Watcher (The Watcher Series Book 1)

by A. J. Eversley

  Kenzie’s footsteps echoed as he walked down the aisles between the beds, scanning the faces as he passed by.

  One caught his eye, an older lady whose leg was in a splint. He picked up her chart.

  Edith P. James

  87yrs – Married – Negative

  He recognized the last name and moved to her side. Pressing the dial to stop the stream of medication allowing her to sleep, Kenzie watched as her eyes opened slowly. They lit up at the sight of him; they were the same bright blue as his own.

  “My son! My boy! You are here! How are you here?” she asked, reaching for his hand, but he recoiled instinctively.

  “I’m sorry, ma’am, but I’m not your son,” Kenzie said.

  She squinted her eyes, touching her hand lightly to his cheek, causing him to freeze.

  “You look just like my boy, only you are too young to be him. And he is gone now.” She was suddenly aware of her surroundings. She looked around to her side and asked, “Where are we?”

  “You are here so we can keep you safe,” Kenzie reached back and released the anesthetic flow once again. “I will let you rest now. When you wake, you will feel much better. I promise.”

  She reached for his hand, and this time he didn’t pull away. A twinge in the pit of his stomach jumped.

  “You’re my angel, aren’t you? You’ve taken me away from the horror and are bringing me home to my family, aren’t you?” A smile spread across her face as she closed her eyes and fell back to sleep.

  Kenzie touched her forehead gently. He knew what he’d promised was a lie, but she couldn’t know. None of them could. It was more dangerous to know. He would do his best to keep her alive. That would be the only promise he kept.

  Chapter 12

  It had been some time since we had all gathered as we did this night. Two candles lit in the middle of the Command center. We all stood around them, our heads bowed in mourning. One for Kane and one for Ethan.

  “For those who go before us, we honor you. For those we have lost, we mourn you. For those left behind, we support you. And for those not here today, we will always remember you.” Kyle raised his hand, and we all followed suit.

  “Watchers for life.” We all echoed his words.

  I dropped my hand, stepped forward into the circle and blew out the candle for Kane. Tenason did the same for Ethan’s candle.

  Too often had I been here. Too often I have had to say goodbye to people I cared for. But I knew this wouldn’t be the last time.

  ~

  The next morning, we all sat around the table in the main meeting room. Every Watcher, all of Command, Adam, Doc, and even Theresa were present. Smith stood at the front with his hands clasped behind his back, making him look somber. He still wouldn’t look at Kyle, even though he sat to his right.

  Everyone was silent.

  “Adam, with the help of Doc, has made a discovery about the new Carbons,” Smith began. “It seems their new technology allows them to track us down easily, sensing our presence from farther away than they could be detected, as well as render themselves invisible to the Eye.” He sighed. His body looked heavy and tired. It made him look older than I knew he was. “Therefore we are staying in lockdown until Adam can figure this out. We have already lost close friends. I won’t risk any more lives until we are certain there is a solution.” He turned to Adam and nodded.

  “I’m doing my best to figure them out, but they seem to be made of a different type of metal that is completely foreign to me. This new element allows the Carbon to put up a shield that the current Eye can’t penetrate.” Adam looked around the table. “They have also upgraded their control system. I’m not certain, but it seems their sensory board has been upgraded, which is what allows them to find us so much easier than before.” The room fell silent.

  Kyle turned to Smith and said, “You have to tell them the rest. They deserve to know.”

  As soon as we had heard the Carbons’ plan for us, we had run straight to Smith and informed him. He didn’t seem as surprised as we had been by the news. Weird.

  Smith scanned the room, shifting on his feet before he spoke. “Right. We captured a Carbon who was able to give us some information. It seems their plan is to take certain humans who match a specific code they call the C-Node code and turn those humans into Carbons. It’s unclear what the specifics are, but I suspect they need the human bodies to continue building the Carbons. Doc is trying to find out more.”

