by Holly Hook
The farther we get into Nebraska, the clearer it gets that I’m going to get another taste of my new curse.
It's three in the afternoon now, and the nice, fluffy cotton balls drifting over the plains grow taller, turning into dragons and towering mountains. The shadows rolling over the plains deepen into lakes of darkness. Before long the first rumbles of thunder will roll through the air.
“Yep. I think I’m some kind of storm magnet now.” I try to keep my tone light, but my words quiver.
A week ago I was excited to see this.
"This isn't looking good," Tommy says, hitting the gas. "How far are we from Highway 54?"
I turn my phone on and mess with the GPS, following the lines of red and blue on the little screen. "Maybe twenty minutes. Then we need to make a left and go south." I circle Evansburg with my finger, leaving a fine line of sweat on the glass. It's a tiny dot in an expanse of green and brown.
What am I going to do when I find that woman again?
"Tommy, when we get there, I want to go in alone when we find that farm."
"No way," he says, glancing at me. He's pale with smudges of gray under his glasses. "There's no way you're facing that alone."
"There's no way you're going in there. I don't think you'll like getting put on that altar or whatever and getting a tornado slammed into your chest."
"They only want people who like storms. Right? I was never real interested in them. I don't think they'll want someone who's more into Internet gaming."
"You'd never know." I look out the window at the biggest storm-in-making. It's towering towards the stratosphere, winning the race against the others. "Tommy, if it looks like it's going to get bad, I want you to drop me off on the side of the road and drive away."
He stares ahead, not meeting my gaze. "Allie, I'm not doing that."
Half an hour later, we're on Highway 54, heading south to Evansburg. That’s when I make the decision to get Tommy away from me.
Thunder rumbles. The sky's turned an ugly green-gray to the west. The grass turns dark green and waves like an ocean all around us. My body tingles in anticipation, like its calling out to its element. I can't stop it. And like the others, this storm isn't going to miss. Even if Tommy steps on it, there’s no outracing it.
"Stop the car.”
I can't run from this forever. But the transformation--how can I deal with another one--
Tommy pulls to the side of the highway. A single car approaches from the distance, its headlights kicking on. "Come on, Allie. This storm looks dangerous. What if there's hail or high winds or--"
I snort. "I'm the most dangerous thing here, Tommy." It makes me queasy to say it. I stare down at the floor of the car as another distant rumble washes over us. "I don't think storms can hurt me. It's just a feeling I have."
Tommy looks past me to the darkening sky. "What if you, you know, destroy something?"
I grab the door handle. The land outside is flatter than flat. A single farm stands a couple of miles away, its silos shiny and its barn upright. Other than that, it's all empty. "What? The crops? There's nothing out here. That's why it's better to get this over with before we get to civilization." I harden my features, holding my terror back.
Tommy sighs. He knows I have a point.
The growl rears up inside me, low and dangerous.
I scramble out of the car.
"Allie!" Tommy turns off the ignition and the engine dies.
"Drive away!" I point down the road. "Come back here and get me when it's done."
"But--"
I slam the door. Tommy shakes his head behind the glass. We’re in two different worlds now. He puts effort into making his face a disappointed mask, but just underneath it is relief.
Good. It sucks, but at least I won't kill him. That’s all that matters right now.
He starts the car. With the crunch of gravel, he speeds away.
I watch him go. Red taillights grow smaller down the highway and the growing dark.
He'll come back and get me. I have to remind myself of that. I’m not really alone in this.
He will.
Once Tommy's car turns into a grain of dust on the horizon, it stops. He’s sitting a couple of miles away. Thunder grumbles. It's impatient, waiting for me. I turn and take in the low clouds rolling in over my head. They push and pull against each other like ashy dough.
The tingling grows. Crackles through my body. My palms sweat. I kick at a piece of gravel, watching it skitter across the pavement, trying not to think about what I'm about to turn into.
I have never felt so alone in my life.
My body goes light like I'm floating.
It's starting.
I fold my arms and head for the side of the road. I squat down in the weeds, staring at the grass. They pick at my clothes. Tickle my hair. I count the pebbles, waiting, breathing slowly, willing my pulse to slow.
A few fat raindrops fall onto the pavement. One plops onto my head. Lightning forks to the ground.
And another car approaches from the distance. I can hear it.
My heart leaps enough to break the dizzy spell. They can't see me. If they do, they'll stop. Ask me if I need a ride. Insist I can't walk out here in the storm.
And die.
I scramble for the ditch and lay low in the tall weeds. They'll keep going. Get away from me and continue with their lives. The low whoosh of the car grows louder and another wave of the lightheaded feeling socks me.
Rain rushes down, then stops.
The car's slowing. The whoosh of its tires turns into a grumble and goes silent. The plinks of the cooling engine remind me so much of Tommy's car that I'm sure for a second that it's him.
No. It's a blue car, stopped not twenty feet away from me. I can make out the headlights through the weeds. Someone moves on the other side of the windshield wipers. Storm chasers. Nobody else would stop in front of weather like this.
I can't stay here.
If I run, they'll see me.
If I stay--
The growl fills my head.
With the crashing of grass, I dart out from the ditch, dig my feet into dirt and bolt into the field.
The car door flies open. "Hey!" a man yells.
I don't look back. Another door opens and feet thud after me.
Then I glance back. The world tilts, threatening to go out. Rain beats down again. A dark-haired teenage boy runs after me. He pumps his muscled arms, desperate, terrified.
"Get away from me!" I bolt ahead. An irrigation ditch blocks my way. If I can't jump it--I don't want to think about that.
"Come back!" The boy mutters something. "You'll be safe in the car."
No, I won't. No, they won’t.
The ditch is too big to jump. It's full of water, racing away from the storm.
My being roars and I skid to a stop in the mud.
He catches up with me and locks his hands around my forearms from behind.
"Come on!" he yells, pulling me. "You need to get in the car. You won't get hurt there."
We tumble back. Land. He lets go and I slide from his grasp. Lightning flashes and thunder shakes the world.
"Get away!" I crawl away and face him. "I'm about to--"
"I mean it." He stands and takes my arm, pulling me to my feet. "You want to die out here?"
Our gazes meet. He's got weird eyes. Brown, with flecks of black.
"You don't understand!" I thrash, but his strength matches my own. "Run. I'm a…I'm a--" What, exactly? "Just go!"
"I--" He closes his eyes and turns away, covering them. I'm free.
I stagger away. The world's weightless. I'm air. The boy rushes away like he senses the change.
I fall. Rain pounds down, but I'm past feeling it.
The boy falls, too. He lands in a heap. Lifts a hand like he's waving me away. It slaps back down
on the mud.
Is he…is he like me?
Wind blasts. I'm breaking apart. Flying. The field tilts under me and disappears into the rain.
The rain clears. Fields stretch out below. The earth's a brown and green checkerboard. It's lined with trees. It's amazing. The view makes my transformation almost worth it.
Then the roar explodes.
I twist and turn, plowing forward. The crops bow down. The fields wave in terror.
I am destruction.
And this time I'm not alone.
Chapter Nine
