Chapter 3
The rest of the flight passed in relative peace and silence. Janet was left staring out of the window between dozes, flicking through the channels, watching snippets of movies. Breakfast was served several hours later and Janet dined on poached eggs and pancakes, sipping orange juice, before she had her morning coffee. She picked up the book again, to skim through a few of the pages, but spent most of her time dozing and relaxing. After all, she knew that she would be exceptionally busy once she landed and it was only smart to get as much rest as she possibly could while she was on the plane, with no reception and nothing to do except wait and relax.
It was soothing, in a way and Janet was almost sad when it was time for the plane to land. Sad, but at the same time, she felt a tingle of excitement. Being in the plane and having some time to relax had taken the painfully acute edge off her fear and turned it into something else, something more palatable. She was still nervous and weary, but she was far more excited to land in a new country and explore.
She had not been here before, but she had heard mixed stories about the country. People either spoke of it in regards to concern for danger, or with wonder at the sights and sounds of the place. Janet wasn’t sure which one she believed. She pushed aside the memory of her father’s death and tried not to focus on it too much. That wasn’t because of where he had been, but rather the strong opinions of the faction who had killed him.
She would have to keep that strongly at the front of her mind. She didn’t want to make assumptions about people before she had even met them, didn’t want to color her interactions in such a negative way.
As the plane started to descend, Janet gathered up her things. She made sure to pack all of her bits and pieces into her bag, gathering everything up that she might have missed and making sure her chair was upright, everything tucked away. The descent itself was swift and, in Janet’s opinion, it seemed to be a lot quicker than when they took off. The landing itself was a little bumpy, but nothing major and Janet found herself holding her breath. She straightened her shoulders and unclipped her seatbelt the moment she was allowed to do so. There were not many passengers in first class, so she didn’t have to wait very long to leave the plane itself and make her way down to collect her luggage. She grabbed it and looked around herself. So far, nothing seemed all that different from home.
She caught snatches of different languages, foreign to her ears, but she also caught plenty of English and so was reassured. She headed out towards the main gate, looking around. She had been told someone would be here to meet her, probably the head of security, but Janet wasn’t sure exactly what he looked like.
She stepped out into the airport and was struck by the business of the place. It was just as busy as the airport back home, if not busier. The place was crawling with people from all walks of life and all nationalities and, for a moment, Janet felt a little bit blindsided. She didn’t even know the first thing about the person she was meant to find, and she found herself hoping that she would be able to spot them.
There were a few people standing with signs and she scanned the crowd, trying to figure out which one was for her, if any. She didn’t see her name anywhere and so she looked instead for the company name. Still, she couldn’t make anything out and she felt a sudden plummeting of her stomach.
She swallowed hard, trying to ignore the concern that was gnawing at her, insisting that it be heard and listened to. She looked around for another moment and saw no one. For a moment, she felt a surge of panic. Then she reassured herself that, when it came down to it, she could at least find her way around a city, take public transport and probably find an atm to draw her money. At the very least, she’d fumble through.
Still, being alone in a strange country, when she was the head of a company that was being targeted… Janet swallowed and tried to settle her worries. She would manage as best she can.
As she shifted her bag, she scanned the crowd one last time. Her eyes fell on a man walking towards her, moving through the crowd. She glanced behind herself and saw no one, so she could only assume that her guess was correct and that he was heading for her.
Janet took him in as he approached. He was a big man, with sandy hair and eyes that were alight with the most beautiful and intense blue that she had ever seen. He had broad, strong shoulders and looked like he was pushing six feet tall. He was clearly toned beneath his clothing, the bunching of his muscles obvious as he walked.
And he walked with confidence, confidence and strength and the kind of lazy stride of a predator. He didn’t have to rush, he didn’t have to hurry along. He knew what he was doing and he was clearly aware of the effect he had on people.
He was gorgeous. The thought came out of nowhere and Janet found herself blushing. She didn’t know him, didn’t know why he was heading towards her, didn’t know if he was a friend or foe, and yet there was just something intensely magnetic about him, something that seemed to draw him towards her, draw her in and leave her just a little bit breathless.
