Duff and Lifesaver huddled at the bottom of the stairwell, which, Duff figured, was probably the safest place in the house.
A tornado warning had been issued, and all those in its path were urged to take immediate cover. The voice coming through the television was insistent.
Stay away from windows, go to a basement if you have one, or shelter in a hallway, closet or bathroom if those are your only options. This is a serious situation.
The stairwell leading to the garage at Duff’s house was 13 steps deep and covered by walls on either side. The bottom step was a favorite spot for Lifesaver, a small, ginger cat who was mostly fearless but always put aside his bravado during inclement weather. The first clap of thunder would send him slinking to his safe space, where he would curl into a ball and rhythmically twitch his ears.
When that happened, Duff would lean over the railing and talk to the cat in a calm, soothing voice.
“It’s OK, buddy,” he’d say. “We’ll take care of each other just like we always do.”
Duff’s wife had been gone for 10 years, and Lifesaver came along three years later. As the calendar kept flipping, Duff was less inclined to go out and socialize, and instead preferred the company of his feline. Once he became a “cat person,” he couldn’t imagine life without a furry friend.
And the kitty seemed to like the arrangement, too. He loved shadowing Duff as he went about his daily routine, and always snuggled beside him when the old man reclined in his easy chair, cracked open a cold one and watched baseball.
As the wind howled mercilessly and the hail pounded the metal roof, Duff gently stroked Lifesaver from head to tail.
Take immediate shelter. If you are in the counties of Douglas, Lincoln and Buchanan, you are under a tornado warning. Extensive damage has already been reported.
“I guess we should probably go to the garage, but I really don’t want to,” Duff said as Lifesaver looked up at him and slowly blinked. “Nah … we’re gonna stay right here unless we have no other choice.”
Duff had groceries delivered and used a ride-hailing service when he went out, so his 2009 CR-V had been sitting idle for several years. It most likely still ran just fine, but now it was simply 3,500 pounds of melancholy. When Duff looked at it, he thought of that spring day in 2018 when he grew so despondent he decided he didn’t want to see another day.
With the garage door closed, he planned to get in, crank it up, close his eyes and quietly slip away.
But as he opened the door and plopped down in the driver’s seat, he heard a noise coming from the corner where his tools were stored. He walked over to inspect, and saw the head of a small kitten peering at him from behind the mud-caked blade of a shovel.
Duff reached in and grabbed the puff of orange fur, who just barely spilled over the palm of his hand.
“Where did you come from, little one?” he said as the cat meekly mewed. “How did you even get in here?”
Duff pulled the kitten close to his chest, kissed it on the head, and then walked over to his car and closed the door.
Since then, the pair had been inseparable, and Duff figured this was the ninth or tenth time they had ridden out a tornado at the bottom of the stairwell.
Just as Lifesaver rolled over to get a belly rub, the hail stopped, and the roaring wind had settled into a whimper.
The tornado warnings for the counties of Douglas, Lincoln and Buchanan have been lifted. The tornadic activity has moved to the west and these counties are now under a severe thunderstorm watch. The dangerous weather should be moving out of the area within the hour.
Duff stood up and Lifesaver took a big stretch. Both headed up the stairs.
“We survived another one, buddy,” Duff said. “Why don’t we celebrate by watching some baseball.”
