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She researched every option, every medical journal she could find, not that they made a lot of sense to her, but the findings were all the same. There was only a 4% chance of survival. If my parents won’t stand still long enough to fight this, there’s nothing more I can do.
    She felt a bead of sweat roll down her forehead. As she wiped it away, she looked at the clock on the wall. Not only did it tell the time, but it also provided the temperature. You’ve got to be kidding me. It’s only ten in the morning and already crossing eighty degrees? What I would give for a little snow right about now.
    Texas was as far from her home in Buffalo, New York as she could get. It was late February, but she knew there was still plenty of snow on the ground there. How the days were so hot in Honeywell and the nights so cool was out of the norm to her. At least they have some break from this heat. I couldn’t handle this twenty-four/seven.
    It seemed the weather was going crazy in both places. Buffalo hit a new record for overall snow amounts of the season. Texas never saw these high temperatures in February yet they were setting new high temp records, never mind tornados this early. She didn’t want to know what spring was going to be like for them.
    Back in Buffalo they dealt with the same thing every year: snow, snow, and more snow. But it was their way of life. Casey was used to traveling all over the country for FEMA. Unfortunately, there seemed to be an increase in need. Among hurricanes, floods, wildfires, and tornadoes, it was like the entire country was experiencing one thing or another. How can FEMA keep up?
    Then she remembered most of the town still had no power or even generators in working condition. That meant no air conditioning. If it was this warm on the ranch, she could only imagine what they would be facing when the heat of the day hit in the afternoon.
    Her job was to educate and help people process the proper paperwork required for FEMA assistance. She was not supposed to become personally involved. How could she not care when it was going to be over ninety degrees today, and she would enjoy the comfort of Derrick’s air conditioning? Looking around, she noticed how huge his place was. His living room alone was the size of many homes in her neighborhood. The wheels in her brain were turning, and she knew she was teetering on breaking the rules, several of them, in fact. It wouldn’t be the first time, even though she prided herself on following orders.
    Her father’s last words to her before he and her mother left on their assignment with the Peace Corp echoed in her mind. “Make your mark in the world today, because your acts of kindness are all anyone will remember in years to come.”
    He was so right. He’d spent thirty years as a firefighter with the Buffalo Fire Department before retiring. She grew up hearing people talk about how kind he was to everyone. When he retired she thought he would spend his days fishing by the lake. But once he was told he had ALS he refused to stop. Saying Casey was surprised when they announced they were going to become volunteers with the Peace Corp was an understatement. She begged and pleaded but he refused to listen. She even asked her oldest brother, Mark, to talk some sense into him, but he seemed to be on their dad’s side. I’m never going to get used to them being on the other side of the world.
    She told him it was risky being so far away. What if he needed medical treatment? But his entire life had been one of risk and his retirement wasn’t going to be any different. Casey, on the other hand, found it difficult to function that way. It didn’t mean she didn’t try, but each time she stepped out of the box of company rules and regulations she found herself in hot water. Her father had always encouraged her to make sure she was personally invested in whatever she did in life, as that would ensure she always did her best.
    Even as a child she hadn’t been a