Watcher

by Andrew Weis

  WATCHER

  Part one of the Jessa roscoe trilogy

  Andrew J. Weis

  Watcher

  Copyright © 2019 by Andrew J. Weis

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by reviewers, who may quote brief passages for review.

  Printed and bound in the United States of America.

  Published by Arlington Gate Books LLC

  ISBN-13: 978-0-9993956-6-0

  The characters in this book are fictitious. All events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Cover Art by Deranged Doctor Design

  Author Websites:

  www.AJWeis.com

  www.facebook.com/AndrewJWeisAuthor

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  What happens next?

  Chapter 1

  MY GOD, LIFE’S beautiful. As I folded the note into a perfect little square, a warm smile grew across my tense lips. I’m sure it wasn’t the best love letter written. However, it felt as though a different Jessa Roscoe moved the pen across the paper and chose the words. In other words, I rocked it!

  I didn’t want to send something so personal in a cold text or email so I chose the ancient way and wrote my thoughts on paper. I remembered when my dad told me that was how he did it in high school before they invented smartphones. Talk about living in the stone age; I wouldn’t have survived it.

  I sat in my dad’s 1969 white rust bucket convertible, a Pontiac GTO, and inhaled the musty dusty remnants of the car’s cracked vinyl interior. My dad loved the old muscle cars, but I never saw the attraction since bringing them back to life cost a boat load of money.

  My smile grew wider as I reached into my lavender Jansport backpack, then I panicked. My backpack had everything my life needed except the one thing I needed most at this moment. I shoved my backpack across the car’s bench seat and squeezed my eyes. Where was that damn book? I took a nervous breath and watched the garage’s side door swing open. Mom stood in the doorway with a sly grin.

  “Jessa?” Mom asked.

  “Hey, Mom,” I said, fumbling with my key chain packed with keys and frequent shopper fobs from every store I’d ever been, searching for the stupid car key.

  “Did you forget something?” she asked and held up my missing book.

  My frustrated heart calmed, and I slid out of the car.

  “I was looking for that,” I said.

  “You ran out in such a hurry you left it on the kitchen table. I thought it might be important by the way you held it.”

  “It’s Daniel’s. I told him I’d give it back to him today.”

  I reached for the book and dropped the folded note. Mom spotted it and smirked.

  “That’s so cute. I used to pass love notes in school too,” she said, grinning.

  “Mom, please,” I said, retrieving the note.

  “Is it a love note?”

  “Yeah. Can we not talk about it?” I asked, sliding back into the car.

  “Daniel’s a good boy. I know you’ve had problems with his cousin Coz, but don’t worry. Love always prevails.”

  Mom smiled and blew a kiss.

  “Thanks, Mom. I hope you’re right.”

  Mom left the garage, and I looked at the worn paperback book, The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. LeGuin, Daniel’s favorite. He wouldn’t shut up about it.

  The guy in the book ended war, racism, and turned mean aliens into friendly neighbors by using his dreams. Yeah, right, but I loved Daniel even if he thought weird things were cool. He was my everything.

  With the book in hand, I fanned the pages then stopped in the middle where I wedged my love note to Daniel. I pressed the garage door opener clipped on the sun visor.

  While the world’s loudest garage door motor strained to raise the door with screechy rudeness, I waited. After pumping the gas pedal twice and twisting the ignition key, the engine awoke.

  My cheeks jiggled in the shaky rearview mirror until the tired 400 cubic inch V-8 engine calmed to a steady rumble. I wasn’t much of a fan of old cars, but being around so many people who were, it was inevitable that some of the terminology would rub off on me as well as being able to identify the more popular cars of the classic muscle car era. My eyebrows looked fantastic, my golden hair was silky as always and, luckily, I only had one small pimple on my chin.

  Today was the day I’d get a new exhaust system for my money pit, I mean car. Next up would be an engine overhaul, but that would cost a decent dollar I hadn’t saved up yet. After two years of working at two different salons, I had enough money for the exhaust and half the money for the engine work. Maybe I could make a deal with the mechanics and get it all done at once.

  I never understood why guys sunk so much money into their cars. The latest smartphones and fashions were far more interesting to me than repairing a pile of steel that should’ve been recycled a long time ago. My dad’s passion for the car inspired me to complete the fix-up in his memory, but this latest expense challenged my vow to finish what I started. When would the bills end? Perhaps if I fixed up the car good enough, I could unload it for college money.

  I backed out of the garage, then headed down the alley to the high school where I had one more year until graduation.

  Chicago’s pride and joy, Roosevelt High School, wasn’t so bad. Even though it was a hundred years ago, the graffiti was one thing I hated. That crap was everywhere. Classic architecture never needed an unwanted touch of color from an entry-level tagger trying to score anonymous fame or earn worthless street cred. The only place old schools stood untarnished was in the movies, and this pile of bricks was nowhere near Hollywood.

