THE EASTERN SEABOARD, UNITED STATES
Four days after Ammon brought medicine for Beth
"Hello!" Ammon grinned as Beth opened the door after he used their coded knock for entry.
Beth's whole face lit up. "Ammon! Hello!" She stepped back to allow him in. "I'm so grateful for everything you've done. How are you?"
"It is I who should be asking you how you are doing." His light brown eyes took in her healthy glow and her flushed cheeks with satisfaction.
"I'm much better, thanks to you." She shut the door behind him, locked it, and crossed the room to the sink to wash her hands.
Ammon looked around the garage. He hadn't noticed much about it the first time. It was a large space, mostly open, with concrete floors and a high industrial ceiling. A small table near the free-standing sink that Beth was washing her hands in was surrounded by three different kinds of chairs; a black office chair, a dark brown metal folding chair, and a wooden kitchen chair with arms and a pile of pillows stacked on its seat; presumably for Tootie. A cracked turquoise blue mason jar was filled with fake sunflowers and sat at the centre of the table. Several wooden and plastic crates were piled side by side and on top of each other near the sink, climbing so high they had to be fastened to the wall somehow to keep them from tumbling over. All sorts of odds and ends filled the shelves, including food, blankets, clothes, and a surprisingly large collection of books.
Beth noticed Ammon taking an interest in their storage space and smiled at him, approaching her beloved bookshelf. "When we had to leave our home behind, Sam filled her backpack with cans of food and toothbrushes and everything practical she could carry." Beth chuckled. "I filled mine with books. Sam was furious when she found out. She made me go back with her to get more 'essential items'. I slipped in a few more books when she wasn't looking," she added with a grin.
Ammon laughed with her, though he had never really read any books just for fun. "You love to read, then?"
"Yes." Beth nodded. "I've worn these poor books out, I've read them so many times. But I love them. I read to Tootie a lot. He isn't old enough to grasp a lot of the story, especially since his world is so small…but, he loves it." She turned away from the shelves and faced him. "Do you like to read?"
Ammon shook his head. "No, I never did. I was not an eager student by any stretch of the imagination. Reading something for class was always a chore and I didn't bother with it in my spare time." He paused, then asked, "What's your favourite?"
"Oh, definitely Little Women." At Ammon's blank expression, Beth laughed. "The pages are falling out, I've read it so many times. I adore Marmee and Jo and Teddy and Mr. Bhaer and…well, all of the characters, really. Toot's name is actually Teddy—well, Theodore, but Teddy for short," Beth revealed, nodding at the little boy, who was asleep in the corner, cuddled up with an old, raggedy teddy bear. "He had the worst gas when he was a baby." Beth laughed and Ammon grinned, watching the little guy sleep with warm eyes. "I can laugh about it now, but at the time, it actually scared me. It was so bad." She groaned. "Sam used to call him Stinky. Awful! Somehow we landed on Tootie and it's stuck. Anyway," Beth shrugged, returning to the previous topic, "Sam thinks I'm wasting my time when I'm wrapped up with a good book." She smiled. "It's helped me a lot, though."
"Maybe I should pick up a book now and then." Ammon grinned at her, knowing his mother would have been shocked to hear him say such a thing.
"Maybe I'll convert you." Beth laughed.
"Maybe," Ammon allowed.
The curly-headed little one turned over on his cot, blinking slowly and trying to wake up. "Bethy?" Tootie's voice was a little garbled because he was still half asleep.
Beth glanced at Ammon and then approached Tootie, who was now sitting up, rubbing his eyes. "Hey, sleepyhead! Did you have a nice nap?"
Tootie stretched again and then clambered out of his blankets, his hair sticking up everywhere. Beth chuckled at him, and Ammon found his feet taking him closer to the sleeping area.
Tootie began clapping excitedly when he noticed Ammon, then ran up to him, his arms outstretched. "Up, up high!"
Ammon laughed and reached down to pick him up, then tossed him gently in the air. Toot squealed and begged him to do it again. Ammon obliged, tossing him up a few times, then swung him around to sit on his shoulders.
Ammon asked Beth, "It's only been a few days, are you sure you're feeling all right? Do you want to sit down?"
Smiling, Beth reached up to tickle Tootie's toes, making him giggle and pound his fists on the top of Ammon's head. Beth laughed, then answered his question. "I promise, I feel much better. But I have been resting," she hastened to add. "I took a nap with Toot and woke up right before you got here."
Ammon held onto Toot with one hand and dug in his pocket with the other. "I brought some tea. Would you like a cup? It will help speed your recovery."
"Sure." Beth filled two cups with water and placed them in the microwave.
"Where's Sam?" Ammon asked, curious.
"She's meeting with Ricky today. She usually does on Thursdays."
"Who's Ricky?" Ammon paused, then added, "That's rude of me. You don't have to tell me."
"Oh, no, it's okay. Ricky Mendoza; he's a member of The Cardinals."
Ammon digested that bit of information in silence. Rick the sick. Ricky didn't come into The Hive very often, but whenever he did, he was usually sporting a black eye or worse. Everyone was skinny, but this kid was tiny. It was a bit of a well-known joke for some of the losers around to beat up on him. It had been awhile since Ammon had seen him and he was surprised he was still out there.
The microwave dinged. While Beth moved to retrieve their cups of hot water, Ammon sat down and settled Tootie on his lap. Beth set a cup in front of him and he thanked her. He dipped the tea bag in the water with a spoon for several moments, bobbing the bag up and down, maneuvering Tootie so that he couldn't reach the hot cup. His face was set in a frown.
Beth sat across from them and while her tea steeped, she watched the play of emotions across Ammon's face. He was troubled by something.
"Sam and Ricky used to run track together." Beth paused as Ammon's direct gaze took her breath away for a moment. She tucked her hair behind her ear, nerves getting the better of her, and fiddled with her spoon. "He's a good guy. Sam wishes he would stay here with us rather than trying to make it out there, pretty much on his own, with The Cardinals. But, he's refused every time she's asked." Beth sighed. "I know Sam can seem cold sometimes, but she wasn't always like that. Even here, sometimes, she turns her emotions off and I can't tell…." Beth shook her head. "But, it doesn't happen very often." She paused. "If she cares about someone, she'll do anything within her power to protect them."
Ammon nodded and took a sip of the slightly-steaming lemon ginger tea. Changing the subject, he asked, "So, who are these Little Women?"
