medical canister and comes out with bandages and sterile pads. "Jason" he says as he approaches, "I’ll bandage you and stop the bleeding. The last thing I need is to have you pass out from blood loss." He tears open several of the sterile gauze pads open and presses them to the wound in his side. It’s not deep but it is bleeding freely. He bandages it tightly as Jason keeps an eye out for more activity. "That should stop the bleeding. It’s not neat but it should be okay. Here, drink this it’ll help." He passes him a container of orange juice.

When he returns to her, the baby’s crowning. It’ll be born soon. He dug another juice container out of the canister. She was exhausted the long walk and now the labor, she needed something. He just now realized he had eaten nothing all day and it was now past noon.

"Tom, Now" he sits and helps her steady herself as she strains and pushes. He remembers all the things they had told him at the childbirth classes.

"Breathe, Sloan, breathe. Ride the contraction. Use the pain. Channel it. Breathe." He was breathing in time with her. He put one hand under the small head coming from her. And watches as the shoulders started to emerge. She was panting. "Sloan, breathe deeper, if you pant you won’t get enough oxygen." He looks in her eyes; she is in such pain. He places his other hand on her. She grabs his hand and squeezes as another contraction hits her.

She closes her eyes and arches her back. This one will have to be the last. She is so tired. She lets go of his hand and braces herself on her hands and pushes as hard as she can and feels the baby leave her. Its done, the child is born. Now she can relax.

Tom vaguely hears the sound of gunfire as he looks down and sees the splendor that is his son. He wiggles and suddenly gives out a faint wail that rapidly becomes louder. "Tom, is it a boy or a girl?"

"A boy, a perfect boy." He looks at her with tears in his eyes. He didn’t know it could feel like this.

"Put him here. You’ll have to cut the cord. Can you get a hold of the doctor?" She says as he places the boy on her belly. Her hand reaches up to touch the side of his face. He grasps it and holds it close. She sees a tear trickle down his face. It tells her all the things he can’t. He gets a sheet from the medical canister and covers them both. He goes to the cave entrance to call.

Jason is doing a good job, holding them off. He calls the doctor and hopes he gets him. He gets the instructions from the doctor on what to do and calls Mark again to find the status of the military. The army Rangers are in the area and should be here soon. The nightmare will be over by nightfall. As a matter of fact he could hear the choppers coming down now. The men who held them in the cave were being rounded up as they spoke. He goes to the back of the cave to tend to Sloan. By the time that they were here he had them both cleaned and ready for transport. He holds his son and watches the sun set as they load her into the chopper. Jason was already inside.

"Wait." She says. "Look." He had never seen such a beautiful sunset. She was right, a beautiful sunset foretold a beautiful day. And he knows as he looks at her and his son that tomorrow was going to be a beautiful day.