Storm Chaser (3 page)

Between flashes of lightning, she quickly changed into her pajamas and crawled into bed, pulling the covers up around her neck. She loved Nevada storms, the way the thunder and lightning crackled and rolled, but they scared her too.

She snuggled deeper into the blankets and worried about the horses. She hoped Rusty decided to sleep in his stall instead of crowding up against the outside barn wall like he usually did. Maybe she should have locked him in like her father and brother had done with their own mounts.

Lightning continued to illuminate the darkened room. Jessica counted the seconds between the flashes of lightning and the loud claps of thunder. The storm drew closer. She clamped her teeth together to keep from screaming when a particularly loud rumble shook the house. She pulled the covers over her head and tried to block out the sounds of the raging storm. It seemed to continue for hours, thundering and blowing, but after a while, despite her fear, Jessica found her eyes growing heavy.

She wasn't sure exactly when she fell asleep, but Jessica woke to the sound of scratching at her door. She lay in bed, trying to get her bearings. Shep whimpered outside her door, then scratched again. She sat up, sniffing at the strange acrid smell in the air. An odd flickering of light cast an eerie glow outside of her bedroom window.

Jessica slipped from her bed, noting the silence of the night. The storm had passed. She tiptoed across the room and peeked through the curtains, then gasped as her heart tumbled in her chest. The odd glow of light illuminating the night was the orange flicker of flames rising from the old wooden barn. Wild Hawk Ranch was on fire!

THREE

Jessica stumbled in the darkness of her room, her heart climbing into her throat. “Mom!” she cried. “Dad! Duncan!” She fumbled for the light switch. Her fingers found the switch and light flooded the room. At least the electricity was back on.

“What is it, Jess?” Duncan pushed open her door, his eyes sliding to the window where the eerie light flickered in the reflection of the glass.

“Duncan, get Mom and Dad. The barn's on fire!” Jessica grabbed her jeans and shirt as her brother's footsteps pounded down the stairway. Her hands shook so badly she had trouble dressing herself. She shoved one leg into her jeans and shifted off-balance, almost falling to the floor. Dragging the shirt over her head, she ran down the stairs after Duncan.

Shep barked furiously. Her mother and father were just leaving their bedroom when she reached the bottom of the staircase. “The horses are in the barn!” Jessica cried.

“Call 911, Jess!” Mr. Warner shouted as he ran across the room. He grabbed his hat off the wall peg and slammed it down tight on his head, shouldering the back door open. “It may be too late for the barn, but we might need the fire department for the house.”

The house?
Jessica felt her stomach turn inside-out and her legs go weak. Her dad was right. They were a long way from town. The barn would probably be gone by the time the fire trucks arrived.

Duncan grabbed her shoulder to steady her. “Don't worry, sis, the barn is a ways from here. The house should be okay. I'll help get the horses out. The cattle will be all right where they are.” He turned and ran out the back door.

Jessica's throat squeezed closed. Duncan had just spoken more words in one standing than he'd said all day. That alone told her they were in deep trouble. It would be bad enough losing the barn and next winter's feed supply, but what would they do if they lost the horses and their house, too? What if she lost Rusty?

She walked across the floor to the phone, feeling as if she were moving in slow motion. Her feet seemed to be filled with lead. She lifted the receiver and punched in the emergency number. Her hands trembled so much, she wasn't sure she'd hit the right buttons, but a moment later, the calm voice of the emergency operator spoke up. Jessica gave the woman the information she requested, then hung up the phone and ran to join her family outside.

When she came face-to-face with the awful reality of the raging barn fire, she froze in her tracks, choking as the wind shifted, blowing the billowing dark clouds of acrid smoke toward them. She rubbed her eyes, trying to peer into the bright flames. How much of the building was on fire?

Sparks and ash rained down on Jessica while her eyes traced the line of flames. The fire seemed to have started at the back of the stable. A cold sweat dampened her forehead when she realized that the horses were in that part of the barn. And Rusty was one of them!

Fear roared in her ears, drowning out the awful sound of the crackling pops as the old wooden structure continued to succumb to the voracious fire. “Rusty's in there!” she screamed, racing forward to open the barn doors.

