Home Alone (4 page)

Both children knew they were in for an adventure they wished had never started. Winnie wracked her brain, trying to think of something productive to do. She walked to the phone and lifted up the receiver. There was a dial tone!

"It works again!" she yelled joyfully.

Her eyes lit up when she thought of her next idea.

"Hey, maybe we should give someone a call and check on how the roads are around here." She watched Alec's face to see if the suggestion sounded reasonable to an eight-year-old.

"Who would we call?" he asked, buying into her idea.

They spent the next couple of minutes debating over whom would be the best agency or company in charge of roads in the area. If they had lived in the area longer, they most likely would have known that answer. But once again, being a newcomer had its disadvantages.

Finally they decided to simply open up the phone book and just start glancing through the businesses, hoping some place would jump out at them.

"I'll grab the phone while you find a number," Alec yelled, up and out of his chair in an excited fashion. Winnie flipped through the pages, wishing she knew whom to call. She decided to look under emergency numbers. Even if she couldn't get road information, perhaps they could call the electric company to find out when the lights may be coming back on.

"Hand me the phone," she said, squinting to see the numbers in the dimly lit room. She found the number for a power company. "I don't know if this is the right number or not," she frowned, pushing the button on the receiver.

The minute she did so, she felt her heart sink. "Oh, no!" Winnie groaned, pushing the button over and over again.

"What's wrong?" Alec asked with concern.

"The phone is dead again," she said, looking at him in dismay. With all the other problems, she should have assumed the line would be in and out. She hadn't anticipated this, though, and this new problem made her feel worse than ever.

"Now what?" Alec asked, his eyes filling with tears. "Even if Mom and Dad want to call, they can't."

Winnie simply sat there staring at the phone. She didn't know how to respond to her brother. She had spent so much energy trying to keep Alec upbeat that it was wearing her out.

The frazzled girl put her head down on the table, hoping that a few minutes of silence would help her sort things out. She let the thoughts race through her mind. It took about a minute, but Winnie did feel herself relaxing a little. She began to think about the problems one at a time and tried her best to rank them, listing them from biggest worry to the least. But her thoughts were interrupted with a harsh jab from an elbow.

Winnie's first instinct was to yell at her brother. How dare he punch her like that? But when she raised her head and looked into his eyes, she knew the poke was for a good reason.

"Look at the wall," he mouthed, the fear obvious in his whisper. Winnie followed his finger to the wall opposite them. A bright white circle, about the size of a basketball, was moving up and down the wall.

Alec grabbed hold of his sister, and Winnie grabbed him back. They sat there motionless, wondering who or what was on the other end of that light beam. But neither one was brave enough to move from their chairs. They simply watched the light scatter about the room, keeping them breathless and unable to talk. But as nerve-wracking as the light that appeared out of nowhere was, seeing what happened next was even worse. The beam went out like a birthday candle. The strongest gust of wind so far came billowing through the area. A strange whistling sound that accompanied it made both Winnie and Alec cover their ears. What was that sound? And more importantly, would they ever learn who or what had been outside their door?

"What was that?" Alec finally got up the courage to speak.

Winnie sat staring out the sliding glass doors to the direction from where the light first came.

"Do you mean the light or the sound?" she asked, feeling braver now that the light was gone and the house had stopped shaking.

"I think the sound was just the wind," he said with confidence. "But the light?" He left the question hanging, hoping his sister would know.

"It had to be a flashlight," she said, not totally sure, but finding this the most reasonable answer. The other choice was… well, she really didn't know.

"If it was a flashlight, that means… that means someone is out there," Alec whispered in fear. Winnie could see the scared look on his face, even in the darkened room.

She knew her brother was right. Someone probably was out there. But whom? It certainly wouldn't be their parents. They wouldn't be snooping around with a flashlight. They would just come in the door.

"Maybe it was a boat on the water flashing a light as it moved by," Winnie suggested as the thought came to her. This was the best idea she could come up with. She just wanted to erase the image of a person lurking about outside. She didn't know if Alec would agree with the possibility, but it made her feel better just saying it aloud.

"Maybe…" he said, still looking dazed and frightened. "But we've never seen boats back this way before. Dad said that opening in the back yard was like our private entrance from the bay. Why would any boats be coming in here?"

Winnie took a deep breath and moved out of her chair and toward the window. It was another one of those times when she had to look past her fear and do what she thought her mother would do.

"Do you see anything?" Alec asked, still in his seat.

Winnie held her hands over her eyes blocking out the flickering light from the candles. The storm was still raging. She was almost glad it was too dark to see what was really happening outside. If she had known the porch furniture had blown away, shingles were missing from the roof, and the wind was strong enough to blow a grown man off his feet, she surely would have been more frightened. But she didn't know. She and Alec only knew the worst storm they had ever experienced was raging outside their doors, and they were left alone to face it.

"Mom and Dad aren't going to make it home, are they?" Alec asked in a trembling tone.

Winnie paused before answering. She wished with all her heart she could tell him otherwise. But trying to sugar coat the truth wouldn't work. He would eventually realize this storm
was
the monster, keeping their parents out and the two of them trapped inside.

"I'm sure they'll get home to us as soon as they can, Alec. It just may be closer to morning." She could see the disappointment in his face, even from across the room.

"But think about it," she continued, trying to help him out in any way she could. "We don't want Mom and Dad out driving in this stuff anyway. They probably had to stay in town, and they will be safe and sound there. I am sure they are worried sick about us, and with the phone lines being out, well, you can only imagine what Mom is like about now."

Alec nodded his head, forming the same image in his mind as his sister.

"But think how proud they'll be tomorrow when they see we've survived a hurricane!" Winnie looked to Alec, hoping he could see a light at the end of the tunnel, as she was attempting to do as well.

