Endless Doors, Secret Windows

By John Zarzynski

Alex Cannon is 14 years old in 1968 and will soon graduate from a poor Catholic school on Chicago's South Side. He is still coping with his mother's death three years earlier when during a recess basketball game at school, his life is saved by a scream from a new student which not only warns him of an imminent explosion on the school grounds but uses his secret name - a name only known to Alex and his late mother.

Thus begins his friendship with Jimmy O'Day; a boy possessed of an extraordinary gift of foresight but who believes he is cursed by his frequent and terrifying visions of death.

Jimmy's visions soon begin to focus on an overwhelming evil he calls The Dark Sun; a serial killer who is terrorizing the city. Along with his new friend Alex, he is sent to rural Wisconsin to spend the summer with his grandmother, Evelyn Driscoll. She is a powerful seer who for decades has controlled the chaos of her visions by confining them to her beloved "Doors and Windows"; a wondrous place that resembles an old hotel, except that its corridors seem endless. There is energy behind each door and if you are invited to unlock it, the window within will reveal a scene from the future.

From this secret place Jimmy and Alex will engage in a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with the most brutal killer in Chicago history since Richard Speck.

• Language: English
• Publisher: John Zarzynski
• Release date: May 1, 2017
• ISBN: 9781370240326

John Zarzynski

John Zarzynski is an attorney and writer who lives in Tempe, Arizona with his wife, Georgia.

Book preview

ENDLESS DOORS

SECRET WINDOWS

By

John Zarzynski

Copyright © 2017 John R. Zarzynski

All rights reserved.

Distributed by Smashwords

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Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

(1)

The very first time he heard the new kid’s voice, it was screaming at him to run. It was so fierce that it hit him like a shockwave and for a moment he was paralyzed. He felt like a doomed gangster ankle deep in wet cement instead of a fourteen year old kid who had just taken a little break from the routine basketball game on St. Gregory’s playground. It wasn’t so much that he was being commanded to run although that was pretty damn scary. No, Alex was immobilized by the name the kid used which preceded the command. The boy had bellowed "Johnny Cooper-run!"

It was Alex Cannon’s secret name. He knew that no one else on the playground would have recognized it. No other student by that name was registered at St. Gregory’s and Alex knew of no other family in their little Chicago parish by the name of Cooper. It was a name he was called by only one person in the world and she had died three years earlier - his mother.

Moments before the scream, he had gone to the rusty old bubbler for a drink of water when he spotted the new kid talking with Nina Walfort and Sarah Germaine. They were two of the prettiest girls in the eighth grade class and Alex felt a flash of jealousy as he saw how giddy and stupid they were acting. They seemed to be competing for the kid’s attention - Sarah trying to coax him to look at something in one of her schoolbooks while Nina was leaning into her, nudging her to the side. Alex had seen them behave this way before, but it was when they were vying for his attention.

Who was this kid anyway? Alex knew he was another eighth grader because he had been introduced in his homeroom class although for the life of him he could not remember the name Sister Vivina had called him. At the time, he was more interested in the quiet confident nod the kid had given the class as he took his seat. Not arrogant, not shy - just a nod that said, Okay, I’m a new kid but I’ll get through this day and then everything should be fine.

Alex had ignored the calls from the other players to rejoin the game as he watched the new kid. It was May, 1968, and school was almost out for the summer. Who the hell starts a new school a week before the end of the year? He figured the guy must have been expelled but he did not look like some grease-ball truant. True, he was dressed in a light jacket that looked like it had been around the block a few times but there was nothing wrong with that. Alex’s clothes weren’t exactly new and this neighborhood wasn’t exactly Lakeshore Drive. The kid looked comfortable to Alex but now he suddenly felt embarrassed that the schoolyard playground was such a mess - a couple of old tires that some asshole had tossed away now marked the out-of-bounds on each side of the basketball court; potholes everywhere; bikes lying around haphazardly instead of parked in the damn bike rack. This kid is probably going to hate it here, Alex worried.

Why am I worried about what this kid thinks of this shitty playground, Alex thought. He was starting to get angry at himself. This kid should worry about impressing ME. I’m the captain of every team in this stupid school. I’m the one they are holding up the game for. I’m the one the nuns come to when they have a problem with a kid in school and they want to know if everything is alright at the kid’s home.

