Chapter 81

“How about that walk.” Sheila asked.

“You can still walk? I must be losing my touch.” Catarina purred.

“Your touch is just fine. Come on, it will do you good. The air up here is fresh and pure, if a little thin. But you should be used to that...” Sheila said.

“Yes, this area is very much like Austria. A walk might be nice. But I do not think I am up to a four and a half mile trek.” Catarina said.

“No, just a stroll up the road.” Sheila promised, bending to kiss her softly.

Catarina responded, just as softly. The kiss was a sensual delight. Sheila smiled at her, then rolled onto her feet.

“Come on, daylight’s slipping.” she said.

Catarina traced her fingers over Sheila’s shapely thigh and then moved groggily to her feet, moaning a bit.

“The price you pay for advanced loving.” Sheila giggled.

“How do you do it? I know you felt the same thing I did, and just as many times...” Catarina asked.

“I’ve just had more experience with marathons of devastating sex with John and the others.” Sheila chuckled.

“Quite a life you lead.” Catarina said carefully, not telling Sheila it wasn’t so.

“Yes ... well, come on.” Sheila said.

She dug into the wardrobe and found one of Cindy’s outfits that was appropriate.

“A little thin is it not? I might be a bit cool in that. It is lovely, though.” Catarina said.

“Trust me.” Sheila said.

Catarina looked at her, pulling on a similar outfit. “Okay, but I expect you to keep me warm then.”

“Gladly, but it won’t be a problem. I promise.” Sheila said.

She pulled out two light jackets, of the same material. Even with that it seemed too light.

They pulled tennis shoes onto their feet and then left a note to John saying that they were just going up the road a bit.

Sheila locked the motor home and they started down the road. The agent watching them cussed. He was freezing. The sun had passed over the ridge a good half hour before and the temperature had dropped almost twenty degrees since. His jacket was in the car, up the road somewhere following John.

He took consolation in the fact that the girls weren’t much better dressed than he was, in fact, their outfits looked quite thin. She was sure they would soon turn around and return. He followed from as far a distance as he could and still see their actions.

“This is amazing. I know it is quite chilly from my cheeks. But I feel toasty warm. What is this material?” Catarina asked.

Sheila chuckled.

“A fabric John read about and was able to duplicate. We have to pay patent rights to its inventor, but it’s well worth it. That adds very little to our cost per outfit. The fabric stores heat in the form of fiber twist. When it gets cool, it gives up that twist in the form of heat. When it’s too hot, it absorbs heat. Marvelous stuff.” Sheila said.

“That it is. I love it. It feels sexy. Being so light and yet warm. You say it cools too?” Catarina asked.

“Yes ... to a limit. We would need warmer clothing to stay out a long time. But for an hour or so, this is just fine. In the summer time, you can tell when the fabric has reached its capacity. You suddenly begin to get warm. On some days away from the silo I change outfits multiple times. You can even bias them one way or the other by putting them in the freezer or oven till they saturate.” Sheila said.

“What’s it like in the silo ... to live I mean?” Catarina asked.

Sheila looked around. There was no one in sight.

“Well, I am hoping that you will choose to find out for yourself. But ... it’s wonderful. I’ve never known a more loving atmosphere. The silo itself is comfortable, having all that natural insulation and solar heating. You hardly notice the temperature Most of the time. Perhaps because of that, we don’t usually wear very much. Perhaps that contributes much to the loving atmosphere.” Sheila said.

“So simple a thing as temperature making an environment conducive to love. And most places pay so little attention to it.” Catarina mused.

“Perhaps that’s why the silo is such a nice place to live. All the simple things have been taken care of. John put great thought into everything he did while building it.” Sheila said.

“John built the whole thing? By himself?” Catarina asked, incredulously.

“Pretty much. Oh, not the silo part per se. He purchased an empty concrete tube forty-five feet in diameter and a hundred-seventy feet deep. He drilled all the walls and hung girders for fifteen floors. Then one by one he finished them off. Later, when there were more of us, we pitched in to work on unfinished floors. Working on the silo kind of became therapy after dealing with the world outside. Theresa helped him with the guest room floor, where Cindy first stayed. Then the two of them helped him with the master bedroom ... which you’d absolutely flip over. It has a trap door in it that drops you into the swimming pool in the bottom. A nice deep pool without chlorine and so sparkling clean you would gladly drink it. Yet heated comfortably.

The kitchen is the most wonderful place to cook a meal. With lots of butcher block cutting surfaces set into both counters. It has a pedestal with a sink and a smokeless grill and a second oven and range top. And a small refrigerator set up just for condiments. On the main counter you have a large sink, microwave, range and an oven. Additionally there is a convection oven and just about every type of appliance you could think of. The counter is deep and well lit. There is a refrigerator at each end.

There’s oodles of built in storage. We all like creme of mushroom soup, so there is a special rack that dispenses cans of just that kind. Upstairs is a large well stocked pantry with multiple freezers and above that is a hydroponics room that is now supplying a regular supply of fresh vegetables year round.

On the other side of the kitchen, is a wet bar, fully stocked with just about every liqueur from all around the world. It has its own fridge too. For seating, one side of the pedestal has a raised section on it, which forms a lunch counter. You can make a lunch while looking at a person, face to face to talk and then serve it to them just by reaching up. There are bar stools along the counter and bar. In the middle of it all is this massive trestle table, but with long overhangs on the ends. So you can eat an intimate dinner for two or a sit down feast for twenty. It has large, padded swivel chairs around it, on wheels.