The wind screamed around the eves and pounded on the windows. Ominous black clouds belched flames and roared. The rain came with a sudden roar, drenching the cabin as if a giant were emptying a huge bucket. It roared on the tin roof and plunged off the eves. There the wind caught it and mixed it with the rest of the rain, driving it across the yard in horizontal sheets.
Another brilliant bolt of lightning ended in a deafening clap of thunder. With a sharp cry, she scrambled to the kitchen and dived under the table. Her heart was beating wildly as she cowered against one of the benches.
It was a few minutes before she realized the pounding noise was someone knocking on the door. Who would be out in this weather? She crawled out from under the table and answered the door. Keaton was standing on the porch, drenched.
"Mr. Keaton! What are you doing out in this storm?"
He stepped past her into the room. "There's a tornado warning out and I figured you didn't have any way of knowing it." He glanced around the room. "Do you have a radio?"
"Tornado? Shouldn't we get in a cellar or something?" Her mouth felt suddenly dry and goose bumps sprang up all over her bare arms.
He smiled. "There's nothing to panic about. The chances are slim to none that a tornado will hit this cabin, as sheltered as it is by the hills. It's sturdy and you're probably as safe here as you would be anywhere close. Certainly it's safer here than braving the storm to find shelter." He was moving quickly toward a window as he spoke. "Do you have any candles or a flashlight?" At her nod he continued his hurried instructions. "Go get them and take them to the kitchen." He checked the windows while she followed his instructions.
She ran to the bedroom and grabbed the flashlight, pausing only long enough to check the window there. It was better having something to do. In the bathroom, she paused long enough to grab a towel, which she tossed at Keaton when she met him in the kitchen. She glanced up into his calm features.
"Now what?"
He caught the towel and started drying off. "Now we wait it out." He threw the towel across his broad shoulders and lowered himself to a bench beside the table. "Why don't you make us some coffee?"
He was trying to keep her busy so she wouldn't have time to think about the storm. Fat chance. As she filled the coffeepot, she glanced out the window. It was dark, but the constant lightning flashes exposed a world of wildly waving branches. The rain beat on the roof with a steady roar and thunder cracked like a giant whip. She flinched and moved away from the window to put the pot over a fire on the range.