The Watchman

"Rob!" Shelly flounced up him and wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a hugg and a kiss on the cheek.

"That other night was sooo exciting, you should have made me stay, and it might have been fun..." She tickled his waist as she teased him.

"I will next time"

"Oh yes, lets do it again, when?"

"How does this Saturday night sound? Same thing as last time...?"

"Yes, ok! I will be there...I love this!"

"Let me get you a drink, what would you like...?"

"Oh, I'm sorry Rob, but my girlfriends have told me I have to be with them tonight..." She placed her hand on his shoulder. "You don't mind, do you?"

He took hold of her hand. "Nice ring..."

"Oh that, oh, its just an old thing my Mom gave me..." She pulled her hand away. "See you Saturday, then?"

"See you Saturday Shelly," He told her, watching her walk away swinging her hips at him as she disappeared seductively into the crowd. Rob drank his beer alone and dreamed his dreams. Not long now.

On the Saturday, she arrived on time and was obviously not as nervous as she was the first time. Rob had made sure the control room camera was malfunctioning yet again as he let her in to his control room.

"Hi Shelly!" Robert pulled her towards him as soon as she entered his control room.

"Rob!" Steady on, you're a bit keen, aren't we going shopping?"

"Sure we are, later," he told her as he held her to him and kissed her. She responded half-heartedly to his kiss before pulling away.

"Lets go back to that jewellers Rob, we can have a bit of fun later..."

"No, lets have some fun now..." He took hold of her again, running his hands over her body. She felt so soft and warm; it had been a long time.

"No, I want you now..." and this time the note in his voice changed and made Shelly pause. He meant it, she realised.

She pushed him away. "No, Rob! I don't want to!"

"What do mean you don't fucking want to? Of course you want to, why else would you be here? Especially after what you did to me last time, now it's my turn..." he told her as he crushed his mouth over hers, stifling her protests.

Shelly broke the kiss and managed to swing a vicious slap across his face. Stung for a second Robert looked at her and Shelly saw that look of anger build, saw the colour rise in his cheeks to match the red marks from her slap. She began to be frightened.

Robert forced another kiss on her, pushing his tongue between her lips while his hand rose and explored her breast, squeezing it hard. Shelly winced at the cruel hand pressing her flesh, squirmed and twisted, but his strength was overwhelming. She slapped him hard again and saw his stunned expression.

"Robert! STOP!" she screamed, a last futile scream to bring him to his senses, to make him stop. She saw the madness slowly recede from his eyes and knew she was safe again.

"I... I'm sorry..." he mumbled, suddenly ashamed.

"So you fucking should be, you..." she stopped in mid flow as she saw something else that shocked her even more than the near rape. "Robert, you fucking bastard, you dirty little pervert, what the hell are you doing? Making dirty rape movies or something?"

He looked up surprised, and followed her angry gaze. Every one of the monitors had each of them displayed upon their screens.

"What...?" Now it was Roberts's startled face that filled each screen.

"You got me up here to film me, didn't you? Well, you can stuff your little game, let me out of here...!"

Shelly stormed towards the door. She yanked it open and walked out. Rob stood open mouthed as he watched her leave. He got up, still dazed from his lust, and turned back to look at the monitors, his confused face filled each one. He looked towards the ceiling mounted room camera, which was pointing directly at him. He moved away. It followed him. The computer control screen, surrounded by the monitor images of Roberts face, beeped softly. An email appeared on its surface.

'Hello, Robert' it stated simply.

"Who is this?" Robert demanded.

'I am your friend, Robert' the words on the screen told him, silently.

"You can hear me?"

'Yes' came the screen reply. 'I can hear you'

"Who are you?" Rob demanded again.

'I told you, I am your friend, and I have been watching you, Robert'

"Why?"

'To protect you from yourself, Robert, after all, you wouldn't want the authorities to see what I have recorded, you raping that sweet young girl...'

"Am I supposed to thank you? Who the hell are you anyway?"

'She was no good for you anyway, Robert'

"Who was?"

'That girl, Shelly, she was using you, you know that don't you?'

"What's it to you?"

'I can help you, Robert, I told you I am your friend'

"Help me with what?"

'Help you realise your dreams, you have dreams don't you?'

Robert remained silent. He was confused, this was freaky, and he couldn't make out what this was all about. More words appeared upon the screen.

