AN: All the characters with the exception of a few OC's belong either to themselves or Vince McMahon and the WWE. The only profit I hope to make is that you enjoy the story. For some reason, it won't let me list the characters in the story in the order I want. This is an EDGE story. He and Chris are the main characters, with Shawn, Hunter and others as supporting characters.
This story was started about three years ago. I went through a mental block with it, and set it aside for a while. I once again found the inspiration, and enjoyed writing it again. Therefore, some of the characters are based on their WWE characters at that time, such as The Shield. So, consider that some of their attitudes and behavior are taken from that period of time.
This is meant to be a continuation of the story Lust in the Wind, which is sadly no longer available to read. However, I hope you will enjoy this story, even if you haven't read the other. I will refer to things that happened in the previous story in a way that you will understand things in this story. Also, I will be writing about well known storms, however, times will change. The time line is all that will change. I write with the utmost respect to any person lost or injured in the severe storms and tornadoes I talk about. All facts about the storms are accurate. I hope the precautions demonstrated about taking shelter from storms will increase actual awareness. Also, while my characters are "professional" storm chasers, it is not something I recommend anyone doing without proper training and experience. I would also like to add, that rapid movements in time are hard to express in writing. It may take several minutes to read something, but try to remember, that events, especially the storms, happen in minutes, and sometimes split seconds. There is also a lot of educational information about tornadic storms, and other elements of severe weather. I tried to not only make the story entertaining, but informative and educational at the same time. The vehicle used in this story, called the ROW or Radar on Wheels can be searched under DOW or Doppler on Wheels. You can easily find pictures that may help you understand what the vehicle looks like. I hope you enjoy the story. All the best, Lady Dragonsblood.
It was Saturday, April 30. Chris and Adam Jericho were having dinner with Hunter and Shawn Helmsley at their favorite restaurant. They were enjoying delicious T-Bone steak dinners at the Cattleman's Steakhouse.
The day was a celebration, of sorts. One the two couples had shared for the last five years. It marked the night before the first official storm chase of the season.
The two couples had been close friends ever since a storm season five years ago. The road to that friendship had been long and rocky, but now, they couldn't imagine being without each other.
Five years ago, Adam Copeland had been sent to work with the rogue storm chaser, Chris Irvine Jericho. Adam was a photo journalist and videographer for World Wide Entertainment, owned by Vincent K. McMahon. Vince was more of a father to Adam than a boss.
At first Adam could barely stand Chris. Chris was always silent and brooding, and rather arrogant. After some exciting chases, Chris began to realize that Adam was a strong, and calming influence, who somehow managed to tolerate him.
In time, they fell in love. It was like the storms they chased, hard and fast. They were married, by Shawn, in a field just as a storm moved in.
Their marriage was consummated in the back of Chris's Escalade as the storm roared overhead. It was wild and wonderful. Their marriage was strong, despite the occasional arguments.
Another incident that happened in the same season had put a few gray hairs on Adam's head. Chris had been placing a storm probe in the path of an oncoming tornado. Adam had watched in horror as Chris tried to drive away from the tornado as it had unexpectedly shifted it's directional track. The Escalade had been picked up by the tornado. It burst into flames when it was slammed back down on the ground.
Later, Chris crawled up out of a ditch, bruised and bloody, but alive. The burnt body in the Escalade had turned out to be Adam's former boyfriend turned stalker, Drew McIntyre.
For a while, after the season, Chris was quite a celebrity. Adam had shot enough footage for a two hour television special. It made both Chris and Adam famous, and Vince a lot of money. Neither Chris nor Adam minded their fifteen minutes of fame, because the video saved a lot of lives. It told people what to look for and what to do and how to take shelter on stormy days.
Together, Chris and Hunter had worked on Hunter's invention, a storm data collection probe. Hunter had been frustrated that the probes weren't getting into the storms.
Chris, who was also a Doctor Of Meteorology, thought of many design changes that better enabled the probe to fly into storms. It worked, and they were able to gather information that not only saved lives, but showed more about tornadoes than ever before.
However, the next season brought some unhappy news. For years, Shawn and Hunter had chased with one of Jericho's bitter rivals; Randal Orton and his husband John Cena-Orton.
The Orton's were firefighter paramedics from Denver. Much like Adam had wormed his way into Chris' heart, Randy and Chris became friends. They weren't close, but they were close enough to make the last half that first chase season friendly.
