Sam and Clover look at each other. This is fairly new to them. Usually it's the other way round, they go spying and try to sneak past the guards. Experience wise they should be good at this.

"Who's this Bulldog?" asks Mandy.
"Oh, he's one of the guys from Whoop. He usually did our debriefings after the operations. He looks a bit like Churchill, that's why we called him Bulldog. Alex came up with that nickname, he seemed very pleased with it. When he didn't debrief us, but was around he'd always come by to say hello and make a joke. He's a loveable man." Clover answers.

Softly Mandy starts weeping. "It's all my fault. If I had accepted protection from the start, this wouldn't have happened. Alex would be unhurt, those four agents would still be alive and this Bulldog wouldn't be handicapped."

Clover gently takes Mandy in her arms. "Come on Mandy, let's get inside. Have a lie down, try to rest a bit, you're not to blame." She leads Mandy slowly up the stairs to her bedroom and tucks her under.

"We must make preparations for the protection of Mandy, Clover"
"Yes, I took a quick survey upstairs. There isn't an outside fire ladder and no balcony, so they must either climb their way in or shoot us down on the ground floor. The thing that's worried me most is Mandy's bedroom. It's the corner bedroom. I'd prefer her in the middle one so we can each take a bedroom next to her and when Alex returns she can take the one in front of Mandy's."
"Sounds good, if Mandy allows it." Answers Sam, thinking what Mandy had said to Adams, who only tried to do a good job. "Have you any idea what happened to David? This is so not like him."
"Maybe he's also an undercover agent. Right now I wouldn't be surprised if Mandy's friends Trish & Chris were NSA agents. Can you imagine Sam, Mandy daughter of the president. Hey, then she's Madison's sister!"
"Yeah, guess so."

The doorbell rings and Sam's compowder comes to life. "Sam speaking." "Hello I'm your friendly Whoop delivery boy," answers Bob. "Clover you can open the door it's Bob," Sam screams.

Clover first uses the videophone. She isn't prepared to die out of neglect. When she sees Bob, she cautiously opens the door. Bob walks in. "It's OK Clover, the Whoop technicians are working on the supervising camera's and alarms. We'll also install a generator in the basement so there will always be current." He walks to the living room, waves at Sam and continues: "Further on we have brand new compowders. They use a completely different wavelength than yours, contact to old models is still possible though. They automatically encrypt all messages, courtesy off the Secret Service." He puts a rather large case on the coffee table.

"Don't laugh," he says, while he unlocks the case in a strange way, "I know the guy who designed this. He's good, but is too obsessed with James Bond." The girls smile. They know the guy too. "Anyhow, standard Whoop 15 shots semi-automatic pistols for each of you three and two small 7 shot revolvers, you can easily conceal." The girls look in disgust at the firearms. They really don't like these things, too many men in the field were lost due to them. Bob caries on: "An Uzi machinegun 9 mm, 32 rounds and two Winchester Ranger compact shotguns 5 shot and one in the barrel. We choose the compacts, as they are lighter and smaller. Holsters for all side arms are provided "Bob holds an assorted bunch of holsters up. "Any questions?"

"Where are we to leave them?" Sam asks, "We can hardly leave them on the table or so."

"Weaponry is passing by later on with a case where you can store the guns."

"Oh, and then the gadgets: All weather Umbrella's, Boomerang Buzz Saw Barrettes, Earring Communicators with build in encryption, Electro-Magnetic Bracelet, Expandable Cable Bungee Belt, Heat-Sensor 6000 Infrared Sunglasses (Mk 2) you'll notice that the design has been improved, Liquid-Nitrogen Breath spray and Stuntan lotion.

Further on, your cars are being Whooped up. Built in scanners, the motor will be tuned up, magnetic field to deviate bullets from track, extra airbags for backseat passengers and a built in anti gravity engine to jump obstacles."

Bob looks at the spies. This isn't their everyday job. He knows their good, but bodyguards? You have to sacrifice your life for the victim. Can they do that? If Alex were with them, he wouldn't doubt a second, but Sam and Clover? Oh heck, Jerry knows what he's doing and even Adams agrees. Damned... Bob doesn't. He wants to stick around, but how? He looks at Sam, she doesn't seem too pleased herself, maybe ... ? "Oh, Sam, have you got a second?"

Clover is looking at the firearms, they disgust her, but, HELL SHE HATES THIS, you can't run from it, but do you have to accept it? ... She goes upstairs to have a look at Mandy.

07/06/2004 09:50 AM

Dear Diary,

Disaster continues. David has made other casualties, four of Adams' men and a friend of Clover, Alex and Sam. They are going to be my bodyguards and to think I always treated them nasty. I'm hearing somebody on the stairs so here I end.

"Yes Bob, what do you want?" Sam answers.
"Listen Sam, I don't like this scheme. I don't like it at all. Is there anyway I can give some close support, anyhow!" Sam looks up at Bob, "Maybe," she blushes, "we", she stutters, "could pretend to be..." her voice trails off.

Bob looks at her in astonishment, "Sam you're a genius. That's it." He closes the surprised girl in his arms and kisses her profusely. Clover and Mandy happen to enter the room. They watch them in surprise. Bob is the first to react, "Oh, hello girls. I think it's time I get going." He gives Sam one last querying kiss.

"Oh Bob, please be back soon." Sam swoons. Clover and Mandy look at each other in astonishment. Sam and Bob, oh to Clover ... Brains over Brawn ... They were doomed for one another.
Clover bends over to Mandy: "His name means brains over brawn, somewhat like Sam, they were bound to bind."
Mandy looks at Clover and giggles, "Your kidding right?"
"No way, I'm death serious. Cross my heart hope to die."

"Your serious, as like, totally serious? Oh heck, you are. So they're an issue, like..." Damn it, she almost let the cat out the sack. Does Clover suspect anything?

"Like whom Mandy?"

Heck, who's an issue nowadays, she was up to it all, but close to Clover ...