“Miss Delphare?” His voice was cool as he stepped towards her. He looked her up and down and Janet felt the flush on her cheeks grow deeper.
“Yes?” She straightened a little, trying not to look intimidated by this man. She met his gaze head on, trying her best to focus on the intensity of his eyes, so blue, so bright.
He didn’t draw his gaze away, something intense flashing in the depth of his eyes, fiercely intelligent and focused. For a fleeting moment, she was reminded of the fox in the story, of the fox so intelligent and beautiful.
She shook it off. Something about him was different. He was too predatory for that, and she saw no softness lurking in the depths of his irises.
He nodded, “I’m here to take you to the hotel.”
He turned, as if expecting Janet to follow, but she didn’t, “And you are?”
He turned back to her, looking at her intently, “You arranged for me to pick you up, Miss Delphare.” His voice was curt and clipped, but he was still polite, if a bit aloof.
“Considering my family’s recent history, I expect you’ll have no problem giving me your name and title, then?” She persisted.
She could see a flash of frustration in his eyes. He wanted to leave as soon as possible, she could see that in the tension of his shoulders, understand it in the glances over his shoulder.
“Fang Smith.” He answered curtly, reaching into his jacket “Head of your security team. Now, if you don’t mind, we really need to get going.”
Janet felt the sting of his words, a sharpness to his voice. She frowned quietly as she stared him down. Janet felt the tension flutter through her body. He was right. She didn’t want to admit it, but he was right. She needed to make sure she got to safety, got somewhere that wasn’t out in the open like this. She didn’t think anyone would try anything here, but what if they followed them?
Fang was right. In fact, he probably knew what was best for her in the first place. Head of security. His name rang a bell, pulled up an old, forgotten memory in her mind. He had an American accent too, subtle and soft and beautiful. It was lovely, really, and she could tell that he came from up north, but had travelled widely.
There was something exotic about him, something wild, and something well-travelled. She scowled and pushed the thoughts out of her mind, “Alright. Lead the way.”
He nodded, holding a hand out, “Shall I take your bag?” It seemed to be a mere formality and Janet shook her head, holding it tighter, “I’m fine.” She murmured.
He nodded and turned, “Follow me.”
He moved through the crowd, his steps swift and sure as he headed through the busy terminal. Janet clutched her bag tightly in her hands and made her way through the terminal after him. She held on tight to all her things and matched his stride.
What was one, easy step for him, was a few for Janet, but she was determined to keep up. Already, he was lighting a fire in her, lighting a fierce determination to prove herself. He wasn’t showing her a whole lot of respect. He was polite, but he wasn’t treating her like you would treat the head of a major company, one that you worked for.
There was a discrepancy here and she wasn’t happy with it. She didn’t care about the status before now, but she cared now. Fang had changed everything in the blink of an eye, changed everything in a way that she had not thought possible, had not thought it would come to this.
Somehow, in the blink of an eye, he had made her want to prove herself, want to show him that she wasn’t just here to take her father’s place as a figure head, wasn’t just here to sit pretty. She was here to work hard, she was here to take over the company and make things right again, make things work. Her father had not been a figure head and she was in no mood to be one herself.
She wasn’t going to be pushed aside. She had done her research, had done her work, had done everything she could to prepare herself for this, prepare herself for these meetings and she wouldn’t be undermined the minute that she arrived.
He glanced at her with something like surprise and Janet thought that she saw a smirk, a ghost of a smile against his face. He shrugged his shoulders and led her through the doors and into the light.
For an instant, the light was blinding, searing her eyes and flowing through her vision. Then her vision cleared and she took in the busy carpark, the bustling road in front of them. She smiled and took in a deep breath, taking it all in.
Fang glanced at her, “Car’s this way.” He headed through the cars to one of the first rows. He stepped towards a shiny black sedan and opened it up, popping the boot for her. Janet wrestled with her case and finally managed to lift it and put it in the boot. It left her a little breathless and flushed, but she narrowed her eyes in defiance and stood up straight.