  “And if the human doesn’t match their code?” Tenason’s small voice sounded from the back for the room.

  Smith swallowed before he answered. “They kill them.” He tried to say it gently, but there was no way to soften the blow. No way to tell someone their twin brother, their other half, was deemed unworthy to live. Tenason looked down at his hands as his face went white.

  Smith cleared his throat in awkward silence before announcing, “We will all work together to assist Adam and Doc where we can, or stay out of their way; whichever they prefer. For now, you are all dismissed.”

  I stood to leave, but Smith grabbed my wrist and pulled me back. I was joined by Kyle and Sam from Command. Once the room was clear, Smith turned to Sam and nodded. “Tell them,” he said.

  “Um, right, well, it seems, I mean, we’ve found…well, our cameras found, not us obviously, I don’t venture outside the base much. Or at all. I just run the computers and—”

  Smith raised his eyebrows at Sam.

  “Right, sorry!” Sam scrambled to continue. “Our cameras picked up a group of humans who are trapped. They are on the south side of Cytos, an area we don’t normally monitor, but I happened to be looking, and well, I saw movement. So then I looked closer and saw there were a lot of humans out there, trapped.”

  “They’re held up in an abandoned warehouse,” Smith finished for him. “It seems they have explosives set up around the perimeter, and the Bots and Carbons haven’t yet been able to get through. But we’re certain they will run out of weaponry soon.”

  “How many?” Kyle asked.

  “We estimate around thirty,” Smith answered.

  My mouth gaped open in shock. Thirty humans? Out there and still alive! How?

  Kyle asked my question. “Where have they been this whole time? Nobody can survive that long out there.”

  “We don’t know. All we know is that we can’t in good conscience leave them there to be killed or worse,” Smith said. “I want you two to lead a rescue party. I wouldn’t be sending either of you if I trusted anyone else. Take whoever and whatever you need, but this isn’t like last time.” Smith looked Kyle sternly in the eye. “You won’t be heading out without a plan. You have an hour to get organized.”

  We were almost out the door when Smith added in a soft voice, “One more thing.” His back was to us, his hands still clasped behind him. “Don’t sacrifice yourself for them. Either you are confident you can get them all out safe with you, or you leave them if you can’t. We look after our own first.”

  ~

  Kyle, Byron, Tenason, and I were gathered together around a table with a map of the city spread across it. We weren’t sure if Tenason was ready yet, but he insisted he was coming. We weren’t about to try to stop him. Plus, his long-range shot was the best we had; we needed him.

  We kept our packs small knowing we had to be invisible.

  Kyle stood tall in front of us, ready to go over the plan. “Byron, you bring on the assault from up high,” he instructed.

  Byron was amazingly skilled with cables; he was a regular monkey if they still existed.

  Kyle continued. “Tenason, you will join Byron, but stay back once you get close enough to pick them off. I don’t want you getting close enough for them to sense where you are.” Tenason bobbed his white hair up and down. His bloodshot eyes showed determination.

  “Sawyer, you will take the north side of the building where the entrance is. We need to blow a hole big enough to get everyone out. Sam believes that most of the explosives they have
set up have gone off mainly on the north-end, meaning it may be clearer there. He’s provided us with something to set off the remaining charges without blowing ourselves to pieces. Wait for my signal and then set the explosives. I will come from the south side and make some noise. Once they follow the bait, I will give the signal for you to blow the door. Get them out fast. Don’t look back, just run.”

  I nodded.

  “Sam will be on comms for this mission so wear your earpieces.”

  We didn’t normally like to wear earpieces. Command’s random chatter could sometimes be more distracting than helpful, but this time we were going in blind so we need Sam’s eyes.

  My stomach was in knots. Excitement and nerves ran together. I just hoped I didn’t throw up. Byron’s gangly legs bounced in anticipation, his one unruly piece of hair swiped over his forehead. Tenason was sitting quietly, wringing his hands together.

