Claiming Emily

The emergency alert must have just been broadcasted by the media because the room was quickly filled with the sound of ringing cell phones as parents called their children, drowning out the fire captain's voice over the sound system.

Daniel handed the microphone back to the student DJ who took it from him with a sour look on his face. "Sorry, kid, but it has to be done. You have an hour to get the equipment out of the gym so we can get cots in here," he said, stepping away from the table. He made his way back to the double doors where his brother was talking to the principal, looking around the crowd of students as they stood in the gym, their phones to their ears, trying to find his daughter. It was a themed dance and all of the students were dressed in clothes from different eras, some going all the way back to caveman days, but the girls that were in Fifties-style costumes were few and far between and none of them his daughter. He stopped next to his brother, dropping his hands on his hips as the principal walked the other direction to take care of her own priorities, which meant making a ton of phone calls. He hadn't seen his daughter anywhere in the throng of students; she sure as hell hadn't made her way towards him demanding that he call off the evacuation order, when in fact he hadn't seen her since she left the house for school this morning. "Where the hell is Emily? Have you seen her?" Daniel asked.

"No," Spencer answered. He had been trying to find her in the crowd also and didn't have any luck, even pulling a couple students aside to ask if they had seen her, but no one had. He had a sinking feeling that she had lied to her father and gone to a private party because she knew that he was going to end up canceling the dance and she didn't want her plans to be ruined. "I'll try to find her; you take care of the evacuation," he said as he pulled his cell phone from his pocket, moving away from the doors as he brought up her number. Emily had a bad habit of ignoring phone calls but she sent text messages like they were going out of style and his brother refused to come into the modern age and actually get a smart phone. He typed out a quick text message and sent it to her: Where are you? A minute later his phone beeped and he looked down at the screen.

Emily had typed back: I'm at the dance.

He huffed. Liar. His fingers moved over the screen of his phone as he typed back to her: Like hell you are. We just shut it down. Now where are you? The storm was getting worse, the lower half of town was flooded with three feet of water and it was only going to get deeper by the end of the night and Emily could be out there anywhere. He just prayed that she was safe because once he found her, her father was going to kill her. He waited on pins and needles for her response, looking up briefly as a few of the students left through the doors, bundled up in raincoats and boots to go home for the rest of the evening.

Five minutes later Emily texted him back: The Braun's on Cox Butte Road.

He swore under his breath. That little brat was ten miles out of town! He typed one last message, cursing the entire time, but left the harsh language out of his text. He would chew her ass out later if her father didn't beat him to it. He hit the send button: Stay there. I'm on my way.

Spencer shoved his phone back into his pocket and made his way over to his brother and the two fire fighters that had accompanied them. Daniel was talking to the two uniformed police officers that had come in through the doors when he was busy texting his niece, going over the evacuation plans with them. Getting everyone to higher ground was going to be a team effort and the two departments needed to work together to make sure everyone was out of the way of the storm and the chief of police had pulled everyone in from his station house to assist were needed and county officers were only a phone call away. They had already spent a good portion of the day filling and delivering sandbags to the businesses along the main street that were graciously donating food and supplies before locking their doors for the duration of the storm. He waited for the police chief and command sergeant to leave before he let his brother know of Emily's whereabouts. "She's at a friend's house out on Cox Butte Road."

Daniel swore. She usually let him know where she was going and he wouldn't be this pissed if the weather wasn't so treacherous. The dance never should have been planned in the first place then all the teenagers would be home safe and sound, where his defiant daughter should be right now, and then he wouldn't have a whole town to worry about. He looked at his brother who was just as much responsible for Emily as he was. "She's in so much fuckin' trouble. Have Kevin go get her. I want her ass back here where I know she's safe."