  All kinds of classic muscle cars from works-in-progress to completed restorations filled the school parking lot. The residents in this neighborhood of Chicago, Englewood Rails, known for its many car factories known as Stamper’s Row and where the two largest railroad yards in America intersected, would sooner let their houses fall apart than let a hair fall on their 1960s or 1970s muscle cars.

  Nobody cared about the Northshore folks with their Bentleys and Land Rovers. To us, those people, and the other seven million people in Chicagoland, didn’t exist.

  With a firm jolt, I shoved the column shifter into park and shut off the engine. The jingle of key chains hooked to my backpack swung rhythmically with my steps as I headed for the school’s front entrance and a fun-filled bullet-dodging day in paradise. Fortunately, track and field season was well under way. Our team was great, and I loved th
e camaraderie. At least nobody could take that from me.

  While I stole glances at my smartphone, the seconds dragged on like my science teacher’s monotone voice explaining space-time theory that blew over my head like a blustery winter wind. I saw Daniel between classes a couple times during the day. Since the school was so darn big, getting from one end to the other during the five-minute passing period left scant time to utter anything more than ‘hello’.

  Riley, Daniel’s twin sister, sat next to me in science class which was across the hall from Daniel’s class. We built a nice friendship over the past six months, and she helped Daniel and I stay close. She slid her smartphone under her textbook, out of eyesight of the teacher.

  “Jessa, do you have his book?” Riley asked.

  “It’s in my backpack,” I whispered, pointing at the backpack slumped beside my desk.

  “Just be quick when you see him, okay? He’s been under fire from you know who.”

  “Thanks. I won’t linger.”

  The passing period bell rang, then moments later the repetitious thumps of rap music, slamming crimson steel locker doors, and the chatter of hundreds of high school kids bounced off the tan glazed brick walls. I had a few minutes to make my move and give Daniel back his book. Crossing over to Daniel and through the throngs of kids was like dashing across the Kennedy Expressway in rush hour. He emerged from his classroom, then scooted over to his locker.

  Daniel was the perfect boy for me. I loved his excitable charm when he spoke of the things that mattered to him, like strange science fiction books, time travel and me.

  I got lost in Daniel’s beautiful brown eyes with whites as bright as fresh snow on a sunny day. Most boys around here had wandering eyes or wouldn’t look up from their smartphones long enough to see who was in front of them. I sometimes thought I could stand in the hall naked and nobody would notice.

  He stood twelve feet away from me and fumbled cutely with his locker combination while dozens of kids flowed by to their next dreaded class.

  In a moment of good fortune, I spotted a break in the hall traffic. With him nowhere in sight, I cut across traffic to Daniel.

  “Hey, Daniel,” I murmured while poking my head around his opened locker door. I caught a strong waft of his fresh-scented shower soap and I sighed heavily.

  “Jessa!” Daniel said with his adorable silly smile I loved to death. “How are you?”

  “I’m doing good, now. I wanted to give you back your book while I had the chance.”

  Daniel took the book and stuffed it on the top shelf of his locker. My heart felt a gentle squeeze when I noticed that he didn’t spot the note that bulged the pages enough not to miss. Boys. He’ll see it eventually, I guess. Hell, he better! I only wished I could see his expression when he read the words.

  “Did you like it?” he asked, excitedly. “Was it the coolest story you ever read?”

  I didn’t want to lie, but I wasn’t going to dash his excitement for me.

  “I liked it, but I guess I wasn’t taken in by it.”

  “So, you didn’t like it,” Daniel said with waning enthusiasm.

  Daniel grabbed the book from his locker shelf and studied the cover.

  “Sorry, but no. I didn’t,” I said.

  Daniel breathed a defeated sigh, and a grin cracked his sexy lips.

  “Well, I suppose it’s not for everyone. I think it’d be great if we had a power like dreams or even time travel to change the world,” he said, laughing.

  “Time travel? You’re a dreamer all right.”

  I laughed with him which was always easy. I loved how he never got mad at me about anything. His never ending patience made me love him more and drew me closer to his heart. I inched closer, desperate to give him a quick kiss, but the looming passing period bell pressured my nerves. He stood inches from my face when I thought of a way to get alone time with him; it was always a challenge.

  “Hey, I’m taking my car to Double N tonight to get an exhaust system put in,” I said with wide eyes. “It’s my first time going there. If you want, we can go together. After that we can grab a slice of deep-dish pizza at Dino’s.”

  “I’m all over that, but we have to watch out for Coz,” Daniel said. “He’s been pissed lately.”

  “I wish he’d leave us alone,” I said, lowering my head.

  “Me too. He’s gotten a lot bigger this year and meaner too. I think he might be using steroids.”

  Daniel and I had been together since the first day of sixth grade when my family first moved to Englewood Rails. Unfortunately, my friendship with Daniel drove a wedge between him and his cousin Cozumel Montgomery, Coz for short. Coz liked me too, but he never showed me any feelings of love. The way he looked me over whenever we were in the same room made me cringe.

