Romancing the Storm: Second Chances (5 page)

"What are we going to do?" I ask Judah as the wind whips around the little hut. He scampers to the windows and pulls the shutters to hoping to stop the wind and rain from entering the hut. I do likewise with the door. Still, the little hut sits precariously on the beach edge, certainly not built as a bunker.

Judah turns to me with worry in his eyes. "Gracelyn I don't like the looks of this storm. They said it was a hurricane. There's no way this place will survive a direct hit from one," he says as he goes to the door and opens it a touch to look outside. The wind catches it, and it whips open all the way. He struggles to shut it again.

"Maybe the bulk of the storm is hitting to the west, and we're just feeling the very outer edges of it," I suggest not convincing myself. I wrap my hands around my arms as I shudder at the thought of weathering such a storm here.

The wind blasts the hut and the entire building trembles. Judah shakes his head at me, a stern look upon his face. "Not safe," he says as he goes to peek out of the windows. The rain is coming down in droves, it's dark outside because of the cloud cover.

"Pack as much stuff as you can carry. We need food. There's plenty of water there," he says as he rushes to his bag.

"What? Where are we going we don't have a boat," I say as I go to my bed and pull my bag up.

"Inland. We have to go inland. It's not safe here on the beach. This hut is barely taking this now. If we hurry, we can make it to the falls before the brunt of the storm hits. We'll have to ride it out there. Otherwise, we could be killed here," Judah says as he packs. He leaves some room in his bag and goes to the kitchen and grabs as much food as possible.

"Do the same," he orders.

"You mean we're going to hike back to the falls?" I say not fully grasping it.

Judah stops and comes to me. He puts his hands on my upper arms and looks me right in the eyes. "We have to go to the falls, the cave behind it. It's the safest place on the island. The cave will protect us. We have a chance to survive this if we go there," he says.

A chill runs through me as I frantically pack and grab as much food as possible. He's right. This hut won't make it. I have my one suitcase, and that's it. Judah has a large backpack. He rolls up a blanket and attaches it to the framework. "I can carry another bag since I can wear this on my back."

We cram as much food as we can into a large canvas beach bag I brought. I grab a few towels and shove over the top. The hut shimmies as a blast of wind hits it. "We need to go, now," Judah says. "Stick close to me."

"Okay," I reply as I hoist the bag with my hands. It's heavy with my things and food, and I managed to pack another blanket in the side pocket. I wish we had planned better and brought all the comforts of home to the cave.

"Let's go." He hesitates at the door. "I wish I knew what that note said. If it said he's coming back at a set time, we could wait here. But I’m not confident he’s coming back, and we need a safe-haven."

"Then let's just get to the shelter of the cave."

The storm rages as we step out. Lightning flashlights our way, but the torrential downpour slows our speed. Little rivers of water crop up all through the forest floor as we rush inland to make our way to the cave behind the falls. Our trek is slow due to the rain and the wind. A couple of times we had to stop and just put our backs to a tree. I pray all the way there hoping we'll arrive alive. I don't know what I'll do if something happens to Judah.

The rain falls hard and masks the tears now pouring forth from my eyes. To say I'm scared is an understatement. The fierce wind blasts around us. We hear the creaking of a tree as it uproots near us. "Keep going," Judah yells above the storm.

We have to keep moving as we have no choice. We can hear other trees being uprooted and the crashing of limbs and branches. We trample through deep puddles and streams. I lose my footing at one point and almost topple over. I reach out and grab a nearby tree and stumble. Judah stops and gives me a hand. "Stay close," he yells.

Finally, we hear the rushing of the falls as we near the craggy rocks that make up the outer edges of the deep pool. "Follow my footsteps," Judah says as he expertly climbs and towards the crashing water.

We carefully hike over the slick rocks towards the falls while carrying our heavy baggage. I slip a couple of times and almost fall into the deep pool of churning water. I cry as I grit my teeth to make it over the rocks and to the edge of the ledge that leads to the falls to the cave. Finally, Judah makes it and tosses his bags within before grabbing my bag and guides me over the last bit of rocks and onto the ledge.

"Dear God, that was scary," I cry as I shake my arms off the excess water. It's nice and dry and dark in the cave.

Judah produces a small lantern that barely lights a circle in the middle. He then proceeds to the ledge again. "I've got to gather some wood so it can dry so we can have a fire at some point," he says.