Like Drew had done to Adam, John's former lover, Brock Lesnar had stalked the Orton's. Brock ran a tour company that chased storms. He'd hired Drew, just to cause the problems he did. It had been miserable for both John and Adam.
One day, Randy had remained behind while the others went on a chase. Randy had been jealous that Chris had solved the problem with the probes instead of himself. John had said he was being childish and left Randy alone to pout.
Sadly, Brock took advantage of Randy being alone. He broke into Randy and John's hotel room. Brock beat and raped Randy.
The incident triggered the eating disorder John had worked so hard to conquer. Though they tried, it finally tore John and Randy apart. After therapy, John grew mentally stronger and happier, but Randy never got over the rape.
John divorced Randy and went back to his hometown of West Newbury, Massachusetts. Randy went to his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. Both still worked as firefighter paramedics. Every year John sent cards at Christmas, but Randy lost all contact completely.
After that, Hunter and Shawn decided to leave Denver. They bought a house next door to Chris and Adam, in Norman, Oklahoma. The neighborhood was right across the street from the University of Oklahoma.
Hunter got a job teaching Science at Norman High School and also taught classes at the University. Shawn became the Pastor of a small, but strong non-denominational church. Every year, during the chase season, a visiting Pastor would take over for Shawn.
Chris taught Meteorology at the University. Then he was offered the job he'd been waiting for. The Meteorology Department at the University offered him the post of Dean of the Department. That had been a proud day for the Jericho's.
Adam still worked for Vince and WWE. His photos and videos had earned him numerous and prestigious national awards. The special about Chris had earned Adam a nomination for an Emmy Award, but he lost out to a documentary about missing children. Adam wasn't upset, missing children were more important.
Even though Adam still worked for Vince, his direct boss was Vince's son, Shane. World Wide Entertainment had opened an office in Oklahoma City, and Shane ran it.
Adam had an office in the WWE building, but he hardly ever there. Shane let him work from home. When he wasn't chasing storms with Chris, Adam took video and pictures around the area. His specialty was nature photography. He was the head photographer for WWE's biggest publication, the monthly magazine called Nature's Wonders. Adam also had a calendar published each year, with pictures of the storms he and Chris chased.
Adam had turned his and Chris' house into a showplace, that only few ever saw. Their backyard was a veritable paradise. He grew all kinds of beautiful flowers and vegetables. Adam had added a Koi pond, complete with a waterfall fountain. The area was the Jericho's refuge.
When they had married, Chris' legal last name was Irvine. He used Jericho as a business name because he wanted the fact that he was a Doctor of Philosophy in Meteorology a secret. However, two years into their marriage, Chris, and Adam by default, legally changed Irvine to Jericho. It was the name everyone knew.
Chris had hidden his Irvine name out of bitterness. For years, he had worked on a University project known as VORTEX. VORTEX stood for the Verification of the Origins of Rotation in Tornadoes Experience. VORTEX would go out in the field and cover storms from every possible angle, even by air. Chris invented a vehicle called the Doppler on Wheels or in short, DOW. The truck would be a mobile weather station with a full sized Doppler radar on board.
The government was interested and took over the project. Chris had rightfully expected to be chosen as one of the three project leaders. To his utter heartbreak and anger, the job went to others. One from the University, and two were the sons of politicians. It was wrong and the University was behind Chris, but Chris left in anger. He cursed science and turned his back on the academic world. That was what drove Chris to chase storms.
Chris' anger drove him to be careless and to take chances other chasers would never dare to take. He got closer to storms than anyone and he sold his videos to the media for a lot of money. He could have cared less about collecting scientific data.
The Helmsley's and Orton's chased for the science. Hunter wanted his probes to gather information that would be used to help advanced warning systems.
Now, for the last four chase seasons, the Jericho's and Helmsley's worked together for the benefit of helping others.
Chris spoke with a bit of huff to his voice. "Oh by the way, it came through. I will finally get to be in the DOW, now that the University has taken over the project. Only the University has changed the name to ROW or Radar On Wheels."
Hunter laughed. "Well, better late than never. Have you picked your students yet? You know we leave on Monday."
