He raised his staff. There was a roll of thunder. The sunlight was blotted out from the eastern windows; the whole hall became suddenly dark as night. —The King of the Golden Hall

James felt a wave of fear course through him when he saw his father's Weather Warrior's all-terrain back-up vehicle trapped under a snaking black power line.

Please, don't be dead.

Relief swept through him when he saw his father wave at him from a few feet past the snared vehicle. He pulled over onto the side of the road. He and Halle exited, but she hung back when he ran over to his father and embraced him. "Dad! Thank goodness you're not hurt."

Amy parked behind James and joined Halle. She observed the reunion with interest, but frowned when the older, blond haired man looked embarrassed by his son's effusive display of affection.

Lars remained stiff in his son's embrace. "What took you so long?"

The icy tone made James duck his head. He pulled away and brushed a hand over the nape of his neck. "We stopped to help a little girl and her mother. She was trapped under her demolished home."

Lars voice was scathing. "I know. I saw the video." His blue eyes turned to ice as he glared at his son. "What did I tell you about putting yourself at risk during a tornado? We could have been sued."

Jame's stomach dropped into a pit and he exhaled. "Dad, she would have died." His words rushed out. "There was a sub vortex forming that would have taken down the rest of the house and buried her and her dog alive."

"That's not Weather Warrior's priority." Lars crossed his arms.

Halle walke over and stood by James. "He's right, Mr. Winter. If we hadn't helped Maria, she would have died." She met Lars gaze without flinching. "Your son saved her life."

"I don't need you to lecture me, guttersnipe."

"Guttersnipe? Listen, Buddy, you have no idea who you're dealing with. "Amy placed her hands on her hips and thrust her face forward. She reminded Naseem of a pugnacious Chihuahua that had tried to bite him during a childhood birthday party when he refused to share his piece of cake.

Lars turned his back on them. "James, a word."

Amy muttered, "Why does James let this guy live rent free in his head? I just want to run Mr. Evil over with my monster truck. James and Halle are heros. They shouldn't be taking shit from anybody."

Nasseem sighed, "If Lars doesn't get what he wants, he goes absolutely berserk...kinda straightjacket, stripped a few gears, kind of psycho. James can't handle his father's disapproval."

A few feet away, James spoke with his father. "I'm sorry, dad. I'm going to deploy the probe and make you proud."

"No, you're not. You had your chance. You'll mess it up. Let Halle do it." His smug tone stung James."

"She can't deploy the probe by herself. It's not safe and she could be killed." James looked at his father.

He's not telling me something.

"She needs backup. I'm going to help her."

"No. You're not. Listen to me. I'm the only one who cares about you. I'm all you have in this world." Lars placed his hands and James shoulders and assumed a fatherly tone.

James looked over at Halle and pulled away from his father's possessive grip. "No. I'm all you have."

"You only help people because you want them to idolize you. Not because you care about them."

"You're talking about yourself!"

"I worked hard to reach this level of success. You were handed everything."

James laughed, bitterly. "I've always been a prisoner of your ambition."

Irwin interrupted their argument. "This time it's different. We all need to work together. All four of us will deploy the probe." He nodded at Halle. "I asked her and she's agreed to do it, despite your calling her a guttersnipe."

"What about our bonus?" Lars rounded on Irwin.

"You haven't earned your bonus."

"I've put a lot of time into this mission. This guttersnipe isn't going to ruin everything."

"That's not what it sounds like to me. Sounds like she's going to save the mission," Irwin responded.

Amy noticed the Mayor's Cadillac that was lying on its side. Where's the Mayor?" She walked towards the demolished luxury vehicle.

Irwin and Lars froze and locked gazes. Their minds met like two kites colliding in the sky. "No. Don't go over there," Irwin yelled.

*Picture is from cowboystatedaily.com