The Watcher Read online

  “Sir, I have no idea how to find this person.”

  “No one else does either. But find him you must.”

  “Why?”

  “The Opposition has been looking for someone they call the Old One for more than twenty years. This has to be the one they’re trying to find.” Nicole’s eyes flew wide open as Grant added, “I knew about that, but no one gave any credibility to the intelligence. It appears this person is more important than I suspected.” Nicole shook her head as Grant ordered a tech to carefully bag the musket and take it to his office. Grant turned to her, “You are relieved of your normal duties and you will focus on this assignment. You will report directly to me and no one else will be told what you’re doing or where you’re going.”

  “Does that include the members of the Team, Sir?”

  “It does. And I want to know if any of them question you about what you’re doing.”

  Nicole knew that Grant was not saying something, but she replied, “Yes Sir.”

  • • •

  “It appears that woman is the one that found you.” The man nodded. “What do you intend to do about this?” The man shrugged. “Is it time to activate the plan you set up?” the computer asked.

  “Not yet.”

  “Why not? This species has come far in their computer development. Hiding will not be as easy from now on.”

  “Before I do that, I have an unresolved issue.”

  “What is that?”

  “I want my musket returned; it has special meaning to me. I should have taken it with me when we left but I wasn’t paying attention.”

  The computer paused and replied, “You must know they’re setting you up hoping you’ll make an effort to retrieve it.”

  “Of course; but that just means we have to be careful in doing it.”

  “I don’t think careful will do it this time.”

  The man continued to listen to the humans inside his former residence and shrugged.

  • • •

  Two days later, Grant walked into the computer room, looked around, and said, “Everyone get out!” He looked at Nicole and said, “You stay!” The room emptied and Grant pulled up a chair beside Nicole, “We’ve found out how the Old One managed to escape.”

  “Is that what we’re calling him now?” Nicole asked.

  “Yes it is.”

  Nicole activated the voice module and said, “Rename the file on the current investigation to Olde One.” Nicole saw the file name change on the monitor.”

  “Why did you add an ‘e’ to old?”

  Nicole smiled, “Just seems to fit. How did he escape?”

  “The team inspecting the house found a tunnel in the basement.” Nicole’s eyes narrowed. “No, he didn’t just walk away. That tunnel was a hundred-foot straight drop into the bed rock below the house.”

  “That would have required a long climb down,” Nicole responded.

  “That’s just it, there was nothing in the tunnel to allow him to climb down,” Grant replied. “The tunnel walls were so smooth that nothing would stick to them. And there was no trace of a cable or rope on the top edge of the tunnel.”

  “Was the tunnel hidden?”

  Grant nodded, “It was under a table with a rug under it. The search team did a good job and used an ultrasound transmitter to see if there was anything under the house. That’s when they found the tunnel under the table.”

  “Are you saying the table was still over the tunnel?” Nicole asked with narrow eyes.

  “Yes, and we see no way that table could have been moved back in place if that tunnel was used.”

  “Someone would have to remain behind to make that happen,” Nicole remarked.

  “The moment the search warrant was issued, I ordered a satellite to start looking at the house and its infrared determined there was only one person in the house. Whoever was there, moved out of the upper levels of the house five minutes after the issuance of the search warrant and went to the basement causing the satellite to lose him; he had to know about the warrant.”

  “How is that possible?”

  Grant shook his head, “I have no idea…however, there’s more. We sent a Commando down into the tunnel and when he arrived at the bottom, he found a circular cavern more than four hundred feet in diameter and it extended far beyond the Commando’s sight. The walls of that cavern were as smooth as the tunnel that dropped into it. One of our scientists took samples and reported that it was carved out of the rock by some kind of superheated laser beam.” Nicole stared at Grant and he added, “I had some Commandos go into the tunnel carrying scuba gear with them.”

  “Why scuba gear?”

