CHAPTER 2

Debbie was literally plucked out of his hands and deposited in Penny's arms. "No chickens. I don't want you distracted," John declared as he sent Penny back to the ship, hen in hand. Turning back to face Don, he said, "You'll not have the moral dilemma of having to decide whether to save my wife or that chicken."

"Her name is Debbie," Don replied, lightly.

It was obvious to him that John was concerned who he'd choose to save in a crisis and to be fair, maybe the ex-marine should be worried. Mrs. Robinson was being her usual charming self when it came to him. Since the prep for this trip had started, Don had been outright insulted by her three times, been on the receiving end of four innuendos and then there were the comments he couldn't bucket, but he was leaning towards character slurs. Not that he wasn't giving as good as he was getting, with respect, of course. He in turn had offered up six wise-cracks, three dumb-ass remarks, and more smirks than even he could count. He thought they might be tied at the moment.

"Thanks, John, for taking that decision out of my hands," Don quipped as he watched Penny walk away with his chicken. "Stroke her tummy to get her to sleep," he yelled after the departing red-head. "Does your wife like that too?" Don joked as he looked over at John, whose glare said it all. Raising his hands in peace, he mumbled, "Sorry. Too far. I'd never touch your wife's tummy…I mean unless I had to like, uh, to save her life or something. From danger. Not that I'd put your wife in danger."

The thunderclouds covering John's face weren't getting any lighter and the air between them crackled with static electricity.

"Look, West," John snarled as he stepped further into Don's personal space. "I'm not happy at all about the arrangements for this trip. I should be going with my wife, back to that piece of scrap from the Resolute to salvage more supplies. But I need to stay here and handle crowd control with that damn Robot."

"Hell of a piece of machinery," the mechanic mused as he cocked his head and glanced over at the gleaming blue metal. He could have saved himself from a lot of ass-kickings in life if he had that piece of work at his side.

"Could you…" John paused for a moment searching for the right word, "work on it?"

The dark-haired man didn't even answer that question other than to give John an incredulous look that was well-deserved. "I'm a great mechanic. The best. But that thing…", he let the sentence drift off into space.

John sighed, not that he hadn't received the answer he expected. Nobody really knew what that thing was. "Anyway, I need to stay here. We need more stuff from the Resolute according to my insistent wife, she can't go alone, and you know where the wreckage is located."

"She is insistent, isn't she?" Don intertwined with a smirk that he immediately wiped off his face when John's unamused eyes bore into his face. "Yeah, ah, sorry. I guess that is 'husband-only' joke territory."

Don didn't think John could get any closer to him unless he crawled inside his skin, but somehow the irritated man did draw nearer. "I almost lost my wife in a tarpit…"

"And yourself too," Don swiftly interjected.

"Which doesn't matter. You see, West, that is what I need you to understand. I love my wife. The mother of my precious children…"

"Technically, Judy isn't…" The minute the words started to leave Don's mouth he knew he'd crossed the line.

To his credit, John clenched his fist, but didn't use it. "Don't go there, West. Ever."

The mechanic swallowed hard as he dipped his head in acknowledgement. He knew he played with fire more than he should and occasionally got burned in the form of being beaten to a pulp. One look at John's physique told him this match was best left unlit.

"My wife and my children are my life. I would die for them in a heartbeat. Be sure you don't ever put my family in danger, or harm them. And if the choice is their life or yours, think really hard on the right decision," John warned menacingly.

Don, the man who had never had a family, had never seen such unconditional love, was blown away by John's unfathomable passion. Don found himself sweating from the intensity of John's feelings.

"Am I clear, West?" John growled, closing the last millimeter of space between them.

"Crystal," the mechanic gulped, as he involuntarily took a few steps backward to escape.

Unfortunately, Don backed right into Judy, who was walking over to give a bag to her mother. Instinctively, he grabbed Judy to stop them both from tumbling into the dirt. His hands innocently gripped her biceps to steady them. However, under the glaring, disapproving eyes of John, Don felt as if he was groping her chest. He let go of Judy so fast as he stepped away from her, she stumbled and nearly fell over anyway.

John had to contain the smirk that threatened to appear on his lips as he watched Don fumble about. Clearly, he had the cocky little bastard off-balance. Good. It wasn't that men like Don weren't mostly decent guys, but it didn't hurt to keep them on notice.

