A/N: Hey guys! I started writing this series after I finished The Bodyguard series on Netflix. I'm American, so if there are inaccuracies with any British politics, I'm sorry. I'm researching as I write. Another disclaimer, since this story involves political figures being protected, I'm going to do my best to show a bit of their work. That being said, I am not using this work to express my own political views or use it to bash others' views. This is just a story, and I think that showing characters at school and/or work is a way to gain more intimate knowledge of the characters as people. Also, I'm going to put in characters from some other fandoms in here, so let me know when you spot them!
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"Lion is entering ballroom, east side."
"Copy."
"Lion approaching Senator Stone."
"Copy."
"Lion being approached by Stone's wife."
"You know, I really don't need a play by play."
"Yes, you do."
"No, not really."
"You're going to be watching him obsessively anyway. Might as well narrate it."
Harrison huffed and pressed his finger against his earpiece.
"Jacob, I swear-" Harrison started.
"Careful with that thought, Haz," A new voice warned. "We don't want Lion to hear you threaten a colleague, yeah?"
Harrison growled. Jacob and the other man chuckled.
"Stay on task, boys," Another new voice said. It was their commander. A chorus of "yes sir"s echoed from the three men.
"Osterfield," The commander said. "Got anything suspicious?"
Harrison scanned the ballroom, eyeing the international and national dignitaries. Agents from various agencies dressed in suits were scattered around the edge of the ballroom, all scanning the room with watchful eyes. Harrison saw his protectee, standing in the middle of the crowd, surrounded by people waiting to talk to him. Harrison scanned the immediate area around him.
"Nothing, sir," Harrison answered.
"Holland?" The commander asked.
"Nothing, sir," Tom answered after a few moments. "Unless you count Jacob eating his fifth croissant sandwich suspicious."
"Hey!" Jacob squawked over the intercom. "It's free food! And I'm hungry. And it's delicious."
Harrison's stomach growled.
"I think I'll take one," Harrison said, stepping away from his position against the wall. "Jacob, switch with me?"
Jacob sighed. "Sure." Harrison began to pass through the crowd, taking advantage of the close proximity to scan people more closely. He kept Lion in the corner of his vision. A hand brushed against his hip. He wheeled around, hand on his pistol. He was greeted with the dark eyes of the British Prime Minister's wife. She giggled, sipping the glass of wine she held in a gloved hand and swayed a bit.
"Couldn't resist," She said coyly, scanning Harrison. "You're just so handsome." She reached her free hand and rested it on his chest. Harrison clenched his jaw and dropped the hand from his gun.
"Ooh," Harrison heard Tom say over the radio. "Take it, man. It's not every day you get hit on by the Prime Minister's wife."
"Or a woman old enough to be his mother," Jacob added. Harrison snapped his head to the side, giving Jacob and Tom hard glares. Both men, dressed in suits were barely holding back fits of laughter. The sensation of a hand trailing down the front of his suit made him turn his attention back to the Prime Minister's wife. She was smiling coyly. Harrison fought the heat rising to his cheeks and grabbed the woman's wrist.
"I'm working, ma'am," He said.
"Oh, well then we can meet up after you're done, then?" The woman giggled.
Harrison sighed. "No. It would be unprofessional."
The woman waved a hand dismissively. "No one cares."
Tom and Jacob laughed out loud into the earpiece. Harrison felt his temper rising.
"I care, actually," Harrison said firmly. "And do keep in mind that everything you say can be heard by my colleagues and my superiors." He pointed to his earpiece. "I'm sure it would be tragic if someone found out that the Prime Minister's loyal wife was sleeping with someone tasked with protecting the Prime Minister."
The woman's eyes widened and she pulled her hand back from Harrison.
"Apologies," She mumbled, sipping on her wine and walking away. Harrison sighed in relief.
Tom sighed. "Mate, that would've been an amazing story to read in the paper; Protection Detail member sleeps with Prime Minister's Wife."
Jacob giggled. "I think it would read something like "PPO Scores Big with Woman Who-"
"Batalon," A voice snapped over the radio. "Seriously. Keep it together, gentlemen. I'd hate to separate you three."
Another chorus of "yes sir"s sounded through the intercom.
Harrison's stomach growled again.
"I'm going to get a sandwich," He said. He started making his way over to the food table. He spotted the tray of croissant sandwiches Jacob had been devouring and walked to it. He snatched one up and took a large bite. He kept surveying the crowd. He saw a young man, probably in his late teens, with dark hair slowly pushing a full serving cart through the edge of the crowd, heading away from Harrison. Harrison crinkled his brow. Odd, since all the food was where Harrison was.
"Tom," Harrison said into his earpiece. "There's a server boy with a cart coming your way."
"I see him," Tom answered. The server boy passed by Tom, hurrying when he saw the agent survey him intensely. Suddenly, Tom stiffened. Harrison's heart skipped a beat.
"What is it?" Harrison demanded.
Tom waited until the boy was out of earshot before answering.
"I think he has a bomb," Tom said. "The food on the top of the cart is fake and he's moving very steadily like he's afraid to shake it too much."
