21

An uncomfortable silence hung over the table, Chloe trying to make eye contact with her sister while Ling and Connor fidgeted with their drinks. Connor wanted to offer his sympathy, but there was little that could be said in response to Emily’s outburst without sounding trite or insensitive.

After a few minutes of pushing their salads around their plates, Chloe sighed and piped up, “Listen, Emily, Daddy’s made his decision. They’ll be with us on the yacht whether we like it or not, so we might as well try to get along. And why not take advantage of their supposed protection? Let’s go down to the beach. We haven’t been allowed that much freedom in months!”

Emily pushed her plate away and put aside her napkin. “Fine,” she said, offering Connor and Ling a civil smile. “At least my father will have someone to blame this time when things go wrong.”

Connor tried not to react to Emily’s bad attitude. Instead, he returned her smile and replied good-naturedly, “With us on board, it should all be smooth sailing.”

“Ha, ha,” said Emily without humor as she picked up her Gucci handbag and strode off.

Shouldering a matching leather handbag, Chloe joined her sister and headed for the stairs.

“Well, that was a pleasant lunch,” said Ling, turning to Connor with a forced smile. “Can’t wait for the trip!”

Connor sighed at the thought. “They just need time to get used to the idea.”

“Well, I’m sure glad Emily’s your responsibility,” said Ling, rising from her chair.

“So much for team spirit!”

“Hey, you’re the hotshot bodyguard,” she replied, punching him playfully on the arm. “You can handle her.”

Connor just hoped he could. An uncooperative Principal made the task of being an effective bodyguard almost impossible. “Then we’ll just have to convince them both that we can do the job.”

Catching up with the twins at the restaurant entrance, Connor quickened his pace to reach the glass double doors first. Stepping outside and holding the door, he did a quick scan up and down the road. Although Operation Gemini hadn’t officially started, he nonetheless assumed his bodyguard role. So did Ling, who hung back inside the café to cover their backs.

In his split-second surveillance sweep, Connor observed a couple of cars heading in their direction and a battered white pickup truck parked on the opposite side. Farther along the street a woman was pushing a stroller with a screaming baby inside, while nearby a young couple was entering a clothing store. Satisfied that none of them presented a viable threat, Connor stepped aside to allow Emily and Chloe out.

“Thank you,” said Chloe, taking Connor’s door-holding as a gesture of politeness rather than security.

“Just making sure the coast was clear,” Connor explained.

She glanced over the road at the turquoise sea and white-crested waves peeling along the shoreline. “Of course it is!” She laughed, donning her sunglasses. “It’s a glorious day.”

“You misunderstand,” said Ling. “Connor was performing a security sweep before you left the restaurant.”

Chloe raised an eyebrow. “Manly Beach is hardly a war zone.”

“You’d be surprised,” said Connor as they crossed the road to the wide tree-lined promenade that hugged the golden stretch of beach. Passing by a bench, Connor noticed the eyes of four teenage surfers keenly following their progress. But he wasn’t overly concerned. Emily and Chloe’s twin looks naturally attracted attention—though Connor realized that at some point they were bound to draw unwanted attention.

“There may not be guns or bombs going off around here,” he explained, “but you’re still at risk.”

“From what?” asked Chloe, gesturing with her hand at the idyllic scene—the path thronged with laughing teenagers, sun worshippers, red-faced tourists and bronzed surfers, their boards tucked under their arms. A leisurely stream of bikes glided by in the bicycling lane, while roller skaters weaved in and out at high speed.

“You’re not only at risk from known threats, such as enemies of your father or professional kidnappers,” Ling replied, glancing meaningfully at Emily, “but also from anything that might happen on the street—muggings, pickpocketing, car accidents, trip hazards, fights—”

“You’re beginning to sound like our father. We’re only going for a walk along the beach,” said Chloe, sighing in exasperation.

“That’s when a Principal like you is most vulnerable,” Connor said. “See that woman over there?” He pointed to a woman in a red bikini spread out on a beach towel, chatting on her phone and gazing at the surf. “She’s in Code White.”

“Code what?” asked Emily, showing her first sign of interest in the conversation.

“Code White. It refers to a person’s mental state when they’re not tuned in to their environment, lost in their own bubble. Most people live their lives like that: oblivious to the potential dangers surrounding them. Even from here I can see that her bag contains her wallet, car keys and an iPad. Someone could rob her before she’s even aware that her belongings are gone.”

“Aren’t you being a bit paranoid?” Chloe suggested.

“No, just hypervigilant,” replied Ling. “As your guardians, we can’t afford to space out like that. We need to be in Code Yellow—relaxed awareness—the default mind-set of a trained bodyguard.”

