Devin looked at the television at the same time she did, and she suddenly felt guilty for lying to her little boy. The images on the screen of the obviously worried weatherman and the way his hands were flailing about—God, would Justin call her out for being a liar?
“They’re just showing some old footage, buddy.” Devin approached them and let a hand fall against his shoulder, squeezing gently. “Go and eat your sandwich now. Everything’s going to be okay.”
“Aw. Okay.” Justin huffed and headed towards the kitchen. “A twister would have been awesome.”
Her mouth fell open at her son’s statement, but she didn’t have time to worry about what other twisted thoughts he may have had as Devin gripped her shoulders and turned her to face him.
“My mother just called me,” he said quietly. “She said there’s a funnel cloud over her house right now; she’s really scared.”
“Oh my god.” Her heart stopped for the briefest of moments and she clutched the fabric of her shirt, knees trembling. “What do we do?”
“
We
do nothing,” he replied, sighing. “I want you to take the kids into the basement and stay there. I need to go make sure my mom’s okay; she’s by herself.”
“But then
I’ll
be by myself!”
She knew it was a terribly selfish thought to have. Devin’s mother needed him just as her children needed her. Nick was on his way anyway, so why did she feel Devin needed to stick around, too?
“Never mind,” she said, shaking her head. “Just go to your mama – we’ll be all right until Nick gets here.”
“I’d offer to take you guys with me, Kel, but it might get bad out there.” He moved to the window and pulled the curtain back to peer outside, his jawline tightening. “It already looks bad.”
“We’ll be fine, Dev. Don’t worry about us,” she said, stepping up behind him and wrapping her arms around his torso. She squeezed gently and closed her eyes, saying a silent prayer for his safety. “Just make sure you drive carefully, okay? If anything does happen...”
“I’ll be careful.” He promised, turning in her arms and pressing a kiss to her forehead. “And I’ll call as soon as I’m there. I just need to make sure she’s okay.”
“I know.” She smiled, tilting her head back to meet his gaze. “You’re a good son.”
“Yeah?” His expression softened and the corners of his mouth curved into a smile. “You think I am?”
“I think you’re a lot of good things.”
He cupped her face between his hands and guided her mouth to his, kissing her sweetly. “Thank you for thinking that,” he murmured against her mouth. “You are, too.”
She smiled as tears blurred her vision. She wasn’t even sure why she was crying, but the tears fell anyway, as Devin kissed her again and glanced towards the stairs.
“I’ll be right back,” he said, and then he ran back up to the second floor.
“What...?”
He was back within thirty seconds, cuddling a sleeping Jamie to his chest. She was wrapped in her favorite blanket and none the wiser to the chaos happening around them.
Thank God.
“Here, babe,” he whispered, carefully placing Jamie in her arms. “Take them down to the basement. Grab a flashlight and go.”
“But what about Mrs. H.?”
“Call her and see if she needs to come over, yeah,” he said, nodding. “But get downstairs as soon as you can. I don’t want anything to happen to you guys.”
He cupped her face and his gaze seemed so sincere.
It only made the tears fall harder.
“I’m scared,” she admitted in a softer voice. “I don’t want anything to happen to you either, Devin.”
“Nothing’s going to happen to me, Kel,” he replied, giving her that gorgeous smile of his. “I just need to get to my mom and make sure she’s safe. We’ll come back here as soon as the weather eases up, all right?”
“Okay.” She sniffled. “Be careful, please.”
“I will.” He kissed Jamie’s forehead and glanced over her shoulder, nodding to Justin. “Take care of your mama and sister, little man. Okay?”
“Okay!” Justin crowed excitedly. “Don’t get sucked up in a tornado, Dev-o!”
She rolled her watery eyes as he kissed her cheek and tried to keep her breathing as calm as possible.
“Go to the basement,” he repeated, opening the front door. “I love you guys.”
And then he was gone, leaving her in stunned silence.
Had he just confessed his love for her, for them?
She didn’t have long to think about it. As another clap of thunder shook the very ground itself, the power went out and the world suddenly seemed very dark. Her knees trembled as she clutched Jamie to her chest and felt around for Justin.
