Guest: Excellent point - but in this story, I can only manage one sibling for Claudia so don't worry about the dual names. lol

Trying to move the story line along AND of course give each event their due - so let me know if this flows.
Many thanks to everyone reading along - and to those who post and send messages. I do appreciate it.

The Pregnant Pause

Myka and Helena didn't speak about the crystal, or the Warehouse, again that night. Knowing that it caused Myka concern, Helena did the only logical thing she could think of - The next morning, she brought it to Irene for safe keeping.

"What is this?" Irene asked when Helena placed the item in front of her on the desk. Helena could tell by the way Irene stared at it suspiciously that she wasn't about to take it without question.

"I need you to keep it for me, in a safe place," Helena said, hoping that would cover it.

"Where did you get it?" the woman asked, staring at it, but not touching it.

"What does it matter where I got it? It's something of value and I wish for you to keep it," Helena said exasperated.

"Okay," Irene said, finally picking it up and placing it in her flat handbag.

"Do you carry anything else in there?" Helena wondered because she couldn't understand how a woman could have such a smooth handbag and wondered if the woman only carried it for show.

"Everything I need," Irene answered, much to Helena's chagrin.

Things seemed to return to normal and no one in the group mentioned the impromptu visit to the Warehouse again. Pete and Jane were busy making their plans and Claudia and Eileen were trying to find the time between school and work, to talk about theirs. Claudia did share with Helena that even though she was thrilled to pieces that Eileen said yes, she didn't often trust her feelings which seemed to rush at her. Helena asked her if she could swim and when Claudia affirmed that she could, the Brit asked how she managed the waves at the ocean. The techie stared up at the ceiling, then answered that she moved under them and then allowed them to carry her back to shore. Then Helena offered what sounded like empirical evidence. She affirmed that her experience with emotions was that it took the same skill set as swimming. "Go with them, Claudia. Fighting them is what causes one to drown," her mentor explained. "I might need help….you know…with all of this," the younger woman admitted. Helena gave the empathic response that helped Claudia the most: "It's okay. We all do."

In Claudia's eyes, if Helena admitted she needed help with something, then it was perfectly fine for her to admit it, too. She rushed at Helena and hugged her. "Thanks, Helena," Claudia said, feeling like Helena was the closest thing to family she had felt in years. While Eileen had dozens of people to announce the engagement to, Claudia only had her brother, Joshua in Switzerland.

Now that Jane Lattimer was retired from the Warehouse and back working as an early education teacher, Pete felt comfortable enough to share his mother's history with his fiancée. Maybe it was the natural order of things that Jane would have some trepidation about her future mother-in-law, but Pete was beginning to suspect it had more to do with the way the former Regent had treated Helena. The one upside to the whole Warehouse escapade for Pete was the new found respect Jane had for Helena. That made Pete's life a whole lot easier.

Three weeks to the day, Helena and Myka took the Early Pregnancy Test kit out and opened it. The test showed positive, as Myka prayed and Helena knew it would. There was something different about Myka and she could see it, even if she couldn't explain it. Helena dropped to her knees and placed her head in Myka's lap as she sat on the bed. "We did it, Myka," she said and Myka could feel the tears fall from her wife's eyes. "You're going to have our baby."

What brought great joy to the couple also brought concern. How would they explain this to the world? They didn't want the child to be treated as a test case, which surely the press and public would do when suspicions arose. There would, of course, be speculation of a sperm donor. Myka soothed Helena's fiery response to that and they finally agreed that they would not answer any questions, telling the press and public it was a private matter.

They did however share the news with the friends who had gathered at the townhouse for dinner. After they enjoyed a sumptuous meal and drinks, Helena stood up.

"It gives Myka and me the greatest joy to announce that we are expecting," she said and everyone rose to their feet for congratulatory hugs. Irene waited her turn and when she hugged Helena, tears began to stream down her face. "I have been waiting for this day," whispered the woman who knew Helena the longest.

Bridget would have screamed the loudest, if it hadn't been for Pete who jumped out of his chair and into the air, yelling – "YES!" "I'll teach him or her sports cause let's face it, I'm the one to do that," he said, puffing out his chest.

"Oh, yes, Uncle Pete, every toddler should know how to wrestle," Claudia teased him and then said she would be in charge of teaching the baby technology.

"You do know what her mother does, right?" Eileen whispered about the great Inventor, but Claudia dismissed that saying there would be no way Helena could raise a kid and keep up with the changes to her IPhone.

"Well, there goes our wild Friday nights of drinking and clubbing," Bridget bemoaned and when Myka reminded her they rarely ever did that, the punch line came: "Yes, I know, and yet- we're still friends."

Then she said she wanted to give the Baby Shower and all but had Sarah start designing a line of baby clothes. "Something cute, but not something that will get her ass kicked the first day of kindergarten," Bridget said.