"You're not going back out there! You could get hurt. Here, I'll come with you," I say.

"Not. You dry off and change your clothing. I'll get the wood. It's okay, I'm a bit more experienced at this than you. Just stay put," Judah orders and he turns and leaves me in the cave alone.

The storm rages beyond the falls as I cower in the back corner of the cave. Judah's been out there for a good fifteen minutes, and I worry about his safety. I had changed into dry clothing, but I'm considering putting the wet clothing back on to go out there and find him. I hear a thump and jump up with the light of my cell phone to see. A few wet logs lay up on the rocks, quite a few now that I see. I grab a towel and put it over my head and gingerly step out on the ledge to gather the logs and drag them into the dry cave. I don't see Judah anywhere at the moment.

There are five logs and now they are lining the cave wall to dry. I hear another thump and race over to the ledge to see Judah flinging each log up to the rocks. "Are you okay?" I yell.

He looks up and nods and turns to go back for more. I wish he'd just stop and come into the safety of the cave. The storm doesn't let up, and the wind intensifies. I stand at the edge fearing for Judah's life. I hear trees cracking and falling all around as the wind battles through the forest. The lightning doesn't let up, and it gives much-needed light. At the same time, it is scary because it's dangerous. I swallow hard as I strain to see Judah a little ways up in the trees gathering smaller twigs.

He scampers up the rocks with the load in his hands. "That's it," I say and plead with him to stop.

He comes into the sanctuary of the cave and drops the limbs scattering each on the cave floor. "We have to have this so we can have a fire. Perhaps the wood will dry enough for us to cook breakfast in the morning," he says.

"I'm not worried about frying bacon in the morning. I'm worried sick about you out there," I say exasperated by the whole event.

"I promise, by morning you will be hungry," he says as he peels out of his soaked clothing. I hand him a towel. He strips to his underwear, and I blush heavily, thankful for the dimness of the lantern light. However, each strike of lightning gives us more than enough light to see everything very clearly. I turn around while he dresses in dry clothing.

I shiver as the wind blows a fine mist in the cave. The wind is swirling and disappears. The boom of thunder causes me to jump. Hands touch my shoulders as Judah steps up to calm my nerves. I turn and allow his arms to encircle me. My arms instinctively go up and wrap around him, and he holds me. It feels good, he's warm.

"It's okay. We're safe now," Judah says.

I nod and pull back. Blaine swims to my mind, and I wonder if he'd been as considerate and caring as Judah in this situation. I wonder if I'll ever see him again. Tears sting my eyes as I try to grasp our current situation and the loneliness I felt after Blaine left.

We create make-shift beds with the blankets and use rolled up towels for pillows. The hurricane is relentless, and the occasional spray of fine mist means it is swirling brutally above the island right now. We hear the trees cracking and creaking. Thankfully the wind doesn't carry debris into the cave; the falls seem to shield us.

Judah lies next to me, his arm protectively around me. I'm facing away from him and temptation. I feel his breath on my neck, and it makes me want to turn around to face him. But I don't. I love Blaine. Blaine has my heart. Still, Blaine's not here with me. Blaine is on the other side of the world without many regards to my feelings about it. I swallow hard as the thunder booms. Judah draws me close and only then do I relax enough to fall asleep.

A loud boom jars me awake. I sit up on the cave floor and Judah is on the ledge looking out. It is a bit lighter than the night but still very dark. "What time is it?" I ask sleepily.

"It's a little past six thirty. The wind, believe it or not, is getting worse. We're stuck here I'm afraid until it passes," Judah says as he turns and checks on the wood.

"Is it bad that I've become accustomed to the storm out there?" I ask as I look over the ledge on the other side at the misty rain pelted forest.

"No, it's probably a defense mechanism. This storm is rough. I'd say we got hit dead center for the hurricane. I'm sure there's nothing left of the hut," Judah says sadly.

"Should we try to make our way back to the beach, just in case someone comes to rescue us?" I ask as I dig through the food for a bite of breakfast.

"No. It's too dangerous out there. I suspect a third of the trees have uprooted. If you stand here long enough, you'll see debris flying around. The wind is too fierce right now. We need to stay put and ride it out in here. We have enough food to make it," Judah says as he's looking out over the ledge at the devastation happening before our very eyes.

