I Have My Eyes on You

By Mayra Castaneda

Darrian Collins is recently divorced and is starting over in Austin, Texas. She has a job at a restaurant and is studying at the same time while trying to meet new people. Her older sister Danielle Collins lives in the same city, and she is pushing for her younger sister to go out on dates and be more sociable. While Darrian is living a simple and quiet life, her sister invites her out so she can hang out with the friends she regularly goes out with.

This is where Darrian meets Danielle's coworkers/friends. She is introduced to two young men named Timothy and Michael and a young woman named Amber.

To everyone's surprise, Michael and Darrian get along and start dating. This makes Danielle very happy knowing that her little sister is having fun and isn't lonely once again.

This, however, makes other people very angry, and in time, Darrian will find herself in a cat-and-mouse game. She begins to be harassed and receive strange and dark gifts from a person she doesn't know.

As time goes by, she starts to wonder if the person sending her things is a stranger after all. Maybe...just maybe...the danger is a lot closer than it seems.

Danielle is the only person whom Darrian can trust, and together they try to keep each other safe.

While Darrian's quiet and peaceful life is turned upside down by this tangled web of lies, there is also a sinister and dark secret the city of Austin holds. Someone has been kidnapping and murdering young females during the night.

Could all the kidnappings and Darrian's stalking be connected? Or is it the work of an ex-lover who holds a grudge on Darrian for trying to have a new love life.

Humans have always had a dark side and can commit horrible acts. In this terrifying story you must remember that someone is always watching!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Newman Springs Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Nov 8, 2023
• ISBN: 9798887637334

Book preview

Table of Contents

Title

Copyright

Prologue

1: New Beginnings

Leaving the Past Behind to Make a New Start

2: The Gathering

An Occasion When People Come Together as a Group or in a Crowd

3: Alluring

Powerful and Mysteriously Attractive or Exciting; Irresistibly Seductive

4: Reset Button

Out with the Old and in with the New

5: Affection

A Gentle Feeling toward Another

6: Carefree

Unworried, Untroubled; Very Relaxed and Happy

7: Confused

Lacking Order and Finds It Difficult to Comprehend a Situation

8: Denial

The Action of Declaring Something to Be Untrue

9: Prowling

A Person or Animal in Search of Its Prey

10: Anger

A Strong Feeling of Annoyance, Displeasure, or Hostility

11: Confidence

A Feeling of Self-Assurance Arising from One's Appreciation of One's Own Abilities or Qualities

12: Aggression

The Action or Act of Attacking without Provocation

13: Deception

The Act of Obtaining Something You Want by Fraud, Double-Dealing, or Trickery

14: Intuition

A Thing That One Knows or Considers Likely from Instinctive Feeling rather than Conscious Reasoning

15: Alarmed

Frightened or Concerned That One May Be in Danger

16: Instigating

Inciting Someone to Do Something, Especially Something Bad

17: Hostility

Unfriendly Behavior, Acts of Warfare

18: Repercussions

An Unintended Consequence Occurring Sometime After an Event or Action, Especially an Unwelcome One

19: Deceitful

Intentionally Misleading Others

20: Cruel Intentions

The Desire to Inflict Severe Pain and Suffering on Others

21: Recuperation

Recovery from Illness or Exertion

22: Thrill Kills

Premeditated or a Random Murder That Is Motivated By the Sheer Excitement of the Act

23: Jealousy

Feeling or Showing Envy of Someone

24: Exoneration

The Action of Officially Absolving Someone from Blame, Vindication

25: Rancor

Bitterness or Resentfulness, Especially When Long Standing

26: Horrendous

Extremely Unpleasant, Horrifying, or Terrible

27: Conspire with the Enemy

Join in a Plot for a Common Interest or Purpose

28: DESPAIR

Loss of Hope

29: Foundation

Establishment or Basis

30: Charisma

Charming or Inspiring Quality

31: Vicious

Marked by Violence or Ferocity; Spiteful

32: Collision

Impact, Colliding, or Contact Most of the Time Leading to Disaster!