“So you’re constantly on edge?” said Emily, her curiosity overcoming her mood.

“Not exactly,” replied Connor. “We’re just aware of the people around us, the environment we’re walking through and any potential dangers. For example, did either of you notice the white pickup truck parked on the other side of the road earlier?”

“No,” said Chloe, looking back over her shoulder.

“Then you wouldn’t have seen the two guys in the front seats.”

Chloe and Emily turned to stare.

“So what?” said Chloe. “They’re just hanging out.”

“If that’s the case, why do they have a pair of high-powered binoculars on the dashboard?” Connor challenged.

Chloe shrugged. “Maybe they’re checking out the waves?”

“Or they’re bird-watchers,” suggested Emily, nodding up toward the branches of the pine trees where a couple of white cockatoos squawked loudly.

“With bandanas and tinted sunglasses, they don’t strike me as the type to watch that sort of birdlife. And, with no boards in the back, they aren’t here to surf.”

“So what are they doing?” asked Chloe, an edge of excitement entering her voice.

“I’ve no proof they’re a threat,” said Connor. “They could be undercover police officers on surveillance. Or simply workmen on their lunch break. I only suspect they might be bag thieves. But since I’m alert to their presence, they can’t take me by surprise, like they would that woman.”

“Wow! I didn’t realize there was so much to this bodyguard business,” said Chloe, studying Connor and Ling in a new light.

“That’s barely scratching the surface of what we do,” replied Ling, shooting Connor a sly wink that at least Chloe was beginning to appreciate their worth. “But, if people were more aware, they’d be less likely to get into trouble. Who knows, if either of you or your father had been more tuned in last year, the kidnapping might not even have happened.”

Connor winced at Ling’s tactlessness.

“Well, it did,” said Chloe, glaring at Ling as Emily’s expression darkened and she once more fell into tight-lipped silence. “Anyway, you don’t know what happened, so you have no right to pass judgment.”

“I’m only saying . . . that it won’t happen this time because you’ve got us to watch out for you,” blurted Ling, trying to rescue the situation.

Chloe’s phone rang, a pop song ringtone interrupting the tense moment. Chloe pulled out a slim white phone and answered. “Hi, Josie . . . Yeah, okay . . . Just down on Manly . . . I know, it’s been forever . . . Yeah, I’d love to, but you know what my father’s like . . . You could come over to ours . . .”

As Chloe chatted with her friend, she slowed to a stop by the sea wall. But Emily kept going—splitting the group up. Ling hung behind, giving Chloe the space to talk, while Connor stuck with his Principal, purposefully maneuvering himself to her right-hand side. During close-protection “walking drills,” he’d learned that this position was best for a right-handed bodyguard. In an attack, he could pull the Principal away with his left hand while using his stronger right arm to fend off the attacker or draw a weapon.

As they wandered away, Ling held open her palms in a sign of sheepish apology to Connor. But he just waved the problem aside. Mistakes happened.

Now that he was on his own with Emily, Connor decided it was an opportunity to try to bond with her. “Sorry about what Ling said back there,” he began. “She can be quite . . . blunt at times.”

“Hmm,” said Emily, barely acknowledging him, her mind seemingly elsewhere.

“Perhaps it would help if you told me what did happen.”

“I’d prefer not to talk about it.”

“Sure,” said Connor.

After a couple more attempts at conversation, both of which resulted in monosyllabic replies, he decided the best strategy would be to walk in silence. No point in annoying Emily further. Besides, it wasn’t his job to be her friend. He was there to protect her.

Connor maintained a sharp watch on his surroundings. A couple of Rollerbladers were speeding along on the path ahead. A pair of rainbow lorikeets screeched in the branches above. A blond surfer with his board tucked under his arm strutted past. He gave Emily the eye until he noticed Connor staring at him.

As they strolled along the shaded avenue of towering pine trees, Emily studied Connor out of the corner of her eye.

“Why do you keep looking up?” she asked eventually.

Connor, who hadn’t realized he was being so obvious, replied, “Dropbears.”

Emily did a double take, then let out a short burst of laughter—her first genuine expression of good humor.

Connor furrowed his brow. “What’s so funny?”

“You are,” she replied. “Dropbears of all things!”

“But my Aussie friend Jason said they were really vicious.”

Emily searched Connor’s face and saw only genuine concern, which made her laugh even harder. “You actually think they’re real. It’s just a joke Aussies tell tourists to scare or confuse them. You Brits are so gullible!”

Connor felt his face flush. He’d been suckered by Jason’s dropbear story. And now he looked like a fool in front of his Principal. This was not a good start to the operation. Emily would think he was a total idiot.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when Emily’s laughter suddenly turned to a scream.