It was only when Almira Arrived at her home that she realized that her basket was unoccupied. She knew instantly what had been done and railed against Hunk in her anger. "Oh!" She screamed aloud in her solitude, "That spindle-shanked, rubber-jointed, big-nosed, flat-footed, numb-sculled, bone-headed, hatchet-faced, idiotic, moronic excuse for a farmhand!"
She also used some other words which she would never have said in public and which I have the delicacy not to put down in writing.
After getting some of her anger out, she turned to go back out of her house. The farmhands had interfered with the law. Although she had no proof that Hunk had freed Toto, she could still threaten. Maybe it would get them turned out of the farm.
Mounting her bicycle, she began to pedal back towards the Gale's home. After a while, she happened to look up at the sky and stopped dead. The clouds hanging low in the horizon were a dark, almost green color.
Almira had lived in Kansas her whole life; she knew certain signs. For once, she ignored them. Biting her lip in fury she pedaled faster. The air was deathly still as she flew down the road, her black dress billowing out behind her. Nothing was going to deter her from her mission. Then, the wind began. Howling over the planes, it came tearing and rending towards the Gale's farm. Far off, the calumnious sky became still darker as the clouds began to move towards the ground.
Miss Gulch reached her destination in time to see Hunk and Hickory running about in the yard.
"Hunk!" Henry cried, emerging suddenly from the house, "get them horses loose! Hickory, check on the pigs, clouds that color can only mean one thing—"
As Hickory sprinted off and Hunk scrambled towards the barn, Zeke came hurtling down the path, yelling at the top of his lungs.
"Henry!" He hollered, "It's a twister! Just spotted down the way! And it's coming our way!"
Almira realized suddenly that she had made a big mistake. She couldn't get back to her house in time. She hesitated. Maybe the Gale's would allow her into their storm cellar. The thought was thrust away in another instant. There was no way she would be asking for help.
Emily came around the barn and began to yell for Dorothy, but Almira couldn't have cared less at that moment what had happened to that girl. At least, she didn't have any reason to. She hated the Gales. And yet, as she heard the frantic voice of the aunt, her stone-encased heart felt a twinge for Dorothy. But it was only a twinge. In another moment, the Gale's and their farmhands had bundled into their storm cellar without Dorothy and Almira had begun peddling for her life through the wind.
After riding for a minute, she glanced behind her to see where the tornado was, and saw a tiny figure in the distance. It was Dorothy running towards her house. Miss Gulch then gave up any hope she had of possibly getting away from the twister by riding away from it. Turning back the way she had come, she frantically searched for a shelter of some sort. Thinking of the Gale's barn, she made her way to it.
Staggering in the blustery conditions, she tried the barn door. It was locked and chained. She whirled around, panicked, and saw the tornado nearing the farm. It was over for her. She sank down against the door of the barn and curled into a ball.
"Nina!" She cried in despair, "oh, Nina! I'm sorry! I should have listened to your advice! Been more kind... like you were... you may have been right after all about there-there being a God. If you were... oh! Let him save me now! I promise I'll leave the Gale's alone! All of them! Even the little girl and her dog! Just save me!"
Her strength failed her and she slipped into a stupor.
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Meanwhile, the Farmhands and their employers where huddled in the cellar. Emily was sobbing about Dorothy. Henry was doing his best to comfort her while the others stood near the ladder to the hatch.
Hickory looked in concern towards the Gale's and leaned over to whisper to his friends. "We've got t' do somethin'! We can't just leave Dorothy out there all alone in the storm!"
Hunk nodded. "I agree, we'll have t' go and find her."
Zeke looked a bit uncertain. "I dunno Hunk, if we leave, I don't think we'll be able t' get back in here again. The hatch closes so tightly that you can only open it from the inside and the wind is blowin' so hard that anyone outside wouldn't be heard."
"But that's just it!" Hunk said, "if Dorothy is out there, we won't be able to hear her."
"Hunk's right Zeke," Hickory added, "we can help her more outside, maybe help her find shelter. Just have a bit of courage— that's what you always tell us."
Zeke gave in. "Of course, you're right... let's go."
"I'll tell Mrs. Gale."
Hunk walked softly up to Emily and put a hesitating hand on her shoulder.
She started and looked up from where she had her face in her hands. "Oh, Hunk, what is it?"
"We're goin' t' go out an' look fer Dorothy."
"What? You mean you're going out into the storm? You can't! You mustn't!"
