Never cheated on him.
He picked the camera up from the mount and pointed it out the windshield. Through the screen the light gray morphed into dark gray, blue became green only to become blue again. Lightning splintered the scene and thunder laughed in response. The weather gods were having fun this afternoon.
Two maroon vans sped past the live truck, soaking the windshield with dirty rainwater.
Seth turned off the camera and reclined, staring at the departing words of Tuck’s Tours.
“That man is as arrogant on the road as he is in person,” Rick mumbled. “People really pay him for this?”
“A sucker is born every minute. Follow him. If this thing fizzles I can at least get an interview with him.”
Ex-girlfriends aside, Seth always considered himself to be a good judge of character, and something about that man had irked him since dancing with Elaina. It was a look of curiosity and contempt. It was a look of temptation and threat. And, something that baffled him; it was a look of possession. Maybe a good interview would help him peel back the layers of this enigmatic man.
The computer in his lap beeped and he looked down. The hook was getting more defined. It was only a matter of minutes before showtime.
Tuck’s two vans pulled over, and Rick slowed, pulling off to the side just ahead of them. Between the thick clouds and the near-dusk setting sun, a preternatural darkness settled over the road.
Lightning illuminated debris flying across the highway and just out the driver’s side window, a spindly rope tornado slinked out of the storm and flirted with the earth.
At the next lightning flash, cars around them collectively hit their brakes. The twister danced in a field to their left, as if listening to some wild, enchanting song. Up, down, forward. Right, up, up.
Vehicles sat immobilized as the twister crossed the highway a half mile in front of them. That was smart for all the moms and dads taking their kids to soccer practice, but Seth could feel his flailing career running out of gas.
“We have to get around this and follow it,” he told Rick.
His cameraman eased the heavy truck onto the shoulder, two wheels on concrete, the other two sloshed through the mud.
Lights flared behind them. Tuck’s vans followed suit.
Rational thinking told him the man was following the storm, but a niggling irrational fear flared down Seth’s spine.
“A little further up, and then let’s film a stand-up. Maybe get some of the twister in the background.”
Rick glanced at him from the corner of his eye. “You sure about that, man? I don’t see Elaina out here to save you if you get too close.”
“I’m not going live, let’s just get some footage of the twister, I’ll talk along.”
The cameraman put the truck in park and reached for his equipment, while Seth checked the radar once more.
The storm was moving away, but he couldn’t help but hear Rick’s apprehension echo in his mind. After all, his colleague was the one with a wife and kids. Seth just had an ivy waiting for him back in Atlanta. Assuming he’d remembered to ask someone to water it.
“On second thought,” he said. “You stay here, keep an eye on the radar in case it turns, I’ll jump out and get some footage.”
Without giving Rick a chance to argue, Seth hopped out and the wind clawed at his pants and jacket, whipping him around to face the headlights of Tuck’s parked vans behind him.
Expressionless heads watched him from behind the flickering windshield wipers. He’d never been much of an egomaniac, but the little bit of ego he did have was at risk if he didn’t at least get some footage.
He pushed off from the van and took five steps out. His ears popped and fine, sharp rain pelted him in sporadic drops. Seth wiped the water from his face and pressed record, focusing the camera on the tornado ahead of him.
“You’re looking at a rope tornado,” he shouted over the din of the wind. “This storm is probably about a mile, maybe two miles, away, but as you can see from the trees, there’s some pretty serious winds even here.”
As if to reinforce his words, what looked to be a wall flew a hundred yards in front of him, tumbling as if it were nothing more than a weed.
Shit.
“That shed wall probably weighs a hundred pounds, and you can see how it was just tossed in the air,” Seth paused, letting the sound of the wind, rain and tornado have a starring moment. “I know I’ve said before, but I’m trained to chase storms. I’m not in the path of the tornado, I know it’s hard to tell but it’s moving away from me.”
He heard someone shouting his name, and turned to look behind him.
Tuck was motioning him forward. “We have to go,” the man shouted over the wind. “The atmosphere’s too unstable, something’s going to drop behind us.”
Seth jogged toward him, the wind equally pushing him forward and pulling him back.
Tuck’s face was hidden under the hood of his raincoat, he couldn’t rely on looking him in the eye to see if the man told the truth or was simply trying to get him out of the way.
“What do you mean? We’re on the backside.”
“Did you go to school to just look good on camera or for anything useful?” the guy snorted. “You ain’t on the backside of shit until you see blue sky.”
He opened his mouth to argue, but Rick rolled the window down and shouted his name. “We’ve got another hook forming behind us. We gotta go, buddy.”
“Now you believe me?” Tuck’s gravely voice was full of I-told-you-so. “Follow me.”
The three vehicles made awkward U-turns and sped back to the interstate.
Seth kept his eyes on his laptop the whole time, marveling at the radar’s seeming obedience to Tuck’s wishes. How did he do it?
Everything science told him said they were in the clear. This man was clearly in possession of some knowledge beyond what the Forecast Channel had in its arsenal.
Seth only looked up when he felt the van turn into the parking lot of a gas station behind Tuck.