Satisfied that he was now thinking more clearly, Alex gave the new kid one last look before re-entering the basketball game. Donny Hansen had just dived for the ball that had gone out-of-bounds and was lying at his feet, grinning and looking sheepish. The new kid suddenly jerked his head towards him and locked his eyes squarely on Alex’s. In that instant, the gaze was so piercing, so urgent, that Alex felt like the kid was inside his skull. That is when he heard him scream, "Johnny Cooper-run!"

Alex could see the mouth of the new kid frozen on the word, run! He could see the scared looks on the faces of Nina and Sarah. He could see the wide-eyes and confusion of the other players on the basketball court. But now Alex knew that there were two things he was compelled to do: grab Donny’s shirt and run like he never had before.

So that is precisely what he did. He slid his fingers inside the neck of Donny’s sweatshirt and grabbed a fistful. He started to sprint at the same time that he lifted and jerked. He and Donny were fifteen feet away before the echo of the scream had faded. And in the instant after Alex and Donny had vacated the spot where Donny had fallen, the asphalt exploded with a fury that made the scream seem like a muted whisper. Rock, metal and flame burst sixty feet into the air. The ground shook hard enough to knock every kid on the playground off of their feet, except for Alex. The debris rose until it reached its crescendo and then it began to rain down on the two story school and any kid who was unlucky enough to get in the way. Alex watched as the rock and metal fell mostly on the roof. When he looked back down, he saw three of his classmates were bleeding from cuts on the head and arms. They didn’t look too bad and some of them were crying.

Alex realized that he had not even turned around when the explosion tore a hole, three feet in diameter in the schoolyard. Yes, he flinched hard and his ears went momentarily deaf from the shockwave so that all he could do was see, but not hear, the debris crashing down on the roof. He was still staring at the face of the new kid, who had fallen on the asphalt and whose eyes were skyward, his mouth hanging open. Alex knew without the slightest doubt that he and Donny, whose sweatshirt was still locked in his hand, would be dead if he had not been commanded to run. The kid had saved his life.

He watched him now as the boy picked himself off of the ground. He was shorter than Alex, maybe 5’8 to his 5’10, and he looked to be a good fifteen pounds lighter but he moved like an athlete as he helped Nina and Sarah to their feet. They were looking at the new kid with blank expressions. When their faces turned to each other, they burst into tears and their cries spread to the other girls like a rolling wave. Soon, every girl on the playground was wailing as they hugged and checked each other for injuries. The boys walked zombie-like toward Alex, gathered behind him, and stared in the direction of the new kid.

* * *

Alex saw a half dozen nuns burst out of the school and run in all directions to the small pockets of students spread throughout the playground, many of whom were still sitting on the asphalt. Sister Vivina, who looked to Alex like she was a hundred and ten years old, raced towards him. He felt a sharp tug on his arm and realized he was still holding onto Donny’s sweatshirt and Donny clearly wanted no part of the sprinting Sister. He willed open his cramped fist and Donny ran toward the street and in an instant he was around the corner. When he looked back toward his teacher, he saw her standing over the gaping hole, almost obscured by the rising smoke and steam, standing shoulder to shoulder with the new kid.

Alex heard the sirens in the distance as he walked the fifteen feet to the hole. The twenty other boys who had gravitated toward him stayed back, content to let Alex be their eyes. The new kid looked at him and shook his head slightly. Alex knew he was being asked not to say a word about the scream.

Okay, don’t worry about it, he said.

Don’t worry about what, Alex? asked a suddenly angry Sister Vivina. Don’t worry about an explosion that could have killed you and a dozen others? Don’t worry about whether another one is about to hit at any second? Just what exactly shouldn’t I be worried about, Mr. Cannon!

Alex was unprepared for this attack and was unsettled by the look of panic in the eyes of his teacher. Before he had to speak, the new kid jumped in.

Don’t worry, Sister. It’s all over now. Nothing else is going to happen. And nobody got hurt very bad.