Jessica felt strong hands around her waist and her feet lifted off the ground. Her father carried her back and set her none too gently next to her mother. “Stay here,” he commanded. The sound of frightened whinnies floated on the night air as she stared into her father's worried face.

“You can't go in there, Jess!” Mr. Warner yelled over the roar of the spreading flames. “It's too dangerous!”

“B-but…the horses…” Jessica stammered.

Her mother hugged her tightly. “Hush now, Jess,” she said.

Then a movement over her father's shoulder caught Jessica's eye. A black shadow headed toward the front of the barn. She widened her eyes in the darkness, trying to make out the shape.

The front doors of the barn flew open. Jessica knew her brother was going to try to save the horses. “Duncan!” she cried.

Mr. Warner's head snapped around when Jessica shouted her brother's name. He gave her a look meant to keep her rooted to the spot, then turned and ran toward his son. “Duncan, don't you go in there!” But it was too late. Duncan's shadowy form slipped into the burning barn.

Jessica turned to her mother, seeing fear leap into her eyes. “What do we do?”

“Grab the hose!” her mother ordered. “I'll get the one from the outbuilding. We'll water down the front of the barn so they'll have a place to come out.”

Jessica could sense the terror in her mother's words even though her voice remained calm and steady. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her own fears. She had to be brave, too. Her brother's and father's lives could very well depend on it. She hurried to the faucet and turned the water on full, then stretched the hose to the front of the barn, aiming the spray at the opening.

“Somebody's coming,” Mrs. Warner nodded toward the long dirt road that led to their property.

Jessica saw the wildly bouncing headlights as the vehicle came pell-mell up the bumpy road. “I think it's the Lightfoots coming to help,” she said.

“Good,” Mrs. Warner directed her spray of water toward the barn. “I just hope the fire department gets here soon.”

Jessica could hear the frightened neighs of the horses trapped in the barn. Her heart went out to them. What if they were too scared to leave the barn? But she knew her father and brother. They would find a way to bring the horses out safely. She chewed at her bottom lip, praying her father and Duncan were okay.

Another terrified whinny pierced the night and Jessica immediately recognized it.
Rusty!

“Don't worry, honey.” Mrs. Warner laid a reassuring hand her daughter's shoulder. “Duncan and your father will get all the horses out.”

Tires skidded on gravel as the old blue pickup braked to a halt and Wyatt, Gator, and their father jumped from the vehicle to help.

“Thank goodness!” Mrs. Warner cried. “Jake and Duncan are in the barn, trying to get the horses out. We're keeping the doorway watered down so they'll be able to make it out.” She stared at the building that was now half in flames. “We'll have to hurry. That roof won't hold out much longer.”

Gator took the hose from Mrs. Warner. “Why don't you get a couple of blankets we can wet down in case the guys need them when they come out?” He peered into the roaring inferno. “If they're not out in another minute, my dad and I will go in after them.”

Mrs. Warner grabbed the young boy by the arm. “Gator, I can't let you and your father risk it. There are already two men in there. It's too dangerous to send anyone else in.” She jumped as the barn creaked and several boards from the loft broke through to the bottom floor in a flurry of sparks and flames. “They'll be out soon, I know it!”

A siren wailed in the distance. Everyone turned to see flashing red lights making steady progress toward the ranch.

“The fire engines are coming!” Wyatt hollered over the roar of the fire.

Just then a shout erupted from the barn. “Stand clear!” Mr. Warner's voice rang out. “One horse coming out!”

The small crowd outside the barn scattered as Mr. Warner's big bay bolted from the barn, his eyes rolling in terror as he raced away from the burning building. A moment later, the two men emerged from the barn. Duncan led his blindfolded horse while his father pushed from behind. The panicked animal stumbled through the doorway, making it forty feet from the barn before collapsing onto his side in the grass, his breath coming in great, labored gasps.

With her family safe, Jessica's spirits soared. But her eyes quickly scanned the confusion, looking for the last horse. “Where's Rusty?” she cried.

