Twist of Fate

by Parker, Syd

  “Hey, she calls herself that, I don’t want to offend.”

  “Right. Like all of a sudden you care about what people think.”

  “Let’s just say, I’m finally growing up.” Parker said proudly, then laughed. “Or, at least I’ll say I’m thinking about it.”

  “Oh God, don’t think too hard. I don’t want you to get a headache.”

  “Funny, Sarah.” Parker tapped the map. “Why don’t you just shut up and drive?”

  Chapter 16

  Remy drained the last of her Mt. Dew and scanned the horizon. They had passed a couple other chasing teams on the fourteen—hour drive from Iowa to Alabama, but hadn’t passed the hail battered Chevy. She knew without speaking to Sarah that she would be heading in the same direction. Both were seasoned chasers, and especially recently, had an uncanny knack for showing up in the same place. Sarah may not have liked it, but it pleased Remy to no end.

  “They’re already here, Chica.” Carmen’s amused tone interrupted her thoughts.

  “Who’s already here?” Remy asked nonchalantly, but Carmen read her like a dime store hooker.

  “You know.” Carmen smirked, obviously not letting Remy off the hook. “Pretty excited to get there myself.”

  “I’m sure.” Remy said sarcastically. “Picking up where you left off?”

  “Well that and…” Carmen’s eyes twinkled wickedly. “Got a text from Parker. Apparently, she’s got some pretty good gossip to tell me. A little something about Sarah hooking up with someone. You wouldn’t happen to know what she was talking about, would you?”

  Remy shrugged and shook her head feigning innocence. “Nope, can’t say that I do.”

  “Tu eres tanta.” Carmen said with a chuckle. “You think I don’t know something is going on with you?”

  “Did you just call me a fool?” Remy asked incredulously.

  “Si, Chica. Because you are a fool. I got eyes, you know? I can see what’s going on right in front of me.”

  Remy rolled her eyes. “There’s nothing to see, because there is nothing going on.”

  “Uh-huh. Just like nothing happened that night you met Sarah.”

  Remy’s face went white. “What do you know about that night?”

  “I know you guys disappeared, and I didn’t see you till the next morning. You want to try and tell me that you were studying weather charts?” Carmen teased her mercilessly. “I’m just betting that Sarah’s little hookup has everything to do with you.”

  “Nah.” Remy shook her head. “Besides, we didn’t hook up. It was just a kiss.”

  “Mierda!” Carmen slapped her thigh. “I knew it! You got the hots for her, huh?”

  “Maybe.” Remy blushed.

  “You better tell me about this kiss, Chica.”

  “It’s not a big deal, C. Just let it go okay?” Remy pleaded with Carmen. “I’m not sure anything will even come of it, but I don’t want you two hoo—hahs ruining my chances by ragging on her about it.”

  Carmen’s eyes widened and she put her palms up feigning innocence. “Who, me?”

  “Yes, you, Ms. Nosy Pants.” Remy smiled.

  “If it gets you laid, I’ll take a vow of silence.”

  Remy snorted loudly. “You, not talk? That’s the funniest shit I’ve ever heard.”

  Carmen glared at Remy and waggled her finger in her face. “Keep it up, Chica. Don’t make me go all Puerto Rican on your ass.”

  “Truce.” Remy begged. “The last time you did that it was four straight days of yelling at me in Spanish. Ay, ya, ya, I couldn’t take that again.”

  “You give up too fast, Chica.” Carmen scolded mildly. “I hope you have more fight in you for Sarah. She will chew you up and spit you out.”

  “Hey, if it involves me and her and eating in the same sentence, she can do whatever she wants.”

  Carmen groaned loudly.

  “Hey, if I have to sit and listen to you and Parker and your bad hotdog jokes, you can tolerate my pie jokes.”

  “I’m just saying that woman is fire. I see the way she glares at you. It’s not pretty and if you are going to handle that one, you are going to have to grow some balls.”

  “Or…I could just borrow Parker’s.” Remy snickered at Carmen’s look of disgust.

  “You want to play for her team, you gotta get your own balls, Chica.”