The storm was fully past them now; the sky to the west was a layer cake of black from the trailing clouds to blue-black of the horizon to orange of the last remnants of the day’s sun. The air was cool and damp.
There was always something about the moments immediately following a storm that made him feel grateful for everything in his life. It was as if God told him He could take it all away if Seth wasn’t careful.
Rick pulled up to a pump behind Tuck’s vans.
Seth approached with his hand outstretched.
“Hey man, I really owe you for back there.”
The man pursed his lips, his gaze shifting down before meeting Seth’s hand with his own calloused palm. “Think nothing of it.” His weathered cheeks pulled back into a grin. “I couldn’t let these kids see you get hurt.”
As if on cue, a swarm of Boy Scouts fled the vans, hyper chatter competing with the distant thunder.
“They were getting their weather-safety badges,” Tuck added.
“I’d say they just learned a lot.”
The boys overtook the sleepy convenience store, an equal number lining up for the bathroom as raiding the drink coolers.
“Hey, so let me make it up to you. If you’ve got a few minutes, can I interview you for my show?” Seth asked.
Tuck rocked back on his heels and popped a toothpick in his mouth while his other hand worked some change in his pocket. “Well, I don’t know about that.” He leaned up on his toes, breaking eye contact to look over his head. “I’m a pretty private person. You know, staying off the grid and stuff. You see Lainey out here?”
“Who?” Seth couldn’t help but look behind him, as if the man’s roving gaze was an indicator of a sneak attack. “Look, is there really such a thing as being off grid? Anyway, this will be great for your business. You can tell people the services you offer. Who was it you were asking I’d seen?”
The man shook his head, droplets of water escaped his shoulder length
hair, like a dog shaking off the water. “Sorry, meant Elaina, you seen her? And my business does just fine.”
He crossed his arms in front of his chest and straightened his back. The nickname set off an alarm of protectiveness deep inside of him. He’d never heard anyone call her Lainey, not Heath, nor Pierce.
She’d never introduced herself as that or suggested he call her that. Of course, there were plenty of douchebags out there who belittled women with unprovoked nicknames, but his alarm wasn’t at a watch level. It was at a warning level.
“An offer like this doesn’t come along very often.” Seth’s words had a sharpness he thought had gone dull. “Trust me, you’ll be begging me for this later.”
Tuck met his posture with his own crossed arms. “I appreciate the offer, and I can promise you I won’t be begging you for anything.”
The air around them froze. Even the chirping crickets sensed the tension forming and went silent, out of fear and curiosity as to what would happen next.
Tuck’s blue-gray eyes stayed locked on Seth’s, the toothpick bobbed back and forth and the sound of the damn change in his pocket jangled over the din of the interstate.
The older man was no match, but that didn’t lessen the sensation of malice that pulsed from him.
With empty bladders and full sodas, the Boy Scout troop ran out of the store and back to the vans, breaking the bond between them.
“Seth, ready?” Rick asked. “Everything okay here?”
“Yeah, everything’s fine.” The assurance squirmed through his tight jaw. “We’re done.”
He’d tugged the door open and was about to crawl inside when he heard Tuck’s voice again.
“You better watch your back out there, boy.” The man didn’t look at him; instead he gazed up at the sky.
“Is that a threat, old man?”
“Nah, just a warning. Out here in the field, a storm can be a man’s accomplice.”
29
Heath was waiting for Elaina on the steps of the science building. His gaze flashed over the rim of his glasses, briefly making eye contact before he stood and walked ahead of her into the building.
This summons from Pierce was different than before. Most of the time, getting called in was a collection of mild warnings of stormy weather ahead, but this one felt like they were about to walk into a rare, mythical fire tornado.
With each step up the stairs and down the hall, the air tightened and her cheeks flushed as if she was getting too close to the sun.
Their appointment was for two o’clock, and they arrived at ten minutes before, just on the verge of being late in their advisor’s mind.
Elaina could feel her professor’s awareness shift as they hovered outside awaiting an invitation to enter. As usual, his office was dark except for the blue-white glow of his computer screen and the yellow light of the fish tank.
Frustration simmered within her gut. Every minute she stood outside waiting for Dr. Pierce to finish whatever it was he was doing, was time away from her mother. Never mind that she’d missed an important consultation with the doctor while chasing that hot mess of a storm in northeast Arkansas.
Never mind when that Buick had been flying in her direction the only thought flashing through her mind was her mom would wake up to learn that Elaina had died. Never mind that there would always be another storm.
She’d never have another mother.
That was what mattered.
Elaina shuffled and sighed, her annoyance as obvious as the bright sun on a cloudless day. A quick glance at her watch revealed two p.m. had come and gone ten minutes ago. This was one of Dr. Pierce’s mind tricks. Sweat them out, make them squirm while waiting for their punishment, then rush them through the sentencing phase before he escaped to class.
This wasn’t her first rodeo. It wouldn’t be her last, either.
