We had all enjoyed a drink or two out on the deck but then came inside as the sky turned a lot more ominous looking, and we were now hearing thunder. LOTS of thunder and periodically, rain droplets on the windows. Not much yet, but that would change and we all knew it. I had caught a glimpse of the sky to the west as I was heading in and I suspected and rightly that we were gonna be the Rico and Dylan Hotel tonight. Not gonna be a night for driving to be sure. I have to hand it to myself. Good idea when I told Frankie I wanted a house with 9 million bedrooms just in case. LOL. He tossed in a few hundred extra, just in case.
I suddenly felt hands on my shoulders from behind, but they didn't feel like Rico's. Besides his were around my waist. Hmmm.
I turned and looked.
"Hey hotstuff."
"Hey borderline gawjus y'self, Dylan."
We both grinned and giggled.
"What's up?"
I looked at her and knew...
"That was my question for you."
"Can we go upstairs, Bear?"
"Why Rose...in front of the children and..."
I looked at Rico who was struggling to contain one his legendary giggles, sad to say. When he gets like this...
"Whatcha thinky, Bearski?"
and he flashed me one of his world famous clueless looks.
Ok. That is when I lost it.
He does that shit with a straight face, too.
"I don't know Boo, she has quite the reputation...you know," I replied with as dead pan a look as I am ever capable of at this point. Course I got swatted as usual.
"YEH,THANKS TO YOU, mah fave Bear," and now she was giggling. I SWEAR,WE ARE NOT FIT FOR PUBLIC CONSUMPTION.
But, of course, we headed upstairs. When Rose talks Bears listen, and do...and know they better. Haahaa.
I really didn't have a clue what was getting to Rose, and yet in a way I did. I always do and also of course,we didn't get far before here came Elke and Ofelia, and then a few more steps and here came Tess and J R.
(The only one missing was Charlotte, Tess' mama who was working tonight).
It's a WONDER these broads (minus JR of course) even let me go to the bathroom by myself. EVER.
Course there was that time...
Then I heard it. Hell, the DEAD heard it. In Nova Scotia.
"MY GOD, Hawney. Thet was a bit too close foah comfort."
"Got that raht, Feelie," Rose replied and everyone else nodded.
The lights flickered. Only for a minute, but...it was a tell-tale sign that we were gonna be in for it. We of course had no worries about the power. The entire RiverFront Commons complex including our compound has huge generators that will keep us up indefinitely, but it is an eerie feeling to see the lights flickering.
BAM!
Another and then another and then another. Spine tingling crackling and THUNDERING booms of the hair raising kind.
"OH hawney, Ah does not lahke the sound of thet. Rose?"
"Me either, Feelie."
Trust me. It is a rare thing to see these broads scared of ANYTHING. But yes...they were.
Elke said she was gonna check on everyone downstairs and walked out of the room. Even cool calm and collected professional psychologist Elke MacAlester I could see was a bit unnerved.
She left and then it became deathly quiet...as everyone seemed to be withdrawing into their own internal space where people go when being confronted with these huge and violent summer storms. I am a real woos at moments like this and while I know they get to Rico too, as usual he gets real concerned about me.
"Bearski? You okay, honey?" We were sitting on one of the big overstuffed leather couches in my home office, but we were both sitting on the edge. I think we hadn't even realized when that first big boom came but everyone moved to the edge of their seats. Not only the thunder, but the lightning too. One moment pitch black outside and then these HUGE FLASHES...
sometimes moving across the yard in a way I didn't think I had ever seen before, and Feelie was right. They were coming VERY close to the house.
I just nodded at him, but he knew better and so did I. These storms scare the beejesus out of me. Rico pulled me in tighter, as I think he could feel my trembling. My left leg was pushed up against his right one and it was on auto-pilot. Each time one of those booms happened, I jumped. Just a little but Rico's grip on me would tighten. I think partly for him being worried about me but him too. He would never admit it but...
I looked at him and blushed but he understood. He knew my fear and why. But tonight, everyone seemed on edge and I knew it was not just from the storm. The storm was to me merely a harbinger of a much bigger stormy time to come and soon too.
I know that is what Rose was hinting at earlier, and I could see the look on everyone's faces and in their eyes. We have gone through this crap SO much that I think we have gotten kind of a sixth sense about it. I usually get it first, but sometimes it will be Rose or Elke or Ofelia...and if I get it so does Rico, as in tune as we are.
I felt jumpy, and I could tell Rico did too. But so did Rose. Rose and everyone. We just continued to sit in stony shaky silence with the only noise being the sound and light show just outside. I could almost feel the tension in the air, and that is also a disquieting feeling.
I KNEW it was gonna be a LONG night, and sad to say...I was right. Fate and the dirty bastard demons who seem to delight in harassing this group of misfit crime fighters was about to raise their ugly fat little heads and we knew it.
BUT...how? Why? No answers...at least not yet. Not really even any questions, but that would change oh yes it would.
IT USUALLY DOES.
BAM BAM BAM BAM, and I heard the sound of glass breaking. OH MY GOD!
WE ALL JUMPED and headed for the stairs.
CHAPTER II: SHATTERED
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