Studio 30 Plus: An Answer

Studio 30 Plus gave us spring and/or vernal this week for our prompts.  I had an idea of how to use both in this scene from my Weather Riders serial, but it got too long to work vernal in.   So watch for it next week!  Also, be sure to stop by Studio 30 Plus to check out other great authors via their button below.

                There really wasn’t much more I could do.  I still couldn’t move very well, though that was improving every minute.  I didn’t recognize where we were and had no idea how long I was out.  It was overcast, but no storms, so I was struggling to even figure out which direction we were going.  I was in a world of hurt and had no way out.  I found myself wishing Caiden would turn up somehow.

                We drove for at least two more hours, all of which were in the middle of nowhere.  After an eternity, we turned off the highway onto a dirt road that ended at a dilapidated farmhouse.

                We’d gone north.  I could tell that from the vestiges of snow under the trees and in the shadow of the house as we pulled up in the almost non-existent driveway.  The spring thunderstorms hadn’t made it this far north yet.  However, there were no other clues so I still didn’t know much more about our destination.

                Two men came to the car.  I’d missed them at first, though they had been waiting on the porch.  They pulled me out of the car with a disturbing nonchalance.  They were neither taking special care to assist me, nor were they deliberately cruel.  I was no more than a bit of luggage to them.

                “You sure she’s the one?” the taller of the two men asked.

                “Yes.  There is no doubt.”

                “You said that last time, Edward.”

                “Enough, Micah.  It is not as if the ones we seek will advertise their presence to us.  Besides, she was able to fulfill what we needed with her talent.  She lacked the strength.  This one is stronger.”

                “Any of you want to fill me in on this?” I glanced around.

                “What have I not answered for you?  I have explained that we are in dire need of your assistance.”

                I blinked several times.  Had I heard Edward right?  He really thought he’d explained it all to me even though he’d told me nothing.

                “You never told me what you need me so badly for.” I couldn’t help the sarcasm that crept into my voice at that point.

                “As I said previously, that will be made plain soon.  Please, step inside.”

                Micah and his partner still had me by the arms so I didn’t have much choice but to follow Edward through a screen door that dangled by one hinge and was lacking most of the screen.

                The smell hit me first while my eyes worked to adjust to the dim interior.  Unwashed bodies riddled with disease.  The house wasn’t unsanitary, but filled with many people who gave the distinct impression there was something seriously wrong with them.  Visual details started to solidify.  Most of the people in the house were male.  Thin.  Clean.  Sick.

                “Do you see what we face?”

                My jaw worked for several seconds before my voice caught up, “Yeah.  But what do you want me to do?  I’m a chef, not a doctor.”

                “It is not a doctor they need.  They, we, need your power.”

                “You want me to guide a storm here?  How would that help?”

                “It would not, and that is not what we need.  We need your power directly from your body and soul.”

                Yep.  Caiden could come riding in any time to rescue me as my shocked brain worked to process what Edward really wanted from me.  All I heard was a gust of wind catch the screen door and slam it against the jam on its one poor abused hinge.

Also - the Don't Panic Picture Prompt is live and you have until Sunday at ll:59 pm CST to take the challenge!