Finally, as if he’d seen the sudden winning pattern in a game of Solitaire, Dr. Pierce clicked his mouse hard three times and shoved the keyboard tray into his desk. “You can come in now.” His voice was as flat as the Oklahoma plains.
Unlike before, he gave them his full attention as they slinked into his office and took their seats like a couple of naughty school kids.
Heath sat with his chin nearly touching his chest and his hands cupped in his lap. Everything about his posture begged forgiveness.
Elaina, on the other hand, straightened her spine and squared her shoulders. She intentionally tilted her chin up, hoping the gesture added just a little bit of height.
With her thick hair long and wavy rather than its usual braided ponytail, she wanted to take up a little bit more space sitting in her advisor’s office. If he was going to cut them down to the quick, she needed a little additional mental padding.
“Well,” Dr. Pierce began. “I could say I’m disappointed, but that would be letting you off easy. I’m beyond that. I’m embarrassed. And I can honestly say no doctoral students have ever done that to me before, so…” He reclined and started clapping.
A hard sound that popped in her ears each time his palms collided.
“Congratulations.”
Heath folded in on himself just a bit, as if hoping the professor would forget he was there.
Elaina glanced at her friend and the frustration that’d been on a low simmer cranked up to a rolling boil. “I doubt we’re the first students to miss collecting from a storm system.” She pushed the words through her tight throat. Her brain told her to sit there and take it, but her mouth ignored the command.
Her partner sucked in air beside her and his body lifted slightly, as if he fed off her strength.
“You’re correct, Ms. Adams, if this were the first case of missing data, but you both were so far off the path, the only data you gathered was how much rain fell. If you’re more interested in rainfall, might I suggest a change to landscape architecture.”
“That’s not true; we got some interesting stats on straight-line winds, and barometric pressure and rear-flank downdraft.” The words were sour in her mouth, as if fueled by the acid churning in her stomach. “The winds were strong enough to send a Buick flying in my direction.”
That last sentence hung in the air between them. Dr. Pierce’s steel-blue gaze dug into her eyes. He rubbed his palms on his useless legs. A shudder rocked his body as if shaking off her words. “Rookie. Mistake.”
The sound of the gurgling fish tank drowned the thundering blood rushing through her ears. Ever since she’d stepped foot in his office the first week of her freshman year, she’d worked harder, longer and smarter than her peers.
When she wasn’t in class, Elaina was in the lab or in the field. When she thought she’d given everything she had to her studies, and to Dr. Pierce, she gave more.
She became drunk on the approval that a mentor gives a protégé.
That a father gives a daughter.
Only, Pierce wasn’t her father, and she wasn’t his daughter. The minute she walked off campus for the last time as his student, someone else would be waiting to step forward and fill her shoes. Hopefully, that student wouldn’t have to understand the soul-splitting agony of choosing between capturing data from one of the last spring storms for her dissertation, and sitting vigil by her comatose mother’s bedside.
Heath shifted beside her, inhaling and pulling his shoulders back, as if finally allowing himself to be seen in the office.
She could feel words about to escape his throat. “No, we did not disappoint you.” Her own words were filled with angry energy as they exploded before her best friend could speak. “We did not make a rookie mistake. We did not embarrass you. We did what we do every day. Bust our asses for you.”
Heath whipped his head in Elaina’s direction.
Pierce crossed his arms over his chest and narrowing his eyes.
“What are you doing?” Her partner’s face nearly contorted into a question mark.
“He’s wrong and he knows it.” Her legs bounced, the extra energy needing another escap
e hatch. Or, maybe her legs were trying to take her away before her mouth really got her in trouble. “How many dates have you cancelled with Chloe because of the weather?”
“This is not about me,” Heath said through tight lips.
“Of course this is about you.” She hopped up from her seat and leaned on the desk, answering her friend while staring down her professor. “This is about all of us and the ridiculous demands he places on us because he’s locked in that damn chair and has to live vicariously through us.”
Shit.
Her brain cursed as soon as the insult escaped her lips and her knees went wobbly, as if they wanted to be no part of her blasphemy. Elaina’s hands turned white as they gripped the side of the desk, pulling double duty for her traitorous legs. “I-I’m sorry.” Her apology gurgled with the water, bobbing like an air bubble waiting for a fish to come and suck it up.
Unfortunately, the fish weren’t biting. Neither was her mentor.
Former mentor?
“Well,” Dr. Pierce said, pausing to clear his throat. “A conversation about your future doesn’t seem likely with your current state. Lucky for you, Ms. Adams, the radar is rather boring over the next few days, so you can take some of that time off you believe you deserve.”
Her heart cantered with the fury of a hailstorm. Dr. Pierce had always been there to help her. To advise her, to show her what she’d missed in a way that was never patronizing. The raw edges of her nerves were quick to jerk at any comment. “I’m sorry,” she said again, this time the sentiment melded with burgeoning tears.
“If you’ll excuse me, I have to prepare to be insulted again with a class of brain-dead freshmen.” He turned his attention away from Elaina and Heath and the metal-on-metal sound of his keyboard tray scraped her ears.
Run. Leave. Go.
Vortex Page 18