Fang was smirking very faintly, and he opened up the passenger door for her, “We’ll go straight to your hotel. We can go over the details of your security there.”
Janet nodded, sliding into the car, feeling the warm leather seats. She settled back, sliding the seatbelt across her shoulders and clipped it in. Fang entered the car soon after and she was struck, suddenly by the scent of his aftershave and cologne, filling the car with a delicious subtlety. She turned her head and tried to ignore the pleasant scent washing over her, taking small breaths instead.
Fang didn’t seem to notice, and he pulled out of the carpark, driving towards the exit. He paid for his ticket and before Janet knew it, they were flying along the highway. She shivered, feeling the excitement burn against her skin.
Despite her frustration at Fang, or her worries about her new life, she felt excited at the prospect of seeing this glorious new country as they drove along. She knew that she wouldn’t see much, but that was okay. She would see what she could and she could explore more later.
The excitement didn’t dull at all at that thought. In fact, it felt more acute, more intense. She leaned as close to the window as she could as Fang drove the car down the sweeping highway, which divided quickly into many ways. The highway itself was absolutely massive and the cars whizzing along it didn’t seem to slow down for even a second. Janet felt a tingle within her, a flutter of excitement, of something like wonder. She couldn’t see much other than the highway, that was, until they turned a corner.
A particularly curvy part of the highway turned and Janet was allowed to catch a glimpse of the city itself, of the sweeping scene before her. Her breath caught in her chest, wonderment and excitement flooding through her. She bit her lip, feeling almost giddy. It was gorgeous! It was just like back home, and yet there was something slightly different to it, an exotic edge that Janet reveled in.
For that instant, the feat that had been gnawing at her heart was gone, eased into something different, a strange sort of determination, and a strange sort of happiness that she could not quite explain. Then the city was swept from view, as Fang took the turnoff into the city itself.
She took a deep breath. She had heard good things about Cape Town, but that was from an outsider, tourist perspective. She supposed that that would be different from someone working and living in the city, although it still looked glorious, at least, to Janet’s eyes.
She took the streets in with rapt awe. It was lovely, and it was interesting. There were people who were clearly from money, and others who were standing at the traffic lights for money.
“They’re called robots.” Fang glanced at her, “The traffic light, I mean. You’ll get caught out on that.”
Janet smiled. From the way that he had said it, she had the suspicion that he had gotten caught out just as badly when he had landed here to start work. She thought about this for a moment, “How long have you been here?”
“A few years, always working for the company.” He didn’t glance at her again this time, but, to be fair, the roads were exceptionally busy and Janet couldn’t really blame him for wanting to keep his eyes on the road.
“Do you like it?” It was an instinctual question, something that she had been brought up to ask.
Fang shrugged, “It’s nice.”
Janet nodded. His eyes didn’t light up, didn’t seem to light up about anything he spoke about and Janet felt a strange sort of twist in her stomach. She didn’t know that guy, couldn’t figure him out and she was usually fantastic at sizing people up fast and getting an idea of how to talk to them. Business, public relation and human resource training had prepared her for that.
But with Fang, with Fang, he was as familiar and as strange as this city itself. She watched as they weaved beneath bridges, and waited for people to cross at the lights. His car didn’t seem at all out of place here, something Janet was grateful for. She hadn’t wanted to draw attention as being a secure vehicle. That wouldn’t have been a smart move.
They approached a large building, with gloriously high windows, and a luxurious looking entrance hall. Janet barely got a glimpse of it, before Fang drove past into the parking lot. He did this quickly, hopping out of the car before Janet even realized he had turned off the engine.
He was grabbing her bag just as quickly, “We’re here.” He added over his shoulder as Janet hurried to catch up. They made their way into the hotel lobby and Janet felt a tingle move through her. It was gorgeous!
