Watcher of Worlds (Whispering Woods)

by Brinda Berry

  Like footprints outside my bedroom window.

  I looked at the limp, broken body in my hands and I knew. I knew that Dr. Eli Bleeker had killed Biscuit.

  Knew hate like I hadn’t known before.

  Before…

  “Sweetheart, did you hear me? I’m worried about you. Come down and eat some dinner.” Dad hovered at my door. Worry weighed on each word like an invisible anvil.

  “Please, Dad. I’m not hungry. I’ll eat later.” I stared at the bedroom wall, then forced myself to make eye contact. “I promise. Later.”

  Dad nodded once. A sad smile began at his mouth and stayed in his eyes. He slipped out the door and closed it behind him.

  I didn’t know where Pete went after. After my world fell apart. After the numb, red hate bled into my soul.

  I unblocked Bleeker’s phone number on my cell and waited.

  The phone chimed once and the call confirmed what I knew in my heart.

  I pressed the button. A lump formed in my throat and I wanted to spill my fury into his ear.

  I could feel him on the line.

  “Answering now, I see.” Dr. Eli Bleeker’s voice held a self-righteous edge.

  “I am.”

  Hesitation weighed on the line. “I’m very sorry that it’s come to such a tragic point in our relationship.”

  “We have no relationship.” I needed to stay calm.

  He tsked. “Mia. My work is important to me. I need a portal finder. You need to ensure the safety of those you love.”

  I began to shake and was glad he couldn’t see me. I pressed my free hand to my mouth, smashing the sob back, breathing slowly.

  “It will be difficult for me to do anything for you. Biscuit is…” I bit my bottom lip and tasted blood. Breathe. One thousand one. One thousand two. Steady. “…was very important to me.” I would never forgive him for that. Ever.

  “I understand. But I needed your attention. And now you understand the seriousness of this situation.” His voice sounded regretful, but he was good at that. I pictured him, maybe sitting in a comfortable chair somewhere in those stupid suspenders he wore. Last fall, he’d fooled me with his earnest plea to help him get away from the IIA.

  Biscuit had comforted me when Dad went away on work trips. When Pete left home without explanation. When Regulus broke my heart. And Biscuit always loved me, when I felt I had no one else.

  “Mia, dogs can be replaced. It’s much more difficult to replace people. I sent you photos earlier to prove how easily it could have been Regulus.”

  His words stabbed at my chest. Regulus’s name on his lips placed a strangling grip around my throat. Breathe.

  “What do you want from me?”

  “I need portals found. I thought I’d made this clear. And you need to understand that I have a duty and I’ll do whatever it takes to see it through.”

  Duty? What was he talking about?

  “When?” I asked.

  “You’re agreeing?” He paused. “Good. Let’s make the first meeting today.”

  “Fine. Where?”

  “There is a water tower on Route 55. It’s—”

  “I know where it is. I’ll be there in an hour.” I needed an hour.

  “Mia. You should come alone.”

  “Sure.”

  “Don’t test me.”

  “I understand.” I pressed END. Bleeker meant every word he’d said. And I intended to get him. I needed to see Bleeker’s face when he realized that it was game over. After that, I’d let the IIA have him.

  I dialed Arizona. His voicemail answered and I didn’t leave a message. Bleeker had Regulus’s phone so I couldn’t call him.

  I hit another number on speed dial. I had to hurry and count on getting away without Pete knowing. He would stop me and I knew what I had to do.

  “Hey, Babe. Merry Christmas.” Austin’s voice soothed me.

  “I need you to come get me. Help me.”

  There was a momentary pause. “Something wrong? You OK?”

  “No. I’m not. Can you come?”

  “I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

  “Give me a little time. Be here in a half hour. And it’s dangerous. You should know.”

  “Wouldn’t expect it to be dull.”

  “Austin?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Thanks.”

  “Anytime, Babe. Anytime.”

  * * *

  “Austin’s coming over. I’ll be outside talking with him. I want to tell him about Biscuit.”

  “Tell the boy to come in.” Dad patted my shoulder and then tugged my earlobe, something he’d done since I was a kid. I stood in front of the window, my breath fogging up the glass.

