“Mom Rachel! Dad Michael!”
He ran into the living room where they both were. Tears streamed down his face. Rachel picked him up immediately.
“Ethan, what happened?”
Through sobs, Ethan managed to say, “Mrs. Coleman’s tree. The big one. It’s going to fall. You have to warn her now.”
Mrs. Coleman was a widowed neighbor who lived across the street. She had a huge cottonwood tree in her backyard, about fifty years old, with branches that stretched over her house. Michael and Rachel exchanged glances.
“Ethan,” Michael began gently, “trees don’t just fall like that. That tree has been there for decades.”
“But it’s going to fall!” Ethan was almost shouting now. “The Lady in Blue showed me. It’s going to fall right into the room where Mrs. Coleman sleeps.”
Rachel felt chills run down her spine. Four times before Ethan had been specific; four times he had been right.
“I’m going over there,” Michael said, already standing up.
He crossed the street and rang Mrs. Coleman’s doorbell. She opened it, smiling kindly. “Michael, what a pleasant surprise. Come in.”
“Mrs. Coleman, I know this is going to sound absolutely crazy, but I need to tell you something.”
Five minutes later, he was back.
“Well?” Rachel asked.
“She was very polite, said the tree is healthy, inspected two years ago. But…” He hesitated. “I saw something on her face. I think she’s taking it into consideration.”
On Friday, the storm came. It started as a normal heavy rain, but it quickly intensified. Winds began to howl around the house. Thunder shook the windows. And then, at 9:37 PM, suddenly, they heard it—a crash so loud it made the ground tremble. It sounded like the world was collapsing.
Michael ran to the front window. The giant tree in Mrs. Coleman’s yard had fallen. Not to the side, not backward, but straight onto the house. Massive branches had pierced the roof, completely destroying the area where the main bedroom was located.
“Oh my God,” Rachel whispered…