  “Fine.” Remy conceded. “And, don’t you worry about me. I can handle her just fine. If she’ll give me a chance.” Remy added under her breath.

  “Que?”

  “Nada. Just talking to myself.” Remy checked the gauges. “Shit, we gotta get gas. We are way passed empty. See what happens when you get me off track?”

  “Dios mio.” Carmen exclaimed loudly. “You’ve been on the left side of the street since we ran into Sarah.”

  Remy laughed out loud. “You mean out in left field.”

  “Street, field, whatever. You’ve been a whole different Remy the past few weeks.”

  “You don’t like it?”

  “Nah, I’m not saying that. I’m just saying you are different. More focused on the things going on around you, not the old Remy that was solely focused on just this.” Carmen spread her hands out, encompassing the vehicle around them.

  Remy knew she was talking about chasing in general. She was right, this had been her life for longer than she could count on one hand. She was still as dedicated as before, she was just starting to realize that there might be room in her life to actually have a life. “I’m growing, what can I say?”

  “I like this new you. You’re much more fun to be around.”

  Carmen smiled. She didn’t need Remy to acknowledge her existence outside of being her spotter, but it made her feel good knowing that maybe all the years they had shared a tiny space together had made an impression on Remy. Maybe, when they joked about being friends, they really were. And maybe, just maybe, Remy had room in her heart for more than the nameless souls she was trying to save. Maybe she actually had room in her heart for herself.

  “Gracias, C. In my old age, I’m realizing that I need more than this to be complete. I’m content with my life, but I see the way you and Parker look at each other, and I know I’m missing out. I kiss Sarah one time, and in that instant, a future very different than the one I planned flashed in front of me, and you know what, I liked it. I want more. I want the whole nine yards. I’ve locked myself away in Thor for too long. I realize there is room for more than one love in my life.” Now I just have to convince Sarah she wants the same thing.

  “In your old age, you have gotten pretty smart.” Carmen smiled from ear—to—ear, watching Remy deftly maneuver Thor into a lane at the far end of the gas station. “Think you can still pump the gas, or do you need me to do it, old timer?”

  “You’re a funny girl.” Remy jumped out of the truck and started the pump. She knocked on Carmen’s window and when she rolled it down, she smiled ruefully. “I’m gonna grab another pop. You want anything?”

  “An extra hot, non—fat, soy latte, light foam, no whip.” Carmen laughed at Remy’s exaggerated glare. “Kidding. Just grab me some gas station coffee. But you owe me a frou—frou drink from Starbucks.”

  “Deal.” Remy jogged away. Moments later, she deposited a steaming cup of coffee in Carmen’s hands. Remy had already drained half of one soda and had a second tucked under her arm. She caught Carmen’s sideways glance and shrugged her shoulders. “What? I’m tired.”

  “Uh—huh.”

  Carmen scanned the radar while Remy topped the tank off and got back in the truck with a sigh.

  “Is it close?”

  “Another couple of hours, I think.” She held the phone up for Remy to see. “But, there is definite movement in this storm. This one’s big, Rem. Biggest of the season.

  Remy could only nod. Carmen hadn’t exaggerated. The jet stream had caught up with the trough they had been watching, and the radar flashed way more red than green.

  “Where should we camp out?�
��

  Remy rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “I’m thinking anywhere in this corridor.” She pointed at a strip between Mississippi and Alabama. “This storm’s already dropped funnels in Oklahoma and Texas. I think that was just the beginning. I say we hang out somewhere south of Tuscaloosa.”

  Carmen nodded. “I don’t even know where to begin. There’s massive supercells everwhere.”

  “I’m watching this cell.” Remy pointed at a large cell centered about fifty miles north of Jackson, Missisippi. “This one just looks bad.”

  “Alright, let’s do it then.”

  Remy pointed the truck back out on the highway. The system they were watching was part of a major system that covered half the US. It had already kicked several tornadoes out, one measuring an EF4. It had leveled the small town of Cullman. The other thing that worried Remy more than anything were reports that the storms had knocked out power for most of the residents in the storm’s path, making it nearly impossible to issue warnings. If more tornadoes did touch down, she could only pray that everyone had made it to safety.

