Whipped by Arias J.J

Author:Arias, J.J.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-12-24T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 26

Outside, the wind howled like the creature from a horror movie slamming itself over and over against the rattling shutters. With each heavy storm band punishing Erica’s house, the lights flickered and faltered. Erica pictured the giant sea squid from Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea wrapping its heavy tentacles around the house while trying to rip it apart.

“Maybe we should watch something else.” Cheyenne’s voice shook Erica out of her waking nightmare. “You look a little pale.”

Erica was back in the room, the cat sleeping in her lap as she sat in an armchair and Cheyenne sat crossed legged on the couch as far away from her as possible. She’d lost track of how long they’d been sitting there like that watching the news. It could’ve been hours. Apart from the increasing devastation of the upper keys, they’d been consuming the same images on a loop.

“Are you in pain?” Cheyenne started to get up. “Is it time for medication or something?”

“No, I’m fine.” Erica didn’t need to tell her she didn’t intend to take any more pain meds. They clouded her mind and her judgment.

“Are you sure?” Cheyenne furrowed her brow, her usually bright eyes dim in the room’s darkness.

The concern on her face was unsettling. Erica wasn’t a baby. She didn’t need to be coddled. “I’m fine,” she repeated more sternly.

Cheyenne shrugged. “Well, if you need me to grab you something just ask.”

Erica’s gaze lingered on her a moment. You’re not only pathologically helpful, but you’re also relentless.

“God, those poor people,” Cheyenne said when her attention returned to the television. “I hate that the eye is going their way and not ours.”

“Someone’s always gotta be the loser,” Erica replied as she scratched Tilly behind the ear, eliciting a deep, rumbling purr while the cat’s eyes remained shut.

“How can you be so callous?”

The sympathy on Cheyenne’s face was replaced with disgust. It caught Erica off guard.

“What?” Erica snapped, already defensive. “Am I wrong? In a hurricane like this someone’s going to bear the brunt of it. How is it callous to state the obvious?”

Cheyenne shook her head. “Everything isn’t so matter of fact, Erica.” There was that hard c again. She was mad, but why?

“So, is me adding those poor people to my sentence going to keep them from getting smashed by tornados and storm surge? I don’t understand what you’re angry about.”

Cheyenne glared before turning away from her and back to the television where people were scrambling onto their roofs hoping to be rescued during the eerie calm of the hurricane’s eye. She wanted to comment that neighbors should be helping each other instead of taking video with their phones, but giving the rip currents in the flood waters, there was nothing to do but wait.

That’s why they told you to evacuate.

On the television, the meteorologist who’d been working all day nonstop, and would probably continue all night, appeared in front of a green screen.

Is it time for the 11:00 p.m. advisory already?

Erica’s body tensed. Every six

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