May Day (The Erelong Trilogy Book II)

The Farmhouse

Storm and Cameron silently ate their meal of cheese, bread, and pickles under the wary gaze of the two horsemen. Their hosts stood with their backs against the wall, neither having exchanging a word as their guests ate at a rough wooden table. Tilford was nowhere to be seen.

Storm glanced up on occasion to get a measure of the two men. He figured the older man to be a farm worker. The cap with the name of a farm machinery outfit emblazoned on the front and pulled low over a skin tanned like leather was the obvious clue. But so were the burly shoulders, and the large callused hands.

"Alistair told us about young Storm," the land worker said to Cameron, finally breaking the silence. "He didn't mention you."

Cameron looked up from his plate and shrugged.

"So, what do you know about our group?" The man persisted.

"You are socialists," Cameron replied.

"And what do you think about that?" The man asked. His eyes flicked from Cameron to Storm.

"About you being socialists?" Cameron asked, and he frowned. "I'm not all that interested in politics."

"Do you vote?"

"I do."

"That means you are interested in politics. Even if you're not, politics is interested in you."

Cameron nodded his head and chewed his food.

"Call me Smiler," the older man told Storm and Cameron as they climbed into the backseat of the pickup. He pointed to the younger man across from him. "His name's Liam."

"Did you enjoy your plowman's lunch?" Kelly asked Storm.

"Good enough," Storm said.

"You two are sleeping at Liam's tonight," Smiler said he slammed the truck door closed.

"Will Alistair be there?" Storm asked.

"Tomorrow you see him," Smiler answered.

He paused to glance across at Kelly. "He's not going to show up tonight, is he?"

Kelly shook his head.

"Where is he?" Storm persisted.

"Did he ever mention the Station?" Smiler asked staring through his side window over the tops of the eucalyptus trees at the dark churning sky.

"No," Storm replied.

Smiler frowned as the breeze picked up. There was a crash of thunder sounding off like a cannon in the distance. He waited without moving off. The sound of thunder came again. Closer this time. The wind gusts had picked up already. The truck shuddered.

"See those clouds?" Kelly said to Smiler. "Watch what they do next."

The first funnel formed as they looked on. It was wispy at first, but there could be no mistake. The tentacle weaved as it thickened then it reached down and tapped the ground. A whirling bowl of debris sprung up where it touched down. The tube was high and thick. It looked like a gray beanstalk sprouting tendrils.

"That thing is massive," Cameron said in awe.

"It's looking like it might be an EF2," Kelly said, leaning across Smiler to see through the debris-covered window. "And with multiple vortices. It might even be turning into an EF3."

"How would you know that?" Cameron asked in dismay.

"I'm doing post-graduate studies in climatology," Kelly told him.