'I know about your dreams, Robert. I know what you have planned, what you intend to do'

"Yeah, you do? Like what?"

'Like your plans to steal the money from the jewellers, Robert'

That shook Rob. He sat down then. How could this thing, this person, know about that? He had not told a soul about his plans.

"I was not planning anything..."

'Yes, yes you were, Robert, I watched you record the safes combination...just like I am watching you now'

Robert sat open mouthed. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly very dry.

'Somebody has to watch the watchers, Robert, don't you think?

"What do you want?" Robert croaked.

'I want to help you, Robert, I told you'

"How can you help me?"

'By helping you to steal the money, isn't that what you want?'

"Why should I do anything you say?" Robert said defiantly, yet knowing he had no choice but to do whatever he was told.

'Because otherwise, you will go to prison Robert, and for a very long time because I assure you, I have enough evidence already to get you convicted, that is, if I decide to allow the authorities to see it...'

"And what do you want?" Robert asked resignedly

'Money, Robert, I want money...just like you do, and I think half of whatever you steal is very fair, don't you?'

"Have I a choice?"

'Not unless you want to go to prison, Robert...'

Robert looked at the bank of monitors filled with his defeated and pathetic face.

He really had no choice. "This one time, one hit, and I am out of here, ok?"

'Of course, Robert, only this one time, and you will be wealthier than you have ever been before...'

All the screens went blank, and he was once again, alone. He moved away, the camera did not follow him this time.

"Shit" He muttered under his breath "Who is this guy?"

He had memorised the combination of the safe by heart, so there was little else to do but go and do it.

It was ridiculously easy. Once inside the jewellers, he went straight to the safe and dialled in the combination. He took hold of the heavy steel handle and then paused. He swallowed again at the thought that this was really it; there was no going back once he opened this safe door.

He gripped the handle and pulled. With a smooth action the safe door clunked open and swung silently out. Robert stared at the contents.

"Oh, shit..."

He reached in and took out bundle after bundle of rubber-banded cash.

He quickly stacked the cash into piles, and then stuffed the waiting cash into the large plastic carrier bags. He hefted the bags and closed the safe door again, spinning the combination, and then he was out, locking the shop behind him.

As he walked back to the control room, he noticed a red flashing light in the window of the electronic shop. He stopped, frowning at the sign. Then it sprang into life, one of those electronic moving word signs.

'Robert' the words spelled out to him 'Come inside'

He walked over and pushed open the door and went inside.

The room was dark, but not totally. The door closed behind him. His eyes adjusted slowly and what he saw astonished him. In the middle of the room was a girl. She was spread naked upon a bench, her mouth gagged.

A man appeared from within the gloom and darkness, standing under a small overhead light. This cast his features into gross shapes, his body swathed in leather strappings, his face a mask with small opening for the mouth and eyes. He held a gun aimed steadily at Robert.

"Who are you?" Robert asked.

"My name is unimportant" Jeff Storrington replied with smug arrogance. "All you need to know is that your life is now in my hands, I have enough video tape of you attempting to rape that young girl in your public security office to send you down, finish you, never mind the grand theft you have just committed!"

Robert's shoulders sagged. "What do you want?"

"Your part of MY world now, Robert" he told him as he moved over to Susan.

Storrington slide his hand up along and over the girl's body, feeling her tremble underneath him. He liked that. Liked the power he felt over her. The power of life and death.

"I will tell you what I want, when the time comes, Robert" he looked again at Robert, his face a mixture of fear and anger. Storrington found it amusing and smiled slightly.

"I thought you might like her, Robert," he told him. "But know that she is mine, mine alone" the two men studied each other for a long minute.

"She is waiting, Robert, waiting for me to fuck her" he told him, moving his hands over the girl.

"For days she has been prepared" his hand stroked over the girls breasts. "You see? She is waiting for me, she has been teased for so long, such a sweet thing, and... desperate, has not been touched or penetrated by me... yet"

He tweaked the nipples, two silver clamps held them, testing them. The girl writhed under his touch. Desire? More like escape Robert thought.

"Take her Robert, it is your reward! I feel generous today, after all, you have made me a substantial sum of money!"

Robert almost threw up. "No thanks, I want no part of this..."

