"Danny, could I have a word with you?" Clara said as she stood next to his desk. It was lunchtime and that meant most of the staff were having lunch and had emptied the teacher's lounge. It was the perfect opportunity to talk to her bodyguard.
Danny knew he was going to get grilled the moment she caught him and his colleague watching over her the previous night. He might as well get swallowed by the ground at this point. "Right," he answered, getting to his feet.
They headed for the end of the corner.
"Would you mind explaining what you were doing in front of John's house last night?"
"Orders from your father, to put it simply," he replied. "Davros met him at the club a few nights ago and he's adamant on getting those factions."
"What did he say?"
"I'm not sure, but the boss has been paranoid about your safety since, so I'm guessing he must have threatened to hurt you."
Clara crossed her arms. "Are you sure he's not being his usual paranoid-self?"
"No, I think the threat is real."
Clara lowered her arms. If it was as serious as Danny implied it was, then she has no choice but to go with it. "He knows where I live then?"
Danny couldn't say for certain. "I think he knows that you're the boss' daughter, but beyond that, I'm not sure, but it's better to assume he does."
"Of course."
"He's also suggested adding a few other security measures."
"Any more of those night car patrols and John will start asking questions."
The former soldier nodded. "Which is why I think it's best if you stay in your flat for the time being, at least until we're sure your safety isn't compromised."
As much as she hated what she was hearing, she understood the seriousness of the situation. "I haven't stayed in my flat for a week now," she said. She knew it wouldn't be difficult to convince John to stay at hers. They always took turns anyway. "What do you mean by other security measures?"
"You'll be assigned extra bodyguards," he revealed. "One will be in the flat below yours and another a few doors away."
"For as long as they stay out of my way, we won't have any issues."
Danny nodded in acknowledgement. "There is one more thing which requires your consent."
Clara furrowed her eyebrows.
"Dave thinks it's a good idea to install a panic button somewhere in your flat, just in case anything happens."
She sighed in defeat. "Will the living room do?" she asked. "You can hide it in the bookshelf."
"Bookshelf it is."
As much as Clara hates the current predicament she's under, she could hardly blame her father for it. She understood what it meant to be the daughter of a drug lord. More lies and more secrets to keep from her fiancé. "Wait, is this going to affect my wedding?"
Danny swallowed the lump in his throat, completely taken by surprise by her question. "I… I'm not sure."
She brushed it off. "I'll speak to dad myself about it."
"I have yet to identify anyone who may have leaked your identity," the man in the grey suit said as he sat opposite of Dave, cutting his steak. "It could have been one of yours for all you know."
Dave pursed his lips. "The issue here is that there are very few people who know my identity," he stated. "So, it's either you three or someone in the higher echelons of my group."
"You're not accusing us, are you?" the man questioned calmly. "Frankly, that's quite insulting."
"If I suspected you of doing that, we wouldn't be here now would we?"
Andrew Yang smirked. "All I could gather on this Davros is that he frequents that new club, Skaro."
"I find it hard to believe we know so little about him," Dave complained. He had a feeling that the traitor was someone amongst them, though he was confident that Andrew wasn't as he wasn't that interested in any of the factions Dave offered when he suggested he was quitting the game.
"Have you talked to Kieran and Julia?"
"No, not yet," Dave revealed. "I wanted to at least control the damage first before I make any moves."
Andrew leaned back against the cushioned seat. "How's that future son-in-law of yours?" he asked amusingly. "Still in charge of the case?"
"Unfortunately."
He chuckled. "Just your luck, I guess."
"Yes," Dave grumbled. "There's every type of man out there and she decides that a detective is the best choice for her."
"Far from the happy father, I see."
He sighed defeatedly. "I don't like him, but I respect her choice and she does seem happy."
"Sounds to me like you'll be expecting grandchildren in the future."
Dave was surprised by the comment as that wasn't a topic that he thought about at all. Grandkids. He was sure Clara would want to have a child at least. He looked down to hide the smile playing on his lips. "Whatever makes her happy."
"Oh, I'm sure the child will melt that cold, cold heart of yours."
Dave cleared his throat and shifted the conversation to a different subject. "I think we should have a meeting with the rest soon, just to discuss the current issue."
