Chapter 29: The 24-Hour Bodyguard

Fear spread through the office like ink in water. The sleek black box sat on the coffee table, sealed in an evidence bag.

Sebastian’s office had transformed into a temporary command center. The Head of Security, sweating profusely, delivered the bad news. "Mr. Sterling, we checked the CCTV. The courier wore a helmet and mask. He dropped the package and left immediately. The delivery was booked via a burner app. The number is untraceable."

The trail was cold. This wasn't just a prank. It was a calculated warning. The enemy knew where Sebastian lived. They knew what Harper looked like. They had even breached the villa’s high-security perimeter to take that photo in the garden.

Sebastian sat in his wheelchair, facing the floor-to-ceiling window, looking out at the city. His silhouette looked like a volcano waiting to erupt.

"Upgrade the villa's security," Sebastian’s voice was cold enough to freeze the air. "Raise the walls. Install infrared sensors. Cover every blind spot with cameras. I want to know the gender of every fly that enters my property."

"Yes, sir!" The security chief scrambled out.

Sebastian turned around and rolled toward Harper. She was sitting on the sofa, clutching a cup of hot tea with both hands. Her face was still pale. The image of her scratched-out face haunted her mind.

Sebastian reached out, covering her ice-cold hands with his warm ones. "Harper."

Harper looked up, forcing a weak smile. "I'm fine, Boss. Maybe it's just... some crazy fans."

"Fans don't breach my security systems," Sebastian’s eyes were dark. "This is targeted at me. You are collateral damage."

He took a deep breath, making a decision. "From this moment on, you do not leave my sight." "You don't go out alone. You don't go to the market. You don't go to the garden." "If you need to use the bathroom, you tell me."

Harper blinked. "Boss, isn't that... extreme? You're going to guard the bathroom door?"

"If I have to," Sebastian said, dead serious. "I will stand guard myself."

Harper looked at his tight jawline. She knew he was doing this out of love, but it felt... suffocating. Like a canary being locked in a cage. Even if it was a golden cage built by love.

---

[The First Night]

When they returned to the Sterling Estate, it was already dark. The atmosphere had shifted. Men in black suits stood every five meters along the perimeter. The little garden—Harper’s pride and joy—was cordoned off with yellow tape like a crime scene.

Harper looked at the trampled mud where her roses used to be. A sharp pain pricked her heart. Her sanctuary was gone.

After dinner (which was tasted by a bodyguard first), Harper stood up to go to the guest room.

"Where are you going?" Sebastian asked.

"To sleep."

"No," Sebastian pointed to the master bedroom. "Starting tonight, you sleep in my room."

Harper’s eyes widened. "Huh?" She knew they were a "thing" now, but... moving in together? Already?

"Don't get the wrong idea," Sebastian saw her panic, though his own ears turned slightly pink. "The guest room is too far. If someone breaks in, I can't reach you in time."

"But..."

"No buts," Sebastian said firmly. "My room has bulletproof glass and an independent panic room. It is the safest place in the house."

So, Harper grabbed her pillow and walked into the master bedroom like a lamb entering the lion's den.

The room was huge, decorated in masculine shades of black and grey. In the center was a massive King-Size bed.

Harper stood by the bed, clutching her pillow. "Um... where do I sleep? On the floor?"

Sebastian was already in bed, wearing silk pajamas, reading a book. He patted the empty space beside him. "The bed is big enough. You take the left, I take the right."

Harper swallowed hard. Sharing a bed. With the Boss.

She climbed in stiffly, wrapping herself in the duvet like a burrito. She lay on the very edge of the mattress, leaving enough space between them to park a car.

The lights went out. The room plunged into darkness. Harper lay there, rigid, listening to their breathing.

Rustle. She heard Sebastian move. Then, a warm, large hand reached across the empty space and found her cold hand under the covers.

"Don't be scared," Sebastian’s voice was low and gentle in the dark. "As long as I'm breathing, no one can touch you."

Harper’s heart trembled. That promise was heavy.

"Sebastian," she turned on her side, looking at his silhouette. "If... if I am a weakness for you, should I leave? Maybe you'd be safer without me."

His grip on her hand tightened painfully.

"Never say that," Sebastian’s voice rose with anger. "If you leave, that is what will kill me."

He pulled her hand, dragging her—burrito blanket and all—into his arms. He buried his face in the crook of her neck, inhaling her scent greedily.

"You are a weakness," he murmured against her skin. "But you are also my armor." "Because of you, I have to win."

Harper’s eyes stung with tears. She stopped resisting. She freed her arms from the blanket and hugged his waist. In this dangerous night, his embrace was the only safe harbor.

---

[The Accident]

The next day. The high-pressure protection continued. Harper felt like she couldn't breathe. She couldn't water her flowers. She couldn't go to the kitchen (knives were dangerous). Even getting a package required three layers of screening.

In the afternoon, Sebastian was in his study having a video conference. Harper felt stifled. She needed to move. "I'm going downstairs to get water," she told the bodyguard at the door. "Just to the living room."

The bodyguard nodded. "Yes, Miss Evans."

Harper walked to the stairs. The grand spiral staircase was made of solid wood and covered with a plush carpet. She took the first step.

Suddenly, the carpet under her foot shifted. It wasn't just slippery. It felt like it was floating.

"Ah!" Harper screamed as she lost her balance. Her body tipped backward. This was the second floor. A fall from here could break her neck.

In a split second of pure adrenaline, she flailed her arms and grabbed the banister. SLAM. Her body crashed hard against the railing. Her wrist twisted painfully, but she didn't fall.

"Harper!" The study door burst open. Sebastian had heard the scream. He spun his wheelchair around, rushing out before he even ended the call.

Harper hung onto the railing, gasping for air, her heart pounding like a drum. She looked down at her feet.

The carpet she had stepped on was loose. And underneath it... glinting in the afternoon sun... were dozens of glass marbles.

Someone had scattered marbles under the carpet at the top of the stairs. Inside the villa. Under the noses of the bodyguards.

Sebastian wheeled himself to the edge of the stairs. He saw the marbles. His face went from pale to a terrifying shade of grey.

A mole. There was a rat inside the house. His fortress, which he thought was impenetrable, was leaking like a sieve.

Harper pulled herself up, shaking. Before she could speak, she saw Sebastian’s hands trembling on his wheels. Not from fear. But from a rage so deep it looked like madness.

It was too close. If she hadn't grabbed the rail... she would be dead at the bottom of the stairs.

Sebastian closed his eyes. When he opened them, there was no humanity left. Only the cold calculation of a tyrant.

He picked up his radio. His voice was terrifyingly calm.

"Liam. Bring the team inside." "Gather everyone. The maids. The cleaners. The chef. The gardener." "Assemble them in the living room."

"If we don't find who put the marbles there today, no one leaves this house alive."