“I haven’t seen it come down like this in years.”
Warning tones rang from their phones.
Digging through her purse, Rachel groaned. “One day I’ll clean this mess out.”
He chuckled and handed her his phone. “Use mine.”
“A flash flood warning has been issued until eight.”
“This area never floods. We’ll be fine.” He drove below an overpass and pulled off to the side. “From flooding at least. I can’t see beyond the wipers.”
“Storms rarely happened where I grew up, but they were amazing when they did.” Her eyes took on a faraway expression. “We lived on the outskirts of town, with miles of flat desert to the north and east. When lightning came, we were treated to a lightshow better than Fourth of July fireworks.”
“I’ve seen videos of desert storms and they’re amazing.” He leaned forward and adjusted the radio to an AM station that gave weather updates.
Monotone voices emitted from the radio, repeating warnings and watches for local areas.
Rachel’s skin faded to a ghastly shade of gray. “Did they say tornado?”
He muttered under his breath, the closest to a curse he would ever come. “We have to get out of here. Under an overpass is one of the most dangerous places to be during a tornado.”
“But how? The raining’s coming harder, and I didn’t think that was possible.”
“I’ll go slow. There’s that shopping center half a mile down the road.” He looked the best he could out the side mirror and saw no lights, the only indication he’d be able to see of another vehicle. “If we can get there, we can run inside. It will be safer.”
Inch by inch, foot by foot, he drove. The rain pelted his car. When the sound became louder, he realized it was mixed with nickel-sized hail. He gripped the steering wheel with all his strength and consoled himself with a reminder that hail wasn’t an absolute indicator of a twister.
“Can you play around with the stations, please, listen for more detailed information?” He didn’t dare take a hand off the wheel. It was all he could do to stay on the road with both hands.
“Okay.” Her answer sounded more like a croak, but she proceeded to press the button, stopping every time she heard a voice. “They’re all repeating the same information.”
“Do me a favor. In my phone, find Craig McClaren. Call him and put him on speaker.” The wind picked up, and he fought to keep his car straight. “He’s an old buddy from college and dabbles in meteorology.”
She held his phone and scrolled through. “Got it.”
The constant downpour and strong gusts almost cancelled out the noise of the phone ringing.
After several rings, Aaron didn’t think Craig would answer. He was about to tell Rachel to hang up when he heard Craig’s signature baritone voice.
“Aaron, my friend, what’s up? I hope you aren’t caught in this monstrosity.”
“Actually, I am. Have you heard any info on this tornado? We’re hearing the warning, but not getting much more than that.”
“Oh man. Where are you?” Craig’s tone hopped from friendly to worried in the space of a second.
“On Hammond Avenue, a quarter of a mile, maybe, from Effron Plaza.”
“You should be good. There’s a cell with rotation near Dulles Boulevard, but no funnel as of now and it’s tracking north of you. A small cloud was spotted over by the Mency area, but that’s dissipated now.”
“That’s a relief.” His fingers eased their grip to a normal strength.
He glanced over and saw the harsh lines of Rachel’s frown soften as she realized the tornado threat wasn’t imminent.
“There’s the shopping center.” Rachel pointed ahead and leaned forward, peering through the waterfall on the window. “At least, I think it is.
“Looks like it.”
“Get off the road and be safe.” Craig’s voice startled Aaron—he’d forgotten his friend was still on the line. “If any more rotations show up, I’ll call you.”
