The two guards stationed themselves outside, leaving the entire house to Sebastian and I. It was nice to finally feel like we had our own space again. Despite its size, the main house had, at times, felt cramped, and the pervasive air of concern and hostility had made it a less than pleasant living environment.
Sebastian produced some takeaway food from somewhere and we ate it sprawled out in front of the television, mocking the terribleness of the reality shows that seemed to dominate every network. It wasn't a particularly interesting evening by most standards, but I found myself laughing harder than I had in weeks. Leaving the Alpha headquarters had lifted a weight from my shoulders that I hadn't even realised I was carrying.
After dinner, Sebastian disappeared into the back of the house for a minute and returned carrying a box.
"I have something for you," he said, his tone once again serious.
"Oh?"
He opened the container to reveal a petite silver gun. My breath caught in my throat. "I want you to have this," he said, removing it and holding it out to me.
"Sebastian, I don't know the first thing about guns." Just the idea of having something so deadly in my hands filled me with an uneasy energy.
"I know. I'm not expecting you to go take out our enemies all by yourself. In truth, I doubt that you'll ever have to use it. I meant what I said about this place being secure. This is just a precaution, nothing more." He reached out with his free hand and cupped my chin, his thumb grazing my cheek with the utmost tenderness. "I can't be with you all the time, and the thought of not being here to protect you myself... please, it would make me feel better."
The concern in his eyes was enough to allay my hesitation. Gingerly, I reached out and took the weapon from him. It's cliché, but it was surprisingly heavy. The metal felt cold against my skin.
"This is the safety," he said, indicating near the trigger. "Don't switch that off unless you mean it. The gun carries thirteen rounds and is already loaded."
Closing my hands more tightly around the grip, I raised it slowly in front of me. I didn't have any illusions about my ability to actually hit anything, but I did feel a certain sense of comfort with that weight between my fingers.
"Okay." Holding death in my hand, I suddenly felt the need to make a joke. "You know, I'm pretty sure none of my friend's partners have ever given them a lethal weapon before. I'm surely the luckiest girl in the whole world."
The tension eased on his face. "I'm glad I could be your first."
"So, what else is there to do around this place?" I asked, setting the weapon aside. "You know, besides play with my new firearm."
"Not a whole lot." He grinned wickedly and slid closer, looping his hands under my legs and lifting them over his lap until I lay cradled in his arms. "Although I have a few ideas about how we can take advantage of our newfound privacy."
"Oh? And what might those be?" I replied as sweetly as possible.
He leaned in to brush a soft kiss across my cheek. "Well, I thought perhaps I'd see how many different rooms I could fuck you in."
"I think I'd like that very much," I replied, already feeling my pulse quicken.
Suffice it to say that there were no rooms left unchristened by the time we finally collapsed into bed.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Sophia
For a little while, the novelty of being somewhere fresh buoyed my mood. I explored the new house, and spent many hours pottering around with a glass of wine and a book. But soon enough, my frustration returned. Each morning, Sebastian would kiss me on the head and then disappear through the bedroom door, not returning until well after sundown. In many ways, he had little more freedom than me, but at least he had a mission. I, on the other hand, was left to simply float around, entirely without purpose.
I tried engaging the security guards in a little banter, but it quickly became apparently that all of the steroids must have burned their fun glands into oblivion. They were about as friendly as a pair of rocks, and even less interesting; I quickly abandoned all hope of alleviating my boredom through conversation.
At my request, Sebastian had brought me a laptop, so I turned to surfing job hunting websites online. I knew it was masochistic to taunt myself like that, but I couldn't help it. After a decade of thinking about nothing but my career, I couldn't just switch off that part of my brain. To be honest, I wasn't sure there were many other parts anymore. It turned out there were several positions going at top tier firms, including one at Little Bell's biggest rival. Any one of them would have been perfect for me, and I knew I stood a good chance if I decided to apply.
I stared at the screen for a while, before closing the laptop and setting it purposefully aside. Well, there you go. Who knows, maybe they'll still be available in a few weeks and all this will have blown over.
But as I lay in bed that night, I couldn't stop thinking about what I'd found. Getting back to work was exactly what I needed. With all day to myself, I couldn't help but dwell on my situation. Being unemployed and trapped in a house, with mysterious forces plotting God knows what all around me, was hardly a recipe for inner peace.
"You know, I'm going a little crazy here," I said the next day, when we were sitting in the lounge room after dinner.
He shot me a sympathetic look. "I know it's rough. Hopefully we'll have something soon. In the meantime, try to relax and enjoy the time off."
"Have you seen me try to relax?" I replied. "It's a train wreck. Yesterday I actually rearranged every book in the study by author name, just to feel like I'd actually achieved something for the day."
He laughed.
"Incidentally, you have an awful lot of cook books from the fifties in there. Anyway, relaxation isn't my M.O," I continued. "I need to be out there, getting my life back on track. The longer I wait to find another job, the harder it's going to be. I get that the situation is dangerous, but I want something to come back to when it's all over."
He stared at me for several seconds, a strange smile playing on his lips.
"What?" I asked, realising that something wasn't right. He shouldn't have been smiling.
He opened his mouth, then closed it again, before standing up and walking over to his desk. "I was going to wait until after all of this was sorted out, but I guess there's no harm in showing you now."