by S. S. Sahoo
“Why do I need a bodyguard?” I whisper yelled at him once we were at a safe distance away from both of the man.
I looked back at them and saw Max glaring at him while he looked around obviously ignoring Max’s stare.
“That’s because I said so,” Zachary said and pulled his hand out of my grip harshly.
“And don’t touch me” he sneered.
“Why? Do I have germs on my hand?” I sneered back.
“Shut up!” he said.
“You shut up!” I retorted back.
“Listen!” he said in a deadly low tone.
“I have told you before and I’m repeating this again for the last time. Don’t question me” he said and I glared at him crossing my hands over my chest.
“Now behave and keep quiet while I talk,” he said and grabbed me by my arm and dragged me back to both of them.
“You will have to guard my wife 24×7,” Zachary said to that guy and I scoffed at him turning my head to the other side I rolled my eyes when I felt him tightening his grip on my arm.
“Look at him, when he was the one who told me not to touch him a few minutes ago,” I thought.
“He can touc- grab me but if I touch him-” my thoughts were cut off when Zachary said.
“Did you hear what I said?” he asked and I nodded even though I didn’t have any idea what he said.
“I still don’t think this is a good ide-” Max shut his mouth when Zachary gave him a stare which looked as if he was warning him to shut up.
“You were crying early about being bored. So, now you can go out” Zachary said and immediately hope of freedom lit up inside me until he threw a bucket of water on it.
“But he will be with you all the time wherever you go and wherever you are except the time you are with me,” Zachary said.
“But why do I even need a bodyguard?” I shrieked and the man shrugged his shoulders.
“For your safety” was Zachary’s curt answer.
“But who has the power to harm me except you?” I muttered to myself to which Zachary asked in a low tone “What was that?”
“Nothing,” I told him.
I looked at the man who still had this strange smile on his face.
“What’s so amusing? Why is he smiling?” I wondered.
“Take care of my wife,” Zachary said and the man nodded.
“I will. You can trust me boss!” he said and Max scoffed beside him crossing his arms over his chest.
“Your duty begins from now onwards,” Zachary said to him and he smiled nodding at me.
“Oh! I forgot to tell you my name ma’am” that man said and I waited for him to continue.
“Hello! My name is Willi Simmel” and all of a sudden something clicked inside me as and I found his name very familiar as if I had heard his name from somewhere.
21
“Aww! It’s a beautiful day today” I said to myself and stretched my arms into the air but a moment later glared back at Willi who was following.
“Why are you following me?” I asked irritated.
“I’m your bodyguard,” he said and I rolled my eyes.
“But I’m inside the house perimeter. It’s just the garden” I said as I walked towards the bench to sit down. I could see Zachary’s men standing nearby.
So why do I need a bodyguard?
“Inside the perimeter or outside the perimeter, I have to do my work,” he said and smiled at me when I took a seat on the bench. He stood next to me and looked around.
I sighed and rested my head on my palm.
This is the first time when Zachary allowed me to walk out of the house, technically inside the house perimeter but here I am being followed like a father follows his three-year-old kid.
“C’mon! Can’t I have some time alone?” I said.
“Hey!” I turned a little from my position and said to Willi.
“I have never seen you before here,” I said and he nodded smiling.
“But why do I think as if I had already heard your name somewhere from before?” I asked and he tilted his head still smiling.
“Am I famous?” he asked all of a sudden excited.
“What th-” I thought.
“No! I mean how come you ended yourself as my bodyguard?” I asked to which he only shrugged his shoulders and gave me a smile.
“What’s with his smiling?” I thought.
“Why are you always smiling?” I asked and he looked up as if he was thinking then looked back at me and shrugged his shoulders. Again.
I gave him an incredulous look and turned around.
“Why does Zachary is the only person in this world who has such type of strange people surrounding him?” I thought and furrowed my eyebrows looking back at Willi.
I huffed out air and leaned against the bench crossing my hands over my chest.
“Well! I understood that you were just doing your work. But why are you following me inside the house?” I yelled at Willi to which he just shrugged and gave me a smile.
“I am doing my work” he replied.
“What work? Why do you need to follow me inside the house? Just go outside!” I said pointing my finger towards the door.
“I have an order from the boss,” he said which made me ball my fists in anger.
“Of course! Zachary” I gritted out.
“Tell me something,” I said.
Willi looked towards me with a questioning look.
“Are you really my bodyguard?” a frown marred his face and he furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.
“Tell me the truth! Has Zachary kept you to make me mad right? You are here to disturb my nervous system?” I said and he gave me an incredulous look but minutes later composed himself and the same stupid smile was back on his face.
“Oh, whatever!” I said throwing my hands into the air.
I walked back towards my room with him trailing behind me like a tail.
I walked into the room and shut the door on his face.
“Will he guard me inside my room too?” I thought.
I knew he was standing outside the door, guarding me.
I sighed and went towards the couch where I sat and leaned my head against it.
What Zachary told me earlier flooded back into my mind.
Look! If you want to talk to your father then you need to behave and let Willi guard you without any disturbance or stupidity.
I’m giving you two choice.
One, let Willi guard you and soon I’ll let you talk to your father.
Two, create a disturbance and you won’t be allowed to even step outside of that room ever and let’s forget about talking to your father.
When he said that, I stood there in shock. How can a man say that?
But in my case, Zachary could because he wasn’t any ordinary guy after all.
I rolled around and rested my head on my elbow.
“I am bored!” I pouted.
I got up from the couch and went inside the walk-in closet where I took a blue button-up shirt and black jeans.
I changed myself into it and brushed my hair and left it down. I applied some eyeliner and mascara on my eyes and a pink lipstick on my lips.
