Earth's Karma Read online

  Earth's Karma

  Peggy Biedermann

  To my wife, Paula, my first reader and my forever love.

  Chapter One

  The Day Before

  Kat Daskalos sat down at the bar in a Mexican restaurant. Mariachi music played in the background as she ordered a coke. After wiping the rain from her glasses, she replaced them on her head and let her eyes drift over the murals on the walls, paintings of indigenous people working in the fields bringing in the harvest. She shifted her gaze to a window looking out towards the Sandia Mountains. The usual beautiful vista was an angry gray this afternoon due to the unseasonal rainstorm. Heavy thunder rumbled along with the beat of the music. Living in the Albuquerque desert, folks were always grateful for rain, but this storm was an unusually heavy one for late winter.

  Kat began watching the muted flat screen TV on the wall behind the bar. The news was on and she read the scroll… 150 whales had beached themselves in Australia, a third Cat4 hurricane was headed toward the Bahamas and Florida area, an unheard of triple shark attack took the life of a teen surfer on the west coast, tornadoes and flooding in the Midwest, wildfires roared in Arizona and California, two hikers in different areas of Alaska were attacked by grizzlies, and the continuing rescue efforts in Mexico City following a 7.0 earthquake, not to mention Australia being consumed by fire. “Holy crap,” Kat thought to herself. “Mother Nature is sure making a stand.” She glanced again at the rain sliding down a nearby window and saw lightning flash.

  She was waiting to meet her sister-in-law, Lisa, for dinner. Kat tucked her long damp hair behind her ears, took in a deep breath and slowly released it before she took another swallow of her drink. She did not really want to meet anyone for dinner and she definitely did not want to be at this restaurant, but she humored Lisa every year at this time because it was so important to the vivacious young woman to keep up with tradition. Kat “Katerina” Daskalos’s birthday was tomorrow, and this had been her wife’s favorite place to have dinner. They celebrated all their birthday dinners here, until they didn’t.

  The memories flooded her mind causing the noise of the storm and the restaurant to fade as she closed her eyes and tried to focus on her breathing. She shifted her weight on the bar stool to get more comfortable but could not keep the vision away. Three years ago, Kat celebrated her birthday with her beautiful wife, Liz, at this very restaurant. They especially enjoyed the evening because earlier that day, the doctor performed an ultrasound on Liz and gave them the eagerly awaited news that they were expecting a baby boy in a few months.

  Kat could still see Liz that evening, literally glowing. Her natural beauty was enhanced by her joy, the hormones and the occasion. Liz’s belly was just big enough for her to rest a hand on and Kat was mesmerized by this lovely brunette whose smile made her heartbeat faster. For the life of her, Kat could not imagine why this amazing woman chose her as the person to share the rest of her days. She had always felt a bit awkward, too tall, glasses, and her leg did nothing to help her feelings of inadequacy.

  Kat saw herself as a former Army nerd, handicapped and average looking. She was always proud to have lovely Liz on her arm, but figured other people wondered what Liz saw in her. Heck, she wondered it herself. Liz had been Kat’s occupational therapist five years ago after an IED had taken out the Humvee she was riding in while on assignment in Afghanistan.

  Kat’s right leg was nearly severed at the knee, yet the wounded soldier managed to tourniquet herself and get the other two members of her unit out of the vehicle before it burned. Sadly, her commanding officer was already dead, so Kat focused her energies on the driver. When help arrived, they found her wrapped around the young man to help keep them both from going into shock. They hailed her as a hero.

  Kat sipped her coke and remembered her “15 minutes”, the honors and ceremonies that came of it. She received the Distinguished Service medal, a Purple Heart and an honorary discharge. She also became addicted to pain killers. It wasn’t intentional, but her injury and subsequent surgeries to preserve her leg saw her using the meds regularly and she just got used to them. Slowly, the dosages became more than prescribed, yet there was no problem refilling the prescriptions. Kat began to enjoy the numbing effect of the drugs and looked forward to taking them. The VA did not acknowledge a concern, but when Liz started working with her, she discovered the addiction. She was the subsequent reason Kat was able to kick her habit.

