30. Unsung Hero

Chrissy takes on a tornado.

Chrissy examined the darkening sky as she exited the store with her shopping bags. She saw a large bolt of lightening followed by a loud, rolling boom. It looked like a nasty thunderstorm was on its way. Large drops of rain began to sporadically pelt her as she reached the car and loaded her purchases into it. She just got inside the car when the sky opened up with a downpour and the wind began to gust heavily. Lightening flashed and thunder cracked as she pulled out onto the roadway.

Visibility was less than half a mile and she was having a hard time seeing the road through the downpour. She nearly ran down two boys that suddenly appeared out of nowhere bicycling along the side of the road. They looked about eleven or twelve years of age and were carrying fishing rods with them. They had apparently gotten caught in the storm. “Stupid kids!” she muttered, “Don't they have the sense to get out of this mess?” Oh, well. If the idiots got hit by lightening it was none of her business.

She continued driving for a few seconds, then stopped. She shook her head in exasperation and put the car in reverse. When she had drawn even with the boys she rolled the window down and yelled at them, “Hey! You dumb-asses! Get under some shelter before you get struck by--”

A loud wailing sound suddenly cut her off. Tornado sirens! Chrissy tensed and began scanning the sky. The sirens didn't necessarily mean that there was a tornado, but that a weather radar somewhere in the county had picked up some cloud rotation. False alarms were not uncommon. There was a sudden bright flash of light up ahead near the ground that was followed by a loud, popping crack! “That wasn't lightening!” she said to herself with a worried look.

She could hardly see anything through her rain soaked windshield, so she got out of the car and looked up. The rain was beginning to slacken, but the visibility was still probably only half a mile. Why are all those birds flying around in a thunderstorm? she wondered as she saw a bunch of small black objects swirling around in the sky in front of her. Wait! Those aren't birds. That's... debris!!” There was another bright flash followed by a popping sound ahead of her and she realized it was coming from power lines being torn from utility poles. “Oh, s**t!!” She had a sick suspicion about what was happening.

The two boys had gotten off of their bicycles and were standing next to her. The situation did not look good. She started looking around for some kind of shelter. As she searched, one of the boys pointed up and said, “Look at that!!”

They looked up at the sky in front of them and saw a long, snake-like funnel slowly emerging from the haze of rain no more than two blocks away and coming toward them. Chrissy looked around frantically, her mind quickly analyzing each option. There was a furniture store just ahead of them to the right. It was constructed of sheet metal and glass. We'd have better luck in a cardboard box! Ahead of that was a cement block building. Too far, we'll never make it! A drainage ditch ran along the side of the road. Too exposed! But as she followed the ditch with her eyes, she saw a culvert where the driveway to the furniture store crossed over it. Yes!

She grabbed each boy by the hand and hollered, “Come on!” The culvert was about half-way between them and the tornado. They would have to hurry. As they started running the sky opened up with a bombardment of marble-sized hail. “Gah! Holy Hell!!” Chrissy yelled as the hail pelted them painfully. The boys let go of her and whimpered as they covered their heads with their hands. She grabbed them by the shirt collars and dragged them along with her. “Move it, d****t!!”

When they reached the culvert, Chrissy looked down at the opening with dismay. It was blocked with iron bars, presumably to keep kids from playing in it. The wind nearly blew her off her feet and she had to hold on to the boys to keep them from being blown away. As she looked around desperately for another option a large, crumpled piece of sheet metal fell out of the sky next to them and rolled away down the street. There was no time for a plan 'B'!

She pushed both boys into the ditch and jumped in after them. The hail had stopped, but the wind was whipping the rain into their faces and there was a loud roaring sound. I'll be damned. It does sound like a locomotive! She hunkered down against the iron gate and wound an arm around one of the bars. She hollered at the boys, “Listen to me! Hold on to me with everything you've got and don't let go!” They both stared at her. “NOW!!” They wrapped their arms around her. “Tighter!” They hugged onto her so hard she could barely breathe. She wrapped her free arm around them as best she could.

Suddenly, everything seemed to stop. The rain quit and the wind died. There was an eerie calm. It was as if someone had pushed a pause button on the storm. The boys looked up into the sky in awe, wondering if they had just been saved by some strange miracle. But Chrissy wasn't fooled for one second. “Put your heads down!” she snarled through gritted teeth, “Hang on!!” They immediately complied, for just that moment more afraid of her than of the storm.

That's when all hell broke loose! The air began to swirl around them with such force that it nearly pulled Chrissy's arm out of its socket. The wind screamed and it felt as if someone was trying to yank the boys out of her grasp. Her ears popped painfully as the air pressure dropped and she had a hard time discerning which shrieks were from the boys and which were from the wind. She felt a warm sensation against her thigh and for a moment worried it was blood, then realized one of the boys had wet his pants.

Then it was over. The wind died and the roaring began to subside. She tried to move but the boys still clung to her like leeches. “Okay, you can let go now,” she said, “But stay down.”