  They had made good time so far, but when they hit rain just outside of Fayette, they slowed considerably. “Shit, this is nuts.” Remy squinted, trying to make out the road through the water pouring down the windshield. “I hope it doesn’t stay this bad.”

  “Shouldn’t.” Carmen said after looking at the radar. “We should drive out of this in a couple of minutes.”

  Remy’s phone buzzed crazily on the console. She tossed it to Carmen. “Text. Check it.”

  “Dios mio.” Carmen said as she read the text. “It’s Sarah. There’s a tornado down in Lawrence County. They are following it now.”

  “Tell her to be careful and try not to be a hero.” Remy shook her head. “Oh shit, that means Parker is driving. Is she crazy?”

  Carmen swallowed a lump in her throat. This was Parker’s first season. She shouldn’t be driving, at least not in the middle of a chase. “Why isn’t Sarah driving?”

  “My guess, she didn’t want to miss any of the footage.”

  “Again…is she crazy?”

  “Probably a little. Hopefully, she doesn’t have Parker trying anything crazy.” Remy prayed they were all right. It was one thing to drive into a tornado with Thor. It was entirely different, and potentially suicidal, to do so in Sarah’s car. She silently cursed Sarah’s contract with Rogue Weather. Hopefully, her need for funding wouldn’t outweigh common sense. “I’m sure they are fine.”

  Remy passed a small sign announcing Tuscaloosa in twenty miles. She grabbed the map and flicked her eyes between that and the road. “I’m going to come around on Highway 11.”

  Twenty minutes later, she parked on the shoulder. One glance at the sky, and Remy knew this storm was a bad one. “These trees are killing us. We need to get to a clearing.”

  She drove and kept a massive supercell in her rear view mirror.

  “Park here.” Carmen pointed to a break in the trees where they could see farmland for several miles. “This is good.” She pointed at a large hook echo in the supercell just behind them. “Look at the rotation in this cell. It’s churning.”

  Remy grabbed her camera and got out, shooting several shots of the wall cloud that arched above them. “There, there. We’ve got a tail. It’s coming down. Oh God, C, it’s massive.”

  Carmen pointed out in the field. “Debris, we’ve got debris. That funnel is down.”

  “It’s gotta be moving a good fifty, sixty miles an hour.” Remy continued snapping pictures. “Oh shit, oh shit! Power lines, it’s snapping the power lines.” She saw the telltale spark of electricity as the tornado shredded across the fields, ripping up power lines.

  “Rem, we gotta move! It’s shifting, it’s shifting!” Carmen was waving excitedly. “Rem, get us out of here!”

  Remy turned on the engine and gunned it. The tires whined in protest. They couldn’t get traction on the wet pavement. She watched the massive tornado coming straight for them. It was at least three—quarters of a mile wide and bearing down on them faster than they could move.

  “Come on. Get this fucking thing moving!” Carmen shouted above the massive roar behind them. “Let’s go!”

  “I’m trying.” Remy let off the gas, letting the tires grip and then she gunned it. She could see trees in her mirror being ripped up and flung out in the road. The last thing she wanted was a huge branch coming at her face. Her hands were ghostly white where she gripped the steering wheel and she could hear Carmen praying in Spanish.

  Even though they had ridden one tornado in Thor and survived, this tornado would shred them to pieces. Remy guessed it to be an EF4, one of the strongest tornadoes possible. She couldn’t tell which was louder, her heart beating or the massive rush of wind that sounded like a freight train running through her head.

  “Faster, you have to go faster!” Carmen shouted.

  “I’m trying. Don’t you think I know that?” Remy yelled, her fear making her edgy. She passed cars on the highway and she waved her hand at the drivers to turn around. “Tornado! Turn around! Turn around! Can’t they see a fucking tornado about to take them out?”

  She could hear Thor’s engine protesting her demands to speed up. “God, come on!” Her heart raced and beads of sweat rolled down her face. Just when she thought she wouldn’t out run it, the tornado shifted directions and headed north again. She pulled over and got out of the truck. Her body shook all over.

  Carmen was laughing nervously. “Oh man, that was close. I can’t believe we made it.”

