Chapter Four

In Wichita, they stopped in Wichita for lunch. Mr. and Mrs. Wildewood went inside, but Jason and Clara stayed in the truck. “Did you hear it?” asked Clara. Jason nodded. “Who could it be?” wondered Clara. Jason shrugged. “We’ll find out sooner or later,” Both of them climbed out of the truck, and inside McDonalds.

          Within thirty minutes, it would be time to get back on the road. That was just enough time for them to eat a quick lunch, and for Jason to check the hurricane; Hurricane Ike. So far, he was strengthening up steadily. Clara watched it intently. That voice whispered in her ear again!

          “It will stay at a Category Four, but it will almost hit Category Five. You will lose two people that are close to you, no matter what you do,” Then, the voice stopped. But Clara suddenly realized who it was. It was Agnes! Her head spun. She couldn’t stand straight. Clara collapsed to the ground.

          Jason heard something thump onto the ground behind him. He looked down and saw Clara lying there, as pale as snow. He bent down. “Clara,” he said, “wake -up!” Mrs. Wildewood watched nervously. She was shaking. Clara’s eyes opened. “Wh…wh…what happened?” she asked. “You fainted,” said Jason.

          Clara sat in the truck, drinking some water. “Feeling better?” asked her obviously concerned mother. Clara nodded. They had just passed over the Kansas-Oklahoma border. It was about three in the afternoon. She pulled out a book, and started reading.

          It was ten at night, and they were about an hour away from Corpus Christi. Hurricane Ike was approaching rapidly. Clara could see the occasional glow from the hurricane. She began to get excited. This was going to be probably the most adventurous time in the summer. But she remembered Agnes’s warning.

          An hour later, they ran into a stream of traffic going to the other direction; back north. The highway going southbound was completely open. No one would go towards the hurricane. The lightning bolts were seen over the ocean. Clara put on her backpack. They would be getting out soon.
          When they got to the ferry leading over to Port Aransas, all of the ferries were being closed down. One last one was going over to the other side to be rigged down. Mr. Wildewood asked if they could take the truck over with them. The ferry man shook his head. “With this wind; it’ll be dangerous. Ya’ll could leave your truck on this side and aboard the ferry on foot,”

          It was their only choice. Corpus Christi wasn’t the best place to watch a hurricane. They had to be right on the ocean. The four fought their way onto the ferry against the driving wind. The rain was beginning to fall in a light mist. The ferry made its way ever so slowly out to the bay. A wave occasionally splashed over the side. The ferry docked onto the other side. They waved their thanks to the ferry man, and headed for the beach.