Close Protection

Chapter 21 Milosh

21 MILOSH

‘Hand off her thigh, Teddy,’ Henry instructs coolly as I walk into the snug. I look around the room and spot Teddy and Daphne on the couch, sitting way too close together for my liking.

She’s holding a washcloth in her hand and is almost face to face with him. Amelia and Henry are sat opposite on the other couch, with a scowl etched onto Henry’s face as he watches them.

Teddy’s hand is still lingering on Daphne’s leg so I clear my throat, letting my presence be known, and it’s almost comical how fast Mr Build-A-Bear shrinks back.

Almost being the operative word.

Everything about this guy irritates me.

From his curly blond hair to his polo shirt and sweater combo, he oozes charm. His glasses frame his face, despite the black eye, and really help him lean into the whole Prince Charming look that I’m sure works real well with Daphne’s princess girly vibe.

Physically, he looks a lot like Eddie, Daphne’s cousin’s boyfriend. But the big difference is, Eddie seemed like a decent guy.

Teddy is simply a dick.

After Teddy showed up, George took him to get changed into some dry clothes, while Amelia went to get Henry. Daphne got changed back into her regular clothes and I helped Hallie and Averie pack up and leave. I know before they left they agreed on a dress for Daphne, but I don’t know which one it was.

‘Stop moving,’ Daphne sighs, dabbing the washcloth to the side of Teddy’s mouth, her other hand gently holding his jaw in place.

‘Sorry, sorry,’ Teddy chirps, smiling at her, then wincing in pain.

Good.

‘So, Teddy,’ I say, and all at once four heads turn to me. I lean against the wall, slipping my hands into my pockets as I look at him. ‘How exactly do you know Daphne and her father?’

My eyes involuntarily wander to Daphne as she starts nervously biting her lip.

‘Well,’ Teddy starts, ‘I’ve known the Greens since I was a child. Spent way too many Christmases here. Our parents are close friends.’ He motions between him and Daphne, grinning. ‘And I actually started working with George this year as an apprentice, of sorts.’

As if on cue, George walks through the door holding a hot drink.

‘Here you go, Teddy.’ I don’t miss the subtle tremor in George’s hands as he places it onto the coffee table and takes a seat next to Henry. ‘All right, now we’re all here, Teddy, take us through what happened.’

‘Well, when I got back home after my workout everything was ruined. My apartment had been completely ransacked, with torn books, flipped tables, broken glass – you name it. I ran to my bedroom to check what else had been damaged but when I opened the door there were two huge men waiting for me. I tried to run but they were fast and caught up with me.’ Teddy takes a dramatic pause. I look over to Daphne to see her brows are knitted together in concern and empathy. Amelia and George have similar expressions. Henry, however, is sitting there looking completely unimpressed as if this is the most mundane story he’s ever heard.

‘They started punching and beating me,’ Teddy continues, ‘and I honestly didn’t know why. I thought this was a home invasion and they were after my stuff, so why didn’t they just take it and go?’ As Teddy is speaking a fresh scab on his lip bursts, causing blood to start dripping down his face. Daphne is quick to catch it with the washcloth, holding it firmly to his face while her other hand rests on his shoulder.

‘Thank you, Daph.’ He directs to her with a small smile against the washcloth before continuing. ‘Anyway, they clearly knocked me out because I woke up bound to a chair with them throwing water over my head.’ He clears his throat, evading any eye contact and looking down to the floor. ‘They started questioning me about… you, George, and were asking about your old job. I didn’t know any of the answers to their questions but they kept b-beating me until they eventually realized I wouldn’t be of any help to them.’

He blinks viciously, as if trying not to cry. ‘Th-they left, leaving me bound to my chair, so I tipped myself over to break it and I was able to untie myself. Since they were asking about you I thought it best to grab some clothes and come straight over, to give you a warning. I don’t want anything to happen to you or Daphne.’ He looks over to her and her eyes soften.

‘That must’ve been really scary for you, I’m so sorry.’

‘Thanks, Daph, but it’s really not your fault,’ he responds, dropping his hand to her knee.

‘Keep your hands to yourself, Ted,’ I warn simply.

He removes them instantly as Henry tries to stop himself from laughing.

