Her Anchor (34 page)

Chapter 6

Brad was about to carry Kiley into the bedroom when her phone started to ring.  She looked at it.  She had five missed calls from her father.  She frowned, calling him back.  She was still naked. 

“Hello?” 

“Kiley?  Where the hell are you?”  Her father sounded angry. 

“I’m fine dad.”  She rolled her eyes. 

“I want to know where you are.”  Kiley said nothing. “Kiley?”  Still, Kiley kept quiet.  Her father sighed. “I want you home this instant, young lady.  You hear me.  Come home before you get yourself into trouble.”  His voice sounded stern.

“Fine.  But can I bring a friend?”  Her dad said nothing.  After a moment, he cleared his throat. 

“A friend… what kind of friend?”  He asked. 

“You’ll see.”  Her voice was full of sass.

“Fine.  Just come home.”  Kiley hung up before looking at Brad.

“Is it too early to introduce you to my father?”  Brad blushed as he looked at her. 

“You want me to go with you?”  He asked, a little surprised.  Suddenly he felt extremely nervous.  “Don’t you live in the rich part of town?”  Kiley nodded casually. 

“Yeah, so?” 

“Well… I’m not really part of that social class… I would stand out like a sore thumb.”  He said, embarrassed.  The thought of entering the rich part of town made him feel uncomfortable. 

“Don’t be silly… it will be fine.”  Brad looked into her green eyes before sighing.  He couldn’t tell her no. 

***

The gates of the Bullen Estate opened up with a groan.  Brad’s eye caught sight of the gold-colored embellishments on the gate and wondered if they were real or painted.  He then stared at the large driveway that led to the mansion.  He had never seen anything so luxurious and grand.  He stared at in wonder. 

As he stared, the car stopped. One of Kiley’s bodyguards opened up the door.  She got out and held out her hand for Brad.  He took it and blushed.  He squeezed her hand gently.  Kiley quickly dragged him into the house.  Brad was nervous.  He didn’t know what to do or how to act.  What if her father disapproved of him?  Brad went through a million different scenarios and every way they could go wrong. 

Eventually, Brad found himself in front of Mr. Bullen himself.  The regal looking man made Brad feel inadequate.  He started to sweat under his hoodie.

“Who is this?”  Kiley’s father asked as he looked at Brad. 

“Well… the night I snuck away from the party… a group of five men tried to assault me and Brad saved me.”  Kiley explained.  Her father looked surprised. 

“Is that so?”  He looked at Brad again, examining him closely.  “Were you armed?” He asked.  After a moment, Brad shook his head. 

“Impressive.  Do you have a job?”  Mr. Bullens asked, seriously.  Once again Brad shook his head.  He felt like he was being interrogated.  “Do you want a job?”  Brad was taken by surprise.  He didn’t know how to answer. 

Kiley nudged him.  He looked down at her, seeing her large green eyes imploring him to answer.  He cleared his throat and squeezed her hand. “Um… what kind of job, sir?”  He asked.

“Well… you seem like a strong individual.  My daughter seems to like you.  You seem capable of protecting her.  I can offer you a job as her personal bodyguard.”  Brad’s eyes grew large at these words.  He looked down at Kiley who was smiling big. 

“Do you mean that dad?”  She asked, excited.  The thought of Brad as her bodyguard excited her.  She thought back to his fight with the Russian.  If Brad could beat a man like that, she was in safe hands. 

“I… I’m honored by the offer… but…”  Kiley frowned as she looked up at him.  Did he not want to be her bodyguard?

“The starting salary is $100,000 a year.”  Brad’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.  Was this man being serious?  Brad hesitated a moment. 

“Did… did you say… $100,000… sir?”  Brad whispered softly.  There was disbelief in his voice.  Mr. Bullens nodded.  Brad took a moment to answer.  He thought about the large amount of money.  With that sort of money his mother could get the treatment she needed until an organ donor came through.

Maybe she would even to get out of the hospital and come home.  Brad then looked at Kiley thinking that as her bodyguard he would spend more time with her.  He looked at Kiley before looking at Mr. Bullens.  Slowly he nodded his head.  Kiley smiled big and hugged him. 