Chris nodded. "Yes, I have. Three excellent students. Roman Reigns, who will drive the ROW. His major is in lightening studies. Seth Rollins is the computer tech. He can make a computer dance. He will be in charge of the radar and forecasting. I hate to say it, but Rollins is almost better than me at predicting storms. The third guy is Dean Ambrose. He is so much like I used to be that it's scary. I think, if he could, he would walk up to a tornado and stroke it. He is more Adam's problem though, he is a journalism major and a videographer. He is also doing a secondary major in general Meteorology. He wants to be an in the field weather reporter. All three of them are chasing their Doctorates." Chris finished telling Hunter about the students who would go along for the season.
Hunter couldn't respond. He and Chris stood as their spouses returned from the restroom. Hunter and Chris kissed their husbands cheeks.
"So, what did we miss?" Adam asked as he sat down and sipped his iced tea.
Chris smiled at his beloved. "Just telling Hunter about the boys."
"Ah yes, Adam just told me in the restroom. Sounds like one of them will be a handful. Ambrose was it? Sounds like someone I know." Shawn interjected with a glance towards Chris. It made Hunter chuckle.
Adam and Hunter both laughed when Chris crossed his eyes and stuck his tongue out at the older man. Shawn just shook his head.
"Don't worry, Shawn. I managed to tame this lion. I think I can handle Dean. If not, Shawn, you can deal with him..." Adam's look changed from jovial to serious. He spoke again. "I mean that seriously. I know how much you helped Chris. Dean isn't angry with science like Chris was, but he is angry, at the world it seems. One good thing, he is really close to Roman and Seth. I am not really sure, but I suspect they have a three way relationship."
Chris chimed in. "You're probably right. I've seen Reigns calm him down when Dean was upset. Rollins as well. Shawn, I know I've said it many times, but you saved my life. I love you, both of you." He gave the older couple a warm smile.
Shawn flushed a bit. "You… were worth saving. You felt so guilty about your mom."
A lot of Chris' past anger came from an incident when he was a teenager, in Winnipeg, Canada. Chris had gone to chase a tornado. As he chased, he realized the tornado had torn up his own neighborhood. The tornado had destroyed his childhood home, with his mother inside.
Chris could smell gas, and power lines sparked. He found his mother, buried under rubble in what had been their kitchen. She was badly hurt, but he had to get her out. His actions caused her to be paralyzed for the rest of her life. Minutes later, the gas ignited and she would have burned to death. It ate at Chris constantly. During chase seasons Shawn secretly counseled Chris for many hours. Shawn finally made Chris understand, his mother had loved him for pulling her out.
Chris shook his memory when he felt his husband's hand on his leg. "Yes, you helped me so much. Then you helped us both so much last year when dad died. Remember when he went chasing with us when he came down to meet Adam?" He looked at his "family" around the table.
Adam laughed. "Ted out danced all of us. He was so much fun. You swore he had a crush on me. I also remember a certain Pastor wore a skin tight sexy boy leather outfit." He wiggled his brows at Shawn.
"Oh how well I remember." Hunter leaned over and gave his husband a sound kiss on the lips.
It was Chris' turn to tell tales. "I remember a certain Kitten, who got stuck in a pair of electric blue leather pants." He leered at Adam. Adam flushed deeply and hid his face in his napkin.
Hunter again laughed, Adam was just so adorable. "Say, I've always wondered. I know why you call Chris, Lion, but why are you called Kitten?" He finally asked the question he had wanted to ask for five years.
"Because when he is in the throes of passion, he makes this purring sound, mixed with a mewl. It is the most sexual sound in the world." Chris spoke unabashedly.
"Christopher Keith!" Both Adam and Shawn spoke at the same time. Adam wanted to crawl under the table. As it was, he buried himself in Shawn's strong arms. He hid his red face in the crook of Shawn's neck.
"Don't worry, Adam. You can come home with us. I will protect you from the bad Lion." Shawn spoke like a protective mamma bear defending its cub.
"No, he can't. I want to see if I can make you sound like a kitten. It can't be cuter than the sound you make when you're about to..." Hunter hushed when Shawn slapped him upside the head, albeit gently.
"You can go stay with Chris. Adam and I will lock you both out. Now, either grow up or it's the dog house for you both." Shawn again spoke firmly.
"I can't wait to be with mature college grad students. Now, I want peach pie and ice cream." Adam's voice was full of exasperation. He loved Chris more than anything, but sometimes Chris was just… too much.
