Between the Lanterns(44)

August had tears in his eyes as they pulled apart. Samantha did, too.

“Sweets, why are you crying?” she whispered.

August wiped at his tears, feeling a little embarrassed and said, “Me? Why are you cryin’?”

Samantha smiled and rubbed her hand down his chest, wiping at the sweat dripping down his torso.

“Because I love you so damn much that it hurts,” she told him. “And I just came twice… That don’t happen to a shy Southern lady like myself every day, you know?”

August wiped at the sweat running down the back of his head and looked away.

“Shy, my ass,” he replied. “But, I love you so much it hurts, too, babe.,” hHe paused, fighting back more tears before going on., “I was also thinkin’ that I’m gonna miss this place. That was one of the last times we’re ever gonna have sex in this house.”

Samantha laughed. “Sweets, if you promise it’ll be like that every time, we can fuck five times a day before we leave.”

August’s eyes went wide with shock, and he gasped, “Such language from a shy country girl! And I can’t make any promises about it always bein’ that great. I’m only a man, not a machine.”

“Well, maybe I’ll talk to Woodrow about it, then, sweets,” she said in a husky voice and winked at her man slyly.

His eyes shot open even further as he said, “You ain’t gonna be gettin’ freaky with Woodrow, woman. I won’t have you defilin’ our robot.”

At that moment, having heard his name called twice, Woodrow marched into the kitchen and found them both naked and lying together on the table.

“WOOD ROW CLEAN?” it said.

They both burst into laughter while Woodrow waited patiently for an answer.

“No, Woodrow, sweets,” Samantha replied in between guffaws. “You don’t have to clean. Go back into the living room and enter power down mode, please and thank you.”

Woodrow trundled out of the room, making a noise like a baby playing with wooden blocks. Samantha watched him go and remembered why August had made her original small, wooden sculpture into an automaton. It was because she so despised the big metallic and soulless Montek.Automatons that were just becoming popular at the time. Now they were just about everywhere, and functioning on tech that her husband had designed. Strange how time messes with your life like that.

Montek had, for lack of a better word, stolen the original Woodrow. Then later, she and August built a larger, full-size wooden automaton. The new Woodrow was a vital part of their lives. He assisted August run the shop, cleaned the whole house, did lots of chores, helped do the shopping, and was even learning to be a sous-chef of sorts, and… well, was just always around. She couldn’t imagine their lives without Woodrow.

In a way, he was just wood and string. He walked and talked, but didn’t mean anything. On the other hand, he was more advanced in many ways than the current Montek.Automaton models, which was why Montek wanted to get their hands on him so badly. The upper management at Montek must have realized they burnt a crucial bridge when they fired August over the factory accident. Now Montek needed to reverse-engineer this odd, wooden robot to make improvements on their line of automatons, b. Because improvements often meant new models, and new models always meant more Credit. But the Luries would never sell Woodrow, no matter what happened to them, she thought.

August watched Woodrow leave and felt a tinge of sadness because he loved that clunky, wooden oddity. He had built the original Woodrow out of a wooden sculpture his wife had made for him, but once Montek stole it, he and Samantha had created this new one together. Woodrow was vital to their everyday lives, and a symbol of their feelings about Montek and the modern world. He would never sell Woodrow to Montek. Even though what was coming would change everything. It didn’t matter. They’d never have him.

“Woodrow should go on the journey, too. He’s earned it, sweets,” Samantha blurted out.

August had just come to the same realization as his wife. It wouldn’t be that hard to arrange the transport of an automaton for human companionship. People did it all the time with Montek.Automatons. Why not with Woodrow? It was a great idea. August had made his mind up. Tickets would be booked for Woodrow as well.

“Absolutely, Sam,” he said. “He does deserve to come along. He can help carry all your bags.”

August winked at Samantha, this time. As they were still naked and on the table, she didn’t have many ways to retaliate, so she lightly slapped his butt.

“No, he can carry your bags, sweets,” she replied.

August looked away, in the direction that Woodrow had gone, shrugged his shoulders, and replied, “He’ll be a big help.”





Chapter 19





BELIEVE IT





Joshua Stevens arrived precisely at 7 pm, pulling up to Sweets, Inc. in Montek.Drive’s newest model AutoCar. It was worth more Credit than some of the houses back on August’s street. Mr. Stevens strode into the shop with a shit-eating grin on his clean-shaven face.

“Ok, Mr. Lurie,” he said, rubbing his hands greedily. “Show me what you want us to buy. I have a feeling it’s a game-changer. Am I right?”

August could sense that Mr. Stevens was nervous. He was full of restless energy. Maybe it wasn’t nerves, though. Maybe it was just excitement. Either way, it made August uncomfortable.