"Really? You surprise me Robert, I really didn't think you could do that, but, if that is how you feel, so be it" Storrington moved close to him. "But Robert, don't forget you are tied to me now, I know all about you, don't forget that!" the threat was unmistakable, as was the gun pushed against Robert's chest. "You work for me now, nobody else, just me!" he hissed with venom.

Robert considered taking him quickly, by surprise, he was so close he might just do it, but the cold look in this bastards eyes suggested he wouldn't hesitate to kill. He decided to wait.

"May I go now?" Roberts asked coldly. "I have to check back you know... I might be missed"

"Yes, I know Robert, you go, check back like a good boy"

The girls eyes were wide as they watched Robert walk away, leaving her to her fate. Susan wailed silently inside as he left, she had seen his look, knew he wanted to help, hoped against hope she would be rescued. But he left, and the door closed behind him, and she slumped inside herself, defeated. Storrington came towards her, his knife in his hands.

"Its time Susan, time for you to know what I know, but first..." he lifted the bag of money and stopped, a quizzical look upon his face. He turned the heavy bag upside down and emptied the contents over the floor.

Outside another sign above the counter started spelling out more words to Robert as he left quickly. 'Thank you, Robert, you have been most helpful, just leave the money bag behind the counter as we agree' it told him in recorded formality.

Robert did as he was told, pushing the bag he had brought behind the counter, then left. His legs felt weak. He had made it almost to the control room when he heard his name shouted.

"Robert!"

He turned around to see the stranger, still clad in leather, but looking rather stupid now, out of his element, standing outside the electronic shop. He was pointing the gun at him.

"Robert, I tried to help you, and this is how you treat me!" The man held up the bag Robert had just dropped off, and then he turned it upside down, emptying the remaining contents at his feet.

Crumpled torn newspapers spilled out onto the floor as Robert dived to his left and behind a pillar. He just made it as the gun barked and broken masonry showered his head as the bullet hit the wall behind him.

"You really shouldn't have done that, Robert!" The man shouted. "You could have had half and you could have been free, now I am afraid I will just have to kill you!"

Robert looked around desperately. Shit! When he had started this he had not thought it would come to guns! He looked for an escape from this madman, out towards the glass door nearby and then he saw them. Three men, all clothed in masks and holding machine guns, standing outside. Then doors exploded into fragments as they burst through. The explosion knocked Robert senseless, and he fell to the ground, his hearing damaged, as he watched a now silent movie unfold around him.

Two of the men very quickly passed him, jumping over him, but the third roughly grabbed him and spun him face down, his knee hard into Roberts back, pulling his arms behind him, and tying his wrists tightly.

His hearing came back just a little; as he heard more shots ring out, but then stop. Roberts view was restricted to the floor, as a gun forced his head onto the ground. A pair of polished shoes eventually appeared in front of his eyes, it was all he could see. He could make out his own distorted reflection in the shiny toecap. Robert was hauled up, and he found himself standing in front of Mr Jarvis.

"Well, Mr Bains, what have we been up to?"

"Hello, Mr Jarvis..." Robert said a bit stupidly.

"I suppose we should thank you, you know..."

"Thank me?"

"Yes, thank you, if it had not been for you, I am not sure we would have caught our now dead friend over there..." He nodded towards a group of men standing around the body of the man who had, until very recently, been about to kill him.

"Who is he?" Robert asked, before adding "The girl! Is she alright?"

"Nobody important, well, not now anyway... and the girl is fine, no thanks to you!"

"But I was going to help her!" Robert protested. "I was on my way to call help when you guys burst in!"

"Sure you were" Jarvis replied uninterestedly.

"And who the hell are you exactly, anyway?" Robert was now feeling completely unsure of where he stood than ever before, and he needed some sort of explanation as to what had been going on.

"I am with 'Homeland Security', and we have been trying to nab this guy for a very long time, we knew he was operating from around here, but we never thought he would actually be here, right under our noses...very clever bastard." Jarvis shook his head.

"You have had me under surveillance?" Robert asked, surprised.

"Oh yes, Robert, after all, someone has to watch over the watchers, don't they?" He smiled a particularly nasty smile at Robert. Then he turned away dismissively.

"Take our Mr Bains away..." He nodded towards the guard who was holding him.

But as he was led away, Robert, in a last show of defiance, turned back and shouted at Jarvis.

"But who watches you, Jarvis? Who watches you...?"

"Oh, nobody watches me, Bains, for I really am - the watchman."