  Grant leaned forward, “A compass was used to determine that one end of the large tunnel ran directly toward Chesapeake Bay. The other end remained underground for a long distance. A laser range finder was unable to determine how far the end of the tunnel was from the house.”

  “So, what did you find out?”

  “We had to drop a small electric cart into the tunnel to carry the scuba gear. Two Commandos used the cart to move further into the tunnel toward the bay. They finally arrived at the end of the tunnel…” Grant paused.

  “And?” Nicole asked.

  “It terminated under the bay. Grant pulled a computer tablet and opened it. He pressed a button and Nicole saw a video of one of the Commandos standing in a huge cavern staring at a wall of water at the end of the tunnel. She could clearly see large fish swimming; it was like the tunnel used in Sea World. “What’s holding the water back; I don’t see any glass,” Nicole mused.

  “There isn’t any; there’s nothing at the end of that tunnel but the water does not enter it,” Grant said softly. Nicole’s eyes widened as she watched a Commando walk up to the water and stick his hand into it; the water remained in place. She looked at Grant and he blew out a slow breath, “Whoever did this is as far ahead of us technologically as we are to the cavemen.” Nicole started shaking her head and Grant turned to her, “The first Commando that entered the tunnel went to the edge and jumped into the tunnel with a reppel line around him. He slowly started falling and then fell slightly faster to the bottom of the tunnel. Falling slowly at first would allow the table and rug to be pulled back over the tunnel. Gravity has been changed and manipulated inside that tunnel.” Nicole stared at Grant in silence and he added, “Whatever was inside that large tunnel is larger than our most recent nuclear submarines and you know how large they are.”

  Nicole shook her head and said softly, “I wonder if there are more of them.”

  Grant added the clincher, “I doubt it.”

  “Why?”

  “We found numerous fingerprints inside the house and the thumbprint matched the one used in 1962. This is the man your computer found.” Nicole’s expression changed and Grant said, “What are you thinking?”

  “Sir, our first sighting of this man was in Plymouth in the early sixteen hundreds…but he came here from Europe. There’s no telling how long he has been here.”

  “Or if he’s really a man,” Grant added. Nicole nodded. “I can see why the Opposition want’s to find him; if they can get their hands on his technology; we’ll stand no chance against them. You must find him first!”

  “Sir, I’ll do what I can but I’m at a loss on where to begin.”

  “Just follow your intuition Nicole. Your instincts are better than anyone I know.”

  “Yes Sir.” Grant left and Nicole pulled up the video of the commandos in the tunnel. Anything that was recorded was immediately sent to the computer’s database. She stared at the huge cavern and asked, “Can you make a judgment about how long the object that was in that tunnel is?”

  “Not an accurate one.”

  “Make an estimate.”

  “Somewhere between a mile and ten miles long.”

  “But the tunnel was only two or three miles long.”

  “The section that ran out to the water was that long, but it extended seven miles in the opposite
direction.”

  “But a structure that long would be next to impossible to be strong enough to withstand gravity!”

  “You’ve heard that gravity was changed in those tunnels. It is possible it could be even longer.”

  Nicole blew out a breath and wondered what she had gotten herself into.

  Chapter Two

  “What are you going to do now?” the computer asked.

  “I think I’m going to hang out for a while and allow things to cool down.”

  “Where are you going to do that?”

  Charles smiled, “Why, at home.”

  “I hope you’re right about this.”

  “Do you see anything I’m missing?”

  “Not at the moment.”

  “Then monitor everything that’s happening and let me know if you do see anything.”

  “Ok. When do you want to go?”

  “Now would be a good time.”

  • • •

  Nicole sat at the computer shaking her head. After a few minutes, she said, “Put up a list of where Guetteur has lived in the past.” A long list of cities appeared on the monitor and Nicole stared at it. After a moment, she ordered, “Rank them in order from the cities he lived in the longest to the shortest time.” The list reappeared and Nicole stared at it. She picked up her bag and left the room.

