Jade (Ch. 1)

There was a storm brewing in Valkyrie, Kansas. Jade was standing in her back yard staring at the open space between her and the storm. She felt the coldness of the wind that blew, but the warmness of her own skin. She was mesmerized by the whole situation. She'd always dreamt of being a storm catcher one day, but no one would give her a chance. The air was circulating and she could tell there was a tornado in the works.

"Jade, c'mon! There's a tornado comin'. Get in here." Jade's sister, Gabrielle, called.

"Gabby, I'm not ready to come in. I'm watching." Jade responded.

"C'mon. You know, if mommy was alive, she'd be screaming her head off for you to come inside because she couldn't lose one of her baby girls in a stupid storm. Daddy's worried 'bout you. Let's go." Gabrielle said.

"Gab, shut up. It hasn't even been a year since mama went." Tears welled up in Jade's eyes remembering the death of her mother.

Jade's mother had been sick for a long time and the doctors couldn't tell anyone what was wrong with her, but on the morning of  November 18, Jade's mother finally took her last breath and died in bed. Jade was only 16 and Gabrielle was only 11. Jade had taken her mother's death to extreme measures because that was her best friend. Jade could tell her mother anything. Jade has missed about a month of school because of this tragedy.

"Jade, baby. Come on. I don't want you out here." Jade heard her father, Maxwell, say.

"Daddy, please? Can I at least watch it touch ground? Please?" Jade begged.

"No, you need to get in here now. I can't afford to lose you and your mother just six months apart. I need you to be safe. Come inside so you'll be safe for your mother and I. Please, baby girl?" Max coaxed.

"Fine. I'm coming." Jade slowly walked back to her little two-story house.

"Thank you, Jade." Her father hugged her as she passed by him.

She hugged her father back, then let go to go to her room to collect some supplies.

"Jade, can I come in?" Gabby asked.

"What?" Jade asked.

"I just wanted to come in so I could talk to you." Gabrielle sounded sad.

"Gabs, what's wrong?" Jade turned to her little sister.

"I miss mom." Gabrielle said as she walked in and sat on Jade's bed.

"I miss mom, too." Jade sat beside her sister.

"What did you like best about her?" Gabby asked.

"What I liked best about mom was that she was always there when things got tough and that I could tell her anything. What did you like about her?" Jade said.

"I loved it when she baked with us. She was the best cook. I know you can cook pretty good, but I think mommy was a little better. Sorry, J." Gabrielle blushed a little.

"It's okay. I don't mind. I know I'm not as good of a cook as mom was. I'm getting better though. And you want to know what else? When mom told me that she was pregnant with you, I was excited because I was getting a new sibling. I drew on her belly all the time. I was the one who called you Gabrielle. Mommy and Daddy liked it, so they named you that. And if you were a boy, they would have called you Gabriel." Jade smiled at her little sister.

"Really? Aw, Jade. I love you." Gabrielle hugged Jade.

Jade hugged her back then let go.

"You better go get some things packed up before the tornado hits. I'm packing up what I love most." Jade got up and placed a picture of her mother in a box with some other items of importance.

"Gabrielle! Jade! You better hurry. We have about 5 minutes to get to the storm cellar before the tornado hits!" Max called to the girls.

"Okay!" They said together.

Gabrielle went to her room to pack up things she didn't want destroyed.

After 3 minutes had passed, the girls were down in the cellar with their father.

"This will be the fourth house we had to rebuild since your mother and I had you two." Max said, a little upset because of what he knew, but the girls didn't.

Max knew that his wife, Sara, was pregnant again. She wasn't far into her pregnancy, but he knew she wouldn't make it through. Tears welled up in his eyes and he turned away from the two beautiful girls who were starting to look just like their mother.

"Daddy, what's wrong?" Gabrielle asked.

"Nothing, baby girl." He answered.

"Dad, something's wrong. Please tell us." Jade chirped.

He sighed, shoulders slumped, but he turned to face his girls.

"Girls, there's something that I need to tell you...." He was stopped by the sound of howling wind.

He stood there and listened to the storm.

"What is it, Daddy?" Gabby questioned after the wind had died down a bit.

"Girls, it's something about your mother...." He started.

The girls leaned forward in anticipation.

He sighed then he said, "Your mother was pregnant with your baby brother. If she would have lived, we would have named him Zakary. I'm so sorry that we didn't tell you sooner, but your mother knew she was dying and that she wouldn't make it to deliver the baby."

"Daddy...." Jade said.

"Yes?" He looked at her with tears in his eyes.

She got up and wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him gently.

He hugged her back and held on. Jade kept hugging her dad until she felt Gabby's arms around him.

"Daddy, it's okay. It'll be alright. At least he's with mommy and he's healthy and happy where ever they are." Gabrielle said.

"Yeah. And now since we know Mom was pregnant, we love them both. And we love you, Dad. We love you so much." Jade kissed her father's cheek.

"I love you girls, too. And I hope I never lose you." He kissed both their heads then let them go.

All three of the family listened as the tornado hit their house and then it disappeared into the plains of Valkyrie. A few minutes later, the storm passed and was over.