“I don’t believe you. Lando has worked for years to get to this point, to find an internship, to come out chasing. I don’t think she’d readily give that up after two weeks. What did you say to her?”
“I didn’t say anything, I swear.”
“You had a conversation with her, yes?”
Diane nodded her affirmation.
“Then you talked to her. What exactly did you say to her?”
“Nothing that would make her leave.”
“Bullshit, Diane. What did you tell her? Did you tell her we didn’t need her? Did you tell her she was fired?” Diane’s absolute lack of reaction told Violet everything. Collapsing onto the bed, Violet folded in on herself. “Why the hell would you do that? She’s good, Diane. She’s better than me in some ways, and you fire her?”
“She wasn’t fitting in with our dynamic.”
“What dynamic? We argue and fight. She bounced between that. If any dynamic isn’t working it’s the two of us.” Violet glared. “Why did you fire her?”
“It wasn’t working out.”
“Are you ever going to answer me?” Violet sighed at Diane’s hard stare. She’d known better before she asked. Diane would never tell her what was going on. She staunchly kept most of that to herself, hiding it away. Resigned, Violet gripped the strap on her backpack. “Let’s go catch this storm.”
Diane tried to talk to her while they drove, but Violet wouldn’t answer. She stewed. She was pissed, not only at Diane but at herself. Lando had been right. She let Diane walk all over her, and she just took it. There was pushback, yes, but never enough that would require a change from Diane.
They drove for an hour before they found the storm. It wasn’t full-fledged yet. Violet stared at the clouds as if they reflected her mood, a swirling dark matter of anger just under the surface, waiting to be let go.
She didn’t want to be there. For the first time since Violet could remember, she didn’t want to be at the center of the storm. That thought echoed in her mind and her heart as she guided Diane closer. Other storm chasers lined the dirt roads, so Violet knew they were close to the right place.
Biting her cheek, Violet stared out the window. Everything in her protested being there. The love she’d had of chasing gone, and she hoped it was just for the day, although, if she thought about it long enough, her love for chasing had slowly been waning the last few years. She’d found that excitement in Lando, someone who was young and had all those dreams in front of her, someone who brought that excitement with her.
She’d enjoyed Lando’s countenance, the energy she brought to everything. Without her they felt like two old women, far past their prime, and nowhere near ready to be chasing that season—or any season.
Diane parked, and Violet stepped out of the vehicle. Wind rushed at her cheeks, pushing her hair away from her face as she squinted through it to see if the funnel they’d been following had touched down yet. Violet took a moment to go the trunk and grab the small box of devices they needed to get into the line of the tornado. She flipped them on and then went back to her computer to make sure they were connected and tracking.
She did everything in silence, not even bothering to talk to Diane about what needed to happen next or where they should be focusing. Diane had her camera to her face, no doubt as a protest to the fact Violet wouldn’t even speak to her. Her heart shattered. If Lando had been there, they’d be running off into the field together. They’d be making this plan together.
Violet stopped short, staring at the sleek devices that had been Lando’s responsibility. She didn’t want to do this without her, but more importantly, Violet didn’t want to do itwithDiane. Everything that season so far had taught her that she and Diane were not a match made in heaven. They needed to not be partners in this, to separate.
The grant money would come with her because she was the one with the credentials. It would leave Diane high and dry, but on some very basic level, Violet didn’t care. Diane had dug her own grave on this one, and she wasn’t about to pull her out, not when she couldn’t guarantee that Diane would ever do the same for her.
Violet rolled her shoulders and picked up the box, turning to face the field to the west. The funnel had touched down, making a very small tornado, but any tornado was worthy for them, especially if it was a rope tornado, which this one was. The bulk of it wound its way from earth to sky, connecting them in a power that Violet wanted to harness and study. She’d always wanted that, but today…today she could have gone back toIndigo, curled up in her bed, and stayed there.
No one had ever been able to pound the love of storms out of her before. No one but Diane. Flicking her gaze to Diane as she stood, camera to her face as she snapped photo after photo, Violet acquiesced. They had this one storm, and then she would figure out what needed to happen. For now, she wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to find more information, get more data.
Walking next to Diane, they stood side by side and watched as the tornado came toward them, closer as it wobbled in their direction. It was always a miracle that they had any idea where these beasts of power and wind were going to begin with. Violet said nothing to Diane as she walked down the ditch to the fence line.
Crossing it, being careful not to catch herself on the barbed wire, Violet waded through the wheat fields toward the tornado. Her heart raced, and she was determined, but nothing felt the same without Lando there. She wanted to see that excitement reflected in those pale blue eyes—the excitement she’d once had herself.
Jogging, Violet made her way to the center of the field. Wind whipped around her. She glanced back to Diane who had a radio to her mouth, and she realized last minute, she hadn’t taken hers. Cursing, Violet dropped the box at one of the high points she could find and ran toward the Hummer. She made it to the fence before she turned around and found the tornado gone.
“Well, that was short lived,” Diane said as she came over, leaning on a fence post.
Violet didn’t answer. Short-lived like Lando’s participation in their team. It seemed perfectly fitting for a day like today. She walked slowly through the rain to snatch up the box of devices and carry it to the car.
Sliding into the passenger seat, Violet brushed her wet hair out of her face. “I’m done for the day, Diane. Let’s go back.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.” Violet didn’t give any more explanation than that. Diane would do what she wanted anyway, and all Violet could hope was that she listened this time and took them back toIndigo.She wanted to find Lando, figure out where she had gone off to, and then she wanted to talk. Maybe they could still resolve this dilemma and Lando could join their team again. Maybe she could even fire Diane and it could be her and Lando chasing for the rest of the season.