Landon looked at his secretary who fainted in his arms while wondering. Was she always this composed no matter the situation?
Due to the suddenness, he didn't have time to control his speed and just yanked her away to where she was standing without thought. She didn't even think to question it or maybe she's just preoccupied with the shooting to even notice it.
Roma has always been expressionless and stiff like a doll which sometimes made him overlook her presence until yesterday happened.
Shifters have really strong instincts. It's something that helps and guides them to the right path. It's like a voice that whispers to them from time to time. However, other species pointed out that shifters became a slave to their instinct so much that it influenced a big part of their life. It became the point of blame for everything bad that happened to them so a lot stopped the habit to listen to them and some even do the opposite of it.
Landon had never needed his instinct throughout his life. He just simply do whatever he wants according to his goals and his instincts never did surface until yesterday.
It was a normal working day with the usual people but as he was passing by Roma's desk. His long dormant instincts screamed at him to pay attention to her which greatly intrigued him. It never happened the past years so why now?
Added the fact that he only managed to dodge that bullet and take her away was because his instinct warned him that she's in danger even though both their bodies would be hit.
From his investigations last night, her background had been clear and thoroughly checked before she started working for him. This mystery is proving to be very entertaining for him. He smiled absent-mindedly at the thought.
Landon carried Roma and laid her down to the sofa on the right side of the room where there's a wall safe from a sniping position. He shrugged off his suit jacket and covered her with it in case she got cold.
He took out his phone and made a call, "Sebastian, we got a situation here. Call the cleaners and have this mess sorted out without a peep."
Cleaners were humans bound by their contracts to help shifters protect their secrecy. They are people who must pay their debt with their life because of cashing in a favor from a shifter. To break their contract would be to die from a horrible curse put in place by a paid magick.
Sebastian arrived in record time and examined the scene.
"They are due to arrive in 10 minutes. They used bullets which meant they are humans. Why would a human be involved in this?"
"Using humans would be a smart thing to do, which also means the mastermind behind this is very cruel," Landon commented coldly.
Sebastian casted a confused glance in Roma's direction.
"She was almost shot too then she fainted on me," Landon explained.
"Do you want the others to hunt the sniper?"
"No need, the human would just be a scapegoat and would surely know nothing. I want the mastermind behind this all," he replied darkly while looking at the bullets on the floor.
***
When everything was quiet in the room, Ley opened her eyes. She slowly sat up then looked at the presence near her.
Landon sat on a chair close to the sofa while browsing some papers. He paused what he's doing when he sensed my stare.
"Are you alright now?" he said while examining her face.
Again his voice was doing wonders in her head with it magnified in the quiet room.
She nodded stiffly. After pretending to faint for half an hour, her whole body is rigid from not moving.
Landon grabbed a bottle on top of the coffee table which he gave to her. Ley looked at it and found out that it's water. Well, he might've thought I needed water after fainting.
He gestured for her to drink it and just stared at her thoughtfully.
She drank a bit of it and found him still staring at her like he's trying to figure her out. The atmosphere turned ambiguous around them when she returned Landon's cryptic stare. What's wrong with this guy?
A few minutes passed by and Landon stood up and declared , "Let's go. I'll take you home."
She almost said yes when his words registered on her mind.
"I'm fine already. I can go home by myself," she refused reasonably.
"It's not just because of that. You've been involved in the shooting accident earlier. Whether you're marked by that sniper or not, this time you're involved already. I listened to you when you wanted to continue working here even though I've been facing threats then you almost got killed. This time you should listen to my arrangements," he just logically cornered me and he knew it.
She suppressed the urge to smack off that smug smile on his face and acquiesced like it's no big deal. Two days in the job and her face felt like it's cramping from keeping it dull.
Landon walked away fully expecting her to follow him out. Seeing his back makes her want to kick it. Why bother hiring someone to protect him? He certainly seems capable enough to protect himself. It's really humiliating when you're the bodyguard and you're the the one who got protected instead.
They arrived in the parking lot and she's surprised to see that it's not the one mentioned in Landon's file. It looked like it was exchanged for a bulletproof car. It was sleek and black and makes her want to whistle with its beauty.
Landon opened the door and gestured for her to go in the passenger seat which disturbed her internal drooling at the car. He went in after her while Sebastian was at the driver seat who threw a smile at her when she entered.
They went on their way and Landon spent it reviewing some papers while she did her utmost not to fidget.
Judging by Landon's record, he doesn't do anything without a reason. She gave him a suspicious glance, trying to figure out why he's so concerned with Roma's wellbeing suddenly. He could've just ordered someone to drive me home. Why the sudden need to do it personally?
She glanced at the window and saw that they were almost there.
"You can just drop me off at the coffee shop. I need to get something there. I live at the building just in front of it.
They got off the car and she was preparing to say goodbye but she saw Landon staring curiously behind her.
She turned her back and saw the people inside the coffee shop looking curiously at them.
This is the reason why she doesn't want to be sent home. Annoying onlookers. What the hell are they even doing being so obvious like that?