Watcher (The Watcher Series Book 1)

by A. J. Eversley

  “I wouldn’t be so sure about that, Father. I’ve changed a lot in the last ten years.” I sat up in the bed, swinging my legs over the edge. “And I’m not overly fond of this father-daughter reunion.” I leaned forward and made to reach out my arms, but my body froze. I tried to tell my arms to move, but they wouldn’t. I was frozen.

  “We have ways of ensuring you comply,” my dad responded calmly, looking down at the clipboard.

  Just as fast as it came, the freezing released, and my body stumbled back. I crouched back into the far corner of the bed, hugging my knees into my chest.

  “You see, we are more than capable of controlling you. We have the ability to make you do whatever we want now, but I would prefer to explore other options first.” He turned to me, looking up from his clipboard to meet my eyes. “Honey, with your help we can change the course of history. We don’t have to continue this cycle of war, destruction, rebuild, and then war again. We can live in a society where there is no poverty, only prosperity, where disease is a thing of the past. Death will no longer be feared! There will be peace always and no war!”

  “And the only thing we have to sacrifice is our own free will,” I retorted.

  “Humans are evil by nature, Sawyer. Give them too much, and they will expect more. Give them too little, and they will revolt. No one is ever satisfied with having only what they need. They always want what they don’t have. If we can eliminate that innate instinct in all humans, there will be no jealousy or corruption. There will be no envy because we will all be equals. Coleman can do that. He has done that. I’ve seen it!”

  “So we can all be like robots, following your every command,” I argued.

  “No, honey. There is a distinct human emotion that we still need. That human interaction we require to fully achieve complete satisfaction. We are offering the whole package. Live like gods, live forever, and still feel human.” He stood and paced. “We only want to train the brain to think and feel what we tell it to. All other emotions like love and family will still exist.”

  “Family doesn’t exist anymore. You can’t rebuild a relationship on lies and expect people to believe it.” I sat up taller again but kept my back against the wall. “My family is dead. They died ten years ago.”

  “We do not plan to build a future on lies. We only intend to add simple suggestions or thoughts into the human brain to change people’s natural reactions. To enable them to make better choices that will help all of us.” My dad sat back down, calm and collected once again.

  “Why not just force us to think how you want us to? What do you need me for?” I asked.

  “We can force you, and we will if it comes to that. But right now there is still a group out there who seek to destroy our future, a group who does not see what the world could be. And we require you to tell us where they are.”

  “Where they are? Who?” I shook my head. I didn’t know where anyone was. Didn’t he remember how he brought me in here?

  “Commander Smith as you call him and his team,” my dad said.

  “They escaped right under your nose. I have no idea where they are. You’re wasting your time asking me.” I stretched my legs out and crossed my arms behind my head.

  “We believe that you do know, that Smith told you, you just don’t know it yet. We already scanned your thoughts, and we know everything you are willing to remember, but we can see there is something missing. And we know what Smith is capable of.” His eyes glowed with anger.

  “What do you mean, ‘What he’s capable of’? Saving humans? Protecting us from monsters like you?”

  “You think too highly of him, sweetheart.” My dad shook his head, like he pitied me.

  “Smith was our first subject. We sent him out just after the cleansing began to collect appropriate humans who would fit our program. However, we found that after a few years, he began to do his own thing, and soon after we realized he was working against us. His programming wasn’t strong enough, and his human instincts fought our suggestions. He knew too much about us, and we are certain he told you his plan, even though you may not remember it yet.”

  I couldn’t believe it. I was shaking my head, thinking this couldn’t be true. Smith was one of them?

  “You knew where we were all this time? Why didn’t you just take him back?” I asked.

  “Oh yes, we were the ones who told Smith about the base. He would have never found it otherwise. But we needed him alive, and we knew he wouldn’t allow himself to be captured. That is why he stopped coming out at all. He hid in that base knowing it was his only way to survive. We almost caught him once, but I withdrew our troops to save you, to save my daughter.” He reached for my hand, and I pulled it away.

  “I’m not your daughter anymore! I don’t need your protection!” I shouted.

  He leaned back in the chair, smoothing out the front of his shirt.

  “Why now? Why did you go after him this time?” I asked.

  “We received information he was planning an attack, that he was planning something that would erase all we have worked so hard for.”

  He was delusional. He’d lost it.

  If Smith had any plans, I would’ve known about them, but I didn’t. “You were wrong. Your information was false. He wasn’t planning anything. We were only trying to survive,” I said.

  “You can’t lie to us, Sawyer. There’s no use in trying. We’ve read your memories and know that Smith mentioned a mission just before the attack. And we know you knew about it, even if you don’t remember it now.” He leaned back in the chair, tapping his pen on his clipboard.

  “If you read my memories, then you know all there is to know! I can’t remember something that didn’t happen!” I yelled. “Wait—” I realized a piece of the puzzle I was missing. “You said you learned this through intel. What kind of intel?”

  “We sent in one of our associates, our most trusted operative,” he explained calmly.

  “A spy?” I was horrified. Surely we wouldn’t have fallen for something like that.