This place was full of luxury, with a huge and sweeping entrance hall, leading onto a dining hall and personal shops, right in the hotel. It was gorgeous and from the way the staff were dressed, Janet would have guessed that this was a high quality hotel.
Fang didn’t even pause at reception, simply going to the elevator with her bag. Janet hurried after him, slipping in just before the elevator doors shut. They rode the elevator in silence, Janet feeling a mounting tension in the air. She avoided glancing at Fang- she already knew that he was tense.
She was hit, anew, with the scent of his cologne and she bit her lip. At last, the elevator opened and Fang led her to her room. He opened the door and set down her bag, looking over at her, “Your room.”
Janet gasped. It was huge! She raced to the windows, taking in a breathtaking view of the water, a stunning balcony to sit on, a lavish lounge area and so much more. It was pure luxury, and not what she had expected for a hotel suite. She bit her lip, feeling a little giddy. Her parents had always tried to keep her down to earth, despite their wealth, so they had never stayed at a place like this before!
She turned to Fang, who was surveying her with a small smile on his face, “You like it?”
Janet nodded in agreement, “I do. It’s really lovely.” Her voice came out as a little bit breathless and she felt the excitement twist in her stomach. She was enjoying this more and more.
Fang nodded and went to sit down on the couch while Janet deposited her things in the bedroom. She sighed at the lovely views that she could see out of her bedroom window, she smiled at the lovely room and the gorgeous bedding that she was lucky enough to enjoy and to receive. It really was lovely and she found herself feeling very lucky for this opportunity, even though it was brought on by the most terrible tragedy. She wondered if her father stayed in a room like this, maybe even this very room, before he had checked out.
She felt like she barely knew him, barely knew this man who was such an important part of her life, such an important man in terms of her upbringing, her life, her very existence. Her father. And yet, she barely knew him, didn’t know what made him tick, didn’t know what he might like or dislike, didn’t know what he thought about so many different things. Janet sighed and looked around the room for a lingering moment.
She needed to talk to Fang about the security, find out what his schedule was for the meetings and other events that she had planned. She would then need to call up a few of her public relations team and talk things through with them for the meeting that was happening the day after. It was important that she got this sorted, that she understood what was expected of her, so that she could make sure everything went smoothly.
She adjusted her dress, freshening up her look and smoothing her hair out before she left the bedroom and went to the couch where Fang was sitting. She sat down, facing him and looked at him intently.
“So, what do I need to know about the security?”
He blinked and looked taken aback at her directness. Janet felt a surge of satisfaction but she didn’t let it show. Fang recovered quickly.
“What do you know about your father’s passing?” The question was sudden, but Janet found that she was prepared for it.
“I know he was killed by a very radical faction, who are opposed to the business, especially the diamond mining taking place in Kimberly.”
Fang nodded slowly, “You’re not wrong.” He leaned back and Janet saw something like pain cross his eyes, “It happened when I was out of town. I had to fly back to America to train new recruits for the security team, the company I work with.” Fang sighed as if a great weight was on his shoulders, weighing down on him. He shook his head slowly.
“I should have been there.” There was something like regret in his voice, some pain that was creeping in that Janet could never fully understand.
“But, I wasn’t. I heard the story second hand, from my team.” He looked at her intently, “They’re good, but no one is perfect.”
Janet felt something move in her chest. It was oddly refreshing. He wasn’t apologizing, he wasn’t trying to take the blame himself, not really. He clearly felt guilt, that he had not been there, but he did not try and shirk the responsibility, nor did he grovel. It was what it was. Janet liked that. She liked the honesty in his eyes.
She realized, suddenly and fiercely, that this was a man that she could trust. She could trust him with her life, and he would not let her down. He was honest and he seemed to have a clear picture of what happened. Janet listened with baited breath.
“He was leaving a meeting, one of the big ones.” Fang shifted, “Apparently, he wanted to make a detour. Now, we hadn’t had an incident in months, and I can only assume that everyone was feeling a little bit relaxed, a little bit at ease.” Fang shrugged, “Apparently, the meeting had gone well.”
