Outburst Read Online Free Page A

but a few minutes before it started pouring.
    “Huh?”
    “What do you want? Why did you call me?”
    Forrest looked at Todd as if he were nuts. “I didn't call you. You called me.”
    “What?”
    “You called and asked to meet secretly with me. Said it was something about a blackmail story.”
    “No, I didn't. I never called you.” Wondering what the hell this was all about, Todd said, “I got a call this morning from a guy who said someone was blackmailing him. I'm presuming that was you.”
    “What?” Forrest said with a confused grin. “Fuck, no. I got no secrets.”
    He studied this Mark Forrest, saw the wholesomeness leaking out his pores, and Todd's instincts told him that Forrest was telling the truth. Yes, he was part of the younger generation, the young gay guys who'd never considered the closet and had always been out, easily and naturally so. Which meant only one thing. Then again, this wasn't the first time something like this had happened, nor would it be the last.
    “Come on,” said Todd as the rain started coming down in large pellets. “Someone set us up.”
    “But—”
    “Let's just get out of here. My car's over there. We'll figure it out.”
    Out of nowhere a huge gust of wind exploded over them, and in an instant the rain was hitting as hard as if it were being sprayed from a fire hose. A burst of lightning struck just up the river, followed almost immediately by a deafening explosion of thunder.
    Todd lifted his arm up to shield his face from the pelting water, opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly an enormous sound drowned him out, a wail that rose and continued in desperate warning. Shit, you didn't grow up in the Midwest without knowing what that meant, without knowing that the only time it was safe to hear sirens like those was the first Wednesday of the month at 1:00 P.M.
    Scanning the skies for a funnel cloud, Todd grabbed Mark Forrest by the arm and, above the ever-increasing wind, shouted, “We gotta get out of here!”
    Forrest hesitated just a moment, that was all. Then the two of them turned, started toward the downtown side of the river. Todd was already soaked, but with any luck they could make it safely to his car. As he took a step forward, however, a huge blast of wind blew him off-balance. Oh, my God, thought Todd, is this really a tornado? A dazzling and deadly lightning bolt struck a lamppost not fifty feet in front of them, followed instantly by thunder so loud that Todd could feel the force of the sound reverberate in his chest. Shielding his eyes with his right hand, Todd looked up, saw the blackened lamppost tip off the bridge and blow to the turbulent waters below. The wind, Todd realized as the two of them struggled along, was coming from the right, whooshing down the river from the northwest and growing stronger by the second.
    Glancing toward downtown, Todd saw nothing, not a single light. All of the buildings were gobbled up by the darkness, swallowed by the rain and clouds and wind. Jesus, just how bad was this going to be?
    Suddenly a figure in a hooded yellow slicker emerged out of nowhere, someone small, someone running desperately along the Stone Arch Bridge. Another fool, thought Todd, as Mark and he charged on, their heads bowed against the torrent. Someone else looking to get killed.
    A huge gust came up, Mark lost his footing, and with a wide grin, this cowboy of a guy screamed, “Holy shit!”
    The approaching man was struck by the same gust, and he swerved and caught himself on the railing. Clasping the hood over his head with his left hand, he rushed on, nearing Todd and Mark.
    Another burst of wind blew back the guy's jacket, and it was then that Todd saw it, the glint of metal. An umbrella, thought Todd, useless in such a storm and folded up for safekeeping. The rain pelted Todd's face, and he closed his eyes, opened them, struggled to see.
    White light burst all around them and the skies exploded like a bomb. Suddenly that other person was