Wendy glanced outside and her mouth went dry at seeing lightning flash to the south and the wind picking up. “Time to load up,” she said, jumping to her feet. The twins looked on in shock as Wendy moved at hyper speed, loading up the last of the stuff.
Picking up Noah, Wendy put him in and then grabbed Jo Ann who was holding Ryan. Lifting them up, Wendy put them in the back and turned around to pick up Sally. Yanking her door open, Wendy put Sally in and pushed her until Sally stepped over the center console and dropped into the passenger seat.
Taking her M4 off, Wendy tossed it on the dash as she hopped in the seat. The engine was cranked before her door closed. “Ready?” Wendy asked, but didn’t wait for an answer as she dropped the shifter in reverse.
Throwing up dirt as she backed up, Wendy tapped the brakes and threw the shifter into drive. Instead of pulling around the house and back to the road, Wendy took off across the grassy field. Barely slowing when she reached the ditch, Wendy guided the Tahoe back onto the road. Glancing back and seeing the trailer was fine, Wendy hit the accelerator.
The girls looked at Wendy in shock. Wendy was clearly scared and that upset their world to no end. “What’s wrong?” Sally asked, glancing over at the speedometer and saw they were at fifty.
“A storm is coming,” Wendy cried out very fast.
Sally turned to look at Jo Ann in the back who just shrugged. When Sally turned back to Wendy, thunder exploded outside and Wendy levitated out of the driver’s seat and Sally felt the Tahoe speed up. Hearing the patter of rain, Sally saw large raindrops hitting the windows.
“It’s just rain,” Sally finally said.
“Sally,” Wendy snapped as she started hyperventilating. “This is the south! Tornados drop out of the sky, destroy everything, and kill you! They like dropping from the sky in storms, not rain showers. That is a storm brewing outside!”
With wide eyes, Sally turned to Jo Ann and saw her face was pale. Having never given a thought about a storm before, the twins were now filled by Wendy’s terror. Spinning in her seat, Sally looked around them. Not for people, but for funnel clouds; people be damned.
The rain picked up and Wendy had to slow down as lightning flashed outside and thunder exploded, making everyone squeal. Noah and Ryan latched onto Jo Ann as she too tried to see outside through the sheets of rain.
Almost missing a turn because she couldn’t hear the GPS, Wendy slowed down to twenty. “Sally, turn the GPS up so we can hear it,” Wendy said, having to raise her voice over the rain.
“Maybe we should’ve stayed in the barn,” Jo Ann yelled from the back, trying to see funnel clouds even though it was dark outside now.
“No! Tornados love mobile homes and barns, you never stay in those!” Wendy shouted, gripping the steering wheel hard. With every flash of lightning, the twins scanned around as thunder shook the Tahoe.
Lightning forked through the sky, turning night into day and Sally cried out, “Tornado!” and Wendy buried her foot in the floorboard. Unable to see far up ahead of them, even with the lights on, Wendy turned to the GPS screen and followed the road using the car on the screen.
Jo Ann leaned over so she could see out the passenger windows as lightning flashed and she saw the shadow looming behind them. As she took a breath to scream, lightning flashed again and Jo Ann saw the shadow was a water tower. Not sure if that’s what her sister had seen, Jo Ann kept looking around.
With her face pressed against the passenger door window, Sally tried to see where the shadow had gone but couldn’t because trees were around them now. “I don’t see it anymore,” she finally said. Then, Sally realized they were hauling ass.
Turning around, Sally glanced over at the speedometer and saw the needle passing ninety. Looking at Wendy, Sally noticed Wendy would glance out the windshield but was keeping her eyes on the GPS screen. “Don’t wreck or the tornado will catch us,” Sally said with a dry mouth.
Nodding, Wendy tapped the brakes until she slowed to forty and she could see out of the windshield again as the wipers tried to keep the water off. Even tiny little Ryan could feel the fear that filled the Tahoe as he clutched Jo Ann tight.
It was an hour later when the rain slacked off and Wendy turned on the post light and aimed the powerful spotlight ahead. Now able to see really far, Wendy sped back up as the rain started coming down hard again. Having watched Wendy, Sally reached up and swiveled the post light in front of her until it pointed forward and turned it on.
With the two police spotlights shining, the Tahoe sped on until they crossed into Georgia. It was only then that Wendy slowed back to forty and turned the spotlights off. Everyone was panting hard like they had run the distance instead of ridden.
Climbing in the back, Sally grabbed bottles of sports drinks and handed a bottle of water to Jo Ann. Climbing back into the front seat, “Are there a bunch of storms like that near the house?” Sally asked and then handed Wendy a sports drink.
Bobbing her head side to side, “My husband built me a concrete house that a tornado can’t knock down,” Wendy sang out with a sassy tone.
“I love Arthur,” Sally and Jo Ann said in unison.
Leaning over, Sally looked at the gas gauge.
