“This is a different kind of bodyguard.”
“What do you mean different?”
He doesn’t answer right away, and the pause stretches long enough that my mind starts racing through possibilities. A monster who can pass as human? Someone already inside the organization? None of the options make sense, and the anxiety that’s been humming under my skin since I walked into this conference room spikes sharper.
“Captain,” I say. “What kind of bodyguard?”
“A symbiote.”
Fuck no.
I’m on my feet before I realize I’m moving.
“Absolutely not.”
Holt stays seated, calm and unmoved by my reaction.
“Hayes…”
“I will not let a parasite touch me, let alone merge with me.”
My voice comes out harder than I intended, but I can’t help it. The thought of something sliding under my skin, spreading through my body, living inside me like some kind of infection makes my stomach turn.
“They’re not parasites,” Holt says quietly. “And you know that.”
I do know that. Symbiotes are people, legally recognized and protected, and calling them parasites is the kind of prejudice I’ve spent my career fighting against. But knowing something intellectually and feeling it in your gut are two different things, and right now my gut is screaming at me to refuse this.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “I have nothing against symbiotes personally. But I won’t do it. I’m fine on my own.”
“You’re not fine on your own. The Kyzer family kills people who cross them, and if your cover is blown, you’ll be dead before we can get to you.” He stands now, his bulk making him tower over the table. “The bodyguard is highly trained, works for Monster Security Agency, and has years of experience in exactly this kind of operation. He’s well documented and perfectly safe.”
Monster Security Agency. Everyone knows about the MSA. They’re the best private security agency in the world, the kind of organization that handles protection for politicians, celebrities, and corporations with enough money to afford the best. If the FBI contracted with them, this isn’t some random symbiote they pulled off the street. This is someone with credentials and a track record.
But that doesn’t change what merging means.
“He’ll be with you at all times,” Holt continues. “Merged with your body, completely hidden. The Kyzers won’t know he’s there. Their magical detection won’t pick him up. And if something goes wrong, if they try to hurt you, he can protect you in ways no human bodyguard could.”
“I don’t need protection I can’t control.”
“You need protection you can’t be separated from.” His voice is firm now, the fatherly tone dropping away. “When he’s merged with you, he can enhance your strength, speed up your reflexes, help you keep your emotions in check during interrogations. If you need to fight, he makes you ten times stronger. If you’re injured, he can heal you. And most importantly, he can’t be taken away from you or detected by anyone.”
Everything he’s saying makes sense strategically. I know that. A symbiote bodyguard would give me advantages I couldn’t get any other way, protection that can’t be compromised or removed. But the cost of that protection is something I’m not sure I can pay.
“A symbiote merged with me means complete access to my mind,” I say, and I hear the edge of panic in my own voice. “No privacy, no secrets. Everything I think, everything I feel, he’ll know all of it.”
“Yes.”
“Then you understand why I can’t do this.”
Holt studies me for a long moment, and I see sympathy in his expression, but it doesn’t soften his next words.
“You don’t have a choice, Hayes. Either you take the bodyguard, or the mission is canceled.”
“Captain!”
“I won’t send you into the Kyzer organization without protection. You’re too valuable an agent to risk losing, and thismission is too important to let you go in alone.” He crosses his arms over his chest. “This is non-negotiable.”
I want to argue, want to find some way to make him see that this is asking too much, but the look on his face tells me there’s no room for debate. He’s already made the decision. This meeting isn’t about getting my agreement, it’s about informing me of what’s going to happen whether I like it or not.