  “Oh yes, someone who was sympathetic to our cause. Who didn’t require much convincing. We were confident this person would not turn on us as Smith did. I suspect Smith was onto us since it took him three days before he sent you guys into the warehouse to collect the humans we left for him. But as we expected, his human nature would not allow him to just leave them there.”

  My eyes widened. “The spy was one of the people we rescued?” I whispered.

  “Oh, yes.” My dad smiled. “I believe you have met before, but I will save that reunion for another day. For now, sweetheart, I just want you to consider your future and how you can be a part of the new world.” He stood, taking his chair with him, and left.

  I was more confused than I’d ever been.

  Smith was one of them, or he used to be. And there was a spy in our midst, someone working for them, feeding them information. Someone who was ultimately responsible for all those people who died at the base.

  I refused to let myself think of who it might be. It couldn’t be. That wasn’t possible. There were thirty people in that warehouse, it could’ve been any one of them.

  But there was only one who had access to Command, and only one who knew the ins and outs of our base. Only one I remembered who healed in mere hours, something no true human could ever do.

  I knew who it was, and when I escaped from here, I’d pull the trigger and end the traitor myself.

  Chapter 28

  For three days, my dad visited. Always at the same time, and always for the same reason. He wanted me to help them, to give them information on Smith I didn’t have. I sat there, refusing to talk.

  I found out they’d been trying to catch a Watcher since Smith turned so they could ferret out his plans, but the Watcher never seemed to make it back to Sub 9 alive. My dad tried giving me information in hopes that it’d prove I could trust him. He let me know that out of the nine Watchers who were left, five were still alive, including Kenzie, which I alrea
dy figured.

  ~

  On the fourth morning, things changed. My dad came in with two guards. They tied my wrists and ankles.

  “We’re going on a little trip,” my dad said mournfully.

  I shuffled down the white hallways slowly, trying to remember every turn and each door we passed—potential exits. There were no windows to the outside that I could see, and it wouldn’t matter anyway as the few windows Sub 9 had were bulletproofed and several inches thick. Sub 9 was a steel cage, impenetrable to attacks from the outside. The only way in was through the front door which was guarded at all times.

  By the time we reached the door they had brought me through, I lost count of how many rights and lefts we made. I was pretty sure they took me around in circles to throw me off, and it worked.

  In the room was a chair, much like the one I woke up on that first day. They pushed me down into the seat and strapped me in it.

  My dad paced in front of me. “It pains me to have to do this, sweetheart, but we are running out of time. And frankly, Coleman is growing impatient.” He stopped in front of me, looking me in the eye. “You have forced my hand so I have no other choice.” He nodded to the guards and said, “Send him in.”

  They opened the door, and my heart dropped to the pit of my stomach.

  Kenzie.

  “Traitor!” I spat at him. “How could you?”

  “Oh yes, I believe you have already met Kenzie although I didn’t think you knew each other that well.” My dad glanced between us. “This makes things much more interesting indeed.”

  Kenzie wouldn’t even look at me. He stood in the corner like the soldier that he was, but he didn’t take his eyes off the floor.

  “Kenzie was a special patient of ours. You see, he came to Coleman and I when he was only ten years old. After an unfortunate accident, he lost the function of his left arm. His parents couldn’t afford the financial burden to care for someone ‘special’ like Kenzie, so they made us a deal. We got to keep Kenzie for our research, and they were paid handsomely for their sacrifice.” He winked at Kenzie who still hadn’t taken his eyes off the ground. “As you can see, we repaired his arm quite well, and we were able to add a few modifications.” My dad nodded to him. “Show her.”

  Kenzie walked toward me, his head still down. He paused briefly, and as he glanced up at me, there was a glimmer of the Kenzie I knew before his face went cold.

  He lifted his left arm and touched my shoulder. Instantly, my whole body burned from the inside out. I tried to scream, but my voice wouldn’t work. I felt like every part of me was on fire. He let go, and instantly, the pain was gone.

  I was breathing hard and felt the sweat dripping down my forehead as Kenzie stepped back into the corner.

  “You see now?” My dad walked closer. “You see the pain he can give you with just one small touch, and that was only a taste of what he is capable of.” He smiled at Kenzie. “If you continue to refuse to help, we will be forced to make you comply.” He nodded to the guards. “Take her back to her room. I’ll give you a little time to change your mind, sweetheart.”

  One guard removed the straps while the other lifted me up. I was unsure if my legs would even work as they dragged me to the door. As I passed Kenzie, I tried to stop and looked him in the eye, the guards pulling me onward. Tears threatened to spill down my cheeks as he glanced up before looking away, but in that moment, I saw the apology in his eyes. It was too late.

  ~

  I was abruptly awoken in the middle of the night. Even without windows or a clock, my body had become accustomed to discerning the time. The guards walked in and grabbed me, taking me again to the same room where my dad and Kenzie were already waiting.

  “You’ve had enough time to think. Will you comply?” my dad asked.

  “How can I comply when I know nothing?” I yelled. The guards strapped me into the chair again, and my dad nodded solemnly to Kenzie.

