The front door slammed against the wall, cracking the yellow paint. A man fell inside, panting like his life depended on it.
“Quick, get us out of here! A twister—at the end of the block. Headed this way!” The man stumbled and fell to one knee, his gaze on the two boys before him.
The taller boy’s eyes shot wide, his heart pounding. “But Aaron, what can I—”
“Don’t deny it, Chad. I know your secret. You need to get us out of here now!”
“You know?” the younger boy said.
Aaron nodded. “Yes, Charlie.” He placed one hand on Chad’s shoulders and nodded for Charlie to do the same.
“But, I can’t control it yet.” Tears filled Chad’s eyes. “I have no idea where we’ll end up. And once we jump, it will take hours before I can get the strength to go again. What if I take us somewhere bad?” His hands went numb.
“Anywhere is better than here.” Aaron squeezed the boy’s shoulder. “Do your thing. Take us away.”
Chad nodded despite his fear, then closed his eyes. The sound of a freight train echoed outside the house. Something large crashed into their front window.
But he never saw what it was.
One second they stood in their living room, then a flash.
And all was silent. The air was crisp, a scent of something burning fresh on the breeze.
Chad opened his eyes.
He stepped back in amazement. It had worked. He’d teleported all three of them to safety! “A mountain. I brought us to the top of a mountain.”
Aaron whooped like a cowboy. Charlie covered his mouth with both hands.
“You did it, kid!” Aaron patted Chad on his back. “You saved us.”
A rumble vibrated beneath them.
Charlie’s face fell. “Where did you—”
Once more, the ground shook, this time much more violently, knocking them off their feet. A puff of smoke bellowed from the canyon to their right. Aaron ran to the edge and looked down.
With an ashen face he turned back. “This is no mountain. This is a volcano. And I think it’s about to erupt.”
©Laura L. Zimmerman 2018
Photo by Casey Horner on Unsplash