“Downstairs, baby,” she instructed him, her voice quivering. “I need to find a flashlight and call Mrs. H. right fast.”
“Okay, Mama!” He didn’t sound afraid at all. “Isn’t this storm fun?”
No. It was the least fun thing she could think of, and it didn’t help that two pieces of her heart were out there in the middle of it.
N
ick
The rapidly darkening sky made him very nervous. Weather in Prairie Town, thus far, hadn’t worried him too much. Growing up in Virginia, he’d seen his fair share of Mother Nature’s power, so a little rain and thunder didn’t bother him. But, when the world suddenly became eerily quiet, it rattled him to his very core.
Something was definitely coming.
As he headed towards Kelly’s house, he kept an eye on the sky, watching as lightning flashed behind the looming clouds.
“...We urge everyone to find shelter immediately.”
“No shit.”
“One tornado has been confirmed on the East side of town. Please stay off the roads...”
A violent gust of wind slammed into the side of his truck and he gripped his steering wheel, as if that would help, holding on for dear life.
“A second tornado has just been reported on the South side of town. If you are in this location, please seek shelter immediately.”
Listening to the surprisingly calm voice of the meteorologist on the radio, he cursed beneath his breath.
Two tornadoes touching down in such a small town was surely a recipe for devastating damage. Prairie Town was going to be hit with a state of emergency, and what about all the people who didn’t know about it? People like his father, who didn’t care to prepare for things like this?
“Shit, shit, shit,” he muttered, smacking a palm against the steering wheel.
At least he was only a few minutes from Kelly’s now. He only prayed—which was something rare, because he wasn’t religious—the tornados would stay away from them. He hated the thought of the people he cared about being put in danger.
He couldn’t fight a tornado.
His eyes moved to the sky again and he felt sick to his stomach as it began to turn green.
That’s not good.
Fingers trembling, he reached for his cellphone and quickly dialed Kelly’s number. Hopefully she’d listened to him and was already in the safety of the basement; hopefully the funnel cloud developing right before his very eyes would not touch down.
“God help us,” he whispered, listening to the static on the line. It was ringing, but that static caused every nerve ending to tingle in a horrible way.
“Hello?”
He sighed a breath of relief when Kelly’s voice greeted him, and he quickly thanked whatever higher power was listening.
“Babe, it’s coming,” he said, keeping his voice as calm as possible. “There’s a funnel cloud. I’m looking at it right now.”
“I know,” she replied in a trembling voice. “I see it, too.”
“What do you mean you see it, too?” His brows pinched together. “You shouldn’t see
anything
from the basement.”
“I know, I know,” she replied, sighing loudly. “But Mrs. H. is coming over and I have to make sure she gets here safely.”
“Are the kids in the basement?”
“Yes. Justin’s being so brave – and weird. He’s actually hoping we’ll have a tornado.”
“It might just happen,” he said, licking his lips nervously. “Look, I’ll be there in less than two minutes. Get Mrs. H. inside and tell Devin to make sure the cellar door is locked tight.”
“I already took care of that. And—”
Uh oh. Why was there a ‘and’, and why did he dislike the sound of it?
“—Devin isn’t here. He went to get his mom. She was really scared.”
“He what?” Tingles of dread shot straight down into his toes as he clutched the phone and stared out the windshield in disbelief. “He’s out in this, right now?”
“Y-yes. But his mom was scared, Nick. I couldn’t tell him not to go. What kind of person would that make me?”
“No...I know.” He sighed. “I would have done the same thing for my mom.” But even so, he was still terrified of what could happen to him. “Do you know where Devin’s mom lives?”
“Yes, of course. Everyone knows where the Roses live. Why? Are you thinking of going over there? Nick, please. I’m scared enough already. I don’t think I can handle having the kids and Mrs. H. here by myself.”
“No, I’m not going over there. I...”
Shit.
He wanted to. A part of him desperately needed to venture back out there, straight into hell if need be, but he couldn’t do that to Kelly and the kids.
“Nick? Please tell me you’re coming here.”
She was crying. The tears were evident in her voice as thunder rumbled again.
He swore he could feel it shaking his innards.
“Yeah, baby. I’m coming,” he whispered after a moment of contemplation. “I’m coming. Two tornados have already touched down and a third might be dropping right on top of us.”
