Page 30 of Tucker
Aloud pop wakes me near dawn, and a peek out my window shows me what happened.The faint green glow of an exploded transformer fades in the distance, but thatisn’t the sight that makes me curse out loud. It’s barely light enough to seethe power lines lying across the driveway.
Alight tap on my door is followed by Leah’s unsure voice. “Tucker? Are youawake?”
“Yeah,come in.”
Thelights go out just as she steps inside and I get a brief view of her sleepyeyes and tiny body wrapped in a green robe. “Did you hear that noise?”
Istrike my lighter and dig through my dresser drawer for a flashlight. “Yeah, itwas a transformer blowing out. The sun will be up in a few minutes. You shouldgo back to bed. I’m going to check on the animals.”
“Ican help if you give me a minute to get dressed.”
“No,it’s dark and there are power lines down. Wait here.” Before she can open herstubborn little mouth to argue, I stare her in the eye. “I mean it, Leah. Starta fire in the fireplace if you aren’t going back to bed.”
Herlips press together and she gives me a sarcastic salute. “Yes, sir.”
Damn,I want to pop her on her plump little ass, but I hand her a flashlight insteadand head downstairs.
Myfirst step outside almost lands me on my ass. There’s at least half an inch ofice covering everything. Tiny icy shards hit my face with no sign of lettingup. After a few more steps, I give up and backtrack to the house to wait fordaylight. It won’t be long and it’s too hard to walk on ice and watch out fordebris.
Andthere is definitely debris. From my limited view, I can see branches litteringthe yard.
Leahis dressed in sweats and curled up by the fire in the living room when I comeback in. “That was fast.”
“Ineed to wait for it to get light. If the power will be out for a while, I needto get the kerosene heaters going in the barn, and hook up the generator forus.”
“Youdon’t usually lose power for long out here, do you?” she asks.
“No,not usually.” But the small amount I’ve seen tells me this isn’t a normalstorm. Good thing I’m prepared. I dig through the hall closet and return withtwo battery powered lanterns and a weather radio.
Switchingon the radio, Leah and I listen to the latest report. Worry etches her facewhen they announce most of the state is without power, not just us. Thetemperature has shifted just enough to change the snow to ice and we aren’teven halfway through. It’s going to get much worse before it gets better.
Myphone pings with a text from Dare.
Dare:This shit is going to get bad.
Me:I know. We have a generator for heat. It’ll be fine.
Dare:Take care of her.
Me:I will. Do you have a way to heat?
Dare:No. Heading to Landon’s since they do.
Me:Take care. I’ve got this.
“Letme guess, Derek?” Leah asks.
“Yeah,he’s taking Ayda and Ollie to Landon’s since he has a fireplace.”
Shenods, and I can see the anxiety in her face. “Hey, we’re fine. We have enoughfood and firewood to last a month. Don’t worry.”
“I’mnot,” she lies, heading to the kitchen. “At least the stove is gas, even if thefurnace isn’t,” she calls back, banging some pots and pans around.
“Waterheater too, so we have hot water. What are you doing?”
“Makingsome oatmeal and coffee. We should have something warm before we go outside.”
“Youaren’t—