"Mrs. Gale," Hunk began. (They had all been told for years to call their employers by their first names but they still slipped into the formal address out of habit.) "Dorothy's out there. Who knows what happened to her? We won't even be able to hear her if she tries to get into the cellar. Please ma'am, let us go."
Emily looked questioningly up at her husband, who glanced at his farmhands. Seeing their determination, he nodded silently at her. No words were needed; they all knew what they must do. Hunk unbarred the door to the storm cellar and struggled out, the other two following behind. The wind whipped their hair into their faces as they stumbled out.
Zeke forced shut the hatch, then yelled, "Hunk! It's crazy out here! Look at the twister! It's almost upon us!"
"Let's go into the house!" Hickory shouted back, "we'll be safer and we'll be able to get our bearings! Who knows, maybe Dorothy will be there!"
Hunk nodded, not able to speak. Feeling the wind moving him about, he ran quickly to the shelter of the house. Once inside, they shut the door and barred it. The howling of the wind was a bit quieter inside.
"Hickory, Zeke, go into the kitchen," Hunk called, "it's more enclosed, I'll search the house for anything useful, then we'll be able to use this place as a stronghold when we look for Dorothy."
They obeyed at once and Hunk moved from room to room. It was a small cottage and it didn't take him long to arrive at Dorothy's bedroom. Entering it, he froze. His little friend was lying half on her bed, unconscious. Toto was on the bed next to her. The window had been blown open and the glass was shattered. The branch of a tree was obviously he culprit, for it lay on the floor near Dorothy's legs.
Hunk rushed over to the girl and yelled for his friends at the top of his voice. Instantly, the door was flung open. Hickory and Zeke staggered in.
"Hunk!" Hickory ejaculated, "You found her!"
Hunk went swiftly up to his friends and spoke over the wind. "She's unconscious! I think she hit her head! I dunno how bad she is."
"Let's get her into her bed," Hickory answered, "I'll deal with her shoes, you take Toto."
Zeke turned towards the door. "I'll get the table from the kitchen," he said, "we can use it to block the window; the twister's nearly upon us!"
He ran out and the other two moved to get Dorothy into her bed. When Hickory touched her shoes, however, she cried out in her sleep and struggled.
"Forget it," Hunk said, putting Toto on the floor, "leave them on. You would think they were made of jewels or somethin', the way she's goin' crazy!"
"Alright, I'll go and get some water for her."
Hickory was about to leave, when Zeke came bursting in with the table. Out of breath, he could only lean the table against the window and gasp for a moment. He gesticulated wildly for a time, then spoke.
"Outside! Near the barn! I saw... through the window... Miss Gulch! She's layin' out there and the twister is about to hit!"
Hickory's soft blue eyes grew wide. "We've got to help her! Bring her in here!"
"You're right," Hunk agreed, "No one deserves that, not even that old... you're right."
Zeke stood up straighter. "Hunk, you an' Hickory stay here and look after Dorothy, I'll fetch Miss Gulch."
Without waiting for an answer, he was gone.
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Almira was roused from her despair by a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Zeke's face above her, genuine concern written on his face.
"W-what?" She tried to speak, but her voice was lost in the squall.
Zeke spoke for her. "Miss Gulch! Come with me; we have shelter. Can you stand?"
She tried, but her legs were shaky and would not support her.
"Never mind that!" Zeke cried, "I'll support you; lean on my arm!"
She did so gratefully. She had never been so happy to see anyone in her life. She was even glad when she saw the other three people she hated most in the world and that mangy little dog too. Once in Dorothy's room, she sank down by the door and began thanking anyone who went near her. Hickory brought her a blanket and Hunk actually smiled a bit sheepishly at her from Dorothy's bedside.
Once Almira had recovered a bit, she noticed the girl in the bed. Something about the attitude she was in reminded her of Nina. Fear clouded her mind again and she stood up.
"What's wrong with her?" She asked, voice shaking, "what happened?"
"She must've hit her head," Hink answered solemnly, "we don't know how bad she is."
Almira would have said more, had not the tornado stuck at that very moment. The house shook as the wind smashed into it, tearing parts of the roof off and toppling small structures in the yard. Two minutes earlier and Almira would have been out when it hit. The three farmhands rushed to throw their weight against the table as it began to fall inward. The wind whistled through the cracks and filled the room with an eerie sound.
Dorothy moved in her bed and muttered something about apple trees and a witch. Only Toto heard her. He was curled up on the pillow next to her head.
It felt like several hours before the twister passed by, but in reality it was only about ten minutes. When it was over, Zeke moved the table away from the window to give them light and dragged it out into the hall.
