WARNING! — This chapter deals with some real life experiences in a highly fictionalized manner. Storm chasing, the main topic in these chapters, can be extremely dangerous. DO NOT attempt this activity unless you have had proper training or are with an experienced storm chaser with the proper training.

The events in this chapter are based on real experiences during a group of severe thunderstorms that blasted through Upstate NY in the late 1990's. The storms had wind gusts over 125 miles per hour and extremely heavy rain and lightning. They swept through central New York, taking down power lines and damaging buildings all over the area. The storms caused several million dollars damage in central NY.

If anyone reading the story discovers a typo or other error, please let me know so I can correct it. You can send an email to: [email protected]. Please let me know where you saw the story and what the error was. I'll attempt to get it corrected. Thanks to Steve Zink for proof reading and editing assistance and Rebekkah deMere for her expert nit-picking that helps me keep the story on track.

This is a work of fiction, with a few life experiences added in. All of the characters in this story are fictional, and any resemblance to anyone else living or dead is probably a coincidence. Please notify me if you are archiving this and the other chapters of the story on a web site. Permission specifically granted to Sapphire’s Place and Crystal’s Story Site to archive this. If you intend to publish this story in magazine or book (paper or electronic) format, please contact me for arrangements. Additional information on this story may be found at: http://www.ralabs.com/zapped/ .

Dear Diary,

Saturday

Last night was sure interesting. Where else can a girl get to go out with a handsome man to a drive-in movie and nearly get blown away by a tornado?

Waking up again this morning was worse than yesterday and better than yesterday. How can that be? Well…

The first time I woke up was around 3 AM again, when I found myself on the floor UNDER my bed screaming as loudly as I could. The dream had returned again, but this time the images had been crystal clear. I saw Adam and I running for our lives from a huge black wall of debris driven by the wind in the funnel of a tornado. As the blackness was about to engulf us I awoke to find myself on the floor with my head poking out from under the bed.

At this point Adam came charging into the room, baseball bat in hand. "Jen, JEN! What's wrong? Are you OK?" His jaw dropped open when he saw me wedged under the bed.

"What could POSSIBLY be wrong?"

"But you were screaming…" He straightened up from a crouching position, and looked at me under the bed.

"Duh, WHAT'S WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE?"

"You tell me." He leaned casually on the baseball bat, chuckling softly.

"I'm stuck under the bed, all wound up in the blankets, screaming my head off."

"Oh, I thought that might have been it. Thanks." He looked like he was trying very hard not to laugh.

"And WHY does someone come running into my room with a baseball bat every time I scream? What is this, Who's on first?"

"I don't know."

"He's on third…" I struggled to untangle myself from the blankets.

I heard him laugh softly, then he sighed and leaned the bat against the wall near the door. He towered above me with his arms crossed on his chest, looking a lot like Mr. Clean. "Ahhhhh… Are you OK?" A big grin appeared on his face as I looked up at him.

"What's so funny? Do I look OK to you? I'm shaking like a leaf in a hurricane, and I think I wet myself."

"You are, and from here you look fine. Do you want some help getting up?"

"No. I decided that I like it under here. I'm going to stay here for the rest of the night." I struggled harder to free myself from the cocoon under the bed. I gave up when I realized I had only made it worse.

Adam laughed again, then sat down on the floor, pulled me out from under the bead and untangled me from the blankets. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"The same nightmare I had last night and for the past couple of months has returned. I'm not sure I want to say any more right now. Adam, can you just hold me, please?" I was shivering visibly.

"Are you sure, Jen?"

"Yes, Adam. Just hold me, please…TIGHT!"

He moved closer, and I leaned forward slightly to wrap my arms around his waist. He responded by wrapping his arms around my waist. I buried my head in his chest as the tears started to flow. We sat there locked together rocking slightly until my shivering and tears stopped many minutes later.

I looked up at Adam, and he gently wiped away the last of my tears with the sleeve of his pajamas. I scowled at him for using his sleeve. There was that damned silly grin again. He chuckled softly to himself. "Well, you DID get my PJ top all wet didn't you? What's a little more water on the sleeve? Besides, you're even more beautiful when you're mad at me."

"ADAM! Will you please help me get up?"

"Why? You said you LIKED it down here! Want me to get your pillow for you? The blankets are already here." He chuckled again.

"Oh hell, I give up. I can't stay mad." I giggled for a few seconds. "Now, PLEASE help me up."

He picked me up like a limp rag doll and tossed me back on the bed. The sheets and covers followed, landing in a heap on top of me. He sat down on the edge of the bed when he finished making it. I was staring at the wall so he put his hand under my chin and gently guided my head to look at him. "You do realize how absurd you looked under there, don't you? How did you get under there like that, anyway?"

"Yeah, I know how it looked. The only thing hurt is my pride, or what's left of it. Thanks, Adam, I'm glad you're here. And if you figure out how I got under there, please tell me. I don't know."

"I thought he was on third." He got up to leave. "I'll see you in the morning, Jen."

"Adam, please stay."

"All right. I'll be right back." He gently kissed me on my forehead and headed for the guestroom. I heard him use the toilet. Moments after it flushed, he re-appeared carrying a blanket and a pillow. I must have had a confused look on my face. "No, I'm NOT sleeping on the floor. You have a big enough bed that there's room for both of us. I'll just sleep on top of the sheet and blankets. That way we can both be sure nothing is going to happen. OK?"

I nodded, and ducked back down under the covers on my side of the bed. Adam placed the pillow on his side and lay down on top of the covers already in place, facing me, and pulled the blanket over himself. "How's this?"

"Just right, Adam. Thanks for putting up with me. Sorry to be such a big pain."

"Don't worry about it, Jen. Now, try to get some sleep. We've got another big day today." He gently brushed aside the hair that was hanging down in front of my face, then reached back and hit the light switch on his side of the bed to turn out the room lights. In a few minutes, we were both sound asleep.

Waking up again a few hours later was very special. I awoke to find Adam looking at me. We were laying face to face about a foot apart. My arm was over his waist, and his arm was over mine. I had to blink several times to be sure of what I was seeing and feeling.

"Good morning. How are you feeling?"

"Better than I've ever felt, Adam. Are you dealing with this all right? I notice you seem comfortable in this situation."

"Now that I know what I've been missing all of these years, yes, I'm doing fine. The lyrics of an old Mama Cass tune keep running through my head. 'Did you ever hold a hand to stop its tremblin?, Did you ever watch the sun desert the sky?, Did you ever hold a woman while she's sleepin?, friend don't let the good life pass you by.' Two out of three is pretty good don't you think? And maybe we'll get around to watching a sunset together. Thanks for helping me, Jen. I could do this with you every day."

"Maybe we'll watch that sunset tonight. I think the song was called 'Don't let the good life pass you by'. Adam, would you like to do this again tonight?"

"Jen, I would be the world's biggest fool if I said no. I'd like that very much, if you don't mind."

"I'm the one that asked, remember? I wish we could stay here like this for the rest of the day, but we have lots of other things to do. We can continue this later tonight, without all of the sheets and blankets in the way."

A worried look came over his face. "Do you mean you want to have sex?'

"Well, not right now, Adam. I'm still having my period. All I meant was that you've been the perfect gentleman, and I'm comfortable if we share this bed normally without you sleeping above the blankets. Cuddling is better that way, you know. That's what I'm most interested in now. Just the friendly company of another human being."

"I'm not ready to take that next step, either. Just being with you like this is all I will ask of you right now. But when you're ready to take that next step, I think I might be, too. OK?"

"You'll be the first to know, Adam. Now, let's get up and get busy. We may have a long day ahead of us. Let me use the shower first, then I'll get us some breakfast." He nodded in agreement, then pulled back his blanket to get up. He gathered up the blanket and pillow, and started toward the guestroom.

"Ummm, Adam?"

"Yes?"

"I was wondering how you knew about Abbot and Costello and Mama Cass. I thought I was the only one old enough, at least mentally, to know or care about them."

"I like older music, and old comedy bits, too. My dad collected transcriptions of old radio shows from the radio stations. He still has quite a collection of them. I used to listen to Jack Benny, Fred Allen and lots of other old shows as a kid. The 'Who's on first' routine was always a favorite of mine. I sometimes wish I was born back when radio was king, just so I could have worked in broadcasting back then. It seems like such a great time. I'm also a big fan of older movies, too. I noticed quite a collection of video tapes out there in the living room."

"Adam, I know exactly how you feel. I wished the same thing. Maybe later tonight we'll settle down and watch a few of the classics after we watch the sunset."

He nodded and left the room. I got up and headed for the bathroom. I removed the tampon, noting that the flow was almost gone, and stripped for a quick shower. As I was finishing up, a wonderful smell drifted my way from the kitchen. I put on a bra and panties and my bathrobe and went into the kitchen. "ADAM! What are you doing? I was going to make breakfast!"

"I decided to return the favor from yesterday afternoon. Have a seat. It's almost ready."

I dropped into a chair at the kitchen table. In the short time I had been in the shower and drying off (ok, well not so short, since I washed my hair, too), Adam had managed to set the table and prepare hash browns, a sunny side up egg and a few strips of bacon for each of us. Two slices of neatly buttered toast were on each plate, and a glass of orange juice was placed next to the silverware and napkins. "I have to admit that when you do something, Adam, you do it properly. This looks great!"

"Dig in, Jen. Let me know if there's anything more you want."

I picked up a fork and dug into the hash browns after popping the yolk of the egg. "Mmmmm… This tastes great, Adam. What did you add to the hash browns? All I had was the frozen plain variety. And do you always cook like this, or is this special just for me?"

"No, this is the way I usually cook. You know yourself that if you're single and can't cook well that all you wind up doing is eating a lot of bland TV dinners and take-out food. None of that junk food is good for you on a daily basis. I just learned to cook out of self-defense. As for the hash browns, if I told you what I added I'd have to kill you, since it's a secret."

Now where have I heard all of THAT before? "AWWW. Come on. I have to know what you did with these potatoes!"

"All right. I just used a little of the grease from the bacon to fry them in, and I added a little extra onion salt and some garlic powder from your spice stash."

"I'll have to remember that. I use bacon grease for the same trick myself sometimes, but I never thought about adding the spices."

We finished breakfast, then took care of the dirty dishes in the dishwasher. We went back to our rooms and finished dressing. I took off the bra then checked my panties for any signs of spotting and found none. I decided to go back to the pads, and put one in place just in case. I wondered if tonight would be the night after all.

I decided to wear shorts and a matching light blue halter top. I remembered from the weather reports for today that the temperatures could be in the high 90's with loads of humidity. Now that it was acceptable for me to wear less clothing on a hot day, I figured I'd go with it since the air conditioning in the truck was broken. I didn't know how long we would be out in the hot temperatures, either.

I grabbed a large bag looking something like a woman's version of a gym bag and stuffed a pair of tennis shoes, socks, jeans, a blouse, an extra bra and panties and some extra supplies into it. At least I would have a change of clothes with me for whatever happened today. I took the bag out by the front door and dumped it on the floor. I grabbed my purse from the table near the front door where I had left it last night and restocked the supply of tampons, and checked that I had a good supply of cramp medication. By this time Adam had finished dressing, and I caught up with him in my computer room.