"But what about tonight? What are we going to do?"

Winnie looked from her brother to her watch. It was only 8:00. Usually at this time of night, they were still outside playing in the back yard or watching a favorite show on TV. It was hard to imagine what they would do to occupy their time besides worry.

"Let's try the radio again. I found some new batteries." Winnie said, hoping a channel would come in with some news. "Maybe we can get an update on things."

Alec grabbed the radio first and began fiddling with the knobs. It took quite a few minutes, but he finally tuned in a station.

"The National Weather Service has issued a hurricane warning for Manatee and Sarasota" the announcer said in a stern voice. "Winds will be at gale force. People should remain indoors and protect themselves accordingly. Do not attempt to go outside unless it is an emergency. There is flying debris due to winds… winds that are capable of doing plenty of damage. Please follow all hurricane safety guidelines and be safe!"

Winnie and Alec stared at the radio like the voice was speaking directly to them. When the man was finished with his report, he had a guest on from another area speaking about the damage in his town. Winnie directed her focus away from the box and onto her brother.

She tried her best, once again, to think about what her parents would do if they were here. Her dad would most likely be bustling about, making sure everything was secure and safe. She and Alec had already done all they could in that department. Doors to the outside were locked, and the basement door was securely barricaded from whatever was trying to come up. Her mom would probably try to get them involved in something that would take their minds off the howling wind and distant claps of thunder. She thought about this for a moment and decided to give it a try.

"Hey, Alec, we still have a while before bedtime. Want to play a game?" She wasn't sure how her brother would handle this suggestion.

"First off," he said, sounding rather bold in his answer, "I don't think we are going to bed tonight. At least I'm not. And secondly, it depends on what game you are thinking of."

Winnie almost laughed at his diplomatic way of dealing with her. "Your choice," she said, knowing this would delight him.

She knew he would choose Monopoly. He always did — every time he was given the opportunity. That was his favorite board game, and the least favorite of Winnie's. She had given him the choice, though, and she had anticipated his answer. So she was prepared to go with Monopoly.

She took the flashlight, and Alec's arm, and carefully walked in the dim light to the hall closet where they kept the games. He held the light while she reached and moved items to finally get to the box. Alec was already mumbling about how he was going to beat his sister and leave her broke and in jail. Winnie was inwardly surprised that her diversion was starting out so well.

The children played for almost an hour without even mentioning the storm. It took them a little while to adjust to playing in the low light of three flashlights propped on a chair, but once they got started, they had no problems.

Alec was on a roll and just about to buy 'Boardwalk' when he heard a sound that distracted him.

"Did you hear that?" he asked, dropping the hundreds he had in his hand.

"Hear what?" Winnie asked, thinking he had to be hearing the noise in the basement again. She had heard it herself intermittently over the last hour, but it was hard to hear over the roar of the storm outside. Occasionally the wind would take a short break, but when it did, it always seemed to come back with even more strength than before. During those short spells, the clanging in the basement would start again, making the hair on Winnie's arms stand up. She had hidden it rather well over the last hour, but she could now feel the tension creeping back into her body.

"I heard something outside," Alec said, motioning for Winnie to be quiet.

"It was probably just something blowing around.

"No," he said sternly. "It was more like a scratching sound."

Winnie strained her ears to hear. It took a few seconds, but she too heard the sound.

"What do you think it is?" Alec asked.

Winnie didn't have a clue. Her brain was tired from all the guesswork this afternoon and early evening. It seemed all she had done was try to figure out the origin of this noise then that one. It was a strain, and a game, and a chore that she was really tiring of now.

She got up from her chair and moved toward the sliding doors. With all that had gone on over the past few hours, getting up and moving around the room was becoming much easier. Before, fear had her frozen in her tracks. Now it would take something a little scarier to bring her to that point of frozen terror.

But when she got to the door, she found herself jumping back, startled by a strange sound.

Her loud scream made Alec jump out of his chair. He found himself on the floor, the chair flung squarely in front of him.

"What is it?" he yelled, afraid to look.

"I don't know," Winnie said, standing about two feet back from the noise. She wanted to be brave and use the flashlight to get a closer look, but that frozen feeling of fear was over her once again.

They heard the noise once more, this time even louder and longer. Winnie strained to hear, hoping it would be a sound she would recognize.

"It sounds like something rubbing up against the screen door."

Alec stayed behind his chair, deciding his sister was going to have to handle this one on her own.

"Can you see what it is?" he asked.

Winnie took a deep breath and forced her feet to move forward. She heard the noise again and, this time was determined to figure out what it was. She moved to the door and let her body ease down to the floor, closer to where the scratching was coming from. When she finally turned the flashlight onto the glass, she let out a happy squeal at what she saw.

"It's a kitten, Alec! A baby kitten! It's hanging on the screen door with its claws." Winnie's giggles filled the room with relief and gave them the first reason to smile in hours. Alec leapt from his position of hiding and joined his sister at the door.

"The poor thing," he said, leaning up close to the glass to see it. "Let's let it in."

Winnie agreed with his suggestion but was a little leery at trying to open the door. "Alec, this wind is really strong. What if the door slides open and we can't get it shut?"

Alec stared at the door, almost as if he didn't believe that could actually happen. But with the sound of the next wind gust, it was rather obvious it could.

"Let's just wait until there's a little break in the wind, then we'll hurry up and open it."

Winnie thought about this for a second, then agreed with the plan. They had to let the kitten in. Without them, the poor thing would surely be swept away in the wind. They were its only chance.

It took a few minutes, but the two finally agreed that the time had come. Winnie unlocked the latch and gave the door a push. It slid open easily, the wind taking it with force.