The Link

Chapter 13 - Sam

There is nothing that will squelch one's euphoria like easy crib assembly. I think they put the word 'easy' on the outside so you would feel like a fool calling up the manufacturer and bawling them out. Teegan was on a blanket spread out on the floor exercising her ability to roll over and almost crawl. Betty was on a supply run. Just stuff for a few days, her contribution for our helping her escape. She was going to spend the night; then we would drop her off at her sisters, who was a good two hours away, the next day.

"I should just let you help me," I said rhetorically to Teegan as I tried to figure out which screws were As and which ones were Bs. Teegan surprised me by moving her knees forward as if she could crawl. Unfortunately, she neglected to move her hands and went down face first in the blanket.

I began to smile at her trials, then my chin and left cheek suddenly felt as if I had dragged them along a rug. I rubbed the area with my hand, no damage, but the feeling was real. Teegan pushed herself back up on all fours and bounced her butt back and forth, seemingly unaffected by the face plant. I dropped the instructions and crawled over to my smiling girl. Her chin and cheek were slightly red, exactly where the pain had graced my face.

"Sympathy pains?" I asked Teegan, who just gave me her best laugh in reply. She liked my attention, no matter what the reason. She rocked back and forth with more enthusiasm now that she had my eye. I laid next to her, watching her exercise and her aborted attempts at crawling. She didn't go down again and maintained her balance on all fours. She eventually gave up and laid down and rolled to her back. I played tickle the belly for a few minutes before I went back to the crib assembly.

Betty returned with six bags of groceries, more than I was expecting, enough to get us through a week or so. I checked on Natalie before we made a late lunch. She was still sleeping soundly, recovering from the stress of the aggressive bonding. I gave her a light kiss on her forehead noting how peaceful she looked. I could only hope that there was no lasting damage from such use of Teegan. For her sake and mine.

As usual, Teegan was starving. I gave up trying to dodge her ever quickening hands and learned to work with her help. If you time it right, she would grab the handle of the spoon instead of the bowl, allowing most of the food into her mouth. Betty thought the whole operation was hilarious. Teegan acted like we never fed her. Afterwards, I gave the little monster a bath that she seemed to enjoy. Hard to tell, since she was always smiling.

"Good morning," a sleepy Natalie said as she strolled from the bedroom adding a yawn. She was back in her jeans and shirt from the morning.

"Actually, it's night," I responded with a smile. Betty and I were watching an old TV that could only pick up three channels. Uncle Dave had jury-rigged some makeshift digital antenna into a converter box, not wanting to absorb the monthly for satellite. It was reasonable since the cabin was expected to be empty a good portion of the year.

"Anything good on?" Natalie asked as I scooted over to make room for her on the couch. Teegan smiled in my lap and pumped her arms at Natalie's return. Natalie bent her head down and gave Teegan a peck on the cheek. Her lips moved higher, and I received much more than a peck. Betty looked away with a blush as Natalie lingered longer than appropriate for public consumption. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the brief interlude.

"It looks like they gave up on Flagstaff," I said when Natalie cosied into me, "not even a mention on the news."

"Is that good or bad?" Betty asked.

"Who knows," Natalie replied, "I doubt they'll give up. It may just mean they weren't fooling anyone anymore. Maybe they think we're still there."

"Or they know we left," I added, shrugging my shoulders, "you hungry?" I asked Natalie.