Kisses to Remember
Page 9
Groaning, he pulled himself out of bed and opened the door. Johanna was standing in the hallway with her hand fisted as if ready to knock.
“Tornado siren,” she said to his unasked question. She didn’t look particularly worried for a person who had used the word tornado. “Basement. Now. This way.”
Kam flew by with a sleeping bag and a flashlight, which he shined directly into Holden’s eyes. The beam cut into his brain like a laser, and he held his hands up to block the light.
“Kam, that doesn’t help poor Holden’s headache.” Johanna grabbed the flashlight and pointed the beam to the door across from the guestroom. “Get downstairs.” She ushered the boy to the steps, and Miles scratched his way down the stairs behind him.
“Does this happen often here?” Holden asked, still in awe of Johanna’s calm in the midst of that ear-splitting siren. Maybe it was only ear-splitting to his sensitive head.
“More than I’d like it to,” Johanna said. “But this is Nebraska.” She shrugged. “There’s food and other supplies down there and a couch. You were probably just settling down, huh?”
“Yeah.” Holden let her edge him toward the basement stairs as she had done with Kam. She was still wearing her jeans and rose T-shirt. No shoes now and her hair was corralled into a loose ponytail through the back opening of a black baseball cap. She looked angelic though that siren suggested they were in Hell.
“Sorry, but Mother Nature does as she pleases and on her own schedule. It should be quick, and either we’ll have a house to come back up to or we’ll be living in the basement for a while.” She gave him a little nudge to the steps.
As Holden grabbed the railing, hail beat on the roof. It started out as a soft pitter-patter, but in a matter of seconds, grew to a sound much like falling bricks would create. Wind rattled the vents on the roof, and Holden glanced back into the guestroom where rain pelted the windows, and the tall grasses in Johanna’s field snapped around like whips.
“Go ahead,” Johanna said. “I’m going to see what’s keeping Ted.”
“Wait.” Holden didn’t like the fear in his voice. Had he ever been in a tornado? If he lived in Texas, he could have been. Shit, why can’t you remember?
“It’ll be okay.” Johanna patted his arm. “Kam’s down there.”
“And I know what to do!” Kam called up from the bottom of the stairs. “C’mon, Holden. I’ve got M&Ms down here.”
“M&Ms?” Holden looked at Johanna.
“Apocalyptic food. We took a vote a few years back and decided if we were the only humans left after a disaster, we wanted to live on M&Ms.”
“But M&Ms don’t have nutritional value,” Holden said.
“No, but when they run out,” Johanna shined the flashlight under her chin casting her face in spooky shadows, “we eat each other.” Laughing, she went down the hall in search of Ted.
Holden wasn’t positive, but he was pretty sure he liked Johanna even more.
He reached the bottom step and was impressed by the basement. Finished with burgundy carpeting and knotty pine-paneled walls, the space was clean and cozy. A leather sectional couch took up most of the one room area while a TV hung on the far wall with a video game system sitting on a low table below it. Kam was sprawled on the floor sifting through games with Miles beside him.
Holden wandered deeper into the room and peeked into an open closet beside a small bathroom. Pulling a string, he turned on a single bulb light to illuminate supply shelves stocked with canned goods, water bottles, toiletries, and yes, M&Ms in all varieties.
Tucked away in this basement, the tornado siren seemed farther away and less of a concern to Holden. That settled him some, but he wished Johanna and Ted would make an appearance soon. He didn’t know what to do during a tornado.
Or did he?
“Dammit.”
“Mom doesn’t like words like that,” Kam said.
Holden whirled around, forgetting the boy was still in the room. “Right. Sorry. I’m just—”
“Scared?” Kam turned the TV on. “I used to get scared too, but Pep said there’s no sense in being scared of a tornado because you can’t fight one anyway. You just have to be willing to wait her out and rebuild afterwards.”
“Makes sense. Have you been in many tornadoes?” Holden eased onto the couch. Its leather was smooth against the backs of his legs, and the cushions cradled his body. How could a person be worried about anything sitting on this couch? He rested his throbbing head against the cushions behind him.