For two days, we ride out the storm, hunkering down in the cave with the occasional peek over the ledge. Finally in mid-morning on the third day the wind stops and the sun pops out. Judah looks up at me and rushes to the ledge. The waterfall causes colorful rainbows to dance across the pool. The trees, bedraggled from the unrelenting storm lays over in protest, many uprooted. Branches and leaves litter the forest floor. Small rivers and streams snake out in all directions.

"Better get a move on while it's calm," Judah says as he dresses for a trek.

"Move on to where?" I ask as I slide my feet in my shoes.

"We need to head out to see what happened at the beach. We need to see if anyone will come to rescue us," Judah says. "Come on."

We exit the cave. "Wait, shouldn't we bring our stuff with us?" I ask as I look back at our food and clothing strewn about the cave floor.

"No, if what I suspect is true, we won't have time to come back before the storm resumes," he says and climbs down the rocks to the forest. I follow stepping in puddles and streams. It's too wet to avoid.

"Do you think the storms passed?" I ask as we walk fast through the forest toward the beach.

"No, if the hurricane has hit, this is just the eye, the calm in the center. It depends on how big the storm is as to how long this calm will last. It can be deceptive."

It takes us forty-five minutes to reach the outer edge of the lush forest, but nothing on the beach looks familiar. "Are we lost? Is this the right place?" I ask feeling my heart thump hard in my chest as the realization sinks into our situation.

"We're at the right place. The storm has destroyed the landscape. Nothing looks familiar, but we need to find something that indicates this is where we were left off at the dock if the dock still exists," Judah says.

The clearing reveals a beach littered with tree trunks, branches and bits of wood and debris. Judah walks to a level spot. "This is where the hut was," he says, a grave look on his face. "We need to find some evidence of it."

I scour the area and within the trees are a few boards from the hut. The dock is gone, the only thing left are the posts where the steps were that lead to it. I can't believe the devastation of the storm. Above us, the sky is blue, and the sun is shining. It's as if nothing has happened; it's just business as usual. But to the north we can see the swirling of the wall of clouds, the edge lighting up with bolts of lightning the sea churning underneath it. It's calm here at the moment, but not as calm as if there weren't a storm above us still raging.

"Do you think we were at the outer edge maybe?" I ask as I glance around. Judah squints to the south.

"No, if you look there, and to the east and west, you can see the same clouds. We're in the eye," he says.

My heart sinks. We had three days of horrendous storms, and we have to endure it again. "I wish the hut had made it," I say feeling disheartened.

"Just think, had we stayed we would have been killed," Judah says. I shiver at the thought of the devastation. "We're lucky we made it to the cave when we did. This island was a direct hit for the hurricane."

"So should we head back to the cave so we'll be safe when it hits again?" I ask as I look back at the trashed forest.

"We will. I want to wait a bit to see if a boat will happen by first. If they rescue us now it would be great," Judah says.

"Unless the mainland was just as devastated as we are here," I say with a new fear.

"If, so we'll manage. We're not helpless. We have plenty of fresh drinking water. And worse case, we fish for our food. There are a few fruit trees here and there in the woods."

"Unless they are uprooted."

The rumble sounds from the west. The storm is moving faster than I like as the wall of clouds appears closer. The wind starts to pick up again. Judah stands by the posts of the dock looking back towards the mainland. He shakes his head slowly with a worried look creeping in on his handsome face. He's not my fun-loving adventure-seeking guy anymore. He's serious and grave and for a good reason.

He turns to me and upon seeing my serious look he steps up to me looking right at me. He gently swipes a spring of hair as the wind blows it into my eyes. For a moment we just look into one another's eyes, I want to melt into his arms.

"It's going to be okay. Keeping you safe is my top priority. Don't worry, we'll be rescued probably after the storm passes," he says. I want to reach out, but instead I hug him briefly, and then we turn and head back into the forest amidst stronger blowing winds.

"We should take advantage of the calm and catch a swim," Judah suggests.

"I'm not much in the mood for a dive and swim," I say sourly. I'm now worried we won't get off this island.

"No sense in not enjoying ourselves in spite of it. We have a few minutes before the storm hits again. We can cool off and clean up before round two. Come on it will be fun. Put your suit on," Judah demands.

We turn our backs and dress and clamor up the cliff to the top of the falls so we can have one good jump. I'm hesitant, but Judah grabs my hand and smiles at me. "Come on, we can do this," he says and counts down from three and we sail off the top to the deep cold pool below.