  “One more thing,” Kyle said, looking intently from one set of eyes to the next. “There will be no Plan B for anyone. We all return alive, with or without the trapped humans. Is that understood?”

  We all nodded.

  “Smith, Sam, or I can pull the operation at any time. If that happens, you turn and leave. No questions asked.” Kyle was only looking at me. I nodded, but he still asked, “Understood?”

  “Yes,” I replied.

  He squinted as if he didn’t believe me, but he let it go. “Let’s move out,” Kyle said, rolling up the map and stashing it on his back.

  The walk to the main door seemed unusually long, and the silence was killing me. The doors slowly creaked open for us, and we slipped through only to hear them slam shut as soon as we passed. We were alone.

  Byron and Tenason headed up the tower as Kyle and I stuck together for the first few miles. Kyle then broke off to the west so he could come around to meet the Carbons and Bots head on. I ran south at a steady pace. Soon the building came into view, and I slowed down and hid out of sight. The Carbons sensed our presence, but our various angles and positions had them confused. I swung around the adjacent building and waited for my signal.

  Tenason started. He picked off a Carbon as the rest scanned to see where the shot came from, but Tenason was too far away for them to spot. Next Byron laid covering fire as I moved closer. As I had expected, the Bots surrounded the Carbons to protect them. They were all huddled together by the main door, scanning for the gunmen.

  Byron was spotted, and the Bots turned to fire as an explosion went off in the distance. They moved toward the sound, leaving a few covering the front door. Kyle’s plan was working.

  “Tenason, you’re up,” Sam instructed from Command. He took out two more Carbons guarding the door, and the remaining Bots were picked off easily. My feet hit the ground running.

  “There may be explosives still surrounding the building,” Sam said as I neared the door. “Place the magnetizer right about there and run for cover.”

  I did as I was told, leaving the magnetizer and sprinting out of view. It went off with a deafening crack, sending a shock wave fifty meters out, and setting off the remaining explosives as Sam had intended it to do.

  We didn’t expect the humans inside to open the doors for anyone, which was why we had to blow the door down. I set the explosives as instructed and then yelled a warning, “Move away from the door! We’re blowing it down!” I ran for cover as the explosion went off.

  The sound was deafening, and I could already see Bots returning to the warehouse. We didn’t have much time to get everyone out.

  I ran back to the door which had a gaping hole in it. As the smoke settled, I peered inside. More than thirty humans were huddled in the back of the warehouse, all scared, but a few were poised to fight.

  “I’m human! I’m here to get you out,” I explained. I was panting from the run and yelling from the sound of the explosions.

  “Prove it!” someone yelled.

  We expected this. Taking out my knife, I carefully cut the palm of my hand. Bright red blood poured out, proving I wasn’t a Carbon.

  Everyone quickly gathered, and one at a time we squeezed them through the crack. Tenason and Byron started leading the group back to the base where they’d be checked to make sure they were all human. The last ones were almost through when I spotted a younger man and an older woman in the corner. “Hurry up!” I yelled.

  “She can’t move,” a voice answered back. “She has a broken leg and can’t run!”

  “You have to leave her. There’s no time.” I lowered my voice in an attempt to reason with him. Yelling at these people wouldn’t make them trust me.

  “I will not.”

  I should’ve left them, yet I found my feet taking me closer to them.

  “Thirty seconds, Sawyer. They’re trying to come back, and Kyle can’t hold them much longer,” Sam’s voice sounded in my ear.

  “We have to go now. Leave her!” I yelled.

  “No!” he shouted, trying in vain to lift her limp, heavy body. He was strong enough to carry her, but she cried in pain every time he tried to lift her, causing him to put her back down.

  “Hurry up, Sawyer. Get out of there now!” Kyle said.

  I knew I was supposed to just turn and leave them, but I couldn’t just let them both die. I reached the old lady’s side and saw a splinted leg. She groaned, and I ducked under one bony shoulder as the guy took the other, being careful not to bump her injured leg. He was much younger than I had first thought, not much older than me. Together we carried her to the door and squeezed our way through as a group of Carbons rounded the corner.