  I was aware I was pretty, and I worked hard at looking my best, so I didn’t think I was conceited with my self-assessment. Girls track team workouts occurred six days a week so there wasn’t time for me to become a doughy slug. Word reached me that most boys thought of me as a prize, a trophy even, with the goal of getting in my pants.

  “I wish my father was back from Afghanistan,” Daniel said. “He’d know what to do.”

  “When’s he coming back?” I asked.

  “Next February.”

  “I can’t imagine what it’s like for you having your father over there in that mess. How are things with your aunt?”

  “Okay, but she still won’t let me have any girls over,” he said like a pouty boy. Damn, he was adorable.

  “That’s because she doesn’t want anything to happen to her sweet little Daniel,” I said, tapping the tip of his nose.

  Daniel smiled as a wave of bashfulness washed over him.

  “She seems to like you, Jess, based on what I’ve told her,” he said. “So, about Double N. Did you bring your car to school or is it at your house?”

  “It’s here. Why?” I asked.

  “You mean it started?” he said, chuckling.

  “Go ahead, make fun. It’s a work in progress, you know.”

  “Are you going to restore it or resto-mod it?”

  “Restore it. My dad was able to get it running before he died.”

  Daniel’s eyes shifted as he looked beyond my shoulder. He shut his locker and stepped in front of me.

  I turned around and there he stood with his protruding chin, Coz, Mister Thug Deluxe. He had the worst case of resting bitch face I ever saw.

  I wasn’t sure why Coz stayed in school. He didn't take part in any sports, do homework, or even attend any of his classes. Even though we were all juniors, Coz thought he owned the school and treated it as if it were his personal kingdom.

  “What’re you doing with my girl, white boy?” Coz demanded, shoving Daniel against the locker.

  “I’m half-white, Coz. We have the same grandparents, or did you forget that already?” Daniel said.

  Coz jabbed Daniel’s shoulder. Daniel shoved Coz back.

  “Coz, stop it!” I said.

  Coz saw the book in Daniel’s hand, then snatched it away. He giggled as he scanned the book’s cover. I prayed to God Coz wouldn’t spot the note.

  “The Lathe of Heaven? Jeez, Daniel, you believe in angels? Ain’t that sweet?”

  “It’s got nothing to do with angels, not that you’d care about them.”

  “They ain’t even real, boy. Can’t you take a joke?”

  I snatched the book from Coz and shoved him as much as my smallish frame allowed. He stood a good foot taller than I, but I never liked bullies nor felt intimidated by him.

  “That doesn’t belong to you, Coz,” I said.

  Passing kids took an interest in our squabble. They all had their smartphones out ready to record more senseless crap. There was no point counting on them for help, the worthless voyeurs.

  Daniel didn’t like smartphones much. He hated video games even more. He wasn’t interested in trolling through social media sites either.

  Only a week ago,
he said how much he hated it when I played with my phone when I should’ve been giving him my attention. After more thought, I realized I might’ve put a strain on our relationship. I’d have to watch myself going forward.

  With gritted teeth, Coz stepped toward me ready to shove me when Daniel tackled Coz to the glossy brown tiled floor. Daniel got in a few good punches and bloodied Coz’s nose, but that only seemed to annoy him.

  Kids gathered and cheered on the fight. I hated when boys got this way. Coz grunted a few times but managed to shove Daniel away. Coz kicked Daniel in the stomach, who then buckled down to the floor. Like a crazed serial killer, Coz pulled out a knife.

  “Like this, boy?” Coz said. “I should kill your ass now!”

  Coz swung the blade across his body. In a blink, the blade sliced my cheek. I touched my cheek and saw blood on my hand. I reached into my purse, removed a brown Dunkin Donuts napkin, and held it to my cut.

  “Coz, stop it,” I pleaded.

  “Enough of the shit. Tell him, Jessa. Tell him for good you’re mine,” Coz huffed, as he squared off with Daniel. “Then the boy can walk.”

  Daniel looked at me as if a major act of betrayal slapped him. I had to put out this fire fast. I came up with an idea. It was a gamble, but since Daniel and I were tight, he’d understand me when I explained my actions to him later. Coz would never hurt me anyway, besides him accidentally cutting my cheek.

  My heart crushed when I took my first step toward Coz. As I watched Daniel’s eyes widen, his lips parted. My stomach knotted and churned. My chest felt as though it were about to explode. A coldness enveloped me and my head spun as I played on with the biggest mistake of my life, but I couldn’t turn back now. I had to protect my Daniel.

  “Look what you made me do, half-breed. See what you did?” Coz said as he exchanged looks between me and Daniel.

  “Baby, you know how I love you,” I cooed. I’d make a terrible actress, not that Coz would notice. “Now put away the knife before you hurt someone else.”

  As much as it disgusted me, I stroked Coz’s cheek.

  Coz looked at me like the over-horny piece of garbage he was. Coz was such an easy play. Daniel was safe.