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“Pardon? Did you said that you are going to assign me...?”
“A bodyguard, that's right.”
Van Zieks frowned. He looked at the chief prosecutor, and with a sigh he spoke again.
"Without my permission," he added. “Don't you think that, if I needed that kind of protection, I would have hired it myself, instead of using the prosecution funds for it?”
“That is precisely why I have hired them. Because you wouldn't accept it any other way.”
“Maybe it's because I have no need of them.”
The chief prosecutor looked at him, raising his eyes from his feet to his head. And finally, his gaze on van Zieks’ forehead, he said:
“That bandage says otherwise.”
Van Zieks looked away. A blush of embarrassment was on his cheeks.
“I've been taking good care of myself for years.”
“This case is being especially complicated, I can tell from the number of attacks so far. I don't want you to take the risk alone.”
“And do you prefer to leave me at the mercy of some bodyguards who could betray me?”
“That is precisely why I have been careful when choosing them. They don’t know anyone in that criminal organisation. In fact, they have never set foot in Great Britain in their entire lives.”
That made him raise his eyebrows, which brought pain to the wound on his forehead.
“Where do they come from...?”
***
The first one greeted him with a long bow and a friendly smile. The second one followed the bow by drawing his katana in the air and putting it back in the scabbard. Each of those gestures felt like a statement. That is why van Zieks felt that he should do the same. Introductions over, he turned to the door of his office.
“Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to start my work. You can keep watch in the office, or leave until the day is over and I return home.”
When he had his hand on the knob, Naruhodo's body moved ahead of him.
"Allow me," he said, and proceeded to open the door himself.
He moved ahead of van Zieks, walking around the office, examining every corner. Van Zieks tried to go after him, but Asogi put a hand on his arm to stop him.
"Everything is alright," Naruhodo concluded. “Come in”
"Are we going to do this in every room I walk in?"
"Not all of them," Asogi replied. “Only at key points, such as your office, the courtroom, or your home.”
That made van Zieks straighten up.
“Will you also work in my house?”
“Wasn't that part of the contract?” Naruhodo asked. “The chief prosecutor told us that we would stay there...”
He heard genuine concern in his words, and realized that they probably wouldn't have looked for another place to stay. He sighed. It seemed that he had no choice.
The day went on, in calm. Asogi practiced with his sword, training in the free space of the office, Naruhodo read some books. Van Zieks was grateful to be allowed to work in peace.
The situation changed at the lunch break. As soon as his tray was served, Naruhodo approached with his own fork.
“Is this necessary?”
"It's part of the protocol," Naruhodo said, putting a piece of the entrecôte in his mouth. He closed his eyes as he savoured it. He seemed to enjoy it more than he should, being surely the most expensive meat he had ever tasted. When he realized what he was doing, he opened his eyes and put the fork down. “It's delicious. Enjoy it. If I don't die, of course.”
He did the same with the glass of wine that accompanied it.
“Will you be the one who takes the risk in all the tastings? What about your partner?”
"I'll take the risk when I have to fight an enemy," Asogi said from the other side of the room. “Each one has his role.”
“Yes. I'm not as good as him at fighting, but I've been told I'm a good observer.”
“He is. If one day there is something strange in your office, he will notice it instantly.”
“Or in the street, or in your house... Or in the food. You can eat now, by the way.”
Van Zieks took a sip from his wine, and said nothing else.
***
Van Zieks spent some time thinking about what Asogi had said. The different skills that the two bodyguards had, which complemented each other.
Luckily, in those early days there hadn't been any situation where they had to test their skills. Even so, van Zieks had been watching them, and he had been able to see it.
From the beginning he had noticed that Naruhodo wasn't too strong or quick. But his hearing, his eyes, were especially acute. When they walked down the street, he kept looking around, noticing every detail. On one occasion, while he was looking at some men out of the corner of his eye, he whispered to van Zieks to leave, to get on the first omnibus they saw. Who knows if that act saved them from a fight.
As for Asogi, his sword skills were remarkable. Even if he hadn't fought yet, van Zieks had been able to notice it as he spent hours in the office practicing. Always wielding the weapon that he carried on his belt.
One day, he came to ask him the question that he had been thinking about from the beginning.
“Why the katana?”
It was a day with hardly any work, in which he could not do anything except look at the documents that were already done, waiting for something new. That's why he ended up getting distracted by the training of his bodyguard.
“It is the sword of my family. It is the weapon that I have always wielded” was his solemn response. Then he added, "And the rivals I have to fight against aren't used to them."
Without another word, Van Zieks got up from his desk, and went to the wall, to take one of the swords that hung there.
He stood before Asogi, in a fencing pose, on guard. He understood, and took a similar position.
“Show me.”
And so he did. His katana whistled through the air at the first cut. He swung his sword in a direction Van Zieks wouldn't have expected. Still, he fought back.