Helena approached Vanessa Calder – again. "If you won't switch to obstetrics," Helena said, renewing her plea and noting how stubborn she was for a doctor, "….you should give pediatrics some thought." It made the good doctor think about what was about to be unleased on her fellow healthcare providers, whoever they were. She would later slip Irene a piece of paper before she left. "We need to talk about this," she said to Irene who wondered what part the doctor thought she had in all of this. "This woman can help," Vanessa said adamantly. Irene looked at the slip of paper that had the name of an RN on it. "We'll talk," the doctor said and patted Irene's hand sympathetically. The friends all left that evening and although there was no formal consensus, each one was about do their part to help the expecting couple.

Helena sat next to Myka as they called her parents. "We have good news," Myka said and explained that they were expecting. Jeanie and Warren were overjoyed and immediately offered to stay with them when the baby arrived. Myka was very glad they were on Facetime because the expression on Helena's face would have spoken volumes.

In all the excitement, Helena conveniently forgot to mention (again) the issue Leena had reminded her about (again) before she left for the weekend. Funny, how the mind protects us by blocking certain things. The couple was busy talking and planning for the future, the past was not really on their minds. Which is why the subject of the Warehouse was nowhere on their landscape.

It was however, filling up their basement.

Over in Queens, a short distance away from Manhattan, Irene was still experiencing some trouble with the package Helena had already given away. As soon as Irene brought it home, the family dog, Bandit started growling and fussing about over the thing. Irene decided that maybe it was emitting a sound undetectable to humans. So, she placed it in her mother's cedar hope chest in the spare bedroom, closed the door and forgot about it.

Bandit, on the other hand, did not.

Weeks after giving her the package, Irene walked into Helena's office and did something she rarely did – she interrupted a meeting. "I apologize, Mr. Styles," Irene said to Morgan and her sincerity struck the man. He was just finishing up with his new boss when Irene walked in on them.

"I'm sorry, Morgan," Helena said, "But if she doesn't get her way, she gets incredibly testy."

Morgan smiled, but never allowed his disbelief to show on his face. In the short time he had been at Wells Corp as an employee, he knew who could be testy at the drop of a hat. "Of course," he said, taking his leave.

"I believe this belongs to you," Irene said, putting the crystal key on Helena's desk.

Helena stared down at it and then at the woman who just delivered it to her. Irene was agitated about something. "Curiosity got to you?" she asked because the object had been wrapped up securely in bubble wrap.

"The only thing that I was curious about was why Bandit reacted to this thing the minute I brought it into the house," Irene said.

"Curiosity got the….. dog?" Helena said, knowing the idiom didn't work. "That's rather odd."

"Well, I put it away in a cedar chest, in the spare bedroom, but apparently he finally figured out how to open the door knob," Irene said because she found the door wide open.

"Clever dog," Helena remarked.

"Yes, and determined, because while I was at work, he managed to get in the room, figured out where it was, and tore everything apart to get at it. Doesn't that strike you as ….odd, Helena?" Irene said, leaning into the desk a little now. Helena couldn't escape the stare even if she wanted to.

"Odd?" Helena asked, which she shouldn't have. She picked it up and felt the dried slime of saliva. "He put it in his mouth?" she asked horrified and dropping it back on the desk.

"No opposable thumbs," Irene reminded her about canines.

"Whatever has you cranky?" Helena asked, taking note of the woman's tone.

It made Irene stop, sit back and take notice herself. She could even sense her impatience at the moment. And then the woman who always had an answer did something that surprised Helena; she hesitated. "I….," she started, looking at her friend. "Don't trust them."

"Them?" Helena asked, for clarification.

"Those people you worked with. That's it, Helena. I don't trust them," Irene said, pulling on her suit jacket and sitting back in the chair, now that it was settled. Ever since she found out about Myka being pregnant, Irene became even more suspicious of the timing of the reconnection.

"You and Myka both, I'm afraid," Helena said, sighing.

"Oh good," Irene said, glad to be in such good company, but then noticing Helena's glare. "I mean, you can't blame us, Helena."

"Of course I can, but I shan't. I understand Myka's position, but yours is a puzzle," Helena wondered out loud. "You have rarely demonstrated a discriminating taste in people before."

"You know that I am, in part responsible, for hiring your staff, yes?" Irene reminded her boss.

"In part," Helena said, enjoying the tete a tete more than she would admit. "Well, suffice it to say, I appreciate your concern, although as I explained to Myka, I don't think this situation has warranted it."

"That brings us back to this…thing," Irene said, pointing to the crystal. "What is it?" she asked again.

Helena smiled, as her eyes fell adoringly upon the key. She picked it up slowly this time and used a tissue to wipe it off. "This, my dear Mrs. Frederic, is the device that allows the Time Machine to become fully operational." Helena said it with such pride and admiration, that it took Irene a moment to grasp what she was talking about. Irene remembered all too well what happened when Helena last tried to use the contraption.