  “No, thanks. We like talking in the Jeep and listening to music. I need to get outside. “

  Dad studied my eyes like a roadmap to my emotions. “It will hurt for a while, Sweetie. It’ll get better.” He pulled me into a quick hug.

  “Where’s Pete?”

  “He went out to hunt for the coyote. Your brother’s pretty broken up about it, too.”

  I could taste the bitterness in his voice.

  “Good,” I said.

  “He wants you to stay inside. He’s protective. Practically ordered me to keep you nearby.” Dad shook his head. “I told him that I didn’t expect you’d go anywhere.”

  “Well, he’s here,” I said. Austin gave a wave from the Jeep. “We might even take a drive. OK?”

  Dad frowned and worry lines appeared on his forehead. “As long as the roads aren’t slick. You’ll need to be careful.”

  “Austin’s Jeep has four-wheel drive. It’ll be fine.”

  He mussed my hair. Outside, Austin bobbed his head in time as the stereo subwoofers drummed a bass beat through the windows. I ran down the porch steps and hopped in.

  “You have trouble getting away? Your mom didn’t care?”

  “She’s had so much spiked eggnog today that she doesn’t care about much.” Austin shoved his dark bangs out of his eyes and looked at his cell. “I’m on time. It’s a first. Where are we going?”

  “Water tower on Route 55.”

  “Gotcha. And why are we going there?”

  “Bleeker. He killed Biscuit.”

  Austin stopped reversing the Jeep. “Come again?” His wide, startled gaze met mine.

  “Yeah.” I didn’t want him to see the automatic tears that filled my eyes, so I looked away and stared at the bushes in front of my house. A dull ache rushed through my heart and pounded in my head.

  “You’re sure?”

  “Yeah. Pete came in last night—”

  “Pete’s here?”

  “Yes. He came in and told me that he needed to come home, that something was going down with Bleeker, that he was here to protect me, that—”

  “Slow down.” Austin put the Jeep in drive. “So, Pete’s home. Where is he?”

  “I’m sure he’s hunting for Bleeker.”

  “And I take it Pete doesn’t know that we’re on our way to the psycho killer?”

  I sighed. “Do you think he’d let me go?”

  “Why don’t you let him take care of this?”

  “I’m not going to argue with you. I should have done the right thing a long time ago. I’m turning Bleeker in to the IIA.”

  “What about Regulus and Arizona?”

  “Called Arizona. Got his voicemail.” I told Austin about the photos sent by Bleeker from Regulus’s phone.

  “What’s the plan?” He turned onto the highway.

  “I have a stunner.” I held up my phone. “I have handcuffs.” The handcuffs made a jingling sound when I pulled them out of my purse and held them up.

  “Nice.” He winked at me. “I’m not even going to ask why you have those. I’m just going to imagine.”

  “Gross.” I drew out the word.

  “Can I borrow those sometime? You know…for crime fighting?”

  Leave it to Austin to lighten the mood. “Snooped through Pete’s bag
to see if he had something I could use.”

  “Ah. I’ll ask Pete.”

  I tried to smile. He was trying so hard. Like a visitor making casual conversation in the hospital cancer ward.

  “I don’t know how much control I have. I might kill him.”

  “With that?” Austin took his eyes from the road to examine my phone.

  “Yeah. I’ve practiced with Regulus’s stunner.”

  He pursed his lips and I wondered what he was thinking.

  “Go ahead,” I said. “Don’t hold back.”

  The mountain road wound upward, a steep incline with curlicue curves. I winced at Austin’s reckless driving. We were nearing the water tower.

  “Stop the Jeep. I’m getting out here. He said I had to be alone.” I rested my hand on the door handle.

  Austin looked at me with lowered brows. “No way.”

  “I’m going to fling the door open. You’ll risk me falling out.”

  “Mia, crazy talk.” He shook his head frantically. “Stop. Hand off the door.”

  The key to bluffing is knowing how far to take it. The problem was that I wasn’t bluffing. I was entirely prepared to open the door. He’d slow the Jeep. Probably.

