I said. “She’s missing my dad. She told us she didn’t want to see you anymore, but I don’t think that’s true. You’ve made her happy.”
He looked down at me for a long moment.
“She makes me very happy.”
“Then go remind her of that.”
He went back to Mom’s bedroom and let himself in without knocking. Zach and I waited by the table. The low rumble of Uan’s voice came from the room several times before the door opened and Mom emerged. Her face was tear-stained and mottled, but she didn’t give us the Mom glare as she parked at the table.
“Thank you,” she said simply.
“Anytime,” I said.
We served dinner and sat down together. Before I managed more than a few bites, Zach reached into his pocket and withdrew several packets of birth control, which he set on the table without a word. I was surprised he handled it with so much dignity. And in front of Uan, too. But it was only right since he needed to understand what they meant.
I looked at Mom then Uan. Uan frowned at the packets of pills.
“Do you know what they are?” Mom asked.
“Medicine,” Uan said. “Are you sick?”
“No.”
Zach started eating in a hurry.
“Slow down, Zach. Even if you finish, you’re not excused.”
Zach groaned.
“I asked Zach and Brenna to go on the supply run today to find birth control. These pills will help prevent pregnancy. At my age, it’s a risk to have more children. Do you understand what that means, Uan? If you choose to be with me, I can’t give you kids. You won’t have children of your own.”
He looked at us then Mom.
“I will have children of my own. I will have Brenna and Zach.”
Chapter Six
I washed the pot and wondered what would happen next. Mom had her pills and Uan’s definite interest. Hearing that she wouldn’t ever have his baby hadn’t scared him off.
Glancing over my shoulder, I considered the pair as they sat on the back porch. Mom was bundled up in a blanket on Uan’s lap. Their heads were close as they talked to each other. I was glad she had someone.
“How soon before she gives him the green light to move in, you think?” Zach said, taking the pot to dry.
“Probably not very long. A few days at most. She’ll want to give him some time to change his mind.”
“Do any of them ever say no?”
I snorted.
“Not that I’ve ever seen.”
“What are you going to call him?”
“Uan for a while. Dad, if he deserves it.”
“Really?”
“You heard Mom. We’ll be the only kids he’ll have. I think he’d like being called Dad.”
Zach was quiet for a minute.
“If he deserves it,” he agreed.
After we finished up with the dishes, I went through the cupboards to look at our supplies.
“Damn. This is amazing.”
Zach grinned.
“Two full totes, one for each of us. And, I got to pick what went in them.”
He’d organized everything by type, putting the canned goods in a lower cupboard and the boxed stuff in the upper cupboards. We even had two bags of flour and other baking ingredients.
My mouth started to water for the biscuits that I knew Mom would make.
I paced the back of the truck, moving to keep warm. I’d gotten smarter each trip, not just about how I did things but about how the supply runs were handled in general. On the second trip to Harrisonville, we’d approached from the north. Garrett had explained that the group never came in for supply runs from the same direction twice because of infected traps. The infected were getting too smart. We’d left with more supplies than the day before, thanks to a supercenter, and I had managed to stay on the roof without freezing my ass off. To top my amazing day, Thallirin hadn’t tried to talk to me during our trek home on foot, and Mom had made biscuits.
Thinking of the flaky treat, I pulled a wrapped biscuit from my pocket and took a bite. Even cold, it was amazing.
My footsteps were quiet as I turned, scanned the surrounding trees, and walked the length of the truck trailer. While two of the trucks were the canvas-backed military kind, the third was hard-backed. The cargo bay kept the humans warmer and safer, and the solid surface made it possible for me to move around when on guard duty.
A thick tree to the right caught my attention. I didn’t stop to stare but kept moving, noting it again during my sweeping glance.
“An infected is watching us from the