She drew a deep breath and noticed Helena's gaze had not broken. She could almost see the twinkling in Helena's eyes – the one she knew meant the woman was very proud of her invention. And then Irene asked the question she might have asked from the beginning, but didn't think it was necessary. "Tell me, Helena, why aren't you keeping this at your house?" She expected the answer to take a minute so she sat back in her chair and crossed her legs. Helena read the body language accurately – she wasn't budging until she got a satisfactory answer.

"Well…. I…we…..decided…..," Helena floundered, hoping to find the answer that would stop the certain deluge of additional questions.

"Myka doesn't want it there?" Irene guessed and picked at an imaginary piece of lint on her skirt. She may not have been looking directly at her boss, but she felt her eyes look up and lock onto her.

"She never said that…" Helena tried, but Irene added – "You mean …directly."

Before Helena could form her next sentence, Irene was already asking her why she thought the people returned it to her and what, if anything, did they want in exchange for it?

"What do they want? No," Helena said, her accent wrapped around each word individually. "It's a gesture of ….of good will." Helena was having trouble deciding on whether to be cooperative or defensive and defensive won. "I helped them out. Myka explained that she was less than charmed by their deeds and asked for them to return my things. They did. I don't see what the issue is here," Helena said, and meant it.

Irene considered the explanation and found it to be slightly plausible. Perhaps they were complying with Myka's request because they knew there wouldn't get anywhere with Helena without Myka's consent. Irene stared across the desk at Helena who genuinely seemed confused why no one could believe the gesture for what it was. "Okay, Helena," Irene said and slowly reached across the desk and retrieved the crystal key. "I don't think this is something that should be lying around in a hope chest though."

"No, you're right," Helena said. "Do you have a safe in your house?"

"No, I have never really had need for one," Irene said, her few heirlooms kept in a safe deposit box at the bank.

"Well, it would seem now you do. I'll take care of that," Helena assured her friend who was once again the Time Machine's Custodian.

Irene stood up with the object in her hand and was about to leave when she turned back to her friend. "Do be careful with them, Helena," she couldn't help but say to express her concern.

"When am I ever not careful?" Helena asked and Irene smiled and begged God to keep her tongue silent.

By the time Irene got home that night, she could hear the banging and drilling from her front steps. She opened the door to find Bandit sitting there, wagging his tale. Then Sui, decked in a white half apron, came into the living room. "Sui?" she asked, but he couldn't hear her. "Dinner in five," he mouthed because he thought she was asking about it. Then he took Bandit into the other room. With that, a large burly man came up out of the basement and said he was done and would show the person in charge how to use the safe now. There was dust all over the floor as Irene reluctantly made her way downstairs.

"This here is your biometric safe, ma'am," the Wells installer said and Irene came to a halt on the stairway. The massive container was against the wall in her modestly finished basement and was, by far, the largest thing in the area – perhaps in her whole house.

"Now, this uses a combination retinal scanner, finger print and voice scanner so if you would step over here, ma'am, I'll get you set up," the man instructed Irene. After helping Irene place her eye near the scanner, her initial fingerprint scanned into the reader and her voice recorded, he packed up his stuff.

"We had to take the door off the side of your house, ma'am, but we put everything back, good as new," he explained before he left and Irene thanked him as she looked at the monstrosity in her house. Then she heard Bandit barking upstairs and remembered her pocketbook. She came upstairs to find the canine, his hair standing up on his back, teeth bared as he growled at the purse.

"I've never seen him to that," Sui admitted curiously.

"It's okay," she said, calling him over and reassuring him that the contents of her bag were safe. He immediately sat down and looked up at her, eyebrows twitching just a bit. "Well, no, I don't know that for certain," she admitted as she took the object out, took it downstairs, and placed it in the safe. The door to the safe was so heavy that Irene pushed it with both hands. "Why on earth did she have to order the biggest one?" she asked out loud and then stopped when the answer came to her.

Were there other things that Helena wanted Irene to keep for her?

When Helena and Myka got home that evening, Myka went immediately upstairs to change. Leena came into the hallway just as Myka closed the door to their bedroom.

After greeting Helena, the Domestic Director asked her if she figured out where she wanted to put all the things that had 'arrived'. Leena could tell by Helena's grimace and peeking upstairs that she had not.

"You still haven't told Myka?" Leena inquired, finding it odd that Helena would hesitate.

"I …..haven't found the right moment," Helena said, looking up to make sure the bedroom door was closed.

"Well, you might want to decide because the boxes keep arriving," Leena said. She simply wanted to know where to put all these packages that seemed to arrive each day.

"I will…tonight," Helena said, thinking Myka might be in a better mood after a nice shower.

Helena wasn't worried about telling Myka that her other personal belongings were arriving from the Warehouse. She was concerned about telling Myka that they were being sent via the Wells personal underground transportation system.

It seemed the Warehouse somehow made a tunnel connecting itself to the townhouse location – and Helena couldn't imagine Myka would be happy about that.