‘What did these men look like?’ I ask, trying to get us back on topic. The quicker this is sorted, the sooner Build-A-Bear can leave.

‘It was two white guys. They looked like they could pass as bodybuilders and they both had leather gloves on. Also, when they took off their jumpers I spotted matching tattoos on their necks.’

‘What did these tattoos look like?’ George asks.

‘I couldn’t see very well but I think it was a skull with a chess piece on top of it.’

‘Is that the same tattoo that the guy who broke into the house had?’ Daphne asks quietly, looking at me. I nod, while Teddy gawks.

‘Someone broke into your house?’

‘Yeah,’ Daphne whispers.

‘This house?’ Teddy presses, looking only at Daphne.

‘Yes, Teddy, they did, now move on,’ Henry bites out.

George stands up, looking uneasy, and starts pacing the length of the room. ‘This is all my fault.’ He starts chewing his nails.

‘I don’t understand,’ Daphne speaks up. ‘You said they’re after your money, but then why would they hurt Teddy to get to you? If they wanted money, why didn’t they just ask Teddy or his parents? And why do they want to know about your old job? What old job? You’ve only ever worked at Greenway.’

‘Daphne, please stop with the questions.’ Agitation laces George’s tone as he continues to pace.

‘Hey.’ I cut in quickly, shaking my head.

He looks at me for a moment before taking a deep breath. ‘Sorry, Daphne, that was rude of me.’

‘Sir, you need to tell your daughter the truth. Now.’ At that, he stops pacing entirely.

Is it my place to decide this for him? No.

Should I have said that? Probably not.

Am I mad that I did? Absolutely without a doubt no.

From the start, I haven’t been keen on lying to Daphne while everyone else knows what’s going on. She’s seventeen years old, not ten. But it’s not my place to tell her the whole story.

Well. Not until now. This Daveeno case has affected her more than anyone and she still doesn’t know why? That’s absolutely ridiculous, if you ask me.

George glares icily, as if to scare me.

‘What do you mean, the truth?’ Daphne questions before looking over to her father, realization washing over her. ‘The explanation you gave me in my room was a lie. Wasn’t it?’

He says nothing.

‘Wasn’t it?’ she asks again, her voice rising slightly.

‘Yes,’ George responds weakly.

She nods slowly, taking a few deep breaths before lifting her head high, a mix of anger and determination on her face. ‘Okay,’ she starts, ‘someone is going to tell me the truth about what’s been going on here, and they will tell me now. I’m done with being lied to.’

‘Daphne, I lied to you to protect you,’ George pleads.

‘Well, a whole lot of good that’s done,’ she scoffs, rolling her eyes.

Jeez, she’s sexy when she’s angry.

‘Daphne, that’s not fair.’

‘That’s not fair?’ she repeats in shock, her shoulders tensing. ‘No, what’s not fair is that Teddy’s house got ransacked purely because he’s associated with you. What’s not fair is that I got choked and nearly kidnapped because of you. You have absolutely no right to tell me what’s fair and what isn’t. Now, someone, tell. Me. The. Truth.’

‘There’s an organization called Daveeno,’ I start.

‘Milosh, no—’ George tries to interrupt, but I don’t let him.

‘They’re a corrupt international intelligence organization that work with the worst of the worst, supplying them with weapons, intel and power. They’re particularly well known for planting spies.’

‘Spies?’ Daphne gapes. ‘As in Alex Rider?’

‘Who the hell is Alex Rider?’

Daphne completely ignores me, and looks over to George, her mouth agape. ‘Are you a spy? To be honest, that would answer so much.’

‘No, Daph,’ George responds. ‘Well, not really.’

‘Oh, great, here we go,’ Daphne mutters.

‘I used to work with MI6 as an independent contractor for antidote formulas. I really enjoyed it and it was a break from my mundane life. I was good at it, and I was helping people.’ He glances over to Daphne. ‘It’s actually where I met your mother.’ He smiles.

I watch Daphne as that news sinks in, her expression morphing from confusion to hurt. ‘Mother used to work at MI6?’

‘Yes.’ He breathes out a laugh. ‘She was the head of intelligence, actually.’

‘I really don’t know anything about you, do I?’ she whispers in response. The pain evident in her voice crushes me.

‘D-Daph, come on, it’s not like that,’ George says.

