“Yeah.”
“How’s it feel to be a shit sometimes?”
“Good. Refreshing.”
“Imagine that. Question. Does a God-loving man like yourself ever get the urge to break the rules?”
He peered in my direction, curiosity dancing in his eyes as he kept pace with Olivia. “Why do I get the sense you want to corrupt me?”
“Can the innocent be corrupted?”
Another poorly hidden smile curled his lips, and he shrugged.
That decided it.
In one swift move, I tore the dashcam from where it was adhered to the windshield, lowered my window, and sent itflying. The handheld radio followed. Next, I ripped off my headcam and grabbed Gale’s. The expensive pieces of equipment joined them, bouncing and breaking on the road behind us.
I brushed my hands together, all too self-satisfied.
Gale’s jaw dropped as he peered in the rearview mirror. “Oh, wow. Charles is going to have your head on a platter. You’re in so much shit.”
“Yep. Might as well go for broke. Turn this car around, trouble. We’re going back to that cell. I’m here to chase tornadoes, not take a leisurely country drive.”
29
Gale
Gale
I wasn’t sure what was happening to me. Never in my life had I been the reckless one. No one would call me rebellious. I’d grown up afraid of my own shadow and unwilling to break the rules for anything, enough to drive Olivia crazy. Yet, the instant Ozrik suggested turning around, I let off the gas, increased the distance from Olivia’s car, and swung a U-turn. Gunning the engine, I took us back the way we’d come.
Ozrik whooped, slapping my thigh as he studied the sky. “You fucking rebel!” he yelled.
His energy was contagious, and I couldn’t stop smiling. My blood surged as we drove into the heart of a fast-forming hook echo. I didn’t need radar to see it happen. I read the clouds.
Ozrik pointed. “Right there. Do you see it? Go that way.”
I followed his instructions, swinging down one side road after another.
We hadn’t gone far when Ozrik shouted. “Look at that. Those fucking idiots. Look at it. Do you see it?”
“It’s forming a mesocyclone.” It was textbook, and I couldn’t look away, struggling to keep my eyes on the road.
“We need to head west. Take that road up there.” Ozrik bounced in his seat, his eyes glowing in the diminished veil of the storm.
My instincts were not the same as Ozrik’s, and he should have been the one behind the wheel. I had tons of storm knowledge under my belt, but I was used to computer screens and reading data. Discerning how close was too close, or the kind of distance we should keep from a potential tornado, was not my forte, so I listened to his instructions and followed them without question.
He guided me through a few turns until he shouted for me to pull over. The second I stopped, he tumbled from the car like a kid on Christmas morning. He didn’t even shut the door as he ran into the center of the road, neck craned to the sky. I left the key in the ignition and grabbed my camera, joining him.
The storm’s strong current had formed a rotating updraft, pulling air from horizontal to vertical. That current drew in the humid and rain-cooled air, condensing it until a low-forming cloud appeared, shifted, and grew. We stared, awestruck.
Ozrik slapped my arm, pointing like I couldn’t see it happening. “It’s forming a wall cloud. Shit, Gale. Is it gonna happen? It’s going to happen.” He rubbed his arms, as if they tingled, his smile breathtaking.
The wind whipped our clothes, slashed our faces, and knotted our hair. It didn’t rain, but the storm raged. Neither of us moved, mesmerized by the spectacle. Books and videos didn’t do it justice. I understood why Ozrik did this.
My heart pounded. Although the instinct to run was hard to resist, I remained rooted in place, taking it all in.
Struck with nervous anticipation, I took his hand.