He had the workstation going, and was browsing the NWS web site looking at the weather maps. "I hope you don't mind, I helped myself."

"Not a bit, only if you break it, you fix it!" I gave him a little peck on the cheek and put my chin on his shoulder to look over it at the screen. "So what do they say?"

"Jen, if I understand this right, we're in for one hell of a storm later on this afternoon. The warm front that came through last night is dragging lots of hot and moist air into the area. With the heating from the sun, it's putting large amounts of energy into the atmosphere. When the cold front moves in and cools things off, all of that stored energy and moisture has to go somewhere. Where it winds up will be inside some huge thunderstorms."

"You got that right, Adam. From what I see, this could be about the largest, nastiest run of thunderstorms this area has ever seen. Go over to the NWS watch and warnings page to see what they have up." He clicked on a few links, and the watches and warnings screen popped open.

"Looks like trouble, Jen. A watch is up already. They usually only issue those within a couple of hours of the actual storms."

"That's true. Check for warnings from the direction this thing is coming from. Looks like from the west. What's happening in Ohio?"

"Warnings are up all over almost the whole state of Ohio. Mostly very heavy thunderstorms, but a few tornado echoes have been seen on Doppler radar, too."

"I think the decision we made to go to the NWS office today is a good one. If this thing hits in full force, the poor guy on staff out there will have his hands full. It might just be the three of us unless he can get one of the other staffers in. Oh, that's right. You've never been out to the office, have you?"

"No, I haven't. What's it like?"

"A whole lot of equipment and computers, and the busiest phone lines you ever saw in bad weather. There are a couple of private lines that ring almost constantly from the media and police and fire agencies looking for information. Then there's the ham station, and all of the traffic that needs to get handled. We may want to ask a couple more hams to help if it looks real bad when we get there."

"Should we contact the SKYWARN group and set something up, since we have the advance notice that this stuff is coming?"

"You must be a mind reader, Adam. Can you call them on the landline, and let them know we'll be at the weather service office around 3 PM? I think that will give us plenty of time to get organized before the worst of it hits the area."

'Let me take care of that now. Should we arrange for at least two more hams to meet us there? We could use the backup and extra hands on this one."

"Sounds like a plan, Adam. Why don't you make that call? Use the public line, please. I need to leave the private line open for a while. Hey, do you want to get in some pool time this morning? It needs a little tending as far as a cleaning and a chemical check. We'll need to do that now if we want to use it a later."

"Jen, I'll make a deal with you. Let me get the calls out of the way, and I'll check the pool. I'm just guessing that you haven't tended to your web servers for a good three to four weeks. Why don't you spend some time this morning doing system maintenance, and then we'll get into the pool."

"I STILL say you can read minds. The key to the storage shed for the pool care stuff is on a tag hanging by the back door. Help yourself. Just take it easy on the chemicals. I use the concentrated variety, so don't use too much. You may have to take two readings a couple of hours apart to get the levels right."

"I'm on it." Adam left me to tend to the care and feeding of the web servers and email system. Just as I was getting started, the private line rang.

"Hello?"

"Bob, is that you? I think you're calling yourself Jennifer now? This is Megan."

"Oh, hi, Megan! I was wondering when I'd hear from you to catch up on all of the area goings-on. Want to come over?"

"Sure. Mind if I bring my art stuff? I want to do a picture of you."

"Sure, bring it along, Megan. See you in a few minutes. The front door is unlocked. I'm in the computer room. Just come on in. I have a guest for the weekend, so just tell him you're a friend if you see him in the house."

"Be over in a few minutes. Bye!" I hung up the phone. Megan Giles was a neighbor from a few houses away. She had been a great help when I moved into the place a few years ago. She's also a talented artist. I never had the chance to sit for one of her pictures before, so I didn't know what to expect.

I returned to the computer work, and a few minutes later I heard the front door open and close. "Anybody home?

"In here, Megan!"

"Hi, Bob, er… Jennifer. So, this is the new you?"

"This is what I look like now, yes. What do you think?" I stood up and did a little twirl to let her see all of me, then sat back down in the chair in front of the main workstation.

"You look great! Mind if I get to work sketching you?"

"Not as long as you don't mind if I keep on working."

"Go right ahead. I just need to look at you to get everything right." She set to work with her pencils and paper as I turned back to my keyboard work.

I must have had a couple of hundred messages waiting for answers. It took nearly 90 minutes to get everything cleaned up and the email answered after I tossed nearly 150 junk emails in the bit bucket. I finally finished, and turned around to see Megan smiling at the page she was holding. She held it up for me to see.

"Well, Jennifer, what do you think?"

"Is that really me, Megan? That's fantastic. I don't know how to thank you for this!"

"Just the look on your face is enough. Maybe I went a little overboard on the hair style, but it does add something to the picture, doesn't it?"

"Megan, you just gave me the hair style I'm going to use at the Mayor's ball when Peggy and I get the award. I'll have to take this with me to show Rebekkah when I go to get my hair done. And please call me Jennie or Jen. Jennifer sounds so formal."

"OK, Jen. I have to get back home. I'm doing some commissions for a few people, and I need to get back to work on them. We'll get together and get caught up on all of the local news in a few days."

"I'm looking forward to it." Megan picked up her art supply bag and headed for the front door. I heard it open and close moments later.

I decided to go out back and see how the pool was coming along. I found Adam with the vacuum hose attached to the skimmer. "How's it going, Adam?"

"OK, I guess. There were lots of leaves and debris that got into the pool from the storm last night. We must have had some high winds here to blow that much junk into the pool."

I walked over to the skimmer and opened the top. I reached in and fished out five big handfuls of leaves and twigs as Adam continued to clean the pool's bottom. "You're right. I should have put the pool cover on it. We'll have to put it on when we're finished this morning, or all of that junk will just wind up back in the pool again."

"I haven't tested the water yet. I took about fifteen loads of grunge out already, and there's still more to get out. Can you do the chemical check?"

"I got it!" I went to the storage shed next to the pool and got the test kit. I put my finger over the empty test vials and plunged my arm down as far as I could reach into the pool. I pulled my finger off the vials to let the water in, and carefully lifted it back out after it had filled. I poured a little water back into the pool so the vials were just full to the measuring line, then added a drop of a different chemical to each of the three vials. The resulting color of each vial was compared to a chart to determine which and how much of each chemical to add to the pool.

"Hmmmm… Looks like more of everything, Adam. Keep on cleaning. I'll add the chemicals." He nodded his agreement, then went back to getting the trash off the bottom of the pool. I got out three bottles and went over to the pump. I reached down and turned off a valve that let water from the return line to the pool flow into a small fixture. I took the cap off of the fixture and added a couple of scoops of chlorine, a scoop of PH plus and a double scoop of anti-algae mix, then put the cap back on. I turned the valve back on, letting the water dissolve the chemicals and push them out into the pool via the return hose. I added about a half scoop of chlorine to the pool skimmer to shock the filter, then put everything away.

"It will take about thirty minutes, but what I added should make the pool good to use. Come on back in and change into your swim stuff when you're finished. I want to get in some pool time this morning. How about you?"

"I'd like that. I'll be in after I finish up in a few minutes."

I went back into the house to the bedroom, and got out the single piece red suit I had worn yesterday. I stripped down and changed into the suit. Like yesterday, it hugged everything in the right places and left just enough exposed. I put my hair up to keep it out of the way and grabbed my bathrobe as I went back to the kitchen. I grabbed the sun block bottle and a pair of sunglasses from the counter near the back door, and my extra large beach towel from the back of the chair, then headed out to the pool.

I spread out the towel in a spot in the sun by the pool. I was setting on the towel trying to put sun block on my back when Adam came out. "Jen, let me get that. Just roll over face down, please."

I handed him the bottle and turned over on my tummy. I pulled the top of the suit down a little in the back so he could get some under the edge of the top. "Can you get the back of my legs, too? All I need is to burn them, then have to sit on them while we're out!"

He poured some of the lotion in his hands, and worked it into the skin on my back in long slow strokes. I swear, if I was a cat I would have been purring. It felt that good. He stopped to pour some more lotion, and proceeded to do the back of my legs. The feeling of his hands on an exposed bit of my bottom and as those marvelous fingers massaged my inner thighs almost pushed me over the edge. The feelings were wonderful, but more than a bit disturbing, in that I had changed so fast as to even think of sex with a man. I sighed deeply, and decided to just soak in the feelings. There was very little I could do to change the situation. I was now and forever will be female.

"Jen, JEN! Earth to Space Cadet Jen. Are you there?"

"What... Oh, sorry, Adam. I had another one of those spaced out moments, I guess. What were you asking?"

"Roll over, and I'll do the front of your legs, too."

I turned over and dropped the top of my suit a little. "Please do my top, too, ok?"

He looked more than a little nervous at that, but nodded his agreement. He poured more lotion in his hand and started at my toes. Making sure my feet were covered in the slippery lotion, he slowly worked his way up my legs, rubbing every inch as he neared my thighs again. Once again the sensations I felt almost drove me to tell him I was his to take, but reason won out and I simply lay there on the towel with this incredible glow inside.

He stopped one more time to pour some more lotion, then started on my shoulders and worked his way down to the top of my suit. His hands started to massage my breasts. I gently pushed his hands away from my chest. "Adam, no."

He looked like I had slapped him. "I'm sorry. From the look on your face, I thought you liked that."

"Adam, if you only knew how that felt and how much I liked that. I want so much to do it with you, but I'm just not ready yet. When I do, I want the moment to be perfect. OK?"

"I understand, Jen. This is all new to me, too."

I tugged the top of suit back up. "Let's get in some pool time and cool off, shall we?" I got up and climbed the stairs to the deck around one end of the pool. I checked that the pool was clear, and cannon balled into the water. "Come on in, Adam, the water's great!"

Moments later he made an even bigger entrance as he belly flopped into the pool, sending spray everywhere. He came up to the surface sputtering water out of his nose. "How was that, Jen?"

"Not bad, not shabby at all. If I had my old body and did that, the pool would have needed a refill! If I was a judge, I'd have to give that an 8.9 out of a possible 10. I took off points for poor surfacing technique."

"Poor surfacing? Oh, well. I'll settle for the 8.9 then." We both floated around the pool for another thirty minutes, enjoying the sun and water. I have to admit that floating in this body is quite a bit different from my old body. I had so much fat before that I had no problems staying afloat. In fact, someone could have used the old me for a raft. Now I had to do a little kick now and then to stay upright in the water. The balance felt wrong to float like I had before.

Another fifteen minutes had gone by when I looked at the clock by the back door. "Come on, Adam. I think we've had enough. I'm getting all wrinkled. Let's get back inside. I have to wash my hair to get all the chlorine out of it."

"I should do the same. Chlorine really does a number on hair, doesn't it?"

"It sure does. I don't know how many people I've seen with a green tinge to their hair from swimming in pools with lots of chlorine and other chemicals. I want to get this stuff out before I get 'pool hair', too."

We picked up our stuff and headed for the back door to the house.

"Jen, I'm going to call the SKYWARN folks on the repeater and set up some backup for us at the weather service office this afternoon. I couldn't reach anyone when I tried earlier on the phone. Is it OK if I use your transceiver?"