  “I’m jumping.” He didn’t slow down enough. “One.” He grabbed my arm. “Two.” I pulled the handle.

  “Mia! Come on.”

  I took my hand away from the door. “Stop the Jeep and talk to me.”

  He pulled to the side of the road. “You’ve lost your ever-loving mind. I’m going with you. I don’t know what you’re thinking.”

  “Bleeker said I have to be alone. It’s not going to work if you’re with me.”

  Austin’s eyes darted from me to the road. “What’s he going to do? Shoot me?”

  “Um…yes. I think he will.”

  “I said you’re not going alone.”

  “Yes. We don’t have time to argue. He’s going to think I’m a no-show if I don’t get out and run.”

  “Mia? What does Bleeker drive?”

  “How would I know—”

  “Don’t turn around. Duck down in the seat. A Beemer is pulling up behind me. I’m going to pull out and leave.”

  I obeyed and rolled my body into a ball perched in the floor space. The Jeep surged forward and Austin accelerated at a speed that jolted my head against the glove compartment.

  “What are you doing?” My voice was like a squeal.

  “He’s following us.” The speedometer edging to forty.

  “It’s him? Bleeker?”

  “Get up and put your seat belt on. He’s right on my bumper. This dude has a death wish.”

  9

  Afternoon Drive

  Pete glanced at the passenger in his truck. Most people didn’t understand Timothy “Tiny” McAlister. Tiny lived in a run-down farmhouse with his grandmother. A grandmother who doted on him with homemade fried pies and all the Internet service he required. He didn’t attend college and he didn’t work. He didn’t date. Most people weren’t sure what he did.

  But Pete knew. He knew Tiny was busy programming and selling apps as quickly as he made them.

  When he wasn’t programming and playing the stock market like he belonged on Wall Street, Tiny played Quest of Zion. They’d discovered the game together and logged twenty-eight hours straight, playing until they’d collapsed from lack of sleep.

  Operation Zodiac needed Tiny, but Tiny preferred to sit in his oversize computer chair and monitor the action from his computer. He didn’t want to answer to anyone—especially the authorities.

  “So what do you think about this Regulus guy?” Pete said.

  “He’s smart. Honest. Too honest if you ask me.”

  Pete smirked. “Too honest?”

  “Been real honest with your sister. Girls don’t always appreciate honesty. I mean, I’m honest, but I’m not trying to keep a girlfriend.”

  “He needs to concentrate on his duty and quit trying to hook up with my sister.” Pete waited a few seconds, let his animosity take a backseat, then switched to a safe topic. “And you’d be honest—girlfriend or not. It’s your nature.”

  Tiny grunted.

  Pete gave a low laugh. “You and this Regulus guy may be more alike than you think.”

  “Regulus is not a bad guy.”

  “And Arizona? What about him?” Pete turned into the Whispering Woods University campus.

  “He’s a douche bag.”

  “Like him that much, huh?”

  “I like him less than a remote access Trojan.”

  The computer virus reference meant Tiny seriously hated Arizona. He glanced sharply at his passenger before putting the truck in park. “Is there something I need to worry about with him?”

  “No. It’s Em that he’s messing with—not Mia.”

  “I’m not worried about him asking my sister for a date. I’m interested in knowing if Arizona and Regulus can get Dr. Bleeker.”

  “Yeah, yeah.” Tiny opened the truck door. “So, am I the good cop or the bad cop?”

  Pete laughed. “Buddy, you just have to show me to their dorm room. Only been here once, a long time ago.”

  “Follow me.”

  * * *

  Regulus and Arizona’s dorm room had two beds, two desks, two closets, and enough room for two people. Three people currently stood in the room, including Pete. That’s if Tiny counted as one.

  Tiny sat at one of the desks as if he did it every day. The swivel chair appeared to be two sizes too small for him.

  Pete waited for a second. Introductions must have been a foreign language to Tiny whose knowledge base consisted of computer languages.

  “Hi. I’m Pete Taylor.” He gave Arizona a nod. Then he looked around for a seat in the room. He’d seen closets larger than this.