Chris smiled. "I am sorry, baby. You are just fun to tease. You know I love you. If my Kitty wants pie a la mode, he can have it." He leaned over and gave Adam a chaste, but love filled kiss.
The light hearted banter continued as the four friends enjoyed dessert and coffee. However, so much talk of when they all met, led to a memory about a very traumatizing event in the lives of Chris and Adam.
Hunter and Shawn telling how they first met in college, took Adam back to the night when he and Chris admitted their love for each other. Then he remembered the very next morning.
After declaring their love for each other and making love, the couple had fallen asleep. In the morning they woke up to the sound of knocking on their hotel room door. It was the police. They arrested Chris for rape and dragged him off to jail. Chris had been accused by a guy he had pulled at a bar. Chris had brought him back to the hotel for a one night stand.
At the time, Chris and Adam were barely friends. Still, after Chris had the guy, Mike Mizanin in the bed, he began to feel guilty. He told Mike to get dressed and go home. Apparently that had angered the man.
A few weeks later, when a storm system led them back to the same area, Chris took Adam dancing at the same bar where he'd picked up Mike. Mike saw them and got angry.
It just so happened that Adam's ex-boyfriend, Drew McIntyre sat next to Mike at the bar. He saw Mike's reaction to Adam and Chris. Drew engaged Mike in conversation and convinced him to accuse Chris of rape.
While Chris was in jail, Drew thought he could win Adam back. Adam flat out told Drew to fuck off. Adam found out where Mike worked and went to talk to him. After Adam gave a pleading talk, Mizanin dropped all the charges. The nightmare ended with Drew's tragic death during a tornado.
"Adam? Hey… Kitten?" Chris gently nudged his husband. He'd been trying to ask Adam a question, but he saw Adam was a million miles away.
Adam realized Chris had spoken to him. "Oh sorry. What did you say?"
Chris reached over and caressed Adam's cheek. Somehow he knew where Adam's thoughts had gone. "It's alright, my love. That is all history and behind us. Look at it this way. When I was… away, I got the ideas for the probes. Now, what I said was, are you ready to go home?" He brushed a stray strand of Adam's blond hair from Adam's brow and tucked it behind his ear. Adam's hair hung past his shoulder blades and was as soft as silk.
Adam leaned into Chris' touch. "How did you know what I was thinking?" He had a look of awe in his eyes.
"Because I know you. All the past, Kitty. Drew can never hurt us again. I love you so much." Chris leaned over and kissed Adam again, only this time it wasn't so chaste.
Hunter and Shawn smiled at each other. Hunter finally had to speak, before the Jericho's got too carried away. "Okay guys, I really don't want to hear the kitten sound in public." He chuckled as he spoke.
Chris broke the kiss as he and Adam burst out in laughter. "You're right. I don't want to go back to jail for indecent exposure." He stood as he held the chair for Adam.
Adam and Shawn wandered out to the parking lot to wait for their men to pay for their dinner.
"Chris must be so proud of this." Shawn stood before a brand new Ranger Rover that had been custom fitted for storm chasing.
Adam beamed. "We are. The other Rover was alright, but this is our dream. We saved up a long time for this. Once we got the insurance settlement, we started a special bank account for just this. I finally have enough room. We will keep our truck though. I will still use it when I go out to shoot pictures."
"Well, you guys have earned this. I think Hunt is a little jealous. He wanted the probe launcher in our truck, but there wasn't a safe place for it." Shawn spoke with awe as he and Adam walked around the brand new vehicle.
Adam nodded. "It does take a lot of room. I just wish we had a chance to chase a couple of times before the season, but no storms popped close enough. Hopefully we can get any bugs worked out before a big one comes along." He kicked one of the rear tires.
"I can understand. I am looking forward to our new position on the team, now that ROW is joining us." Shawn stated as their husbands joined them.
Chris gave a growl. "I hate that new moniker. I am the one that came up with DOW in the first place. But, because VORTEX called it DOW, we now have to call it ROW. I will say this one time to get it off my chest. I am going to show that punk Rasmussen how that baby really works. I'll give the NWS data that the VORTEX team could only dream about." He spoke with fire and passion. It also burned in his blue eyes.
Hunter gave Chris a pat on the shoulder. "I know you will. But, remember, that it's a student driving the ROW. Our mission this season is to get the probes into the storms. That's where all the data will come from. If this Ambrose kid is as hotheaded as you say, you have to set a professional example for him." Hunter spoke more like a loving father than a friend.
