AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Thanks to lovesgod12, StoryMaker7, and AveXCninja11 for your comments on the last chapter!

In the chapter below, a summer night doesn't end well...

Chapter 4 - An Awful Summer Night

"Maybe when I go to the grocery store tomorrow, I should stock up on paper plates and cups," Sam pondered as she placed her dirty dish in the dishwasher after dinner.

"Is that because of the water rationing?" Nya asked as she placed her own dish in the machine.

"Water rationing?" Lloyd questioned. He hadn't had a chance to listen to news reports.

"Yeah, they were saying on the radio that each household in the Ninjago City area might only be allowed a certain number of gallons per week, and if you use more than that, they'll charge you an arm and a leg," Sam explained.

"Oh, wow, does that mean I have to take shorter showers?" Jay whined. "It sure better start raining soon!"

After the kitchen had been cleaned up, Sam returned with Jay and Nya to the cottage. The blue ninja and the samurai had volunteered to assist in applying the second coat of paint to the bedroom walls.

Before they began, Sam briefly explained where the future furniture would be placed in the room.

"The bed will go against this wall, with two end tables on each side. We'll put the dresser in the big space along the wall where the closet is."

"And I was thinking this corner would be a good place for a crib, for a future little leaf on the Smith family tree someday," Sam concluded, smiling as she spoke.

Sam couldn't be sure, but she thought Jay, who had his arm around Nya's shoulder, and Nya, who had her arm around Jay's waist, may have held each other a little tighter, as if they envisioned a time when a crib would be needed for a future baby Walker.

The evening was fun as well as productive. Jay had the girls constantly laughing as they discussed many topics, including wedding related matters, women's fashions, and favorite bands and singers.

The blue ninja especially cracked up his companions with all the ideas he came up with for Kai's bachelor party.

At about the time Jay and the girls were finishing up the painting project, Nya's communication bracelet beeped. Knowing it was Sensei calling her from the Bounty's control room, she pushed the buttons to activate communication on her end.

"Yes, Sensei?" she spoke into the bracelet's embedded microphone.

"Nya, would you and Sam and Jay please make your best effort to finish your business in the cottage and return to the Bounty as soon as possible? We have just received some news that you three need to know about."

"Uh, of course, Sensei," Nya replied. "We're working on wrapping it up now, but we'll speed things up and be there within 15 minutes, I would say."

"Thank you," Sensei responded. He ended the communication link on his end, and Nya pushed the necessary buttons on her bracelet to terminate the link on her end.

"What do you suppose that's all about?" she wondered aloud.

"I don't know, but I didn't get a warm and fuzzy feeling from him," Jay commented. "I would think he would just go ahead and tell us if the news were good."

Sam silently agreed with Jay. A seed of apprehension began to grow within her. Nevertheless, she tried to keep her tone light.

"Hey, Jay, if you wouldn't mind ripping off the painter's tape from the walls and picking up the tarps, then once I finish rinsing the paint rollers and Nya closes up the paint buckets, we should be done."

"Aye, aye, captain," Jay responded, also trying to keep his tone light. He sensed her apprehension.

After just a few more minutes of cleanup, Jay and the girls left the cottage. Sam left the windows open so that the fumes of the paint would dissipate more quickly.

When Sam, Nya, and Jay arrived back at the Bounty, they were greeted at the door by Lloyd. He looked somber.

"Let's go into the living room," he said.

This can't be good, Sam thought.

In the living room, Sensei Wu was waiting, sitting on a kitchen chair placed in front of the sofa. He had a solemn demeanor as well.

"Please sit down," Sensei instructed the new arrivals.

Sam and Nya sat down on the middle section of the sofa. Jay then sat on Nya's right side. He took her hand in his.

Lloyd sat on Sam's left side and took her hand in his, too.

This REALLY can't be good, Sam thought.

Sensei cleared his throat and began. "Zane called earlier with some news. About Kai."

Nya gave a little gasp. Sam's heart began to pound.

Sensei continued. "Kai was setting a backburn fire on Oracle Mountain just before sunset this evening. The firefighters on the scene said it appeared he became trapped in a sudden wall of flames...and he is now missing."

Jay gave a low whistle.

Sam felt a sensation of paralysis begin in her chest and flow down to her feet.

Tears welled up in Nya's eyes. "But, Sensei, Kai is the master of fire..."

"Yes, Nya, indeed he is," Sensei affirmed her statement. "However, he is not fireproof beyond a certain temperature nor beyond a certain length of time. Nevertheless, we here in this room cannot jump to conclusions about his fate, so that is why we will fly the Bounty out to northwestern Ninjago right away to search his last known whereabouts. The resources of the firefighters are spread very thin right now, so in order that they can focus on the wildfires, the officials gave us permission to take over the search for him" - Sensei paused - "or his body. Sam, are you all right?"

Sam's face was pale.

She felt Lloyd squeezing her hand. "Breathe, Sam," he urged.

Sam took a deep breath. It helped, but not much.

"Sam, do you need to do anything at the cottage? We plan to leave in about 20 minutes," Sensei asked.

To Sam, it sounded like someone else was talking when she said, "I just need to close up the cottage windows. And I need to call Mom and Dad."

Lloyd stood up. "I can close the windows. Why don't you go right in the control room to make your call?"

Sam numbly fumbled for the cottage key in her pocket and handed it to him. "Thanks."

He helped her stand up from her sitting position on the sofa and followed her out of the living room, just pausing long enough to look back at Jay and Sensei and say, "I'll be back to help pull up anchor."

Upon reaching the control room, Lloyd stopped her for a moment. "Hey, Sam?"

Sam turned to look at him.

"Have faith," he said.

She appreciated that he was trying to cheer her up. But the smile he gave her didn't quite reach up to his eyes. She could tell he was worried.

"Thanks," she said, returning a weak, small smile. She entered the control room and he went on to take care of the cottage.

She picked up the phone and began to dial her parents. She was glad that she had an excuse to make the call a short one. The others needed to get into this room in order to get the journey started.

The answering machine kicked in at her parents' home. She hated to leave upsetting news for them on the machine but she had no choice. They were bound to learn of media reports about the missing ninja by the morning hours anyway, so she wanted them to personally hear from her beforehand. In her message, she promised to call them back within 24 hours with an update on the search for their future son-in-law.

When she finished her call, she went straight to the bedroom she shared with Nya. She could hear Nya talking with Jay in the living room. That was fine with Sam - she wanted to be alone.

As Sam got ready for bed, she heard the ship's engine roar and felt its vibration as it came to life. Tonight's flight on the Bounty would be the first ever for her. The ship seemed like it was going to rattle itself apart, but if no one else was worried about it, she wouldn't worry, either.

The last thing Sam did before climbing into bed was to take off her necklace with the intent of placing it in her jewelry box. It was a simple gold chain which sported a heart charm. Kai had given her the chain and heart last Christmas. As she opened the lid of the jewelry box, she paused to look at their wedding rings. She had stored them in the box to await the wedding ceremony, when she and Kai would formally present them to each other.

She recalled that a friend once told her about someone being married in a hospital room while suffering from a grave illness.

Sam took the rings from the jewelry box and hooked them onto the gold chain. Then, instead of putting the necklace in the jewelry box, she placed it on her bedside table. She climbed into bed and turned off the bedside lamp. Her mind raced from thought to thought.

If Kai was found alive but seriously injured, she wondered if he would want to have a simple ceremony right in the hospital room.

In the event that Kai was found...not alive...she would leave the ring she planned to give to him on the mountain where he drew his last breath.

The tears flowed into her pillow as she cried herself to sleep.