Alex saw her eyes flutter. He could tell she still wanted to be mad; still wanted to argue but somehow the words whispered by the new kid had helped to ease her panic. She paused, took a deep breath and moved with authority to the group of boys behind him, telling them to line up in single file so she could check for injuries and get a head count. The other nuns followed her lead and began organizing the students in their immediate area. No one bothered Alex or the new kid as they stood side by side at the hole. Alex’s knees still felt a little shaky but the kid next to him seemed calm as hell. His shoulders were hunched and his hands were jammed in his pockets but his eyes were clear and focused. They watched in silence as police cars, fire engines, and even a van from WGN screamed to a stop right on the playground. Alex watched the row of houses across the street spit out the parents who lived there - parents desperate to see their child standing upright and not blown all to hell.

I’ve never seen anything like this, said Alex as he surveyed the growing chaos.

Me neither, said the new kid. You think your dad will come?

Nah, said Alex. He wondered if the kid who knew his secret name also knew his mother was dead. How about you? Your mom or dad here yet?

They’ll be here soon, I’m sure. And Coop, I’m real sorry about your mom.

Thanks, said Alex, but if you know she’s dead, you know it’s been a long time now.

I know, but -

Hey Cannon! What’s happening up there? A voice came up from the hole in the asphalt and mingled with the rising steam. Alex recognized it but had never heard him speak with such fear before.

You okay, Mr. Casey? asked Alex. He brushed away the steam from his eyes and bent over to get a better look at the school janitor. He was peering into the basement at what looked like an office, if you could call it that. A small cot was shredded, a radio was in pieces, and a dozen mops were broken up and scattered about. What looked like the bottom half of a furnace stood in the middle of the small room, still smoldering. Mr. Casey emerged from the shadows and Alex could see his face covered in soot and blood oozing just below his hairline.

You’re bleeding, Mr. Casey. Come on up, said Alex.

Anybody bleeding up there? he asked Alex, who detected a slur in his voice. Alex knew then that the janitor was drunk. He sounded like his dad and he knew that kind of voice all too well.

"It’s not too bad. I think everybody is okay. What happened, Mr. Casey? The janitor grimaced with disgust.

My fucking Shenango. It got too hot, I guess. Too much dust - too much gas - who the hell knows. Guess I shoulda been watching it closer, he said as he spied a miraculously unbroken pint of whiskey standing upright on the floor in the corner.

Alex did not know what a Shenango was but he assumed he was referring to what was once a furnace.

Come on up, Mr. Casey, said the new kid, It’s too hot down there.

Who the hell are you? asked the janitor as he took a pull from his bottle.

I’m Jimmy O’Day. I’m new.

Yeah? Well I’m Mr. Fucked and I’m old. Pleased to meet ya.

Alex and Jimmy’s laugh was drowned out by the sirens and roar of the two more fire trucks that rolled onto the playground. They turned and watched as a fireman jumped from the lead engine and began waving his arms and directing other fireman to small groups of students spread out across the schoolyard. Alex had never seen so many adults moving so fast before in his life. It made him nervous but this Jimmy O’Day looked unconcerned and half-amused.

Hey, do me a favor, will ya? Don’t call me Coop around anybody else. Nobody knows that name and it’s kinda…

I won’t., Jimmy answered. You’re not going to say anything about me yelling like that, are you?

Not me, but it was loud as hell and there were a lot of us around. So how’d ya know? asked Alex.

Know what? Your secret name or that the furnace was gonna blow?

That my mom was dead, Alex choked. He had never uttered Mom and dead in the same sentence before and he sure as hell was not about to cry in front of the kid who just saved his life.

I’m not supposed to talk about it, Jimmy said as he looked away. Alex saw him scanning the crowd now as if he was looking for someone and he sensed his new friend was changing from calm to nervous to close to panic.

It gets me nothing but trouble, Jimmy said as he continued to investigate the growing crowd and the chaos on the playground. This kid is going to bolt like Donny Hansen did, Alex thought, so he reached out and held the sleeve of Jimmy’s jacket. His friend tried to pull away as he stared at two adults about twenty feet away. Both were slowly walking toward them. The cop was in the lead and looked to be smiling at them but the dark haired man behind him was not smiling at all and, in fact, looked like he was pissed.