The fire engines roared into the driveway, sending up a cloud of dust that mingled with the heavy smoke from the burning barn.

“Is everyone accounted for?” the first firefighter on the scene asked, signaling his men to unroll the large hoses.

“We're all okay,” Mr. Warner answered.

Jessica took several steps toward the barn. “My horse!” she screamed. “Rusty is still in the barn!” Fear seized her, choking the breath from her body. She couldn't let Rusty die like that. She took several more steps, feeling a blast of hot air as several more boards from the loft crashed to the main floor, bringing down burning bales of hay in a shower of sparks.

“Jessie!” Duncan grabbed her from behind, picking her up and carrying her backward. “Rusty wouldn't come out, Jess. He was too scared.” Duncan broke into a coughing fit, doubling over and resting his hands on his thighs. When the fit passed, he raised his soot-covered face to his sister. “I tried my best, Jess, but he wouldn't go through the barn.”

Mr. Warner clapped a hand on Jessica's shoulder. She wasn't sure if it was to comfort her or to keep her from dashing into the burning building to save her horse.

“Rusty's okay, Jessica. His stall door must have blown closed during the storm,” Mr. Warner said. “I opened it and he went out into the corral. He's at the back of his pen, but we've got to get him out of there before the barn falls.”

“Stay here, Jess,” Mrs. Warner ordered. “Let your father go after Rusty.”

Her father nodded, then began to wheeze uncontrollably.

“We need a medic over here!” one of the firemen yelled, signaling to the others.

Jessica waited until someone came to look after her father, then took that moment of confusion to dash to the back of the barn where Rusty's corral stood. As she approached, she heard the nervous whinnies of the new horses in the round pen. Shielding her eyes from the bright yellow and orange flames leaping skyward, she could see the youngsters were a little further away from the barn than Rusty. They would be safe for the moment. Right now, she had to direct all of her attention toward her old horse.

“Rusty?” Jessica could just make out his dark shape against the inferno. The horse pushed against the boards of his pen, his eyes wide with terror as he tried to escape the flames.

She rushed into his pen. “Rusty, come on!” She sprinted to his side, pushing him toward the exit. Rusty balked, afraid to move from his spot. Jessica cried out in alarm as a live ash landed on her horse's back and his coat began to smolder. She used her sleeve to brush off the hot ash, then pounded on Rusty's back until the fire was out. The smell of burning hair hung heavily on the air, causing her stomach to roll.

“Rusty, please,” Jessica begged as she continued to push on his hind quarters. She had to get him to leave his pen before the burning barn collapsed into his corral.

Wyatt appeared by Jessica's side with a halter in his outstretched hand. “Put this on him, Jess,” he instructed.

Jessica looked up in relief, managing a small smile. Wyatt was great with horses. He'd know what to do. “He won't budge,” she cried in panic, fumbling with the buckle on the halter.

Wyatt positioned himself behind the old horse. “Just get the halter on him, Jess, and get out of the way. I'll make sure he moves.”

Jessica's fingers shook so badly, it took several tries to get the halter latched. “Okay, he's ready. What do you want me to do?”

“Get his head pointed toward the door, then stand back!” Wyatt hollered above the crackling of the flames.

Jessica did as she was told. She pulled on the lead rope, pointing Rusty's head toward the gate, then stepped through the opening to wait for Wyatt to work a miracle. She watched as the tall, thin boy took off his baseball hat and smacked it down on Rusty's haunches, then raised his arms in the air and hollered something in Paiute.

Rusty balked, but Wyatt smacked him harder on the rear and jumped up and down, waving his arms wildly. The old gelding rushed through the gate, stumbling close on Jessica's heels as she raced away from the barn.

When they were a safe distance away, Jessica stopped and threw her arms around Rusty's neck, burying her face into his sweating coat. She could smell the fear emanating from the old horse's body. It mixed with the scent of wood smoke, burned hair, and sweat, making her gag.

Rusty lowered his head to the ground and coughed.

“Are you okay?” Wyatt joined them, running his hands over Rusty's body, checking for injury.

Jessica nodded. “I'm fine, but Rusty's coughing.”