Spencer heard a snicker out of Collin, the fireman standing behind Daniel and out of his earshot, and he shot him a gaze that silently told him to cool it. Two months and Daniel still didn't know of the bet that had all but fizzled out. A few guys still had eyes on his niece even though Collin had given up hopes of trying to get into Emily's pants but Kevin hadn't and ten miles out of town was a long way to drive, to be alone in a vehicle with a young girl ripe for the picking. "I'll go get her," he said, "she's my damn niece." He turned on his heel and swore up a blue streak the entire way to the doors. The last thing he wanted to do was drive through the pouring rain to rescue his foolish niece at his brother's request when he had more important things to tend to like getting the elderly to safety. He would be furious knowing Kevin was driving out there in the harsh weather and there was no way in hell he could explain his sour mood to his own brother. She was partially his responsibility and she was going to get an earful.

He ran down the steps in front of the school in the howling wind and pouring rain and over to his personal truck that he had left parked along the other side of the road behind the rescue vehicle his brother had driven, the parking lights marking its location as if the big red vehicle wasn't visible enough. The night was lit up with the flashing strobes coming from the bars on the roofs of the police cars blocking the two lanes in opposite direction, the two rain-slicker clad officers directing the cars one direction that came for shelter and the ones who were the parents that came to pick up their children and take them home, the other direction to avoid a potential pile up of cars. He climbed in behind the wheel of his truck, dropping his radio in the cup holder, and pulled the door shut. He shoved the key in the ignition and starting the engine, turning on the heater full blast more or less to try to drown out the sound of the rain rather than take the chill off of the interior. Of all the nights that Emily had to go rogue and go to a party, she had to pick this one. He shifted the truck into reverse, backed up the few feet it took to clear the rear of the rescue truck and shifted into drive, pulling out onto the road and waving a thank you at the police officer as he waved him on through.

The wind had started to blow even harder since they had arrived at the school, the storm intensifying and making it even more difficult to drive under the dark of the night. The rain was pelting the road hard, the windshield even harder and Spencer hit the high beams as soon as he cleared the city limit line, the headlights barely even illuminating the road under all the standing water. He had no choice but to keep it under the speed limit; even with the wipers swiping as fast as they could it was still impossible to see in the dark and the flooding was even worse in the outskirts, there was less drainage and it was nothing but fields and a few houses a half mile apart, more residents that were on the evacuation watch list. The radio in the cup holder squawked and he reached over and shut it off, it was a distraction in harsh weather and he didn't really need to know anyone's location at the moment. He felt the traction control kick in when the truck started to hydroplane across the asphalt under a strong gust of wind and he kept it under control, swearing first at himself and then at Emily. He didn't know if she had gotten a ride out to the Braun's house or if she had driven out there alone, both ways it was dangerous and a stupid, stupid idea. One of the three bridges that spanned the creek was in the distance and he slowed down, trying to observe the road the best he could from the high standing truck and, still being able to see the guard rail, he drove across it, the oversized tires splashing through the rainwater that had pooled in the dips in the road, the creek had yet to reach the road even though it was past the flood stage. One down with one more to go until he had to take the turn that would take him up Cox Butte Road.

The treacherous drive took him more than half an hour and he turned up the steep narrow two lane road, rainwater rushing down the ditch on both sides of the road like a roaring river, and he nosed the truck into the driveway of the Braun residence, the high beams lighting up the night and the front of the house. He didn't see Emily's Mustang amid all of the other vehicles parked in the driveway so she had gotten a ride from someone and he shifted the truck into park, setting the parking brake and dug his phone out of his pocket, sending Emily a text to get outside and that he was here to pick her up. A few minutes later the front door of the house opened up and his niece stepped out onto the porch, pulling her jacket on over her black top and pink poodle skirt costume. Before he could open his door and go after her, Emily was pulling up the hood of her jacket and running down the driveway towards his truck, leaping over the mud puddles in her Mary Janes, mud splattering on her white frilly ankle socks and up her bare legs. He leaned over and unlatched the door, pushing it open as she got closer.

