Chapter 9

Rebecca

“You called for me, Chief?” I said, closing the door after me. I was wondering what to call the boss man while at the workplace because calling him by his first name didn’t exactly fly. The man was my boss even though we knew each other before then, so it was only natural to show the guy some respect, right?

“Hello, Rebecca. I wanted to discuss with you about a job. Are you interested?” he asked. I sat down across from him and shrugged.

“Hit me with it,” I answered. I’ve been stagnant for about a week because I didn’t have anything to do, so I was looking forward to this.

“Okay,” he said, nodding before handing me three blue folders. “The clients you will be assigned to are Tanner Lee and his five year old daughter, Elizabeth. According to their manager, Tanner reported that his daughter was almost kidnapped by three yet unidentified assailants during one of his concerts a week ago.”

I furrowed my eyebrows as I listened to his briefing. That sounded very familiar.

I flipped the first one open, and was surprised to see the little girl I helped out on the parking lot a week before. Now that I think about it, Veronica did say the singer at the concert was named Tanner…

“I know this girl,” I blurted out, making Chase raise his eyebrows in surprise.

“You do?”

I told him about how I was at the parking lot at the time, and that the little girl was being chased after by men in suits, and I managed to subdue them before they got their hands on her.

“Ah, so you mean the woman they were referring to that saved Lee’s daughter was you?” Chase said.

“I didn’t know she was his daughter, though,” I said, flipping onto the second folder next, glossing over Tanner’s profile. So the man who picked Beth up from the café was him. “He looked so different from this picture though, and when I saw him on stage.”

“He was probably wearing a disguise,” Chase suggested.

“He was just wearing a pair of glasses, though,” I recalled.

“It could’ve been enough, then. If the lenses were big enough, it would make the eyes expand so that there’s a noticeable difference. But that’s not important,” he said, shaking his head and going back to the matter at hand. “By the way, do you still remember the men you took down?”

“Vaguely.”

“Vague enough that you could ID them?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Alright, then. I’ll have the police send us a cartographer to do a rough sketch,” he said, before chuckling. “This is quite the lucky break, Rebecca. I’ve never seen a case have so much progress even before we start the work.”

“Pretty weird, right?” I said, agreeing.

“Then again, I was kind of surprised at how adamant the manager was about hiring you for the case. I guess this Tanner guy recognized you from the roster I gave him, and specifically requested you to handle this matter,” he explained.

“You mean the reason you’re giving me this job is because he selected me for it?” I said, my eyes widening in surprise. Chase nodded, smirking.

“I handed them over a roster of our members, and he chose you as one of the agents to take the case,” he said.

“One of the agents?” I parroted.

“Oh, right. Didn’t I tell you? You’re working with another one on this case since you’re assigned to guard two people. Therefore, I’m sending in two.” Chase explained.

“Don’t you trust me? I can handle this myself,” I urged him.

“I know how good you are, Rebecca, but not even you can be in two places at once. Tanner goes out of the country pretty regularly due to his shows and tours, but he doesn’t always take his daughter with him. How will you protect the kid if you’re out of the country protecting Tanner?” he asked.

I scowled at him, acknowledging my shortcoming but still unable to accept the fact I was going to be partnering up with someone else to accomplish the mission.

“Okay, then who’s going to be my partner?” I asked, going over the available crew I could work with. Spencer was out since he was getting married, which leaves Jason…but Jason hasn’t quit being Veronica’s personal bodyguard, has he? Then who…?

“I’m glad you asked. Since we were going to be short one man, Spencer graciously found someone to join the family,” Chase replied.

“You’re pairing me up with a newcomer?” I asked, incredulous. Was he serious?

“Funny, he said the same thing a while ago,” Chase noted. “And since he needs experience, and you have plenty, I am going to put him under your supervision.”

“So you’re giving me two children to babysit?” I shrieked. “That’s not going to help me do my job!”

“Stop exaggerating, Rebecca. He looks like a dependable guy. And he’s ex-Special Forces, so I’m sure he won’t be any trouble,” he said, waving off my concerns.

“Where did you dig this one up, then?”

“I didn’t actually,” he said, his expression smug. “Spencer recruited him. And before you go off on a tangent, yes, I trust my brother’s judgment.”

I rolled my eyes and collapsed on my seat, suddenly exhausted. There was no way I was going to win this one.

“Am I going to meet this guy anytime soon, or will we have our first meet and greet once we start the mission?” I grumbled.

The sound of knocking came from the door and I straightened up, narrowing my eyes at it.

“Great timing! That must be him now,” Chase exclaimed, leaving his desk and walking towards the door. He smiled at the person behind it and waved him inside. “Rebecca Hayes, I’d like you to meet your new partner, Michael Gardner.”

I froze at the sight of him.

Michael’s jaw tightened and he walked towards me with his hand raised.

“It’s nice to see you again, Rebecca,” he said.

I blinked at him as the numbness of my body dissipated, and I did the most sensible thing I could do in the circumstances.

I stepped back and promptly punched him in the face.

***