She peeked over the top of the ditch and saw the tornado receding into the distance. It had moved off of the road and was traveling over an empty field. “That mother must've gone right over us,” she muttered, then turned to the two boys. “You guys okay?” she asked.

They both nodded, still visibly shaken and sobbing with fear. They followed her up out of the ditch and back onto the roadway. Debris was everywhere. There was a pick-up truck on its side right where they had been standing a half a minute before. Where the hell did that come from?! There was no one inside. She walked back to the car and inspected it. There was not a scratch on it. The boys' bikes were lying nearby undamaged. It was amazing just how selective a tornado could be in its destruction.

The boys stayed within a couple of feet of her, still frightened from their ordeal and looking to her for guidance. Chrissy heard approaching sirens and saw a police car coming toward them. The car stopped and an officer got out. “Are you guys okay?” he asked.

Chrissy nodded. “You might want to check that place,” she said, pointing at the furniture store. Large pieces of the roof were missing and all the windows were shattered. He got back into his patrol car and sped off. More police cars began arriving while some sped by to other parts of the city.

“You guys should be alright, now,” she said to the boys, “Just don't go near any power lines! Wait until the cops give you the all-clear before you go home.”

They nodded silently. Then one of them said, “Thanks, lady.”

“Yeah,” she replied, then added sternly, “Stay the hell out of thunderstorms from now on, okay?!”

She got into the car and drove home. Ian had heard the sirens and had been concerned about her when she got back to the apartment. All she told him was that she had seen a tornado. Later, as they watched the evening news, almost all the stories were about the tornado. Luckily, there had been no fatalities, though there had been some serious injuries and a lot of damage. One of the stories was about two young boys who reported that an unknown woman had saved their lives and then disappeared after it was over. One of the boys' mothers was interviewed and she gave a tearful 'thank you' to whomever the strange woman was. Ian looked at Chrissy suspiciously during the story, but she ignored him.

“Stupid chick should have her head examined for risking her neck for two dumb-a*s kids that don't know any better than to get out of a storm,” she muttered.

“Well, if I was that woman's husband, I'd be damned proud of her for what she did,” he said with a hint of a smile, “She's very brave.”

She looked at him for a few seconds and then turned back to the TV. “Well, I suppose she couldn't just let them face that tornado alone without doing anything.”

“She sounds like an amazing woman.”

“Stupid kids.”

Author's Note

As usual, Chrissy doesn't like drawing attention to herself.

All constructive criticisms and suggestions are welcome.

Reviews

[Kaya]

You describe that storm incredibly... I felt as though i were there. (albeit in a safer way)
I adored the way Chrissy saved those boys and I think Ian's definitely got a grip on the perfect way to make her feel loved and appreciated without embarrassing her.

[Craig2591]

Thank you. Writing an action scene like that is always challenging. I'm glad it was successful.

[Julie McCarthy (juliesp..]

I read this quickly and loved it, i like the descriptions of the storm/tornado and the quirky ending!!! great thanks for entry into my competition on seasons.

[Craig2591]

Thank you very much!

[Julie McCarthy (juliespenhere)]

It’s ok congratulations

[Julie McCarthy (juliespenhere)]

Check your emails I think this won a place in my comps I judged

[Julie McCarthy (juliespenhere)]

Yes you did !

[Christy the Poetic Hear..]

Chrissy is a true hero!!! Thank you for entering my contest!!

[Craig2591]

Thank you for the review.

[John Lauterbach]

Never been in a tornado before, and I don't think I want to be. I like the confusion of the debris with birds and comparing the sound of the wind to a train, those added a lot to it.

[Craig2591]

Thanks. Though I've never actually seen one, I live in a very active tornado part of the country and know a lot about them.

[Tabitha t]

The storm was very believable.I loved hoe she didnt say she was the Hero. Very Chrissy like. great additon to the saga!

[Craig2591]

Thanks. I'm glad it was believable. There's a tornado siren about thirty yards from my house. It will make you jump right out of your skin when it goes off, especially in the middle of the night.

I read a story of a guy that hid in his bathroom during a tornado. The storm ripped the roof off of his house and tried to suck him out. He had to hold onto the toilet to keep from getting sucked out. It pulled his dog out of his grasp (he found the dog unharmed afterward). It kind of inspired the part where Chrissy was in the ditch holding on for dear life.

[Tabitha t]

You can tell you put a lot of work into this. You had a very clear vision in your head when you wrote this and you can tell. Good job

[Annie Ale]

I like the fact that she put the children before herself and didn't take credit for it with her husband. That made the story more real.

[Craig2591]

Thank you for the review.

[Tina Kline]

Avery gripping and intense chapter. Chrissy was brave, yes, and she kept her head about her and didn't panic. She is a survivor!

[Craig2591]

Thanks.

[Nienor Niniel]

Enjoyable story, with drama, too! Chrissy is a lovely human being.

[Craig2591]

Thank you.