Are You Afraid of the Dark

chapter Forty-Five
AT WAS A perfect day for flying. KIG's 757 was speeding over the Pacific Ocean under an azure blue sky. Pauline and Tanner were snuggled together on a couch in the main cabin.

Pauline said, "Darling, do you know it's a shame that people will never know how brilliant you are?" "If they ever found out, I'd be in big trouble." She looked at him and said, "No problem. We could buy a country and proclaim ourselves the rulers. Then they can't touch us." Tanner laughed.

Pauline stroked his hand. "Did you know that I wanted you from the first time I saw you?" "No. As I remember, you were very impertinent." "And it worked, didn't it? You had to see me again, to teach me a lesson." There was a long, erotic kiss.

Far away, lightning flashed.

Tanner said, "You'll love Tamoa. We'll spend a week or two there and relax, and then we'll travel around the world. We're going to make up for all the lost years when we couldn't be together." She looked up and grinned impishly. "You bet we will." "And every month or so, we'll come back to Tamoa and put Prima II to work. You and I can pick our targets together." Pauline said, "Well, we could create a storm in England, but they wouldn't notice." Tanner laughed. "We have the whole world to choose from." A steward approached. "Is there anything I can get you?" he asked.

Tanner said, "No. We have everything." And he knew that it was true.

In the distant sky, there were more flashes of lightning.

"I hope there isn't going to be a storm," Pauline said. "I-I hate flying in rough weather." Tanner said reassuringly, "Don't worry, darling. There's not a cloud in the sky." He thought of something and smiled. "We don't have to worry about the weather. We control it." He looked at his watch. "Prima's about to blow up." Sudden drops of rain began to pound against the plane.

Tanner held Pauline closer. "It's all right. It's just a bit of rain." And as Tanner said it, the sky suddenly began to darken and tremble with loud peals of thunder. The huge plane started to bounce up and down. Tanner was looking out the window, puzzled by what was happening. The rain began to turn into large hailstones.

Tanner said, "Look at-" The realization suddenly hit him. "Prima!" It was a cry of exultation, a look of glory in his eyes. "We can-" At that instant, a hurricane hit the plane, bouncing it around savagely.

Pauline was screaming.

* * *

IN THE REDBRICK building at KIG, Andrew Kingsley was operating Prima, his fingers flashing over the keys in remembrance. Watching his target on the screen, he could see an image of his brother's plane being buffeted by three-hundred-mile-an-hour hurricane winds. He pressed another button.

* * *

AT A DOZEN branch offices of the National Weather Service, from Anchorage, Alaska, to Miami, Florida, meteorologists were staring at their computer screens in disbelief. What was happening seemed impossible, but it was happening.

* * *

WORKING IN THE redbrick building, Andrew was grateful that there was still one thing he could do to help make the world a better place. He carefully guided an F-6 tornado he had created-up?up-higher and higher?

* * *

TANNER WAS LOOKING out the window of the wildly tossing plane when he heard the telltale freight train sound of the approaching tornado over the roar of the storm, traveling 320 miles an hour. Tanner's face was flushed, and he was trembling with excitement, watching the tornado spinning up toward the plane. He was ecstatic. "Look! There's never been a tornado this high. Never! I created it!

It's a miracle! Only God and I could-"

* * *

IN THE REDBRICK building, Andrew moved a switch and watched the screen as the plane exploded and pieces of wreckage and bodies were hurled into the sky.

Then Andrew Kingsley pressed the red button three times.