  “I’m Arizona. You’re Mia’s brother. The MIA brother.”

  “That would be me. Not really MIA, since I’m here.” Obviously.

  Arizona stared with curiosity. “You visiting?”

  “I’m…working. I’m here to talk to you and Regulus.”

  “Regulus isn’t here,” Arizona said.

  Pete nodded and checked his watch. Time was short and he needed to get back to the house.

  “When will he be back?” Pete said.

  “Pete asked me to bring him.” Tiny looked at Arizona. “That crazy Dr. Bleeker killed Mia’s dog. Hit him with a ball bat.” Tiny shuddered.

  Arizona winced. “Ah, man. How’s Mia?”

  “She’ll be fine. But I’m more worried about her safety than I was earlier.” Pete looked at Arizona. “I know you work for the IIA and they want Bleeker. Let’s not play games. You know I work for OZ. We both want the same thing. It’s stupid not to work together to stop this lunatic. Figure out how to take care of him.”

  Arizona nodded. “Go on.”

  Pete leaned on the edge of the desk and folded his arms. “We capture him together. The government wants him off US soil. You can take him in. It’s a win-win.”

  “Agreed,” Arizona said. “It might be easier if you joined the IIA. We can always use you.”

  Pete wanted to wipe the asinine grin off Arizona’s face. He could see why Tiny wasn’t a fan.

  “Not gonna happen. Are you interested or not?”

  “Interested.” Arizona shrugged and gave him a friendly smile.

  “What’s this?” asked Tiny. He’d turned to the laptop and studied the highway map displaying a moving signal.

  Arizona looked at Pete. “Your sister’s on the move.”

  Pete grunted. “You’re tracking my sister?” He stopped himself, calmed his voice, began again. “Does Mia know you’re tracking her?”

  “We’ve been worried that she’d get into trouble. The tracking chip is in the new phone Regulus gave her yesterday.” Arizona gave a sheepish grin. “It was for her protection.”

  “I wondered why she had a pink phone. I bet she hates that.”

  Arizona’s eyebrows lifted. “She didn’t say
she hated it.”

  Pete chuckled. “Did she say she loved it?” He pulled out his phone. “Need to make a quick call. I asked my father to watch her. To keep her there.”

  “She’s headed up the mountain.” Tiny hunched over to point at the screen. “Highway 55.”

  “I need to know what she’s doing out the house.” Pete stepped to the door which only put two feet between himself and Arizona.

  After making the call and tamping down the irritation that Mia couldn’t stay put for a couple of hours, he decided he was lucky she’d left with Austin. Austin was trustworthy. It would look suspicious if he tried to trap his sister inside her room. He hoped Mia didn’t guess that someone—most likely Bleeker—had killed Biscuit.

  “And Regulus?” Pete waited a beat. “Let me guess. He’s out there.” Pete pointed at the screen.

  “He left as soon as she did.” Arizona sat on his bed.

  “She’s with Austin. Looks like they took a drive.” Pete grabbed the remaining chair and sat. Looking out the window, he said, “Weather’s getting worse. He’ll take Mia back home.”

  Tiny kicked off his mud-caked hiking boots. “Mind if I see what else is around that area?” He didn’t wait for Arizona to answer but proceeded to click and type. His fingers danced across the keyboard like a master pianist playing a concert, forgetting about the others in the room.

  “Dude,” Arizona said, “Can you leave those puppies on?”

  “Got ’em wet. My socks are wet, too.” Tiny’s monotone told them that he was not going to be distracted by any discussion of etiquette.

  Arizona made a choking sound and muttered something about spray. He got up and opened the window.

  Tiny leaned back in the chair, and Pete grimaced at the squeaking sound of metal and plastic stretched to the weight limit.

  “Is this a front for your monitoring setup?” Tiny folded his arms over his chest and spun the chair in a circle and examined his surroundings.

  “Huh?”

  Tiny waved at the barbell and weights stacked in one corner. “This stuff. Is this here to make it look like you’re a real college boy?” He picked up a graphing calculator from the desk.

  Arizona snatched it from Tiny’s hand. “Um, no. I use everything.”