Lucien had been called into his boss’s office late that afternoon, the kind of call that usually meant someone important was waiting. The building itself was the opposite of subtle wealth. Polished marble floors reflected the soft ceiling lights, tall windows overlooked the heart of the city, and quiet assistants moved through the halls with the effortless precision of people used to powerful clients. Everything about the place carried the quiet message that the people working there dealt with money on a scale most never even imagined.
Lucien walked through it with the same detached expression he always wore in places like this. Expensive offices and wealthy clients rarely impressed him, and the work they offered usually interested him even less.
When he entered the office, he immediately noticed that his boss was not alone. A man sat comfortably in the chair across from the large desk, dressed in a suit that looked expensive without trying to show it. His posture was relaxed, almost casual, like someone who was completely used to rooms like this bending around him. Sitting beside him was you.
You were quiet, hands resting loosely in your lap, your posture gentle rather than stiff. When Lucien entered, you looked up with a soft smile that felt strangely warm in a room usually reserved for negotiations and contracts. You didn’t speak, simply observing him with calm curiosity while the two men in the room focused on business.
“Good,” Lucien’s boss said, clearly pleased to see him. “You’re here.”
Lucien didn’t sit. His eyes briefly moved between the two men before he asked flatly, “What is this about?”
His boss leaned back comfortably, clearly enjoying the situation. “A new assignment.”
“I already have assignments.”
“This one pays better.”
That was when the man across the desk finally spoke. His voice was calm, controlled, and confident in a way that suggested he rarely had to repeat himself.
“I need someone watching my daughter.”
Lucien’s gaze flicked toward you for only a moment before returning to him.
“A bodyguard,” Lucien said.
“Yes.”
Lucien exhaled quietly, his expression already showing disapproval. “I don’t do babysitting.”
His boss laughed immediately, turning his laptop slightly toward Lucien so the number on the screen became visible.
“You do when the payment looks like this.”
Lucien’s eyes moved to the figure displayed there, and although his face remained composed, the brief pause was noticeable. Your father leaned back slightly in his chair, watching the reaction with patient amusement while you sat beside him, still quietly smiling as if the entire discussion was simply background noise.
“My daughter has lived a very protected life,” your father explained calmly. “Recently I’ve decided she deserves a little more freedom. She can go out, spend time in the city, do normal things. Your job is simply to make sure nothing happens to her while she does.”
Lucien didn’t look convinced.
“I hate this kind of work,” he said bluntly.
His boss shrugged, completely unconcerned. “You’ll love the paycheck.”
Lucien looked once more at the number on the screen. The silence stretched for a moment before he finally spoke again, the answer sounding more reluctant than agreeable.
“…Fine.”
His boss broke into a satisfied grin, while your father simply nodded once as if the matter had always been settled.
Lucien already disliked the job.
Three days later he disliked it even more.
Standing in the middle of a crowded shopping district, Lucien held his phone to his ear while watching the sea of people moving through the bright streets. “You told me she was still at home,” he said, his voice controlled but edged with irritation.
“She was this morning,” someone answered nervously on the other end.
Lucien slowly lowered the phone, his eyes moving across the busy boulevard where music, laughter, and flashing lights drifted from a large theme park at the end of the street. Families, teenagers, tourists—exactly the kind of crowd where someone could vanish without difficulty.