"Sure. It should be set on the repeater already. I left it on an omni directional antenna, so you shouldn't have any problems getting into the machine. I'll see you back in the computer room after I take a shower."

I grabbed my stuff and headed for my bedroom. I stripped off the suit and wrapped myself in the towel. I went into the bathroom and started the shower running. About fifteen minutes later I was finished, with most of the time being used to thoroughly wash my hair. I wrapped my hair turban style with a towel, then I wrapped another fresh towel around myself and went back into my bedroom. Moments later I heard a knock on my door.

"Jen, can I come in?"

"Just a moment, Adam." I sat down on the bed and crossed my legs while still dressed in just the towel. "OK, Adam, come on in."

The door slowly opened, and Adam stepped into the room wearing only a towel. "Jen, I got in touch with the SKYWARN folks and let them know we plan on being at the NWS office this afternoon. They said they'll they will have two more people come over to lend a hand during the worst of it. Is the shower available?"

"Thanks, Adam. The bathroom is clear. Go right ahead." The towel on my head started to unwrap, and I reached up with both hands to grab it. In doing so, the towel around my body opened up and dropped to around my waist, giving Adam a look at my chest. I stopped reaching for the towel on my head and grabbed the towel now around my waist and pulled it back up. My face must have turned a brilliant red.

Adam made only one comment. "Very nice." He then turned to leave. As he did, his hand went toward his own towel. With a flourish his towel dropped off, leaving a clear view of his bare backside as he went out the door.

Just before the door closed, I yelled, "Nice butt!" I dropped the towel back down to my waist, then took the towel off my head and used it to finish drying my hair as much as possible. A few minutes with the blow drier would finish the process. I stood up and removed the towel around my body. I got a fresh pair of panties and slipped them on after putting a new pad in place. I put the halter top and shorts set I had worn earlier back on. I sat down at the makeup table and finished drying my hair, then brushed it into my usual ponytail style. I decided to do without makeup today, and applied a small spray of rose scent to my neck and wrist. I put my tennis shoes and socks back on and went back into the computer room.

I was looking at the latest weather maps as the private line rang. I answered it.

"Hello?… Oh, hi, Sally. How's it look up there at the drive-in?… Just the screen is real bad, huh?… How's the roof of the snack bar?… Well, all of that can be fixed… Do the best you can to secure the place, and I'll talk to Henry tomorrow to see where we go from here to get back in business… Thanks, Sally… No, just change the sign and the answering machine message and head back home. There's not much more we can do right now until arrangements can be made to repair the screen. Everything else will hold until then… Ok, talk to you then. Bye!"

Adam came into the room a few minutes later. "Was that Sally?"

"Yes. The drive-in screen is pretty bad. The snack bar has the big windows blown out, and some of the shingles on the roof are gone. Other than that, it doesn't look too bad. I'll have to talk to Henry to find out who he has available to fix the screen. That's a custom job because of the materials needed. The rest we can do with local help."

"That's great, Jen. Maybe in a week or two at most they'll be back in business."

"It all depends on how fast the screen can be repaired. Hey, look at these!" I reached over and picked up the maps I had just printed. "We're going to get a line of storms running out ahead of the main cold front by almost an hour. That's the usual pattern around here when a large cold front moves in after a heat spell. We'll take a one-two punch in this storm. The first storm line will weaken trees and power lines with high winds and heavy rain, then the actual front will move in and finish the job."

"Old Mother Nature sure can throw a temper tantrum now and then, can't she?"

"She sure can. It's getting near lunchtime. Do you want me to fix something here, or do you want to go somewhere?"

"Let's go somewhere. You don't need to cook today. I'm buying!"

"Adam, that's not necessary, you know."

"I know, but it makes me happy to do it for you."

"When you put it like that I can't turn you down, can I? Put together what you'll need if we're out all afternoon into the early evening. I already have a bag packed on the floor near the front door. Put your stuff with mine. I'm going to re-fill the ice chest. Could you bring it in out of the truck?"

"Already got it. I got your keys and brought it in while you were in the shower. It's in the kitchen."

"Mindreader! I'll get a few snacks ready if you'll clean it out. OK?"

"Let's get to it!" We headed for the kitchen. Adam lifted the cooler to the kitchen sink and drained the water from the melted ice. We tossed the food left over from last night since it had gotten warm. We did save the unopened cans of soda to be cooled down again. I got out a big block of cheddar cheese and cut some thick slices into cubes, and dumped them into a plastic bag. Another stick of crackers got tossed in, too. I added some fresh apples, a couple of oranges and a couple of bananas. I also emptied the ice reserve in the freezer again.

"Adam, we'll have to make a quick stop for ice and a half gallon of milk again. Is there anything else you want to take with us?"

"Nothing I can think of to put in the ice chest. We could use some rain gear just in case."

"There are a couple of ponchos in the truck behind the seat we can use. I don't have any new hip boots yet that will fit me properly. I'll just have to make do with the old ones in the truck if I need to use them. I doubt that I'll have to on this storm, though."

As I closed the lid to the ice chest, the private line rang again. "Hello?"

"Hi, This is Roy Taybeck calling. Is Bob around?"

"Hello, Roy, This is Bob. Have you been following the news?"

"Yes, I have. Should I call you Jennifer now?"

"Either that or Jen or Jennie. I prefer Jen most of the time. How are things at the radio station these days, Roy?"

"Going all right. Jen, the reason I called is the storm. Before your accident you used to help me with the station maintenance. Are you still available to do that?"

"Of course, Roy. Are you thinking you could take some damage from the storm? They're expecting lots of lightning on this one."

"You still read minds, I see. Yes. I'm expecting to take a hit on this one. I'm at the studio now, and will be here for the duration. I was wondering if I needed you if you could run out to the transmitter site. I think you still have the key."

"I still have it, and yes, I can run to the site if something goes down. I'll only be a few miles away from it at the NWS office at the airport. If you need me, try my beeper. The number is the same. You can also call the NWS private line. I know the station has the number posted in the newsroom."

"Thanks, Jen. I'll give you a call if we have problems. Give me a call when this all blows over, and we'll get together for lunch again."

"OK, Roy. I'll talk to you later. Hey, do you want the usual news feed from the NWS, since I'll be there anyway?"

"Sure, I'll tell the news staff to expect you, and make sure they know about your change so the female voice doesn't come as a shock."

"Who's on duty for news today?"

"Ted's on the main news desk, and Phil is running backup for him as this thing gets closer."

"I've worked with both of them before, and there shouldn't be any problems. Just let them know I'll call if I can get enough advance warning to be of any help. Is the private news line number still the same?"

"Yes. Everything is the same as it was last time you were here, Jen. I keep wanting to say Bob. Forgive me, but it will take me a while to get used to the new you."

"Same here, Roy, same here. Hey, is it OK with you if I make a stop at the transmitter site just to check on things?"

"Sure. If you find something bad, let me know, and I'll get someone out there fast...unless you can patch it quickly."

"I have to get moving to the NWS after lunch, so I'll catch up with you at the station by phone before all of the fun begins later today."

"Bye, Jen."

"Bye." I hung up the phone and turned to Adam. "Looks like I have an additional mission today."

"What's that, Jen?"

"I help Roy Taybeck, the chief engineer over at the big radio station in the city. He just asked me to stay on-call if something happens at the transmitter site."

"Wow. I didn't know you were into that, too. How long have you been doing that?"

"For about twenty years. I always wanted to get into broadcasting. Early in life I developed a talent for things electrical or electronic, and chose that route in life as my occupation. Computers and networking only came later, when personal computers came out in the 70's. The station was looking for some help in a computer project, and I got the temporary job. I've been working there off and on ever since as engineer and occasional fill-in host or DJ when someone goes on vacation."

"I keep forgetting the mind in that wonderful body is older than I am. You never cease to amaze me, Jen."

"I'll take that as a compliment. Otherwise I could be really offended, and you wouldn't like to see me angry. I used to punch holes in walls before. I'm not certain what I'm capable of now, especially since I got this ring. Hey, we never did get on the Internet and do any research on the ring, did we?'

"We can still do that tonight unless we're out a lot longer than we're planning now."

"OK, Adam. Let's get loaded up and get moving. I want to stop by the transmitter site and check everything before the storms hit. I haven't been there in a few months. After that, we'll get a quick lunch."

Adam and I loaded up the truck with our bags and the ice chest. I tossed him the keys, and he once again assisted me in getting into the truck on the passenger side. We made a quick stop at a small store to pick up supplies.

As we finished restocking the ice chest, I noticed a couple of photographer types taking pictures of us. The lettering on their bags indicated that they were from one of the supermarket tabloids. They walked toward me, and started bombarding me with questions.

They followed me to the cab, still pressuring me for a comment. I decided to give them one. "Gentlemen, I realize that you have a job to do. I also have a job to do. If you want to follow me you're welcome to do so, but I can assure you that you and your potential readership would probably be bored to tears. I'm going to inspect the transmitting facility for a local radio station for their chief engineer before the storms hit our area. Then I'm heading to the local weather service office to stand by for the SKYWARN network because of the storms we'll have later today. If your readers want to know about all of that, then you're most welcome to tag along. Just keep out of the way, and please stay quiet."

"Our boss wants us to get some pictures of you. Personally, we both don't like to do the type of stuff they want, but it's our job. They mostly want boobs and buns shots of some public figure to plaster all over the front page. We've been following you for the past couple of days, and we just can't bring ourselves to shoot that kind of crap, even though we did have a pretty good chance when you were outside in your back yard this morning. From what we've seen, you haven't done anything wrong to anyone to make the paper go after you. We've got to come back with some type of story, though."

"I have to tell you guys that I'm more than a little disturbed that you even thought about shooting pictures of me in a private area. But since your common sense held out, I won't sue your butts off. I have a feeling that if you hang around a while you'll probably get something sensational enough without it being X-rated. Lately I've had a disaster of the day type existence. Last night I almost got blown away by what might have been a tornado. Before that a friend was mugged, and before that I almost got fried in a rescue after a bus crash. I don't know why today should be any different. All I can say is to be extra careful if anything happens around me. I seem to wind up in the middle of the strangest things."

"We'll remember that! By the way, I'm Tod Abernathy, and this is Joe Irwin. We'll do our best to stay out of your way as much as possible."

"Thanks, guys. Now, I have to get going to the radio station site a few miles away, so just follow us." Adam and I turned to get into the truck as the photographers sprinted back to their car. Adam helped me in again, and then got in and buckled up. We pulled out of the parking lot with the tabloid guys right behind us.

"Well, how did I do back there, Adam?"

"Sounds like you have both of them in your corner, Jen. It's still hard to believe that two guys working for one of the tabloids have a sense of decency about them."

"It is a bit unusual to find someone in that profession with the tabloids that actually cares about the people they're supposed to dig up the dirt on, isn't it?"

"I guess. So what's the plan with those two, anyway?"

"Just like I told them. They're welcome to tag along and take all of the pictures they want in public areas or private areas I okay for them. I can't stop the publicity, no matter how hard I might try. All I can do is try to direct it to something common and ordinary so the tabloids will get tired of the same old boring stuff and leave me alone. If something does happen, then those two will be there to get the pictures, anyway."