Andrew nodded. "Of course, though it will probably take a while before we can actually all come together since Julia is holidaying in Canada."
Just as Dave was about to speak, his phone vibrated, and he raised it slightly to check who was calling. Clara. "Would you mind excusing me for a moment?" he murmured before standing up and heading over to a quiet corner. "Clara," he greeted warmly.
"Hi, dad," she replied, sounding a bit unhappy.
"Is everything ok?"
"Yeah, fine, it's just that I've been told that I'm in danger, so not a big deal," she said sarcastically. "And that I have to hide in my flat."
"I just need you to stay there for a week or two," Dave explained calmly. "I'm not taking any chances with Davros."
"You and John are the same," she sighed.
Dave knitted his eyebrows.
"He's just as worried about this Davros guy."
Dave's shoulders sank. "Your safety is my priority," he assured. "Nothing will happen to you."
"I'm not worried about myself, dad."
He cleared his throat. "I have to go, Clara, but we'll talk soon," he murmured. "How's John?"
She chuckled. "This is the first time you're asking about him."
He bit his tongue. At least she sounds a bit more cheerful now. "First time for everything."
"He's working hard catching bad guys and solving crime," she stated. "Typical of him."
"That's good," Dave said before he locked eyes with Henry. "Right, I really have to go now, take care."
"You too, dad."
"Is there a reason why you're so eager to go back to your place?" John asked as he trained his eyes on the busy road. "My house too boring for you?" he joked.
"One, your house is not boring and two, I miss my flat," she explained, grinning. "You do realise that I've spent more time at your place than my own since the past few months, right?"
"Ah, so it's a case of homesickness, then?"
"Well, I do miss my books," she said lamely. God, that sounded like a pathetic excuse.
A few minutes later, they finally reached their destination. Once they had settled in at her flat, she came up with the idea to send John off to the Tesco express nearby.
"What if they don't have your cookies?" he inquired.
"Then just get me the doughnuts."
"If they don't have those?"
"A Twix will do," she concluded, leading him to the door.
The schoolteacher watched him disappear down the staircase to buy the groceries and once she was sure he wouldn't be returning because he forgot his wallet or ask the type of Twix she wanted, Clara sent a text to Danny.
A minute later, he appeared along with two other men whom she recognised were her father's own bodyguards.
"Miss Oswald."
She stepped outside to let them in.
"Do what you have to do and do it quickly," she instructed as they set down the backpacks they were carrying.
One of the men went over to the bookshelf and began looking for any small space discreet enough to install the panic button while the other went to the kitchen to set up the second one.
Danny, on the other hand, did a sweep of the entire flat, searching for any hidden devices or microphones.
No more than five minutes later, Danny emerged from inside. "All clear," he stated. "I just need to show you where and how the panic button works."
Clara followed him and was led to the bookshelf first.
"The button is hidden above this Jane Austen book here," he revealed and pointing at the black device. "You just have to press it once to activate it and it will immediately ring our phones," he continued before pressing it. A second later, three distinct ringing tones could be heard.
The former soldier then guided her to the kitchen.
"The second one is hidden underneath the kitchen counter."
Clara nodded in acknowledgement. "Right, thank you guys," she said, nodding at them.
Her bodyguards then left, shuffling out of the tiny flat in a hurry before her fiancé returned.
When John finally reached the flat, he felt as if something was off. There was just something about the living room that didn't look quite right to him.
"What are you staring at?" Clara asked amusedly, leaning against the doorframe of the bedroom.
He turned around to look at her. "Did you move anything?"
She nodded to the bookshelf. "Tilted it slightly to the left," she answered. "Thought it might look good that way."
The DCS faced the bookshelf again and looked at it closely before shrugging. "Makes sense," he murmured before heading to the kitchen.
Clara sagged her shoulders and couldn't have been more grateful he didn't push the matter further.
"Are you sure everything's ok?" he asked, approaching her with a concerned look. "You're doing those eyes again."
She couldn't tell him the truth, but she couldn't lie to him either. "Just nervous and excited, I guess," she said quietly. "I just want everything to be perfect."
John grabbed her hand. "You're asking for the impossible, Clara Oswin," he whispered. "Knowing our luck, things will be slightly chaotic, in a good way that is."
She smiled. A genuine one this time. "Sounds like my kind of adventure."