“I’ve been in four tornadoes that actually touched down on our land. None of them have destroyed any of our stuff. We’ve been lucky.”
This kid couldn’t be the age Johanna said he was. Nine turning ten next week? He sounded more like a fifty year old with ages of living under his belt and wisdom in his head.
The TV screen flickered to life as Kam put in a game. “The Obstacle Course is my favorite. Want to play?”
The fast-moving graphics jumping around the screen made Holden’s body scream, NO WAY! “Umm, not this time around, Kam.” He closed his eyes to keep from hurling.
“Your head still hurt?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll keep the volume low.”
“Thanks.” Add courteous to the list of Kam’s good qualities. Holden didn’t know the kid well, but he was shaping up to be incredible. Like his mother.
****
“Ted?” Johanna’s voice couldn’t compete with the tornado sirens. She stepped into the barn, and several cows mooed in response to her presence, but no Ted. She checked the small workshop at the back of the barn, but he wasn’t in there either or the tractor shed adjacent to the barn. “Where the hell are you, Ted?”
She left the tractor shed and glanced toward Ted’s cabin. Hail pegged her head and shoulders, and she pulled her cap on more securely, shielding her face with the cap’s bill. She ran to the back porch of the farmhouse and pulled out her cell phone. Wind howled as she dialed Ted’s number.
“Hello?”
“What are you doing? Get over here!” Johanna yelled over the cacophony of hail, wind, and sirens.
“I’m putting out some buckets. There are a couple of roof leaks I’ve been meaning to fix. Haven’t gotten to them yet and now water’s pouring in.”
Johanna clicked her phone off and grabbed a few tin pails from the porch. Using one as a helmet, she darted toward Ted’s cabin, which was a bit of a journey. Most of the time she respected Ted’s need to have his own space, but it only took a night like tonight to wish he lived in the farmhouse instead.
When she burst through the cabin door, huffing and puffing, and still holding the pail on her head, Ted whooped in laughter.
“Great hat, sweetheart.”
“Shut it. Here are a few more pails. Position them and let’s go.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He gave her a salute, took the pails, and disappeared into his living room.
Johanna peered out the cabin’s small kitchen window. No funnel clouds touching down. Yet. They hadn’t had any major tornado damage since Alex had been in jail. Small stuff like torn roof shingles, downed trees, but nothing catastrophic. She had to believe someone was looking out for them still.
“C’mon, Ted!” She wanted to be in her basement with Kam. And Holden. Damn, he was adorable, all big-eyed and a little frightened by the sirens. Poor guy didn’t need a tornado on top of everything else he’d been through recently.
Ted appeared in his raincoat. Johanna wished she’d slipped on her own before leaving the farmhouse, but she hadn’t thought the search for Ted would take her clear across the property.
Lifting her pail back onto her head, she opened the front door and ran for it. Ted was right behind her, until a gust of wind uprooted a nearby tree. Johanna dodged the flailing branches, but Ted’s shout of pain made her turn around. The fallen tree had him pinned to the ground. She tried to move the tree, but it was too heavy for one person to move.
“My legs,” Ted sh
outed. “Get it off my legs!”
Johanna tried again to move the tree while Ted’s groans sounded and the weather beat her up. She used a loose branch like a lever and lifted the tree slightly, but couldn’t lift and pull Ted out at the same time.
“Can you get out from under it?” she asked over the whipping wind.
“No, if I lift onto my elbows, my back hurts. I think my leg’s broken too.” Ted grimaced as mud splattered around him.
After digging in her pocket, Johanna pulled out her cell phone again and dialed the farmhouse.
“Hello?”
“Kam, put Holden on the phone?”
“What’s wrong, Mom?”
“I need to speak to Holden for a second, honey. Put him on.” Johanna kept her voice calm despite the panic welling up in her stomach. The sky above them was roiling with greenish-black clouds now. A funnel could be born at any moment. She already felt a change in pressure.
“Johanna?” Holden’s voice calmed her. She wasn’t alone. She could get help.
“Ted’s stuck. I need help getting him inside. Can you come out here?”
“On my way.”
“Tell Kam to stay put.”