33: Rivals

A Thing or a Person Competing with Another for the Same Objective or for Superiority

34: Exposed

The Act of Revealing Secrets about Someone or Something

35: Heartless

Displaying a Complete Lack of Feeling or Consideration

36: Delusion and Deception

Making Someone Believe Something That Is Not True

37: Inferno

Being in Hell

38: Termination

The Act of Bringing Something to an End

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About the Author

cover.jpg

I Have My Eyes on You

Mayra Castaneda

Copyright © 2023 Mayra Castaneda

All rights reserved

First Edition

NEWMAN SPRINGS PUBLISHING

320 Broad Street

Red Bank, NJ 07701

First originally published by Newman Springs Publishing 2023

ISBN 979-8-88763-732-7 (Paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88763-733-4 (Digital)

Printed in the United States of America

For everyone who is a dreamer and a believer!

For my dad

Jose I. Rodriguez (March 16, 1952–July 9, 2019)

Thank you for always encouraging me to follow my dreams.

I will always have you in my heart.

For my mom

Arcelia G. Gonzalez (June 10, 1957–August 4, 2023)

Thank you for everything you have done for me.

I'm so proud of you for fighting through sickness and glad that you're still here with me.

Kalijah Wayne

Thank you for teaching me that people aren't always what they seem, and making me stronger.

Prologue

You could hear someone coming down the stairs. They turned the light on in the dark room.

There was an old wooden chair with scraped paint in the room. You could tell the chair had been yellow, but now most of its paint was chipped away. You could tell that the wood was still resistant even in its old condition.

It was placed in a dark and quiet windowless room, and now you could see that there was a young woman sitting on the old wooden chair. You could see that the woman was in pain because she was strapped to the chair; her hands were bound by rope in the back.

Her head was tilted down with her dark hair covering her face. At the right side of the room was a table that had a bunch of different tools. Among these items, there were some pruning shears that had dried blood on the blades. There was also a couple of hammers and knives that were all placed on the table.

Each item was covered with dried blood. One of the hammer still had hair; it was clear that it belonged to someone's scalp. When the woman finally awakened, she tried moving her hair slightly to the side so she could see who was in the room with her. She wanted to know where and why she was there and how she got there in the first place but had a horrible feeling it was not going to end well.

Since her hands were bound behind her, she could only move her hair slightly as she moved her head to the side. She could see that it was a tall man with muscular arms who was in the room with her.

She could not see his face all the way because he wore a baseball cap. She began to cry and tell him to let her go. Even with her cries and pleas, the man who stood in front of her just stayed calm and collected before he started speaking.

He explained that he was doing everything for them and that he was doing it out of love for her. This made her extremely upset since she didn't even know who the man who had taken her captive was.

How could you love me if I don't even know you and you have me tied up? she asked. You have me against my will, and I'm hurt. This isn't love! She yelled and sobbed, trying to get him to untie her from the dirty chair she was bound to.

You do know me. We have been talking for months now! he responded. I've been watching you for some time! he said to her as she struggled, trying to get free.

The woman looked confused and angry. She started yelling for him to let her go. I want to go home to my family and my boyfriend. Please let me go! She begged and pleaded in a desperate tone. She heard a cat making noise, and she remembered her pet. All she wanted was to be in her bed with her cat at home instead of this real-life nightmare.

She would give anything to be home again. She kept crying and begging for him to let her go.

You are home now, and I'm never going to let you go! the stranger said to her.

Her sadness and fear quickly dissipated and turned into hate. She started screaming and telling him how much she detested him and how she could never love a monster like him.

As he heard her angry tone and how she expressed herself toward him, he became angry. He quickly and violently slapped her so she would shut up and stop crying.

He finally looked at her and told her that if she was not going to be with him, then she was not going to be with anybody else. Her rejection had left him more unhinged.

He got the sharp shears and started cutting her fingers off her right hand. The woman screamed in agonizing pain as the blood smeared everywhere. In desperation, the young woman begged the man to kill her already. She knew she was never going to return home anyway. She just wanted the torture to stop.

The more she cried and tried to get away, the harder it was for her to get loose. She could see her life slipping away; she was in the hands of this psycho. The thoughts of never seeing her family and friends were heartbreaking.

