It was utter nonsense, according to her.
She couldn't order him around?
He is free to do whatever necessary to save the life of the client?
The payment must be renewed periodically on time else the services will be stopped immediately?
There was much more but these caught her attention first. What does it mean she can't order him around?
What kind of bodyguard would he be if he is free to do what he pleases?
What was her grandfather thinking before signing this?
She heaved a sigh and kept her phone on her desk. This was so frustrating. He was easily getting under her skin. He was unpredictable, always keeping her on edge.
Last night she had an argument with him related to the footwear she wore around her house and outside.
He demanded that she only wear one pair at home and one outside.
When asked why, he argued that he needs to memorize the sound of her footsteps. So he would know where is she, just by hearing them. If she kept changing her footwear, that would become impossible.
This morning itself, she had got into another argument regarding how she should act in an emergency. That was necessary. But the things he expected her to do during one were ridiculous.
"You should be able to adjust to your surroundings. If need arises you would even have to sleep in a shed for weeks." he had said.
Shed? Really? Sure her assasins were dangerous and left no stone unturned. But she couldn't just stop living her life. What would be the point if she lives in constant fear?
She heaved another sigh and went to the living room where he was reading her schedule.
"Can you not go to this party tonight?" he asked.
"No. I need to. It's a public gathering of sorts. Important people are going to be there. I need to show up to represent Stone Corp." she said shaking her head.
"Well then I would suggest that you wear some kevlar undeneath your outfit. And are you open to the idea of wearing a helmet?" he asked.
"I would humbly reject your suggestion and I am not open that idea." she said smiling politely.
"Do you want to die? Why are you making my job harder?" he asked.
"Your job is supposed to be hard. You are costing quite a fortune, you cannot just put me in a box and call it protection. I need to able to live a life." she said.
"If you're going to come to the party, at least don't act weird." she added as she left to get dressed.
After a while she appeared downstairs where he was already waiting for her, dressed in a black suit and carrying a briefcase.
"Are those weapons? I told you, it's a high profile gathering, you won't be allowed to bring it in." she said with a frown.
"I will deposit them somewhere if it becomes a problem. It should not be your concern." he said.
She breathed in her irritation and the two went down the lift straight to her car. Usually her bodyguard would be driving but as he wasn't 'paid' to drive around and won't do anything which is not mentioned in his contract, she arranged for a driver beforehand.
The car was a BMW 7 series. With custom bulletproof doors and could withstand blasts. Underneath the seats were first aid kits and blood bags of her type in case of immediate transfusion. The car sickened her to the core. She always felt like she was in a coffin. But she didn't have much of a choice.
As they reached the venue, her bodyguard, just like she had expected, was stopped and asked to show the contents of his briefcase.
He opened it and to her immense surprise, it contained knives, two SIG Sauer M17, hand grenades and to top it off, an M4.
The guard at the venue was obviously disturbed and said, "Mam, I cannot allow your bodyguard to enter with these things. There is already very tight security measures around." he said.
"She has had a lot of assasination attempts on her life. I am sure you can make an exception." said 001.
"No, we can't. The rule is the same for all. Besides, every person in the party is a high profile figure. Assasination attempts and death threats are common but we have taken measures to avoid that." he said unmoving.
"Make an exception." repeated 001 as he straightened himself.
"He said no already." called out a voice.
001 turned to face a man, around his age. He had long white hair which he had tied neatly in a bun. He was slightly taller, but definitely looked like a model.
"He said no. I urge you to comply." he repeated as he stared in 001's eyes.
"Your eyes, they seem nice." he said staring into their red hue, his gaze piercing through them, reaching 001's soul. Or was there nothing inside?
In a flash the two reached for each other's throat.
Sylvia gasped as the other guards around them pulled their firearms, all pointed at 001.
"STAND DOWN!" yelled one of them.
001 stared into the man's eyes, his grip unmoving on his neck. The man reciprocated with equal strength.
"Who are you?" he asked in a strained voice.
"Is this how you ask for introductions?" asked the man with a slight cough.
"Don't play dumb. You were the one who reacted first." he growled, his neck turning slightly red.
"Let's be civil then. Should we let go at the same time?" asked the man, his eyes slightly watering due to the strain.
The two let go at the same time. 001 massaged his neck and took a deep breath, the redness around his neck lessened. The man's grip strength was certainly something. He looked at him again. He was very handsome, but nothing about his face showed that he was someone trained. He could tell now with conformation that he was, but other than that, one's first guess by looking at his peeled physique underneath his white tuxedo would be that he is a successful actor or a model.
"The name is Jakob Alfson." he said as he took out a handkerchief, dabbing it on his eye to get rid of the watering.
"Sunny." said 001.
"Is that a fake name?" he asked with a scoff.
"Is yours real?" questioned 001.
"Yes. As a matter of fact. It is." he said his tone easy.
"Let's go in first. We have already caused a scene." said Jakob.
