Free The Watchers by Wendy Reakes Page A

altogether.
    “While I have you, Mr President, our other matter…” Alice looked towards the closed door of her office. The ‘other matter’ was as classified as any matter could get.
    “I’m not sure if I have the time…perhaps we could reschedule another call.”
    “Yes, of course. Perhaps tomorrow.
    “Yes, tomorrow.” Then he hung up.
    Alice empathised with the Americans. They were going through an even rougher time than Britain and the rest of Europe. She was confident the UK could never get as bad as the States, but frankly, it may not even matter anymore. She recalled a story she heard once about the Great Fire of London. The city had become so rat and plague infested, so disgustingly unliveable, the royal society conspired to have it burned to the ground. It had been the only way to wipe out the stench and the disease. By destroying it, they had something to build on, but first, sacrifices had to be made.
    A bit like the sacrifices the people would be making in 2028, if everything went according to plan.

Chapter 13
    Wiltshire
     
    One hour after her meetin g with the watchers, Mia was soaking in a hot bath thinking about the most spiritually defining moment of her entire life.
    After sitting on the damp grass for a whole hour, she’d requested they stand. She’d watched Uriel lift himself off the ground, using just the muscles in his legs as if he was weightless, or an athlete, fit, strong and healthy. He’d offered her his hand. She paused only briefly before she reached out, and then she gasped as their fingers connected. His skin was smooth and warm, his touch gentle and loving as if his fingers were caressing hers like a lover’s touch. He pulled her to her feet as if she was weightless.
    Mia shook away her fantastical emotions; like she was in love with him, as if she had been seduced. Was that the way of the Angels, to love? And was that the way of humans; to misinterpret that love? She didn’t know. She just knew she was confused. She stretched her legs and then bent down to brush the grass off the back of her jeans. “Earlier, you said your mother had left messages for us. What did you mean? What sort of messages?”
    Uriel moved away from her and walked to one of the great stones supporting the giant lintel above it. He lifted his hand and touched it, as if it was a living breathing thing. “There are messages all over the planet, etched by her. Have you heard of the drawings on the Nazca Plains?” He turned to face her.
    "Yes…I mean…kind of." She recalled a coffee-table book she'd seen at her aunt's. It showed giant drawings etched upon the rocky plains in Peru, in an area of about 37 miles long. An assortment of perfectly straight lines, many running parallel, as others intersected, formed a grand geometric form. In and around the lines were strange symbols and pictures of birds and beasts all etched on a giant scale, which could only be appreciated from the sky. They weren't widely known until the 1930's when an aircraft spotted them and claimed a striking resemblance to a modern airport. They had been constructed around 200 BC. “What is the message?”
    “Simply that the Angels were there to protect the earth, man and every living creature upon it. The central image depicts a primitive drawing of an Angel, but the explorers labelled it a condor.”
    “Incredible.”
    “The most modern messages are the crop circles your people call fake. They are created by the mother. Her message there is clear, yet your people do not see. They complicate the simplicity that is before their eyes. Man is blind.”
    “What are the messages?”
    He turned back towards her. “You can see for yourself. That is why we chose you.”
    “You chose me? Why?”
    “You have great psychic energy. You are one with the Earth. You can prosper and flourish when you walk the lines…the ley lines. You are one of many, but tonight this meeting is for you. There will be no other until we send for you.”
    She