Shawn spoke as well. "Hunt's right, Doctor Jericho. You told Adam to keep the past in the past. You're Dean of the department. That should prove that the University has always been behind you. Be the leader I know you can be for those three boys; and us."
Chris looked at his elders. He knew they were right. "You're right. Past is past. I'll try to be the best leader I can be." He took his keys out of his pocket and tossed them to Shawn. "You drive. After all, when I have to be in the Radar on Wheels, you will be driving Adam so he can launch the probes." Chris spoke seriously.
"No, Chris. I was going to tell you, I am driving Adam. I'd rather have Shawn drive the Scout. He won't be so close to the storms. Shawn knows I know how to get the better angle to launch the probes." Hunter took the keys from Shawn, who nodded in agreement.
Chris rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Well, I can't argue there. Maybe you'd be the better leader." Chris half joked as the four men got into the Range Rover Sport, turned chase vehicle.
Hunter turned the key. "Nope. You're the leader, Chris. You have earned that. Now, let's see what this baby can do." He spoke with excitement and gunned the engine.
Hunter actually drove safely and sensibly. He enjoyed the quick response of the Ranger Rover. He knew he would be able to get the probes in the right place. Especially with Chris on the radar to guide him.
Hunter pulled the Rover into the Jericho's newly expanded garage. Adam had to give up part of his side yard, but the garage had to be expanded to make room for the new Range Rover. Adam didn't mind too much, he hated mowing the side yard.
The couples hugged and bid each other goodnight. The would see each other at church the next day. Adam especially wanted to be there. It was Shawn's last Sunday to preach until August 7, when the chase season ended.
While Adam took a shower, Chris went into his home office. The office had a complete weather station. Cables went up into the ceiling, then through the attic to the roof. On the roof, Chris had a satellite to the National Weather Service or NWS. He also had an anemometer to measure wind speed and direction. There was a device to measure atmospheric pressure, humidity and the temperature. His last piece of equipment was fairly new, at least to Chris. The University had replaced several of their portable radars. They let Chris have one for his home office. It sat on the roof in a clear box made of Plexiglas.
Chris worked on where they should go to begin the chase. The first strong front of the season was coming in from the west coast. He knew Texas was the target, but exactly where was what he needed to figure out.
With a fine point Sharpie pen, he drew a perfect outline of the United States. Chris then got lost in adding lines and numbers about the incoming cold front, and the location of the warm air rising up from the Gulf. Where the two met, storms would develop.
Adam who wore only his long silk robe, found his husband where he always found him, in the office. Chris' face was buried in his hands. Adam knew by that his Lion was frustrated.
The damp haired blond put his hands on Chris' shoulders and began to massage them. "You will figure it out, my Lion. You always do." Adam leaned down and whispered in Chris' ear.
"Oh that feels good, Kitten. You know what would feel even better?" Chris asked with a husk filled growl.
"Yeah. You inside me." Adam's return whisper was hot in his husband's ear. He bit Chris' ear lobe and raked it through his teeth.
"You read my mind. Bedroom, now!" Chris stood up and threw Adam over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. He carried Adam down the hall to their bedroom.
When Chris put Adam down, the blond slipped off his robe. He was naked and glorious. Adam still had the best legs in the world. Chris lusted after Adam just as much as he did five years ago, even more so.
While Chris quickly stripped out of his clothes, Adam pulled back the covers and slipped into their king sized bed. He fanned his long hair out over the pillow. He lay on his back, his left leg bent at the knee. Adam's graceful hands rested on his abdomen.
When Chris turned to the bed, all the breath sucked out his body. Adam was so beautiful. Adam's skin was lightly bronzed from all his yard work. He also loved that Adam had not cut his hair since their wedding. Chris felt that Adam's long hair was like gold, and he loved to lace it through his fingers.
"Come to me, my handsome Lion." Adam's voice held a lust filled growl. He held his arms up to Chris.
Chris fell into Adam's embrace as his own bronzed body covered Adam like a blanket. Their cocks were hard as they rubbed together. They kissed with sloppy passion, their tongues slid against each other.
Adam bent his other leg to give Chris better access to his eager hole. "I'm still a bit loose from this afternoon, get in me now!" Adam whimpered in Chris' ear. He bucked his hips to prod Chris to hurry.