You gotta let me go! I gotta get out of here! Jimmy pleaded as Alex held his arm. The moment he relaxed his grasp, Jimmy pulled a Donny Hansen and raced to the street with a fluid burst of speed and he was around the corner in the blink of an eye.

Hey! What the hell! said the cop as he walked up to Alex. I need to talk to that kid! Alex looked past the cop at the dark haired man who veered left and walked away, staring at him and now looking very pissed indeed.

What was that about? asked the cop who did not appear to notice the man who had just been behind him.

I guess he had to go. He said his parents would be worried, said Alex.

But the other kids are saying he’s a hero - that he warned you just before the explosion. Is that true? Alex remained silent.

They’re saying you moved out of the way just in time and that you dragged another kid with you. So I guess that would make you a hero, too. So tell me, is any of this true? asked the cop.

Alex did not like cops very much but this one had a friendly lilt to his voice, unlike the others he had met who only seemed to bark orders at him. He thought for a few seconds before answering.

I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, he said before he turned and walked slowly toward the street.

(2)

Jimmy tried hard to control his breathing as he walked to school on the third day after the explosion. It was only four blocks away and he didn’t have much time to stop his hands from shaking. If he was going to fit in at St. Gregory’s, he could not be seen as some jumpy kid who was scared of his own shadow.

The school had been closed for two days and Jimmy considered exploring his new neighborhood or maybe joining his new friend Alex in celebrating an unexpected vacation. Instead, he locked himself away in his room. At first his parents tried to coax him out, and he felt bad that he was worrying them, but he just couldn’t leave. Nancy, his ten year-old sister, tried yelling at him to come out and even started crying. All he could muster was the energy to open the door, give her a hug, and tell her he was okay and he would be out soon.

The only way he could keep the visions at bay was if he was alone in his room. And even that did not always work. But he knew for certain that they would come in droves if he went outside. For reasons he could not understand, just doing the normal activities any fourteen year old boy would do seemed to trigger an explosion of images in his head. And these were not pretty images, either. They were visions of things to come - people dying horrible, unexpected deaths in car wrecks, plane crashes, and even being murdered.

He had visions as far back as he could remember and at first they were sort of fun. If someone lost a wallet, he always knew just where to find it. He knew Aunt Jane was going to have a baby before she did. His dad even made a few bucks betting on the Cubs when Jimmy would tell him it was the right time. Parlor tricks, his grandmother would call them with an edge in her voice, as if he was not taking the visions seriously enough.

But two years ago, the fun stopped and now all he saw was ugly and bloody. And they were accelerating at a pace that kept him in a constant state of panic. What the fuck was he supposed to do about it anyway? Most of the visions were of people he did not know and of places far away. Like the two boys about his age who lived in Ireland and claimed to be his cousins. But they were dressed in clothes that belonged to an era hundreds of years ago. Not even of the here and now. They needed his help and acted like they could help him as well. These were the visions that made him feel completely insane. He swore he would never tell anyone about the cousins, not even Grams. He sure as hell didn’t want to be locked away in some dirty asylum. Was he destined to be nothing more than a powerless bystander? Was he destined to watch them die the horrible death he knew was coming? To watch them turn their heads to him and ask, Are you going to help? He wanted to scream back that there was nothing he could do but he knew better. There must be something but he just could not see it.

Now, in the last three months, the visions were getting worse but at least they seemed to be in the present or very near future. He knew most of the people or at least recognized them. So instead of standing back and doing nothing, he decided he had to intervene. At first, it worked. He talked his dad into keeping their next door neighbor, Mr. Galoon, home from work on a day he knew another employee would go crazy and shoot up the place. Mr. Galoon would have been a goner. But then came Emily Hoag and his world turned upside-down.

Jimmy thought of Emily sitting in his eighth-grade class at his old school, Mother of Good Counsel. She had always been a quiet one, probably because she was a little overweight and her skin broke out worse than the other kids. But she went from being quiet to being creepy-quiet. Jimmy saw that she stopped washing her hair and even brushing her teeth and she was missing a lot of school days, too. The other kids started to be meaner to her than they ever had before - holding their noses and snickering at her whenever she passed in the hallway. Emily did not seem to care. She had a vacant look in her deep blue eyes that reminded Jimmy of an empty ocean.