"You ok, Don?" Judy asked once she recovered her balance and glanced up at him. "You seem flushed." Instinctively, her hand reached upwards towards his forehead. After all, she was a doctor. She swore she heard her father growl under his breath as Don moved out of her reach so fast, she wondered if he thought she had cooties.

"No. No. No. I'm good. More than good. Great. Well, not great but…nothing's wrong. It's just like super hot. The planet must be drifting closer to the sun," he unwittingly jested just as Maureen walked over to see what was going on with the three of them.

Maureen grabbed the mechanic so hard on his bicep that he let out a squeal of indignation. He jerked his arm out of her grasp causing her to stumbled a little. Backing away, Don muttered to John, "I didn't do anything. She started it."

Maureen was furious that somehow this scruffy mechanic had found out about the planet's orbit and she closed in on him again. "How do you know about that!" she hissed, angrily. "Were you spying on us!"

"Spying?" Don stuttered in disbelief. He'd admit he might be more observant then the average Joe, but it was what had kept him alive as he struggled on his own to grow up. Knowledge was power. But he had no idea why he had set Maureen off.

Maureen glanced over at John, realizing her faux pau. It had just been an innocent, but accurate comment. Don caught the glance and his spidey senses went tingly. He had just put his foot into something. About the planet? And the sun? He didn't have time to pursue it any further as Maureen rounded on him again.

Wanting to brush past this quickly, Maureen snapped, "You ready, West? We don't have all day."

"Yes Ma'am," he mocked, straightening his back and giving her a half-salute. After she rolled her eyes at him, he bent over and grabbed his backpack. "Major Donald West reporting for duty."

John's eyes narrowed when Don said Major. He began to wonder if it was another joke, or if there was some truth to the use of the title. Don could be ex-military, he mused. Sometime, when there was the luxury of time, he'd have to ask the younger man. If Don had been in the service, given the behaviors that John had witnessed so far, the man probably was drummed out for insubordination.

Don headed around the front of the Chariot towards the driver' side. As he went to sling his pack in the back seat, he heard Maureen bark, "What are you doing?"

Tossing the pack in the back, he said, "Stowing my gear. I figure this trip is gonna take a day or two and you might appreciate me having a clean pair of underwear."

"My God, West. Do you ever stop?" John groaned, amazed at the amount of verbal diarrhea that spilled forth from this man's mouth. The smirk John got as his answer said it all.

Maureen, once again, shoved Don out of her way. "I'll drive."

Putting his hands up in submission, Don looked over at John and mouthed, "She touched me, first." John wasn't amused.

Eventually, the two were settled in the C-8 that they had borrowed. After John gave his wife a lingering farewell kiss, then the doors closed and the vehicle lumbered away.

Judy, who had stood to one side watching the exchange, sighed. Only a few days ago she, Don and the others had set out to find Don's crashed ship and the fuel. And it was only a few days ago she had her patient die in her arms. It was still so raw that unbidden tears slipped past her lashes. She had been so sure she could save him. But not only was she wrong, she had also caused them to lose the majority of the fuel they were going to use to escape this miserable planet.

John, sensing his daughter's quiet distress and guessing from where it stemmed, walked over and put his arm around her shoulders. Allowing her to keep her grief private, he simply kissed her on the top of her head and said, "They'll come back soon. Safe and sound." Letting his eyes linger on the horizon long after the Chariot was out of sight, John sighed.

"Don't worry, Dad. Don will take care of Mom. He's not a bad guy. He…" Tears welled up in her eyes again. "He risked his life…helped me when no one else would."

John, who had heard the story, nodded. Don wasn't a bad guy. The young man just needed a kickstart in the right direction sometimes.

Unbeknownst to all, Dr. Smith, who was the real spy, lurked on the ramp of the Jupiter, frowning. West was still an unknown quantity to her. She had been manipulating him fairly successfully she thought, though she wasn't one hundred percent sure; it's hard to con a con man. To add to her uncertainty, Don and Judy had come back from the ship that she had been on, the one that crashed in the desert. Had either of them boarded? Been to the real Dr. Smith's cabin? Saw his stuff wasn't hers?

Based on that odd radio call from Judy wanting to speak to her Mom, she was thinking the two had found something. And if they had, they had no doubt shared it with Maureen. Well, that is why she did what she did today. At least two of the people on this planet who might know she wasn't the real Dr. Smith would soon be gone. Looking around, she saw Judy and her Dad. As soon as they split apart, she moved to trail Judy. This was a dangerous planet. Accidents could happen at any time.