Bill & Harriet's

"Hon, it's time to milk."

Harriet tried to squeeze the last pungent dregs of coffee from the tube. "It's too early. Not even 3 a.m. yet."

"Those cows aren't going to milk themselves. Aphelion One's launch date moved up, so if we want our cheeses on the trip, we need to start a big batch."

She knew she didn't need to see Bill's face to know there was that grin on it, the same one he had the day she met him all those years ago, sitting on the fence between their yard and his family's pasture.

"You," she said toward the empty hatchway, "can't count what we've got in that back room as cows. Not really."

His voice called from the next room. "They still need milking, love."

"Fine." She floated after the voice, gliding into the room called The Creamery, the heart of their small business. The thought made her chuckle. It's more like Frankenstein's lab, with all these organs racked around the room. People don't like to talk about it, but we're the heart of the station and every mission to Mars, no matter how Rupert advertises his fancy zeoponics next door. Fresh cheese makes people feel like they're back home and that's worth more than gold.

She floated through her routine like she had so many days before, starting the nutrient flow and suction lines. The bulk tank came in from the cold, sterilizing vacuum outside, and was wiped down.

"You gonna help with this?" she called out.

Bill muttered something from the next room about arranging another ice allotment when the load arrived from the lunar mine.

Harriet shrugged. He was a better cheese maker.

She found herself staring at Aida, her top producer. Bill hated it when she named them, but somehow never remembered they were the same names as his families' cows. She remembered them all from the first time she watched him milk, even though they were just kids. Strong and handsome, she thought he was, and more than a little shy, too.

A voice yelled from the doorway. "***, Harriet!"

She brushed a lock of white hair from her eyes, and looked at her neighbor hovering across the room. "Rupert, you're a sight."

"It's ***, Harriet. I'm covered in *** from your damn monsters."

Bill roared with laughter from the other room.

She said, "I didn't know you caught it all in your bathtub."

"Not funny. We were changing the lines and the temporary holding tank overflowed. It's everywhere. Why the hell didn't you tell me you were making so much today?"

She put her hands on her hips. "Why didn't you tell us you were changing the lines? You know we milk at three in the morning, since you changed your inflow rate to charge more then."

"Your volume is more than the rest of the station. You should pay for keeping these things alive."

Harriet's tone was like ice. "You signed a big contract for both Aphelion One's and Two's greens. It's all over the station. I know you don't have enough fertilizer for that. You need our manure a lot more than we need your nutrient backflow, Rupert. You think about that. Now, get outta here before I call Bill."

"Bill?" his tone was uneasy. "Fine, next time just say something."

Weightlessness made it impossible for Rupert to stomp on his way out or she was sure he would have.

She felt Bill behind her. "Nicely done, love. I think that deserves an indigo whippet."

She shook her head. "Oh, no. Those candies are over twenty credits each."

"Nonsense, my dear. It's not every day you can tell that SOB off, and you know you love them."

She grinned. "I love the way they make my skin glow in the dark."

"I won't tell the health inspector if you won't. Besides, you're saving on the light bill, then. But don't take too long, we've got to pipe into the whey centrifuge soon or there won't be a clean break. Gonna make a couple wheels of cheddar today. That ought to be aged and sharp just when they decide to celebrate their arrival."

He paused. "We'll need something mellow for contrast, too. Maybe muenster."

She chuckled. "My man, the cheese artiste."

"You see? And glowing, too!" Rupert was in the doorway again, this time with the station administrator.

"Dan!" she called with a big smile. "What brings you down?"

Dan jabbed a finger toward Rupert. "Stinky here does."

Rupert crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Aren't you going to do something about it?"

Dan stared him down. "This is the last, original, demonstrator businesses in operation on any of the ten Free Market Stations. As such, it has a different charter, so whatever happens to it is solely my discretion. Get lost or I'll inspect you next."

Rupert skedaddled.

"Annoying git," Dan muttered under his breath. "So, Mom, how are things going?"

She shrugged. "Same old cheese factory. Same old cheesemakers."

Dan grinned. "I remember when Dad told me about turning this old Columbus module into a cheese factory. Nobody believed it was even possible in microgravity. Now, folks sure love how he timed different cheeses to mature at different times throughout their trip. Always kept it fresh. Although really, it was your ship's storage design just as much. Brilliant, figuring out how to use the dark side of ships just enough to keep things refrigerated."

She nodded.

He sighed. "Look, Mom, you can't keep talking to Dad like that. It's not right."

"Think I'm crazy, do you?"

Dan looked at the floor. "Just knock it off when people are around, ok?"

Harriet regarded her son sourly. "Anything else?"

"We'll bring the kids for Sunday dinner. Give you some real company, ok?"

She nodded.

Watching him leave, she felt the spirit of her late husband wrap his arms around her.

"Kids." Bill said, "Never know as much as they think they do."

She smiled. "Nope."

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