‘No, it’s fine, it’s just eye-opening, is all,’ she says quietly, offering a heartbreaking smile. All that fire in her eyes has been extinguished. ‘Anyway, please continue.’

‘Um, okay. Many years ago, I was working on an antidote for a toxin named serum 627. I mixed the wrong ingredients, and instead of making an antidote, I made the toxin worse. It was powerful and deadly and could snuff the life out of someone without leaving a trace. It also lowered their inhibitions during interrogation. I knew that if this got into the wrong hands the consequences would be terrible, and at the time MI6 had a problem with Daveeno double agents so I couldn’t trust anyone. I created an antidote for the toxin, just in case, then destroyed any evidence that it was ever created. I kept a written copy of both locked away, and completely forgot about it.’

He kept a copy of the toxin and the antidote formula?

‘Until recently. Somehow Daveeno found out about the toxin and want it for themselves. That’s the reason they broke into my office and here, but they couldn’t find it. They clearly thought that if they kidnapped you I would give it up, but Milosh got you out of the mall before they had a chance. And now with the increased security around the house, no one’s getting in or out without us knowing.’

I look over to Daphne to check how she’s taking all of this but I can’t read her. Her face is blank. ‘Why haven’t you given it to them?’ she asks.

‘Because I don’t have the formula any more. And even if I did, I couldn’t. These people would probably sell it to the highest bidder and who knows what they would use it for. I don’t even know how they found out that I made it.’

‘Okay then, so what’s your plan? Hide at home for the rest of your life?’

‘No, that’s actually where Milosh comes in.’ I feel five pairs of eyes land on me as I keep my face passive. ‘Milosh isn’t actually a qualified close protection agent. Yes, all his accolades are real, but after his special ops mission he joined a task force that is focused on dismantling Daveeno. When my office at work got broken into, they reached out to me because they suspected it had something to do with Daveeno. I needed protection for you, Daphne, so they suggested that Milosh should come here and pose as your close protection agent, keeping you safe while also having eyes inside the house.’

Daphne simply nods, not looking at anything but the floor.

What are you thinking, Daphne?

I should be focusing on what George is saying but all I can think about is how I lied to her. I could’ve told her countless times why I was really here. The truth wasn’t that far from what she believed, but still. How’s she supposed to trust me, or trust anyone for that matter, if people are always lying to her – me included?

‘The Major in charge of the task force has been kept up to date on the situation through Milosh,’ George continues. ‘Working with Interpol, the FBI and the NCA they’ve been building a case against Daveeno and are waiting for the final missing pieces before they can make a move on them. With my help, and all the information I possess, they think they can shut it down. We just have to be patient.’

The room goes silent when George finishes speaking. Daphne and Teddy were the only ones in the dark about all of this.

‘Okay,’ she replies plainly before turning to face Teddy. ‘Teddy, you should stay here for now. You’ll be much safer.’

‘She’s right, Teddy. Please do stay,’ George seconds.

‘Okay, thank you, I really appreciate it.’ He smiles sincerely.

‘I’m going to let the staff know we’ve got another person staying with us,’ Amelia chimes in, standing up.

‘All right,’ George responds, walking to the door before looking over to Daphne. ‘Daph, are you all right showing Teddy to one of the guest rooms?’

‘Sure,’ she responds, glancing over at Teddy. ‘Where are your things?’

‘Just outside.’

‘Okay, let’s go.’

He opens the door for Daphne and she slips out first, but as he passes me I grip his bicep, holding him in place.

‘Careful, Ted. No touching,’ I warn, my voice low and measured.

He swallows once, readjusting his glasses before nodding and walking out.

The door closes softly and I turn back to a smiling Henry. ‘Glad to see there’s another Teddy hater in the house. Welcome to the club, Petrov.’

‘You don’t like him?’ I direct to Henry, a warm wave of satisfaction passing through me.

He shakes his head, leaning back into the couch. ‘Nah, not since I saw him trying to take pictures of Amelia every time she bent down to grab something. I took his phone to delete the photos and he had hundreds of them, with a few of Daphne as well. In the pool. So I broke his phone then I broke his hand.’

‘Good,’ I bite out.

‘Yeah.’ He nods pensively. ‘There’s something off about that boy, I just don’t know what.’