ALEJANDRO SERRANO

When he felt a pair of eyes staring holes into the back of his head, Jerome looked away from the TV and glanced behind him, his hand braced on his glock in caution.

"You felt me staring. Good." Alejandro noted aloud as he stood behind the sofa, his eyes on the re-run of the football game from earlier that day, not all that interested. In his hands he held a plate of sausages and mash which Jerome recognised from his lunch at the bakery that same day. That must have been the carrier bag that Layla had been carrying when they left the bakery.

Jerome watched him warily before turning back to face forward. "Did I wake you? Sorry."

"No, don't worry about it. I wasn't asleep." He walked around, no longer standing behind the sofa but in front of it now.

Jerome chuckled and shuffled up to make room for him. "I guessed I wouldn't be seeing either of you till morning."

Alejandro couldn't hold back the cheeky grin as he plopped down on the sofa, cradling his late dinner to his chest. It was nearly midnight, so it was more of a midnight snack than dinner, really.

"Layla's out cold but I managed to work up an appetite." He gestured to the food. "I hope we didn't bother you." He apologised, even though he didn't seem all that apologetic.

"Don't worry. I figured out what was about to go down," pun intended. "So, I just turned the volume up."

"Smart man." Alejandro grinned unapologetically. He refused to apologise for pleasuring his girlfriend, especially when she was as stressed as she was.

He chuckled. "I don't think she likes me much."

Her former bodyguard hummed and finished off the rest of his meal. "Don't take it personally. You've just got big boots to fill."

The insinuation was lost on him.

Alejandro stood up with his empty plate and retreated to the kitchen to give it a quick wash. Drying his hands on a towel, he contemplated between crawling back under the sheets and cuddling with his gorgeous girlfriend, or getting to know the man that would be responsible for keeping her safe and out of harm's way for the next month or so. It didn't hurt to get on his good side.

As hard as it was, he chose the latter. Her safety was top priority for him.

"Can I interest you in a beer?"

Jerome didn't even hesitate. "I probably shouldn't, but go on."

A small smile graced his lips and he headed back over to the sofa, sitting down in his previous spot before handing the second beer to his successor.

"I'm sorry about what happened to you and Layla."

Alejandro sighed. "Yeah, me too."

"Byron sounds like a real character."

He chuckled and raised the bottle to his mouth. "You've heard of him?"

Jerome nodded and took a swig. "He calls the station at least at least twice a day to inform them of something he's suddenly remembered. Shanker warned me not to let him near Layla."

Alejandro pursed his lips. "He sure does get around."

"Look," Jerome turned to face him. "I don't want things to be awkward between us. I'm just here to be Layla's bodyguard and that's it."

"You look after her during the day and hand her over to me for the evenings?" He joked.

He chuckled. "Something like that. Just less sexist sounding."

They laughed at that.

"I know what it's like to be in your boat, you know?"

"Oh?" He sounded, genuinely curious.

"I was actually in the exact same position as you about ten years ago."

"You fell in love while on the job too?" He quirked an eyebrow at that.

"Exactly." He paused to take another gulp of his cold drink, pausing for dramatic effect. "On my first assignment as a bodyguard, I was protecting this woman who needed protection while the police gathered evidence against her abusive boyfriend. I spent nearly 2 months as her bodyguard because the guy she was trying to put behind bars was a slimy kind of guy who covered all his tracks."

"And is that woman?" His voice trailed off into a question, knowing that domestic abuse, or any other kind of abuse for that matter, was a sensitive topic for all.

"That woman is now the mother of my children. We've been married for 8 years now and have 2 boys, 6 and 4." Jerome smiled proudly as he thought back to then.

"How did you manage it?"

Jerome chuckled. "Easy. We didn't get caught."

Alejandro groaned.

"We weren't a bunch of horn dogs, like you two." He gestured towards the bedroom door. "Anything we did, we did behind the closed doors of her apartment."

"I deserved that." He sighed with a soft smile. "I don't regret it though."

"Neither do I. Becoming a bodyguard is the best thing I ever did. I never would have met my wife otherwise."