  He stepped forward, and his hand softly touched my arm. Even though I was expecting it this time, the shock and pain still took over. I refused to scream or cry, not letting them have the satisfaction. My whole body burned as my muscles tensed up. I felt my energy leaving me. I was glad I was strapped to the chair as I don’t think I could’ve even sat up at that point. Kenzie let go, and I fell limp against the straps.

  “You see, the thing about Kenzie’s ability is that he can’t kill you, but the pain alone will drive a person mad,” my dad said as he nodded to Kenzie again. “Pretty soon you will be begging us to stop.”

  I clenched my jaw, not uttering a sound. The burning ignited every cell, and my entire body tensed at the pain. Even when Kenzie let go, my body ached with exhaustion.

  “I don’t know anything—” I breathed, barely able to speak.

  “We believe you do, dear. Again,” my dad instructed. This time when Kenzie touched my arm, I felt the burning and the pain, but my vision went black.

  I gasped for air, the pain was unbearable. “Okay, okay.” I whispered. The pain stopped.

  “Where are they?” my dad demanded, his tone much colder than before.

  “I don’t know. All I know is they have help, someone else,” I explained, trying to figure it out myself. If Smith was working on a mission without us Watchers, that meant he had to have help. I was pulling at strings but hoped that’d get them to stop.

  “Good, good. Tell Coleman,” my dad said to a guard. “You’ve done well, honey. We’ll try again tomorrow.”

  What did I just do?

  Did I just betray my people?

  What could Smith be up to?

  A guard picked me up and helped me out of the room. I looked at Kenzie again, but he wouldn’t meet my eyes.

  ~

  Only a few hours later, I was sitting back on my bed in the tiny white room. My head fell to my chest as I didn’t even have the strength to hold myself up any longer. I heard the door click open, but I didn’t bother looking up.

  A guard came in, and I was expecting him to pull me up and out of the room again, but instead he instructed me to lie down. He strapped my legs and arms down to the bed.

  Voices sounded from behind the door, barely audible, but I heard them, “This is not proper protocol. Are you sure we must do this?” A female voice whispered.

  “Yes, it is the only way. We are running out of time. We will run out of time.” The other voice was almost too quiet to recognize, but I was certain it was my dad.

  “As you wish, sir.”

  A lady in a white lab coat came through the door, and she had needles and a syringe with her. I wanted to ask what was going on, but my throat was raw and my voice inaudible.

  She took out the syringe and injected a blue-looking liquid into the inside of my elbow. It stung for only a minute, and then my body relaxed. I closed my eyes as I was suddenly tired, and I felt my body drift off, no fight left in me.

  ~

  I was standing in a large white room, twice the size of the room I swore I was just in, and it was empty. I pushed against the walls, searching for a door or a way out, but there was none. I was trapped.

  “You could save me,” a voice said behind me, and I turned around to see my mother standing before me.

  “But you’re…your dead.” I moved toward her, but with every step I took forward, she stepped back.

  “You can save me!” she urged, and I kept shaking my head.

  “I’m sorry, Mom. I’m so sorry!” I reached for her, but she disappeared. The room turned black, and I felt the walls closing in on me. I pushed against them, trying in vain to stop them from crushing me, but it was no use. I couldn’t stop what was coming. The walls closed in, and I crouched down, closing my eyes and waiting for it all to be over.

  ~

  I woke up, dripping in sweat, in the little white room. I was lying on a cot that was too small. My body ached, but I felt a little better. I rubbed my arm and felt a pinprick needle scab just inside the elbow, and I remembered the lady who had come in earlier.
I looked down and saw two more needle marks, barely visible on the inside of the other elbow. I wondered what the lady was doing to me, but I also wondered if it even mattered anymore.

  I had begun to think about my death. That would be my only way out. I noticed they had left me food, but I considered leaving it. Starvation could be my way out. What was the point of living, anyway? Even if I were to get out of here, where would I go? Back into hiding? Scrounging for food and watching my back around every corner hoping to survive another day?

  I had nothing left to live for. My family was gone. What friends I had were gone or soon would be. Until Kenzie arrived at base, I hadn’t even opened myself up to the possibility of caring for another human being, and look where that had brought me. I should have kept it that way. I should’ve never let him in.

  If I had the chance to go back, I would’ve ended my life a long time ago. There was no hope for us; there never had been. I saw that with blinding, crystal clarity.

  Chapter 29

  The torture from Kenzie continued for a few more days, and each day I told them something new. Small and insignificant in my eyes, but my dad seemed more than satisfied with each little detail. Most facts were true but didn’t have any connection to Smith in my opinion. My body ached so badly from exhaustion that I couldn’t even walk myself back to my room. The guard had to carry me every time.

  I remembered one small detail I was certain was a clue, but I’d been holding off telling my dad, until now. My body was drained, and I couldn’t take it any longer. I remembered seeing a map in Smith’s office a long time ago, but it always struck me as odd.

  “Well?” my dad asked as I slumped down in the chair, barely able to open my eyes.

  “There was an old map, pre-World War III, I think.”

  “What did it show? Was there any writing on it?”