I took my handbag and opened the door to find Willi standing next to the door with his legs crossed and he had his hands stuffed into his pant pockets.
Though I felt bad for him and I felt a little concern growing inside me for him, but all my concern was washed away when he looked back at me and smiled getting attentive.
I looked at his appearance. A brown leather jacket with a black shirt underneath and black jeans with shoes.
His brown hair was ruffled backward and if I looked closely than I could see a small tattoo on his neck.
“Are you checking me out? But you are married” he said smugly which I wanted badly wanted to slap out of his face.
“You wish!” I said and walked away from him and I knew he was following me.
“Where are we going?” he asked and
I rolled my eyes when I heard the word ‘we’.
“I don’t know,” I said.
“I am bored and as I’m allowed to go out of the house” I looked back at him “of course with you tailing behind me, I want to go somewhere maybe sight seeing. I have never been to Romania before” I said and he nodded.
When we were outside, I asked a man to bring the car.
He took his phone out and I knew he called Zachary. Then he nodded and asked another man to bring the car. I stood there waiting and finally, a sleek black car came into view.
Three men came out from the car and one held the door open for me to get in.
“Wait!” I said looking at the three other men.
“Will you all be accompanying me?” I asked and all of them nodded.
“But I already had him with me,” I said gesturing at Willi.
“Boss asked us to do. He will be guarding you and boss told us that you are not allowed to go out of the house without us” one of them spoke and I clenched my teeth.
I got inside the car and the man closed the door. Willi sat on the front seat and thankfully the other three chose to take another car after us.
“Why am I under such tight security?” I muttered rubbing my forehead.
“Where do you want to go?” the driver asked and Willi looked towards me turning from his seat.
“I don’t know,” I said and looked out of the window.
“Take me to some museum maybe,” I said and the driver obliged. I looked behind from the back screen the other car following us.
“This one is closer. We will go here” I heard the driver talking on his phone.
He was talking to the other man who was behind our car.
“We are here!” the driver said and I looked out of the windscreen to see ‘Cluj-Napoca Bánffy Palace’.
I got out of the car and saw the other car parking next to our car.
Willi was by my side the whole time when we were inside the Palace. The other chased the poor guide away telling him that they could guide me to the place.
After that, we went to many other places. It was very awkward when people looked towards me because I was surrounded by five grown and built men from all the direction who looked around continuously for any threat.
It turns out that the driver was also one of Zachary’s men who were asked to follow me wherever I went. Here, I was sulking for those four men following me and one was added to it eventually.
I would click my tongue in irritation whenever they would chase away any man who came even five centimeters close to my radius.
In the old town, we went to an outdoor restaurant and I took a seat with Willi while the other four sat next to our table.
“I had a wonderful day today,” I said gulping down the water from the glass.
“It looks like it will soon be a memorable day for you too,” Willi said and I was going to ask what he means but stopped when I saw him glaring at a man some distance away from us wearing a hoodie jacket and talking on his phone.
Willi turned on his seat and whispered something to the other four guy. They gazed towards that hoodie guy and immediately turned into an alert position and looked around.
“What’s going on?” I asked and Willi looked back at me smiling.
“Nothing! I’m just skeptical. That man is following us from few minutes” Willi said and gulped down water from his glass.
He looked back at me and smiled.
“Maybe he is going the same way, we are going,” I said and he smiled even more.
“You are naive,” he said.
“Excuse me?” I asked.
“He is totally a suspect. Look at him. He is glancing our way every second thinking he may lose us from his sight. He is totally calling his men giving them our location” Willi said playing with his glass.
“Oh no! What are we going to do? Is he dangerous?” I asked and he pursed his lips and then smirked at me.
“Just act as if you don’t know anything,” Willi said and from the corner of the eyes looked towards the man.
“Let’s get out of here,” I said and he shook his head no.
“If you do that now and if is really after you. He will shoot you” he said and it was enough to scare me.
“Why will he shoot me? What did I do?” I asked terrified.
“What am I gonna do now?” I asked and he gave me a smile.
“Blow a kiss, fire a gun,” he said and in that moment I gave him an incredulous look.
“We need someone to lean on” he sang and I wanted to smack that glass on his face.
“You are singing? At this time?” I gritted out.
“All we need is somebody to lean on,” he said and as I was going to smack him like a reflex action he lunged forward and ducked my head downwards when we heard a gun shot with people screaming and running. It was directed towards me because the same glass from which I drank water a few minutes ago shattered into pieces cutting my skin. The bullet missed me and it shot the glass before me.
“Oh my god!” I screamed petrified.
22
I cried and looked around frantically for help. It was a chaos everywhere. People screaming and running away and Zachary’s man shot back to the people who were now shooting our way.
I peeped from the table to see that they were increasing in number and we were in trouble because the number of man in their group increased and it was literally affecting Willi and the others.
“We are going to die” I squeaked in surprise when one of our men got a bullet in his shoulder and he fell on the ground right next to my hiding place with a loud thump.
“Oh, my god! Oh my god!” was the only thing that came out of my mouth.
“Hurry! Get inside” Willi screamed pointing towards the cafe’s door which was open.
I avoided him and tried to hold that man who lied next to me and drag him with me.
“What are you doing? Just get inside” Willi yelled but I ignored him once again.
“Ma’am let go and please get inside,” the injured man said wincing in pain.
“Get inside!” Willi yelled.
“Shut up!” I said which made him shut his mouth in a second.
“He risked his life-saving mine and you want me to leave everything and run away? Who do you think I am and what am I?” I gritted out and without paying attention to him anymore, I pulled the man from his torso towards the door.