  They watched the tornado in awed silence. It hadn’t gotten smaller, in fact it looked like it had grown in size. They had seen hundreds of tornadoes over the years but this one was unlike any other. Remy guessed it had already cut a path over twenty miles long, making it one of the longest tornado paths on record.

  “Rem?” Carmen nudged her arm lightly.

  “Yeah.”

  “It’s heading straight for Tuscaloosa. If it stays together, they are screwed.”

  “Oh shit.” Remy looked at the bright red rotation on the radar. Tuscaloosa was directly in the line of the storm. “Get in. Whatever happens, they are going to need some help.”

  Remy gunned the engine, and this time the wheels grabbed and Thor jumped like a jackrabbit out of the gate. There was no way they would beat the storm, she only hoped that after it hit, her training would be of use. Her thoughts flashed back to her days as an EMT. She could still see the blank, hollow eyes staring out at her and the thought made her shiver.

  Carmen squeezed her arm. “Maybe it won’t be as bad.”

  Remy shook her head, her eyes grim. “I’m afraid it’s going to be worse.”

  They could still see the massive wedge tornado in the distance and the amount of debris getting pulled into the vortex was unlike anything they had ever seen. Remy’s eyes never left the tornado and Carmen had the camera trained on it, recording every detail of the storm as it raged its fury on anything in its path.

  “I just hope they saw it coming.” Remy’s voice shook with unmistakable uncertainty. “Otherwise, there is no telling what we will find.”

  Aside from the sound of the road, neither one spoke again until they pulled into the city. Nothing could have prepared them for the devastation that awaited them. Tuscaloosa had been leveled. Remy’s heart broke again and she struggled with the knowledge that she was no closer to figuring out the violent storms today than she was eight years ago.

  Every building for miles had been demolished, cars had been thrown around like toys and trees lay upended as far as she could see. The first people were just coming outside, stunned looks on their faces. She could hear sirens in every direction. She swallowed the massive lump in her throat and let out a heart—wrenching wail. “It’s just not fair, it’s just not fucking fair.”

  Carmen squeezed her hand. “Come on. They need us.” She was the level—headed one now, her emotions shoved deep inside. If she didn’t get Remy’s head on straight, she w
ould be no help to anyone, least of all herself. She forced Remy to park the truck.

  Remy shook off her doubts, taking several deep breaths to steel herself for the task at hand. She started walking in the direction of the worst damage, praying she found life and not the grim faces of death.

  “There!” Carmen shouted, pointing at a man struggling to get his leg out from under a large beam. She squeezed Remy’s hand one last time. “You can do this, Chica. This is why we are here.”

  Remy stumbled over piles of debris on her way to help him. “You alright? You alright?”

  “Yeah, just my leg.” The man said shakily.

  “We’ll get you out. What’s your name?” A calm serene had overtaken Remy, and the years of training came back to her.

  “Peter.”

  “Peter, good to meet you. Why don’t we get this off your leg?” She pulled on the beam unable to budge it. “C, come here. Grab something to wedge this off.”

  Carmen grabbed a smaller two—by—four and shoved it under the beam. “Just hang on Peter, we’ll get you out.” She shouted over the sudden barrage of sirens. She glanced over and saw dozens of ambulances and police cars converging on the main road.

  They gripped the two—by—four and heaved until they felt it budge. The beam moved with a groan. Remy let go long enough to grab Peter’s arm and pull him out. She knelt over him and pulled his pant leg up gingerly. She grimaced when she saw the jagged edge of his tibia poking out of his skin. She hoped her face hadn’t paled enough to worry him. “How you doing, Peter? How’s the pain?”

  He tried to look at his leg but Remy wouldn’t let him. “I’m…I’m alright I guess. Can’t really feel it right now.”

  Remy chuckled nervously. “That’s probably good for now. The shock is keeping you from feeling the pain. There’s a good chance that you broke your leg. I think we need to get it stabilized and see about getting you to the hospital.”

  She grimaced. More than likely, he wouldn’t be seen tonight. Given the devastation around them, his wounds would more than likely be considered minor in a hospital full of people with life—threatening injuries. “Can you hold still for a bit longer? I’m going to try to splint it to prevent any further damage?”