Whatever natural supply of water that was there seemed to have backed up over a small area. Returning to the patio I spotted a small stand-alone stone...building some sixty feet from the rear wall of the hacienda. Upon investigating I found my generator and propane tank cache. There were two green painted five-gallon kerosene carriers there as well. The fuel within was so old that I'd never try to use any of it in a lamp. It would make a good starter for the fireplaces though. Two of the four. I made some suggestions about what he might like to do and then he pointed me to an empty office and I settled in to draft a plan to cover what we had talked about.We broke for lunch about one o'clock and I made another quick phone call to try and catch Leslie, but she still wasn't back yet. Burt sprang for lunch and when we had finished eating he said:"Can I ask you something personal?"I said, "I guess so."And then he asked me when was the last time I got laid. I told him that it had been over. Davis shut her eyes."You can stay -" "I know," he cut her off. She'd offered permanency before.Ms. Davis accepted his answer. He had his reasons, and she knew him well enough to guess what the main one was: He wanted to keep those he cared about safe. To her knowledge, she and Kevin were the best people he had in his life. Tommy wouldn't subject them to whatever would have followed him there."I know you were smoking," she said to break the silence. “In the backyard.”Shit, he thought. Now the. Her hair was a medium brown with just a hint of red, worn in a short bob cut. Long hair would be a hazard when it came time to put on a space helmet. The body under the suit was pretty plain, and just a little soft. not much had to be done manually in her world. Outwardly the thickness of the suit made her appear a bit chubby, but also a bit more voluptuous.Before going to sleep, Serris had set a course to her then-home: A satellite station orbiting an orange planet in the process of being.