“Oh, God.” Her voice was strangled by fear, and he knew the feeling all too well.
He was scared, too.
“Hurry, Nick. Please. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
In spite of the impending danger surrounding them, and ignoring the fact the funnel cloud was rotating and beginning to lower, he smiled. He wasn’t sure why—it was stupid to be smiling when he was about to be involved in a live version of
Twister
, but he did anyway, because he could hear something in Kelly’s voice he had been hoping to hear someday.
He could hear her love for him.
“I see Mrs. H. She’s coming!” She exclaimed excitedly. “I need to cross the street to get to her. This wind is insane. I think the funnel cloud is lowering.”
“It is. I can see it,” he said, lifting his eyes back to the sky. “I’m almost there, Kelly.” And he was. Pulling onto their street, he could see Mrs. Harrington’s frail frame trying desperately to fight against the hard winds. “Shit.”
“What? What is it?”
“Do you see me coming?” He asked, pressing the pedal to the floor. “Go back in the house, Kelly. I’ll get Mrs. H. inside.”
“I can get her,” she insisted, her voice cracking with fear. “I’m on my way to get her now.”
And then he saw her. His beautiful girl was struggling to make it down the driveway, her blonde hair whipping back and forth as she motioned for Mrs. Harrington to move faster.
She won’t make it,
he thought, watching as the elderly female clutched the handle of her umbrella to her chest.
And Kelly won’t either.
It was like a scene straight out of a natural disaster film. Putting his truck into park, right there in the middle of the street, he jumped out and shoved his phone into his pocket, jogging to Mrs. H.’s side.
“Oh, Nick! Hello, dear,” she said, turning her head to stare at him with wide, fearful eyes. “This is some terrible weather, isn’t it?”
“Yes, ma’am, it is,” he replied, his eyes lifting to the sky again. Maybe she just hadn’t looked up yet.
Maybe that was for the better.
“Nick, I told you I had her!” Kelly shouted, skidding to a halt in front of them. “Your truck is in the middle of the street – what if it gets blown away?”
“I’m not worried about my truck, Kel. It can be replaced – you guys can’t.” He slid his arm around Mrs. H.’s shoulders and guided her towards the porch. The wind became vicious and unforgiving as the sky darkened, angry and violent.
“Then I’ll park your truck. It’s—”
“You will do no such thing!” Mrs. Harrington scolded, keeping close to Nick as they made their way onto the porch. “Get inside, young lady. Your youngin’s need you.”
Damn right, they do.
Once they were inside and the front door was closed, he locked it and then turned around to stare at them. Both women stared at him with eyes as big as saucers, and it was understandable.
“What do we do now?” Kelly asked, raking her fingers through her messy, windblown hair. “Don’t we open the windows or something? Isn’t that what you’re supposed to do?”
“That’s purely a myth,” he replied, leading Mrs. Harrington down the hallway.
“How do you know?” Her voice squeaked as pictures began to rattle on the wall.
“I read it somewhere.”
Guiding Mrs. Harrington down the stairs, he listened to sounds he wasn’t sure he could describe. The entire second level of the house sounded like it was about to collapse and he was certain he heard one of the windows shatter.
Justin greeted them at the bottom of the stairs. He was wearing a football helmet and a big smile.
“Is it here?” He asked excitedly, hopping up and down. “Is the tornado happening?”
“You silly child,” Mrs. Harrington said, still clutching her umbrella. “Leave it to you to be thrilled in a moment like this.”
“Better thrilled than scared.” Kelly hurried to furthest corner of the basement where Jamie was sleeping contently. She tucked the blanket beneath her chin and lifted her eyes to Nick’s. “At least she won’t remember any of this.”
“Hopefully.” He helped Mrs. Harrington sit down and then gazed up at the ceiling as the rattling grew louder and louder. It really did sound like a damn freight train.
“It’s here!” Justin cheered. “Mama, the tornado is here!”
And Devin isn’t.
His heart twisted painfully within the confines of his chest and he tugged his cellphone free, tempted to call him. But it wouldn’t do any good, would it? No one would have service while a tornado plowed through their town, let alone
three
of them.