  Liz was assigned to Kat when she went to the rehab facility after her third and final surgery. The therapy goal was walking pain free without assistance but probably not without a limp. There was an instant connection between the two women from such different backgrounds. Kat just figured Liz was sweet and extra attentive to all her patients, however, Liz was smitten by the bright blue eyes, dark hair and natural tan that wrapped up a tall, street toughened, yet soft-hearted soldier whose name spoke of her Greek ancestry.

  She would look at Kat sometimes, just look at her until Kat would say, “What?”

  To which Liz would respond, “You are so special. You’re going to change the world.”

  “What are you talking about?” Kat would ask.

  “It is a feeling I have when I am near you. You have an incredible vibe. And your name…. Katerina Daskalos… it means “pure teacher”!” Liz explained.

  “Hmm, if you say so,” Kat said, “Although, I would like to share that ‘incredible vibe’ with you,” she added with a suggestive wiggle of her dark eyebrows. That comment led to much more than Kat had ever bargained for as Liz grabbed her hand and literally dragged her to the nearby couch to take her up on her offer.

  Life was good. Kat had received her teaching certificate just before she was injured. After her recovery, she pursued her “Troops to Teacher” program with Liz’s full support. Kat hoped she could make a difference through this program in the lives of young people who might be struggling to stay off the streets. Her own experience in that area would certainly come in handy

  A vibration from her phone shook Kat from her memories and she read a text from Lisa, Liz’s sister. “On way. Don’t you DARE leave!” This was embellished with a variety of emojis that went from smiling dogs to angry devils. Lisa was always so dramatic.

  Kat smirked and looked up from her phone to meet the eyes of another woman who was sitting a few seats away. Blond, kind of cute, she set off Kat’s gaydar, even though there was nothing overtly ‘gay’ about her. The woman smiled at her and maintained eye contact. Kat gave a polite nod, adjusted her glasses and looked back at her phone, quickly sending a Neanderthal text grunt of, “K”. Still smiling, she knew the lack of conversation would bug Lisa to no end. She enjoyed riling up the sweet but feisty woman.

  Thinking back, Kat thought about needing the pain meds and how they were gradually weaned away as the love between them grew. Kat worked hard at her recovery, both physically and emotionally and perhaps even harder because Liz was there with her. She had never had someone stand by her before. Over her months of recovery, Kat regained the ability to walk but still needed a cane for stability. She resigned herself to this fate as the only resolution would be amputation and a prosthetic. The pain became manageable and most of it she ignored as the new love in her life began to blossom. Within six months of completing her rehab, the pair got married and began building a home together.

  They were the perfect match. Where Kat was hardened, Liz was soft, if Kat was cynical, Liz was positive. Liz could be a bit naïve and Kat balanced that with her street knowledge. Kat began to see herself in a new light, one that had never been cast upon her before. She discovered her first experience with unconditional love and realized that despite lessons learned from the past, she had a lot to offer. Kat slowly let down her guard and dove in to her first committed relationship.

  The sound of someone clearing her throat brought Kat back from her reminiscing. She felt a presence next to her, grabbed her cane, stood up with a bit of a hop and turned expecting to see a perturbed Lisa. Instead, it was the cute woman from a few seats down. Kat looked at her a bit startled as the woman took a step closer.

  “Oh my God, this woman is going to hit on me!” Kat inwardly groaned and then literally felt the blonde’s eyes travel down her body before coming to rest on her leg and cane. Quickly, the woman averted her eyes, excused herself and walked past Kat as if that had been her plan all along.

  Sighing and taking her seat again, Kat was relieved things had not been even more awkward. She was so not interested in dating. People told her she should. Some tried to set her up. She always turned them down and, in this case, it was pretty handy having a bum leg to chase the ladies away.

  “Whew, that was a close call! I almost had to talk to someone,” Kat chuckled to herself, drifting slowly back to her memories and ordering another coke. She looked at her custom cane, a gift from Liz. Carved from oak, expertly weighted, it fit her hand perfectly. Along with intricate Native American symbols carved into the wood, a silver, snarling bear head was fitted on the handle to look ahead as Kat walked.