"Sounds like you have it all worked out."

"Not really, Adam. I'm just making it all up as I go along."

We rode most of the rest of the way to the transmitter site listening to the radio. Reports were coming in about the damage the storm had already caused in other areas. If the forecasters were right and I hoped they were very wrong, this would be one of the most powerful storms to move through the area. I was becoming more concerned with each passing minute, and I think it showed.

"Jen, what's wrong? You look like you don't feel too great. Your face is all scrunched up, and if you frowned any more, it would probably become permanent."

I argued with myself for a few seconds, then decided to just tell the truth. "I may as well tell you. I've been having these nightmares for several months about being chased by a big black roaring monster that was throwing things at me. In the past couple of days I've come to realize it was the funnel of a tornado, and that someone was with me. That someone was you, Adam." There, I finally got it out. I certainly didn't feel any better, but at least I said it.

"Jen, I have to tell you something, too. I've been having similar nightmares. My dream changed the night I first met you from just me to the two of us. I didn't know it was really you until you woke up this morning screaming. You see, I was just waking up at the same time from the same nightmare."

"Oh my God, Adam. Maybe we should turn around now and go back home. It may be safer there than being out today. I don't want to see you get hurt because of me."

"Jen, you know just as well as I do we can't do that. We promised to help the SKYWARN folks, and you have to honor your word to Roy that you'll help out if he needs it. Besides, this is just like the way I got the same feeling last night that we were needed at that drive-in. I just didn't say anything about it then because you were so concerned. I get the feeling now that what we're going to do today is very important. I don't know how or why, but I think we need to do this."

"I have that same feeling, but I also know I couldn't bear living if you got hurt because of me. Please be very careful, Adam, OK?"

"I will, Jen. Looks like we're at the transmitter site. Should I just drive up to the building I see?"

"Yes. That's an old house that serves as the transmitter building. Years ago the government regulations required the transmitter site to be staffed whenever the transmitter was on. Today's remote control and monitoring equipment made that rule obsolete years ago. The station still uses the building, since it serves their needs quite well. It even has running water and a bathroom. I do need to go in and check the transmitter and the comm link back to the station, besides using the facilities."

We pulled into the driveway, and parked the truck under the old enclosed carport on the side of the house. I let Adam and myself and the two reporters in through the side entrance. I turned on the lights, then headed for the transmitter room at the back of the house. We passed several unused rooms along the way.

"Those used to be the bedrooms and living room. They're just empty space with a table and a few chairs in each room now. I think the living room still has a couch and an old TV. The transmitter is located in the room at the back of the house." I opened the door to the transmitter room, and was greeted by a thunderous roar from the fans which were cooling the room. "The roar is the cooling fans. The transmitter kicks out quite a bit of heat. In the summertime it's vented outside. In wintertime it heats the house quite well."

I walked over to an equipment rack and pushed a few buttons and compared the readings with a chart on the rack. "I just took a few measurements of the transmitter and antenna system. Everything looks normal. I see everything is the same as I remember it from a few months ago. Let me call Roy on the comm link to check that out." I reached over and picked up a noise canceling microphone hanging on the rack. "Transmitter to studio. Do you copy, Roy? This is Jennifer."

"Yes, Jennifer. I copy just fine. Things OK out there?"

"Fine, Roy. Has anyone run a generator test in the past couple of weeks?"

"Yup. We just did one yesterday via remote. You might want to give it a visual inspection just to be certain that everything is OK, though."

"Have the tower guy wires been checked and tightened?"

"All set a month ago when we had the tower company do a PM call. Looks like we're good to go unless we get some extreme winds. Those towers are rated for winds over 100 miles per hour."

"All right, Roy. I'll inspect the generator. If it looks OK I'll let you know from the weather service office. Anything else?"

"Nope. Catch you later, Jen. Studio out."

"Transmitter clear."

I put the microphone back on the hanger on the rack. "We have a two-way audio circuit between here and the station for emergency communications. There's also a backup radio available just in case. I need to inspect the generator. Let me use the restroom, and I'll be finished in here." I headed out of the transmitter room past another room that said studio on the door. I pointed it out to Adam. "Years ago the station used to broadcast out of here, too. They moved the studio downtown when the laws about manning the transmitter site changed so they could be closer to the action for the news people. The studio still works, and can be used to broadcast out of here in case anything happens to the downtown location. I'll be out in a few minutes, Adam." I ducked into the restroom and closed the door.

I dropped my shorts and panties and emptied out. I cleaned up and checked the pad in the panties. Just a tiny spot remained. Well, one more should take care of things, so I replaced the used pad with a fresh one. I washed up and waited in the studio for the guys to finish their own bathroom trips. I decided while I was waiting to fire up the studio gear. The master power switch popped a bit as I pushed it on. With a bit of gentle coaxing the equipment came to life, and I soon had the feed from the studio playing over the studio speakers. I put on the headphones on the console and hit the talk button on the microphone channel. Sure enough, the sound of my voice appeared in the 'phones and registered on the meters of the mixing board. If I had hit another button, I would have dumped the main studio feed and replaced it with the feed from this studio.

I decided to try out the two old turntables, and picked out a couple of the old LPs from the stock the station left behind for emergencies when they moved the studio. Both turntables worked properly, so I turned my attention to the phone lines. They had left the old phone system intact, and simply reduced the incoming lines to three. All three showed up on the studio telephone and could be selected to go out over the air if needed. I also fired up the old reel to reel tape recorder and played back a fragment of what was left on the old tape that was on it. I also tried to record a little of the audio from the station. I had satisfied myself that most of the stuff still worked so I shut down the studio gear. The guys had been watching me through the glass window of the booth. I waved them into the room.

"You guys could have come in, you know!"

"Jen, the sign next to the door was lit up with 'On the air', so we waited outside."

"You could have come in anyway, Adam. The relay is probably stuck on the sign." I walked over to the equipment rack and thumped it on the side. I heard a small clunk from the rack and looked out to see that the sign had turned off. "I'll have to fix that someday." The two news guys were just staring at me with their mouths wide open.

Adam was the first to speak. "How did you do that, Jen?"

"You see, Adam, I built the thing almost twenty years ago. I remember that rack as if it were yesterday. In fact, I helped Roy build most of this studio. Look at this…" I went around to the back of the console and removed a small access panel with a couple of thumbscrews. I pointed inside to a small paper label. It read 'Built by Robert Stevens and Roy Taybeck, June 1982.' I put the panel back in place and headed to the back of the equipment rack.

I opened the door of the rack and flipped off a switch on a small box mounted inside. "There, that should take care of the sticky sign for a while. I just shut off the power to it. I'll have to make a note in the maintenance log to do something about it later. Let's close up here and head out to the generator for a look. Roy tells me that it could use a good visual inspection. It passed a remote startup test yesterday." I closed the door on the back of the rack and headed for a door that led outside in the transmitter room. "The generator is right back here."

I unlocked the door and opened it onto a view of the huge lot behind the old house. In the distance about a thousand feet or so away you could see four tall towers in a diamond shape. "The towers are about 350 feet tall, and are used at night to direct the station's signal away from other AM stations outside of our area. Daytimes they run with just one of the four towers and full power in an omni-directional pattern to cover the whole area. The daytime tower is the one all the way out, but it can be switched to be any of the other three at a small manhole located in the center of the array. See the painted pipe sticking up about in the middle?" They all nodded. "That's a small concrete room set in the ground with all of the matching equipment for the towers. They wanted all of the wiring buried to improve the pattern generated by the four tower setup. We don't need to go out there right now."

I turned my attention back to the generator, and pulled the oil dipstick to check the level. I grabbed a rag tucked in the corner of the generator housing and wiped the stick clean. Another reading confirmed the first.

"Adam, we need to add a couple of quarts of oil. In the transmitter room is a box under the bench with some quarts of 10W-30 oil in it. Can you grab three of them for me? And there's a plastic gallon jug under the sink. Can you bring out a gallon of water?" He nodded and headed back for the house. "Well, guys, what do you think so far? Any story here?"

"Are you kidding? Our editor would fire us if we came back with just this."

"I told you it was going to be a long, boring afternoon, didn't I? YOU were the ones that wanted to tag along. Hang in there, guys, the afternoon is still young, and the storm isn't even here yet!"

"I guess…" He fell silent as Adam returned with the oil and water. I took the bottles from him and proceeded to use the rag to try to loosen the oil filler cap on the engine. I fussed with it for several seconds, unable to break the layer of crud built up over several months of poor maintenance.

Finally, Adam spoke up. "Jen, let me try that." He took the rag, and with a single effortless twist, broke the grunge layer that held the cap closed. He handed the rag back to me with a silly grin on his face.

"Showoff! Sure, take all the credit!" I opened the first of the bottles and emptied it into the engine. "Adam, can you take another reading for me? Do we need another quart?" I tossed him the rag as he headed for the rear of the generator housing. I saw his head disappear inside.

"Looks like it will take almost all of another quart. Go ahead and add it." He brought the rag back.

I upended another bottle and watched it all drain into the engine. "One last check, please? A little over full is fine with this old lady." I tossed the rag back to him.

"Got it. That's fine." The rag came flying back my way seconds later. I snagged it out of the air and took off the cap to the radiator. To me it looked a little low. "I need to give this old girl a drink."

I filled the radiator to the top and put the cap back in place. The rest of the water went into a reserve tank next to the radiator. The radiator would draw in more water via a hose if the system needed more. I fussed with the generator a bit more, checking an oil tank used for bearing lubrication on the electrical generator. I added the last quart of oil to the tank and put the cap back on. "That finishes things. I want to crank her up for a couple of minutes to check for leaks. Everyone clear?"

I looked to make sure they were all well away from the generator, then flipped a switch to TEST and hit the start button on the control panel. The generator roared to life and settled down into a nice even purring sound as the automatic governor took over engine speed control. The voltmeter registered an even 120 volts and a small current draw could be seen on the amp gage. I looked to the back of the house and saw the test bulb glowing brightly, indicating that power was reaching the house. If I turned the switch from TEST to RUN, the transmitter load would be shifted instantly to the generator. I decided to leave things alone and check for leaks. I saw only a tiny drop of oil from the oil pan gasket and decided that it wasn't anything to worry about right now. Later the station would have to do some work on it, but by then the old girl might get retired and a new generator put it in its place. I shut the generator off, put the switch back in RUN mode, and locked the access doors.

"Let me wash the grease off and I'll be good to go." I headed for the restroom again to get the grime off my hands, and make one more use of the toilet just in case. In a few minutes I was finished, then waited for the guys to finish, too. I herded everyone back outside after turning off what I had turned on in the house, and locked the door. Adam and I went back to the truck, while the newshounds headed for their car.

"OK, next stop a fast food place to get lunch, then onward to the weather service office. Ready, Adam?"

"All set, Jen. Where do you want to get lunch?"

"You pick it. Almost any place is fine with me. We may not be able to eat again for six to eight hours, so make it good."

Adam backed the truck out of the driveway of the old house and headed back into the city. The tabloid guys stayed right behind us. In about twenty minutes we were back in the city limits and headed in the general direction of the airport. The weather service office was in the base of the control tower at one end of the field.