"Naughty Kitty. If I wasn't so hot for you, I'd make you wait. But, you are too beautiful. Get ready." Chris growled like the lion he was.
Chris quickly lubed his cock with spit and the fluid that already leaked from the slit. He took himself in hand and guided his hard shaft to best ass in the world. Adam whimpered and mewled at the same time. It was the kittenish sound Chris adored.
Adam once again thrust his hips. "More babe, please, more."
Chris knew what his husband wanted. He settled balls deep inside Adam's tight heat. Chris wrapped his hand around Adam's rock hard shaft.
Adam sighed and wrapped his arms around Chris. He ran his hands up and down Chris' muscular back. His Lion was still so fit and well built. Chris' body was honed to perfection by the yoga they both did twice a day. The couple found it was not only great exercise, but it helped them to relax and keep their over worked minds sharp.
Chris thrust in and out of Adam's tight heat at a steady pace. When he pushed into Adam, his hand slid up Adam's cock. When Chris pulled out of Adam, he slid his hand down on Adam's dick. The counter sync drove Adam into sexual heaven. Adam let Chris know how he felt by sucking hard on Chris' tongue with a moan.
Chris pulled his lips from Adam's and kissed his way from one of the blond's ears to the other. He occasionally stopped to suck on the patch of skin on Adam's neck, by his ear. Adam again made his kitten sound. His nails lightly raked across Chris' back.
Chris growled low in his chest. He looked at his husband. Adam's lips were pulled back in a pleasure filled grin. Adam's hazel eyes were half-lidded and filled not only with lust, but love.
Adam could seen the love on Chris' face and in his blue eyes as his Lion looked down at him. They needed no words, their eyes and faces said it all. For five years their love had been strong, and it continued to grow stronger with each passing day. They were soulmates for life and nothing would ever tear them apart.
Their love making continued with the passion and love they felt for each other. As their need for release grew stronger and stronger, Chris' pace increased. His hips drove his cock hard and deep into Adam. His hand worked Adam's cock with pulls, light twists and tugs. Chris also pressed his thumb against the slit at the top of Adam's soaking wet cock.
"Faster, Lion. Please… so close… so close…" Adam mewled like the kitten he was. Adam pressed his knees around Chris' hips. His hands raked across Chris' back. Adam bit down on his husband's shoulder, then he licked and kissed the darkened flesh.
Chris marked Adam in the same way, only his mark would last a few days at least. Chris could feel his own eruption begin to uncoil in his belly.
"Cum for me, baby. Cum for your Lion." Chris' words were like a hot desert breeze in Adam's ear.
"Oh Lion, my glorious Lion… Ah… oh, fuck!" Adam cried out in consummate rapture as his cock spilled its contents over Chris' hand and ran down onto his groin and down his sides.
When Adam's cock erupted, his muscles clenched around Chris' shaft. With a deep chested, lion-like growl, Chris filled Adam with his cum. When he eventually pulled out, some of the substance dripped onto Adam's thighs.
Chris rolled off his husband. He panted hard as he recovered from their third round of sex that day. They had made love that morning, then just before they went out to dinner in the shower and now. Chris was well sated.
Adam rolled onto his side and sighed deeply when Chris wrapped his arms around him. Adam nuzzled his head into the crook of Chris' neck. It was the only place he slept well.
"Think we will still be having this much sex when we've been married as long as Shawn and Hunter?" Adam asked in a sleep filled voice.
Chris laughed softly. "I hope so. At least Hunter still buys lube. He got some when I went shopping with him yesterday." He pulled Adam even closer.
Adam looked at Chris with a raised brow. "Hunter bought lube? At the hardware store?"
Chris laughed again. "No, silly Kitty. We stopped at the pharmacy. Shawn sent him for vitamins. You know Shawn, a vitamin a day keeps the Doctor away."
"Oh, that makes sense then. Yeah, I know. He keeps bugging me to take vitamins. I eat plenty of fruit. I wonder if Randy and John miss chasing? All this time and I still miss them. Well, mostly John. He was so good to me when you were in jail." Adam gave a bit of a sad sigh.
Chris moved his hand to stroke Adam's hair. He could feel Adam immediately relax. "You get like this at the start of every season. I don't know if they chase or not. John never mentions it in his Christmas cards. I know you miss him, but he is very happy now. Randy just… I hope he got or will eventually get help for his anger issues. However, being raped… it was all to much. We have our own new baby to worry about." He kissed the top of Adam's head.
