Broken Orbit | ONC

Back Outside

     Ram was confused as I came back inside with the tarps, the mower, the gas, and the tool box I'd found. He closed the door as I dumped my goods on the floor of the kitchen. Chance bounced into the room to examine my goods. Maria followed and blinked. "Mama's mower?"

    "Why did you bring that inside?" Ram looked less than pleased.

   I didn't answer right away. I flipped the mower over again and snagged a knife from the block on the table, chipping at some of the frost. I began to explain. "This mower has a combustion engine. It requires gas, but it produces heat."

   Ram's eyes squinted. "We have fire for heat."

   "True. But it might be possible to take this engine and apply it to something else." I looked up. "Like some sort of vehicle."

   "Is that even possible? It's not the same as a car's engine. I work with my papa on cars, and I know that's not going to get close."

   "Not necessarily a car. Something smaller, maybe closer to snow mobile. An engine rotates a track that moves it forward. I could attach it onto a bike and create my own tracks..." If I was lucky, it could work. I got the last of the frost off and checked the breaker box and grinned for the first time in a while. "This is intact. No reason it shouldn't start."

    Ram peered inside. "Mama used it all of the time. Perfectly fine."

   "Would you mind if I took this?" I looked up at him. "It could get me to my destination faster. Might even buy Chance some time." The dog was busy taking small pellets of food from Maria and the bag of dog food.

   Ram hesitated. I understood why. If he could use the mower for his own uses, then he'd want it. I tried to think of any way he could use it, but it had limited gas. Even I would not be able to use it for long. Besides, all it was was an engine. Making it into a source of light was not a good idea. And Ram had said, they had fire. They'd always have stuff to burn, considering the amount of debris in the front yard.

   "I guess..." He finally said. "If you can get it to work, it's all yours."

   "And the bike in the shed?"

   "That, too."

   I pulled a can of beans out of my bag and handed it over. "Then here. I might be stuck in here for a bit while I put this together. Food is on me."

   Ram's eyes widened. "Beans?"

   Maria poked her head into the room and smiled. "I still have Mama's spices." Ram handed it over. "Go right ahead, Mari." His lip twisted up into a crooked smile. "You haven't lived until you've tasted my mama's beans."

   While he made a fire and Maria gathered her things, I moved into the living room to start pulling the engine out of the mower. I was forced to take off my gloves in order to handle the pieces, and my fingers began to chill. I had to take the gloves on and off, because my hands got too cold to be steady.

   About an hour later, Maria returned with a bowl in her hands. I took it from her. The bowl was warm against my fingers. I hadn't removed my gloves to be able to feel warmth in months. For a second, I reveled in the feeling of being able to feel my fingers. I ate the beans shortly afterwards, before they got cold. I had to admit, Maria knew her way around the spices. They were excellent.

   She went to bed afterwards, taking Chance with her. An hour later and he trotted out of the room she'd been sleeping in. He sat down beside me and laid down, yawning and curling into a tight ball. I smiled a bit and continued working on the mower. Another hour or so later and I was able to bring in the bike and start figuring out a way to attach the motor and create tracks.