Adam found a Chinese buffet type place, and turned into the parking lot. "Good choice, Adam. We might call the folks at the office and see if they've had lunch yet. I suspect some nice warm food would be real welcome right now since they've been busy all day."

"My watch says it's almost 2 PM. We said we would be there by three, so we have plenty of time. If I remember right, the office is only about a mile away now. Right?"

"Right you are. I'm all set. Let's go." I waited for Adam to get out and come around to help me down. I held his arm as we headed for the entrance. I looked back to see the tabloid guys parked next to the truck.

"Hey, guys, leave the cameras out here, OK?" They both waved, and I saw the camera bags go back into the car. "Thanks, guys."

Adam and I went through the register and got set up at a table. We left our stuff there and headed for the buffet tables. "Hey Adam, the hot and sour soup looks real good. Lots of big chunks of stuff. Want to try some?"

"I'll pass. I wasn't able to quite acquire the taste for it. I'm going to have the egg drop soup, though. The sweet and sour chicken looks great, too."

We both piled our plates high with a little of everything. I got a large bowl of hot and sour soup, while Adam got the egg drop soup. The news guys were waiting at our table when we got back.

"Mind if we sit with you?"

I looked over at Adam, and he nodded slightly. I replied, "OK, guys, just no questions about me, OK? Now, how did you two get hooked up with a rag like that one, anyway?"

Joe answered. "Well, we were both fresh out of college and looking for a job. This was the first one we found. I can't say we're real pleased at what we do, but it does pay the bills and leave a little something left over for food each week." Tod nodded in agreement.

"I take it you two roomed together in college?"

Now it was Tod's turn. "Yeah, we were and still are good friends, even though we're living in separate apartments with our girlfriends. We see each other five days a week, and work together almost every day on projects for the magazine. Like Joe said, it's a living. Not much of a living, but it'll do until something else turns up."

"So what would you two guys really like to do?"

"We've always talked about going to cover a really big story like a war or natural disaster."

"Well, as far as the natural disaster part goes, your chances are pretty good today. The storms moving in could be the heaviest this area has seen in years. That's why Adam and I are headed for the weather service office. We'll be doing the communications chores for a group of storm spotters out in the field, and relaying all of that information to the weather guys. I'll also be doing live reports from the NWS office for the radio station as the bulletins come in for their news department. It helps to get the word out faster to the general public."

"Jennifer, what are some of the things we should be looking for?" That came from Joe.

"If you hear the term 'hook echo' while anyone is looking at the radar, it could be an indication of a tornado in the storm. There's a characteristic shape returned when radar bounces off the funnel of a tornado or storm cloud that could produce one. Hail and high wind speeds are some of the other things we're worried about, too. These storms may have some extremely heavy rain that will cause flash flooding."

Joe turned to Tod. "Tod, do you still have that camcorder?"

"I sure do. It happens to be in the car along with some tape and a fresh set of batteries, the AC adapter and a good microphone. Why, Joe?"

"Great, Tod. I'll do the stills, and you handle the video. If we get lucky, we'll have something to sell to a local station or network. I think I'm going to grab some film for my own camera, too. If we get some good photos that weren't done on company equipment or film, they'd be all ours to sell!" Both were wearing grins from ear to ear as they turned back to Adam and I.

"There you go, guys. Keep thinking like that and you'll be away from that trash heap in no time at all." I stuck my fork back into the pile of Chinese veggies on my plate and scooped up a mouthfull. "And please call me Jen." I popped the veggies in my mouth and started munching the crispy chunks of water chestnut and snow peas.

Adam piped up. "And guys, from a PR person's viewpoint, keep your images simple and to the point. Try to get people in the picture, too, and be sure to get their names and phone numbers. You may need to arrange for a release to use their pictures, unless you get their permission in writing up front."

"Both Joe and I thank you for your suggestions. We'll stick with you as long as we can, but we may break off to look for other stories as they develop. Is that OK?"

"That's fine, guys. Like us, you gotta do what you gotta do when you gotta do it." I took a bite of some sweet and sour chicken I had on my plate. "Adam, did you get any of the sweet and sour chicken? It's great!"

"No, I was going to get that the second time around."

"I think once is enough for me, Adam. I just can't eat like I used to with this smaller stomach." I looked down to see that my once flat tummy was now bulging out a bit over the top of my shorts. "See?" I pointed down to my tummy and patted the small bulge.

"Jen, you still look great, and that bulge will go away in a couple of hours or so."

"I'm feeling full so I think I'll stop after a little desert. You go ahead and help yourself, though." I got up and moved toward the desert table. I got a brownie, a chocolate chip cookie and a small glass of milk. By the time I got back, Adam had returned with another plate heaping full of food.

"My God! Where do you put it all? It sure isn't going to your butt. I saw that this morning." Both of the newsies were looking over at me with wide eyes at that remark. "Down guys. Nothing that need concern you."

"I don't know where it all goes. I eat like this all the time, and I just don't seem to gain any weight. Maybe it's because I work out in the evenings at a local fitness place."

"That's probably it." I finished the cookie and drank a little milk to wash it down. The brownie was next. "When we're finished we'll stop at a small sub shop near here and get a couple of large subs the folks out there can split. That place has four foot long subs, too, so I'll get two of those."

"Sounds like you're planning on feeding an army, Jen."

"Maybe. That can sure be a hungry bunch if they've been busy and haven't had lunch. I need to get them to eat something, or they'll get too tired easily. You need to stay alert during these things, and a run-down body doesn't help that a bit. That's why I wanted to get a good lunch."

We finished up lunch in silence. Even the tabloid guys were quiet. I told Adam I had to make a quick trip to the ladies room and grabbed my purse. As I dropped my panties to pee I noticed the pad didn't have any spots on it. I removed the pad and tossed it into the trash. So, tonight would be the night after all! I finished up and went back to the table.

"Adam, I'm all set to go. How about you?"

"I'm stuffed. No desert for me, so I'm all set. Ready?"

"Yes, let's get going. You guys know where to meet us?"

"Yeah, Tod and I have been out at the airport before shooting pictures in the terminal. We can find you."

"See you guys out there. Remember, eyes open and mouths shut, OK?"

"Yes, ma'am!" They both gave a salute.

"Sheesh. Everyone's a comic. Come on, Adam, let's go before they elect me president or something."

On the way out, Adam grabbed a brownie from the desert table and stuffed it into his mouth. He was still chewing on it when we got into the truck.

"Had to grab a brownie, huh? Got Milk?"

"Noph, gopha geph phome."

"I assume that was 'No, gotta get some'?"

He nodded as he kept chewing. "Well, you can get a pint at the sub shop. Turn left up ahead, and it's about half a mile on the right." A couple of minutes later we pulled into the parking lot. Adam's cheeks were still packed with sticky brownie goo. "Come on, chipmunk boy, I need your help carrying the stuff. The milk is in the cooler on the left."

I got to the counter and ordered two four foot long subs. One was roast beef and the other was a mixed meat type. Both were loaded with veggies and cheese. I figured that should hold us for a while, especially since I really wasn't hungry after that lunch. Adam had paid for a pint of milk, and was working on the last of the brownie ball in his mouth.

"I could have warned you, but you said no desert. Changed your mind?"

"Well, men can change their minds too, you know. They looked good so I got one. Except for being real sticky, it was pretty good." He was licking the small clumps of brownie from his fingers.

"Just clean the brownie goo off the steering wheel, OK?" I tossed a couple of paper napkins at him. He started to go back to the truck. "HOLD ON THERE. Remember, I can't carry all of this myself; well, you couldn't either, in one trip. Wait." In a couple of minutes my order was ready. I paid for it and handed one of the heavy bags to Adam.

"Wow, what's in this thing? It weighs a ton!"

"That's just ONE of the four footers I ordered. I have the other one and the salads in this bag. It's heavier, but then, I can use both hands to carry it. You have to use one hand to unlock the truck."

He thought a moment, then nodded. "Right."

We headed for the truck. I was wondering if all men were that dense after a huge lunch, or if it was just Adam. Hey WAIT A MINUTE! I used to BE one of those dense men! When did I start thinking like this? Wow, things sure have changed.

Adam unlocked my door, then helped me in. I put my bag on the seat and hit the release for the door lock on his side. Moments later we were back on the road to the airport. As we neared the airport the view improved so we could see almost down to the horizon. I noticed some darkening in the sky. I reached over to the radio in the truck and hit the button for the AM band. I then hit another button and the radio jumped to an unused frequency in our area. I turned up the volume to hear the static in the background and listened for a few moments.

"What ARE you doing, Jen?"

"I'm using the radio to check for a thunderstorm. You can hear the lightning as static on a radio tuned to an unused frequency. If I tune the radio to a local station I can sometimes get an idea of how far away the storm is by how much the static interferes with the station." I hit a button and the radio jumped to the station I worked with. "Yup, just as I thought. There's one out there, but not too close yet. The static is still there, but just in the background when we listen to this station."

"I think we're here. Where do you want me to park?"

"There are a few spaces for the weather service over near the door to the office; if one of them is available park there. Otherwise, just find a spot as close as you can get."

Adam pulled the truck into a space just a few feet from the front door. I collected a couple of things from the truck and grabbed my purse. Adam had grabbed the bags of food and was waiting to help me out of the truck. We locked it and went into the office.

The short corridor lead to a longer windowless corridor that ran the length of the building. We saw signs for the restrooms and a water fountain. I went down the hall and stopped at the door for the weather service. Adam came up behind me and I opened the door.

We walked into a small counter area with doors to two other rooms and huge glass windows in the walls. I waved to one if the guys in the forecasting room when he looked up. I recognized him from previous visits I had made when I was a man. By the look on his face, he recognized me as well. He got up and came toward us.

"Hi, George. How's the world's oldest working forecaster doing these days?"

"Just fine, Jennifer. Boy, you've sure changed. I knew that when you were a guy you wanted to lose a lot of weight. I think this is a little drastic, but you do look great!" I walked around the counter and gave George a little hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Hey! What was THAT for?"

"It's a girl thing. I love to do it to see how people react. You're about average, though. The funniest was when someone that used to know me as a man fainted when I did that. The most interesting was when someone kissed back." Adam's eyes got wide at that comment, but I just let it pass unanswered. "So, what does this whole mess look like?"

"Not good, Jennifer. It just gets worse as it gets closer. So far, there have been reports of tornadoes all along the path of the cold front. The secondary front ahead of the main action is almost as bad as the main body itself. After the secondary front moves through, there seems to be about a one hour gap until the main front moves through."

"George, please call me Jennie or Jen. It'll save lots of time. I don't see anyone in the radio room, so I assume we're the first here?"

"You are. And do I see bags from our favorite sub shop?"

"You sure do. Have you had lunch yet?"

"Dannie and I caught something to eat, but it wasn't much. Let me have those, and I'll get things set up in the office for a little feast before the action starts."

"Here you go, George. I've brought us a new victim… ahhh…helper today. This is Adam Tilton. He'll be working the ham station to collect reports. Adam, this is George Tobias. I think he did the forecasts for God just after God created the Earth. At least he says he's been around that long." I winked at George.

