Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13 JANUARY 12, 1888 PRAIRIE CREEK SCHOOL AROUND 10:00 A.M. After seven days of being cooped up because of the cold, the kids at school acted like bank robbers who'd escaped from jail. Nobody wanted to sit

still. And to their surprise, Miss Ruell cut their grammar lesson short. "I wouldn't mind a little fresh air," she said. The schoolhouse erupted in cheers. John and the guys leapt out of their seats. Kids poured outside, most without their coats and wraps. Franny ran off to play hide-and-seek with her friends. John and the guys stayed in front. The hard-packed snow was slick, like an ice rink. They slid around, racing each other and spinning until they were too dizzy to stand. John was sliding across when someone came up right next to him. Myra! "Race you," she said, smiling as she whooshed by. Her flowered dress billowed behind her like a sail. John's heart somersaulted inside his chest. He tried to catch up with her, but she ran off giggling with Annie. John wondered if the guys had seen that. He looked around and realized they weren't

skating anymore. They were on the schoolhouse steps. John went over. They all looked uneasy. Rex was peering into the sky to the north of them. "What's wrong?" John asked. "See that?" Rex said. John followed Rex's gaze. And that's when John saw it in the distance, a gray shadow in the sky. At first he thought he was imagining it, that the blinding brightness of the day was making his eyes play tricks. But no. Rex was right. There was something in the sky, something big and dark. And it was getting bigger by the second. It was coming this way, and moving very fast. Rex's mouth fell open. "What the…" They all stood and watched as the shadow in the distance took shape. With each second, it got bigger and darker. It was a cloud of some kind, dirty gray and billowing, and stretching out across the land.

The temperature was dropping, fast. John was shivering, not just because of the cold. He didn't know what he was looking at. He just knew it was bad. The schoolyard went quiet. Kids stopped sliding in the snow. All eyes were on the churning cloud. "That's a huge storm," Rex said. "I've never seen anything like it." A low rumbling rose up. The ground shook. And now Miss Ruell was clanging the bell. "Children! Come inside now! Hurry!" The day seemed to turn to night. And then came an earsplitting roar. It sounded like a train was speeding right by them. But of course there was no train anywhere near here. It was the sound of a monster blizzard, closing in. Kids rushed into the schoolhouse. John was swept up the stairs in the wave of panicked bodies.

Suddenly he was inside. The schoolhouse door banged shut. And then, ROOOOOOAAAAR!