A month ago, Jimmy had been staring at the back of her head in class when the images came upon him like a series of sonic booms. He saw her in her room at night, scrunched under the covers and holding them tight under her chin. Her eyes were not empty then - they were filled with terror. Jimmy heard the door to her room open and saw the light from the hallway splash upon her bed before her father shut the door. The rest of the images made him so sick that he threw up right there in the class. That shit-head not only raped his own daughter but convinced her that it was her fault and that it was a sin that she tempted him so much.

So Jimmy waited for her after school. The other kids who filed past him in the parking lot didn’t tease him about getting sick in class. Jimmy knew they wouldn’t, he was too popular for that and the worst anyone said was that he sure smelled up the class. When Emily finally came out, Jimmy told her that he was going to walk her home. She did not protest but she did not look at him either.

I’m gonna tell somebody about what your dad is doing to you, he said.

She stopped and glared at him, holding her school-books tight against her chest, just like she scrunched up her bedtime covers.

What are you talking about, she hissed.

You know what I’m talking about. It ain’t right and I’m gonna tell somebody.

Jimmy could tell from her face that she was not going to deny it. She may not know how he knew but it was clear that they now shared her secret.

You keep your fucking mouth shut, Jimmy O’Day, she said in a harsh whisper. It’s none of your business

Maybe not, but now that I know, what am I supposed to do? I can’t just do nothing.

Her tears started to fall then, followed by sobs that she tried to keep in her throat. Jimmy thought she might choke on them.

It’s not his fault - it’s my fault, she said in a quiet voice.

Bullshit, Em.

No, Jimmy, please! You can’t tell. I’ll make him stop, I promise! Don’t tell, okay? She was begging.

If he believed her, he probably would have kept her secret. But the images came again - more sonic booms that made him wince and made his eyes water. The last one was of Emily standing naked in her bathroom, staring at herself in the mirror, her wrists spurting blood into the basin with each beat of her heart.

So Jimmy told his parents the whole story. They did not question him - never once asked him, Are you sure? His father simply walked with Jimmy the two blocks to the Vliet Street police station and reported the crime. But as Jimmy’s bad luck would have it, the cop who took the report was Emily’s father’s best friend. When Jimmy’s dad told a small lie that Emily confided in his son, the cop almost spat on the floor.

This is complete bullshit. Jack would never do such a thing to his own child. Your son is full of shit.

Jimmy saw his father’s face redden and he could feel his anger rising.

I don’t care what you think about your friend or even my son. I’m reporting a serious crime and by God, you’ll investigate it or there will be hell to pay, you understand? His voice was loud enough that the lobby of the station, crowded with a dozen citizens and cops, grew quiet.

Oh I’ll investigate alright but if your son is making a false report, I’ll arrest his ass!

Jimmy was not surprised when Emily denied everything. But her father’s cop-friend did not like the look in her eye because he threatened to take her to the hospital to have her private parts checked out. Jimmy had no idea what that meant but it scared the shit out of Emily. Scared her so much that she told the cop that it was Jimmy who was forcing himself on her after school in an empty garage near her home.

Jimmy could not believe it when the cop-friend came to their house and threatened to arrest him. He had even dragged Emily along with him. Jimmy could not hear the angry exchange between the cop and his dad because he was staring too intently at Emily. She was staring back at him without blinking. There was nothing in those eyes - just that big empty ocean.

Jimmy was not arrested that day or any other. He figured Emily must have recanted but he never knew for sure. But they did kick his ass right out of school and only ten days before the end of the year. And they had to move, too, from the only house he had ever lived in. His dad said it was so they could be closer to his new school. Jimmy did not have to have visions to know that explanation was bullshit. There was no way his dad would live in a neighborhood where everyone thought his kid was a pervert.

So much for trying to help people, Jimmy thought, as the playground at St. Gregory’s came into sight. He would never make that mistake again. Hell, maybe the next time he would be arrested. Maybe his dad would get fired. And for what? For nothing, that’s what. Emily is still getting raped and will die in less than a year. They’ll all die - everyone in every fucking vision I have.