"How certain?" Their commander inquired.
Tom licked his lips. "80%, sir."
"All right," Their commander said. "Go to Plan Delta."
"Yes, sir," Tom, Harrison, and Jacob said into their comms. Tom turned and followed the server boy, who was now passing through a door that entered the kitchen area. Jacob started quietly ordering the people immediately near him to leave the room calmly. Harrison headed to the event director.
"Ms. Newhouse," He said when he approached. The older woman turned to him.
"Yes, Mr. Osterfield?" She asked, a hint of concern in her voice. It was rarely a good thing when a security person approached her during an event. He leaned closer to her, whispering in her ear.
"We need to get everyone out of here quickly," he said. "Tell him that there's an issue that needs to be handled and the room needs to be clear." The woman nodded and approached the small stage at the front of the room. Harrison turned and pushed through the crowd towards the Prime Minister. He was in the middle of talking to an American Senator when Harrison grabbed the man's shoulders and steered him towards the door.
"Apologies, sir," Harrison said to the senator. "There's an issue and we need to vacate the room." Harrison let go of the Prime Minister and walked beside him. "Stay with me, sir," He said to the man beside him. The Prime Minister nodded.
"Of course," He said. He glanced around anxiously. "Where's my wife?"
"Safe, sir," Harrison answered. "Her own detail is getting her out of the building."
"Good," The man responded. The two of them were almost to the door when a loud crack echoed through the room. People screamed and started scampering out of the ballroom. Harrison grabbed the Prime Minister's arm to make sure they stuck together.
"With me, sir," Harrison said, loud enough to make sure the man heard him. Harrison turned and ran towards the secret exit a few yards to the left of the main entrance. He kicked the wall in, making the hidden door swing inward, revealing a dark, narrow tunnel. He pushed the Prime Minister through. Two agents that were stationed in the tunnel each grabbed an arm of the Prime Minister.
"Take him to Zone Delta," Harrison ordered. The two men nodded and hurried off, Prime Minister in tow. Harrison quickly shut the secret door as the commander started yelling orders rapidly.
"Holland, make sure the device is isolated," The man ordered, his voice firm and calm. "Batalon, keep the guests calm and at least a hundred yards away from the outside of the building. Osterfield, help Holland."
"Copy," Harrison said. He sprinted across the ballroom, towards the doors Tom passed through. He pushed the doors open and dashed through the kitchen, trying to find Tom. He suddenly lost his footing and slipped. He barely had time to catch himself on one of the large counters. He glanced down and saw the thing that made him slide was a stream of blood on the floor. It leads from the industrial stove, past Harrison and around the other side of the counter. His breath hitched.
"Tom?" Harrison asked loudly, hoping Tom would hear him over the intercom or in person.
"Here!" Tom answered from the further end of the kitchen. Harrison sighed a little in relief ran to him. Tom was gently pushing the cart towards the large walk-in freezer. Harrison ran to the doors and opened it, shuddering at the blast of cold air.
"Can you disarm it?" Harrison asked.
Tom shook his head.
"No, it's more sophisticated than what I've seen before. Looks like there's a million and one trip wires in the control unit, but I can't tell because the unit is welded and bolted shut."
"Is there a timer?"
"Yeah, we got thirty seconds left."
Harrison muttered a curse.
"A little warning would be nice," Harrison snapped.
Tom gasped when he walked into the freezer, pushing the cart towards the back of the freezer.
"I had other things to worry about."
"Whatever." Tom ran out and helped Harrison close the door. When the door was locked, the two men sprinted across the kitchen.
"We go about twenty seconds till it blows," Tom said into the comm. He and Harrison burst through the doors into the ballroom.
"Get outta there," The commander said. "Batalon and Newhouse got everyone out, as far as we know. If you see anyone along the way, pull 'em with you."
They made sure the ballroom was empty as they ran, slammed the doors shut behind them and hurried across the large room to the exit.
"Copy," The men answered. They burst through the exit doors and headed down the long hallway towards the foyer of the building.
"What happened to the server?" Harrison asked.
"Shot him," Tom said. "I caught him when he was trying to put the cart near the stove, probably trying to get a bigger blast. He refused to stand down. Shot him in the head and then moved the body so I could get the cart to the freezer. Then you got there."
"Ten seconds," Harrison panted, feeling a bit his steam run out.
"We should be good," Tom said, a little out of breath as well. "It only looked to be about twenty grams of explosives."
"That's it?" Harrison asked. The two men reached the foyer and headed toward the large, glass exit doors. He could see Jacob and Newhouse along with the guests on the other side of the large parking lot that
"At least that's what I saw on the outside. There could've been more inside the unit or something," Tom said. The two men burst through the exit doors but kept sprinting towards the crowd. A loud boom rattled through Harrison, jarring every bone in his body. He was pushed forward, crashing onto the asphalt. He slid across the rough surface, his palms grating against the ground. Pain exploded in his head and all he could see was white. His ears rang. He felt his vocal cords vibrate as he groaned, but didn't hear anything. His head felt like it was spinning like a top. He rolled onto his back and closed his eyes. He was going to be sore tomorrow.