"Good for you, man." They both raised their bottles and cheered before returning to silence.

"I give you my word, Alejandro. I'll protect her with my life."

"I really appreciate that, thank you."

"You don't have to thank me. It's my job."

"No, it's mine." He chuckled and stood up, ready to head in for the night. "I'll see you in the morning."

Except, he saw him again before the morning.

"Are you decent? Please tell me you're decent."

"Jerome?" Alejandro called out; his voice groggy with sleep and glanced towards the window. The light wasn't shining under it which suggested that the sun hadn't even risen yet. "What are you doing in here?"

"You two need to get dressed and come out here. Hardy and Shanker are here." His voice was urgent and his words rushed.

That woke him up.

"Give us a few minutes."

Once the door closed, Alejandro threw the sheets off them and sprang out of bed. He walked over to the wardrobe and grabbed a pair of jogging bottoms for each of them, as well as a top for Layla.

He threw her clothes on the bed while he got dressed.

"Layla, I need you to wake up." When she didn't even stir, he sighed and placed a knee on the bed as he bent over her sleeping body, trying to shake her awake.

"Baby," she turned her head in his direction, her eyes still closed. "Again?" She mumbled quietly.

Alejandro threw his head back and laughed at that. He shouldn't have been surprised though. He had awoken her during the night on more than just a few occasions just because he needed another fix but unfortunately, this was not one of those times.

"Not this time." He shook his gently again. "I need you to wake up, beautiful. Detective Hardy and Shanker are here?"

That caught her attention.

Layla's eyes opened wide and he had to quickly move out of the way as she sat upright in surprise. "It's still dark. Why are they here this late?"

He shook his head. "I don't know."

"Do you think something happened?"

He pursed his lips. "I need you to get dressed so we can find out what they want."

Layla noticed the way he avoided her question – suggested that he did, in fact, believe that something had happened as they were dropping by so late – and hurried to pull on the clothes he set out for her.

When they headed out of her room, all three men sat around the kitchen counter. Layla and Alejandro joined them as they sat on stools of their own.

Alejandro must have noticed how anxious she was feeling, so when he reached out to grab her hand, she sent him a grateful look.

Hardy and Shanker eyed them with an equally grim look on both their faces.

"I'm not going to beat around the bush, but Byron has gone missing."

"Missing?" Layla questioned; her eyes wide with shock. If she wasn't awake before, she certainly was now. "How did he go missing?"

Shanker frowned. "We suspect he's been kidnapped."

Alejandro squeezed her hand and she wondered if it was more so for her sake or his. "What about Neil?"

"They hit him over the head and when he woke up, he called us immediately."

"Is he okay?" Alejandro asked, concerned.

Hardy nodded. "The doctors are saying he has a mild concussion, but should be fine. They'll be keeping him overnight."

"What happened?"

"They went out for food last night and when they got inside Byron's apartment, they were ambushed. They hit Neil round the head and left off with Byron."

"How did Neil not realise the locks were tampered with?" Alejandro sighed and ran a hand down his face in frustration.

On one hand, he hated Byron but now that he had been kidnapped, he couldn't help but feel bad for the man. He was already going through so much. On that same hand, he was angry at Neil for messing up but also understood that there would always be human error. However, on the other hand, he knew it wasn't Neil's fault. The man was the best bodyguard he had working under him – and that was saying something given his very high standards and expectations – so if they managed to pull a fast one of him, there was no doubt they were extremely skilled and cunning.

He made a mental note to call up Neil after the detective's left, just to make sure he was alright. If he recounted what happened before being knocked out, even better.

"That's the thing. He said they weren't."

"Did you check for yourselves?"

Both detectives nodded. "We've just come from Byron's apartment. The locks haven't been touched and nothing in the apartment looks out of place."

"So, you're saying they had a key?"

"That does seem like the only possible explanation right now."

"It must be someone Byron knows then. Enough that he would give them a key to his place."

A pregnant paused filled her apartment as they all allowed the information to settle in.

Layla was too afraid to ask but recognised that being scared would not be doing her any favours in this situation. "Do you think it's the same guys from the bank?"

