‘How was A&E?’ Libby asks.
Though the three of us are studying medicine together, we got split up for placements, worse luck.
‘Eventful, as usual.’ I take a deep breath, readying myself to elaborate even with the ear-splitting bass pumping in the background, while Mel fills a glass for me.
Just as the first crisp cold mouthful seeps deliciously down my throat, a thunderous bang pierces the air.
The music cuts out, blinding overhead lights blink on and someone shouts, ‘Everybody get the fuck down!’
All hell breaks loose.
2
ARCHIE
Technically, my job title is ‘bodyguard’, but somewhere along the way it’s evolved into ‘babysitter’ for two tiny twin dictators.
The weak January sun illuminates the manicured lawns of Huxley Castle. It’s unseasonably mild and therefore the perfect morning for a little ball practice with my two favourite four-year-olds.
‘Hit it hard this time!’ I yell at Blake, swinging an imaginary bat through the air. His own bat, a gift from his Uncle Jayden, is almost as big as him.
Nodding at Bella, Blake’s twin sister, I signal for her to throw the ball again. Her pursed lips and cute snub nose are a picture of determination. Her arm launches back before propelling the ball impressively high into the air. Bella has more zest than many grown men. Though given who her parents are, it’s no surprise.
Blake’s little arm swings ten seconds too late. Clearly, I needn’t have worried about him breaking a window.
Bella whoops, pink unicorn-embellished trainers hop on the spot in a victorious jig.
‘Ah! I’m shite!’ Blake cries, throwing the wooden bat to the ground, pouting like only a four-year-old can get away with.
‘Shite’s a bad word, Blake.’ Bella stops dancing, placing one hand on her tiny, legging-clad hip. ‘You owe the swear jar five euro.’
‘I’m not paying.’ Blake’s arms cross tightly across his tiny torso.
I march over to stand between them, ruffling Blake’s dark cropped hair. Both children are the image of their father, my employer, and treasured friend, Ryan Cooper.
I’ve worked as private security for Ryan and his brother, Jayden, for years. The position fell into my lap while I was drowning my sorrows in a bar in LA. I’d just been discharged from the British Army. I wasn’t in a good place mentally. I boarded a plane hoping to pick up some private security work with a guy I’d been stationed with in the Middle East but got side-tracked by my first taste of freedom and excessive amounts of Macallan whisky.
When a fight broke out in a bar, I apprehended a guy with a knife in less than ten seconds. Jayden offered me a job, and thank God he did, otherwise I might still be in that same bar drowning those same sorrows and battling my PTSD alone.
I don’t need to work. Not anymore, anyway. I don’t need a lot. I have no interest in materialistic things. Between the military pension and some well-invested bonuses over the years, I could comfortably retire.
But then what would I do?
I was born to protect and serve. Working for the Cooper brothers gave me a purpose. Indirectly, they saved me. I owe them everything.
And I can’t help feeling that if I save as many lives as I’ve taken over the years, perhaps I might somehow balance the invisible scales that hover over me.
Huxley Castle is a far cry from the modest farmhouse in the Cotswolds where I started life. But it’s the first place I’ve felt truly at home in years. Maybe ever. Ryan and Sasha treat me like a member of their family. Which is the main reason I bought one of the luxury cabins situated on the castle grounds. For the first time in my life, I’ve found somewhere I feel I belong.
My cabin is my private sanctuary, with unlimited access to all the castle facilities, the twenty-five metre glass domed pool, the in-house cinema, and Michelin-starred restaurant.
My favourite facility, though, is the winding gravel trails that blaze through the castle’s surrounding woodlands. Sprinting ten kilometres, inhaling the smell of the thick fresh foliage each morning helps eradicate the harrowing memories of the past.
My father always told me I didn’t have what it took to be a soldier. It turns out he was right. Still, it’s hard to dwell on what’s behind me when I’m gauging every gruelling step ahead.
I’ve lived here for five years, providing security for Ryan, his wife Sasha, and their family, both here and on various tours and trips. Glancing between the twins, my heart swells in my chest. The day they were born seems like only yesterday. I watched them take their first steps. Bella first, of course, paving the way ahead as usual. On their first day of school, I was almost as emotional as Ryan.
It’s an honour to live here with them and serve them. It’s not how I envisioned my life.