"Pleased to meet you, Adam." They shook hands. "Gonna get his baptism by fire today, huh, Jen?" George winked at me, then nodded toward Adam.

"That he is, George. Let me get him set up and bring up the SKYWARN net, then I'll come over to get the latest report from you. I'm doing live feeds for the radio station, too." George nodded, and headed for the office to get the food set up. I looked into the forecast room and waved hello to Dannie Washburn. She waved back as I collected Adam and headed for the radio room.

The radio room is one of the four rooms in the weather service office space. If you think of a large square dived into four rooms, you have a good picture of what the place looks like. The lower right hand corner room is the counter area, and has doors into the office room above it and the forecasting room to its left. The office room has another room to its left that holds the radio equipment used for the emergency broadcasts and the ham station also resides there. The radio, forecasting and office rooms all have huge glass picture windows, since they are located on an outside corner of the building. The smaller counter area has no windows looking outside. There are windows in all of the walls between the rooms, so you could see most of the area from any room you were in.

I got Adam set up in the ham station, and after a few minutes of making himself familiar with the gear he was ready to go. "Adam, go ahead and get on the repeater to get the net started. Start taking general check-ins. I'll go see Dannie and get a copy of the latest weather statement for you. I think George will be getting something to eat right now." He started up the SKYWARN net as I left the room.

Since there was no door between the radio room and the forecasting room, I went back through the office. George was seated at the desk chowing down on a small section if the sub. "How is it, George?"

"Pretty good, as usual, Jen. Thanks for thinking of us. I have a feeling that this is gonna be a real blinger."

"Let's see, a real blinger. Is that some new technical term?" I smiled at him.

"You know what I mean. I would have used another word but I try not to use that language around the ladies."

"Thank you, George. I'm still the same inside, so it wouldn't have offended me in the least. If I'm guessing the word you would have used, I tend to agree. We are gonna be in the deep stuff, aren't we?"

"The way the front is moving, I figure we'll be in the leading edge of the start of it in less than an hour. If ya gotta take care of anything, do it now, cause there just won't be time after it starts."

"Thanks, George. We've been through this before, though."

"Not like this, Jen. Now, scoot. You need to get updated from Dannie and get the word out on the radio. Tell her I'll be in to let her take a break in a few minutes." I nodded, and left George to inhale the remaining few bites of his portion. I gently knocked on the forecasting room door to alert Dannie I was coming in. She was a pretty looking redhead with bright green eyes, and a slim athletic figure poorly hidden under a blue satin blouse and tight fitting blue jeans.

"Hi, Dannie! Like my new look?"

"I always knew that as a guy you wanted a complete makeover, but this is a bit much, isn't it? How are you, Jennifer?"

"Please call me Jen, and I'm getting used to it. Thanks to screwed up genes and a lightning hit, I wound up like this. By the way, how are you doing?"

"I'm about six months into the trial period. If I pass this test, then I'll get a date when they can do my breast implants and do the surgery to make the change permanent. Even like this I've gotten a few requests from men for dates, and the occasional lewd proposition or two. I envy you, though. You've got the real equipment, don't you?"

"Yup, and that's a scary thought. A few weeks ago, I was a man that couldn't get laid no matter how hard I tried, and even if I did, I couldn't have fathered a child. Now I'm a complete woman, and getting pregnant is a real possibility."

"You can have the orgasmic experience I can only dream of, even after the surgery. Well, enough of this, but we do need to talk later. I want to hear everything that's happened to you."

"OK. So, right now, what's about to hit the fan?"

"A big load of crap, and I'm NOT talking about fertilizer. Here's the latest I have in text form. Are you doing remotes for the radio station like last time?"

"Sure. That's why I came to see the best two forecasters the weather service has on this job. Let me digest this, and I'll give the station a call. George says he thinks there's about an hour until the show starts. What do you think?"

"Honey, if that man says sixty minutes until the curtain goes up on this thing, you better be in your seat at the fifty-nine minute mark. I've never seen him wrong in the five years I've been working with him."

"Good enough, Dannie. Let me run this through the copier for Adam, and I'll go make the call to the station."

"Hey, Jen. Is that guy your boyfriend, or is he up for grabs?"

I had to think a few moments on that one. Was I really ready to admit I had a boyfriend and possible lover? Again, I wondered how fast things were changing in my life. I sighed deeply, then made my decision. "Sorry, Dannie, that one's taken. Want me to ask if he has a brother?" I winked at her.

"Not yet. I'll let you know when I'm ready for that step. OK?"

"Works for me, Dannie. Gotta run. Be back soon. Oh, there are subs in the office. George will be in momentarily to give you a chance for a food break."

I stopped at the copier in the counter area and made a copy of the bulletin for Adam. I passed through the office again. "Well, George, what do you think of Dannie?"

"I still don't completely understand how someone like Dan Washburn wants to become Dannie, but I'll support her every way I can. That forecasting talent is too good to let go of, no matter what the outside package looks like."

"Thanks, George. I'm going to talk more with her after this is all over about what I've been through. I know our experiences are quite different, but it might help her adjust. If you're finished, I think she's ready for a break and something to eat."

"Just finished, Jen. I need to hit the men's room, and I'm all set for a couple of hours."

"George, I just can't imagine why everyone says you're a grumpy old man. You look more like a big plush teddy bear to me." I gave him a big wet kiss on his forehead. Moments later a balled up paper napkin with my lipstick on it whizzed by my ear and hit the door jamb.

"Shhhh... Don't spoil my reputation, Jen. I took me YEARS to get it that way!" He winked as he left for the rest rooms outside in the hallway.

I headed into the radio room and handed the copy to Adam. "So, how are things in here?"

"Going just fine, Jen. We're getting a pretty good turnout on this one. In another ten to fifteen minutes or so, we should have everyone in place. So, what's going on?"

"George says we have about an hour or so before the first of it hits. After that, who knows? It all depends on how Mother Nature feels about beating the tar out of us."

"I hope things aren't too bad. We've had more than our fair share of bad weather this year."

"Well, love, there's not too much we can do about it, is there?"

"Wait, I just heard something new there. Did I hear the word 'love" in there somewhere?"

I blushed at the slip. Oh, hell, I may as well admit it now, and get it over with. "Yes, you did. Don't get yourself all worked up, but tonight's the night. I'm ready to take things to the next level."

"Oh, Jen, I'm so happy to hear that. I've been hoping for this since you lost your towel this morning."

"You had a little problem yourself, if I remember correctly. Nice set of buns there." I reached down and gave one of them a little squeeze. Adam resounded by doing the same to me.

"AHEM. Do I have to toss a pail of cold water on you two love birds?" We looked up to see Dannie standing in the doorway.

"No, at least, not yet. Tonight, though…" I stood there a moment, thinking about later tonight, then came back to reality. "I don't think you two have met. Adam, this is Dannie Washburn; Dannie, this is Adam Tilton. Adam is the PR Director over at the big mall in the city."

Adam took her hand and gave it a little kiss. "Hello, Dannie, nice to meet you." I elbowed Adam in the side, and he winced a bit. "OWW!"

"Down, boy. Ever since I rescued him from the pound, he's been a real frisky puppy. I haven't quite got him trained yet." I patted Adam on the head as he made a few barking sounds and then nuzzled my hand.

She giggled, and thought for a moment. "If you breed him, do I get a choice from the litter?"

"We'll see about that. Anything new on the weather?"

"Yup. George took over for a little while to give me a break. An alert just came in about high winds and large hail in this first batch of storms. The lightning will be pretty bad, too. Better go see him for an update, then call the station. I'm going to get some of the sub real quick, then get back in there." Dannie turned and went back to the desk in the office.

"Thanks for going along, Adam. You made a good impression on her. We'll talk a bit more about her later. All I'll say for now is that she's had a tough time of things lately. Also, don't fully believe what you see when you look at her. I've got to go see George. Better tell the group about this. We're going to be real busy for a while."

"Ok. I have one last thing to say. I love you, Jen."

"I love you too, Adam." Our lips touched and we held that kiss for what seemed like forever. We broke when we heard Dannie clearing her throat in the next room. Adam returned to the radio as I walked out of the room.

"Good going, girl. You finally landed him."

"I wasn't really trying, Dannie, it just worked out that way."

"Anyway, Jen, have fun later tonight."

"What's with everyone today? Is EVERYONE a mind reader, or am I that transparent?" Dannie just shrugged, and I went back to see George. A few minutes later I was on the phone to the radio station.

"Talk Radio 740 Newsroom. Can I help you?"

"Hi. This is Jennifer Stevens. Is this Ted?"

"Yup. Hi, Jennifer. Boy, has your voice changed! I do like it. What have you got for us?"

"It's not good, Ted. We have some nasty stuff heading this way, and it should be here within the hour. Want to go live with this? I have a report ready to go."

"Sure. Hang on one. Be ready to go when I toss it to you. OK?"

"All set when you're ready, Ted." I heard a click, then the audio from the station came on the line. I heard the news 'sounder' break into the music that was playing, and Ted did an intro and toss to me. "Here's our own Jennifer Stevens at the weather service office. Looks like we've got some extremely nasty weather headed this way. Right Jennifer?"

"That's correct, Ted. The weather service will be issuing a severe weather warning shortly for the entire area. A large area of heavy thunderstorms with high winds, heavy lightning and damaging hail is working into the area ahead of a cold front. This first line of storms so far has had wind gusts in excess of 100 miles per hour, with hail larger than an inch in diameter. Once again, these are expected to be dangerous storms, so if you're outside, please seek shelter now. If you're on a boat, head for the nearest land, and get off the area lakes and rivers. Local forecasters are concerned about the possibility of flash flooding when the main storms move through with the cold front. With all the rain we had last night, the ground is saturated and will not absorb any more water, leaving whatever rain falls to run off into streams and rivers."

"Jennifer, is there any chance for tornadoes with the main body?"

"There's a better than 75 percent chance of a tornado with the main cold front. Conditions are right for one to develop. Of course, I'll have additional details as soon as they become available. Stay tuned to Talk Radio 740 for the latest news on these dangerous storms. Back to you, Ted."

"Thanks, Jennifer. So there you have it, folks. Batten down the hatches and get ready for a wild afternoon of weather." I heard the music return. Moments later, the line clicked and Ted came back on.

"You're clear. Sounded good, Jennifer. Are we really in for some bad stuff?"

"Let's put it this way, Ted. This will be one that people are talking about for many years to come. If there was one forecast that the weather service would screw up on I wish they were drastically wrong about this one. I've seen the data and radar myself, so I know they're right on the mark on this. Tell Roy we're going to take a hit on this one, and to stand by there. I have a bad feeling about this."

"I'll pass that along to him. He's monitoring your repeater and the remote indicators from the transmitter site. The wind has started to pick up out there. We're seeing gusts over 60 miles per hour and sustained winds around 40 miles per hour right now."

"Thanks, Ted. I'll relay that to the folks out here. Call you back in a few more minutes. Bye." I put the phone back on the hook, and walked out of the office back to the forecasting room.

"Hey, George!" His head bobbed up from behind one of the consoles.

"Whatcha got, Jen?"