Jimmy! Alex’s shout felt like a slap in the face. Alex was smiling and jogged over to greet him at the edge of the playground.

Where you been, O’Day? he asked as he tossed Jimmy a football. He just stared at it in his hands, the rage he felt from a moment ago still burning.

Man, you look like you want to chuck that thing right in my face, Alex laughed. Lighten up, wouldya?

Jimmy forced a faint smile and tossed the football back to Alex, who led him through the playground toward the school. A few of the boys called out to Alex, asking to be thrown the ball, but he ignored them and kept it tucked in the crook of his arm. They walked by a group of four girls - probably seventh-graders - and two of them made the Sign of the Cross as they passed. What the hell is that about, Jimmy thought?

Alex just laughed again. They must think you’re some kind of saint - a miracle worker.

Huh?

Poor Jimmy. Girls don’t put out for no saint - they’d be afraid of going to hell. Alex thought this was hysterical. Don’t worry about it, Jimmy-boy. You weren’t going to get none anyway. They’re all hot for me!

Jimmy could not help laughing. His rage and anger were gone - maybe for the first time in a month. He wanted to believe he could put things right in his life. That he would not have to be scared all of the time, that he would not humiliate his parents or make his sister cry. And he was starting to like this Alex kid. He always thought that he had the worst luck in the world but now, with Alex, maybe things would turn. Yeah, right.

(3)

Jimmy sat on the bike rack after school, waiting for Alex. He supposed his new friend was going to ask him about his day and he did not know how he was going to explain it. Alex had told him to expect that the other students would treat Jimmy with some respect. After all, his scream had saved two kids. And in fact, all his classmates had been as nice and friendly as they could be at their age without appearing uncool. But what Jimmy did not expect the hostility of the nuns, especially Sister Vivina.

It was not until his fourth hour writing class that Jimmy realized that he had been assigned seats in all of his classes that kept him far away from any of the girls. Shit. They heard about Emily and they must all think I’m a pervert. He did not think the students noticed anything out of the ordinary, even when his history teacher who had been smiling and laughing at an answer given by Sarah Germaine suddenly settled her gaze upon him. The smile disappeared, her lips pursed like only a nun’s can do, and she looked away. How was he going to explain that to Alex who was watching the whole thing?

Hey! St. Jimmy, get over here! Alex was flanked by three other boys but seemed to be dismissing them in favor of Jimmy.

I’m headed over to the club, Alex continued. I can’t promise anything, but there’s a pretty good chance the other guys would vote you in as a member, if I backed you. Come on.

Club? I don’t know about joining any club, said Jimmy. He looked around and could not imagine what kind of a club would be located in this neighborhood. Was Alex some sort of rich kid? Was he suggesting that they go to one of those fancy Chicago golf courses he had heard about? If not, it was not likely that they would be the fast friends he had hoped for.

It’s not that kind of club, Alex said. It’s just down the street off Vliet.

As they began to walk, Jimmy started to relax. Vliet Street near the school was lined with old businesses that looked like they had been there forever. He now saw grocery stores, a drug store, even an old boarded up movie theatre. No fancy clubs here, that’s for sure.

Louie’s Drug Store was on the corner of Vliet and Third. Jimmy let Alex lead him to an area outside the back of the store through an alley. A high brick wall shielded it from Third Street. They entered through an alley courtyard that was littered with an old stained mattress, two broken down lawn chairs, piles of books and magazines misshapen by the weather, and about a ton of cigarette butts. Jimmy spotted a rusted coffee can half-filled with pennies. Okay, he could feel at home here. It was enclosed enough that kids would be away from the eyes of ever-present adults who were sure to put a stop to any fun fourteen year old boys liked to get into.

We come here after school and on weekends, Alex said. Louie lets us hang out here. He’s a pretty good guy. We stopped some kids from St. Leo’s from stealing all of Louie’s cigarette displays. We don’t let nobody steal from Louie.

Jimmy watched as Alex sat down on the edge of the dirty mattress. He reached under it and pulled out a deck of cards and started absently dealing two