  Liz had been fascinated with the story of how an elderly, Native woman stopped a homeless Kat while at the New Mexico State Fair Grounds. The silver-haired woman uttered one sentence, “The spirit of the bear is strong within you.” The intensity with which she said it and the fire in the woman’s brown eyes made the moment very real for the teenage Kat. She watched the woman disappear into the crowd that flocked to the Indian Village to watch the dances. Years later, Kat still remembered the woman’s touch on her arm and the oth
er-worldly look to her eyes.

  Coming out to her conservative family at the age of 18 had resulted in her being ostracized to the point that she ended up on the streets instead of going to the college she had been promised. After a year of couch surfing and shelter living, she turned to the military. DADT, “Don’t ask, don’t tell”, was still in effect at the time of her deployment, but Kat was not looking for relationships. Nor was she into politics or the idea of war, she just realized serving was her chance at the education she desired and some direction to her life even if she had to be in the closet.

  Enlisting in the army meant a physical and it was then that Kat discovered she was truly a rarity. Doctors informed her she had “golden blood”, a condition officially called Rh-null blood, so rare it is believed that less than 50 people worldwide have it. For some reason, this condition escaped detection until she joined the army. As a precaution, it was agreed that Kat would donate a bag of blood every 6-8 weeks which would be kept with the medical teams in her unit. Before its shelf life went bad, Kat would donate again, and the previous bag of blood would be sent for testing. Golden blood was hard to find, and the military knew a good thing when they had it. Kat got used to the regular donations and was forever taking iron. These procedures would prove to save her life as her medics had the blood she needed when she was injured.

  Never the athlete, Kat stumbled through basics. A previously unknown strength was marksmanship, surprising everyone (especially since she wore glasses) by earning her sharpshooter badge. Creative interests led to her studying technical engineering. Kat put in the extra work to qualify as a Military Occupational Specialist and in time, was assigned to the 615th Engineer Company in the 4th Engineer Battalion. Kat’s boots barely hit the ground before her unit was deployed to Iraq. Shortly after their arrival, they received new orders to pack up and finish their 12-month assignment in Afghanistan. The battalion supported Operation Enduring Freedom for the next 10 months. Just about anything that needed fixing, she was there to help make sure it happened and the jobs were never ending. Things went well for 8 months and then her world changed forever from one little bump in the road. Before she knew it, Army Specialist Daskalos found herself headed home on a stretcher.

  Kat’s thoughts returned to the present and she noticed she had finished her drink. She checked the time knowing she should have never been on time because A: Lisa was notoriously late, and B: The poor girl was having to cross the river to Albuquerque’s westside during rush hour which was always something to avoid if at all possible. At least the latter would be a legit excuse for making her sit long enough to down two drinks by herself. Kat adjusted her glasses and picked up the menu to see what looked good though she knew already what she would order. It was always the same, a dish she used to share with Liz, but now took home the extra.

  “Hey, Bitch!” caught her attention and pretty much the attention of everyone else in the restaurant. Kat’s head popped up from the menu and she glanced across the busy room to where a perky young woman sporting brown hair with a bobbing pink ponytail was bouncing her way through the people and tables like a pinball being played in a machine. She was carrying an obnoxious bouquet of helium birthday balloons dripping with raindrops and a pink gift bag from Juicy Couture. Lisa had arrived. Kat grinned on the outside and cringed on the inside as people turned to watch the vivacious and charismatic Lisa make her way to the bar.

  “Excuse me. Excuse me. Gotta make my way to the birthday girl,” Kat heard her saying as she brushed past the last table. Then she was being hugged so tightly Kat was momentarily surprised at the contact until her brain kicked in and she returned the embrace with as much fervor and even managed to pick Lisa up off her feet and give her a little swing which resulted in a squeal of delight from the young woman.

  Placing her back on her feet, Kat observed, “You hardly got wet. I was soaking when I came in here.”