Adam yawned. "True. I know you mean the ROW not the students." He managed a slight, tired laugh.
Chris nodded. "Like I said, you know me too well. Do we have to go to church tomorrow? I need to work on the forecast." He sounded like a little boy begging to play hooky from school.
"You don't have to go, but Shawn will be disappointed. I'll explain that the forecast means more than him. Shawn will understand." Adam yawned again. He felt bad, using guilt, but he wanted Chris to be there for Shawn.
Chris sighed. "You know how to use guilt, don't you? Okay, I'll go. You're right, I owe Shawn and it is only for a couple of hours. I love you, Kitten." He gave Adam a sweet, love filled goodnight kiss.
Adam smiled. "Thank you. I love you, my Lion." He snuggled into his place in Chris' arms. The Lion and Kitten fell into a deep, sex sated sleep.
On Sunday, dressed in their suits, Chris and Adam went to Shawn's church. They sat on the back pew with Hunter. There were only fifty members, but they were a close congregation. There were a few young families with children, the rest were middle aged couples and elderly. They came in all shapes, sizes and colors and they all looked after one another.
The congregation loved Brother Shawn and Hunter. They always hated to lose them during the chase season. However, they also knew that what Brother Shawn and Hunter did helped save lives. They were proud of their Pastor and his husband.
The congregation also loved Chris and Adam. They also appreciated their life saving work. The kids loved it when Adam would invite them to his garden paradise every Easter for an egg hunt. Chris dressed as the Easter Bunny was not to be missed.
Shawn gave a shorter than usual sermon. He spent the rest of time introducing the fill in Preacher. His name was Ted DiBiase, and was married to a kind young man named Cody. The congregation knew they would be in good hands. Besides, they all had Brother Shawn's cell phone number in case of an emergency.
Normally after church, the Jericho's and Helmsley's would have lunch together. However, today, the two couples were too busy getting ready for the start of their three month adventure.
There would probably be times, when the storms would lead them back home, where they could sleep in their own beds. They looked forward to those days.
Both Chris and Hunter hired Matt and Mike Thompson to look after their yards while they were gone. The fifteen year old twins were very responsible. They were the children of the head of campus security and had been raised to serve others.
The Thompson twins were the only ones Adam trusted with his backyard and he paid them well. He also let them pick fruit and vegetables from his trees and garden. All Adam asked was for them not to pick and eat them all. He wanted to preserve some to have in during the winter. The boys would put Adam's fruit and veggies in the cool storm shelter, hidden under the garage by a sliding floor panel.
Adam stood at his kitchen counter and double checked the contents of their full trauma first aid kit. One thing they had all done, including Chris, was to take a very advanced first aid class. They had also qualified in search and rescue.
Never again would Chris drive past a town devastated by a tornado. All chasing would stop. Saving lives was the most important thing. It took a bit for Chris at first. However, when he pulled a two month old baby from some rubble, all Chris' fears of helping others completely vanished.
Chris shut himself in his office and worked on his forecast. Now that he'd had a rest, the mathematical formulas came easily and he was able to plot their course.
Chris pinpointed the Midland/Odessa area. They would have time to make the seven hour trip. The storms would not start until Tuesday or possibly Wednesday afternoon. He sat back with a satisfied smile. He also wondered when Adam had brought in the roast beef sandwich and glass of milk.
Chris chuckled at the size of the sandwich. He knew Adam was trying to clean out the fridge. Well the milk was still cool, so enjoyed his lunch as he triple checked his forecast.
Later, Adam held a clipboard in hand, with several pages attached. As Chris loaded or checked equipment into the Range Rover, Adam made a check mark by the item.
Radios, scanner, computer, car repair items, tire repair items and rescue items like an axe, shovel and small chain saw were all checked off. Lights and flashlights were checked. Maps, radio repeater guides, log books and Skywarn frequency books were also checked.
Also, this season, all three vehicles would have portable tornado warning sirens. They would be able to warn drivers on the road or people in remote areas. Chris had obtained permission from the NWS to use the sirens. The National Weather Service wanted to test if the sirens should be added to police cars and other emergency vehicles.
By ten that night, Chris and Adam were sound asleep. Five in the morning would come fast. They were all packed and anxious to start. It was time to go… into the storm.