Warmth from the thermally heated sand beneath the old army canvas seeped into Trixie's body as she remained curled in a foetal position. Ever so slowly, the intense pain in her left side began to ease. How long she waited for the stabbing sensation to become manageable, she couldn't tell. It felt like an eternity with her eyes closed and mind concentrating on remaining still. Any small movement brought back the sensation.

Jim's hand, resting on Trixie's hip gave her immense comfort. Sitting next to her, keeping vigil, he didn't say anything. The lack of questions helped her relax. His concern displayed his devotion to her well-being. At some point the hurt diminished enough, allowing her to drift into a peaceful slumber.

'Jim,' Trixie whispered on waking, slightly disorientated.

Greeted by a soft snore and a length of pure American male cuddled up to her, a delighted smile lit her face. Her husband had fallen asleep spooning her body. His heat, combined with the natural warmth of the cave allowed Trixie to unfurl slightly while slumbering. Her knees and hips now flexed at ninety degrees, she attempted to straighten them further. Feeling the pull low in her abdomen, the intense pain seemed to have faded. Confused, Trix considered her situation.

Strange, she thought, I wonder if I've pulled a muscle carrying the potted plants across the hole. This came on so suddenly, not while I lifted anything heavy. In fact I'd finished my chores and came back to the sleeping cave to start our evening meal. It just happened. One step I felt fine, the next, I thought someone stabbed me in the stomach.

Noticing how little light made it through the opening into the sleeping cave, Trixie realised night had fallen in the hours she slept. Not wanting to disturb Jim after the fright she put him through, she attempted to return to sleep. It didn't come easily. Her mind continued to investigate the reason for the discomfort in her side. She considered and rejected so many scenarios because they didn't fit the facts. On the cusp, an idea, a stray thought really, entered her mind.

Once it entered, she couldn't shake the notion. In fact the more she thought about it, the more sense it made. Trepidation made her move suddenly, sending a jolt of pain up her left side. Letting out a whimper, the soft sound woke Jim instantly.

'Trix,' he rubbed his eyes, 'what is it.'

'I…I think I'm going to be sick,' she reacted to the newly acquired awareness her body knew to be a certainty. Why she didn't fit all the pieces together weeks or even months ago, she couldn't say. It seemed so simple now she suspected the truth.

Scrambling from his position, Jim rushed out to find an empty tin. While there is grabbed some other emergency supplies they kept just outside the cave. Returning in time, Trixie attempted to empty the contents of her stomach into the offered receptacle. Dry retching because she hadn't eaten since early morning, Trixie's blue eyes looked miserably up at her Husband. Handing her a wet strip of t-shirt once used to bandage his sprained wrist Jim helped Trixie wipe her mouth.

'Jim,' Trixie's voice sounded weak to her ears.

'Don't talk,' Jim wiped her forehead. Gesturing to the used tin, he waited until Trixie indicated she no longer needed it before taking it outside and burying the contents.

Looking at him with sorrow, she watched Jim come back to her side in the dim light. This time she's demanded he listen to her theory. 'In June, I got sick,' she started.

'I don't think this has anything to do with that,' Jim commented softly. 'You might have appendicitis. Brian and I saw something like this at college…'

Shaking her head only made the spots before her eyes turn in lazy circles. Realising she probably needed a drink, she asked, 'could you get me some water, please.'

Helping Trix to sit, Jim noticed each time she winced. He held the half full tin to her lips. Allowing him to treat her like a patient, made Jim feel useful and easier to manage. After several mouthfuls, Trixie pushed his hand way.

'I think I'm pregnant,' Trixie realised dropping this bombshell might be easier than a gentle explanation. 'I think it happened the day we heard the noise and took that long bath in July.'

'How,' Jim questioned with incredulity, 'we've been so careful. You've had your period every month. Surely we would have known before this.'

'When I got sick at the end of June,' she started to explain. A wave of fatigue swept over Trixie and she had to lie down. Jim remained frozen in his position at her side. 'I think it mucked up my cycle. I had my period as usual at the start of July. The change in my mucus that tells me when I'm fertile didn't really happen that month. I made us take a two week break just after we heard that noise to make sure. When everything seemed normal at the start of August, I didn't worry about it anymore.'

'I remember,' Jim choked. 'At the time I thought you were being paranoid. What changed you mind, Trix,' he asked, wondering how she seemed so sure.

'My periods have been lasting less time and the bleeding is lighter,' Trixie explained the logical sequence she discovered now making sense. Talking about the situation held her fear at bay. 'It makes sense if we made a baby back in July. When Mom and I were arguing so much, I'd do my research about the consequences of becoming sexually active at the local library on the computers so she couldn't see what websites I looked at. I never wanted to be one of the good girls who got caught so I made sure I knew my options. Being down here with you, I didn't plan on the rhythm method, even if I did learn about it.'

'Just before we were taken,' Jim moved closer, his voice low and thoughtful. Taking Trixie's head, he moved it onto his lap. 'I did a course on counselling teenagers engaging in sex and the repercussions of their choices. I thought I'd need it for health education.'