She hung up and pushed down on the branch lever to keep the weight of the tree off Ted. “Holden’s coming. He’ll pull you out. We’ll get you inside.”
“I’m a pain in the ass, aren’t I?” Ted’s teeth showed as he fought off the pain.
“Always.”
Ted coughed then pulled the hood of his raincoat over his face to keep the rain out. The hail had stopped, but the wind was picking up. Johanna did not like that green hue in the sky.
She looked toward the farmhouse as Holden leaped off the porch. Despite her worry over Ted, she took a moment to watch Holden. He ran toward them with some serious speed, and she wondered if he was a runner. Clearly, he was in good shape even with a concussion, bruised ribs, and a slashed forearm. The muscles in his legs were well toned, and Johanna stared at them even after he had stopped in front of her.
“Did you call 911?” he asked.
Duh. “Not yet. I was only thinking of getting him…” Her words trailed off as she stared beyond Holden. Beyond the farmhouse and barn. Beyond the field leading out to the main road. She let go of the branch lever, and Ted groaned.
“Johanna?” Holden grabbed her shoulders, then turned around to see what she was looking at.
In the too close distance, a black funnel struggled to take shape. It pierced through the clouds several times, testing the sky, building its form, swirling into a natural beast. There was a moment when Johanna thought it would dissipate, not have enough energy to truly become a menace. The funnel lost its outline, and she exhaled.
On the next breath, however, the twister arrowed to the ground as a fully formed monster and tore up the earth on its way toward them.
****
“Jesus!” Holden pulled Johanna toward the fallen tree. “Prop that end up and I’ll pull him out.”
“Kam’s alone back there.” Her voice was a whisper, yet every word had registered in Holden’s brain.
“Yes, and we’re going to get back there too. Lift and I’ll pull.” He picked up the branch and put it in Johanna’s hand.
She hesitated for a moment, her eyes still on the roaring, twisting beast heading their way.
“Johanna, let’s do this.” Holden nudged her again. He couldn’t remember if he’d experienced a tornado before, but he sure as hell wasn’t about to let himself—or Ted and Johanna—get sucked up into one today.
Johanna dug the branch in under the tree and pushed down on her lever. Ted let out a half-scream as the tree was lifted off his body. Holden rushed in and hooked his hands under Ted’s arms, tugging the man until he was clear of the tree. There didn’t appear to be any blood seeping from Ted. If they were lucky, he’d probably only have some broken bones.
“Grab his feet.” Holden tightened his grip under Ted’s arms.
Awkwardly, he and Johanna carried Ted to the farmhouse while that funnel cloud swirled ever closer. The howl of the twister drowned out the sirens, but somehow the loudest noise in Holden’s ears was his pulse.
They dragged Ted into the house and took a moment to rest on the kitchen floor, all three of them breathing heavily.
“Leave me here.” Ted gazed up at the ceiling. “Get downstairs.”
“We got you this far,” Holden said, rising to his elbows. “What’s a trip down a narrow staircase?”
A raspy, half-chuckle slipped from Ted’s throat. “Well, I did help Johanna drag your ass off that plane. Guess you owe me.”
“I settle my debts.” Holden nudged Johanna whose chest heaved up and down as she lay on her back on the other side of Ted. “You got this?”
“Let’s do it.” She sat up and grabbed Ted’s feet again.
As soon as they got near the basement door, it magically opened. Miles barked at them and Kam raced up the stairs.
“Stay down there, sweetie,” Johanna said. “We’re coming down.”
The noise level outside reached epic levels. Things were being torn apart as that funnel plowed across Johanna’s land. Holden pushed the images out of his head and focused on getting Ted downstairs. He went first while Johanna repositioned to cup her hands behind Ted’s knees. Together, they made it down and to the couch.
“I’ll call 911.” Johanna picked up her cell phone and paced away from the couch. When she paced back, she pointed to the three males and said, “We’re not calling 911 anymore after this. Got it?”
“What hurts, Pep?” Kam kneeled beside his grandfather, and again, Holden was struck by this kid’s maturity.
“My legs, mostly.”