  • • •

  Charles took a cab to a house and told the driver to wait. He walked up and knocked on the door. A young girl came to the door and Charles smiled, “I’m here to inquire about the car you have for sale.”

  She looked over her shoulder and shouted, “DAD, SOMEONE IS HERE ABOUT THE CAR!”

  A middle-aged man came to the door and looked at Charles, “May I help you?”

  “I’ve seen your ad online about a car you have for sale.”

  The man reached in and took his jacket off a coat rack just inside the door and said, “Come with me.” He pressed a button next to the door and the garage door began going up. He led Charles to the garage and pulled off a car cover from an old Mustang. “She’s been scratched up in a minor accident, but she runs good.”

  Charles walked around the Mustang and asked absently, “How much do you want for it?”

  “She’s got eighty-five thousand original miles, but I’ve kept her serviced and maintained.” Charles nodded slightly and the man said, “I’m asking eighteen hundred dollars.” Charles winced as he stared at the damaged passenger side and the man quickly added, “I’ll take fifteen hundred if you’re really interested in buying it tonight.”

  Charles nodded and looked at the man, “Why are you selling it?”

  The man put his arm on the shoulders of the young girl standing next to him, “We have a new addition to my family and all of us don’t fit in it anymore; the baby seat takes up too much space on the rear seat.”

  “Will you give me a bill of sale if I pay cash?”

  “I certainly will!”

  Charles nodded and said, “Give me just a moment.” He walked out of the garage, took a large suitcase out of the trunk, and paid the Cab Driver. He walked back in and took a wad of cash out of his jeans pocket. He counted out fifteen hundred-dollar bills and handed them to the man, “Do you have the title?”

  The man smiled and said, “I do.”

  “Please sign it over to me along with a bill of sale and we have a deal.” The man went inside, and Charles handed the young girl a hundred-dollar bill, “Give this to your father after I leave and tell him it’s for the baby.” She smiled brightly as her father came out of the kitchen into the garage. He filled out the title and bill of sale on the hood of the car and handed them to Charles as he stuck out his hand, “Thank you.”

  Charles shook it and said, “You can cancel the insurance, but I may not get the title changed for a while; I’m going on a long trip and won’t be able to do it quickly.”

  “That’s fine.” The man handed Charles two keys and he got in the driver’s seat. He cranked the car and listened to the engine as the man said, “You’re welcome to the car cover if you want it.”

  Charles got out of the car and put the cover in the trunk along with his suitcase. He smiled and said, “I’ll take good care of it.” The man nodded as Charles backed out of the garage and turned around. He pulled out on Federal Furnace Highway and turned left. Four miles later, he turned on a small paved road and drove through some woods before it cleared out as he saw the campground ahead. He held out his hand as he pulled up to the entrance and the electronic gate raised the bar. He drove up the right dirt road and arrived at a covered trailer four hundred yards later. It was dark but he removed the cover from the camper and folded it. He put it in a weatherproof, plastic container, and pushed it under the camper.

  He pulled the electrical cord out of the back of the camper and plugged it into the outlet at the front of the trailer. He spent the next hour de-winterizing the water lines. He turned the valves on the propane tanks and then went inside. He turned on the heater and it immediately started blowing hot air through the vents. He heard the propane water heater come on and he smiled, Good, everything was working fine. He took a tiny device out of his suitcase and attached it to the back of the television. He turned it on and used the remote to pick a channel to watch. He sat back on the couch and said, “You made a good choice on the car.”

  “I scanned it and it’s like the owner said, it’s in perfect running order. Are you going to get the exterior repaired,” the computer asked.

  “I don’t know. I’m leaving it like it is for the near future.”

  “Why?”

  “No one will pay any attention to it in its current state.” Charles paused and said, “You need to hide.”

  “I’ll move out into the ocean and stay there.”