The answer was simple. "Yes."

"Do you think they'll come for me next?" Layla couldn't help but asked, worried.

Hardy rubbed a hand down his face. "We suspect so."

Jerome finally joined the conversation. "What makes you say that?"

Both detectives glanced at him. "There was a note."

"What did the note say?" She asked quickly. The way the detectives were looking at her and each other, made her think that the note had something to do with her.

"We need to get Layla to a safe house." Alejandro shot up in his seat, dropping her hand.

"That's exactly why we're here. We need to move you," he nodded at Layla." And Jerome to a safe house."

"I'll go with them." Alejandro offered, the plan already set in motion in his mind.

"That can't happen."

Alejandro's body was shaking with rage now. "She's in danger. I need to protect her."

"That's what her bodyguard is for." Hardy pointed out with a grim look on his face.

"I'm her bodyguard." He pointed out weakly.

"You're not and we all know that."

Shanker jumped in quick, not appreciating the standoff between both of them.

"Layla. We need you to pack a bag quickly. Just a small one filled with essentials. No electronic devices so leave your phone and laptop behind. Clothes, medicine, things like that." He instructed her, but when she didn't budge from her seat, he continued but with more urgency in his voice. "I can't give you any more than 5 minutes I'm afraid."

Layla felt like she had stepped out of her body and was watching the scene from a distance, a total outsider.

It was just all so surreal. Unbelievable, nearly.

Layla nodded and hopped off the stool and retreated to her bedroom where she was quick to pull out a medium sized duffle bag from the back of her wardrobe. She didn't know how long she was going to be away, so she threw in all sorts of clothes from jumpers and jeans to lounger wear and pyjama sets as well as some essential skincare bits.

"You should wear your boots." He murmured quietly as he stepped into the bedroom a few moments later, closing the door behind him to give themselves a private moment.

"What? Why?" She asked, already sat on the bed, tugging on her sneakers. "These are more comfortable."

Alejandro desperately wracked his brain for a feasible excuse that would persuade her to her boots. "I don't want your ankles to get cold."

"I've got socks on." She pointed out, confused at his bizarre request.

"Please, beautiful." He begged her. "Do it for me."

She nodded her head hesitantly, and walked over to her shoes to swap the sneakers for her heeled ankle boots instead. She didn't quite understand his reasoning behind the incessant begging for her to do so, but she trusted him and did so without hesitation.

"I don't want to leave you."

"I know, I know." He rushed over to her and lifted her to her feet before pulling her into a hug. "I don't want to leave you either but I need you safe."

"I'm safe with you."

"Not anymore." His voice wavered with emotion.

It was only then did she truly feel the gravity of the situation.

"You need to go a safe house. It's too dangerous for you here now." He frowned, his eyes swimming with so much that she wasn't able to decipher anything in the light grey pools. "Jerome is going to keep you safe. I'm not allowed to go with you."

"They can't do that." She protested.

He sighed and took a few steps closer to her. "I hate it too but I can't do anything. I'm not your bodyguard anymore which means I'm not privy to information about the case. They won't even tell me where the safe house is." A frustrated growl passed his lips and his eyes burned with anger.

Alejandro rolled his head back and stared up at the ceiling. He didn't know when he would see her next. It could just be a few days or even a whole month, there was no way of knowing. When she was in the safe house and thinking of him, he didn't want her to think back to think back to this moment and how angry he had been.

He wanted her to remember all the good times.

"When will I see you again?" Her small voice called out to him, pulling him from his thoughts.

He covered the few steps separating them and she stood up, awaiting him.

"I don't know, beautiful." He reached down and clutched both of her hands in his. Raising her hands to his mouth, he brushed his mouth over her knuckles, taking his time to kiss each dip and fall. "But I promise it won't be long. I can't stay away from you for too long, you know that." He murmured.

She sighed and nodded her head, holding back her sobs. When he noticed this, he let go her hands and pulled her into his arms. He pressed her into his chest and kissed her hair, murmuring promises that they would be safe and back together before she knew it.

Layla didn't know what to believe anymore.

-

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Layla Knight

09.06.2020