"The folks at the station say they're seeing gusts of 60 miler per hour at the transmitter site. Sustained winds are around 40 miles per hour. What are you seeing so far?"

"It's not good. Take a look at this." He motioned me over to the Doppler radar display screen. "All of this blinking red is the real heavy stuff, and is moving directly for the heart of the city."

I pointed to a small green and red hook shaped feature on the edge of the red area. "George, was this here the last time you looked a few minutes ago?"

"It sure wasn't. You know what that is, don't you?"

"Sadly, I do. I saw one once before, when the people got killed at the fairgrounds. That's a hook echo. On Doppler radar that's what the rotation inside a funnel cloud looks like. If I'm reading this right, George, that thing is headed directly for downtown. Please tell me I'm wrong. PLEASE!"

George silently filled in a few lines on a standard form on one of the terminals, then hit the transmit key. In a few moments every alarm monitor in the forecasting room went crazy. He handed me a printout. "Make the call to the station NOW. There isn't much time left."

My hands were trembling as I dialed the phone. "Hello, Ted?"

"Go ahead, Jen. What have you got?"

"Get me on the air NOW!" The phone clicked and I heard the standard alert tone. "Please stand by for emergency information. All set, Jen Go ahead."

"This is Jennifer Stevens, at the weather service office. They have just issued a tornado warning for the city. A stong radar return indicated a funnel cloud just southwest of the city moving into the city limits. All residents are urged to take cover in basements or other underground areas immediately. This storm…" At that moment Adam came running into the room.

"Tornado reported on the ground just inside the city limits, moving to the northwest at 30 miles per hour. The base of the tornado is almost 300 feet wide at this time. Winds in the funnel are reaching speeds past 200 miler per hour." He ran back out to the radio room.

I was almost yelling into the phone. "CORRECTION. We've just had a report that a funnel is on the ground just inside the city limits on the southwest side. The storm track will take the funnel to the northeast though the heart of the city. Once again, seek shelter NOW. Repeating, a tornado is on the ground on the southwest side of the city, moving at around 30 miles per hour to the northeast. The area of destruction is at least a football field wide, and may grow as the tornado moves. Take shelter immediately. Back to the station."

The line went dead momentarily. I heard the alert tone again, and my taped words repeated again. "Jen, you there?"

"I'm here. Thanks for setting up the loop. Keep the line open. OK?

"Got it locked on. If I can't raise you, I'll kill the lock and hang up so you can call back in."

"I'm going to put you on hold so I can get to the radio room. Stand by." I hit the hold button, then slammed the phone back down on the cradle. I raced over to the radio room. The noise inside from alert tones and callout sequences coming from every scanner and alert receiver was deafening. I started turning most of them down until I could hear the two meter radio with the live reports from the trackers. I grabbed the phone and hit the button for the line to the station.

"Ted! Still there?"

"Still connected. What've you got?"

"Take me live, NOW."

"You got it. GO!"

"This is Jennifer Stevens at the weather service. Reports are coming in of damage to several buildings in the downtown area. The funnel is still on the ground near the corner of State Street and Delacroix Avenue, moving to the northeast. The base has grown to over 500 feet, and winds are estimated to be over 250 miles per hour. Please move to the lowest level of your house or apartment building basement areas, preferably on the southwest corner of the basement. This is an extremely dangerous storm. It has already heavily damaged over a dozen buildings in the downtown area as it continues to move to the northeast. Areas in the way include the state office building, baseball stadium, the regional farmer's market and the airport. Now, back to the studio."

I heard the line click, and the new report started repeating over and over. Ted came back on the line. "Jennifer, did you say the airport?"

"I did, Ted."

"Well then, get the hell out of there!"

"Can't. I'm sticking it out as long as I can help. I'll be OK. The storm may veer to the east a little and miss the tower building. No real way to tell until it gets here, though." Adam ran in and shoved a piece of paper into my hand. I paused to read it. "Ted, get me back on, now!"

CLICK "GO, JEN!"

"A report has just come in that the state office building has been badly damaged by the tornado. A few additional apartment buildings in the downtown area also took direct hits. It's still moving to the northeast at about 30 miles per hour. All residents should take cover until the tornado passes. Stay tuned to this station for updates. Back to you."

CLICK "Back again, Jen. You're clear."

"Thanks, Ted. The radar shows the storm is taking a more easterly track. Looks like it may not hit the tower building directly. May come very close, though. Can't see much point in staying on the phone right now. We have to get to some type of shelter, and fast. I'll call you back when I can. Bye!"

I slammed the phone back into the cradle and ran to the radio room. As I looked out the window, the wind was picking up and the sky had turned a deadly black. At about 4 in the afternoon near the tail end of summer, it looked like the time should have been around 4 AM instead. The airport runway lights had come on, and most of the streetlights had automatically turned on. As I looked toward the southwest, I saw a wide black wall of debris and dirt moving toward us. I punched Adam in the shoulder and pointed out the windows at the approaching whirlwind. "Adam, tell them we've got to take cover. We need to get to the hallway now!"

In just a few seconds the wind increased to an eerie screech as it drove sheets of rain against the windows. I saw the double paned glass windows start to vibrate from the wind pressure. There were two large picture windows, each measuring four by eight feet, side by side in the room. They would never stand the pressure from these winds and rain. The seals around the windows were already leaking water driven by the rain. Water was running down the window sills and pooling on the floor. A torrent of water was hitting the side of the tower like someone was hitting it with a wide open fire hose.

I didn't think it was possible, but in those few seconds the wind got even louder. The windows started to work loose from the rubber mounts holding them. "ADAM, NOW — MOVE!" I pulled on his arm to get him to move away from the windows toward the relative safety of the windowless hallway. We had just reached the door when the first of the picture windows shattered, spraying shards of glass toward us. Fortunately, the increased pressure in the room slammed the door shut behind us, containing the hailstorm of flying glass to the room itself. We heard the second window in the radio room blow in as all of us headed to the hallway. The radio room door was the next to go, as the wind invaded the office. I screamed as a huge crash shook the building, setting off the fire alarm and crash sirens. The generator in the next room sputtered to a stop, plunging the hallway into blackness just as the rain soaked panels from the drop ceiling came crashing down on us. The list thing I remember was Adam holding me tightly to his chest.

I awoke to the sound of sirens getting closer. It took a few moments for my dazed mind to do a reality check and remember what had just happened. I felt cold, and was soaked through to the skin. I felt arms still holding me, and looked up to find Adam still hugging me tightly, even though he had passed out from the force of the tiles hitting us. I pushed a few tiles away, and was horrified to see a chunk of the wall at the end of the hallway missing. It let in enough light to see that we were covered in mud and debris. I fought to clear the debris enough to rouse Adam, and found that Dannie and George were trapped in the rubble next to us.

Adam finally came awake. "Anyone get the number of that bus that hit us? I want to complain to the company." He moved slowly, testing his arms and legs for problems. Finding none, he began to slowly dig us out of the pile. A few moments later I was free enough to try to move. Like Adam, I had been very lucky in getting only a few cuts and scrapes from the fallen ceiling.

"Adam, help me get these two free and checked over." I started digging at the rubble, and finally moved enough to expose George and Dannie. George began to moan and move slightly. "Hold it, George. Take it easy, old friend. Let me look you over." He nodded weakly. I checked his arms and legs for breaks, and found none. "Where do you hurt, George?"

"Neck and back, mostly. Hard to get a breath, too."

"Just stay there. The rescue folks should be here in a few moments. I hear them outside now. Adam, see if you can get their attention. We need them in here now." He nodded, and started looking for a way out. I looked over at Dannie. She looked like she had a few cuts and scrapes, too, until I moved the last ceiling tile that was covering her middle. I gasped when I saw that a ceiling brace had come crashing down and crushed her groin area. There was blood everywhere. I ripped the seam of her jeans, and found that the soft tissue there was beyond normal repairs. It looked like Dannie was going to get her surgery much sooner than she figured. I debated if I should try the ring, but the debate ended after a few moments when Adam returned with two paramedics in tow.

I moved to the side and let them get to work. "Come on, Adam, they don't need us in the way. Let's go see what's left of the weather station." He helped my up, and we worked our way carefully back to the office. What we found was startling.

The crash turned out to be a dual engine Cessna that had been blown sideways into the side of the tower building, just where Adam and I had been standing in the radio room. Another few moments in getting out, and we would have been under the plane, not standing here looking at it. The radio room and office were completely gone, with little remaining to identify what had been installed there. The forecasting room was much better. The equipment looked to be intact, but without power. The emergency phone on the desk was ringing, and I made my way over to pick it up.

"Hello? Weather Service."

"Jen, is that you? This is Ted at the station. What happened out there?"

"Not much, just the tornado driving a plane into the side of the building. I'm OK, but the weather folks are out of commission for a while. Better get in touch with the other area office, and tell them that this one is out of service for a while. How are things going there?"

"That's why I was trying to call. Hold on one, Roy wants to talk to you." I heard some muffled talking, then Roy came on the line.

"Ted told me the problem out there. We've got problems here, too. The transmitter site took a hit. Looks like the omni tower may be down. I can still talk to the transmitter, but it's off-line and won't come back because of the antenna problems. Are you up to a trip out there to get us back on the air? With the local weather service office gone, we need to get back as soon as possible. The rest of this storm is only about forty-five minutes out, and moving this way fast."

"I think I can make it if my truck survived. I'll check and keep you informed. OK?

"Thanks, Jen. I'll be waiting to hear from you. You're the closest one to the site, so do the best you can. Bye!" I hung up the phone as a couple of the local hams made their way into the damaged office. Adam told them the story, and that we were needed elsewhere. The agreement was they would hold things down here until another weather service staffer showed up.

"All set, Adam?"

"Sure, Jen. Let's get moving." I grabbed my purse from the rubble that used to be the counter area as we walked out of the office. We worked our way out of the rubble around to where my truck as parked. Other than a few dents and scratches, it had survived the storm intact, since it was shielded by the building. We cleared some debris so we could back out, and headed for the transmitter site as fast as the road conditions would allow.

I called Roy from my cell phone and told him that we were on the way. I didn't know what we would run into getting to the site, so I told him we'd do our best to get there.

It took almost thirty minutes for what otherwise would have been a ten minute drive, due to all the street lights being out and debris blocking the roads. By the time we got there, the sky was once again growing dark and angry.

"Adam, leave the truck by the building in the carport car port again, just in case we get hail. We need to walk out there to look at the damage. That whole thing is a swamp, and this truck would get buried to the axles if we tried to drive out there." He pulled into the carport and turned off the engine. We got out and walked around to the back of the building. Sure enough, the two farthest towers were down in twisted heaps of metal. The tower closest to the station was intact. The other one was missing the top half.

"Looks like it got three of them. At least I can make the one tower work as an omni antenna again. We need to get out to the manhole in the center of the array to make the change. I can't do it from the transmitter room."

"Let's be careful. I don't like the look of that cloud line nearing us, Jen."

"I don't have a choice, Adam." I ran toward the manhole, with Adam following closely. About halfway there, he yelled. I looked up to see a wall cloud dropping from the base of the line of clouds above us.