  “Get a move on, Sawyer! Run!” Kyle’s scream echoed in my earpiece painfully, but I didn’t take the time to reply.

  “Can you run?” I asked the mystery guy.

  “Yes,” he nodded, and we took off.

  Reaching back with my free hand, I found a grenade on my belt, pulled the pin with my teeth, and tossed it behind me. It exploded, taking out a few Carbons. It’d slow them down but not for long.

  We were taking too long. Why had we not reached the base yet? The warehouse was only a few miles from the base, yet it felt like we’d been running forever, and my legs could hardly hold my weight, let alone another body.

  Finally, we rounded the last corner as I threw one more grenade. Not only did we have to beat them there, but we had to go in undetected. The base had never been discovered, and we needed to keep it that way.

  As if reading my mind, Kyle sprinted past me in the opposite direction, leading the Bots and the Carbons away from the base. Once we were out of view, we snuck through the crack, and help was already there to carry the old lady the rest of the way.

  I waited by the entrance for Kyle, trying to contact him by comm, but he didn’t reply. I feared the worst. This was all my fault; I should’ve listened. I said I’d do as I was told, but I was stubborn and did my own thing. Now Kyle would pay for it.

  I considered going back out, but I couldn’t risk being seen. Kyle’s sacrifice would be in vain if our base was discovered.

  “I’ve got him!” Sam shouted through the comms. “He’s rounding back, only one following him, and Kyle is much faster. He can easily outpace—” Sam was cut off by a deafening gunshot in our earpieces.

  My world shattered. I could hardly breathe as I braced against the wall for support. “No,” I mumbled. “No!” He couldn’t be gone. He can’t be! He was the strongest. He was the closest thing I had to a friend and the only family I had left, and I’m the one to blame.

  The guards were yelling for me to return to the base. I heard them say they had to close the doors, but I couldn’t move as Byron pulled at my arm. I was frozen with the realization that Kyle had been shot and it was all my fault. I had to go find him and bring him back. I had to save him.

  Then I heard it—the distant pitter-patter of feet hitting the ground. I could tell the steps were labored but strong. I raced to the crack in the wall and peered out.

  Kyle clutched his side with his hand covered
in bright red blood, but he was still running. I jumped out to meet him and help. He grimaced. “I’m fine. Get back inside,” he said.

  This time I obeyed.

  Kyle followed behind Byron and I as the doors slam shut behind us. We slumped to the ground as I reached for his side to apply pressure. “Get Doc, quick!” I ordered Byron, and he sprinted off. Kyle fell in and out of consciousness.

  It was only then I realized the guy who wouldn’t leave that little old lady was hovering beside us, looking like he wanted to help but didn’t know what to do.

  Our eyes caught each other’s, and I couldn’t look away, lost in his gaze. I gave my head a shake and looked away, scowling. “If he dies, we’re both to blame,” I said.

  “I’m sorry,” he replied before he turned and walked away. Doc sprinted down the hallway toward us.

  Chapter 13

  Kenzie

  Kenzie waited by the doors for her to make sure she entered safely. The rush of people and the bombardment of noise was a stark contrast to the silence he was used to. The lights were so dim in places that he could hardly see his own hand.

  She rushed in with another man who was injured, and although he knew he should leave, he couldn’t stop staring at her. His brain felt fuzzy like he’d awakened from a dream and everything was all muddled up into one confusing memory.

  She turned to him, and their eyes met. Lost in her amber brown eyes, Kenzie was at a loss for words. Her eyes remained calm, though she was angry.

  “If he dies, we’re both to blame,” she spat.

  Kenzie knew it was true in more ways than she meant. “I’m sorry,” he said; it was all he could get out before he turned and left. As he rounded the corner, knowing where to go even though he’d never been there, he let out a long breath. He’d prepared for this.