Emily climbed up into the warm cab of her uncle's truck, the layered tulle petticoat rustling as she plopped down in the seat and pulled the door shut, immediately turning on the heated seat. Even though she secretly knew that the dance was going to be shut down, she still wanted to stay at the school but her friends insisted that she come along with them to the party that one of their other classmates was throwing while their parents were out of town for the weekend. It had sounded like fun at the time but the forty-five minute drive in the torrential downpour with an inexperienced driver behind the wheel was looking more and more dangerous by the mile. She wanted to get out at the corner market and call her uncle but she kept her mouth shut and held her breath most of the way to the Braun's. When her uncle had texted her a half hour after she had arrived at the party, she was relieved because she was on the verge of calling him to come get her anyway. She pushed the hood from her head, looking over at her uncle in the dimly lit interior of the truck. He didn't look happy and she suspected that her father wasn't either. She quickly fastened her seatbelt, contemplating even speaking to her uncle. "Dad's pissed, isn't he?" she said, knowing very well by the look on her uncle's face that he was too.

"Pissed is an understatement," Spencer said, releasing the parking brake and shifting the truck into reverse, easing out onto the narrow road in the dark. He shifted the truck into a lower gear as he drove down the hill in the rain, trying to keep from hydroplaning until the tires could get a grip on the asphalt again. He hated driving out in this particular part of the county- it was under another fire district so the department only responded in a dire emergency-the road was more narrow and the twists and turns sharp, making it difficult to maneuver even a standard size truck. Once he was back out on the main road, he finally said something to Emily. "Why did you leave the goddamn dance in the first place? You knew damn well that we were going to cancel it. And why in God's name would you hitch a ride with someone in weather like this and come all the way out here with your friends? Emily Marie, you're just damn lucky that your father didn't drive out here because-"

"I know it was a stupid thing to do, Uncle Spencer, but-" Emily started to apologize with an explanation but her uncle cut her off. It was futile anyway. Once they got back to the school, she fully expected her father not to allow her to attend any more dances after tonight, that was if her uncle didn't lay down the law on the way home, and her father usually enforced whatever punishment Spencer delivered. She just stared out into the darkness through the rain spattered side window. She just wanted to have a little bit of fun her last year in school.

"No buts about it, Emily. You're old enough to know better, for Christ's sake," Spencer chastised, as he eased the truck around a sharp turn in the road. The howling wind had the rain beating against the sides of the truck and the windshield and he felt the truck swerve under a sudden strong gust of air whipping through the canyon. The storm was starting to get even worse.

"I know," she said, her voice soft. "I'm sorry."

"If it was up to me, you wouldn't be allowed to attend any after school functions other than sports, but this is your father's call and we have more on our plates tonight then trying to-" He heard her sniffle and he shut up. He had no intention of upsetting her to the point of tears but that seemed to be the case these past few days. She was growing up and testing her boundaries, seeing how far she could push him and her father, trying to find their breaking point. And tonight just might have been that night, but he wasn't the one to punish her. He was quiet for a long time as he tried to navigate the road in the darkness and pouring rain, the headlights illuminating the reflectors along the side of the road, keeping him from driving into the ditch. He looked over at her in the dim light of the trucks interior. She was staring out the side window with her arms crossed over her chest, shivering slightly, the knee-length skirt and petticoat barely keeping her warm even though she had turned on the heated seat. Without a second thought, he reached over and turned up the heat and the fan until hot air was blowing out against her face and legs, taking the chill off of her.

"Uncle Spencer!" Emily screeched, tensing in the seat. "Watch out!"