'What did you learn,' Trixie asked, hoping the syllabus covered emergency birth. Swallowing hard, she almost missed Jim's next words.

'Some women, a very few can go a whole pregnancy without any symptoms, including loss of menstruation,' he remarked. 'Trix it's not the physical side many of the young mothers have trouble coping with, it's the emotional repercussions. I didn't get to that part of the course,' Jim admitted.

'I didn't think I'd be a teenaged mother,' Trixie responded sadly.

Finding a glimmer of humour in the situation, Jim remarked, 'well, at least I'm not going to be a teen father.'

The joke fell flat as the ramifications of his statement finally hit home. A frown marred his otherwise hansom face. This had been his biggest fear for some time now. He didn't know how they'd cope let alone how he felt about this situation.

'You're sure it's not something else, Trix,' Jim asked with a hint of desperation in his tone. 'Surly you'd have some signs before, what,' counting the months on his hands he came up with, 'somewhere between three and four months.'

'We've relied on tracking my period as an indicator of pregnancy. I think I've been experiencing some signs but ignored them. Now they've come back to bit me on the butt big time,' Trixie observed in a mournful tone. 'That's not true,' she amended, 'I've had symptoms, I just mistook them because I knew how safe we've been.'

'How…how do you feel about this, Trix,' Jim uttered through the lump in his throat.

'I'm not sure,' she answered lowly. 'I haven't had time to process it. I could be wrong.'

'But you don't believe you are,' Jim watched her face in the diffuse light. Trixie's pained expression spoke volumes. 'Between pregnancy and appendicitis, I'll take the former,' Jim tried to see the bright side of the situation, 'at least it's not a medical emergency. Let's wait and see what happens in the next few days.'

They lay together, silent in contemplation. The pain in Trixie's abdomen continued to plague her most of the night. The intensity nowhere near the initial attack, she still couldn't lay completely straight. Eventually they fell into an exhausted sleep.

The morning brought stiffness and sore sensation. Able to stand, Trixie could manage the pulling, stretching feeling which assaulted her abdomen as she took each step. Realising Jim watched her carefully she tried not to show her discomfort. It actually eased as the day progressed, although she didn't feel like doing any heavy lifting. Trixie watched Jim complete all the chores, demanding she rest.

An uneasy truce existed between them. By mutual consent neither mentioned Trixie's expected period or the meaning behind it not appearing on time. After a week of Jim's cautiousness, Trixie found herself frustrated at the limits he'd set. She'd been relegated to recuperating patient and chafed at the restrictions.

Stalking over to him, she tapped her husband on the shoulder. A determined expression on her features, Trixie decided the time had come to face the facts. They needed to talk about the white elephant sitting in the middle of the Hell Hole.

'Do you know how to deliver a baby, Jim,' Trixie asked, fear starting to form in the back of her mind. Eye's wide at her shock tactics, he shook his head. 'I don't think we can fool ourselves any longer. That pain last week had something to do with my internal organs stretching to cope with our growing child.'

'I guessed as much,' Jim stammered. 'I don't know how I feel about this Trix. What's done, we can't undo, so we just have to cope with it. I need you to tell me how you feel. You haven't said a word since…' swallowing hard, he tried to express the myriad of thoughts running rampant in his mind. 'I haven't stopped thinking about it, about the consequences for all of us. How are we going to cope? What if something goes wrong?'

'I'm seven years older than Bobby,' Trixie stated, feeling on safer ground. 'Mom had all of us help her out a lot. I know it's a long time ago but I still remember. Then Honey and I volunteered at the Sleepyside Hospital a few years back. I got stuck in the maternity wards.' Pausing to collect her thoughts, Trix drew in a shape breath. 'We can get through this. I don't know what we're going to use for dippers or clothing, but we've managed to stay alive down here this long, I'm sure we can make it through this.'

Taking Jim's hand, Trixie placed it in hers. 'Promise me you won't try anything stupid, like climbing out of here in the middle of winter,' she pleaded, watching the calculating going on behind Jim's green orbs. Reminding him of his duty, to more than herself now, she rested their entwined fingers on her slightly rounded belly. 'If you left me, or got hurt…'

'We need to get out of here more than ever,' Jim stated.

'And go where?' Trixie asked, 'we don't even know how close it is to the nearest town, or the direction to choose once we make it to the top. The winter is coming fast. You know how cold October gets down here, it might be worse up there without shelter. What about proper camping supplies, we'd freeze to death if someone doesn't find us within a day or two.'

'We have to do something, Shamus,' Jim pleaded. He reacted on pure instinct and not logic. 'It won't be long before you're physically unable to get out of here. Since that night, I realised how big you're getting around the waist. By the time the snow's melted next year, we might have another life to consider. I don't want to bring a child into this Hell we're living.'

'What choice do we really have,' Trixie found tears streaking her face. This emotional display came courtesy of her raging hormones.

'None,' he agreed, anger lacing his words.