Van Zieks focused on defending himself, so he could analyse Asogi's attack. The movements, the way he wields his weapon, his weaknesses.
He was used to that kind of analysis; he was forced to perform it before any new enemy.
Soon, he found out that he was facing a worthy rival. And he understood why he trusted to use his katana against opponents who were accustomed to Western swords. And so, finally, van Zieks lost the battle. The point of the katana landed in the centre of his chest, and the fight ended.
There were a few moments of silence, in which only the heavy breathing of both men could be heard. Then, some applause.
They both turned around, to see how Naruhodo had forgotten about the book he was reading, to focus on the battle and applaud when the show was over.
Asogi raised an eyebrow. And suddenly, he was going to the wall, to pick up the last sword that was left in it. Naruhodo's eyes widened as he took it into his hands, and he forced him to his feet.
“Come on. If you're going to be a bodyguard, you need to know more about combat.”
“But…”
Van Zieks brought the edge of his sword close to his neck. Naruhodo swallowed hard and seemed to pale as he looked at his edge.
"You can try to be the one to fight with swords today,"Asogi said. “And I'll be in charge of tasting Van Zieks’ wine and entrecôte.”
***
The day ended. Van Zieks returned home, with his bodyguards behind him, as always. Each one of them went to his own room, and van Zieks began his night routine.
A routine that was interrupted by some knocks on the bathroom door.
“Van Zieks? Is everything okay in there?”
He held in a breath as he looked away from the mirror.
“Is your monitoring going to include the bathroom as well?”
“No, no. We just wanted to know if everything is in order. It seemed to Naruhodo that you were taking a long time in there.”
Van Zieks pursed his lips. He took a breath, and just spoke.
“I was changing my bandages.”
There were some murmurs on the other side. Then, Naruhodo's voice:
“Can we come in?”
“Excuse me?”
“It's just that Asogi has practice with this. He can help you clean the wound. I once cut my arm practicing archery and he...”
"Just come in," he replied.
Asogi was the first one to enter.
He looked at his face with the same expression he would look at any challenge, trying to analyse it. Naruhodo, instead, shuddered.
"That must hurt," he murmured, almost to himself.
“You are a bodyguard and you are not used to seeing injuries?”
“Don't blame him. He's new to this whole world,” Asogi said as he soaked a towel in balm. “He didn't join the job until he met me.”
“Really?”
“Well, he offered me to come to the UK with him... And I had no plans after college, so I accepted.”
Van Zieks was surprised, and was about to add something, until the sting of the balm on the wound made him clench his teeth.
“But he's right. It looks unpleasant,” said Asogi.
“What wound is not?” replied van Zieks, in a whisper.
With his eyes on the cut, Naruhodo dared to ask:
"What happened?”
Van Zieks was silent for a few seconds. When the two bodyguards thought he wasn't going to answer, he did so.
"It was because of the case I’m investigating right now," he said. “Some colleagues of the culprit attacked me in the middle of the street.”
There were a few moments of silence, without anyone daring to say anything. In that silence, Asogi took the bandages and rewrapped them over his forehead.
“There you go. Good as new.”
There were no more words. His nightly routine over, Van Zieks was ready for bed.
He was lying there, reading a book, when there was another knock at the door.
"Come in," he said, and found Naruhodo entering the bedroom.
“Can I help you?”
“Do you need anything?”
They both spoke at the same time, and then fell silent. It was Naruhodo who spoke.
“Is everything alright? Do you need anything else?”
“I don't think that's part of your bodyguard duty. I should ask that to you, as my guest.”
“No, everything is fine. I've never had a room this big,” he replied, with an awkward laugh. “Sorry.”
But van Zieks sighed softly and shook his head.
“It's fine. I appreciate your concern.”
Naruhodo supposed that he should leave after those words. And yet, something in his heart made him stay.
“How is the wound? Does it bother you?”
“It's not as painful as it seems.”
Naruhodo nodded gently.
“Good to know. Still... I'm so sorry for what they did to you.”
“I am aware of the dangers of this job. The people who want to get you out of the way.”
“But, they didn't want to get you out of the way, right?” he said. “That kind of wound is not made trying to kill. It seems that... that they wanted to hurt you, in the face, on purpose.”
Van Zieks was silent. Asogi hadn't lied, Naruhodo really was perceptive.
"No, I suppose not," was his reply. “It was two days before I took the case. I guess before they were charged with a new murder, they intended to scare me. To make me back out.”
“But you did not.”
“No, I did not. So I guess next time they won't try to scare me.”
Silence again. Naruhodo's head was lowered, with sad eyes. Until he dared to look at him again, and he spoke:
"In that case, I'm glad we're here as your bodyguards."
Van Zieks didn't dare to reply, not even with a “thank you”. The kindness of his words, the feelings in them, as if he meant it, caught him off guard.
There were no words. But their gazes, the ghost of a smile, wished them goodnight.