“I’m sorry darlin’. I’m trying to get us out of here.”
“Mommy? Is the storm coming back?” Jill’s white nightgown seemed to glow in the dark from across the room.
Jessica sighed. “No, baby. I think it’s all gone. We’re kind of stuck until someone can open one of these doors.”
“Where are Julia and Tim?” Jennifer asked.
“They’re upstairs somewhere. Don’t worry. Tim is with your sister. He wouldn’t let anything happen to her.” She stroked her oldest daughter’s fair hair away from her cheek, her heart seizing in her chest, hoping to god that was true.
“I need to go potty,” Jill admitted, crossing her bare ankles and doing the tinkle dance.
“Okay. Let me shine the light in here while you go.” The over-sized shoes she wore slapped against the floor as she ushered her girls to the half bath and watched as the two took turns using the toilet and washing their hands. When they finished, she had them sit on the leather sofa sectional and gave each of them a small water bottle she pulled out of the mini-fridge under the bar.
“Now what?” Jennifer asked, leaning her head back sleepily.
“I guess we wait.” Remembering she had some extra blankets under the bookcase, she pulled them out while holding Jo-Jo on her hip. Staying busy placating her girls kept her mind off the unthinkable. She also didn’t want to frighten them.
“Why don’t you lay back and I’ll cover you up, so you’re nice and snuggly. You can close your eyes while we wait. It’ll be like our own little slumber party.”
The girls seemed energized by the idea and promptly shifted throw pillows, making their special areas on the furniture. Once they settled, Jessica laid back on the open side of the L-shaped sofa and held Jo-Jo to her chest. Staring up at the ceiling, she wondered where Tim was and if he was trying to get to her, the last words out of his mouth haunting her.
I love you, Jessica. Everything will be okay.
The night was long, the minutes dragging agonizingly by. As the first light of day seeped in through the cracks in the closed plantation shutters, Jessica was startled out of a light sleep with the sound of a chainsaw. Jo-Jo immediately started to cry.
“It’s okay. Shh. Baby girl, it’s the workers outside. We’ll be out soon.”
Jennifer and Jill stood on the sofa cushions and watched as two firemen in full uniform pushed open the door and looked around. One of them took off his helmet and gloves as he came toward Jessica.
“I’m Sergeant Conner, Miss. Is everyone accounted for in your household?”
Jessica sat Jo-Jo on the couch and shook the man’s hand before shaking her head. “I can’t open the door at the top of the stairs. One of my daughters is up there with my… my boyfriend.”
A walkie-talkie went off with a crackle of static. “You haven’t heard from them? Any pounding on the door? Yelling?”
Jessica could feel her skin prickle with nerves. “No, sir.”
“Okay. You all sit tight while we go check it out.” The two men lumbered toward the stairs.
“Excuse me, but was that a tornado that came through? Is my house damaged upstairs?”
The two men looked at each other before the sergeant took a step back. “The news channels are saying it was an F2 tornado—a lot of devastation. No loss of life so far.” He put his helmet back on his head. “I’m afraid your house suffered a lot of damage. Your roof was blown off, and a couple of large pines came down through the middle. Glad you and your girls made it down here in time. I’m hoping your other daughter and your boyfriend found a safe spot to ride it out.”
Jessica could feel the air leave her lungs. Swaying precariously, she felt light-headed, afraid she was about to lose it in front of her children.
“Easy, ma’am. I’m gonna have to ask you to sit down.” He grabbed her by the elbow and helped her sit next to Jo-Jo. “We’ll go check it out. I’m calling dispatch to get some guys to come to the basement door and get you out of here too. You won’t get very far with those shoes on.”
“Okay,” she managed to utter. Jo-Jo crawled into her lap, and Jessica absent-mindedly started stroking her fair hair.
The sound of the firemen’s heavy black boots going up the stairs was daunting. With a quick shove, the upstairs door came open and sunlight filtered into the basement hallway.
Wait, what? Sunlight?
She stood and looked up at the entrance, the morning sky greeting her in all its glory. What used to be her living room was totally gone.
“Oh my god,” she whispered. Jo-Jo seemed to sense her distress and started to cry. Jessica swallowed hard, trying to keep a grip on her toddler.
“Mama? What’s wrong?” Jennifer stood next to her, the worry on her young face evident.