He went and got the hammer and hit her head; blood dripped down her face. He saw how scared she was, and he told her that he was going to kill her and that it would be over soon.

1

New Beginnings

Leaving the Past Behind to Make a New Start

A young woman with black straight long hair was sitting in front of a computer, checking her emails. She had recently gotten a divorce and was currently living in an apartment. Darrian Collins had only been married for a year, but it was clear that things were not working out for either of them.

Darrian had been married to Edward McGee, but things didn't go as planned, so they decided it was better for both to get divorced and stay friends since the relationship wasn't getting better. They had no kids, meaning that it was not going to be a complicated and prolonged process. So after only a year, it was done. Darrian was only twenty-eight years old. She was a very petite woman with an average height of five feet four.

She was going to school to study for a psychology major. She wanted to become a licensed therapist to help children and women who had been victims of emotional abuse as well as domestic violence.

Darrian was a very heartwarming person. She was always looking for any way to help people. She knew that becoming a therapist would be a good career choice.

Darrian's apartment was in a middle-class neighborhood in Austin, Texas. Her building faced a huge park. It was great for her since she started jogging in the morning again. She had gotten lazy for a while, so she was trying to make a new routine for her life. Now that she was living alone, she had time to focus on herself.

The park was filled with tall trees; everything was so green and beautiful. The park had a wide trail to allow both runners and bike riders to have enough space without bumping into each other. The atmosphere was very serene, and she loved it.

Darrian had a sister who lived in the other side of town, so she was not alone; and she had her trusted companion—a dog named Pickles, a tan-furred Chihuahua. The small apple head breed dog was very playful and hyper. He had a long tail that curled over the end of the tail. He was always there to greet her when she arrived home.

Even though it had only been a year since her divorce, her sister was always trying to get her to go out on dates and have some fun. Her sister felt that some distractions and interactions with new people would be good for her.

Darrian had the usual social media accounts like Friendbook and Instamessage, but her sister was trying to push her to join dating sites.

Her sister shared some physical resemblance like their black hair. But Danielle's hair was short and curly. Both women had tan skin. Danielle had hazel eyes, and she loved to wear red lipstick. Danielle would get a lot of attention from men and women. She loved the attention people gave her.

That is why most of her friends were men. She was outgoing and not the introverted type. Danielle was thirty-one years old, being three years older than Darrian. So of course, she was always looking out for her baby sister.

Darrian, just like her sister, was an attractive young woman. Her straight long hair was just below her chest line. She had big brown eyes and a kind of smile that would light up the room. She had visible dimples, and every time she smiled, people would point it out.

Darrian used to be very sociable like Danielle, but things had changed after she got married. As the problems started and then increased in her home, she had become depressed and didn't talk to many people. She had closed herself, and now she didn't know how to be the confident person she once was.

Danielle Collins started taking Darrian out when she would hang out with her friends. Danielle knew it would not take long for one of her guy friends to ask Darrian out, so she hoped that her baby sister would be happy again. She wanted her to have fun and eventually start dating someone or at least have new friends.

All the friends whom she had introduced to Darrian were fine, but no one had really grabbed her attention to pursue anything more. They would just go out as friends, and that would be it.

That was about to change when out of the blue she decided to invite her to a night out for some drinks. Danielle hadn't given much thought to introducing her to the guys from work until tonight.

2

The Gathering

An Occasion When People Come Together as a Group or in a Crowd

One Thursday night after Darrian was done with school for the week and Danielle was out of work, they decided to go out. They ended up at a bar and grill called Luna. Luna was a nice place, and it looked expensive. It had a white-collar atmosphere. Most of the women and men looked like they worked in offices handling administrative jobs or professions like accounting. Darrian thought to herself as she looked around the place.

It made sense since her big sister worked in a real estate company. It was the perfect job for someone like Danielle, with her attitude and charming personality. She had no problems socializing with different types of clients.

Darrian felt a bit out of place since she was only a part-time waitress at a local diner. She was getting help through financial aid to pay for school, so with the money she made at the diner, she could afford her apartment. Danielle wanted to help Darrian and have her live with her, but Darrian was too stubborn, and she was trying to be as independent as possible.