“Great.  I also provide housing and a vehicle for you.”  Brad looked at the man in disbelief.  He couldn’t believe that this was happening. 

“Thank you, sir.” 

“But… before you start… you need to get through the application process…”  Brad looked at Mr.  Bullens quizzically.

“Application process?”  Brad knew the offer had been too good to be true.  There was a catch.  There was always a catch.

“In order to be Kiley’s bodyguard you will need to beat Ramos here in a fight.”  Mr. Bullens held out his hand and motioned to Kiley’s current bodyguard, an ex-military veteran who had served ten years as a special operations agent.  Brad looked at the man.  He noticed the man’s tall stature and muscular fight.  There was a harsh look in the man’s eyes.  This would be no easy fight.

“C’mon Brad I know you can take him!”  Kiley said, encouraging him.  He looked at her before looking at her father. 

“I accept.” 

A few hours later, the two men were in the middle of the backyard.  They looked at each other for a moment before shaking hands.  Brad thought this to be a very bizarre situation.

“First man to be pinned down for 3 seconds is the loser, keep it clean, no major injuries.”  Mr. Bullens explained before starting the fight.  The two men circled around each other. Kiley could see that Brad was analyzing his opponent’s every move. 

They kept moving before Brad was suddenly tackled to the ground.  Kiley winced as she watched Brad hit the ground. 

Brad quickly recovered, however.  He started to dish out fast jabs at his opponent.  Ramos, highly trained, avoided most of them.  He was quick on his feet and Brad took a while to adjust his fighting style.  Soon, however, Brad gained the upper hand.  He started to fight with his powerful legs, dishing out kick after kick, gaining momentum. 

While Ramos found himself getting worn down by this man.  He tried to counter, but Brad was too quick.  Ramos breathed hard as he tried to recover.  As he did, Brad landed a roundhouse kick to Ramos’ head.  Kiley flinched as she heard the sound of a jaw dislocating.  She closed her eyes and looked away.  So much for no major injuries.

Ramos hit the ground hard, collapsing like a sack of potatoes.  Brad quickly got on top of him, pinning him down. 

“1… 2… 3!”  Mr.  Bullens looked surprised.  He hadn’t expected this stranger to take down one of his best bodyguards. 

“You’re… you’re hired…”

Kiley rushed over and hugged him.  He grinned proudly as he picked her up and spun her around.  She giggled as they kissed. 

“I knew you could do it…”

Chapter 7

A few weeks later, Brad found himself feeling happier than ever.  He was now living a decent life and his mother was getting the proper treatment she needed.  His girlfriend was amazing and their sex was indescribable. Life seemed perfect. 

Today, Kiley and Brad were taking a walk around the city.  Kiley was holding Brad’s hand as they passed an alleyway.  As they did, they heard the sound of a fight. 

“What’s that?”  Kiley asked.

“Sounds like a street fight to me.”  Kiley looked up at him with big eyes.  There was a mischievous look on her face. 

“No… absolutely not… you know those days are over for me.  I don’t fight anymore.  I’m your bodyguard now.”  He smirked and looked down at her, gently kissing her forehead.  She pouted at him. 

“C’mon you know you would win if you did!”  Brad looked at her and sighed.  He couldn’t tell her no. 

“But street fights are…”  Kiley cut him off with a kiss.  Brad was about to tell her that street fights were dangerous.  They involved even fewer rules than underground fights and often times they involved knives and other weapons.  Kiley, however, pulled him into the alley.  There was a group of men circled around a current fight.  Kiley could hear the sound of men groaning and winced a bit, imagining the bloody pulp they were beating themselves into.  

“I got your next fighter right here!”  Kiley exclaimed, grabbing everyone’s attention.  Everyone turned, looking at her. 

“Is that so?  That pretty boy wouldn’t last five minutes with my man.”  Kiley glared at him. 

“I bet $5,000 that
my
man will win.”  Everyone’s eyes grew in surprise. 

“Kiley… are you sure?  $5,000 is a lot of money…”  He whispered.  Kiley shushed him, pulling the money out of her purse. 