Sylvia was looking around slightly nervous, the situation had escalated so quickly. She had begged 001 not to be weird and cause a scene. But he didn't listen. She didn't want to linger around anymore and when she heard Jakob saying that they should go in the venue, she didn't hesitate to ditch him.
001 tried quickly following but Jakob put a hand on his shoulder.
"Wait up, I wanted to talk." he said with a small smile.
"Let go, I need to be with my client." he replied.
"She will be alright. Besides, I really need to have a word." he said.
001 followed but kept an eye on Sylvia from afar. Jakob took out a box of cigarettes and put one in his mouth before offering one to 001.
He refused and took out a box of his own. Even refusing Jakob's offer to light it for him, preferring to use his own lighter.
"You are from some shady organization aren't you?" asked Jakob taking a drag.
"Not your concern." he replied following suit.
"It is. I am protecting a client of my own here. I need to know which kind of people might possibly rub shoulders with him. I was a commander in the Jaeger Corps." he revealed.
001 could tell that it was no lie. They were known by many names, The Elites, the hunters or simply the Jaegers. An elite special operations force of the Danish Armed Forces part of Special Operations Command (SOKOM). There was the thing in his eyes which screamed that the man was dangerous. He had killed and should be considered a serious threat.
"Why is a decorated soldier like you in the security business? You seem too young. Quit early? Or wait. A deserter? A traitor?" asked 001 with a small grin.
"Keep trying to get under my skin. It isn't going to work. Sunny." he said with a chuckle.
"Did I say it right? Sunny? You could have chosen a tough sounding name at least." he added blowing some smoke.
"Why do you keep assuming that its a fake name?" he asked calmly.
"Stop beating around the bush. I brought you aside becuase I wanted to know about your organization. Where are you from? Definitely not some legal private firm. You are no soldier. But you are trained. Highly. My grip is insanely strong, I know it. The fact that you managed to stand, choke me back and talk, back there proved that you are not someone normal. Spill it out. I am interested in knowing what kind of underworld gang you are from." asked Jakob.
"We are not a gang. We are an organization of sorts." he admitted blowing some smoke.
"Wow, that's interesting. So what is the name?" he asked.
"You won't find us even if you know the name."
"That's really interesting. You really made me curious. I like to make powerful friends. Do you?" he asked.
"Will you be useful?" asked 001.
"You can find out only in the time of need I guess." he said taking out his cellphone.
The two exchanged contacts. Jakob saved his number as Sunny, while 001 saved Jakob's number as Jaeger.
"Aww, you could have used the name you know. I did not lie about it, unlike you." he said noticing.
001 didn't pay any attention rather, he crushed his cigarette's butt on a dustbin and dumped it in.
"I will expect some good money in return, if you ever call for a favor." said Jakob grinning as he scratched his chin, 001 noticed a solid thick gold ring on his middle finger, with the insignia of the Jaeger Corps- a hunter's bugle emblazoned on it underneath a transparent moonstone.
He didn't reply and made his way through the guests towards Sylvia, who was busy talking to the CEOs of some companies, who were all licking her boot to manage fundings. It was evident in her face that she knew it, but allowed it for she liked the attention.
"It's already 20 minutes. Can we leave now?" asked 001 slowly.
Sylvia looked at him as if he was an idiot and ignored him, choosing to pick a drink offered by a waiter and reingaing in her conversation with the CEOs. 001 sighed and walked a few feet back, choosing to observe from a distance for now.
He noticed Jakob behind an old man who appeared to be another rich bloke just like everyone else in the party. Jakob picked two drinks and raise in the direction of 001, inviting him to have a drink. 001 walked towards him.
"So he is your client?" asked 001 as he took a glass from him.
"Yep, owner of a major airlines." said Jakob nodding.
"How much is your pay?" he added.
"Why do you want to discuss that?" asked 001 raising an eyebrow.
"Because then I will know why you are working for that hot client of yours. If you are charging well, then that means you are there strictly for business. If not, then you are simply there to bang her. And if both, then my friend, you are a greedy bastard." he said downing his drink in one go.
"So you are doing it for the money?" asked 001.
Jakob laughed slightly and motioned his eyes at a beautiful young women who was now standing beside his client.
"Whenever the old guy is sleeping, his wife and I." he said motioning the deed with his hands.
001 sighed. "Well, I am there for the money. Strictly. My organization demands 60% of my pay." he said.
"Woah, that's pretty steep." said Jakob a little surprised
He could tell that Jakob wanted to ask more but was refraining himself. Jakob was a strong and dangerous individual, his air-headed attitude coupled with his good looks made him seem like an actor. But he was very sharp. Sharp enough to know that though he wanted to know more about his mysterious organization, he shouldn't dive deep enough to land into unnecessary trouble. He was just socializing. Collecting contacts of the guards of the other rich people so as to build a strong network of his own. This was his understanding on how people got by in the bodyguard world, and it seemed to work well till an extent.