Almira went up to Dorothy and looked down at her. She did seem like Nina, lying there in that position. In a moment of decision, she spoke in a shaky voice. "I-I'll fetch D-Doctor Stamford for her."
The others looked at her in surprise.
"Really?" Hunk asked, "that- that would be extremely helpful if ya could. Thank you!"
She nodded to them awkwardly and slipped out into the hall. The house wasn't too badly damaged. Some parts of the roof were missing and various jars and pictures were smashed on the inside, but other than that, it had borne up fairly well. A few paces down the road, she spotted her bicycle. It was miraculously untouched except for some scrapes and dings here and there. She rode with great celerity to the doctor's house. Luckily, it was near to the farm and it didn't take her too long to arrive.
Dr. Stamford creaked open his storm cellar when she stomped upon it.
"M-Miss Gulch! What are you doing here?"
"The Gale's child is ill, she hit her head. You need to come right away."
Stamford looked at her in amazement. "A-alright, I'll be there in a minute. I just have to get my bag and see if I can't rescue some of my equipment."
"Well," Almira said sharply, "see that you do so fast. I'll be at the farm when you arrive."
With that, she spun on her heel, mounted her bike, and rode back to the farm. When she walked in, she saw the three farmhands sitting around the trashed kitchen table on broken chairs, looking worried.
"What is it?" She asked, her heart sinking, "is the girl worse?"
Hickory put her at her ease. "Oh no, she's not worse. The Gales are in there with her now. Did ya fetch the doctor?"
Almira sat down in a rickety old chair as strait-backed as herself. "Yes I did. He'll be here directly."
They all three chorused their thanks. After a few minutes the doctor arrived. He left soon after arriving, giving the good news that Dorothy was fine, only concussed.
The little girl woke soon after that. Mumbling something about home, she opened her eyes.
Emily was grinning. "Dorothy, Dorothy dear. It's Aunt Em darling."
"Oh! Auntie Em! It's you!"
Dorothy grasped her aunt's arm as if not believing she was real.
A cheery voice came suddenly through the window. "Hello there! Anybody home? I just dropped in because I heard the little girl got caught in the big—"
A white-haired man with a long mustache came sauntering around the side of the house. He looked like a traveling salesman or preformer or some sort. He stopped what he was saying when he saw Dorothy and grinned. "Well, she seems alright now."
Henry addressed him with a smile of his own. "She got quite a bump on the head. We kinda thought there for a moment she was goin' t' leave us."
Hearing his words, Dorothy sat up in bed and said earnestly, "but I did leave you Uncle! That's just the trouble, and I tried to get back to you for days and days!"
Emily pushed her back down and tried to pacify her. "There, there," she soothed, "lie quiet now, it was just a bad dream."
Dorothy seemed as if she would argue, but Hunk, who was standing by the door with his friends, couldn't hold himself in any longer. Bursting with joy, he knelt beside her.
"Sure!" He said, "Remember me? Your old pal, Hunk?"
Hickory followed suit and took a knee right behind his friend. "And me, Hickory?"
Zeke, not to be left out, bent over them both. "You couldn't forget my face could ya?"
Dorothy beamed at them all. She touched Hunk's face and he clasped her hand. In another moment, however, she was back to her fantasy.
"But it wasn't a dream!" She said, "it was a place. And you, and you, and you, and you were there!"
She looked around and pointed to all of the others in succession, subtracting her aunt and uncle. Then she became perplexed. "But you couldn't have been, could you?"
"Oh we dream all sorts of things when we—"
Dorothy interrupted Emily. "No Aunt Em! This was a real, Truly live place. And I remember that some of it wasn't very nice, but most of it was beautiful! But, just the same, all I kept saying to everybody was, I want to go home. And they sent me home! Doesn't anybody believe me?"
Henry placated her. "Of course we believe you Dorothy."
She leaned back on her pillow and hugged Toto to her. "Oh," she said contentedly, "but anyway, Toto, we're home. Home! And this is my room... and you're all here! And I'm not going to leave here ever, ever again... because I love you all! And oh! Auntie Em! There's no place like home! There's no place like home!"
Almira saw the whole scene from where she stood hidden in the doorway. Her heart felt a pleasant ache as she saw them all around Dorothy.
"Yes," she thought, "yes, Nina, you were right about that too... you also used to say that there was no place like home!"
With that, she turned and walked slowly out of the house into the sunshine that was lancing through the clouds. She would go home, and she would never forget again what Nina had taught her. Not ever, ever again.