  “Yeah, damn rain. I got lucky with some Rockstar Parking. Just the balloons got wet,” Lisa replied, giving the bundle a shake, which flicked water all over Kat.

  Ignoring the mini-shower, Kat tapped a non-existent watch on her wrist and said “Well, I went ahead and ate, had a couple of cokes, almost got hit on, so I’ll be going now. See you later,” Kat added, making a slight move toward the door.

  She was stopped with a blaring, “Get your ass over to that table right now.” Lisa stepped in front of her, physically grabbed her shoulders and turned her around to see a waitress preparing a booth nearby.

  “Hey, how did you get a table? I have had one of these flashy, vibrate thingies and it has not gone off yet. They told me 45 minutes when I came in.” Kat showed Lisa the rectangular pager and indeed, the lights were dark.

  Lisa’s brown eyes (‘so much like Liz’s,’ thought Kat) were full of mischief as she said, “That’s Jen fixing our table. She’s family. I texted her when I was close.” Lisa, like her sister, preferred the fairer sex. She preferred them a lot. Her exes were always family and forever her friends. Kat was never sure how she managed it, but more power to her! The two made their way to the booth. Lisa set the balloons on the table and handed the gaudy package to Kat who had her hands full of a cane and a pager.

  “Here, let me have that,” Lisa said, grabbing the pager and placing it on the bench seat. “I’ll let you know when it vibrates,” she giggled and slid herself into the booth, placing her butt right on the device. The waitress laughed and said she would be back with waters and chips with salsa. “Bring some guac, too, please!” Kat shouted at the retreating woman.

  “You are such a nut,” Kat observed while hanging her cane on a hook at the end of the bench then moving her way in to sit across from Lisa, setting the present on the table with the balloons.

  “And that’s why you love me!” Lisa replied in a sing-song voice. She picked up a menu, held it to her forehead and closed her eyes. Waving her other hand mysteriously in the air, she chanted in a fortune teller’s voice, “Let’s see…you are having a chicken quesadilla with olives and no jalapenos, extra sour cream.”

  “Well, duh,” Kat snorted, “Except you forgot the sopapillas. Maybe extra since it IS my birthday.”

  “I did NOT forget. You just never want them until you are ready to eat them, so they are hot out of the grease. And it is NOT your birthday until tomorrow,” Lisa said emphatically, moving the balloons out of the way as Jen, the waitress, brought their drinks and chips. Just as a glass of water was placed in front of her, Lisa jumped and knocked the table enough to cause the glass to tip, spilling water all over Kat’s lap. “Holy shit!” Lisa yelped and groped around the bench on which she was seated.

  “What the hell, Lisa?” Jen, the waitress, hissed. “I’m so sorry, ma’am “she apologized, handing Kat some napkins. Kat began to wipe up the offending liquid.

  “Yeah, WTH, Lisa?” Kat repeated, setting a soggy mass of tissue on the table.

  “The f-ing vibrator went off on this thing,” she said holding up the plastic rectangle with flashing lights for all to see. Several people nearby began to laugh, along with Kat and the waitress as Lisa turned red.

  “Look at you blush,” Kat ribbed.

  “I’ve seen her blush,” Jen, the waitress, snickered under her breath.

  “Damn, you two! Jen, can you just bring us our order, Puhleez!” Lisa fussed but at the same time was trying not to laugh.

  “When did we order?” Kat asked.

  “Really? Like, I ordered ahead of time. This place takes forever so Jen was already on it. It’s not like you are gonna try something new or anything.” Lisa settled herself back in her seat and then with a bit of sympathy asked, “You ok over there? Need any more napkins?”

  “No, I’m good. It’s not every day a pretty girl makes me this wet,” Kat quipped.

  “Wow! Great one! Wish I had thought of it!” Lisa giggled. “Speaking of which, here is your present,” she added, pushing the birthday bag across the table to her sister-in-law.

  Kat cautiously removed a pair of white sweatpants with black racing stripes and the word ‘Juicy’ printed on the butt. She held them up a bit, observing the gift. “Um, I love it?” she said with a questioning tone.