"SHIT! FASTER, ADAM! That manhole is our only chance!" I fumbled for the key to the lock on the manhole as I ran. "FASTER!" I reached the manhole first. SHIT! The lock was rusted, and the key refused to even go into the lock. I looked up to see Adam standing next to me. We both looked toward the wall cloud to see that the tornado had touched down, and was sucking up everything it its path. That path was directly toward us. The wind started to roar, as the funnel was less than a football field away from us.

"I love you, Jen. I'm sorry we had to end this way."

"I'm not finished yet, Adam." I looked down at my hand, and thought of the night I saved Peggy. In moments, a glowing red ball of fire had grown in the palm of my hand. "Look out, Adam!" I opened my hand, and the ball shout out toward the lock. The instant it touched the lock, it vaporized in a flash of sparks and smoke. "Get this open, now!"

We yanked at the hatch for what seemed to be forever until the rust broke. It came clanging open with only moments to spare. The black wall of debris was less than a hundred feet away, and the winds increased, threatening to suck us into the vortex. I dived in first, with Adam right behind. We never had time to close the hatch. In seconds the swirling mass of debris swept over the hatch of the manhole. We felt the air being drawn out of the manhole as our lungs fought to retain the air in them. The air grew thin, and debris rained down on us from the open hatch.

It lasted only a few seconds, but felt like an eternity. The view through the hatch slowly cleared, and the air felt thicker again. Rain poured into the manhole from the cloudburst that followed the tornado.

Adam and I sat there hugging each other, and laughing that we beat the odds against us. How many people have a run-in with two tornadoes in one day and live to tell about it? As we caught our breath and wound down from the excitement, we heard a voice from the direction of the hatch.

"Jen, Adam, are you ok? Talk to us!" Adam and I exchanged looks, wondering who else was crazy enough to have followed us out here. I poked my head out of the hatch to see the two tabloid guys from earlier today.

"Hi guys, get any good stuff today?" I worked my way out of the manhole, and reached back to take Adam's hand as he scrambled out of the hole.

"Thank God you're all right!" We got it all on tape. Want to take a look?"

We walked over to them as they rewound the tape. Adam and I watched as we walked out toward the manhole, then began running as the storm approached. We saw where we had kneeled side by side when I tried to open the lock. Fortunately, our bodies blocked the view when I generated the fireball to destroy the lock. My secret was safe from the world, at least this time. I wondered about Adam, though.

“How come we didn’t see you at the airport?”

“Well, Jen, we got caught downtown when the storm went through. We got lots of great pictures and video. We worked our way back to the airport just a little while after the tornado hit the tower. They wouldn’t let us go into the area. We saw your truck leave and followed you here. We pulled in just as you spotted the twister coming at you.”

"Looks like you need to get to a TV station and get your stuff on the air." I gave them the address of the station where Dorene worked, and waved as they walked back to their car. I looked toward the transmitter building, to see that both it and the carport had survived. "Let's get this tower online, then we'll go into the transmitter building to recover a bit."

I climbed back into the manhole and changed a few jumpers around on a panel on a small rack off to the side. Then I got back out, and Adam and I walked arm in arm back to the building.

"Jen, what did I see back there?"

"Just what you thought you saw. I generated a ball of fire that blew the lock apart."

"How?"

"If I knew that, I'd tell you. I just discovered the ability a few days ago."

"Oh, what else can you do?"

"I can heal people. Other than that, I don't really know the extent of what I can do. I've never really explored it. Everything has been so busy the last few days that I haven't had the chance to even think about it."

"OK. We'll talk later. Right now you need to get the station back on the air, then we need to get back to your house and check on things there. Agreed?"

"Yes, love. I have no problem with that. Quite frankly, I'm beat to my socks...if I was wearing any."

"Me, too. Think we'll recover?"

"We'll sure try. There's something else I want to do tonight that will tire us both out, but we'll both be very happy afterwards." I winked, and added some extra sway to my hips as I climbed the short set of stairs ahead of him to the back door of the building.

"You're giving me dangerous ideas, Jen." He was grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh, good! You got my message then!" I gave him a long lingering kiss, then turned toward the transmitter equipment rack and grabbed the comm microphone.

"Jen to station. Are you there, Roy?"

"Thank God! We've been waiting forever to hear from you. Are you OK?"

"A little banged up, but otherwise intact. I have the single remaining stick patched in. Let me take local control of the transmitter for some tuning, then I'll turn it over to you. OK?"

"Here you go!" A light on the panel turned from red to green as I was given local control of the transmitter. I put the transmitter in low power mode, and re-tuned the matching network for the proper levels. Satisfied that things looked good, I shut down the transmitter, put it in normal power mode and turned it back on. Everything held, and the meters looked close to normal for a single antenna operation.

"Station. Go ahead and feed audio, Roy. Looks good here."

"Thanks, Jen. Stand by."

Moments later, I heard the newsroom at the station begin coverage of the storms again.

"Sounds good here, Roy. I'll stay here for another fifteen minutes or so to be sure, then I'm headed home."

"Thanks again, Jen. I have another engineer who will be going out there to look at the damage and babysit the thing overnight. Go home and see if you had any damage, and take it easy. I want to hear all about the day later, when we get together for lunch. By the way, the GM accepted your idea for a radio show. The one you asked about before your accident. You'll have to talk to him about it more next week."

"OK, Roy. I'll talk to you then. Transmitter out."

Adam and I took a few moments to use the facilities and clean up some. Our clothes were totally ruined from the day's disasters. We both looked like we had been covered with mud and rinsed off in gray paint. We used the change of clothes we both brought and felt much better after using the bathroom in the old house. We still weren’t very clean but we did manage to get most of the really bad grunge off.

“I’ll have to take a shower when I get home, Jen. I still have dirt everywhere.”

"Don't worry about that too much, love. I'm sure we'll be able to help each other in the tub. Let's get back home and relax."

"Works for me, Jen. I'm outta here." He picked me up, tossed me over his shoulder then carried me out to the truck. He gently placed me in the passenger seat and went around to get in the driver's side. The ride home was very quiet, as we both looked at the devastation around us.

As we got closer to my house the damage lessened until we were just a few blocks away. Then it looked like the area wasn't touched at all. We pulled into my driveway to see a couple of the antennas on the house bent at strange angles, and a few of the shingles gone on the roof. "Well, Adam, if that's all the damage, I was very lucky today." We walked around the house, inspecting things as we went.

Some of the lawn furniture was turned over, and the missing shingles from the front roof were found in the back yard. I estimated only a few hundred dollars in damage that could wait a few days to get repaired. I unlocked the front door and was about to go in when Adam scooped me up and carried me inside. He went to the living room and set me down gently on the couch, then sat down beside me.

"Are you sure you want to do this tonight, Jen?"

"Yes, Adam. I'm positive."

Our lips touched, and seemed to lock together. For once I stopped fighting the feelings, and let the body override my brain. A very wonderful warm glow developed in my middle and a very wet feeling lower down.

Adam reached out and undid the bow holding my halter top. I let it slide off, and reached out to unbutton his shirt. It, too, came off easily. Next, my shorts and panties slid off after I stood up next to Adam. I undid Adam's belt and unzipped his pants. I pulled them down around his feet as he stepped out of them. The last thing was his briefs. They slid down, revealing him at full attention.

"Glad you're thrilled to see me like this!" I wrapped my arm around his waist, and gently guided him to the bathroom.

The shower was wonderful as we soaped up each other and gently massaged sore and tired muscles. I almost melted when his strong hands kneaded my neck, releasing all of the tension built up there during the day. His hands soon worked their way down to explore my already hard nipples. Little tweaks and squeezes drove me over the top to my first orgasm of the night. His hands worked their way down to my hips and tummy, gently caressing them as they went. He finally found my clit and gently stroked it as I squealed with delight. Fingers probed in and out of my vagina, sending me over the top again.

I gently moved his hands away, telling him I needed a few minutes to recover. I found his eager organ with my hands, and gently squeezed the head and balls. He groaned in pleasure, and his eyes rolled back in his head. I continued the stroking until he gently pulled away.

"If you keep doing that, I'm going to come right now. Want it in bed, or should I take you right here?"

I thought a moment, then turned off the water and grabbed a towel. "Coming?"

"Whenever and wherever you want!" he smiled, and grabbed another towel.

We dried each other off and headed for the bedroom. "Adam, would you please use a condom? I'm not ready to be a mom just yet. I think I have some here if Momma Peggy did her usual thing." I went to the nightstand by the bed and opened the drawer. Nothing there. I went back into the bathroom and looked through all of the cabinets there. Nothing. I started tearing out all of the clothes in my dresser and finally found the box in the bottom drawer buried under the bras. It had a handwritten note that simply said "GOTCHA!" OK, Peggy, paybacks are a bitch, and I'm just the bitch to handle that.

WOW! That was sure a change in attitude. I think I've finally made the adjustment. Better get back to the business at hand, or in hand, as the case may be.

I slid into the bed next to Adam and handed him the box. He took one out and put it on as I eagerly watched. "Do you want the bottom or top?"

"Bottom, please. I'm an old fashioned girl."

"Since when?" Adam rolled over and positioned himself to enter me. "Ready?"

"Just go slowly. I'm still a virgin, and it'll hurt a bit."

He nodded, and slowly rubbed the head of his penis over my clit, making me squirm and moan. He rubbed a little more, picking up some of my natural lubrication, and then placed the head between my waiting lips and gently pushed. It started to slide in, and sent shock waves up my spine as it went in slowly, centimeter by maddening centimeter. It finally reached a point where the pleasure turned to pain. Adam sensed me tense up and stopped, then pulled out slightly.

"Want to stop, Jen?"

"No way. Just make one quick thrust in, and it will be over. OK?"

"All right. Do you want to know when it's coming?"

"NO. Just do it!"

Moments later, he made the thrust and broke the barrier. I let out a small yelp of pain, then asked him to wait for the pain to subside. As he waited with his cock still inside me, he nibbled my nipples, sending me over the top again.

I nodded for him to continue, and the rest slid in without any pain but quite a bit of pleasure. I nodded for him to continue, and he started long rhythmic strokes in and out. The fire slowly built within me, and after a few minutes of pumping I was screaming in ecstasy as my first orgasm from sex with a man washed over me. Adam continued pumping, and I soon had a second and then a third orgasm. I figured out which muscles did what, and clenched down around Adam's shaft. He shuddered as he, too, had an orgasm. I felt him pumping inside me, and we both collapsed from the sensory overload.

I came back to the real world a few minutes later, with Adam laying next to me smiling and looking at me. I smiled back, and ran my hand down his chest and teased his softened shaft.

"A bit tuckered out, I see. Let me know when you're ready to go again."

"What, once isn't enough for tonight?" He tweaked my still hard nipples and rubbed my clit, making me squirm.

"I'm ready to go most of the time. What's your excuse?"

"Women. Just can't satisfy 'em."

"You can try all you want. I won't complain."

"Come here, you." Adam reached over and turned out the light as he pulled me closer.

We didn't get much sleep, but then, it was worth it. I don't think either of us will forget that night, especially what happened at the end. That, however, is another story.

-*-*-*-*- Continued in Zapped! Chapter 6 -*-*-*-*-