He leaned back, “It was as he was leaving the car that they struck. He didn’t last five minutes.”
Janet felt a pang in her chest, a pain that she could not quite explain striking her between her ribs. She bit her lip and nodded, not trusting her voice.
“I told you that because I thought you deserved to know.” His eyes met hers and Janet was, again, startled by the brilliance of the blue, “You deserve the truth, not a watered down version of events.”
He leaned forward, “Secondly, I don’t want to make the same mistake twice, and I don’t think you want to either.”
“You need to make sure that you stick to procedure. I need to make sure that my team and I stay alert at all times, make sure that no one drops their attention, even for a minute.”
He sighed and shook his head, “We have more men on now. That doesn’t mean an increase in security, but rather, an increase in rotation, so each guard gets more time to rest, sleep and recoup. We were running low on men before, so I cannot say that the men were at their best, you understand?”
Janet nodded. The lump in her throat still stung, but she felt relief at his words. He had a plan. He knew how to fix the previous mistakes and he wasn’t ashamed of letting her know that there had, indeed, been mistakes in the past.
She felt reassured and she nodded, “I’ll stick to the plan.”
Fang nodded, “Good.”
He looked at her again, for a long, lingering moment. There was something intense about his gaze, something incredibly focused, “As head of security, I don’t usually play bodyguard.” His voice was soft and quiet, very measured.
“John was good to me, and I needed this job.” He cut himself off, as if he didn’t want to say more, “I’ll be watching you personally, on guard twenty-four seven, but it’s only as a favor to him.”
Janet nodded. She didn’t know if she was grateful or offended, but she settled for the former, “Thank you.”
Fang shrugged, “Miss Delphare that means that I will be staying in this apartment.” He looked at her for a long, piercing moment, “There’s a spare room to the left of yours.”
Their eyes met for the longest time before he spoke again, “If you have a problem, speak now and I will arrange for a female member of the team to standby instead.”
“I’m fine with you staying here.” It felt odd, inviting a man to stay like this. It had never happened before. Sure, she had hookups in college, but she hadn’t exactly invited them to stay with her. Besides that, she was aware of the fact that this was a completely different course of action. She needed to make sure she was protected and he was just the best man for the job.
Fang nodded with satisfaction, “Tomorrow, we will be ready to take you to the meeting. I recommend we leave an hour before it is time to get there. Traffic is hell and I’d like to take the extra time to get you there in one piece.” Janet nodded again.
“I will be there to escort you and my team will be monitoring the car and monitoring you from a distance. Once we arrive, I will escort you in.” He looked at her hard, “I will not accompany you into the meeting itself, but please rest assured that we will be monitoring the windows.”
Janet nodded, feeling a twinge of fear. She finally asked the question that had been hammering at her chest for the longest time, “Do you think the chance is high? Of someone trying to kill me?” Her voice came out softer than she had intended it to.
Fang looked at her for a long moment, “Honestly, I cannot say.” His voice was quiet, “You are the head of the company now, so it seems logical that they would have you in their sights. However, there is always the chance that they were simply targeting your father.” He shifted and looked at her dead on, “There’s more than a seventy percent chance that they want you dead, and, personally, I don’t like to gamble with odds like that.”
Janet felt cold ice slide into her stomach and she nodded, “Thank you, Fang.”
He nodded, “I will be around, making sure that you are safe. We have guards watching the windows, so please shut your curtains if you require privacy. Your safety is the most important thing, but I understand you will want your space.”
He stood up and stretched and Janet was reminded forcefully of a cat, a big cat, stretching before the hunt. He seemed so confident, so comfortable in his own skin. Janet shivered, feeling an unusual longing twinge in her stomach. She shook her head and tried not to think too hard on it.
Fang made his way to the room beside hers and Janet watched him go. With shaky hands, she pushed herself up. She had work to do and she wasn’t about to be spooked by Fang’s information.
She had the protection she needed, now it was time to prepare for the meeting itself. She was determined to do this right.