Spencer's head snapped back around just in time for him to see the huge tree that had fallen across the road, blocking their path. Without even thinking, he slammed on the brakes, feeling the heavy truck hydroplane across the slick road as the traction control kicked in, the oversized tires trying to grip the road through all the water, mud and muck that had washed across the asphalt with the uprooting of the towering fir tree. He could hear Emily's painful gasp as the seatbelt locked and dug into her chest, his doing just the same, and he gripped the steering wheel, counter steering as he straightened the truck out, sliding sideways into the downed tree rather than head-on. The truck came to a sliding and abrupt halt, rocking against the impact, the over-sized tires taking the severity of the collision. He let out the breath he didn't know he had been holding and loosened his grip on the leather wrapped wheel, the color slowly coming back to his knuckles and fingers. That evasive driving course he had taken for the hell of it had finally paid off. He shifted the truck into park and looked over at Emily. She was shaking, more from fright than the chill, her blue eyes wide. "Are you okay?" he asked.

Emily nodded her head. "Y-yes," she stammered, pulling on the seatbelt that was still locked across her chest. She looked out the side window in the pouring rain, down at the trunk of the tree that was level with the rocker panel. If the lifted truck didn't have oversized tires, her door would have been smashed in. "We're stuck, aren't we?" she asked, looking over at her uncle. She should have just stayed at the dance, but no, she had to go and leave and now her stupidity had gotten her and her uncle stranded out in the middle of nowhere in a menacing rain storm. The downed tree was blocking the entire road, taking with it the power lines and one if not more poles, and leaving the surrounding area in total darkness, the headlights on the truck the only light seen for miles. She felt a chill run up her spine and it wasn't from the cold. They were stranded.

"We're not stuck," Spencer reassured her as he shifted the truck into reverse. The tires were wedged up against the tree and they shredded the bark as they spun out in the mud and muck as he pressed down on the accelerator a little harder, trying to get enough momentum and grip on the road. The deep tread on the tires finally got the debris cleared from the road and he eased it back a little further, the tires slipping and spinning again before gaining traction, and he shifted it into gear, easing the truck away from the fallen tree and back into the right lane, heading in the direction they had just come from. The headlights reflected off of the mile marker along the side of the road. They were still five miles from town but they were far from being stuck out in the storm. "There's a BLM road about three miles north that connects onto Wagon Wheel Road, putting us back onto the main road. It's risky but we have no choice."

Emily looked over at her uncle. He knew the roads out here better than she did, his job depended on it, and they had four-wheel drive, but the weather was unpredictable and more fallen trees and mudslides were to be expected. She didn't think they should risk the drive but they had no choice, they had a better chance of being rescued if they stayed on the main road but they needed to get back to the school and out of the raging storm and she didn't really want to argue with him. She just wanted to be home safe and sound and in her nice warm bed. She pulled her jacket tighter over her chest and stared out into the darkness through the heavy raindrops that dotted the side window.

Spencer swore under his breath as he tried to maneuver the truck down the road, staring out the windshield as the wipers tried to keep up with the pounding rain. They were about a mile from the road they were going to turn onto when the headlights illuminated the reflector that was fallen across the road rather than mounted to the end of the cement post, marking the narrow two lane bridge. He slowed the truck down, stopping in the middle of the road, staring out the windshield at the earthen mess that blocked their path. The creek had turned to a fast running river from all the rain and in the process it had collected all the debris from the recently logged hillside, uprooted tree stumps and other leftover logging waste all catching a ride in the fast moving water and rushing down the hill, taking out everything in its path, including the bridge and a large section of the road. And he didn't doubt that the rest of the hillside would be coming down in a massive mudslide before sunrise. At least there were no houses in the path of the imminent slide, which also meant they had no doors they could knock on and seek refuge for the rest of the night. He let out a long breath along with a harsh expletive. "Now we're stuck," Spencer huffed, looking over at Emily in the dimly lit interior of the truck.

She knew her uncle was pissed at her; it didn't take a genius to figure that one out. Her stupidity had gotten them stuck in a raging storm for God knows how long without food or water or shelter. She pulled her jacket tighter around her chest and stared out the window, unable to look her uncle in the eye. There was no amount of apologies that were going to soothe things over between the two of them.