  “Just stay in touch if anything happens.” Charles sighed and watched a news channel…so much going wrong here.

  • • •

  Nicole spent a month wandering around Boston looking for Guetteur. According to the computer, he arrived in Boston in the early seventeen hundreds and didn’t leave for Washington until 1808. She used the surveillance cameras to search for the man, but he wasn’t seen. She had been personally searching Old Boston and had come up empty. Had she missed something? That night she opened her computer and said, “Pull up the list of cities Guetteur lived in.” The list appeared and Nicole said, “Put the date he initially appeared in those cities.” She stared at the list but didn’t see a date beside Plymouth. She entered a query and the computer replied, “We only have a record of him being there by his name appearing on a ship’s manifest that arrived on the second ship carrying colonists. There is no record of him living there.”

  Nicole sat back and wondered why there was no record of him living in Plymouth. Did he just immediately leave after he arrived? She thought about it and asked, “When did the second ship of colonists arrive in Plymouth.

  “The Fortune arrived in 1621, one year after the colony was founded. It carried thirty-seven new colonists and Charles Guetteur was one of them. Two more ships arrived in July 1623.”

  Nicole sat back and thought about the data. Just walking away from Plymouth wouldn’t be a smart thing to do at that time in American history. However, if he had a spaceship, he could go wherever he chose. Nicole shook her head and knew she had decided the man was an alien; there was no other way to explain the evidence. But why would he take an ancient sailing vessel to Plymouth and immediately leave. It didn’t make sense. She let her mind flow freely and after a few minutes, she sat up straight; he didn’t leave. The only way he could have been given that musket by Myles Standish was for Myles to know him and respect him. He must have lived in Plymouth for more than eighty-years; he didn’t show up in Boston until the early 1700’s. So why wasn’t his name on any of the records in Plymouth? She looked up and rolled her eyes; the answer was clear; the same way he changed all the hospital and legal records; he removed them. Why would he deem that necessary? She smiled, he intended t
o go back one day. She knew she had to be right. She was from a small town in Georgia and when she sought peace of mind, she would get away from Washington and go home to decompress. Plymouth was his first home in America. She packed her bag and checked out of the hotel in the morning.

  • • •

  “That woman who uncovered your presence is coming to Plymouth.”

  “What?”

  “She’s figured out that you stayed here longer than the records of the colony say.”

  “She is really starting to get on my nerves.”

  “You won’t have to worry about her much longer.”

  “Why not.”

  “She’s being followed by agents from the East. They’ve been patient so far, but they have orders to kill her if she doesn’t find anything soon.”

  Charles’ eyes narrowed, “I can’t allow them to do that.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because then I’d lose the opportunity to get my musket back.”

  “Just let it go!”

  “I don’t expect you to understand this being a machine, but that musket means a lot to me; as much as the stone knife Amug gave me for saving his mate’s life.”

  “That important?”

  “Yes.”

  “You fawned over that knife for years.”

  “I did and I wasn’t paying attention when I left the musket behind. Keep me appraised on what’s going on when she arrives.”

  “Ok, but I’d hate to have to burn this city to the ground to keep you out of trouble.”

  “Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”

  • • •

  Nicole rented a car and arrived in Plymouth on Monday afternoon. She spent the week traveling around the city and getting a feel for the places Guetteur might frequent. There weren’t nearly as many surveillance cameras in the small town, and she was left to having to depend on finding him without them. Fortunately. Plymouth wasn’t a large town. After five days, she hadn’t seen him. She had his image etched into her memory from the computer’s data and she didn’t see anyone close to his appearance. On Saturday evening, she was walking around Plymouth Center and decided to step into the New World Tavern. She chuckled and knew the name is what drew her in. The night air was getting cold, so she went in, took a seat at the bar, and ordered a beer. She sat there for two hours and began to think she needed to find another place to search. A man sitting at the bar to her right looked at her and said, “You appear to be waiting for someone.”