“Can you feel them?” Holden asked.
Ted wiggled his feet. “Yeah.”
“That’s good. Do you want—” A horrible scratching above them cut off Kam’s words, and the boy edged closer to Holden.
Instinctively, Holden put his arm around Kam’s shoulders while Johanna hung up her cell phone.
“An ambulance is on their way.” She threw a glance up to the basement ceiling as the scratching noise grew louder then faded away.
“Did you tell them we’re down here?” Holden asked, Kam still beside him.
Johanna nodded. Her eyes closed, and she collapsed on the rug, her body making a soft thud as it hit the ground.
“Mom!” Kam ran over to her. Miles pushed his nose into her cheek several times until Kam pulled the dog back.
Holden kneeled beside her and put a hand to her face. “Johanna? Can you hear me?” God, she looked even more like an angel with her eyes closed and her hair spilling from her baseball cap.
“What happened to her?” Kam tugged on Holden’s sleeve. “Is she all right?”
The boy’s panic was tangible, and Holden supposed having one parent in jail made you value the other parent all the more. What were his own parents like? Were they wondering where he was? Did they live in Texas too? Were they dead?
The word dead spun around in his head, took shape much like the tornado outside. It scoured through his brain as he stared down at Johanna. She looked dead, and that thought propelled him to shake her. Shake her hard until she mumbled something incomprehensible and opened her eyes.
Kam pushed forward and leaned over her. “Mom! Are you okay?”
Holden helped her sit up. “You passed out,” he said to her silent, furrowed brow question.
“The fact that we just ran here while a tornado approached…it overwhelmed me for a minute.” She rubbed her temples and hugged Kam who had climbed into her lap. “It’s okay, baby. I’m all right.”
“Sounds like we’re all all right.” Holden offered her a hand and guided her to standing with Kam clutching her around the waist.
She cocked an ear toward the ceiling as she smoothed Kam’s hair. “It’s passed. The question is what did it do out there?”
A new set of siren noises rang out. Sure that she was steady on her feet, Hold
en released his grip on Johanna. “I’ll go up and bring the emergency folks down here.”
“Thank you.” She dropped a kiss on the top of Kam’s head and went to Ted on the couch.
As Holden climbed the stairs, Miles darted ahead of him and rose to his hind legs. The dog pawed the doorknob and the basement door swung open. Holden wanted to be impressed, but instead he braced himself for what was waiting beyond the door. Only a threshold of wood separated him from the illusion that everything was intact upstairs.
He pushed the door open in slow motion. The hallway revealed itself, and Holden was encouraged by what he saw…or didn’t see.
No wreckage blocked the hallway. No light streamed in from gaps in the roof. No broken glass sparkled on the ground. With Miles by his side, he stepped into the hallway and walked to the kitchen. Everything appeared to be fine in there as well. A quick peek out to the back porch showed the barn to be still standing.
He pushed open the front door as an ambulance screamed up the driveway. Holden hailed them to come in through the front.
Then he saw it. Beyond the downed tree that had nearly flattened Ted.
A pile of jagged construction debris jutted up into the still blackened sky. A pile that used to be Ted’s cabin.
****
Johanna was relieved to be able to say she was Ted’s family. She was so not in the mood for another battle with hospital personnel. The EMTs loaded Ted onto a stretcher and into the ambulance.
“You riding with us, ma’am?” one of them asked Johanna.
She volleyed glances between her car and the ambulance, then looked at Holden who stood behind Kam as if blocking him from...
“Oh my God.” She gazed beyond Holden at what used to be Ted’s cabin.
“What’s the matter, Mom?” Kam started to turn around, but Holden clamped two hands on his shoulders.
“I think she needs another hug.” Holden prodded the boy forward.
Johanna accepted Kam’s hug and collected herself. This was not the time to come unglued. Would that time ever come? She’d been waiting for it, but someone else always needed her. Kam, Ted, random pilots from Texas.
She released Kam. “Thanks, honey.” She glanced once more at the rubble behind Holden. How much would that cost to fix? She’d kick in some of the payment. Ted had his own money, but he did so much for her and Kam. She had to help out.