FALLS LIKE THUNDER [TYLER OWENS]

ELEVEN : OKLAHOMA SMOKESHOW

CHAPTER ELEVEN : OKLAHOMA SMOKESHOW

ARLINGTON, OKLAHOMA

BEFORE THEY SET OUT, KATE TOSSES WILLOW HER CAMERA BAG, INSITING SHE TAKES IT FOR THE RIDE. Willow hadn't thought to bring it on their first chase back, but she knows it's always been essential for Kate to capture every angle of the storms they hunt, filling walls with maps and photos like some kind of tornado detective. With Kate busy riding alongside Javi, more focused on getting him positioned in front of the storm than on documenting it, she entrusts the responsibility to Willow.

Now, as Scott speeds down the rough dirt road, Willow fiddles with the camera, letting the silence thicken between them. She doesn't have any interest in conversation—not even casual remarks to drown out the awkward quiet.

"I'm getting the feeling you don't like me much now," Scott finally comments, gripping the wheel tightly as he navigates the uneven road. The Wranglers' convoy is strung out in front of them, peeling toward the storm.

It wasn't like she had anything going for him before; not with his rude dismissal of her suggestions, even though he tried to smooth it over by attempting to recruit her. "Yeah, well," she mutters, unable to keep the edge out of her voice, "you were a jerk to Kate."

"She lied," he retorts, his gaze flicking toward her. "She was scared—"

"Not of the tornado," Willow snaps, cutting him off, her eyes narrowed as she looks over at him.

(Willow wonders what he knows, how deep his friendship with Javi runs, or if it is only really a business partnership.

He would know, wouldn't he? If they were close, and if he did, is he that much of an asshole that he cannot consider their past?)

She sighs, looking away. "Can we just focus on the storm?" She takes Scott's silence as agreement.

Just then, Javi manages to push the fleet past the Wranglers, first overtaking the caravan, then Tyler's truck. He's already glancing over by the time they slide up beside him. A frown settles on his face when he spots her in the passenger seat of Scott's vehicle instead of Javi's. She tries to give him a reassuring smile, but all she can manage is something tight-lipped, tainted by her exasperation. His frown deepens, and she can feel his silent disapproval across the space between them.