Chapter 29 - Madwoman

Raine creased her forehead. She was disappointed at not seeing any positive hints from Tyrone's expressionless face. 

"I hate sweets," he casually replied.

Raine was not someone who could be easily discouraged. Tyrone could carry on with his facade for as long as he wanted. He could hide his expressions and fake his answers for all she cared, but she still wondered how long it would take for her to find out what she wanted to know.

She sighed and changed the topic, "An important part of your job is for you to remember and make sure that you always have a lollipop on you whenever I ask for it."

"I understand, and I will keep that in mind," Tyrone answered. His cold attitude didn't affect Raine. Instead, it only made him more attractive in her eyes.

'I'm sure there's a reason behind why he easily accepted this kind of a set-up,' Raine mused. She was determined to prove that her speculation was correct.

"Lyne will coordinate with you on my schedule and let you know about all the things you need to know while you're working for me. You will stay with me twenty-four-seven. The contract will arrive here shortly, so make yourself comfortable in my office while you wait for it," She casually explained. "For now, I'll get back to work since we'll soon be leaving for country D. And I, for one, hate leaving a lot of pending work behind me."

Tyrone watched Raine get back to work, sitting on her chair and table. He suddenly asked, "I'm going with you to country D, right?"

"Didn't I make myself clear? Twenty-four hours a day. Seven days a week.… Meaning, you will also sleep with me."

Tyrone's jaw dropped upon hearing her words. He wondered if Raine was just kidding around like she always was or if he had to literally share a bed with her. And yet, he didn't bother to react or utter a word to make her clarify her statement.

He watched her put the lollipop into her mouth and subconsciously mumbled, "Aren't you old enough to stop eating lollipops?"

Raine chuckled, "I didn't know that there was an age limit for having lollipops."

"Well, it's not good for your teeth and health as you age," Tyrone stated a matter of factly.

"I have good memories about lollipops so it's like heaven to me. Anyway, let's talk about it later, darling. I'm honestly more interested about the Umbra Security Agency…" Raine opened up. "Your agency is quite interesting. Taking clients from humans and mutants."

She wanted to know more about the security agency. She wondered if Tyrone would be willing to give any and such information that she wanted about it.

"Mutants?" Tyrone murmured. It was the first time he had heard that word describing non-human entities.

"Yeah. From now on, we will call them mutants. It fits the era. Plus, it makes them sound like sci-fi movie characters; more relatable to this new generation," Raine informed with an amused smile as the genius little Stella who gave them a better description of mythical creatures crossed her mind.

"That's new. They're used to being called monsters," Tyrone answered with a dark expression that he quickly replaced with his usually stoic face.

"Excuse me. I usually call them mythical creatures, not monsters. We call the rogue ones monsters, but only because they act like one. Anyway, what's with the quick, gloomy look? Do you have any mutants in your agency that I should be killing by now?" Raine said without batting an eyelid. She quickly noticed the dark expression that washed over Tyrone before he quickly replaced it.

Raine couldn't tell whether Tyrone was human or a mutant like the lollipop boy. That was the one strong reason, aside from their eyes having striking similarities, why she was sticking to her speculations that they were both the same man.

"You see, you will be my right-hand man starting today. So brace yourself for having hectic days from now onwards," she stated. "You'll be with me even when we go on our operations against mutants."

"You trust me too much. Don't regret it later if, in the end, I don't turn out to be someone you should have trusted so easily," Tyrone replied with a serious face.

"Thanks for the heads-up and warning, darling, but I know what I'm doing," Raine commented with a wink. "You… openly saying these things makes me want to trust you more. Ah, what you're doing right now is reverse psychology, and I'm perfectly eating the bait!  But you are my bodyguard, so you have to ensure my safety every time, even in my nightmares while I'm sleeping."

"Why do you always take things so lightly…" Tyrone whispered. 

"Because if I take things too seriously, I might become a madwoman, darling," Tyrone didn't respond so she added, "And if we do come to that place where you happen to end up as a disappointment to me, then I guess you'll leave me no other choice but to give you the bloody-eyed hunter's way of punishment."

There was a moment of silence as Raine eyed Tyrone with suspicion. He was in deep thought, but only he knew what was going inside his head.

"Now, just focus on finishing your coffee and go to Lyne's table to coordinate with her for you to understand what you'll need. And again, she'll be discussing with you everything you need to know while working with me." Raine said, breaking the sudden change in the atmosphere.

She watched Tyrone drink his coffee, not even bothering to remove the mint lollipop inside his mug that he put in a while ago.

Raine smirked as she inwardly mused, 'I thought he hated sweets?' 

Tyrone probably noticed her and read her expression. He suddenly picked up the lollipop from the mug as he whispered, "You said I remind you of someone. Who?"

"The boy who gave me a lollipop when I saved his life…" Raine whispered.