She looked very nice tonight because she had borrowed a cocktail dress from her older sister. The beautiful cocktail dress was a dark-red color. It was an off-the-shoulder satin dress, and from the waist down, it had a wavy style to it. Danielle had invited three other friends; they had decided to meet up at 9:00 p.m. Both sisters had gotten there at 8:30 p.m. before anyone else.

This was the first time she was ever going to meet this group of friends. Since it was all people from her big sister's work, she had not been introduced to them. The two young women decided to wait by the bar side until the others got there. Then they would relocate to a table where they could all fit. It was 9:15 p.m. when two handsome men walked into Luna. Danielle quickly waved them down toward the bar side.

Hey, guys. This is my little sister Darrian. Darrian, meet Michael Cayce and Timothy Reed, both awesome guys and single! Danielle said with a huge smile and a wink to the guys.

Nice to meet you, Darrian responded.

Michael Cayce was tall with tanned light skin. He had brown eyes and short black hair and had a beautiful smile. He had a nice lean body, and you could tell he worked out.

Timothy Reed, on the other hand, had a very muscular body. He was tall, with light-brown and blonde hair and blue eyes. He was certainly what you would call a gym-devoted person, and it was obvious he took that very seriously.

Michael and Timothy both said hi as they shook her hand. Darrian blushed a little as both guys smiled. Thanks for the subtleness, sis! she said in a low voice to her older sister. They moved to a rectangle table that was located toward the back of the bar.

The wooden tables were a glossy mahogany color. "Who else are we waiting for? asked Michael.

Amber should be coming in a bit. She might be finding a parking spot, Danielle said.

Oh no, speaking of the devil, there she is, said Danielle. All three lifted their hands so she could see them.

Amber quickly saw them and approached the table. She hugged all of them and shook Darrian's hand. Amber Williams nice to meet you, Darrian.

Amber was a short girl; she had her hair dyed a dirty-blond color. She was thin and had a light complexion. Her long straight hair looked beautiful in the ponytail she wore tonight.

They each ordered some drinks; the girls had ordered margaritas on the rocks, and the two men grabbed some bourbon. Michael was sitting next to Darrian. Sitting across was Amber and Timothy. Danielle decided to sit on the end of the table, which was to the right of Darrian. The coworkers told stories about the weirdest things that had happened to them as they showed houses. Darrian just listened as they took turns telling their stories. Some were funny, and some were creepy.

Darrian noticed how Amber kept looking at Michael more than anything else. They were waiting for their food to arrive and continued drinking. While everyone was talking, Michael finally saw the chance to turn and talk to Darrian.

Hey, I don't want to make this weird or rush things since we just met, but can I have your cell phone number and maybe you will let me take you out sometime? Michael asked.

Darrian was surprised but excited. She did find him attractive; she loved the way his black hair looked. She gave Michael her cell number. Danielle was talking to Timothy, but when she saw what happened, she quickly turned her attention to them.

Wait a minute, are you guys actually going on a date? Danielle teased.

Michael started smiling, and Darrian gave her sister a huge saucer-eye look, meaning Shut up!

Well, that's my plan, Michael responded. Timothy and Danielle were laughing when Amber came back and sat at the table. She returned from the bathroom. What's going on? What's so funny? Amber asked.

Oh, nothing, just that Michael got Darrian's number. Maybe now he can go on an actual date, Timothy replied to Amber.

Amber looked stunned and was quiet for a few seconds as she heard Tim talking. Oh really! That is nice. Michael loves to be nice to people and make new friends, Amber said, looking directly at Darrian without blinking. Amber finally turned to Danielle and Timothy and asked if anyone wanted another drink so they could flag down a waitress.

Darrian could not explain it, but she felt so uncomfortable at the way Amber looked at her. It sent chills down her spine. She wondered if she had ever dated Michael. She tried to ignore the way she looked at her, but it was difficult.

She decided she would ask Danielle about it when they were alone. She did not want to do it in front of everyone at the bar. It was close to 11:00 p.m. Danielle