“What do you say hot shot?”  The man grinned taking the money. 

“Fine if you have a death wish for him, I won’t stop you.”

Brad looked nervous.  For some reason, he didn’t feel right about this fight.  He could feel it in the pit of his stomach.  He looked around and tried to calm himself down.  It was not like him to get pre-fight jitters.  As he looked around he locked eyes with Kiley who gave him a thumbs up.  He knew he couldn’t let her down. 

Suddenly the fight broke out.  Brad was doing well and holding his own when suddenly things got dirty.  His opponent pulled out a knife.  This took Brad by surprise. Before he could react the knife was already inside of him.  He fell to the ground in pain.  His opponent smirked, kicking him in the stomach. 

Kiley tried to run forward and help her boyfriend when someone grabbed her.  They pulled her out of the alley.  She kept screaming and struggling before a group of men threw her into the back of a van.  Brad groaned as he watched everything from his fallen state. 

The men continued to hit him and torture him and it was a surprise they didn’t kill him.  When they thought he was beyond repair the crowd dissipated.  Brad watched in horror as a man in a red hoodie, the same red hoodie from the night when he saved her.  This man got into the van and drove away as Kiley screamed for help. 

Brad tried to get up and run, but he couldn’t.  Everything went black. 

Chapter 8

A few hours later Brad woke up and cursed under his breath.  He got up and winced as he felt the pain of all his injuries.  He quickly pulled the knife out of his side, grunting in pain.  He was bleeding, but he ignored it.  He had other matters to attend to.  They had taken Kiley and he needed to find her. 

Quickly he pulled out his phone.  He was glad they hadn’t taken it from him.  When he became Kiley’s bodyguard, he had gotten access to the tracking device on her phone.  If Kiley had her phone on her he would be able to find her.  He looked at his phone, quickly finding the information he needed to rescue her. 

It looked like she was in one of the abandoned subway stations.  Brad started to run down the street.  His heart was pounding in his chest as he thought about his girlfriend.  He prayed she was okay. 

Adrenaline pumped through his veins as he broke down the wooden boards shutting away the entrance of the station.  He crashed down the stairs and winced as he tumbled down the steps.  He got up and started to search for Kiley.

As he walked through the station, he noticed a light coming from an abandoned subway cart.  He approached it slowly, peeking inside one of the windows.  Kiley’s hands were tied to one of the subway poles and there were three men guarding her.  Brad formed a plan before creeping into the train. 

He took down the first man easily.  The other two men charged at him and he did his best to fight them both at the same time.  Somehow, in the end he managed to slam both of their heads together, making them fall, unconscious to the floor.  He looked up, ready to save his girlfriend when his eyes grew wide in horror. 

Before him, Kiley looked scared as the barrel of a gun touched her forehead.  She was whimpering softly as the man with the red hoodie looked at Brad, a grin on his face. 

“Not so tough now are you?”  The man grinned as he cocked the gun. 

“Don’t!”  Brad pleaded as he looked at the man.  “Kill me instead.” 

“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea…”  He grinned and pointed the gun at Brad.  Kiley’s eyes grew large as she shook her head in terror.  She tried to escape her bonds as the man put his finger on the trigger. 

Suddenly the sound of a gunshot resounded through the subway cart.  Kiley closed her eyes as her heart pounded in her chest.  She heard Brad scream out in pain and feared the worst.  She was too scared to open her eyes. 

The man with the red hoodie smirked as he watched Brad wither in pain.  He pointed the gun at Kiley, taking his attention away from Brad.  When he did, Brad quickly swept the man’s feet from under him, knocking him to the ground.

He moved quickly, knocking the gun out of the man’s hand before raining down punch after punch on the man’s face until he was unconscious.  Brad breathed hard as blood spilled from his bullet wound.  Despite this, he got up and untied his girlfriend holding her close. 

She finally opened up her eyes to look at him.  She kissed him deeply.  She was glad he was alive and thankful that they were both okay.  Or so she thought.  She looked down to see his bloody shirt. 

“You’re… you’re hurt!”